It wasn't the cool ocean breeze that sent a shiver down Caspian's spine, nor the chill of the approaching night. Though Caspian had faced war, magic, werewolves and even death; nothing compared to the terror that raced through his mind and body.
A sad smile, so faint it almost didn't exist, formed on Melioralee's lips.
"My father used to say that a man's silence sometimes tells you more than his words..."
A knot began forming in the pit of Caspian's stomach.
"Melioralee, I... yes. Yes, it was Susan." Caspian sighed and hung his head.
Tension filled the silence between them as both Caspian and Melioralee stared out into the ocean.
"Caspian, love shared with someone is beautiful, be that for a season or a lifetime. The past affairs of your heart are of little matter to me... but I refuse to compete with a memory. Now, I know your intentions for bringing me and my brother to Narnia include more than just tours and introductions. So, before this goes anywhere, I must know: is your heart free from the shadow of her memory or does it still haunt you?"
Without a moment's hesitation Caspian replied, "It haunted me for a long time...so long I didn't think I'd ever find lo- I didn't think it possible to free my heart and open it again. But something changed that night in the haven. As we watched the stars together, the pain, the 'shadows that haunted me' as you put it seemed to melt away. Almost as if they never existed."
Caspian paused, grasping Melioralee's hands and placing them over his heart. "My heart never raced for her like it races now, Melioralee. My spirit never yearned for hers, all of time and nature didn't stand still when she entered a room. It's true, I cared for Susan, I even thought I wanted her; but you have something she never did...my love."
A tiny gasp escaped Melioralee's lips at the rush of Caspian's confession.
"I know this must be a lot and I didn't plan on telling you this way," Caspian continued, "but you must know; you are not competing for anything. If you'll have it, my heart is completely and wholly yours."
Tears glistened in Melioralee's eyes as the breeze tossed a few loose strands of hair into her face.
"Say something..." Caspian urged, brushing the ringlets out of her eyes, "why the tears?"
Melioralee looked up into Caspian's eyes for only a moment more before wrapping her arms around his body and hugging him tightly.
"I was prepared for this moment to be goodbye..." she trembled, "you have my heart as much as I have yours."
Relief flooded Caspian's heart as he returned Melioralee's embrace.
As they stood wrapped in each other's arms, Melioralee began to recite a poem and all of nature fell in rhythm with her words:
"Mother once told me, someday I'd find,
A man whose heart is true and kind.
Of noble character, a gentleman,
Who'd win my heart and take my hand.
He'll always be right by my side,
If not in distance, in heart and mind.
Yet guard yourself from disillusion,
And do not take him if unproven.
KAMU SEDANG MEMBACA
•King Caspian: A New Dawn•
Fiksi PenggemarIt has been nearly two years since Caspian X was crowned high king of Narnia. Allies have been formed, enemies defeated and Narnian Sovereignty reestablished, but something is still missing. There has been an emptiness in Caspian's heart since the...
