Naomi had her arm looped through Caspian's as they attended the ceremony. Although the tea had done amazing work, he was still inexplicably worried that she was not healed and would fall on her sprained ankle.
Cherishing his fretting, she stayed close to him in compliance with his command that she not do anything too exerting.
He had taken meticulous care of her, and she couldn't help but begin to hope that he was beginning to return her feelings. Was it too soon to hope for such a thing?
The feast was wonderful, and it was nice to see that much of their initial trial of a ceremony had been copied to reflect the other Rhone/Cetoan couples.
"Do you know anyone?" Caspian asked her curiously as Naomi surveyed the newest arrivals for the first time.
"I'm not sure. That girl Brenna from earlier seemed a little familiar, but I couldn't say whether we've met. It's a little bit difficult sometimes. Most of my life, my eyes were a different color entirely, as were everyone else's. It can be strange to recognize people after such a dramatic change."
She watched the couples beginning to dance, a bit absent-mindedly.
"You truly are feeling better?" Caspian asked.
"The wounds on my back are healed," She began, ducking her head because he had taken her word for it rather than presuming to check, "My ankle and shoulder both feel much better as well. I'm nearly as good as new!" Naomi smiled, listening to the music with her eyes ahead.
"Then would you like to dance?" He was standing now, and holding out his hand.
"Really?" She blinked up at him, but put her hand willingly in his.
"Don't you think we should encourage the newlyweds by showing them that the first such marriage is going well?" He gave her a mysterious half-smile that she didn't quite understand.
"Is that sarcasm? I almost died and we spent a week worrying ourselves half to death in another world not knowing whether your father would live. That is hardly the ideal start to a union."
"Hmm," He agreed, leading her to the dance floor.
"You never told me. Is sarcasm playful or disrespectful here?" She echoed a question from the earliest moments of their marriage.
"I would say it depends on the context." Caspian replied thoughtfully.
"And in this context?" She asked.
"Do you think it's sarcastic to say our marriage is going well?" He pulled her into a closed dance position, with one hand holding hers, and the older behind her shoulder blade. She bit her lip in thought.
"I'm not exactly sure what you think most of the time," She replied honestly.
He smiled enigmatically as if driving that thought home, and she pursed her lips in mild frustration.
"And do you think it's going well?" He asked, a little more seriously.
"Well, you haven't beaten me yet, so I would have to give a rather enthusiastic 'yes'." Naomi tried to keep her tone teasing, but Caspian frowned.
"Is that what you expected from me?" He didn't seem to like that at all.
"I did not know exactly what to expect. I had no idea of Cetoan expectations or customs. Mayra told me that if I was beaten, I should run away and she would hide me and take me somewhere far away." The admission was a little more than she wanted to say, but the honesty tumbled from her lips.
"I'll never beat you," He promised, with a little bit of an ache in his voice.
"I think I already knew that," Naomi smiled at him encouragingly, but couldn't stop a wave of relief from his assurance. His frown deepened as he noticed.
"Is that common, where you are from?" He pressed.
"It is not openly spoken of, but it happens." She dropped her eyes, wondering if her stepfather beat her mother now that she was out of the way. She hadn't really liked him.
Caspian looked like he wanted to ask more, but glanced at their crowded surroundings and hesitated.
"Mayra has a good heart if she was willing to rescue you from me," He lightened his tone, and Naomi nodded.
"She is kind, and bold. A good friend."
"Who is… engaged?" He jutted his chin in the direction of the girl in question as she danced with the Klain guard who was often with her.
"I don't believe so. They argue quite often. She doesn't seem willing to fall in love just yet, which for her is a requirement before marriage," Naomi bit her lip. Perhaps she shouldn't speak so cavalierly about her friend, but after all, Caspian was her husband. Should she not share everything with him?
"I cannot blame her for that desire," He said. Naomi nodded. He'd said as much before.
"I have never thought to have such a luxury," She kept her eyes down. Caspian's posture stiffened ever so slightly, and she wondered at it.
"I thought all women wanted to be loved." He said quietly. Naomi paused for a long moment as she considered what to say. Caspian silently waited for her response, and she glanced up to find him looking at her with a complicated expression.
"I am content as I am," She said at last.
"That wasn't exactly what I was wondering." He said. The song came to a close. "Are you tired? I don't want to exhaust you so soon after you have healed."
"I am well," She smiled sincerely at him. A breeze blew a lock of hair across her face and he reached up to brush it back before she could react.
"Then would you like to dance to another song?" He asked as the music began.
"I don't know this dance," She whispered, entranced by the sensation of his fingers on her cheek.
"You didn't know the last one either, did you?" Caspian's eyes sparkled with amusement.
"No," She admitted. She had trusted him to lead her through the steps.
He pulled her into a whirling formation and she soon found herself laughing in delight at the lively steps.
"You learn quickly," He complimented as the music slowed slightly from its rapid pace.
"There is so much for me to learn," was her humble response. His brow furrowed, and she ducked her head.
"Yes. I think tomorrow you must begin learning to swim." He decided.
"What?" She asked in surprise.
"I took you on to a ship, and clearly you had no idea whatsoever how to swim. You must learn if you are to live by the sea." Caspian asserted again.
Naomi could not argue the logic in his words, but she had no idea how to respond.
"How does one learn to swim? What does one wear?" Her eyes were wide.
"I will get something from my mother for you to wear," He decided, "And then we can begin after we finish our morning chores. I doubt that she will have any time to teach you, being so busy with the new Rhone arrivals and other matters."
"You will teach me?" Naomi squeaked.
"Do you have an objection?" He asked curiously, not offended in the slightest.
"Not to you as an instructor," She assured.
"Then to what?" His eyes narrowed as he tilted his head.
"The only time I was in the ocean, I nearly drowned," She pressed her lips together, hesitant to admit the fear she had of putting herself willingly into the water.
"And I didn't let you," He said as he spun her around. "Don't you trust me?"
"Yes," She responded without hesitation, "It's me I don't trust."
"I suppose confidence-building will have to be part of the first lesson," He mused.
"You can teach me that?" Naomi's tone was skeptical but with a tinge of hope.
"I'm confident that I can."
Her giggle made him laugh, and Naomi caught his parents looking at them with approval. She smiled at them in response, but then Caspian followed her gaze.
His mood soured immediately, causing Naomi no small amount of confusion. The song ended and he led her from the dance floor without another word.
"I'm sorry I laughed," She chewed her lip furiously as they sat back down. It was the only thing she could think of that could have caused his sudden mood swing.
Caspian sighed and closed his eyes.
"It's nothing you did. Not at all your fault, honestly. I have some things I need to get past and all I want to do is dig my heels in and be stubborn instead." His mouth twisted as if instantly regretting the statements.
"I don't understand any of what you just said," Naomi admitted. "Stubbornness can be good, when it is put towards the right cause," She offered, hoping it was the encouragement he needed.
"You think far too well of me. Let's go home," He said. "Unless you want to stay."
"Home sounds lovely," She said. She still wasn't quite sure what was bothering her husband, but if home was what he needed, that was where she would like to be.