Chapter 12
A/N: Thank you to those people who have been sending me PM's telling me about how they were enjoying this story, it really means a lot so here is another chapter for you all, and I hope you enjoy it!
Disclaimer: C.S. Lewis. That's all I'm gonna say
"I demand to know where you are taking me" Edmund demanded. He hated the fact that he was being dragged along under Janet's hold. He was a king! He should be respected! But Janet did none of that, she gripped Edmund's arm harder which made the young boy wince.
"You'd best keep your mouth shut boy" Janet hissed.
Edmund glared, but then realized that she was in front of him so she couldn't see his face and just sighed instead.
He looked around the castle. Everywhere was either black or grey. There wasn't a single bright colour in sight despite his light tunic. The furniture's were ancient and dark which matched Janet's personality, and the halls were very wide and well spaced. Edmund despised the smell of the castle, though it definitely didn't beat the dungeons, it reminded him of evil and all things worse. The windows were very big and vulnerable and Edmund couldn't help but laugh quietly at their stupidity. What if the Northerners were being attacked and the opposing army decided to throw giant rocks using catapults that aimed at the big windows? They would be dead instantly. Even the corpse smelling dungeons were a safer place to be in!
Edmund's face grew woeful at that thought. Speaking of dungeons, he was wondering how Eris was holding on. And he also wondered if the little faun had woken up or not… he prayed to Aslan that he'd be okay…in fact he prayed that everyone and Narnia would be okay.
They suddenly rounded up a corner and Edmund grunted at the sudden pain on his arms. All of his thinking had distracted him from the death grip that Janet had on him.
They continued walking and Edmund grew impatient. Even though this castle wasn't as big as Cair Paravel, they sure did have a lot of rooms. Edmund huffed with annoyance.
He couldn't help but wonder what his siblings were doing at the moment. Peter was out of the question, without a doubt he would be worried sick for his well being. Edmund smiled to himself at that thought. That was one of the reasons why he loved his brother, albeit it can get annoying at times but he knew that at the end of the day, Peter is always there for him and he would do anything for his brother as long as he was safe
He just hoped that Peter wasn't feeling guilt-ridden. He also hoped that Susan and Lucy were doing okay. But most of all, he hoped that Aslan would guide them along the way and that both he and Eris will be saved. He shouldn't get his hopes up though, but optimistic as he was he couldn't help but hope for victory
However Edmund had a wretched feeling in the pit of his stomach which wasn't a good thing as it indicated that something wrong was going to happen. He had a bad feeling of this. He didn't know what he was expected to do because no matter how many times he would ask Janet, she wouldn't answer, so he just gave up trying knowing that he would never get the answer until the time came
He was once again forced out of his thoughts when he was suddenly rounded to a halt. Both he and Janet were stood in front of a large black wooden door.
Since manners were extinct in the Northern castle, Janet opened the door without the need for knocking. This had startled the owner of the room.
Edmund was pushed inside the room with Janet following behind him. The dark haired boy looked to see a marsh-wiggle who appeared to have been distracted from reading a book. Edmund sensed that the creature was annoyed at the sudden entrance; the boy didn't blame him, for he would have been highly irritated if someone decided to barge into his bed chamber like that.
Janet spoke up in a tough tone "This is Edmund; he's going to be our entertainer for this evening's homecoming party. And I shall expect you to dress him up in a smart and presentable manner; we will need to impress our guests" Edmund didn't notice the smirk on the woman's face as she said this
The marsh-wiggle instantly stood up and bowed before his queen "Yes your majesty" he looked up to see Edmund "Right this way" he gestured beside him, indicating that Edmund should step more into the room.
Edmund hesitantly did so. The creature looked back at his majesty and bowed again "Your majesty, how long does he have to finish getting ready?"
"Six o'clock" she said "If he is not ready by then, I will throw you behind a cell and make sure you get killed the following day"
Edmund winced at those harsh words, even though it wasn't directed at him he glared at Janet while she exited the room.
The marsh-wiggle turned to examine Edmund and noted his thin form, pale skin and dark hair.
Edmund did the same. The creature was quite old and short. He had dark eyes and grey hair which was covered by his pointy black hat. His clothing was black and his shoes were dark in colour as well.
