Moonshine

Chapter 8- Metanióno

μετανιώνω: metanióno
Greek
regret
-

Edmund dearly hoped he'd heard wrong. They hadn't yet reached where the Narnians were- they were quite near, and would be there by noon- and now he wasn't sure if he wanted to reach there at all.
A fort. The Narnians, his people, who had lived in the most beautiful woods and towns- who had lived freely and happily, had been reduced to hiding out in a fort, after having to hide in the darkest parts of the woods for centuries. They had been captives for so long- and to fight against the prison, they had to take shelter in yet another prison.
And all because they had left Narnia. Would he regret anything more?

He had been imprisoned, too, long ago- starved, tortured, alone- and he did not wish it on his worst enemies.
Well, maybe his worst enemy, since she was who had imprisoned him in the first place.
Then again, he had deserved it, nasty boy that he had been.

"How large is the fort?" He found himself asking the Minotaur- Britos- who he had been walking with since they had set out after waking. Lucy was with Trumpkin; and Peter and Susan were with Caspian- Peter being with Caspian was no surprise to him. Susan must've been there to chaperone.
He would be glad, though, if his suspicions about the two turned out to be right. He hoped Peter could move on from Aura, learn to- to care like that for someone again.
He couldn't. His heart was Sanya's, forever and ever- death may have parted them, but it could not change that.
Sure, it meant his life would be an endless tunnel of loneliness, but it was alright. He had his family- and he could get a cat, in the future, when he moved out of his parents' house. Romance may never come for him again, but he'd still have love.

Britos scratched his furry head, "Large enough to fit us all, easy. There is a lack of beds, but most are rallying impressively, despite the discomfort. There are other worries, though...." He hesitated, and Edmund nodded at him to go on, "well, weapons was one, but we manage to build enough, and there is always the Telmarine armoury, if need be. It's the morale which's the true worry."

Stepping over a gape in the grass- a snake burrow, it seemed- he asked, "How do you mean?"

"We have been preparing for the battle which is to come, ever since the Telmarine Prince found us- well, the mice say we've been preparing for it all our lives, and I reckon they ain't wrong-" He shrugged, shifting his axe from one shoulder to the other, "and I dunno, Majesty, sometimes it seems like people's would rather take an easy way out."

"Yes, that would certainly be a preferable alternative to toiling endlessly and fighting in a bloody war." Edmund muttered sarcastically- though at least fighting would give him body warmth, which he desperately needed- before speaking louder, "And have any of them spoken of this 'easy way'?"

He shrugged again, "I don't know, King. If they have, it's not reached my ears. But I can be pretty sure that these easy ways are ugly and dark, and not at all something honourable Kings and Queens like you'd be associated with."

"If you do hear tell of these easy ways, I ask that you let me know." He didn't trust the Minotaur exactly, but he accepted that he would tell him the truth. "We have enough trouble to deal with. Assassination attempts, or- or dark magic- I'd like it if we avoided those."

"Will do, King." Britos nodded, glancing at the boy- in the moment of his look, he noticed that the young King had shivered, rather violently. "Are you- are you well, Your Majesty?"

"Oh- yes." Edmund nodded quickly, adjusting his sleeve to cover more of his arm. He wished they hadn't discarded their clothes at the beach or at the Treasury- he could've worn his school shirt or blazer as a coat. He was sure, of course, that if he did so, he would be mocked relentlessly by his siblings. But he kept getting intermittent chills through his body- he would take all the teasing in the world to feel the warmth he had felt at the beginning of his dream. "Just a sudden cold breeze hit me, I think. Winter's coming soon."
Autumn was coming soon. Not winter. He needed to relearn to lie well.