Chapter Twenty Five:

The Changed Lady

A day later, Crystalline awoke to the sound of much commotion coming from outside her bedchamber door. A few seconds later, a maid burst into the room, her face flushed but cheerful. She bobbed a quick curtsy to Crystalline before saying rather quickly,

"My apologies for intruding on your sleep milady, but we have just gotten news that the three royals of Narnia are due to be arriving at the castle this very afternoon! I thought you'd might like me to help you to get ready for their arrival."

Crystalline, who didn't fully realize what she was getting herself into, smiled and replied, "Of course, I would love that, thank you."

The maid smiled again. "Alright, then! Let's get started!"

The maid then whisked Crystalline out of bed and led her to an armchair in front of the hearth.

"Now, let me just get some water for a bath, and we'll clean you up right quickly," She said, and bustled out of the room. She came back a few minutes later with a bucketful of boiling hot water. Racing into a room that was adjoined to Crystalline's bedchamber, the sound of the maid pouring the water into a bathtub could be heard.

"Do you need any help?" Crystalline, who was feeling very uncomfortable with merely sitting and doing nothing; called to the maid.

"No, no! You just sit and rest, milady. A few others should be bringing more water up presently!" The maid's cheery call came from the adjoining room. As if on cue, five other maids came marching into Crystalline's bedchamber, all carrying buckets of hot water.

Goodness! One would think I was queen of Narnia by the way they wait on me! Crystalline thought to herself as one smiling maid helped her up from the armchair and marched her into the adjoining room. For the next hour, Crystalline found herself being scrubbed, poked, prodded at, and fussed over by six maids, who all seemed to think Crystalline wasn't truly clean until they had washed her themselves. By the time the hour was up, Crystalline was as clean as the day she was born, and smelled heavily of roses.

After her bath, Crystalline was then bustled behind a screen where one of the maids helped her to get dressed. Normally, Crystalline wouldn't have needed help getting dressed, if it weren't for the fact that the maids insisted she wear a corset. And of course, no one can put on a corset by themselves. After being fussed over for another fifteen minutes, Crystalline was finally dressed. The moment she was about to make her way to the door, however, yet another maid came in with a tray of breakfast, which was, all in all, not very unpleasant, for Crystalline was very hungry. After eating everything off of every plate that was set before her, Crystalline was free to spend the rest of the day as she pleased.

Walking with hurried steps out of her bedchamber, Crystalline made her way down the hall. After walking through many corridors, accidentally ending up in the laundry-house, getting completely lost, and asking for directions, Crystalline made her way into the castle gardens, hoping to find at least some peace from the kayos ensuing around her. As she walked among the rose beds, she heard a small bird singing. A few seconds later, she heard a reply, but it didn't sound like a bird. Rounding a corner, she saw Edmund sitting on a stone bench, replying to every bird that chirped.

"Good-morning, King Edmund," Crystalline said softly. Edmund, not completely startled but startled all the same, instantly turned to look at her. He had to fight to keep his jaw from dropping.

"Crystal," he breathed, "you look… wonderful!"

Crystalline smiled and blushed, her cheeks turning as red as the scarlet colored dress she wore. "Thank you for your compliment, King Edmund. It is greatly appreciated."

Edmund snapped out of his trance. Blushing himself, he said rather hurriedly, "Oh! Forgive me, milady. Tis a lovely day, isn't it?"

Crystalline smiled at him. "Quite. The roses are beautiful, are they not?"

Edmund smiled and nodded "Yes they are. One can easily see why they are called the flowers of love, for they are such fair flowers."

Crystalline nodded. "They give off such a lovely smell as well."

Edmund likewise nodded. "Yes, they do." The then stood up and asked, "would you do me the honor of walking with me, Crystalline?"

Crystalline smiled. "I'd love to, King Edmund."

Edmund smiled back, and held out his arm to her. Crystalline took it, and they walked along the path together.

"Do you know much about flowers, King Edmund?" Crystalline asked as they passed the rose bushes and made their way to other various flower beds.

"Not as much as my sisters, but I do know a bit of the language of flowers." Edmund replied.

"The language of flowers? What's that?" Crystalline asked inquisitively.

"The language of flowers is mostly symbolism. Every flower in the language has a meaning. Or example, Forget-me-Nots mean remembrance, and Hyacinth means sorrow."

