Down for years
I knew by then
That someplace lovely
Would steal you, friend
I asked you
If I could come
You laughed about it

~"Going to the Sun" by Bjéar


Although Eviz had lived in Calormen for twelve years, she had never been in The Great Desert since she had been taken captive, for which she was now grateful. The journey to Narnia had been torturous. Prince Rabadash was driven across the desert in a shaded carriage pulled by camels while the many servants and entertainers he brought with him made the journey on foot. Despite the light, colorful robes that Calormene slaves wore, it was still unbearably hot underneath the blazing sun. The sand burned her feet through her sandals and she could feel blisters forming on her toes. She had been thankful when they had reached the mountains of Archenland and were engulfed in shaded forests as they continued to make their way north.

The journey through Archenland had been interesting. The people were seemingly terrified of the Calormene party as villagers hurried into their homes to close their doors and windows. Eviz had expected them to stop in the capital of Anvard and stay the night in the palace, but Prince Rabadash insisted he would not see the Archenian king. It had been rumored that Princess Aliena of Archenland had rejected a marriage proposal from Prince Rabadash several years ago, leading to tension between the two kingdoms.

As much as Eviz was amazed at the beauty of Archenland, she was even more amazed when they had arrived in Narnia the final day of their journey. The forests were in full bloom in the spring, the mountains capped with snow, and the water was cool and crystal clear. Flowers seemed to be everywhere and the sky was the bluest she'd ever seen. The slaves gossipped among themselves as they followed behind Prince Rabadash's carriage. Eviz learned that Narnia was filled with all sorts of mythical creatures such as dwarves, minotaurs, and fauns. Many of the slaves seemed fearful of coming across one of these creatures, but she was intrigued. They mostly feared coming across Aslan, but Eviz knew that if Aslan was truly the one who had created this beautiful land that they had nothing to be afraid of.

At last, they saw Cair Paravel in the distance. Eviz envied how the castle sat right on a cliff overlooking the shore, surrounded by lush forests and hills. Tashbaan was nestled in the heart of the desert where buildings and people were quite literally stacked on top of one another. The heat from the desert made traveling anywhere outside of the Tisroc's residence unbearable. If you were brave enough to venture out of Tashbaan's walls, you would always return coated in dust or sand.

As they made their way closer, Eviz was pleased to see that the palace was not surrounded by a high wall, but open to view. Prince Rabadash had scoffed at how it made the Narnians vulnerable, but Eviz knew it meant that Narnia wasn't threatened by enemies. A horn sounded as they approached and the large doors of the palace swung open to them. Many of the slaves gasped as a faun stepped forward and eagerly bowed to the prince.

"Your Highness," the faun said, "Welcome to Narnia. We have eagerly awaited your arrival. The kings and queens have set your rooms in the west corridors and will see you after you have rested from your long journey."

"Your name, creature," Prince Rabadash said rudely.

The faun seemed taken aback by the blunt question, but answered, "Tumnus."

"Tumnus," Prince Rabadash repeated. "Please let the kings and queens know I am hungry and to have a meal sent to my room as soon as I am settled."

The prince then strolled past the faun, nearly shoving him aside as he walked through the large doors. The rest of the Calormene party followed, continuing to be amazed at the splendor of the castle as well as the creatures that roamed its hallways. Even the ordinary animals like beavers and wolves spoke!

The Narnians seemed uncomfortable around the Calormene slaves as they were escorted to their sleeping quarters. Slavery was not allowed in Narnia and Prince Rabadash's decision to bring them along was evidently creating tension from the get go. Eviz was astounded by the rooms they were given. Instead of all the slaves crowded into one large room with straw and a blanket to sleep with, they were each given their own room with a cot and wash basin. Eviz couldn't help but let herself settle into the cot and drift off to sleep, unable to remember the last time she had slept on a mattress.

