The Just and the Wise

Chapter 5

"Oh, you have not!" Caspian laughs. "She's beating you fair and square, Ed!"

"I've never appreciated you going easy on me, Ed," I cock an eyebrow at him, "you know that."

"Oh-ew," Caspian says to Lucy and she scrunches her nose in disgust.

"Not what I meant!" I shake my head at Caspian.

"Fine!" Edmund lunges at me and shows no mercy.

He swings at me repeatedly, backing me into a corner with my hand still behind my back. I hold my own for a moment, but Edmund twists our swords to an odd angle and moves towards me so that I can't hold on to my weapon anymore. With one more twist, Edmund hits my sword from my hand, presses the flat side of his sword against my chest, and puts a hand on the barrels behind me that he's cornered me against. His face is only a couple of inches from mine.

"I win," he says in a gruff voice, and I feel butterflies in my stomach.

"Damn, Y/n," Caspian calls out, "I thought you had him there for a second!"

"No one beats Narnia's finest swordsman!" I laugh and put my hand on Ed's chest, signaling him to back up.

"I want you to know that I hope to finish this little moment later," Edmund leans in and whispers, his hand briefly moving over my hips.

"Whatever you say, love."

I take Edmund's hand, and we walk back over to where Lucy is standing against the rail. A crew member hands Edmund a drink, and I take mine back from Lucy.

"Y/n, Edmund, do you two think if we keep sailing to the end of the world we'll just...tip off the edge?" Lucy asks us.

I tilt my head in confusion at her question, and Edmund replies, "Don't worry, Lu, we're a long way from there."

I see the door to below deck open, and the lovely Eustace emerges with the same disgruntled facial expression he's had since I first met him.

"I see you're all still talking nonsense," he walks over and stands beside me, crossing his arms angrily.

"Are you feeling better?" Lucy asks kindly.

"Yes, no thanks to you," he says in an accusatory tone, "it's lucky I have an iron constitution."

I bite my lip to keep from laughing, and Edmund notices and lightly elbows me in amusement.

"As effervescent as ever I see!" Reepicheep climbs up the rope behind Lucy. "Find your sea legs?"

"Never lost them," Eustace shakes his head, "I'm simply dealing with the shock of things."

Edmund looks at Eustace with a particularly distasteful expression before taking a swig of his drink.

"Mother says I have an acute disposition," their cousin continues, "due to my intelligence."

"Ha!" I scoff, and Edmund chokes on his drink, making Lucy snicker.

"I don't think he has a 'cute' anything," Reepicheep states, earning a smile from Lucy.

"I'll have you know, as soon as we find civilization, I'm contacting the British consul and having you all arrested for kidnapping!" Eustace storms off or tries to anyways.

Caspian steps in front of the angry boy, and Eustace bumps into his chest.

"Kidnapping is it?" The king asks. "That's funny. I thought we saved your life."

"You held me against my will!" Eustace shouts.

"Oh?" I say with mock surprise.

"In, what I must say, are the most unhygienic quarters!"

"Mm. He would know; he won an award in grade school for 'Most Hygienic,'" I say in a bored tone.

"Did you really?" Lucy asks her cousin.

"It's like a disgusting zoo down there!" Eustace ignores us.

"He's quite the complainer, isn't he?" Reepicheep says, clearly amused by the boy.

"He's just warming up," Edmund rolls his eyes.

I look up at Edmund, and he moves his arm back behind me, resting his hand on the rail behind me. I lean into his arm and put my hand on his back and lightly scratch it over his shirt.

"Y/n, when did you get so good at wielding a sword?" Caspian asks me as Eustace goes to try to convince Drinian to take us back to England.

"Watching you, Peter, and Edmund," I say with a smile, "I just studied your moves and memorized them. I also read a few books on fencing strategies back home, just in case."

"No kidding," Caspian smiles at me, impressed. "It's a shame we didn't have you here the last few years. We could have used a swordsman like you on the front lines many a time."

"Well, I'm here now," I shrug and finish off the drink in my hand, "and if this time is anything like last time, I'm sure I'll have the opportunity to show off my skills."

Caspian laughs at my cockiness, and Edmund smiles down at me. I look over at Lucy, but she's looking away from us. A small frown turns her lips downward.

"Say, Lu, what's the matter?" I ask her.

Before she gets the chance to respond, a man on the lookout yells,

"Land ho!"

The crew swings into action, preparing to embark upon the land.