SPDVengence, Aramoorn, Haylee, Dean's Leather Jacket, LittleSquirt1, and romantic.dreamer26- do I have to say it? You guys are the best. Rock on witchyo bad selvez. ;)

Okay, so, this chapter took me a while because I went into it with this question: "Where the hell am I going to put Izzy during the battle?" When I started, I had no clue. After some discussion with Haylee and a lot of ideas thrown out the window because they were pretty bad and Mary Sue-ish, this is what I came up with. It's not my favorite chapter, but I did my best. I hope you like it anyway. :)

Chapter Ten: Even Stars Can Fall

What happened for the next hour could only be described as organized chaos. Everyone was running a different way, shouting a different order, but all of them knew exactly what they were expected to do.

Which was why I was surprised when, instead of joining the fray, Haybra came to find me. I was leaning against a wall in the forge, trying to stay out of the way while also kind of watching Caspian out of the corner of my eye as he shouted orders and pulled on his armor. Okay, I was shamelessly staring, but like I said, I'm only human! Anyways, Haybra came quietly and I didn't realize she was there until she spoke.

"Do not let him slip from your hands, Daughter of Eve," she said, making me jump.

"Oh, sorry," I apologized. "I didn't realize you were there. What did you say?"

"The stars have already spoken for Seledin and I," the centaur continued as if I hadn't spoken. "And they have spoken for you as well, but even stars can fall."

"I don't understand. What happened with you and…" I trailed off, noticing for the first time the look of sadness on Haybra's face. "Did he…fall at the castle siege?"

She nodded sadly. "I knew it was coming soon, though I did not know when. It is in this way that the future is not set in stone. I advise you to hold fast to your prince. Fate can only do so much, and from there we must take our destiny into our own hands." She took my hands in hers, an unnaturally intimate gesture for a centaur. "He is your Compositus Animus. You will feel his absence always."

"What does that mean?" I asked softly.

"In the tongue of Adam, it means Matching Soul," Haybra said. "You are no longer two separate people."

I didn't know what to say to that. She had pretty much just flat out told me that Caspian was my soul mate. "How is that possible? I've only known him for a week."

"It does not matter how long you have known him here." She lifted her hand and touched my forehead with one finger. "For you have always known him here." She lowered her hand to rest it over my heart. "Hold on while you can, young princess, for the day soon comes when you must part." Haybra trotted quickly away, leaving me to wonder over her words. Matching Soul? Where was she getting this stuff? Forget reading the stars, she's been reading too many romance novels. And yet…

I put my hand over my heart, thinking about her last words. You have always known him here. What a cheesy thing to say, if you think about it. She just made it all fancy so it wouldn't sound as corny. Oh, I have always known him in my heart! Forget Mystery Science Theater, now I'm a Disney princess! She'd even called me princess. As if I have any royalty in me at all. Puh-lease. Maybe the next time Haybra wants to talk, I should tell her I'm busy. All this "soul connection" business was freaking me out.

Especially since I knew I wouldn't be staying for much longer. I could feel it, a light tugging at my veins, my natural world calling me back. It was an uncomfortable feeling, like I didn't fit in my own skin anymore. I knew, undeniably, that I would be leaving Narnia soon.

I would be leaving Caspian soon.

I brought my fingers up to my mouth and absentmindedly brushed them over my lips, still swollen from his kisses. Thinking about it made me feel a tugging of a very different kind. What was I going to do? As undeniable as my departure was, my attachment to Caspian was equally as obvious. Could Haybra be right? Could something much larger than I could ever comprehend be going on here?

Fate can only do so much…

Was this fate?

Well you don't fall down in front of someone's horse every day now, do you?

Was that fate? Did some greater force pick me up and drop me under the hooves of Caspian's horse because it was supposed to be him? Was I supposed to be doing something more? If so, then why him? Why some prince in a world parallel to my own whom I will have to leave and never see again? Why…

I caught Caspian's eye from across the room, and he gave me an encouraging smile that I returned, even though I couldn't feel it. One corner of his mouth turned down and his brow furrowed, but his attention was immediately drawn elsewhere by a dwarf who was having trouble with his armor. What did it mean, that look on his face? He couldn't possibly tell from all the way across the room that my smile was fake, could he? I know that I can put up a good façade when I need to, so how could he know? I'm a walking two-way mirror, seeing other peoples' happiness and reflecting it back without actually feeling it. It was part of being an outsider, part of living in a glass case that nobody can get through.

