Chapter Eight: On The Lone Islands

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~ Narnia ~

"Eustace! Come on, stop all this!" Lucy called, looking around the streets and alleys leading off the square for her cousin.

"I'm gonna kill him!" Edmund muttered, looking into a shed. Susan and Lucy both shot up and met one another's eyes at the phrase. That was something they hadn't heard in a long time. Gavan shrugged when Caspian looked over at him, wondering what the girls were thinking about.

"The sooner you stop playing hide-and-seek the sooner I can forget about you! You little brat." Gavan scowled, looking into some empty barrels.

"And you're certain he's related by blood?" Caspian asked, peering into a doorway that led to some stairs. He did not understand how people as noble as the Pevensies could have such an aggravating, spoiled child for a relation.

"Regrettably." Susan replied, kneeling down to look under a wagon. Even her gentle nature was starting to wear thin.

"Eustace, your cousins don't mean it, please come out! Or do I have to blast this city to the ground to find you?" Serene called in annoyance, brushing some curtains aside with her magic, and looking into the window.

They all jumped and looked down the road when a scream was heard. Eustace came running towards them faster than Lucy had ever seen him move before. Soon they saw the reason. Four large draft stallions were galloping down the road, the wagon they were drawing taking up almost the entire width of the lane. The driver seemed oblivious to the boy running for his life as he beat the stallions into a faster pace. As Eustace ran past, Edmund jerked him into the doorway he was standing in.

Everyone looked out the doorways and from things they'd been hiding in as the wagon went past; Gavan stuck his blonde head out from one of the empty barrels he'd jumped into, watching inquisitively. Three guards were running behind the wagon, for reasons unknown to them, until the royals and the Stars heard more yelling and screaming. Suddenly a man and a little girl ran past, screaming for someone in the wagon. A woman in chains was yelling back to them.

"Helaine!" the man shouted, trying to get past the guards. One of the men threw him to the ground. His daughter, or they guessed she was his daughter, stumbled up to her father and screamed for her mother again.

"No! Go back! Gael, stay with your father!" The woman cried, watching them for as long as she could.

As soon as the wagon had gone too far to come back, they all slowly came out of their hiding places. They had learnt from last time. They did not want to go back to prisons or slave ships, no matter what. Even if the Lone Islands had been freed and Narnian rule restored, there were bound to be people who didn't know. It was a large city. Edmund reached the fallen man and his little girl first.

The little girl looked up at him and screamed when she saw the long blade in his hand, a souvenir from the fight to free the slaves. Edmund quickly lowered the weapon, but the father looked up, and his gaze was not pleasant.

"Who are you? What do you want?" He questioned harshly, but to Edmund's relief, in Trader's Tongue, looking at all the people as they emerged.

Gavan jumped gingerly out of the barrel; while Serene climbed down from the ledge she'd jumped onto when the wagon had driven recklessly past. Susan slid out from under the wagon and Caspian walked cautiously out of the doorway. Zephyr stared down at them from where he'd jumped onto a roof, using his magic. Lucy walked out of the alley and came up to a hysterical Eustace who was inconsolable about nearly being run down.

"Who're you? I mean, you're not the one who's standing with a blade in his hand. I think I deserve an answer first. But, because it would be considered undiplomatic; I am King Edmund the Just of old Narnia. The girl next to the blonde boy is my sister, Queen Lucy the Valiant of old Narnia, the blonde boy is my cousin, those two are Stars, friends of the King and Queen. The Queen with the long dark hair being my older sister, and the King is her husband, they rule this new Narnia. And that is Serene, a Narnian enchantress by gift of Aslan. Now, who are you?" Edmund said, looking slightly impatient. The others walked over to him while the man and little girl just stared.

"I am Rhince, and this is my daughter Gael. You are Narnians?" The man asked, standing.

"Yes, what part of my explanation was not clear on that aspect?" Edmund questioned, raising a dark eyebrow in sarcasm.

