The Prince, The Girl, The Lion

by AGirlHasNoName20

1300 years after their reign, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy are back in Narnia to save the day. But their golden days are long gone and now, the must fight along unexpected allies to save Narnia from new enemies as their people face extinction. But most of all, they must stay strong as this journey...changes their lives forever. Suspian. Edmund/OC.

20. Break The Wheel - COMPLETE

You guys, this chapter is 49 pages long. I'm kind of proud of myself.

So much happens here and I'm so excited for you guys to read this. For everyone who's been reading, voting and commenting, thank you all so much. It really means more than I can say that this story is enjoyed.

Please, vote, follow the story and comment!

Chapter 17. "Break The Wheel."

Dear Robin,

So much has happened since my last letter.

I guess I've had time to process our victory against Miraz but, even as I sit behind my desk in my study, it feels surreal to announce that we've won. It almost feels like I should be careful, as if speaking about it outloud will jinx our good fortune.

However, I must say that I haven't really had the time to think about it. Not truly. While we were at war, it seemed as if my sphere of responsibilities and duties were small. The war, the Narnians' survival, that was all myself and the others could think so, in a way, all of our actions were affected by the metaphorical sword hanging above our heads (and not so metaphorical once the final battle took place).

Now, I'm free from the fear and stress of not knowing whether we are going to survive. And, at the same time, countless fears have taken hold of my heart ever since.

For once, though no one has made an official proposition, I am more than aware that everyone wants me to become Queen when Caspian is crowned King. Fortunately, they all say I should because of everything I've done for Narnia and not because of who I am but at the same time, I am fourteen years old. How the hell can I look after a Kingdom when I can barely look after myself?

And that's the other thing. Everyone thinks so highly of me because I am the daughter of the Great Lion. Now that I've had a little time to look into the lore, I've noticed that I'm only referred to as 'Aslan's Daughter'. Not to be self-centered, but I'm not defined by who my father might be. Aslan, as much of a wonderful legend as He might be, was never with me, not in any way that actually counted. Ersan and Tor were. Our mom was. Caspian and Ed and Lu and the others were here instead of Him.

How can I be deserving of praise and loyalty only because of my bloodline? How can I be defined merely by who I am to Aslan when I, as a person, am so much more?

Am I being too crazy to complain about this? I feel like, in the end, as special as I might be, I've always been nothing but a pawn in the game of those stronger than me. One thing is to feel insignificant in a universe where literally every force is bigger than us but to be used as a pawn without any regards for my own life by my own father...it angers me tremendously. So, maybe I'm petty and I'm allowing my daddy issues to intrude with the honour I should feel by my true bloodline. I don't know what I should feel. Maybe I should allow myself to feel whatever it is I feel.

My point is, I cannot truly trust or really forgive those who allowed me to live through hell through my entire life, those who saw me restart my life more than once - each time leaving people I love behind. Aslan, as good as he might be, took me from you. Maybe he was forced to do so. Maybe the same forces that are messing with my life have also messed with His but Robin, I cannot forget that it's because of Him that I'm not with you.

Anyways, I will figure that out. Maybe. Hopefully.

For now, I've been focusing on helping Narnia restore its peace. It's been two weeks since we won the final battle against Miraz. I cannot begin to describe the whirlwind of changes it's supposed. Moving into the Telmarine Castle, gathering the remaining Telmarine leaders and helping Narnians and Telmarines cohabitate the country they were ready to die for if it meant the other group would leave.

The others and I, we've always known that the hatred spread between both folks could only be complex - considering that it was first crafted 1300 years ago - but we could have never imagined how many outlets it would have. We know that Narnia belongs to Narnians and Telmarines and that - despite the many differences we have -, the resilience that lies within both groups are only proof of how well they can work as allies instead of enemies.

But there is so much healing to be promoted. So much culture to be restored. So many Narnian and Telmarine' traditions that we need to figure out how to avoid them from clashing. It is for this very reason - I believe - that the others want me to be Queen. In a way, I guess it does make sense for the true heirs to the Telmarine and Narnian thrones to be crowned together as a sign of unity but, even if I can see that, it doesn't mean I agree. Sure, it would be a step in the right direction but who am I to tell my people how to live their lives?

Anyways, between everything that's been going on, it's hard to find time to be with my friends and even then, all we seem to do is talk about our progress. Of course, I don't complain, because this is the matter in which I'm most interested but, at the same time, I can't help but understand what the lore meant when it described me as a 'free spirit'. If I'm being honest, I guess I had the secret, dark hope that once the war was over I would have time to figure myself out. Yet, that has been proven to be futile hope. I guess one of the prices to pay as a leader is to forget about oneself but...yes, I just have a lot to figure out.

Most days, I feel like my mind is constantly racing, overwhelmed by everything pressing my every thought. Jack. Aslan. Archenland. Narnia. I feel like, without any warning whatsoever, my life has turned out to be a race and though I try my very best to keep up, I try my very best to reach the end of this struggle...I feel like there isn't an end, I feel like I will have to continue fighting without respite. And I wished I didn't but I'm growing tired, Robin. For two years, I haven't had a second of respite. I need to settle down, I need to know that wherever home is, I will find stability in it.

Caspian, as the next King of Narnia, has filled his schedules with meetings, counsel gatherings, and private meetings with Aslan, Peter and Professor Cornelius. Why those three you might ask? Well, as much as we have all been of help, we also have agreed that as King of Kings and High King respectively, Aslan and Peter have the authority when it comes to the right way to lead Narnia onto a new Golden Age. Of course, it is Cornelius the one that taught Caspian ever since he was a little boy, so there is no one better than him to continue tutoring the new soon-to-be King.

Adrien, bless his heart, has been the one who's kept me from losing my mind during these hectic days. Despite everything that's been going on, I've made sure to maintain a few hours free every day so I can keep tutoring him. Of course, once we reach a new, relative normality in which peace finally reigns, I will enroll him in order to make sure he gets the best education there is but for now, there are some things I need to teach him, things that only a kid who's gone through what he has can understand and needs to hear as his life continues to be altered. Now that the war is over, it is certainly a challenge, leading a country while also taking care of my adoptive brother but I could never leave him, not after everything he's been through. With every struggle that he's told me about, I find myself empathizing with him even more, not only because of the pain he carries but also because of the way his life has also been altered permanently without regards for his own safety.

Speaking of the Kings and Queens of Old, their experience and wisdom has been essential during the aftermath of the war. Lucy, as she's always been the best with people, being able to empathize with them deeper than any of us, is now the one in charge of organizing the tour through the Narnian cities. The idea is to get to know our people and their struggles, and for them to get to know us and our intentions now that we are to rule. This project has made our Personal Sunshine even more excited, which I didn't think was possible but well, it wouldn't be the first time Lucy Pevensie has managed to surprise me.

Susan has always been the best host and a remarkable diplomat, only second to her younger brother. Now, she's the one in charge of arranging the castle's staff - making sure there's equity in the numbers of Narnians and Telmarines hired -, and the coronation ceremony has been placed in her expert hands. Of course, that has led her to subtly pressure me into considering becoming Queen in order to finalize the preparations. That means that, in a way, I've been pressured the most by her since I don't want to inopportune her anymore than I have to. Of course, Caspian is the one that has been annoying me the most about this but, when it comes to him, I'm happy to keep him waiting.

Ed is now the one in charge of arranging meetings with the ambassadors that are coming to Narnia for the coronation. So, not only does he have to review the previous peace treaties and commercial treaties between us and the region but also, he has to learn everything he can about our relationships with the other countries ever since the Golden Age. Between his duties and my own, it's been difficult to find a moment for us to be ourselves - Ed and Beth - instead of King Edmund and Princess Elizabeth. However, we've made a routine of studying together and during those long hours, we've managed to get to know one another in a way we couldn't while our lives were constantly at risk.

Peter - with the help of Caspian and Professor Cornelius - has been the one in charge of reviewing the laws installed by the Telmarines in order for them to cover Narnians as well. The idea is to make sure both folks are equal under the law and in their own eyes as well to ours. Of course, there will always be work to be done in order to ensure equity between Narnians and Telmarines but through this, we think that it's a good place to start and work from.

The work has been hectic during the last two weeks. We've gotten to know Narnia's laws, economy, international status, making plans for the future based on that. We've prepared as much as possible and now, we're letting those plans be known. The invitations for the Coronation and the meetings with the ambassadors are leaving the castle as I write this. Later today, we are opening the castle' gates for those who wish an audience with us. Also, we will be naming the new Lords and Ladies of the Counsel, our new generals, we'll be releasing the new laws and Lucy will share her plans for the tour with Trumpkin and Trufflehunter.

Of course, I sent the invitation to Archenland myself. There is so much I need to discuss with Ersan about the future of Archenland so I must have a meeting with him before the Coronation. Not only is my future in Archenland in question - considering who I am to Narnia - but also, I have learned information about both Tor and Torin, information I haven't been to process completely, not with everything going on.

You might remember I told you Tor died while protecting Torin from a pack of wolves. His death meant that the one who put me to safety in a world I knew nothing about had been ripped away from me and my own. His death meant I had to step into shoes too big for me to fill, breaking my relationship with Torin definitely.

Now, Aslan has told me the truth. Tor is alive, taken captive by Jack, who followed Tash's command and was helped by Torin.

I...I cannot begin to describe the betrayal I'm feeling right now. I might have never been as close to Torin as I was to Tor but Robin, I saw how kind Tor was to his brother. He was the only one who accepted Torin completely. The fact that he would betray his own brother for the throne leaves me heartbroken. But it gets even more tricker, because when Torin assumed he would be made Crown Prince, I was asked to step in as Tor's successor. Now, I am in Narnia. Queen or not, I belong here and therefore, I must resign to the titles I hold in Archenland. That leaves Torin free to take the throne of Anvard. Unless I find a way to bring Tor back to where he belongs, Archenland will be at the mercy of a tyrant.

Still, even with everything that awaits for me, I am currently ruled by a sense of peace I cannot ignore. Right now, the sun is rising, painting the clear Narnian sky with countless tones of gold and red. Everything is silent, the sort of peaceful silence that precedes the chaos of a hectic place such as ours. Still, if I close my eyes, I can forget about that. I can imagine you next to me, child or a young man already, our mom safe with us. I can imagine a happy, peaceful life for us in England, where everything is normal and we're together. I imagine this and I smile because, as much as I've made a life for myself here, a part of my heart will always belong to you and mom.

Please, take care of yourself. You and mom. Stay safe and happy. I promise I will do everything to make the two of you proud.

I love you.

Beth.

"Beth?" A sleepy voice drawled from behind her.

Beth straightened with a sigh and turned on her seat, smiling as her eyes fell on Adrien. "Hey, brother. You were too tired last night so I was afraid I'd disturb your sleep if I moved you to your bed. How was your rest?"

"Way better than the hard cots we had back at The How," Adrien chuckled lowly as he rubbed the sleep off his eyes. Then, his eyes became more alert as he studied the room. "Wait, I fell asleep? How did that happen?"

"Do I really need to explain that?" Beth deadpanned, smiling crookedly when Adrien merely glared at her. Then, she stood from her seat by the table next to her bed and walked to sit besides her brother. "You, Ed and I were talking after dinner, remember? I don't recall the precise topic exactly but at one moment I turned towards you and you were snoring into my pillow."

"Oh, no. Caspian wanted me to chaperone," Adrien explained with a groan. He turned over and buried his little face into the pillow. "He's going to kill me."

Beth frowned, her eyes flashing dangerously as the message sunk in. However, she refused to let any of that fall on her brother so instead, she took a deep breath and carefully moved Adrien's chestnut hair out of his face. "Excuse me, chaperone? Why did Caspian tell you to chaperone?"

"Well, he said that now that we're living in the castle, it isn't well seen for a King and the heir to the Narnian Throne to be hanging out without chaperones." Adrien shrugged, smiling innocently as Beth's mood darkened even further. "Since I'm always hanging out with you, he made me volunteer."

"Well, I know you were only trying to help me but Caspian is an idiot," Beth scoffed. "Do we listen to idiots, dear brother?"

Adrien grinned mischievously. "We don't."

"Exactly," Beth couldn't help to chuckle as Adrien sat comfortably beside her. Then, she wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "I know you've never had a proper childhood. And I know it will take some time for you to get used to where we live now. Now, we're at peace, and that means that some things aren't going to be like they used to."

