[twenty-one: Do you just not care?]

Sometimes someone comes into your life that changes everything. Raise the standards, makes you laugh, and makes you feel like you. There is something about him that you cannot put into words, and even though you are not with him, you do not want to let him go.

Genevieve Potter opened her eyes to find herself on the very pedestal she left, her eyes trailing down the wedding dress that complimented her figure in the boutique mirror as she let a troubled sigh escape her lips before her eyes trained to the painting on her right,  watching as the very ship she had been on a mere hour ago sailed away beyond the horizon - as if were never there at all and that Narnia was once again nothing but a selfish daydream.

Ronald Lee stood at her side as they watched the ship sail out of view, one of his hands clutching on a suitcase for the hotel that the two were supposed to stay in that night - though Ron had a different idea entirely. His heart ached as he watched the sorrow across his cousins face, his face distorting to a frown as he wished to know what was going on inside her head - to know how hard it must be for her to believe she had lost the love of her life.

Though if Eustace and Ron had their way then it wouldn't appear so.

"Please don't cry." Ron whispered as he approached the girl who had tears falling freely down her cheeks, wiping her tears away with his thumbs as he tried to comfort her - but failing as he only released a waterfall that collapsed from her broken eyes. "Genny please stop! Talk to me!"

"Tears are the words the heart can't say." Was all she said as she rushed to wipe her tears, thanking Aslan that none of the make-up applied by Agatha Pole had been smudged. 

The two were silent for a moment as they both looked into the mirror, noticing how different they looked compared to the months they spent on the Dawn Treader - Ron noticing that he was no longer taller than Genevieve after his growth spurt during their time in Narnia and he immediately pouted.

He missed being tall.

"Do you want me to button your dress up?" Ron asked her and Genevieve only replied with a nod as he stood behind her and slowly buttoned up the wedding dress, stepping back as they both looked into the mirror at the pair of them. "You need to just remember the good times."

"I tried it all before Ron," She whispered as she looked at him. "and it only makes things worse."

"Maybe this time it'll be right." Ron suggested and Genevieve only sighed as she stepped off the pedestal as she fetched a tissue from her bag to wipe her eyes.

"I don't thing I'll ever be alright again Ron." Genevieve stated as she wiped her eyes before she caught a glimpse of someone walking across the street. "Is that Jill?"

Ron's head immediately snapped up at the mention of Jill Pole, his eyes darting to the very girl who indeed was walking down the streets of Cambridge with a basket in her hand full of last minute invitations - as requested by her mother. His eyes narrowed upon looking at the house, his eyes promptly diverting to a window at the top of the house where he could briefly make out the silhouettes of three figures looking at something on the wall - though he couldn't see their faces.

"Yeah, she's delivering last minute invites." Ron stated and Genevieve only sighed as she watched Jill walk into the home with a sad smile on her face. "We can still stop the wedding."

"It's time to accept that I can't get out of this Ron." She whispered before she turned to him and gave him a frown. "I need to stop getting my hopes up!"

"Now looking at her - what are you doing here?" Agatha asked as she walked into the room with the tailor, her eyes glaring at Ron who was stood by the window and physically jumped upon hearing the horrid woman speak.

"I came to check on my cousin, she is getting married in a few days you know." Ron stated the obvious as Agatha only glared at him harder, the dislike of the boy being clear.

"Get out!" She sneered as she looked at him, her hands going to her hips. "Before I call your father about your idiocy!"

"My idiocy?" Ron laughed as he looked at her and took a step forward with his arms crossed over his chest. "News flash the village called, they'd like their idiot back. You better get going."

Genevieve stifled a giggle as she viewed the interaction, watching as Ron grabbed his leather jacket and threw it over his shoulder - sending Genevieve a cheeky wink before he left the boutique - leaving an enraged Agatha behind. Genevieve watched as Agatha composed herself before turning to the tailor with a fake smile plastered onto her face.

"So do you think a corset is best to cover that stomach or will we need to do extra fittings on the dress?"

However Genevieve couldn't focus on the tailor or her soon to be mother-in-law as her attention focused on the glimmering accessory on her wrist.

Her charm bracelet.

+++

It was immediately clear that as soon as they walked through the wave back to Lucy's room in Cambridge that Edmund couldn't describe what he was feeling. He wasn't happy but he wasn't exactly sad either. He was just caught in between those two emotions and so many more that his heart felt... empty.

So incredibly empty!

A large tightening of his throat and a rather short intake of breath forecasted the ignition of emotion which up till this date, he had managed to keep buried deep inside himself. Not any more though, that image of things  with a love which were not to come, was too powerful and gut wrenching to be kept in check - the tearing at his soul was too compelling and energetic to be contained. The vision he had, began to swim in front of him as tears welled from deep inside and coursed down his cheeks. 

He had lost her!

"Edmund, it's okay." Lucy whispered as she hugged her brother, the two watching as Eustace placed the painting on the wall that was missing the very ship that they had been on only a mere hour ago as it never existed in the first place. 

"I've lost her Lu." Edmund whispered as he sat down on her bed, pulling his hands through his hair. "I'll never see her again."

"Edmund, please don't cry." Eustace tried to comfort the boy before Edmund's eyes snapped up to his, an inquisitive look on his features. 

"How are you so calm? You've just lost Reep and Ron yet you haven't even shed a tear." Edmund stated before he stood up and pointed a finger at him. "Do you just not care?"

"Edmund!" Lucy shouted as she looked between the two, surprised at how Eustace hadn't spat back with an insult like he used to do and instead just folded his arms over his chest and let Edmund rant on. He knew not to argue.

"Think about it Lu. He gets to go back to Narnia and we don't. He gets to see Ron again and yet he didn't blink an eye when we had to come home again." Edmund stated angrily as he looked at the boy with a sour look, unaware of the sound of a doorbell downstairs. "Isn't it odd?"

"Well I..." Eustace was interrupted by a loud shout up the stairs, the three stopping their argument as they listened to what was occurring downstairs.

"Eustace? Eustace what are you doing up there?" Alberta asked as she shouted up the stairs, the three sharing a look as they all turned their head in the direction of the door. "Jill Pole's dropped in for a visit."

"Jill Pole?" Edmund asked as Eustace's eyes widened, unaware that Pole would be visiting their family on that day and how it would correspond with the plan. "Where have I heard that name before?"

"Trust me Edmund," Eustace smiled as he looked at his cousin with a happy look. "You'll want to speak to her."

Edmund and Lucy only shrugged at each other as they began to walk out the door, Eustace getting a peculiar feeling that he was being watched. Cautiously Eustace began to walk to his window and looked out, a large smile spreading over his face as he met the eyes of a familiar pair of orbs who was leaning against a lamppost across the street looking at him. He watched as the figure smirked as Eustace opened the window as they began to mouth something to him and he only just managed to catch the words.

"Meet me at six outside the Experiment House." He had said and Eustace nodded with a smile as he closed the window and made his way downstairs.

How was Ron and Genevieve at the wedding boutique opposite his house the whole time and they'd never noticed in the months they'd been here?