Tempest{Caspian X/Reader}

The train station is crowded, noisy and dusty. So when you first hear something that sounds like a horn, you brush it off as some strange variant of a train’s whistle. And then all the busy sights and sounds that had been overwhelming you for the past hour begin to fade away into a rush of light.

Shock is far too mild a word to describe what you are experiencing as you turn this way and that, looking for some kind of explanation. And on turning to your left, your eyes latch onto Peter, just as his hand grabs onto yours, and he is screaming something- “Hold on”, you think it is.

Panic, yes, panic is the correct word. But at least you know that the Pevensie siblings are with you too, because you catch a glimpse of Susan trying to lean past Peter and get a look at… something.

By the time the strange whooshing fades, and the bright light is gone, you are standing on a beach with pristine white sands and blue waters, a verdant green forest spreading over the hills behind you.

“What on earth is going on?!” you cry, turning to Peter, whose hand is still gripping yours, expecting that he will be equally panicked.

But the expression on his face is one of delight, and when you rip your hand from his in confusion and look around at the others- you see that they are all displaying the same emotion in varying degrees.

“___, hey, look at me, it’s alright,” Peter says, concern clouding the joy on his face as soon as he notices that you look borderline terrified, “we can explain this, okay? Just relax.”

For a long moment, you consider his words, and the entire situation as well. And then you decide to trust him, because this is the sweet, curiously brave boy who has a crush on you, who has been giving you flowers and candy and shy smiles— that seem oddly out of place on his face— for the past few weeks.

“Okay,” you agree, letting out a breath that you hadn’t really realized you’d been holding, “explain.”

X

Peter does explain. You’re in a different world now, he tells you, it’s called Narnia, and the Pevensies have all been there before. More than just that, they had ruled as kings and queens, and with that revelation so many of the little things that had puzzled you about the siblings suddenly begin to make sense.

But still, a different world.

It’s a beautiful place to be sure, and your opinion on that doesn’t change despite the fact that you’ve been thrown into the middle of a war. And for the first few days, you are in an odd emotional state that combines awe and shock and excitement at all the new things you’re seeing, the people you’re meeting.

One of them in particular stands out- Caspian, the prince who had blown the horn which had pulled you and the Pevensies to Narnia. At first, it’s just the fact that he’s undeniably handsome that draws your attention but as the days pass it grows into something more.

He is kind, and brave, and so full of hope. But it is his determination to fight for the Old Narnians—who are just as new to him as they are to you—that makes you realize that he is something special.

You’re falling in love with him, and if the way he behaves around you is any indication- then he feels the same way. You want to do something about it, you really do, but you can see the growing tensions between him and the Pevensies, and you feel—strange though it may be— that you owe the siblings your loyalty. So you don’t say a word about your feelings, choosing to conceal them instead, and you wait for something to change.

X

The assault on the Telmarine Castle turns out to be the catalyst you had been waiting for- the thing that would change the dynamic between the Pevensies, you, and Caspian. You had refused to
side with either Peter or Caspian when they had fought about the planned attack but when the raiding party returns—much diminished in number—you do not hesitate to go to Caspian.

Peter has his siblings, and though Caspian has managed to rescue his beloved tutor, Dr. Cornelius, you do not think it will be enough. And you simply can’t bear to see him in pain.

So you go looking for him the night after their return, and after about ten minutes of searching you find him in edges of the forest by the How, looking at the stars in silence.

“Caspian,” you call out to him as you approach, to alert him to your presence because you don’t want to startle him.

“___,” he responds after a few seconds, sounding distinctly surprised, “what are you doing here?”

“You left without a word, we were all worried,” you tell him, before sucking in a deep breath and gathering the courage to continue, “I was worried, about you.”

“Peter doesn’t mind that you came after me?” he asks, looking at you with some disguised emotion in his eyes as you lower yourself onto the leaf-strewn ground next to him.

“Peter? What does he have to do with my being out here?”