Maybe you're not supposed to bring other people inside. Maybe you're supposed to let yourself out.

Oh. Oh! Oh! There it is, right there in front of me in the words of a little girl. I looked at Caspian again and thought about the myriad of things that had happened in the short period of time that I'd known him. How many times had we almost been killed together? Maybe it's possible that events, just like time, can bring people closer together. I mean, if Romeo and Juliet fell in love in moments, perhaps it's possible to feel strongly for someone in a week. It dawned on me that, when I was with Caspian, I wasn't on the outside looking in. I was right where I wanted to be. I clicked. I fit. I was visible on the other side of the two-way mirror.

He could see me.

But it wasn't only him. Edmund could too, and Lucy. Probably even Haybra. They could see me, not just the me that I showed everyone.

Maybe you're supposed to let yourself out.

Was I finally done being Bubble Girl? Had I escaped the glass case that cut me off from the rest of the world? Is that what this is all about?

Did Caspian pull me out? I thought about my breakdown after I fought with him, the way I'd split right open and displayed my insides to everyone. I'd confessed my darkest secrets and I was still accepted.

And I had to leave it all behind.

"Right Izzy?"

I blinked, suddenly realizing that Edmund, Peter and Caspian had appeared at my side. "Uhhh, what?" I asked, confused.

"I was just saying that it would be a good idea if you came with me to deliver Peter's challenge to Miraz," Edmund clarified. "It's subtle, but if they see you I think they might think we have more than just the Narnians fighting on our side."

"Like I'm a representative from another country?"

"Yeah."

"They'll probably just assume I'm Susan or Lucy," I pointed out the flaw.

"We can have you introduced," Peter suggested. "As…Princess Isabella…from over the sea!"

"Miraz knows the stories of Aslan coming from over the sea," Caspian said, somewhat reluctantly.

"So he'll assume I come to represent Aslan?" I asked. "I don't know if that's such a good idea. I don't feel comfortable impersonating a representative of Aslan."

"But you are a representative of Aslan if you're fighting in his name," Edmund encouraged. "So you're not really impersonating anyone."

"It is a clever plan," Caspian admitted. "If Miraz worries, so will the rest of his army. But if you're not comfortable doing it, no one will force you to." He cast Peter a warning look.

I looked at each of them in turn. "And you think it will help, if I do this?"

"It couldn't hurt," Peter replied. "But it will most likely shake Miraz up a little if nothing else."

"But if you don't want to-" Caspian started.

I didn't let him finish. "I'll do it."

He hesitated. "Are you sure?"

I met his gaze. "I want to help."

I could tell he really didn't want to let me go, but couldn't think of a plausible reason not to. He was torn between his ridiculous need to keep me safe, and his soldier sense that it was a clever war tactic.

"Hey," I said, punching him lightly on the shoulder. "You can't protect me from everything, you know."

Caspian shrugged. "I can try."

"Well, yeah. It's all you ever do. It's pretty annoying, but I guess it's okay since you're just, like, trying to keep me alive and stuff." He smiled.

"We should get going," Edmund said. "Wimbleweather and Glenstorm are waiting outside." Wimbleweather the giant and Glenstorm had apparently also been chosen for this little rendezvous. Quite the intimidating crew. All we needed now were some leather jackets and dark sunglasses.

"Okay, let's boogie!" I said with a little more enthusiasm than was necessary for someone who was crossing a battlefield to deliver a challenge to a one-on-one battle to the death. Edmund and I started for the door.

"Wait!" Caspian called as we walked out into the sunlight. I turned around. He was jogging towards us with a vest of mail similar to his own, and a belt from which a sword hung. "Here." He handed me the vest. "Put these on. Hopefully you won't need them, but…" I pulled the vest on and he helped me fasten the belt around my waist, his hands lingering. "A representative of the Great Lion would not go behind enemy lines unarmed."

"Probably not," I replied. He was about to say something else, but something distracted him to the left of the How. I followed his gaze and saw several troops riding through the trees.

"Oh no," he breathed. "I must go."

"Me too."

Caspian nodded and started to run back into the How. I turned to Edmund and gave him a heartening smile. "Let's go!" We'd barely gone ten paces when we had to stop again.

"Isabella!" I whirled around. It was Caspian again, running towards me.