"I know but-," Adrien began, quietening as Beth threw him a gentle smile.

"Let me say this, little brother." Beth quietly requested. "I know it will be hard but the fact that we live here and that we are going to lead a comfortable life means that you finally get to be a kid. Right now, your responsibilities are to take care of yourself and to do everything in order to obtain a bright future. That means continuing your education, most of all, but it also means getting friends your own age so that, eventually, you get to be a kid again."

As Beth continued speaking, Adrien's gaze lowered towards the ground and once she finished, silence enveloped them for a few seconds.

"What is it, sweetheart?" Beth finally asked.

"I just don't want to fail you. You did so much for me during the war and," Adrien gulped almost fearfully. "I don't want you to regret taking me in as your brother."

Beth quickly knelt before her brother, the navy blue skirts of her dress flowing as she moved. Then, she gently pulled his face upwards so she could look right into his brown eyes. "Without you, Adrien, I wouldn't have survived the war with my mental health as intact as it is. I love you, little brother. I want to help you become everything and anything you want to be as you lead a healthy, happy life."

Adrien couldn't help but smile slightly. "So no more chaperoning?"

"No more chaperoning," Beth confirmed. "If anything, you can help me prank Caspian for thinking I need chaperones."

"I mean, with Aslan around, it's not surprising that he would try to look after you," Adrien chortled. When Beth merely rolled her eyes, Adrien smiled his devilish smirk. "Do you have any ideas?"

"Between you, Ed and I, I'm sure we can figure something out," Beth smirked before hugging Adrien. "See, little bro? I will always need you."

oOo

"Don't go that way."

Caspian faltered in his steps, frowning as he turned and noticed Edmund walking down the hall towards him.

Caspian had scheduled a meeting with Lords Robertson that morning to discuss the audiences set for the afternoon, so he had missed breakfast with the others. This was actually the first time he was running into a friend of his that day.

In a completely unexpected manner, the stress of running a country had become a blessing in disguise. Of course, partly due to the fact that he was grateful of no longer being in mortal danger but also, the incredible amount of things he now had to tackle meant an easy way for him not to deal with the fact that he was once again in his ancestors castle.

The castle that, for centuries, had been a beacon of worship and awe amidst the Telmarine society. The halls through which his ancestors had walked. The rooms in which his race had plotted for the continuation of the Empire, regardless of what it meant for the innocents living in the same land.

Now, Caspian saw everything different. Caspian saw that castle as a sign of terror for the oppressed folks. He saw those halls as haunted, forever darkened by the ghosts and demons of his past. He saw those rooms as prisons for all of those who believed in a united Narnia.

Everywhere he turned, Caspian saw his father and his uncle. Two men who had been so different while alive, yet so alike in death, when only the things that truly counted were left. He saw every single one of his ancestors, all of them supporters of the Narnian eradication. He saw the legacy he was yet to break free from.

So, he was free. Free of Miraz. Free of anyone who would dare to tell him he was doing everything wrong.

And yet, he was still imprisoned. Haunted. By both their traditions and his own past.

During the past two weeks, his mind had constantly gone back to the same statement, the same desperate wish.

He needed to get out.

When Edmund called, Caspian had actually been deep in thought as he tried to find a way to escape that castle, so we can't really fault him for being confused.

"Excuse me?" Caspian uttered as Edmund fell into step with him.

"Beth is that way," Edmund explained with a bemused smirk. "And she told me of your desire to have chaperones watching over us during breakfast. I think that the only reason why she hasn't retaliated is because of how important today is. I wouldn't count for her to keep the peace tomorrow, though."

Caspian sighed wearily. He knew Beth wouldn't agree with it but truthfully, at the time it had seemed like a good idea considering they were in a place he knew better than anyone. Still, his hands unconsciously fidgeted with his forest green shirt as he replied, "Look, should she become Queen of Narnia, she will thank me. The Telmarines are much more strict than what she - or you - are used to."

"I understand but you should have told us," Edmund replied. His black shirt contrasted perfectly against his slightly tanned skin - product of all those months at the How - and his arms were linked together behind his back as they walked. "And you should have never put Adrien, of all people, on chaperone duty. You know that we are trying to give some normality to the kid."

"Normality. That actually sounds refreshing," Caspian mumbled, his thoughts once again haunted by the memory of his family. Slowly, almost against his will, Caspian stopped walking, his eyes fixed on thin air even as Edmund turned towards him. "Look, I get it. I will apologize to Beth later. Right now, I need to continue working."

Caspian tried to move but Edmund held him by the arm. The Just King frowned with concern as he studied his friend's face. "Caspian, are you alright?"

Caspian opened his mouth to reply, his eyes wide with conflict and exhaustion, when a bubbly ball of sunshine raced towards them from the gardens to their left.

"Ed, Cas! Isn't today exciting? I cannot wait to meet our subjects! We-," Lucy began, her voice chipper, yet halted herself as she took in the mood of the duo. Quickly, she crossed her arms, frowning almost angrily. "Don't tell me you two are fighting again."

"Cas, what is it?" Edmund asked again, his gaze fixed on the prince's.

"I-," Caspian began, yet shook his head before retreating his steps back the way he'd come from. "I need to show you something."

Edmund and Lucy exchanged a bewildered gaze but followed Caspian anyways as he climbed the large staircase he'd descended from, the one that led to the wing where all studies and meeting rooms were located.

Silence was king as the trio walked down hall after hall, the almost silver of the marble walls a nice companion to their intense' coloured outfits. The morning sun filtering through the windows made Lucy's auburn hair glow in a most mesmerizing manner, while it also made the boys' swords shine with golden light.

At last, they reached an entrance bigger than the ones they had just walked past. The heavy, wooden double doors were shut close, their only decoration being door knobs shaped like eagles. On either side, two completely armoured Narnian guards stood onguard, though they quickly retreated to the other end of the hall per Caspian's request.

As soon as they were again on their own, Caspian took a deep breath, his hand posed on the doorknob. He could feel the concern of his friends as they wondered why did he freeze, what could possibly be behind that door that would make the overconfident heir to the Telmarine throne hesitate. He could feel every cell of his body willing for him to move, to twirl the doorknob and get it over with.

But he didn't.

And the explanation was incredibly simple. Because, none of the ghosts that had haunted in the other parts of the castle were anything in comparison to what was behind those doors.

Finally, a little hand fell on his large one in the most gentle of manners, yet it almost made Caspian jump in shock.

"You don't have to do it alone, Cas," Lucy spoke from his right, her voice gentle and hopeful. "We'll do it together."

Slowly, Caspian nodded, and the doors were opened.

Looking back on it, Caspian would be uncertain on what was what he noticed first. Or rather, it was such an onslaught of impressions, memories and sensations that made it impossible for him to pick the most relevant one.

As it had been at least two weeks since that room had been opened, the room had the characteristic smell of those rooms who go too long without any sort of ventilation. A light coat of dust covered every surface, from the piles of books neatly organized by the bookshelves behind the desk centered in the room, to the Telmarine ornaments hung over the fireplace. The room was quite comfortable, with a large glass door by either side of the desk, a fireplace by their right, and a wall entirely covered with bookshelves to their left. Only a wooden, cushioned chair stood behind the desk, no other sort of seat provided for those accompanying the former owner of the room.

The room was relatively tidy, if one didn't count the dust. However, the papers strewn haphazardly across the desk spoke of an owner that had left in a hurry, too preoccupied to worry about mere documents.

Caspian had no idea what that room would seem like to Edmund and Lucy. For him, it was cold, filled with ambitious prospects and dreams of power. It embodied everything his father and later his uncle had stood for. It embodied the Telmarine tradition - proud, rich, and empowering -, yet cold, unforgiving and focused on power and riches instead of love and family.

It embodied everything Caspian didn't want to be.

"I thought we had already seen Miraz's study," Edmund stated as he wandered into the room after Caspian, his eyes already flickering towards the bookcase.

Caspian entered the room almost in a daze and nodded distractedly in Edmund's direction as he slowly headed towards the desk. "This was his personal study. Here, he worked on the projects he didn't want to share with anyone, not even his most trusted allies. Not that he trusted anyone but...well, you know what I mean."

Lucy, who had opened one of the glass doors, stepping onto the balcony behind it, frowned as she took in Caspian's conflicted tone. "Caspian, are you sure you want to be here? We can get the others and go through the room without you."

Caspian reached the edge of the desk, running his fingers slowly across the wooden surface as his eyes quickly scanned the documents on it. "No. I have to do this. I have to be as different as them as I can. Sooner rather than later."

"You already have proven yourself," Edmund frowned. He and Lucy stood by the side of the desk nearest to the entrance, their frowns identical as they studied Caspian. "You know that, right? What you did during the Revolution will always be remembered. We couldn't have gotten here without you."

Caspian slowly sank on the seat, his eyes narrowed almost as if he expected Miraz's ghost to expel him from his seat. He wondered what Miraz did there, what sort of plans had he managed to begin before he died.

He wondered whether he would also have the need of a room to keep his darkest secrets. He wondered whether his Telmarine roots meant the time would come when he had no one to trust.

Beth. Susan. Edmund. Lucy. Peter.

He almost wanted to reassure himself that the moment would never arrive but then again, it had before.

And the consequences had been catastrophic.

"This castle is not my home," Caspian finally spoke, his eyes on the desk' drawers as he opened them methodically. "I wish it was, I wish I could find a sense of belonging with my culture but I can't, at least not here. This place...it only reminds me of everything my uncle, my father and those before them did. Of how divided Narnia is, because of them. There is so much I need to fix and this place...it only serves to remind me of every wretched prejudice they tried to teach me."

"And you will," Lucy intervened, her eyes widening the longer she listened to Caspian. "Caspian, you aren't even King yet but you've already done so much! I know these weeks have been hectic but, believe me, if any of us had any doubt of the great King you are going to be, we would have said so."

"I was a traitor," Edmund then stated, Lucy and Caspian turning towards him with sober looks as they noticed the pain in the Just King's eyes. "When Aslan made me King, it took me forever to even accept that He believed I could be a good King. Some days, I still doubt it. But, we don't rule for ourselves. We rule for our people. As such, it only matters whether your people think you are a good ruler. Right now, you are doing everything in your power to be ready. Show them your efforts today and every day from now on. Show them that you work for them, not for yourself, and they will believe in you, just like they believed in me."

"I don't want to stay here," Caspian admitted after a long moment, his eyes burning with hot tears as he opened the last drawer of the desk. "I don't want to be like them, holed up in a room, obsessing over the power I could have. I need another home because this isn't it, not anymore."

"And we will," Lucy promised, her smile bright. "We will get the idea to the others and we will find a place to build the new castle of Narnia. Anyways, we could use a castle that will bring positive emotions for both Narnians and Telmarines."

"And once you are ready, you will face those ghosts. And we will face them with you," Edmund smirked before his eyes drifted towards the bookcase. "Now, do you mind if I take a few of these books? They sound fascinating."

"Sure, go ahead," Caspian said distractedly, his hand doing a last, half-hearted sweep across the wooden floor of the drawer he'd opened, his mind already set on closing it so he could go through the papers he'd taken out.

Then, his heart stopped as his fingertips brushed a rolled-up parchment by the far end of the drawer.

And, as he took it out, it began to beat very quickly.

"What is it?" Lucy asked with wonderment as Caspian ripped the seal holding the parchment rolled.

Feeling Edmund by his right, Caspian opened it slowly, his eyes widening as he recognized the territory. It was one he only knew through legends but one he cherished, for its very name shone in a way his own castle wasn't able to.

Then, a smile began to grace his lips slowly.

"I have an idea."

oOo

When Peter opened the door to the shared study of the Royal Family, he found it to be empty. As scheduled, it was time for their final meeting before they opened the gates and, to the surprise of no one, Peter was the first to arrive.

Though some of them would never admit it, they were all rather excited about the meeting. Not only because they missed spending time together but because they were an excellent team, all of them providing unique points of views and arguments that would otherwise be ignored. It had taken them a minute to find the right dynamic between them, with the whole competition between Peter and Caspian to give an example, but once they did, they found that they wouldn't change their group for anything.

Edmund was the strategist, Beth was the source of wisdom, Susan was the practical one, Peter was the politician, Caspian was the cunning mind and Lucy was the most empathetic with the people. As such, once they won the war and encountered the fact that they now had to work with dozens of members of their staff, they soon began to relish the spare moments in which they could work just the six of them together.

