"She ends up crying almost every time I talk to her," Edmund said sullenly.

Peter laughed.

"It's not funny."

"No, no you're right. I was just thinking of what a wonderful husband you must be...if your wife cries every time you are near," Peter finished with another laugh.

"Yes. That's hysterical, dear Brother." Edmund eyed Peter sharply.

"All right, all right. I'm sorry Brother mine." Peter held up his hands in surrender. "Earnestly, I do not envy you in this situation." Peter took a moment to pour them each a glass of ale. "I mean, you have this proof of another life, a future life, with a pretty wife and two beautiful daughters, but you, of course, have no memory of it. It is difficult enough for me to comprehend it and I'm just the favorite uncle."

"You're the only uncle...I think." When they were together, Ileana and Edmund didn't really talk about the rest of his family; now it had him curious. Were his sisters married? Did Peter find someone to put up with him? What did his parents think of Ileana?

"That's irrelevant," Peter said with a shrug of his shoulders. "I think instead of fretting about it, you should stop to think of how lucky you are."

Edmund was lucky, he knew that. Sara was a pure joy. Meri was bright, talented, and had a strong, promising future ahead of her. Meanwhile, Ileana was still obstinate and impertinent but Edmund didn't see those as negative traits anymore. She was strong and confident, she didn't easily back down or shy away and now knowing her history Edmund could only respect that and admire how she had overcome. And she was beautiful.

Edmund had noticed her beauty the first time he saw her on the training grounds. The way the sun danced off her hair or the way her eyes shimmered. He'd been taken by her then, but the thought of an evil imposter had taken precedence in his mind. Somehow, her beauty had only grown since then. As the days passed and he got to know a little more about her, Edmund found he wanted to be in her presence more and more. There were times where he found himself just standing outside the guest wing, hoping to catch a glimpse of her.

Peter was still talking. "...what better fit could there be for the Just King of Narnia?"

Edmund wrinkled his nose in thought; he really had no idea what Peter had just said.

"If I may make a suggestion, my King?" Nalsa asked.

"Please, Friend, speak freely. I think our dear Ed could use all the advice he can receive," Peter replied.

"If Lady Ileana is your Mate, then why not just mate with her? Why complicate things?"

Peter laughed and clapped Edmund on the back. "Why not indeed? A sound piece of advice if ever I've heard any."

Edmdund did not share Peter's amusement. "It's not that simple, Nalsa."

"Only because you refuse to make it that simple. It is clear to us Beasts that the two of you are...what's the word you would use?"

"Perhaps the term you are looking for is 'attracted,' my Friend?" Peter suggested.

"Thank you, High King. I do believe that is the word I was looking for."

"Yes, they look at each other and they wish to see what lies beneath the gown and robes? Except, in this case Ed, you are at a disadvantage for she knows what lies beneath the robe."

"You are not helping, Peter," Edmund said irritably. Peter simply laughed. "I cannot just mate with Ileana, Nalsa. For one, I believe that mating should be about more than just fulfilling the carnal desires of the flesh. And two..." Edmund took in a deep, steadying breath. "I am not yet the King she wants."

This, at least, shut Peter up.

It's true. Edmund was not yet the Little King Ileana had fallen for, but perhaps he could change that.

"I don't understand why men get so bothered by sex," Ileana said rather abruptly. The woman sitting on Edmund's right bristled and took in a sharp intake of air. Edmund, too, was caught a bit off guard.

"What?" he asked, his voice squeaking just a little.

"Men will lose themselves, lose their principles for the chance at one night with a beautiful woman. I've had sex loads of times and I don't see the appeal in it, all that sweat and heavy panting. The grunting and baying. And you're naked so the mess gets everywhere."

Again, the woman sitting beside Edmund huffed and puffed. Clearly, she was disgruntled by the notion of talking about sex on a public plane. So, Edmund continued his conversation with Ileana in Italian; he was certain the woman wouldn't understand that.

"Ileana, please, lower your voice. There are some people who are not so open about the discussion of sex in public." He looked pointedly over his shoulder at the woman. "Or at all, possibly," he amended. "Secondly, I wouldn't label what you've had as sex, but rather men forcing themselves on you against your will and consent."

