The morning brought with it the cold. The air was tainted by the remnants of smoke and ash of the dying fire. It had burnt and consumed through the hours until almost nothing but soot had been left behind. A few hopeful embers still clung to small clumps of coal, much to the girl's relief.
Eloise felt beyond grateful that her clothes had mostly dried through the night, though her fingers and toes still felt like ice. As she scoured the forest floor for kinderling, she periodically rubbed her hands together and breathed hot air over her digits, doing what little she could to keep them warm and flexible.
The sun had barely risen in the sky when both she and Arthur had woken. The little centaur- Lightning Bolt- still slept soundly, and It was without debate that the two decided breakfast would be required.
The cat seemed much calmer, and he shook off her concerns for his well-being. She wasn't entirely sure if he was simply putting on a brave face for her sake, or if the talking-beast actually did feel better now that he'd slept. He had been quite overwhelmed the previous night, and though he wasn't bouncing with happiness, the cat didn't appear to be as distressed anymore.
Far too restless to stay stationary for long, the tabby set off with the promise of returning with whatever prey he could find. It was with uncertainty in her blue gaze that she watched him sneak off into the bushes. Quietly the girl acknowledged she was glad he looked more held-together than expected. She wasn't sure what she could have done if he was still upset when he woke.
Soundlessly Eloise began searching for more wood to revive the fire with. She didn't stray far, and quite often looked back to the bank, keeping herself near so she could hear if the child stirred. She wanted to be near when the boy awoke, so he wouldn't feel too alone- but kept some distance as not to frighten the poor thing.
It had bothered her- that she was the source of his fearful reaction. The girl knew the centaur had his reasons, but while she'd not always had a deep affection for children; to see one so terrified of her mere presence greatly disheartened the human.
To say she was curious, would be a severe understatement- If the speed at which she gathered the kinderling was anything to go by. There had been so many questions racing through her mind, that she'd almost been completely unable to sleep- but her exhaustion had made quick work of her. The girl had barely been able to stay conscious for a few seconds after her head had touched the ground.
She still felt sore from the beating the rough waters had given her the day before. Part of her hadn't been expecting to feel so tender. The ache in her muscles was enough to make her wince when she moved too quickly- but she pushed through the pain with a resilient need to finish her task.
With haste, Eloise tightened her hands around the bundle she'd collected, making her way back to the river with wide steps over the shrubbery and little care of the small scratches she received from the shrubbery. It wasn't till she drew nearer that she realised she'd forgotten to keep an eye on the boy; as she was surprised to find him on his feet, looking around wildly as if he were wondering if he'd been dreaming.
Her loud shuffling through the thick foliage alerted him to her company, and though he didn't seem startled by her appearance, she could see his shoulders grow tense. The girl paused as her shoes met the sand, and as they stood across the fire from one another, the distance began to look much shorter than it actually was.
Now that daylight once again had graced them with its presence, they each took a moment to survey each other with a shared peculiarity. It occured to the human, that she- in her odd torn clothes that had dried into a wrinkly mess- likely looked almost as strange to the Centaur as he and his half-horse body was to her.
As she dropped to her knees to set the tinder in the sand, she'd been seconds from greeting him, but Lightning Bolt appeared to suddenly lack the immense control it took him to keep silent.
'You're the weirdest looking human I've ever seen,' Is what she thought he might have intended to say. He seemed to blurt it out so abruptly that his own mind hadn't yet been able to conjure the most polite, and direct expression of these thoughts- thus it came out as, "Clothes look painful." The moment he'd said the words, his cheeks had flushed a shade not too dissimilar from his own curly locks.
Eloise had to run this sentence through her head twice before she understood what he was trying to say- and she couldn't help but let out a snort of laughter. Lightning Bolt appeared relieved his words hadn't offended the girl, and she could see his face contort oddly in his effort to not smile back.
Pushing her hair away away from her face, she replied, "They're rather comfy actually- but not exactly meant for this sort of terrain."
The centaur nodded at her response, trying and failing miserably to stop himself from constantly eying her tight jeans and odd shoes off. An amusing thought occurred to her- What would a centaur look like if he wore jeans?
At this thought, she added, "I wouldn't recommend them to you though- they're not really your style." A giggle came spluttering from her lips as she spoke, and she hung her head, shaking it to try and rid herself of the image of a grown centaur in light blue skinny jeans.
Lightning Bolt looked unable to decide if he should laugh or not. He elected to stay silent as the girl's shoulders stopped shaking from laughter, watching as she began to start working at the fire again, pressing kindling to the embers and blowing gently to stoke the coal.