And that room was fit for an enjoyable time in which the group discussed important manners. The far wall of the room was entirely made of glass, so the sun hit it harder the closer it got to the horizon. A round table had been placed by the middle of the room, six cushioned chairs around it. To the right, a large fireplace stood proudly, Narnian and Telmarine banners over it. By the other wall, bookcase after bookcase filled to the brim with books featured across it. Next to the window, a large sofa had been placed facing the door, a coffee table right before it.

Peter was sitting on that sofa, his eyes on the forgotten game of chess on the coffee table, when Susan entered the room with a smile.

"After the audiences are over, you must go to the Coronation Room. I don't want to be conceited, but the room is looking exquisite," Susan gushed joyfully as she took her seat by the round table. She left the sheets with the pending preparations she needed to oversee on it and looked up, frowning as her eyes fell on her disgruntled brother. "Are you even listening to me?"

"Of course I am," Peter replied easily, his eyes still on the game. "I will visit it as soon as I have a spare moment."

"Why are you looking at the chess game as if it were a difficult math problem?"

At that, Peter snapped his gaze towards his smug sister. "For your information, I had trouble with geometry, not math. And I'm wondering why it is so hard for our beloved brother to clean after himself once in a while."

"Ah, yes, that might have been my fault," Beth intervened as she entered the room as well. She gave Susan a one-armed embrace before leaving her own pile of documents on the table and turning towards Peter. "Him and Adrien were playing earlier when my brother was supposed to attend his first tutoring session with Professor Cornelius. In the midst of me giving them a piece of my mind for playing today - of all days - they ran off without putting the game away."

Peter shook his head with an amused chuckle as he began to put the pieces away. "I see my brother has already been berated, then. No need in punishing him for this as well."

"Is Adrien still with Professor Cornelius?" Susan asked in turn, ignoring his brother completely. "Do you think it's going well?"

"Well, if I trust my brother's education with anyone - until I find a school for him - that is Professor Cornelius," Beth replied. As Peter joined them around the table, Beth took her seat with a sigh. "Now that the kid's been through a war, he feels it's useless for him to get an education. If Professor Cornelius doesn't knock some sense into him, I don't know how could I."

"The kid worships you, Beth," Lucy chipped as she entered the room as well. She hugged everyone as well as she could before dropping her rolled-up maps on the sofa and taking her seat to Beth's left. "He would do anything you tell him to."

"He better," Beth grumbled playfully before nodding towards the maps Lucy had brought in. "How are the plans for the tour going?"

"I will tell you once the others arrive but I'm very excited," Lucy beamed. "I had a meeting with Trufflehunter and Trumpkin today and they were very helpful explaining the changes Narnia has undergone over the past centuries."

"Once the tour is over we need to figure out where we are going to build the new cities," Susan commented thoughtfully. "Now that the war is over, I'm sure at least some of the Narnians are going to want to recover areas they used to cherish like Beruna or even the area around Cair Paravel."

"Also, we need to take into account possible immigrants," Peter added. "Once the commercial treaties are signed, it won't take too long for ships to start arriving at our harbour and with them, new citizens."

"I will discuss that possibility with Ersan once he arrives," Beth nodded with a smile just as Edmund entered the room.

"Well, hello my beautiful family," Edmund called as he went around the table. He patted Peter on the back and kissed Susan's cheek before kissing Lucy's temple and plopping down by Beth's right, who was staring right ahead as if she hadn't noticed him at all."And hello my beautiful, amazing girlfriend who I hope knows I'm very sorry for earlier? And that will hopefully forgive me because she is, as I've mentioned before, amazing?"

Beth continued to look ahead in utter silence, her eyes glazed over, while the others all held their breath expectantly.

Then, the Mighty Daughter of Aslan, Wise High Lady of the Narnian Court, snorted loudly. As everyone else laughed, she covered her eyes with her hand and sighed wearily. "I hate you, Edmund Pevensie."

Edmund kissed her cheek before beaming at her. "You love me."

It was in this mood of general exhilaration that Caspian found his family. He took one look at the blush in Beth's cheeks, Edmund's wide smile and Peter's look of disgust and sighed. "I see our love birds are at it yet again. I thought this was a serious meeting?"

"You are one to talk," Beth retaliated immediately. Still, she straightened in her seat as Caspian took his seat between Peter and Susan. "He does have a point though. We don't have a lot of time. Shall we begin?"

"Who's taking notes?" Edmund asked as he grabbed his books and left them on a neat pile on the floor between him and Susan. Meanwhile, a small chaos ensued as everyone emptied the table as much as possible, leaving their materials on the sofa, on the coffee table and even on the bookshelves. "Petition for it not to be Peter. His handwriting is appalling."

"Perhaps," Susan intervened before her brother could begin their usual quarrelling, "Us girls should be in charge of that. We are much neater after all."

"Plus," Lucy added innocently. "We can do more than one thing at once. Like think and write."

"Nice," Edmund rolled his eyes moodily.

Lucy stuck her tongue as she and Beth laughed. "Thank you."

"Children," Peter intervened gently, smirking when all Beth, Edmund and Lucy glared at him. "We need to move on if we want to fit all of our schedules today. We have the audiences after all."

Edmund moaned almost in disgust. "Remind me again why do we all have to sit through the endless audience?"

"We need to be united in front of Narnians and Telmarines," Beth replied patiently while the others groaned in exasperation. After all, it wasn't the first time this discussion was taking place. "We can take turns after but now, they need to know that they have our attention."

"Speaking of which," Caspian intervened while Beth comforted a moody Edmund. "Have we decided who the members of our Council are going to be?"

"I still think Trumpkin, Trufflehunter and Glenstorm should be the Narnian ones," Lucy argued with a shrug. "Without Trumpkin we would have never reached you and Beth. Without Trufflehunter, Caspian, you wouldn't have survived and Beth, who knows where you would have ended up without Glenstorm. They've been the most loyals to us."

"Still, we would be naming our favourite Narnians as members of the Council," Peter frowned as he leaned back on his chair. "It wouldn't be a positive sign for those against us."

"So we are going to name people we don't know to please people who would be displeased with us regardless?"

"I agree with Lucy," Susan interjected. "We need to think of those who would bring the most insight into the future decision' making."

"So there would be seven spots for the Council?" Beth asked. "Three for the Narnians, three for the Telmarines, with me as High Lady?"

For a long moment, utter silence was made as the other five exchanged hesitant glances, all of them wanting to reach the too-long ignored subject, yet all of them fearful of the reaction. Finally, it was Caspian the one who succumbed to the glares thrown at him by the other four.

"Or," Caspian began, coughing nervously before smiling his most charming smile. "You could be Queen."

Beth sighed. The dreaded moment had come but at least, it was finally spoken instead of poorly hidden. "Caspian, you don't want me to be Queen."

"Of course I do. I would have died countless times if it wasn't for you," Caspian retorted.

"Of course you don't have to do anything you don't want to," Edmund gently intervened as he reached to clutch his girlfriend's hand in a reassuring manner. "But Narnians and Telmarines, they would see the coronation of Caspian and you as the unity of both folks. You two saved Narnia and I know you don't believe this, but you are ready to lead them."

"I don't want to fail anyone," Beth admitted, her voice small.

"Well, you will."

"Nice, Peter," Susan deadpanned while the others laughed. "Way to help."

"But it's true," Peter replied before smiling at Beth. "You will fail because you're human. Just like we failed thousands of times while we lived in Cair Paravel. But truthfully, Beth, after everything life's thrown at you, being able to fail like any normal person should bring you endless comfort, wouldn't you agree?"

At Beth's hesitant smile, Lucy rushed to grab her other hand. "Think about it and let us know. We will be okay with whatever you decide."

Beth nodded her thanks before gesturing at Caspian. "What about the Telmarine members of the Council?"

"Well, I think both Lords Robertson should take two of those spots. They were here to protect the Telmarines while the others left to fight, Caspian began, his voice strengthening as the others nodded in agreement. "On the other hand, I've been hearing rumours about Miraz's campaign to get rid of my father's loyal followers. Today, I received confirmation."

Susan frowned. "Confirmation?"

"There were seven lords, members of my father's council and his most trusted advisors," Caspian explained as he rose from his seat. He grabbed a map he had left propped up against the coffee table and took it back with him. As he sat again, he extended it, revealing a territory known to them all. "After my father's death and in order to get rid of any competition for the throne - until I became of age, of course -, he gave those seven lords the task of finding the edge of the world. Of course, none of them came back but Miraz recently received notification of Lord Bern's whereabouts here, in the Lone Islands. I would like to offer the last spot to him."

"The edge of the world," Edmund repeated, his eyes glimmering with excitement. "That sounds like a proper adventure. Do we know anything about it?"

"Well, if it is anything like the Earth, there isn't an edge at all," Susan commented practically. "We would just sail around the world and come back to Narnia."

"However, we are not in England," Lucy rushed to retort as usual when Susan got logical. "We are in Narnia."

"I'm just saying that it doesn't have to be anything exciting like water pouring over the edge and monsters waiting for those unlucky enough to fall."

"And I'm saying that just because England is what we know, it doesn't have to be like it."

"Girls," Peter intervened with a resigned sigh. "Let's get back to the point. Do we all agree with Caspian's proposition?"

When all of them nodded, Beth turned towards Lucy. "Lu, tell us about the tour."

"Well, so far I have categorized each city depending on the amount of damage brought to them during the war," Lucy began. She too extended a map across the table, revealing the different cities of Narnia painted in green, yellow or red. "Of course, those painted in red are the ones who have suffered the most so we should see about visiting them as soon as possible, maybe even having some of our guards go earlier to see what they are in need of."

"We should see about organizing rations to be delivered until after the coronation, at least," Beth nodded. "That way we can be of assistance before we are free to go."

"Well, there's also the issue of the Telmarines who don't want to stay here," Caspian reminded.

"Do we even have an option, though?" Peter frowned. "I mean, they should be free to come and go as they please but other than that, what can we do?"

"Aslan said he had a plan for them," Edmynd shrugged before turning towards Beth. "Do you know anything about it?"

Beth shook her head. "I have to talk to Him about other things, though. I will be sure to ask Him about this as soon as I have the chance."

"I will finalize the details once we get confirmation of Aslan's plan, then." Lucy rolled her map and smiled excitedly. "It's going to be a fascinating trip, getting to know Narnia again."

At that, everyone sobered up. For the Pevensies, getting to know Narnia once again was a privilege they had not dared to dream with. Narnia was their home and it would always be so, especially with Caspian and Beth in the picture. However, they still had an idea of Narnia in their minds that was completely different to the one they had seen their second time there. Narnia without Tumnus, without the Beavers, without Oreius and all of their other friends. Narnia without Cair Paravel, without its peace, without the calm they had come to associate with it.

It was still home, yet a home they barely recognized. And, though neither of them wanted to admit it, they feared that if they got to know their country again, they would once again be asked to leave.

And it was that which haunted the six friends. They had gotten used to working together and, before they realized it, they had become family. But they all remembered that once their work was done centuries ago, Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy were forced to leave. The idea of the group being torn apart, perhaps for good, was one they couldn't stomach.

"Well, since we are all in the mood, I have something to propose," Caspian finally broke the tense silence. He squeezed Susan's hand with a small smile before grabbing another map, this one propped up against his chair.

"What is it?" Peter asked, frowning with trepidation as he noticed the excited smiles in Edmund's and Lucy's faces. Meanwhile, Susan and Beth looked on in silent interest.

"I have been thinking a lot of the image of unity we need to give our subjects," Caspian began, the map cradled closely to his chest. "What you and Ed told me a few weeks ago, about how actions are the ones that matter to make them trust us."

"The truth is that this castle is not my home anymore and truthfully, I don't think many would disagree with me. This is the place where we lost great numbers to the raid, this is the place where my ancestors carried on their oppressive methods," Caspian shook his head, his gaze burdened as he glanced at each of his friends. "We cannot stay here. Not us, those who are supposed to rule a peaceful Narnia."

"What do you suggest then?" Susan asked softly.

Caspian glanced at Beth before extending the map across the table. "Cair Paravel was a beacon of hope and unity for Narnia during the Golden Age. It was the place in which Narnians felt safe. And it was where Aslan was rumoured to return once all we had of the old Narnia were its stories. I propose we build Cair Paravel again."

For a second no one spoke.

