"D'you think he's dead?"

"Shut up. He's breathing. He'll be fine."

"He looks awful."

"You'd better not keep talking like that once Queen Lucy gets back."

"I can't believe she didn't have her cordial with her."

"I don't think she thought she'd need it," Caspian groaned as he tried to sit up.

"No, Your Majesty," Professor Cornelius said as he laid a hand on Caspian's shoulder. "You must stay still. Her Majesty Queen Lucy went to retrieve her cordial." The King must have looked panicked because the Professor laid a calming hand on his forehead. "She has guards with her, including the General."

Caspian visibly relaxed, his eyes slipping shut. He was in such pain, the contest much more brutal than he had anticipated. There was fire in his leg, his arm and his side, and all he wanted to do was see Lucy and then surrender back to the darkness that was trying to overtake him.

"Her Majesty will be back soon," a sweet, soothing voice told him. He turned towards it, his eyes opening to see a Telmarine woman, not much older than Lucy, with a wet rag in her hand. She offered him a small smile as she gently laid the cool rag over his forehead. "You've got a fever. Once Her Majesty returns, it'll break," the sweet voice promised.

Before Caspian could thank her, the door flung open and Lucy hurried in. "Caspian!" she cried, rushing over and dropping to her knees beside his bed. "You're awake." Her hand reached out to press the cool cloth a little tighter against his forehead before sliding back over his wet hair. "You're an idiot."

He weakly chuckled before wincing, his eyes slipping shut again. "You speak to your King like that?"

"I'd say you'd better get used to it," Edmund called from his place across the room. "Lu, the cordial."

His eyes were closed again so he didn't see her move, but then he smelled and tasted the sweet elixir and he felt his whole body relax. He weakly scrambled to grab Lucy's hand before he felt himself being pulled under.

"I'll stay," he heard Lucy tell the others softly. "Supper is waiting. Go on." He heard shuffling and the door closing and he finally allowed himself to rest.

When Caspian woke again, he felt much better. He was groggy and could still smell the remnants of the cordial on his lips. A lot of time must have passed because Lucy was seated beside him on the floor, his hand held in hers, as she slept away. His eyes moved to the window to see the dark of night and a sliver of the moon high in the sky. He reflexively squeezed Lucy's hand and smiled slightly when she woke right away.

"Caspian," she said softly as she turned to kneel beside him. "You're awake."

Wincing slightly, his muscles unused for some time, he shifted over. "Come off your knees," he said tugging her slightly. "Sit beside me."

Slowly, Lucy climbed onto the bed beside him and brushed her hand over his forehead and over his hair. "Your color is much better now. Thank goodness you kept my cordial. I know it's been used before but never more than now have I been glad it's withstood the passing of time. You could have died," she added so softly that he could barely hear her.

"He was better than I anticipated," he answered honestly. "There were moments when I didn't think …"

"Shush," she said, her hand moving to rest over his heart. "You won. And no one had to lose their life." Lucy shifted in her seat so she could inspect him fully. "Are you having any pain?"

Her hand slid over his arm, down to his side, and as her hand traveled towards his thigh, his hand quickly moved to stop it. At her look, he blushed. "I'm sorry, my Queen," he apologized softly. "It's just …"

"Say no more," she told him quickly as she stood. "I'll go fetch some supper. You haven't eaten in a long time and the food will do you good." She dropped into a quick curtsey before feeling and Caspian knocked his head back against his pillow in embarrassment and exasperation.

When Lucy got down to the kitchens, she saw the young woman who had been with Caspian when she arrived up to his room. She was Telmarine, she thought, and Lucy had seen her around recently but with all of the commotion and distractions that Percival caused, Lucy hadn't been able to introduce herself. It would be a nice distraction to make a new friend while she prepared a broth for her King.

"Excuse me," she called kindly, stepping around the table to where the young woman was. When the girl dropped into a curtsey, Lucy smiled and reached to upright her. "No need, dear. What's your name?"

