Chapter Six
The group headed slowly back towards the dam. It seemed like no one was in a hurry to get back to the dam without their missing siblings. Rebecca was trying to keep her focus on Aslan and fighting the White Witch, and not panicking over what may be happening to Joy. Or staring at the back of Peter's head for that matter, since he was walking in front of her. Mr. Beaver was leading the way, waddling through the snow, when he suddenly stopped and started sniffing the air. The children quickly gathered around him in a huddle.
"What are you doing?" asked Rebecca. Mr. Beaver shushed her, then looked back up the slope. Susan and Lucy looked over at Peter, who wordlessly shrugged. Then, Mr. Beaver's eyes went wide with fear and he started running down the hill.
"Come on!" he shouted. "We're being followed!" The children hurried after him.
"What could be following us?" asked Peter.
"The Witch's secret police!" shouted Mr. Beaver urgently. Rebecca then remembered the pawprint on the parchment from Mr. Tumnus' cave.
"Wolves?" she asked, secretly hoping she was wrong.
"Yes!" shouted Mr. Beaver, and that made all the children run. Dodging between the trees, Susan pulled ahead of Peter while he grabbed onto Lucy's hand and helped her run. At the back, Rebecca slipped and fell hard in the snow.
"Rebecca!" called out Lucy, and Peter stopped running as well. He started to run back to help her when a chilling howl came from the woods behind them. Lucy and Peter froze in their tracks. Rebecca leapt to her feet and caught up to the others. The children raced through the trees and down the final slope where they could see the dam. They rushed inside and Mr. Beaver bolted the door behind them. Panting, they all ran through the inner door and into the heart of the dam.
"Hurry Mama, they're after us!" said Mr. Beaver urgently.
"Oh! Right then," said Mrs. Beaver, and she instantly started busying herself about the kitchen.
"What's she doing?!" asked Peter. Mr. Beaver shrugged, exasperated. Susan and Rebecca moved past Peter to help her.
"You'll be thanking me later," said Mrs. Beaver. "It's a long journey and Beaver gets pretty cranky when he's hungry." Mrs. Beaver grabbed some sausages from the ice box.
"I'm cranky now!" shouted Mr. Beaver. He, Peter and Lucy looked on while the others gathered together some bundles of food: sausages, bread, cheese, a tin full of tea, the bread knife, tea pot and cups all neatly packed in their wrappings. All of these, including Mr. Beaver's tinder box, were placed inside a large sack.
"Do you think we'll need jam?" asked Susan, and Mrs. Beaver bundled it up without a response.
"Only if the Witch serves toast," said Peter. Both Rebecca and Susan glared at him.
"Not helping Peter," mumbled Rebecca as she wrapped some bread in a clean cloth. Then, growls came from outside the hut.
"They're here," said Peter, and everyone froze inside the room.
"I'm almost finished," said Mrs. Beaver. Scratching noises came from the wall by the window.
"They're trying to get in!" said Rebecca. Peter quickly shoved Lucy behind him and grabbed Susan's arm. Rebecca snatched up the sack of supplies.
"That's enough!" shouted Mr. Beaver. He ran across the room and opened the oddly-placed door in the kitchen, where a lantern could be seen with a rope leading down into a dark tunnel. He grabbed the rope with his paws and slid down into the dark space. "Come on!" he told the others. Mrs. Beaver quickly followed, then Lucy, Susan, Rebecca, and Peter went last, closing the door behind him. Once inside the tunnel, Peter lit the torch which Mr. Beaver said he kept down there for emergencies and they went forward as fast as they could.
All the children, except Lucy, had to walk bent over because of the low ceiling, and they all had to pick their way over roots sticking out of the dirt floor below. Rebecca carried the sack of supplies and tried to keep it from banging against her leg as she briskly walked. All the while, Mr. Beaver told them the story of the tunnel. "Badger and me dug this," he said, "comes up right near his place."
"You told me it led to your mum's," said Mrs. Beaver. Rebecca smiled in spite of their situation. In front of her, Lucy tripped over a root.
"Ow!" she cried as she fell.
