Warning: This is part two of a trilogy, so if you haven't read part one (The Naiad Within) I highly suggest that you do. Also, this is mostly movie based which means it has the whole green mist thing, but there will be a few parts that I might take from the book more.
For most of the story (i.e. the actual voyage) the ages of the characters are as follows:
Caspian: 21
Ava: 19
Edmund: 15
Lucy: 13
Eustace: 12
You can find a link to the full character biographies on my profile. Biographies include a picture of the character, their ages, all their names, birthdays (where applicable) and other relevant information.
As usual, I do not own Narnia or Caspian or anything else from the wonderful mind of C.S. Lewis or Walden Media and 20th Century Fox. Ava though, is completely mine.
Without further ado, here's part 2... Enjoy :D
The Naiad Trilogy
Part 2: The Naiad and Her King
Chapter 1
Ava knelt beside the injured Faun laying on one of the many cots in the tent. As she gently moved his blanket aside, the Faun stirred and his eyes fluttered open.
"Princess," he began to speak but stopped abruptly as he winced in pain.
"Shh, don't speak, Voltinus. Save your strength," Ava said gently. She went to remove the bandage covering his wound but he tried to stop her. "Please, allow me to help you." The Faun didn't protest further as Ava proceeded to clean his wound again and redress it.
It has been eighteen months since Ava learned she was the Naiad Princess and much has changed. A few days after the Pevensies left Narnia, Ava ventured to the river where she learned many things. She learned all the traditional dances that the Naiads participated in. She learned all about the history of Naiads and her parents. And she learned how to control and use her magic. One of the aspects of her magic was healing, and that in particular was of great use at the moment.
For a long while, Narnia had been at peace with the surrounding countries. But that all changed at the beginning of the summer when the Northern Giants became unruly. A few of them ventured into Narnia and began terrorizing its citizens. So King Caspian, after trying to deal with them peacefully and failing, had to wage war against them. Giants weren't the brightest of creatures, but they were strong and viciously violent. For this reason, Ava insisted upon being present at the Narnian campsite so that she may tend to the wounded.
By the time Ava finished redressing Voltinus' wound he had fallen back into a gentle sleep. Ava silently moved on to care for the next wounded soldier. As Ava continued to tend to the wounded, the weather began to change for the worse. It had been dreary all morning, but now it seemed the rain had finally moved in; Ava could hear the large drops pounding against the tent's canopy. Not that Ava minded the rain at all, but it always made the soldiers grumpy and volatile.
Ava was just about to tend to a Satyr when the tent opening was suddenly thrown aside and a young Telmarine soldier stepped inside. He looked around in a hurry for Ava and called out, "Princess," when he saw her. Ava briefly glanced at him before turning her attention back to the Satyr.
"I'll be with you in a moment, young Sir," she said.
"I'm afraid this can't wait, Princess," he said as he approached her.
"Sir, I am busy. I was just about to clean Selenius' wound."
The Telmarine soldier gently grabbed Ava's arm and whispered in her ear, "It's His Majesty; he's been wounded."
"Caspian," Ava whispered his name as she looked back to the Satyr.
"Go to him, Princess. I will be fine until you return," Selenius replied.
Ava nodded her head and quickly followed the young Telmarine out. He led her through the maze of tents in the campsite; the injured tent was kept far from the King's tent. All the way to Caspian, Ava's heart steadily increased its beating. She could not stop her mind from filling with worry. She knew Caspian. They had become great friends over the months. She knew he wouldn't send for her if it wasn't serious. Narnia was in no state to lose her King now.
At last Ava and the young soldier reached the tent of King Caspian X, and Ava quickly rushed inside. Caspian appeared surprised to see Ava, but not wounded, not at first; as Ava looked closely at Caspian's right arm she saw the sleeve drenched in blood. Caspian looked to Ava before turning his focus to the young Telmarine.
"Willet, I appreciate the gesture, but I did not send for the Princess. Next time, wait until you are instructed." Caspian spoke calmly, but Ava could hear the tension in his voice; he was obviously holding something, probably pain, back.
"Sire," Tavros, a Minotaur, stepped forward. "I sent Willet after the Princess. Do not be angry with him, for he was only following my orders."
"That's all very well, but…" Caspian winced and placed his left hand on the right side of his chest as pain shot through his arm.
"Caspian," Ava took a step towards him but he held up a hand to stop her.
"I am fine. It is a minor wound. I am sorry they worried you Ava. You may return to the Narnians in the tent."
"Caspian, don't be foolish. Your sleeve is soaked in blood. I can see it from here," Ava protested as she took a few more steps towards him.
"Your Majesty, it would be wise to let the Princess heal you, to keep up morale around the camp," one of Caspian's new Lords, Drinian, advised him. Caspian finally nodded his consent.
"I need a bowl of fresh, clean water and some bandaging cloths please," Ava said as she quickly closed the distance between her and Caspian to examine his wound. Tavros and the boy Willit left to fetch what Ava requested, leaving Ava, Caspian and Drinian in the tent alone.
"What is it, Princess?" Drinian asked as Ava began to shake her head. She could feel her cheeks begin to grow red and she fought to steady her voice before replying.
"I need you to take your shirt off."
"Pardon me?" Caspian asked his eyes wide.
"Your shirt, Caspian, it's blocking my view of the wound and I can't see it clearly. So please, remove your shirt," Ava explained hurriedly as she fought against the blush spreading across her cheeks. Caspian stared at her for a few seconds more. "Now, please."
