MISTROSTRINGS here ^^ Hope you all liked MisticLight's last chapter. I KNOW I DID. Hope you guys keep reading the story! Please review and comment!

FOR NARNIA!

~mistrostrings

~.~.~.~.~.~.~

From behind a tall, thin tree, the most unexpected thing came out. Margaret's jaw dropped as a surprised gasp was about to escape her lips. Not wanting to be rude, she quickly shut her mouth and let her eyes express her shock. She looked over at Annette whose face wore just as much revelation as her own.

The small badger stumbled out from behind the tree, walking on two legs. "A-Annette…" Margaret whispered, nudging her friend. "Aren't they supposed to walk on four legs?" The badger shot her a warning look upon hearing her words. Margaret's frightened eyes shot down towards the ground in embarrassment. "I didn't think he would hear me."

Caspian continued glaring at his surprise guest with annoyance.

"I just think we should wait for the Kings and Queens!" The badger said with a heavy sigh. Annette looked over at Margaret with a sudden twinkle in her eyes. Her heart, though she did not show it, was fluttering at the announcement of 'Kings and Queens'. They really weren't in England.

Annette noticed Margaret's discomfort hadn't changed. She followed her friend's line of vision, only to stumble upon... "A dwarf?" Annette asked aloud, raising her brow. The short man also gave her a warning look, but kept quiet. His dirtied and wrinkled face was tight and unwelcoming.

Margaret gently took her friend's hand. "I don't know if I like him very much. I was rather hoping it would be someone more pleasant. He has a melancholy look about his face, don't you agree?" Annette nodded. Even though she felt threatened, she knew she was safe with Caspian at her side.

"Come on." Caspian said bitterly. He moved away from the others and began trekking through the tall forest grasses. Annette and Margaret followed him silently.

"Fine!" The badger cried out to him. "Go then! See if the others will be as understanding!" His short, black arms folded across his fuzzy chest.

"Well... maybe I'll come with you!" The dwarf was a bit less persistent than the badger and quickly found his spot next to Margaret. "I want to see you explain things to the Minotaurs." His words obviously disturbed all of them. Caspian was quick to turn around and voice his concern.

"Minotaurs?" Caspian questioned. "They're real?"

Margaret quickly let Annette's hand fall. In excitement, she dropped to her knees and became eye level with the dwarf. "Did you really say Minotaurs? Oh, is it true?" She cried as her face glowed with excitement. "Are they really here? In…" She paused, forgetting the name already.

"Narnia," The dwarf grumbled with a roll of his beady eyes. "And yes, of course they're here." Margaret didn't mind his hostility as long as his words were true. "What's getting you so excited?"

"You don't understand," she laughed. "Ever since I was able to read fairy tales, I've always loved the idea of Minotaurs. They're so big and overpowering!" She clasped her hands together, sighing dreamily. "To see one in the flesh… That would be the ultimate dream."

"This isn't some kind of fairy tale," The badger replied. "They're here and they're real." He glanced up at Caspian. "And very bad-tempered."

"Yeah," The dwarf also gave a teasing look at Caspian. "And not to mention big."

"Huge." The badger corrected.

Margaret stood up and placed her hands on Annette's shoulders. "Did you hear that Annette?" She whispered. "Huge! He said they were huge!" Annette nervously shrugged her friend off. She didn't understand her friend's excitement. Large, unforgiving creatures were not something she was particularly dying to see.

The badger and the dwarf began walking again. Caspian was the one to follow this time. "What about centaurs? Do they still exist?"

The badger cracked a small smile. "Well, the Centaurs will probably fight on your side." Caspian smirked, pleased with this response. "But there's no telling what the others will do…"

Annette paused suddenly, causing Margaret to run straight into her. "Is something wrong?" She asked. Annette said nothing, simply staring at Caspian and the creatures walking ahead. After a moment or two, Caspian must have noticed things had gotten quieter. He quickly spun around to see the girls frozen a few feet away from them.

"What's wrong with them?" The dwarf snickered.

"You said fight," Annette stated firmly. There was no warmth on her face. There wasn't even curiosity. She was putting on her strict face, the one Margaret was fearful of. And she was fearful for a reason. "What do you mean 'fight on your side'?"

Caspian looked down nervously at the animals, who looked back up at him. "You mean, you haven't told them?" The badger said, cocking his head to the side.

Caspian shook his head. "I… I just met them. How was I supposed to trust them?" Slowly, he lifted his head. His eyes locked with Annette. Though her heart began to beat louder and quicker than before, she remained firm. She would not crack until she knew an answer. "Why… why don't you explain things?" Caspian quietly said to the badger.

The badger nodded, taking a step closer to the girls. "Sit." He said, pointing to a tree stump. Carefully, Margaret and Annette followed his orders. "My name is Trufflehunter. My friend is Nikabrik." The girls nodded their heads politely towards them.

