The Voyage - Edmund Pevensie

12

Cat's POV:

As soon as Lucy and I had finished saying the spell, one of the ladders on a bookcase in front of us began to move. We shared a brief look with wide eyes, before looking back towards the ladder where there now seemed to be something moving. What looked like an outline of a person began to swirl and distort the area around it as they walked from the ladder to one of the tables, dropping a book as it went. I followed them the entire way, my guard instantly up and my hand flew to my dagger silently cursing myself when I realized it was still outside the mansion. 

However, when the shape turned towards us, new book in hand, a man stood in front of us not looking very surprised to see us there. His eyes flicked between Lucy and I, the book of incantations still in front of us, and my hand still at my hip. At that, he quirked a brow up and I felt a flash of guilt for thinking of drawing my knife when we had been the ones to intrude in his home. 

"We're sorry to disturb you sir," I began. "But we were sent here by the creatures living outside to complete a spell. Now that it's done, we'll leave immediately. We apologize for our intrusion." Lucy nodded in agreement behind me, but to our surprise the man just smiled. 

"It's no trouble at all your Majesties, welcome to my home." So, it seemed he knew who we were. I'll admit I was slightly impressed as this island didn't belong to Narnia. Thus, I wouldn't have expected this man to know my face, let alone know Lucy's. 

"You know who we are?" Lucy asked behind me. The man smiled again. "I have known who you are, Queen Lucy, since you stepped through that wardrobe into Narnia over a thousand years ago." He then turned to look at me. "And it would be impossible to not have heard of you Queen Catarina. You and your brother helped restore peace to Narnia once again. It is an honor to meet you both, or at least meet you both in person." He bowed his head slightly. "I am Coriakin, and this island is my home. It has been since I came here hundreds of years ago." 

There was a slight pause after Coriakin stopped speaking, and I swore I could hear the gears turning in both mine and Lucy's minds. Lucy was able to recover first though. 

"It's nice to meet you sir, thank you for your kindness." Thank goodness Lucy was with me and always remembered her manners. I had been one second away from asking every question that was piling up in my brain. 

"Yes, thank you sir. Your home is lovely." 

"Why thank you," he said, looking genuinely pleased as he did a quick survey of his library. "It's the culmination of many, many years of collecting."

"Did you collect your book of incantations?" I asked, looking back at it on the podium. I half expected it to be gone, but it was still there open to the page we'd just read from. 

"No, not that one," he told us, stepping up around the podium to shut the book. "That one I made myself." 

"So, you're the wizard who made everything invisible, including the creatures outside?"

"That would be me," Coriakin answered me. "And they're called Dufflepugs." Quick as a flash he pulled out a small book from one of his sleeves and flipped to a page in the middle. A creature that looked like a man from the waist down, but instead of two feet had one solitary, rather large foot. "Quite harmless really. Quite easily spooked. Did they use their 'We're ferocious bears' speech again?" 

"I believe they just said they were very large" I said smiling. 

"Ah, so I see they're not getting any more creative," Coriakin joked. 

"Speaking of the Dufflepugs, we should probably go tell them the spell is complete," Lucy said. 

"We should also probably get the boys too," I told her. "If they woke up and saw we weren't there, they're probably worried sick." 

"You're not traveling alone?" Coriakin asked. 

"No sir, we've come with my brother, Capian, Lucy's brother, Edmund, and a crew of sailors. We're sorry to have intruded on your island, but we needed to stop here for the night."

"Please don't trouble yourself, it's no worry at all. And I believe I know why you're here, and what you seek," he told us. Somehow, I wasn't surprised. "I also have a way to help you fight the green mist, but it would be better if we retrieve your brothers so that everyone may hear it at once. Also, I imagine the Dufflepugs are giving them a riot of a time right about now." There was a twinkle in his eye that made me think that he knew a lot more that at first glance. That, and I had to contain myself from laughing at the thought of Caspian and Edmund fighting with the Dufflepugs."Let's go retrieve them shall we?" Lucy and I nodded, and with that we set off for the front doors of the mansion. 

As we walked, questions swirled around my brain, one after the other that I was begging to ask. This was a mysterious man who someone arrived on this island hundreds of years ago, knew Lucy from her first time in Narnia, and was able to turn himself, a group of Dufflepugs, and his whole mansion invisible. I glanced at Lucy who also looked deep in thought. 

"I know you both must have many questions. All will be answered in due time, I assure you," Coriaken told us just as we were about to step outside. Lucy and I shared a quick glance, both thinking the same thing I was sure. 

This man could definitely read minds. Either that, or he knew he was being mysterious on purpose and liked creating suspense. 

I liked him already.