Kings & Saints ➢ Peter Pevensie [3]

Chapter VIII - A Bear and a Girl

I held Trufflehunter in one arm, my sword in the other. I held my ground and prepared the swing at anything I saw. It came my way, ready to end me just like all the rest. It ran fast, catching me off guard when he jumped and kicked me with both feet in the chest. I dropped my sword in an effort to lessen the fall damage on Trufflehunter, he grunted in pain.

"Choose your last words carefully, Telmarine."

"You are a mouse."

The small thing rolled his eyes, keeping this toothpick-sized sword between my eyes. "I was hoping for something a little more original. Let go of my friend and pick up your sword."

"No, thanks." I shook my head.

He frowned, "Pick it up! I will not fight an unarmed man."

"Which is why I might live longer if I choose not to cross blades with you, noble mouse," I explained. Professor did not nearly explain enough about this world.

"I said I would not fight you. I didn't say I'd let you live!" He threatened, I don't know how he could kill me without a fight.

"Reepicheep!" Badger was able to speak, hissing in pain as he did so. "Stay your blade!"

"Trufflehunter?" The mouse recognized my little companion.

"I trust you have a very good reason for this untimely interruption." The mouse seemed like an old soul. Someone my professor might adore.

"He doesn't. Go ahead." Mr. Sunshine smiled for the first time since I had met him.

Trufflehunter frowned at him, holding his side. "He's the one who blew the horn."

"What?"

"Then let him bring it forward. This is the reason we have gathered." A voice that I did not recognize said from beyond my head. I peered up, seeing a large shirtless man alongside three others. My eye traced down to discover that this large man was only half man, the other half of him was a stallion.

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I dismounted onto the rocky beach, pulling the boat onto the shore as my siblings jumped out. Even Lucy failed to be talkative through the end of the boat ride. That was of course until she found the possibility for a new friend. She smiled delightfully at a large black bear about thirty meters away, walking towards him with a pep in her step.

Lucy is the definition of a social butterfly, she loved school for that reason and I had never hear of anyone disliking her there. It was something that I feared would grow out of her over the years. But even through wars in this dominion and ours, her wings never stopped flying.

"Hello, there. It's all right. We're friends. I'm Lucy." She introduced herself.

I continued tying our boat to a bounder, once the people's queen, always the peoples' queen.

"Don't move, Your Majesty." Trumpkin warned making me look up. I didn't see any Telamarines, and it took me another second to realize he was yelling at the bear. Lucy ran, tripping and falling over driftwood a few paces later.

Susan took her bow off her back, nocking one arrow, as the bear stood and growled. "Stay away from her!"

"Shoot, Susan! Shoot!" I screamed. Peter joined in, having no choice but to watch. The bear was too close to Lucy, running in with our swords would surely scare him and put her in greater danger. "Susan, now!"

An arrow shot, only it was not Susans. Trumpkin was the one to shoot the bear, his arrow coming from behind us. The bear collapsed, saving my little sister. We all ran over, weapons in hand in case one arrow didn't do the job.

"Why wouldn't he stop?" Lucy was shaking as I picked her up off the ground.

Trumpkin fell back into his dull tone, "I suspect he was hungry."

"He was wild." Susan was as confused as the rest of us. "I don't think he could talk at all."

"Get treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." He sighed, taking his knife out. He gripped the handle, digging the blade into the bear's chest. If the arrow didn't kill him in the initial blow, the knife sure did. "Talking bears are especially unlikely, I think there's only one left and the Telmarines got him too."

"We have to help him," Peter said, noble and prepared to save the world, it was so easy for him to fall back into old patterns.

The dwarf shook his head, "It's no use, your majesty, he's probably already dead. He was caring for a slave last I was there. Bet my beard she's dead too. He kept giving her his rations of water. Telmarines barely give enough food and water for a regular human prisoner, never mind a full-grown bear."

"There are slaves? In Narnia?" Susan inquired, and if you listened hard enough you could hear the crack of her heart.

He nodded, "You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember."

A bear and a girl. Narnia seemed to be a neverending reminder of everything they lost. Guilt struck my chest and never seemed to stop. I had been the one to propose their body should be put in the royal crypts. They should have been buried somewhere in the Western Woods together. A selfish part of him wanted to keep them close, and at the time, there was no safer place than the core of the castle. His error led to grave robbers stealing their bodies and all their processions. Ashton and Ben deserved a final resting place, away from castles and the politics. I could only pray Aslan protected them in a way I did not know. And protect the bear and the girl from two more unmarked graves. But Aslan had given up on him long ago and hasn't answered any prayers since.

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I'm going to try to write another chapter for tomorrow, we'll see how it goes.

B