♘

         "EDMUND, LUCY!" Dorothy called out as her siblings and Eustace came to the surface, gasping for air. She sighed in relief, knowing they were ok. 

"What's happening?" Eustace asked with a frantic look on his face. "Where are we?"

Dorothy turned around when she saw a shadow falling over them. Her eyes widened as she looked at the ship and turned to Eustace.

"Eustace, swim!" she exclaimed, grabbing his arm and helping him. "Eustace, come on!"

Edmund and Lucy, who turned when they heard their sister cry out to Eustace, looked up at the ship in shock before swimming as well. They all tried to ignore Eustace as he continued to ask where they were and let him have his mental breakdown. Four splashes were heard from behind them and as Dorothy continued to swim as she tried to gasp for air, she felt someone grab her from behind.

"It's all right!" a familiar voice reassured her. "I've got you!"

Dorothy whipped around in fright, but when she saw Caspian's face, she became grateful to see her old friend again.

"Caspian!" she exclaimed with a wide smile that reached her ears.

"Ginny!" Caspian smiles back.

"Edmund, Lucy, it's Caspian!" 

Lucy and Edmund both stopped swimming and turned around, noticing that their younger sister was in Caspian's secured arms as he helped her swim to the ship. Three other men were swimming towards them to help them.

"It's alright, children," a young man reassured as he approached them calmly. "You're safe now."

"Are we in Narnia?" Edmund asked to make sure that they were in Narnia.

Another man laughed as he grabbed onto Lucy to help her. "Yes, you're in Narnia," he replied as he helped Lucy.

"I don't want to go! I want to go back to England!" Eustace cried as he tried to get out of another man's arms. "I'm going back to England!"

As the three men helped the three younger teens, Caspian helped Dorothy onto the lift, placing an arm around her waist. One of Dorothy's arms held on tight to the rope while the other was holding on to Caspian's waist as the lift was raised out of the water. Caspian's men who were still on the ship pulled the lift towards the boat and Caspian helped Dorothy get on.

"That was thrilling!" she giggled as a towel was wrapped around her shoulder.

"How in the world did you end up here?" Caspian asked with a teasing smile as he led the teen towards the front of the ship.

"I have no idea."

"Caspian!"

Caspian and Dorothy turned around, seeing that Lucy and Edmund had boarded the ship with the help of Caspian's men. Caspian smiled at Dorothy before heading over to Lucy and Edmund as he was given some towels for them.

"Edmund, Lucy!" he greeted, wrapping a towel around Lucy and handing the other to Edmund.

"It's so great to see you," Edmund greeted with a smile.

"It's great to see you, too," Caspian says back as he and Edmund share a brotherly hug.

"Didn't you call for us?" Lucy asked as they approached Dorothy.

Caspian shook his head as his eyebrows furrowed together. "No, not this time," he replied confusingly.

"Well, whatever the case, I'm just glad to be here," Edmund says happily.

A loud, girlish scream caught everyone's attention and they, along with the crew, turned around. While the men watched confusedly, Dorothy shared an eye-roll with her siblings as Eustace complained and struggled. A rat was on top of Eustace as he tried to calm him down.

"Now, calm down, sir," he spoke carefully.

"Get that thing off me!" Eustace continued to frail around on the floor as the crew snickered as Reepicheep was suddenly flung off of Eustace. "Get that thing off me!"

Dorothy watched as her mouse friend rolled towards them. Once he was finished, the noble mouse stood on his feet and looked back at Eustace with a confused look.

"Reepicheep!" Dorothy and Lucy exclaimed.

Reepicheep turned around and when he saw the children standing with Caspain, he bowed to show respect. "You're majesties," he greeted gracefully. Dorothy and Lucy giggled a little as Edmund smiled slightly down at the knight.

"Hello, Reep," he said. "What a pleasure."

"Pleasure's all mine, sir," the noble mouse smiled but then pointed towards Eustace, who was coughing up water. "But first, what to do about this hysterical interloper?"

"That giant rat thing just tried to claw my face off!" Eustace screeched, pointing an accused finger toward Reepicheep.

"I was merely trying to expel the water from your lungs, sir."

Eustace's eyes widened and he gasped as he stood up in shock. "He just talked! Did anyone hear that?! He-- he just talked!" he exclaimed, his eyes flickering to the crew members of the ship.

"He always talked, Eustace," Dorothy told her cousin with a calm smile.

"It's getting him to shut up that's the trick," Caspian joked, earning laughs from the men.

"The moment there is nothing to be said, Your Highness," Reepicheep says, narrowing his eyes at the king, "I promise you, I will not say it."

"I don't know what kind of a prank this is, but I want to wake up right now!" Eustace continued to complain.

"Perhaps we can throw him back?" Reepicheep suggested, looking up at Caspian with a hopeful look.

Lucy and Dorothy shared a look before they turned to Edmund, who had a look that said he agreed with Reepicheep. Dorothy's eyes widened in shock as she nudged her older brother with a look on her face. " Edmund!"

Dorothy turned back to look at Eustace, who began to cry as he walked around the ship. She felt bad for Eustace, as he was scared out of his mind and he wanted to go back home.

