𝐔𝐍𝐓𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐃 || Tirian of Narnia

Chapter Six: Harbinger

A/N: I know I say this a lot, but thank you SO MUCH to everyone who has reviewed and commented on this story! Reviews genuinely mean the entire world to me, so please do leave your thoughts if ever you have any!

I started outlining Untamed back in December of 2020 (back when it was only supposed to be a standalone, lol), so it's just crazy to me that it really exists now and people actually like it. This is a dream come true in the best possible way!

Love you all the most~

xXx

CHAPTER SIX: HARBINGER

The stars were fading by the time Tirian finally collapsed onto a stiff blanket on the forest floor, the Narnian earth a welcome relief after hours of stone in the dark.

The journey back to the Shribble had felt even longer, if it were possible, than the journey in, even though they were no longer forced to be cautious and had likely halved their afternoon time.

Hosha said he would be happy never to see another rock again, and that was the last thing Tirian heard before the heavy shroud of sleep claimed him.

He woke to glaring daylight piercing the canopy of branches overhead, and rolled over with a groan, dislodging Cinder from atop his chest and bumping into Hosha who mumbled something indignant in his sleep.

The Cat bolted into the low branches of the nearest tree and pinned Tirian with a glare of betrayal.

"Sorry," he mumbled, "Maybe get your own bed."

Cinder licked his paw and stubbornly said nothing.

Tirian ran both hands over his face and stayed buried there for several minutes, hiding from the painful brilliance of the sun as he tried and failed to crawl back into his long-forgotten dream.

"You'll need a better internal clock if you want to be any kind of woodsman," said Gareth, blotting out the light for a moment as he stepped over the boys and Tirian squinted up at him, the lord carrying rolled up mats and buckling them back into their bags. "Everyone else is ready to go whenever you are."

"How?" moaned Hosha, apparently only half asleep, and secretly Tirian had to echo the sentiment.

But eventually the two of them sat up, with a great deal of groaning and eye rubbing, and hauled themselves to their feet to shake the earth from their leaf-strewn blankets and roll them up tight again.

As he gazed around in the late morning light, Tirian realized they really hadn't come far from the river last night, and he could still see it rushing just beyond the edge of the forest.

The horses were all saddled and waiting when they emerged, and Gareth herded the boys over to mount up as soon as they'd tied off their packs.

Cinder followed, leaping up in front of Tirian as he hoisted himself into the saddle, and Hosha brought his horse around to ride beside him the moment they started moving.

The fresh green scenery and the voices of the other men woke Tirian up the rest of the way, and he gazed at the passing forest until his eyes landed on Hosha, and noticed for the first time the bandages wrapped around the heels of his wrists.

"What happened there?"

"What? Oh." Hosha lifted his hand and twisted it around so Tirian could see the scrape that extended up the side of his pinkie. "Just where I broke my fall. It's not bad or anything, but Father didn't want it to get infected."

The image of the giant flashed into Tirian's head, reeling back and flinging Hosha to the jagged ground. "Hey, how did you get that thing to drop you, anyway?"