Alliance

Chapter 14- Apsens

"Ettinsmoor? To spy on the giants?" It felt like someone else was speaking, but using her mouth and voice- but a hollow, empty sort of voice. "Edmund's gone?"

"Yes, to do that. And yes, he is." He nodded, before kneeling down and facing his nephew at his level. "Your Daddy's gone to work. He'll be back before you know it, though."

His face crumpled, and became tinged with grey- he always started reverting to his natural skin colour when he threw too emotional a tantrum, "I- WANT- DADDY!"

"Sanya- he's- turning grey- Sanya, snap out of it!" Peter near yelled to his frozen sister-in-law, who blinked and set into almost immediate action.

"Your father will be back soon." She whispered soothingly into Jem's hair, having picked him up again. "I promise. He wouldn't leave you."
Her? Yes, he'd desert her in a heartbeat if he could. But tiny James Edmund Pevensie, his little boy? No, not even when the stars rained down from the Heavens.

He looked at her, eyes even more uncommonly bright than usual. "Truly?"

"Haan." She nodded, kissing his cheek- which was turning back to its illusioned peach-white hue. "Truly."

"I thought he would have told you." Peter said sheepishly, hands clasped behind his back. "Being friends and all now..."

"Even if we weren't friends, it should've been common courtesy to inform his wife that he was going on a deadly and dangerous expedition to scout out very large and very violent creatures who are planning to attack Narnia." Unlike Peter, she hadn't bothered to keep her voice low- she was a little too miffed and much too agonised to care. "Alone."

"He's gone with Philip." Her brother-in-law tried to mollify her, inwardly cursing her brother for having left her in the dark and consequently having left her for him to deal with.

"Oh, a cheeky talking horse is such good backup." She replied sarcastically. "I'm not at all fretting or worrying that he might die now."

"Daddy will die?" Jem looked at her, promptly horrified and tears starting to stream down his face. "But- you said-"

"No, no, of course he won't, oh, Heavens- don't cry, Jem-" She said, and he started positively wailing and tugging wildly at her sleeves, skin rapidly greying now.

"WANT- DADDY- YOU- DADDY- PLEASE, PLEASE, MUMMA- GO GET DADDY-"

"I never know how to handle his tantrums, I'm terrible with crying people! Edmund handled him during these!" Sanya's face was panicked- Peter felt bad but also clueless- as she swung around, Jem firmly in her grasp, trying to pacify him. "Baby- please stop- your father- Daddy's going to come home soon-"

"NOW! I WANT HIM NOW- MUMMA, PLEASE-"

"He can't come home now-" Sanya said, before seeing Peter's warning head shake and amending herself, desperate, "I mean- he's gone to get you gifts- you wanted a pony, didn't you?"

He stopped his attacks on her sleeves and slowly looked up to her, his shrieks disappearing, “Po- pony?”

"A little horse? Like Moonlight, but even cuter?"

"Da-daddy's get me an horse?"

She was so relieved he had stopped howling, she didn't even correct his grammar, and just said, "Yes. Yes, he is. But he needs to find the very best pony for you, so it will take him some time to come."

"Oh- oh." His small face creased into a frown as he apparently thought hard, and both his mother and Peter watched him in apprehension. "Can I name pony?"

Sanya breathed a silent breath of relief. "Of course, Jem. Whatever you want."

"Anything?"

"Anything." She promised again, hoping this was a promise she actually could keep.