"Caspian, wha-" I never got to finish asking him what the hell he wanted this time, because while I was in the middle of asking he pulled my body against his so hard it almost knocked the wind out of me. But it didn't, which is good because the pulling thing wasn't what interrupted me. What did interrupt me were his lips. Crashing into mine. My body reacted instinctively, fingers running over his neck and into his hair, lips parting to allow us the exploration we both craved. This kiss was nothing like the first one. He kissed me now with an unfamiliar desperation. I realized he was afraid he might never see me again. I realized I was afraid of that too. I had to force myself to break away. "Don't you have somewhere to be?" I asked breathlessly. Caspian nodded and let go of me, stepping back. He hesitated, looking at me. "Go! I'll see you later." Nodding again, quickly, he turned and ran off again.

When I turned back around, Edmund had this ridiculous expression on his face and Wimbleweather was staring down at his toes. Glenstorm pawed the ground anxiously. Oh shit, everybody just saw that.

"What?" I snapped. "Let's go if we're going!" The whole walk across the field, Edmund kept glancing my way and snickering to himself. When we were almost to the Telmarines' camp, I fixed him with a glare. "You know, I hit a prince before and I so would not hesitate to hit a king." That shut him up. Seeing the olive branches that both Glenstorm and Wimbleweather bore, several guards escorted us through the camp to Miraz's tent. The giant and centaur opted to wait outside while Edmund and I went in.

"Who is it that wishes to speak to me?" a gruff and heavily accented voice asked as we stepped under the canopy. I saw that the speaker was a bearded man, sitting in the center of a long table of men and wearing a crown. Caspian's crown. I wanted to slap the smug look right off his face.

"King Edmund of Cair Paravel," Edmund said in a powerful voice, "and Queen Isabella of the East." Queen? What? I thought I was just supposed to pretend to be a princess! Now I'm impersonating a queen!? I tried not to let my guilt show. I instead fixed my mouth into a straight line and looked only at Miraz, keeping up as serious and intimidating an expression I could under the circumstances.

"Queen of the East?" Miraz said skeptically, looking me up and down. "I was not aware there was a Queen of the East."

"Of course not!" I answered before really thinking about it. I quickly redeemed myself for my hasty remark. "I hear that the Telmarines have long since forgotten the tales of old, and so you would not be familiar with the lands from which I hail."

Miraz leaned forward, leering, trying to make me uncomfortable. "And what lands would they be?"

I met his gaze steadily. "I hail from the lands of Aslan, over the eastern sea." Edmund nodded, and while it seemed to the Telmarines he was merely agreeing with me, I knew he was doing it to let me know I was doing well. Miraz sat back, trying to quickly rearrange the shocked look on his face before his soldiers could see it. He failed.

"Well then," he said. "Welcome to Narnia, Queen Isabella. It is a pity we did not meet under better circumstances, for I am known to throw a wonderful welcoming feast." I could tell that was a lie. Who visits him? His mother?

"A thousand thanks, your Lordship," I replied, "but I have already been wonderfully welcomed by King Caspian and his people." Edmund raised an eyebrow at me, but I just smiled. I wanted to annoy Caspian's uncle, and what better way than calling him King?

"He is calling himself King now?" Miraz spat.

"He calls not himself King, but rather his people have named him so." I was pretty good at this Renaissance speech stuff. "His Majesty is far too modest to request the title. Only one overcome by hubris would claim kingship for himself." The Telmarine Lord's eyes narrowed. Izzy two, Miraz zero! And the crowd goes wild!

Miraz just glared, then waved his hand at us. "Enough. What is it you have come to say?"

Edmund stepped forward as he unrolled the challenge and I followed, standing just off his right shoulder. "I, Peter, by the gift of Aslan, by election and by conquest, High King of Narnia, Lord of Cair Paravel, and emperor of the lone islands, in order to prevent the abominable effusion of blood, do hereby challenge the usurper Miraz to single combat upon the field of battle. The fight shall be to the death. The reward shall be total surrender," he read.

There was a long silence after he finished reading. I clasped my hands behind my back and pretended the line of men behind the table didn't frighten me.

"Tell me, Prince Edmund-" Miraz began.

"King," Edmund corrected.

Miraz raised his eyebrows. "Pardon me?"

"It's King Edmund, actually. Just king, though. Peter's the High King." There was a short pause. "I know. It's confusing."

Miraz brushed off his annoyance. "Why would we risk such a proposal when our armies could wipe you out by nightfall?"