Several hours later, after unpacking and rearranging Prince Rabadash's room to his liking, the Calormenes made their way to the throne room to make formal introductions between the two kingdoms. The slaves whispered excitedly as they lined up behind the prince and other members of the Calormene court. The kings and queens of Narnia were legendary to the Calormenes after hearing the tales of their defeat of The White Witch. In fact, Calormen had only been able to expand its territories into the east and west thanks to The White Witch's defeat. Although the Tisroc and Prince Rabadash were too proud to admit it, they owed a great deal to the Narnian rulers.

The doors to the throne room flew open and many in the Calormene party had to shield their eyes from the brightness that overcame them. Tall windows lined all sides of the room and the walls and floors were covered in brilliant, white marble and gold. Eviz had to stop herself from audibly gasping as she saw the array of creatures surrounding them as they made their way to the center of the room. As she was shorter than most of the other slaves, she did her best to stand on her tiptoes to get a first look at the kings and queens.

The four rulers stood proud and tall in front of their thrones, dressed in ornate robes with their crowns glimmering on their heads. Queen Lucy, King Edmund, Queen Susan, and High King Peter all stood perfectly in a row with smiles on their faces. Queen Lucy smiled brightly at Prince Rabadash, her long brown hair tumbling down her back. However, when she caught sight of the slaves in the throne room, her smile instantly disappeared. King Edmund, with his dark hair and dark eyes, looked unashamedly annoyed at the Calormene party. Queen Susan was perfectly poised and radiantly beautiful, her bright blue eyes contrasting strikingly with her almost black hair. She was looking straight at Prince Rabadash who seemed to cower away at the idea of a woman addressing him so directly.

Eviz's gaze at last fell on High King Peter. Out of all the siblings, High King Peter was the most renown of the Narnian rulers. Tales were told about the sword given to him by Father Christmas and how he was perhaps the greatest swordsman in all of the surrounding empires. He was a tall, broad chested man, towering over his brother and sisters. Even though all four of them were elevated on a platform, it was clear that the high king was well over a foot taller than Prince Rabadash. In fact, she even saw the prince adjust his robes and stand up straight to try and match the high king in height. The king's eyes were the same shade of blue as his two sisters, but his hair was a golden blonde that matched the crown sitting on his head. He looked every part of a king and Eviz grew ashamed of her ragged and dirty appearance.

"Prince Rabadash of Calormen," the high king said, his deep voice ringing around the room. "We are deeply honored by your presence here in Narnia."

Prince Rabadash bowed, but kept his eyes focused on Queen Susan. "Your Majesties, my father sends his regrets he could not make the trip himself. He would like to present some of the finest jewels in Calormen as an apology for his absence."

The prince snapped his fingers, sending Eviz into action. She took a small chest from a nearby slave and came forward. Keeping her eyes to the floor, she approached the high king, offering out the small chest. She tried to control the pounding of her heart as he reached out and took it from her, his fingers lightly touching hers.

"Thank you," the high king said.

What astonished Eviz was that he had not addressed the prince, but her! She blushed wildly and remained frozen in place, unsure if a slave should speak to a high king.

"Back in your place, girl," she heard the prince say harshly. She bowed to the high king once more before rushing back to her place among the other slaves, grateful to be out of sight.

"Forgive her, Your Majesty," the prince said. "My slaves are not used to such foreign places and customs."

"Slaves?" a high pitched voice said. Standing on her tiptoes, she saw Queen Lucy descend to the floor so she was in front of Prince Rabadash. "Your Royal Highness, slavery is not permitted here in Narnia."

The high king quickly raced to his youngest sister's side, sensing the shift in her attitude.

"My sister means no offense," the high king said, taking Queen Lucy's arm and gently pulling her behind him. "We are unfamiliar with the Calormene ways."

"As I can see," Prince Rabadash said coolly.

Queen Lucy broke free of her brother's grip and surprised everyone by coming to Eviz's side and taking her hand. "I hope you find your rooms comfortable," Queen Lucy said to her, smiling brightly. "I know the accommodations you receive in the Tisroc's palace must not be ideal."

"Lu!" King Edmund said warningly.

Queen Lucy ignored him. "Do the rooms please you?" she asked Eviz.

