#comeback event

You truly are insufferable.

The more Caspian stares at you, the more he wishes he could simply shake some sense into foreign dignitaries’ heads whenever he wants. But he can’t, that would probably lead to a war, and even if his frustration with you seems to have reached new heights this afternoon, he can’t act so carelessly. He loves Narnia too much for that. He merely pictures the scene in his head instead.

He gets it that you are here, in Cair Paravel, to defend the interests of your own country. But he also reckons that you could go about it in a smoother, nicer way.

And you find him pig-headed to no end.

The more you look at him, sitting there in his tall wooden chair, the more you want to slap him. Imprint your fingers in his cheek in red lines. That would feel good. But you can’t, because that would probably lead to a war between your two countries, and you love your kingdom too much to endanger it in such a stupid way. You are too smart to do so. Instead, you simply picture Caspian’s stern face coloured with the traces of your palm across his cheek.

You get it that he is defending the interests of his kingdom, but you reckon that he could handle the situation in a more sympathetic way.

One thing is for sure, he doesn’t like you.

And one thing is for certain, you don’t like him either.

Caspian heaves a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose and closing his eyes. He has a headache after hours of discussions on this treaty. It’s almost midnight, the world is full of shadows and starlight now. He wants to get out of this room, walk through the gardens, all the way to the cliff so he can look at the sea shimmering under the moon and smell its salt in the air.

He can’t think properly now, anyway. He’s too tired for that.

“Lady Y/N, I reckon we should take a break for tonight. We all need some sleep. We can resume this meeting tomorrow morning.”

You want to contradict him, just for the sake of it, but the truth is, you’re exhausted as well. You easily yield, the negotiations will resume in the morning. You don’t want him to see that you’re relieved though, so you walk out without showing how tired you truly are.

He annoys you so much. When you walk out, you notice the way he politely waits for you to exit before he would. You hate the fact that he asks you if you want him to accompany you back to your room, that he asks politely if everything is to your liking…

You hate it how polite and perfectly sweet he is despite the fact that your discussions are going nowhere.

You decline his offer to accompany you of course, after three weeks spent in Cair Paravel, you know your way around the castle pretty well.

Once in your bedroom, you heave a relieved sigh as you take off your corset, and slip into some comfortable night gown. And as you change into new clothes, you stare at the scar on your forearm, a white line that runs along the length of your limb. You have about a dozen of these by now. None of them come from your own life.

Your soulmate must be reckless, and you’re not surprised. You’ve always been pretty reckless yourself…

You sit down on the edge of your comfortable bed, brushing your finger along the pale mark. Sometimes, you wonder if he’s still out there. You haven’t had a new scar in a while. You haven’t felt physical pain because of him for over a year. Maybe that last time, the day you got a very nasty scar across your back, he didn’t make it…

You push the thought away. You can feel that he is alive still.

One day… one day you will find him.

You shake yourself out of these thoughts, and get ready to go to bed. You can’t let yourself be distracted by this. You’ll find your soulmate one day, but for now, you must remain focused on this treaty you must create. A lot of work. It worries you enough already.

It worries you so much, actually, that despite your exhaustion you find it impossible to sleep tonight. Thoughts keep bumping into each other in your busy head. Things to do, arguments to try…

You heave a sigh, sitting up in your bed and reaching for a candle to get up. Maybe some fresh air will help you find some rest.

You put on a long coat, open the door of your chamber, and walk into the corridor, your way lightened by the small candle in your hand and the stars shining brightly outside.

Caspian shudders, but he doesn’t walk back inside to fetch a coat. It’s only September, the end of summer and the dawn of autumn. Still, the wind is cold, coming harsh from the sea, salty and wild. Caspian loves it, the strength of the wind as it gets caught in his loose hair, in his large purple shirt. It reminds him of sailing. The feeling of freedom, the rush of adrenaline, the reassuring movement of the sea… He misses it. As he stares at the ocean before him, with soft waves making its surface everchanging, modifying constantly the pattern of the reflected starlight, he misses exploring its secrets, its islands, its wild dreams.

