"when the rhythm starts to play, dance with me, make me sway"

-

FIVE.

CADY'S ITCH FOR THE OCEAN HEIGHTENED AS PETER ROWED THE GROUP DOWN THE LAKE. Trumpkin guides the way as they follow current through the woods. Cady places a hand in the water and wishes for the burning sensation to leave. Edmund sits beside her, his leg bobbing up and down restlessly.

"They're so still," Lucy comments, gazing around the quiet forest.

"They're trees. What'd you expect?" Trumpkin replies with a deadpan.

"They used to dance," Lucy says sadly.

Trumpkin looks at Cady pointedly when he responds, "Wasn't long after you left that the Telmarines invaded."

"Those who survived retreated to the woods. And the trees, they retreated so deep into themselves that they haven't been heard from since," he adds.

"I don't understand. How could Aslan have let this happen?" Lucy questions. Cady's urge to throw a history book at the young girl grows as Lucy fires question after question nonstop.

"Aslan? He's real?" There is so much hope in Cady's voice when she turns to Edmund.

Edmund nods, a shadow of a smile on his face, "He's glorious and so, so radiant."

Trumpkin snorts. "Aslan? Thought he abandoned us when you lot did."

"We didn't mean to leave, you know," Peter answers after a long pause.

Trumpkin avoids the Pevensies' gaze and stares off into the distance, "Makes no difference now, does it?"

"Get us to the Narnians, and it will," Peter states in a matter-of-fact way.

Cady's legs wobble when they arrive at the shore, everything in her yearns for the feeling of submerging into the ocean. It is absolute agony yet there is a sense of relie f in her. At that moment, only Caspian matters, she has to get to Caspian.

Trumpkin jumps off and anchors the boat into the rocky sand. The rest of them follow, and Susan helps Edmund and Peter pull the boat further into the shore.

Lucy wanders off on her own, having spotted a giant black bear in the far end of the beach. "Hello, there!"

Cady looks over at her, watching as the young girl continues to speak to the creature, walking towards it without a sense of caution. "It's alright, we're friends."

The black bear lets out a loud grunt, making its way over to them.

"Don't move, your majesty!" Trumpkin shouts at Lucy, taking his bow and arrows from his quiver. The bear starts bounding towards the young girl and Cady immediately grabs her dagger, already running forwards to protect the girl.

"Stay away from her!" Susan shouts from behind, her bow and arrow at the ready.

Lucy stumbles a few paces before the bear, falling onto the ground with a terrified scream.

"Shoot, Susan! Shoot!" Cady can hear Edmund's shouts from behind her.

Cady makes a move to dive in front of Lucy, shielding the girl as she brings her dagger upwards, slashing the bear without hesitation. Blood splatters across her dress and there is a sharp whoosh sailing across the air. When she looks up, Cady finds an arrow lodged itself into the bear and snaps her head up to find Trumpkin in an archer's stance.

"Why wouldn't he stop?" Susan asks, worry lacing her tone.

Cady helps Lucy up, saying, "I suspect he was hungry."

The young girl stumbles away and into Peter's waiting arms, clutching to her older brother in dear life while Cady steps forward.

"Thanks," Lucy utters, her voice shaking.

Edmund stands at a safe distance away from them, sword drawn to protect Lucy. "He was wild."

"I don't think he could talk at all," Peter says.

Trumpkin joins Cady before the bear, poking the creature with his bow. "Get treated like a dumb animal long enough, that's what you become."

"I'm sorry," Cady whispers. She kneels down, cutting her blade into the bear's chest and twisting it, giving the creature a quick, less painful death.

"You may find Narnia a more savage place than you remember," Trumpkin states.

Lucy turns her face into Peter's torso and lets out a painful sob.

Cady leaves Trumpking to skin the bear and the Kings and Queens wait aside while she washes off the blood on her dress by the water.

"Princess," Peter crouches down beside the blonde. An easy smile etches across his face and for a moment, Cady thinks that maybe she is hearing something deeper than fondness.

