OUR FEET hit the sand only moments apart.

I sprint after Edmund — running at full tilt a few feet ahead of me, boots kicking golden sand into the air.

In the distance, High King Peter and Trumpkin haul the rowboat through the shallows to the mouth of the Great River, the Queens watching from shore.

Edmund sees them as well and veers in their direction. I follow, my breaths coming in pants from the strenuous run and my constant laughter and shouting as I chased Edmund down the cliff to the beach. My human form in the absence of any physical enhancements I typically implement is slow and flagging, though I'm not surprised.

Edmund glances over his shoulder at me, a wide grin on his face. And then he falls; crashing to the sand with his feet all twisted and his momentum causing him to flip over his shoulder and onto his back.

I stumble to a stop, uncontrolled laughter exploding from my chest so all I can do is stand next to him and laugh my ass off.

Edmund groans, eyes shut tight and making no move to get up. I would be concerned, but then he starts laughing as well.

The scene keeps replaying in my mind so I can never catch my breath.

Queen Susan calls to us from the channel. "Are you two alright?"

Cracking his eyes open, Edmund lifts his head to look at his sister. "We're fine!" He drops his head back down with a long groan, punctuated by laughter.

His gaze flickers to me. "That hurt," he declares in a gravelly voice.

His words prompt another bought of laughter from me. "That," I protest, wiping tears from my eyes, "was golden."

His eyes flutter shut as he chuckles again. "I would've won."

I grin and stick my hand out. "Whatever you say, your majesty."

Edmund laughs, clasping my hand as he gets to his feet, causing sand to cascade off his clothes in a shimmering cloud. He smiles down at me crookedly, brushing more sand off the front of his tunic. He has some in his hair and on his face, as well.

I reach up with a grin and dust off his forehead. "How did you manage to get it everywhere?"

He stares at me dumbfounded, eyebrows raised. "Did you not see me nosedive?"

I snort unattractively. "Oh, I saw it," I laugh, stepping away from him before I give in to the urge to run my fingers through his dark hair.

"Come on." I start walking backwards, towards the rest of our waiting company. "We have a lot of ground to cover."

Edmund smiles roguishly, shaking more sand from his clothes before following me.

When they hear us approaching, the two Queens spin around to look at us. Queen Susan appears as indifferent as ever while a wild grin overtakes the younger girl's face.

"Oh, I love that dress!" She exclaims. "You look wonderful!"

I smile shyly and manage a decent curtsy. "Thank you, your majesty. You look lovely, as well."

"Thank you," she giggles, then holds her hand out. "My name's Lucy."

Could she be any cuter? Smiling, I grasp her small hand and shake firmly — a strange, traditional greeting I learned from the Telmarines. "Arryn, your majesty."

She repeats my name almost like she's testing it on her tongue. Then she gestures to the elder girl, who's busy cleaning up Edmund. "That's my older sister, Susan."

Hearing her name, the dark-haired Queen glances over at us, offering a polite smile and tiny nod. Edmund looks over as well, shooting me a helpless, exasperated look as his sister sweeps sand off his shoulder.

"Did you stop to roll in it?" Susan demands scoldingly.

He smirks. "I fell, actually."

She sighs heavily and steps back like she's given up.

"You fell?" Lucy repeats incredulously.

I have to choke back my laughter. "It was hilarious."

The two Queens start laughing, while their brother rolls his eyes.

"We all ready to go?"

As one, our heads simultaneously whirl around to the High King, who's watching us from his perch in the rowboat next to Trumpkin looking marginally unimpressed.

Peter leaps into the shallow water, gesturing to the boat with —much to my surprise — a smile on his face. Queen Lucy hurries forward excitedly, not bothering to lift her skirt as she splashes through the water. Peter helps her up into the boat where Trumpkin awaits and turns his expectant, blue eyes to rest on us.

"Come on, then," he says, amusement lining his voice. "We don't have all day."

Almost imperceptibly, Susan shakes her head fondly and approaches the boat. Edmund and I share a fleeting, excited grin before following her.

The water barely reaches over my ankles, even as my feet sink into the sand. Luckily, my dress isn't restrictive in its length and neither gets wet nor causes difficulty climbing into the rowboat. That is one thing I've always loathed about wearing dresses as a human: the utter lack of convenience. Although, I can't deny the comfort of simple, everyday dresses, or how incredible a beautiful gown can make me feel.

Lucy settles onto the small seat at the bow next to Trumpkin, who appears to be whittling, while Susan sits down on the second bench, leaving an unoccupied space beside her. I claim the open spot, albeit a little hesitantly.

Peter takes up the rower's position on the middle bench and Edmund sits at the stern to operate the rudder. I feel odd being separated from him, as it's the first time since meeting him, but I'm soon so engrossed in my conversation with Lucy that I hardly notice the emptiness in my chest.

She tells stories of the four of them growing up together, causing them all to smile and bicker — even the two eldest, who prove to be much more easygoing than I'd initially thought.

Trumpkin sits in silence, occasionally scanning the canyon walls around us while constructing new arrows to make up for the ones the Telmarines destroyed. I offer to help and fashion a few while listening to the Queen's extraordinary stories, inquiring about all the bizarre places and things she mentions: like boarding school.

"Oh, it's like a regular school," Lucy explains cheerfully. "Except you live there until the end of the term when you get to go home for Christmas and a few weeks in summer."

She giggles at the confusion on my face. "It's not too bad," she says. "Well, the first year is quite dreadful, but you get used to it. All the girls sleep in one big room, and they serve breakfast, tea and supper every day — though it's not very good. But it's all girls, sou don't have to deal with any boys, and you go to class every day like normal and on Sundays, we walk into town for church." Her eyebrows furrow in confusion when I have no reply. "You do have school...don't you?"

"Education?" I inquire. "Of course. Although, it's quite different."

Now, Susan is intrigued. "How so?"

"Well," I look over the newly-attached fletching on my arrow in satisfaction. "I imagine your schools are gatherings for everyone to learn at once."

Clearly entertained by my description, Lucy nods and waits for me to continue.

"The Telmarines don't have those." I set the arrow down in my lap. "The palace has a professor; he's responsible for the education of the young royals and nobles — only those who have a part in running the kingdom. It's considered a waste for anyone else. Individually, they're taught mathematics, astronomy, history, navigation, all those sorts of things, until they're old enough to either run a kingdom or sit on the council," I sigh, twirling the arrow absently between my fingers, "which isn't long. I was lucky the professor raised me and let me join his lessons with the prince. I got to learn all about you four and the Old Tales."

Lucy grins widely. "Really?" She asks, exchanging excited glances with Susan. "You read stories about us?"

I laugh and pick up another arrow to fashion. "Every one, your majesty."

▬▬ι══════༻❁༺══════ι▬▬

author's note

boarding school in the 1940s was actually pretty rough and also quite expensive. i have no personal experience with private schools, i don't know anyone who's gone to one, let alone a boarding school. so i had to do some research of course. i read a few online stories from girls who attended london boarding schools during that time, and it sounds not fun at all. but lucy is a pretty optimistic person and tends to overlook the bad in just about everything, so her description of it is pretty positive and excitedly brief. i couldn't see her sharing any bad experiences or stories with someone she just met anyways, so

really hope you guys are enjoying chimæra so far!