CHAPTER EIGHT:
HALF LIGHT
(trigger warning: mentions of violence)

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THERE WAS SOMETHING TO be said about the nature of fear. Fear was breath-taking. It ate at the soul, tore piece by damning piece to shreds with rotten teeth. Fear was consuming. It enraptured the mind, ensnared the heart in a cage with no lock, a room with no doors or windows. Rosalie knew fear like everyday anxiety, but this was different. Flying hundreds of feet in the air in the claws of a gryphon, a bronze chest plate strapped to her torso was not what one would expect from magic. Maybe she'd made a mistake. Maybe she should've listened to Edmund.

"You're not ready for this," he'd insisted the second she asked to borrow Susan's spare armour. She'd tried to wait until he was out of earshot, but it seemed that whenever Rosalie's safety was concerned, Edmund had the ears of a bloodhound. "Stay here with Lucy."

"I can't," she had protested, feeling the weight of Alysanne's gaze on her back. They seemed to taunt her with every blink. You're the one with the power, not him. "I can help—"

Edmund's laughter wasn't meant to be cruel, but it cut through bone regardless. "You have one training session with Alysanne and suddenly you're a fighter? Come on, Rosie."

"Have a little faith in me," she snapped, chin jutting with satisfaction when Edmund's expression flickered in surprise. "You're not my husband or my brother, Edmund. I can make my own decisions."

"Fine," he'd muttered. "Have it your way."

At the time, Rosalie had been driven by the urge to do the right thing. She couldn't see him or Susan or even Peter risk their lives while she sat around and did nothing. She wasn't a child. She was here for a reason (... right?) She had a fire in her veins that longed to be set free. Why explore these abilities, why even ask Alysanne to train her if she couldn't do anything to help them? But Edmund had a point, as much as it pained her to admit it. As the two of them flew together in stubborn silence — it was safe to say Edmund had taken to giving her the silent treatment once it became clear she was ignoring his wishes — Rosalie's stomach lurched with dread.

There would be no turning back now. They'd arrived at Miraz' castle.

This will make or break you, Rosalie Hannigan. Time to prove yourself.

In the dead of night, Rosalie could just make out the pearly white edges of the gryphon's eyes as she and Edmund were deposited on one side of a shingled tower roof. With a surprising amount of ease for a creature so grand in size, the gryphon landed beside them, waiting for Edmund's signal to strike. Below them, a guard scanned the horizon with beady eyes, his sword surely sharp enough to shatter through the stone Rosalie hid behind. She struggled for a moment to find her footing. Every breath sounded like a gunshot in the looming silence.

Edmund caught her eyes first, nodding once. It seemed he was putting his feelings aside for the time being. They couldn't be arguing when lives depended on them and both of them knew it. Rosalie nodded back, trying her best to smile even when the gryphon struck and carried the squirming guard away with iron claws. They'd disappeared into the clouds before Rosalie could even hear him scream.

"You want some help?" Edmund called once his feet had made contact with solid ground. He stared up at Rosalie from the narrow lookout space, one hand holding the torch he'd accidentally brought to Narnia while the other reached for her.

"I'm good," Rosalie declined, bracing herself to jump over the edge. Her ankles buckled as she hit the ground, but she managed to right herself with a sheepish grin. Edmund shook his head, but he wore a smirk despite the tension that lingered. "Thanks, though."

"No problem."

And they were silent again. It wasn't uncomfortable; rather, it was the calm before the storm as Edmund approached the landing and began to flash his torch in the direction they'd flown from. One, two, three. One, two, three. A moment later, more gryphon shapes peeled out of the shadows carrying who Rosalie knew to be Susan, Peter, Alysanne, Caspian and Trumpkin. They descended from the sky like Gods. Alysanne had a spear clutched in her hand — though where she found it, Rosalie had no idea. Peter and Caspian carried swords that sliced through any guards who spotted them along the way. Susan hefted her bow and took aim at anyone who noticed the flashing signal above. Their gryphons dropped them on a lower bridge right by one of the castle's entrances. They were gone in a blink, and so the waiting game began.

"What now?" Rosalie asked, curling her arms around her stomach as a strong gust of wind battered against the tower.

