Caspian dispatched Twinklefinn to the ship as Peter hailed a passing Hawk to fly on to Anvard with news of Corin and asked a sparrow to make for Cair Paravel.
Then they dove back into the depths to begin the painstaking work of removing the bodies from the ship. Corin’s decayed fetters were easily pulled apart and Susan insisted that she be the one to carry him to the surface.
With tears streaming down her face, she remembered his bright laughter, inquisitive mind, and insatiably ability to get into trouble as she laid him out in a shaded grove where the dryads spread their leafy arms over him like doting mothers. It was almost difficult to see any vestige of that loving little prankster in the strong serious bearded man lying in repose and she wondered anew at his story as she returned to the water to dive again.
Lucy insisted on carrying Mr. Tumnus’ body. As she kicked toward the surface, her mind went back to that first day. She remembered how scared she’d been when he first appeared and then how fun it was to shake his hand for the first time. She remembered his beautiful little home and the porcelain teacup and the sweet steamy taste of tea. She thought of her horror when he’d first revealed his plans to turn her over to the Witch, then her gratitude for his saving her, then horror again at learning of his arrest.
But, most of all, she remembered his agonized expression bound up in cold hard stone turning to joy and gratitude when the Lion set him free. His countenance held that same expression of peace right now and that made it easier for her to return to the water.
Peter and Edmund brought the Beavers up and laid them in honor beside Tumnus as each of them remembered how it was this couple who first taught them about Aslan and brought them safely into His presence.
It took all day to bring up the rest of the bodies. Each one was carried up individually and given due honor as national heroes. Then in the late evening a flower-laden caisson arrived from Cair Paravel with horses and Corin was laid under the Archen flag. Finally, Caspain sent out nocturnal birds to summon the Narnians for a funeral ceremony at dawn and the little party sat down to eat a meager dinner brought from the ship before falling into a wearily fitful sleep on the lush green lawn under a bright full moon.
They awoke before dawn to the steady drumbeat of dwarfish footsteps stamping through the forest. Then, as they were scrambling to their feet, Reepicheep arrived at the head of the Talking Mice. As the sun rose over the horizon, flashes of color could be seen flitting through the trees as all types and sizes of Birds winged their way towards the cove. Following them, the kings and queens noticed fleeting shadows slinking amongst the trees and were not surprised when, after several minutes, a number of great Cats appeared then sat down to clean their paws.
Soon more rustling was heard among the tree leaves and ground foliage as the Squirrels, Chipmunks, Moles, Skunks, Badgers, Hedgehogs, Beavers, and other small Beasts scampered into the clearing to find their place among the growing crowd. Next came the somber notes of pipes as a procession of Fauns entered the grove.
Following that came the stomping of hooves and a great many snorts and tossing heads as the Centaurs, Horses, Unicorns, and Winged Horses arrived. Finally, splashing in the cove signaled the return of the water-folk and everyone rejoiced that Cathedral Cove would once again become a place of happiness.
Forming a semi-circle facing the sea, everyone paid homage to the ancient tetrarchs and their new King before Peter came forward to speak
He wanted to cry as he looked out over the eager crowd; so great was his love for this land he had led and would never see again that it was difficult to express what was in his heart. He could see the love returned in the Beast’s eyes and feel the expectations that beat in their hearts.
What was he to say to them? This would be his last speech in Narnia. The last ceremony he would ever lead. He hadn’t ever thought about that before, but this was literally it.
“Y-you may or may not already know,” he forced his mouth to form the words, recalling to mind the structure of funeral ceremonies as he made his opening remarks, “but this will be the last time I am to be with you in Narnia. Aslan is sending myself and Queen Susan to live in our own world now.” He paused, glancing at Susan’s teary stone-faced look as a shocked murmur of dismay ran through the crowd. He knew she shared his feelings.
“And while it’s true that King Edmund and Queen Lucy will return someday,” he pressed on, “we don’t know when that will be but we are all incredibly grateful that the Great Lion has brought us home in this age. For truly, Narnia is our home.” Drawing a deep breath, he finished his opening, “And though it hurts immensely to not be able to return home ever again, I will always remember. He is not a tame Lion…”
“But He is good.” everyone automatically murmured the response before another despairing murmur ran its course.
“I have been constantly reminded of His goodness since we returned and none more so than the fact that He has set a man on our thrones who, though he is Miraz’s nephew by blood, he is Aslan’s son by adoption, just as my siblings and I are. King Caspian will uphold the old laws and the traditions and you must all swear to help him.”
“We will.” they answered solemnly.
“I also bear witness to His goodness by this last duty that we were called too.” Swallowing back the tears that threatened to crack his voice, he mastered himself with an iron-clad willpower, “Some of our dearest friends were recovered off of the wreckage of our own flagship, the Splendor Hyaline, yesterday. Mr. Tumnus, Mr. and Mrs. Beaver, and Archenland’s Prince Corin were very dear to us. It is an honor now to attend to them after so many centuries…an honor we had not expected to receive and I thank Aslan for that.”
