Greenroof 9, 850; Sixthday
I arrived at the training grounds at my normal time, and to my surprise, it wasn’t empty. General Kaymen and Amesh were standing in the middle of the courtyard talking quietly to each other. Not wanting to disturb them, I walked silently to the armory to put on my hauberk, tabard, and Phraymore. It was scorching day, and wearing the rest of my armor would be hazardous to my health. When I came back into the courtyard, I was again surprised by Kaymen and Amesh, for they were waiting for me to exit the armory. The Centaur was wearing a smug smirk on his face while Amesh looked a bit flustered.
“Is there anything I can do for you, gentlemen?” I asked the both of them.
Kaymen looked to Amesh and then to me. “You are excused from training at the moment, Lady. The Lord Amesh has a question for you. When the two of you are finished, I expect you back here.”
“Yes, sir.” I looked to Amesh and gestured towards the archway. “Shall we walk in the gardens?”
Nodding, Amesh came to my side and followed me to the castle gardens. When we were out of earshot of the gates, I turned to Amesh and asked, “What is your question for me, Amesh?”
He looked at the ground. “The two of us have been courting for over a year, and I desire to ask you something that pertains to the relationship.”
I smiled softly at him. “Then ask, my Lord. Ask.”
Amesh took my hands in his, and came so close to me that I had to look directly up to meet his eyes. He looked nervous yet confident in whatever it was that he was going to ask. “Swanwhite the Alluring, Queen of Narnia and love of my heart, will you marry me?”
A wide smile unconsciously covered my face. “Yes, my love. I will marry you.”
Amesh broke into a smile and picked me up into a hug and spun me around. I laughed out loud with happiness, and when he put me down, I was unsteady from the overwhelming joy.
“We shall talk about plans later today, is that alright?” I asked.
“That is perfectly fine, love.”
“I must go train now. Until later.”
“Until later.”
We hugged once more—longer, tighter one before I left.
I ran back to the training grounds, not because I was in any hurry, but because I was so excited, so blissfully happy that my body refused to do anything slow. My wolf guards quickly joined me.
“Your Majesty has finally fallen prey to Amesh’s hunting!” Shream commented.
“Oh, Shream!” I said with a whine, though I didn’t really care.
“Oh come now, your Majesty! You enjoy it!” Famina said.
I laughed. “That I do. Tell me, Famina, how are you doing? The pups are due soon, correct?”
Famina had been expecting for nearly a year now. Nodding, she said, “They’re due within the next few days, Majesty.”
“Why are you out and about then?! You should be in Cair where it’s cool and comfortable, not out here. And I thought I gave you leave from guard’s duty.”
The She-Wolf bowed her head and then met my eyes, for we had stopped. “You did, Queen Swanwhite, but when Shream brought me word that the Lord Amesh desired an audience with General Kaymen, I felt the need to come out and see your answer.”
I gave a silent snort. “Alright, Famina. Now get inside before you do those pups any harm!” I said with amusement.
They both gave a dog’s laugh. “Yes, your Majesty. Congratulations.”
I nodded my thanks and continued to the training grounds. When I arrived, I went straight to the corner the General and I normally occupy, and we got down to our two-swords dueling.
-x-x-x-x-x-
After seeing to my royal duties, I met up with Amesh to discuss things that we definitely wanted to have happen. We decided that we’d leave most of the decorating, food lists, and such to the Narnians.
Then I decided to bring up an important fact. “Once we are married, you will be King Consort, not King. As King Consort, you wouldn’t have as much power as if you were King.”
“I understand, love. How much power would I obtain?”
“Enough so we would reign more equally instead of one over the other. Decisions like going to war would need to be discussed between the both of us.”
“Understandable. Who will make the crown?”
“The Dwarves. They do marvelous work; they made both of my crowns, and my parents’ crowns.”
“Now, how about the actual wedding ceremony?”
“I was hoping that we could do the traditional Narnian ceremony. The bride and groom walk down the aisle (wherever the ceremony is being held), and a good friend or parent is asked to give a marriage blessing. Unfortunately, I have no knowledge of Calormen weddings,” I said apologetically.
“That is alright, my love. Calormen weddings are long, dull events. The priests of Tash are required to say many prayers, and other things I would rather not go into. Who would we ask to give the blessing?”
“It is customary for me to give the blessing to the marrying monarchs,” said a deep, rich voice I immediately recognized as Aslan’s.
We quickly rose to bow and curtsy to Him. I then ran to give Aslan a hug. He purred as I buried my face in His mane.
After I drew back, Aslan encouraged Amesh. “Come to me, my son.”
Amesh slowly drew towards the Lion and stopped two arms-lengths away from Him. I had completely forgotten that Calormenes have a deathly fear of lions.
I moved to his side and whispered, “He won’t hurt you.”
He gave me a skeptical look. Giving him a playful shove, I said smiling, “I wouldn’t have hurried to hug Him, otherwise.”
All three of us chuckled at my comment.
“I will need to speak to both of you before the wedding to be certain of the love in your hearts,” Aslan stated.
“Yes, Aslan,” we replied in unison.
The Great Lion smiled. “Now, inform your subjects,” He said, motioning towards the door.
I looked at the angle of the sun outside and couldn’t believe that it was nearly time for court. “Oh! My, how the time has flown. Will you join us for dinner, Aslan?”
