Chapter Nine: Narnia at Peace

Disclaimer: Since I'm still rather astonished at what this story became now that we're nearing the ending, it would be utter hubris for me to claim the beginnings of it as my own. They're not; very little of this chapter is.
Anything underlined is a direct quote from Lewis, either from Prince Caspian or The Voyage of the Dawn Treader.

A/N: Though I mention them little on here, I do want to thank everyone who reviewed, especially readers who did so consistently. That encouragement is what made sure I posted consistently; and that has, hopefully, also made me better as a writer. So my heartfelt thanks, here in an author's note, because I'm not sure what the best way to thank you is.
And yes, this is very long. I wasn't expecting it to be, but I'm not sure how to cut it down more without leaving some promises I made unfulfilled; so I will ask your pardon instead.

Updated 03/04: Calyn was kind enough to point out that, as Aslan instructs Edmund and Lucy at the end of Voyage to find Him in their world, Edmund really shouldn't be able to point to a story like King David's that identified Aslan in their world. I'm grateful for the correction, and as I didn't want to remove it completely, I hope I reword it to be ambiguous enough that it fits with the canon.

OOOOO

The very next morning Caspian woke, and was called by Trufflehunter to a meeting of kings and council. They would summon all the talking Squirrels and Birds ("They really do make the best messengers, Caspian," said King Peter, and Queen Lucy interjected, "And they love being trusted with news, they really do") and send them all over Narnia. Most would be sent to the Telmarines, letting them know that Caspian was their king. (And who would argue with that, Caspian thought, with Aslan standing next to him and affirming his rule?). But the messengers also declared that Narnia belonged to the Talking Beasts and the Dwarfs and Dryads and Fauns and other creatures quite as much as to the men. Caspian had been surprised at the wording - surely he would be the only human in Narnia? But a look at Aslan's grave face settled his mind; if Aslan could make the descendent of the Telmarines a king, He would surely also take the Telmarines who wanted to stay. A few of the messengers would be sent, at Aslan's direction, to pockets of Narnians that no one at Beruna had known still existed, to let them know that Narnia was free once again.

But that left the problem of the Telmarines who would hate this new Narnia. (Caspian's Narnia. That was still a daunting thought.) And the council turned to Aslan, waiting for His judgement; and He gave it. The messengers would be told to proclaim that anyone who did not want to live in this new Narnia would be given a new home; one Aslan would provide. They would have five days to decide.

The messengers were summoned and sent, bouncing, twittering, and gossiping, many born in the arms of the Dryads who had gathered close to hear. The Dryads launched the birds in the air with a graceful swoop of their arms, bowed, and then dispersed to the river to speak with their cousins the Naiads, and the squirrels leaped from their heads to their homes in the trees, and the few great Cats who had been selected bounded away, and the rest of the council also bowed, and turned to go walk in their new home. The four (the four, Caspian still marveled that they were here) looked from Aslan's face to Caspian's, and King Peter jerked his head at his siblings, and they also bowed to Aslan, the boys clasping a friendly hand on his arm, the girls smiling at him, and then they too left. Caspian stared at the ground, quiet, willing to do Aslan's will but not quite sure why he was here.

"There is still work for you to do," said the grave, deep, golden voice of the Lion, and Caspian looked up. "You are not the only one to have suffered during your uncle's reign. As King, you must give them justice as well."

"Who, Aslan?" Caspian asked.

"There were those who stood by your father, and your mother, and either fell to Miraz's soldiers or were imprisoned, robbed, or banished." And Caspian remembered, so long ago it seemed like he was a child hearing it, Doctor Cornelius telling him of the lords who had known his father executed, shot with arrows, sent to fight giants; but then there were "The two brothers of Beaversdam [Miraz] shut up as madmen. And finally he persuaded the seven noble lords, who alone among all the Telmarines did not fear the sea, to sail away and look for new lands beyond the Eastern Ocean."

"Beaversdam," he said, looking at Aslan. "That—that's not far," remembering the adventures he and his nurse had pretended to be going on. The great Lion nodded. "Oh, Aslan, I'll free them at once. I'll go there today. But the others—the seven—they're not dead, right? Can I help them?" He pictured meeting them, listening to them, about their stories of his father and maybe his mother. They had to be alive, right?

