Chapter 9: If These Walls could talk they'd have so Much to Say

Edmund tried to get up but his face was stuck to the ice wall that he had fallen asleep against. He tried to pull away but stopped when he felt pain in his cheek. He tried to look around to find something that would help him pry his cheek away from the wall.

"Aww, the Just King is having trouble…who's the weak one now?"

Edmund let out a cry of pain when he was suddenly ripped away from the wall. He raised his hand to check if his cheek was still there, and he was relieved to know that it was still attached. The pain was dull because his cheeks were practically numb but the cold didn't stop the pain of her fingers biting into his shoulder.

"Come!"

He was yanked to his feet and was shoved in front of her. He tired to plant his feet on the ground to stop her from taking him but his feet slid against the glassy surface. A few of her wolves pushed against him, urging him forward against his will. She shoved him into his sleigh and got in before urging the horses forward.

The cool wind stung Edmund's eyes as he tried to keep them open but the wind forced them shut. He didn't know where he was going, which was what scared him the most. What would she do with him? Would she take him to a secluded area and finish him right then and there? Would she keep him in Narnia as her slave until he withered away, fragile and weak? Would she turn him to stone and keep him forever? His mind raced and his stomach churned. The vibrations from the moving sled weren't helping at all.

Looking up he locked eyes with Jadis, who seemed to notice the look of nausea on his face. She merely smiled and looked back up to the horizon, humming a tune under her breath. Edmund wrapped his arms around himself tighter, imagining that he was in a warm place, or he was being hugged.

Hugging.

Something he took for granted back home, just like his family. Lucy always tried to hug him but he'd remain stiff or shove her away. "It's embarrassing" he'd say "to have your little sister hug you all the time." Or he'd make an excuse about being a man and men don't hug. Lucy would immediately shoot that back in his face with Peter, of course.

Edmund was always compared to Peter and he hated it. He wasn't Peter; therefore he shouldn't be compared to his older brother. And yet, the Just king felt like a part of him was missing when he wasn't compared to Peter. He felt…empty when he wasn't being compared to Peter's open mind or Peter's bravery.

Peter wasn't all that special. He could be really hard headed sometimes. He wouldn't let anyone's opinion change his mind when it's been made up. That's the basis of most of their fights. Peter continued to see Edmund as a little kid while Edmund desperately tried to make himself something that Peter could be proud of. It was hard, especially when Peter has all ready done something and been praised for it when Edmund started to do the same.

"Here we are."

Edmund slowly lifted his head, forcing himself to keep his lunch down. His eyes widened when he looked up at the large castle. He remembered everything about it. Every secret passage, every piece of stone, every tapestry, everything.

It's hard to forget your own home, especially when it's as grand as Cair Paravel. Even though his heart soared to see his old home it also clenched in fear. Every single life changing moment that happened in the castle hit him all at once, causing tears to spring to his eyes.

He didn't want to remember.

"Wake up." Peter gently nudged Lucy's shoulder until she forced her eyes open and squirmed in her seat. Susan looked around with sleepy eyes and yawned before pushing open the door to the door allowing cool air to swoop inside.

Peter paid the cabbie before sliding out. He helped the girls take out their bags and walked with them up the front stairs of Professor Diggory's home. Peter was sure this was what they had to do. Edmund needed them and this was the only way they could get to him.

Peter knocked on the door, not letting up until Mrs. Macready answered it, eyes wide behind her thick glasses and her mouth open. She moved out of the way to let them in, closing the door swiftly behind herself. She ushered them into the living room and told them to stay there until Professor Diggory got there.

"I still don't think this is a good idea," Susan's voice broke the silence.

Peter immediately cut his eyes at her. "You don't think this is a good idea?" He repeated. "What is a good idea then, Su? Enlighten me," he ordered harshly. "Leaving our brother in Narnia? Letting him wander around by himself? Continuing on with our lives as if he wasn't here? Not caring that he just disappeared in my arms? Which of those do you think is a good idea, Su?"

Susan slowly shook her head as she glared at Peter, anger flashing in her eyes. Peter slumped in his seat, his arms crossed over his chest. Lucy looked back and forth between Susan and Peter, hating the weight of hostility that was settling in the room.

Lucy forced herself to get out of her seat, despite Mrs. Macready's orders, and rushed towards the bathroom. Once she got there she locked the door behind herself and looked in the mirror. Is this what Edmund looked like? Was he this scared? Lucy studied her reflection in the mirror but had to tear her eyes away when she felt herself starting to cry. She wiped at her eyes, making sure no tears were going to fall out. When she deemed herself ready she pushed open the door and stepped out in the hall.

It was silent. Susan and Peter probably still weren't talking to each other. Lucy wanted to go back to them but she made a snap decision in her head and went the other way, following the path to the wardrobe. She pushed open the door and a familiar magical feeling fell over her as her eyes locked on the covered wooden stricter. She gripped the sheet and pulled it away, letting the material fall to the floor before grasping the knob.

She looked over her shoulder once before opening the wardrobe and stepped inside. She pushed her way past the coats, eyes closed, biting her lips as she prayed for access to Narnia and to her brother. She kept a hand out in front of her and she closed her eyes, expecting to feel the back panel of the wardrobe.

She tripped over a stray shoe and fell. She used her hands to catch herself, opening her eyes when she felt the cold instantly biting at her hands.

Snow.

She made it.