Disclaimer: I don't own Narnia or any characters you may recognize from the books or the movies, I wish I did but I don't... I also don't own the Narnian Calendar. It belongs to Elecktrum who was kind enough to let me borrow it for my story. Her own stories are awesome and you should go read them too.

Summary: When memory is veiled, can the love forged between two hearts survive?

A/N: If you have not read the first seven stories in the A Light in the Darkness main story arc (Awakened, Shadowed, Revealed, Concealed, Rekindled, Refracted, and Reflected), I highly recommend you do so for the full experience. However, I have included a quick summary of the previous stories so if you want to give this one a whirl on its own, you can.

Chapter Twenty: Arrangement

24 Frostmoon 1008

Aslan walked down the beach, on one side of Him was Lucy and on the other…on the other was Kat. Peter ran his hand through his hair, wondering if he should send a page to remind Lucy of his orders concerning Kat. Shame lanced through him as soon as the thought emerged. He knew better, he knew that Lucy could be no safer than walking with Aslan and that he had only required her and Susan (and Thalia) to not be alone with Kat.

Shaking his head at his own paranoia, Peter made himself leave his study. He didn't pay much mind to where he was going until Edmund's muttering caught his attention. For some reason, his brother currently had a number of items ranging from knives to an odd box spread out over his desk. "What are you doing?"

Edmund glanced at him. "Just trying to find something."

Peter picked up the odd box. Its smooth wooden surface gleamed slightly in the afternoon sunlight. "Did you ever figure out what this is?"

"No. And Kat never told me either. Don't touch that one!"

"Ow!" Peter glared at the innocuous-looking carved fox, its jaws currently clamped on his fingers. His brother reached over and hit the small latch just behind the fox's left foreleg, not quite hiding his smirk. Peter shook his hand. "I never understood why Kat thought a biting fox was an appropriate birthday present."

"She thought it was funny."

Peter just shook his head. The next item that caught his attention was much safer. A large coffee mug formed of clear glass and with silver paint spelling out the three levels of 'coffee coherency' as Kat called it. A finger's breadth from the lip of the mug was the first line with its warning: "Unable to communicate in full sentences." In the middle was the second line with its caution: "Slightly more coherent but still unable to hold a conversation." And a finger's breadth from the bottom was the last line with its pronouncement: "You may speak now…unless you see me refill this mug. Then you must wait through another cycle." He chuckled, remembering how many times Edmund had escaped early morning conversations by using the mug Kat gave him last year. Then he sobered. "Why do you have all these presents out, Ed?"

His brother didn't quite meet his gaze. "Because… I ran into Kat this morn and she didn't even realize that yesterday was my birthday. And I thought maybe I could find something that might help her remember her past habits for gifts…" He shook his head and carefully returned the gifts to their appropriate places until only the mug remained on his desk. "I think we should be grateful that we managed to keep Lord Ammon away from Kat without any further incidents."

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It had been difficult to get away from all the prying eyes, but now they were focused on that Lion. Their own devotion made the Narnians foolish. Yet, the target never presented herself in such a way that it would be easy to take her. The figure opened the wardrobe and placed the key items in the hollow beneath the false bottom of the drawer. Those would keep nicely until they were needed.

Pulling open another drawer, gloved fingers dug through until they touched the cloak. This one would do nicely. Returning everything to its proper place, the figure slipped back out of the room. Now they need only wait for the opportune moment.

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26 Frostmoon 1008

Lucy fidgeted. She wanted more than anything to cast Lord Ammon into his ship and bid him never return. Of course, that was a very undiplomatic response. Susan touched her arm and she stilled. Her thoughts wandered, though, as the family bid their guests farewell. Susan had insisted they do so for Lady Jezreel's sake. A slow smile stole over Lucy's lips as she remembered what Aslan had said about joining her picnic to celebrate the coolness of the day (the first truly cool day they had had since late Mayblossom).

She had invited Kat but Kat had once again declined. Perhaps it was still too crowded for her… Lucy had almost distracted herself with plotting how to help Kat feel more comfortable around crowds again when Lord Ammon's snide words assaulted her ears. "And the Princess Royal still will not appear before the family of her victim? I should have thought that she would at least show her face at our departure. If only to gloat over her triumph."

Lucy narrowed her eyes at him. She wondered what his reaction would be if she drew her dagger. He certainly wouldn't laugh long. "The Princess Royal respects the grief experienced by Lady Jezreel. 'Tis a sign of that respect that she will not force her presence upon the bereaved family. Perhaps you might learn from her example."

He turned a delightful shade of purple and his nostrils flared. But, his eldest brother caught him by the arm before he could say anything and hissed in a low tone that she no doubt was not supposed to hear, "Remember your place. Do not cause any more difficulties."

The brothers turned away and Lady Jezreel followed at a more sedate pace. When the family of Count Achan was finally aboard their ship, Lucy breathed a sigh of relief. Now, they could focus on more important things such as helping Kat. Thalia would probably be willing to help her persuade Peter to hold a family-only picnic…and Kat was part of the family. She just needed to time her request so Peter would be more likely to grant it.

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A/N: Please Read and Review!