She wished she thought to wear a thicker shirt; at least she was smart enough to insist on wearing men's breeches, unlike Susan who wore her purple floor-length dress. She wasn't sure where Lucy located the pants, but she had a feeling they might've been Edmund's judging by the rosy hue of his face every time he looked at her. Or maybe he was still angry and therefore uncomfortable and Rosalie was just oblivious.

"I'm sorry," she blurted before Edmund could answer. He frowned, but once Rosalie started talking, she often found she couldn't stop. The words poured out of her like a broken tap, trailing into the abyss when Edmund's face broke out with a smile. "I should've listened to you, I had no reason to get angry—"

"It's okay," he cut in before her voice could accidentally rise above a whisper. Most of the guards had been taken out by the others but they couldn't be too sure. With that handsome smirk of his now firmly in place, he took to leaning up against the wall, amused by the way Rosalie's stare lingered on where his fingers spun the torch around idly. "Are you regretting your decisions yet?"

Slowly, Rosalie shook her head. "I know you think I'm not ready and maybe you're right. But what am I here for if not to help you? At least, if I'm worrying about you here, I can keep an eye on you."

Edmund sighed. "When we make it back to the How, let me teach you how to fight properly. Whatever Alysanne has shown you isn't enough. Not if you plan to carry that around." He gestured at the sword Susan had strapped to Rosalie's side before she could even think to protest. Edmund's eyes were soft as they traced her face. His moving hands lazed distractedly, the torch fumbling between his fingers. "Okay?"

"Okay."

All of a sudden, the torch slipped and Edmund failed to catch it. Rosalie gasped, darting over to peer over the edge just in time to see it land in the lookout below. The ring of light flickered and went out. Edward muttered a string of curses and disappeared down the stairs as the door opened below.

"Ed, wait—"

Rosalie quickly followed after him, heart skipping a beat when the guard blinded himself by aiming the torch at his face. Edmund pulled her into an alcove just in time for the guard to whirl around. He groaned and rubbed his eyes but was soon distracted when a bell sounded overhead. No, not a bell, Rosalie realised. An alarm.

Someone knew they were there.

"Stay here," Edmund said before jumping over the edge.

He crashed into the guard from behind, sending them both to the floor in a mess of limbs. Metal shrieked as the guard drew his sword, prompting Edmund to do the same. For a moment, Rosalie listened and remained hidden, but as the torch began to roll towards the edge, she emerged. Edmund spared her a glare as the guard rounded on her. He managed to block the sword that came her way as she scrambled to pick up the torch.

"Rosalie," Peter called as he spotted her. "Rosalie, now! Signal the troops!"

"It's not working!" she cried, smacking the torch against her palm when the light failed to switch on. "Ed, what do I do?"

Peter had gone back to opening the gates, ignoring Susan and Caspian as they shouted protests from behind him. Alysanne was nowhere to be seen, but Rosalie didn't have time to question it. Several guards spilled into the courtyard as the alarm continued to blare. They bore down on the others in seconds, forcing them into action all the while Edmund and his guard battled overhead. Rosalie had just managed to get the light flickering again when a heavy force slammed against her back. She grunted as her head bounced on the cobblestone. The guard swung his sword just as Edmund tackled him. Rosalie didn't think as she pushed herself to her knees. With blazing fists, she reached out and latched onto the man's face. He screamed as his skin blistered and peeled, then went quiet, eyes rolling into the back of his head from the agony.

Your gift is a part of you, Alysanne had said. It is like an extension of your arm, or your leg. A very piece of your soul. Do you see it?

She did. At last.

"Edmund, the torch!" she shouted, rousing him out of his horrified trance as she forced her own mind back to the present. "I think it's broken."

"Shit," more curses spilled from his mouth as he took it from her.

There was no more time. They had to signal the troops one way or another. Rosalie just hoped her idea would work. She pushed herself to her feet, motivated by the guards screaming below. Raising her palms, she let her eyes close. She heard Edmund murmur her name, but the burning had returned, summoned like air to her lungs. One, two, three. One, two, three. The fire flickered at her command. The whole castle seemed to shake as the troops answered by rallying forward.

When she opened her eyes again, Edmund was no longer watching her. Fear returned like a tidal wave. He hadn't seen her summon before. It wasn't even something she was used to. Did it detest him? Was he scared she would hurt him like she hurt that guard? Tearing the skin from his bones without thought of caution? Rosalie had never believed herself capable of harming someone. Even when Michael taunted and teased her, she never sought to see him suffer. What was different now? Did she have Alysanne to thank for this?

