I dedicate this chapter to Sennadouglasx and Fcrbes you two are so great and thank you sm for the support wth ily
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Artemis had trouble falling asleep that night; she couldn't stop tossing and turning in her bed. The thought of Lucy finding a way back to Narnia hadn't left her mind for more than a minute. That minute of not thinking of Narnia, was filled by thoughts of the other Pevensie children. She realized that she should have been nicer to them. Nothing of what she had ever had to go through was their fault, in any way. One particular sibling kept creeping into her mind, but that was something she didn't want to admit, just yet. That was her; stubborn as always. Eventually, Artemis couldn't do it anymore. She couldn't stay in bed and not sleep. She couldn't get her mind around it quite yet. She had to see it for herself, so that was exactly what she did. Facing her own wardrobe, she changed into more Narnia appropriate clothing. Both her hands moved up to her hair, and pulled a few strands back, tying them together at the back of her head to keep them out of the way.
The young Narnian turned around and went down on one knee as she reached under her bed. Pulling her hands back, they held her beloved bow, quiver and her sword. For a moment, the young warrior thought she saw her father standing in the corner of her room. But she soon realized it wasn't him, when she focused on the night's darkness her room was taken over by.
She knew that if she would actually get back, she would have to try her best to hide her marks. On Earth it came a lot easier, the somewhat burning sensation, or even urge to bring them out; to be herself; to look like herself, was not nearly as bad as it was back in Narnia. But when she gets overwhelmed with a certain emotion, for example, she gets flooded with feelings of deep anger and aggression: her marks will appear and she gets out of control, most of the times. It has not happened many times, actually, but when it did, it was best to leave her to herself. She would most likely retreat to her room and break something, she'd then start cursing at herself, then would flee outside and go back to the exact tree that brought her here, and maybe curse that one too.
Artemis secured her large sword around her waist and her bow tightly in her hand, as she swung her quiver onto her back. The cicadas were laughing out in song to the dark blue 4am night sky, as the tired, pale girl made her way to the wooden wardrobe in the spare room down the hallway. Not realizing a certain nine year old girl had already entered Narnia a few minutes earlier, meeting her new friend: Mr. Tumnus. Inhaling deeply, she felt her right hand heating up, slightly. Her eyes looked down at her finger and she saw Oreius' ring glow. With each step closer to the wardrobe, the small stone decorating the silver ring would glow brighter and brighter, also growing warmer and warmer to Artemis' ring finger. ''Ow! By Aslan, Oreius what is this thing?'' She cursed as she swiftly pulled it off her finger and dropped it in her pocket to cool off. Her finger now had a burn mark in the exact shape of the ring, but just as quickly as it came; it vanished.
''Please, just let me come home, Aslan. It's all I'm asking'' Whilst those words flew from her lips, she stepped inside the wardrobe and she immediately felt a cold breeze, blowing her hair back a little. A big smile immediately filled Artemis' face and she let out a small chuckle before entering completely, shutting the wardrobe's door behind her. After only a few steps, snow covered branches had come in sight and Artemis couldn't take the waiting any longer, so she started running. She wanted to get home, to see her world again and most importantly: see her beloved friends once again.
A painful, burning sensation took over her head, specifically in her cheeks and forehead: exactly where her marks were supposed to be located. The feeling was so much more intense in this world, she expected it, but she didn't remember it hurting this much. It was most likely due to how long she had been used to Earth's atmosphere, not Narnia's. "No, not now.'' Artemis controlled herself as she shut her eyes tightly, concentrating on her marks only, concentrating on the sight of seeing them fade away. She inhaled deeply, letting the Narnian air she hadn't smelled in so long fill up her lungs.
The air smelled cold, too cold, not how she remembered it, but neither was the country. It used to be so green, now there was snow everywhere. Jingling sleighbells were heard approaching and the sound was followed by the sound of hoofs pounding on the frozen ground. It took her only seconds too long realizing who was approaching. It was Jadis, the White Witch, or what she likes to call herself: The Queen of Narnia.
She could tell herself that as many times as she desired, it was never going to be true. She would never be the real Queen of Narnia; she did not deserve that title, one single bit. Realizing that there was a chance that she would not make it out of this situation, and she didn't want to risk losing any of the weaponry she loved so much, she quickly removed her sword from her waist and her quiver from her back. One of the trees, most likely one of the only ones on her and Aslan's side by now, opened up, revealing to her a hiding spot for her sword, bow and arrow-filled quiver. ''Thank you, I definitely owe you'' She whispered as it closed up again, seeing no trace of any bow or sword anywhere.
Before Artemis got a chance to flee from the Witch, the reindeers had surrounded her, already, giving her no way to run. ''Well, what a sight this is.'' The cold voice spoke from the sleigh, yet she didn't care to step out of it. Ginnarrbrik, her personal minion, did, though, he forced his dagger against her throat and kept her in that position until Jadis did eventually step into the snow. ''Oh, dear Artemis, it's been so long. Don't you think we should talk? Catch up? Just like old times.'' A devilish smirk-plastered-face suggested.
The pale girl scoffed and spat at her. The way she was talking to her brought back all the memories of what Jadis had ever done to her. All the lock-ups, the starving, the slaps and even the whippings she would get when she did not give the answers she desired.
Jadis raised her hand and backhandedly slapped the younger girl's right cheek, and immediately after, caressed it. Artemis raised her eyebrows and creased them together, confused as to what she wanted from her. The Witch's hand moved from her cheek to her hair, carefully brushing her hand through it. She let out a sharp and evil laugh as she took half of the girl's hair and pulled it down roughly. ''We're going to have so much fun together, Marked One.'' She then nodded her head at Ginarrbrik, who finally moved his dagger from her throat, but instead, placing the tip of it on her lower back, getting her to move anywhere he wanted her to go. She was lead back to the white sleigh and she was pushed froward, forced to step on and join the Witch to her ice castle, which was probably never as cold as her heart.
They were just about to take off to the castle to lock her up, when the three of them heard a young male voice calling out. ''Lucy. Where are you? Lucy, I think I believe you now'' It was Edmund. Artemis recognized his voice and saw his small figure moving amongst the trees, getting closer to the sleigh than ever recommended if you wanted to live. ''Lucy!'' He called out one more time, as he started to close in on the sleigh, the sleigh he probably didn't see due to how white it was. His eyes widened when he saw the dwarf, Ginarrbrik, sitting on the front of the carriage, and the Witch who was sitting there like royalty as she pushed Artemis down to the bottom, making her unnoticable for Edmund from his point of view. Artemis knew how this was going to play out if she didn't warn him. He would approach Jadis and she would act so sweet and motherly to him that it would make everyone around her sick to the stomach, then she would subtly get him to bring his brother and sisters to her, so she could prevent the prophecy from happening. Well, there was no way in hell, she was going to let that happen.
