"Sweta! You don't understand. The bride and the groom haven't decided about that yet and I am not going to pressure them about it. Tell Claire to keep the fabrics ready, in case they change their minds." Nina looked around and found yet another person to correct. "No, the flowers go over there! The new shipments need to reach-" Evelyn walked by with letters and was stopped by Nina. "Evelyn, please help me with these caterers and florists. They are refusing to take their orders to the new location."

"Yes, Nina. I am talking to the movers next. I'll let them know as well."

Nina clapped her hands together. "This is going to be the greatest function that has ever happened." She started to walk towards the exit where she saw a certain someone hiding behind a pillar. "Your Majesty!" She held her chest. "What are you doing here?"

Sophie Adams smirked. "Watching you make a fuss over this. After all, it's my only source of entertainment for the past few months." She winked.

"Do not sneak up on people, my Queen. We have a lot of work to do and I need you to be your relaxed self until the wedding."

Rewind time.

Let me back up.

It had been a year since Sophie came home and two years since she started to live once again in the Telmarine Castle. There were a lot of formalities that needed to be completed because everyone was moving to their new home - Cair Paravel. The castle stood before the beach in all its might, always ready for the rulers to sail away when they needed time alone, but during this time, nothing was easy. 

Caspian and Sophie had grown closer and talked about a lot of things, but never spent more than a few hours together. They were kept apart ever since the news of the engagement broke out, as if they needed to be pampered. The two of them told each other that they would take care of any problems that came their way. "Together." That was their vow, and during this time, they had their forces keep an eye out for Olivis. Something told Sophie that the Witch wasn't done with her. After finding out the entire story, and after finding out that there were three Witch sisters from Charn, there was a bigger threat to be dealt with.

The castle was being renovated in the sense that all the furniture and items that made the Telmarine Castle livable were being moved to Castle Cair. The Telmarine Castle was going to be used for official ceremonies and meetings. The castle would be guarded because the Council were planning something else for it as well.

In short, life was changing once again and this time, Sophie was changing with it.

Sophie hugged Nina from the back. "I can't believe that this is happening."

"It is. Finally! You two have no idea how much we were rooting for you." She kissed her forehead and blessed her by placing her hand on Sophie's head. "I'm so happy for you, Sophie."

"Thank you so much, Nina. For everything."

It didn't take much for her life to get to the way that it was. Sophie wouldn't call it normal, because, well, nothing in her life could be counted as normal.

"Mother?" The two of them heard the voice of a very beloved guest.

"Rumira, darling. We're here."

Rumira, Nina's daughter, ran towards them and bowed to Sophie. "Congratulations once again, Your Majesty!" They had spent a lot of time together now that Nina and the Professor were keeping Sophie and Caspian apart until it was absolutely necessary for them to spend time with each other. But it gave Sophie an excuse to annoy Rumira and Evelyn and become their friend without being their Queen. "We need to have a meeting sometime. We haven't covered a lot of topics to talk about."

"Yes, we do. Can we meet up for lunch this weekend?"

"This weekend?" She thought about it, a certain meeting some people that she couldn't reveal to anyone until the right moment, which she hoped would never arrive. "I will be here." She curtsied in a manner that they had always made fun of.

"Oh you two girls need to take your chit-chats someplace else." Nina hurried them out of the main hall. "I don't want you to come between anyone's path and please be careful about the glass chandelier outside. They need to pack it up."

"It's alright, mother. I will take my leave now. I only wanted to see the castle once more before commoners wouldn't be allowed."

"I don't know about that, but we are always there for the people," Sophie said. "I suppose this would be my chance to actually understand this world in a way that I didn't before."

Rumira left and Nina, Evelyn, Marcus and everyone else were busy with castle stuff. In that time, Sophie walked over to the astronomy tower in the stables below that was also half the owlery. The past year had been a confusing time, but she was getting through it with the help of Caspian.

But she had one more person's help whom she was really grateful for.

Her owl, Luna, was waiting with Sophie's letter. "Hey, buddy." She stroked the bird's feathers and was careful to not let her nib her fingers. Luna was a little cranky like the other birds because their house was shifted to the old tower until they could be transported safely.