Caspian tried to smirk as he moved to unbutton the top of his shirt, but the motion sent a spike of pain through his arm and made him hiss instead. Ava's hands swiftly shot up and began to unbutton the shirt for him. As he exhaled, Ava could feel Caspian's warm breath on her hands, and as her fingertips brushed against the skin of his chest she could feel that warmth start to seep through the rest of her body. Ava could no longer fight the blush that now seemed to cover her whole face.
She wasn't the only one who was affected by the slight brushing; Caspian felt the warmth too. He had always found Ava pretty, and as he came to know her his affection for her had only grown deeper. Now she stood before him, so close to him, doing something that could be so intimate in any other circumstance. He had to fight to maintain control of his thoughts, but that became near impossible to do as her hands lowered to his waist and paused there.
"Perhaps I should take it from here?" Drinian asked, stepping forth.
"A most excellent idea, my Lord," Ava said as she quickly dropped her hands and stepped aside.
Ava turned away from Caspian and faced the entrance of the tent as she tried to collect herself and regain control. What had just happened? Why did her body react like that to the faintest of touches? Sure she understood how that particular action could be viewed as intimate, but Caspian was her friend. They didn't view each other in that light. She couldn't. She was the Naiad Princess.
Ava turned back around as she heard Drinian move away. She had to force herself to focus only on Caspian's wounded shoulder and not the rest of his exposed chest. She took a deep breath as she approached him once more. She carefully inspected the wound before commenting on it, but when she spoke at last, she was surprised to find her voice was steady and even, because her pulse certainly did not feel steady.
"It doesn't appear to be a very deep wound," she said.
"That's good, I suppose," Caspian replied.
"It's very good. It means it will heal faster. Please, sit on the bench there." Caspian moved to the bench Ava had pointed to just as Tavros and Willet returned, and Ava instructed them to sit the bowl and bandages down on the table before Caspian.
"What are you doing?" Willet asked curiously as Ava placed her hand in the bowl and left it there.
"I'm heating the water up a bit," she replied.
"You can do that?"
"I can control many aspects of the water, including the temperate. I can make it as hot or as cold as I'd like."
"What else can you do with it?"
"Willet, that's enough. Don't disturb the Princess," Drinian commanded.
"It's quite alright, Lord Drinian. I don't mind answering the boy's questions." Ava smiled before turning her attention back to the young Telmarine soldier. "I can will it to go where I want." She demonstrated this by pulling her hand out of the bowl and making the water rise up as if it were attached by a string on her finger.
"Usually," Ava continued. "When one holds water in their hands it easily slips through their fingers. That is not so with me." Ava lowered her hand into the bowl again and scooped out a handful of water in demonstration. She then carried the water to Caspian's shoulder.
"I'm going to clean the wound first," she explained. "Now, the water is quite warm so be prepared."
Ava tipped her hand sideways and allowed the water to slowly fall on Caspian's shoulder. The water ran the length of the wound and gathered at the bottom on either side of his shoulder. Ava recollected it and sent it running over the wound again. She did this once more before discarding the water and collecting a clean handful from the bowl. Each time the water ran over the wound it collected dirt, dried blood flakes, shirt strings, and any other debris that was there. Ava repeated the cleaning process until the skin around the wound was red and the water came off as clean as it had been when it went on.
"Now, I treat the wound. This is a bit difficult to explain, but I'll do my best. First I make a stream of water between two hands. Then I lay it over the wound so that the water covers it completely. Next I send pulses of magic from one hand to the other. The magic flows through the water and through the wound healing it from the inside out. Finally I lay a thin strip of water over the wound and wrap it. Sometimes one treatment isn't enough and I have to do a second, but I have to let it sit a couple of hours first."
Ava collected the water she needed from the bowl before proceeding. "Now Caspian, I've been told that at first the water feels cold, even though it will be the same temperature as when I cleaned the wound. Then you'll feel a sort of tingling or bubbling in the wound as the temperature steadily increases. After the temperature has reached its peak it will slowly turn cold again."
Caspian nodded to show that he understood, and Ava proceeded to treat his wound. The treatment lasted about five minutes before Ava collected more water for the thin strip and wrapped the bandaging cloth around Caspian's shoulder.
"Now, try moving it a bit," Ava said when she had finished wrapping it.
"Wow," Caspian exclaimed as he rolled his shoulder a few times. "It feels better already. Thank you, Ava."
Ava beamed. "You're quite welcome, Caspian. And I trust, that next time you won't hesitate to seek my aid. We don't need a King who's too proud to admit when he is hurt. Now," Ava stepped away from Caspian and picked up the bowl of water. "If there is no one else who needs my healing in this tent," she paused and looked around. Seeing no response she continued," then I shall be heading back to those that do need my aid. I will come back later today, Caspian, to check on your shoulder."
"Very well then. Thank you again, Ava," Caspian smiled.
"It was my pleasure, Your Majesty." Ava gave a quick teasing curtsey before leaving the tent; Caspian did not like it when those he considered his friends bowed to him or addressed him as 'Your Majesty.'
XOXOX
Ava returned to the tent of injured Narnians and picked up where she left off with Selenius, and she continued to heal the wounded throughout the day. Using so much healing magic did have its toll on Ava though. As the sun began to set, Ava found herself growing much weaker. After checking on Caspian again, to find that the large gashing wound on his shoulder had reduced to a small red scar, Ava retreated to the nearby stream where she stayed through the night replenishing her magic. When the sun rose in the morning, Ava returned to the campsite and healed as she was needed.
The war with the giants continued over the next several days, but by the end of two weeks the giants had surrendered to the Narnians. When Caspian and all his army returned to the castle at Beaver's Dam, for the restoration of Cair Paravel was not yet complete, Caspian was adorned with the title Baron of Ettinsmoor. Every few months after that war ended, Caspian received the due bimonthly tribute from the giants.
Narnia was at peace once more.
