Hope you all enjoy this next chapter!

XOXO,

M

The Six

Chapter 7

Emily POV

"Can I come with you? Pretty please!" Lucy begged Susan as she gathered her arrows.

"I suppose so," Susan said. "Just stay out of the way; I don't want to hit you with any stray arrows."

"I promise I won't get in the way," Lucy said solemnly.

"Careful," Peter said. "Make sure you have your cordial with you, Lucy."

"It's right here," Lucy said, patting the belt she wore around her waist that held her healing cordial and her dagger.

"Good," Peter said. "I don't want you to be in any danger, either of you."

Susan nodded. "We'll be alright, Peter, really." Then the two girls left, leaving me alone with the boys.

"You're worried about them," I stated.

Peter looked over at me. "After what happened this afternoon - can you blame me?"

"No, I can't," I said. "They'll be all right, though. Susan's got her horn with her, and Lucy's got her healing cordial. And they've both got weapons. Not to mention the fact that we're in the middle of an army encampment - our army encampment."

"I suppose you're right," Peter sighed. "I just - I worry about them a lot, all of you really. I don't want you to get hurt."

"I know," I said, nodding.

"Well, if we are going to go to war we should probably get to practice." Edmund said with newfound encouragement.

"How about it Pete?" He asks, before turning and winking at Jack and I. Leaving and appalled look on my face. He and Peter each gather their shields and weapons before walking down to where the temporary stables were to practice riding.

After they left there was silence between Jack and I for a few moments, and during that silence I decided that I wanted to go on a walk. "I think I'm going to go on a walk," I said, breaking the silence and standing up.

"Absolutely not," Jack replies.

I arched one eyebrow in surprise, "Excuse me?"

"I'm not letting you go on a walk alone," He says. "It's too dangerous."

"Then I suppose you'll have to come with me," I said stubbornly, "because I fully intend to go on one."

Jack stares at me for a moment and then sighs. "All right, then. I suppose I shall, if you're that determined to go on one."

I grinned, revealing inside at my little victory. Jack got up from where he sat and the two of us began to amble quietly down through the grassy meadow near the training grounds. "I'm glad Edmund's back," I say softly.

"So am I," Jack replies. "He was an idiot for what he did - but it's such a relief to have him back with us."

"I'm just scared I'll loose him again. Or Susan, or Lucy, or Peter," I pause for a second, trembling slightly. "Or you…"

"We'll get through all this together," Jack says assuredly, taking my hand in his and gently squeezing it. I looked up at him and smiled, not letting go of his hand as we continued on our walk together around the training field and back to Aslan's camp. The sun had nearly set when we reached the tent I share with Susan and Lucy. "Well, I suppose I must bid thee goodnight, milady," Jack says gallantly, raising my hand to his lips and kissing it. "Until tomorrow then?"

"Of course, good Sir," I reply, giggling a little at his sudden chivalry. "And a good night to you as well."

Jack lets go of my hand and I move into the tent deep in thought, smiling at the lovely evening I'd just spent with Jack. It being the first peaceful time we have spent with each other in months, and probably the last for a while. Lucy's mischievous voice shakes me out of my reverie. "Did you have fun with Jack, Em?"

"Ah, yes, Emily," Susan added, her eyes sparkling. "Did the two of you have a nice walk?"

"Of course we did," I reply, blushing a little. "I'm rather tired now, though. I think I'm going to go to bed, if that's all right with the two of you?"

"I suppose," Susan said, a little disappointedly.

I changed from my lavender gown into a thin white nightgown that was lying on my hammock, most likely left there earlier by Susan. Yawning, I climbed into the hammock and pulled the blanket over me, suddenly finding myself utterly exhausted from the day's events. I was just about to sink into blissful slumber when -

"Emily? Are you awake yet?" Lucy's adorable voice cut through the silence.

"Mmm," I mumbled.

"Did Jack kiss you?" she asked.

I sat straight up in my hammock. "Lucy! Of course not!" I exclaimed in near outrage. "Jack and I are just friends!"

