The Call To The Old - An Edmund Pevensie fanfiction

Chapter three

Talia walked the halls of Miraz's castle. It was a large palace, and she knew that it was easier to hide in the numerous corridors than to retire to her bedroom, which would be the first place that they would look for her. The walls of the castle were cold and uninviting, Talia shivered at the touch of them. The corridors were tall, and the ceilings loomed above her. Below her the stone floors were cracked and broken with age, some of the larger cracks were covered with deep red carpet, etched with designs of lions, bears and snakes. Hanging upon the walls were huge paintings depicting the family members of Miraz; they each bore piercing dark eyes- all except Caspian's father. Caspian never really knew his father, and he would always return to this painting to meet with his father. Talia would oftentimes find her friend talking to the paint, explaining how his day was, detailing how much he missed him and how he would make him proud. She was surprised that King Miraz still had the painting up, as it was a visual reminder of his usurpation of the crown.

Walking past the artwork, Talia journeyed along the corridor towards her and Caspian's old classroom. Here they were educated, here they played, they laughed and celebrated with the innocence of their youth. She spent a lot of her time growing up in this room. Her tutor, Doctor Cornelius, was almost a surrogate father to Caspian, just as Talia's maid, Sefnei, was to her. He taught them lots of things, mathematics, science, reading. Of course, these skills were not typically taught to girls, so Talia had to have lessons with the Tutor in secret, in order to keep the narrative up that all she knew in life was how to sew, weave and cook.

Her fingers traced over the books on the shelves and she reflected on how she used to get lost in the pages of fantasy. How she used to read and read about the true stories of adventure and the made-up stories of equal excitement. She was suddenly reminded of how they used to have to hide the best books in the chest by the window, in case the King ever saw them reading it. The girl headed over to the wooden chest, that stood inconspicuous in the corner of the room. It creaked open, causing dust to dance all over her, due to the fact that it hadn't been open in many years. Talia pulled out all the cloths and rags, to reveal a shining book sitting at the base of the chest.

She kneeled on the ground, placing the old book out in front of her, it was truly a beautiful novel; the cover was decorated in gold designs, and despite its age even the illustrations were in perfect condition. In the center of the cover, in bright bold letters was the title, "The Kings and Queens of the Old." It detailed stories of the fantasy of Narnia; supposedly this was a time where the animals could talk, and so could the trees. The Kingdom of Narnia was ruled over by four siblings: King Peter the Magnificent, Queen Susan the Gentle, King Edmund the Just and little Queen Lucy the Valiant. Their rule was known as the Golden Age of Narnia, full of peace and serenity, under the siblings Narnia thrived and everyone was happy- until one day when the Kings and Queens simply disappeared. Talia and Caspian had always been drawn to the story, but their Tutor never commented on whether it was reality or not.

The truth is, the concept of Narnia was always an idea that King Miraz shut down to his subjects, as a fantasy. Until one day, when it was illuminated that the King had been finding Narnians and putting them to death, this truth was hushed and brushed over- for how could the King be killing beings that don't even exist?

Talia always had an inkling that perhaps, maybe, once upon a time, four siblings really did rule over a beautiful Kingdom, where everyone truly felt peace. And as her fingers traced over the drawings of the book, dreams were brought back to her- dreams that she, too, lived in Narnia and was finally content. She laughed at her childhood innocence, how naïve was she, to believe in something so obviously fantasy.

A knock at the door, brought her away from her thoughts. Talia's pulse raced, thinking the worst; her brother had come to finish their earlier conversation. She was reluctant to turn around, until the voice spoke, and it was a voice whom she recognised to be her old tutor, Cornelius.

"What are you doing up here, Talia, everyone is looking for you?" he questioned, with care.

Talia turned to face the elder man, with the old book still in her hands, "I can't do this anymore Cornelius." she frowned.

"Whatever do you mean dear?" he came closer to the teary girl, closing the classroom do behind him.

Talia sighed, with a smile, "it was never real was it? Narnia?"

The old man furrowed his brows, "your younger self would be very displeased with your lack of faith."

She laughed, "please, sir, was Narnia ever real?"

"Narnia is and always will be alive. Its presence lives among us, inside us. It's magic floats all over the forest. When we breathe, Narnia breathes with us."

"Where?"

"Everywhere, dear, Narnia is everywhere."

"Please," she pleaded, "no more riddles."

He sighed, contemplating his next answer, "long ago, your ancestors forced Narnia apart. They once lived all over, and now all of its inhabitants have retreated into hiding. If they are caught, they are killed by King Miraz."

"So, it really is true," wonder filled the girl's eyes, "and the Kings and Queens?"

"It's all real." the tutor responded.

"How do you know?"

"I, myself, am half human, half dwarf. But you must not tell anybody." he ordered.

Talia's smile widened, she stood running over to the window, to stare at the forest in the distance. "It's all real." she whispered to herself.

Another knock at the door. "Quick." her tutor spoke, "Hide the book." Talia placed the book back into the chest, while Cornelius went over to answer the door. Talia hid behind the curtains, just in case it was her brother or father. Her heart beat so loud, she shivered in anxiety, she was not in a good state to face either of them.

She heard her tutor exclaim in shock.