Author's Note: I hope you guys all enjoy this chapter! I owe a big thank you to my wonderful beta, Queen Su! Please review!
Disclaimer: Narnia belongs to C. S. Lewis!
"General Glozelle will be upset if you are late for dinner," Hanelise said to Maria through the door.
"He is my father, he shouldn't be too upset! It's at our old house, and anyway, he always gets held up at the castle," Maria said stepping out of the door, pulling her hair out from the collar of her blue dress. Hanelise held the door open for her friend, watching her walk to the stairs.
Maria had always loved dinner at the old house. Ever since her mother's death, they had lived in the castle. They still owned the house, so in the middle of every week they would have dinner there.
She had a busy night; if dinner was too long, she wouldn't be able to go help Edmund. Maria didn't know how he was today because of her lessons. She hoped he was alright; he was in a horrible condition last night.
Maria took a step through the main gate of the castle into the village. Guards patrolled the village, probing the darkness for anything that looked suspicious. The old house was toward the edge of the town.
Pushing the door open she saw that the table was set. She heard her father in the other room. Maria was late, but he was never on time. This meant he probably wanted more time to talk, and it was most likely about her outburst yesterday.
Maria leaned against the door, "Papa! I am here!" She called into his room.
"Go ahead and sit down, I will be out in a moment!" He shouted back.
Maria stepped over to the table and stared down at her food. She took a sip of water as Glozelle took a seat across from her. Maria smiled at her father and took a bite of bread.
"How was the lesson?" He asked, giving his daughter a smile in return.
Maria stared up at him, swallowing the hunk of bread, "It was great! Professor Hywet was really nice, but that is no surprise."
Glozelle chuckled lightly, his split lip made his voice sound thick, "Yes, Hywet is a very nice man. What did you learn?"
Maria smile faded for a moment and she took a bite of the chicken to fill her mouth. She hadn't thought that through. Maria didn't feel comfortable lying again, but would he be furious if she told him the truth.
"Erm," she paused swallowing, "He told me about the Narnian history." That wasn't exactly lying; Maria didn't give him the details.
Her father stared at her curiously, "Did he tell you the old tales?"
"No," Maria said quickly. What did he consider 'the old tales?' Maybe they were different from what she thought. That wasn't lying...was it? "He showed me a book on the monarchy of Narnia."
"Very interesting," Glozelle responded, after taking a drink of water to clear his throat.
"How was your day?" Maria asked staring at the dark tablecloth.
Glozelle assumed she wanted to know about the prisoner. "It was good," he lied. He only did as he was told. "King Miraz wants me to go to the river."
Maria's head shot up, she loved the river. Maria just loved water. "Why?" She inquired trying to make conversation.
"To help speed up construction," he answered simply. "He needs the bridge finished as soon as possible. The troops need to make it to the encampment."
Maria didn't like the bridge. It ruined the natural beauty that surrounded the great river. She sighed, "When are you leaving?"
Glozelle looked away, avoiding her eyes. He knew how much she hated it when he left. "Tomorrow morning."
"Why so soon, you just got back!" Maria set her fork down and crossed her arms. "Can't you just stay a little bit longer?" She pleaded.
"I wish I could stay." Glozelle answered truthfully "I missed you while I was gone and I wish you could come with me."
A smile broke across Maria's face, "Can I come?"
Regretting his words, he answered her, "No."
Maria let out a small cry of aggravation.
Her father tried to sound optimistic, "Professor Hywet has agreed to stay with you."
Maria loved it when Professor Hywet took care of her when her father was gone. He was like an uncle to her, or even a second father.
"He agreed to stay with you here in the house," Glozelle said hoping to give his daughter some buoyancy. She loved this house and it might cheer up to know she could stay here. "Hywet should be here soon." He smiled at his daughter.
Maria nodded; she tried not to show her disappointment. She wanted to go to the river, but she knew she would not be allowed to go.
Her father would be gone, but Hywet would be here. Then Maria could ask him anything about the Golden Age. She wouldn't have to worry about trying to conceal the information.
General Glozelle, Professor Hywet, and King Miraz were all around the same age. When they were younger they all had the same tutor. Hywet had been the best student, but Glozelle had excelled when they studied military. Now King Miraz was different, even when he was a teenager he would stalk around the castle ordering people around.
"I have to go soon, Maria," General Glozelle stood up kissing his daughter's forehead. Abruptly, he heard a knock on the door. "Come in!"
Tamwyn Hywet stumbled through the door with an arm full of books and a stack paper. Maria laughed as he struggled to the table. Finally he set his burdens down. "Maria loved the lesson so much today that I brought some more books for her to study."
Glozelle spoke, "Thank you for coming Tamwyn," he said before returning his attention to his daughter, "I love you, Maria."
Maria looked up and wrapped him in a warm hug, "I love you too, Papa!" She stopped, allowing him to go to the door.
"See you soon!" He called back with a wave.
Maria watched him leave for the castle. But she didn't leave the threshold even after his figure disappeared. Maria felt a hand on her shoulder, "Thanks for staying with me Professor." She said as she peered at the stars.
Hywet chuckled, "Maria, you only have to call me professor when we are studying the lessons. Any other time you should call me Uncle Hywet, like you did when you were little."
Maria laughed at the long forgotten memories that she recalled as he mentioned them. Her thoughts changed when she remembered Edmund. Maria had to go visit him tonight.
Right after she gave a nice fake, but convincing yawn, Hywet sent her to her room. Maria sat in bed for a few minutes thinking about the evening.
What would Edmund need? Food of course, and a cloth to clean his wounds, but Maria hoped she wouldn't need to clean anything else. Would she tell him what she knew? In the past, he had betrayed his family for candy! After a few moments she decided, not to trust him yet. It was too risky and she barely knew him.
Sneaking into her father's room she opened up the wardrobe and reached down into the box in the corner. Picking up the keys she smiled. When she was ten, her father told her (without thinking) where he kept the second set of keys to the dungeon. Maria tiptoed past the guest room where Hywet was sleeping. Leaning lightly upon the door, she put her ear next to the smooth wood and heard a loud snore from her tutor.
Escaping out the back door, she turned towards the small garden. Their home was on the edge of the village, so the front of the house was facing the streets of stone, but the back was covered in grass facing the woods that stood far away.
She had planted fruit in her small garden. Maria thought Edmund might like the fresh berries. She grabbed the basket that sat on the edge of the house then crept into the quiet garden. The wind blew through the tall grasses around the garden and the slivery moon was waxing in the night sky.
Maria bent over and began to pluck the ripe strawberries that grew scanty in her garden. How much food would Edmund need? There was not a lot so she would have to save some for another night. After picking no more than a handful, she headed towards the castle.
She made it past the guards at the main gate with ease. Again, the two guarding the doors to the dungeon gave her trouble.
But she held up the basket full of strawberries, "I picked fresh strawberries for the castle's kitchen," she beamed at them. They smiled letting her pass.
Maria turned down the hall thrusting the door open that led to the cells. She descended the stairs rapidly, making sure she had everything necessary for aiding Edmund. Maria lifted the keys up and searched for the right one.
As soon as Maria reached the cell where they kept Edmund, she pushed the key into the hole. Cringing as the lock creaked; she stepped in the dimly lit room. She gently closed the door and turned around to face Edmund.
Gasping in surprise she covered her mouth as she saw Edmund leaning wearily against the wall. She was barely able to speak, for her mouth ran dry, "Edmund, what did they do to you?"
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