Hello again everyone, and welcome back! I'm really excited to start the final story of this series, and the support you've all shown for it's predecessors has been amazing and motivated me to continue, so a massive thank you for that and long may it continue! The format of this story will be similar to Dreams, Desires and Destiny where there will be no definitive recurring plot line, but will rather consist of several story arcs, one shots and drabbles spanning from 1942 until the train crash in The Last Battle in 1949. I have no idea how long it will take me to update this time, but I would expect a week at the very least depending on how much school work I am given, although I do aim to produce at least one chapter a month. I hope you all enjoy this chapter, and feel free to leave a review and let me know what you think!

August 1942

It was the summer of 1942, and Peter and I had spent the last few months with Professor Kirke studying for our University entrance exams; Peter having chosen to pursue a degree in medicine while I had decided to study English as my main subject, and then undertaking my exam to qualify as a teacher in my final year. When our results and offers had arrived last week, both of us had comfortably surpassed the minimum marks required, though Peter had done so by miles. Then again, he was the one who had sometimes stayed up until three or four in the morning studying, where as I had normally given up by about eleven or twelve.

After reviewing all of our options, we had both decided on Kingston University to study at, both of us requiring four years to complete our chosen courses. We were a little nervous about beginning life at University, but looking forward to it at the same time. It would be another change to our lives preceding all of the others we'd had to endure, but at least this time we were now a step closer to living our own lives again.

When we had returned to England this time everyone, including Peter, had adjusted much better than the time before. But while his siblings weren't able to see it, in the few classes we had shared and the free time we had spent together, I had seen several glimpses of High King Peter. This was normally when Roger and his gang tried to irritate Peter again, though, but it was better than starting a fight and risking suspension or expulsion. Of course, we all still missed Narnia, though I had seen Edmund and Lucy off to their cousins house for the summer with a knowing smile for the final adventure they would have, only made all the more comical by their disgruntled looks and less than pleased expressions when I had happily told them to enjoy themselves. But now we were all going to be reunited for the first time in several months; Susan and her parents having returned from America two weeks previously and Edmund and Lucy arriving in Finchley the week after. Peter and I had just waited for our results before organising our return to London, where Mr and Mrs Pevensie had very kindly offered to take me in again for the three weeks before we would move in to the University dorms.

Although I had enjoyed my previous stay with them, I was glad of the Professor becoming my legal guardian during my time at Hendon House, and it had eased everyone's mind knowing that I now had somewhere to go other than the Pevensies. Although everyone was sad to have to see him let go of his beautiful manor, including the wardrobe that had started everything (the war had not failed to touch him either, it seemed), his new house on the outskirts of London was still quite a decent size with plenty of room for the three of us, and it was usually very peaceful. That is, until this morning when we were due to leave for our train in fifteen minutes.

"Peter, would you please hurry up? We'll miss our train!" I admonished as he ran around his room.

"I can't find my ticket!" he exclaimed, forcefully pulling open a drawer and slamming it shut when he realised it was empty.

I started to laugh and Peter spun around to face me, "What is it?" he asked with confusion.

"You can't find your ticket because I have it, you eejit." I reminded him.

"You know, you never did tell me what that meant." he countered as he joined me and we walked out towards the main sitting area.

"That's because it's better if you didn't know." I called as I walked down the narrow hallway in front of him. Peter didn't have time to reply due to the Professor appearing, his head bent so as to read the book in his hands.

He glanced up when he heard us approaching, "You'll miss your train if you don't hurry up." he said in a matter of fact tone.

"Peter forgot that I had his ticket, so he was practically tearing the room apart trying to find it." I explained.

"As I recall, you never were very good at keeping track of all of your text books, Mr Pevensie." the Professor said to Peter evenly. Peter's cheeks flushed slightly as I bit back a smile, recalling all of the times he had very nearly torn the Professor's study and library apart trying to find one book or another.

"Are you ready?" Peter asked.

I nodded, before turning to the Professor with a small smile, "Goodbye, Professor. And thank you for everything." I said sincerely, and I was surprised to see a small smile form on his lips, "Goodbye, Miss O'Brien, Mr Pevensie." he answered simply, nodding to both of us in turn. I returned his smile, as did Peter, before we walked out of the door with our suitcases in hand.

When the door had closed behind us, Peter and I paused and glanced at each other, "Shall we?" he asked with a small smile. I placed my hand in his as my answer, and we walked down the road hand in hand towards the train station. When we reached it, we easily found our train and boarded it, though from Peter's antics earlier we only just managed to make it with five minutes to spare, and it wasn't long until the train began speeding towards Finchley.

"I don't know about you, but I'm really looking forward to hearing about what Lu and Ed got up to in Narnia." Peter said with a smile as he sat opposite me.