"Oh, my Kings and Queens, they've taken my wife, please you have to find some way to stop this horrible sacrifice! Please, so no others may suffer. For us, it is already too late, but for others like us, there can be some hope." The man begged, looking at them with a pleading glow in his eyes as he put his arm around his daughter.

"What sacrifice?" Caspian asked with a frown.

"People are gathered and used much like sheep for a sacrifice, to this green mist, I only learnt about it myself from a man who was imprisoned with me. I believe that is what he's talking about." Edmund spoke up quickly, looking to Rhince for clarification.

"I heard about this mist from Lord Bern, I have seen it myself, this is what you're referring to?" Caspian turned back to the man.

"Yes, what his Majesty says is true. Please, is there not something you can still do to save others?" Rhince asked again.

"Perhaps there is something we could yet do. We are sailing to the east, and if there is a way to defeat this mist, we will find it." Caspian said firmly.

"Could I come with you? I'm a fine sailor, been on the seas my whole life!" Rhince said with almost pathetic excitement.

"Of course, you must. Could you be ready to depart in a week's time?" Caspian queried.

"Certainly, your Majesties! I will be in port the day you're ready to leave." The man said with a hurried bow, before turning with his daughter back the way they'd come.

"You couldn't refuse the man, could you?" Susan knew, looking after them sympathetically, watching the figures turn a corner.

"No, I could not." Caspian agreed, walking over to her and sliding his arm around her waist. They walked back the way they'd come to go to the boats and head back to Bern's.

~|:Xo0oX:|~

Susan gasped in surprise when she saw Bernstead coming into view. It was beautiful, almost like a Golden Age manor. She smiled at Lucy who was sitting next to her; it had been so long since they'd been in the company of actual Narnian nobility, would anything have changed?

Susan marveled at the grace and beauty of the manor's design as the boats came up to a long, low terrace, even with the water's edge. The elegant style of placing nearly all the buildings on the water front, so ever room had a balcony was ingenious. Looking into the clear blue water, she realized that the rocks had been carved away to make almost a sort of pool.

The area was beautiful. She remembered when, as one of 'The Four' she had come to Avra in the Golden Age, and there had been nothing on the island but palms and flowers growing and the waves crashing up on the sandy beach. When she walked up the stairs built down into the water for times such as this, she wasn't as startled by the oddness of the place as Caspian had been. Narnia in her time had been very wild; she was used to the crazy speed of everything as Bern's twelve daughters ran out to greet them.

"Queen Susan, Queen Susan!" a redhead called, walking up to her. The baby in her arms squealed in excitement when he saw his mother, leaning out toward her, away from the girl. Susan held out her hands for the little boy, tears trailing down her face when she finally had her son in her arms.

"Thank you." She whispered to the redhead, smiling through her tears of joy. The girl just nodded with a smile. "How's my little boy, hmm? Oh I missed you. I thought I was never going to see you again." She whispered, brushing her fingers over the child's black hair, combing out the small tangles. The baby just smiled, grabbing for his mother's braid that was lying over her shoulder.

Susan wiped her tears away and walked back over to the group, smiling. Aslan had saved them all, as he always did.

~|:Xo0oX:|~

"When Father decides that I can wear my hair up, I'm going to do it just like yours." Fern whispered in admiration as Susan piled her curls up in one of the many Golden Age styles she fancied. The older woman turned in her seat to smile at the fourteen year old.

"Don't be too hasty about growing up. It isn't everything." She said, before returning to putting the finishing touches on her hair.

Bern and Roxanne it turned out had anticipated a ball, and so everything was ready when they returned. The only thing that had been left was to invite the guests. While that took place, the six oldest girls excitedly took Lucy, Susan and Serene with them to their boudoir to find something to wear. The girls rooms were filled with petticoats, dresses, bodices, skirts and all manner of clothing articles that involved getting ready for a ball. The bejeweled hair pins were scattered everywhere, some even on the floor. Colorful ribbons, laces and trims were trailing over mirrors and across couches and chairs. Dancing slippers were under tables and underfoot too, causing near-accidents when girls dashed from one place to another, looking for one certain thing in the mess.

