Hi everyone! Sorry for the late update, but I hope this will be worth it. I'm very excited about this story! I've tried to blend both the book and the movie for this story, so you'll notice some differences as you read. I hope you enjoy and feel free to leave a review!

-Fair Echo

Chapter One

Thirteen-year-old Joy fiddled with her tie as she looked at her reflection in the tube station window. She looked tired. A tinge of sadness rested around her eyes, and she looked incredibly impatient. Joy turned away from the window and looked around at the crowd of students. Loud voices and shouts came from the group and Joy huddled along the wall. As she pressed her back against the wall, her thoughts turned away from the boarding school and the station.

Why was Aslan waiting so long to take them back to Narnia? It had been a year since she and the others had returned from Narnia, and Joy's anxiety grew every day. How was Cair Paravel fairing without their Kings, Queens, and Protectors? How was all of Narnia and her ally, Archenland, faring while they had been away? How was Corin and his newfound brother getting along? She sighed and looked around for her friend. "Come on, Ed," she whispered and looked down at her wristwatch.

"Hey, Joy!" A girl was calling out to her and Joy noticed it was her used-to-be friend, Doris Appleton. She groaned while putting on a half smile. After Joy had come back from Narnia last year and when Joy's grades had fallen while Doris' grades had soared, they no longer shared any common ground and so they had drifted apart.

Snapping back to the present, Joy watched Doris run up to her, her brown braid swinging over her shoulder. She was panting when she reached her. "All us girls are meeting down on the lower platform in a few minutes to say good-bye," she said. "Do you want to come?" Joy shook her head.

"No," she said politely "but thank you for asking me." She looked down at the pavement below her feet and silently begged Doris to go away.

"You've really changed," said Doris and Joy rolled her eyes. "Ever since you came back from that old fogey's house last year, you haven't wanted to join us girls for anything. You sit there quietly and daydream or scribble in your books. Or you spend far too much time at the archery range than any girl should." Joy's head snapped up and she glared at Doris.

"He is not an old fogey," she said angrily. "Professor Kirke happened to be very nice and kind during Rebecca's and my stay at his house, and I don't want you to say anything unkind about him again!" She jabbed a finger into Doris' face. "And as for my archery, without it I would have lost my sanity after two months of classes with you!" She hadn't realized she was shouting until she saw that two teenagers who had been staring deeply into each other's eyes just moments before were now glaring at her. Joy smiled sheepishly and dropped her back against the wall of the station again. Doris, however, was not impressed.

"Well, I'm sorry I bothered you, Joy," she said as she backed away with a haughty expression. "I only did this because of a bet Emily Lawrence made with me. She knew you wouldn't do it but I said otherwise. Thanks to you, I owe her five pounds!" Doris walked briskly away and Joy pulled on one of her blonde braids with frustration. She didn't know how to act around her friends after all that happened in Narnia! Getting biscuits, going to the movies, or listening to records were not the same as planning out strategies to keep Narnia safe from her enemies or looking after Cair Paravel. None of them would understand. Also, Professor Kirke had told the children not to tell anyone about Narnia, so Joy had backed off from all her friends as a precaution. Even Harold, her beloved cat, was no longer friendly towards her after Joy had talked to him for hours about her wishing he was a Talking Cat.

Joy had buried herself in writing about Narnia in her notebook and on spare pieces of paper which she hid under her bed during boarding school last year, and she practiced as much as she could at the archery range behind the school as well. Rebecca frequently joined her out there, and the two would practice sword play with large sticks they'd find in the woods around the school during their walks outside. Rebecca sketched and painted scenes from Narnia and the two girls filled a scrapbook of writings and drawings which they had compiled throughout the school year. Joy now had it in her suitcase, which was resting by her feet as she waited for Edmund. He had left to fetch a newspaper, probably to check on the latest news about the war and left his suitcase with her. Joy shrugged off her shoulder bag and dropped it on top of her suitcase.

"Joy!" called Lucy's voice, and Joy smiled when she saw Lucy and her sister, Susan, running towards her. She smiled and waved, but her smiled was short-lived when she saw the worry in their faces.

"Hello," said Joy when the two girls reached her. Lucy briefly hugged her and then Joy asked "What's wrong?"

