~ Coronation of a King ~

Caspian breathed deeply, staring out over the balcony's rail to the world that fell away below the Telmarine castle, Zadvede, at Beaversdam. He curled his fingers against his palms, trying to still his unease. Closing his eyes, he whispered the words aloud for the first time.

"I shall be king of Narnia."

Nothing but the wind echoed around him, sweeping his words away as if they had never been; tumbling them into the air and wheeling them end upon end into the sky. Indeed, he was to be king, but he did not feel ready. Aslan, the great lion, had told him he was; had bid him stand with the others: Peter, Susan, Lucy, Edmund, but he did not feel truly ready. He did not know how to be a good king, a leader. What if he failed like his father had? Like all his ancestors before him?

"Caspian."

He whirled quickly at the sound of the soft-spoken word, dark strands of his hair curling around his face as he looked at the speaker who had entered his room. Professor Cornelius stood just a little ways inside the large bedchamber, watching the young Prince who would soon become his king with kind eyes. He didn't know what sort of fears the Prince had, but he understood that what was coming would be a change, as everything had been for him of late.

"Professor, have I forgotten something? Are they waiting for me?" He moved forward quickly, nervously. Unaware of the action, he ran his fingers through his thick dark hair, glancing around him and looking at the ground, before meeting the professor's eyes once more.

"No, not quite yet; I wanted to see you for a moment, before the ceremony." Cornelius paused, clasping his hands slowly across his stomach, chin resting on his chest as a thoughtful look came to his face. While they waited, the wind swept into the room and whispered around them, billowing out the maroon drapes on either side of Caspian and causing the lantern flames to flicker slightly.

"I want you to know that you have shown what a fine king you can be. You have changed for the better since last I saw you. You grew up from the time I helped you escape to the time you helped me from the dungeons; a most noble contradiction from the kings of the past. Aslan would not have chosen you if he did not think you ready for such a task as this," Cornelius finished, tugging a bit at the ends of his grey beard absently.

Caspian smiled in return, looking down, shaking his head slightly. "Thank you, Professor."

"My Lord, everyone is assembled; Aslan and the Kings and Queens are waiting for you." A Dryad entered the room, looking somewhat rushed. She beckoned quickly for Caspian; with her other hand she motioned into the hall. Cornelius exited the room at a brisk pace, and Caspian could hear his shoes against the slate floor as he walked down the corridor to the large Hall of Council where Caspian's crowning would be held.

His apprehension returned, and he swallowed sharply, staring at the Dryad for a long moment. "Come, My Lord, all is not so frightening as it seems. Do not fear, for this shall be a blessed time; a time for all to remember in the many prosperous years to come!" She motioned once more for him to walk before her. He jumped forward, trying to quell his fears.

~|:O:|~

The stairs could have taken a century to descend and he would not have cared, but at long last he reached the main floor and knew he could not turn back. Aslan turned to look at him when he entered through the oaken doors that closed off a small room just before the larger, wider, doors which opened into the Hall. A tall blonde wearing a golden crown turned, his dark blue velvet cape brushing against the floor and his tall black boots.

Beside him stood another young man, his dark hair accented by a silver crown of equal Dwarven-Narnian quality that rested upon his head. He smiled welcomingly, holding out his hand and motioning to Caspian, brown eyes alive with laughter. His grey and silver clothes were cut in a style that was no longer known, but he and his brother did not look out of place at all.

A woman, standing to Aslan's right, looked in Caspian's direction also. Dark hair to match her youngest brother's fell in waves down her back under her golden circlet of sunflowers; she wore a dress green as emeralds, with a golden-russet cape draped elegantly over her shoulders. A girl, her hair framing her face in bright golden-brown layers, smiled at him and hopped a few inches off the stone floor excitedly, her hazel eyes as bright as the sky-blue dress with silver trim and lace around the sleeves she wore to match her circlet of silver.

"Come, Son of Adam, the time is near at hand." Aslan shook his mane ever so slightly, sending beams of light in all directions as he stood taller, Lucy's slim childish fingers buried in his golden mane. He stared into Caspian's eyes unwaveringly.

"Caspian, we never came to take your place, merely to put you in it," Peter declared, smiling with a nod in the Prince's direction.

"Come, Caspian; come join the Kings and Queens of Narnia." Edmund smiled welcomingly once again, dipping his dark head to the place beside them. "No more a prince, you must be a king now."

And then the doors swung open, and the Kings and Queens walked on either side of Aslan into the Hall. To the right and left stood Centaurs with Telmarine guards between, their swords held aloft as the Great King of Kings and the Four Rulers of Narnia walked the aisle down the center. Caspian watched them divide at the dais and move to flank the throne, which Aslan stood faced for a moment before turning to look upon the people congregated within the large room; a Dryad and Faun placed a thick cape over Caspian's shoulders and attached a gilt Narnian broadsword onto his belt as he watched and waited.

"For decade upon heavy decade, Narnia has laid as though asleep, waiting for a Son of Adam to rise and ascend the throne with justice as his law and righteousness as his sword. Many, though strong of heart and mind, lost hope because the path to a new age was riddled with death and loss, but there were yet many who did not, and they fought well for me with sword and body.