As the heat of the embers seemed to sense the presence of more fuel to burn, the flames leapt up with excitement and greedily began to churn through the sticks and dry leaves. The human fed it two larger branches, and then proceeded to shuffle back, till she no longer felt her eyes burning in their sockets.
Crossing her legs, she looked up from the fire to the centaur, whom had also moved a fair distance from the now roaring flame. She spoke clearly, "Arthur has gone hunting. He should be back soon, and then we'll have breakfast."
The boy's jade-like eyes widened with surprise, and he awkwardly replied, "Um… Centaurs don't eat meat."
She blinked at him for a moment, a look on her face like shock, and then she leant back- so much so that her double chin stuck out as she gasped, "Shit- of course you don't. Oh I'm so sorry, I'm a complete idiot. Half-horse, I should have known that-" she spluttered, rising to her feet. "I'll uh…" She gestured toward the forest, but felt a sharp drop in her confidence. She didn't know what the hell to feed this poor boy- should she start gathering a plate of grass? But what if he didn't eat grass either? Why oh why, had she been so daft?
The child seemed unsure of what to make of her colorful language, but seeing her uncertainty, he hesitantly replied, "It's okay, I'm- I'm not really hungry anyway."
She huffed, "Bullshit you need to eat. That was a rough time you had yesterday, and If I'm starving, then I know you must be." Her face felt hot, and her tongue felt much looser- she knew she shouldn't have sworn, but the words slipped unabashedly from her lips without her control.
The boy- whether or not he understood what cuss words were- looked almost sheepish. It was the kind of look a child gave when both their hands were caught in the cookie jar, but he was insistent that he didn't feel hungry.
Eloise would have argued more with the centaur, but right at that moment the orange tabby padded out from under the brush, stealing her attention. She noted, with a twinge of disappointment, that he'd returned with no luck. The ache in her stomach was almost as great as the soreness of her body. In truth, she was miserable. Her first days in Narnia were turning out to be quite awful.
She spoke sullenly, feeling the heat leave her cheeks as mopery took over, "I suppose none of us will be eating then."
Arthur appeared quite cranky, and snapped at her, "I did my best. I'd like to see you try running your damn socks off after a squirrel or two."
Eloise held her hands up in the air, "Calm down, I didn't mean it like that."
The cat sighed, a very flat and frustrated look on his face, "I know you didn't, I just-" he let out a growl. He took a moment to squeeze his eyes shut, and sat by the fire, taking in such a deep breath his head rocked back, right until he exhaled and dropped it to touch his chin to his chest.
Both the centaur and the girl couldn't decide what to look at- each other, the cat, or the fire. Finally the feline looked up at the centaur and asked, "How are you feeling now? Ready to talk more?"
So out of the blue this question had been- not to mention, quite to the point- that the ginger haired child appeared a little taken off guard. His eyes flicked to Eloise, and he appeared to want to seek reassurance from her, but thought better of it and stepped slightly away from them both.
The girl noted the intenseness of the gaze Arthur had fixed the boy with- how it made the boy hesitate as he replied, "I uh- okay." She wasn't sure for how long a cat would mourn, but friend or not, she quietly promised to herself, that she wouldn't let her cat take any of his feelings out on this child.
Not that he would, intentionally, she thought. A callous whisper chimed, wouldn't he? You don't really know do you? You don't know him.
No, don't allow yourself to go there Eloise. Neither cat nor centaur saw the girl shake her head.
Arthur spoke evenly, "Good. I have some questions that I really need you to answer as best you can- is that alright?" For a creature that didn't even reach the boy's knees when standing, it was almost funny to see him command such attention from the centaur.
"I'll try I suppose," he replied uncertainly. His large horse ears were folded back slightly, and upon his face there was an almost worried expression; as if he were afraid of saying something wrong.
"That's all I need. Now," Arthur began, "Firstly, who are these Telmarines that you spoke of yesterday? You seemed frightened of them. Are they someone we ought to worry about?"
At the mere mention of the word, the blood seemed to drain a little from the boys cheeks. He seemed unsure of how best to answer, and as he spoke it sounded as if he were on the verge of losing his voice entirely, "They're… they're the bad men."
The girl felt something akin to ice fly through her veins. It had been something in the way he had said it. She could feel his words almost planting the very seeds of fear themselves. If they would blossom, she didn't have enough information to know yet- but, she became very aware, that this boy clearly was terrified of them for good reason.