He takes a deep breath, shudders again in the cold. It smells of salt, seaweed and a little bit of the last roses still blooming in the gardens behind him.

It’s quiet. Only the distant murmur of the sea coming and going, running away and then crashing again against rocks and sand. It’s quiet. Almost still. He hears the branches of the trees behind him as well, as they swing gently in the summer air. Leaves whisper, and if Lucy was there, maybe she would understand them. The thought makes him smile. He misses her. He misses all of them tonight…

He jumps as he suddenly feels a sharp pain in his toe. He winces, looks down at his leather boot. But nothing has bumped into his foot. It’s his soulmate again. She keeps on bumping into things, he has stopped counting the bruises that have appeared across his skin because of her along the years. A tender smile forms on his lips. She must be clumsy.

One day he’ll find her. One day, he’ll see her and he’ll know right away. He is certain of it. He’ll feel that she’s the one the second he sees her. He’ll find her one day.

But for now, he doesn’t have time to look for her. For now, he has this treaty to establish and to sign. It’s more important, Narnia depends on it. And Narnia always comes first…

The pain in his toe subsides. One day, he’ll find her…

He notices then that a new sound has appeared. Distant still, muffled, but still there. Caspian listens carefully.

Footsteps…

“Is anyone there?” he asks, his voice loud but still warm.

The footsteps stop, seem to hesitate, and then resume, this time heading in Caspian’s direction.

Caspian surprised when he sees you appear at the end of the path where he now stands. He greets you with a polite yet forced smile, and you do the same. But it would be inappropriate to turn back, so you join him, determined to merely respect the etiquette, and then to be on your way again.

“Lady Y/N, it is a surprise to see you here so late at night. Is everything alright?”

“Yes, your Majesty,” you nod, forcing your polite smile to remain on your lips. “I was merely not tired enough to fall asleep. What about you?”

He smiles, his gesture more genuine this time.

“I reckon that the same subject that kept you up tonight is also the cause of my own unrest.”

“I see… This treaty is a lot work, indeed.”

“It is.”

An uncomfortable silence settles between the two of you, and you look away. Instead of staring at Caspian’s features - that are partly hidden because of the darkness of the night - you settle your gaze on the infinite sea. You grow calmer instantly. And the king by your side seems to notice it.

“This is my favourite view of the sea,” he says in a quiet voice, unwilling to disturb the peaceful expression that has grown across your face.

“It’s beautiful. And… quiet.”

“The ocean can be very soothing.”

“Is it the reason why you are here so late at night?”

Caspian nods, his eyes set on the flicking light of the moon upon the changing waters.

“I come here whenever I need to think. It helps me calm down and focus.”

You understand why he would do that. It is peaceful indeed. The regular sound lulls you, makes you feel calmer than you have felt for weeks, months even.

The silence that settles now between the two of you is more comfortable than you expected it to be. You feel relaxed, and you reckon it is the first time since your arrival at Cair Paravel that you feel so calm in Caspian’s presence. Maybe that’s why you speak again; you’re not sure why though.

“I had never seen the sea before coming here.”

Caspian turns to you again, a slight frown across his brow.

“If you wish, I could show you some beautiful spots.”

“Do you not think that we are too busy for sightseeing?”

Caspian shrugged.

“Maybe it would do us good, actually. We have been fighting against each other for three weeks now, a truce could help us settle on an agreement.”

“I would hardly say that we have been fighting,” you argued.

“Constantly arguing then,” he laughs.

“We are defending different sides.”

“You are a little harsh sometimes.”

“And you are too stubborn.”

The two of you stared at each other for a moment, with the sound of moving branches and waves crashing upon the sand as a background. It painted a scene filled with the patience you sometimes lacked around him. It filled all the space with the moderation Caspian sometimes abandoned when you were around.

You thought to have crossed a line, he was King, after all. But Caspian smiled instead of being angry. A bright, genuine smile that you recognized despite the darkness that surrounded you here, at the top of the cliff. You offered him the same gesture.