"Lucy!" gasped Susan. Peter turned around and Rebecca stopped walking. Then Lucy froze as barks and growls filled the tunnel behind them.
"They're in the tunnel," she whispered. The hair rose on the back of Rebecca's neck.
"Quick, this way!" said Mr. Beaver.
"Hurry!" said Mrs. Beaver. Susan quickly helped Lucy up and they kept on running. Peter called back "Run!" but Rebecca thought they didn't need any more encouragement. Then, around another turn, the group reached a dead end. "You should have brought a map!" shouted Mrs. Beaver to Mr. Beaver.
"There wasn't room," he said, "next to the jam," and he climbed out of the hole and opened the door in the dirt in front of them. Mrs. Beaver went next, then Susan, followed by Lucy and Rebecca. Peter put out the torch and crawled out last.
"Come on Lucy," said Susan, and she made her stand clear of the door. Rebecca and Mrs. Beaver quickly checked the sack to make sure nothing was broken while Peter and Mr. Beaver pushed a barrel of water in front of the tunnel door. Lucy cried out in pain behind them and they all turned around.
Stone statues were scattered throughout the clearing. Lucy had tripped over what looked like a squirrel family having tea. A wild hog stood in the doorway of one hut, and a badger, rearing and ready to strike with his claws, stood defending another badger who was cowering against the wall of another hut. The children stared with silent horror at the sight. Rebecca's heart broke at the sight of the poor animals, and her fists clenched tightly around the fabric of the sack.
"What happened here?" asked Peter.
"This is what becomes of those who cross the Witch," said a new voice, and a fox appeared on the roof of one of the huts. The girls gasped. Peter gathered his sisters behind him, while Rebecca quickly dropped the supplies and scooped up a handful of snow. Mr. Beaver marched forward with his fists clenched while Mrs. Beaver tried to hold him back.
"You take one more step traitor and I'll chew you to splinters!" threatened Mr. Beaver. Rebecca threw the snowball and narrowly missed. The fox chuckled, ignoring the threat.
"Relax," he jumped off the roof and landed neatly on the ground "I'm one of the good guys," he said.
"Yeah?" asked Mr. Beaver with disbelief. "Well you look an awful lot like one of the bad ones." Mrs. Beaver was still trying to pull him back. A sudden thought struck Rebecca, and she dropped the second snowball.
"An unfortunate family resemblance," said the fox, then Rebecca interrupted him.
"Wait!" she said and stepped forward. The fox looked over at her with bright, intelligent eyes. "Are you the fox who helped my sister Joy when she was here?" asked Rebecca. The fox studied her face, then smiled.
"Yes, that was me," he said, bowing his head slightly. "A pleasure to help a Daughter of Eve." Then his smile drooped. "Unfortunately," he looked back at Mr. Beaver "I brought this upon your friends by bringing Joy here." The fox looked away with a guilty expression and Mr. Beaver looked angry again. Barks and growls came from the tunnel door. The fox's guilty look vanished. "But we can talk about that later, right now we've got to move." The barking came closer and closer.
"What do you have in mind?" asked Peter. The fox smiled again and looked over their heads at the huge tree behind them. The group ran to it. Rebecca and Peter hoisted the Beavers up and they scrambled from branch to branch. Susan went next, followed by Lucy who got help from Peter. He then turned to Rebecca. "Up you go," he said.
"No," Rebecca shook her head. "You go next," she said, "as future King."
"Rebecca," said Peter with frustration "now's not the time for," Mr. Beaver interrupted him by shouting from above.
"Would you two humans stop arguing please!" Peter grabbed Rebecca by the arms, handed her the sack of supplies which she had dropped earlier, and forced her up onto the branches. The fox swept the snow beneath them with his tail to hide their tracks. Rebecca held the sack in her lap and she and Peter sat on the branch below Susan and Lucy. They all watched with fear as the barrel holding the tunnel door closed spun away like a spinning top when the door flew open. The wolves shot forward and quickly surrounded the fox in a circle.
"Greetings gents," said the fox. "Lost something, have we?"