Aslan said nothing, and Caspian thought for a moment. He remembered, vaguely, a celebration where a ship went out to sea, and the great, glorious blue of the ocean that had promised limitless adventure and exploration, and his heart beat faster. "Aslan, can I go after them?"

"You must attend to your duties here first," the Lion said, his voice a low growl of warning. "But, once [you] establish peace in Narnia, you may follow them—for a limited time, King Caspian—and see if you can give justice to them as well."

"For how long, Aslan?" Caspian asked, wondering how long it would take to establish peace. The idea of sailing into the sea caught his heart with the same strength the tales of Old Narnia had.

"Kings once swore to a task for a year and a day," the Lion responded. "But that is for the future, King Caspian. There is justice you may deliver now, for two brothers who have waited for years." And Caspian bowed, understanding Aslan's dismissal, and left quickly, eager to go on another adventure. But Beaversdam was too far to walk; Caspian went to find his horse Destrier. He found him already saddled right next to King Edmund, another horse nearby. King Edmund offered Caspian the reins with a careless, "Would you like company?" Caspian acquiesced gladly-the company of any of the four was welcome. The two swung up and settled in their saddles-and were confronted by a glaring Trumpkin, arms crossed in front of them.

"And where might you two be going?" he demanded.

"I'm not sure yet, D.L.F.," King Edmund responded cheerfully. "But Peter asked me to stay with Caspian today—said something about Caspian learning what it's like for a king to get into trouble, and all that rot." Caspian blinked. Surely King Edmund was joking? "Why, you coming with?"

"Until it's clear the old Telmarines have no intentions of killing my king, yes," the dwarf snapped back.

"Well, let's have your hand, then," King Edmund said, reaching down as he bent over. Trumpkin looked at him like he'd grown another head.

"A dwarf walks," he spluttered. "We're sons of Earth, thank you very much, and we don't travel six feet above it." He looked at Caspian. "Where to, your majesty?"

"Beaversdam," Caspian responded, watching King Edmund out of the corner of eye, and seeing a grin on his face. He realised that King Edmund might have known Trumpkin would refuse. The two horses fell in after the stomping steps of the red Dwarf, and Caspian whispered to Edmund, "Do dwarfs not like to ride?"

"Not full size horses," King Edmund murmured back. "In our time they'd ride ponies if they had to, but not much else." He grinned. "It's good to see some thing about Narnia haven't changed."

For King Edmund they may not have changed; but as they rode through Beruna, Caspian watched with wonder as his old world and new melded together into something very much changed. In the streets were many of the younger Telmarines, laughing and talking and making friends with the creatures. A golden-haired girl, perhaps four years younger than Caspian, ran out to Trumpkin and laid a hand on his arm. "You're a dwarf!" she cried with excitement, and Trumpkin gave her a half-glare even as his mouth twitched.

"That I am," he said. "What of it?" She smiled wider, but anything she would have said was lost as an older woman appeared in the doorway of the closest house, calling "Alissel!" And the girl giggled and left, leaving Edmund and Caspian grinning at each other at Trumpkin's discomfort. He noticed.

"Let's get going, your majesties," he growled, pushing onward. They left the town behind soon, and King Edmund passed the next few hours teaching Caspian about the laws that ruled Narnia in their time, with Trumpkin listening and interjecting whenever he felt like it.

They weren't stories, but it was still one of the best afternoons Caspian had lived, King Edmund on his right, dryads greeting them from the trees, and dwarfish common sense aimed at him from below. It seemed, on this ride, almost as if he could be a king.

"Were you ever nervous?" he asked Edmund, during a moment of silence. King Edmund looked at him quizzically. "I meant—being king." He trailed off, but Edmund seemed to understand.