He gave a nod. “At your request, I shall, my daughter.”
We bowed and curtsied to Aslan before heading to the throne room and to court.
-x-x-x-x-x-
I announced the wedding as the last order of business, and that it would be held in three days, according to Narnian tradition. Ecstatic that their Queen was getting married, the tailors, cooks, and decorators went into action. A few of the Narnians had sense enough to ask us if there were certain things that needed to be made or planned. We told them about our ideas, and the Narnians assured us that they would be incorporated.
Amesh and I decided to walk around the more unknown areas of Cair Paravel to keep out of the way of the mad decorators. We came across a part of the castle on the eastern side that looked to be unlived in. There were more bedrooms, a library, kitchens, and a great hall with four (yes four) thrones at the end, on a dais. When I saw the four thrones, I was puzzled.
“They are for future Kings and Queens of Narnia.” Aslan’s voice startled us. Turning around, we saw Him looking a bit sad. “Their arrival in Narnia will end a great evil that will consume Narnia for one hundred years.”
I stood in shock. “Narnia will have a tyrant for a hundred years? Why?”
Aslan must’ve read my thoughts, for He replied, “You, Queen Swanwhite, and you, King Amesh, will be the last monarchs of Narnia before Jadis kills the Tree of Protection and sweeps down upon Narnia.”
Picturing the Tree of Protection being murdered, I felt like I was going to cry I tried to speak, but there was a knot in my throat that would not go away.
Amesh spoke for me. “Aslan, is there naught we can do to prevent this from occurring?”
The Lion shook his head. “No, my children. It is my Father’s will. But there is something you can do for the Narnians, dear ones.”
My eyes widened with hope, the knot vanishing. “What is it, Aslan?”
“Write down the lyrics and the music to the songs you gave and plan to give the Narnians in a journal so that they are kept forever. They will be needed in the evil period.”
We both nodded. I was unable to move from the complete shock of the news that He had just told us, but there was a little voice in the back of my head saying everyone would be alright. Amesh had his arm around my shoulder, and now he was trying to relax me by rubbing my upper arm.
Aslan then drew our attention back to Him. “Amesh, I wish to talk to you.”
Squeezing my shoulder, Amesh released me and stepped in the direction of the Lion. “Of course, Aslan.”
The two went off walking down the corridor, and I decided to explore the Great Hall that was built for the Kings and Queens who were to come after me. The Great Hall was very long, with pillars and a glass roof. There was even an upper level where the stairs were, and what it would be used for was beyond my knowledge. When I got to the dais, I discovered that there were designs at the top of the tall-backed thrones. The two thrones to my left had the hilts of swords and a bit of the blade carved into the top. The one to the far left had two pieces of what looked like a wand on either side of the sword. It puzzled me as to why that would be carved on the King’s throne. I supposed that the two on the left were Kings’ thrones because of their designs; the two on the right looked more Queenly. The one to the right center had a horn with a lion’s head mouth carved into it, while the one on the far right had a bottle carved into it.
“The Kings and Queens who will sit upon these thrones will be some of the best monarchs Narnia has ever had,” said Aslan from behind me. He walked over to my side.
“How will they be related?” I asked in a wondering tone.
“They are four siblings. The eldest will be one year older than you were when you entered Narnia, and the youngest will be eight.”
I slowly nodded. “They will have a wonderful time here.” I took a deep breath, getting myself out of wonder into the present. “It’s my turn?”
Aslan gave a low chuckle. “Yes, my daughter. Walk with me.”
He turned around and started walking slowly down the Great Hall towards the doors.
“Why do you wish to marry Amesh, Swanwhite?” He asked.
I thought about my reply for a moment before speaking. “He is a kind and gentle man, and a terrific swordsman. He loves Narnia and her people almost as much as I, and he wishes to do things in Your name rather than Tash’s. And most of all, because I care for him a great deal, and because he cares for me.”
“Well answered, my daughter. If you were to have an argument, how would it be settled?”
“I would listen to his side, and then I would tell him my side if, after listening to his side, I still felt I had a point or that my side was correct. I would not completely dismiss his side, and I hope he will not completely dismiss my side.”
“And what about children, my daughter? Even as you have been told that you will be the last Queen of Narnia for one hundred years, do you desire having children?”
“I will bear and raise as many children as you bless us with, Aslan. I will train them to defend Narnia and her citizens until their deaths.”
“And what if you become overly stressed by bearing or raising your children, or from the pressure of being Queen?”
“I would ask Amesh if he would be alright with me stepping down some in my duties as Queen. I would do the same for Amesh if he needed it. And if I didn’t recognize that I needed some time to stop being Queen and Amesh did, I would do my best to heed his advice. And again I would try to do the same for Amesh.”
Aslan purred. “Yours and Amesh’s answers are very similar, my daughter. The two of you will make good monarchs for Narnia.”
“Thank you, Aslan.”
The Great Lion stopped just in front of the doors, and turned to me. “Do not forget your task.”
I nodded, looking into His golden eyes. “I won’t, Aslan.”
He smiled and pushed the doors open with His snout. As we walked to the section of Cair that was alive with activity, I thought about the wedding, Aslan, and what He told Amesh and me. Things look like they’re going to get interesting from here on.
<Previous | Next>