Eviz glanced at the slaves around her, who had taken several steps back at the queen's approach. Queen Lucy smiled and squeezed her hand.

"The rooms are very fine, Your Majesty," Eviz said at last, her voice barely above a whisper. "Thank you."

The queen beamed, clearly pleased at her answer, but fear overcame Eviz as she saw the prince's deathly stare in her direction. She remembered Anah's warning of the prince's temper and shrunk back so she was out of his view.

After talk of Narnian and Calormene relations as well as available resources, the Calormene party was sent away along with High King Peter, King Edmund, and Queen Lucy so Prince Rabadash and Queen Susan could get to know one another. As the other slaves whispered excitedly among themselves and hurried back to their sleeping quarters, someone tapped Eviz on the shoulder. When she turned and saw High King Peter, she sunk into a deep curtsy.

"Please," the high king said, holding up a hand. "Forgive my sister earlier. She has a genuine heart but can forget herself at times."

Eviz kept her eyes to the floor, praying Prince Rabadash and the other slaves were unaware of this interaction. She could sense the high king was perplexed by her silence, but slaves in Tashbaan rarely spoke to anyone of royal blood. She had been beaten numerous times since being in the Tisroc's household for speaking out, let alone engaging in conversation with someone of such high rank.

"What is your name?" the high king asked. This was another question that was rarely asked of her as well.

"Eviz, Your Majesty," she said meekly.

"I bid you good day, Eviz," the high king said, before turning on his heel and walking away. Eviz watched him leave with wide eyes, becoming more and more impressed with what the kingdom of Narnia had to offer.


Later that evening, Eviz found herself staring out one of the large windows in the west corridor. The prince had retired to his room until dinner, but it was well known that a slave girl or two would also be joining him in his bedchambers. Eviz, along with the handful of other slaves he brought along, were instructed to wait in the west corridor until he was ready to be dressed for dinner. Eviz hadn't minded when she discovered that the west corridor had a spectacular view of the sea.

Cair Paravel sat on the edge of the cliff and below it sat a beach with pure-white sand and the bluest ocean she had ever seen. She had admired the way the waves crashed against the shore and how the pinkening sky was reflected on the water as the sun set. This was her first time seeing the ocean since she'd arrived in this strange place twelve years ago. She brought her knees to her chest as she listened to the chatter of seagulls outside.

"Eviz!"

She jumped and turned to the entrance of Prince Rabadash's rooms where a slave was frantically waving at her. "You better come quick! The prince wants you to bring your dulcimer and accompany him to dinner."

She stood, smoothing her hair, before rushing down to her sleeping quarters to retrieve the instrument. She cursed herself for not bringing it to the west corridor with her, but it had been buried in the mass amounts of other things the prince had demanded be brought with on this trip.

As she ran down the large hallway, she was astonished to see an owl flying towards her. But it wasn't just flying, it was carrying her dulcimer in its claws!

"Hey!" Eviz cried, growing panicked. She was already late and if she had to spend time chasing this owl, it would certainly earn her a beating if she wasn't expected to get one already. She leapt in the air, trying desperately to grab the dulcimer from the owl's claws, but the bird was too fast. The owl cleverly swerved before dropping the dulcimer gently in her arms.

"Your dulcimer, madam," the owl said. The soothing, musical voice caught her off guard, nearly causing her to drop the instrument.

"My apologies," she said, bowing her head. "I'm not used to animals being able to speak."

The owl gave a tinkling laugh. "Seeing how you are from Calormen, it is perfectly understandable. You are Eviz, yes?"

She nodded.

"Ardas, the high king's personal guard, overheard you needed your dulcimer. He thought I would be the quickest to assist you."

"Ardas?" Eviz asked.

"One of the many wolves you may have seen prowling around the palace," the owl said, ruffling his feathers as he perched on a nearby window sill. "My name is Flametail, the official messenger of the kings and queens."

Eviz couldn't help but smile to herself as she rushed back to the west corridor. In Tashbaan, no one would ever think of doing such a favor for her. Narnia was so different, so much kinder… She shook dangerous thoughts from her head as she tried to imagine making a living in this place. She knew that if she tried to escape again and was caught at the hands of Prince Rabadash that the penalty would most certainly be death.