Crystalline nodded. "Is there any flower that means freedom? If so, I would love to know what it is."

Edmund looked thoughtful for a moment. "I don't think there is such a flower. But instead of flowers, we have the open sky, the tall grasses that wave in the free and fickle wind and the birds that wheel freely about in the sky. And we have ourselves, too. We all are symbols of freedom, I suppose."

Crystalline smiled again. "Even now, I still can't believe we're free…" she glanced at Edmund before adding, "and I still can't believe that you're King Edmund the Just."

Edmund chuckled. "You know, I can't believe I'm King Edmund either. It seems so surreal."

Crystalline nodded knowingly. "I am sure your life as King of Narnia seems so long ago."

Edmund smiled and nodded. "Aye. It does. As does your life in Narnia, I am sure."

Crystalline frowned a little and looked at the gravel path they were walking on. "It was so long ago, it doesn't seem real anymore."

Edmund frowned as well. "Would it be too painful for you if I asked what happened to you?"

Crystalline pressed a tight smile and shook her head. "I will tell you, if you really want to know."

"If you don't mind..."

"I don't."

Crystalline drew a deep, shaky breath. "Well, it all started a few days after my tenth birthday…"

Crystalline was excited. Well, this might have been an understatement. She was very excited. She was now ten years old, which meant her mother would allow her to run errands with her elder brother, Colin.

"Mamma?" Crystalline asked her mother, who was busily packing a basket full of food.

"Yes, Crystalline?" Her mother asked, turning around to face the young child.

"Please, tell me again about the Kings and Queens." The young girl replied, walking up to where her bother stood in the kitchen of their small cottage.

Her mother laughed. "But I have already told you so many times, Crystalline. Why should this time be any different than the last?"

"Oh, but it will be different this time, Mamma."

"How will it be, Crystalline?"

"Because I heard you telling Colin that King Edmund won a tournament!" Crystalline did a little jump. "Please, will you tell me, Mamma? Please, please, please?"

Mamma laughed. "You shouldn't have been eavesdropping Crystalline, though it did no harm. But try not to eavesdrop anymore."

"I won't Mamma." Crystalline excitedly promised.

"Alright, then; come here and sit on my lap, and I will tell you."

When Crystalline was seated on her mother's lap, the mother proceeded to tell her daughter about the tournament that had been held in the isle of Galma to celebrate the coronation of the four Kings and Queens of Narnia, which had happened only six months before. During the tournament, in which High King Peter and King Edmund had participated, King Edmund had unhorsed another knight in the joust. Edmund was very proud of his accomplishment, but only after had had made sure the no harm had been done to the Knight with whom he had sparred.

After the story, Crystalline's mother laughed when she saw her daughter's beautiful gray eyes, which were wide with awe.

"I like King Edmund," the young girl finally concluded as she scooted off of her mother's lap.

"I do hope you like the other royals, too, Crystalline. They are all important to Narnia. All of them protect Narnia in order to keep it a free country…" she sighed. "And since those Calormenes have been raiding the mountains, we need the royals' protection more than ever." She stood looking out the kitchen window for a moment, clearly lost in her thoughts, before she shook herself and turned back to Crystalline.

"Now, dearest; I need you to go and get your brother. I have an errand for both of you."

"Yes, Mamma!" Crystalline excitedly exclaimed, bolting out the door before her mother could say anything else.

"Colin! Colin! Mamma has an errand for us!" Crystalline ran over to where her thirteen year old brother stood, chopping firewood. He smiled at his little sister, and put down his axe.

"What errand is that squirt?" he asked as he brushed his sweaty bangs out of his face.

"I don't know; Mamma wanted me to get you!" Crystalline cried for joy.

"Alright, alright, squirt! I can hear you right properly without you yelling," Colin teased.

"Come on, Colin! Let's go!" Crystalline said impatiently (in the same tone), grabbing Colin's hand and pulling him inside the cottage.

"Yes, Mum?" Colin called to their mother, who stood in the kitchen doorway, smiling.

"I need you to go to beavers dam, and give this basket to Mrs. Beaver." Their mother gestured to the basket of food she was holding.

Crystalline's eyes grew wide. "You mean, the Mrs. Beaver that helped the Kings and Queens?"

Mother nodded. "Yes, Crystalline. Now run along, both of you. And be careful."

