The water that swept the Pevensies down the river was definitely more than a few degrees lower than freezing and for a second the Guardian just floated there. The water was dark and menacing and Cassie could barely see her hand in front of her face through the murky water. The cold shocked her to her very core and the current was strong as it pushed her backwards and forwards through the river, but it only took a few more seconds before adrenaline kicked in and Cassie leapt (or swam) to life. The Guardian's first issue was obviously her worrying lack of air and so Cassie used all of her strength in an attempt to kick towards the surface, against the strong current. Black spots danced in front of her vision as she struggled for air but she continued to thrash in the water in a desperate attempt to break the surface. Cassie's mouth opened in a silent scream as she felt the stitches she had done only recently tear and break in her shoulder and the murky water began to turn red. The next few seconds seemed like a life time and Cassie's lungs burned with a need for air before her head finally exploded from the water with a large splash and Cassie gasped as she took in great lungfuls of air. The current was merciless as it swept her down the river and she desperately scanned the riverside for signs of the Pevensies or the Beavers.
It was a desperate race against time as Cassie fought against the current, and several times her head sank below the water again before the Guardian forced herself upwards. She was rapidly running out of strength and it was getting increasingly difficult to swim forwards as she relied mostly on her legs due to the pulled stitches in her left shoulder, but apparently today things leant in her favour and Cassie's eyes lit up as she spotted some familiar brown fur on the riverside. Quickly, the Guardian veered to the right as she frantically pushed herself to the nearing bank. It was safe to say that Cassie had never been happier to see the Pevensies in her life as she used the last of her strength to pull herself up onto dry land.
Cassie let out a large breath and collapsed at the feet of the awestruck Pevensies and she heard a few gasps. Admittedly, she'd looked better in the past and her current bedraggled appearance of wet hair and soaked clothes that stuck to her body did make her quite gasp worthy in her opinion. Cassie closed her eyes, grateful for the silence as the Pevensies stared at her, but it became very awkward very quickly.
"The things I do for you ungrateful humans." Cassie managed to gasp out in an attempt to break the silence.
The Pevensies seemed to unfreeze and Cassie opened her eyes as she felt a presence kneel down next to her.
"Cassie!" Lucy gasped, "You came back, and you're- bleeding?"
Cassie turned her head and gritted her teeth at the sight of her bloody shoulder, "Looks like it."
Lucy reached into a pouch around her middle and brought out a strange looking vile. Cassie was immediately suspicious and as the young girl moved the vile closer to her lips and the Guardian (as gently as possible) grabbed Lucy's wrist.
"What is it?" She questioned.
"It's supposed to heal people," Lucy answered. "Santa gave it to me."
The Guardian hesitated a moment longer before she nodded and released Lucy's wrist and a single drop of the strange liquid landed on Cassie's dry and cracked lips. It had an odd taste; sweet yet warm, and it filled Cassie with a familiar feeling of calmness and serenity. After a few seconds, Cassie turned her head again and smiled at the sight of her now uninjured shoulder.
She sat up and rolled it experimentally before smirking, "Nifty."
However the Guardian had barely struggled to her feet before see was being verbally assaulted by Susan Pevensie.
"I suppose you had a plan that followed throwing yourself into the river, or did you just get an urge?" The older Pevensie asked sharply, but as Cassie looked into the other girl's eyes she bit back her snarky response when she saw the thinly veiled concern that lay there.
"Well theoretically, the plan was to catch up with you idiots to make sure no one fell off, but apparently my plan wasn't as fool proof as I expected."
Susan scoffed but before she could reply, Mrs Beaver gasped and everyone turned around as the beaver began to speak, "I don't think you'll be needing those coats anymore."
An equally soft gasp left Cassie's lips as she turned and stumbled towards the blossoming flowers that Mrs Beaver had been staring at. She held a pink flower softly between her fingers and the Guardian's face lit up with a smile.
"I have not seen such beauty in many years." Cassie muttered before turning to the Pevensies. "It's a shame you could not have seen Narnia in its prime, beauties such as these were everywhere. You would have loved it, Lucy."
"Well Narnia isn't rid of us quite yet," Peter began unexpectedly. "I'm afraid you'll have to deal with us ungrateful humans for a while longer yet."
Cassie froze and it took a few seconds for Peter's words to register in her mind, but when they did her smile grew impossibly wide.
"Does this mean- are you staying?" She asked excitedly.
"Maybe." Susan quickly cut in.
Cassie rushed forward and crushed the Pevensies in a quick hug before stepping back, "I'll take maybe over a no any day."
Then the Guardian turned and began to walk away, leaving Peter and Susan frozen in confusion and Lucy smiling. Cassie walked a few more steps before turning back to them.
"Well?" She said expectantly. "Aslan's not going to wait forever, are you coming or not? We're nearly there!"
The Beavers began to hurry after Cassie and Lucy laughed, breaking her siblings out of their confusion. Lucy began her attempt at catching up with the Guardian and Peter turned to Susan with a smile before they too set off in the direction of Aslan's camp.