"Don't patronize me!" growled the leader. "I know where your allegiance lies. We're looking for some humans." The fox laughed, acting cool as a cucumber.
"Humans, here in Narnia," said the fox. "Now that's a valuable bit of information, don't you think?" Peter looked uneasily at Rebecca. She refused to believe the fox would turn them in when he helped Joy and shook her head at him. A wolf broke out of the circle and snapped its jaws around the fox's body, making him cry out in pain. Rebecca pressed the fabric of the sack against her mouth to hide her gasp but refused to tear her eyes away from the scene unfolding below. Beside her, Peter grabbed her other hand which was gripping the tree branch beneath them and he looked both scared and angry.
"Your reward is your life," said the wolf "but its not much." The wolf laughed a deep, rough laugh and the fox glared at him. "But still," the wolf stalked closer "where are the fugitives?" The fox was now gasping for air. He briefly looked up at the children, then pointed with his paw.
"North, they ran north," he said weakly.
"Smell them out," said the leader, and the wolves ran off. The one holding the fox tossed him away towards the huts, where he lay limp in the snow. For a few minutes, no one dared to move for fear the wolves would come back.
"Would you come down already?" said the fox, who was struggling to get to his feet. "I can't start a fire all by myself."
"Wait!" called out Rebecca, slipping her hand out from beneath Peter's. "I'll help you!" She took the sack of supplies and rushed down the trunk, stepping cautiously from branch to branch. Mr. Beaver grumbled to Mrs. Beaver as he climbed down, but one look from her made him grow quiet. Peter went next, making sure Lucy and Susan did not trip or fall, and Rebecca helped the fox get to his feet. "Are you alright?" she asked.
"Maybe I should be a little more careful next time," he said with a twinkle in his eyes. Rebecca laughed and stood up.
"What makes you so sure they won't come back here looking for you?" she asked.
"Well," the fox shook out his fur "they will likely report back to the Witch sooner than later. Only question I have is how they found out about you?" Rebecca felt her blood run cold as the others gathered near. It suddenly struck her as to who had told the Witch.
"Edmund," said Rebecca quietly, looking at the others.
"No, surely Edmund can't have done that," said Susan, shaking her head. "He couldn't have betrayed us."
"I'm afraid so," said Mr. Beaver. "Why else would he have gone to the Witch?" Peter said nothing but a cloud of anger covered his face and nothing more needed to be said. Rebecca wanted to point out to Susan that only Edmund could have done so as he was the one all the evidence was pointing to but chose to say nothing. Apparently, so did the others. Even Lucy didn't rush to Edmund's defense but looked sadly at the snow under her feet instead.
Using the tinder box, Mr. Beaver and Peter started a fire in the little clearing with all the little houses behind them. They all sat around it and nibbled on some bread and cheese while the sausages roasted over the fire. Mrs. Beaver tended to Mr. Fox's wounds, and Rebecca asked him about Joy's first trip to Narnia. After he told them about taking her to the Badger's home, Lucy asked about Mr. Tumnus and if Mr. Fox knew what might have happened to him.
"Well, it was through your sister" he nodded to Rebecca "that I found out that the faun Tumnus was on our side, but unfortunately the Witch got to him before I did. Ow!" He groaned in pain. Mrs. Beaver rolled her eyes and applied more salve to the bite marks on his back.
"Are you alright?" asked Lucy.
"Well, I wish I could say their bark as worse than their bite," said Mr. Fox and then he flinched. "Ow!"
"Oh, stop squirming," said Mrs. Beaver "you're worse than Beaver on Bath Day." Mr. Beaver chuckled.
"Worst day of the year," he whispered. The children smiled, except for Peter who looked very serious. Rebecca stared at him and wondered what he was thinking, then he looked in her direction and she quickly looked back at Mr. Fox.
"Thank you for your kindness," said Mr. Fox as he stood up "but I'm afraid that's all the cure I have time for."
"What's the rush?" asked Rebecca.
"You're leaving?" asked Lucy.