“I shall try to be more open-minded, then,” Caspian said after a short silence.

“And perhaps I could try to be calmer.”

“I truly want our two countries to build an alliance. One that would guarantee peace between our kingdoms for the years to come.”

“This is what I want to achieve as well.”

“We have the same goal, we should be able to settle on an agreement.”

“I hope so. The future of our peoples depends on it.”

Caspian nods, but he offers you a smile again nonetheless.

“If you agree, I would like to show you around tomorrow. We can go to the beach, I know a few places you should enjoy, the views are particularly beautiful. We can continue our work on the treaty the day after. Perhaps… if we spend a little time together, we would be able to work together in a more efficient way.”

You nod, quite unsure about this proposition, but you don’t dare refuse. He’s King, after all.

“Very well. Then, I should go back to bed, and try to get some sleep for tomorrow.”

Caspian bows his head, and you walk back to your bedroom, quite puzzled by your exchange with the king.

What does this new behaviour from the king mean?

You keep on thinking about this strange proposal of his to spend the day with you. Alone, apparently. Just the two of you. The mere thought to be alone with him for several hours makes you nervous, because he is king, but for another reason as well, one you can’t seem to fully fathom just yet…

You reach your bedroom again, set the candle you carried with you on your table, it has died long before; when you walked out of the castle and into the garden it was blown out by the wind.

You take off your coat, your shoes, and in the silver light of the moon coming in through your window, you notice that your toe has reddened. You have hit it in a rather big rock set in the gardens.

You heave a sigh, shaking your head at yourself. You can be so clumsy sometimes…

You reckon this will leave a bruise.

You love the smell of the sea.

Salty and fresh and dangerous. Seashells crack under your feet with each step you take. There are so many of them. You’ve picked a couple, the prettiest one, you hold them in your palm now. Fragile. Colourful. Tiny treasures you mean to keep forever.

You’re surprised, really. Caspian is charming. You’re used to being mad at him, to being annoyed by him. But now… now he’s walking by your side, your arms locked together, and he talks about Narnia and the things he loves, and you find his voice soothing and warm. You could listen to it all day long.

What is happening to you?

You laugh at one of his remarks, and he can’t help but smile at the sound. Maybe, just maybe, you are not as insufferable as he thought you were…

You let him guide you along the beach. It’s quiet under the tall cliffs, no one in sight but the clear blue sky, the turquoise sea, the golden rocks and the white sand. Just you and Caspian and the beautiful landscape. Back and forth of the waves. You like it this way.

Caspian is guiding you towards one of his favourite spots, a lagoon in which coral has been growing for centuries. Undisturbed, it covers the shallow sea with hundreds of shapes, colours and fish.

You can’t refrain a gasp at the sight of so many colours. The water is almost transparent, only slightly tainted in blue. You follow Caspian as he climbs on top of a rock at the foot of the cliff above you, and you sit down together on the edge, staring down at the incredible sight. You stare at the fish that swim and hide among the coral reef.

“It’s beautiful,” you whisper with a grin.

Caspian stares at you, a satisfied smile on his lips. And he reckons that… you’re quite a sight to see…

He looks away, blushing slightly.

“I’m glad you enjoy it.”

“How did you find this place?”

“I love sailing. I’ve explored most of the Narnian coast.”

“Are you not afraid? When you go sailing?”

“Of the sea? No. I like how wild it can be. I find it reassuring.”

“Really?” you ask with a frown.

But Caspian nods, and gives you an amused smile.

“It’s soothing. The waves, the peaceful sounds. When I’m at sea, I’m not really a king anymore. I depend on the elements around me, and no one can ask me to control any of it. It’s reassuring, to know that for once, you are not the only one responsible for what happens next.”

You stare at him, puzzled by his response. He keeps on surprising you.

“Duties can be a heavy load to carry,” you answer, but your voice comes out as a breath, and it makes Caspian look at you again.

“Indeed… most of the time.”

