Disclaimer: Narnia, the Lone Islands, and the characters do not belong to me.
The Departure of Lord Bern
"Captain!" shouted Lord Bern. "Where is our next destination?"
"The Lone Islands!" replied the ship's captain, Dulian (whose son, Drinian, I'm sure you well know as the captain of the Dawn Treader, which you can read about in another book). "According to the historical records which I found in the library on Galma, there are three of them: Felimath, Doorn, and Avra!"
"Very good!" answered Bern. "Thank you, Dulian!" He then turned back to his friends, the other six lords of Narnia. "What do we know of the Lone Islands, friends?" he asked.
"Honestly, I do not think we have that much information on them," replied Lord Mavramorn. "I, for one, can only think that they have been around since long before Caspian the Conqueror took over Narnia."
"In the time that I advised him," said Argoz, "His Majesty, Caspian IX, never even spoke of the Lone Islands. I am not sure if they belong to Narnia or not."
Bern frowned slightly. "Are they even populated?"
"Oh yes," replied Revilian. "They are populated for sure, because I can think of a few people I know from the Lone Islands who own trade shops in Narnia. It may be that the Lone Islanders are descended from those in Calormen, because they have similar appearances and use the same currency as the Calormenes."
"Alright then," said Bern. "We may need to be careful upon arriving at Felimath, for the inhabitants may be hostile to us."
Upon anchoring the ship and landing at Felimath, the lords looked out over the land from the deck before disembarking. From where they stood, there wasn't much to see. They could, however, tell that Felimath was likely the smallest of the islands; the next island, Doorn, could be seen less than a couple of miles away in the distance.
The lords wandered aimlessly for a while, and stopped for a short rest under a large tree whose branches spanned several feet. There was plenty of room for all seven to lie down under the tree and still be completely shaded. Finally, all but Lord Bern were snoozing.
Bern got up quickly when he heard footsteps nearby and the sound of sheep bleating. Finally, he thought, some life in this place. He walked back out into the sun, blinked several times, and looked around.
He had indeed heard a flock of sheep, for there they were, roaming with no real purpose and grazing along the way. For a minute, he thought that the flock was alone, and no one was herding them. But then, he spotted the young girl who he assumed was the shepherdess. He approached her, thankful that she saw him so that he wouldn't frighten her.
"Excuse me, "he said, "but can you tell me a little about this place? My companions and I have traveled by ship from Narnia, where we were commissioned by Miraz the Lord Protector to explore the unknown lands to the east."
"Certainly," she replied with a distinct accent. "You must know already that you have come to the island of Felimath, the first of the three Long Islands."
"Yes, our ship's captain revealed this to us," answered Bern.
"Well," she continued, "the island of Felimath is in fact unpopulated, as it is rather too small to support a town of any size. We keep our herding animals here mostly. My father owns this flock of sheep, and I, being his only daughter, have the job of leading them twice a day so that they can graze. My brothers are learning the craft of carpentry from my father, and have no time for anything else."
Bern watched the girl intently as she spoke, noting that she was a good ten years younger than he. She was tanned from spending so much time in the sun, and she had very dark hair and eyes. She was slender and had a decent complexion, but she looked quite worn out. Perhaps, he thought, this is the real reason why the Long Islanders are compared to the Calormenes. Bern thought that she was actually rather pretty, and he decided that he might like to get to know her a little better.
"You are quite a hard worker, then," he told her, "to be willing to come out here so much to do this."
"Well," she replied with a smile, "I must admit that, being the only girl in my family since my mother died, I have enjoyed the time I get to spend away from my father and brothers. They only speak of their work."
"What is your name?" Bern decided to ask the girl.
"I am called Serana," she replied.
"Well it is very nice to meet you, Serana. Would you be so kind as to introduce me to your family?"
"Yes, I would gladly do that," she answered. "Perhaps, though, you should awaken your friends so that they do not wonder where you are. We can go after I finish here."
Serana's family proved to be exactly as she described them. Her father was called Uvran, and he was one of just three carpenters who lived and worked on the island of Doorn. One could tell that he loved everything about his work, though he was usually tired at the end of the day. He laughed easily, and he was not the kind of man who could be easily trifled with.
