"Lu?" Peter asked confused as he looked to Lucy worriedly. She didn't respond and instead stared at the broken door in front of her with wide eyes. Before anyone knew what was happening, the girl had let out a gasp and bolted towards the door. "Lucy!" Peter cried out and the others quickly followed after the girl.
They made it to the broken door and Rosemary let out a small gasp as she looked at the destruction in front of her. They had thought the door was bad, but the inside was even worse. There were tables and chairs flipped over and broken, plates and cups shattered on the ground, and pretty much everything else was broken or shredded in some way and on the ground.
"Who would do something like this?" Lucy asked quietly as she looked around in disbelief. Rosemary looked at the girl and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. Lucy instantly leaned into her touch and Rosemary began to comfort the girl before her eyes landed on the piece of paper hung up on the wall by a nail.
"Look," Rosemary whispered out as she pointed at the paper. Peter looked at the group before walking over to the paper and tearing it off the wall.
"The Faun Tumnus is hereby charged with High Treason against Her Imperial Majesty, Jadis, Queen of Narnia, for comforting her enemies and fraternizing with humans. Signed Maugrim, Captain of the Secret Police. Long Live the Queen," Peter muttered.
Susan took the paper from his grasp and her eyes flickered over the words. "All right. Now we really should go back," Susan said. "But what about Mr. Tumnus?" Lucy asked.
"If he was arrested just for being with a human, I don't think there's much we can do," Susan told her. "You don't understand, do you?" Lucy asked.
Rosemary looked down at the girl before it all clicked. "You're the human," she whispered out. Lucy nodded. "She must have found out he helped me," Lucy said.
"Maybe we could call the police," Peter suggested. "These are the police," Susan pointed out as she held up the paper. "Don't worry, Lu. We'll think of something," Peter told the girl.
"Why?" Edmund asked and the four quickly turned to look at him. "I mean, he's a criminal," Edmund pointed out. Rosemary furrowed her eyebrows and gave Edmund a confused look. Something was off. He was acting strange.
Before she could question him, they heard the chirping of a bird followed by a loud, "Psst."
The five children looked out the doorway and Susan furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. "Did that bird just "psst" us?" She asked as she looked back at the group.
Rosemary rubbed Lucy's arm up and down once in comfort before stepping away and beginning to walk outside. Edmund saw this and didn't even hesitate before hurrying after her, not wanting her to go out on her own.
"Rosemary," Peter called out before the other Pevensies hurried after her as well. They walked back out into the snow only to see the bird fly away. "Well that didn't go as planned," Rosemary muttered.
As soon as those words left her mouth, the sound of a twig snapping filled the air. Rosemary jumped slightly in surprise and Edmund was by her side almost instantly. He took a small step in front of her which she didn't seem to notice.
The snapping of a twig soon turned into the shuffling of feet. The children couldn't see where the noise was coming from and while Peter, Susan, and Lucy were latching onto each other, Rosemary gently grabbed onto Edmund's arm and leaned into him.
Suddenly, from behind a rock, a beaver stepped out. The group instantly relaxed upon seeing it and Rosemary let her arm drop back down to her side as she took a small step away from the boy who she had gotten quite close to during her state of fright.
"It. . .It's a beaver," Lucy muttered as the beaver slowly began to make its way over to the group. Rosemary wasn't quite sure why he did it, but Peter bent down and held a hand out towards the animal before saying, "Here, boy. Here, boy."
"It's a beaver," Rosemary whispered in confusion as she looked to Edmund. "Why is he calling it forward?" Edmund shrugged and the two looked back to the boy. The beaver stared at Peter's hand for a second before looking back up at Peter.
"I ain't gonna smell it, if that's what you want."
The Pevensies all let out gasps while Rosemary let out a loud laugh. She wasn't sure why she was laughing considering that an animal just spoke, but the fact that that's what the beaver had said to Peter was hilarious in her opinion.
Peter sent a small glare in the girl's direction before looking back to the beaver. "Sorry," he muttered. The beaver just looked away from Peter. "Lucy Pevensie?" He asked and Lucy immediately fell quiet. "Yes?" She asked as she walked forward.
The beaver held up a hankie and Rosemary furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. Where had he gotten that from? Lucy took the hankie from the beaver and looked at it. "Hey, that's the hankie I gave to Mr. Tum. . ." Lucy trailed off.
"Tumnus," the beaver finished. "He got it to me just before they took him." "Is he all right?" Lucy asked. The beaver looked around as if he were trying to make sure no one was near before he whispered, "Further in." He then gestured towards the woods and began to walk off.