"Haven't you already underestimated our numbers? I mean, only a week ago Narnians were extinct." Good point. Go Ed!

"And so you will be again," Miraz replied. I really, really wanted to smack the smug look off of his face.

Edmund didn't miss a beat. "Well then you shall have little to fear."

Miraz laughed heartily. "This is not a question of bravery."

"So you're bravely refusing to fight a swordsman half your age," Edmund assumed, provoking. That's it. He's definitely my favorite.

Miraz leaned forward, speaking through his teeth. "I didn't say I refuse."

"You shall have our support, your majesty," a man on the right said. "Whatever your decision."

"Sir," another man said, gaining Miraz's attention. "Our military power alone provides the perfect excuse to avoid what-"

The self-proclaimed king jumped to his feet, grabbing his sword. "I am not avoiding anything!" Temper, temper! He should see my therapist. She's great with anger management.

"I was merely pointing out that my lord is well within his rights to refuse," the man explained.

"His majesty would never refuse," said a voice from behind me. I glanced over my shoulder to see another bearded man standing just within the canopy. "He relishes the chance to show the people the courage of their new king."

Edmund and I looked back to Miraz, who raised his sword and pointed it at my favorite King of Old. "You," he growled. "You had better hope your brother's sword is sharper than his pen."

When Edmund turned around, the smirk on his face was contagious. A similar expression appeared on my face as I gave Miraz a curt nod and turned to follow. "Queen Isabella." I paused and swiveled to look back at him. "Send my regards to your…Aslan." From his tone, I could tell it was a challenge. He was looking for something in my words or face that would give me up as a fake. I wasn't going to let that happen. Too much was at stake.

"I shall, Lord Miraz," I said in a voice that was more confident than I felt. "Though I am sure he already knew you would be sending them." The look on his face was priceless and I had to hold back a grin as I followed Edmund out.

"That last bit was genius," he commented in a low voice as we were escorted out of the camp.

"I guess," I replied doubtfully. "But I feel terrible anyway. Lying isn't something I like to do because, well, you know…" He nodded. "And I'm lying about Aslan. It makes it that much worse."

"Have you ever met Aslan?" Edmund asked.

"Well, no, but Caspian told me stories…"

"Oh, yes, of course, King Caspian."

"Don't take that tone with me! That jerk was annoying me. I couldn't slap him physically so I found another way. And oh, yeah, Queen Isabella? What the hell?"

Edmund shrugged and nodded curtly at our escorts as we passed over the boundaries of the camp. "Queen is a lot more intimidating than princess. And if you aren't one right now, I'm sure Caspian will be changing that soon." For a second I forgot that we were supposed to be regal and punched him hard on the shoulder. "Ow! What was that for!?"

"For being a smug little creep!" I replied.

"Hey, I'm 1300 years older than you. Respect your elders!"

"I don't give respect to anyone I don't get it from," I snapped.

"All right, all right. I'm sorry! Just don't punch me again. That hurt." Edmund rubbed his arm and Wimbleweather laughed the way he always does at things that shouldn't really be funny. The poor guy can't help it. Giants aren't exactly the brightest bulbs in the tanning bed, if you know what I mean. You should have seen Reepicheep's reaction when he was the cause of Wimbleweather's chuckles. It was adorable. Ahem…

"I know it hurt. That's why I did it." I made a face at him, which he returned. By that time we were far enough away from the encampment to act a little childish and not compromise the plan. "That was strike one, by the way. If you start making kissy faces you're going to have to learn to use a sword with your feet."

Edmund shuddered. "Point taken." I raised my hand to pat him on the back and he flinched.

"Relax, Your Highness," I laughed, patting his shoulder. "You'd think you were scared or something."

"Who wouldn't be scared of you?" he mumbled.

"Well…my parents aren't scared of me. Neither are my best friends, so that's four…" I trailed off contemplatively. "Maybe my brother and sister…six…hmmm… Who else?" I rubbed my chin like I was deeply in thought. "…Nope. That's about it."

"Caspian isn't scared of you," Edmund said. I moved to punch him and he ducked, holding his hands up. "Sorry! Sorry!" I couldn't help but have a bit of a cackle at that one. What can I say? I can't suppress the crazy all the time. We walked past the stone ruins in front of the How where the single combat was to be, and Peter was waiting for us behind it, his question written all over his face. "Miraz accepted," Edmund said.

Peter let out a long stream of air. "Good. We've successfully bought ourselves some time." He looked at me. "How did it go for you?"