"It has been a pleasure my Queen and an honour," the fox gave Lucy an elegant bow. "The time is short and Aslan himself has asked me to gather more troops." The Beavers gasped with excitement. Rebecca felt the same warm, adventurous feeling wash over her at the mention of Aslan's name.
"You've seen Aslan?" asked Mr. Beaver.
"What's he like?!" asked Mrs. Beaver excitedly. Rebecca held her breath with anticipation.
"He's everything we ever heard," said Mr. Fox, and Rebecca felt strangely disappointed by the description. Mr. Fox turned to the children. "You'll be glad to have him by your side in the battle against the Witch." Rebecca nodded and rested her chin on her hand. She wondered what Aslan was really like and how would she act when she would finally meet him.
"But we're not planning on fighting any Witch," said Susan. Rebecca frowned.
"But fighting may be," Mr. Fox cut Rebecca off and looked at Peter.
"Surely King Peter, the prophecy!" he said. The whole group looked at Peter.
"We can't go to war without you," said Mr. Beaver. Peter looked at Susan, then Lucy, and tossed another stick onto the fire.
"We just want our brother back," he said.
"And my sister," mumbled Rebecca, but no one was listening. Mr. Fox trotted slowly away from the campfire, and Rebecca thought of all the questions she had. "Mr. Fox!" She scrambled to her feet, tripped on the hem of the fur coat and ran after the fox. "Mr. Fox, wait!"
"Yes?" Mr. Fox turned around, his eyes glowing in the moonlight, and Rebecca stopped running. "What was it you wanted?" The words slipped from her mind and Rebecca forgot what she wanted to say. Was it about Joy? Herself? "Yes Rebecca?" he prompted her.
"Why am I in Narnia?" The words exploded out of her mouth. "If the prophecy only calls for two Sons of Adam and two Daughters of Eve, why did my sister and I even end up in Narnia in the first place?" Tears of frustration started to form in her eyes. Why was she here if she was to be useless?
"Well, I've always thought that any humans who come into Narnia come for a reason," said the fox. Rebecca shoved her hands into the soft pockets of the coat and looked away.
"I guess Joy and I are the exception," mumbled Rebecca.
"Maybe next time I see Aslan, I'll ask him for you." Rebecca's head flew up.
"Really?" she asked breathlessly. "No," she shook her head "I'm sure that would be bothering him."
"No, Aslan would not be bothered by such a question," said Mr. Fox as Rebecca knelt in the snow in front of him.
"Are you sure?" she asked. "He sounds like he's too busy to worry about one human girl."
"Oh no, he is not like that at all," said Mr. Fox, shaking his head. "I will ask him for you," he paused "unless you reach Aslan's Camp first." And with a wink, he bounded off into the woods. Rebecca stood up and rubbed her cold knees.
She returned to the camp fire and sat down beside Lucy, who handed her another piece of toast.
"Thanks Lucy," said Rebecca softly.
"Is everything alright Rebecca?" asked Peter. She looked across the fire at him, and quickly raised her head.
"I'm fine," she said, and focused on the dancing flames before her. The Beavers kept rubbing their paws together, holding them out in front of the fire, then rubbing their paws together again. Rebecca looked around at all the gloomy faces.
"Look," she said, "if what Mr. Beaver said is true, Edmund and Joy are alive, right?" She looked at Mr. Beaver for confirmation.
"That's right, and she won't hurt them if I know the Witch," said Mr. Beaver before taking another sip of his tea.
"So, we have nothing to worry about as long as we reach Aslan's Camp before the wolves head back to her castle," said Rebecca. "Correct Mr. Beaver?" He nodded.
"You're not the least bit worried about Joy?" asked Susan, and Rebecca's bravado dimmed slightly.
"I am worried," she said "but I also think there's nothing we can do right now except for heading towards Aslan's Camp. Then, we'll ask Aslan to help us rescue Edmund and Joy, and then save all of Narnia through making the prophecy come true!" Lucy nodded slightly while Susan shook her head.
