Journey of Trust | A Narnian Story

Chapter 19 | Suspicions

In the following week, nothing happens; nothing out of the ordinary picture of a tame sea, the sky, and occasional clouds. At least, the blue of the sea and the sky vary from time to time. The crew goes about the daily work which is – plainly said – not much these days as the wind does most of it to keep the Dawn Treader moving. The kings and queen as well as their cousin and Luna who can't help much around the ship are doomed to boredom. The two young women don't have a problem with it. Lucy reads a lot, Luna and Eustace join her often, or she sews and is forced to participate in the occasional training lessons. The latter is mainly pursued by Luna who makes use of the spare time and the lack of other manual labour. Caspian and Edmund join in, and, after a few days of sulking over his sore muscles, Eustace is brought to come along as well. Reepicheep works with the boy a lot. Turns out, the blond is a quick learner. However, his body isn't as quick as his mind – strength needs time to develop.

Training, reading, playing chess, and helping out here and there isn't enough to keep the Just King busy for long. Out of the royals, he's the most restless – out of the six friends, Reep would surpass him. Having always been kind of mischievous, an idea strikes him. Edmund broods about it no full day until the first prank is devised. Wasting no time, he proceeds to execute his plan. Poor Anaru is the first victim. The young sailor is on deck-scrubbing-duty and finds that the soap is gone. Rynelf and the older jack-tars tease him about it while Edmund snickers to himself in a corner, knowing exactly where the soap has disappeared to. Around lunch, Rynelf complains that his soup tastes funny and asks Jaro, the chef, what on the seven seas he has put in there. The men laugh and tease both of them until Jaro takes Rynelf's bowl to taste it. He can't believe his own soup would taste 'funny'. It really does and Jaro leaves for the kitchen, grumbling to himself about an unthankful lot. So, he doesn't witness Rynelf's hiccup where bubbles pop out of his mouth – and his nose – twice. For once, it isn't the ship's first mate to joke around and 'play jester' as Drinian puts it. Rynelf is a good lad, a good sailor too, who likes to tease others but doesn't think himself too good to laugh about himself either. So, that meal contains a lot of laughter, and after overcoming his surprise, Rynelf laughs with everyone.

In the afternoon, Jaro gave up thinking about the soup incident. Maybe Anaru didn't wash up well and some soap was accidentally left in the bowl. Unfortunately, Edmund misses the look on the ship's cook's face as he finds the soap between his potatoes, missing a small part.

In the evening, Caspian grows suspicious of his friend's behaviour. Edmund kept to himself today, always on his feet around the ship. That isn't far from the usual if it weren't for the sneaking part. The King of Old seems focused on something, maybe deep in thought? No, then he wouldn't need to look over his shoulder like someone who is up to something. The current King of Narnia decides to lay low and wait, for now. He needs to tend to some papers anyway. With a shrug he pushes away from the railing and heads to his study. On the way over the main deck, his gaze travels up to the crow's nest. Two set of feet dangle over the edge. He cranes his neck to get a better look. There, Elrik and Luna sit, talking and laughing together. As the sailor says something, a grin spreads over her lips. Caspian feels something hot in his chest, averting his gaze for a moment to swallow. His brow is creased as he looks up again briefly. It's good to see her so carefree, no doubt, still Caspian wishes he could joke around with her like that – just like they used to before he became king. He values the friendship Luna and he share, but sometimes it seems like sand trickling through his fingers – lesser and lesser left of it. However, that's not entirely true; they share an indelible history, went through thick and thin together and will always share a strong bond. Over time, that seems to be not enough anymore. It isn't a reprehensible feeling at all, maybe it was to be expected as they fit together so well – completing each other here and softening edges there. Caspian realised that long ago, so did Luna. For a short time, that was alright and wonderful, and they slowly approached each other, just to be ripped apart by duty and decorum as he was crowned king, and she was given the responsibility to watch over his life. They adjusted to it, only for the feelings to resurface now. Caspian isn't sure if she feels the same way and he's afraid to ask. Since the unexpected ending of their fight a few days ago, he had to think about it all. Luna and he didn't talk much, both a little inhibited, that gave him the time he needed. The fight alone wasn't what made him question every interaction they shared lately, the harmless flirting – yes, admittedly – their gazes and gestures, every detail really. He had to listen into himself to realise it started much earlier; the feast on the Lone Islands played a role, but maybe it never wasn't there.