they sleep for the rest of the day and all of the night, soundly tangled in each other in a way they haven't been in years. there is something of the, not innocence, but audacity of childhood in it, how they hold each other tightly without fear. edmund fell asleep in peter's arms and wakes up in peter's arms, and the symmetry comforts him. he is far away from everything he knows with only peter to fall back on, and for the first time since their plane left jfk, this knowledge warms him instead of filling him with dread.
maybe it's the jetlag.
+
their sisters' faces are pixelated and stop-motion on the computer screen, moving in and out of the frame (lucy keeps knocking the webcam on its side), and their voices and giggles on the speakers are tinny and thin.
"i tried to see miraz today," susan is saying. "but he's like fort knox, you know how he is. his inner circle is impenetrable. but i've left a note with his assistant."
"how did that work out?" asks edmund.
"i heard from miraz today. he can't resist an old flame. we're having coffee tomorrow."
peter's jaw tightens, but it's not like there's much he can do.
"good," says edmund. "good. be careful."
susan rolls her eyes. "i'm not an amateur.
"how is manila?" lucy cuts in, her face suddenly taking up the entire screen. "how is lune, and the twins, and aravis?"
"lune is out of the country on some business thing," peter replies. "cor and aravis are i don't know, up north designing irrigation for the rice paddies, whatever. feeding some orphans. saving some whales."
"what crawled up your ass and died," says lucy, making a face.
there is a knock on the door, and peter and edmund call out almost in unison to come in. corin sticks his head in. "hey, you wanna go out for lunch?"
"is that corin?" lucy demands. "point the webcam at him! hi corin!"
corin laughs and walks over to the laptop, and slings his arms around peter and edmund's shoulders, grinning at the screen. "what's up, sexy. how's new york?"
"oh god," says susan. "don't even ask."
corin laughs again. "all right then, well. if it's all the same with you two ladies, i'm going to take your brothers to lunch."
the goodbye is long, protracted, and repetitive. "i love you," susan says a final time.
"i love you too," peter says, trying not to sound wistful. and susan and lucy disappear from the screen.
"god," says corin. "you guys make me puke. okay, grab your shit. do you like seafood?"
no subject
maybe it's the jetlag.
+
their sisters' faces are pixelated and stop-motion on the computer screen, moving in and out of the frame (lucy keeps knocking the webcam on its side), and their voices and giggles on the speakers are tinny and thin.
"i tried to see miraz today," susan is saying. "but he's like fort knox, you know how he is. his inner circle is impenetrable. but i've left a note with his assistant."
"how did that work out?" asks edmund.
"i heard from miraz today. he can't resist an old flame. we're having coffee tomorrow."
peter's jaw tightens, but it's not like there's much he can do.
"good," says edmund. "good. be careful."
susan rolls her eyes. "i'm not an amateur.
"how is manila?" lucy cuts in, her face suddenly taking up the entire screen. "how is lune, and the twins, and aravis?"
"lune is out of the country on some business thing," peter replies. "cor and aravis are i don't know, up north designing irrigation for the rice paddies, whatever. feeding some orphans. saving some whales."
"what crawled up your ass and died," says lucy, making a face.
there is a knock on the door, and peter and edmund call out almost in unison to come in. corin sticks his head in. "hey, you wanna go out for lunch?"
"is that corin?" lucy demands. "point the webcam at him! hi corin!"
corin laughs and walks over to the laptop, and slings his arms around peter and edmund's shoulders, grinning at the screen. "what's up, sexy. how's new york?"
"oh god," says susan. "don't even ask."
corin laughs again. "all right then, well. if it's all the same with you two ladies, i'm going to take your brothers to lunch."
the goodbye is long, protracted, and repetitive. "i love you," susan says a final time.
"i love you too," peter says, trying not to sound wistful. and susan and lucy disappear from the screen.
"god," says corin. "you guys make me puke. okay, grab your shit. do you like seafood?"