Narnia Preferences and Imagines

○Edmund~VI○

Rain, Rain Go...Away?

The rain was no longer drizzling. It turned into a downpour that soaked you through on your return from the village. You'd thought you could make it, knowing your horse had been cared for and was ready for the relatively short ride back to the castle.

Lucy's birthday is coming up shortly. As one of her trusted friends you want to get her the best present there is. You'd found the perfect gift when out shopping with her a few days prior and had asked the vendor to hold it for you. Knowing there was only so long that they could do so before having to put it back out for sale, you'd decided you'd better go before too long and retrieve it.

Thus, you chose the worst day of weather to do so. When the storms in the morning finally broke you went out, ignoring the High King and Queen Susan who advised you to wait one more day. The looming clouds in the distance didn't scare you, you would be there and back before anyone could wonder where you'd gone.

Yet on the way there, your horse seemed distracted. Itself scared of thunderstorms, it took longer to get the steed on track than the whole journey should have taken. His apprehension set you back, and you were caught in a drizzle that invited you to stay in the warm shop behind the vendor's stand to wait out the rain.

With the rain gone and your present carefully packaged, you set out. Only to get halfway there and no further when the Heavens opened. Lightning cracked across the sky. Storm clouds gathered by the dozens to beat down on you with rain. Thunder rolled like a bowling bowl headed straight for a strike. But you pushed on. Gently encouraging your horse to continue straight ahead, you forged through the rain, even as it began to seep through your clothes and wet your skin, leaving behind an icky, damp feeling.

Edmund is standing in the foyer when you slip inside, water barely dripping from your outer garments. His eyes widen upon seeing you, glimmering with a certain humor at your situation.

"You're looking quite drenched," he notes, his eyes glazing over your figure unashamed.

"Oh, just get me a towel." You glare, muttering under your breath. In order to keep him from seeing your blush at his wandering eyes, you turn your attention to sticking your gift for Lucy in the hidden pocket of your outfit. With a core shaking chuckle, he slips past you, leaving his signature scent hanging in the air.

He leaves you standing there for longer than you think is necessary, shivering in the drafty corridor (it's hard to heat a hallway that large anyway), but upon his return he's carrying the fluffiest of towels and, to your surprise, a shirt and pair of pants.

"Here's your towel and some clothes. I figured you wouldn't want to keep wearing those and Lucy wants you to come play truth or dare with us before long, so I took it on myself." He hands you the bundle in his arms, ushering you into a small powder room to change. "Don't take too long. We wouldn't want to keep Queen Lucy waiting."

With a sarcastic curtsy, you shut - and lock - the door, inviting the warmth to cover you. You take care to dry off as best as you can. Then, you carefully slip the shirt over your head. You immediately recognize it as Edmund's. His smell is all over it, delighting your nose with library books, oak, and the salty smell of the sea. You adjust it on your body, finding a strange love in the way it engulfs you. The cuffs fall over your hands, but you don't care to roll them up. Rather, you finish your touch up, grab your present for Lucy, and open the door.

Edmund's jaw practically falls to the floor, but he's quick to recover. His eyes light up with that same twinkle, his lips forming into a smirk. "Shall we go then, lad?"

"Oh, shut up." You reply, finding your way to the grand staircase. Sticking the gift in your pocket once more, you let Edmund lead you into the library and to one of the chairs that sits in a semicircle around a blazing fire. You're drawn like a moth to the flame, desiring more warmth after your battle with the hypothermia that is the cold and the rain.