With Courage [Prince Caspian]

Chapter 15

So... I'm weak. I wrote this in one sitting and it may be my favourite thing from this entire story and I just had to get it up ASAP. (If you're reading this after it's completed then for context: I'm uploading this 5 hours after chapter 15) It's just one scene with a focus on Caspian but I had to get it up. And now, since it's almost 2am, I think I'll sleep. 

Following a concise recap by Caspian of the task they were to complete, told in such a clear, calm tone that Amber was especially taken aback by given the contents of the discussion, the Dawn Treader crew gave a reluctant farewell to Ramandu's island and tried not to view their feast as a dead man's last meal.

They returned to the ship in silence. After setting sail for Dark Island to retrieve the final sword, newly joined by Eustace who had been caught up on the new developments by Reepicheep perched on his snout, men strode through the ship with faux confidence, assembling armour, sharpening weapons, and keeping their eyes firmly away from their sinister fate despite the green hand digging claws into their jaws and trying to force their gaze.

Caspian and Edmund prepared in the office and watched Ramandu's Island shrink through the bay windows, the stars in the sky smothered one by one by a thick cloud of grey. When the latter left with Caspian's bequeathed sword, he took a moment to wonder how his simple quest had changed so drastically. He knew bringing peace to Narnia in the first three years of his reign would not mean peace across all lands, or believed the achievement to be eternally binding, but he had hoped for the journey to be one of hope, adventure, and roaring success. Though it hadn't been all bad. After all, he and the crew had rid Narrowhaven of the slave traders, and are in the process of returning their lost citizens, he got to reunite with Edmund and Lucy, and met –

Knock knock.

He smiled, seeing her silhouette through the glass door.

"Come in."

Amber entered with a wary grin and hovered near the door. "I saved you some cake." She held up a small parcel.

"I'm afraid I'm not hungry." He smiled softly and watched her eyebrows raise sceptically, walking further into the room.

"Are you sure? Nothing like a bit of sugar to get you ready for a fight." She unwrapped the cake and waved it under his nose before breaking off a piece for herself.

There was a glint in her eye that he had come to recognise over time.

Caspian sighed and leaned against the table, securing his hands to the edge as to hide the minor tremble that had begun with each inch of the Dark Island's grasp they sunk into. "Should I waste my breath trying to convince you to stay below deck?"

He swiped a finger over the icing, thinking back to Redhaven of the Seven Isles and their deliciously sweet pastries and his heart ached at the thought that he would never be able to show them to her. The creamy religieuse and soft maamouls. But the tulumbas... He knew they would be her favourites, she savoured the meals they adorned with lemon more than any. They could have danced in the village square afterwards to a bard's tune, let the village kids weave flowers into their hair. There was so much for her to see.

Amber smiled and nudged his shoulder. "You could deplete all the oxygen on board and it wouldn't be enough for me to change my mind."

"I thought as much." He nodded, taking a final moment to appreciate the resolve in her eyes. He didn't know if it would be there again. Their march into Dark Island was feeling more final by the second, but he wasn't ready to say goodbye. Not yet. Not now.

He strode to the wardrobe and removed a wooden box lined in gold, placing it on the table gently.

"What are you doing?" Amber asked.