"There's a fight going on inside!" said Lucy, pointing at the doors which led to the lower levels of the station. "I think it's Peter again!" Panic rose inside Joy's chest as she looked at the doors. Rebecca had left to find Peter earlier, was she caught up in the fight too? A part of her wanted to run with Lucy and Susan but she knew she should wait for Edmund.

"I'll tell Edmund," she said to Lucy. "You two go find out what's going on." Susan shook her head as she followed Lucy inside the station's doors. Joy looked back at the bustling street and watched for Edmund's dark blue cap to appear. Two more girls her age brushed past her before she finally spotted it. Air caught in her throat when Edmund looked in her direction and smiled, and Joy quickly swallowed.

"Got it!" he said when he reached her, waving the paper in his hand. "The Nazis are making things difficult on the coast but we're still giving them a good licking," he stopped, noticing the worry in her face. "What happened?"

"Lucy and Susan ran into the station," she said. "Lucy thinks Peter's in another fight." Edmund snapped into action, and Joy briefly saw the King Edmund the Just in him as he grabbed his suitcase and ran into the station. Joy grabbed her stuff and followed him. Once inside the station, she caught up to him as he looked around the main lobby.

"Where did she say the fight was?" he asked. Joy panicked, not remembering what exactly Lucy had said. Then she spotted some students rushing up a flight of steps, talking excitedly. She pulled on Edmund's jacket sleeve.

"This way!" And she took off running. Edmund followed and quickly surpassed her. He reached the top of the steps and nodded down at her. She reached him and he handed her his suitcase.

"Hold this," he said, and jostled his way down to where the fight was. Joy saw that Peter was struggling against several bullies on the platform below.

"Edmund!" she called, but he paid no attention to her. He pushed his way past Susan and Lucy, who called out his name as he passed them. Joy struggled with the suitcases and watched from the top of the stairs, feeling a sense of helplessness. Edmund reached the bottom and then leaped on top of one of Peter's assailants! He knocked him to the ground and struggled as the biggest bully pushed Peter up against the wall. Joy looked around and saw her sister standing by the wall at the edge of the crowd at the bottom of the stairs.

Rebecca was shaking her head and had her arms crossed against her chest. Sensing Joy's stare, Rebecca looked over at her and shrugged helplessly. Joy shrugged back and suddenly got an idea. She set down Edmund's suitcase and then her own. She opened hers, dug out the Narnia scrapbook and held it up over her head. Rebecca saw it, immediately straightened, and nodded. Joy steadied her grip and tossed it over the crowd of students. Rebecca easily caught the leather-bound book and clutched in front of her chest as she stepped away from the wall.

Joy watched as some of the crowd started taunting Rebecca, saying she shouldn't get involved. Edmund jumped on another one of the bullies as another pinned Peter to the tube tracks. The third bully kicked at Peter's stomach and turned around as Rebecca swung the heavy leather book at his face. It made contact and the bully spun around and fell backwards onto the tracks. Rebecca got ready to hit Peter's other attacker who quickly took a step back with his hands raised. This gave Peter a moment to stand up, and then the air filled with the screeching of whistles.

Home guards swarmed the boys on the tracks and disregarded Rebecca, who was still holding the scrapbook. The children who had been watching the fight began to back up the steps and crowded around Joy. She scrambled to pick up the suitcases and rushed through the crowd to get to the platform where the six of them would wait for the tube. She turned left, away from the flow of students and went down a flight of steps. There was already a large crowd of students gathered on the correct platform, so Joy quickly picked a bench away from the group further down the platform. She set down the suitcases and plopped down on the bench to wait. She noticed some mothers saying good-bye to their children and frowned. She wished Mum didn't have to work at the factory today.

Lucy and Susan quickly joined Joy, and she noticed Susan looked slightly annoyed as she sat down on the opposite side of the bench. "Susan," she asked, "what's wrong?" Susan sighed frustratedly.

"I would have thought he would be used to this world by now," she said, and Joy swallowed hard. She still hadn't gotten used to it and she had only been a Protector. How hard it must be for Peter who was the High King to adjust back to this world?! And why had Susan accepted it so quickly?

