"Well! We have had a time," said Peter.

Edmund said something afterward, but Susan didn't hear it. All she could think of was Aslan's voice, saying that she and Peter could never come to Narnia again.

"…buy you another one when we get to school," Lucy was saying. "Right, Susan?" She turned expectantly toward Susan, but Susan wasn't looking at her. She was staring at the ground, unblinking. Lucy looked at her, concerned. "Susan?"

Susan snapped out of her trance. "Hmm? What?"

"What's the matter, Su?" asked Peter. Susan glared at him. As if he could pretend that nothing was wrong!

"I'm fine," she muttered, and she returned to her blank stare. Why never again? Why, Aslan?

The other three children looked at each other uneasily and said nothing. A train pulled up and Lucy bent to pick up her bag. "Susan?" she said nervously. "Our train is here."

Susan slowly picked up her bag and turned away from the boys without saying goodbye. Lucy waited, glancing at the boys with apology in her eyes. Peter awkwardly cleared his throat. "Goodbye, Lucy. Don't worry, boarding school isn't as bad as it seems." Lucy tried to chuckle, but Susan still made no sound. "Susan?" Susan sighed and turned her head toward him. Peter was shocked; she had never behaved this way before. "Susan, if it's about Narnia…" he said carefully.

Susan swung fully around; Lucy had to jump out of the way of her swinging schoolbag. Susan spoke with rage in her voice. "What else could it be about? I would rather never to have been there than to have been there and unable to go back!"

There, she had said it. For a moment, no one spoke. Peter, stunned, tried to think of something to say. Edmund and Lucy just stared.

Without another word, Susan turned and walked toward the train. She looked back at Peter angrily before climbing aboard, then sat where he couldn't see her. The other three stood still with worry in their eyes. "I'll try to talk to her," Lucy said, finally.

There was nothing more to be said. Lucy hugged her brothers and climbed on the train. Susan was looking out the window, tears forming in her eyes. Lucy cautiously sat down next to her. "Susan…?" Susan shut her eyes and turned her face away from her. Lucy sat on the long train ride, trying to think of some comforting words. She couldn't.

That night, in bed, Susan was awake behind closed eyes. In her mind, she tried to imagine why Aslan wouldn't allow them back to Narnia. Why, Aslan? She had stumbled there as a fulfillment of an ancient prophecy. She had seen the Hundred Year Winter's end. She had seen Aslan sacrificed for Edmund's treachery. She was there when He was alive again. She had seen the battle won, the White Witch defeated, and Narnia restored. She had become a queen, loved by many and named Queen Susan the Gentle. And now, at the end of a sadly short adventure with Caspian, Aslan had brought the news that neither she nor Peter could ever return to Narnia. Why, Aslan?

She suddenly heard a voice, a low and sweet voice, stern yet tender. "Susan." She knew that voice! She sat up in bed and listened. "Susan," it said, louder.

"Aslan?" she whispered.

"Daughter of Eve, these things are not for you to know."

"But why, Aslan?"

"You will understand one day."

"Why not now?"

Aslan was silent.

"Aslan, please. Was it something I did?"

"It was your time."

Susan paused. "Was it Peter's time, too?"

"Child, I tell no one any story but his own."

Susan lay back down, frustrated. "But Aslan, you are not telling me anything!" Susan was angry by now. "Aslan, please. Just tell me why I can't go back to Narnia!"

"You are too old, child. You must begin to come close to your own world now."

Susan had known what he would say before he said it; he had said the same thing when he first brought the news. As soon as he began, she covered her ears. I don't hear it, I don't hear it…

The voice of Aslan slowly faded away. As Susan finally drifted off to sleep, she couldn't help feeling a certain emptiness inside.

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Author's note: This is my first fic! Sorry, I know it's a common theme for Susan stories. Read and review, and be nice, please!