make it right ➞ edmund pevensie; the chronicles of narnia [editing]

TWELVE.

"they try to keep me down but i just get higher."

-

TWELVE.

DOCTOR CORNELIUS ALWAYS FORBID HER TO SOAK TOO LONG IN THE WATER. For reasons unknown other than that her mother didn't want her to get wrinkles. Not a very good excuse but it made Cady listen, nonetheless.

But today, for once, Cady wants to break the rules, and let herself relax. No rules, no teachers, no Pevensies, nothing. She has had enough of these annoying feelings that make her burst and it is like a fire set aflame, ready to burn everything that stands in its path. Destructive, just like her mother said she is.

She pulls off her coat and boots, leaving her only in her dress before she dips into the cool water. It comes around her like a cool embrace closing over the top of her.

Cady stays in the water, breaking the surface just to take a deep breath before diving back in for a swim. She hears voices sail over the trees and ducks behind a large rock, hiding out of sight in the river.

She hears Susan's voice first, it's gentle but scolding, and Cady flinches when she raises her voice. "Edmund, stop it! Did you not hear what her doctor said? When we win this battle, she'll be married to a kingdom for relations, because it's Telmar tradition!"

Cady hears his shuffling as Edmund sighs, saying, "It's not like we wouldn't be back."

"Just because you wanted to play knight in shining armour, doesn't mean she will be here when you come back again! Centuries have passed since we were last here," Susan protests. "It will never work out."

"You're wrong," Edmund replies, determination lacing his voice. "It will work out, I know it will."

"What happens when you come back and find her married?" Susan asks, kicking a leg in the water. "What happens if you're only a few years older and you come back to find her decades older than you?"

"I don't care, she's worth it," Edmund says. Cady's heart aches, because she cannot know the future and she's terrified of what it holds. Fate has not been merciful to her and she doubts it will be.

All of a sudden, pain shoots up her legs and it takes her entire being to hold in her scream. A stinging pain sets her gums on fire and Cady clenches her jaw, stifling her yell as she inhales through her nose shakily.

There is shuffling on the shore and Cady hears them leave, their steps crunching the dirt and sand before their footsteps reside.

Cady lets out a whimper, feeling her legs bend in an unearthly direction. She holds herself above the water with the rock and lets out a cry when another jolt of pain shoots up her legs, setting her thighs on fire in fresh agony. There is a magic in this, ancient and delicious, yet painful and agonising.

"Princess?" Cady snaps her head at the familiar voice coming from the exit of the How's direction.

"Cady? What are you doing out here alone?" Peter's voice cuts off when he finds Cady struggling on the piece of rock. A whimper escapes her lips as she turns to the High King with glassy eyes. "Oh, my Aslan! Cady!"

The High King runs over to her immediately, pulling her out of the water and scooping her up into his arms. "What on earth happened?"

Cady shakes her head, tears pouring down her face and the world blurs before her. "Get Caspian and Doctor Cornelius," she chokes out. She feels his grip tighten around her as he breaks into a run towards the How.