Lucy and Susan had given up on trying to keep some order to everything long ago, as the girls didn't seem to mind the clutter. Celandine was helping Lucy with her hair, and doing an excellent job of it too. Buttercup sat on one of the chase lounges, reading. Dahlia and Eglantine were trying to coax Serene into something more festive than the plain dark blue dress she wanted to wear.

"It would look so lovely with your complexion," Dahlia tried.

"And your eyes!" Eglantine broke in, holding up the edge of the white skirt, pointing to the green trim encircling the hem.

"And you have such stunning curls, we could make you look sensational!" Dahlia begged, jumping up and down slightly, looking at Serene hopefully.

"I don't know, I really think I should just wear this." Serene tugged at the dark dress, even though she was starting to glance wistfully at the green and white one.

"Serene, this will probably be the last time to even get to wear a dress, as the long skirt is rather limiting on shipboard." Susan spoke up from where she sat, pushing the diamond pins into her hair.

"Oh, if it will make you happy." Serene relented with a smile.

"Yes! Now, go change! Come on, we'll help with the petticoats." The girls said excitedly, so much so that it was hard to tell who was speaking. Serene met Susan's eyes in bewilderment, but allowed them to lead her to another room. Susan let out a silver laugh at Serene's expense.

"You know, this is much like Narnia was in my time." Susan said in a confiding tone to Fern. The girl leaned forward on her elbows, eager for any tales or mention of old Narnia.

"Really?" She queried.

"Yes, the wildness, the laughter, it is all very much so. And you must tell your older sister that she reminds me of the High King's wife, Queen Amalia. They both have that lovely personality that I can never seem to imitate." Susan admitted, patting Fern on her arm before finishing and standing. She had had a ball gown on board the Dawn Treader, in case of parties, and so far, she had been right. Since setting out, they had attended three balls. But none of them had celebrated freedom, merely their arrival.

The blue and silver evening gown was quite lovely. It was dark midnight blue, with silver petticoats showing out from the front, and silver lace on her cuffs. It was just off the shoulders, allowing her to wear the long diamond necklace she had been given as an anniversary present by Caspian. She moved to see who might need her help. Celandine, who had finished Lucy's hair, was trying to do her own, but she was having difficulty trying to get some strands from falling around her face. Susan smiled, she could help with that. She knew what it was like to have that one annoying strand that seemed to go against everything you tried to do.

"Here, like this." Susan said, gently taking over from Celandine. The girl smiled at Susan in the mirror, her face showing gratitude. Susan tamed the unruly red hair into a lovely style.

"Before I leave, I'll tell you how to do this style, so you can do it yourself after I'm gone." Susan said, leaning over the girl's shoulder for some pins.

"Oh, that would be wonderful, thank you so much! I can hardly do anything with this mop." Celandine despaired, gesturing to her now tamed curls.

"No, you just haven't learned what to do yet, but by the time you're my age, you will know plenty of styles to do on it, and I'm sure your mother helps." Susan encouraged, smiling back.

"Yes, that's true." The redhead admitted.

"Good! Well, I think you're done." Susan stood and walked over to Lucy, who was wearing one of Eglantine's dark purple dresses.

"What are you thinking of?" Susan asked, nudging her sister with her shoulder, and smiling.

"Oh, just everything I guess. I wonder about Peter, Su, sometimes he's fine, and then sometimes I don't even know this depressed, dark person that looks like my brother. I hurt to see him hurting, because I know that it's not fair for him to be alone. But I suppose that this is a journey that he alone must take, the battle he alone must face, just like Edmund had to, just like you've had too. Just like I'll have to, I suppose." Lucy said, keeping her head down, playing with a bit of lace as she spoke.

Susan sobered at Lucy's words, she wondered how bad he truly was, but knew Lucy's guess was probably pretty close to the truth. "Yes, everyone has to face their dragons. It is not easy. He will get through it; he wasn't made High King for nothing. He can fight, Aslan has given him all the skills to wage this war, but he must use them. I didn't understand what Aslan had told us at first when he said; "we had learnt all we could from this world" but now it do. We learnt skills so we could come away and face life stronger, better, with all our courage. You will see someday, just as Peter said when you left through Aslan's Door." Susan comforted, putting her arm around Lucy's shoulders in a sisterly hug.

