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Chapter Six

It was still very early when we started towards Tashbaan, and the city was shrouded in mist. When the light began to clear, Bree, Hwin, and I all knew what we would see, but Shasta did not. He gasped as he saw the island city, with its towers like jewels in the turban of its hill. Even this early, the city teemed with life. Every inch of that hill was covered in buildings and gardens and palaces and temples, and above all, with people. As I looked on Tashbaan that morning, my chief though was there ahead of me lay thousands of chances to be discovered and stopped and married to the despicable Ahoshta.

Shasta looked a bit different. He was moving slowly, and I heard Bree murmur every now and then for him to get on. For the first time, I felt a bit sorry for that boy. I did not care for Tashbaan, but I had been many times. If fortune was with us, Shasta would go but the once, and he would experience none of the pleasures the city had to offer. I comforted myself with the knowledge that such as Shasta wouldn't have been able to experience the pleasures I was thinking of in any case.

The road we traveled on now was walled; there were gardens on either side. I had been to the one on our right, actually- it belonged to one of the younger princesses. A wind picked up, and the oranges that grew there and the flowers let off an aroma. Shasta breathed it in. "I say, this is a wonderful place!"

"I daresay," whispered Bree, "But I wish we were safely through it and out on the other side. Narnia and the North!"

The horns sounded, and I felt them resound in my bones. I shivered, feeling both fear and an awful familiarity, awful because it was the thing I was afraid of now, and awful because I'd never experience it again.

"That's the horns blowing for the city gates to be open," Bree murmured. "We shall be there in a minute. Now, Aravis, do droop your shoulders a bit and step heavier and try to look less like a princess. Try to imagine you've been kicked and cuffed and called names all your life."

I did as he said, annoyed that I'd had to be reminded, but I couldn't resist hissing back, "If it comes to that, what about you drooping your head a bit more and arching your neck a bit less and trying to look less like a war horse?"

"Hush," Bree said, in the quietest voice he'd used yet. "Here we are."

The walls had opened up, and we saw the great bridge into the city. The light off the river danced strangely on its sides, but of more interest to me were the people. There was a crowd here already going into the city, and as we joined, I felt suddenly very small. I was with the majority here, for the first time in my life. The common masses of unwashed peasants, a nobody. But I was a Tarkheena- or was I anymore?

"Is anything wrong?" I jumped at the voice, and then glared over at Shasta.

"Oh, it's all very well for you," I told him. "What would you care about Tashbaan? But I ought to be riding in on a litter with soldiers before me and slaves behind, and perhaps going to a feast in the Tisroc's palace (may he live forever)- not sneaking in like this. It's different for you."

Shasta looked hard at me. Then he sighed and looked away. I think for a moment I saw him actually roll his eyes at me. I kicked at the pavement. Stupid boy.

The gates were already open, and we were nearing the entrance. The walls towered over us, and in the gateway, twelve guards stood leaning on their spears lazily, not worried at all about who was entering. I scowled. If only they'd known! But Bree went a little, an ever-so-little bit faster, pushing Shasta on surreptitiously with his nose, and I followed him leading Hwin.

Then a laugh, a mocking, loud one, sounded, and Shasta made a noise of surprise. I looked over, and a soldier had thrown a carrot at him.

"Hey, Horse-boy! You'll catch it if your master finds you've been using his saddle-horse for pack work."

The colour left Shasta's cheeks, and he called back right away, "It's my master's orders, so there!"

I winced as the guard came over and cuffed the boy. He cried out and fell to one knee. "Take that, you young filth, to teach you how to talk to freemen."

Shasta got up, and led us past the guards. As the crowd closed behind us I got a bit closer to Bree and the boy. "You shouldn't have talked back to him, Shasta, however scared you were," I hissed. "We're slaves. We don't speak unless invited to and never pretend we know more than our betters. The freeman is always right."

Shasta sniffed. "I'm sorry if I never learned slave etiquette," he retorted quietly, wiping a tear away with the back of his hand and leaving a muddy streak on his face. An angry red mark was still visible where the guard had hit him. I knew from training that a mark like that would bruise.

"That's why I'm telling you, fool," I said. "Are you all right?"

Shasta shrugged. "I'll be fine. That back there wasn't too bad. Back home Fath…I mean, the fisherman hit me harder than that, sometimes."

The crowd pressed in around us now, beggars and waifs and peasants like we seemed to be on their way to the market. The stench rose around me like never before, because before I had always been lifted up above the masses on a litter and surrounded by perfume. I looked at Bree and Hwin and smiled to myself. At least we didn't look worth stealing from.

Shasta turned left, and I followed him and Bree closely into a wider, nicer street. The hill was steep. I knew here lived some of the wealthier merchants of the city. Just around the corner were some of the established shops, some of which that I had frequented as a Tarkheena back on visits to Tashbaan, or gone to with my friends, at least.

And of course as we went higher and higher in the city, the crowd got worse and worse, and our progress got slower and slower. Because now there were ambassadors and state officials, and Tarkaans and Tarkheenas passing on their litters, and we had to get out of the way and wait until they had passed. It was an uncomfortable thing, firstly because I'd never realized before just how tight the peasants in the crowd were squeezed when the lords and ladies passed. It was like sardines packed into a can! And of course we had to get as close to the wall or the rubbish heap and as far away from the nobles as possible, because they might recognize me, or wonder about Bree and Shasta and actually stop to do something about it.

We began to pass the palaces now, and some of the minor temples. We passed great statues I had seen about a dozen times, and fountains I had splashed in as a child. My stomach was burning. Every moment I feared that someone would come around the corner and call out "Aravis, what have you been doing? Come home at once, you ungrateful child. Your father has been worried sick, and you've shamed the honourable Ahoshta Tarkaan. The poets say…" I closed my eyes nervously, and stuck close to Bree.

It was midday now, and we were almost halfway through the city when the trouble came. The criers came, and we were almost directly in the middle of the street.

"Way! Way! Way," they cried. "Way for the White Barbarian King, the guest of the Tisroc (may he live forever)! Way for the Narnian lords!"

Shasta was of course ahead of me, and he tried to get out of the way. He really did. But there was this woman just to the side, and when he tried to back Bree, she shoved him hard with her basket of linens, and he stumbled into someone else. The someone else shoved him again, and he lost hold of Bree. I darted forward, of course, and grabbed Bree's halter, but the crowd had got Shasta. I backed up a few rows, but in the end, Shasta was quite stuck in the very front. He was not five feet from the rest of us, but of course, we could not get to him and he could not get to us until after the Narnian lords had passed.

I saw them, the Narnian lords, as they came up the street. They were walking, dressed in fine tunics of lovely colours like red and forest green and sapphire blue, but they wore no jewels save those in the dainty circlets or winged helmets on some of their heads. Their swords were straight and shining. They brought no slaves, and whistled and laughed and joked as they went along, completely sufficient and happy in themselves, strong and gay but not at all proud. My heart turned over for a moment, but then it nearly stopped. For the tall, dark-haired, fair-faced man that led the others gave a cry and looked at Shasta, of all people.

Over the crowd, I could just make out his voice. "There he is! There's our runaway!" Then he seized Shasta by the shoulder and slapped him like one slaps an errant child.

Shasta looked back wildly at Bree, but the horses of course, could not say anything, though I felt them both tremble in horror. I could not say anything, nor call attention to myself. My eyes were rooted to the scene. And Shasta tore his eyes away quickly before he looked at me. I saw his face, his eyes wide with fear and confusion. And I saw the moment he decided not to say anything, even to get back to us. His jaw set, and he looked back at the Narnian King.

His hands were taken, one on either side, and the entire party marched off with him. I swallowed, suddenly far more afraid than I had been before, and began to move towards the northern gate again. But I did not get that far, because the criers came again. "Way! Way! Way! Way for the Tarkheena Lasaraleen!" I froze.

Lasaraleen's family had been friends with my family, and the two of us had often met. She was a year or so older than me, and I had heard that she had lately married well. Now she lived here in Tashbaan, and was on very good terms with the royals, or so it was rumoured. She was well-attended by slaves, and I looked up to see her.

But she looked at me. And she recognized me. Of course she recognized me, dirt and all. How many times had the two of us played dress-up together? She cried out, "Aravis! What on earth are you doing here? Your father-"

I did not know what to do, but something must be done, so I let go of the horses and jumped up onto the litter with Lasaraleen. I heard the slaves grunt beneath us. I did not care. I whispered. "Shut up! Do you hear? Shut up! You must hide me. Tell your people-"

"But darling," Lasaraleen began dramatically. Oh, I knew if she had her way all of Tashbaan would know how she found me dressed as a peasant in Tashbaan.