"Well, I went from being a princess to being a queen," I answered, glaring at Edmund who was trying to look innocent. "And Miraz seemed to get pretty nervous when I told him I was from the lands of Aslan. A couple of his soldiers were there to see it too."

"Excellent." Peter's eyes were drawn across the field. "He is already on his way." We all turned to look. Indeed, a group of soldiers were headed our way. One of them was wearing an ugly masked helmet, and I guessed that was probably Miraz.

"He's like, 104 years old," I commented. "You can totally take him out."

Peter gave me a look that was almost amused. Le gasp! High King Pain-in-the-Ass has a sense of humor? "Let's hope so," he replied. I gave him two thumbs up.

We spent the next couple of minutes fitting Peter with armor. One of the bears and Glenstorm stood at either end of our side of the battle area. Edmund was the third marshal, and after a hushed discussion they decided it would be wise for me to stay outside and watch as well to keep up my Buffy the Telmarine Slayer façade. Across the ruins, Miraz's men had set up a chair that was a lot fancier than the one we had for Peter. What a show off. Seriously, who brings a friggin' throne to battle? He also had his three marshals standing behind him. Two of them I recognized from the deliverance of the challenge, but the third seemed to be just another soldier to me.

I was feeling pretty nervous when Peter and Miraz entered the ruins. They circled each other for a few moments, and I was waiting for the banter to start.

"There is still time to surrender," Miraz said. There it is.

"Feel free," Peter replied. I almost laughed out loud at that one. He really does have a sense of humor. Leave it to Peter to be funny when he's about to try and cut someone's head off.

"How many more have to die for the throne?"

Peter reached up to lower the faceplate of his helmet. "Just. One." With incredible strength and agility, the High King sprang up and over a chunk of stone, bringing his sword down hard on Miraz's shield. The advantage passed back and forth so quickly I lost track after a while. Being unfamiliar with battle, it was hard for me to be sure exactly what was going on at all times. I had to go by Edmund's murmurings of encouragement and sometimes worried thoughts spoken under his breath. At one point, when Peter was on the ground, Miraz stepped on his shield and he cried out in pain. I flinched. It looked like his shoulder might have been popped out of its socket. That's not a pleasant feeling. I know. It happened to my elbow once… They had been fighting for several minutes when Peter's attention was attracted by something over Miraz's head. Following his gaze, I saw Caspian riding towards us with Susan behind him. Susan, I knew, was supposed to be with Lucy, searching for Aslan. I understood Peter's distraction.

"Does His Majesty need a respite?" Miraz asked nastily.

"Five minutes?" Peter requested.

"Three," Miraz growled.

Peter came over to us while Miraz retreated to his own side to have a wound on his leg bandaged. Susan jumped down from the horse, followed shortly by Caspian.

"Where's Lucy?" the young king asked.

"She got through," Susan replied, and then looked at Caspian. "With a little help."

Peter gave Caspian a grateful look. "Thank you."

"Well, you were busy," Caspian replied. He noticed my presence for the first time, and the look on his face was a cross between relieved that I was okay and ticked off that I wasn't inside. I decided I'd better give him a little warning before he threw me over his shoulder and carried me into the How.

"Don't touch me," I said quietly as he reached my side. A hurt looked crossed his face. "No, you idiot. They think I'm some badass warrior queen from Aslan's land. It wouldn't look good if you dragged me into the How- and I know that's what you were planning."

Caspian's expression showed that I was right. "You shouldn't be out here."

"I don't have a choice. If I don't stay it'll blow the whole thing. Miraz isn't as stupid as he looks. By the way, he thinks we named you our king now. You should know that."

He stared at me. "Sorry?"

"He was pissing me off! Acting all smooth and conceited. I wanted to knock him down a few notches so…I called you King Caspian instead of Prince Caspian…" I shrugged.

Caspian smiled and shook his head. "Your attitude is going to get you into trouble one day."

"It's already gotten me into trouble. Loads of trouble. I'm used to it." I returned his smile. He raised his hand to touch my cheek, then remembered my warning and rested it on my shoulder instead.

"If the worst happens, which I expect it will," he said, casting an accusing glance over his shoulder at his uncle, "stay by me. I'll take care of you." Peter cried out, and we looked over to see that Edmund had popped his shoulder back into place.

"If the worst happens you'll have enough to do without having to look after me," I reminded him as we watched Peter and Miraz re-enter their battle.