Arthur too, seemed to sense this and spoke hastily, "I need to know what's happened between now and the- you called it the Golden Age, correct?" The cat's tail swished furiously along the sand, creating small mounds either side of the sweeping motion. The boy nodded once, and the tabby demanded, "Tell me everything."
Eloise stopped the boy from speaking, and she looked down at her cat with a frown, "Arthur, he might not know-"
"It's okay Miss Eloise," Lightning Bolt interrupted her, a little more confident as she caught his gaze with a hint of worry in her blue eyes. "I know a little, but…" The young centaur's gaze flicked between the cat and human. She could physically see the cogs turning in his head.
Arthur parroted, though his voice sounded a little gentler, "But what?"
"It," the boy started, "I…" he thought harder. He was starting openly at Eloise now, his eyes a blazing fire of forest green. "If you're really from the Land of Spare Oom then…"
The cat replied "She is," just as quickly as Eloise had spoken, "I am."
The boy let out a sharp breath, and finally he appeared to have decided that he believed them. "Then I think you ought to come meet my uncle. He's the leader of my herd and-and I think he's been waiting for you for a very long time." The centaur seemed to take in a baited breath, gazing straight at her as he awaited her response.
She'd been taken aback to say the least. Of all the things she'd expected him to say- that was certainly not on the list. Not quite sure how to respond, she blinked furiously as she stared back at the boy with a heavily furrowed brow.
Arthur however, seemed to catch on much quicker than she did. "Your uncle? Has there been another prophecy?" She wasn't sure why, but at the word prophecy, her heart began to beat harder in her chest.
Eloise felt more and more confused as the boy responded, "I'm not sure. They wouldn't tell me- but uncle Glenstorm has been stargazing more often than he usually does the past few weeks." The tabby's ears pricked up at this. She could see him practically twitching with excitement.
Glenstorm. Lightning Bolt. Aslan. Narnia. What is with all these odd names?
Lightning Bolt continued, "I'm not sure what that means, but I don't think this is a coincidence- that you've come to Narnia."
Arthur agreed, "No one arrives in Narnia by coincidence. Eloise is here for a reason- and you and I both know it."
Said light-brown haired girl grew a little bit annoyed, and barked, "I'm right here you know- Will you please stop talking in riddles?"
Both talking beast and centaur looked up at her- and she almost wanted to take back her words. They looked at her knowingly- even though both were shorter and younger than herself. She now wanted to kick something and hide at the same time.
The two exchanged a glance, and with only a few short words more, they set off- following the centaur who promised to do his best to lead them to his herd.
A few steps behind, the girl trudged on with a heavy stride. She knew for a fact now, that Arthur hadn't told her everything she ought to know about Narnia. Whether she was angry about this or not, she couldn't decide- she was still reeling from the strange turn that the conversation had taken.
Almost three hours passed, and Eloise still didn't feel any better. Unlike herself however, the small centaur had a bit of a skip in his step as he led them forward, stopping here and there at various roots and trees to observe them.
Though they hadn't asked any more questions, the boy spoke in a voice that was now oddly chipper, "My uncle will answer all your questions, I know it. He'll be so glad to see you!"
Under her breath the human grumbled, "Yeah I wish I could say the same."
Having heard her, Arthur glanced questioningly over his shoulder at her. She shot him a displeased glare and he slowed down to walk beside her, speaking quietly to her, "What are you so grumpy about?"
She looked down at him, raising a brow, "Because none of what's happening makes any sense whatsoever?" The frown on her lips grew as she thought aloud, "Why are we following him? Shouldn't we be looking for Aslan?"
Arthur sharply looked forward at the Centaur, but the boy continued trotting along, too focused on ensuring he was going the right direction to bother listening to either of them. He turned back to her after he was sure he hadn't heard her speak, "A thousand years have passed since I was last here- don't you think it would be smarter to catch up on that history first? You know, before we go traversing the wilderness?"
"Sure- okay, that's fine," she begrudgingly admitted, "but what was all that talk about a prophecy?" As she tried to hold the cat's gaze from below her, clusters of her long hair fell into her face, annoying her just enough to make her rip a thin long piece off the bottom of her shirt. Oh what she would give for a hair tie. Or a burger.
As they plodded on after the centaur, they kept their heads down and voices quiet. Occasionally Arthur would glance up to check they were still on track, but mostly he continued to look back at the confused girl.
Threading her fingers through the tangles in her hair, she did what little she could to tidy it up before securing it all into a low ponytail. As she did so, beside her the tabby cat explained, "Do you remember what I told you about the Pevensies? How they came to Narnia and helped Aslan defeat the White Witch?"