I cut her off. "Do what I tell you or I'll never speak to you again!" I said urgently. "Please, please be quick, Las. It's frightfully important. Tell your people to bring those two horses along. Pull all the curtains of the litter and get away somewhere where I can't be found. And do hurry!"

Lasaraleen waved a lazy hand. "All right, darling," she said. She looked over to two of the slaves beside the litter. "Here. Two of you take the Tarkheena's horses."

As soon as I heard her say that and saw two of them get Bree and Hwin, I drew the curtains. The perfume and the two of us all boxed up together in it made it rather disagreeable, but it couldn't be helped.

Las didn't like it though. "I say, darling, do you think we really want the curtains drawn on a day like this? I mean to say-"

I cut her off again. "I mustn't be seen," I told her. "My father doesn't know I'm here. I'm running away."

Lasaraleen was looking at her dress. "My dear, how perfectly thrilling. I'm dying to hear all about it. Darling, you're sitting on my dress. Do you mind?"

I edged off of the dress, annoyed, perched like a bird on the very edge of the litter. Lasaraleen smiled brightly in the darkness. "That's better. It is a new one. Do you like it? I got it at-"

"Oh, Las, do be serious! Where is my father?"

"Didn't you know?" Lasaraleen asked, surprised. "He's here, of course. He came to town yesterday and is asking about you everywhere." And to think," she giggled. "Of you and me being her together," she giggled again, "And his not knowing anything about it!" She giggled some more. "It's the funniest thing I ever heard!"

For a while she just giggled, and I remembered now why I was always so glad when the parties we went to with Lasaraleen were over. "It isn't funny at all," I said. "It's dreadfully serious! Where can you hide me?"

Lasaraleen waved a hand again. "No difficulty at all, my dear girl. I'll take you home. My husband's away and no one will see you." She brought up a fan and fanned herself. "Phew! It's not much fun with the curtains drawn. I want to see people. There's no point in having a new dress on if one's to go about shut up like this."

I ignored her complaint, wondering where we were in the city. "I hope no one heard you when you shouted out to me like that."

"No, no, of course, darling. But you haven't even told me yet what you think of the dress."

As if I could see it in the darkened litter. I rolled my eyes. "Another thing," I told Las. "You must tell your people to treat those two horses very respectfully. That's part of the secret. They're really Talking Horses from Narnia."
"Fancy!" Las said, sounding intrigued. "How exciting!" But then she appeared to think of something else, for she went on, "And, oh, darling, have you seen the barbarian queen from Narnia? She's staying in Tashbaan at present. They say Prince Rabadash is madly in love with her. There have been the most wonderful parties and hunts and things all this last fortnight. I can't see that she's so pretty myself. But some of the Narnian men are lovely. I was taken out on a river party the day before yesterday, and I was wearing my-"

I brought her back to topic. "How shall we prevent your people telling everyone that you've got a visitor- dressed like a beggar's brat- in your house? It might so easily get round to my father."

"Now don't keep fussing, there's a dear," Lasaraleen said, putting a comforting hand on my shoulder. "We'll get you some proper clothes in a moment." I sighed in exasperation. "And here we are," Lasaraleen said, as the litter was being lowered.

We were in a courtyard of some palace here in the city- Lasaraleen's, I corrected myself. Lasaraleen made to go in, but I reminded her, "Oh, Las, you can't! The slaves will talk! You must say something to them!"

Las giggled. "Sorry, darling, it had gone right out of my head. Here. All of you. And you, doorkeeper," she said to the servants and slaves. "No one is to be let out of the house today. And anyone I catch talking about this young lady will be first beaten to death and then burned alive and after that kept on bread and water for six weeks. There."

I smiled. Even though no one could live through all that, it should be a good deterrent. Lasaraleen motioned for Bree and Hwin to be taken away. I waved to them, and followed Lasaraleen inside.

A/N: Yeah. Not my favourite chapter to write. I do hope you enjoyed it, though. The action's picking up, though! Leave a review! Please and thank you!

God Bless,

L.M. Sharp