Edmund and Lucy had heard of Caspian's plans earlier but not even that could prevent them from staring at the map of Cair Paravel with longing and melancholy. Peter and Susan too, their fears of having to return to Narnia quelled by the hope this plan gave them.

Beth, on the other hand, smiled at Caspian before squeezing Edmund's and Lucy's hands.

"Do we all agree?" She called softly, her voice slightly hoarse with the emotion.

And, as they all nodded, their hearts brightened as that flicker of hope became as strong as a flame.

oOo

As soon as the meeting was over, Beth ran out of that room, out of those halls, as far as she could outside of that castle to think.

The pressure of having people depend on her, of having to decide sooner rather than later about her future, of having to carve one of the most important paths of her life was too oppressing while inside the walls of the castle.

So, she ended up by the private gardens, traditionally reserved for the Royal Family. With rushed, almost agitated movements, Beth practically ran through the luscious green clearing. She ignored the beauty of the place, one that would have amazed her had it been a better time, and instead chose to sit with her back to the trunk of the biggest tree, hoping its shadow would hide her from any possible passerby.

Almost instinctively, her eyes shut close as her mind seemed to race even faster, her arms pulling her legs close to her chest.

And then, almost without willing to, she prayed.

"Aslan," Beth whispered urgently. "I need your help."

"I'm always here, Dear One. Even when it doesn't seem like it."

Startled, Beth opened her eyes. "I wasn't sure you were going to appear. You have many responsibilities, after all."

"None of them more pressing than helping my daughter," Aslan sat on his hind legs, His warm eyes glowing comfortingly. "What can I do?"

"It isn't so much as doing but rather...there's a lot in my mind," Beth began slowly, frustrated at herself as her mind seemed to work too fast for her to process her feelings in order to transmit them to Aslan. "Everyone thinks I should become Queen. Of course they've left the choice to me but Aslan, it's too complicated. I don't know how I am supposed to make this choice!"

"How is it complicated?"

Beth sighed, her head hanging slightly in shame. "I can see how it would be a sensible move. If I became Queen, then both Narnians and Telmarines would be represented within the Crown. I love my people and I love Narnia so, if me being Queen was a good idea, then I would agree without hesitation."

"But you don't think it's a good idea," Aslan stated calmly.

At that, Beth raised hastily from her place on the floor, her frustration too great for her to remain still. "You say you have been keeping a close eye on my life. Therefore, you know why I am hesitating. Not only do I know literally nothing about my true identity but also, the man I thought was my former father is now hunting me down, I'm carrying poison within me and, let's not forget, I'm not even a legal adult!"

"Nor where the Kings and Queens of Old when I crowned them," Aslan counteracted easily. "Still, they led Narnia into the Golden Age."

"You know that's not the point."

"What I know is that everything you have said are things brought onto you, not caused by you," Aslan continued. "Everything that's happened, everything you are dealing with, it doesn't define you. You're bigger than it."

Beth faltered for a second, her heart stilling as she took in Aslan's words.

'You're bigger than it.'

That was her fear. That her heritance, her identity, were bigger than her own person. To hell with what people might think but at the same time, she refused to have people trust her blindly just because her father was Aslan.

Shaking her head, Beth raised her arms in an agitated manner. "It still matters! Or are you saying there's a way to stop Jack from coming after me? And that only if the poison doesn't kill me first!"

"There's a way, Dear One. To fix both things."

Beth froze. "What?"

Aslan's gaze was serious, burdened by the heaviness of the topics pending discussion. "Walk with me."

Aslan rose, heading to more secluded parts of the garden and, without hesitation, Beth raced after Him. As they walked, they were studying their surroundings carefully but there was no one there but themselves. No sounds but the paws of Aslan lightly brushing the blades of grass below them, the flowing skirts of Beth's dress brushing against the ground, and the birds chirping above them.

"As you know, the Crown Prince of Archenland, Tor, has been captured under Tash's orders," Aslan began gravelly.

"I'm aware," Beth managed to hiss, her anger at her brother Torin too great to simmer down completely. "Have you found more information?"

"As a matter of fact, I have." Aslan nodded. "I have followed Jack's footsteps, actually. I believe he is keeping Tor on the inside of a mountain by Narnia's Northern border. This mountain contains a portal between this world and Tash's, very alike the one you saw in the How."

"So Jack hasn't left, after all." Beth felt herself deflating, her hope exploding into ashes and leaving nothing but despair behind. "What about the cure for the poison inside me?"

"As you know, Lucy's cordial didn't work," Aslan replied. "That doesn't mean that potion won't work. What you need is the flower from which that cordial came. The flower contains a juice much more intense than the one Lucy has. It will cure you."

"And where is that flower?" Beth asked, her question only met with silence. As she realized what that meant, Beth stopped walking. "No. Don't tell me-."

"Jack knew of this." Aslan admitted almost sorrowfully. "So he stole one of the plants containing these flowers, burning the others. He has now hidden the last plant in that mountain, along with Tor."

"It's a trap then." Beth moaned anxiously. "He won't stop until he kills me."

"How are you feeling?" Aslan asked softly. "Have you noticed any changes with the poison? Any discomfort or pain?"

"I haven't," Beth shook her head. Her hands drifted towards her stomach, hugging it tenderly. "In fact, I have been feeling stronger than usual every time I use my powers, as if that poison's fuelling me."

"Your mother had the same ability to use weaknesses to her advantage. She was never poisoned, of course, but she had the skill to take bad or evil things and force them to give her strength."

"My mother," Beth began slowly, hesitant to ask her next question.

"You can ask me about it, Dear One." Aslan reminded her kindly. "I did promise I would tell you everything."

Beth gulped nervously. "Who is she? Does she know I'm here?"

"Your mother actually wrote to you, Beth. During the years we spent apart, she wrote to you about her life and about her own so, when you were ready, you could know more about us and about yourself." Aslan said. "I believe you're ready now. A chest with the letters is waiting for you in your room."

"Letters," Beth repeated with awe. She was barely conscious of the tears falling down her cheeks. "I can't believe someone wrote to me! To think that, all this time, I've been writing to my brother Robin with no idea I would receive letters as well."

"Speaking of Robin," Aslan replied, a glint in his golden eyes. "I believe you will need a companion for when you leave to find Tor."

Beth never replied. Not with words, at least. Overcome with emotion, for the first time since she encountered Aslan, she allowed herself to let go of her control and hugged the Great Lion fiercely, her shoulders shaking with ecstatic sobs.

oOo

Any writer will understand the thrill of getting to an especially good part of a story.

For Edmund, the Revolution wasn't precisely a good part of his story - it couldn't be with all the death and fear it entailed - but it was still one he cherished. It was during his time in the How that he was entrusted with the challenge of helping his people after hundreds of years of repression and genocide. It was when he learned the value of himself not as a King admired by thousands, but as a leader ready to give his own life for his people. It was when he found himself again after a year of heartbreak and wondering in England.

And of course, Caspian. And Beth. He wasn't really sure where he would be without them, for the weight they implied in his own life - looking at it in retrospective - seemed too great to be measured.

So, all in all, the Revolution was important to him. As such, Edmund had been impatient to finish writing his records of the Golden Age. Meetings, training sessions and battles aside, Edmund had managed to finish writing down the fifteen years of the reign of the Kings and Queens of Old so, as they moved into the Telmarine Castle in preparation for Caspian's coronation, Edmund had also moved onto the tales of their second journey to Narnia.

Of course, he was perfectly aware of the year they'd spent in Narnia. That year, like most dreaded parts of a good story, were also needed, because a story can't be good if the good and the bad days don't counteract one another. He knew he would have to get to it, he knew he would have to deal with every single moment of angst, doubt and excruciating pain he'd endured during that wretched time in England.

He knew.

But, he couldn't. Call it writer's block, over-indulgence or simply a self-protection' manoeuvre but, after having saved Narnia and currently awaiting for a word from Aslan as to what his future was, he needed to move on to happier days of his life.

So, he wrote. He wrote about the Brave High Peter, the Warrior Queen Susan, the Cunning King Edmund and the Saviour Queen Lucy. He wrote about the impressions they had of this new Narnia, the friends they made, the importance each of them had in the Revolution. He wrote about the new character of their people, of the way the Narnians had refused their own extinction for countless generations. He wrote about the endless courage of those who faced their deaths during that fateful raid. He wrote and wrote and wrote about the Narnia he loved, the Narnia he was seeing right before his eyes, finally after a torturous time back home.

He wrote and, at some point, the goal of his writing changed.

While in England, he had picked up his writing in order to remember. He needed to remember every single detail about the golden country he'd once known. He wrote to cope. He wrote to find a way to be strong, even as all of his siblings crumbled onto the ground. So, as Peter snapped, Susan broke down and Lucy darkened with despair, he wrote. He wrote, he remembered, and he survived.

Now, he wrote for Beth.

He needed her to know what he thought of her. How she had come to save Narnia and had ended up saving him as well. How, in spite of his mistakes, of hers, of every drama, every ounce of fear, every uncertainty when it came to the future, she'd met a young man who was merely surviving and had turned him into a man who lived, for himself and for others.

So, he wrote. He wrote about the magical Princess Elizabeth, who had changed everything for Archenland before travelling to Narnia to help a friend. He wrote about the Princess who refused to give up on her hope for the Narnians and with that, helped the Narnians feel hope as well. He wrote about the girl who had been fighting for survival her entire life, and who found a home and a family in the How. He wrote about the girl who questioned her importance, yet quickly became an essential piece in his family. He wrote about the girl who had been born to be Queen, yet who had never thought about wearing the crown. He wrote, he remembered, and he fell in love with her all over again.

He'd always thought the process of writing down their second journey to Narnia would be short in comparison to his memoir of fifteen years as King Edmund the Just but, maybe because the topic was one he was deeply invested in, he couldn't seem to put an end on the amount of words he wanted, needed to write down.

So, every moment in which he could sit down in his private study, a steaming cup of tea beside him, books on the history of Narnia piled up around him and his leather journal opened right before him, the windows behind him opened to allow the wind and the chirping of the birds fill the room, those were moments he always cherished.

Until he was interrupted, of course.

"My dear Edmund," Caspian began as he unceremoniously entered the room, Susan in tow. "I need to ask a favour of you."

"No."

Withholding from giggling as Caspian frowned rather petulantly, Susan crossed her arms with a knowing glint in her eyes. "I told you, Caspian. Once Edmund gets into writing there's no way to get him to do anything else."

Edmund looked up briefly with a frown. "How did you know I'm writing?"

Susan fixed him with an unimpressed stare. "Really, Ed. What else do you do here?"

"Um, work?"

Ignoring them, Caspian took a couple of long strides towards Edmund. Then, he pulled back one of the chairs by the other side of the Just King's desk and plopped himself on it, Susan following his lead in a much more graceful manner. "Ed, I need you to convince Beth."

With an exasperated sigh, Edmund looked down once again towards his journal, rereading the last sentence to get into the mood again. "No."

"You know as well as I do that she has to be Queen," Caspian insisted, undeterred by Edmund's refusal. "She has done so much for Narnia and she is the daughter of Aslan. C'mon, Ed, if you can't convince her then no one can."

"Well, maybe I shouldn't, then." Edmund snapped moodily. Realizing he wasn't going to regain the inspiration any time soon, he rested his back against his chair with pursed lips. "She doesn't have to do anything. She will make her own choices and we will respect them, whatever they might be."

"I see you've been taught well," Susan quipped in with a proud smile.

"I've learned the hard way, Su, there's a difference." Edmund snorted against his will before focusing on the Telmarine Prince again. "Look, Cas, we all know Beth would be an amazing Queen but we need to remember that, while you've been taught how to be a King all your life, she's spent most of her own surviving. She will be excellent at leading, but that doesn't mean she's ready for it. Don't push her."

"Well, it's not like I have all the time in the world." Caspian rebutted anxiously. "After all, the coronation is in two weeks."

"She can be crowned later," Edmund simply replied.

"It wouldn't be the same though," Susan intervened gently. "I agree that we need to give her time but the ideal would be to crown Caspian and Beth in the same ceremony."

"Well, we'll see whether she changes her mind, then." Edmund replied before standing up, eager to be on his own again. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to continue writing."

Caspian opened his mouth, ready to argue but in that moment, the door opened once again, allowing Beth to enter the room.