"Annette." One said.

"Margaret." Replied the other.

Trufflehunter politely nodded as well. "A pleasure." He paused, taking a heavy sigh. "Where do I even start?"

"Just skip to the good stuff." Nikabrik said, obviously not interested in story time.

Trufflehunter shrugged his fuzzy shoulders. "Well, many years ago, Narnia was filled with every kind of creature you could think of; Minotaurs included." he said, offering Margaret a small smile. She couldn't help but wiggle in her seat with excitement. "Our Kings and Queens could not stay forever. They were different." He paused, meeting their eyes. "Just like you."

"You mean they were humans?" Margaret whispered with astonishment.

"From Earth?" Annette finished.

"Yes." Trufflehunter nodded. "We have humans in Narnia, only they are not the same realm as you. Our Kings and Queens were from your land and they ruled Narnia as well as everyone in it for many wonderful years." Margaret frowned. What was the problem, then? "One forgets the importance of home sometimes though, as did our Kings and Queens."

Annette nodded, understanding. "They had to go back. They had to leave Narnia."

Sadly, he nodded. "Since their disappearance, the Telmarines have invaded Narnia. They pushed talking… 'beasts'… like us into the woods." Hurt dripped from every word as he spoke. Margaret stared at his soft face, noting the sadness locked in his black eyes. "Even the trees were considered monsters. They drove their memories underground… They forgot about the lightness and gentleness that Narnia stood for. Some of the animals can't even remember how to speak anymore."

There was a small silence. "You…" Annette said, redirecting her gaze to Caspian. "Who are you in all of this?"

The creatures looked up at him, curious to see what he would say. "My father was King Caspian the Ninth. He was a good man…" The badger's hurt stare transferred to the young man. Caspian could no longer look at them. He stared bitterly at the ground as his voice dropped to a whisper. "He died. My Uncle Miraz now claims to be the rightful Telmarine King. I have left them after his son was born." His voice was nearly gone. "I was frightened of what they might do to me."

"Yeah, that's about it. He ran away and we got stuck with him." Nikabrik said. "Truth be told, he's not all that bad. At least, not half as bad as that Uncle of his."

Caspian's eyes flashed a shade of red. "I am not like my Uncle."

"Alright, alright, that all makes sense," Annette said quickly as she feared Caspian's wrath. "Just tell me one thing. You said you would wait on the Kings and Queens." Margaret nodded. "Does that mean they're coming? Are they coming back?"

Caspian looked up. "I used a signal. I did not know what it was at the time. We believe that it might have called them back." His eyes glanced up at the sky for a moment as his imagination was set free. Who were these noble leaders? Margaret couldn't help but wonder as Caspian continued. "I wish to create an army; an army of Narnians to go against my uncle and his plans. With Kings and Queens, I do not know what will happen, but I suspect they might help." The forest creatures nodded and the pack began to carry on their journey.

"It looks like the story is over…" Margaret whispered, helping Annette stand up.

"I suppose." Annette said. She sighed heavily. It was all so much to take in. She couldn't help but feel insecure in the woods now that she knew the dangers hiding behind them. What if the Telmarine men were out in the woods that very moment? What if they were still trying to find Caspian? The boy was freshly tired, it was clear he had just run away. They wouldn't give up the hunt so quickly. Annette pushed the thoughts aside and continued walking.

"I have one more question," Caspian said slowly. "What… about Aslan?"

The dwarf and badger did not look too kind when they turned around to face him. In fact, they looked furious. "How do you know so much about us?" Nikabrik said with warning in his voice.

Caspian shrugged. "Stories."

"Wait a minute," Trufflehunter said, surprised. "Your father told you stories about Narnia?"

"No…" Caspian said hesitantly. "My professor." The creatures looked at one another in surprise. "Listen," Caspian said suddenly. "I am sorry. These are not the kind of questions you should be asking." The anger now turned over to Caspian, who stormed past the creatures. Heat was getting passed around to each member of the group. It was obvious that no one was very happy, and everyone just needed a second or two to breathe.

"Caspian, wait!" Annette whispered beneath her breath. Leaving Margaret behind, she rushed past the three others. Caspian looked surprised when he saw her show up at his side. He paused, letting her step in front of him. "Who… Who is Aslan?" She whispered, hoping the two Narnians wouldn't hear. His brown eyes stared at her face for a moment. That quick beating in her chest started again. Caspian couldn't answer, but not because he didn't want to.

Something was coming.

"What is it?" Nikabrik asked curiously as Trufflehunter sniffed the air.

"Human." He replied.

Nikabrik jerked a thumb at Annette and Caspian. "Them?"

"No…" Trufflehunter said fearfully as he turned his head. "Them."