Lost boy || Prince Caspian

25

Caspian and Otto had just managed to finally separate, after a good ten minutes floating in the sea and exchanging muttered words and kisses while the crew brought the saved narnians on board, and climb back on board when a voice called from the other side of the ship. A familiar voice that no one had heard in several weeks. Immediately Edmund, who had been teasing Otto and Caspian for being so 'gross', and Lucy hurried to the edge of the deck. "I'm down here!" The voice called again as Otto followed. He stuck his head over the edge and his face lit up with a grin. 

"Eustace!" Lucy exclaimed in delight. Eustace was treading water in the turquoise blue beneath them. He was human once again, blonde hair glinting in the sun and blue eyes crinkling as he grinned at them. It was the happiest Otto had ever seen the boy look. The perpetual scowl and fear that the boy had worn before now gone and replaced with joy and pride. 

"I'm a boy again! Look! I'm a boy!" He splashed his arms around to prove his point and Edmund laughed. 

"Eustace!" Reepicheep scurried over from where he had been hanging in the rigging. "I see your wings have been clipped!" The mouse declared as he let out a gleeful laugh and threw himself into the water. Otto chuckled as he tried to dry his wet hair. Caspian leant on his shoulder as the mouse bobbed to there surface and they watched him begin to sing. "Where the sky and water meet. Where the waves grow ever sweet". Suddenly the mouse paused and Eustace pressed wet fingers to his mouth. "It's sweet," Reepicheep stated. "It's sweet!"

Lucy and Caspian both chuckled in amusement, thinking that it was just a joke, but Otto looked up and his eyes caught something on the horizon. He squinted and lifted on hand to block the sun from his eyes. "Look", he pointed and the others glanced up. In the distance was a white line that seemed to blend the sky and the sea together. 

"Aslan's country", Caspian straightened as his face fell into one of recognition. "We must be close". 

"Well", Edmund shot them all a grin. "We've come this far". 

"Might as well go a tiny bit further", Otto added with a smile. He and Caspian both shared a look and then the king was turning around. 

"Prepare a boat! Drinian, you get the crew and the people settled and see to the wounded. We are going to Aslan's country". 

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It did not take long to prepare a boat. The sun was warm on them as they made their way across the water. The sea was as calm as glass and as they are closer, a blanket of white met them. Hundreds of white flowers that Otto recognised, but could not recall the name of, floated on the surface. They parted easily for the rowboat and drew close behind them so it looked like they were sailing over a cloud. Caspian and Edmund rowed while Otto sat at the helm. All three men had removed their leather armour but still held swords at their waists. Lucy, Eustace and Reepicheep sat at the back of the boat. The three of them watching the flowers in silent wonder. The air around them content and not needing words. All the children from England could feel it and judging by how Caspian kept glancing at Otto, he was beginning to feel it too. 

"So what was it like when Aslan changed you back?" Edmund broke the silence, the oars making gentle splashes as he and Caspian rowed. 

"It was weird because not matter how hard I tried, I couldn't do it myself", Eustace replied. He sounded far more relaxed than he had been before, more confident and sure of himself. Lost was the snotty  anxious brat that Otto had first met in England. It was fascinating to see the change Narnia had on his character. The boy seemed more himself than he had ever been and watching it made Otto wonder about the ways this world had changed him. Narnia had a way of exposing the inner qualities of a person. It had centred him much more than he had ever expected. He was far more comfortable with himself than he had ever been in England. Caspian had helped too.

Eustace frowned as he tried to explain the experience. "It sort of hurt, but it was a good pain. You know, like when you pull a thorn from your foot. Being a dragon wasn't all bad. I think I was a better dragon then I was a boy really". Eustace turned as Lucy patted his shoulder and sent his cousin a small smile. "I'm so sorry for being such a sop".

"It's okay Eustace", Edmund grinned. "You were a pretty good dragon". Caspian chuckled as the blonde flushed with satisfied pride. 

"My friends", Reepicheep called gently. "We have arrived". Beyond the flowers was a white line of sand, the sea lapping gently on the gold. The sand did not stretch far, nothing more than twenty metres before it met water again. Otto stared as the boat gently came to rest on the shore without so much as a thud. Towering over them was a wave twelve feet high, the very tip cresting white and glinting off the sky. It hung as a wall over the sand, never falling yet the water still moved. 

Reepicheep was out of the boat first. Otto and Lucy following shortly backed by the others. Caspian was staring in awe at the never falling water, watching the deep blues and greens ebb and flow as the wave swirled. As the wee rose and fell slightly at the top, they could catch glimpses of lands beyond. White cliffs and dots of greenery. Curiosity was strong as it brought them closer. All of them striding in a line towards the wave. It was Eustace who first noticed the return of a old friend. "Aslan", he greeted. Otto turned. The lion, who he had not seen since Caspian's coronation, was walking across the sand towards them. He was just as magnificent and regal as he remembered, yet there was a gentleness about him that put them at ease. 

"Welcome children", Aslan seemed to smile at them fondly as he stopped between them and the wave. "Very well indeed. You have come far, and now your journey is at it's end". His voice was calm and deep yet there was a rising anxiousness in Otto's throat. He swallowed. 

"Is this your country?" Lucy asked. 

"No, my country lies beyond", Aslan turned his head in the direction of the wave and the tantalising glimpses of land past the water. Caspian was watching the water with dark eyes and an unreadable gaze. The sun glinting off his hair as a gentle breeze played with the strands.

"Is my father in your country?" He voiced quietly. 

"You can only find that out for yourself, my son", Aslan answered gently. "But you should know that if you continue, there is no return". 

unedited