it is a terrible thing to be alone

four

The fourth time was when Edmund realized he had not, in fact, gotten over it.

The painting in Lucy's room felt like a cruel joke. It was a very Narnian ship, as they had both observed upon arrival, and Edmund was not sure whether he would rather sit looking at it all day or avoid it at all costs.

For in addition to its very Narnian-ness, it reminded him of a conversation he had had with Caspian.

"Were the Lone Islands a part of Narnia?" Caspian asked. The challenge to Miraz had just been drafted and Emperor of the Lone Islands had been among Peter's titles.

"Are they no longer?" They stood in one of the many passageways of Aslan's Howe as Edmund waited to leave to deliver the challenge.

Caspian shook his head. "Telmarines have always feared the water. That is why the castle is built inland and the forest was allowed to grow wild. No one has gone out to sea in... years." He looked pensive.

Edmund sensed there was a story there. "Who were they?"

"Seven of my father's closest friends and allies," Caspian said. "Miraz sent them out to sea to get them out of his way. None of them ever returned." He smiled sadly. "Even so, I have always been intrigued by the idea of sailing."

The look in his eyes after he said that was how Edmund imagined he would look on a ship. Eyes focused on a faraway spot, slight smile on his face.

So when, after being barged in upon by Eustace, the painting began to move, Edmund thought he was imagining things. Until Lucy gasped. Until sea spray hit him int eh face, bringing him farther back in his memories, to sailing on the Splendor Hyaline.

That was when he began to hope. As the bedroom was engulfed in water and slowly transformed into open ocean, he hoped that this time, Narnian time would be kind to him.

Then the ship was bearing down on them and several sailors had dived into the water and Edmund realized, at about the same time as Lucy did, that there was a possibility they did not wish them well. He swam desperately, pulling his arm out of the grip of a man he didn't recognize. From somewhere to his right, over the splashing of Eustace, he heard Lucy's surprised voice, "Caspian?"

His heart stopped as he heard Caspian's response, clear as day. "Lucy?"

"Ed, it's alright," Lucy called out, although he had already stopped resisting his rescuer. "It's Caspian!"

He didn't get a good look at Caspian until they were on deck. His soaking clothes clung to his skin, his shirt especially leaving nothing to the imagination, so much s that nearly made Edmund look away in modesty. He looked more than a year older than the last time they had seen him. Edmund suspected that more than a year had passed in Narnia. Caspian had never been a particularly shy or overly uncertain person, but he was much more comfortably confident now. As they went through introductions and explanations, he saw how Caspian interacted with the crew and felt that surge of pride again. Caspian had grown into his title, and it fit him perfectly.

In days, it was as though Edmund and Lucy had been on the voyage all along. There was no stiffness or awkwardness with Caspian, Drinian or the rest of the crew.

And Edmund decided that he liked peacetime Caspian. While he had admired Caspian's strength and determination in wartime, this Caspian laughed more, an utterly joyful sound that sent a nervous stutter through Edmund's chest.

It was some of the most relaxing time Edmund had spent in Narnia. He and Caspian sparred, bodies close and hearts thumping, and swam in the waves, wrestling and trying to push each other under, and when the sun set, they looked up at the stars. He and Caspian soon found that the Telmarines had created new constellations which were different from the ones he had been taught as a young king. They stayed up into the early hours of the morning, exchanging the legends they saw told in the skies.