A/N: So it's been a little while... It actually took me a while to figure out exactly how this chapter should play out, so that's my explanation haha. Anyway, there is a bit of excitement in this chapter :D So, without further ado, here is chapter twelve and let me know what you think with a review. ;)
Camille had spent most of the day reading the book she had found or inspecting the locket Peter had given to her. By the time she had gone back up to her room after dinner, she was thoroughly frustrated. Susan had yet to ask Camille if she wanted to accompany her that night, and Camille was beginning to wonder if the young queen had decided to just leave without her. When Camille wondered if that was the case it upset her, and she found herself debating over whether or not to just go and tell Susan that she wanted to accompany her.
Yet, at the same time, she still couldn't decide if she even wanted to go in the first place. For one thing, the more that she read about Ettinsmoor and the dangers it held the less eager she was to go. However, she felt like maybe she was supposed to go. It was entirely possible that Aslan intended for her to go, though that was what confused her the most. It did seem as though going to Ettinsmoor was what she needed to do before she could go home, but Camille didn't see how she would be of any help. After all, wasn't her purpose to play that magic-suppressing flute? If that was so, it didn't seem as though it would be of any help against giants or dragons or anything else that lived in the wild of the north.
There was, of course, the possibility of there being a witch in Ettinsmoor. The fact did remain that nobody knew who or what had taken Edmund and Lucy north, nor did anyone know the reason why. But, after quite a bit of conversing with Gareth and Mae, as well as some of the other Narnians, Camille had learned that the last witch had been defeated three years ago. Additionally, there had been no strange sightings or occurrences that would hint at a witch living in or around Narnia. To the Narnians, it just didn't seem very plausible.
Nevertheless, Camille still felt that Aslan would want her to go with Susan. So, as she lay on her bed, holding the locket up over her face to admire it, Camille made her decision. She waited there, thinking that Susan would come and find her eventually. Then, as the sun was setting, there was a light knock on her door.
"Come in," Camille called, pushing herself into a sitting position. She clutched the locket tightly as Susan entered.
When Susan turned back around from shutting the door, she offered Camille a smile, "So, have you made up your mind?"
Camille merely nodded in reply.
Susan's smile seemed to brighten, "So are you coming with me, then?"
Again, Camille nodded, too anxious to say anything.
"All right, then!" Susan was beaming, "I'll be back soon. But, until then, please wait here."
With that, Susan turned and left the room. Camille breathed a sigh of relief and unclenched her hand, looking down to see the locket still there. She found herself wondering when she would see Peter again as she looked at it. The funny thing was that, when she agreed to go with Susan, she suddenly felt much less afraid of how he made her feel. In fact, she found herself wishing he was still in the Cair with her. Then, of course, she wondered if he would be upset when he learned that she was traveling with Susan. He had asked her not to go even if his sister did, and she had agreed not to. Now she would be going against that promise.
With a heavy sigh, Camille laid back down on the bed. Now all there she had to do was wait for Susan to come back. Closing her eyes, she started to form the image of Peter's face with her mind's eye. When she could see him looking at her through his blue eyes, Camille opened her own to look up at the ceiling. The more she thought about him the more anxious she felt. She didn't like that she was breaking her promise, even if it was possible that Aslan wanted her to. Camille wasn't used to trusting other people anymore, and she felt like she had Peter's trust but that now she could lose it.
It seemed like hours passed before there was another knock on her door; it had been dark for some time, at least. Once again, Camille called, "Come in!"
It was Susan, and the faun Mr. Tumnus was with her. He dropped something on Camille's bed beside her, and when she sat up to look at it she realized that it was new clothing for her. "You should probably hurry," Susan said before turning to Mr. Tumnus and thanking him for his help.
Camille considered changing her mind for a moment, but ultimately gathered the bundle in her arms and hurried to the bathroom. She was surprised that the entire outfit was black, and was even more surprised to find that she would be wearing pants. Quickly, she slipped on the shirt, pants, belt, and boots. There was a jacket, too, but Camille thought it would be too warm for that. So she stepped out of the bathroom with it in her arms.
Susan smiled at the sight of her, but Camille frowned, "Don't get me wrong, I like the pants, but why am I in all black?"
"Well, since we will be traveling at night – at least to start with – it will make it easier for you to disappear if you need to."
"But won't I be hot during the day?"
"Did you think we'd be going with only one change of clothes?" Susan laughed lightly before adding, "Now come on, we've got to get moving."
With that, Susan led the way out of the room and down the stairs of the castle. There was one time when Camille was sure they would be caught, seeing as they had to pass a room Gareth was sitting in. Apparently he was staying up in case Susan did try to leave. Surely enough, the two of them managed to slip outside and met Mr. Tumnus as they walked over to the stables. Two Horses that were loaded down with supplies were waiting just outside the doors and were speaking quietly to one another as they approached.
Susan introduced Camille to the Horses. Their names were Dalton and Piper. Dalton was the larger and darker of the two; Camille guessed that he was either dark brown or black whereas Piper seemed to be golden in color. It was hard to tell for sure in the light of the half moon. It was when Susan pulled her bow and arrows over her shoulder and across her back that Camille suddenly remembered Finis.
"I just remembered that I forgot something," Camille said, starting to turn to go back to the castle. Before Susan could stop her or ask what it was, Camille called over her shoulder, "I'll be right back, I promise!"
