Disclaimer: I do not own any Narnia characters. The only characters that are mine are the ones that aren't in the Narnia series (obviously). Please don't sue!
"Amara! Supper is on the table! Come and get it before it gets cold!" she shouted from the garden gate. Amara smiled as she jumped from the branch and onto the soft grass. She followedher friend into the castle and sat with the rest of the kings and queens for their dinner.
"Come on, Kitten; ride with me. I need to go down to the camp to check on my men." Amara stood up from the table just as the fauns came to take up the plates.
"I don't want her going down there with a bunch of men." Edmund spoke up as Aurora slid back her chair to join her friend.
"She's with me. Nothing can happen so long as she stays in my sight. I won't take my eyes off of her. I know you don't like me but do you seriously think I would put her in danger. I care about her just as much as you do. Just not in the same way." Amara retorted as she and Aurora walked out of the castle and towards the stables. They saddled their horses and rode off on the trail in silence.
"What's wrong Mara?" Aurora looked at the woman beside her curiously. She had a blank expression on her face and was staring off into space.
"Huh?" Amara snapped back to reality. "Oh. Nothing; I was just thinking. That's all." She turned back to the trail ahead of them, swallowing the lump in her throat.
"You're not the only one who misses him you know." Aurora knew exactly what she was thinking about.
"I know that. It's just that, besides you, he was all that I had after I lost my father." Amara stifled a chuckle as memories came back.
"What was the laugh for?"
"I was just remembering. I don't think you ever realized how much your brother cared about you. You were his heart before I ever came into the picture." Amara said.
"He loved you too. You were his everything while he was with you." Aurora countered.
"I meant a lot to him yes but you had a special place in his heart. Do you remember the time he let you climb that tree but you fell and hit your head?"
"Yes. I was unconscious for hours." Amara nodded still smiling.
"It took me forever to get him to calm down. He blamed himself for you getting hurt. And he was so mad that day the boys in the palace were picking on you."
Aurora laughed.
"I remember that. They told me I couldn't play with them because I was a girl."
"You came crying to him and he got so upset. He hated to see you hurt. He stared those boys down until they let you play. And you ended up showing them that you could play better than any of them. Lycan was so proud. I remember taking you to the village with us one day to do a little bit of shopping. One of the ladies there thought that you were our daughter. I'll never forget his expression. He was just absolutely beaming." Amara said.
"I was his kitten and you were his sprite. He whole heartedly believed that you had some sprite blood in you. He told me that the last time he had seen one she had silver hair and green eyes like yours." They both laughed at the memories they were reliving.
At this point in their trip, they could see the tents from a narrow cliff that overlooked the valley.
"Something's not right." Amara said as they rode a little further, her face suddenly becoming serious. She turned to her friend. "No matter what happens, I want your word that you'll do as I say."
"You know I can't do that Amara." Aurora answered.
"Promise me or we're turning back around. I need to discuss some things with my men regarding the next battle but if you won't listen to me, we are both going to turn around and they'll have to do this without me. I promised to protect you and that's exactly what I'm going to do."
"Amara…"
"Promise me." Amara interrupted her friend. Aurora nodded in reluctant agreement. "Okay. Do not get off of your horse unless I tell you otherwise. Run when I say run." Before Aurora could respond, Amara was continuing their ride. They reached the bottom of the valley and were at least half of a mile from the camp when the sharp twang from a string preceded the muffled sound of an arrow hitting something thick. Amara's horse bucked her off and sent her flying a few feet away. The arrow had struck the saddle and startled the horse. Amara stood up and drew her sword as a young man jumped out from the woods surrounding them. His sword clashed with Amara's as she tried to drive the man from Aurora who was still seated on her horse, remembering her promise. She was wide-eyed with fright for her friend. Their swords swung into each other numerous times. The sound of clashing metal filled the air. One loud impact resounded when everything stopped. The two duelers stood in each other's faces, their swords crossed at their necks.
"Kahn?" Amara whispered. "Is that you?"
"Amara?" the silver haired male answered. Amara shoved her weight against the swords, knocking the man over and onto the ground. His sword fell out of his hands. Amara kicked it over to the side while holding hers at his neck.
"What are you doing here, traitor?" she scowled.
"I could ask the same about you," the young man retorted.
"You don't have a right to. You left us remember?"
"And for good reason." At that, Amara shoved her sword closer to his neck. He tried to lean his head back to keep it farther from the blade. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. "You don't have the guts to kill me. I know you too well."
"You don't know me at all." She said, replacing her sword on her hip. "Get out of here. You're not welcome on this land." The man stood up, a smirk filling his expression.
"As you wish; your ladyship." He bowed and walked off through the foliage that had just previously hidden him. Amara got back on her horse that had only traveled a small distance away from her. She placed the arrow into the saddle bag and continued to ride towards the camp.
"Amara, who…" Aurora started only to be cut off.
"Don't ask questions and keep up. We're almost there." Amara's face no longer held the laughter it had only minutes before. Her mouth was stretched into a straight line. Her body was tense and her riding stiff. They reached the camp and Amara handled the business that needed to be taken care of there, not even mentioning the encounter they had just had. They saddled their horses and rode back at a quicker pace than they had on their way to the camp. Aurora decided to try her luck again.
"Amara, please tell me. Who was that that attacked you?"
"It's not important. We need to get back to Cair Paravel." Amara tried to change the subject. Her mood hadn't changed in the slightest since she had gotten back on her horse from the duel. "Hiya!" she shouted at her horse that broke out into a full gallop. Aurora followed her lead but was quicker. She pulled ahead of Amara slightly and took a sharp turn cutting off her friend's path.
"It must be important if you're trying so hard to change the subject. He knew your name for Aslan's sake."
"Get out of my way Aurora." Amara avoided meeting the queen's eyes and tried to avert her horse to a new path around the block Aurora's horse provided. Aurora was a step ahead of her friend.
"He knew you were a girl Amara. Half of your regiment don't even know that." Amara finally stopped trying to find a way around the horse. She completely avoided Aurora's eyes as she spoke slowly.
"He's my brother."
Thanks for reading! Sorry it took me so long to put this chapter up. Since it's summer vacation now I'll be able to update more often. So please rate and review for me. I don't want to write all of this if no one is reading/enjoying it. :) Thanks again!
