The High Queen of Narnia

Chapter 26

Something that always made Elodie not get cold feet about staying in Narnia was the stars. Without all the light pollution, it was an endless spattering of stars across the sky, whole galaxies seeming to be visible. It was a truly magical sight. However, that night as she lay on the ground with Caspian's coat draped over her body, she heard him tell Edmund about his wish as a boy. That he'd follow the stars as he sailed to the end of the world to find his father there and Edmund had said that now he might be able to do that. And it made her nervous. Almost all of the books and stories she'd read about visits to an afterlife or the end of the world usually described them as a one-way trip. The heroes didn't tend to come back. If that was the case, she didn't know what she would do if Caspian left her. It was a possibility she hadn't even considered. One she didn't want to consider as Caspian came to rest beside her and she curled into him.

And it was a worry that didn't fade as Lucy roused them all awake the next morning, the sun barely shining.

"What is it?!" she heard Reep exclaim as her eyes fluttered open.

"Lu, what's wrong?" she asked as she sat up, Caspian's coat still covering the both of them.

"It's the blue star! It's the blue star!" she cheered as the mouse woke the dragon and sure enough, above the horizon line just as the sky was starting to lighten up, was a shimmering blue orb.

"Alright, everyone up. We have to set sail immediately. We don't know how long that star will be there," Elodie instructed as they all got up and moving.

"But, queen Elodie, what about the dragon?" Rhince asked.

"What about him?"

"It's just that the captain said he's not to come on board," Rhince replied and Elodie's smile was wicked as she dusted herself off.

"Even if I did take orders from Drinian, Eustace won't be on the ship."

"I'm sorry, milady, but I don't understand," Rhince continued.

"He's a dragon, Mr Rhince," Caspian spoke as he began shrugging his coat back on. "He'll fly."

And with a nod, they made their way back to the ship, stirring everyone from their slumber as they set sail after the blue star. However, as the sun drifted into the middle of the sky they encountered a problem that they probably didn't have a solution to.

"The wind has left us," Drinian explained as they looked to the rolled-up sail and they could hear the men bellowing below decks as they manned the oars.

"So how do we get to Ramandu's island now then?" Edmund asked.

"My guess is something doesn't want us to get there," Drinian voiced as he proceeded to walk about the sip.

"If I get any hungrier, I'm going to eat that dragon," one of the sailors grumbled.

And said dragon growled as Reepicheep sat atop his head and tried to keep him calm.

"If you men are going to keep whining like a bunch of children - actually, I take that back because we have a child on board and even she isn't complaining as much as you two, so let me rephrase. If you men don't stop whining like the men you are, you'll be fed to the dragon who I'm sure is just as hungry as you are," Elodie threatened and the two sailors promptly hung their heads.

"Apologies, your highness," they muttered in unison as the queen simply rolled her eyes at the sound of her husband's laughter.

"I think you were right about humans being my forte," he chuckled as she resumed her place by his side.

"As annoying as my family can be, they're still my family, and I'll defend them till my dying breath," she reasoned and Caspian wrapped an arm around her as he rubbed her bicep, her head falling onto his shoulder.