Chapter Three

Victoria lay on her bed with a book in her hands, it was 'Little Dorrit' by Charles Dickens one of her favourites but she had barely read more than a page. She lay simply staring at the ceiling high above her its yellow, gold and white Georgian colours swirled in her mind. She knew exactly why her great aunt had punished her. She was terrified of the Wheelan-Holmes name being defiled.

"Well too late," Victoria thought "mother ran it through the mud years ago Great Aunt Ursula and you know what? She is happy. Our house is so full of love and smiles that yours never is." As she said her monologue in her head she turned over and felt something in her cardigan pocket dig into her side. She fished out a grubby packed tied with brown paper and string, undoing the string she found a small red box the kind used by the best jewellers. She opened the box and inside found a silver necklace with a pendent in the shape of a roaring lion. She dropped the box in surprise the necklace was clearly beautiful and fine but that also made it expensive. "Who would send me this?" She asked aloud to the room. Looking at the package to assess if there was a clue, she found none.

Curious she wondered what to do. Great Aunt Ursula would confiscate it immediately neither Henry nor Lehzen would have any more idea than she would. So Victoria did the only thing she could think of standing up she walked over to a mirror on the dresser. Moving aside a pile of books in front of the mirror she put the necklace on. It fell longer than she thought resting not against her throat but on her chest. She looked down at the lion and vanished.

Victoria reappeared. Her breathing was shallow and laboured with the shocked of disappearing and then reappearing. "Where am I?" She wondered. She could see the outlines of what looked like trees and beneath her bare feet was a carpet of leaves. She heard a twig snap and looked upwards.

"Who's there?" She shouted but there was no reply. She saw a flash of gold out of the corner of her eye. Looking around furiously trying to find it she saw nothing. Then another flash of gold this time she made out the shape: a lion.

Her mind suddenly flew back to her brother on the train earlier in the day "I kept dreaming about a lion." He had said. For some reason Victoria felt as though the lion had the answers to her questions and with an impulsive decision that was completely out of character she ran after the lion. Victoria was clumsy and as she ran she was careful not to trip up and often lost sight of the lion, only for it to reappear a few moments later.

Finally she exited the forrest and found herself at the edge of a great stately garden. Being distracted for a few seconds she missed her footing and found herself sprawled all over the neatly mowed lawn.

Picking herself up she felt the grass between her toes and was reminded of her parents house with its neat lawn. She wandered from the lawn to a paved road, the road had neat boxes of flowers in different colours: the first purple, the second red and so one down the long road. On her right hand was a still pool of water so clear she could see even by the moonlight the beautiful mosaics at the bottom of the pool.

"Stop stranger!" Victoria looked up to see a soldier on the other side of the pool point at her. He was dressed in what Victoria thought of as medieval clothes: chain mail and armour with a red lion on a golden motif. Victoria knew she should be running but she glanced at her necklace, the symbol was the same.

One soldier grabbed her arm as a second pushed her forward.

"Who are you?" The first asked. His helmet had a large red feather on and his air gave Victoria the belief that he was in charge.

'Victoria," she said "my name is Victoria Smith."

"What are you doing here Victoria Smith?" the man asked.

"I don't know," she said "I found myself here, I followed a lion." She knew it sounded lame even whilst she was saying it.

"Really?" The soldier with the red feather half-sceptical, half-angry. "We will see what the King says?"

"The King?" Victoria asked. She was now throughly confused she was either going to be taken to Buckingham Palace or she was in another world. And as far as she knew the King's soldiers didn't wear chain mail.

"Come on," the man pushed her onwards a little.

"Pervis, the lady is a prisoner not a convict." The man in charge said as they marched Victoria forward. By the moonlight she saw the path change from rough stone to marble as the palace came into view. It was marble palace with wide steps leading up to grand glass floor to ceiling windows. The middle window was open and it was this that Victoria was walked through by the soldiers. She found herself in a brightly lit antechamber. The soldiers knocked on a door to hear.

"Come in." Victoria felt Pervis grip her arm a little tighter as they walked through the grand doors. Victoria saw a tall man bent over a table, his back facing them.

"Your majesty."

"Don't bow Marshall," he waved as he turned around "I've told you that if you bowed every time we met all you'd be doing is bowing."

Victoria looked at the man, he was taller considerably taller than she was but at barely 5 ft 2 inches she knew that wasn't hard. He had dark blue eyes and light blonde hair almost platinum in colour that was encircled by a thin band that marked him as the king. He smiled at the trio.

"Can I help Marshall?" the King smiled kindly "and who is this this?"

"This your majesty," Marshall announced "is Victoria Smith," he said the name as though it was a curiosity. "We found her in the gardens." The King walked forward his brow creased in curiosity his eyes fixed on the pendant around her neck.

"Where did you get this from?" He asked.

"I was given it," she said defiantly looking up at the much taller man.

"Do you know what it is?"

"A necklace." She replied.

"It is a symbol of the royal family of Narnia." He said pulling the necklace. Victoria disappeared.