"Well," said Joy "I haven't gotten used to it. Why have you accepted this situation so quickly?" Susan looked over at Joy with a confused look.

"Because it's the logical thing to do," she said. "And wishing you were in Narnia," she said with a superior tone "does not change your situation in any way. We are still a part of this world no matter what." Joy felt shocked by Susan's words and shrank in her seat, unable to think of a comeback.

"Joy, Susan," said Lucy "please stop." She looked over at Susan. "Aslan will bring us back in his time." Joy frowned.

"I wonder what is taking him so long," she mumbled. Lucy frowned at her.

At that moment, Peter and Rebecca appeared. Rebecca was looking around the tunnel and refusing to look at Peter. Peter was frowning and when he sat down on the bench, Rebecca walked past him to hand the scrapbook to Joy. "Thanks, Joy," she said. "Bringing that along really came in handy this time." Rebecca looked at Peter as she spoke and he coolly met her gaze.

"It wasn't needed," he said, and looked away. Rebecca sighed and stepped closer to the bench, leaning down so her voice would not carry over the length of the platform.

"As a Protector," she said softly "I helped you out in battle and saved your life more than once. Why can't I do the same here?" Peter glared up at her again.

"Because here is a whole other type of battle," he said. "And I need to fight it out for myself." Rebecca sighed again and walked onto the other side of Joy but did not sit down when Joy slid over to make room for her.

"I don't remember you being this stubborn when you were the High King," she said, and leaned on the wall beside the suitcases at Joy's feet. Edmund came running up, ending the sparring match between the two.

"I had to find my hat," he said, and looked around the group. When he looked at Peter, Joy noticed that his shoulders dropped a notch and his expression fell. He made his way to the bench, sat down between Peter and Joy, and said, "You're welcome." Peter instantly stood up and stepped away from the bench.

"I had it sorted," he said. Joy looked over at Edmund who shook his head.

"What was it this time?" asked Susan in an annoyed voice. Peter turned around to speak.

"It was me, actually," said Rebecca. She looked from Peter to Susan and folded her arms over her chest. "One of the boys was giving me a hard time," said Rebecca and she looked back at Peter "and Peter told him to stay away from me."

"And he bumped me," interrupted Peter. All the children looked at him except Rebecca who stared at the floor.

"So, you hit him?" asked Lucy.

"No," said Peter shortly. "After he bumped me, they tried to make me apologize. That's when I hit him."

"Really," said Susan, still annoyed "is it that hard just to walk away?"

"I shouldn't have to!" exclaimed Peter. "I mean, don't you ever get tired of being treated like a kid?!" Edmund scoffed and Joy frowned.

"We are kids," said Edmund sarcastically.

"Well, I wasn't always!" said Peter. Joy leaned her elbow on the armrest of the bench and propped up her chin, feeling slightly miffed at Edmund for reminding her of their unfortunate situation.

"Neither were we, Peter," said Rebecca. "And I am grateful you told that jerk to leave me alone." Their eyes met for a moment and Peter looked away quickly. He let out a long breath through his nose and sat back down on the bench.

"Its been a year," he said, "how long does he expect us to wait?"

"I think its about time we accept that we live here," piped up Susan. "Its no good pretending any different." The others hung their heads.

"Not helpful, Susan," said Rebecca, who pushed off the wall and began to walk away.

"Where are you going?" asked Joy. Rebecca turned around.

"Look, I know we are all struggling with patience and wishing we were back in Narnia," she said, "but fighting and sulking is not going to do us any good." She looked in the faces of each of the occupants on the bench. "Aslan said 'Once a King or Queen of Narnia, always a King or Queen.' So, we have no reason to doubt him, and we need to trust in his timing."

"But it's so hard," said Joy. Rebecca nodded.

"I know," she said gently.

"If we simply take this world one day at a time," said Susan "we can learn to accept it." She looked around the group. "It only takes time." Joy knew Susan was trying to help but she and Rebecca frowned.

"I'll be right back," said Rebecca frustratedly, and she continued walking down the platform. A train whistle went off in the distance and Joy sighed. Another year back at school without Narnia.