"Beth!" Edmund exclaimed, his body automatically rounding the desk so he could get closer to her. He smiled as Beth snuggled herself to him. "I thought you were taking a walk?"

"I did, as a matter of fact." Beth pulled away from Edmund to hug Susan and Caspian as well. "I needed to talk to Aslan."

"Aslan," Caspian breathed with awe, as he did every time he heard His name after meeting Him. Then, he realized the meaning of those words and beamed with excitement. "Wait, does that mean-."

"Cas, wait. Let me speak first." Beth walked towards the window, closing it before sitting on the windowsill. "First, I need to apologize to you for being such a pain in the ass with this whole coronation thing."

"Don't you dare apologize," Edmund immediately shook his head firmly. "No one expected you to rush into anything."

"You wouldn't be you if you didn't think things through," Caspian added, his voice light with anticipation. Though Beth had given no answer yet, he couldn't help but hope that she was at least thinking about the possibility.

"We were just talking about it, in fact." Susan intervened as well. "You shouldn't be forced to decide or do anything you don't want to."

"Thank you. I still think I was an insufferable idiot but I'll let it slide for now," Beth chuckled lightly before her bottom lip nervously. "I talked to Aslan about a lot of things, including the coronation. I realized that I had two main concerns or issues when it came to being Queen. One of them being that I don't want to be crowned simply because of who my father is. Maybe I'm being self-centered or I'm worrying about things that simply don't matter in comparison to the big picture but I don't want my father's identity to have anything to do with what I do in life."

"It doesn't, though." Edmund intervened, his brows furrowed with focus. "You know that, right? Who your father is, it's part of your identity but that is only one factor. You are so much bigger than that and if you're Queen, you'll be great at it because of you, not because of your father."

"I know that now," Beth replied with an adoring smile. "But I still worried that our people would think that. Which brings me to the fact that I can prove to them that I'm not only my father's daughter. I can continue working as hard as I worked while we were in The How and I'll be able to prove myself. Fortunately, I'm not afraid of working, however hard it may be."

A long moment of silence ensued while the other three processed everything Beth said, and everything she had chosen to leave unsaid. All of the fears she had mentioned before, which she had apparently chosen to defeat. The final decision had also been said by implication, one they secretly knew she would get to, for she cared about her people above everything.

So, Susan looked at her with pride, Edmund looked at her with pure adoration and Caspian, who was slowly raising to his feet, beamed with relief and gratitude.

"So that means?" Caspian finally asked.

"You're right, A Telmarine King and a Narnian Queen crowned in the same ceremony will be ideal to unite our people," Beth replied, her hand rubbing the back of her neck. "There's much I need to deal with, still, and I will discuss it with all of you once everything dies down but I'll be crowned. I'll be Queen Elizabeth."

As Caspian cheered loudly before going to find Peter and Lucy, Susan following him, Edmund went towards Beth and hugged her fiercely.

"I'm so proud of you," Edmund muttered as he buried his face in the golden cascade that was her hair.

Beth pulled back slightly with a smile, her arms still around his frame. "Because I'll be Queen?"

"Because you are trusting yourself to do a good job," Edmund corrected, his smile widening as Beth blushed.

"It's not that I'm trusting myself but rather that, when it comes to this, I cannot fail." Beth sheepishly replied before smiling. "But I'm getting there. To trust myself, I mean. With your help. I promise I am."

"I love you," Edmund simply replied. He kissed her temple before straightening again. "Wait, what do you need to deal with?"

"Well, there's a lot. But one of those things, I was hoping you could do with me after our first date tonight." Beth smiled suggestively, laughing when Edmund blushed. "My mother actually wrote me letters, just like I'm writing to Robin. Aslan left them for me in my room."

"After our date then," Edmund smiled before leaning down to catch her lips into a longing, deep kiss that left them breathless. "That sounds like a plan."

oOo

Though she knew she wasn't a prisoner per se, not yet, Prunaprisma hadn't left her quarters since the moment Caspian and his committee made it to the Telmarine Castle.

Not only was she aware of how heavily people watched her every move but also, there just wasn't anything of comfort outside of the rooms she knew like the back of her hand.

Her husband was dead. Her people had lost. Narnia was undergoing tremendous change, so much that the Telmarine Queen didn't know what the future looked like anymore.

As a member of the highest rank within the Telmarine society, Prunaprisma had learned to live a life ruled by comforts, by privilege. And, sooner rather than later, she'd come to realize privilege was often related to predictability, in the sense that whatever her heart desired, her life would provide for her.

Now, now she wasn't really sure of what to do.

Whatever life brought to her, Prunaprisma however knew one thing.

She knew he was coming. She didn't know when but sooner rather than later, he would be there to talk to her.

If only she knew what to say.

She stared out of the window of her bedroom, her eyes seemingly dead as they stared at the distant forest with an unfeeling expression, all of this a stark contrast to the high level of activity in her mind. Her body was frozen, even as the cold wind that reached her through the window caused her arms to unconsciously hug her body. Her breath was controlled and even, forbidding even one ounce of panic to seep through her. She needed to think, she needed to relay on her mind - her greatest asset - to carve a way for her to survive. In a world in which everything she'd once known had exploded, leaving her and her son as the only survivors, she needed to know, to be sure of her every step.

She needed to think.

Still, how could she hope to justify her decisions? Now that the war was over, now that countless deaths had been registered by both sides, now that they had finally figured out that there was a way for Telmarines and Narnians to live together in peace, how the hell could she hope to support her actions?

In the face of everything she'd lost, how could she hope to argue - even to herself - why winning had been so important?

Three swift knocks against the wooden door of her room suddenly resonated, effectively breaking the silence that enveloped her and snapping her out of her thoughts with a jolt.

Prunaprisma closed her eyes, wishing for them to go away. She wasn't ready yet. She didn't have anything to say, yet.

"...Queen Prunaprisma...may I come in?"

Taking a deep breath, Prunaprisma retreated from the window and took a seat on the sofa besides her son's crib. She looked at the innocent, beautiful baby for a long moment, knowing that if she didn't find enough strength in anything else, she would find it in him. At last, after what seemed a tensioned, expectant eternity, Prunaprisma straightened in her seat and folded her hands neatly on her lap. "You may."

It took him a moment, but he complied.

Caspian entered slowly, almost warily, as if he had been expecting a sort of attacker behind the closed door. His royal clothes were forest green, a fashion Prunaprisma guessed he had adopted from the Narnians. He wore no crown, but his head was held high, pride and ease allowing him to stand straight.

In that moment, Prunaprisma wondered what she would have seen in him had she paid more attention to him in the past. She wondered what sort of life could they have had, had she allowed herself to love her nephew, had her nephew had a motherly figure in her life. She wondered whether Caspian would have turned just like his father and those before him, or whether he would have influenced her, making her betray the life she knew and cherished.

Regardless of that, Prunaprisma could see there was a change in him. He would always be the little kid who had to take care of himself, at least in her eyes, but now, now she could see that while he was as independent as they come, there was a calm glint in his eyes, one related to knowing oneself to be cared for and loved.

She knew Caspian had to be close to the Kings and Queens of Old but she never imagined their bond to be so tight.

Prunaprisma couldn't help but be jealous. If only she could find a home like Caspian apparently had.

Caspian stood by the door, his posture stiff, reluctant to go further. His eyes hovered in her vicinity, not quite laying on her figure, even as he directed himself to her. "Your trial is going to take place in three days' time. I'm aware you've chosen to stay in your quarters until then, which is a fine choice. I shall place a couple of guards by the entrance, should you or your son need anything until then."

Prunaprisma nodded, her posture the regal one she'd mastered over the years. She opened her mouth to reply but just then, her son began to fuzz in his crib. She could see that Caspian's eyes widened, almost as if he had forgotten about the third person in the room.

Still, Prunaprisma didn't miss a beat. She swiftly took her son in her arms and looked at Caspian with gravity. "Thank you, Caspian. I don't suppose you will be the judge?"

"That would hardly be wise, or appropriate. By marriage, I am your nephew, after all." Caspian's eyes were on his nephew but still, he managed to smile bitterly at the thought. "Aslan and King Edmund will be the judges."

"The Narnian King of Kings and the Just King of the Golden Age." Prunaprisma mused, forcing her voice to remain calm even as fear struck her heart. Suddenly, the prospect of her possible incarceration...or death was much more real. She looked at her son, forcing herself to breathe deeply until she could feel her heartbeat slowing down. "I suppose I should be satisfied. Whatever the outcome, I am being assured a fair trial. Who is going to stay with my son until it's over?"

Prunaprisma knew he understood the meaning of her words.

What would happen to her son, to the only innocent life she knew, should she die? Would he be okay? Could she really trust Caspian with that?

"If you have any preferences on that matter, I'll do my best to comply with them," Caspian replied, his eyes meeting hers for a second before they flitted back to the little baby in her arms. "In any case, he'll be safe and happy. No matter what."

Deep inside, Prunaprisma knew he was saying the truth. After all, he was different to his uncle or his father or any telmarine she'd come to know in her lifetime. He was a caring soul, not at all interested in power.

Should she die, she secretly knew her son's life wasn't going to be anything alike to Caspian's while he was under Miraz's supervision.

Still, she had to insist.

"Is he really?" Prunaprisma asked almost anxiously, meeting his gaze with concerned, widened eyes.

"Of course he is," Caspian almost snapped, seemingly offended by the implied accusation. "I'm not Miraz. Your son, he is innocent and he is my family. He is my cousin and therefore, we share the same blood. I'll protect him with my life if I have to."

Prunaprisma stared at him, almost studying the features of the nephew she had never come to know. Her lips pursed in a poor attempt to hide the growing lump in her throat as Caspian stared at her, willing for her to believe him.

With a start, Prunaprisma realized that Caspian didn't want for her to trust him because he had an ulterior plan. He needed her to trust him because what she implied, was so against his character.

And it was that dawning moment that made her smile, her character weakening completely as her eyes filled with unshed tears. "Would you want to hold your cousin, Caspian?"

Caspian gaped at her for a moment before he smiled, his posture relaxing at last. With hesitant steps, he marched across the room and sat by the couch in front of hers. "Yes. If you don't mind, of course."

Prunaprisma hesitated for a second. Of course she did. Her baby had never been held by anyone other than her. Even Miraz had only held him briefly, a moment so short that could be barely considered.

But, taking a leap of faith, Prunaprisma ignored her motherly fears and carefully handed her son to Caspian, immediately leaning back on her chair to study his reaction.

From the moment he held his cousin in his arms, he seemed to forget about her, choosing instead to cradle the baby's head carefully. He stared at the baby with a strange expression in his eyes, an emotional one, and one Prunaprisma knew she would have deciphered had she known Caspian better.

After a long moment, Caspian spoke, his voice hoarse with emotion, his accent thickened by it as a result. "It breaks my heart, to have met him under these circumstances."

Prunaprisma heard his words and, almost following the decision of some powerful entity, she knew her answer.

"I keep thinking of what life would have been to him, had I not chosen the side I chose." Prunaprisma spoke almost without thought. She ignored Caspian's surprised glance and instead chose to graze her fingers across the thin hair of her baby. "I have been taught to follow my husband's decisions regardless of the situation so I don't see how I could have chosen differently but I wonder... I don't have any option but to wonder, Caspian. If my son had been born under different circumstances, if I had... I used to be so sure that Miraz was right-."

"That Narnians deserve to be extinct, you mean?" Caspian cut her off, his gaze hardening with a heated glare.

"That the only way for Telmarines to survive is to live without any sort of competition," Prunaprisma countered calmly, watching as the glare disappeared of Caspian's features. "It all seemed so meaningful. The way he spoke, the way everyone spoke about you and your own, they made me so convinced that we would die if you didn't. They made the situation seem so drastic, so...grave. I now look at my fatherless son and I wonder what was this for. I wonder...if Miraz had won...whether we would have actually been safe. How could we be okay if we continued to choose war?"

"I could have turned exactly like him," Caspian admitted, his voice small as he carefully adjusted the covers around his cousin's little body. "If it wasn't for Professor Cornelius...what the Telmarine culture teaches us about war, that it is the only way for us to survive, it's not correct. It is an inaccurate knowledge, yet an easily believable one. We're taught to love war, and it is extremely hard to escape it."

"Have you escaped it?"

