"How is she alive!" A voice echoed through the abandoned caves at the edge of the border of any map that the people of Narnia possessed. The caves were the joining of three different caves - rock-cut, water and lava. The meeting of all three stood three thrones, two of which had been empty for far too long. "The princess. How is she alive!"

The woman wore a red dress and had deep burgundy hair. Her dress stuck close to her body unlike the gowns of the other two who were missing, their absence like a void to the woman staring at her reflection in the ball.

"Oh, how I wish Jadis hadn't been such a fool! There has been no one to exist who has dared to survive my powers. And yet," The Queen walked towards the crystal and touched it one hand, moving it to show a clearer picture of Dhruvika talking in the woods with a naiad. "The girl survives. It must have been that young boy! Jadis told me that he escaped only after the ruddy bird escaped."

She had been alone with her thoughts ever since the four children defeated the rightful ruler of their kingdom in what they considered to be a worthy battle. She walked up to the podium and brought her hands near her face. She stretched the muscles, bringing her power to her eyes and threw a ball of fire in the direction of the cave that would lead to what had been her, and only her, cave.

She fell to her knees thinking about how her parents would have been disappointed at seeing their situation. One of the three? dead, that too at the hands of a Lion! The youngest? Trapped several feet under water in an enchanted castle where she wouldn't dare to escape without risking her own dear life. And the third? All alone.

She was the eldest and had to take the burden of the world on her shoulders once again. She needed to win. She had to win! The curse of killing the girl's parents hadn't been enough and the millennia of silent torture wasn't enough either as the princess had dared to escape her hold. The Queen was going to make her home proud, even if it had been destroyed.

That was what had resulted in her despising young children. The beautiful world that had been Charn was brought to ruins and dust by two babies! Carmis tapped her index finger on the ashwood that her throne was made of and made a plan to bring the young girl down.

"The time for avenging has come."

At the same time in the grounds of Cair Paravel, the two new friends were walking alongside each other while talking about things that were close to them. "If you could change one thing in your life," Dhruvika started. "What would it be?"

Edmund stopped walking suddenly. He had hoped to hide that part of his life from her because that wasn't something that he wanted to bring to his new life, and it was definitely something that he wanted her to know about.

"Honest reply?" He asked, putting his hands behind his back to appear chivalrous. What was he doing? He wondered how his siblings would make fun of him if they could see him. But it was better that they didn't. He didn't need them to know how he really felt around the one friend that was able to tolerate him. "I wouldn't change anything."

"Really?"

"I'm sure you have heard about my....encounter with the White Witch." He shuddered just thinking about her. How could he have been so naive and stupid?

"Well, that wouldn't be your version of the course of events."

A smile crept over his face. His siblings had told him the same thing and he knew that they were right. There was no point blaming himself for actions that he had committed in his past. He wasn't the same person anymore. "Lucy would love to pull you into a bear hug right now."

"I...."

"I'm kidding! You should see the look on your face right now. It's as though I've asked if I could kiss you." His eyes widened as he kicked himself. "I apologise. I did not mean that....or say that to indicate anything."

Dhruvika squinted her eyes at him. "Yeah, have fun with my emotions. They are all for the show."

"I am not having fun."

"I'm glad. But seriously, let's get back to the topic."

He nodded, his heart still beating quickly against his chest. "I wouldn't change anything because I don't want to think about what could have been. I can never know what that would have been like and in reality, I'm happy the way that things are right now."

"Who wouldn't love to be a King as a teenager?" 

"We do miss our family at times but as siblings, we have grown closer. And that is a bond that I am going to cherish for the rest of my life." He revealed. "I've learnt more from life and that's how it should be, isn't it? We learn more from experience than books, and that is exactly what I am able to achieve. So, no. I wouldn't change anything."

Robin looked at him with admiration in her eyes. "Well said, Drida." 

They turned around a corner of the grounds and almost came to face the guards when Edmund pulled her arm and she dashed against his chest. Both of them hid behind the back wall of the castle. Things were silent in the few seconds that they stood that way before Dhruvika smirked.

"What?" He asked her.

"You are really tall." She needed something to distract her from stopping her from feeling things that she was very new to. "Maybe I should call you 'Tree' instead."

He laughed softly. "I am the King of the Western Woods after all. Besides, Robin and Tree make good partners."

Footsteps started to approach them and Edmund started to panic while trying to come up with the best solution of escape. "How do we get out?" He mumbled the way he usually did while dealing with a problem.

"Go and meet them. I'll find my way out."

After knowing each other for almost a month, he was sure that she knew her way in and out of the castle. He trusted that she could. "Are you sure?"

"One hundred percent." 

They hadn't realised how close they actually stood until the sounds of the footsteps grew louder and Edmund moved away from the corner to meet the guards. "See you tomorrow." He told her before he left.

"See you tomorrow, Tree."

He winked at her before walking in the direction of the footsteps. "Oi, Goldmark!" He shouted as he went to greet one of the guards and Dhruvika couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"Tree," she whispered before heading back to the camp.

*****

I'm hoping and assuming that no one figured out 

that Jadis, Olivis and Carmis were sisters 

when you were reading Act Three of

'The Lost Legacy'! It's a HUGE reveal!