"Yes, there's nothing quite like listening to Lucy tell a story." I replied with a laugh. The letter she had sent us was very brief, but she had mentioned that her, Edmund and Eustace had been pulled in to Narnia and met up with Caspian again, setting sail with him and his crew on the Dawn Treader.

"Even if you've already heard it before?" he asked, his smile never fading.

I grinned back, "Yes, even then." I confirmed.

xXx

After two hours, the train finally pulled in to Finchley's main station, Peter and I unable to stop ourselves from looking out of the window to try and spot his siblings or parents.

"Look, they're over there." Peter said excitedly, pointing to further down the platform where I finally saw them. We both immediately reached for our luggage and all but ran off the train and down the platform towards them. Lucy was the first to spot us, and she beamed in our direction before turning to her family and pointing us out. Susan and Lucy collided in to me when we reached them, and I threw my arms around them as we all laughed giddily. Peter, on the other hand, had been claimed by his mother who hugged him tightly. Over Lucy's shoulder, I could see Edmund and his father standing next to each other; a smirk on Edmund's face and a calm smile on Mr Pevensie's.

Once I had been released by his sisters and they had attacked Peter, Edmund approached me. "Are you too old for hugs now?" I asked.

"I think I can make one exception." he replied. I laughed before pulling him into a hug, "I hate to admit it, but I've missed you." I said as we broke apart.

"I have to say the same." Edmund added, his smirk returning.

"It's wonderful to see you again, Anna." Mr Pevensie said from behind his son, who stepped aside to allow his father to shake my hand.

"And you, Mr Pevensie." I responded with a smile.

"I hope you kept Peter in check during your stay with the professor."

I laughed, "He was a handful at times, but I think I managed well enough." I joked, emitting a smile from the older man. It wasn't hard to see who Peter resembled; while the others received their dark hair and pale complexions from their mother, Peter had the same fair hair and darker skin as his father. Not to mention the same smile.

"And Anna, dear, how are you?" Mrs Pevensie suddenly exclaimed from behind me, giving me a hug as I turned to face her.

"Very well, thank you." I replied.

"I trust you and Peter enjoyed your stay with the professor?" she asked as we all began to leave the station and walk the short distance to the house.

"We did send you letters, mum." Peter pointed out with a laugh.

"Yes, I know that dear, but it's always better to hear about these things first hand." she replied.

"We did enjoy it, but Professor Kirke had both of us working very hard." I said, answering her earlier question.

"And your excellent results showed that! Now, we'll all go in to town next week and get you both everything you need, and then..." Peter and I exchanged a look, smiling at his mother's needless worrying and her tendency to always be overly prepared. When we reached the house, the first thing Peter and I did was empty our suitcases, with Susan helping me while Peter dragged Edmund into their room against his will to help him.

"Is that all of your stuff then, Anna?" Susan asked as she folded my last blouse and placed it in the drawer.

"I think so. Thanks for helping me by the way, Su." I replied, placing my small suitcase in the bottom of the wardrobe. I stood back and looked around the room, comforted by it's familiarity. Susan and Lucy's bed was on either side of the room, with a small camp bed in between that had been erected by Mr Pevensie for me. The only other furnishings were a sturdy wooden wardrobe and a small desk for working and writing letters on.

"Do you want to go outside for a little bit? I need to go for a walk." I said to Susan as she brushed her hair.

"Oh no, definitely not. Hannah Smyth is outside and I don't want to run in to her." she answered disparagingly.

I raised an eyebrow at Susan, "Why, what's so bad about her?" I asked with a laugh.

"You'll see what I mean if you get the...pleasure of meeting her yourself." Susan said briskly.

"Why do I get the feeling you're over exaggerating slightly?" I replied teasingly.

"I'm not, even ask Lucy or Peter or Edmund." she argued.

"I'll meet her first and then form a more unbiased opinion, thank you Su." I replied with a smile.

Susan rolled her eyes, "Fine. But you don't know what you're getting yourself in to!"

I laughed, "We are Queens of Narnia, Susan. I have handled far worse than a snotty teenage girl." I reminded her. At my reply, Susan suddenly became very quiet, and slowly sat on the bed with a far off glazed look in her eyes. I immediately realised my mistake and mentally kicked myself before sitting next to her.

"I'm sorry, that was quite insensitive of me." I apologised.

Susan shook her head, "It's not that, it's just...Oh Anna, will we really never go back?" she asked desperately.

"You know as well as I do what Aslan said, Susan." I said gently. Susan remained silent, and gave me no reply.

"I know you're still upset about Caspian, but he isn't the only boy out there." I pointed out.

Susan sighed, "I know that, but I still wish I'd had the chance to have more time with him." she said sadly.