"Your Majesty," Cady replies, scrubbing aggressively at her dress and her sleeves, rubbing the blood out before it can stain the garment.

"I just want to say thank you for saving Lu." The High King smiles.

Cady looks at him with a grin."No worries, your Majesty."

"Call me Peter, Princess." He waves his hand casually.

"As long as you stick to calling me Cady, your Majesty." Cady's grin widens. Their shoulders bump against each other and Cady dissolves into a fit of giggles when Peter loses his balance, falling backwards with a pout. The High King brings himself forward and moves to splash water at the girl.

"Hey!" Cady pulls a face playfully. She splashes him back, the bloodstains on her dress long forgotten.

A shadow casts over the two and Cady looks up at Edmund, his figure blocking out the sun from behind him. "Hey, we're good to go," The brunet shoots them a dirty look.

Peter shrugs. "Let's go."

The group venture into the woods, climbing up the hill and walking through the trees. Cady twirls a stray lock of her hair worriedly. She hasn't heard from Caspian in days, even with Trumpkin's reassurance that he is in good hands with Nikabrik and Trufflehunter, Cady can never be sure about what things her brother will do on his own. Cady may be more troublesome than Caspian, but their parents used to call them wildcards, two peas in a pod that can get into some royally crazy situations.

Cady is so buried into her thoughts that she missed a step on the stairs, barely toppling over if not for Edmund grabbing her just in time. "Thank you," Cady says breathlessly, moving to stand up.

"Are you alright, princess?" Edmund asks, falling into step with her as they continue to follow Peter at the back of the group.

"Just worried about Caspian, your Majesty," Cady replies with a nod. Her hair is a mess, the long plaits and small braids in her golden waves are loosened through the days of journey, and Cady resorts to retying them to pass the time.

Edmund smiles, "It's Ed and you don't have to worry, Caspian will be safe with the Narnians by now. Plus, you're with us now."

"You mean, lost in the woods with you guys now," Cady giggles as they venture through a rocky path in the forest.

He sighs, shaking his head, "Anyway, how do you know this Caspian?"

"He's my brother," Cady grins, glad to be talking about her brother. She doesn't know what she is going to do without him.

Edmund arches an eyebrow teasingly, "Your brother? You talk about him like he's your lover."

"That's disgusting," Cady shakes her head, unable to contain the playful disdain that etches across her face. "I love him but no, ew."

Edmund's attempt at masking his grin only results in a weird contort of his face that causes Cady to burst into a brilliant smile, catching the boy off guard.

"I don't remember this way," Susan's confused voice sails through the woods clearly.

"That's the problem with girls," Peter says. "You can't carry a map in your heads."

Lucy snorts, speaking back quickly, "That's because our heads have something in them."

"I wish he'd just listen to the DLF in the first place," Susan mutters to Lucy, loud enough for everyone to hear. It is a sharp dig at their older brother but Peter pretends to not hear Susan's comment.

"DLF?" Edmund scrunches up his face in bewilderment.

Lucy beams, nodding at Trumpkin, and says, "Dear Little Friend."

Cady throws her head back to laugh, shooting a glance at the dwarf and making a gesture about his height. Trumpkin glares back at her and Cady shrugs.

The dwarf sighs, catching up with Lucy, "Oh, that's not at all patronising, is it?"

When they emerge into a well-lit cavern in the middle of the woods, Peter pauses to stare at the fork in the path within the rocks. "I'm not lost," the High King reassures himself.

"It's good to have self-confidence, your Majesty," Cady says, patting his shoulder teasingly.

"No, you're just going the wrong way," Trumpkin adds.

Peter immediately perks up to argue, "You last saw Caspian at the Shuddering Woods, and the quickest way there is to cross the River Rush."

"But unless I'm mistaken, there's no crossing in these parts," Trumpkin replies calmly.

Peter frowns, "That explains it, then. You're mistaken."