White Lion

Chapter Eight

After a scolding from Ms. Macready, we were all forced to stay in the house because of the rain for a few weeks.

We talked a lot about our years in Narnia, about how much we missed it. And Aslan.

It was strange, living fifteen years of your life and walking through a portal to find you were just a child again, and only minutes had passed in the 'real' world.

I somewhat missed being a lion, but nowhere near as much as I missed the Pevensies when the war ended.

They all left and went home, leaving me in the mansion.

I spoke with the professor about Narnia and Aslan, but his memory started slipping over the next few months.

After a year, I had just turned fourteen. It wasn't a big celebration, but Ms. Macready got me tickets to go around England.

As long as I was back for supper, she joked.

I arrived at the train station, in London a few days later, where I could've sworn I heard a lion's roar over the loud trains.

Slowly, the tiles started falling off the walls and papers flew everywhere. I saw beautiful waters and soft sand-

I was back in Narnia.

Just to see if I could, I shifted into a lioness and started running as fast as I could. I wondered how much time had passed.

There was a palace in the distance, more heavily guarded than Cair Paravel, and made of iron.

I ran up to the gates to see who had arrived when someone fired a crossbow at me.

"Don't fire!" I shifted human, but the armor landed in my leg. I fell to the ground.

The next thing I knew, I was in a cell in my human form, a carelessly wrapped bandage around my leg.

Something was very wrong with Narnia.

Of course, that was probably why I was back.

A few weeks passed, and my only visitor was a professor, who asked for stories about Narnia. And one of his students, Caspian, sometimes came as well.

But all of that ended when there were screams of a baby.

From what I understood, the man known as Miraz wanted the throne, but he couldn't do that until he had a son.

And from the look on the professor's face when he ran past my cell, there was a son.

"We need to hurry," the professor unlocked my cell, which I certainly had not been expecting, and then pulled me through the hallways of the palace.

It was magnificent, but I didn't have time to look around.

We reached a tall door, which the professor opened, closing it behind him.

A boy was sound asleep on a bed in the center of the room. The professor put his hand over the boy's mouth, silently waking him up.

Caspian tried to get free until he saw who it was, "Five more minutes?"

"We won't be watching the stars tonight," the professor replied, throwing armor at the boy, then at me.

I raised an eyebrow as I set it down, "I don't wear armor."

"Suit yourself," Caspian said, hurriedly putting his on as we raced to the stables.

After we both mounted horses, the professor handed Caspian a horn, "Use it only in your time of greatest need."

Where did the professor get the horn of Queen Susan, the Gentle? She must have had it in her saddlebag that day we were chasing a white stag.

"And you," the professor turned to me, "I know who you are. Protect him." He handed me my sword and dagger, though I didn't know where he'd gotten those either.

I realized my necklace was still around my neck, as it had been since Father Christmas gave it to me.

He then slapped both horses, sending them running off into the woods.

My horse may have been the same speed, but I was more experienced at riding. We neared a river, where the strong current stopped many of the Telmarines from following.

Caspian hit his head on a branch, falling off his horse backwards. I didn't have much of a choice but to help.

I leapt off my horse as I continued running away, shifting into a lion right away.

I let out a roar loud enough the trees shook. I'd forgotten how much fun that was.

The Telmarines stopped, but Caspian also eyed me with fear, not knowing that I was still Madi.

I stalked towards them, noting the fear in their eyes. But as I stepped protectively one front of Caspian, I heard a horn blow.

"Don't!" A badger ran over, along with two dwarves.

One dwarf was caught by the soldiers, while the other hit Caspian in the head, knocking him out cold.

As they approached me, I growled at them, stepping towards the soldiers. I could talk in the lioness form, but I figured it was more threatening to seem like a dumb beast for now.

I lunged towards one of them, but they hit me with a crossbow, the force and pain knocking me to my side.

Everything was heavy as someone dragged me towards a hollow under a tree, where I rested on a bed. The badger, who's name was Trufflehunter, tried to remove the arrow.

The lion side of me took over, and I growled at him. He took a few steps back and decided to let me rest.

I blinked several times, or so I thought. It felt like blinking. But it had been two days.

"Who's that?" Someone asked warily as I opened my eyes again.

Caspian was talking to Nikabrik and Trufflehunter.

"You don't know?" Trufflehunter asked.

Caspian, who had been raised by the people who thought Narnians were a myth, found this slightly offensive.

"Madilyn Fox, the Lioness," the badger said, "Protector of Narnia. Daughter of Aslan."

At least Caspian knew who Aslan was. And none of them knew my mother. I'd leave it that way. For now, at least.