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N E R I S S A
I make my way through the woods, letting my fingers brush against the trees as I walked by them.
The sun was already starting to shine down upon Narnia. It was peaceful here in the woods with not a soul in sight, just the way I preferred it to be.
I savour the last couple of moments of the walk back to the dreaded castle, taking the longer route on purpose. But it still felt far too soon before I find myself slipping back in through the hidden door into the castle.
I make my way across the hallway, trying to make as little noise as possible.
"Hold." The Witch's voice echos through the walls, "Where have you been?"
"I've been out searching, my Queen." I reply, twirling around the face her, "Unfortunately, the humans are nowhere to be found."
She hums thoughtfully as she narrowed her eyes at me, "You told Maugrim I asked for him?"
"That's what I was told, your Highness. I was merely conveying a message." I shrugged.
"Well, who was the one who told you to convey this message?" She questions.
"One of the Minotaurs, I think. Or maybe it was one of the dwarfs, I can't quite remember." I lied.
The Witch takes a step towards me and glares down at me.
"Let this be a warning to you, Archer." She hisses, "If I find out you're betraying me, I'll have your head."
"Understood, my Queen." I reply, offering her a sloppy bow.
I could see her face in my peripheral vision, red with anger as I strolled off before she had even allowed me to.
I duck behind a pillar, peeking out to make sure the Witch was gone before sneaking back down the hallway and down the stairs that led to the dungeons.
Mr Tumnus straightens up, immediately on high alert as soon as hears me approaching them.
"It's just me." I announced, allowing the faun to finally relax.
Mr Tumnus was wide awake, too afraid to even fall asleep, although the bags under his eyes were evidence that he was exhausted. The Pevensie boy on the other hand- was fast asleep, not even aware of my presence.
I reach over, tapping the boy lightly on the shoulder.
"Edmund." I called, but still, he laid sound asleep. "Edmund." I called a little louder.
This time, the boy jerks awake, scrambling to the other end of his cell, as far as he could possible get away from me.
"I'm not here to hurt you, Edmund Pevensie." I say.
"You're lying! You're one of them!" He yells.
I quickly shushed him, "Not too loud, the Guards will hear you."
"She's telling the truth, Edmund." Mr Tumnus jumps to my aid, "You can trust her."
I offer Mr Tumnus a thankful nod, before turning back to Edmund, who had calmed down significantly but was still wary of me.
"Edmund, I've spoken to your siblings." I state, successfully managing to gain his full attention now, "They're safe for now, but they're worried about you."
"They are?" He asks and I nod in reply.
"I need you to tell me everything you've told the Witch. It'll be a lot of help." I requested.
"I only told her about the Beavers." He gulps, "Nothing else, I swear!"
"Alright, it's good that they don't know anything else and I'd like to keep it that way." I say, a little firmer to get the message through, "I need you to make sure not to tell her anything more. Otherwise, your siblings would be in grave danger."
"I won't, I promise." He assures.
Just then, the sound of footsteps starting to make their way down the stairs catches my attention.
"Ginarrbrik!" The Witch's voice calls, "Come with me."
"Yes, your majesty." The dwarf replies.
"Hide, quickly." Mr Tumnus rushes.
I quickly scan the dungeons, spotting a large hole in the ceiling.
I jump, catching the jagged edge of the ceiling and pulled myself up into the hole which made for a surprisingly good hiding spot.
I carefully watched from above, taking extra care to stay hidden as the Witch stops right beneath me.
"My wolves tore that dam apart." The Witch bellows, "Your little family are nowhere to be found."
She reaches down, lifting the boy up by the collar of his shirt.
My heart pounded against my chest with worry, fearing that these by be the last few moments the boy may ever see.
"Where did they go?" The Witch demands.
"I don't know!" Edmund's voice trembles in fear.
"Then you are no further use to me." She tosses the boy aside, raising her wand over her head and ready to strike.
"Wait!" The boy stops, "The Beavers said something about Aslan." He says.
I curse inwardly, the boy had done exactly what I had told him not to do.
The Witch lowers her wand, her face falling into a mixture of surprise and fear, "Aslan? Where?"
"I..." Edmund drawls as his eyes dart up to meet mine nervously.
"He's just a stranger in Narnia, your Majesty. He can't be expected to know everything." Mr Tumnus quickly interjects before being hit in the stomach by Ginarrbrik.
The faun looks up at me, shaking his head slightly just as I was about to blow my cover to stop him.
Reluctantly, I heed his advice, forcing myself to sit tight until the Witch is gone.
"I left before I could hear anything." The boy continues, "I wanted to see you!"
The Witch seems to consider her options for a second.
"Guard!" She calls.
Soon, an ogre joins us in the dungeons, answering to the Witch's call.
"Release the faun." She orders to my surprise.
The creature does as he was told, breaking the shackles around Mr Tumnus' hooves before dragging him over to the Witch.
"Do you know why you're here, Faun?" The Witch asks.
"Because I believe in a free Narnia." The faun answers.
"You're here because he turned you in." The Witch exposes, pointing the tip of her wand at the human boy, "For sweeties."
Mr Tumnus is left speechless upon learning of his betrayal, staring at the boy with disappointed eyes.
The faun then looks up at me, "I still believe that Narnia will soon be saved." He says, "And you'll be the one who will bring us freedom."
The Witch scoffs, thinking Mr Tumnus was speaking to the boy.
"Take him upstairs." The Witch orders, "Edmund misses his family."
It takes everything in my power to not run after Mr Tumnus, remembering that I had once promised to free him. But all I could do was watch as the guard dragged him away and soon after, ordered Ginarrbrik to bring Edmund away as well.
I composed myself, coming out of my hiding spot as soon as the coast was clear. The Witch was going to be on the move soon and the Pevensies had to be warned.