The Just and the Wise

Chapter 18

Your POV

After Lucy falls back asleep, I decide to slip back into mine and Edmund's room. I don't know if he's in there, or what time it is, or if we've sailed far. I just know I want to be back in my own bed.

I open the door to our cabin, and I faintly see Edmund asleep on top of the covers. I smile a little at seeing him sleeping. The sheets are cold against my legs as I slide into bed next to him and drift off into a restless sleep...

Edmund's POV

Hissing sounds pull me out of my slumber. I open my eyes and look around me, but I see nothing. I'm wide awake, and the hair on the back of my neck is standing up. Y/n is sound asleep next to me on her stomach, her arms under her pillow and her face turned towards me.

The hissing and whispers grow louder and louder until they morph into a coherent voice-a voice that to this day sends a terror through my bones.

"Edmund...Edmund..."

The mist takes the form of a woman. Lighting strikes, exposing the details of her form; it's the White Witch.

"Come with me," she says, her voice eerily smooth like silk, "join me."

Lightening flashes again, and I slowly sit up in my bed and try to back away from her form. I draw my sword and point it at her, but I blink and she's gone.

"Edmund," I hear a faint whisper, and I turn and see my little sister standing by mine and Y/n's bed.

My breathing slows, and I look back to ensure that the mist, or whatever it was, is gone.

"Oh, Lucy," I say, looking at her, "you startled me."

"I can't sleep," she whispers, glancing down at Y/n and back at me.

"STOP!" Y/n lurches up from the mattress, making my sister and I jump.

I put my hand on Y/n's shoulder as she gains her bearings, realizing that only Lucy and I are here.

"Let me guess," I look at the two of them, "bad dreams."

Lucy nods. Y/n sits up and pulls her hair to one side before pulling her knees to her chest and looking at me. Lucy sits down next to Y/n and rests her head on her shoulder.

"So either we're all going mad," I say, "or something's playing with our minds."

"The mist," Y/n says, putting one arm around Lucy, "it's toying with us."

I get up and walk Lucy back to bed and come back to Y/n. She's still sitting with her knees to her chest, and her eyes dart up as I open the door. I look at her, and I know we both feel utterly exhausted and drained.

She holds her arms out to me, and I crawl over the bed and lie down, my head resting on her chest as we lie down under the covers. I sigh deeply, and I let myself completely relax into her.

"I'm tired, Edmund," she says quietly, "I'm exhausted, and I want this to be over."

"Me too, love," I say, moving my head up and kissing her jaw, "thank you for caring for Lucy."

"Always," Y/n says, "she's my family."

I move out of her arms and shift so that we're lying looking at the ceiling, still rocking back and forth with the ocean waves.

"What was your dream?" I ask her.

She doesn't reply.

"Love?" I look at her, and I see tears silently falling down her face. "Y/n, what is it?"

"I dreamt that..." she wipes the tears away and takes a deep breath, "I dreamt that I failed you, and Lucy, and Caspian, and Narnia. It was up to me to stop the mist and I failed, and you all went with it. Everything I loved...gone. Aslan stripped me of my title, and I never got to come back."

I bring her into a tight embrace and kiss her forehead.

"I saw the White Witch," I say, and Y/n immediately sits up and faces me.

She puts her hands on either side of my face and looks sternly into my eyes.

"Edmund Pevensie, she has no power over you," she says, her eyes moving back and forth between mine, "Aslan set you free from her. It's only the mist, it's not her."

I smile at her and kiss her deeply before pulling away.

"I know, love," I say, and she breaths a small sigh of relief, "you'll never let me forget who I am."

"Good," she says, kissing me back firmly, "let's get some rest, ok?"

"Ok," I kiss Y/n one last time before we fall back into a restless, tormented sleep once again.