"I didn't fight them; I didn't resist them," Lena argued.

"And what would they have done to you if you had? Kill you?"

"If I was lucky. They would have beaten me more likely, taken what they wanted again and again, and...then they would have killed me."

Rage boiled up inside Edmund. He flexed his fists until his nails cut into his palms. He knew Miraz was a vile man, but the more he learned about what he did to Ileana, the more he wished he had been the one to kill him.

"You did what you had to in order to survive, Lena; that is not the same thing as being willing or compliant," he said when his anger abated, "But you are right. Some men will throw their honor aside for one night of mediocre sex..."

"I was never mediocre," Ileana defended quickly. Edmund grinned; he'd have to agree with her on that.

"But sex, true sex they way I beleive it is meant to be, when done properly between two people who genuinely care for each other, who love each other, well, it's... it's greater than anything you could possibly imagine."

Ileana stared at him for a moment. "You are a better spy than you are a poet, Little King."

Edmund laughed. "Very astute of you."

"And...thank you, Edmund," she said softly. "Most men do not see that a woman being forced is not compliance."

"Well, as someone once told me, most men are idiots. And I've learned to trust her."

Lena laughed. "Smart girl."

Edmund smiled to himself. Some time later he turned to her and asked, "baying? Really?"

Ileana laughed harder. "Sì. Telmarine men make all sorts of noises during sex."

Edmund couldn't help but watch Ileana as she leaned against a rail post. The weather was fair that morning and so Meri had wanted to ride Philip; she had also wanted her mother to come along to see her progress. Ileana didn't seem too keen on the idea but she had come along anyway. Now she stood leaning against a post, hands fidgety as she worried her bottom lip between her teeth, and twitching everytime Meri rode a little faster. Edmund felt it was his duty to distract her from her thoughts; maybe it would help distract him from his thoughts as well.

"How did we meet?"

Ileana jumped slightly, and Edmund marveled at how her cheeks tinged with color. In the weeks he'd known her, he hadn't ever seen her blush before. He had a feeling he was only seeing it now because she was embarrassed at being caught in a state where she was not in complete control of her reactions. Her next actions only served to prove his theory correct.

"King Edmund," she greeted with an almost breathy whisper. Edmund thought he'd like to hear her say his name like that again, except without the 'King' part. Ileana dropped her hands to her sides and squared her shoulders as she attempted to regain control, or at least provide the illusion that she had.

"Should...shouldn't you be watching Meri and making sure she doesn't fall?" Ileana asked.

"Nah, she's fine." Edmund waved off her concerns. "She's on Philip; there's no better Horse to be on, and really she's a natural."

Ileana made a little humming sound as her eyes looked over his shoulder.

"So, how did we meet?"

"What?" Her eyes turned back to him. "I..I've already told you how we met. We met outside of Le..."

"...Le Caveau in Paris. Yes, I remember," he finished. "But that's not the encounter I'm talking about. Correct me if I'm wrong, Nalsa, but didn't Ileana once say we met before then but never spoke?"

"You are not mistaken, my King."

"I said that? Really?" Ileana asked. Now, at last, Edmund seemed to have her full attention. "I am wondering if perhaps I have told you too much already. If you know what happens in your future, does that make it happen?"

"Or will we change things accidentally and keep them from happening?" He thought of Sara and what a disgrace it would be if she never existed. "I can see your concerns, Ileana. Perhaps if you only told me the good and not the bad from here on out. I am not likely to want to change the good."

"Sometimes, particularly between you and I, the good and the bad are...inseparable." A dark shadow crossed her features and Edmund noticed she traced the scar on her hand.

"Well then, in those cases I will trust your judgement on the matter."

Ileana remained under that dark shadow. Edmund desperately wanted to pull her from it, but how? He put on an air of arrogant nonchalance with his cheekiest smirk.

"Is our first meeting one such occasion? Or was the pleasure abundant?"

Ileana looked at him and nearly, but not quite, rolled her eyes. "You are as annoyingly persistent as ever, I see."

Edmund let his smirk deepen. "You might want to get used to that."