"Yes I remember." She couldn't take it. The unknowing. What had he not been telling her?
"Well, they didn't just stumble into Narnia. When the Witch Witch first rose to power, there was a prophecy that spoke of four humans that had the power to defeat the Queen," he padded a few steps ahead of her, leaping up onto a large boulder that brought him level with her head. "You see Eloise- no one is brought to Narnia without good reason. You're here because you are meant to be."
I'm meant to be here. Meant to be. That single notion changed quite a bit in her head. She'd been riding off the assumption that her arrival had been an accident. Before the mention of prophecies, she'd believed it to be unintentional, the arrival of any other worldly beings in Narnia.
But alas. This wasn't an accident.
Arthur spoke with a hint of pride to his voice, "When King Peter and his siblings came, they helped defeat the wicked witch and became legends. You were destined to come here just like them. I know it!"
She felt cold as the breeze blew against her, embracing her as the girl stopped to look deep into his beady green eyes, and she spoke, "So whether I like it or not, you're telling me I'm going to be dragged into some sort of war to fight against a big bad evil?"
Arthur frowned, and pinned back his ears. "No that's not what I'm saying-"
She interrupted, "And my memories- was I destined to lose them too?"
The feline appeared quite hurt by these words, and stumbled over his words before she relented a little, giving voice to her concerns. "I can't even remember my mother's name," She croaked, "Arthur the last thing that I need is an entire people hoping that I'll be some sort of prophesied savior."
His eyes were a little wider, and he appeared almost guilty. "I'm not like King Peter," She begged, a whimper in her voice, "Arthur please-" More than anything, she was scared. Scared that- just like her past- her future might also be completely out of her control. What could she do, what left did she have to give? All she had were a few scattered memories and scars from a trauma she couldn't remember.
Sure, it had happened with King Peter, Queen Susan, King Edmund and Queen Lucy- but she wasn't sure if she'd ever be like them. Brave, selfless- noble.
She was beginning to realise just how out of place she was in this land. Swords, knights, kings and queens. Prophecies, talking animals- centaurs. All the knowledge she had was useless to her in this world.
The talking-beast tried to assure her, "L-let's not worry about that yet-"
"Arthur-" she stopped. The girl had just realised she'd lost sight of the centaur. "I can't see him."
For a moment, Arthur wished he could turn back time. Un-do all that had been done. To him- to her. To Narnia.
Everything…
He had imagined a great deal of things when he dreamed of returning to Narnia with his best friend. This was not what he thought would be written on that shooting star he wished upon, as it cast over their house in Australia.
She wasn't meant to lose her memories, he wasn't meant to return over a thousand years late. At least- that's what he liked to believe.
But he couldn't deny it- he wanted her to have that same glory that High King Peter had. She deserved it, that much he was sure of… but how could he expect her to want it too, when the girl barely recalled her own country?
Was this really how it was supposed to be- for him to be so… so helpless? So completely unable to give his friend the answers she needed most?
Was this the payment she had earned; when she'd taken him in all those years ago?
He'd never doubted so much in his life before- he'd never questioned the very reason he walked the land of Narnia. When he'd been thrust into Eloise's world, scared and lost, he had felt like discarded waste. Left to his own fate.
Then she had come- she had saved him from that lonely death he'd felt was to be his curse. It had taken time, but eventually he understood. He was there- because of her.
But now- he doubted it all again. Maybe he was cursed. Was this his fault? Had he meddled in her destiny, and in doing so doomed her to a life without memories? What were the rules of this game that the fates were playing at?
And moreover… How did Aslan come into this?
Suddenly, he wasn't sure if he wanted to find that lion or not.
At Eloise's voice, the cat wrenched his head away, darkened eyes seeking the figure of the centaur. Failing to lay eyes on him, his head and heart hurt- his deepening worries for his companion adding to the more pressing issue of the disappearance of their guide.
Lifting his nose to the air, he could still find strong traces of horse hair and herbs. Glancing sullenly up at the girl, he spoke, "Don't worry- he can't have gotten far."
He slipped quietly down from the boulder, padding through the trees with his head close to his shoulders. The boy's tracks were easy to follow, and proved enough of a distraction to keep him momentarily from debating how best to provide his human with weightless reassurance.
Absently he called out the centaurs name. He wasn't overly concerned, but after a moment he realised the boy hadn't responded. The talking-beast raised his head, pricked his ears up a little higher and his eyes narrowed.
He couldn't have gone that far, could he? Far enough to not hear him call out?
