By my so far calculation, it has been over three hours now since we left the small river bank. Between those three hours or longer, Peter and Edmund would switch between rowing. It was now Peters turn, his clothing was now dry. This river seemed huge as we kept going strait, grass now lined the river bank. Another hour in, the bank of the river started to get steeper until we were in a bank with a bend and steep cliffs.
"Finally something more interesting." I thought as I stuck my finger in the clear blue water.
When I looked up on top of the cliff, I saw big huge trees that had grown really high. However they looked bigger then normal trees would and seemed to have wider trunks, but they looked beautiful even still.
Every one was silent, but every know and then we would talk about something that we noticed or something that we thought of, Susan would usually state a random fact. Peter and Edmund would keep switching between rowing and resting, I said I would row but they wouldn't let me. So I just put my head in my hands and stared at either the water or the bottom of the boat, how fun right?
Another hour had past now and by the look of the sun it was around Lunch, I was hungry and could feel my tummy rumble.
"What do we have for Lunch Peter?" I asked him.
He looked at me with a (are you serious right now) face, but none the less looked to edmund who just shrugged and rummaged through his shoulder bag.
"Apples." He told me pulling out a bright red one.
I sighed because I should've known that from the beginning, "Can I have two please?"
He replied with a small frown,"I can only give you one, we need to save them. One per person a meal."
I shrugged and took the one shinny apple he handed to me, so far I had three apples at the ruins of Cair Parivel and this would make four. I bit into the apple and even though it tasted divine, it was starting to get old. I then started thinking about meat and fried food, I however had to stop because that was making me not want to eat the apple.
"They look so still." Lucy spoke with a sad tone hinted in her once happy voice.
Trumpkin looked at the huge trees around him and said in a very dull tone, "Their trees, what would you expect?"
"They used to dance." Lucy told him still very sad and disappointed at the reality that what Narnia used to be, was long gone. This was a new Narnia, I think Lucy didn't want to admit it.
"It wasn't long after you left that the talmerains invaded, those who survived retreated to the woods and the trees they retreated so deep into themselves that they haven't been heard from since." Trumpkin explained.
I mumbled kind of sad as well, "That's so sad."
I grabbed my locket and gave it a squeeze but I didn't let go this time, my gaze fell on Lucy who looked very lost right now.
Trumpkin laughed a little at my statement, "If you believe it."
Lucy sighed at the disbelieving dwarf, "Well I don't understand all this, how could Aslan let this happen."
Trumpkin scoffed, "Aslan, thought he abandoned us when you left."
Peter looked back and I could see guilt in his eyes, "We didn't mean to leave you."
The dwarf didn't even look at him and questioned Peter,"It makes no difference now, does it?"
Peter looked frustrated now, at the dwarf or at himself..I think it was both.
"Get us to the Narnians and it will." Peter told him flatly.
Everyone grew silent for the longest time as we traveled through bends and rocks, Edmund and Peter switched a couple of more times before we turned another bend. I looked down at the water getting tired of the blue liquid that seemed to cover every inch of land.
When I finally decided to look up, in the distance laid another beach with a forrest in the distance, I sat up from my slumped position and smiled for the first time in hours.
"Ed, when we reach the beach tie us up." Peter instructed his younger brother.
Edmund nodded as Peter rowed the boat closer to the sand, then with a couple of hard pulls of the wooden oars we landed close enough to the sand so Edmund could hop out.
I didn't wait for Ed to pull the boat assure to hop out, in fact neither did the rest of my siblings. Once I was on the sand, I gave a good stretch as my buttocks was sore as well as my legs. I was in fact so happy I could've kissed the ground, however I didn't want to get sand in my mouth.
I decided to look around a little but I didn't go to far because I didn't want to get lost, also I wanted to be here if my siblings needed me at any point and time. I walked over to some beautiful pink flowers that had caught my eye, I touched the peddle with my index finger and felt the texture. It was soft but it had a ruffled texture to it, I have never seen a flower quite like this before.
I was about to touch another one when I heard Lucy screaming, I whipped my head around quickly.
Lucy was being chased my a bear, I tensed up but I quickly pushed down the fear that started bubbling up inside of me. I grabbed my bow with one arrow, I strung it and held it in my hand ready too shoot if need be.
I could hear Edmund yelling to Susan in the distance, "Shoot Susan shoot!"
However she didn't shoot, this was my chance to prove to my self that I wasn't (wet fingers) as Trumpkin called it. I raised my bow in the air, the bear was moving swiftly and I wanted to wait for the perfect chance to kill it.
Lucy suddenly fell on the ground and the bear stood up on its hind legs, Susan still wasn't shooting...I had one shot to kill this beast. I let go of my string and the arrow hit the bear in the heart, the animal fell down dead. I took a deep breath as his body lay lifeless on the ground, I did it..I saved Lucy.
"Who..." Susan started to say as her gaze and everyone else's looked over at me who was standing dumbfounded.
Edmund smirked as he walked over to me, "that was you?"
All I could do was nod, I was still shocked on how well my marksmanship was.
"That was amazing, I..." he started to say.
I interrupted him, "Your welcome, I think we just found some food besides apples."
Edmund smiled a soft smile and took my hand gently, he lead me over to the bear.
The animal wasn't moving at all, I was standing next to Peter who had his arm around Lucy and his sword pointed at the lifeless beast. I pulled out my sword too making sure if the bear was alive I could kill it again, however I was pretty sure it was dead.