"Very well then," Ileana sighed. "We first saw one another here, in Narnia, inside the Telmarine war camp."

"War camp?"

"Yes. The Prince thought he ought to be king like his father had been."

"Usually that is how that works," Edmund said confused.

"Yes, but Telmarines not only value power, they envy it. The King's brother wanted to be King too, but there could not be two kings. Not in a Telmarine Narnia at least. The King's brother was older, stronger than the Prince, and he...he killed the King."

"His own brother?"

Ileana nodded. "But it was done in secret. I only know because..."

"Because men loosen their tongues when a pretty girl is on their arm. The King's brother, he was the Lord you were..."

"I was his cortesana, yes; he was the Lord Protector, the King's regent, but he made everyone call him Majesty, like a true king. He was fine letting the Prince live, he was still very young at the time, so long as he never had a son himself. But then his wife, Lady Prunaprismia, gave birth to an heir; the Prince now stood in his way."

"So he killed the prince? Like he killed his brother."

"He tried to. The Prince escaped somehow, and started a rebellion. He brought back the Bestia of myth."

"Brought them back how?"

Ileana shrugged. "There were tales, fables of the Bestia who lived in the woods and ate the naughty children. I guess they were more than just tales and fables."

"The Narnians survived; they retreated to the woods and hid in secret all that time. Then along comes the Telmarine Prince, ready to fight his uncle. But why would the Narnians trust him?"

"Because he wasn't alone. It was said he had the help of the ancient Kings and Queens."

"Ancient...you mean us? My family? We come back to Narnia?"

"I am not sure how nor for how long, but yes."

"Next time you tell a chap he's destined to leave his home behind, you might want to follow it up with the fact that he returns to it," Edmund said, unable to keep the anger from seeping into his voice. What else had she been keeping from them?

"Yes you return...to a world thirteen hundred years in the future where the castle you now reside in lies in ruin and everything you hold dear is dead. Perdonami, King Edmund, for wanting to spare you that bit of grief a while longer." Ileana's sharp tone was equal to his own.

Edmund glanced down at Nalsa then over to Philip who was now racing across the field with Meri low on his back. They would be gone, his compatriots, his two best friends. Dead. Along with Mr. Tumnus, Orieus, Cook, and everyone else. Too many to name.

"You...you are right, Ileana. It is I who crave thy forgiveness."

Edmund met Ileana's gaze. He saw a deeper grief there, and once more he wondered what she could be hiding. Sometimes...the good and the bad are inseparable.

"So, there was a war? And we came to help," he said, trying to get back on topic. "But why were you in the middle of the war camp? Wouldn't it have been safer for you back at the castle?"

"One of the ways the Lord Protector liked me best was when I was on display, be that lying naked in his bed when someone came in, or sitting on his lap during a war council. He wanted every man to see the young beauty he bedded each night. He wanted them to see me, desire me, and envy him because he was the only one who could have me."

Edmund closed his eyes. He already felt the urge to kill this Lord Protector. "What was I doing in the Telmarine war camp?"

"You came to deliver a challenge. One-on-one combat to end the war. It was a very pretty speech, but I cannot say that I felt any sort of salvation in it. Here was this young prince who came to rescue me..."

"King," he corrected habitually.

"Just King, though."

"What?" Edmund quirked an eyebrow.

Ileana smiled. "It's nothing. When you were finished with your speech, the Lord Protector, in mocking fashion, asked me what I thought of it. Mind you, I was only allowed to speak in Telmarine, so you would have had no idea what I said."

"And what did you say?"

Her smile turned into a smirk. "'Big words for a little King.'"

"Ouch. Harsh."

Her smirk grew deeper and Edmund found himself entranced by it.

"He thought, as you do now, that those words were meant for you."

Edmund laughed and Ileana laughed along with him. Right away he decided he liked the sound of her laughter. It had a musical quality to it and it made him wonder why he had yet to hear her sing. Perhaps more than the sound of her laughter though, he liked how her eyes shined when she laughed; it's like they were laughing too. Their eyes met and Edmund felt the air thicken between them, as though it was anticipating what would happen next, but she looked away before anything could.

"*Merda. Cosa stai facendo, Meri?" she murmured.