"Let's just focus on one problem at a time Rebecca," said Peter with a stern look in her direction. "Edmund and Joy are where we cannot get to them without help. We should focus on getting to Aslan's Camp and go from there." Both the Beavers looked slightly disappointed, but Rebecca thought she saw a plotting gleam in Mr. Beaver's eyes and wondered if he was planning something. She turned her attention back to Peter.
"But," argued Rebecca "by joining with Aslan we can help our siblings. Attacking the Witch's castle may be our only way of freeing Joy and Edmund. In turn, by defeating her," then Susan spoke up.
"Rebecca let's focus on Edmund and Joy," she said, and Rebecca saw no point in continuing to argue about the prophecy since no one was listening. Her eyes met Peter's for a moment before she stared at the fire again.
The night grew colder, and Mr. Beaver stood up once everyone had finished eating. "Come on," he said to the children "we can sleep in Badger's house tonight. Best to get out of the cold on a night like this." No one argued the point, and after stiffly standing up, they followed Mr. Beaver back towards the statues and houses. Mr. Beaver glanced briefly at the statue of his friend and shook his head before opening the door to the hut.
Peter lit the fire in the stove while Susan closed all the curtains. There were two bunks built into the wall, so the Beavers took one and Lucy took another since the others were too big for them. Peter, Susan and Rebecca were left to sleep on the floor, but with the thick fur coats acting as blankets, they were quite snug. Rebecca took her place between the cupboard of dishes and the stove, while Susan lay with her back to the stove and Peter was by the opposite wall.
"Goodnight," said Rebecca softly, and a chorus of "Goodnights" followed until Mr. Beaver told all the humans to quiet down so they could get some sleep. Rebecca thought about Aslan, rescuing Joy and Peter's hand on hers earlier that day. With those thoughts, she drifted off to sleep.
It was a rough night in the cell, and bitterly cold. Every so often Joy would look out the cell window but the same blackness of night greeted her every time. With all the ice around them, Joy couldn't tell how much time had passed since they were thrown into the cell, but it seemed to inch slowly on. She kept her word by not saying one word to Edmund and kept her back to him the entire time.
By what seemed to be hours later, Joy was staring at the crust of bread, silently debating whether to eat it or not. Edmund must have had the same idea, because she heard a crunch come from behind her, and then Edmund started coughing. Scratch. Clang. He must have picked up the mug and dropped it back onto the tray. Joy peeked at hers and saw it was frozen. She silently fumed and knew she wasn't going to forgive Edmund for a long time. Then a new voice spoke from the other side of the cell, and it was so soft that Joy almost missed it.
"Hey," it said. Both the children were startled. Joy looked through the broken divider which she hadn't noticed before due to her anger and saw a faun with a bruised face and a red woolen scarf covered his upper body. He had the same iron shackles around his legs that Joy and Edmund did and he looked so pitiful in the lowlight that Joy felt like crying as she stared at him. "If you're not going to eat that," said the faun. Edmund picked up the crust of bread and moved slowly across the cell floor. Joy grabbed her piece as well and crawled next to him.
"I'd get up but," the faun spoke slowly like he was in pain "with my legs," and he groaned as he leaned against the divider and took the bread from Edmund.
"Mr. Tumnus?" asked Edmund. Joy glared at him for beating her to the question. Mr. Tumnus scoffed.
"What's left of him," he said. Joy looked down at the bread in her hand.
"Here's some more Mr. Tumnus," she said and she held out the crust. Mr. Tumnus took it and looked from her to Edmund.
"Are you Lucy's friend Joy?" asked Mr. Tumnus. Lucy had told him about her?! Joy nodded excitedly. Mr. Tumnus then looked at Edmund. "You're Lucy Pevensie's brother?"
"I'm Edmund," he said, looking very uncomfortable and he wasn't looking Mr. Tumnus in the eye.
"You," said Mr. Tumnus "you have the same nose." Edmund hung his head even more, and Joy frowned at him. "Is your sister alright?" asked Mr. Tumnus. Joy did not know how to answer, and Mr. Tumnus must have noticed her worry for he asked urgently "Is she safe?"
At that moment, they heard growls come from above their cell. Joy and Edmund looked at the ceiling, and then at one another. Edmund said, "I don't know."