“Your people seems satisfied though. Most seem happy here.”

“I hope so.”

“What about you? Are you happy?”

Caspian smiles.

“What a personal question!”

“You are not forced to answer it.”

The king takes a second to think about it, ponder your question, weigh his response.

But eventually, he answers with an earnest smile.

“I reckon that I am as happy as I can be in my current situation.”

“What an elusive answer,” you tease him, and he chuckles.

“There are people whom I miss,” he goes on. “I am worried about Narnia. About your kingdom. About the future. About the past. I am worried about many things. But I have friends who help me, I cannot ask for more.”

He takes a long, deep breath, takes in the taste of the salty air.

“What about you, my lady? Are you happy?”

It is your time to hesitate. You have not planned for the conversation to turn out so personal, but when you look into his eyes, you can’t look away. You can’t remain silent. Instead, you want to confess everything to him.

“I think that I am… as happy as I can be in my current situation.”

You exchange a smile.

“Are you homesick?” he asks in a quiet tone, as if to not scare you away.

You shrug.

“Not really. But I am worried about this treaty. I am worried about your kingdom. I am worried about mine. I am worried about my soulmate too.”

Caspian frowns ever so slightly, but doesn’t stop you when you continue.

“I haven’t had any sign in over a year. I’m scared he might be gone already.”

“I am sorry to hear that. I hope he is still alive and well, that you will find him soon.”

You give him a grateful smile; you can hear in his voice that he means it.

“What about you? Have you found your soulmate?”

But Caspian shakes his head.

“Not yet. I have not had the time to look for her. I know she is alive though. She seems clumsy. I have so many bruises…”

You both laugh.

“Mine seems reckless,” you tell him, a fond smile on your lips. “He has some nasty scars.”

“A soldier?”

“Probably, yes. I suppose so.”

“Have you been looking for him?”

“Not really. No time for that. I have a treaty to prepare instead.”

Caspian smiles fondly at you, before setting his gaze on the sea again. It’s infinite, it would seem. From here, it looks never-ending…

“I hope we find them, eventually.”

Something has shifted since that afternoon with Caspian, and you don’t like it.

Or rather… you do like it. And you hate the fact that you enjoy it.

There is a pull towards him now. An external force that seems to guide your gaze in his direction all the time.

Maybe it’s because you’ve spent a lot of time with him that day. You’ve spent a long time talking together while sitting on this giant rock, looking at the ocean. And you enjoyed that moment, you genuinely did. Caspian was kind, gentle… a side of him you had not witnessed before.

Is it the reason why you keep on staring at him now? Why you notice the way his messy bun leaves a few strands of dark hair escape? Why you keep on thinking that you love how dark his eyes look, so black you can’t see where the pupil ends and the iris begins…

You hate the fact that you can feel that you have started liking him.

Because you would be lying if you pretended that you do not find him attractive. Caspian is truly handsome. And you hate yourself for thinking that way, but you can feel that you are attracted to him now. Which is the last thing that you need, because a) he is the king of Narnia and you are a foreign representative with a treaty to defend; b) you have an awful lot of work to do, and you cannot let yourself be distracted; and c) Caspian is not your soulmate, and it would be ridiculous to endanger your work and your reputation for a fling, no matter how kind and handsome the man can be.

Of course, you know that Caspian is not your soulmate. How could he be? He is a King, and you are not a princess. Besides, you reckon that you would have felt it. You would have known, at first sight, as soon as your eyes would have landed onto his frame. You would have known that he was your soulmate. And you did find him attractive when you first met him, but nothing more. And then you got annoyed at him, angry even and…

And even now, despite this afternoon spent together, during which you grew closer, there are moments when you get so frustrated with him…

Right now, for example.

You are tired, it’s late. You’re hungry, but this meeting seems never-ending.

And you’re tired. You’re tired of arguing, of discussing, of convincing him…

And the more frustrated you become, the more you feel attracted to him. Desperately so. And that is not a good thing at all.

