Caspian Jones

Chapter 5: Davy

"Cas?" I ask carefully as we walk through the streets behind Anna.

"Yes?" His voice is softer now, calmer. His face is, too. Caspian has my hand in his, matching his steps to mine perfectly.

"Why are you so coarse toward Anna?"

"It's stupid." Caspian laughs and shakes his head.

"I guarantee it's not."

"Oh, it is." He avoids my gaze. "It's not worth it to be honest."

"Cas..."

"Davy, please." He looks me in the eye, tears threatening to fall over. Anna is ahead of us still, clearly hearing the conversation but not intruding.

"Cas- Caspian?" She finally speaks up.

"It's Cas." Caspian concedes.

"Cas..." Anna repeats. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah. Where are we going?" He changes the subject.

"My place. It's just above the blacksmith's."

"Wait, Anna, your place?" I find the courage to join the conversation.

"You need a place to stay during these four months, don't you?"

"Well, yes, but-" I struggle to form the complete sentence.

"Why with you?" Caspian finishes for me. His grip on my hand grows tense. I trace circles over his knuckles until it softens.

Anna stops, "I'll be honest, when I said four months, I meant with you two helping me. The easiest way to do that is if you live with me."

Caspian lets out a dry laugh, sounding a little bit like a dog when he does so, "I hardly think so."

"Cas, I know you don't trust me, but trust me, if I wanted to, I could march you two straight to Nroh. And I don't know about wherever you're from, but here in Cirn, castaways, especially royal ones, are very valuable. How much do you think the King and Queen would pay to bring their darling boy home?"

"What would happen to Davy? He's not a royal." Caspian talks about me like I'm not there, which I don't mind, because I'm curious as well.

Anna thinks for a second, looking me in the eyes with what appears to be pity. "He'd be killed."

"Lead the way, Anna. We've got to be well-rested to work on that ship." Caspian says without hesitation. His voice is breaking, but he keeps his composure.

I've never seen Caspian so vulnerable, so scared. Most of the time, he's flirtatious, charming, and radiating confidence, but as soon as Anna said the word "killed," he paled.

Anna nods quietly, I think she knows something about Caspian's behavior, but she won't say.

"Here we are. Home sweet home." Anna pulls a key from her bag and swings open a frail wooden door. "Upstairs, last door to the left is the bedroom, which leads into the bathroom. To the right is the kitchen. Sorry about the mess." Anna begins to scoop up scraps of metal and clothing.

"It's a lovely place." Caspian speaks first.

Anna blushes a little bit and continues clearing away the minimal clutter. "Well, don't just stand there and stare at me, go take a tour. Decide who gets the bed, or what side."

Caspian and I give each other a side glance, but do as she says. Anna's bedroom is actually pretty spotless, she's got the windows shuttered, but sunlight still peeks through. Her bed is bigger than an average townsperson's, in that it can fit two people as opposed to one. It's got nice blue blankets stacked at the foot and three pillows at the head. Her kitchen is rather tidy as well, a few dirty pots lying here and there, but otherwise clean.

"Go ahead, help yourselves." Anna squeezes past us, tossing us each a roll and a fruit from her table. "You must be starving, I'll get dinner going. Do you like chicken?"

"Chicken sounds great, thank you." I take a small bite of my roll, and Caspian follows suit. Anna smiles, sending a glow to her bright hazel eyes.

She gets to work, chopping potatoes and carrots, lighting a fire and roasting the chicken over it.

She sets the finished meal in front of us, digging plates and goblets out of a cupboard.

"I don't have any wine, I hope that's okay." She nervously pours us some water. "And I know, it's not really the kind of food you might be used to-"

"Anna." I stop her, looking deep into her eyes. Her expression softens, but Caspian bristles. "It's perfect."

"Above and beyond, really." Caspian adds. "Thank you."

"Well, I didn't make it for you to stare at, go on." Anna cuts of some of the chicken breast and offers it to Caspian.

"No thanks, I don't like breasts." He politely declines, taking a leg instead.

We sit quietly while eating, talking only to ask someone to pass the vegetables. Anna's an incredible cook, and apparently even Caspian thinks so, because he devoured both the legs and six rolls.

"Thank you for this, Anna." He repeats, washing his potatoes down with a swig of water.

"It was no trouble, really." She collects our dirty plates.

"Let us clean." Caspian stands.

"Oh, I can't ask-"

"You've taken two complete strangers into your home, offered us your bed, and even cooked us a delicious meal. At least let us clean up."

Anna hesitates, but eventually hands to plates over to Caspian. "I'll go prep the bed and get a little place set up for myself."

"About that," I join Caspian at his side, rolling up my sleeves, "we've decided that we'll sleep on the floor."

"Are you sure?"

"Of course. Again, you've already done so much for us, this is our way of repaying it."

"Alright... then I'll go get that set up for you." She exits the room, still a little nervous. Once she's out of earshot, I turn to Caspian.

"Look at you, all chivalrous." I nudge him with my elbow.

"Laugh it up, Davy." He cracks a smile, rubbing away at a plate. His smile reaches into his eyes, making my heart skip a beat, and I have to focus on a nonexistent spot on my plate.

Anna enters again just as we finish putting away the last dish. "I'm gonna crash. Goodnight, boys." She taps her fingers against the door frame.

"Night." Caspian and I say in unison, before Caspian turns back around. Anna gives me a small wink before leaving once again.

A fluttering sensation appears in my stomach as I watch Anna walk away. I look back to Caspian, and the same feeling rises.