"Right" the creature began "Edmund is it?"
Edmund nodded
The marsh-wiggle narrowed his eyes and leaned closer "Are you the King Edmund?" he asked
Edmund nodded again "Yes, I am he" he proudly said "And your name?"
"Pleased to meet you, I'm Wicklebourn" he said "but, I don't understand why you're here exactly, I mean… shouldn't you—"
"I have been kidnapped" Edmund interrupted to make things easier "along with a friend of mine"
"Oh… sorry to hear that" was all Wicklebourn said before an awkward silence took over. There wasn't really much explaining to do about that, because this was Janet, and this wasn't surprising to the creature
Edmund was quite surprized at the sudden apology, he thought that since they don't have marsh wiggles in Cair Paravel, he assumed that they were evil, but this Wicklebourn fellow was actually a nice person.
"It's fine" he said before turning around "Right then Wick, what am I going to wear? I hope we get this night over and done with because I am absolutely dreading it, I don't even know what an entertainer does!"
Wicklebourn cleared his throat "Wick?"
Edmund turned around to face the creature with a smile of amusement in his face "Yeah, short for Wicklebourn… that is… if you don't mind me calling you that"
The creature thought about it for a moment and smiled "Okay that's fine" he said "Right, let's pick something nice and presentable for you to wear" he walked over to a big massive wardrobe that was stood at the far corner of the big room and looked through all the pieces of clothing.
Edmund took in the sight of the room. It hardly contained anything, and as always, every colour was black and grey. There was only a table, a chair and the wardrobe and a small window.
"This is your room?" Edmund asked from across the room. Wicklebourn looked back at the boy before proceeding in looking for clothing
"No, this isn't classed as my room, I only use this room for sleeping and if I have free time, I read"
Edmund contemplated his words, amazed and angered at how Janet treated this creature. After all, this room didn't belong to anyone else so why not just let him have the room?
His thoughts drifted back to Eris. Here he was, about to get dressed smart and modish and she was in a windowless and claustrophobic cell wondering if he would be okay and probably bored out of her wits. He wondered why Janet chose him out of all people to be a certain thing at a party. It was a thought that he will probably never have the answer to.
Both Wicklebourn and Edmund jumped when they heard a faint clatter of what sounded like broken glass
"What was that?" Edmund asked
Wicklebourn shrugged "I'm not sure, it could have been an accident or something"
"I'll go check—"Edmund got ready to stand up and see what was going on when Wicklebourn interrupted
"No!" he said, but not loudly "No Edmund, if Janet sees you out of this room without her permission, I will be in big trouble"
Edmund understood and sat back down on the chair "Are you loyal to Queen Janet?" Edmund asked
The creature paused in mid-search before continuing "well, I don't have much choice do I? I've grown up under her control; I don't really have a choice. She's cold-hearted, yes I'll agree to that, but… I am loyal to her and I always have been"
Edmund was ready to argue but then kept his mouth shut; he knew that it would do no good to make someone hate another person.
Time seemed to pass before Wicklebourn finally started "This is perfect" he held up the clothing that Edmund was expected to wear. The boy wasn't surprised to find that it was all black and he scrunched up his nose at the sight.
"Wick…I'm not wearing that"
"You have to Edmund; it's what Queen Janet expects" Wicklebourn said
"What is that though? …No. I'm not wearing that, it looks funny" the boy argued
"You are wearing it whether you like it or not" he pushed Edmund behind a grey room divider screen
"No, it looks big"
"You are wearing it"
"It's too black for me"
"Wear it"
"It will suffocate me"
"Wear it. Now"
"I don't find it smart or presentable"
"Edmund"
"I'm allergic to it"
"I don't care if you have a damn seizure, wear it now!"
Edmund - knowing that he had used almost every excuse from the book - finally relented and silently cursed at the sudden defeat. He snatched the clothing with a huff and a glare, and got changed with vexation
()()()()()()()()()()()()()
In Darreth's bedchambers…
Janet entered her son's bedchambers after she dropped Edmund off with Wicklebourn. Darreth's room was filled with rich furniture though it was (as always) all in dark colours in general
She found Darreth still wearing his everyday tunic; thus, she scowled at him "You pathetic boy, why aren't you dressed? We have only one hour left and you're not presented in a regal manner!"