Her spiralling thoughts were quick to come to a halt when Edmund disappeared over the side of the roof. Rosalie called his name and chased after him, hovering just out of sight in case an enemy bow turned in her direction. She could just make out Edmund on the roof below, kicking aside one of the archers as they took aim at Peter. He didn't see them at first, but Rosalie did. Her heart seized with panic as half a dozen bows turned his way. He just made it through the door below before several arrows embedded themselves into the wall and a wave of fire took the shooters out.

Behind her, a door creaked, but it wasn't Edmund returning to her.

It was Alysanne.

"Hey," Rosalie's smile dimmed into a frown. "What are you doing up here?"

A dagger glinted in the other girl's hand. Her expression was inscrutable, but something felt off to Rosalie. The last place Alysanne should've been was on the roof with her. She should've been in the thick of the fighting with Caspian and the likes. No. Something wasn't right. Alysanne was getting closer, the space disappearing between them, dagger raised...

"Alys, what..."

Rosalie Hannigan's life was like a burning phoenix; always ready to fizzle out at a moment's notice. The second the blade plunged through her stomach, time seemed to speed up and slow down at once. The world around her stopped turning as Alysanne's eyes blazed an icy shade of white... like snow... Her blurry figure leaned down to whisper in her ear, "For my mother, cousin."

Then, she disappeared back inside, leaving Rosalie alone out in the cold, dark night. And yet, the impact of the cobblestone against her back was quick and harsh, like plucking a band-aid from a wound. Only this wound wasn't one she could recover from with ease. There would be no band aids for family betrayal, for fatal backstabbing.

For that was what Alysanne was, right? Family. And she was right under Rosalie's nose from the very beginning. Ready and waiting for the perfect moment to push the blade in deep.

"Rosie?"

The erratic pounding of her heart almost drowned out his voice. Hot tears gathered in Rosalie's eyes as footsteps neared, trailing down her cheeks in steady lines as she tried in vain to call back. But everything hurt, even parting her lips to shout to the frantic boy who was searching for her.

"Rosalie?"

Edmund's voice was louder this time. A moment later, the door swung open, letting in a second's worth of the fight below before the rest was silenced by Edmund's horrible cry. He had found her.

"Rosie... oh my ― who did this?"

In a blink, he was at her side, hands pressed on top of hers. He pulled back just as quick, hissing at the heat of her palms burning up, but he forced himself to go back again, to put pressure on the maroon spot that was growing by the second across the soft green material of her shirt.

"Rosie, open your eyes. Tell me who did this."

Through choked cries, she managed to stammer out, "A-Alys..."

"Alysanne did this?" he repeated, a muscle in his jaw ticking as rage followed by realisation clouded his features.

Upon hearing the whimpers Rosalie let out at the reminder, he held back the remark she knew he wanted to make. Instead, with blood-coated hands, he attempted to gather her up in his arms and head towards the edge of the tower where he knew a gryphon would be waiting for him. A sharp scream tore through the air as Rosalie's vision went fuzzy. Edmund, despite wincing at the sound he knew would draw attention to them, merely held her tighter, muttering apologies that Rosalie wasn't hearing as she drifted in and out of consciousness.

He sighed in relief once he saw the waiting gryphon and prepared to lower Rosalie down when the door, which he'd held shut with his torch just in case, rattled under the vengeful fists of Telmarine soldiers. Edmund cursed under his breath, panic rising at the sight of Rosalie's pale face. Her eyes weren't opening, body hanging limp in his arms. If it wasn't for the faintest rise and fall of her chest, Edmund would've thought she was dead.

They didn't have much time to waste. He needed to get her to safety. He couldn't even fathom the possibility of losing her... However, with not one but two Telmarine soldiers breaking through, and the endless drop of air waiting behind them, he just might if he didn't think fast.

"Rosie," he murmured in the redhead's ear, unsure if she could hear him or not but needing to say it anyway. "I need you to trust me, okay? I'm getting us out of here."

Then, before the Telmarines could come any closer and before he could change his mind, he threw himself and Rosie over the edge of the tower, with only one way down.

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A/N: If you've read the prologue, you'd recognise this end scene already, but a few things were altered so nothing was spoiled in Alysanne's fic. What do y'all think? Let me know!