Edmund had said he'd be here. And while Al had many flaws, lack of loyalty had never been one of them. He couldn't leave someone waiting for him, not when he knew they'd be there. Leaving Edmund alone on the beach, at night, waiting? Doomed to disappointment? Al could never do that.
But his presence here, hovering uncertainly at the edge of the sea-rock, wasn't acquiescence either. He hadn't changed his mind about any of the things Edmund had wanted, had asked for, that day they'd met in the halls. Maybe he was loyal, and honest, and beautiful, and all those other things Edmund said. But how could he hope to have a relationship with a king of Narnia? Things couldn't be equal between them. And Edmund, king or no, could never understand what Al had lived through in a hundred years of Jadis's rule. What all the lions had lived through. What the pack needed from each other. Leopards weren't lions. They didn't depend on each other the same way. They didn't depend on anyone.
But Edmund, hugging his knees in the moonlight, didn't look fiercely independent. Or any kind of independent. He looked lost. Al knew he'd done that. Maybe he didn't agree with Edmund, but he'd hurt him. He hated that.
Al cleared his throat softly, taking a cautious step forward. He didn't want to give Edmund the wrong idea, or lead him on, but he wanted -- he wanted the king to have a friend.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2016-06-17 03:08 am (UTC)But his presence here, hovering uncertainly at the edge of the sea-rock, wasn't acquiescence either. He hadn't changed his mind about any of the things Edmund had wanted, had asked for, that day they'd met in the halls. Maybe he was loyal, and honest, and beautiful, and all those other things Edmund said. But how could he hope to have a relationship with a king of Narnia? Things couldn't be equal between them. And Edmund, king or no, could never understand what Al had lived through in a hundred years of Jadis's rule. What all the lions had lived through. What the pack needed from each other. Leopards weren't lions. They didn't depend on each other the same way. They didn't depend on anyone.
But Edmund, hugging his knees in the moonlight, didn't look fiercely independent. Or any kind of independent. He looked lost. Al knew he'd done that. Maybe he didn't agree with Edmund, but he'd hurt him. He hated that.
Al cleared his throat softly, taking a cautious step forward. He didn't want to give Edmund the wrong idea, or lead him on, but he wanted -- he wanted the king to have a friend.
"King Edmund?"