I received my first review! Yay! Thank you so much Bexxii! It's good to know that my story is being enjoyed! So, since Bexxii is my first reviewer EVER, she gets my Reviewer of the Month award! Woo Bexxii! Look for your name in my story in an update soon!
In the end, dance lessons did prove to be a good idea. Narnian dances were a lot more complicated than I had predicted and I could not have just learned them from watching other dancers. Several times throughout the lessons my instructor commented on my natural talent. I couldn't decide if he was bluffing in order to earn my affections, or being sincere. He kept congratulating me on my grace and poise, and at one point I couldn't help but snort.
"Whatever is the matter, Milady?" The faun inquired as everyone in the lesson turned to look at me.
"Nothing. So sorry for the interruption. Please, proceed." I responding, blushing furiously.
Every dance partner I had during the lesson had commented on my eyes and my "comforting aura." I was getting used to these comments, but I still had yet to figure out who this Aslan character was. Apparently, he created Narnia, defeated some witch, placed the Pevensie's as the monarchs, and was a lion. Everyone was keen to talk about how glorious he was, but no one seemed to know where he was. I was beginning to doubt his existence.
After my dance lessons, I was whisked away by Queen Susan, who had overseen the lessons, to the market to find material for a ball gown.
The market was very busy and colorful and full of grand multitudes of creatures. Each creature would greet the queen with a bow and me with a shocked glance and an inquiry of "the great lion." Susan would always answer for me before bidding the creatures farewell.
"Thanks for that." I muttered after Susan had shooed away a minotaur who had fearfully fallen to his knees before me exclaiming that he would give his life for Aslan in repentance for his sins if I saw fit.
"It is no trouble. The people of Narnia are fiercely loyal to Aslan. Your resemblance to him makes them believe that you are a messenger from him." Susan stated as she walked over to a stand. "Blue or red?" She asked, holding out two separate materials for me to choose between. I chose the red silk.
"Do you think I am?" I asked her, referring to being Aslan's messenger. She glanced at me before paying the vendor for the material. She handed the material to the servant who was walking with us.
"I'm not sure. You have no recollection of being so, but Aslan works in mysterious ways. You could be without knowledge of being so. Or, it could just be coincidence that you resemble him so." She stated, ushering me along to another booth.
This particular booth sold jewelry and I was immediately captivated with a silver necklace. The necklace had a small silver chain and at the end of the chain there was a small pendant. An intricate, linear design fell into a "v" shape and at the end of the shape, a red stone dangled.
I reached out to touch the necklace and a hand slapped my wrist away. I looked up and saw an angry looking man who immediately began apologizing as soon as he saw my eyes.
"I'm terribly sorry, Miss. I thought you were one of the young scoundrels who runs through here and snatches items off my table.
I shook his apology off. "Don't worry about it. How much for this piece?" I asked.
He looked down and his eyes widened at the necklace. "Oh, a heavy price indeed. 100 Narnian gold credits. I found this beauty in the Western Woods, Milady. I was on my way here from my tour of Narnia, I am Archenlandish and am here for the Fall Market, when I stumbled upon a clearing in the wood. In the center of the clearing was a stone table of sorts, not unlike your infamous Aslan's stone table, which I did see, but this one was much smaller and not broken. And it was made of marble; pure marble. It was polished so that the light falling from the sky and hitting it directly caused diamond like sparkles to decorate the entire clearing."
I was watching him wide eyed as he told his story. A deep yearning within my heart ached and I felt as though I needed to see this marble table myself.
"Upon the table lay this silver necklace." He stated proudly with a smile.
"So you took it?" I asked disbelievingly.
He started and looked at me abashedly. "Should I not have claimed such a beautiful necklace, Milady?"
"Of course not!" I heard Susan exclaim beside me. I had not realized she was there until she walked up beside me.
"If such a table as you suggests exists, then the necklace upon it belonged to whosoever the table belonged." Susan stated logically as she stopped beside me.
"Which necklace has caused such a story?" Susan asked regally. I smiled at her and pointed at the necklace.
"It's very beautiful, is it not? 100 Narnian gold credits, the man says. If I had money I would surely buy it. It is the most beautiful piece I have ever seen." I stated with a sad smile. I looked up at Susan and saw she was pale and her eyes were wide.
"You say you found this necklace in the Western Woods?" She asked shakily.
"Yes, your majesty." The man confirmed.
"This is property of the Kings and Queens of Narnia and I am confiscating it." Susan stated angrily.
The male blanched. "I am sorry, your Majesty. I had no idea that this belonged to you. Please, take it."
Susan gingerly lifted the necklace off of the table and ushered me away. She walked at such a fast pace that I thought I would lose her in the crowd.