Peter, Lucy, and Rosemary began to walk after him, but Susan grabbed ahold of Peter while Edmund grabbed Rosemary. "What are you doing?" Susan asked. "She's right," Edmund said as he let go of Rosemary's wrist. "How do we know we can trust him?"
"He said he knows the faun," Peter said and Rosemary pointed at Peter and nodded her head in agreement. "He's a beaver," Susan argued. "He shouldn't be saying anything!"
"Everything all right?" the beaver asked as he appeared on top of one of the rocks. "Yes. We were just talking," Peter told him. The beaver looks around before whispering, "That's better left for safer quarters."
The older children looked at the beaver in confusion while Lucy turned back to them. "He means the trees," Lucy said.
At that moment, whispers filled Rosemary's ears. She looked around at the trees and shook her head. "They aren't going to say anything," she told them.
Peter looked to her and gave her a confused look. "Of course they won't say anything. They're trees. They can't talk," Peter said. Rosemary looked at the boy. "First of all, we literally just heard a beaver talk, so I don't know why you can't believe that a tree can talk. Secondly, they can speak," she told him.
She looked at the trees who were whispering things that she could hear before she looked back to the group. "You-you don't hear them?" Rosemary asked confused.
The others paused for a moment trying to see if they could hear what Rosemary was talking about. Finally, one by one they shook their heads.
"What are they saying?" Lucy asked. Rosemary slowly walked away from the group and over to the closest tree. She brought her hand up and gently placed it on the cool bark of the tree.
"They're cold," she said. The siblings instantly rolled their eyes and Rosemary chuckled. "They won't tell," she assured them. "They said they're happy we're here."
Rosemary's eyes flickered back to the tree suddenly as a frown appeared on her face. "They say danger is coming," she whispered in a confused voice.
"Danger? What kind of danger?" Susan asked. "The White Witch," Lucy muttered. "How come you can hear them talk?" Edmund asked. The siblings all gave the boy a look while Rosemary chuckled softly.
"You're Will's daughter."
Rosemary froze at those words and spun around to see the beaver watching her. He almost looked both sad and relived, but she didn't understand why. Who was Will? And why was he saying that Will was her father? Her father had been in the real world, not Narnia.
Rosemary opened her mouth to question the beaver, but he had already looked away. "Come on," he told them. "We don't want to be caught out here after nightfall."
- - -
"Ah, blimey! Looks like the old girl has got the kettle on. Nice cup o' Rosy Lee," the beaver, who had introduced himself as Mr. Beaver during their walk, said as they came upon a small dam on a frozen lake. "It's lovely," Lucy said while Rosemary looked at the small home with a smile. "It's so cute," Rosemary commented.
"It's merely a trifle," Mr. Beaver told them. "Still plenty to do. Ain't quite finished it yet. It'll look the business when it is, though." "Well, you've done a lovely job so far," Rosemary said with a kind smile.
Mr. Beaver looked to the girl and smiled slightly. She was definitely Will's daughter.
The group made their way down to the dam and were almost there when they heard a female voice cry out, "Beaver, is that you? I've been worried sick!" Rosemary watched in amusement as another beaver walked out of the house. "If I find you've been out with Badger again, I. . ." She trailed off at the sight of them.
"Oh! Well, those aren't badgers."
Rosemary let out a small chuckle while Mrs. Beaver began to walk towards them. "Oh, I never thought I'd live to see this day," she said in disbelief. She then looked at Mr. Beaver. "Look at my fur. You couldn't give me ten minutes warning?"
"I'd have given a week if I thought it would've helped," Mr. Beaver told her making the children laugh. "Oh, come inside, and we'll see if we can't get you some food, and some civilized company," Mrs. Beaver said, directing the last part at her husband.
Mr. Beaver chuckled and looked at the Pevensies and Rosemary before gesturing towards the door. "Now, careful. Watch your step," he told them. They all hurried over to the door and Susan, Lucy, and Peter went in before Rosemary followed behind.
She had just gotten in and turned to wait for Edmund only to find that he hadn't come yet. She waited a second and he came walking in a moment later. "You okay?" She asked and Edmund looked at her with a surprised face, not thinking she had waited for him. "Yeah, I'm okay," he assured her, but Rosemary felt like he was lying.
"Excuse the mess," Mrs. Beaver told them. "Can't get Mr. Beaver to get out of his chair." Rosemary heard a small groan from behind her and saw Mr. Beaver shaking his head in embarrassment.
Rosemary chuckled softly and Mr. Beaver showed them over to the coat rack. They all took their coats off before they were led to the kitchen. They all sat down and Rosemary was saving a spot for Edmund to sit down next to her only for him to walk right by her and go sit by the window.