"Yes," the older boy responded seriously, Trumpkin listening below. "Especially as time went on, and we had reputations of being the founders of the Golden Age. It was a lot of weight on our shoulders—even with four of us—but we spoke about it one time, and Lucy reminded us it wasn't our doing, it was Aslan's. Back when we first began to rule, Su told us a story, a legend from our own world, of a king who started as a shepherd. He defeated a giant with only a sling, became one of the greatest of kings in legend, and ruled and wrote songs for years upon years. But the funny thing about the story was that it gave no credit to the king, but to the one it said made him king. It was almost like they knew our Aslan." He paused. "I should go back and find that story, in our own world, sometime. Anyway, the point was he'd been an ordinary boy, a shepherd, before someone greater than himself came along. And that's true in Narnia too. It is always Aslan who makes extraordinary tales out of ordinary people. Even us." He smiled at Caspian. "Even out of boys and girls who are too young to rule and nervous about doing so."

"And there'll be plenty who'll remind your majesty that there's nothing special about you, 'cept being Aslan's chosen," came Trumpkin's gruff voice. Caspian looked at the two of them and relaxed; even laughed.

"You're right," he said. "It's Aslan who makes all the difference."

They reached Beaversdam a few hours before the sun set, and found the birds and squirrels had already been here. And that there were none, not a single man, woman, or child, who was anything but delighted with the changes in Narnia. They welcomed King Caspian with cries of joy; a few had even heard of King Edmund, and watched him with wonder. They mixed with the dryads fearlessly, and Caspian, as he looked around, wondered why. He walked around his horse and found King Edmund looking around too, watching the people with his penetrating gaze.

"This reminds me of the Lord Perdain's lands," he said quietly, still intently watching the people. He gave his reins into the hands of a teenage boy with a nod of thanks. "A place ruled so well it lifts up everyone who lives in it." He looked over at Caspian. "Why are we here?"

"There's two lords here, two brothers." Caspian hesitated. "I think my Uncle locked them up as madmen, but they were friends of my father." King Edmund waited, just a moment, eyes still sharp, then nodded.

"Well, on with it then." Caspian took a deep breath, then turned towards the crowds in front of them.

"Good people of Narnia," he started, remembering just in time not to call them Telmarines. Aslan, help him with this. "I have heard that years ago my uncle, the Usurper Miraz, wrongfully imprisoned the two Lords of Beaversdam. At Aslan's bidding, I have come to restore them to freedom and their lands. I ask for a guide to show us the way to their prison."

The crowd in front of him murmured, soft conversations with each other. They didn't die away, and Caspian shifted, wondering if he should speak again. But King Edmund put a hand on his arm. "Wait," was the quiet command. And Caspian waited.

The seconds felt like minutes, like the conversations would never end. The crowd was more restless, paying less attention to the royalty right in front of them. Wasn't a king supposed to take charge? He glanced at King Edmund, and found the king's eyes were on the back of the crowd. Caspian looked, and saw a small commotion, a group of people ringed around something, appearing to be restraining it. Trumpkin, standing to the side and too short to see what they were looking at, grumbled under his breath. Caspian looked at Edmund, who was taller. "What is it?"

"I think it's two men, arguing," Edmund replied. The crowd in front of them was turning, looking back to whatever had attracted their attention, and Edmund stepped forward. "Let's go see, shall we?"

Trumpkin went first, his sturdy dwarf arms pushing aside people who wouldn't move, till they reached the out edge of the commotion.

"We trust them," Caspian heard a voice say.

"And you've a 'abit of jumping 'eadfirst into trouble, you 'ave," an angry voice responded. "An three years it took, to get you out of it last! 'ow do you ken e's not like 'is uncle?"

"He has his father's voice and trick of speech, even so young!" Caspian stopped, surprised. Did they mean him? But Edmund, with an impatient look, grabbed his arm and pulled him farther forward, trying to push between two solidly built older ladies who were shaking their heads.

"And," added another, slightly older voice, "by the Lion's decree he is our king, and we owe him our allegiance, regard-" the voice broke off. Edmund had made it into the circle, hauling Caspian with him. In the middle were two men, clad in light armor made mostly of leather, the older with a grey beard and a young face, and the younger clean-shaven with a smile that reminded Caspian of Lucy's. The two were looking directly at the kings.

They knelt, eyes down, on one knee. Around them, in a spreading wave, those they ruled knelt as well, to the king their lords' acknowledged.

"Welcome, Caspian, King of Narnia," said the older. With a sideways glance at Edmund, Caspian stepped forward.