"Lenlia, Your Majesty," she said with a small shake in her voice.

"Lenlia. What a beautiful name. Telmarine, correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. I've recently returned from Archenland."

"Archenland?" Lucy asked curiously. "What were you doing there?"

"Studying medicine," she answered. "There are few places I could study here and I didn't want to delay my education simply due to lack of funds. They're much more liberal in Archenland. It's easier to work off the debt."

A pit formed in Lucy's stomach, wondering how bad Archenland had gotten since she'd last been there. "And how did they have you work off that debt?" she asked cautiously.

Lenlia was silent for a moment, confused, before her eyes widened. "No! Your Majesty, no, it wasn't … Cleaning. After lessons, I would clean."

Lucy let out an audible breath then chuckled to herself. "And you've finished your lessons?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. I was recently offered a job here in the castle as a nurse. I just happened to have been closest when King Edmund and Eustace brought in His Majesty. I hope you weren't offended to find me tending to him."

"Of course not," Lucy answered, her hand moving to rest on that of the young woman. "Any help given is help appreciated. Cas – the King was not well. Your help kept him safe until I could arrive with the cordial. I'd say it's I who should be curtseying to you," she added.

"Please, no, Your Majesty," Lenlia rushed. "It was my pleasure. My-my duty."

Smiling, Lucy nodded. "I'm going to get some broth for the King. I'm sure once he's feeling better, he'll want to thank you as well. Will you have supper with us tomorrow?"

"Wi-with you and the King?" the young woman asked, clearly nervous at the prospect.

"And my brother, my kinsman Eustace, Trumpkin and the Professor. Possibly some shipmates from the Dawn Treader. The King prefers having many people in his company. There's nothing to be intimidated by, dear Lenlia." Lucy moved over to heat up some broth. "But, of course, if you do not wish to join us, I'll accept defeat." There was a smile in her voice, hoping the woman would be at ease and accept the invitation.

"It would be an honor, Your Majesty," Lenlia said as she dropped into a curtsey.

Finishing up the broth, Lucy smiled. "Excellent. I'll make sure Trufflehunter finds you for dinner." She stepped closer and laid a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Thank you again. Your help tonight was and is very much appreciated." With one last smile, Lucy gathered the broth for Caspian and an apple for herself before heading back to the room where the King rested.

The next morning, Edmund found himself and Eustace in the King's private study with Caspian, their eyes on the Doornian ships about to set sail.

"I probably should be down there," Caspian lamented from his seat. His muscles were still weary from the battle despite his wounds being healed. "It's bad diplomacy."

"I reckon he wouldn't want you there anyway," Eustace replied. "You beat him." There was a grin on his face. "It was downright thrilling, if you ask me. I've never seen a match like that ever before. I say, I think the only better one would have been between the two of you!"

Edmund rolled his eyes and stepped closer to the window. Lucy had wanted to go down to bid the Count and his people goodbye but Edmund had put a stop to it. First, he didn't trust Percival and his men not to kidnap her and take her with them. Narnian tradition or not, Percival was clearly unhappy with his loss. He'd even refused the drop of cordial Lucy had offered to send over to him the night before.

At the docks, he watched Glenstorm, Trumpkin and Drinian oversee the Doornian ship's loading and disembarkment. "I'll be glad to be rid of him. Things can go back to normal now."

"As normal as they can be with Caspian and Lucy getting all romantic." Eustace wrinkled his nose and shook his head. "Gonna be weird."

Edmund turned to look back at the King. "Does it start now?" Edmund asked. "Have you talked to her about it?"

