Hearts Connected As One

Chapter 14 - The Admittance Of Shared Feelings:

Edmund quickly led me through the corridors of the How.

His grip on my hand was tightening, I could feel how tense he was. His emotions were spiralling so I took the lead and gently guided him out onto one of the empty lookout points.

I calmly looked into his eyes and I could tell he was scared and hurting, no matter how much he tried to deny it to himself. I pulled him into a tight hug, stroking my hand across his back soothingly as I did with Lucy after the bear incident.

"I can do whatever you need me to, listen or I can just sit here with you quietly. But you just need to know one thing... I am so incredibly proud of you." Edmund rested against my shoulder, nestling his head in the crook of my neck. I could feel him start to cry and I stroked his hair gently and pressed a soft kiss against the side of his head.

I have to admit I was hurting badly. Nikabrik was dead, he helped to raise me and I can safely say I loved him a lot. Nikabrik was the one who taught me how to shoot a bow, he made mine from part of the ruins of Cair Paravel.  The dark-haired, bad-tempered dwarf was one of the closest father figures in my life but he lost hope and tried to summon the evilest force Narnia has ever seen. He lost hope, in the Kings and Queens, in me and Caspian but most of all he lost hope in Aslan. There was no other option for him.

Right now Edmund was probably feeling a million times worse than I was. So, I needed to be strong for him.

"Are you okay? I asked gently, as I pulled out of the hug slightly. It was a stupid question but I didn't know what else to say. He had been completely silent since the whole incident.

"No, not really," He admitted with a soft expression. He was letting down his walls, the sarcasm defence that he often used was nowhere near. This was genuine, raw pain and emotion.

"I've had a lot of history with the Witch. Nobody actually knows the whole story, I never told anyone. I never thought that there was a way she could come back. Her evil grin and her cold demonic eyes still haunt my nightmares. Just like they did for 15 years over 1300 years ago. I have never truly forgiven myself for what happened with her. All the books written probably just pass me off as a traitor who became a King because I was needed to complete the prophecy." Edmund sighed. He had clearly been bottling this up for a while, but didn't say anything for fear of appearing weak. He doesn't understand that this isn't a weakness, it's a strength.

I didn't dare to interrupt until he had finished talking. He needed this time to rant and get everything off his chest. I just listened intently, here to support him through this. When he had finished he looked down at me, his eyes slowly filling with tears.

"I'm pretty certain that I have read all the books about your Golden Age and none of them has said that you are a traitor,"  I explained honestly, moving closer, taking his hands in mine.

"So tell me... Why would you say that?" I asked curiously, unable to hide the sad undertone that followed with it. Edmund released one of my hands, before running his free hand through his dark hair. A single tear slipped down his cheek, I gently brushed it away with my thumb.

"I'm sorry." He apologised.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. Ed, when they talk about what happened between you and the White Witch they don't call you a traitor." I reassured, smiling up at him lightly. He glanced down at me.

"What do you mean?" How do they describe me?" He asked inquisitively.

"They refer to you as a young boy who made a mistake after being manipulated by one of the darkest forces Narnia has ever seen but learnt to accept it. They also say you became a far better man because of it. A fair and just King, a good strong diplomat and the greatest swordsman that Narnia has ever seen. Even better than the High King Peter." I continued.