Edmund smiled. "I assure you, she is quite safe." An idea came to him then, one he could not pass up. "Come, I will show you."

He held out his arm to her and surprisingly she took it. He tried to ignore how right it felt having her so near, and failed to push aside the thoughts of wanting to be nearer still. He led her to the edge of the field and called for Meri and Philip to return. They came galloping back too quickly he thought, as Ileana slid her arm from his.

"Did you see, Mamma?"

"I did. You were going a little fast, don't you think?"

"I was hardly even at half-speed," Philip replied.

"Merda!" Ileana jumped again, before swatting at Edmund's arm. "You could have warned me he was a Talking Horse."

"Ow." He rubbed his arm. "I thought you knew."

"Meri and Sara know more of your Narnian tales than I do." Ileana then turned and did something she wouldn't have done a month ago. "My apologies, Philip, if I have offended you. I have been told that Talking Beasts often take offense when any reference is made to a similarity they might have with their dumb counterparts."

"No offense taken, Lady Ileana. You should have heard King Edmund when he first discovered it," Philip said with a snicker.

"Hey now, leave our first meeting out of this, Philip."

"That may actually be one Narnian tale I wouldn't mind hearing. Anything that might knock his ego down a peg or two," Ileana said with a grin.

"Then I have plenty to tell you."

"Oy! Absolutely not. There will be none of that," Edmund protested.

"We will speak privately when he is not around," Philip said adamantly.

Edmund shook his head. "First my sisters, and now my Horse. What more will you take from me, Ileana?"

"He is not your Horse so much as you are his Human," Meri said.

Philip snickered again. "I like this little Mare."

"And I thought we had something special." Edmund shook his head again. "Come," he waved Meri down. "Your mother is concerned for your safety, and I wish to show her she has nothing to fear. That is, of course, if it is alright with you, Friend?"

"I can go a bit longer," Philip said with ease.

"What are you talking about?" Ileana asked.

Meri swung off of Philip with ease. "An excellent suggestion, Edmund. But good luck."

Edmund entwined his fingers and held them palm-up beside Philip. "Now, it's your turn."

"Wait, what?" Ileana said.

"I'm going to teach you how to ride now," he replied.

"You want me to get up there?"

"I do."

"I'm in a dress," she said as though it weren't obvious.

"So? Sue rides in dresses all the time."

"Come on, Mamma. It will be fun."

"Show me where Meri and Sara get their fearlessness from," Edmund added.

"Fine," she huffed. "What do I need to do?"

"I'll give you a boost up. You'll put your left foot here and then swing over with your right."

"If you drop me..."

"I won't, promesso."

"What did you say?"

"Promesso? That is the word for 'I promise' isn't it? Did I miss pronounce it?"

"No. You said it perfettamente; perfectly," Meri said. Ileana looked over her shoulder at her. "I've been teaching him a few phrases. He picks up Italian much easier than Aunt Lulu." She giggled.

"Yes...he does." Ileana looked back at him curiously. Edmund continued to smile.

"Great! Now that that's settled..." He entwined his fingers again. "Are you ready?"

With a final disgruntled sigh, Lena picked up the skirt of her dress in one hand and grabbed the saddle with the other. She lightly placed her foot in Edmund's hand and he helped lift her up so she could swing over.

"Nicely done. Now, move forward a little. Good. Are you settled?"

"As much as I can be I suppose." She shimmied in the saddle. "Why...whoa, what are you doing?"

Edmund had swung himself up behind her without warning. "You didn't think I'd make you this alone, did you?"

"I..."

Edmund could hear the catch in her voice and felt her body stiffen at his touch. He slightly leaned forward to whisper so that Meri couldn't hear. "If you'd rather I not, then I can get down."

She turned her head towards him; they were only inches apart. Her tongue came out to wet her lips as she looked at him. Edmund felt his own breathing catch. His mind raced to places it shouldn't go. So much for trying to distract himself.

"No," she whispered. "No, it's...it's all right. I...I just wasn't prepared." She turned back to the front. "There are no reigns. What do I hold on to?"

"Not my hair please," Philip said. "I just had it washed."