Northern parties were very diverse from Cair Paravel. Unlike the Cair, it was vital that you are dressed smart and as attractive as possible. Overall, it was quite a serious occasion rather than an enjoyable one.
Darreth smiled sheepishly and looked down in fear for his mother "I'm sorry mother, I'll get started right away" his hair was tasseled and all over the place. He was quite a disorganized person.
Janet was about to retort when a sharp knock came from the door. Both Darreth and Janet turned towards the door which was yet unopened. Janet huffed
"For goodness sake come in already!" the woman shouted and Darreth winced at the sudden yell.
The door opened immediately and a young girl rushed into the room panting for breath which indicated that she had been running in search of her Queen for quite a while. Her face was heavily made up and her brown hair was styled up in a side bun and her earrings were green and dangly. Her face was flushed from her running and she wore an orange puffy dress that was lengthened above her bare thighs. It was obvious that she was wearing a costume for a show or something along the lines of that
"Your majesty! Your majesty! It's urgent!" the girl said in between her heavy breathing. Her eyes were wide from whatever the emergency was
Janet frowned "What are you doing here" she hissed with anger, "You're one of the dancers for the show! You should be rehearsing your dance along with the other five girls!"
The girl shook her head hopelessly, still breathing quickly "Your majesty! That's the problem! One of the girls has broken her leg! She can't attend the dance! We—"
"What!" Janet roared, standing up all of a sudden. Darreth winced again along with the girl. "This can't be happening! There has to be at least six girls overall for the dance!" Janet was so furious that she grabbed the nearest object which was a brush that was sitting on Darreth's bed side table and threw it across the room and landed on the clock that was hung above the door and it broke into millions of pieces and eventually dropped heavily on the floor creating a loud noise that made the girl wince again.
"How are we supposed to present the dance with just five girls? You have rehearsed well over a month now and it's gone down the bin! We have very important visitors and we have to impress them as much as we can but how will we do that if the show turns out horrifically bad?" Janet continued her yell
The girl hesitated to reply, afraid that she will distress her queen further. But she knew she was expected to reply so she had no choice "Your majesty…" she said, trying to sound easy but her shaky voice was betraying her "it was an accident, she insisted that she could still carry on but it's obvious she can't because she keeps falling down. She is now currently seeing a healer and we have been confirmed that she won't be healed for a few weeks"
Janet was glaring daggers at the girl while she was talking "Tell the healers that that won't be necessary"
The girl looked at her queen with one eye brow lifted up in confusion, "I'm sorry your majesty, but why?"
Janet narrowed her eyes further and walked closer to the girl but stopped mid way "I will make sure that the girl gets killed. She is no use to our castle any more and I warned you all about this"
The girl gasped, completely horrified "Your majesty…" she couldn't continue further knowing that you can never question the Queen's actions. Instead she said "What shall we do your majesty?"
Janet turned towards Darreth "Darreth dear, go and get changed. This is none of your business" she ordered and Darreth nodded his head and walked to the far side of the room to where his wardrobe was so he could pick out what to wear
Janet turned back around to the girl "Now, this is what we are going to do…"
()()()()()()()()()()()()
At the dungeons…
Eris had told Finn her side of the story of how she and Edmund had gotten here in the first place. The little faun was very surprised that this was the monarchs she was talking about. He felt angry at those two soldiers who had decided to sneak into the Cair and kidnap both Eris and King Edmund.
Even though this was only their second time in seeing each other, Finn had developed strong loyalty towards Eris, he had never felt this way to any one else, except his mother.
"Finn, what about you? How did you get here?" Eris asked, deeply concerned. Out of all people, Finn would be the last person she'd expect to be thrown in here.
Finn furrowed his eye brows and looked off into space as he recalled the memories. Soon, his lips started to quiver and this went unnoticed by Eris who had immediately wrapped her arms around the little boy in a loose but comforting hug
"I'm sorry Finn, I didn't mean to remind you" she apologized
"No Eris" the little faun sniffed, trying his hardest to make it seem like he wasn't crying but his shaky voice didn't help. "I have to tell you"
Eris gently let go of him and waited patiently for the faun to continue.