“You two aren’t…?” he trails off, leaving the question unasked, though it’s already clear to you exactly what he wants to ask. And you find yourself stumbling over your words in your hurry to clear up his confusion.

“We aren’t together,” you speak with increasing surety, “there’s nothing romantic between Peter and I, and there never will be.”

“Is there someone else then? Back in your world?” he sounds almost hopeful now, and you realize suddenly that you are sitting much closer to him that you had thought. And even in the faint glow of the stars, you can see the hint of a blush rising on his cheeks.

“No, there isn’t,” you tell him, almost whispering, “though there is someone here, in Narnia, who I care rather a lot about, and he just doesn’t seem to see it.”

You hold his gaze as you speak, and as a result you see the moment when he finally realizes what you’re implying, the pure joy that blossoms in his eyes. And he breaks into a wide smile, reaching out to take your hands in his.

“I am a fool, indeed,” he replies, entwining his fingers with yours, “but I do see now, ___. And I feel the same.”

“Oh, I’m glad,” you almost sigh, because while you had long suspected his feelings, it is still so good to hear them confirmed, “I’m so glad, Caspian.”

“As am I,” he draws closer to you still, his eyes flicking between your lips and your eyes. You think you know what he wants, and you lick your lips, and manage a shaky nod, already feeling your cheeks heat up with a magnificent blush.

He wastes no time in kissing you, his lips moving over yours soft and slow and gentle and this, you think, is everything that a first kiss should be.

Needless to say, it is only the first of many more to come.

X

The relationship between you and Caspian only strengthens after that, and soon you have progressed from falling in love with him to actually being head over heels in love. It is a feeling that only grows once you defeat the Telmarine forces, the ensuing peace allowing you more time to spend with him.

And then, everything changes yet again, and you feel as if your world has crashed.

It’s Susan who comes to you and tells you what’s going on, who explains in distraught tones that you’re all going to be leaving, returning to the world that you had long since stopped missing, a world that seems bland and ever so far away now.

You barely wait for her to finish speaking before rushing off in the direction of the castle, ignoring her bewildered cries of your name.

Your mind is in chaos, and the one person who drowns out everything else is the one you are in search of- Caspian. You find him finally in the throne room, talking to Dr. Cornelius, and without a word you rush towards him, throwing your arms around him.

You can feel his surprise in the way he stiffens at first, and a few seconds pass before he relaxes and returns your embrace.

“___, is everything okay?” he asks, his hands rubbing your back in motions that are meant to be soothing. Needless to say, they don’t have their desired effect because when you pull away a little to look up at him, you can hardly make out the details of his face through the tears in your eyes.

Immediately, his eyes fill with concern, as he draws you close again and attempts to calm you down with whispered words and kisses pressed into your hair.

“We’re leaving,” you cry out finally, your words muffled into his chest.

“What?!” he exclaims, tearing himself away, hands coming up to cup your face as he meets your gaze, eyes filled with the same sheer panic that had gripped at your heart the minute you had understood the implications of Susan’s words.

“Aslan says we’re going away, back to our world, and he hasn’t spoken to me so I don’t know whether
I’ll ever be coming back,” the words come out in a strangled torrent, and you find yourself clutching onto the fabric of his shirt, pulling him closer again, “Caspian, I don’t want to leave.”

He draws his hands away from your face, places them on your waist and holds you to him, his forehead resting against yours, his eyes falling shut.

Silence falls over the pair of you where you stand frozen in place, a silence that is thick and filled with a desperate sense of loss. And just when you feel as if you’ve almost drowned in it,
Caspian’s eyes flutter open again, and his gaze is so intense it’s almost as if he’s looking into the depths of your soul.

“You’ll come back to me,” he whispers finally, his words carrying a sense of conviction so absolute it takes your breath away.

“You truly believe that?”

“Yes, yes I do,” his voice grows louder, “Come back to me, ___, I’ll wait for you. As long as I must, I will wait.”

His eyes have grown beseeching and his hands on your waist grip just a little bit tighter, though you don’t really mind. Because while he has almost managed to convince you, you are still scared of what is to come.