"Yes, I suppose that's true." Lucy brightened slightly, returning her sister's smile. They looked up when Azalea came into the room. Spying Buttercup reading, she walked over behind her and pulled the book from her sister's hands.

"Now, Buttercup, you have to pull yourself out of that book! Come on, you are going to this ball!" Azalea said. Buttercup looked up at her oldest sister from where she was sitting curled up on the chase lounge. "But it was just getting good!" The brown haired girl cried, looking slightly angry.

"Come on, you can read at the party, be a withdrawn individual, I don't care, but you are going to this ball." Azalea said calmly, but with force, putting the book on her dressing table, finalizing her words.

"Very well." Buttercup groused, leaving to change into her yellow party frock. Azalea smiled as she left. Turning to Susan and Lucy, she commented on Buttercup's lack of enthusiasm. "She's rereading one of King Edmund's accounts of the North Battle, she finds history fascinating, but I must admit; the way he writes it is very captivating. I don't know if anyone will ever marry her, the only hope we have is that there's someone out there who's just as much a history nut as she is, if not more so." She laughed and shook her head as she spoke, glancing to the book on her dressing table as she did.

"Well, there is someone out there for everyone. It will just take time. It took me thirteen hundred years to find my husband, though; I don't think it will take her quite so long." Susan replied, laughing slightly. Lucy joined in, and soon enough the other girls were coming to ask what the joke was.

"Nothing, just a comment on husbands, and the time it takes to find one." Azalea managed to get out between breaths.

After more good-natured banter and fussing over ribbons and laces, the young woman and girls were soon ready. Serene was wearing the white and green dress, Dahlia had helped twist her hair into a beautiful look, framing her face with several shorter curls. Azalea wore one of her wildly patterned dresses. And all the other girls' gowns were their favorite colors. Eglantine and Lucy were starting to become good friends, joking about how they were almost twins in their dresses.

~|:Xo0oX:|~

"I wish the other girls could be here, but Mother said they couldn't stay up so late. Usually we have parties and such earlier in the day so they can attend. But I think Mother and Father wanted this one to be for the adults this time. They're using the Big Room." Fern said as they walked down the stairs to the ballroom.

There were two ballrooms in Bernstead. The "Small Room" and the "Big Room", the Big Room was larger and more ornate than the smaller room, and it had a raised orchestra stand for the musicians.

"I hope I learn and remember all your sister's names. You shall have to help me remember for the duration of our stay here. When I return, I am sure I will have commemorated them to memory." Susan said to Azalea. "There are so many of us, aren't there?" The young woman laughed.

"Truly. I understand why you never told be about them. Afraid they would run me off?" Arran stood at the bottom of the steps, smiling slightly.

"No, I was hoping you'd run of your own accord!" Azalea replied, looking rather vexed to see him.

"A pirate never leaves empty handed. You should know that by now." Arran said, as she stopped at the foot of the stairs.

"Are you planning on pirating another of my father's vessels? You know, if I told him that was you, he'd hang you in an instant!" She said, smacking his arm away when he offered it.

"Oh, angry, what have I not done now Love? And the only thing I want to steal from your father, is you." He replied, his eyes sparkling.

"Go away, rot in some brig." She muttered, walking past him as fast as her skirts would allow. He watched her go with a smile. "You know, I just love that about her." He commented absently, before walking after her.

"He doesn't seem too afraid to profess his feelings for her." Susan said, a bemused smiled on her face.

"Every one of us knows about their romance, that's why he's not afraid. Around others though, he wouldn't be saying such things. Azalea tells us she despises him, because of what he's done. He boarded and pirated everything off of one of Father's merchant vessels." Buttercup elaborated.

