Chapter Nine. The Last Gift

Snow fell silently from the dark sky and glistened in the soft glow of the moonlight. It fell onto Edmund's face and scattered throughout his messy hair. One side of his face was dripping with blood and his entire body was racked with pain. His head was pounding and throbbing so badly, he dare not open his eyes. Memories began to flood into his mind, but were they memories or dreams?

"Remember, no one comes into the country and no one comes out."

Peter. He saw his brother on his horse about to leave. Leave for where?

"Sometimes the love for a child will make a person, especially a parent, do things they might not otherwise do."

Annelise. When was the last time he had seen her? And what was she talking about?

"Edmund! Be careful!"

Philip. Be careful of what?

"Philip?" he groaned gently. He didn't know if he was alive or dead. Were these thoughts only dreams? Or memories of what had already past? He could barely open his eyes, the pain in his head and face was so bad. Then he heard another voice. A kind gentle voice that sounded like an old man.

"What are you doing all the way down here, boy?"

The next thing he knew, something warm was being poured into his mouth. Whatever that liquid was, it went rushing right into his head, dulling the pain and causing him to become sleepy again. Before he blacked out entirely, he heard the voice of the old man say, "Sleep for now. For only in the dreams of your memories, will you find your answers."

"This is a time to show our bravery, Lucy. Not our tears," said Susan gently as she put her arm around her weeping sister.

"Peter is going to war and your acting like that's a good thing!" Lucy said is a hard tone. Edmund was only half listening to his sister's argument, as he watched his brother ride through the gates that led out of Cair Paravel.

Peter was going to war, in Ettinsmoor. The letter had come five days after the guests for his birthday party had was pleading him for help and he knew he had no time to lose.

Within three hours, he had Oreius align four-thousand soldiers to take to war, he had sent letters to all of the other countries saying that Narnia was at war with Ettinsmoor and all diplomatic functions were canceled until further notice.

He managed to give instructions to his three siblings in less than twenty minutes and was packed and ready to go in ten. It was almost as if he was preparing for the entire thing, before it even began.

"Remember, no one comes into the country and nobody goes out," Peter had said to his brother as he was saying good-bye to everyone on the castle steps.

Edmund nodded, unable to reply. In a way, he was now the high king and felt totally unprepared for the task that lay in front of him.

"What about the wedding in Terebinthia?" he asked hesitantly, "Susan and Lucy desperately wanted to go." He wanted to go as well, but he kept that to himself.

"That should be fine, but just get out as soon as possible." Peter then took off his signet ring that signified him as high king and gave it to Edmund, "Narnia is now your life and all that lives within it. The country will be looking to you now and I know that you will not fail me," he said as he gave him his ring. "Promise me."

"Alright," was all Edmund could say. With no other instructions to give, Peter gave his brother a hug and then left to say good-bye to his sisters.

"Be careful and be safe," said Susan trying to hold back her own tears.

"I will," he promised.

Lucy had been in the back with her head down so no one there could see the tears that their "Daisy Princess" cried. Peter walked over to her, hugged her, and then whispered something to her that brought a brief smile to her face.

Then he mounted his horse and gave instructions to Oreius to assign the troops. While that was going on, Susan walked up to him and gave him his sword, Rhindon.

"I hope you don't have to use it any more than you need to," she said.

"So do I," he said as he hooked the sword onto his belt. And then he left, but before he rode through the gate he looked briefly behind his shoulder at as his siblings one last time, hoping that this wouldn't be the last time.

"Promise me." Edmund heard his words again. He looked down at the gold ring his brother had given him. Would he be able to keep such a promise?

TM King Christian and Queen Maria joyfully request the honor your presence

To celebrate the marriage of their daughter

HRH Princess Halina Jacqueline Maria Elvenwood to

Demetrius Alessandro Halabin on

Friday, November 12, 1006 at Eyra Caladrin.

The ceremony will be held at four o' clock with a reception afterwards.

THE KINGDOM OF TERBINTHIA

"A Light Shines In the Darkness"

The wedding proved to be a good thing for them to go to. Halina was radiant and her groom couldn't keep his eyes off of her through out the entire ceremony. There were tears that were shed on both sides.

King Christian and Queen Maria had a hard time keeping back their own while the vows were said and it was actually Annelise who cried the most. Right in the middle of the ceremony, her mother put her arm around her and rocked her gently in her chair. She managed to find Edmund in the large crowd and give him a small smile through her tears.

At the reception, there was so much food and dancing and laughing, that you almost forgot the sadness you had hours before. Edmund at least thought so as he sat out on one of the open air decks (Terebinthia is an island and its weather is like summer time all year around) watching the waves on the beach.

"Here, you didn't eat very much at supper," Edmund turned around to see Annelise giving him a gold goblet filled with wine.

Her face was tear-stained, but now held a soft, gentle joy in it. She had changed and grown a lot in seven months.

