Metamorphosis || Edmund Pevensie

Chapter 18: Staying Up

Dhruvika stared at the night sky. It was strange that she hadn't noticed it before because she never went by a night without thanking the moon for giving her her human life back. She believed one of the legends where the moon was a guide for anyone who lost their path and she definitely wanted to be in his or her good graces.

"The stars." 

"Yes." She heard Oreius beside her but she hadn't heard him trot outside to stand next to her.

"Does it mean what I-"

"Yes, it does. Love is back together." He pointed the stars out by their names and traced its shape with his hand. "You don't have to take its meaning literally. It is a symbol of union and friendship. Your meeting with the royals has happened at the right time. In a way, I am glad that I didn't forcefully take you to castle Cair Paravel earlier." Both of them smiled. "I would have done it but....I am glad I didn't because the time now is ripe."

"But what about the one next to Love?" She pointed out the other constellation which was inferior to the first. That was the one that they had to talk about.

"Ah. You were able to point it out."

"I can point War out even when I'm asleep." Dhruvika bit her inner cheek. It was the one constellation that she had seen her entire life, just lingering over her head and mocking her. "Does that mean that....today's events are going to cause a fight in the universe?"

"The universe is a difficult place. We shouldn't take every sign that it shows up in the literal sense. Love is dominating War. Your union could be a sign of prevention and caution."

Dhruvika nodded. "I hope so." But deep down, she knew that it wasn't. She had been expecting this for some time now. She grew tired of looking back and Carmis' little 'visit' proved it. She could never be safe. But why did it feel so when she was with him?

Back at Cair Paravel, the brothers broke their hug as Susan Pevensie cleared her throat. Peter and Edmund looked at her and took their seats when she began asking Edmund the questions that had been running in her head ever since he pushed her out of his room. 

"So that's what you meant by talking about proposals later on."

"Yes."

"Do you like her?"

He felt like he was facing an inquiry but that was just Susan. "I do."

"What happened to 'I'm never going to fall for someone'?" Lucy imitated the time he had teased her for reading love poems written by soldiers that were sent away to war. He had some of his favourites in that book and was grateful to her for making him read it. He did apologise later on, of course.

"Uh...."

"Obviously Captain Speechless here cannot answer your question, Lu." Peter also joined in to make fun of Edmund, who didn't seem to mind it really.

"'Never' is a strong word."

"Hey! That's what I told you!" Susan exclaimed and threw her napkin at him. That had been her response when he had told her that he would never like anyone more than Turkish Delight.

"I know!"

Everyone laughed. It was nice to spend a night where they didn't have to worry about politics. They were with their siblings and nothing else seemed to matter. After they finished their dinner and dismissed everyone for the night, there was a soft knock at Lucy's door. She wasn't surprised when Edmund walked inside and lay on the bed next to her.

She turned to give him a stare when he shrugged, clearly confused by her reaction. He liked having conversations with her but he knew that she was staring at him because of the time. "Oh, come on. Stay up for once, will you?"

"And be tired the next day? No, thank you."

"You are such a follower."

"You're not tough enough to be a breaker, Ed." He didn't mind that she made fun of him. She was his little sister after all. And everything that she said could never be offensive to him. "Will Dhruvika like me?" Lucy asked slowly.

It was clear to Edmund that she had been meaning to ask that for a while and was waiting for the right time. "She will love you! Why wouldn't she?"

Lucy shrugged. "I don't know. None of us have ever liked another person before and now that she is going to be a part of our lives....curiosity got the better of me, that's all."

He didn't know what to answer to that but he made a mental note to tell Robin to talk to Lucy first. "She will love you. Only a really mad person could hate you, Lu."

"Aww, thank you, Ed!" She threw a pillow at his face for implying that she was soft.

"Thanks." He scoffed and hugged the pillow. "And that's not really true, you know? We have liked people before. Our status in this world and what it means is what is restricting us to act on behalf of our hearts."

Lucy's eyes widened. Edmund's words were for himself but he was also indicating her relationship with- "How did you know?"

Edmund rolled his eyes. "I'm your brother. It's my job to know if you're okay."

Lucy bit her lower lip. "I really love them, but there is no way for me to let them know that. We can't be consorts. We can't be anything! If only there was...." She felt strange even thinking that she could be together with the Dryad Devi, but she had to try.

"I hope you work it out. And I hope you know that all of us will support you, no matter what."

She nodded. "I'm sleepy."

"Nice to meet you, Sleepy. I'm Edmund Pevensie. Long time no see!"

"Ed! I'm serious."

"But I thought you were sleepy." Lucy shoved him playfully. "Alright alright! I give up."

"We'll talk in the morning and I better not find you tired."

"You can't stop me."

She was going to say something but stopped midway. "I'm too tired to argue. Go sleep!"

"Goodnight, Lu."

"Goodnight, Ed." She said, pulling the covers over her face. "And shut the door behind you!" She shouted when he started to walk away from the room. It was a habit of his. He rushed back and closed the door.

Meanwhile, the eldest Pevensie was back in the tower as he tried to complete his work. He adjusted the telescope in its place and looked around the clouds that passed the night sky. There really was something about them that fascinated him. He couldn't believe that they were just bodies made of mass and gases as he was taught. They couldn't be. They just couldn't.

"What?" He whispered when his eyes came across the two new constellations in the sky. "That's not possible." He looked closely and even though he thought that it was the sleep getting in the way, it was in fact the constellation of Havoc. He took his gaze away from the telescope and looked at the sky with his own eyes. It was faint but it was glowing like it always did when it appeared. "Not possible...."