Caspian cocked his head thoughtfully. Not for the first time, he remembered when he returned to the How, and how much he ruined everything because of the drama related to his family. He could still feel the blade in his hand, the metal cold despite how much he'd used the blade throughout the night. He could still see Beth's widened eyes as he placed his silver blade against her pale throat. He could feel the cut his sword made against her neck, small drops of crimson blood dripping from it.

But then, he remembered that he had been against the raid. He remembered that he turned his life around, making amends and forming stronger bonds with his family as a result. He remembered the look in his uncle's eyes as he dropped his sword to the ground, refusing to take his life.

"I'm not sure yet," Caspian finally replied. "Maybe, with time, I will be able to say I have."

Prunaprisma leaned back against the back of her seat, her eyes cautious as they studied Caspian. Finally, she smiled thinly, barely noticeable unless paying attention. "You are nothing like your ancestors, Prince Caspian. I don't know whether it is your nature, or whether it is a result of what you've learned during your time apart. I wished I knew you better so I could have my answer."

"You don't have to say that," Caspian intervened, shaking his head firmly as his posture turned defensive. "You don't owe me anything."

"I know," Prunaprisma agreed easily, her smile widening a smidge as Caspian looked at her with surprise. "I'm saying this because I think you will be a better King than those before you. I wish I knew you better, so I could be proud of you."

Caspian gulped, smiling slightly as he passed the baby back to his mother. "In any case, I vow to live up to your expectations.

Prunaprisma shook her head. "Don't live up to mine. Live up to your people's expectations."

oOo

Adrien was the one who found Beth standing slightly apart from the closed doors of the Throne Room. The young centaur frowned, slowly edging towards his sister as he studied his posture. Months of constant living with her had made him understand her mannerisms quite proficiently.

Take for example, this moment. The young soon-to-be Queen had her hands united behind her back, her back straight as she stared into nothing. Her hair, curled into perfection, bounced down her back with every slight movement of her head. Her dress, navy blue, flowed gracefully as she stepped from the wall to the window and back again.

She was the embodiment of perfection, not one sign - for the untrained eye - of anything being under less than the most perfect of controls.

That, knowing Beth, usually meant she was about to lose it.

"Beth?" Adrien called as he neared her enough not to draw any attention to themselves. "Are you alright?"

"We never talked about announcing my coronation," Beth hurriedly explained, nodding as a group of court' members walked past her on their way to the Throne Room. Then, her eyes widened slightly in panic as they fell on her brother again. "I have to enter that room and tell a crowd composed of people who double my age that I'll be their Queen. They'll assume and I'm going to be Queen because of Aslan. What is that if not privilege?"

"Yes, it's your right but you know you are not being crowned because of that. Beth, please, I thought you knew this already," Adrien cocked his head worriedly. "You know you can do this. You have experienced in courts. You were already accustomed to the idea that you were going to be Queen of Archenland. How is this any different?"

"I have no idea." Beth admitted, freezing as she processed what Adrien had said. Then, she snorted lightly. "Gods, you're right. Of course you are. I'm being so stupid."

"You aren't being stupid," Adrien began, rolling his eyes when Beth fixed him with a glare. "Okay, maybe you are but it's a lot of pressure. Of course you need a minute."

Beth nodded and closed her eyes, taking a deep breath as she forced herself to calm down. As she felt her muscle relaxing inch by inch, she realized with incredible relief that her thoughts seemed clearer, not at all muddled. Almost with surprise, she felt the panic leaving her, having arrived so suddenly that she hadn't noticed it.

As her mind became clearer, she thought of Adrien, Robin and Tor. The Narnian brother who needed her. The English brother she would never forget. The Archenlandian brother she had to save.

And, as her nerves steeled, she wanted to laugh. She was carrying poison within her, for Aslan's sake. What was a small meeting in comparison to that?

"Okay," Beth smirked as she finally opened her eyes, ready for the upcoming battle. Her eyes twinkled as they fell on her brother. "Will you enter with me?"

Adrien blanched. "Are you sure?"

"You are the brother of the next Queen of Narnia, Adrien. That officially makes you a member of the Royal Family," Beth replied before nodding with her head towards the door. "C'mon, this should make for a really nice entrance."

oOo

If someone were to ask Edmund later, he would have unknowingly agreed with Beth.

It was an amazing entrance.

The large Throne Room, for the first time since its creation, was host to an infinite display of colour. The Narnians, while wearing colours as intense as the Telmarine ones, they also shone because of the cheerfulness of their clothes, making a stark contrast with the sobriety of the Telmarine ones.

The Telmarine Throne had been left unused and, instead, six chairs had been placed in a row by the bottom step of the stairs, four crowns on the seats, leaving the two chairs by the middle unoccupied.

The Kings and Queens of Old entered at the same time, drawing the already full room to silence. Undeterred, they walked across the room, nodding at their friends and acquaintances as they went. Susan and Lucy headed for the seats to the right, Peter and Edmund going for the ones to the left. Caspian sat between them, leaving the seat to his right for Beth.

Who, several minutes later, was nowhere to be seen.

Edmund was lazily studying the crowd before him, ignorant to whatever discussion Peter and Caspian were having next to him. Almost without warning, his thoughts began to drift away, farther and farther from the meeting, so far that, if asked, he wouldn't have been able to answer where they had gone.

And, at last, the doors opened one last time, the crowd growing silent once again.

Edmund could feel himself growing speechless, as always when Beth entered a room. A vision of golden and blue, Beth walked swiftly and without hesitation, Adrien right beside him. She smiled gracefully at the familiar faces around her but, as she took the final steps towards her friends, her smile turned apologetical.

"I apologize for the delay," Beth mumbled forcefully as she took a seat between Caspian and Susan. Adrien moved towards their right, standing as perfectly as any high-ranking military would have.

"It's okay," Caspian replied with a whisper before standing up, this time directing himself to the crowd before him. "Lords and Ladies, members of the court of Narnia, I thank you in the name of my family for being here. As you know, when I arrived here I spoke of my intentions as the next King of Narnia. I made a vow that day, a vow to make of Narnia a country in which Telmarines and Narnians could leave with equity, in peace, and in prosperity under a government that saw after their needs."

Knowing that was her cue, Beth stood up and took a few steps forward, her head held high even as she felt the countless stares. "In order to achieve this, my family and I have been working on the many measures we want to introduce in the next couple of days. For now, we have a few things we would like to announce. First of all, with the approval of my father Aslan, and the support of the Kings and Queens of Old and Prince Caspian, I shall no longer be the High Lady of this brand new court. In two weeks time, I shall be crowned alongside Caspian, taking my place as rightful Queen of Narnia."

Immediate whispering ensued as the different groups of members present turned towards one another, their faces framed with thoughtfulness as they processed the information. With relief, Beth realized there was no immediate rejection to the idea by the Telmarines hand, while the Narnians seemed ecstatic by the idea. Still, she remained standing, allowing the crowd to study her, to analyze her piece by piece until they could see she meant well.

And, at last, the questions began.

"I apologize...Your Highness," a lord in black clothes spoke loudly to make himself heard. He walked towards the front of the crowd and lay eyes on Beth with polite arrogance. "But a King and Queen ruling together without being husband and wife is something unheard of."

Beth smiled, forcing herself to ignore the chill of repulsion the idea of marrying Caspian gave her. She almost wanted to turn and look at the barely hidden horror she knew Caspian's face was featuring.

Instead, she nodded with understanding. "I understand, my lord, but it is not without precedent in the history of Narnia. You have the proof sitting on either side of me."

As the crowd looked at Peter, Susan, Edmund and Lucy with newfound interest, Edmund took the opportunity to stand, therefore allowing Beth to sit. "Equality must exist in every aspect of the law and the government. While new measures will surely come, for the state must be in permanent adaptation to its reality, there are some we have already decided. As such, we will now announce the new lords of the Narnian Counsel."

"Trufflehunter, Trumpkin, Glenstorm," Peter called with his most regal voice as he stood besides his brother. His posture was commanding, his voice as serene as the sea on a clear day. "You have our endless gratitude for your actions during times of need and for your friendship during the darkest days. We would like you to join our counsel as the Narnian Representatives."

Once the three of them bowed in gratitude, Caspian stood beside Peter and addressed the crowd as well. "Lords Robertson, please advance."

Once the twins bowed down before their Prince, Caspian continued. "Your loyalty to my father is one that never wavered and that, plus the defiance you showed to my uncle's doings were paramount in assuring the safety of the Telmarines. During the war, your focus was with the people, and that is something I will never forget. We would like you to join our counsel as Telmarine Representatives."

While Lord Darrhen bowed down his head in gratitude, Lord Geon rose hesitantly, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I apologize, Your Highness, but isn't there supposed to be another Telmarine representative for the council? In order for things to be equal, as you claimed."

Caspian nodded in agreement. "There should be, Lord Geon, and I have a candidate in mind. As a representative of the seven lords who were sent on a suicide mission by Miraz due to their loyalty towards my late father, I will offer the remaining seat to Lord Bern, who is rumoured to have settled in the Lone Islands."

As the twin lords clapped, now the Narnians joined by the Telmarines as they applauded the decisions taken by their leaders, a Telmarine officer made his way through the crowd, his hazel eyes lit with aggravation as he walked. Usually, he wouldn't have been noticed but there was something about him, something about his powerful stance or maybe even the stark contrast between the barely held anger in his features and the joyful atmosphere around him, but he was noticed by the royals.

When Captain Solano finally stood by the front of the crowd, he found that High King Peter and Prince Caspian had already turned towards him. Behind them, Queen Susan and Queen Lucy were regarding him with carefulness, while Princess Elizabeth and King Edmund unconsciously gripped the armrests of their seats as they felt the tension increase.

"I apologize, Your Graces," Captain Solano spoke, his eyes on Peter and Caspian, occasionally flicking towards Edmund. He refused to acknowledge the girls at all, even as they leaned forward to listen. "But it seems as if not only the Council will have fewer Telmarine than Narnian members until this Lord Bern is found but also, that we are supposed to accept a woman to be our Queen. If I may be so bold, it seems as if, for everything you've done to bring equality, you haven't really given us Telmarines much reassurance of a prosperous future."

The effect was instant.

As whispers erupted once again, with Narnians looking on with concern as their beloved leaders were attacked, the Telmarines listened with a mixture of concern and alarm. For once, they had long forgotten what a peaceful, prosperous Narnia was. Under Miraz's reign, and even that of Caspian IX, the government had set their priorities on the warfare and the risk of international conflicts, setting most of their resources towards the Telmarine army.

The truth of the matter was that the commoners had suffered. They cared not for policies, or for who deserved to be King or not. They cared for their safety and their happiness. They wanted to live in a Narnia where they wouldn't see their lives affected by war. Sure, war was something Telmarines cherished and understood more than mostly everything else. Still, there was a difference between being good at something and actually enjoying it. And, after 1300 years of watching one power hungry King after looking after their own interests, they were tired of losing everyone and everything they loved for something as theoretical as power.

After all, it was always power for the King, never for the people.

At the same time, they couldn't help but to worry as they processed Captain Solano's words. If these new Kings and Queens didn't care as much for the Telmarines as they did for the Narnians, then would they really be okay? Or were they doomed to be ignored once again?

By the chairs lined up, the Royals weren't unaffected either. Edmund only remained sitting due to Peter's restraining hand on his shoulder. Caspian tensed, offended by Solano's words towards his sister, and also worried about what his words would cause to the people, especially those who were still unconvinced by the good heart of the royals. By his right, Susan, Lucy and Adrien all frowned, taking personal offence by Solano's demeaning words.

However, the one who actually replied was Beth.

Unfazed, she stood, silently enjoying as the crowd fell into utter silence, taking the newest developments with interest. Still, she ignored them, choosing instead to regard Captain Solano almost with expectancy. "Captain Solano, tell me. How long has it taken for you to become Captain of the Telmarine army?"

Captain Solano straightened, raising an eyebrow in puzzlement. "Five years, roughly."

"And that period in which you waited, it didn't come without the effort you had to make, the sacrifices you had to do to prove you were worthy of advancing in your calling."

"Of course," Solano replied, his voice heightening as he frowned angrily, offended that a woman would doubt his efforts.

"I understand and I commend you for your efforts," Beth replied calmly. She smiled for a small second before climbing down the step to stand on level ground with the Telmarine. "I am not a woman of war. However, I understand it. I understand the knack for strategy, the cunning mind and the ability to make decisions a person must have in order to win. I do not know of your life or your struggles, Captain Solano, but I understand the instinct for survival, which is the one that makes me respect and admires you and your culture completely."