At now 15, she seemed much older and much more mature. She was still quiet and shy around strangers, but was becoming much more confident in talking to new people.

Annelise didn't have that stunning beauty that her sister or Susan or even Aravis had, but there was a certain simple beauty and pure innocence about her that seemed to reach out to everyone she met. It reminded Edmund a lot of Lucy actually.

"You've changed and grown so much," he said as she took a seat across from him.

"So have you," she replied. And that was true. In the three months that Peter had been away, Edmund had gotten a glimpse of what the life of a high king was like and it was beginning to show. He rarely ate and got little to no sleep.

Susan and Lucy worried about him constantly. Only Tumnus was strong enough to get him through the rough months.

"Being high king must be taking its toll on you," said Annelise.

"Yes," Edmund answered as he took a drink of wine, "but I'm getting through." She smiled graciously at him and then said, "Was the wedding a good break for you or did it make you miss your brother even more?"

He thought for a second and then said, "Both, I guess. We haven't gotten a letter from Peter in almost two weeks and we were getting a letter from him every week, but every time he did write to us, it was usually bad news."

"So, I'm supposing that no news is good news?" giggled Annelise.

"Suppose so," said Edmund as he took another drink of wine, "Your sister seems very happy."

"Oh, she is! The happiest I've ever seen her. She says they want a baby by their first anniversary."

"The greatest product love can produce," Edmund said, "It's amazing what love can really do to a person, especially the love for a child.

"Sometimes the love of a child will make people, especially parents, do things they might not otherwise do," Annelise said although Edmund had the strangest feeling she wasn't talking to him. Before he could answer, he could hear one of his sisters.

"Oh Ed, there you are," came Lucy's voice. She came out onto the deck and handed a plate of food to Annelise.

"That better not be a cucumber," said Edmund picking up a sliced green vegetable.

"It's not," said Annelise, "It's zucchini, but what's wrong with cucumber?"

"All four of us are highly allergic to it," explained Lucy, "So we can't have anything that has cucumber in it or it will get pretty bad."

"I'll remember that," said Annelise.

"Ed, do you know that the Halabin's have seven more sons?" Lucy said as she took a bite of zucchini.

"Really," said Edmund with an air of no interest.

"Not just seven more sons," said Annelise, "but they have four daughters as well."

"That's twelve children all together!" said Lucy in amazement. "I want to have twelve children."

"Do you have to do something before that can happen?" Edmund asked a little slyly.

"I know that! Marriage is just one of those things that come without saying!" Lucy said pretending to be irritated.

"Well, I'm your brother! I need to hear it!"

Lucy then changed the subject in asking Annelise, "What are the names of his sisters?"

"Elaine, Olivia, Anna and Celeste," she answered.

"Did somebody call me?" came the voice of a tall blonde haired girl who came out onto the deck carrying a silver tin in her hands.

"Oh, Celeste, I was just telling them your name, that's all," explained Annelise. She introduced her to Edmund and Lucy, and they in return began to enjoy her company.

"Anee, look what Halina had made especially for us," Celeste said giving her the silver tin.

"Turkish delight!" cried Annelise as she opened it.

"Would you like some?" she offered Edmund.

"No thank you. I'm good," he said quickly, his stomach beginning to churn as if he had lost his appetite all of a sudden.

"If you won't, I will," said Lucy, "I haven't had this since I was six!"

The wedding came to an end and it was time to say goodbye. Edmund, Susan, and Lucy waved good-bye to the Elvenwoods and the Halabins. Edmund looked up and saw Annelise with Celeste and her sisters waving down at him. He smiled at them, but that smile was for only one of those girls.

The November weeks turned to December and still no letter from Peter. They continued on with the Christmas celebrations, but there was still a small sadness in the hearts of the Narnians in knowing that their young, handsome, high king was not there to celebrate it with them.

It was one more week till Christmas. Edmund counted the days on his calendar and wrapped his blanket around his shoulders. Even though there was a warm fire, it was still cold and drafty in his room, especially at night. The wind was beating against his window and snow was beginning to swirl around outside.

"Looks like another snowstorm," he thought. He was about to get undressed, when Beaver suddenly stormed into his room.

"One of the foals has escaped from the stables and no one can find him!" Before Beaver could finish, Edmund grabbed his cloak and raced out of the room and into the main hallway.

"I know he's not going to like this, but I'm going to saddle up Philip and find that foal. Can you explain to Tumnus for me?" Beaver nodded and before Edmund went outside he said, "That foal is Philip's son."

"Are sure we're going to find him in all this?" questioned Philip as Edmund saddled him.

"No, I'm not sure," he said honestly, "but somebody told me that the love of a child would make a parent do things they might not otherwise do."

"Whoever knows something like that, must be a wonderful parent indeed," said Philip.

"Well, she could be, but she's only 15," Edmund said as he mounted his horse.

