No Matter What - Edmund Pevensie X Reader

Chapter 5 - The Invisible Mansion

Y/N felt a tight grasp around her waist - to which she awoke - and she suddenly shot up into the air. Something was holding her, but she couldn't see what it was. She tried to call out for help, but something was clamped over her mouth, preventing any sound from coming out. 'The Thing' carried her through the trees, until it came to a stop at a small clearing. It threw her down on to the ground. Then, Y/N heard a 'thud' next to her, and turned around to find Lucy.

"Are you alright?" Y/N asked frantically.
Lucy just nodded, before scrambling to her feet and holding out her dagger. But it soon flew out of her hand and landed on the ground some feet away. Y/N didn't have her sword - she had left it next to her while she slept. But even if she did have it, she wouldn't use it, for she immediately understood what was happening.
"So we're dealing with invisible beasts," she said to herself.

"There is no escape," said a gruff voice suddenly.
"Well put."
"Scary."
"Yeah."
They all seemed to encourage with him.
"What are you?" asked Lucy.
"We are terrifying invisible beasts," said another.
"If you could see us, you would be really intimidated."
"Yeah."
"You forgot to mention that we are very large."

"Well, what do you want?" asked Y/N.
"You. You'll do what we ask," said the gruff one - Y/N assumed that he was their leader.
"They will."
"Very clear."
"Well put."
"Yeah."
"Or what?" asked Lucy.
"Or death."
"Death! Death! Death!" the others began to chant.

"Well, we wouldn't be much use to you dead, now, would we?" said Y/N. 
"I hadn't thought of that."
"No, you hadn't."
"Fair point."
"Alright. Then we'll just kill your friends."
"Good idea."

"What do you want with us?" asked Lucy, sharing a look with Y/N.
"You will enter the house of the Oppressor," said the gruff one, kicking them forward.
"What house?" asked Y/N, for there was no house in sight.
"This one."

And suddenly, two large doors opened, gorgeous golden light beaming through them, to reveal a beautiful staircase. But the rest of the exterior of the house remained invisible.
"Upstairs, you will find the book of incantations. Recite the spell that makes the unseen seen."
"Well put, Chief. Well put."
"Well, go on. We haven't got all day."
"Remember what will happen to your friends."
"You've been warned."

Y/N and Lucy shared another look, before Lucy asked the obvious question, "Why don't you do it yourselves?"
"We can't read."
"Can't write either, as a matter of fact."
"Or add."
"Yeah."
"Why didn't you just say so?" asked Y/N.

"Beware the Oppressor."
"He's very oppressive."
"What makes the unseen seen, got it?"
"Don't forget."
"Don't forget that."
And with that, the girls walked straight into the invisible house, the doors shutting behind them.

The house was completely quiet. The only audible sounds were the girls' ragged breathing and their footsteps on the marble floor. When they got to the top of the stairs, they found themselves in a corridor, surrounded by doors. All of them were closed, except for the one right at the end of the corridor. Inside was a huge library, crowded with books on every shelf. And right in the very centre of the room was a stand with a heavy bound book on top. It had random letters scattered over the cover, but when Y/N tried to open it, it wouldn't budge. She then noticed an angel engraved on the surface of the stand, and it seemed to be blowing air out. Lucy took notice of this as well, and blew out a large gust of air on the book.

Then, all the scattered letters moved around to form 'The Book of Incantations'. This time, Y/N was able to open the book, and the girls began flipping through the pages. Throughout the book, there were titles like 'Spell that Cureth Toothache', 'A Remembering Spell' and 'A Forgetting Spell'. Then, the girls came to a page titled 'Spell for Snow'.
"With these words
  Your tongue must sew
  For all around there
  To be snow," Lucy read out.

The girls then glanced at the next page, which was blank, until a tiny snowflake landed on it, before melting. And before they knew it, the ground was covered in a blanket of snow, and snow still showered from the ceiling. The girls turned around, admiring the snow. Snow had always brought back some traumatic memories for Y/N, ever since her first visit to Narnia, but she managed to block them out this time.