Caspian stood and straightened his tunic. "Actually, it would be customary for me to discuss it with Lucy's father first. In this case, it's customary for me to discuss it with you." He cleared his throat and shifted slightly. "But, if you'd permit, I'd like to speak with Lucy about it first. Just see how she feels. I know these last few weeks have been hard for her, for all of us. I don't want her to feel like …"

When Caspian trailed off, Edmund nodded. "Like she's being forced into another relationship. I think you'll find she'll need little, if any, time to make that transition." Rubbing his hand over the back of his neck, Edmund continued, "But I fear I might take a little more than either of you would like to grant permission."

"Edmund?"

"She's still young," Edmund told him. "In England, she's not even considered an adult. Yet," he added slowly. "I'm not … I'm not saying don't talk to her. And I'm not saying if she consents that you can't court her. But I do think I'll hold off permission on a wedding for … some time."

Caspian wanted to argue but he knew he couldn't. Besides, that was one of the things he'd discussed with Lucy as he begged for permission to challenge their visitor. It didn't surprise him to find that Edmund wanted him to wait. Nodding, Caspian agreed. "I will speak with her and we'll let you know what her decision is."

Edmund nodded and Eustace muttered how odd the custom was. "I can't imagine this sort of thing would go on in England."

"I'm sure it does in the royal family," Edmund replied, reminding Eustace that this wasn't just two people being in love, but a King and former Queen. "It's how things were done back the first time too."

"Did any of you marry then?" Eustace asked. "You've never mentioned it."

Caspian, having heard the stories, shook his head no. "There are no records of any marriages of the Kings and Queens of Old."

"Some of us came close," Edmund hedged, "but none made it through the ceremony."

This piqued Caspian's interest. "So there were weddings but no marriages?" he asked with interest.

"There were preparations, yes, but no vows." Edmund cleared his throat. "But that was another time. We are here now and have only future nuptials to look forward to."

Caspian wanted to hear more but he could tell by Edmund's body language and tone of voice that he would be getting no more information from the former king. "It must be difficult," he murmured. "Living so many lives."

"I choose to focus only on this one," Edmund nodded as his eyes turned back towards the docks. "They've departed."

"Finally," Eustace crowed joyfully. "Now we can stop tiptoeing around and meeting in secret. I'll confess, though, that it was quite thrilling, concocting a plan to be rid of Count Percival. And it was wonderful when it actually worked."

"Did you doubt your King?" Caspian asked with a little grin.

"Only when he was getting beaten by a kid with a fancy."

Laughing, the men left Caspian's study and poured into the corridor. Edmund, the first out, ran smack into a soft body. "I'm so sorry," he apologized, righting the woman then freezing when he saw her face. "Idis?" he asked, eyes wide as he took a step back.

Shaking her head, Lenlia dropped to a deep curtsey. "Forgive me, Your Majesty, no. My name is Lenlia."

"My nurse," Caspian stated as he stepped from behind his companions. "From last night, correct?"

"Yes, Your Majesty. That's right."

"You must join us for supper tonight," the King responded with a grateful smile. "As a thank you from your thankful King."

"Her Majesty Queen Lucy has already invited me," she told him, eyes glancing to a bored looking Eustace and a frozen Edmund. "If it pleases Your Majesty, I'll attend."

"It pleases me very much," Caspian said with a nod. "We shall see you then. Thank you again, Lenlia. Come, friends."

Caspian turned to head down the hall, Eustace following immediately but Edmund stayed where he was, his eyes on the woman in front of him. She looked so much like Idis that he could barely take his eyes off her. Under his scrutiny, he could see some differences but her eyes …

"King Edmund?" Her voice was soft and scared and it pierced through a million memories that flooded him at once.

"My apologies," he said with a bow. His voice was distracted but sincere, as he met her eyes. "I'm sorry."

Shaking her head she glanced around before looking back to him. "Are you unwell?"

"No. No, I apologize. I shall see you at supper, Ms. Lenlia."

"Of course, Your Majesty," she said as she curtseyed again.

With a nod, Edmund turned and followed in the wake of his companions, his mind in the far past. He knew he would remain haunted by her eyes for the rest of the day.