The Hostile Heritage

Chapter 1: A Vow in Time

"Your parents were supposed to be killed by the catapults I rained on their little castle. But when we went through the rumble, we didn't find their bodies. They had escaped. With you, as it seems. Your parents were nothing but imbeciles."

"We'll see about that, Sophie Adams! One day, you will have to face a situation where you have to make a very important decision. We'll meet again!"

"You're going to be just like us one day. All alone with the weight of your own sorrows harbouring your sanity."

"The world is a cruel cruel place. And this is no place for a woman like you to fall to her knees at the expense of her sacrifices."

"The future is not one to look forward to. This is the beginning of the end."

"Sophie! Sophie, my love."

The eyes of the brunette opened in a frantic manner. It took the woman a few seconds to see her husband's face above hers, having been crying in her sleep. The world was foggy but his voice was the one true north she could rely on. "Caspian?" She asked as she wiped her face and looked up at him properly. "What...."

"You were struggling in your sleep," he said, removing the strands of hair out of her face softly with two fingers. He hadn't wanted to wake her up halfway through her sleep but he couldn't stand by seeing her wither. He couldn't see her hurt in any way. "Nightmares again?"

Sophie sniffed. "I don't really remember....What time is it?"

Caspian looked at the window in the distance and saw the sky lighten. "Dawn is breaking."

She nodded. They had gone to sleep earlier than they usually would have. No wonder she was feeling tired. "I was talking in my sleep, wasn't I?"

Caspian smiled softly, still brushing her hair to calm her down. He kissed her forehead as it pained him to see her this way. Sophie had been muttering in her sleep more often and he could only connect it to the nightmares. He wished he could help her because if he could go through her nightmares for her, he would gladly do it. If he had to walk through Hell because that's what it would take to be with her, he would do it.

"It's better than laughing in your sleep, I suppose."

Sophie scoffed and smiled. "That's true." She looked at him and then buried her face in his chest. "I told you that you would have to deal with me like this. I guess I left out the part where I have trouble sleeping." She played with the collar of his white tunic to control her breathing.

Caspian kissed the top of her head. "And I meant when I said that I couldn't wait to do it." He put his arms around her and brushed his fingers over her left arm. "For better or for worse, remember?"

She nodded, resting her head against his warm chest. "We should get up sometime."

Caspian wrapped his arms around her tightly. "No," he whispered in her ear.

"You can't say 'no' to waking up, Cas. We have a lot of work to do."

"I don't know about work. I want to lie here with my wife," Sophie smiled, still not believing that they were bound together for eternity, with all the vows in both their traditions.. "And forget about the rest of the world. But even though I can't do it," he sighed. "At least us have these few moments."

It had been two years since the much awaited Royal wedding that took place. Two years since Sophie was not only Sophie but the Heir of Narnia. She had adjusted to the changes that came along with it but she and Caspian made sure to not let anyone make them feel indifferent.

The Council had grown to letting Sophie make major decisions as she got familiar with the entire politics of Narnia. She had set laws to match her Other World's so that there was equality among all. Nobody would be discriminated against for their faith or who they loved.