[Type text]
"Kill him!"
"Murderer!"
"Liar!"
"Thief!"
"Talmarian!"
"Dirty scum!"
Everyone that had gathered for the meeting was yelling out at the prince. I was shocked at how my people were treating him.
"Everyone quiet down please! Do I have to summon the spirit of my mother?"
They all went silent.
"Yes. That is what I thought. Now I personally think that my mother would be ashamed of the way you are treating him."
"Your highness, all that horn proves is that they have stolen yet another thing from us!" The dwarf shouted at me.
I heard Caspian's voice from behind me. "I didn't steal anything."
"Didn't steal anything?" An angry oxen yelled, "Shall we list the things the Talmarians have taken from us?"
"Our homes!" a female centaur shouted.
Another yelled, "Our land!"
And yet another… "Our freedom."
"Our villages!"
"Our lives!" the last one was extra loud.
I stood beside Caspian, stunned at my people's grievances. I myself was a Talmarian when I first came here.
"Please! Narnians! Don't you all remember? Or have you all forgotten that I was a Talmarian before I came to Narnia?" They started to calm down. He glanced at me in thanks.
"And even so, you would hold me accountable for all the crimes of my people?"
"Accountable." The dwarf stated yet again. "And punishable."
"Hah!" the mouse shouted. "That is rich coming from you dwarf! Or have you also forgotten that it was your people who fought alongside the white witch?" He pointed his tiny sword at the dwarf.
The dwarf flicked the blade, "And I'd gladly do it again, if it'd rid us of these barbarians."
"Oh, please let us not go back to that!" I said in a frustrated voice.
"Then it's lucky that it is not in your power to bring her back." Badger said less calmly than usual. "Or are you suggesting we ask this boy to go against Aslan now?" and the shouting started again. "Some of you may have forgotten, but we badgers remember well… that Narnia was never right, unless a Son of Adam was king."
"He's a Talmarian! Why would we want him as our king?" The dwarf pestered.
The shouting started again. I had to yell loudly over it, which made my Talmarian accent spark and anger spike.
"For the same reason that you had chosen me to be your princess and my mother to be your queen long ago…" I looked at him, sure of what he was going to say.
"Because I can help you." He stated, giving me a thankful look again.
"It's a trick!" My head snapped to the voice, singling out an ox. I gave him my mother's stare, which was motherly, but all the same controlling.
"Let him speak." I commanded in a voice that both my parents would be proud of. They all went silent.
I looked up at him again. He seemed shocked at my tone of voice. But nevertheless, he stared out into the crowd like a trained speaker and began to slowly convince them.
"Beyond these woods, I am a prince. The Talmarian throne is rightfully mine. Help me claim it, and I can bring peace between us."
A centaur sauntered forward. "It is true. The time is ripe… I watch the skies, for it is mine to watch, as it is yours to remember, badger… Tarva, the lord of victory, and Alambil, the lady of peace." He looked at me and Caspian, insinuating that we were the lord and lady. It sort of made sense. We could join in an alliance, and bring victory and peace, "have aligned in the high heavens. And now here, a Son of Adam has come forth, to offer us freedom and wants his victory… and we have our lady of peace… Lady Serena. When joined in an alliance, these two could bring us peace." We looked at each other. Everyone seemed to be processing the thought of us in an alliance. I looked back at the centaur, who seemed intrigued by how we looked at each other.
"Is this possible? Do you really think there could be peace?" A squirrel in the nearby tree babbled. "Do you? I mean, I mean really?"
"Two days ago," Caspian said to the squirrel. "I did not believe in the existence of talking animals… or dwarves… or centaurs…" he looked at me for the longest time, "Or witches… yet here you are." He said it more to me, before snapping his gaze away. "In strength and numbers that we Talmarians could never have imagined. Whether this horn is magical or not, it brought us together. And together, we have the chance to take back what is ours." He said fiercely, straight at me and the centaur. He clutched the horn in his fist.
The centaur looked valiantly at him. "If you, Prince Caspian… and you, Princess Serena… will lead us, then my sons and I… offer you our swords." He ripped his sword from its place on his belt. It made that oh so familiar sound of metal scraping. The other centaurs followed their commander's lead, taking out their swords and holding it out in front of them. The oxen eventually joined in, and everyone surrounding the two of us.
"And we offer you our lives… unreservedly." The mouse said, in a more serious tone than I had ever heard come out of his mouth.
The badger came closer to us. "Miraz's army will not be far behind, your highnesses."
"If we are to be ready for them," Caspian started. "Then we will need to hurry to find soldiers and weapons."
He looked to the centaur. "I am sure they will be here soon."
With that we all dissipated to sleep for the night.
I decided to pick a spot near a tree, resting my back against the hard trunk. This was something normal for me. Everyone around me was already snoring, especially the dwarves and centaurs.
"Mind if I steal this spot?" Caspian asked me.
"Not at all," I answered, moving over a bit. Well this felt a little strange. I leaned my head back, nodding off to sleep to the sound of all the Narnians around me.