"I'm scared," whispered Joy. Mr. Tumnus' sat up straighter, alarmed. Then the dungeon's cell lock clicked.
Mr. Tumnus, Joy and Edmund scrambled away from the divider. Joy crawled quickly on all fours with the chain rattling on the icy floor. She had just reached the wall when the cell door opened. It was the Witch! Followed by the wicked dwarf who brought them into the dungeon earlier. Edmund was still in the middle of the cell, slowly making his way to the wall.
"My police," said the Witch "tore that dam apart." She stopped, facing Edmund in the middle of the room. "Your little families," she glanced at Joy "are no where to be found." Joy slumped against the wall with relief; Rebecca, Lucy and the others were safe. The Witch then grabbed Edmund by the collar of his shirt and hoisted him into the air! Joy gasped, worried she was next. "Where did they go?" asked the Witch, holding Edmund on a level with her face.
"I, I don't know!" said Edmund, in pain from the weight of the chains. The Witch looked over at Joy, who stared wide-eyed and afraid to move.
"And you?" asked the Witch to Joy. She shook her head, and the Witch looked back at Edmund.
"Then you are of no further use to me," said the Witch coldly and she dumped Edmund onto the floor. She then raised her wand.
"Stop!" shouted Joy, pushing away from the wall. She didn't want to see anyone, even Edmund, get killed.
"Wait!" cried Edmund. "The Beaver's said something about Aslan!" Mr. Tumnus' head flew up. Joy stared wide-eyed at Edmund. Don't give anything away, she thought. The Witch froze, looking furious. She quickly lowered the wand.
"Aslan?" Her voice seemed choked with anger. "Where?" she asked, eyes blazing. Edmund met Joy's eyes for a second then looked back at the Witch.
"I," said Edmund before Mr. Tumnus interrupted him.
"He's a stranger here Your Majesty, he can't be expected to know anything," said the faun. The Witch's dwarf quickly slammed the butt of his axe into Mr. Tumnus' temple, making him cry out in pain. Joy winced as the sound echoed off the walls.
"I said," the Witch glared at Edmund "where is Aslan?" Edmund looked over at Mr. Tumnus, who lowered his head when the Witch looked over at him.
"I, I don't know," said Edmund and Joy breathed a sigh of relief. "I left before they said anything." He struggled to sit up. "I wanted to see you," he pleaded. The Witch looked unfazed.
"Maybe I should ask your friend here," said the Witch, and she pointed her wand at Joy.
"No!" Joy cried out. "I don't know where Aslan is!" She shook her head and looked over at Edmund. The Witch's eyes blazed and she lowered the wand. In a sweeping motion she stooped down and slapped Joy across the face. Joy's face spun sideways and her left cheek slammed into the wall. Dark spots spun over her vison and pain throbbed in her head. Joy kept her eyes shut, afraid to open them for fear of crying. "I hope that is the last time you lie to me," said the Witch coolly.
"Leave her alone," said Edmund. Joy let out a tiny whimper and slowly peeled open her eyes, only to see the Witch glaring at Edmund.
"How dare you," said the Witch, and then she shouted "Guard!" The monster quickly marched into the cell, holding the mallet in one hand.
"Your Majesty," he said.
"Release the faun," said the Witch, staring at Edmund. Joy finally pushed herself up to lean against the wall and stared at the wand in the Witch's hand. Mr. Tumnus cried out in pain as the guard pounded the nails out of the shackles. He then dragged Mr. Tumnus out of his cell and threw him at the Witch's feet. The Witch rested her wand over her shoulder and looked down at Mr. Tumnus.
"Do you know why you're here, faun?" she asked. Mr. Tumnus raised his head so he could look the Witch in the eye.
"Because I believe in a free Narnia," said Mr. Tumnus. The proud look in his eyes made the urge to cry rise in Joy's throat again. The Witch smiled cruelly down at the faun.
"You're here," said the Witch "because he," she pointed at Edmund with her wand "turned you in. For sweeties." Mr. Tumnus and Joy looked at Edmund, who looked incredibly guilty. Joy then remembered his reaction to Mr. Tumnus' cave.