Lucy and Susan, who were both getting ready for bed, burst out into peals of laughter at my outburst. "Goodnight, Em," Susan said through her giggles.

"Ugh," I groaned, laying back down and pulling the covers over my head. I began to wonder a little though. Jack was acting lovingly much more recently, even in the open - especially with him taking my hand in his and holding it through almost our entire walk. I began to gain as tight feeling in the pit of my stomach. Goodness I love that boy, I just don't know how long he would live if Peter knew. Unable to sort out my thoughts properly, I finally pushed them aside and fell into a deep slumber, a slumber in which for the first time in a long time, I did not dream about the bombings in London but of a castle by the sea, a brown-haired boy, and the kisses he gave me. So for the first time in a long time, I truly slept calmly.

The Next Morning

I wake up the next morning and stretch, still exhausted from the day before. "Good Em! You're up!" Lucy said cheerfully.

"Ugh," I groaned, attempting to roll over onto my stomach with little success, as I was in a hammock. "I don't want to get up."

"I'm sure you don't," Susan said, "especially if your limbs are aching as badly as mine."

"They hurt," I mumbled into my pillow.

"Mine do, too," Susan said. "Breakfast will be soon, though. You'd better get up."

Reluctantly, I slowly got out of the hammock, feeling an ache in every bone in my body. I got down a lavender dress from where it hung and changed out of my nightgown into the dress. Then Susan braided my dirty-blonde hair into one long elegant braid. She also had some leftover sprigs of white forget-me-nots that she'd woven into Lucy's braids, so she wove them into my flowey braid. "You look lovely," Susan commented after she'd finished.

"Thank you," I said. "Now let's go to breakfast; I'm starved."

The three of us came out of our tent into the brilliant sunshine of a warm spring day. "I wonder what's for breakfast," Lucy said as we rounded the corner to the space between our tent and the boys' tent, where breakfast had been set out for us. Peter Jack and Edmund were already there, Peter standing by a tent pole with Jack and Edmund sitting down at the table.

"We waited for you to eat," Peter said.

"Why thank you, dear brother of mine," Susan said, sitting down at the table. Lucy sat down by Edmund, and I sat between my two sisters. A dryad brought plates of poached eggs, sausage, and toast to the low table we sat at. Edmund immediately began to eat his fill of light, buttered toast.

After breakfast was finished and we had all cleaned up, as well as caught up on last night's events Lucy reached over and tugged on the sleeve of my dress.

"Come on Em, lets go."

"Where is it exactly that we are going?" I questioned.

"To get in some practice," Susan said, the corners of her mouth turning up slightly in the ghost of a smile.

"Come on!" Lucy exclaimed, jumping up and almost knocking the table over in her excitement. "I want to practice throwing my dagger!"

We all laughed at Lucy's excitement. "In that case, I'm going to ask Oreius to teach me how to swordfight," Jack said, standing up reluctantly.

"We should all practice more," Edmund said, nodding in agreement.

So it was that only a few short minutes later I found myself with a bow in hand and a quiver of arrows slung over my back. "Don't worry, Em; you'll do fine," Susan said.

"I don't know," I admitted. "I'd rather practice with the daggers."

"Just try," Susan said encouragingly. "Besides, your a natural with those daggers. But they won't do you much good from afar."

I watched as Susan placed an arrow to the bowstring, drew back, and released, sending the arrow flying gracefully into the outer ring of the target. She frowned, obviously not happy with the way the arrow flew..

Suddenly a dagger flew through the air and landed straight in the bullseye. We turned to Lucy, who was giggling. "That's not fair," Susan exclaimed.

We stopped practicing for a moment as Jack rode up to us, quickly dismounting and gathering his reins. Looking purposeful in his movements. Peter and Edmund galloped nearby on their horses, swinging their swords at each other. "Keep the blade up, Ed," Peter shouted to Edmund, "just like Oreius told us!"

We stood and watched the boys practice their sword fighting, and I couldn't help but notice out of the corner of my eye how much more Jack looked like a young man than a boy with sword at his hip. I kept my eyes on him, admiring the way the sun glinted off his hair and - I shook my head. Peter doesn't know about us yet, and I don't plan on him finding out now. He has way too much on his plate, we all do really. With this whole war thing dangling over our heads.