Captain Solano faltered with surprise. "I- Thank you, My Lady."

"Now, I ask you to respect me in return, even if you do not trust me just yet," Beth continued, her face no longer cheerful but severe. Her head held high, her eyes hardened with determination, she began to walk slowly towards the young captain. "I understand that your culture does not accept a woman as Queen, not one who actually makes decisions. And, Captain Solano, you don't know me yet so I do not nor will I expect you to trust my abilities this soon. However, I will say this. There's been several Queens before me who made their countries a better place. Queens Susan and Lucy are a perfect example of that. After me, several Queens will rise to the throne, and will continue a legacy of peace and equality. My gender does not prevent me from doing my job to the best of my ability. It is my mind and my instincts that give me the skill to do good by my people. It is by my father that I am the true heir to the Narnian heir but you are a part of Narnia as well. Therefore, I will be your Queen and I will do good by you. I urge you to remember that."

"How can words give me any reassurance?" Solano retaliated. "How can it give reassurance to any of us."

"I suggest you start listening to me, and to my family as we announce the measures we decide to improve our people's lives," Beth replied. She finally stood a few feet before the captain and, undeterred by the fact that she was a few inches shorter than him, she held his gaze with utter confidence. "When it comes to me, whether you listen to me or not, I suggest you wait until you see me in action. They will prove my character in a way my words cannot."

And, as Captain Solano bowed down his head and retreated, Peter whispered. "I am so glad we decided to attend the first audiences together. This was fun."

Beside him, Edmund barely held himself from glowering. "I want him fired. The nerve of that man."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Calm down, lover boy. Beth clearly needs no bodyguard."

"We need to be careful, though," Caspian intervened, his eyes fixed on the audience before him. "Captain Solano voiced his insecurities. That doesn't mean some of the Telmarines here won't choose to keep quiet while they plot against us."

Peter nodded, watching as the first commoner who had requested an audience entered the room. "Let's just hope it's not too late to change their minds."

oOo

Beth sat slowly on her throne, her hands slowly feeling the clear, smooth marble. Her eyes were down as she slowly took in her position, what it meant for her to be there. Now that she was sure of her choice, the duty given to her was relatively nice, in the sense that it gave her a sense of purpose completely unrelated to herself or her own family drama.

But then, she glanced at the seats to her right.

When she finally looked at Lucy and Adrien, who stood by the first row of the seats with identical proud smiles, she did so with a frown. "This isn't right."

Adrien snorted with amusement. "I knew it! Pay up, Lu."

Lucy made a face at Adrien before facing Beth with her hands in her hips. "It's perfect. If you weren't so humble, you would see it for yourself."

"I don't know if humble is the word I'd choose," Beth muttered under her breath,withholding a smirk as Lucy merely sighed in exasperation.

As Lucy focused on her current task - comparing the arranged seats with the confirmations to the invitations they'd sent, Beth allowed herself to sink into her thoughts once again, her eyes wandering across the mesmerizing sight around her.

Rather than having the coronation in the grim Throne Room, they had chosen an old banquet room for the coronation, arranging to fit the grand occasion. By the platform where the Royal Family had its meals whenever they hosted a party, they had arranged six marble thrones, reminiscent to those the Kings and Queens of Old sat on in Cair Paravel, yet featuring Telmarine traits such as the golden birds depicted across their backrests.

Behind them the wall was made entirely of glass, so they would be assured plenty of sunlight during the ceremony. Facing the thrones, hundreds of chairs had been placed for the diplomats and leaders that would come to attend the rise of the new King and Queen.

Ignoring the feeling of grandiosity the room gave her, Beth focused on Lucy again. "You and Su are older than me. You are the Queens of Old."

Lucy turned towards her with clear annoyance. "Your point?"

"My point is that I shouldn't be in the middle! That's the place of the High Queen!"

"Which you will be!" Lucy finally bursted, causing Beth to jump on her seat and Adrien, who had been busy trying to glimpse under the silver trays countless maids were parading as they headed for the room where all food for the celebration was to be inspected for approval, almost tripped over thin air.

Sighing, Lucy sat besides Beth. "Look, I'm sorry for scaring you but really, how did,'t you see this coming? My siblings and I' we've ruled already. Once a King or Queen, always a King or Queen...but Beth, our time has passed. If we get to stay, then we count ourselves blessed but it's your turn to make a new, better Narnia. Yours and Caspian. Not ours."

Beth slowly nodded as she made peace with this new information. "Were you planning on telling me anytime soon?"

"Of course!" Lucy replied, smiling innocently when Beth glared at her. "Sometime before the coronation. When you had no chance of refusing."

"Nice," Beth snarkily replied, not being able to hide her laugh. "So I was feared by my own family."

"In a healthy way, I promise." Lucy joined in, relieved that Beth seemed to take the information well enough.

"If it helps," Adrien intervened as he left his position by the door to walk to his sister. "I'm not afraid of you."

"Don't speak too soon," Beth replied, smiling excitedly as a thought crossed her mind."

Adrien faltered in his steps, his eyes widening comically as he paled. "Oh, no. What are you thinking about?"

Beth stood and walked towards Adrien. As she arrived next to her brother, she wrapped an arm around him and nodded at Lucy. "I will be High Queen if Adrien places the crown on my head."

"Like did for us," Lucy sighed melancholically. "What a fitting tradition."

"So now I have to stand before hundreds of people." Adrien huffed moodily. "I hate you both."

Beth laughed and walked again towards her throne. She sat on it and rested her chin on a small, slender hand.

Lucy crossed her arms expectantly. "What are you thinking about?"

"About Captain Solano," Beth mused quietly. "I haven't been able to stop thinking about his words."

Adrien scoffed. "You should. That man was rude and mean to you."

"I know but...he doesn't know me," Beth replied. She straightened with a shrug. "He didn't live with me for weeks. What if he is right? What if we need to do more for our people? What if our actions aren't enough?"

Lucy and Adrien looked at each other, not having to speak to know both feared their beloved friend and sister had lost her mind. Finally, the first one turned towards the Narnian Princess. "What do you suggest?"

"That we give them power to decide about their own lives," Beth replied bluntly. "Who are we to decide everything for them, after all? They should be represented."

oOo

Unknown to them, the boys were having a similar conversation by the training grounds.

Edmund and Peter stood side by side, their arms crossed as they regarded a shocked Caspian in silence.

"Look at the poor boy," Edmund finally commented, biting his lips to uselessly hide his smile. "He's about to collapse. I don't think he believes you, Pete."

Peter sighed in resignation, ignoring Edmund as he no longer could contain the laughter. "It does sound like a joke I would do."

Caspian continued to stare dumbly at them, frozen into shock until Edmund snapped his fingers right before his face. It was only then that he jolted out of his trance. "You want me to take over as High King of Narnia."

Peter rolled his eyes. "Yes."

"Me. Who you hate."

"I don't hate you," Peter protested, sighing when Edmund elbowed him. "Not anymore, anyways."

"Me, who blamed you for leaving Narnia."

Peter turned red, but breathed deeply when Edmund glared at him. Finally, he managed to force out a grimace. "Water under the bridge."

Deciding to take matters into his own hands, Edmund clasped a hand on Caspian's shoulder. "Look, regardless of what happens to me and my siblings, our time is over. We will always be Kings and Queens but we didn't come back to rule again. It's now up to you."

"Su has already decided Beth should be High Queen," Peter added in a seemingly nonchalant manner. "If the Daughter of Aslan is High Queen, then I can think of no better candidate to be High King than the one who united us all and won the war."

"And you don't care? That I'll be High King and not you?" Caspian asked, finding it hard to believe.

Peter tensed. He would never say it outloud but of course he cared. Blame it on his ego but he'd grown used to his title. He loved it. It was part of who he was. What would it mean, for him not be the one people looked to for answers anymore?

Peter shook his head almost imperceptibly for the outer eye. This was bigger than him.

"Ed is right. Our time to rule is over," Peter finally replied. And, to be fair, he truly meant it.

Caspian nodded and looked away, his gaze edging towards his army, Narnians and Telmarines training together for the first time since the war ended. Following the decision proposed by the girls, the high ranking officers were now composed of equal numbers of both sexes, which had proven to do wonders in terms of uniting the troops. Glenstorm and Reepicheep had been tasked with supervising the army's progress so they were also there, walking around the different training pairs.

"I didn't do anything on my own," Caspian finally replied, his eyes still on the army, his army now. "We did that together."

"And we all received retribution, though we never needed it," Edmund humbly shrugged. He too turned towards the army. "It's time you get yours. So shut up and take your rightful place, will you? This faux humility is creeping me out."

Peter rolled his eyes but turned towards the other two, forcing them to meet his eyes. "Speaking of the coronation, we need to discuss the Telmarine tradition. Since we are planning a hybrid coronation, we should see about adding the Telmarine tradition as well."

Caspian nodded almost absently. Then, he remembered what the tradition was, and paled considerably.

Everything had been going so well until now.

"That doesn't look good," Edmund grimaced. "What is it?"

"Well, that might be tricky," Caspian weakly replied after a long moment of silence. "Because the one who places the crown on my head has to be a former Telmarine King or Queen."

"And the only living Telmarine Queen is pending trial for high treason," Edmund finished for Caspian, his eyes full with exasperation.

Peter buried his face in his hands. "Of course. When is anything easy for us?"

oOo

When Susan finally was done with her meetings and free to find her boyfriend, she found him lying on his stomach, face buried in his pillows and completely immobile. He hadn't even taken off his boots and he looked so tired that Susan almost thought he had passed out, hadn't it been for the way his back remained tense even as she lay beside him and wrapped an arm around his waist.

"Hey," Susan whispered, chuckling when Caspian groaned. "What can I do?"

With a tired groan, Caspian rolled over so he lay facing Susan. His eyes still closed, he leaned forward until his forehead was pressed against hers. "Just stay with me."

Susan edged closer to peck his lips sweetily before burying her head in his chest. "I'm not going anywhere."

For several minutes they stayed frozen in that position, both of them feeling the exhaustion of the day washing away as they relished in the company of the other. Regaining his strength, Caspian wrapped his arms around Susan and finally blinked his eyes open, smiling when she looked up at him with pure love.

And it was with that look of pure, unfiltered understanding and acceptance that Caspian found the strength to talk. "So much has happened today."

Susan couldn't help but giggle. "Fortunately, we kind of already knew today was going to be hectic."

Caspian's smile widened at the truth of that sentence but, soon enough, it bled away. Unconsciously, his grip around Susan's waist tightened. "I'm going to be High King."

Susan's smile softened as well. "I know."

"And Beth is going to be High Queen. And she will die if she doesn't get the cure for the poison."

Susan felt tears gathering in her eyes. Beth had never been her favourite person but she'd saved her brother. She would always be a hero to her for that and she couldn't help but to love her. So, she worried, just as much as everyone else did.

However, that moment was about Caspian, not her. So, closing her eyes, she cradled Caspian's face in her hands and kissed him softly, allowing her love for him to pour out. "I know, my love. She's not alone. Neither are you."

Caspian opened his eyes and sighed sadly. "My aunt may die. She never loved me and I loved her but she's the only family by blood I have left. Her and my cousin and if she dies, she will help me."

Susan regarded him silently, her fingertips caressing the contour of his cheeks. In that moment, more than anything, she wished she had the ability to do something, anything that would erase those problems out of the world. She wished she could make it easier for Caspian. It didn't even matter how; for she only cared about easing his worries off just a smidge.

She wished she could.

But she knew better.

More than that, she knew she could only do one thing. So, with a smile, she turned so she was facing the ceiling, and beckoned him with her hands. "Come here."

Caspian hesitated but soon followed, encouraged by the soft look in his love's eyes. He lay right beside her, resting his head on her chest and closing his eyes with a sigh when he felt her lips on his temple.

"I love you Caspian," Susan whispered, closing her eyes too when she felt the tension slowly evaporating from his body. "I'm here. I'm always here."

The silence that enveloped them as they fell asleep was the comfortable one couples who know one another profoundly often enjoy. It was the one shared between best friends, the one shared between the people who've seen each other at their best and worst. It was the sort of silence that didn't call for being filled, for it was a natural one.

At that moment, no words were needed between them.

And it was the best sleep of their lives.

oOo

The chest was smaller than she had imagined.

