Coriakin, Caspian, Edmund, Y/N, Lucy and Eustace were now walking down the same corridor from earlier.
"What did you mean when you said you made them invisible for their own good?" asked Lucy, referring to the dufflepuds.
"It seemed the easiest way to protect them from the evil," replied Coriakin.
"You mean the mist?" asked Edmund, after sharing a look with Y/N and Caspian.
"I mean what lies behind the mist," said Coriakin simply, gesturing for the others to go inside the big library.
Once everyone was inside, Coriakin walked to his desk, with purpose in every step he took. He picked up a long scroll from behind it and rolled it out onto the floor. It fell flat, but hovered a few inches above the ground. On it's surface was a map of all of Narnia.

"That's quite beautiful," said Eustace.
Everyone looked straight at him, eyebrows raised.
"I mean, for a make-believe map of a make-believe world," he covered up quickly.
He was not wrong, though. A blue area, representing water, spread over the centre of the map, leaving the land to border the edges. Y/N's eyes, however, lingered on one specific corner of the map.
"Aslan's camp," she said to herself.
It looked just like she remembered it. Just as real as the memories etched in her head. She forced a sad smile.

"There is the source of your troubles," said Coriakin, as the map zoomed in to show a rather peculiar-looking black lump that had green light glowing from within.
"Dark Island," Coriakin continued, "A place where evil lurks. It can take any form. It can make your darkest dreams come true. It seeks to corrupt all goodness - to steal the light from this world."
"How do we stop it?" asked Lucy.
"You must break its spell," replied Coriakin, before turning to Edmund, "That sword you carry... There are six others."
"Have you seen them?" asked Edmund.
"Yes," said Coriakin.
"The six lords... They passed through here?" asked Caspian.
"Indeed."
"Where were they headed?"
"Where I sent them."

The map then shifted its focus to another island.
"To break the spell, you must follow the Blue Star to Ramandu's Island," explained Coriakin, "There, the seven swords must be laid at Aslan's table. Only then can their true magical power be released. But, beware, you are all about to be tested."
"Tested?" asked Y/N.
"Until you lay down the seventh sword, evil has the upper hand. It will do everything in its power to tempt you. Be strong. Don't fall to temptation. To defeat the darkness out there, you must defeat the darkness inside yourself."

**********

"So we're stuck here," said Drinian, placing a marker on a spot on the map that was laid out on Caspian's desk, "at half rations, with food and water for two more weeks maximum. This is your last chance to turn back, Your Majesties. There's no guarantee we'll spot the Blue Star any time soon. Not in this storm. Needle in a haystack, trying to find this Ramandu place. We could sail right past it and off the edge of the world."
"Or get eaten by a sea serpent," said Edmund, trying to lighten the conversation.
Y/N gave him a soft smile. Drinian, however, did not take this statement jokingly, and nor did Caspian.
"I'm just saying the men are getting nervous," said Drinian, "These are strange seas we're sailing - the likes of which I've never seen before."

"Then perhaps, Captain, you would like to be the one to explain to Mr Rhince that we're abandoning the search for his family," said Caspian.
Drinian hesitated, then shook his head, saying, "I'll get back to it. Just a word of warning - the sea can play nasty tricks on a crew's mind. Very nasty."

**********

Although Edmund's arm around her waist was really comforting, Y/N still had an uneasiness lurking in the back of her mind. Their shared hammock rocked back and forth, and Edmund's breath was steady and calm on the back of Y/N's neck. She could tell he was in deep sleep.
"It's now or never," she thought.
She reached into her pocket and took out the berries from earlier. Her eyes had not yet adjusted to the dark, so she couldn't see the berries, but from what she could feel, they were still firm in shape and had amazingly not been crushed yet. She stuffed the handful of berries into her mouth and chewed on them silently.

Y/N closed her eyes and concentrated on what she wanted most. But after a couple of minutes, nothing seemed to change. Sighing defeatedly, she opened her eyes. And when she did, she was greeted with delightful beams of sunlight streaming in through a large window, instead of the dark and dingy sleeping quarters of the Dawn Treader. Y/N recognised her surroundings immediately. It had worked. She was in hers and Ed's shared bedroom back in Cair Paravel!