"I demand to know just where in the blazes am I?" Eustace screamed at some of the crew members and before either of them could answer, a black minotaur stepped up.

"You're the Dawn Treader," he says to Eustace, who had a pale face as he looked up at the animal, "the finest ship in Narnia's sea."

Dorothy watched as her cousin blinked in shock before he fainted, causing the men to laugh. She sighed as she shared a look with Lucy and Edmund while Caspian walked up to the minotaur, who turned to him with a confused look.

"Was it something I said?"

Caspian glanced down at Eustace for a split second with a smile before glancing back at the minotaur. "See to him, will you?" he ordered.

"Your Majesty," the minotaur responded. As Caspian turned away, the minotaur picked Eustace up with an easy grip before taking him below the deck.

"Men," Caspian announced as he stood on the steps that were close by, "behold our castaways. Edmund the Just, Lucy the Valiant, and Dorothy the Courageous," he introduced them, Lucy and Dorothy, both curtsying with smiles on their faces. "High King and Queens of Narnia."

The men on the ship bowed respectfully to the siblings. Dorothy's smile never left her face as she looked around the ship in awe, feeling happy that she was home again.

♘

"Why do we have to wear these outfits? We look like boys!"

Dorothy lets out a little giggle at her older sister's complaint. Both girls were in Caspian's chamber, getting dressed into the new attire that Caspian had lent them. Dorothy didn't mind that she was wearing boy's clothes though she could tell it bothered Lucy.

"Don't worry, Lucy!" Dorothy beamed as she tied her hair into two low pigtails and looked at Lucy. "I'm sure we rock these outfits better than the men!"

Lucy lets out a giggle. "You're probably right. We do look ten times better than them."

"That's the spirit, Lu! Now, come on. They're probably waiting for us."

The two sisters locked arms with each other before heading outside and sure enough, Edmund and Caspian were both waiting for them.

"Read, Lu, Dot?" Edmund asked from below.

He, too, had changed out of his wet clothes and into another attire that Caspian had lent him. Dorothy hated to admit it but Edmund's attire looked much better than the clothes that Caspian had brought her and her sister. The girls walked down the stairs, joining the two young kings as Caspian gave them both a teasing smile.

"Ah, lads," he began with a teasing glint in his eyes. "I don't suppose you haven't seen two young girls around here anywhere, have you?"

"Alright!" Lucy snapped as she punched Caspian in the arm, feeling more insecure about herself.

"If you're talking about our cousin, he's still down below, passed out," Dorothy joked, causing the other three to laugh at her comment.

' "Come," Caspian smiled at the three as he led them into the captain's quarters. "We have much to discuss."

As Caspian opened the door to the captain's headroom, Dorothy and her siblings looked around in awe. What caught her attention, was the golden plaque of a lion hanging on the wall, instantly reminding her of Aslan.

"Aslan," Dorothy says with a soft voice as she walks closer to it. She placed a hand gently on it as she turned to Caspian, who watched her with a gentle smile on his face. She returned it with one of her own before she continued to look around with her siblings.

"Look," Lucy spoke, and Dorothy turned to see her looking at Susan's bow and arrows, along with her horn. "Susan's bow and arrows."

"And her horn," Dorothy added as she joined Lucy and traced the designs on Susan's horn.

"Lucy," Caspian called to the older sister and they turned around, seeing that he had her dagger and healing cordial.

"My healing cordial. And dagger," Lucy grinned as she walked over. She was about to grab her items but stopped midway and looked up at the King, "Oh, may I?"

"Of course," Caspian smiled amusedly and Lucy took them gleefully. "They're yours."

"Peter's sword," Edmund mused as he walked over to the sword that was pinned to the wall.

Caspian continued to smile as he walked over to Edmund. "Yes. I looked after it as promised," he says as he grabs the sword and hands it over to Edmund. "Here. Hold it, if you wish." ;

"No, no. It's yours. Peter gave it to you," Edmund says and Dorothy can hear the jealousy in his voice. She felt bad for Edmund, as he was always second best, according to himself, that is.

"I did save this for you, though," Caspian grinned. He walked over to the cabinet and took out Edmund's torchlight that he left the last time they were in Narnia.

"Thanks," Dorothy's brother thanked as he caught the torch with ease when Caspian threw it towards him. He turned it on, seeing if it still worked, and blinded himself, causing Dorothy to giggle.

"And Dorothy," Caspian called to the younger girl, causing her to turn to him. She watched as he dug into a chest and took out a ruby ​​red necklace, as well as her dagger. "I believe these belong to you, kiddo."

Dorothy grinned as she walked over to the king and took her items. "Thanks, Caspian," she thanked the older man placed her necklace around her neck, and tied her dagger around her waist.

"You are much welcome," Caspian smiled at the young girl before looking at the other siblings. "Now, let's get down to business, shall we?"

♘

and, after three months, I have finally updated! so sorry for not updating but I do plan to have this story finished by the end of this year. I also recently started working as well and my manager has me working long hours so idk when I will be able to update again but it will be soon.

I am also working on drafts that I plan to publish sometime soon once I have plots and chapters written for them.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!