"Querida, I need to know that you are safe," Caspian responded, keeping his voice low so that only I could hear.

"Don't worry about me. Worry about them." I nodded to the thousands of Telmarines that were just waiting for the command to attack. "I can take care of myself. I'm a big girl and I remember most of the defensive maneuvers I can do with a sword."

Caspian looked at me doubtfully. "You haven't practiced since I taught you."

"But I learned from the best," I replied with as much assurance in my voice as possible. "I'll be fine. If I think it's becoming more than I can handle, I'll retreat to the How."

He breathed in deeply. "Do you…promise that you will run at the first sign of it being too much?"

"I promise," I answered. We both knew it was a lie. I wasn't about to leave my friends outside to battle while I was snug and safe inside the stone temple. It didn't sit well with my conscience, and a little bit of Lex was leaking into my system, mixing excitement into my fear. I wanted to fight, and the darker corners of my mind seemed to be pumping out confidence in my nonexistent skills. Maybe Lex was good for something.

"Respite! Respite!" Miraz cried out in a raspy voice. Looking over, I saw that he was on his knees before Peter, who was holding his fist back, ready to deliver a fatal blow to the man's head with his steel coated knuckles.

"This isn't the time to be chivalrous, Peter!" Edmund called. Peter seemed to think differently. He let his hand fall to his side, and started to walk towards us. After he'd turned around, Miraz dove for his sword a few feet away.

"Peter!" Edmund yelled as the Telmarine came at him from behind. Peter turned around, and with amazing skill grabbed the hilt of the sword, twisted around and sunk the blade into Miraz's side. Shock was etched into the Telmarine's features as Peter pulled the sword free and he fell to his knees. His young opponent held the sword up to take the last blow, but hesitated.

"What's the matter boy?" Miraz wheezed. "Too cowardly to take a life?"

Peter lowered the sword and leaned in. "It isn't mine to take," he said, then stood up and turned to hold the hilt out to Caspian, who cast me a glance before walking forward slowly to accept the sword. He approached his uncle and drew the sword back, his palm against it, ready to deliver the fatal strike.

"Perhaps you do have the makings of a Telmarine king after all," Miraz said breathlessly as he lowered his head, succumbing to his fate.

I could see Caspian shaking slightly, trying to withhold his anger, his hate for the man who stole his father from him. With a furious scream, he drove the sword not into his uncle, but into the ground. Straining my ears, I could just make out his livid words. "Not one like you," he spat in disgust. "Keep your life, but I am giving the Narnians back their kingdom." As he rose and walked away, a thousand different emotions exploded in my chest- respect, pride, and affection being just a few. There was also another emotion, something strong that almost overpowered all the rest. I couldn't tell what it was.

Glenstorm lifted his sword to Caspian as he passed, and all the Narnians cheered. It must have been a hard decision, whether or not to kill the man who raised you. Regardless of the fact that Miraz killed his father, I knew that in his heart Caspian still loved his uncle. I'm not sure how I knew it, but something in his expression and decision told me that it was true. No matter how badly his mind wanted revenge, his heart wouldn't let him do it. I had a sudden desire to go to him, hug him, kiss him. My heart was broken for him. I wanted to help him bare the weight of his pain the way no one was ever able to do for me. There was an ache in my chest- a powerful need to stay with him. I longed to always be there to offer my embrace, my attention, my advice, my heart. Right next to my heart's need to see my friends and family again was another wish just as strong. I wanted to stay and be there for him, care for him, love him. Whoa. Wait. What did I just say?

"Treachery!" someone screamed, shaking me out of my contradicting thoughts. "Treachery! They shoot him! They murdered our king!" I saw first Miraz's lifeless body with Susan's arrow in it. I looked up at her where she had gone during the battle, standing on a rock outcropping with the rest of the archers. I sent her a questioning look and she shook her head.

"Peter!" Caspian yelled. I whirled around in time to see Peter take off the head of the nameless soldier. Two feelings clutched my heart, one was logical: disgust, the other was a much more primal instinct that I wasn't willing to consider.

The other two men who had been Miraz's marshals were running across the field. "To arms!" one was screaming. "To arms, Telmar!"

Caspian was suddenly at my side. He grabbed my arm and practically threw me onto the back of a horse before climbing up behind me. "I will need you to take the reins in a moment," he said into my ear, and then kicked the horse into a gallop down into the How.

I was frightened.

Lex was excited.

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-Gina