Sophie took her letter from her beak and climbed down the staircase. The seal was clearly meant for her and she knew that nobody had intercepted it in between. She reached the courtyard and headed directly towards the castle, and when nobody was around to stop her from being herself, she let out a sigh of relief. Every letter could hold a piece of information that could tumble her world but each letter made everything special.

Once she was inside the safety of her chambers, Sophie opened the letter.

Queen Sophie,

I am so happy to hear that the wedding is nearing. But unfortunately, I am an old star. I am bound by my mistakes from the past and I am faithful to the Great Lion for letting me stay in Narnia. I am deeply sorry that I won't be able to make it to the joyous occasion, but know that you are not alone.

I have talked to a dear friend of ours, who will come your way soon.

Take care.

With Love,

Coriakin.

Sophie huffed. Coriakin couldn't make it to the wedding. She should have expected that though. The island sealed his existence within the borders. If he could have made it, it would have been as though her parents were with her. But Sophie was glad that their dear friend was going to come. She had been meaning to have a word with her soon because the last time Lilliandil and she had talked to each other, they were interrupted by the wedding planners over and over.

There was a knock at her door that took her attention away from what would happen with Olivis somehow found herself at Coriakin's door. Would he be able to keep her prisoner? Or will she destroy yet another loved one. "Come in."

Evelyn peeked her head inside and Sophie smiled. "Your Majesty? His Majesty wants to have a word with you....at the library."

"Thank you, Evie." Sophie looked at the ink bottle and the quill that lay on the study table where she was seated as the door closed and the sound of footsteps started to recede. She decided to write her reply first and had a hard time phrasing the words together, but managed to write that she understood why he couldn't make it to the wedding. "Even though I need you to be here." She signed the letter with her name and rolled it up, letting it rest against the lamp on the table because she was yet to close it into the scroll-case. Sophie stood up from her seat and rotated her wrists, stretching her hands before meeting the only person that she loved more than the world and life itself.

Caspian was looking at an old novelty book when Sophie walked inside. He had been trying to read through the old legends and theory books that he may have skimmed through as a learner. A particular thought about his future with Sophie had him curious and he wanted to know whether his suspicions were right or not. He had his head practically inside it. He had rested his head on his head and was so engrossed in the book that he didn't realise that Sophie was present there until she hugged him from the back and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Hey, you."

"Sophie." He smiled, closing the book. "Is all well?"

"I...." Sophie took a seat next to him, wondering how he could always figure out when something was wrong or running inside her mind. "Coriakin can't make it to the wedding."

"Oh Sophie, you knew that he wouldn't be able to come."

"I know." She sighed. "I am living a dream, what can I say?" She shrugged and managed to make both of them smile. "Anyway, so what did you want to talk to me about?"

"Ah!" He closed the book shut and both of them faced each other. "I wanted to talk to you about our safety. It's time that we appoint our personal guards, Sophie. I know that this is not something that happens in the Other World, but for our own safety, I think it is best if we each have a royal guard."

"Have you thought about who you want your guard to be?"

"Well...." He looked so adorable right then that Sophie wanted to kiss the scar over his eyebrow once again. "That's what I wanted to talk to you about. I can decide my guard later on. But first, I need you to find someone that you can trust to save your life. No one is more important than you," he said, taking her hand in his.

"I say the same about you, Your Majesty." They smiled, the titles not mattering anymore as both of them were equals. "We'll decide on someone. I'm sure that our opinions won't clash."

He nodded. "I also need you to decide on your ladies-in-waiting."

Sophie whined like a child. "I don't need ladies-in-waiting, Cas. I can take care of myself."

"But Sophie, as a ruler, the people will expect you to have what you described as the inner circle. You don't have to choose any ladies like people usually do. You can choose people that you trust." He knew that Sophie wanted to argue about this topic. "At least tell me that you will think about this."

Sophie was defeated. "Alright, I'll think about it."

"Thank you. Would you like to go for a walk around the castle? These are our last few days here. We could see around once more."