"Are you the Lords of Beaversdam?"

"We are, your majesty," the younger man said, looking up. "And we're terribly glad you've come to free us, as that legalises what our people did on their own, several years ago." Caspian heard King Edmund chuckle beside him.

"And have your lands been restored?" he asked, remembering some of Edmund's legal lessons on the way over.

The brothers hesitated, looking at each other.

"In a manner of speaking, your majesty," the elder said at last. "We've been ruling again since we were freed—settling disputes and such—and our people brought us what we need, but we haven't entered our home since our imprisonment; it could've brought punishment on our people, if Miraz had discovered we were free."

"Not that we were there much anyway before," the youngest added.

"Then I hereby restore your home and thank you for continuing in the faithful exercise of your authority," Caspian said. "And please get up; you're as tall as I am, kneeling." And both brothers grinned, and came forward to clasp their king's hand, inviting him and his two companions to their newly restored home for a celebration that night. Caspian heard more stories of his father than he had heard in the rest of his life, as well as tales of parts of Narnia he had never heard before. The following day the two escorted their kings back to Beruna, and there met Aslan, kneeling before him and receiving his "Well done, good and faithful servants."

There were a few other people to restore things to, and a castle to put to the use of the group of kings and queens; Caspian's nurse and Doctor Cornelius helped him reward the faithful (especially the servants), comfort the grieving, and draw the rest of the willing Telmarines into fellowship with the Old Narnians, over the next few days.

The unwilling Telmarines (about half of them) gathered up their courage to take Aslan's offer of a new home, and met him after those five days at the appointed place, where Aslan had caused .

There, Caspian stood with Aslan and Peter in front of two stakes of wood, higher than a man's head and about three feet apart. A third, and lighter, piece of wood was bound across the at the top uniting them, so that the whole thing looked like a doorway from nowhere into nowhere. Behind them were the council (the Lords of Beaversdam now included), and the other kings and queens. And there, Caspian heard Aslan tell a legend he had never heard, of how the Telmarines first came into Narnia, from the same world as King Peter. He heard they had come as pirates, Sons of Adam though they were (and therefore able to be kings), and lived and drank and looted and ran, till they fell through from their own world into Narnia, and lived there till they forgot their own world. And he felt the shame of such a past, standing so close to the Lion who had made all things good, and wished he'd somehow descended from King Gale or something like that instead. But Aslan was speaking to him.

"Do you mark all this well, King Caspian?"

"I do indeed, Sir," said Caspian. "I was wishing that I came of a more honourable lineage."

"You come of the Lord Adam and the Lady Eve," said Aslan. "And that is both honour enough to erect the head of the poorest beggar, and shame enough to bow the shoulders of the greatest emperor on earth. Be content."

Caspian bowed, content with Aslan's words, and remembering Edmund's, that Aslan made legends out of boys and girls.

And he had need to remember, a few minutes later, when Aslan's plan unfolded, and he learned that the four were to go through the doorway as well (and vanish, which was as magical as any of the legends he had heard), and they changed into the odd, flat attire they had brought from their own world. The world they were going back to. And Caspian, for a moment, wanted to try the door for himself, just to get a glimpse of their world, the odd place where they were just boys and girls. But that wasn't Aslan's plan, and he waited, with his council, and cheered the kings and queens, said goodbye, and watched them disappear, along with most of the problem Telmarines. And then Aslan, with his great, commanding goodness, ordered the doorway dismantled and burned, and Caspian crowned. After the coronation, Aslan bestowed the Highest of all High King's blessing on Caspian, and left himself.

Caspian, looking around at his council, drew himself up. "Come on," he said quietly. "Let's go back home, and see if we can put Narnia to peace." For that was his next goal, one Aslan would help him towards. And after that?

After that, he thought, would come more adventures, ones at sea.

Adventures that might even become legends of their own.

OOOOO

Response to Anonymousme: Thank you, so much, for pointing out the typo. They always bother me in other stories, but alas! I'm not very proficient at finding them in my own. So thank you, again, for that, and for your encouragement.

Only the epilogue to go now! Do you know the story is at 97 pages? That kind of boggles my mind.