Narnia: Prince Caspian & The Dark Angel

08 | Aslan's How

Raven was sinking in her somber thoughts, taking her mind away from Narnia for a few moments as she stared at the redhead painted on the wall. Yet, her senses were on high alert, and before Raven could blink, she whirled around to face the intruder she heard shuffling near. With the torch as Raven’s source of light, she was able to distinctly see Susan standing before her with an arrow notched in her bow. “Who are you?” Susan growled, her eyes narrowing in suspicion as she tried to pin point the hooded stranger. Raven raised an unseen brow and let out a chuckle at the Queen’s attempt of threatening her, swiftly raising her hand to pull back her hood. “If you think you can try to shoot me with another arrow, then you’re wrong,” Raven mused, reaching into her cloak to reveal one of Susan’s arrows.

Susan significantly paled, her eyes flashing with fear as she quickly lowered her bow. She tried to stutter out an apology, something she chastised herself for since she was indeed a Queen and queens don’t stutter, but her eyes couldn’t peel away from the uncovered face of the Dark Angel. Raven’s dark hair framed and paled her porcelain skin, and her face held a deceiving perception of a young and innocent girl with supple features and vibrant lips. Yet her eyes betrayed her face, shining with an uncountable age behind the veils of blue-green irises that vaguely reminded Susan of an old friend from long ago. When Susan realized that she was rudely staring at the Dark Angel, she quickly averted her gaze and said another apology, managing to do it smoothly this time.

“It is alright, your highness,” Raven said, her sudden threatening demeanor settling into a tense one. Raven was uncomfortable in the company of Susan, for her incessant fear of the Dark Angel shrouded any sort of calm attitude she wanted to portray. She had clearly frightened the Queen on the bank the other day, and seeing as they would be around each other more, she wanted to stop scaring her. Susan forced a small smile, her brilliant blue eyes trailing to the painting of Crystalline that Raven was just admiring. Fear left her eyes, and a veil of sorrow overcast her features as she stepped towards the painting. Not wishing to be in her way, Raven stepped aside and watched Susan.

Susan stood quietly, her eyes far off as old memories resurfaced. Though she wasn’t as close to Crystalline as her other siblings were, she still held great respect for the angel who willingly sacrificed her life for her brother. Susan was sure that Crystalline was more than just an angel doing what she was prophesied to do, she was a dear companion to them all and a lover to one. Her heart ached at the thought of Crystalline, and before Susan could allow herself to cry, she averted her gaze to another painting along the walls, seeing a few of the battles painted there. Letting out a gasp of surprise, Susan turned to face the still Raven who stood a respectful distance away.

“I must bring the others to see this!” She said before running back down the way she came, leaving Raven to her whirling thoughts once more. Raven went on to looking at the rest of the paintings, her thoughts drifting to the time she lived in Calormen and all everyone talked about was the royal siblings of Narnia. She remembered the scandal regarding Susan and the blasted prince, which nearly led Raven to insanity when they attempted to attack Narnia. Raven knew Susan was well sought after, since her beauty is one of the rarest, but she never expected it to go to the extent of war. She then remembered the recurring news of Peter courting yet another female, whether from Archenland or Telmar or anywhere else. Her lack of love for Peter helped Raven not think twice of it, for the High King had every right to indulge himself with any means necessary; at least that’s what she told herself.

In a matter of a few minutes, the others came rushing through, bringing Caspian along with them to see the paintings along the walls. The other three Pevensies were quick to get over the initial shock of seeing Raven’s face for the first time, and were further stunned to see all the paintings that littered the walls of the How. “It’s us,” Lucy exclaimed in surprise, her eyes scanning every painting until it fell upon the one of Crystalline. She visibly stiffened, something only Raven caught, and quickly moved to be next to Susan. It disheartened Raven to see the frown on Lucy’s face, but what struck her was the sight of Peter freezing in front of the painting.

Suddenly, the air grew thick as the siblings eyed the High King nervously, wondering what his reaction was going to be. Much to their surprise, he did nothing. Peter simply stayed firmly planted in his spot, his eyes never swaying away from the painting. When he moved, it was just his arm, and he reached to the work of art almost longingly as his forefinger traced it. His shoulders visibly slumped, almost as if a new weight fell upon him when he looked at the painting. Peter at long last moved away, grasping the torch Raven given to him more tightly as his eyes quickly met hers.

Raven was shocked to see the storm of anguish behind his kind eyes, more so when he directed a question right to her. “What is this place?” He asked Raven, who was still trying to compose herself of the initial shock she went through moments before. Refraining from speaking, she simply chose to step forward and grab his wrist, leading him further into the How with the others following silently. It took everything in Raven to refrain from holding his hand, finding that to be an intimate action rather than plutonic. He harbored no feelings for the Dark Angel, and she had it all taken away from her for life. There was no blossoming romance between them, so why was she pestering over the significance of hand-holding?

As they neared the Stone Table, Raven felt a hot shive bite on her spine, only growing more when they finally reached it. She could feel the sweat pooling on her hairline as she stepped away from Peter to grab the torch Caspian had and went to a small basin of oil. She lowered the torch, letting it kiss the oil and ignite a flame that traveled along the wall. The sudden burst of light revealed the work of the Narnians of Old, tall pillars towering upwards to hold the structure over the treasured monument for all Narnians. There were carvings in between the pillars, and even along the channel of oil that was presently licking with blazes.

This was Raven's first time seeing the magnificent craftsmanship carved into the wall, depicting minotaurs, centaurs, fauns, and many other creatures of Narnia. What surprised her most was the carving directly into the two main pillars of the Stone Table, depicting two angels carrying the thick slab of stone up. She could tell they were new, for those carvings never graced the aged stone when she would fly over it long ago. When Raven made her way to near the Pevensies who stood in shock at the sight of the Stone Table, she was met with a sweltering heat that coated her skin, making Raven take a quick step back in surprise. She felt some imaginary veil over her waning in weakness, and when she looked to her hair draped over her shoulder, she could see it flicker from brown to red.

This room is enchanted, Raven hissed to herself and recoiled further away from the Stone Table, not wanting to risk exposure of herself to the Pevensies. Aslan’s warning was clear, and Raven knew better than to ignore it like the rule he told her to follow long ago. Her eyes trained on Lucy who slowly stepped up to the cracked slab of rock where Aslan laid that frightful night. Raven winced slightly, the old memory twisting her chest uncomfortably when it replayed in her thoughts. Lucy quickly turned around to assess her siblings, offering a comforting expression as she noticed Raven’s wary gaze. “He must know what he’s doing,” she said to her siblings.

Raven expected for them to agree, but all Lucy got in response was silence from the siblings who maintained their gaze on the carving of Aslan placed perfectly between the two main pillars of the Stone Table, as other carvings of creatures followed to the left and right of the Great Lion. When Raven was sure that none would answer, Peter spoke, and out came words Raven never expected he would ever say. “I think it’s up to us now.”

Suddenly overcome with deep sadness over his words, Raven left the Stone Table as silently as she came.

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ANOTHER LITTLE CHAPTER FOR YOU GUYS.

I am slowly revealing little easter eggs for what's to come, and I can't wait for your reactions once I'm further along with this book!

Quick question: would you want spin-offs for the series? It's been on my mind for a while.

Tell me what you think below.

Xx