The High Queen's Caretaker (Caspian x Reader)

CHAPTER 2

Y/N stirred. Her phone rang her alarm on the bedside table. Without opening her eyes, her hands fumbled to snooze the alarm. The loud ringtone finally stopped and she groaned in relief. She tried to go back to sleep but images of a flooding kitchen, getting pulled into a boat, and a tall and handsome man with a talking rat on his shoulder flashed into her mind. She shuddered as she reminisced the scariest dream she's ever had. She groaned in annoyance and buried her face deeper into her pillow.

"I've got to apologize to Lucy", she mumbled into the pillow.

"Damn right", Lucy said.

Y/N shot straight up and looked around. Her jaw fell to the floor as she took in the room. She was sitting in a four-poster bed with beautiful, matching curtains and sheets that had the most intricate design she'd ever seen. The room was lit by the moonlight, candles, and lamps, and a crystal chandelier dangled from the ceiling. The mahogany walls and rug-clad wooden floors added to the vibrant feel of the room. There was a vanity near her bed and her eyes widened at the shiny gold filigree along the mirror's sides.

She removed herself from the bed and her skin suddenly missed the warmth of the silk sheets. She walked towards the vanity and looked at herself in the mirror. She wasn't in her pajamas anymore. She was wearing a long nightgown with short sleeves. She looked like she was some noble in a fantasy world. Was she in a fantasy world? She had to be because she knew she couldn't even begin to dream of such a wonderful and detailed room.

She noticed that her phone was on the bedside table along with her earphones. She took them and clutched them to her chest. Somehow it felt good to have something she knew and owned in this beautiful yet unfamiliar room. Suddenly she heard chuckling. She turned to the window to see Lucy sitting on the cushions. She was relieved to see the familiar face and yet astonished at how regal she looked. Lucy wore a velvet orange dress with golden embroidery along the hems and bodice. A coronet daintily sat on her head and her gray hair was styled into a complicated half-up-half-down braid.

"How are you feeling?", she asked lightly, an amused smile on her face.

"I feel... many different feelings" Y/N started, "And I have questions", she finished. Lucy just nodded, indicating Y/N to carry on.

"Is... Is this all real?" Y/N asked breathlessly. Lucy merely nodded, her smile widening.

"So, Narnia is really real?" Lucy nodded again.

"And we're in Narnia?" Lucy chuckled and nodded again.

"And the part where we almost drowned, got saved by a handsome man with a talking rat-"

"Mouse", Lucy gently corrected.

"-talking mouse on his shoulder... that was all real?" Lucy chuckled and walked across the room to where she was standing. Y/N gaped at how she moved without assistance.

"Mhm. Yes we almost drowned, and yes King Caspian and his men saved us, and yes he is quite handsome, and yes the mouse that was perched on his shoulder, Reepicheep, talks – he isn't the only talking animal in this world. And no, you're not dreaming nor hallucinating", she finished. That last word hit something in Y/N.

"So... so all of this is real, and whenever you talked about Narnia back in England, you were being serious and I was being a jerk for not ever believing you?" her voice rose at her shame and sudden rise of self-loathing. Lucy gently smiled and nodded her head again.

"Oh, Lucy. I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry I always fought with you and made you cry. I'm so sorry for not believing you. I'm so sorry for everything. You're my family and I hurt you over and over again, I'm so sorry!", Y/N blurted out until she sobbed. She felt awful. She remembered how angry tears would flow down her cheeks as she would defiantly defend Narnia's existence. She was feeling so guilty and yet Lucy just hushed her gently.