Favorite of the King

Chapter 27

Yvaine sighed and ran a hand through her loose brown hair. She tugged a lock over her shoulder and fiddled with it, bored and frustrated. She was jotting down another report for King Hakan. Evolet had faithfully kept notes during the week she'd been gone at sea. Even with those, Yvaine was struggling to craft the letter.

Edmund was in the room with her. He had both her swords out and was examining them. He glanced at her after a moment. "Just leave that be for now, Eve." He'd taken to calling her that in the past few days. It was simply a shortened version of her name.

"I need to finish it so it can be sent off today," Yvaine replied. "It's already behind a day. Hakan will be angry enough about that."

"What are you struggling with, anyway?" He moved to the front of her desk and peered at the letter.

"Evolet kept notes on the relevant things that happened during the week, but they still don't have a lot to do with the treaty. I'm not sure what to put in the report."

"It'll be a short report, then. Come on. You can take a break for at least an hour." He held a hand towards her.

Yvaine smiled and took it. He placed both swords in her hands. "What are you doing?"

"An experiment. What do you think the differences between a Narnian blade and a Telmarine blade are, based on what you've seen?" Edmund sat at the foot of her bed, waiting for her to reply.

Yvaine inspected each sword before answering. "A Narnian blade is lightweight but durable. It moves freely and isn't cumbersome. A Telmarine blade is strong but heavy. It requires a lot of stamina to wield." She tilted her head and eyed Edmund. "Why do you ask?"

He shrugged. "You haven't used your own sword since you came here."

"I haven't needed or wanted to." She handed her swords back to him and returned to her desk. "Did you talk to Peter about us?" Yvaine knew the answer, of course. She and Lucy had overhead a part of their conversation two nights prior.

Edmund blew some hair out of his face and pursed his lips. "I did. He reacted as I expected."

"Not good?"

"Not terrible, but not great. He gave me a rousing lecture on the safety of Narnia and the risks we'd be taking."

Yvaine furrowed her brows. "Maybe I should talk to him, then."

Edmund shook his head. "I don't think that'd be a good idea."

"All right. I won't do anything for now." She picked up the letter and glanced at her notes.

Edmund came closer again and pushed her hand back onto the desk. "An hour? It's only been a few minutes."

Yvaine grinned sheepishly. "I know, but I need to get it done."

"If only you were as dedicated to your dance lessons," Edmund laughed. "Evolet said she's had a hard time getting you to meet Madame Tanith's goals."

"It's not my fault. I just don't like dancing very much," Yvaine protested.

"I thought you liked it fine."

"All right. I like dancing sometimes and with certain people, but I don't like the dances that Madame Tanith has me learning." Yvaine blushed a bit and looked down.

"Ah I see." Edmund didn't step away from the desk, but he said nothing more.

Yvaine picked up her pen and wrote down a few more sentences. She struggled to keep from smiling and blushing even harder, as Edmund continued to watch her. At last she looked up. Yvaine set her pen down and leaned her head against a hand. "Yes?"