"It was you," she softly said. Edmund's face fell as he looked away.
The Witch lowered her wand. "Take him upstairs," she told the guard. Mr. Tumnus was still staring at Edmund when the guard started dragging him away. Joy could hear him groaning and cry out in pain as he was taken out of the cell and tried to block out the sounds by plugging her ears.
"And ready my sleigh," said the Witch to the dwarf "Edmund misses his family." Edmund hung his head and refused to look up.
"What about me?" asked Joy, then instantly regretted the words as the Witch looked down on her.
"Every human has had a purpose in the past," mumbled the Witch, then she raised her chin. "You will stay here until I decide what to do with you," said the Witch in a commanding tone, and she marched out of the cell. The dwarf scooped up his beard with his free arm and followed her. Once the dungeon door slammed and the Witch's footsteps receded down the hallway, Joy could no longer hold in the pain.
"Ow," cried Joy. Both sides of her face hurt, one from the slap and the other from when she hit the icy wall of the cell. She gently touched both sides of her face and winced.
"Are you okay Joy?" came Edmund's low voice from where he was seated in the middle of the cell. A hot tear leaked out of Joy's left eye and snaked over a raw scratch on her cheek.
"Take a wild guess Edmund," she said, and pushed away from the wall. She slowly turned around to face Edmund. "How could you? You betrayed your family and Mr. Tumnus for Turkish Delight? You wanted to join the Witch's side?!" Her voice grew steadily louder. "Why?"
"She said she would make me King," mumbled Edmund. "Peter was always telling me what to do, and I thought it was about time I told him what to do for a change."
"And was turning your family, and my sister, over to the Witch worth being King?" asked Joy. Edmund refused to answer. "I hope you feel guilty. I hope you feel miserable!" scolded Joy. Edmund still said nothing, but he looked at her with such sad eyes that Joy was surprised. As she started to regret some of her words though, he suddenly frowned.
"You know, I hope you stop talking to me as soon as possible," he said, "you're beginning to sound like Peter!" and he looked away sulking. Joy glared at the back of his head.
"Good, at least one of us makes sense, traitor," spat out Joy, and she stubbornly faced the wall. Tense silence filled the cell. Joy grew increasingly angrier as she thought of Rebecca, Lucy and the others as they were now on their way to the Stone Table, while she and Edmund were here in the dungeon. They would get to meet Aslan first, and maybe Rebecca would find out why she and Joy were in Narnia. As Joy thought about Aslan, she was suddenly hit with an overwhelming sense of guilt, and she realized how angry and bitter her words had sounded. But she wanted to be angry, she had ever right to be. Yet what was the use? Joy sighed, expelling some of her anger. Then the dungeon lock creaked open and the dwarf came in.
"Time to go, Your Highness," said the dwarf in a mocking tone. The guard pounded the nails out with his mallet and forced Edmund to his feet. The dwarf took his place behind Edmund and made him walk forward and out of the cell. Edmund took one last look at Joy, and she was shocked to see how scared he looked. Her hard gaze softened as he disappeared out of view along with the dwarf. The guard sneered at Joy and slammed the cell door closed behind him.
Somehow, the cell felt colder than it did before. Joy wrapped her arms around herself and pushed her back to the wall. She found herself thinking of Rebecca and Lucy. Even Edmund came to mind. She had to apologize to Rebecca once she got out for Joy knew Rebecca must have been going crazy with worry by now. Joy found herself missing everything about her, even when Rebecca would act like Mum and tell her what to do. Just as things had gone back to normal between them, here in Narnia of all places, she had listened to Edmund and went with him to the Witch's house. More tears leaked out and Joy rested her head on her knees. "Rebecca," she whispered, "I'm sorry." Tears ran down her cheeks, warming her face and dripping from her chin onto her skirt. Would she ever see Rebecca again?
Hoofbeats galloped overhead along with the faint jingling of bells. The shadow of the Witch's sleigh passed by the window, and Joy knew Edmund was gone. Loneliness weighed down on her and Joy sobbed.