"They believed that they were not forsaken, and did not forget such knowledge and despair. You have fought well, my beloved Narnia, but now the night has ended, it is the morning. Narnia wake, speak, sing, rejoice! For I give you a Son of Adam to crown as King over you once again. Caspian, tenth of that name, is your king!" A fearsome lion's roar echoed through the Hall, causing those who were not prepared for it to start, but others still to smile. Narnians cheered at the Great Lion's words, and a cacophony of voices rose to shout the battle cry of Narnia.

Horns sounded, and Caspian, who had been listening and watching, knew he could stand there no more. He closed his eyes for but a moment, and then stepped into the massive, vaulted Hall. Light seemed resplendent, and it took him but a moment to realize that such beautiful, bright golden light came from Aslan alone. A smile slipped onto his face as he looked at the Lion, and his fears seemed as harmless as morning frost which seems to cover the ground in all directions but soon vanishes with the rising of the sun.

Narnian music filled the room, and people – Telmarine and Narnian alike – cheered excitedly. Caspian glanced at the Kings and Queens, and Lucy smiled happily. He turned carefully – not wanting to step on the edge of the long and heavy cape – to face the congregation of people who filled the Hall. He lifted his eyes from the floor to look at them, and for a moment was taken aback. They were inspiring. They were happy, and filled him with such feelings also.

And then Peter was speaking, a crown brought before him on a velvet cushion by a Telmarine Lord. Caspian looked to his right, where the High King stood, and took in every word he uttered. Something told him they should be remembered.

"When I was brought back into this world by Aslan, I was not expecting the startling news to reach me that Narnia was not as I remembered and that I would not be the king I had been with my siblings ruling at my side. I was appalled with the way this land and people I loved had been treated, and could not truly understand what Aslan could be thinking to place a Telmarine Prince with little knowledge of my people, upon the Narnian and Telmarine thrones.

"I began this journey not as the king I should have been. I was blinded by pain and contempt for a country I had sworn to despise all my years as king of Narnia. I was acting not as a man but as a child, and I fear this foolishness caused many mistakes. But now, here at the end and looking back to the beginning, I realize I have learned far more from your future king than perhaps I ever learned in fifteen years as a ruler.

"At times, there shall come things we do not understand, things we cannot hope to perceive. But we should not try to mend these complications ourselves. I believed I could, and for that fell to my knees with ignorance. I feared to call for help from one greater than I because I thought I knew what must be done; after all, I had led armies before, why not again?

"But Caspian was not. He called for aid when he knew he needed it. He was not taken in with listening to fears and pride that he alone could conquer his uncle, that he alone could lead the Narnians to victory. He has taught me that I cannot shoulder everything alone. I cannot bear all pains and problems without the help and guidance of Aslan, the King of kings. May such wisdom never be far from him." Peter smiled at Caspian, nodding with respect.

He lifted the crown while Caspian knelt. "So, Narnia, I give you as king under Aslan – who is king over all high kings, Men, and Beast, no matter what title they bear – and king under me, High King of Narnia, Caspian, tenth of that name. May you rule well with the wisdom and grace of Aslan to guide you. Long live King Caspian the Tenth!" Peter stepped away and bowed low, sweeping back his cape with his hand as Caspian stood.

Around the room everyone followed suit. Caspian stared in awe, feeling more amazement for the people than the change in his title. He could ask for no nobler of hearts than these. And no better friends, either, he decided, his gaze settling upon the Pevensies in turn as they slowly rose from their bows.

"Long live Aslan, and long live King Caspian!" Edmund declared. The cry swept around the great room, and Aslan roared.

A/N:

This whole vignette came about because I was listening to the music from Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, and then switched to listening to The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. For those of you who know music, this is because I wished to note differences in cadence and pattern.

What followed was something of a surprise, for they are nearly identical. The only marked difference was this quality of "revival" as I call it, in the Prince Caspian piece. "Only The Beginning of The Adventure" (LWW) and "The Door In The Air" (PC) have slight, hardly noticeable, changes.

So, time passed, and I showed it to my sister as she was writing something in my office one day. She declared absently - I say absent for she is practically in another world when she writes - that the music at one instance sounds exactly like the music at the Pevensies' coronation.

I listened to the Prince Caspian track that was playing, then asked her to switch to "Only The Beginning of The Adventure" for me. She was right! But we never got Caspian's coronation, only a parade after. I was deeply upset, and railed about it for hours whilst she wrote in the chair next to me.

The Pevensies' coronation was extremely important to the changes in Narnia, as is Caspian's; so why didn't we get to see it? It should have been something splendid, I believe, as Peter would have crowned him and Aslan would have spoken. I wish it had been done as the Pevensies' had been done, but it was not. So I have tried to please myself with this little vignette. I hope it was in character enough and that it pleased all of you also.

It is a coronation for Prince Caspian, and it is a celebration for me, as this shall be the fiftieth story I have published to fanfiction after three grand and adventurous years, during which I have become a better writer than when I began.

Happy reading,

WH