You cannot have this kind of thoughts. The kind that makes your heart quicken as you lose yourself in his dark eyes. The kind that makes you wonder what it would feel like to run your fingers through his hair. The kind that makes you want to taste his lips…

You look away in a hurry. It must be the frustration, the tiredness… the exhaustion even. You are not yourself. Absolutely not yourself.

Caspian loosens his collar, before popping open a button of his purple shirt, and you can’t help it when your eyes linger on the spot that is now revealed to your gaze, the patch of pinkish skin under his neck…

You turn away, trying to focus on his words again, but you get lulled by his deep, warm voice…

You shake yourself. What is wrong with you?

“Lady Y/N?”

You look up at him when he speaks your name. He’s frowning. The three advisors who are also in the room are also staring at you now.

“Is everything fine?”

You nod, but quickly heave a sigh.

“I apologize your highness, but… it is very late. I reckon that I am too tired to focus.”

Yes, that is good excuse…

Caspian nods, glancing at the inky sky on the other side of the window.

“Indeed, it is quite late. We should eat something, before going to bed.”

“I am not very hungry…”

“But you must eat something…”

But you refuse again, and this time, he doesn’t insist.

“Well, then… I bid you good night. We will resume tomorrow morning.”

You notice the dark circles under his eyes. He seems just as tired as you are. You catch yourself wishing that he could get some rest.

You must remain professional. You cannot let yourself develop some kind of crush on him. Because, as you keep on repeating yourself as you get up and walk to the door, this can only be temporary. This… tension you suddenly feel… This is only temporary. Caspian is not your soulmate…

“Lady Y/N?”

You turn around, your hand on the doorknob.

“May I have a word? It will be just a minute.”

You merely nod at the king, and move to the side to let the advisors exit the room in silence.

You’re alone with Caspian now, the door closed again, and you stare at him with expecting eyes, wondering what he wants.

And Caspian finds it a little harder to breathe.

Actually… actually a lot harder.

And he hates himself for it. He hates himself for the way his heart is beating faster at the thought of the two of you being alone.

He hates himself for wondering how soft your skin could feel under his fingertips…

He clears his throat, trying to hide his blushing cheeks.

“I just wanted to make sure that you were fine. You seemed… distracted today. Actually… you’ve seemed distracted these past few days.”

You shy away a little, looking down at your feet.

“Is… is there something I can do to make you feel better?”

His voice is gentle, caring even. It makes you look up at him, and you offer him a reassuring smile.

“No, I am perfectly fine. Simply tired. But thank you, your Majesty. It is very kind of you to worry about me this way.”

“Is it… Are you uncomfortable? Have I made you uncomfortable?”

“No, of course not, your Majesty.”

“You… you seem different since… since that day we have spent together. I’ve been wondering if I had done anything that could have offended you or… I don’t know. We spoke of very personal things that day, maybe… maybe too personal…”

“No, I… You have done nothing wrong. Really. I… I very much enjoyed that afternoon we spent together.”

“I did as well.”

He sees you biting your lower lip, and Caspian’s heart jumps against his ribcage. He can’t help but stare, it takes everything in him to look away from your lips again.

He cannot afford to be like this. To feel so… attracted to you. It must be fatigue. It must exhaustion and frustration towards the treaty, towards you…

You are not his soulmate. He must remember that. It would lead nowhere. And there are enough tensions with your kingdom as it is, there is no need to add a scandal.

“I am simply very tired and… I will try to be more focused tomorrow,” you add.

Caspian slowly nods. He wishes he could simply walk over to you and…

No. No, better not think about that…

“Then, good night, my lady.”

“Good night, your Majesty.”

You run away more than you walk out of the room. You barely breathe at all until you are finally alone in your chamber. You let out a trembling breath.

All of this is getting out of hand…

Caspian is not certain when the conversation got so out of hand.

You are alone together in the corridor. It is late in the afternoon, the negotiations for today are over. You are tired, have a headache, and are famished.

