SMOKE SIGNALS

The First Night

Cahira wished she had spent more time outside of the castle before she had been forced to leave. Her life at home was had been beautiful enough, but the wilderness that surrounded them now was... near indescribable. It was evening now; the sun had faded behind the trees and bathed the sky and trees in rich orange light. They had decided to stop for the night in order to set up camp before they lost all light entirely.

"Anyone hungry for dinner?" Trumpkin grunted as he sat next to the fire they had prepared, pulling his bag open to reveal what Cahira could only assume was bear meat from earlier that day.

From the way Lucy wrinkled her nose, it was obvious she had come to the same conclusion. "I think I'm alright, actually."

When no one else spoke up to ask for a share of the food, the dwarf looked up. "Don't tell me you're all that picky."

"I'll try some," Edmund volunteered after a moment.

Trumpkin nodded as the dark haired boy stepped forward, poised to help with preparation. Cahira took another look at the meat. It was a red so dark it was almost purple. She suppressed a shiver.

"I think I might try to find some berries... or other plants." Cahira and Lucy sat up as Susan spoke. "If any of you would like to come with me."

"Suit yourselves."

Peter looked up at the girls as they made to leave the camp. His eye caught Cahira's, and for a moment it looked as though he was going to join them.

"Pete, can you find some kind of long stick? We've got to build a spit."

His eyes lingered on her for a moment more before he turned to face his brother. Cahira found her cheeks warming, though she couldn't place why. She ducked her head as she followed Susan and Lucy into the trees.

"So," said the youngest after a few minutes, "what was it like? Back with the Telmarines?"

"Very typical," she sighed. "I never got to do many fun things. Lots of etiquette lessons, studying, embroidery- though I did enjoy that. Riding. I had fun when I learned to fight, but my aunt put a stop to those lessons. Most of the time I felt like I was in some weird limbo. Too old to be the worriless little princess, but too young for my uncle to marry me off just yet."

As she spoke, Lucy bent to gather a handful of bright blue berries from a slender bush.

"Marry you off?" Susan asked, incredulous. "But aren't you in line for the throne?"

Cahira snorted. "I'm afraid they're not very open to the idea of a woman on the throne. Our family isn't called the Caspian Dynasty for nothing- my brother is the tenth. If you want to get technical about it, I'm even older than him by a few minutes."

"No way!" Lucy stood up straight with eyes wide, nearly dropping the fruit in her hands. "They can't just skip you over like that!"

She shrugged. "I'm not even sure if I'd want to be queen. I just don't like that I don't have any choice in the matter. But then again, neither does Caspian."

The two sisters were silent for a moment. Cahira clapped her hands. "Anyway. Who wants to talk about the line of succession anyways. I'm starving."

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Cahira and Caspian sat at the top of the dais in the castle banquet hall. Of course they were- they were the guests of honor tonight. Their fourteenth birthdays, two years prior. Cahira leaned back in her chair, gaze sweeping across the crowds of people chatting and eating before she looked at her brother.

"When I was your age-" she began.

Cahira didn't finish her sentence before Caspian took a fistful of her hair, trying to drive her head into the mashed potatoes on her plate. She was able to resist, barely, and retaliated with a punch to his thigh, middle knuckle out.