"Oh no," said Susan and she quickly turned to the others. "Pretend you're talking to me," she said in a low voice.

"We are talking to you," said Edmund, and Susan glared at him.

"Ow!" cried Lucy and she leapt off the bench. The children stared at her.

"Quiet, Lu," said Susan, but Lucy pointed at the bench.

"Something pinched me," she said. At that moment Joy felt an intense pulling on her arm and leapt up, rubbing the sore spot.

"Ouch!" She glared at Edmund. "Not funny, Ed." Edmund raised his arms in defense.

"I didn't do anything," he protested.

"Hey, stop pulling!" said Peter as he stood up. Edmund looked from him to Joy, exasperated.

"What is this?!" he exclaimed.

"Would all of you just," began Susan when she stopped and stood up as well. Rebecca cried out from a short distance away and began walking towards them. Edmund stood up as a strong wind began to blow in their faces. "What is that?" asked Susan.

"It feels like magic," said Lucy. Magic?! Joy suddenly felt excited.

"Quick," said Susan "everyone! Hold hands!"

"I'm not holding your hand!" shouted Edmund to Peter. Peter in turned grabbed it.

"Just!" was all he could say. Joy sighed with frustration and grabbed Edmund's other hand before he could claim she had germs or something.

The tiles started blowing off the walls, along with the posters tacked up all over the tube station. The metal grate over the tunnel got sucked into the tunnel before their very eyes, leaving bare rock in its wake. Joy saw the walls of the station crumble around her and thick woods and bushes growing up in their place. She could even see them through the passing tube windows! Loose hairs whipped in her face and stung her eyes but her arms felt pinned in place by the gale-force winds. Something seemed to be pulling at her throat and Joy figured that the wind was pulling on her tie. She looked down and didn't see Edmund's hand. Unable to turn her head, she glanced sideways and did not see any of the others. What had happened to the others?! She tried to scream their names but no sound came out! The tube sped off into the forest, the wind released her and Joy stumbled backwards into the trunk of a tree. The heavy thudding of horse hooves filled her ears.

"Halt!" shouted a voice and Joy looked up to see a group of men wearing Telmarine armor and riding horses. One horse bore no rider but had a bundle wrapped in a dark cloth sitting in the abandoned saddle. She then realized she was in Telmar and looked down to see her school uniform had been replaced with a grey Narnian dress and black cloak with a hood. She reached up into the hood and found her two braids had been tied together at the base of her neck with a ribbon. Narnia and Telmar? What was going on and where was she? She stepped slowly away from the tree. The rider at the front of the group moved his horse forward and stopped a few mere feet from Joy. "Who are you and what are you doing in the Black Woods?" he asked. Joy froze, scared if the Telmarines knew who she was and if they would take her for ransom to force the Narnians to surrender to them. She remembered reports of unrest and famine in the nation before they went back to their own world.

"Joy," she said finally, deciding to take a chance "my name in Joy and I am terribly lost. I am looking for the nearest town." The men burst out laughing and Joy frowned.

"You must be," jeered one of the men. "The nearest town is up by the castle." Joy kept her eyes on the leader, who seemed to regard her thoughtfully.

"We can take you to the castle," he said, "if you are searching for work. Unless you have family in town." Joy shook her head.

"No, I have no family in town," she said.

"What were you doing out here in the woods by yourself?" asked one of the soldiers. Joy thought fast.

"I am looking for my sister," she said. "She was separated from the hunting party at the Narnian border and I cannot seem to find her." All the men burst out laughing again.

"You mean," said the first soldier between laughs "you walked all the way from Narnia's border to Beaversdam? Left your sister behind and walked here with no horse?" Joy's jaw dropped. This was Narnia?! They would not believe her then! She quickly set her jaw and met the soldier's eyes.

"Yes," she said, "and I will do anything to help my sister. I lost my horse in the woods and she must have headed back to the castle. Now that you have pointed me in the right direction, I will get back to walking." Joy turned to walk away from the men.

"What castle would you be referring to?" asked one of the soldiers. Joy shrugged, what other castle could they be talking about?

"Cair Paravel," she said.