"And we could stay away from Nina and everyone else who wants us to stay away from each other because we are getting married." Sophie rolled her eyes at their hypocrisy. The two of them were getting married, nothing else.

He smirked. "That too."

"I'm not the only one who feels this way, right? They seem to be making this a big deal."

"I can see their point of view. This is the first time that there is going to be a joyous occasion since...." He thought about it. "My parent's wedding."

Sophie hit him playfully. "What about the day you were born? Or your coronation?" She wasn't going to let him give them the thunder because he was special too. He was the only one that mattered to her.

"I wouldn't know about that." He laughed. "But yes. They don't seem to understand our side."

"Exactly!"

He stood up first and gave her his hand. Sophie took it and they made their way to the secret passageway in the library. With everyone making a huge fuss about the wedding, both of them used it to spend some time with each other. They started talking about everything but the wedding, having heard enough about that from others.

They walked around the perimeter of the castle when Caspian asked her a question that made her curious more than it had him. "If we had met in the Other World, or if you and your family were here," he started hesitantly. "Would your friends Cassie and Melody have liked me? Or approved of me?"

Sophie would have been lying if she said that she was taken aback by that particular question. "Cassie would have loved you!" She said, her hands around his arm. "She would have threatened you, that's for sure. But she would have really liked you. And you have already met Melody. Why such a sudden question?"

A sigh escaped him. "I was thinking about who I could choose for the position of the Kingsguard when I thought about the opportunities where I could have had a normal life. I could have had friends that I could rely on."

"Hey." She stopped them from walking to prove her point. "I love you. No matter what. I will honour any decision that you make."

He pulled her into a soft kiss. "I love you too, Sophie."

Sophie controlled her heartbeat. Even after all the time that they had spent together, her heart refused to cooperate with her. Maybe that's what people meant by a stolen heart, because hers completely belonged to Caspian. He was the only one that could make her feel this way, proving that there were different types of people in the world.

"Actually when I think about it, Melody would have been the one to have cornered you." She said as they continued to walk. "She would have definitely threatened you if Jayden wasn't present with us." 

Sophie missed her friends. They were her chosen family but that part of her had grown so much in the past three years that she never thought she would be walking hand in hand with a King. Well, or by finding out that she was born a Queen herself. 

"Do we need to have Honours for the wedding?"

Sophie and Caspian's wedding was going to be held in two ceremonies, similar to what their coronations were like. One was to honour the Narnian traditions, and one was to honour Sophie's. Or as she would have said it, the Indian traditions. Having grown up mostly with desis, she had taken in a lot from their culture and wished to have a wedding respecting their traditions. She had asked one of them if it would be okay for her to do so and they had been quite open-minded about it.

Maybe this would be a way of making people realise that they must respect and honour each other's traditions, cultures and the values that they share....that no one is superior to anyone and no religion mattered the most. It was about having faith in what you believed in.

"I don't really see anyone that I could ask for that position."

"Right?" Sophie didn't want to give anyone the feeling that the two of them wanted to spend their time with only selected people. They wanted to be fair rulers, and giving someone that little privilege didn't seem right.

"I'm sure this can be only the two of us."

"I'm sure that it is going to be the two of us."

He laughed. "Oh, I can't believe that this is finally happening." He hugged her from behind. "I would be ready to go through all this fuss over and over again, as long as I'm getting married to you."

"Believe it, mate, because we have already sent out the invites," Sophie smirked. "I feel the same way, and you already know that."

He started to tickle her and she pulled away from him. "No no no!" She laughed. "Cas, no!"

He put his hand forward. "Truce?"

Sophie looked questioningly at him. "Nope." She turned her head away.

"Oh, come on!" She took use of that opportunity to get back at him by tickling him. "Sophie!"

"That's how it feels!" Both of them laughed. "Shall we head back to the castle now?"

He took both her hands in his and kissed the knuckles. "Yes, we shall." Caspian started to run with her hand in his and they were little children again, waiting for a moment of peace in the cruel dark world that would never stop trying to separate them from each other. But they would fight as they always did.

*****

Cast

Sophie Cookson as Rumira Walter