“Okay then,” you tell him, voice hardly wavering on the words, “I’ll come back to you, wait for me.”

And when the last syllable is barely past your lips, he is leaning down and closing the gap between you, sealing his lips over yours in a kiss that leaves you breathless.

That is all the goodbye you share before you leave, carrying in your bruised heart an-almost certainty that you will return.

X

You’re visiting Edmund and Lucy at their aunt’s when it finally happens- the return to Narnia that you have been awaiting for a year now. Of course, being thrown into an ocean and nearly drowning is not the way you would have chosen but it is still worth it.

Especially once you have been hauled to the deck and find yourself in Caspian’s arms once again, your feet dangling in the air as he twirls you around joyously.

You don’t know what you say to him, or what he says in return, so caught up are you in being with him again. Of course, the minutes pass fast, and then he has to let you go, to talk to Edmund and Lucy, and their cousin Eustace.

And after the initial excitement of the reunion passes, you lean against the railing on deck and wait for Caspian as he talks to his men. You’re not really paying much attention to his words, simply watching him instead, enjoying the sound of his voice, and marveling at the fact that you are here, in Narnia, with him.

Soon after, he finishes passing out orders to his crews and walks over to you, breaking you out of your reverie with a gentle hand on your arm and a soft kiss to your cheek.

“Would you come with me, my love?” he asks, voice pitched low only for your ears, “there is so much we need to talk about.”

You blush, and smile, and nod all in one jerky movement and his smile grows a fraction as he places one hand on the small of your back and steers you in the direction of the captain’s cabin. Lucy is just leaving as you arrive at the door and she gives you both a distinctly mischievous smile as she walks past.

Caspian holds the door, ushering you in and then following after and shutting it behind him. And just as you turn to him, he cups your face in his hands, his eyes intent on yours. Your hands come to rest on his chest and you drink in the sight of him in front of you, close and warm, and ever so real.

“You have grown even more radiant in the years that have passed, ___,” he whispers, breath ghosting over your face as he speaks, “I had not thought it possible.”

“And you, my love, are even more handsome,” you return the compliment in equally hushed tones before tipping your face up a little more and stretching upwards to capture his lips with your own. You kiss him long, and slow, and deep, as you both shut your eyes in tandem.

It is only after you have parted, your head now resting on his chest, his arms encircling you, that a niggling doubt creeps up on you.

“Years?” you ask with a growing sense of panic, “Caspian, it has only been one year, has it not?”

Confusion enters his eyes before it is replaced with caution and he speaks slowly when he replies,
“It has been three years here in Narnia, love.”

“Three years?” you gasp, pulling away from him, eyes widened in shock, “you waited three years for me?”

“And I would have waited even longer if I had to,” he replies, and the soft smile on his face sends yet another pang through your already aching heart. What have you done to deserve the love of this man?

“I’m never leaving you again,” you cry, launching yourself at him in a swift motion that ends with your arms around his waist and your head buried in his chest.

“I know, love,” he whispers, his hands gently stroking your back, and he presses a kiss to your hair, and then one to each of your temples, “I never want to let you go.”

You lift your head from his chest and press a kiss to his jawline, before nestling into the crook of his neck.

“Never again,” you whisper, the words almost humming against his skin.

Barely a moment passes in silence and then he is moving again, disentangling himself from you, and suddenly he is on his knees in front of you, your hands clasped firmly in his.

“Marry me, ___,” he asks, voice wavering, as if he is unsure of your answer “stay with me, rule by my side.”

You gasp in shock yet again, and you can hear your heartbeat practically thrumming in happiness, as tears of joy flood your eyes.

“Yes, yes of course,” you reply in tones as shaky as his own, “I’ll marry you.”

He is surging to his feet and sweeping you into his arms before you have time to say or do anything else. His lips are on yours, and his warmth surrounds you and finally, the last of your worries slip away. Because you can feel it in your bones- this is it, this is your happy ending.