"Well… it started when I was in my hut" he shivered once more as he found it hard to voice out his memory of what happened but continued nonetheless "My…my mother was out picking some vegetables that we had grown last season. All of a sudden I…I heard my mother screaming…" the young faun closed his eyes as he pictured the horrified look on his mothers face.
He soon felt Eris's hands patting his shoulder for comfort. He opened his eyes and nodded very lightly in return
"I quickly ran outside to see what happened… and…and… I saw a couple of soldiers, I can't remember how many but I know it was a small number. They were all wearing armour and it was bright silver with a picture of a black crown in the middle of it. It was clear to me that…that they were Northern soldiers. One of them had a hold of my mother. My mother…she…she looked so scared…I…I was scared too. I screamed for her, and I was crying. I've never seen mother so scared or even cry before in my life! She couldn't move because the soldier was so strong. I remember hearing mother call out my name, and I could tell she was warning me about something, but whatever the warning was I knew I failed… because I remember one of the soldiers pulling me from behind. I was being dragged away from mother. The last thing I remember was mother's frightened face, I was screaming and shouting for the enemy to let me go… but… but they were so strong…I…I couldn't save myself… couldn't save mother"
Eris felt sympathy for him. He was only little! He didn't deserve to experience such a horrific sight. She was about to say something when Finn already spoke
"That was the last thing I remember… and then I woke up here. And I don't know where mother is" he was silently weeping now.
Eris quickly embraced the faun; she couldn't help but feel tears prick in her own eyes. "Shhh Finn, its okay, hopefully me or Edmund will find a way out of this, and maybe if a miracle does its job, Aslan can save us"
Finn nodded against Eris's shoulder. But that didn't help him feel better, he wanted his mother, he felt hopeless but another part of him felt a little better that he could have somebody to talk to. But this was the second time that he'd ever been separated from his mother, except he knew that this one would last longer… much much longer.
"Are you okay?" Eris asked once the faun had calmed down. The young boy nodded weakly and pulled back gently.
"Yes... thank you"
"It's my pleasure Finn, and it always will be" she said gently, even though she had no idea why he was thanking her.
"I love you Eris, you're like my second mother, and you always listen to me when I'm upset. I just can't help but feel worried for mother, what if they're hurting her?"
Eris gently ruffled the ginger curly locks of the faun "I love you too Finn, like you're my little brother. And I can assure you that your mother is a very strong woman. She will get through this, I promise" she wished she could take those words back, she sounded so sure but she wasn't feeling it and she didn't mean to bring Finn's hopes up.
Before Finn could even open his mouth to reply, the dungeon doors opened with a bang which made both Eris and Finn jump with fright.
Eris wasn't surprized to see Janet standing in their midst with the same evil smile on her face. It seems like she's everywhere, and Eris was already getting sick of seeing her face.
Finn on the other hand, trembled at the sight of the woman. Eris leaned Finn closer to her for comfort and protection. He'd never seen Janet up until now and he was already scared of her.
"Ah it seems like the weak little faun has woken up finally" she sneered
"He's not weak" Eris hissed, trying to contain her anger "He's stronger than you'll ever be"
Apollo attempted to take a step further towards the girl but Janet stopped him in mid step. She appeared to be unaffected by her words which Eris found strange.
The young girl felt Finn gripping the back of her right elbow in fear.
"I'm going to need you" Janet said simply, echoing what she had said to Edmund earlier.
Eris felt her heart-beat quicken and she paled. What did she want her for? And where was Edmund? Her thoughts were stuck on him. She didn't know where Edmund was and why he wasn't in sight but why was she needed?
"Why?" Eris growled
Janet sighed in a mocking manner and lifted her left hand to look at her fingernails while her eye brows were raised up "I don't deserve to waste my time explaining"
Eris glared at the woman, her attitude was really annoying and it most certainly didn't suit her.
The woman looked up at her guards and gestured for them to unlock the chains on Eris's feet. They obeyed instantly.