Arthur picked up his pace- he could hear Eloise's loud stumbling steps behind him as she followed. The cat trotted ahead slightly, leaping over small rocks and a few stray fallen branches. He noted, the hoof tracks on the dirt were growing wider- the boy had started running.
Toward what?
He tried to listen more intently for hoof beats. The tabby was starting to feel that prick of anxiety spread through his chest.
Over his shoulder he called to Eloise, "Can you see him?" She would likely spot him first he figured.
The human responded, "No I-" from right behind him he heard an almighty thwack that sent him off his feet automatically. Eloise herself released a scream of fright, and as he swung around mid-air, his breath was stolen from him as an uncountable number of Centaurs began pouring out of the wood like a vast sea of war-born warriors.
From the shadows of the trees they came galloping in hoards. With almighty cries of fierce aggression, men and women brandished greatswords and bows- to his horror, he realised that they had all set their sights on them. Never had he felt the fear of the wrath of a charging stampede of a centaur herd, but now he felt it run through him like ice as the ground shook like they were in the heart of an earthshake.
They had crossed the distance between them so quickly, that he'd only just yelled at the human to look out, when an arrow shot past his head- missing him by mere inches.
Like thunder over the land, they were swarmed by the masses. Eloise had tucked herself against a tree trunk, shutting her eyes tight as she cried out in terror.
With nowhere to run, he narrowly avoided being trampled, and lost sight of the girl amongst a current of flesh, hair and iron. Leaping up, he extended his claws and latched himself to the side of a tree.
Arthur hadn't even the time to catch his breath, when he heard Eloise let out a strangled screech in what he instantly knew to be tremendous pain.
The cat cried out. To Aslan, to Eloise- to the Centaurs.
She had heard it before she felt it. The arrow whistled through the air as it pierced toward them like lightning. She was convinced it would miss her, and the girl was quite sure it would have had she not lurched forward to try and reach for Arthur upon seeing the approaching danger.
She'd only just stretched out her arms to try and catch the cat, when she felt a sudden opposing force knock her off her feet. It was as if she had smacked into a moving surface- her body spun backward. She lost control of her legs, and it was only after she'd hit the ground that she realised it hadn't missed its mark at all.
The pain didn't hit her until she pulled herself up against the tree beside her. The blood drained from her face in a rush, as her blue gaze zeroed in on the red liquid that poured out of her in waves. She glimpsed the feathers- the shaft sticking out of the side of her thigh- but the shaking ground and thundering footsteps stole her attention immediately after she'd made the connection.
There was little she could do but scream in terror and pain at the on-coming stampede, and push through the pain in order to make herself as small as possible. She tucked herself so tightly against the bark of the tree trunk that she could taste the dirt and breathed in the cobwebs of the old tree she had lodged herself against.
Racing shadows colored her closed eyes, the wind and dust against her open flesh hurt like someone was pouring acid into it. She faintly heard Arthur screaming her name, begging the Centaurs not to hurt her.
Spreading both palms around her injured thigh, the human feebly tried to hold onto the wound, but felt it draining her of any energy she had left. The tree trunk shook as the centaurs galloped past her- circling the area.
She didn't see it, but felt it as if she were a part of the tree itself- a centaur swung his greatsword low, aiming for her, but instead marked the trunk right above her as his height challenged his aim. Dust, sticks and small pieces of bark cascaded down gently against the breeze, littering her hair and arms with a thin coat of the forest.
For a moment, she lost her sense of time. Everything seemed to happen so slowly and yet all at once- but after a moment she registered the numerous loud voices. Angry voices.
She dared to look up, and her gaze landed upon the quivering form of Lightning Bolt- standing above her. He looked in the faces of all his kin, and though he seemed afraid, he fought through it to demand in a strong voice, "Leave her!"
Her head felt heavy. Her eyes rolled back, and as the sounds of commotion faded, she embraced the darkness with the barest fear of what she would see when she next awoke.
AN: Sorry for the long wait- life has been rather hectic for me with the nearing end of this uni trimester. Lots of due dates, assignments and work etc. You probably already know the drill. Thank you to all my readers who have been patient whilst waiting for this update! I ask that you be patient once again as I'm still in the final two weeks of work, and I don't expect to update this story until mid-December. I will be taking a long holiday so I'll have lots of time to write between stuffing my face with Christmas cake and family get-togethers. XD
To my reviewers...
IdaIdaIda: Thank you so much, I'm so happy to hear you enjoy my writing! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too. :D
FantasticLoser: No break for the poor kids in this chapter sadly! T-T I hope the angst and thrill in this chapter was just as enjoyable! :D
I'll see you all at Christmas time! :D