𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐂𝐄 𝐂𝐀𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐀𝐍 || 𝐧𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐚 [ I ]

Chapter 29

"I believe we're almost there," called Muriel from over her shoulder at Reepicheep and Caspian. The princess was riding a couple of feet ahead of them, anxious and in a hurry to get to the place Aslan had shown her in the pond. "We must be close," mumbled the young woman to herself as she turned her gaze to the road ahead of her, "I recognize it here."

She'd been riding ahead and leading them further down the main road for some time now. Still, there was no sign of the big oak tree, a small path or even one of the steeples from the castle. Yet something in the back of her mind told Muriel that they were nearing the place where the Telmarines had set up their camp. She'd often passed that part whenever she had tried running away from the castle so maybe it was her conscious telling her she was going the right way. It was almost a bit ironic actually. It had always been her conscious telling her that running away was wrong and that her parents would scold her, but now she was glad she hadn't listened. It was because of her adventurous and stubborn nature that she could now recognize this place.

However, even though they were nearing the camp, they hadn't heard or seen anything and there hadn't been any signs of Telmarines yet. Muriel wasn't sure if that made her happy or nervous.

These two emotions were pushing an pulling at each other, like two magnets trying to attract each other with the wrong side. When they followed one last bend in the road every emotion was suddenly put on hold when for a moment Muriel was sure that this was the place. Her breath got stuck in her throat and she halted her horse immediately. Caspian and Reepicheep stopped beside her, the former asking her if they were there. But one good look around the area and Muriel sighed.

"No, no," she mumbled, "I'm sorry. It's not here." She let her eyes look up at the sky. It felt like she'd sighed a thousand times already, but she did so again. Her hope was crumbling and her patience was running out. How long would it take? Was what Aslan had shown her really there? Had it all been a part of her imagination? She had been really tired so that could've been as possibility. What if there was no-

A hand was gently placed onto her arm

Her gaze rested on the hand before trailing to the eyes of the owner. Caspian met her downhearted look with a reassuring smile as he softly squeezed her arm. The warmth that spread from his fingers left a comforting feeling, flowing through the rest of her body. Her body relaxed at his touch.

"Don't worry," he tried to comfort her, "you know these parts better than anyone. We'll get there."

"We'd better go on then."

Muriel shot him a quick smile, but Caspian knew it was forced and not genuine at all. He couldn't blame her though, she was clearly frustrated and upset about the whole situation. But seeing Muriel fidget with her reins, so much that her horse was beginning to get annoyed too, all Caspian wanted to do was take her hands in his and comfort her. To be honest, he was getting a bit uneasy himself and seeing Reepicheep's ears move more than usual made clear that he wasn't feeling so good either.

Muriel had noticed his moving ears as well. She shared a look with Caspian before adressing his frantic state.

"Is everything alright, Reep?"

"I thought I heard something..."

"A human?," butted Caspian in, just as on edge as the other two, "or just a wild animal?"

"I don't know, Sire." The mouse looked around again, this time also using his snout, but whatever he thought he had heard was too far away to smell. "Maybe it's best to ride on?"

"Maybe," said Muriel. "We are close, maybe we should try to reach the path before anyone notices us?"

"I think it would be wiser to scout the area." Caspian rubbed his neck. He might've been the King of Narnia, but he still found it difficult to speak his mind. The heated discussion with Peter back in the How crossed his mind, but he knew better now. He also felt more comfortable sharing his thoughts and feelings with Muriel, but there was always this unexplainable nervousness when he did. Her opinion of his thoughts and ideas mattered to him, but it soothed his nerves to know that she would listen to them, see things from his perspective and try to come up with a plan together. "If anyone would follow us the path wouldn't be much of a secret anymore..."