I put an arm around her shoulder then as she stared wistfully at the floor, "It was just how things were meant to be this time. But that doesn't mean you won't find someone here. Who knows what'll happen?" I encouraged her.

Susan stood abruptly, "It's easy for you to say that; you and Peter got to stay together. You don't know what it is to have to say goodbye to someone like that." she snapped.

I was quite taken a back by her sudden outburst, and slowly rose from the bed, "You're right, I don't know what it would be like to have to say goodbye to Peter. But I do know how it feels to let go of someone you love." I reminded her. Susan stopped and looked silently at me for a moment before turning and walking from the room. I sighed and sat heavily on the bed, only for Lucy to enter as Susan left. Upon seeing the dark look on her sisters face and her silence, Lucy looked at me with a questioning look and sat next to me.

"I'm afraid I may have upset Susan." I explained.

"How so?" Lucy asked.

"I made the mistake of mentioning Caspian." I answered.

"Ah, that explains it then."

"I wasn't trying to deliberately hurt her, it just sort of came up. I told Susan that she would find someone else, and then she started talking about how I don't know what it feels like to have to say goodbye to someone like that. I know losing Emma and Josh was different to her saying goodbye to Caspian, but that doesn't mean I can't empathise with her at all." I said quietly.

"I trust you remember the incident with Rabaddash?" Lucy asked with a slight smile.

I chuckled, "How could I not?"

"Well, you'll remember then how she cried for days after it and was sullen for the entire week, but it wasn't until you talked to her that she saw sense. Susan probably knows what you're saying is right, even I've tried to explain this to her, but it also depends whether or not she'll want to hear that will determine her reaction." Lucy said knowingly. I stared at the young girl before me, wondering how in the world she had transformed from the care free, innocent ten year old I had first come to know, to the now knowledgeable and wise thirteen year old that sat next to me.

"You know, Lu, I've never met a thirteen year old more mature than you." I told her sincerely, and she gave me a small smile.

"We ruled a country for fifteen years, I would hope that I would at least have some levels of maturity. Although the same couldn't be said for my brothers." she added with a laugh.

"I have to agree with you on that, Lu." I replied, also laughing.

"I do have my moments, though." she admitted slowly.

I knew exactly what she was referring to, "You're a teenager, Lucy. Trust me, I'll bet even Susan felt the same as you when she was your age. Even I did, just like every other teenage girl. And remember, not only would your brothers and sisters not know about Narnia, but I wouldn't even be here either." I reminded her.

"I know that, and I promise I'll never do something that stupid again. Oh Anna, the dream was truly awful. First of all, I didn't exist, and then when I asked Peter where you were he didn't have clue who I was talking about, and neither did Edmund! He thought I was talking about that awful Margaret girl that he used to like!" she exclaimed.

"Yes, I remember him saying something about her." I replied, retrieving a nearly forgotten memory from our early years at Cair Paravel. "But never mind about that, the point is that I think you've learned from the experience." I added.

Lucy nodded, "Though I wish I hadn't, just so that I could go back one more time." she said sadly.

"We all wish that, but sometimes it's better just to let things go. And remember, you can still find Aslan here." I reminded her gently.

"Lucy, Anna, could you come down here please?" Mrs Pevensie called up the stairs before Lucy could reply.

"We'd better go see what she wants." Lucy said as we stood before she stopped and turned to me, "Thanks, Anna."

I gave her a questioning look, "What for?" I asked.

"For not yelling at me like Peter or Susan would have." she replied with a smile.

I laughed, "There's time for that yet." I joked as we walked down the stairs, finding Mrs Pevensie in the kitchen.

"Ah, there you are girls. I was wondering if you could help put these groceries away while I make lunch?" she asked as she picked up an apron and put it on.

"Of course, mum." Lucy replied, "Where are Peter, Susan and Edmund anyway?" she questioned as we began to sort through the groceries.

"Peter and Edmund are away with your father to fix the car, and Susan said she was going to the park, though I told her that she had to be back by now." Mrs Pevensie answered, "Though she seemed quite upset. Would either of you know anything about that?" she added.

I immediately felt guilty and opened my mouth to reply, but Lucy beat me to it, "No, mum. I don't know what's wrong with her." she said innocently, and her mother didn't suspect a thing. I raised an eyebrow at her when her mother had her back turned, but Lucy just shook her head.

Peter, Edmund and their father returned a short while later, and Susan arrived just after them. When questioned, she insisted she had just gone to meet a friend and that everything was perfectly fine, all the while with a serene smile on her face. Neither of her parents chose to pursue the matter any further, and neither did we, though I had to explain to Peter and Edmund what had happened later that evening, the former saying he had a good mind to kill her for the comments. Thankfully, Edmund, Lucy and I were able to dissuade him from doing so. While Mr and Mrs Pevensie went to visit a friend that night, the five of us sat in the living room and listened to Edmund and Lucy tell their story. When they had finished, Peter was the first to speak.

