Having heard her woes and what she battles against – and knowing full well what his king would think of him abandoning her – Reepicheep gently but firmly rebuffs any and all attempts by her to consider his own time as anything other than well-spent. When she grows too weary to sing, he tells her stories, instead, and is even now relating the tale of the dryad who sang over his cradle and the destiny he'd always sought.