𝙸𝚁𝚁𝙸𝚃𝙰𝙱𝙻𝙴. ➪ 𝙴. 𝙿𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗𝚜𝚒𝚎

𝚗𝚒𝚗𝚎

It was in June that the new baby bump began to show. Everyone was delighted at the news of a second baby. Up until then, everything in life had been going well.

Sun poured through the sheer curtains draped over the large window in Ed and Phillis' room. Phillis still had nightmares sometimes. But last night, she'd had an amazing dream. It wasn't really a dream; it was more an account of her time as a Queen in Narnia.

The gorgeous royal blue dress that clung to Phillis' figure swayed beautifully as she walked through the halls of Cair Paravel. The sky was blue and cloudless and the sun shone down on the rulers of Narnia. As she turned the corner, she bumped into Edmund. "Eddie!" she exclaimed. "I'm terribly sorry."
"Don't be," he smiled. "I was actually looking for you. I was wondering, if you're not busy, if you would like to take the horses out with me. Go for a ride, perhaps?"
"I'd be delighted to, Edmund," she nodded, now suddenly excited.
Half an hour later, Phillis and Edmund were trotting through the gates of the courtyard on Garnet and Philip. The refreshing sound of hooves on cobblestone electrifying the air. As soon as they were off the stone, they squeezed their horses into gallops. They raced through the forests, the cool air blowing in their face. Once they emerged from the crowd of trees, they were back in Beruna. The large expanse looked the same way it had all those years ago. Garnet, as he always did, took this as the opportunity to gallop ahead of poor Philip. Phillis laughed as the stallion didn't even attempt to slow down. "Philly!" Edmund cried, trying to keep up with the laughing girl.

They ran through the expanse, the wind in their hair and the sun beaming down at them. Phillis turned back to look at Edmund, who was smirking at her. "Come on, Eddie! We haven't got all day!" she grinned.
When they came to a good spot, they dismounted their noble horses, and let them chew on the grass and catch their breath. The two teenagers, drunk on love, stumbled to the grassy ground. Ed fell on top of Phillis. They lay in the long grass, laughing loudly. When the giggles came to a close, Edmund stared down at Phillis, his beautiful eyes flicking between her own and her lips. It was an unspoken request: him begging her to kiss him. Her hand caressed his neck, stroking the stray hairs on the back of his neck. Closing her eyes, she leaned up to press her lips to his. Whether it was the sun, or the passion of the kiss, it was ridiculously hot in Beruna that day. Garnet and Philip, deciding it was none of their business, turned away to graze elsewhere. Edmund and Phillis lay in each other's arms for about an hour that day. They spoke about anything and everything, soaking up every moment they had with each other.

They decided to head back when the ford became slightly darker as the sun set. As Phillis stood, her royal blue dress was completely ruined. It was covered in mud and grass and all sorts. She knew Peter would not be best pleased but in the moment, she couldn't care less. Edmund guided her towards Garnet and Philip. When they were mounted, the horses broke out into a refreshing gallop. The sound of hooves pounding on the ground was music to Phillis' ears. As they entered the woods, it was even darker than before. That didn't scare the horses, though. However, it certainly made Phillis and Edmund feel slightly uneasy.

When they returned to Cair Paravel, Susan stood with Elmer in the courtyard. She was dressed in a cloak, the bitter breeze nipping her arms. "They you are!" cried Mr. Beaver. "Why did you go unarmed?"
The beaver barely gave the two time to answer before bursting into a lengthy lecture about why leaving the castle grounds unarmed, without anyone knowing was a terribly dangerous thing to do. He was right, but Philly and Ed were particularly stubborn teenagers. Some servants took Philip and Garnet away, preparing the horses for the night. "Please, Mr. Beaver," came Susan's incredibly gentle and relaxing voice. "Let them live, will you?"
The beaver looked shocked at Susan's words. He wasn't one to disobey the Queen, so he said nothing further on the matter to Edmund or Phillis. When he plodded away, muttering something about carelessness, to find his wife, Susan turned back to Ed and Philly. "Where have you been?"
Her tone was harsher now. Much colder.
"Just up to Beruna," said Edmund.
"Don't you think that could be slightly traumatic?" Susan asked, gesturing to Phillis.
It was true, Phillis hadn't been particularly keen on returning to Beruna soon. But with Edmund it felt different. She felt safe, even if they were unarmed and no one was made aware of their whereabouts. "I was okay, Su, really," Phillis offered the girl a smile.
"Okay," Susan said wearily. "Just tell people where you're going next time."

Cobalt emerged from the main entrance to the castle, looking as though he wasn't heading anywhere in particular. Then, he laid eyes on the Just King and the Zealous Queen. He dashed towards her, a sense of relief in his eyes, but a tone of anger in there too. "Did you plan on telling me that you were running away?" his voice was scarily dark. It sent shivers down their spines.
"We weren't running away," replied Phillis quietly.
"Oh yeah? Why didn't you tell me where you were going?" he snapped, a growl weaving in and out of his words.
"Because we were in such a rush! I didn't have time to come and find you," said Phillis.
Cobalt huffed, lowering his head. "I'm sorry," he muttered. "I was just worried."
Phillis sighed, kneeling down in front of the leopard. She wrapped her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly. Ed watched on with a small smile on his face.

Her dream ended when she woke. Edmund was awake, flicking through the newspaper, one of his hands resting on her small baby bump. She stirred, her eyes opening. "You're awake, finally," he smirked.
"It's only," she checked Edmund's watch, "Half past nine."
"Enoch's still asleep. I checked," Ed told her.
"Good," she nodded slowly. It had taken them three hours to get him to sleep the night before. He just wasn't tired. They felt like they'd tried everything. It was certainly the most tiring experience.
"I can't wait for this one to come," Ed grinned, kissing the scarred bump lightly.
"Even after Enoch's tantrum last night?" joked Phillis.
Edmund laughed, moving his body up and kissing her forehead. Sudden cries echoed from Enoch's bedroom down the hall. Edmund sighed loudly, throwing the duvet off his legs. Phillis joined him quickly to tend to Enoch. When they reached the crying boy, Edmund lifted him carefully out of his bed. He'd recently upgraded to a toddler bed, and Phillis and Edmund were beginning to get worried that that was the sudden cause for his late night tantrums. The boy had his thumb in his mouth and he clutched onto his teddy bear that Eustace had bought him for his first birthday. It was clear that he was crying because he was alone as he soon stopped when he was safe in his parents' arms. So, they stood in Enoch's bedroom, holding each other as Rum brushed himself along Phillis' bare legs. A happy family, if you were ever to see one.