He cleared his throat roughly, “I didn’t meet Mr. Tumnus until after the battle with the Witch was over, but I loved him from the moment I heard what he’d done for my sister, Queen Lucy.” He cleared his throat roughly again, “Then I learned to respect him even more as an advisor during our reign. He was an invaluable envoy in both domestic and foreign affairs and our Golden Age would have been less without his presence in our court.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Beaver likewise grew on me. They were the first ones to tell us about Aslan and therefore our most critical mentors. I’ll never forget the stories they told us on that long walk to His camp. At first, I wasn’t sure I could believe them since they’d never seen Him before, but the magic of His spirit must have been working in me because I eventually realized that He was smiling at me through them. We’ll never be able to thank them enough for leading us to Him.”
Susan stood up as the High King bowed low, paying homage to their departed friends.
“I first met Mr. Tumnus after Aslan released him from his stone prison.” she began, “Frankly, I was in awe of him for saving my sister even though he barely knew her. It was a miracle to me then and still is today.” Her voice caught for a moment and she took a deep breath to steady herself, “I remember his humor too. I’ll never forget the time he and I teamed up to play a joke on an old Calormene Prince, one of the Tisroc’s younger brothers, I believe.” She allowed herself a tiny snicker, knowing the closest Tarkaan and gossiping Tarkheena was hundreds of miles away, “He was a mite embarrassed at first but, afterward–oh, that laugh of his…”
“I learned much from the Beavers too. I remember best those lovely mincemeat pies that Mrs. Beaver taught me to make. I memorized the recipe and still use it in our own world!” She giggled at the frivolous thought, then forced herself to continue, “But we didn’t just cook together. She taught me many things in the kitchen. I was so young back then…m-much like I am again today, and she helped me become the woman…the queen…I am today.”
“Mr. Beaver was a great advisor too. I’ll never forget his wise consoles.” She smiled slightly, “I even remember riding all the way to Beaversdam once, in the early years, when I was at the Cair all by myself and needed someone to talk to. I got there well after midnight and woke them up. Young fool that I was, I didn’t think, but neither of them complained. They were so interested in my troubles and honored, to help. That’s what they said, they were honored…that meant everything to me…and still does.”
She curtsied deeply in a final salute to her friends as Edmund took center stage. He remembered with grief that his first impressions of his old friends were not the same as his siblings.
“It grieves me to remember that, in the beginning, I did not love our friends as I should have. When I first laid eyes on Mr. Tumnus, we were both captives in the Witch’s dungeon and it was there that I first witnessed a reflection of the Lion’s love. I had betrayed my family. I had betrayed him. I had betrayed all of Narnia. But he was willing to die in my defense. I’ll never forget seeing him turned to stone. That action made me receptive to Aslan’s love and that’s the best gift that anyone could have ever given me.”
“The Beavers too loved me before I loved them,” he went on, “I had no firmer friends. Mr. Beaver stood beside me through many battles and Mrs. Beaver was perhaps the only one, besides my sisters, who could stand up against my temper and make me see sense. Lion love her for that.”
He bowed low as Lucy walked to the center of the semicircle; the younger Queen had a faraway look in her eyes and her siblings knew she was praying for strength.
“Dear Mr. Tunmus was my very first Narnian friend.” she began, forcing herself to speak after a few deep breaths, “I’ll never forget that first meeting. He startled me so…we startled each other, to be sure.” She chuckled softly, “Taking tea with him that afternoon was quite a thrill but what is unforgettable is his willingness to sacrifice himself for me, a girl he’d never met before and frankly, for all we knew at the time, would never see again.”
Her eyes misted but she stubbornly continued, “Seeing him a stone is the most horrific memory that I could ever have, but I’m blessed to be able to pair it with his unstoning. I’ll never forget the hug he gave me that day and I look forward to the day we meet again in Aslan’s country.”
“Mr. and Mrs. Beavers…” she continued, “I loved them from the moment I heard that Mr. Tumnus entrusted our safety to them. He chose wisely. They brought us safely through and introduced us to Aslan, who is the greatest of all friends. Of course, I had many adventures with each of them during our reign. Mr. Tumnus and I used to come to this very spot for the most wonderful picnics and dancing and the Beavers sometimes joined us. Mr. Tumnus was trying to teach me to play his pipe when we, well, when Aslan sent us back…” She curtsied deeply and blew a kiss, “My dearest friends…until we meet again in Aslan’s Country.”
The crowd rose in an ovation of applause as the younger Queen returned to her siblings and then the somber work of burial began. Every Beast had their own particular tradition. Reeepicheep gave a speech in honor of the Mice, the Fauns honored Mr. Tumnus and the other Fauns in song, and the Beavers slapped the water with their tails in mourning. By the time the task was done and the Beasts retired to their homes, dusk was fading into night and the kings and queens were physically and emotionally spent.
“That was the hardest day of my life so far.” Peter sighed, as they bedded down again in the little grove where Corin’s body lay, “and there is another one ahead of us.”
“Seeing Anvard again…” Susan agreed, “is going to be…indescribable.”