Emily Maddison

Emily Maddison
Race	Earth
Other names	Emelia
Born	2013
Age in “Snow”	12
Age in “Sequel”	16
Occupation/rank	Schoolgirl
Family	Luke (brother) Susan (sister) Meg (sister)

Emily Maddison is one of the four Maddison siblings who enter Altierra in the novel The Snow Beyond the Wall. She is the youngest of the group and is 12 years old when she first enters the world.

Though often dismissed by her older brother and sisters, she is the catalyst for the entire story: it is Emily who discovers the portal in the cellar of Portian House, and Emily who finds it again when all hope of returning home seems lost. Despite her youth, she eventually accompanies the mission to free Meg from Sometria and plays a crucial role in the attempt.

Appearance

Emily is twelve years old — the youngest of the Maddison siblings. She is small enough that Alucio, tracking her footprints after she runs away alone, identifies her by the low height of a freshly broken branch — "hinting that a small person had passed this way." Her youth is a recurring practical consideration: Alucio worries she cannot keep pace on long marches, and Raf identifies her as the only member of the party who could pass as a Sometria novice because of her age.

Before crossing into Altierra she wears jeans and pink trainers — the latter a distinctive marker that later turns up as evidence when a Guardia officer presents one to Fabra. At Portian House, Mrs Navarro insists she wear a dress or skirt instead. After crossing into Altierra she is given local Altierran clothing at Elísal suitable for travel and concealment, and receives a cloak for warmth during the march to Sometria. When the siblings later return through the portal, Emily appears to have changed back into her old clothes; Meg is the only one still wearing Altierran clothing, as her own were confiscated.

The reference portrait shows the following details not explicit in the novel text: dark brown, almost black hair parted down the centre and styled into two tight pigtail braids hanging forward over her shoulders; deep brown almond-shaped eyes with a direct and steady gaze; an oval face with a slightly tapered chin and soft youthful cheeks; a fair complexion with warm undertones and a small faint mole on her left cheek; a slender, youthful build.

A tomboy who loves wearing jeans and sweatshirts with rebellious slogans. She hates dresses, skirts and "female" clothing, although her trainers are pink.

On Earth, her hair is in practical pigtails but she loosens it in Altierra to avoid discovery by the Priestesses.

Character

Emily is defined by curiosity, courage, and an emotional directness that her older siblings often overlook. It is Emily who first suggests exploring Portian House, Emily who proposes investigating the cellar, and Emily who crawls through the tunnel into Altierra. Each time, her initiative is dismissed or discouraged — "Nobody cares what you think," Susan tells her when she says the trip will be exciting — yet her instincts prove right.

She is brave to the point of recklessness. When Meg is captured and the others hesitate, Emily runs away alone into the Altierran wilderness to find her sister. This is out of character for her — the novel notes she is "not the sort of person to tease and rarely disobeyed her siblings unless playing" — which makes the decision feel like urgent courage rather than simple naughtiness. The flight is impulsive and dangerous: she is seized by Madesto, a village trader, which forces Susan into a degrading bargain to learn her whereabouts. After her rescue, the group recognises that her disobedience could endanger everyone, and the lesson partly sticks, though Emily's independent streak resurfaces throughout.

She is honest and emotionally transparent. When the siblings discover that Portian House is a ruin and decades have passed in England, it is Emily who voices what the others cannot: "It means Mum and Dad are dead." She cries, and Susan comforts her. At Midsummer's Day, it is Emily who breaks the unspoken taboo: "I want to go home... I want to see Mum and Dad again." Her willingness to say what others avoid becomes a recurring trait.

She shows quiet resilience on the march to Sometria. Despite being the youngest and least physically capable, she does not complain during the gruelling multi-day trek. Alucio worries about her stamina but she keeps pace, and Raf notes she is the only one who could pass as a novice if they need to infiltrate the school. During the rescue itself, she takes up a position watching Meg through a doorway — a small but vital role.