"But we all know that deep down, she really loves him. It's almost as if they play around on purpose. He flirts with her, and she replies with some comment about how terrible he is. He loves it." Dahlia added, grinning mirthfully.

Lucy looked at the women in confusion when they all laughed. She didn't understand why it would be remotely affectionate to fight and argue. If Azalea really loved Arran, shouldn't she just say so? Susan leaned in to Lucy. "You don't understand now, but perhaps someday you will, don't judge without knowing." She whispered. Lucy smiled in reply. Susan was right; it was none of her business. As they walked to the ballroom, Edmund, Caspian, Zephyr and Gavan came up to them.

"You look beautiful sisters!" Edmund said gallantly, while he slipped Serene's arm through his.

"Oh Ed, you just say that because you are duty-bound to tell us we look nice, you know what we'll do if you don't." Susan laughed, showing her mischievous side.

Caspian smiled, before speaking. "Does this mean I can say the truth? No matter my opinion? So, if I say I prefer-" He was interrupted by Susan.

"No! You are under just as much obligation as Edmund. And you're my husband, which mean no matter what, you have to support me." Susan said, her eyes sparkling.

"Very well. All I was going to say is that I'd rather you wear your hair down, not that it matters, you're still just as beautiful." He replied, smiling. She smiled in return as she put her arm through his.

Lucy, Edmund, Serene and the Stars watched the banter with smiles of their own. Bern's daughters had walked ahead of them long ago, eager for a ball. Because a ball meant people, lots of people meant music, and music meant dancing!

"Come on, you are the honored guests, you cannot be found laughing in the halls while a party for you goes on in the next room!" Fern called excitedly.

"Well, the lady says we cannot tarry, come, I'm sure this will be something we'd lament missing." Zephyr said, walking in the direction Bern's daughters had taken.

"After my brother!" Gavan called brightly.

They stopped upon entering the ballroom. "I just remembered what it feels like to be a King, perhaps we could leave, and return when there are fewer people present?" Caspian teased, surveying all the staring, curious faces. Susan looked over at him and smiled, there was no way they would be doing that.

"Let us just think of this as a battlefield, the more people we come to know, the more we conquer." She suggested brightly.

"Perhaps one could look at it that way. At least you have nothing to be worried about; nearly all of these people are Narnian." Caspian said, hinting at the fact that he had a reputation to live down.

"The King and Queen of Narnia!" Gavan announced from behind them, causing them to jump slightly. The Star just grinned as the monarchs walked down the stairs, greeting people and shaking hands. There were times when he just enjoyed being slightly mean, this was one of those times.

When the music began, the guest eventually drifted off, leaving them alone, though several young ladies stood a distance off giggling and staring. Caspian bent his head to whisper to Susan without being overheard. "Why is it, that no matter if one is married, the single young woman are always staring?" Susan laughed quietly at first, thinking it was a joke, but when she looked at him, she realized that he was serious.

"I don't know, all I can say is that looks have something to do with it, and, well, standing. You are a king after all." Susan said, glancing over at the giggling girls.

"I suppose nothing could be done concerning the matter. That aside, would the Queen care for a dance?" He asked, smiling.

"I would love to." She replied, taking his offered hand.

~|:Xo0oX:|~

Lucy watched her sister and Caspian dance with a fond smile. She had always thought Susan danced nicely. She stood on the edge of the dancing floor, near the open doors leading to the balcony. Watching the dancing couples, most of whom were Narnian nobility from around Avra as they had moved here when Narrowhaven became so corrupt, reminded her of the Golden Age, and the wonderful parties and galas they'd thrown when they ruled. She sighed as she remembered them. What fond memories she had.

"It is commonly believed, that when one stands on the edge of a dancing floor, at the back of the room watching, that one isn't a dancer. I think all those beliefs wrong. I, am an excellent dancer. It is the people to dance with, who are not." A male voice interrupted her thoughts. Lucy turned to see Gavan walk up behind her from the balcony. She smiled; at least she had someone to talk to, for however long he stayed before some charming girl came to whisked him off.

"Oh really, you dance?" She replied, looking at him as he came up to stand next to her.