Caspian decided to walk you back to your chamber to finish the conversation you had started. There is no one in the corridor but the two of you, and you are grateful for it. Because the debate is turning into an argument, and it is better if no one is here to bear witness…

It has started with a detail in the treaty. It is slowly drifting to things much more personal…

And you hate it. You hate it because you know that Caspian is kind. But you are so frustrated with him and his stubbornness and his bloody principles and his adorable frown, and his locks of dark hair that call for your fingers and his lips that keep on making you wonder how they taste like and…

You can’t think, you can only get angrier.

“I apologize if his Majesty finds the world unfair. Unfortunately, it has been so since… forever.”

“It is no reason to give up on the idea of improving it.”

“I am here to defend the interest of my nation, not yours.”

“But the interests of your nation should not be limited to destroying Narnia’s interests.”

“That is not what I am doing, and you know it.”

“Do I?”

“Of course, you do. If I simply wanted to make a stand against Narnia, I would have walked away a long time ago and let you deal with a war.”

“Is that a threat?”

“A threat? No. A simple fact. A reminder, perhaps.”

You have reached the door of your chamber, but this conversation is far from over. So, you remain both standing there, in the middle of the empty corridor, your voices raising more and more.

“I do not like your tone,” Caspian warns you, taking a step closer to you.

He doesn’t like it, indeed. He doesn’t like your stare either, the way your breathing has visibly quickened with anger, the way you frown at him, the way you look slightly dishevelled after a long day, the way he wants to run his fingers through your hair, the way he wants to make you shut up with his own lips…

“I do not like yours either, your Majesty.”

“I will not accept this kind of behaviour in Cair Paravel.”

“Perhaps his Majesty should learn that we do not always get what we want.”

“Oh, I know. Thank you for the lesson.”

His sarcasm breaks the lasts bit of patience still stored inside you. It’s your turn to take a step towards him.

And by Aslan’s name, you want to slap him. Or kiss him. You haven’t settled on that yet.

“If you were not a king…” you breathe, anger making your voice tremble.

Caspian takes a last step towards you, bringing you so close together that your chests are almost touching.

“What would you do? Insult me? I reckon you already have. So, what now?”

You stare at each other for a moment. You are unbelievably close. So much so that, as you look up at him, you can feel the warm air escaping from his lungs as it fans over your face…

You glance down at his lips, and when you look up again, you catch him looking down at your mouth too.

Both of you are barely breathing, and it’s not only due to your anger or frustration.

You are standing so close, you are almost touching.

Almost… Caspian keeps imagining it. The way your lips would feel against his, taste on his tongue, his hand in your hair…

And you are so frustrating, he wants to make you shut up…

By Aslan’s name, he wants to kiss you so badly…

He’s been thinking about it for days. He’s been dreaming about you, and thinking of you every waking moment, and he simply cannot take it anymore…

When you open your mouth to fight back, you get shushed by a pair of soft lips pressed against yours.

Caspian has taken your face in both his hands in an instant, on impulse, before pulling you gently towards him so he could kiss you.

He crashes his lips against yours, but he waits a second before moving his mouth over yours. What was vivid at first becomes gentle as Caspian loosens his hold on your face, starts grazing his lips over yours before kissing you gently, softly…

When you kiss him back though, he kisses you harder again, and you love it. Every second of it. You reckon that your heart is going to explode, your knees are about to give out, but you don’t care. All there is to care about is that Caspian is kissing you. Again, and again, and again…

You never want this to end.

But all things must end.

When he pulls away, slowly, your fingers are lost in his hair; his bun already messy before has now disappeared altogether under your touch.

He stares at you, both of you out of breath. You look fragile, all of a sudden. All traces of anger have disappeared from your features, you merely stare with your beautiful eyes, wondering what he will do next.

And Caspian seems to fully realize what he has done now…

He lets go of you completely, in a rush, almost pushing you away.

He takes a couple of steps back.

“This… I am so sorry, my lady,” he whispers, his eyes round in horror, and cheeks reddened by shame.

