like being woken up by someone attempting to cut off her oxygen, but then again, she supposed the Professor wouldn't have liked her to scream out, either. In all honesty, it was a strange way to awake someone, and she took a mental note to remind herself to tell him of her disapproval of his strange tactics. She would suggest pouring a bucket of water, next time, or maybe even shaking her awake. But suffocating was a little too much, in her opinion.

As she realized it was only the Professor, waking her up for earlier lessons – she swore they got earlier and earlier each day – she merely groaned in reluctance against his palm and shrugged him off, rolling onto her side in an effort to gain more sleep after the disruptance. It was only when she heard a voice of a much higher pitch than what usually belonged to the Professor, that her eyes shot open.

'Catherine! Catherine, you have to get up.'

Catherine's eldest brother, Caspian, was born on November 27th, exactly three years before his younger sister arrived. Of course, after the many tragedies in their life, the pair grew closer and closer with each misfortune, and knew almost everything about the other. Alongside this, Catherine knew that Caspian preferred eating cereal to toast and that he would always shift his foot from the right to the left when he was anxious. She also knew that he was late to almost everything scheduled past 10 o'clock because he remained asleep until the late hours of the day. Unless something woke him up.

'Caspian?' Catherine asked, turning around confusedly. 'Caspian, what's going on?'

Her brothers usually soft features had turned hard and pale in the darkness of her bedroom. She swallowed, anxiously.

'We need to leave, now.'

...

' Princess Catherine.' Professor Cornelius began as they ran down the spiral steps led from Caspian's room. There was a beat, a breath waiting for the drop. 'To a son.'

There it is.

Catherine moved her jaw, gaping before turning to her brother with wide, frightened eyes filled with terror about the future.

'He's going to kill you.'

Caspian nodded, swallowing down his fear as he hurried her along, urgently. 'And he will kill you too, if you don't get a move on.'

They swiftly moved to the weaponry, where the Professor grabbed a long, black woollen coat for Caspian, and helped Catherine into a caped, black one. Caspian examined the swords, whipping them from their stands with an exuberant gesture, handing Catherine a dagger. She smiled, nervously and he nodded at her, urging her to take it.

'You may need it.' He told her.

Catherine shook her head, but pocketed it anyways. 'Not when I have you to protect me.'

A sad look passed Caspian's features and his grin faltered, turning into a melancholy, fond smile. 'I might not always be there to protect you, Cath.'

Catherine's face fell. They stared at one another, a mutual understanding passing between them as they flickered between each-other's eyes. The Professor ran ahead of them, bursting through the door, and Caspian sighed loudly, grabbing his sisters hand to pull her outside and towards the stables.

'Hurry, now.' Cornelius told them in a hurried whisper, helping Catherine onto one of the Kings' horses as Caspian mounted his own, struggling to keep it steady as it threatened to run from the urgency of the night. 'You must make for the woods.'

Caspian's features contorted to one of slight disgust, fear and doubt. Catherine pursed her lips.

'The woods?' Caspian said, his voice laced with uncertainty. 'Are you sure?'

'They won't follow you there.' The Professor nodded before reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a white, beautiful horn with several engravings, passing it gently to Caspian, who takes it with care. 'This has taken me many years to get this. Do not use it, unless at your greatest need.'

As Caspian studied it, running the smooth bone in his hand, Catherine furrowed her eyebrows, bewildered. Her old professor wasn't making much sense.

'Professor... that horn...' She said, letting out a sigh. 'It's make-belief. We're not children, we don't need it.'

The Professor turned to her, his eyes glittering. 'It's so much more than that, dear.'

Caspian slid the horn into his satchel and looked up at his Professor with an awaiting glance. 'Will we ever see you again?'

'I dearly hope so, my prince.' Cornelius replied, his face full of fond memories and became upset at the thought of an permanent goodbye. Catherine frowned at his words, knowing that the Professor had never lied to them before, but yet his uncertain answer did not reassure the anxiety that rose in her chest. 'There is so much more I meant to tell you. Everything you know is about to change.'

There is a shout in the distance and the horses grow unsettled, pacing impatiently. Catherine is not ready to say goodbye.

'Professor-' She began, but was interrupted as he hit the back of Caspian's horse, sending it into a rapid canter, hooves clicking along the cobbled stone. 'Go, princess! We will meet again! Do not look back!'

