hiraeth

thirteen

A/N: wrote this 3 times and I'm over it jdjdjdhd

xiii. Peter

Lamplight pools into Peter's lap as he sits cross-legged in an armchair, yawning. It's nearly midnight. His younger brother lays on the bed closest to the window, nose poking out from underneath the comforter. The spitting image of a kid, thinks Peter.

Enne, surprisingly, had managed to bargain a price with the motel owner and get two rooms at a discount (she did an entire improvisation skit and honestly? It was pretty convincing). They all decided it would be best to start looking for Lucy and Susan the next day.

"How much mortal money do you guys have anyway?" Edmund had asked incredulously as they made their way to their rooms. "It's like you never run out!"

Nia had simply said, "Magic," and Enne told Peter quietly that they had been low on money, but Nia had robbed the cash register at the wax museum.

The girls are staying in the room beside his and Edmund's, except Peter hates how the entrance to their rooms are exposed, facing the parking lot, where anyone can just walk by and possibly break in.

He lets the silence drag and then bites the bullet. "How are you so calm?" he blurts out.

Edmund peels the blanket away from his face. "Huh?"

"I mean, you remember as much as I do, but you seem so nonchalant about the whole other dimension thing."

This earns him a sharp laugh. "Ha!" Edmund chortles, throwing his head back. "Me? Nonchalant? I've been fighting monsters for the past week, and you think I'm calm?"

"Ugh, Ed, seriously."

The boy sighs. "You're gonna think it's stupid."

"No, I'm not."

"I don't believe you, but whatever." Edmund leans against the headboard. "If you must know, I was scared, and I still am." He takes a deep breath. "But I trusted you. All of you."

He means him, Lucy, and Susan. Peter smiles softly.

"I knew we'd find each other eventually," Edmund continues airily. "Things always have a way of working out for us."

"Wow, I'm touched." A pillow smacks him in the face. "Ow! I was being serious!"

Edmund crosses his arms. "That aside-'

"Real subtle transition there-"

"Who's your new girlfriend? Nia, was it?"

"What are you, five years old?" Peter shakes his head. "She's annoying. End of discussion."

His brother raises his eyebrows. "Uh-huh. Sure."

"Okay, and what about you?" Peter shoots back, though he knows he's grasping at straws here.

Edmund points at his face innocently. "What about me?"

"Don't think I haven't noticed you and Enne."

"Enne and I have said less than, like, twenty words to each other."

"So you've been counting."

"Literally shut up." Edmund rolls his eyes to the back of his head. "Stop trying to insinuate something that isn't there."

"Hmm, well you started it."

"Who's the five year old now?" Edmund straightens up and throws the blanket off of him. "Anyways, I don't trust them."

Peter does a double-take. "What? Why?" He stops. "Okay, well, yeah, I could see why you wouldn't, but care to elaborate?"

Edmund scoffs. "Seriously? The prophecy sounds brutal. A last goodbye? The final stand? It sounds like a death mission."