The prince was thankfully delayed in his dressing so Eviz was not late after all. Two slave girls tried to leave the bedchambers unnoticed, but it was impossible with so much bustle going on. Eviz saw the way they wrapped their robes tightly around themselves and she grimaced, trying not to think of what they had been through. When the prince emerged from his bedchamber and motioned for Eviz to follow him to the banquet hall, she could tell he was in a foul mood. She had to nearly jog to keep up with him while balancing her dulcimer on her hip. When they arrived in the small drawing room outside the hall, they came to a small ledge near the main doors. In her hurry and fear of the prince's temper, she didn't step high enough, causing her to lose her footing and sending her sprawling.. Almost in slow motion, she watched her dulcimer fly from her hands and go crashing to the floor. To her relief, nothing broke, but two pegs bounced across the room, causing a string to become unwound.

Her heart leapt into her throat, knowing this would not be a quick repair and she would not be able to play that evening. The prince had turned at the sound of her fall, his eyes immediately darkening when he saw the state of her dulcimer.

"You clumsy fool!" he cried, coming over to her. She stood, quickly fixing her hair and robes. "My apologies, Your—"

He grabbed her hair, emitting a gasp from her lips as he brought her face mere inches from his. "Do not address me," he snapped. She tried not to wince from the foulness of his breath. "Your clumsiness has caused me to appear ridiculous tonight, on top of your inability to stay in your proper place earlier today. One more foot out of line, and I'll be sure my mother has you hanging by your toes on the walls of Tashbaan."

He let go of her hair, nearly causing her to fall to the floor. He grabbed the end of her robe to keep her upright before slapping her across the face.

"I say, what is going on here!"

The prince let go of Eviz's robe and she immediately brought a hand to her face, feeling the burn of where he had struck her. Treatment like this was normal in the Tisroc's household. When she turned to see who had spoken, she saw the high king standing at the entrance of the drawing room with a look of disgust on his face. He was in much more relaxed clothing than before: an embroidered shirt with trousers and no crown on his head. She blushed thinking of her disarrayed appearance and what he had just witnessed.

The high king ran to them, putting himself in between Eviz and the prince.

"I'm sorry, Your Highness," the high king said, "But we do not tolerate this kind of behavior here in Narnia."

"I don't care what you tolerate or don't tolerate," the prince growled. "This girl is my property."

The high king frowned at the word "property." "If this is an issue over the dulcimer," the high king said, "I assure you we have plenty that Eviz may borrow for the evening."

The prince narrowed his eyes when the high king referred to her by name. "The girl will not be performing tonight." He proceeded to walk over to the dulcimer, where he glanced at Eviz with a smirk on his face, before stepping on the instrument with a satisfying crunch. Eviz let out a cry, knowing that by destroying the instrument, she had lost all hope of remaining in the Tisroc's household. Without her dulcimer, the Tisroca would certainly have no use for her.

The prince kicked the broken pieces towards Eviz. "I expect this to be repaired and ready to be played by tomorrow evening," he said coldly before going into the banquet hall.

Eviz's hands shook as she picked up the broken pieces, trying to think about how she could possibly repair this before tomorrow night. The wood of the dulcimer was splintered and cracked, several of the strings broken as well. The only option was to make another by hand.

"Are you alright?"

She looked up to see the high king hovering over her, his blue eyes filled with concern. She quickly leapt to her feet, bringing a hand to her face to hide the red mark from Prince Rabadash's slap. The high king picked up what was left of her dulcimer before reaching towards her face.

"May I?" he asked. She looked at his hand with wide eyes, but relaxed and nodded. He lightly brought his hand under her chin, tilting her head to the side.

"No broken skin," he said. "But it looks like you may have a bruise on your jaw. I can take you to one of the healers—"

"That won't be necessary," she said, taking a step back so that he was no longer touching her. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I must leave. Prince Rabadash is angry enough as it is and I must begin repairing my dulcimer."

