what? is this already longer than ot3? OH SNAP. (i am, uh, in a mood.)
caspian sits on the couch holding an icepack to his face. susan regards him grimly. from the bathroom, lucy splashes around in a bubblebath.
there are two bedrooms in the suite, and a living room, and susan is trying to decide if she wants to sleep with lucy or make caspian take the couch. she's leaning towards the latter.
"so, uh," caspian says after a few minutes. "i'm not dead."
pity. "you noticed," susan says. she jerks her head up towards the ceiling. there are cameras in the room, of course. she's debating whether sweeping it for bugs or not is a good idea or a bad one.
"uh," caspian says. "so that went...well."
susan raises her eyebrows.
"well, my aunt likes me," caspian says after a minute. "i think. so maybe --"
"caspian," susan says, "i hardly give a damn about your familial relationships, not when my family's lives are on the line."
caspian coughs, switches his grip on the icepack to the other hand so he can dig in his pocket. "lucy and i were looking for you all over the towers," he says. "i heard what you said to my uncle. i know it wasn't what you came here for, but i thought you might want these." he leans forward, and susan puts out her palm to see her ruby and silver earrings fall into her hand.
she smoothes her thumb over them carefully. the silver is a little tarnished -- it's been a while since she cleaned them -- but the rubies are still bright in the overhead light, and they make her smile. she remembers peter's quick pickpocket's fingers light on her skin, the way she'd looked in the mirror, the way they'd bth<>/i> looked, young and carefree and unblemished. except that hadn't been true at all; they've always been older than they should be.
"thank you," she says. then, "how did you know?"
caspian offers her a faint smile, then winces as it pulls at a cut on the side of his jaw. "i didn't," he says, "i just thought they were pretty, and they were right there, and well, they'd probably go for a decent price at a fence."
abruptly, the phone rings. they both jump and look at it, and then when it rings again susan leans over and picks it up. she doesn't say anything.
"mr. miraz would like to invite you to dinner in the restaurant downstairs," someone's smooth voice says. "the dress is black tie."
susan puts the phone down, then gets up and goes to the closet. she opens the doors.
she isn't sure whether or not to be flattered that miraz remembers her size, and has guessed lucy's and caspian's.
"this should go very well with your black eyes," she says to caspian, tossing him a tuxedo jacket.
no subject
caspian sits on the couch holding an icepack to his face. susan regards him grimly. from the bathroom, lucy splashes around in a bubblebath.
there are two bedrooms in the suite, and a living room, and susan is trying to decide if she wants to sleep with lucy or make caspian take the couch. she's leaning towards the latter.
"so, uh," caspian says after a few minutes. "i'm not dead."
pity. "you noticed," susan says. she jerks her head up towards the ceiling. there are cameras in the room, of course. she's debating whether sweeping it for bugs or not is a good idea or a bad one.
"uh," caspian says. "so that went...well."
susan raises her eyebrows.
"well, my aunt likes me," caspian says after a minute. "i think. so maybe --"
"caspian," susan says, "i hardly give a damn about your familial relationships, not when my family's lives are on the line."
caspian coughs, switches his grip on the icepack to the other hand so he can dig in his pocket. "lucy and i were looking for you all over the towers," he says. "i heard what you said to my uncle. i know it wasn't what you came here for, but i thought you might want these." he leans forward, and susan puts out her palm to see her ruby and silver earrings fall into her hand.
she smoothes her thumb over them carefully. the silver is a little tarnished -- it's been a while since she cleaned them -- but the rubies are still bright in the overhead light, and they make her smile. she remembers peter's quick pickpocket's fingers light on her skin, the way she'd looked in the mirror, the way they'd bth<>/i> looked, young and carefree and unblemished. except that hadn't been true at all; they've always been older than they should be.
"thank you," she says. then, "how did you know?"
caspian offers her a faint smile, then winces as it pulls at a cut on the side of his jaw. "i didn't," he says, "i just thought they were pretty, and they were right there, and well, they'd probably go for a decent price at a fence."
abruptly, the phone rings. they both jump and look at it, and then when it rings again susan leans over and picks it up. she doesn't say anything.
"mr. miraz would like to invite you to dinner in the restaurant downstairs," someone's smooth voice says. "the dress is black tie."
susan puts the phone down, then gets up and goes to the closet. she opens the doors.
she isn't sure whether or not to be flattered that miraz remembers her size, and has guessed lucy's and caspian's.
"this should go very well with your black eyes," she says to caspian, tossing him a tuxedo jacket.