"That castle no longer exists," said another one of the men. "Our ancestors destroyed it hundreds of years ago!" Joy gasped, how long had she been away from Narnia? The woods had grown lighter as the sun rose above the trees and Joy pulled the hood away from her face. When she looked up, all the men had stopped laughing, and one or two had fear in their eyes. The leader backed his horse away from her and his eyes travelled slowly over her face. Joy looked down and felt tempted to pull the hood over her head again. Instead she forced her hands to stay still at her sides.

"You're a spy," said the leader. "A spy from one of our Southwestern enemies." Joy shook her head.

"No!" she protested. "No, I am from Narnia!" She backed away from the group and looked around.

"Take her and bind her wrists," said the leader. "Let's bring her before our King," and two of the men dismounted.

"No!" exclaimed Joy. "I don't want to see the King!" The soldiers strode quickly over to her and one roughly grabbed her shoulders while the other bound her wrists with a piece of rope. Joy glared up at the leader as he stared down at her with cold, brown eyes.

"I'm sure the King will be glad to see you," he said sardonically.

"Wonderful," said Joy with a sarcastic tone. The man holding her shoulders shook her slightly and Joy bit her lip to keep herself from crying out. The leader nodded and looked at the remaining men behind him.

"One of you take the dwarf and let the girl take Destrier," he said. One of the men removed the bundle and Joy quickly mounted the horse with the help of her captors. She pulled the hood up and watched the men in front of her relax slightly. What was wrong with the colour of her hair and what was going on in Narnia? Her two captors mounted their horses and positioned them on either side of Joy, and then the group set out. She gently held onto the reins and let her mind wander to where the others might be, and what was going on. I don't remember seeing Rebecca grab onto Susan's hand, she thought, and wondered if Rebecca had been left on the platform. She shook her head. Aslan would not do that. Or would he?

Gradually, the woods began to clear and Joy became almost grateful to catch glimpses of a brightening sky beyond the thick tree branches. Then, the group broke free of the trees and Joy squinted at the golden sunrise. As her eyes adjusted, she saw that they were riding into a valley with a large town situated at the edge of it. The town was made up of many buildings stuck together, so close Joy thought they were all plastered together to keep from falling off the cliff behind them. Beyond it was a large bridge made of bricks. Joy sat up straighter in the saddle and gasped when she saw that the bridge stretched out over a large rocky gorge. It was then connected to a drawbridge, and on the other side of that was a large gate. Beyond the gate, Joy could see the towers, battlements, and the Keep of a humongous castle.

"Magnificent castle," said the soldier riding beside her "is it not?" Joy nodded.

"It is the largest castle I have ever seen," she said.

"It was built by King Caspian the Sixth," he said. "He was a true King of defense. Under him, we kept out the Calormen army and one of our own enemies to the West." Joy clenched her fist at the thought of Calormens and Telmarines in her beloved Narnia, or anyone else for that matter.

The group rode across the valley, through the town and onto the long, narrow bridge. An anxious feeling rose in her heart and Joy had the inexplicable feeling that she was being led into a trap. The group rode across the drawbridge and under the raised portcullis. As the group trotted into the courtyard, Joy noticed a man and woman up on the balcony overlooking the courtyard. The woman had red hair which was twisted at the back of her head and she was wearing a black dress with a wide neckline. The man was dressed in black and grey and he had a short, pointy beard of dark hair. He was holding a baby in his arms which he stared at with total adoration. Joy watched as the man's eyes latched onto the bundle in black cloth almost immediately after the group entered the courtyard, but shortly afterwards he looked at Joy. Joy felt a chill run down her spine as she stared back at his cold gaze.

"Who was that man?" asked Joy as the group slowed the horses down to a walk when they approached the stables. The leader turned in the saddle and looked at her with confusion.

"That is our King and Lord Protector Miraz," he said. "You have never heard of him?" Joy shook her head and looked back at the balcony. The man was gone and the woman with red hair was staring at her. She thought back to what the leader had called Miraz.

Protector. That was supposed to be her title. And Rebecca's, wherever she was.

As the group entered the stables, Joy's feeling of her being led into a trap returned full force. Now that she was inside this stronghold of a castle, how would she get out? And what were the Telmarines doing in Narnia? And worst of all, what had happened to Rebecca and the others?