"Eustace was really a dragon?" he asked with disbelief.

"Never mind that, but he was actually helpful and kind?" Susan questioned, her shock mirroring that of her brothers.

"As hard as that may be for you to believe, yes he was." Edmund confirmed with a smirk.

"I'm sorry, but I refuse to believe that until I actually see it for myself." Peter said defiantly.

"Give the boy a chance, Peter. He really has changed!" Lucy answered, defending her cousin loyally.

"Ok, Lu. But I still can't quite picture it to be honest." he replied dubiously.

"So how was Caspian?" Susan asked nonchalantly, though it was no secret to any of us why she was really asking.

"Settling in nicely to his new role as King, it seemed." Edmund answered.

"Yes, though he said he missed having you three around." Lucy added.

"I would like to think so." Peter added jokingly.

I scoffed, "After the hard time you gave the poor boy in the beginning, I wouldn't have been surprised if he had said he didn't miss you at all!" I teased.

"What can I say, my natural charm eventually wins everyone over." he replied with a straight face, though the mischievous glimmer in his eyes gave him away.

I laughed, "It's yet to work on me, though." I challenged playfully.

"I would have to disagree with you." he argued, raising an eyebrow.

"Would you two please cut it out?" Edmund interjected, Peter and I descending in to laughter at everyone's expressions.

"We were just messing around, guys. Calm down." I assured them, trying to contain my laughter.

"We'd rather you did it in a less sickening fashion, thank you." Edmund dead panned.

"Oh, shut up." Peter said, rolling his eyes and swatting at his brothers arm.

"You can't say anything, Edmund. The look on your face when you first saw Lilliandil and then when she offered to change her appearance was priceless!" Lucy added brightly, much to her brother's chagrin.

"Caspian was rather smitten too, you know." he argued, and I knew Lucy had the exact same urge to hit him over the head as I was having. We exchanged a look as the room fell silent, and by Edmund's expression he knew he'd said the wrong thing.

"I'm going to read." Susan said quickly with a dark look, and she hastily made her exit.

"Well done, Ed." Lucy said sarcastically.

"I'm sorry, I forgot about the whole Caspian thing. She needs to get over him anyway." he replied with a shrug.

"It's not that simple, you idiot." Peter pointed out.

"I'll go see if she's ok." Lucy volunteered, walking out of the door and slowly ascending the staircase. She had just reached the top of them when the phone began to ring.

"I'll get that." Peter said, leaving Edmund and I alone in the living room.

"I have to say, the story was very nicely edited." I said, raising an eyebrow at Edmund. "You won't tell Peter about it, will you?" he asked a little fearfully.

"About trying to enlist or the rivalry with Caspian?" I asked innocently.

"Both."

"I won't say anything about either, but just know that if you try to sign up again that I will kill you, then tell him and let you be killed all over again." I warned.

"Dully noted." Edmund answered.

There was a short silence before I spoke again, "Peter did want you to have the sword, though." I revealed.

"He did? How do you know?" he asked, seeming a little surprised.

"When we received Lucy's letter and he discovered you'd gone to Narnia again, one of the first things that he said was 'I hope Caspian had my sword with him and let Edmund use it'." I told him.

"So that's why he was smiling when I told him I'd used it." Edmund muttered. We heard Peter set the phone down and begin to walk back to the living room, and so we ended the conversation there.

"That was mum and dad, they're on their way back home now." he informed us, sitting next to me again.

"I'd better go make something for them to eat, then." Edmund said, standing and then making his way in to the kitchen.

"Are you glad to be home?" I asked once Edmund was out of earshot.

Peter nodded, "I've missed us all being together, though sometimes I'm glad of the peace without my siblings." he replied with a laugh.

"Yes, because it's always peaceful with me around." I joked.

"You have your moments, but I can tolerate you." Peter joked with a smile.

"Still as gentlemanly as ever, I see." I replied teasingly.

"I thought that was a rather generous comment." he said, pretending to be completely surprised by my response.

"Careful, or you may get that ring back." I teased.

"Ok, ok, I love having you around and being able to see you smile and hear you laugh everyday. How's that?" he said, smiling widely down at me.

"A little less of the cheesy romance, and you're forgiven." I responded with a laugh.

"But it's why you love me." Peter countered.

"Now that is dangerous knowledge." I said.

"So does this mean you keep the ring?" he asked innocently.

"For now." I teased.

"But you have to promise me one thing." he added.

I raised an eyebrow, "Which would be...?"

"I get to marry you again."

"You'll have to ask me to marry you first."

"I intend to."