Heyyy! Thank you to people who've reviewed and for your suggestions and ideas - much appreciated :D

In this chapter Polly and Digory find themselves in an odd situation, read on to see how they react nd please tell me what you think :)

Enjoy!

Chapter 6

There is a world beyond our own, a world between worlds where the trees are bare yet beautiful and silver, shallow pools are scattered all around, as far as the eye can see. Beside one of these pools, beneath one of these trees lies a girl. The skirt of her white dress is still pristine despite the grass she lies on and one leg is turned in slightly, her skin is the color of moonlight and her hair the color of jet, her green eyes are open but unseeing. She is completely still, as unmoving as the water beside her but this girl could not be mistaken for dead, everything about her – the rosy glow on her cheeks, the gentle rise and fall of her chest, the glint in the depths of her eyes, her hair's shine – is very much alive.

Digory felt like the world was rushing around between his ears, he had squeezed his eyes shut a long time ago and yet colors seemed to have seeped through somehow, he opened his eyes and saw what looked like a stained glass window above him. He became aware that he was moving towards it and put up his hands in shock, waiting for the impact, but it never came. Instead he felt cool water, then nothing...a slight breeze.

He blinked. He was standing in a pool of water in a strange place, he should have been concerned at the very least but he was not. Calmly he stepped onto land and took in his surroundings, feeling a dull sense of familiarity and belonging wash over him. He was completely dry despite having come out of the water but this didn't bother him, the boy smiled contentedly – this was how it was meant to be. Slowly he took another step and then stopped as something caught his eye on the other side of the pool. It was a girl.

The boy did not go to her at once but stood very still and looked at her, she hadn't seen him. He tilted his head, she was very pale...he took a step towards her noticing the vivid green of her eyes compared to the pale green of the grass, her eyes were distant but still something shone in them, it was like when you tossed a coin into a fountain, through the water something gleamed. He took another step closer and this brought him next to her.

"Hello." He said, he didn't smile. He'd forgotten how.

The girl's eyes moved to his, she didn't smile either and it was a while before she spoke.

"Hello." She replied, sitting up slowly. The sleeve of her dress slipped down her shoulder as she did but she didn't right it, simply staring at the boy.

The boy looked at her bare shoulder and then back at her.

"I thought it was just me here." The girl said with a slight frown.

"So did I." The boy replied. "But I've been here a long time." He couldn't quite remember exactly how long.

"Me too. Forever I should think." The girl said, no emotion crossed her face as she spoke.

"That is a long time." The boy nodded slowly.

They both looked up then as snow began to fall from the sky, leaving a sugary coat on the grass. The girl stood up and put out her hand to catch a snowflake. "Odd." She said, bringing it to her eye level and inspecting it.

The boy twitched his nose as a snowflake came to rest on it. "Who are you?" He asked after a while.

The girl's eyebrows drew together as she thought, "I'm...Polly." She said very slowly, her mind struggling to recall itself.

The boy nodded and then frowned when Polly asked him the same question. "Digory." He said eventually and then smiled, pleased he'd remembered.

"That's a strange name." Polly said, looking at him in an oddly familiar way.

"So's Polly then." Digory said. They looked at each other for a few seconds and then Polly gasped as if she'd been underwater all that time and had only then come up for air.

"Digory!" She squealed and flung herself at him, hugging him so tightly that they both fell to the ground. Digory's eyes widened and when she said his name he smiled broadly, even laughing as they toppled over.

"Polly?" He knotted his hand in her hair and held her tightly.

"Yes, it is me! And it's you! Where...where are we?" She said excitedly, scrambling upright and tugging him up with her by his hand.

"I don't know," He said with a frown, "we were in Uncle Andrew's study then I left and you stayed then...then he – you screamed! I heard you! Then you were gone and – and I..." he broke off, searching through his foggy memories. "There were these rings and he was talking about magic, I was angry with him - he'd sent you here. It was the rings that did it, they sent you to another world." He finished hurriedly and Polly's eyes went as wide as saucers.

"They sent me where now?" She asked incredulously.

"Travel between worlds, that's what he said. Then I came after you because you wouldn't have been able to get back." He clenched his fists, "That pig sent you here without the ring to get you back."

"Wait." Polly said firmly, holding up her hand. "We're in another world?" She clarified, raising her eyebrows.

"Yes?" Digory said uncertainly. "It seems so, anyway."

Polly bit her lip as she always did when she was thinking. She scanned the area around her, looking at each individual pool and eventually pointing at the one next to them.

"We came out of there." She said. Digory looked at it and a spark of recognition flew into his eyes.

"Yes, you're right. I remember now." He said, dropping to his knees to get a better look at it.

Polly had not yet finished thinking, something didn't add up to her...well, many things really. She ran a hand through her unruly curls and stood on her tiptoes to try and see how long the pools went on for – the answer was a very long time.

"Digory." She said slowly. He looked up from his inspection of the pool.

"Yes?"

"This isn't another world, your uncle got it wrong." She said, looking at him with sparkling eyes.

"What do you mean?" He asked uncertainly, looking around.

"Well I think that, if we came out of that pool there and there are all these other pools...the worlds – the other one's I mean – you must be able to get to all of them through the pools. If that's the case it means this is kind of a waiting room." She said, trying to explain the garbled thoughts in her mind, a phrase came to her suddenly but she didn't know where she'd heard it. "A world between worlds."

Digory's eyes widened and he got to his feet. "I think you're right! It makes sense, this place has a strange feel to it, like it's not really there at all." He looked at the pools, his mind reeling.

"All those must be worlds." Polly whispered, looking at them with bright eyes.

A smile spread over Digory's face and he stood there for a long time, contemplating the possibilities of such a discovery; they, like the pools, were endless.

Polly was not nearly as fascinated by the exploratory prospects and rather wanted to get back home so after a while she tapped him on the shoulder.

"So these rings, you have the ones we need to get back?" She asked, crossing her arms and shifting the snow at her feet with the toe of her shoe.

"Yes..." He said slowly, "But don't you – I mean, aren't you curious?" He asked enthusiastically. "All these worlds, ours to explore."

Polly thought back to the maps on his wall and how he'd said he was going to see all of those places, she should have known he would want to take a look.

"Well yes but I'm also not crazy." She replied, folding her arms and tilting her chin slightly.

"We can't pass this up Polly! We'll never get this chance again!" He said loudly, unable to believe her response. "We can get out at any time."

"No." She said flatly. "We'd be asking for trouble."

Digory scowled. "Well I have the rings so it seems I am at an advantage." He said, patting his pocket.

Polly's mouth opened in shock. "You beast!" She shouted, "You're as bad as your stupid uncle."

Digory rolled his eyes. "No I'm not, you know I'd never actually leave you here. I'm just saying."

Polly's eyes flashed. "Don't joke about that." She said under her breath.

He moved closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder. "We don't have to. But just think for a minute; all those books you read, the characters in them – would they have passed up an opportunity like this? It's the chance of a lifetime, our only chance to have an adventure." He shrugged, "I just thought you'd like it."

Polly's eyes had softened while he talked and she had uncrossed her arms.

There was a long silence and then she pushed his hand off and grinned.

"What are we waiting for?"