ORANGE FLAMES dance in Lucy's eyes as she watches the fire. From across the pit, her gaze is attentive and filled with fascination, almost like she's waiting for it to tell her a story. Beside her, Trumpkin uses a stone to sharpen his dagger. Occasionally, he scans the surrounding trees as if Telmarines might spontaneously appear at any moment. Next to me, Edmund sits quietly with one leg bent and drawn up, arm resting on his knee. With his other hand, he pokes the burning logs using a long stick, sending a wave of sparks into the air.

"Ed!" Susan scolds, scrambling out of the way before they can land on her dress and burn holes.

Smiling sheepishly, he looks up at his sister sitting on the opposite side of the fire. "Sorry," he mumbles. Lips pressed together, the unimpressed queen returns to her spot by the fire with a sigh, smoothing her dress out around her.

I notice Lucy giggling silently at the two of them. Then she looks over at the dwarf. "How much further do you suppose it is until we reach the Narnians?" She asks.

Trumpkin lowers the stone and his blade. "Another day's trek, at least," he replies, glancing at everyone gathered around the crackling fire. "Probably two."

Lucy sighs tiredly and returns her gaze to the fire. "I think my feet might fall off before we make it there."

Even Trumpkin chuckles at that.

Queen Susan — ever the motherly Pevensie sibling I read about — urges us to settle down and get as much rest as we can. We're to break camp and move out early in the morning to make up for the time we lost dealing with the black bear today.

Peter and Trumpkin skinned the animal, much to Lucy's dismay. And when they arrived at our camp to cook the meat, I'd taken the young queen with me to search for fruit and more firewood. As it turned out, nobody was very keen on eating the strips of cooked meat Trumpkin prepared, but we had to. Even if there were enough apples and berries to go around, the fruit certainly wouldn't sustain us properly for the remainder of our journey.

Only two more days, I think to myself, laying on my back in the moss. Two days.

Staring up at the blanket of twinkling stars, my mind floods with worried thoughts: where Caspian is and if he thinks I'm dead; if he, Trufflehunter and Nikabrik made it to Dancing Lawn safely; if the Narnians have all gathered and agreed to help, or if they'll kill him; if the Telmarines will find them before we do, and this insurgence will end before it's even begun.

Two more days, Caspian. I close my eyes. Stay alive.

━━━༻❁༺━━━

The crashing of undergrowth startles me awake.

Adrenaline surging, I unsheathe Edmund's sword and leap to my feet. The dying light of the fire reveals Queen Susan armed with her bow as she emerges from the trees, sticks gathered in her arms. She stares at me in shock, frightened by my sudden appearance.

The tension in my body evaporates and I lower the sword. "My apologies, your highness," I say quietly, realizing everyone around us is still soundly asleep, as they should be at this hour.

She smiles and approaches the fire. "It's quite alright." She kneels on the ground and begins throwing the wood into the crackling pit. "I suppose it's only fair considering I startled you awake first."

I laugh silently and return my weapon to its sheathe, doing my best to keep quiet. "...Are you okay?" I ask her.

Susan looks up at me with a smile and nods. "Just a little cold."

I suspect there's another reason she's awake in the dead of night, but it's hardly my place to question a Queen of Narnia, so I settle back onto the soft moss and watch her feed the fire. Gradually, the flames grow higher and brighter while snaps and crackles fill the air, sending up glowing sparks that burn out far before they reach the ground.

Susan leans back on her hands and the two of us sit silently in the warmth of the fire, listening to the wind rustle the leaves and the singing of the insects, the nearly-full moon shining down on us.

"I never thanked you."

I lift my gaze from the orange flames to peer curiously at the Queen.

A soft smile falls on her lips. "For saving Lucy," she clarifies, glancing fondly at the sleeping girl beside Trumpkin. "I don't know what any of us would've done if she'd been hurt."

I follow her gaze, a smile of my own falling into place. "I would do it again in a heartbeat, your highness." Susan's blue eyes lift back up to me, shining with gratitude and something else terribly sad. Suddenly, I know exactly what's tormenting her.

"I should be thanking you, your highness. Aslan knows how much longer I would've lasted in that fight without your help."

A humourless laugh escapes her. "Well, you're quite welcome, Arryn. Though, you should be thanking our dear little friend," she nods her head toward the dwarf sleeping not far from Lucy, "not me."

I'd find the unusual nickname amusing if I wasn't so worried about the queen. She's absolutely tearing herself up about this: her hesitation with the bear — her arrow unable to kill.

"Taking a life is hard," I tell her softly.

Susan shakes her head as she removes her bow and quiver, laying them on the ground beside her. "It never gets any easier." I don't have a reply, so our conversation lapses into silence.

The burning sticks spit a swirling swarm of sparks into the air with a snap. I watch them rise into the sky on invisible currents, until one by one, they burn out and flutter down like soft, grey raindrops. Susan holds her hand out, staring down at the ashes caught in her palm with a despondent frown set on her face. She leans forward, blowing gently to send the particles dancing through the air.

"I'm glad you're here with us, Arryn," the queen says, turning her gaze from the ashes to me. A genuine grin splits her face. "And so is Edmund."

I feel my cheeks warm, and I'm grateful the orange glow of the fire is there to mask it. "I'm glad, too, your highness," I reply quietly. "Though I wish I could do more to help."

Queen Susan's eyes shine with the firelight. "You are," she says. "Really. You didn't have to accompany us and you certainly didn't have to stay up to talk with me...but you did. I can't thank you enough." She glances at Edmund's sleeping figure. "I don't remember the last time I've seen him so happy."

Smiling, I follow her gaze to the boy sleeping soundly a few feet from me, one arm folded behind his head, chest rising and falling steadily. The fire casts half his face in an orange radiance, illuminating his soft, freckled skin and the impassive, serene expression he unconsciously wears. My fingers itch to run through his dark hair, and I have to look away before I give in.

"I know it's strange," I admit to the Queen, feeling abashed to be discussing such a topic with her. "And I can't quite explain what it is, but it feels like we've always known each other." I scrunch up my nose, trying to better articulate the strange connection I've felt since we met. "It feels almost like..."

"Magic," she supplies. I stare at her in shock. Yes. Exactly like magic.

Clearly having read my expression, Susan laughs quietly and tucks strands of brown hair behind her ear. "I can't say I'm surprised; there's hardly anything normal about Narnia," she says. "Believe me, that's far from the strangest thing I've heard." Across the crackling fire, the two of us share hushed laughter and exchange grateful looks.

Queen Susan smiles. "Thank you for staying awake with me," she says, trailing her fingers over the soft green moss.

I incline my head to her. "Of course, your highness."

The Queen gives me a funny look. "You're welcome to call me Susan."

A wide smile breaks out on my face, and I do my best to rein it in before I make myself look like an idiot.

She only grins wider and lowers herself onto her back on the moss. "Goodnight, Arryn."

I lay down with my sword beside me, watching the glowing sparks spiral up into the night sky. "Goodnight."

▬▬ι══════༻❁༺══════ι▬▬

author's note

so i decided to try something kinda different and look at a less-explored angle on susan. i mean, poor girl was clearly distraught after the bear incident, and i want to keep that sense of remorse and harsh realization and feed it into a more complex relationship, and not just between her and arryn, but the rest of the pevensies. i want to make this story more than just a romance. and tbh if i was in susan's shoes, i'd feel pretty shitty lol so i'm hoping this chapter wasn't too rough or boring lol the next one will be longer and have more interactions with edmund !

i hope you're all enjoying the story so far!