She pursed her lips in disapproval, too many words slipping at her lips for her to say, but shook her head in irritation, instead and yanked on the reigns of her horse, sending it flying after her brother. Caspian runs through the obstacles in their way, Telmarine soldiers falling to the ground as they rush past them. He grabs one of the weapons they were holding, a large bladed-stick and flipped it in his hand before throwing it backwards to Catherine, who catches it with ease. She throws it down to the fire that neared the gate, sending a large spark to target a Telmarine who threatened to close the gate and block their arrival.

Catherine felt her stomach lurch as they continued to fire, fireworks popping in the background, signifying the celebration of Lord Miraz's new-born. A son. A son who would take the throne from it's rightful owner, Caspian. A throne that could only be given once the rightful recipient had died. Catherine kicked her horse, lightly, to make it run faster from the castle.

'A son! A son! Lady Prunaprismia has, this night, given Lord Miraz a son!'

The race continued, the horses elegantly floating along the petal-freckled fields with a hoard of a hoard of Telmarine soldiers riding close behind them. One of the soldiers shout something and yell for their horses to go faster, to carry them onwards towards their prey. As they came to the tree-line, Caspian and Catherine didn't hesitate to continue their race further ahead, the dark making it difficult to support their surroundings, which were now vague and blurry beside them. The soldiers followed, reluctantly.

The siblings made it to a shore, riding through the clear-waters that rippled and glimmered underneath the moonlight stars. It pulled them down, slightly, and they struggled through the depths towards the woods. Catherine looks back to see the Telmarine's following, a few soldiers falling into the water from the weight of their armour, creating splashes and illusions of large waves. She grinned and chuckled, appearing at the other side of the river and riding further into the woods, leaping over fallen logs and dismembered trees that looked remarkably like broken bones in the dark. The horses hooves connected with the dirt, indenting the forest floor as they made their way through the forest with great care.

This time, it was Caspian who looked back, grinning as they realized they had managed to lose the Telmarine soldiers. His smugness, however, didn't last for long, until a log came into view, threatening to attack him itself as it came closer and closer with each step-

Catherine's goofy grin faded and she let out a soft gasp. 'Caspian-!'

Her call was too late, Caspian turning back at just the right time to hit himself in the head with the the newfound enemy of nature. He groaned and fell backwards, landing on the ground with a soft thud before realizing his foot was still connected to the stirrup, and began to be dragged along the plants as his horse continued with the chase. He unclasped himself, suddenly staying mobile and groaning in pain as he clutched onto his side. Catherine gasped and attempted to draw back her horse, not wanting to step on her brother, but instead her horse rose on two feet and she was thrown onto the ground, hitting her head on the grass.

Recovering, she cradled her head, wincing and sat upright, looking towards her brother who lay ahead, groaning and grunting as blood pooled from his hip, a large scratch running from his torso to his abdomen, Catherine turned towards him, scrambling onto her feet to assess his damage, but was drawn back as something stirred in the bushes, frightening her.

She spun around, whipping out the small dagger that Caspian had insisted she take, earlier, and pointed it in front of her, the direction of which she heard the noise. She squinted through the dark, making out a small tree-trunk, and two small shadows emerge.

'She's seen us.'

Catherine shifts, her eyes darting in the dark. She licks her lips, nervously and jabs the knife towards them.

'I demand to know who you are!' She shouts, her voice remaining steady and strict.

One of the figures reveals a knife from their hand and runs towards her, threateningly. Catherine falls back, scrambling to her brother's side as she attempts to move out of the way of the angered man. He was certainly smaller than he should be. Was he perhaps a child?

Caspian stared with wide-eyes, watching as the man hovered over his sister, who scrambled and gulped, fearfully, awaiting the greeting of his cold, sharp blade. His heart began to race as the small-man brought the knife threateningly to her throat, making her whimper, and Caspian looked around for his weapon. His gaze caught a familiar white horn, which had fallen from his back. He looks back to his sister, only to see that the man was looked back at him, suspiciously. A horse neighs in the distance. Telmarines.

'Take care of them.' One of the men instructs, making the other to run towards the incoming hoard of horses, spinning a sword and yelling.

The remaining made their way towards the pair, and Caspian made a dash for the horn, extending his hand to reach out for it. The man lunged forwards.

'No-!' He yelled.

Caspian grabbed it, instantly bringing it to his lips and blowing it, loudly into the sky. Catherine snapped her head towards him in shock, and spun back around to the small man, who growled, viciously. He threw his hand up, angrily and Catherine gasped.

He brought his hand down towards her-

She fell against the floor, unconscious, with an easy thud.