Chronicles of Narnia; The Lion, the Witch's Daughter and the Wardrobe

Chapter Three: Meeting in the Dungeon

Jade walked silently down the ice steps into the dungeon. Her hair was down, and she was wearing a white nightgown over white leggings. She was carrying a large basket full of food and, of course, her wand. The girl snuck successfully into the lightly guarded chamber that contained the boy and a faun. Both looked up quickly in surprise, and the faun gave her a murderous look. This always happened at first. The boy just looked stunned. "My mother doesn't know I'm here. I've come with food...and apologies for how she's treated you." Both looked at her weirdly. "I'm not going to try to get information out of you, but I just want to tell you," Jade said, giving them both fresh, warm bread, "that I am on Aslan's side." After handing out warm mugs of hot cocoa, she tapped the basket and it disappeared. She kneeled on the floor next to the faun and pulled out her wand. "I know you don't trust me, but I swear I'm not going to hurt you." He looked at her doubtfully, but allowed her to tap his head lightly with her wand. She thought of warmth and comfort as she did so, and she knew that the faun was now feeling warm and comforted. "Thank you." He murmured before drifting off to sleep. Jade smiled and turned to the boy. She went around the thin ice wall that was separating the prisoners and sat on the floor next to the son of Adam. "Please don't send me off to sleep," He said fearfully, as he tried to scoot away from her. "I don't want to dream about her..." "My mother?" He nodded. "I won't." Jade promised. She tapped him lightly on the head with her wand, and thought of slight warmth. He stopped shivering. She smiled and stowed her wand in her pocket. "I'm Jade." "Edmund." The boy murmured. "So...is it true that Aslan's coming back? Mother says that he is, but she's not always the most reliable source of information." Edmund shrugged. He wouldn't meet her eyes. "Are you ok?" Jade asked. She was very concerned for the boy. "I'm fine." He snapped. The girl's feeling were slightly hurt by this. She was just trying to help him! "Look," she said in a gentle voice, "if my mother doesn't get your brother and sisters by tomorrow, she's going to go looking for them. I'm sure she's gonna want you to come. Would you...maybe want to...ride in my sled? So that you won't have to be with her?" "And how am I sure that you're not gonna be just as bad as her?" He asked, meeting her eyes for the first time. Jade bit her lip and pulled out her wand. She laid it on the ground in front of her with quivering fingers. "I, Jade of Narnia, hereby swear that I am on Aslan's side." A long chain made of bronze sparks left the top of her wand and encircled itself around her. Then the sparks faded. "There. I've sworn my allegiance to Aslan's side." He twisted his lip in thought. "I'll ride in your sled if you let me hold your wand for the whole ride." Edmund bargained. She was still for a minute, and then nodded. "Fine. But you mustn't let Mother see. She'd kill both of us without a second thought." He nodded. Jade took her wand and stood. "I'll see you tomorrow, Edmund." She silently ran back to her room, where she fell into a fitful sleep full of dreams where her mother was killing her, Aslan, the faun and Edmund.