bonus chapter; that would be enough.
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     THE NARNIAN SUN WAS ABLE TO WARM EVEN THE COLDEST OF SOULS. Caspian had learned that repeatedly during his time spent aboard the Dawn Treader. The boy-king's icy heart felt had felt little to nothing over the past few years; his soul was devoid of any hope and his heart yearned for one girl to grace his presence.

It had been over three years since Daisy Middleton had ventured into Aslan's country, and not a day had gone by without the girl's bright caramel eyes and chestnut hair had passed fleetingly through the young King's mind. Caspian missed - no, not missed - craved Daisy's presence. Just when Caspian had realised with whom his heart belonged, any hope of his love lasting his lifetime had been crushed by the cruel tendrils of fate.

     But now as the young man sat upon the deck of the Dawn Treader, his eyes following the inky blue horizon, Caspian's heart was starting to warm ever so slightly. The two youngest Pevensies and their cousin had washed up in the Narnian waters no more than a week prior, and despite his yearning for Daisy, Caspian couldn't help but feel his cloudy mood brighten. A warm sense of normality was returning to him and Caspian welcomed it with open arms.

     Squinting slightly to shield his eyes from the mellow glare of the setting sun, Caspian cast his eyes upon the flat, calm sea; it's never ending-ness was a comforting notion. The world was so vast and he was so small - if the entirety of Narnia could live with it's troubles, he could too. Caspian's existence was insignificant in the eyes of history; he was just one leaf on the tree of everything that has been and will be.

      But would he let his first love drive him into a life of mediocrity and sadness? Of course not. Caspian would become one of the greatest rulers Narnia had ever known. And he would do it for her.

     For Daisy.

     Daisy Middleton was Caspian's first love, his first kiss, his first chance at living a life with someone else. And now she was gone, and that made Caspian miserable.

     So often Caspian had wanted to hate Daisy for leaving him behind. He wished to curse her, to scream at her, to forget about her. But that was folly. No matter how hard the young king tried, he found it impossible to hate the girl who stole his heart.

     Caspian often liked to think that this was how everyone felt over their first love. It was a comforting idea - that he was not alone in his sadness, that people had experienced the same empty feeling deep within his soul, that he was not alone.

     And Caspian was right. He was by no means alone. He had Lucy and Edmund and even Eustace. Peter and Susan back in England, Reepicheep and the rest of the Dawn Treader's crew. He had a family that cared for him. A family that would support him no matter how dark things became in his empty cavernous heart.

     With his spirits lifted slightly higher than before, Caspian smiled lightly to himself as he stood up from where he was sat. The boy-King glanced at the gently lapping waves and slowly setting sun, before moving towards when Lucy and Edmund were sat.

     "Do you mind if I join you?" Caspian asked gingerly. For some reason boy felt the need to be cautious around the two; he knew that he had been pushing the siblings away in the midst of his grief, and was beginning to grow worried that they would no longer welcome him home.

     "Oh please do!" Lucy chirped with a smile, taking Caspian by surprise. Swiftly she moved over slightly, allowing space for the older boy to sit between her and Edmund.

     "Thanks." Caspian mumbled, offering the pair a wobbly, half-hearted grin.

     "We saw you sitting over there," Edmund said, glancing towards the older boy sat beside him, "what were you doing all on your own?" The concern laced in the Just King's voice was not well masked. It was clear that Edmund, much like the rest of the crew, was growing worried over Caspian's permanently forlorn state. This young man was a surrogate sibling to the Pevensie children; neither Lucy nor Edmund could bear to see their brother so heartbroken.

     And so, Edmund Pevensie decided that he and his sister would need to talk through everything causing Caspian such prolific heartache (or in the words of Daisy Middleton, hold an intervention).

     "I was just thinking." Caspian replied, not feeling particularly like spewing out three years worth of troubles to Lucy and Edmund.

     "About what?" Lucy asked, gently placing a hand upon Caspian's shoulder and sharing a concerned glance with her older brother.

     Caspian sat silently for a moment, the words that had been swimming around his head and heart growing desperate to burst through the banks of his lips, and to be shared with his family. The young man opened and closed his mouth trying to form a tangible sentence without breaking down entirely - a task that seemed almost impossible given the circumstances.

     After a few painful seconds Caspian finally managed to let out an explanation, albeit a rather short one. "Her." He spat out, before drawing his knees into his chest and hugging them tightly. Caspian mentally cursed himself for appearing so vulnerable in front of his best friends; he was supposed to be a King, strong and brave, not this empty shell of a man.

     "Oh Caspian." Lucy said with a sympathetic sigh, bringing the older boy into a warm embrace. "It's okay, I miss her too - we all do." The young girl had grown so much since she had last been in Narnia. No longer was Lucy Pevensie the girl who stayed away from battle, no longer was she just the youngest sibling. No. Now she was a bright young lady determined to help Caspian through every burden he had to suffer through, and she would succeed no matter what.

     "Is it bad that I want to hate her? To hate Aslan too?" The older boy asked, his voice cracking as he broke away from their embrace. "I want to hate her so much, but no matter how hard I try, I just can't bring myself  to do it."

     Edmund let out a nervous breath before placing a comforting hand on Caspian's arm. "I was by no means as close to Daisy as you or Lucy were," the Just King began slowly, "but I know that wherever she is right now, she'll want you to be happy. Daisy was such a bright person to be around, she was the very definition of happiness and joy, and I can assure you that she would be heartbroken to see you like this. You meant more to her than you will ever know."

     Caspian let out a short breathless laugh almost hidden by the dejected twinge to his voice. "Since when did you become so wise?" He asked trying to appear cheerful, but the unshed tears welling in his eyes told the Pevensie siblings he was anything but.

     "Daisy made me promise to read more Charles Dickens." Edmund replied with a small smile. "She said if I didn't she'd try to find a way back, and would smack me up the back of my head with a wooden spoon."

     "Yeah that sounds like my Daisy." Caspian said wistfully to himself, the tears in his eyes still sparkling bright.

    Lucy then turned to face her best friend's love once again, a gentle smile gracing her youthful features. "And remember Caspian, heaven knows we need never be ashamed of our tears, for they are rain upon the binding dust of earth, overlying our hard hearts."

     And suddenly for the first time in what seemed like a millennia, Caspian's mouth formed into a smile - a true, genuine, happy smile that shone brightly despite his unshed tears. "You know, I really ought to read more of  the books by this Dickens man." He mused, smiling widely at the Pevenies. "At this rate you'll be far wiser than I could ever dream of being - I need to catch up."

     A joke - at last! Lucy an Edmund shared a beaming grin; their brother was himself once again!

     And at last, for the first time in three years Caspian was content with the world. He may not have had Daisy with him, but he had his family. And for now, that would be enough.

hello! in celebration of this little book gaining over 10k reads i'm going to be publishing some bonus chapters for you all to read, seeing as you all seem to love daisy and her story so much. i must thank you all for your endless support of this fic and me as a writer, honestly i couldn't have completed this without you all egging me on.

i love you guys and don't forget to wear a mask, stay safe and keep on signing petitions!