Placed by the center of her double bed, it's golden details glimmered as Beth lit a candle by her desk but that wasn't even the most remarkable part of it. The chest was made of a dark wood, in perfect condition despite the pass of time. There was not a space that didn't feature a carving, and they were all exquisite. A group of dryads and fauns seemed to be dancing around the bottom edge of the chest, while phoenixs, griffins and birds flew above them and ancient oaks decorated the scene. Right before the lock, a lion watched on with serenity in his regal, golden eyes.

Beth bit the inside of her cheek and walked with determination towards the chest.

Only to stop just before her bed.

Then, she turned and stalked over to the opposite wall of her room. There, she stood facing the wall for a moment before turning her head to look at the chest that seemed to be taunting her with indecisive eyes.

She bit her lip anxiously.

Took a step.

And stopped again.

Then, she groaned and buried her face in her hands. This shouldn't be this hard! There were letters from her mother, after all! She was about to get every answer she'd been looking for, every answer about who her parents actually were.

This shouldn't be so hard! Shouldn't it?

Shouldn't it?

A sudden knock on her door snapped her out of her inner struggle and, almost without thinking, she walked to the door and opened unceremoniously.

As her eyes fell on the person standing by the other side, she actually felt her breathing halting to a stop.

Edmund was wearing a forest green shirt that complimented his perfectly messy hair. His pants were tight and brown and, for the first time since he had arrived in Narnia, no weapon was adorning them. His warm, reassuring, brown eyes were sparkling with happiness and his smile was loving as he revealed the sunflower he had been hiding behind his back.

Beth took the flower and leaned against the doorframe to hide how much she wanted to melt in that moment. "I have never been more in love with you, Edmund Pevensie."

Edmund raised his eyebrows in interest. "I like the challenge. Shall I come in?"

Beth frowned. "I thought you had this thing planned for our first date?"

Edmund's smile widened. "Look to the balcony."

Beth walked over to the balcony while Edmund closed the door and waited for her to take everything in.

And what a sight it was.

The candles weren't lit yet because Edmund didn't want Beth to see any light coming from the balcony but really, with the way the stars were shining that night, there was no need. A blood red tablecloth had been spread across the floor of the balcony, with many fluffy pillows waiting for them by the edge. In the middle a closed basket waited for them, two glasses and a bottle right beside it. A vase of sunflowers - Beth's favorite flower - finished the look.

Beth covered her mouth with a hand as she felt two arms enveloping her waist. Wasting no time, she hastily wiped off the emotional tears that had surfaced before turning to kiss Edmund soundly. "This is...I have no words, Ed. I just - I love this. I love you. I'm so happy right now."

"I'm glad you like it," Edmund laughed. He pecked her lips a few times before pulling back and opening the glass door to the balcony. "Now, you get the chest so you can read your mom's letters and I will light the candles."

Beth faltered. "Ed-no. We cannot read them now!"

Edmund frowned. "I thought you wanted me to read them with you?"

"And I do but," Beth looked again towards the beautiful spread and sighed lovingly. "Look what you did for me. I cannot ruin it with my family drama."

Edmund leaned closer, resting his forehead against hers and sighed, feeling more at home than ever before.

"I did this for us," Edmund replied with a whisper. "So we could be us without our royal duties. So we could talk and get to know more about each other and be a couple who doesn't have to worry about anyone else but us. I love you, Beth. I love you and I need you and you need me. Get the damn letters."

Beth laughed as she pulled away. "And you had been doing so well."

"Oh, please," Edmund scoffed. "I've won the title of boyfriend of the year with this."

Beth laughed louder than she had in a long time. Silently, she agreed with him but she wouldn't say it outloud. She didn't have to. He knew.

And that was enough for now.

oOo

In Archenland, things weren't as sweet and cute for Prince Torin.

The now remaining heir to the Archenlandian Throne was currently pacing frantically from one end to the other of his study, his mind racing as he considered his situation.

He knew they would contact him when the time came. He had no idea of what was to come. He had no idea of what they had planned of what was left to be done in order for him to be King. That had been the condition after all. He would achieve everything he wanted in life, everything he had fought, everything he had almost lost, if he did everything they said.

So far, he had done everything without even an inch of regret. He had watched as they took Tor away, he had watched as his brother screamed for him and he had stayed put. His brother's screams as they asked for Torin, as they demanded for him to be left alone, they still haunted him, they still echoed deep within him whenever everything seemed to fade into the dark silence.

And it was in those moments that he wished he didn't have to do it. He wished that, by achieving his one desire, he didn't have to let the one person who had stood by him go.

But that was the thing, wasn't it?

He loved Tor, how could he not? He was his brother and his only friend. He owed him everything.

But love didn't conquer all. Love wasn't the biggest picture. Love wasn't an insurance of everything being alright in the end. In the end, his brother was still between him and the role he had been born to perform.

Love and hate, they didn't cancel one another it turns out.

From then on, everything was easy. After all, Beth was the reason everything had gone to hell. She had fallen into this world and enchanted everyone as if she was a powerful sorceress. She had come and, almost in the blink of an eye, had made Torin fall into oblivion.

Because he had actually been able to bear being in Tor's shadow. He had borne being constantly compared to his brother. He was the second child, after all, and second childs were always overlooked in favour of the golden first-born. It was just the way it had always been.

Then Beth had arrived. She had no training, no knowledge of the deeply intricate political and social situation of the country. And yet, she had become Duchess. More than that, his father actually had the nerve to suggest she would be Princess and Tor's right hand.

Not him.

To hear Ersan's announcement broke Torin down in the way that, at last, he had nothing left to lose. After everything he had done, after the effort he had put in learning his future role, after the sacrifices he'd made, how was this the outcome? How was this girl getting everything he had ever wanted when she had never even dreamt of it? How, how did she deserve it?

From then on, everything he had to do, he did so almost eagerly.

He was aching to see the look in their faces once they discovered the truth. He craved for the moment he got the throne and he got to see the devastation in his father's eyes. Not even the thought of Tor chained for the rest of his life managed to divert him from his goal.

And then, news arrived of Caspian's revolution.

The next day, Beth was gone and Ersan was brokenhearted.

Torin, he knew his role. He knew he had to wait. He knew the truth about Beth's lineage - they'd told him about it - and now, he only had to wait for the moment Beth found her destiny and the plan was set into motion.

He only had to wait.

But he knew he was running out of time.

Rumours had arrived of Caspian's victory. That meant Beth had survived. She had survived and Ersan would see her again. More than that, his father would learn of Beth's true parentage.

And of what Torin had done.

Torin knew Aslan was aware of this. After all, Beth proved he wasn't a legend. Aslan was always present and he knew everything.

He had to know.

And he had to have told her.

Which meant that Torin was in danger.

Yet, no one had arrived to tell him what to do.

So he paced in the lit room and felt as if the darkness surrounded him more and more until there wasn't even a spark to light his way.

It was then that the door opened.

Torin turned, instant relief feeling his heart because he knew it had to be them. He knew they wouldn't leave him alone. He was finally sure of it.

So he turned.

And he was met by the cold eyes of King Ersan.

Torin faltered for one split second but he was too good an actor to ruin his facade right then. He quickly pulled himself together and walked to stand calmly behind his desk. "Good evening, father. To what do I owe this honour."

His father entered the room slowly, almost as if he expected an attack. His two most trusted advisors were flanking him, all three of them with swords strapped to their waist. Finally, Ersan stood by the middle of the room, his companions a couple of steps behind him. "A letter arrived from Beth. She has helped the Narnians win the war and now, she's readying herself for Caspian's coronation."

Torin chuckled. So Beth must have decided to be Queen after she sent the letter to Anvard. It felt so satisfying, knowing something his father didn't. "Well, I'm happy if she's happy but I thought better of her. She's to be our Queen after all, how can she resign to the throne to live in Narnia without any titles?"

Ersan crossed his arms. "How did you know that?"

Torin sat on his chair and raised an eyebrow. "How did I know what?"

"I never said anything about her resigning to the throne," Ersan replied. "She has turned out to be a Narnian Princess by blood. She is the daughter of Aslan, the Great Lion. However, I didn't mention that to you."

Torin took a deep breath as he forced himself to think, knowing there was a way out of this situation.

There was always a way.

His father, however, was in no mood to wait for him to think.

"I thought I raised you better, Torin," Ersan sighed as he hung his head with grief. Then, he adopted his regal stance. "Torin, Prince of Archenland, son of King Ersan. You are hereby under arrest."

Torin rose to his feet as his eyes flashed with fury. "Under what charges? You have nothing on me!"

"I have. Finally, I know the truth," Ersan replied, his right hand gripping his sword and his left one gripping Beth's letter. "You are under arrest, Torin. And you're going to tell me everything about the day Tor died. This time, you are going to tell me the truth."

oOo

"Have the constellations changed since your first time in Narnia?" Beth asked softly as she lay on the ground, empty plates left on a neat pile by the opposite edge of the tablecloth for them to deal with later.

"I'm not entirely sure," Edmund replied as he lay beside her. However, while she looked at the stars, he looked at her. "I used to make up stories about the stars to amuse Lucy. I invented so many stories that I forgot the real ones, or their shapes."

Beth laughed before looking at Edmund. "That's cute. That Lu forced you to tell stories, I mean."

Edmund scoffed with fake annoyance but a proud smile graced his lips. "Well, my stories were the best. I have more creativity than Susan and Peter together. Of course she asked me."

Beth's smile softened. "I see you write all the time. Are you still writing the story of your reign?"

Edmund shook his head. "I moved onto the Revolution. I'm on the part we met, actually."

Beth smiled at the memory and buried her face in his shoulder. "I still love and hate that day. I made such a fool of myself."

Edmund scoffed and kissed her temple. "Please. You were clad in your armour, an army waiting for your command. I was barely awake and had the worst case of bed head."

Beth snorted. "It was a cute bed head, though."

Edmund laughed before looking down to Beth, who now had her head on his chest, and her eyes fixed on the array of stars above her. "Tell me something only I will know."

Beth smiled slightly before shooting Edmund a playful look. "Your first."

"Fine. Bossy," Edmund huffed, laughing when Beth slapped his chest. "I've been writing about the Revolution for you. I want you to see how I see you, at least once."

Beth immediately sat up, turning to Edmund with wide eyes. "What? Why?"

Edmund sat up too, his hands held up defensively. "What do you mean why? Beth, you saved me. So many times. Beth...I was adrift. I was merely surviving, as if I was waiting for something that would have me snap out of it and find the strength enough to pull myself out of the deep end. Beth, that was you. So, you gave me...I guess it was hope but finally, I was strong enough to live, not just survive."

Beth bit her lip, her voice wobbling as the intensity she could see in Edmund's eyes washed over her. "I can't take credit for that, my love. I have been connected with you since the start."

"I wrote for you because I wanted you to see how I see, even if you don't believe me." Edmund whispered into her lips before kissing her. "Are you angry?"

"No. Never. I just...I was so worried that I would never find my home. That I would swap between worlds without anyone I could form a connection with," Beth shook her head and pulled away, cradling his face in her hands as she smiled tearfully. "And I thought I was unlucky and that I would be alone. I was terrified. And I still am but I'm a mess right now because you love me in a way I never thought I would be loved. And, Ed, it's like you make every concern, every pain go away. I now know what happened to my mother and how I got to England and...I don't care. You are my home. You saved me too, Ed and I have this little family and this little home because of you. I could never be angry at you, not really."

Edmund smiled and wiped the tears falling off her cheeks before pulling slightly away. "Is that the thing only I'll know?"

"Of course it is. I have a reputation to maintain," Beth scoffed, laughing with him before she gently pushed him closer. She hated the space between them. "Come here."

Edmund happily obliged but their lips had barely grazed each other's when a sudden screech jolted them out of their thoughts.

They looked up, their eyes widening as they noticed the eagle flying straight towards them.

Edmund gulped nervously. "Is it going to attack us?"

Beth didn't reply, too busy untying the letter strapped to the eagle's side.

As the eagle began nibbling away at the leftover food, Beth turned towards Edmund with surprise.

"It's King Ersan's sigil," Beth whispered. "Archenland is answering our invitation."

---

So, I'm going to publish chapters 18 and 19 at the same time.

One of them will continue this story, the other will be entirely composed of flashbacks.

You didn't really think I would leave you in the dark when it comes to Beth's biological mother right?

Stay tuned!