They rode out into the raging snow storm searching for hours for the lost foal. They called out his name, but the only reply they got was the sound of the wind. They soon came on top of a cliff and began to look. Edmund looked down to only see the bottom of a gorge. He turned around to walk back to his horse when suddenly he was hit by a massive gust of wind.

"Edmund! Be careful!" was the last thing he heard.

"You need to wake up. You're almost home," came that gentle voice again. Edmund slowly opened his eyes to see a beautiful white landscape that was calm and silent and peaceful. It was hard for him to imagine it was a storm the night before.

He was wrapped up in a heavy warm blanket and was being driven around in a sled pulled by four white reindeer. The driver was an old man that had a long white beard and was dressed in burgundy red clothes. He seemed to have a cheerful demeanor that made Edmund relax. In the back of the sled was a leather sack that took up the entire back seat and that also got him into wondering.

"Are you...Father Christmas?" he asked the old man.

"I sure am," he answered, "And you, I take, are King Edmund the Just of The Great Western Woods? The only Pevensie that I haven't met."

"Yes," said Edmund slowly for he knew why he hadn't been there. Father Christmas seemed to read his mind.

"You need not dwell on things that have already passed," he said wisely. Edmund nodded, but then he asked," How did you find me?"

"Your horse told me that you were helping him look for his son, when powerful winds just seem to blow you away into the gorge. I've never seen an animal so hell-bent on his master than that horse was. I told him to go find his son and that I would take care of you.

It took some persuasion, but finally he relented. When I found you, one side of your head was bleeding and you have some scratches, but that's just about it. You must be in pretty good shape to be able to withstand a fall that high."

"That comes from constant physical activity," Edmund said, "But it was still painful when I woke up the first time."

"Oh, I'm sure it was," said Father Christmas as they pulled over into a small clearing near a few trees, "I told your horse that when he found his son that he was to meet me here. And I guess while we wait, I have something to give you."

"An early Christmas present?"

"Oh, no. More like a belated six-almost-seven year Christmas present," said Father Christmas as he got out of the sled and looked inside his bag.

"Six-almost-seven year-" Edmund stopped.

"Wait, when you gave my siblings their gifts, you had mine all along? Didn't you?"

"Of course I did, but you did not get it because you were not ready for it."

"I always thought, I didn't get it because I wasn't there," argued Edmund.

"You are much mistaken then. You were not there because you were not ready to receive it, but now you are," he said and gave the young king his gift.

It was a leather book that was dark red and had gold gilded right onto it. It had the insignia of a lion on the front and on the spine were the letter E.P. Edmund's initials.

"Thank you, sir," he said. It was the most beautiful book he had ever seen. When he opened it up, there were only blank pages.

"Is it a journal?" he asked.

"Yes, it can be," said Father Christmas.

"Hold on," said Edmund suddenly, "All my siblings, even Lucy, got weapons. And I get a journal! What's up with that?" he asked in disbelief.

"Not all wars are won with weapons. Many have been won with words. You have a gift for words and I guarantee you that whatever you write in that book, may one day many years from now save your country."

"What do I write then?" asked Edmund.

"The words will come to you. Now this book is not like most books. It will end when its time comes for it to end, so choose wisely what you write."

"If it's supposed to save my country, I might as well write how I came into the country. Something of a memoir for my children, I guess."

"Well, there's where you need to start then," said Father Christmas. Suddenly there was some rustling in the trees and out came Philip and his son, Caspin.

"Your safe!" cried Philip when he saw his master.

"And you finally found your son!" Edmund said.

"Yes, we had a little talk about him running off," Philip said looking sternly down at his son, but soon softened at Caspin's innocent face.

"Thank you," he said turning to Father Christmas, "This country has already had enough with one king being away. I don't know what would have happened had not I run into you."

"You're welcome. And speaking of that other king, I do have an early Christmas present for you Your Majesty and for your sisters as well," he said and pulled out a letter from his pocket.

"It's Peter's letter!" said Edmund in amazement. He was going to ask how Father Christmas got the letter and then decided not to.

"Well, I had better get going. It's only four more days! Merry Christmas!" said Father Christmas .

Philip, Edmund and Caspin all said Merry Christmas and waved good-bye until he was no longer in sight. Edmund walked beside his horse and told him and his son about the book.

"If you're going to make it a book of memories for your children, you may need to gave it a title," said Philip.

"It's just a collection of stories of my life since I came into Narnia," Edmund said, "So...how does The Chronicles of Narnia sound?"

"Oooo! I like it!" said Caspin

"Simple, yet to the point," replied Philip.

"Well then I guess that's it then. The Chronicles of Narnia," Edmund repeated as they walked back home.

December 18, 1006,

Dear Susan, Edmund, and Lucy,

I hope you all are having a better Christmas then I am! Don't worry about me though, I'm doing fine. I hope this letter might bring you some kind of comfort, considering the fact that I can't write a lot about what's going on. Have a wonderful Christmas and a happy new year. I love and miss you all so much!

Love Peter