soldier, poet, king || e. pevensie | slow updates

the soldier • 22

there will come a soldier, who carries a mighty sword. she will tear your city down, oh lei-oh lai-oh lord

As soon as Coralia had shut the door behind her, she dropped to sit against the wall. Not the professional guarding position, but she couldn't be bothered. King Edmund was driving her insane. The way he continuously tried to fluster her, finding amusement in her embarrassment. She was getting sick of it. All she wanted to do was her job. Stand outside the door, guard the king, cater to the kings every whim.

Coralia started to fiddle with her ginger hair to keep busy. It was the start of a very long night. As much as she enjoyed living in Cair Paravel, she hated the night shifts. She got such little sleep it was a wonder that she had survived this long.

She let her mind begin to wander. They were to leave for Narnia in the morning with fifty of Lune's men and extra hope for Narnia's future. She was proud of the king for convincing Lune to agree, but then again Edmund always had a way with words. He could start and end wars with just a smirk and an off-hand comment. It was very impressive. And here Coralia was, thinking of King Edmund again. What she needed was a night at a tavern and some ale to set her straight.

She stood up, leaning against the wall. Sighing, the redhead began to pace. Anything to stop her from thinking about the man behind the door. Clearly it didn't work. The door clicked and creaked open, revealing a shirtless King Edmund, rubbing his eyes.

"Quiet down, you are breathing so loud."

Coralia nodded quickly, leaning against the wall again. Before Edmund shut the door again, he grinned. "Is something wrong? You seem off."

She shook her head, turning away. She couldn't hate him any more than she did in that moment. "I'm fine, you should go back to sleep. Rest for the morning."

"Are you blushing?"

"I certainly am not." She certainly was.

Edmund gave her one last smile before shutting the door and going to bed.

Coralia rubbed her eyes harshly. King Edmund the Just was going to be the cause of her death.

•

Coralia had hardly recovered from the night before. Edmund gave no hint that it had even happened. Coralia could almost believe that she had imagined the whole interaction. Almost.

She slept very carefully on the back of her horse. He made sure to walk slowly and gently as to not let her fall.  Coralia woke up as day became night, her stomach growling. As soon as she stirred, Edmund tossed her an apple.

"Rise and shine, my dear!" He teased.

"Oh, shut up."

"It's treasonous to speak to a king like that," Edmund gasped. "I could execute you."

"Then what would you do for fun?" Coralia grinned.

"Fair. Anyway, it's dinner time. You can have the night watch, you rested enough today."

The consequences of her own actions, come back to bite.

Chewing on her dinner of stale bread and dried fruit, she settled in against a tree, clutching her crossbow. She tried to keep her mind from wandering, but it was no use. She found herself thinking of her father and the letter she had sent him before they left for Archenland. She thought of her village. Of Dantus.

The thought of the faun reminded her that she'd brought his novel with her on the journey. It was a last minute idea to toss it into her bag, and she hadn't even thought about it until just then.

Pulling out the manuscript, she began to flip through the pages. She'd already read the whole story, but the illustrations amazed her. Dantus had such a gentle hand for his calligraphy and art. It was the first night she'd thought about him in the months she'd been in Cair Paravel.

She began to miss home for the first time in a while. She didn't know she was crying until a tear splashed onto one of the beautiful pages in her lap.

"Damn," She sniffled, wiping her eyes. She tried to dry the page, but another tear fell. She decided to just shut the book and put it aside.

Someone sat down next to her. "Are you alright?" It was Peodum the faun.

"I'm sorry, I must've woke you."

"I'm a light sleeper," He whispered, then repeated himself. "Are you alright?"

"Just missing my father, that's all." Coralia started to put the book into her bag, but Peodum stopped her hand.

"Can I take a look?"

Coralia didn't see why not, Dantus wasn't around to say no. She handed the manuscript to the knight, who skimmed through the pages.

"This is phenomenal, did you write this?"

"Oh, Lord, no. My—" She paused. Who was Dantus to her? Who had he ever been? A friend. Family, even. But something more as well. And now, almost nothing. "Someone from
my home wrote it and let me borrow it. I'm afraid I haven't been able to return it, and with the current state of our relationship, I'm not sure he even wants it back."

"A lover of yours?"

The term 'lover' caught Coralia off guard. She had never considered herself to be someone who'd have a lover. Especially not at her age. And especially not Dantus. "We had a complicated situation. Romance was involved, yes. I'm not sure what we were, or what we are now. I haven't had the time to think about it too deeply."

"Perhaps you should write him. He is a talented artist and author, and it seems to me that you have some emotions to unpack." Peodum handed the book back to her and headed back to where he was sleeping.

King Edmund turned over in his sleep, letting out a huff.

Coralia was unexpectedly hit with a crippling sense of guilt.

•

king edmund the slut is jelly!!