Rosemary frowned at that and turned back to the table. Peter noticed and gestured towards the seat where Edmund was supposed to sit. "Mind if I sit there?" he asked. "Not at all," Rosemary told him as she gave him a kind smile. The boy smiled back and sat down, not noticing the way that Edmund glared in his direction.
"Isn't there anything we can do to help Tumnus?" Peter finally asked once they had settled down. "They'll have taken him to the Witch's castle," Mr. Beaver told them. "You know what they say. There's few that go through them gates that come out again."
Lucy looked down at those words while Rosemary frowned. Mrs. Beaver chuckled nervously before asking, "Fish 'n' chips?" She set the food down on the table before looking to Lucy. "But there is hope, dear," she told her. "Lots of hope."
Mr. Beaver spit out his drink and turned to Mrs. Beaver and Lucy. "Oh, yeah, there's a right bit more than hope!" he exclaimed. He looked around for dramatic effect before putting his hands on the table.
"Aslan is on the move."
"Who's Aslan?" Edmund asked as he got up from his seat by the window. Mr. Beaver let out a loud laugh. "Who's Aslan?" He asked as if it were a stupid question. "You cheeky little blighter."
They all looked to the beavers in confusion and Mrs. Beaver whacked her husband. "What?" He asked. Mrs. Beaver gestured towards the kids and he turned to see them looking confused.
"You don't know, do you?" He asked. "Well, we haven't exactly been here long," Peter explained. "Well, he's only the king of the whole wood. The top geezer. The real King of Narnia," Mr. Beaver told them.
"He's been away for a long while," Mrs. Beaver said. "But he's just got back!" Me. Beaver exclaimed. "And he's waitin' for you near the Stone Table!"
"He's waiting for us?" Lucy asked surprised. "You're bloomin' joking!" Mr. Beaver exclaimed. He turned to his wife. "They don't even know about the prophecy!" "Well, then. . ." she said as she gestured towards the children.
Mr. Beaver sighed. "Look. Aslan's return, Tumnus' arrest, the secret police, it's all happening because of you!" He told them. "You're blaming us?" Susan asked. "No! Not blaming. Thanking you," Mrs. Beaver explained.
"There's a prophecy. 'When Adam's flesh and Adam's bone sits at Cair Paravel in throne, and the daughter of two worlds has returned home, the evil time will be over and done,'" Mr. Beaver said.
"That doesn't really rhyme," Susan pointed out. "I know it don't," he told her. "You're kinda missin' the point!" "It has long been foretold that two Sons of Adam, two Daughters of Eve," Mrs. Beaver began as she pointed at the Pevensies, "and their protector, Will's daughter," she pointed at Rosemary, "will defeat the White Witch and restore peace to Narnia."
Rosemary, Susan, and Peter all shared a look. "And you think we're the ones?" Peter asked. "Well you'd better be, 'cause Aslan's already fitted out your army," Mr. Beaver told them. Rosemary paled. "Our army?" She asked, her voice coming out higher than usual.
"Mum sent us away so we wouldn't get caught up in a war," Susan muttered to Peter. Rosemary sat there in disbelief and put a hand to her head as she tried to process everything. Her eyes flickered up to the beavers who were looking at them excitedly.
"You keep calling me Will's daughter," she said. "What do you mean? Who's Will?" "He's only one of the most bravest warriors Narnia has ever seen and also happens to be your father!" Mr. Beaver exclaimed.
"But my father left me. He wasn't from Narnia," Rosemary told them. "Oh, dear. You don't know about your parents, do you?" Mrs. Beaver asked. The girl tensed up. "What about my parents?" Rosemary asked.
"Long ago, a man named William, your father, arrived in Narnia. He fell in love with a dryad named Aspen, your mother. Together they had you only to find out that you were the protector from the prophecy," Mrs. Beaver explained.
"They weren't the only ones to find out though. The White Witch did as well and she wanted nothing more than to have you dead. Your parents put up a fight and sent you somewhere where no one would find you knowing that you would come back when the time was right," Mr. Beaver finished.
Rosemary sat there for a minute before whispering our, "And my parents?" The two beavers glanced at each other before looking to Rosemary. "They died protecting you," Mr. Beaver told her gravely.
Rosemary felt her heart sink and her face paled slightly. Peter glanced over at the girl and watched as she stared down at her hands with a sick and upset look on her face. He put his hand on top of hers and gave it a small squeeze. She instantly squeezed it back, taking the small bit of comfort the boy was giving her.
"So they're still gone. . ." Rosemary whispered.