"We will, Mum," Colin reassured his mother as he took the small basket and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Come on squirt. Let's go."

"Bye-bye, Mamma!" Crystalline called over her shoulder as Colin led her out of the house.

"Goodbye, Crystalline! Be good!" That was the last thing that Crystalline had ever heard her mother say.

"What happened next?" Edmund asked Crystalline, who had stopped talking. She looked sadly up at him.

"I don't remember the details, but I do remember that we didn't make it to the beaver's house that day. Calormene slave traders got to us first. My brother tried to protect me, and even pleaded for them to take him but leave me free. They didn't heed his pleas, and we were both captured. We were together from then on, up until we were sold onto a plantation. He tried to escape, but was captured again, and was sold to another master far away. I don't know what happened to him, or if he's still alive."

Edmund was silent for a moment, not able to speak. "That's awful," he finally said quietly. Crystalline nodded.

"So that's why I was your hope?"

"What do you mean?"

"What you said about me when we had that little tiff when we were first on the plantation. I was your hope because you thought I would come and save you?"

Crystalline smiled. "Well, ever since that day, I had dreamed of seeing you ride up and save us. Over the years, I realized that it wouldn't happen… until I heard you came to Tashbaan. I knew you had been trying to discuss slavery with the Tisroc, and I thought that maybe you had come to do just that. That was when I allowed myself to believe this dream of mine."

Edmund grinned and chuckled. Crystalline raised an eyebrow, a large smile on her face.

"What?"

"Well, your dream came true," Edmund said, his eyes meeting hers, "even though I failed to beat down the enemy and carry you off into the sunset like the brave and gallant knight you thought I would be."

Crystalline giggled. "Well, we are human. We're not like the magical creatures of Narnia. We don't have superhuman strength. We can't fight like they can."

"But we did fight all the same... We fought for freedom. That's something the creatures haven't done." Edmund pointed out.

"But how did we fight? We didn't cross swords with the Calormenes. Well, you did, but that was when you were trying to save me."

Edmund looked into Crystalline's eyes. Crystalline felt almost as if he were looking into her soul, "Sometimes it's the most silent testimonies that prove to be the most successful battles. Take us for example. We had to quietly put up with whatever the Tarkaan and the overseers dished out at us, we had to battle their cruelty every day. But Aslan let us win the battle all the same."

Crystalline nodded, understanding Edmund's logic. "Thank Aslan. For freedom, and for friends." She smiled up at Edmund. Edmund smiled back. Her heart fluttered at his look. So did his at hers. Their smiles at that moment had caused a spark in both of them, and a feeling grew from that spark like a flame. That feeling was the most blissful, happy feeling they had ever felt in their lives. Some might call it love.

"Yes, thank Aslan." Edmund said, his eyes sparkling with radiant joy. Crystalline returned his look like a mirror.

"So," Crystalline said after a moment of happy silence, "We won a battle together. Do you think we should secretly call ourselves something? You know, something just between ourselves that no one would know about?"

Edmund grinned. "How about "siblings in arms?""

"But we're not related!"

"No one has to be related to call themselves siblings. And I would love to be your brother."

Crystalline grinned. "Alright. Then we'll be a brother and sister in arms."

Edmund grinned back. Both stood for a moment, starring into each other's eyes and smiling. They didn't move for a long moment, before,

"King Edmund!"

Both started, and looked bewilderedly up at the sky, where the voice had called to them from. They saw Feather-Grip flying toward them.

"What is it, Sir Feather-Grip?" Edmund gathered enough of his scattered wits to reply.

"Your royal siblings have just arrived! They are just entering the castle now!"

"Thank you, Sir Hawk! I shall be there in but a moment!"

The hawk nodded and flew away, leaving Edmund and Crystalline alone once more. Edmund looked at Crystalline with still-sparkling eyes.

"Are you ready to meet the others, Crystal?" He grinned. "I mean, sister in arms?"

Crystalline giggled and nodded, having momentarily forgotten that Edmund was her king. "Of course, brother in arms. Let's go!"

Crystalline then followed Edmund back into the castle. Edmund smiled as they walked down the long corridors, arm in arm. Crystalline had changed completely from the sullen, joyless girl he had met when they had been bought by the Tarkaan, and he didn't mind the change in the least.