Fortunately, or perhaps not so fortunately at that moment Mr. Beaver came scurrying through the grass and up to Edmund's horse, who reared upwards and nearly threw Edmund off. "Woah, boy!" Edmund exclaimed.

"My name is Phillip," the horse grunted.

"Oh!" Edmund said in surprise, obviously not realizing that the horse could talk. "Sorry." The rest of us snickered at Edmund's mistake, but our laughter was short-lived.

"The Witch," Mr. Beaver panted. "The Witch is here, at Aslan's camp. She's got a message for him!"

I suddenly felt cold all over, although the day was warm, as I realized it would now only be a matter of time until the battle against the Witch. "I suppose we should go back to camp," I said with a tone matching the way I felt.

"We'll meet you back there," Peter said somberly, and he and Edmund began to ride back.

The walk back to camp was a silent one. Jack didn't ride his horse surprisingly, but instead lead it back and walked alongside us. I didn't know what was running through Susan or Lucy's head, but all I could think of was that the Witch would want to take back Edmund and a bloody fight would break out as a result. Our family just reunited, I thought. Why? Why must this happen? Why can't we be together and happy without anyone interfering?

We arrived back at camp just in time to see the Witch arrive. She was the most beautiful woman I had ever seen, but her beauty was cold and unsettling. Her tight blonde curls were gathered up on top of her head and stiffened to a point. Her dress was white and also stiff, and she walked in a chilly but regal manner. She glared briefly at Edmund as she passed us, but her attention was focused on Aslan, who stood on the lower part of the hill outside of his tent, just as he had when we met him.

"You have a traitor in your midst, Aslan." Even her voice was ice-cold, and I shivered.

"His offense was not against you," Aslan replied evenly.

"Even so," the Witch continued, "the law gives me right to the blood of traitors."

"Do not cite the Deep Magic to me, Witch," Aslan said. "I was there when it was written."

"Then you are aware that the boy belongs to me? His blood is my property," the Witch said, almost triumphantly.

"Try and take him then," Peter said, unsheathing his sword and stepping out into the path the Witch stood upon.

"Do you think that mere force will deny me my right, Little King?" she said condescendingly. Peter bit his lip and stepped backwards. Then she turned to the crowd that had gathered behind her. "If I don't have blood, as the Law demands, all of Narnia will be overturned, and perish in fire and water." The crowd gasped as she uttered these words. "That boy," she declared, "will die on the Stone Table."

"Enough, Witch!" Aslan growled. "We shall speak of it alone."

The Witch hesitated, and then followed Aslan into his tent. Lucy began to cry. "What's going to happen to Edmund?" she asked.

"Don't cry, Lucy," Susan said, putting an arm around our sister.

I sat down on the grass, and the other five followed my lead. Nobody felt like talking, I would steal glances at my siblings every once in a while, but my eyes rarely left the tent Aslan and the Witch were in . It seemed like hours had gone by before the Witch and Aslan finally came out of the tent. We all stood up, waiting with bated breath of what was to become of Edmund. The Witch walked down the little hill and glanced over at Edmund with a smirk. I felt my heart sink into my stomach, sure that she had won her claim over Edmund.

Then Aslan spoke. "She has renounced her claim on the Son of Adam's blood."

I gasped and looked at Edmund, who looked relieved beyond words. Then the Witch spoke again, saying, "How do I know your promise will be kept?" Aslan roared loudly and the Witch nearly ran for her life. The crowd began to cheer, and everyone started congratulating Edmund and telling him how glad they were his life was spared. In the midst of all the joy and excitement, however, I caught a glimpse of Aslan, who looked very disconsolate and padded back into his tent. The coldness I felt earlier returned, replacing all my exuberance at Edmund's life being spared. What had Aslan done to protect my little brother?

Thank You All So Much For Reading! If you liked it please review, and if you have any interesting ideas please message me.

XOXO,

M