She is more practically capable than her siblings assume. She can steer a boat — Alucio assigns her the tiller on the longboat with the comment "Our helmsman" — learns trick knots from Fabra, insists she has been hiking before, and has practised lighting a lantern in the dark, a skill that proves essential when she is the first through the portal on the return. These small competences accumulate, reinforcing the theme of a girl consistently underestimated by those around her.

She has a gift for connection. She bonds with animals — racing forward to hug Bramble the donkey, introducing him and the goat to Meg. More significantly, she forms the strongest bond with Meg during her recovery from Sometria, able to "tease her into speech" when the others cannot. She walks hand in hand with Meg during the journey home, offering silent companionship. This empathy is perhaps her most underrated quality.

Her most important contribution comes at the story's climax. When the siblings are searching for the portal and about to give up, Emily — guided by a memory of a rowan tree growing through a split boulder — climbs a tree, identifies the landmark, and finds the portal. Susan acknowledges it plainly: "Well done, Em. You found it the first time around and you did it again." She is the first through the portal both times, and leads the way back through the ruined cellar holding the lantern.

In summary: curious, courageous, emotionally direct, and quietly indispensable. She is often underestimated because of her age, but her instincts, memory, and empathy repeatedly prove decisive.

She is a tomboy who enjoys physical activities such as climbing trees. She is lively and imaginative, and often dismissed by the older siblings as “playing games”.

She is impulsive but brave; her curiosity drives the discovery of the cellar portal. Has a good memory for locations and remembers the location of the portal.

Speech

Emily's natural register is modern British English — youthful, enthusiastic, and free of profanity. She uses "like" as a filler, as when she recalls the cellar: "We thought like it might be cool." Her speech is peppered with earnest expressions of excitement: "I think it'll be exciting" and "This is more exciting than boring old Dartmoor, isn't it".

She is frequently talked over or dismissed by her siblings, and sometimes retreats into sulking rather than arguing back — after Luke hits her for disturbing them (she was trying to tell them Meg had been kidnapped), she curls up on her bed and growls "Go away" when they come to apologise. She does not have Susan's assertiveness or Luke's authority, and her contributions are often overlooked until events prove her right.

When included in adult discussions, she responds with surprised eagerness. Asked her opinion about the Sometria plan, she says "Me?" — surprised and thrilled — before offering a simple, loyal answer: "I just don't want Susan to get hurt." She pleads to join the mission with childlike earnestness: "Please. I'll behave, I promise."

She is blunt when emotional. Upon seeing the ruined Portian House, she states flatly: "It means Mum and Dad are dead." She does not hedge or soften the implication, and the others are struck by the directness. Similarly, at Midsummer's Day, she simply says: "I want to go home... I want to see Mum and Dad again" — cutting through the siblings' reluctance to voice the thought.

She shows flashes of irritation when not believed. When the others doubt her identification of the tree marker at the portal site, she looks around "with some irritation" and insists: "It is. I know it is." This stubbornness when she is certain is characteristic — she does not argue at length, but she does not back down either.

She does not use the Altierran forms of address naturally. Susan notes with amusement that "She doesn't like curtseys," and Alucio acknowledges she will need to accept them if she is to pass as a novice at Sometria. Her Altierran speech is learned and uncomfortable, not adopted.

A representative line that captures her voice: "I want to see Mum and Dad." — simple, direct, emotionally honest, and brave in its willingness to say what others will not.

Uses "like" in her sentences in the way that modern children do.

• “Flipping”
• “Yonks”

Timeline

Year	Age	Event
2013	-	Born
000 0	00	xxxx
2025	12	Entered Altierra

After the end of the Snow Beyond the Wall, Emily stays on at Elisal. When Raf and Susan build their own residence there, Emily becomes a companion to Fabra.

Images

Emily as she appeared when she first entered Altierra

Emily on a beach near Elisal

Emily in Altierran clothing and with her hair loose

Emily at the age of sixteen