"Why didn't it stop?" Susan asked shocked at the event that just occurred, two times.
"You realize this is the second time someone's been attacked." I mention.
Peter nodded, "your right, he should've talked."
Trumpkin replied while poking the best with the end of his bow,"I suggest he was hungry."
Lucy looked at the arrow in the bear, then at me with a small smile.
She asked me, "That's your arrow isn't it?"
I nodded and answered, "Yes, yes it is Lu."
She looked at me and gave a small shrug, "thanks."
I smiled at Lucy, the little girl let go of Peter and gave me a quick embrace which I embraced back. Lucy went back to leaning into her big strong brother, I smiled turning my gaze to a jealous looking Susan.
That thanks was supposed to go to her, I kind of felt bad for taking that moment of glory away from her. However if I didn't...no..I didn't want to think of the outcome. However I decided to be a good sport and give my sister a little shoulder squeeze, she just looked at me frowning. I let go knowing there was nothing I could do to make her happy right now, so I just looked at Lucy.
"That's what family does for each other." I mentioned earning a smile and head nod from her.
Susan looked at me and I could see pain in her eyes, I rapped my arm around her shoulder with my free arm hoping she wouldn't push me away. To my surprise leaned into me, I gave a small smile relieved that she wasn't carrying a jealous grudge at me.
Edmund looked at the bear and said with a hint of disbelief in his voice, "He was wild."
Peter added off of Edmunds sentence, "I don't think this bear could talk at all."
I wasn't surprised by any of this to be honest, this was getting to be a norm around here. Dwarfs, Talmerains, what next a dark haired prince who would sweep me off my feet?
Trumpkin sighed and looked at the bear, he poked its belly..he was trying to find the perfect spot to skin it.
"You get treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." Trumpkin told us pulling out his dagger.
I put my bow in my quiver, then I took off my weapons. I pulled out my camping knife I always carried and walked over to Trumpkin, I rolled up my sleeves while earning a funny look from the dwarf.
"What?" I asked in defense of his gaze.
He shrugged, "you can't shot a bow when I'm about to drown but you can skin a bear?"
"Your still not going to give me any credit when it comes to actually killing a bear in one shot?" I asked in disbelief of this mans reaction.
Trumpkin sighed and stepped aside so I could stand next to him, I looked at Trumpkin to make sure he was ready.
"You may find Narnia a more savage place then you remember." The dwarf mentioned to my siblings.
Trumpkin stuck the knife in the bear and so did I, I looked at Lucy who stuck her head into Peters side. Susan just turned away, I don't blame them..it was hard and there was so much blood.
It had to be done, we needed food and bear meat was edible...besides it's better then just eating apples for the rest of the journey.
Once we had cut up the meat and took care of the remains, we put the food in a cloth that came from Peters pocket. I went over to the river and stuck my blood covered hands in the cool water, I just started to scrub the blood off with my hand.
As I was cleaning my skin, I felt a presence kneel down next to me. It was Susan, she looked at me with a apologetic gaze. Her eyes were glassy, she looked like she was going to cry.
"Thank you." she said splashing water on her light colored skin.
"That's what family does." I tell her with a soft look on my face.
"I feel so guilty, I almost let my sister..." she told me choking at the last word.
She started to form tears in her eyes so I put my hand on hers, "Hey, hey, hey I know how hard it is to shoot a living thing."
She rubbed her eyes and asked me, "How do you know all this, like shooting a animal or even skinning a bear."
I smiled and gazed in the distance while remembering a distant memory, "My grandpa used to take me hunting once a month, he taught me how to skin many animals. I'm just glad I was there...let's look about it this way, you saved me back at the beach with the Talmerains and now I payed you back by having your back."
She looked at me and smiled, "I never thought about it like that, thanks." She then paused for a minute and looked at me with a frown, "I'm sorry I've been so hard on you, you are family and I'm proud your my sister."
I smiled as I hugged her tightly, that meant the world to me. To be accepted by the sister that I felt never really wanted me in this already formed group, Susan hugged me back even tighter.
"I think Lucy needs you now." I said letting go, it was her turn to be there for Lucy.
She nodded and got up to leave, she turned around and stared to go.
"Susan?" I asked.
She turned around slowly and looked at me with curious eyes, "Yes?"
"Thank you." I said with a big grin.
She smiled and told me something I never thought would come out her mouth, "That's what family does."
I grinned even bigger then before and watched her walk over to hug Lucy, I shook my head chuckling and went back to washing my hands, I thought: "She's quite a conundrum."
After a few more minutes of scrubbing the blood off, my hands were all clean and my skin looked clear.
I got up and grabbed my weapons that still laid on the sand, I stood next to Peter who smiled and wrapped a arm around me.
"The river rush should be that way." Trumpkin announced to the group.
He pointed strait ahead into the forest, it wasn't dense or dark but I was ready to walk and stretch out my muscles even more.
I was now ready for anything that would come my way, I wasn't scared any more; I was Fierce.
We all looked at each other making sure we were all ready for this new adventure.
"lets go." I said making everyone's eyes widened.
Peter smirked, "look who's finally gotten there spunk back on."
"Let's go before I loose it." I laughed.
Everyone chuckled as we all took off, leaving the boat behind and walking into the future.