"Susan!" I called, but she didn't halt or slow down. I continued to call her name until we reached the castle. She stopped and I nearly ran to her. I ran around her to face her and ask her what was wrong, when I saw she was crying.
"Susan, are you alright? What's wrong?" I fretted, unsure of what else to do.
"This necklace..." She paused, letting out a sob.
I looked around and saw a few creatures watching on curiously.
"Come on, lets get you inside." I instructed, ushering her into the castle. When we were inside, I rushed her to her room and asked a servant to fetch a glass of water.
"Susan, really, what's wrong?" I asked after calming her down some. She sat down on her couch and I sat down next to her.
"You found this necklace at the man's table, correct?" She asked, sniffing and attempting to control herself. She held the necklace out to me and I took it from her hands gently.
"Yes. I was walking by and it caught my eye and I was immediately drawn to it." I replied, cradling it in my hands. "I suppose it makes sense that something so nice belongs to you or Lucy."
"It doesn't belong to me or my sister." Susan stated, sitting up straighter. I looked at her with furrowed eyebrows.
"It belonged to Ashlynn. Edmund had it made for her when they started courting. She never took it off. It was her signature piece of jewelry. There is none other like it." She explained. I paled.
"She was riding through the Western Woods when she disappeared." I stated in horror, remembering Lucy's story. "He found this necklace in the Western Woods."
Susan nodded quickly, tears springing to her eyes again. I held the necklace out for her to take but she shook her head.
"No, you keep it." She said, forcing back her tears.
"Susan, I can't." I stuttered, still holding it out for her.
"Ashlynn, please!" She shouted. I flinched and she calmed down and apologized. "You may not be the Ashlynn my siblings and I all knew in loved, but in essence, you are she. Aslan has a plan for you, I know he does. Your hair and your eyes and your mind may not be Ashlynn's, but your body most certainly is. You move like she did, talk like she did. You are drawn to the same things as she was. This necklace was her most prized and favorite possession, and you found it and fell in love with it in only a moment."
I was silent, not wanting to object and make her even sadder.
"Aslan has a reason for everything, and the reason for why you look, and sound, and move, and share the same name as Ashlynn will be revealed in time." She reached out and took the necklace from me gently. I allowed her to do so, and found myself longing to have it back. She motioned for me to turn around and I did so slowly, knowing what she was doing. She unclasped the necklace and put it around my neck, clasping back in place. I turned back to her and she stared at the necklace around my neck, surely remembering her best friend.
"It is only a necklace, and yet it was a symbol for everything Ashlynn represented and loved." Susan whispered. I reached up and touched the necklace fondly. Her eyes moved up to my face. "You are the perfect combination of Aslan and Ashlynn."
I smiled softly. "How funny is it that those names are so similar?" I commented.
Susan's face fell into contemplation. "It is quite strange, isn't it?"
"More like ironic, or coincidental." I replied, looking down at the necklace again.
Suddenly, Susan stood up. "If it is all right with you, Lady Ashlynn, I should like to take my leave. I need to discuss something with my siblings."
I stood up quickly to match her. "Of course, Your Majesty." I replied, still trying to get used to having to use correct courtly vocabulary. She curtsied and I did the same. I left her room and returned to mine.
When I reached my room, I went immediately to my mirror and stared into it. My face was the same as it had always been; heart shaped and small. My nose was a little too large, or so I thought. My eyes, though the same shape, were no longer the blue color that I had always adored. My eyes used to be my favorite part of my body. Now, they had become something strange and bothersome for me. The golden hue was bright and unusual. My eyes no longer fit with my face. My hair, although it had always had a hint of strawberry blonde coloring in it, was now more pronounced in its orangeness. The unfamiliarity of my once prominent features caused my eyes to water. I looked the same, but I also looked very different. It's amazing how changing your hair, or changing your eyes can drastically change the way you look.
My gaze drifted to the beautiful necklace around my neck. It fit; almost as though it belonged only to me; was made only for me to wear. I reached out and touched it, almost as if it were a habit of mine.
I looked down at the necklace for a moment, before looking back up into the mirror. What I saw made my heart stop and caused me to scream out in terror. I threw myself backwards, screaming, and fell to the ground. The image remained. After I stopped screaming, I gazed at it in wonder and horror, for the reflection before me was no longer of me. It was of a small, female lion with fur the same color as my hair, and eyes the same color as mine, and a look of wonder and horror decorating it's face as it crouched on the ground and looked right back at me.
Thank you so much! FYI: I'm going to choose the most helpful reviews every month and use the reviewers name in a part of my story. I think this will be a fun way to get all you readers involved in my story. :) Cheerio! Review!