"Yes, but I am not fond of dancing with blunderers. So I don't. Though I think that you are not one of those types. Why aren't you dancing?" He asked abruptly, looking down at her.

"There's no one to dance with." She said, motioning to the room.

"I have been insulted. I am now no one? My brother doesn't exist anymore either?" Gavan said, raising his eyebrows inquiringly.

"No, it's just, well, I haven't danced in ages, and I don't think I even know the steps anymore." Lucy admitted, turning back to gaze wistfully at the dancers.

"I can change that. Besides, no one ever forgets dancing. May I?" Gavan held out his hand as he spoke.

"I cannot refuse such a kind gesture." Lucy said, mocking the girls who blushed and hid behind their fans when they were asked. She had always been keen on the fact that she shouldn't feel, or act, shy around men and boys.

As Gavan whirled her around, she found that she recalled certain dance steps, and that he was a good dancer. It was wonderful to dance again! She had forgotten how much fun it was, being swept around the floor to a waltz.

"Wherever did you learn how to dance this?" She asked breathlessly, as he brought her back from a spin.

"My Mother, she is very fond of dancing. She taught us all, meaning, me, my four brothers and one sister. I'm the youngest, hence, the best at dancing." Gavan grinned at her look of surprise. She had thought it was just him, Zephyr and Arran, she didn't know he had more siblings.

"It seems I have much to learn about you." She said with a smile.

"It couldn't be learned in a day, or a dance." Gavan replied, twirling her around him.

"There are six of you Stars though?" She asked.

"Yes, my Father is a full Star, but my Mother is mortal. So we're only half-Stars, but Aslan has his ways. And what of you? I know about as much of you as you know of me."

"Well, I don't think you could learn everything in one dance." Lucy retorted, smiling.

"Fine then, but we must talk about something. Your world, I would like to know about it." Gavan said, leading her to the balcony when the waltz finally ended.

"My world? There's nothing about it that needs be known." Lucy scoffed, mentally comparing the fog and smoke filled air to the pure, fresh air here in Narnia. Of course, there were some places, like Digory's place in the country, that were much like Narnia. How she wanted to be there instead of at her Uncle and Aunt's!

"Then what about that house, the one in the country?" He asked, frowning as he looked over at her, as if trying to piece something together.

"How do you know about that?" She asked sharply, turning to him.

"You, um, want it, remember, my magic, I can, well, see what you want. It actually helps when someone won't tell me anything. Like you." He shrugged, looking out over the ocean.

"Very well, yes, there was that house; it's probably the best thing that ever happened to us. Without it, my brother would be a selfish bully, and my oldest brother would be a controlling miser, my sister would be a shallow party girl and I would be, I would be nothing but the youngest sibling. We would never have found Aslan, and Susan wouldn't look so happy, Peter wouldn't be so depressed, and Edmund wouldn't become so quiet like he does every time we leave." Lucy admitted, gripping the marble railing until her fingers whitened at the tips, because, for the first time, she was thinking about how very different their lives would be without Narnia.

"I didn't mean to bring up such sad memories. But, since you told of your life, and said honest truths, I will tell you mine. With the truth." Gavan smiled at her, though his eyes held unmistakable pain.

"I was very close to killing your sister and brother-in-law, more than once. I would have too, if given the order. I was a spy, I recall telling you this in that cell, remember? We all were spies. Or, as Durken, he's the oldest, would rather we call ourselves; "informers". I was fourteen. I spent nearly a year and a half betraying Narnia. I can never forgive myself, none of us can, but Durken suffers the most. It is something that has scarred him. I don't know if we will ever move past it."

"That is what my brother always said, when he would bring up the subject about his almost betrayal. I know that even though he seems alright now, he was not when he first was king. He was constantly displacing himself, talking as if he didn't deserve his title, long after he showed that he was the wisest one of us all. It hurt Peter deeply, but now, Edmund has finally allowed Aslan to take that burden away. He's different because of his experiences, changed. Aslan will do the same for you, it shall take time, and you must have an open mind when he calls, because he will whisper, not roar, and you must listen and be ready." Lucy said with a thoughtful smile.