The high king gently took her arm. "Our court musicians have more than enough dulcimers. Choose one, and you may keep it."

She looked down at the broken pieces of instrument in her hands, knowing without a doubt that it was beyond repair. She glanced over her shoulder to see if any other Calormenes were witnessing their exchange. There was no one in sight, so she let the high king lead her away.

"I don't want to take you from your dinner," Eviz said, careful to walk slightly behind him to demonstrate respect.

"My brother and sisters will keep Prince Rabadash occupied," he said with a smirk. "We all know he's only here to get to know Queen Susan and obtain more land for Calormen in the process."

Eviz raised an eyebrow, impressed at how the high king was already aware of the prince's temperament in the short amount of time they had spent together. She followed silently from hallway to hallway, corridor to corridor, admiring the extravagance surrounding her and carefully observing the high king. He must be a fair ruler, for every courtier and creature they encountered greeted him with enthusiasm and a deep bow. It was so unlike what she had seen with the Tisroc and the prince, whose courtiers and slaves bowed to them out of fear rather than respect. The high king carried a very solemn expression, but she could see from the way his eyes sparkled and his relaxed shoulders that he had a very pleasant demeanor.

He at last stopped in front of a pair of small, wooden doors.

"I'll leave you here," he said. "I must return to the banquet before Queen Susan notices my absence. This is where the fauns store their instruments. They won't mind a bit if you borrow a dulcimer during your stay."

Her eyes grew wide once more. "Fauns?"

He laughed. "They're our court musicians. Queen Lucy swears that they make the best music in all of Narnia!"

"I hope I'll be able to hear them while I'm here," Eviz said. The high king smiled and she was pleased to see that he did not perceive her comment as disrespectful as it would have been in Tashbaan.

"They perform at dinner every evening," he said. "I look forward to hearing your playing as well."

He bowed his head and bid her goodnight. She watched him go until he rounded the corner and out of view. What an extraordinary place this Narnia was! There was no hatred, enslavement, or fear among its subjects. Why had this Aslan put his blessing on Narnia but not the surrounding kingdoms?

Her breath was taken away when she entered the small room. Lutes, harps, recorders, dulcimers, and small drums decorated every corner. Her fingers lightly traced over the carvings on one of the small dulcimers near the door. Just under the bridge, there was a small carving of a lamppost, a faun, and a little girl. Entranced, she took it off the wall and sat down, beginning to gently pluck a light melody.

The music floated from her fingertips, filling the air with its bittersweet tones and haunting harmonies. She could tell this instrument had been crafted by a highly skilled musician, as it was far superior than any instrument she had played in Tashbaan. She glanced at the many other dulcimers on the wall, but knew this particular one would be the one she would borrow. Besides, if the prince was to have her play for the Narnian court, she'd want to play her best to repay the high king.

She tucked the dulcimer under her arm and tiptoed from the room. When she rounded the corner, trying desperately to remember the direction the high king had brought her from, she let out a cry of fright as she came face to face with a wolf.

"My apologies," it said. "I didn't mean to startle you. High King Peter sent me to help you back to your sleeping quarters. THe palace is quite large and can be very confusing to navigate in the dark."

She nodded slowly, still not entirely comfortable yet with the idea of talking animals.

"Your name is Eviz?" the wolf asked. She nodded again. The wolf motioned to the dulcimer. "My name is Ardas, the high king's personal guard. I see you found Mr. Tumnus's dulcimer."

She glanced down at the instrument, her heart sinking. "I didn't know it belonged to someone. I can get another—"

"There's no need," Ardas said. "He'd be glad for you to use it. He's the kings and queens' chief advisor and hardly has time to play anyway. Come, I must help you back so I can return to the high king."

As she sat in one of the small washrooms that night tending to the bruise that was forming on her cheek, she couldn't help but let her mind wander to the high king. Surely if Narnia was as fair and just as it seemed, she could use this opportunity to escape her Calormene enslavement.

She shook those dangerous thoughts from her head. No, she thought. Continue to wait for the right opportunity. Just be patient a little while longer...