Mrs. Beaver gave the girl a sad look and said, "I'm sorry, dear." Rosemary shook her head. "I think you've made a mistake. My parents weren't from Narnia and we're not heroes."
"We're from Finchley and Rosemary's from London," Susan said. The two beavers blinked and looked at each other confused as to what those places were.
"Thank you for your hospitality," Susan said as she got up from her chair. "But we really have to go." "No, you can't just leave!" Mr. Beaver exclaimed. "He's right," Lucy said cussing the three older children to look at her. "We have to help Mr. Tumnus."
"It's out of our hands," Peter told her while Rosemary merely looked down. She was still upset about the whole her parents being from Narnia thing being true. If it were, that meant they were dead and it was her fault. She didn't know which story she liked better. Them having just left her or them dying because of her.
Rosemary stood up from her seat and looked over to where Edmund had been sitting, wanting to go over and receive his comfort for some reason unknown to her. However, when her eyes looked over to the window he had been sitting near, she came up empty handed.
"I'm sorry, but it's time the five of us were getting home," Peter said, but he was stopped when he heard Rosemary's panicked voice fill the air. "Edmund?" She asked worriedly as she looked around.
Peter turned to where Rosemary was now standing by the window. The two made eye contact and Peter called out, "Ed?" There was no reply.
Rosemary didn't even hesitate before going over to the coat rack. She returned a moment later with Edmund's coat in hand. She looked at it before looking up at the others.
Peter locked eyes with her before shaking his head. "I'm gonna kill him," he muttered. "You may not have to," Mr. Beaver said and the group turned to him.
"Has Edmund ever been to Narnia before?"
- - -
Rosemary ran through the snow as if it were nothing in an attempt to catch up to Edmund. Her heart was racing and she felt like she was about to throw up at the thought of him being alone. She couldn't even imagine what she would do if the boy got hurt.
If what the prophecy said was true, if all of it was true, then she was supposed to be the protector. And if she was the protector, then she was doing a pretty awful job right now at protecting.
Rosemary made it to the top of the snowy hill and gripped onto Edmund's coat which was in her arms as she came to a stop. Before her stood a gigantic ice castle. It didn't take much to guess who it belonged to.
Her eyes flickered around the snowy landscape before landing on Edmund who was about to walk into the castle. "Edmund!" Rosemary cried out.
"Shh! They'll hear you!" Mr. Beaver told her. The girl fell quiet, but that didn't stop her from panicking and breathing heavily. Peter noticed the girl's state and frowned before looking forward and at the figure of his brother. He didn't even think twice before beginning to run forward, but before he could get far, Mr. Beaver had grabbed onto his coat while exclaiming, "No!"
"Get off me!" Peter yelled as he shoved the beaver's grasp away. "You're playing into her hands," the beaver said. "We can't just let him go!" Rosemary exclaimed.
"He's our brother!" Lucy argued. "He's the bait!" Mr. Beaver shot back. "The Witch wants all five of you!" "Why?" Peter asked. "To stop the prophecy from coming true," Mr. Beaver explained. "To kill you!"
Rosemary paled and took a step forward and to the castle. All she could think about was how Edmund was walking into the castle where a queen who wanted nothing more than to stop the prophecy, was waiting to kill him. Mr. Beaver jumped in front of her before she could go further.
"You can't go! She's already tried killing you once before. Don't give her another opportunity and let your parents die in vain!" Mr. Beaver exclaimed making Rosemary pause in her tracks.
Her eyes flickered up to the castle before her and she watched with sad eyes and a heavy heart as Edmund walked into the palace, the doors shutting behind him.
"This is all your fault," Susan said to Peter, breaking the silence that had fallen on them at the sight of Edmund walking inside. "My fault?" Peter asked confused.
"None of this would have happened if you had listened to me in the first place!" Susan exclaimed. "Oh, so you knew this would happen," Peter argued. "I didn't know what would happen," Susan shot back. "Which is why we should have left while we could!"
"Stop it!" Lucy exclaimed as her eyes flickered over the older children. Peter and Susan looked to her, anger still on their face from their fight. As for Rosemary, she was still staring at the castle, her face pale and her hands gripping onto Edmund's coat like her life depended on it.
"This isn't going to help Edmund," Lucy told them. "She's right. Only Aslan can help your brother now," Mr. Beaver said.
Rosemary looked to the group, her eyes blazing with a fire they had never seen before. She still held onto Edmund's coat tightly in her arms and she had a fierce look on her face, a sharp contrast from her usual happy and cheery expression.
If Rosemary was supposed to be the protector, she was going to be the protector.
"Take us to him."