"I believe you are right. Thank you. If you'll excuse me, i-I must go." He said rather uneasily, as if something was troubling him.

"What is it?" She asked in concern.

"Nothing, if you'll excuse me." He tried to assure her, before walking away. She stared after him in confusion. One moment he was fine and then the next he acted as if something was deathly wrong.

~|:Xo0oX:|~

The ball lasted long into the evening, and the hall was filled with laughter and gaiety. The Narnians soon realized that Caspian was not like the typical Telmarine kings of their memories. Susan and Caspian enjoyed talking with all the Narnians, who could trace their ancestry back to many old families from the Golden Age. Caspian marveled at how they could remember so many stories and such as they conversed with the nobility.

Lucy was remembered as she had been in the Golden Age, and it was not long before every young man wanted at least one dance with her. Many recalled King Edmund the Just, as hundreds of copies of his books still lived on here at the Lone Islands. It wasn't more than an hour before men started coming to him with questions, and Bern had to remind them that this was a festive occasion, not a Court of Old like the ones Edmund used to reside over. Though, the young man promised to hold a meeting some time later in the week when they could come to him with their questions.

When the last guests were well on their way, Bern and his wife revealed how happy, but tired, they were. A maid and manservant came up to them after the entry doors were closed.

"What do you want us to do about the ballroom?" The manservant inquired of Bern.

"And what of the extra food?" The maid asked Roxanne.

"Leave it, we'll think about that tomorrow." They sighed in exhaustion, but managed to smile, knowing the two were only doing their jobs. The man and woman looked at one another as their master and mistress walked away to bed. "Well, what do you suppose we do?" The maid asked. Gaspard, the manservant shrugged. "You heard the Master, leave it. At least this means some well-deserved rest for us." He said.

"Yes, I could sleep standing like the horses, I'm so tired! How about a cup of tea before bed?" Henrietta, the maid replied.

"That sounds relaxing indeed." Gaspard commented, following her to the kitchen.

A/N:

Well? I rather think I got my old style back on this chapter! Now, I shall explain all that needs explaining...

The line Edmund uses in the opening scene; "I'm gonna kill him!" is the same line Peter used about Edmund in LWW, remember? If not, the movie is free for all to watch!

Goodness, I don't know what else to say, surprisingly! I mean, everything is pretty self-explanatory in this chapter. I'm rather shocked!

I like the idea of Eustace being introduced this way, with everyone getting short on patience with him, leading to more anger and shortness on board.

Buttercup and Azalea have several of my strong traits. {Reading so intensely that everything around you goes into a fog. And being the leader, sometimes the boss.}

Oh, the waltz that I was listening to while I wrote the dancing is called "And The Waltz Goes On" composed by Anthony Hopkins. It is simply beautiful!

I think that many of the Narnians on the Islands were isolated because of what had happened back in Narnia, so they stayed basically like Narnians from the Pevensie's time. Gaspard and Henrietta I made up, but they come back at odd times in the story, so I figured I'd better give the pair some names.

I loved putting Susan as saying: "Don't be too hasty about growing up. It isn't everything." Because, in the books, she didn't take her own advice!

Ah! Cue Gael and Rhince! {Are you satisfied ILoveFanfiction? I hope I have pleased you! :)}

Well, I just don't know what else there is! If you think of anything that needs explaining, please PM or leave a review!

ILoveFanfiction:

I saw your review on chapter 7 and scurried right over and mended the errors! No, a king didn't die, Tobias did. I should have clarified on that, but I was suffering from writer's block, and my writing style was off for that chapter.

I got it back for this chapter though, you may notice the change. Yes, everyone wants Lucy/Gavan, so I shall continue as planned!

Thanks so much for all those compliments, you are so sweet! I know what you mean about a hectic schedule! I also hope you like Seven Swords, Seven Lords, it has a few parallels to this story, so that should be interesting for you!

Happy reading, ~ W.H.