Finn's eyes widened once he realised that he was going to be alone. He didn't move out of Apollo's way when he was in the middle of unchaining Eris so the Minotaur shoved Finn away violently using his feet. Consequently, the young faun yelped at the sudden and painful contact as he was pushed away forcefully
Eris saw this and narrowed her eyes at the heartless Minotaur, she aimed to swing her arm hard at the creature so she can hurt him for payback, but Janet reacted quickly and seized her wrists, Eris wailed at the painful grip.
"You dare attempt to harm our guards then I shall see to it that you are killed" she threatened with a low voice. This however didn't affect the young girl. She merely stared at the woman with complete loath and was definite that her wrist will form a bruise later on.
Once her ankles were free from the chains, the Minotaur pulled Eris up to her feet and, like Edmund, she wobbled a little bit seeing as she had been used to being on the ground for quite a while but soon, she regained her balance. She heard Finn whimper from behind her and she turned her head to face the little faun. Already, he looked so alone. And Eris wanted nothing more than to snatch the faun and run away to freedom. She sent him a sympathetic look and was about to mouth comforting words to the little boy but she found herself being pushed forward towards the doors by the two guards who were standing behind her
As soon as she stepped outside the door, she heard the dungeon doors close with the same annoying creaking sound and Eris felt like she wanted to cry for her dear friend. He was all alone in that filthy dungeon with nobody around; all he had was his painful memories. Eris sent a silent prayer to the Great Lion and hoped that somehow a miracle would happen and it could possible come true.
She found that she was able to breathe more freely now that she wasn't cooped up in that cell and it instantly eased her mind. She hadn't realised, until Janet called out to her, that she had simply stood there relishing the fact that she was out of that horrible room.
"You filthy half-breed, we haven't got all day, hurry up!" Janet sneered, her eyes blazing. Eris didn't move from her spot, she solely just stood there glaring at the woman. Nobody had a right to talk to her that way, especially for someone like her. She just wished to be out of here. But then again, don't we all?
She was pulled out of her thoughts when she suddenly felt a stinging sensation impacting on her left cheek. She went out of balance but managed to maintain her stability and touched the spot where Janet slapped her. She looked back up at the flaming expression of Janet, she was fuming but that only made the young girl feel much better. After all, she deserved it for kidnapping not only her, not only Edmund, but Finn as well, a mere child!
Janet knew that Eris would continue to act like her stubborn self, so she did what she felt like doing.
Eris was screaming and yelling protests. "Let me go! Take your hands off my hair! Leave me be!" she tried to grasp the older woman's fingers from her hair but it was no use. Janet was much bigger and stronger.
And to make matters worse she walked while pulling Eris's hair along with her, ignoring the girl's cries and shouts.
"That will teach you to disobey me" the old woman muttered to herself as she made her way through the wide hallways
Eris felt excruciating pain on her scalp as her hair was being gripped vigorously. She tried with all her might to make Janet release her strong grip. It was times like these where she wished she had her sword.
To her great relief, they stopped and Janet finally released her grip leaving Eris grimacing at the aftermath. After a few moments, she looked around her surroundings and noticed that she wasn't in a room in particular, but in a wide spaced hall.
She looked to see that there was a girl, approximately about her age, standing next to Janet. She looked awfully funny in Eris's opinion.
Her costume consisted of a short orange puffy dress.
Can that dress get any shorter? Eris thought to herself. Her shoes were flat and red, which was a completely different colour to her dress. Her face was invaded with make up. Her rouged lips stood out the most. Her long green sparkly earrings were also a completely diverse colour to the rest of her costume.
Eris couldn't help but wince at the sight. It was absolutely dreadful.
"Your majesty… this is her?" she asked, with a slightly disgusted tone in her voice.
"Yes, she will do exactly as you instruct her to do, for the show" Janet turned to look at Eris "Won't you"
It wasn't a question; it was a statement… a threatening statement.
However, Eris didn't pay attention. She was too shocked. Was she supposed to be in a show or something? What was going on? And why wouldn't anyone tell her?
Eris quoted Janet's previous statement with a hitch of fear evident in her voice "F-for the show?"
I think I've updated this rather quickly… I'm proud of myself yay! Please review! It would a lot. The next chapter may include some graphic scenes… that will be a little horrific but oh well, don't say I didn't warn you! Anyway, please pretty please review!