As she ran back to Cair Paravel, Camille was suddenly very glad she wasn't wearing a dress like Susan was. She was much less clumsy without the hem of a dress to trip over. Soon enough she was slipping back into the castle and was approaching the room that Gareth had been in earlier. She could hear her heart thumping in her ears as she peered around the corner and into the room, but found that Gareth was no longer there. For a moment, she was relieved, but then it occurred to her that she would have to be very cautious until she found him again.
Slowly, Camille crept to the room where Finis was, straining her eyes and ears as she went. Once she nearly ran into Mae, but managed to slip in a doorway while she waited for the dryad to pass. She wondered if Susan and the Horses would wait for her, but at the time she was more worried about running into Gareth. When Camille finally reached the room and carefully shut the door behind her she breathed a sigh of relief. However, as she approached the pedestal she wondered how she would conceal the flute.
After a moment of looking around the room, Camille's eyes rested on a small table against the wall. There, sitting on top of it, was something made of a dark cloth. She crossed the room quickly and found that it was some kind of a long bag with a strap. Then she hurried back over to the flute and picked it up to slip it inside, but froze when she touched it. As soon as she lifted it into the air it seemed to hum with energy, and it startled her. She thought that maybe she was imagining things, though, and quickly slipped it into the bag.
Throwing the flute over her shoulder, Camille turned and quickly left the room. As she stalked back down the hall she jumped at the sound of a door swinging shut, realizing that she hadn't eased the door shut behind herself. Her heart positively racing, she started to run through Cair Paravel, passing Mae at one point. The dryad was startled to see her run past and immediately called after her, but Camille didn't stop. Then, as she was about to cross the entrance hall she halted at the sight of Gareth at the other end.
He seemed to be shocked by the sight of her, "Camille?"
Camille couldn't think of anything to say that would persuade him to let her leave. With her adrenaline still pumping through her veins, Camille ran for the door and reached it just as Gareth started to chase after her. Her legs carried her towards the stables once again, and it seemed as though Susan had heard them coming because she had mounted Dalton and was leading Piper toward Camille.
Camille had only ever been on a horse once in her life, but she remembered how to mount one and quickly hoisted herself up and swung her leg over Piper's back. Then, just as Camille had steadied herself, Susan began to lead them away from Cair Paravel at a run. For a few seconds Camille was afraid she would fall off, but at a run the ride was quite smooth, so holding on wasn't too difficult. The problem was that she wasn't sure how long she'd be able to hold on.
It felt like they had been running for hours by the time the Horses slowed to a walk, and Camille's fingers hurt from holding on too tightly. Nobody said anything for about a minute, and it was then that Camille heard the sound of running water not too far off. Just as she was about to ask about it, Piper spoke up from underneath her, "Could we possibly stop for a drink, Queen Susan?"
Camille hadn't looked much at her surroundings while they were running, so now her eyes were darting all around. She could see somewhat in the moonlight, though she assumed the Horses must have had better eyesight in order to run in the dark like they had been. Mostly, they were surrounded by grassy plains, but there was the occasional cluster of trees. Susan, who was off to Camille's right, answered Piper, "I think that would be a good idea. If you two would stop so Camille and I could dismount first, I'd appreciate it."
Then the Horses stopped, and the two of them carefully slipped off. Once her feet touched the ground Camille thought she might fall over because her legs were that stiff. Slowly, she started to stretch her legs and arms. When she stopped, she realized that Susan was standing just a few feet away, looking off into the dark around them. Without taking her eyes off of whatever it was she was looking at, Susan quietly asked, "What did you need to get before we left? It seemed like it was pretty important," then she looked at Camille, "Was it the locket?"
Camille hadn't thought much of the locket, but then she reached up and pulled it out from under her shirt. She was relieved that she hadn't forgotten it. "No, it wasn't the locket," Camille admitted, pulling the strap over her head as she did. Then she carefully pulled the bronze flute out of the slender bag so Susan could see, feeling it hum lightly in her fingers.
At first, Susan was surprised, but then she seemed to put the pieces together on her own. Once the look of surprise left her face, she said, "Well, I'm glad it was something that could be of use later. However, even if you can play it, it won't protect you in a fight. So, I was thinking I would teach you how to shoot, and I suppose Gareth can teach you how to use a sword once he catches up to us."
Camille's brows came together in confusion, "We're going to let him catch up to us? But I thought we were just running from him."
Susan laughed, "Initially, yes, we were running from him. But we were also running to catch up with Peter. No, we won't be joining Peter; it would be too soon for that. We are, however, not going to let him get too far ahead. On the other hand, Gareth will catch up to us soon enough, but when he does it won't matter that he wasn't supposed to let us leave. At that point it will be his duty to protect us, so he will just have to follow."
Camille couldn't think of anything to say to that, but the Horses returned then anyway. Susan said they should continue on foot for a little while longer, so they did. It wasn't a very long walk, and when they reached a cluster of trees they stopped for the night. Once the Horses were barebacked again they found a soft place to lie just outside the circle of trees. Then Susan and Camille found their own places within the trees. Camille didn't think she would be able to sleep on the ground, but after all of the excitement she had gone through that night it didn't take her long to drift off.
