A/N

I do not own the Chronicles of Narnia nor do I own the characters that are introduced in the Chronicles of Narnia series. I only own my OC Mari and any other characters that sound unfamiliar in the story.

If anyone looked at Fleetfoot and I as we neared the castle, they would think that we were an odd pair; A hyper, overexcited rabbit and a lost, slightly dazed school girl. What an odd pair indeed. We approached a large golden gate which was guarded by two creatures that looked vaguely familiar. I gasped when I realised what those creatures were…Centaurs. Beings that were created from the realms of fiction, were right before my eyes in flesh and bone. I came to the realization that I definitely wasn't anywhere on earth because as far as I knew…Centaurs and talking animals did not exist. The pair of centaurs stood at attention and eyed us warily. "We need to speak to the kings and queens," Fleetfoot stated confidently.

The centaur to the right arched his eyebrow and replied formally, "Why should we let you see them?"

Fleetfoot pushed my leg slightly to make me step forward. "A daughter of Eve…just like our queens would like to see the kings and queens," The rabbit announced smugly.

The centaur on the left hesitated and the one on the right, sighed. "Very well then," the centaur said, "Allow me to escort you both. Mooncoil, please stand guard while I am away."

The centaur on the left, Mooncoil nodded sharply. "Follow me," the right centaur said as he began to walk into the castle.

Fleetfoot and I ran up to try and catch up with the long strides of the centaur. As we walked through the winding corridors of Cair Paravel, I couldn't help but admire the walls of the castle. Many paintings were hung on the walls which depicted great battles, former kings and queens and Narnian scenery. I wish I had time to admire each painting in depth but unfortunately the centaur was walking way too fast for me to even keep up, much less slow down to watch the pictures. After a few minutes of traversing through the corridors, the creature approached a pair of gigantic and intricate doors that were guarded by fauns. "Great more creatures that apparently exist in this world," I thought, observing the fauns who eyed us with interest.

"Amnus, Orvus. Can you tell High King Peter, King Edmund, Queen Susan and Queen Lucy that there is someone who needs to speak with them urgently," the centaur commanded.

The two fauns nodded and replied, "Yes, Sentry Cygnus."

Amnus and Orvus scurried away to fetch the kings and queens, leaving the three of us alone. The sentry stood silently and Fleetfoot began to shift nervously as his moment of confidence faded away. I began shuffling from one foot to the other until I stopped in panic at the realization that I had no idea how to interact with royalty. "Fleetfoot," I whispered urgently, "How do I act around the Kings and Queens?"

The rabbit began to reply when the two fauns returned to their posts. "They are ready for you," One of the fauns announced.

The two fauns began to open the doors and Sentry Cygnus began to lead Fleetfoot and I into the room. The room was massive with white marble walls and floor to ceiling windows that where lined with delicate gold. There was no doubt that the room was some sort of ballroom or hall. I looked forward and stared in awe as I looked at the thrones and the persons seated on the thrones.

The throne on the extreme right was occupied by a young woman with golden brown hair and blue eyes. On her head rested a silver crown that looked like delicate silver flowers intertwined with one another. She had a kind smile and I felt a little less nervous as I studied her. The woman next to her however, made me feel insecure as I looked at her. Her golden crown sat on top of long black hair that fell gracefully over her shoulders. Her piercing blue eyes seemed to be looking at me in interest and I tried to resist the urge to tuck my shirt back into my skirt and fix my tie to try and impress the graceful woman.

Next to the queen, on her left was a man with blond hair and blue eyes, the same colour as the queen next to him. His face was serious and he seemed to be looking at me in interest as well. The man next to him almost made me jolt in recognition. He looked familiar, with his dark brown hair and dark brown eyes that probably would be beautiful deep pools when he was relaxed. Now, however, his eyes were filled with cold calculation as if he was wary and waiting for me to make a mistake so he would have an excuse to throw me out of the castle. I cursed myself in my head as I realised that that was the man in my daydream from earlier that day. His expression in my daydream was totally different to his expression now and I couldn't help but feel nervous as I observed him.

The sentry finally stopped about 5 feet away from the thrones and bowed to the royals. "Your majesties," Sentry Cygnus greeted, "This rabbit and supposed daughter of Eve asked to speak to you all urgently."

Fleetfoot stood on his hind legs and bowed. "You have to curtsy Miss Mari," Fleetfoot advised in hushed tones.

I heeded his advice and curtsied albeit a bit clumsily. This drew a little giggle from the queen on the extreme right. I could feel my face warming up in embarrassment and I thanked the high heavens that my skin was dark enough for the blush not to show. I wasn't sure who spoke but I heard a deep voice that told us to rise. I did as the voice said and made eye contact with the golden haired man. "Tell me humble rabbit, what brings you here?" The man asked and I assumed that he was the same person who told us to rise.

"Allow me to introduce myself, your majesties," Fleetfoot announced, "I am Fleetfoot and the daughter of Eve next to me is Mari."

Fleetfoot began to describe the events that took place when he met me and thankfully left out the part about me freaking out about his speaking abilities. The royals seemed to pay attention to every word that the bunny had said and when Fleetfoot was finished with his retelling of the story, they seemed to be thinking before turning to me. "Can you tell us what happened before you met Fleetfoot?" the queen with the golden crown asked.

I nodded, "Well, you see… I was at home when the house started shaking but then the walls started to disintegrate and blow away like sand and I found myself in a forest. I had no idea where I was, so I decided to walk and maybe I would have been able to get help and it's around that time that I met Fleetfoot."

They nodded at my explanation and the king with blond hair motioned for his fellow monarchs to lean over so they could talk to each other quietly. I fidgeted nervously. What if they couldn't help me? What if I had to find a place to stay the night if they couldn't help me? Those thoughts ran through my head when the royals finally pulled away from the conversation. The queen with the silver crown spoke softly, "You can stay here in Cair Paravel. We have more than enough rooms to accommodate you in."

My shoulders slumped in relief and I smiled at them gratefully, "Thank you, your majesties."

The two queens smiled back and the older queen called for a faun who I didn't notice was in the hall with us until the queen called her over. "Blossom, Can you please escort Miss Mari to one of the guest chambers? Oh, and can you give Miss Mari some proper attire?" the beauty requested.

The faun nodded and motioned me to follow her. "Can you give me a minute please?" I asked.

I immediately knelt down before receiving a response from the faun. "Well Miss Mari, I guess this is where we shall part ways," Fleetfoot smiled.

I grinned, "Thank you Fleetfoot for all of your help. I hope that this isn't goodbye…I quite enjoyed your company."

The brown bunny hugged me and waved as I finally walked towards the faun and to my new life.