“No… there is no need to be sorry for, I…”

“Of course, there is a need to be sorry. I should have never had done that…”

You nod, slowly, but you don’t seem happy about it.

“I accept your apology,” you answer in a neutral tone, trying to calm yourself and ignore the way your heart is breaking when it shouldn’t.

Caspian nods, slowly, clenching his jaw.

Why does it hurt to hear you push him away like this?

“You should… go to bed now.”

Caspian turned on his heels, and he has already crossed half of the corridor when you call him. He freezes.

“Caspian!”

It’s the first time you call him by his name. He closes his eyes. He likes how his name sounds on your tongue…

“Wait, please.”

He turns towards you again, but doesn’t move.

“I think… I think we should discuss this.”

“Don’t you think we have spent enough time discussing for one day?”

“Something has just transpired between us. We cannot merely ignore it.”

Slowly, almost reluctantly, Caspian walks back to you, while you wait for him, motionless in front of the door to your chamber.

“There is nothing to discuss,” Caspian says. “I should not have acted like this. It was out of line. I apologize.”

“Why did you kiss me?”

“It doesn’t matter.”

“It does.”

“It would be a waste of time. A waste of pain. You could be fired, or worse…”

“Why did you kiss me?”

You wore this stubborn look again, and Caspian loved it. He loved the way you spoke your mind too often, the way you were a little rough sometimes. He loved it all…

“Why did you do this?” you ask once more.

Caspian is lost in your eyes. Too much so to refuse anything from you…

“Because I’ve wanted to do so for a while,” he answers, maybe a little too earnestly.

You struggle to swallow, your heart pounding.

“What if… what if I’ve been wanting this for a while too?” you ask in a shy breath.

“It’s madness…”

But this time, it’s your turn to shush him by crashing your lips against his.

And this time, the kiss gets more heated. So much so that Caspian takes two steps forward to press your body against the wooden door that stands behind you.

But clumsy as you are, you hit your head quite hard against the surface, and have to break the kiss with a loud ouch, rubbing the back of your head.

What you did not expect though, was for Caspian to do exactly the same.

You see him wincing, rubbing at his painful skull. When he looks up at you, he freezes.

You both understand at the same time.

None of you can breathe. If you were both in pain at the same time, then…

Slowly, you pull up the sleeve of your left arm, revealing one long scar across the inside of your forearm.

Caspian swallows hard, before doing the same.

He has the same mark on his skin.

“I have twelve scars from fighting on the battlefield,” Caspian speaks slowly. “The last time I was injured was over a year ago.”

You nod, unable to speak for a while. When your voice comes back, it’s a mere whisper.

“I have twelve as well. The last one appeared across my back.”

Caspian can’t help the grin that forms on his features as he raises his hand towards your cheek, relinquishing in the feeling of your soft skin against his calloused fingers.

“You… You’re my soulmate,” he whispers, and his tone is not really one of questioning, but rather of realisation.

“It would seem so…”

You both chuckle, unable to fully comprehend what is happening.

Caspian is about to speak when you pinch him hard on the shoulder.

But you feel the same sharp pain across your flesh…

“It’s really you…” you breathe, tears blurring your vision.

“It is,” Caspian nods.

You cup his cheeks in your palms, brushing your thumbs across his short beard, and he leans closer into your gentle touch.

“I was so worried,” you breath. “I thought you were gone…”

But Caspian shakes his head.

“I’m right here. Have always been.”

You rush into his arms, and let him hold you close.

“What will happen now?” you ask softly, breathing in deeply his scent of firewood and soap.

“I am not sure. But if you are my soulmate then… it changes everything.”

But you shake your head, looking up at him.

“No politics anymore. Not now.”

“I agree.”

“Kiss me again?”

Caspian can’t help but chuckle, and you soon join him.

But he brushes his fingertips down your cheek, and then along your jaw, making your heart explode…

“That can be arranged,” he smiles.

And he doesn’t know what will happen with your government. He doesn’t know what will happen with this treaty. But he doesn’t care.