The girls turned back to the book, and the pages suddenly began to flip forcefully, before Lucy slammed her hand down on one of the pages to stop it. The snow had all disappeared. Y/N looked around suspiciously.
"I'll keep watch," she said to Lucy, who nodded.
Then, Y/N walked out of the room. She stood right outside the door, but it wasn't long before she was distracted by something. One of the other doors was open. Without hesitation, Y/N walked into that room.

Y/N looked at her surroundings, and realised that this room was a much smaller library. She picked up the book nearest to her and opened it. She turned a few pages, before putting it down and picking up the next. These books didn't have words in them. Just pictures. As soon as Y/N looked up from the second book, her attention was fixed on a book glowing golden, on a shelf at the other end of the room. As she walked toward it, she didn't notice the green mist that followed her.

Y/N picked up the book and opened it. The pages were golden too - but Y/N was drawn to a page that was more golden than the rest. On it, in a lighter shade of gold was the drawing of a girl picking berries from a bush. But the berries weren't drawn in gold - they looked blacker than coal. In the next picture, the same girl ate the berries. In the third picture, she was shown with a cloud above her head, in which she was standing next to a boy, holding his hand. And in the fourth and final picture, the girl was standing next to the same boy, holding his hand, just like she was in the cloud above her head previously.

Y/N tried to make sense of this - she had studied some basics in pictography back at Cair Paravel. In just a few seconds, she realised what the pictures meant. When the girl ate the berries, her greatest dream came true. Y/N stared at the page in awe. If only she could find those berries - she knew exactly what her greatest dream was. She was pulled out of her trance by a loud roar from the other room. Y/N ran to go find Lucy, but Lucy seemed to be alright. She was still in front of the book of incantations.

"A spell to make the unseen seen," Lucy read out.
"You found it?" asked Y/N.
Lucy nodded, before continuing to read, "Like the P is psychology, the H in psychiatry, invisible ink, and the truth in theology..."
Y/N walked back outside the room, and kept watch, more successfully than the last time she tried.
After about half a minute, she heard Lucy coming to the end of the spell, "The spell is complete. Now all is visible."

Y/N walked back into the room to collect Lucy and leave, but there was somebody else in the room. Y/N and Lucy watched, their bodies paralysed, as a book floated through the air, the hands holding it slowly becoming visible. And gradually, the rest of his body became more and more visible, before the girls came face to face with the Oppressor.

**********

"Y/N! Lucy!" Edmund exclaimed in relief, as he saw them walking out of the mansion.
"Your Majesty," the 'Oppressor' - whose name was actually Coriakin - said, bowing down.
"Caspian and Edmund, this is Coriakin," said Lucy, "It's his island."
"That's what he thinks. You have wronged us, magician," said a funny little creature, who sounded like one of the invisible beasts from earlier.
"So this is what they really look like?" thought Y/N, "If only I had known, I wouldn't have been nearly as frightened  as I was."

"I have not wronged you," said Coriakin, "I made you invisible for your own protection."
"Protection?"
"That's oppressive. Oppressor."
"I have not oppressed you," said Coriakin.
"But you could've! If you'd wanted to."
"Begone," said Coriakin, throwing something that looked like white ash at the creatures, who hopped away.
"What was that?" asked Lucy.
"Lint. But don't tell them," replied Coriakin.
"What were those things?" asked Eustace, who had been standing behind everyone else the whole time.
"Dufflepuds," said Coriakin simply, before turning away.
"Right, of course. Silly me," remarked Eustace.

Coriakin walked back towards the mansion - which was now visible, thanks to the spell - and everyone followed him. But right next to the main doors was a bush. A bush covered in jet black berries. And Y/N recognised them immediately. As she brushed past the bush, she managed to slip a few berries into her pocket.