Y/N couldn't remember the last time her smile was so bright. Too excited for words, she turned around, expecting to find Edmund lying right behind her. But he wasn't there. Thoroughly confused, Y/N rolled out of bed. Edmund rarely ever - if not never - woke up before her. Without even bothering to check herself in the mirror or freshen up, she left in search of the four people she most wanted to see. She visited each of their bedrooms - Lucy's first, then Susan's, then Peter's - but found nobody. Just as she turned to go into the dining hall, she saw a familiar face approaching and smiled.

"Mr Tumnus," said Y/N happily.
But Mr Tumnus was quite the opposite of happy. He didn't even acknowledge Y/N, which was very unlike him. He had on a worried face and was constantly muttering to himself.
"Mr Tum-" Y/N repeated, but she stopped herself when Mr Tumnus walked right through her.
"Am I dead?" was the first thought that went through Y/N's head, "Am I a ghost?"
She whipped around to see that Mr Tumnus was still walking.
"It's been four hours," he mumbled, "Should be back by now."
Y/N furrowed her eyebrows.
"What is he on about?" she thought.

Then, Y/N heard hooves coming closer at an incredibly rushed pace. Mr Tumnus' ears pricked up and he spun around to face Y/N. Except he wasn't looking at her - he was looking behind where she was standing. Y/N turned around too, only to find another familiar face.
"Nowhere at all to be found, Tumnus,"  said Orieus breathlessly, "We've looked for them everywhere."
Then it hit Y/N. She knew exactly what was happening. But she didn't know why. The berries should have worked! They were her only hope.

**********

Y/N's feet dangled just inches above the water. She had walked all the way to River Rush. Tears brimmed in her eyes as she felt her memories flow through her. Just a few feet from where she was sitting right now was one of her favourite spots in all of Narnia. She and the Pevensies would go there for picnics every once in a while - when Peter was over-stressed or when Lucy needed cheering up. They would joke around and laugh as loud as they could and splash around in the water. Of course, remembering all of this did not make Y/N any happier. In fact, ever since she had arrived on the Dawn Treader, there had been a dark thought that prevented her from enjoying herself properly.

Y/N looked down at the river, in hopes that the flowing water would calm her down. But instead, she just saw her reflection, and that of yet another familiar face!
"Aslan!" Y/N exclaimed. 
When she looked up, the Lion was not beside her like his reflection was in the water.
"Oh, Aslan, I don't know what went wrong! I just wanted to- I just wanted it all back," said Y/N, controlling her sobs.

"Y/N, listen to me," the Lion's deep voice spoke in a calm manner, "I know you wish to go back to a time when everything was just the way you liked, but that is not how it works. I have a plan for you, dear child, just as I have a plan for everyone else. I brought you here to show you that you left Narnia for a reason on this fateful day. If that had not happened, events far more serious, that I cannot mention, would have occured. Life so happens in a way that things will not always go the way you want. And you need to learn that that is alright; that is the way it has to be. Remember, Y/N, it is I who has chosen your fate. Your only duty now is to believe in me."

Y/N was silent. She had understood every word that Aslan had said, and she knew that whether she liked it or not, she would be sent back to her own world without the Pevensies. Aslan had not specified that she would see them ever again, and thus her heart still weighed her down. But she knew that she had to listen to Aslan; she would never doubt Him. He had a plan for her, he had said. And that had definitely given her hope.

When Y/N looked back into the water, Aslan's reflection had completely disappeared, and hers was slowly fading. Soon, her vision turned black, and she was lying down again. She jolted awake to find herself back in the sleeping quarters of the Dawn Treader, next to an already awake Edmund. He was facing away from her and had his sword drawn, but turned to her when he felt her move. Beads of sweat were gathered on his forehead and his face was pale, like he had just seen a ghost.

"Edmund!" a sharp whisper said, and Edmund looked around, worried, before realising it belonged to Lucy.
"Oh, Lucy," breathed Edmund, sounding relieved.
Suddenly, Caspian bolted up straight also, no doubt having had a nightmare as well.
"I can't sleep," said Lucy.
"Let me guess. Bad dreams?" Y/N asked, and although it sounded like a question, she didn't need an answer.
"So either we're all going mad," said Edmund, "or something's playing with our minds."