One of her brothers was married, and the other claimed that he was not searching for a wife. They were both older than Serana, and treated their younger sister much like two older brothers would. Bern noticed that when they spoke to her, it was usually because they were teasing her on the subject of having not yet found a husband. At times like this, Bern remembered that the Lone Islanders may have adopted this custom from the Calormenes, who always married their women young.
On the evening which the lords arrived, Uvran allowed them to stay as guests at his home. It was Serana who served them their evening meal, after which time she always left the room. Apparently it was a custom of the Lone Islands that the unmarried women were not to be present in the room while the men were eating, unless they were serving them. After learning this, Bern wondered silently for the first time that evening what it would be like to live on the Lone Islands; more specifically, he wondered if Serana was interested in him in the same way that he was interested in her.
"Friends," Bern said, "how would it be if we spent some time here on Doorn? It would give us a chance to resupply and rest before we continue our journey."
The lords were in agreement with Bern's proposal, and Bern turned to Uvran and his sons. "Sirs," he asked, "would it be possible for us to stay for a few additional days at your home? If it would be too inconvenient, we can certainly have our ship's captain bring the ship around and anchor it nearby."
"We can provide you a place to stay and an evening meal nightly," replied Uvran. "However, it will be up to you to provide for yourselves during the day."
On this arrangement the lords agreed, and they began to settle in for the evening.
"My friends," began Lord Bern at dinner about a week later, "I must tell you of a decision I have come to."
"What are you speaking of, Bern?" asked Lord Octesian.
"I…" continued Bern, but then he was interrupted by the entrance of Serana, who had returned from tending her father's sheep. He smiled at her as she came over to the table.
"Have you seven enjoyed your meal?" she asked, as she did every night when she came home. This was something Bern had noticed about her; she was the only person he had ever seen who was willing to be as much of a servant as those few who worked for the family.
We have enjoyed it very much, young lady," replied Lord Rhoop. "Thank you very much for asking."
Serana nodded, and made her way from the room. When she left, Bern continued, "I have decided, with some difficulty I confess, that I should like to remain here in the Lone Islands. I believe I have had quite enough of seafaring for one lifetime, and it would be nice to be able to settle down here and perhaps live on Avra, which I have been told is the prettiest of all the islands."
The other six lords looked at him in disbelief. How could their leader abandon them now, when the journey had barely begun? They began to question Bern about why he really wanted to stay, but he would not answer, for he knew if he told them the rest of the truth, they would probably laugh at him. He had in fact already discussed his plans with Serana, since she was the reason he wanted to stay, and she had been more than open to them.
It was Lord Restimar who remained quiet throughout the questioning; he preferred to observe. Now, he believed he had observed enough to deduce what Bern was thinking. He said, "I am of the opinion that the real reason Bern is staying is because he has quite fallen in love with that shepherdess girl who was just in here. I have seen how he acts when she is around, and this is just cause for me to believe my conclusions are true."
Bern tried to keep his composure as he responded, "If that idea was true, do you not think I would have told you?"
"Of course not!" exclaimed Restimar. "Do you not know, Bern, that I have been your dear friend long enough to realize that you would never tell anyone if you had fallen in love?"
"Well do not go thinking that your assumptions are correct, Restimar," said Bern. "I really do enjoy the atmosphere of this country, and at any rate, it is better to live here the remainder of my life than to die somewhere in the middle of the sea or to return to Narnia and likely face death at the hands of Miraz. And now, I have said what I have said, and I will say no more."
Three days later, the lords prepared to sail from the Lone Islands, their ship having been anchored at a port off the coast of Doorn for much of the time they had stayed there. And true to his word, Lord Bern chose to remain steadfast in his decision, and did not board the ship. But as the ship began to leave, the other six lords looked out over the side and saw Bern standing close to Serana; then they knew that Restimar had been right in his assumptions. The ship sailed to the east until the Islands were no longer in sight, and that was the last that was seen of Lord Bern. I'm told, however, that he indeed became a rather wealthy man, married Serana, and lived peacefully for several years.