Disclaimer: I do not own The Chronicles of Narnia or any of its characters. However, I do own my OC named Vaslin.
Chapter 3:
They'd all agreed to head to the river and follow it. After the Kings and Queens had grabbed their weapons- as well as Lucy's cordial and a sword for Vaslin- they'd headed off. The former wolf had a hard time getting used to the weapon's weight and feel in his hand. He experimentally swung it every now and then as they walked, despite the fact that he had a sheath strapped to his belt to hold it for him.
"You'll get used to it eventually." Edmund promised him.
"I hope so." Vaslin sighed.
They rose to the top of the next hill and froze in horror at the sight before them; two armored men were about to throw a red dwarf over the side of a boat. As the bows drew their swords, Susan quickly drew her bow and fired an arrow into the side of the boat in warning. The men glanced at the arrow before looking up at them, the archer preparing another arrow.
"Drop him!" She ordered.
The dwarf said something around his gag. Turns out that was the wrong choice of words, for the soldiers tossed the dwarf into the water. They had dropped him. Peter and Vaslin raced to the river, diving in to rescue him. The forms of the two armored men were spotted quickly. There was an arrow in the body of one of them. The High King and former wolf each grabbed the dwarf under an arm, pushing off the river bed to rise quicker.
As the two boys dragged the dwarf to shore, Vaslin spotted Edmund beaching the boat. Smart, now we won't have to walk the whole way. They laid the dwarf in the sand. Lucy drew her dagger and cut the ropes around his wrists. He removed the cloth around his mouth, rolling over and sputtering.
When he got to his feet, he didn't seem entirely grateful for the save. "'Drop him!' That's the best you can come up with?"
"A simple 'thank you' would suffice." Susan said crossly.
"They were doing fine drowning me without your help." The dwarf pointed out.
"Maybe we should have let them." Peter thought aloud.
"Why were they trying to kill you anyway?" Lucy asked.
Vaslin wiped his face on his sleeve to dry it off some, shaking his head to let some of the water fly from his hair- he forgot he was a human still. The dwarf gave him an odd look.
"Sorry." The former wolf muttered. "Old habit and all."
"They're Telmarines." The dwarf answered Lucy's question. "That's what they do."
"Telmarines?" Edmund frowned, puzzled. "In Narnia?"
"Where have you been for the last few hundred years?" The dwarf wondered.
"It's a bit of a long story." Lucy admitted.
"Yeah...no kidding." Vaslin grumbled.
The dwarf caught a glimpse of Peter's sword as it was passed back to him. He looked at the group in a new light. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me. You're it? You're the Kings and Queens of old?"
"High King Peter, the Magnificent." Peter stepped forward, holding his hand out.
"You probably could've left off the last bit." Susan told him.
The dwarf laughed in agreement. "Probably."
"You might be surprised." Peter drew his sword.
"Oh, you don't want to do that, boy." The dwarf warned.
"Not me." The High King nodded to Edmund. "Him."
The dark haired boy drew his sword as Peter handed his to the dwarf, who reluctantly took it. It dropped to the ground for a moment- he probably wasn't used to using a weapon his size- before he held it up. He swung, slamming it against Ed's sword. He swung again, missing. His hand caught his opponent across the face.
"Edmund!" Lucy shouted.
"Oh, you all right?" The dwarf mocked, crying out in surprise as the flat of the boy's blade hit his rear. With a growl, he attacked Edmund again, but the King was ready. They dueled for only a moment before he'd disarmed the dwarf, who stared at the end of the sword in disbelief. He collapsed to the sand. "Beards and bedsteads! Maybe that horn worked after all."
"What horn?" Susan asked.
The dwarf introduced himself as Trumpkin. He went on to tell them about a young Telmarine who'd been on the run the previous night. How he'd blown a horn with a lion's head on the end; Susan's horn.
After finishing his story, Trumpkin nodded towards Vaslin. "Who's he?"
"I'm Vaslin." He spoke up. "I, uh, I used to be a wolf."
"Is that why you shook your head like one?" The dwarf asked, amused.
"Er, yeah." Vaslin admitted sheepishly.
"I've heard about you too. Part of a lot of the stories." Trumpkin said. "Switched from the Witch's side to Aslan's, huh?"
"Sounds about right." He nodded.
*X*
The boat slid gracefully over the river as Peter rowed it. Vaslin's hand was dipped in it, the water rippling as the hand moved alongside the boat. Cliffs rose up steeply on each side of the river, the afternoon sun hitting the environment just right. Narnia was such a beautiful land. Seeing the sun glint off of the water was one of the things Vaslin had missed most after arriving in the world the Kings and Queens had come from.
"They're so still." Lucy stated, looking at the trees above them.
"They're trees. What'd you expect?" Trumpkin asked dully.
"They used to dance." The girl explained.
"Wasn't long after you left that the telmarines invaded." The dwarf told them. "Those who survived retreated to the woods. And the trees, they retreated so deep into themselves that they haven't been heard from since."
"I don't understand. How could Aslan have let this happen?" The Queen asked.
"Aslan?" He frowned. "Thought he abandoned us when you lot did."
"We didn't mean to leave, you know." Peter told him.
"Makes no difference now, does it?" Trumpkin pointed out.
"Get us to the Narnians. And it will."
Vaslin looked up at them. "We'll take Narnia back from the Telmarines, I promise."
*X*
The sun had been covered up by clouds by the time the group reached land and got out of the boat. Trumpkin pulled the anchor line onto land. The boys and Susan pulled on the boat, beaching it. Lucy wandered off a little ways to explore.
"Hello there." She greeted something.
The others turned to see her approaching a brown bear. It gave off a grunting sound, rising on its hind legs to look at her.
"It's alright. We're friends." Lucy assured the bear, not slowing her approach.
The animal dropped down to all fours, sizing her up and growling. Something felt off about the situation.
"Don't move, Your Majesty." Trumpkin warned.
Vaslin drew his sword as the bear started charging the young Queen. Susan drew her bow as the dwarf and the other two boys went for the boat. Lucy turned and began running from the bear.
"Stay away from her!" Susan demanded.
The retreating girl tripped and fell to the ground, turning to face her attacker as she screamed.
"Shoot, Susan! Shoot!" Edmund shouted.
With a battle cry, Vaslin threw his sword with all of his strength. The bear roared in pain as the blade embedded itself in its shoulder. An arrow from behind the former wolf pierced the beast's chest. The bear collapsed to the ground, dead. Lucy turned back towards them.
Vaslin followed her gaze to Susan. He quickly realized that his adopted sister had never fired her arrow. Then his eyes settled on Trumpkin. Susan turned to him too. The dwarf held a bow of his own in his hands; it was him who had shot the bear and saved Lucy's life. The former wolf breathed a sigh of relief.
"Why wouldn't he stop?" Susan wondered aloud.
"I suspect he was hungry." Trumpkin answered as he walked past her.
The siblings followed him, racing towards their sister. Peter helped Lucy to her feet. Both he and Edmund kept their swords poised towards the bear as if they thought it was still alive. Vaslin planted a foot on the animal's side as he gripped the hilt of his sword and tore it free. The blade glistened red with the bear's blood. Trumpkin took to examining the animal.
"Thanks." Lucy told him from Peter's side.
The dwarf merely glanced at her.
"He was wild." Edmund stated, surprised.
"I don't think he could talk at all." Peter agreed.
"Get treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become." Trumpkin explained. "You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember."