After what seemed like an eternity of struggling, a great weight finally lifted from Caity's chest. She was floating in blackness, yet had the strangest sense that it wasn't empty blackness. Like night without moon or stars. And just as that thought occurred, the tiniest hint of light began to show on a horizon ahead.
I've never seen such a clear, beautiful sunrise, she thought in awe.
The light continued to grow, revealing to her a green, gently rolling landscape. Her bare feet touched soft grass. A cool breeze ruffled the skirt of her nightgown. She didn't feel tired or achy here. This place seemed untouched by illness, pain, or despair. Here she felt at peace.
With morning in full bloom, Caity's surroundings deemed it time to reveal the next glorious sight. Out of the distant mists, almost glowing himself, was a huge, kind-faced, golden lion.
"Aslan," Caity breathed. She felt the need to curtsey as the benevolent guardian of Peter's stories drew level with her.
"There is no need for that, dear one. You have suffered much to get here." The lion's voice was as gentle as his eyes, and seemed to fill Caity like wind in a sail.
"Aslan—sir—is this Narnia?"
The great lion laughed, a playful sound that only hinted at the roar he was capable of. Yet it was not mocking. "No, Caity Miller, it is not. We are far across the sea, beyond the eastern end of the world. This is my country. But come this way, and you may see Narnia as it was told to you."
They walked only a short distance when a clear pool opened up in the grass. Scene after scene appeared on its surface, more real than Caity had imagined them. At the coronation of the four kings and queens, there were Peter and his siblings on the thrones at Cair Paravel.
"It's wonderful," she pronounced after the last image had faded. Her attention returned to the landscape around her. "Am I here to stay, Aslan? I suppose leaving the manor behind means…I've died."
The lion didn't move, though Caity knew he was smiling. "Not quite. I have brought you here at the request of a dear friend. He did not seek personal satisfaction or comfort, but wanted in his heart for you to be happy. Once a King or Queen in Narnia, always a King or Queen.
"That wish has been fulfilled. However, it comes with a great price. You may not just share this knowledge with anyone. Only those with an open heart and a child's innocence can receive the gift that you and the Pevensies have been given."
"But how will I know?" asked Caity.
"You will…Peter did. And so I will grant his own wish, which he set aside for yours. You will return to your world. And when you have lived out the years ahead, then you may return to stay here."
Caity nodded, feeling the slightest reluctance to leave her newfound paradise. "I understand, sir." As soon as she said this, the mist closed in and some invisible force began to pull her back the way she'd come. Aslan's farewell was only just audible before the blackness enveloped her once more.