So, here's the chapter xXFlapjackXx has been waiting for! Bexxii, you'll meet your character in this chapter! Yay! I hope you don't mind, but I creeped on your profile and learned a little bit about you before I created your character! And, because you were my first reviewer, your character will keep reappearing in my story until the end! Hope you enjoy it Bexxii!
"I told you not to leave the room, under Queen Susan's orders! And what do you do? You not only leave the room, but you return covered in grime and sweat!" Merie exclaimed as she scrubbed my hair for the second time that day. I smiled at her guiltily.
"I'm sorry, Merie." I murmured, wincing as she tugged my hair in her irritation.
"Well, you should be. Aslan only knows if you'll turn out pretty enough for the ball tonight. Queen Susan will throw a fit when she realizes you didn't abide by her rules." Merie tisked at me as she pulled me out of the tub. I blushed at my nudity but said nothing for fear of being scolded some more.
Merie dried me off herself. She then told me to stay put before flitting from the bathroom. She returned with a small silk slip and demanded I put it on. I did so quickly.
She ushered me over to the mirror and began styling my hair. The styling took such a while that I nearly fell asleep. Merie shook me when she was done and I was pleased with the outcome. She had left my hair mostly down, with only half of it up in a plaited bun. Gold flowers were woven throughout the plait beautifully. I commended her on such an amazing job and she merely waved my gratitude off.
"You may not like it, Miss, but I will apply charcoal to your eyes." Merie stated, giving a look that clearly said I had no room to argue. Instead of even attempting to argue, I scowled at her. She fetched the dark charcoal and proceeded to paint my eyes.
"Not too much, please." I begged. She nodded her head.
"You wouldn't look natural with too much, Miss." She agreed. I left out a big sigh of relief and allowed her to finish her job.
When she was finally finished applying my makeup, she ushered me out of the bathroom before I could see the outcome and made me sit on my bed. She then darted over to my closet and pulled from it a beautiful red silk gown with gold stitching. I gasped in delight and stood up.
"Mrs. Beaver brought it by while you were out." Merie stated, giving me another irritated look at the mention of my leaving the room. I grinned bashfully at her and she continued.
"There is no time now to get it altered should it not fit because of your escapade, so we must pray to Aslan that it needs no adjustments." Merie then motioned for me to turn around. I did so and she pulled a corset around my front and tied it in place. I frowned at the contraption and was scolded for doing so, being told that gentlemen don't like women who frown. Not that I cared anyway.
She then gingerly held out the dress for me to put on and I did so with enthusiasm. The dress fit perfectly, and at discovering so, Merie let out a whoop of joy and tied the back for me. She then grabbed a pair of gold slippers for me to wear.
She rushed me towards the mirror and I was shocked to see my reflection. I looked completely different. The dark red of the gown made my hair look redder, and the gold of the gown made my eyes golder. As I was staring at my reflection, Merie slipped something around my neck. I looked down and saw Edmund's necklace. I smiled softly and touched the beautiful piece of jewelry.
I didn't have much more time to admire Merie's handiwork before she was ushering me out of my room. I followed her down many hallways before we reached the double doors to the thrown room Lucy had shown me a few days ago. There was a great commotion coming from inside them and I felt my gut twist in nerves.
Merie turned to me. "You're a little late, but you needn't worry. No one will notice your tardiness."
She pushed open one of the grand doors and ushered me inside. Much to my immense horror, the door creaked as it was being opened and several hundred pairs of eyes turned to me and Merie. I froze up and began to back up towards the exit, but Merie's petal soft hands blocked my escape. My eyes drifted up to the dais, upon which the Kings and Queens were sitting, each one of them watching me with amusement. My eyes caught Edmund's, whose were filled with laughter. A small grin played on his face and I felt my already burning cheeks reignite. Merie dragged me away from my position in front of the grand doors and away, thankfully, from the gaze of the entire ballroom.
"No one will notice!" I hissed at her as soon as everyone turned their gazes back to the dais, where Peter was now making a speech.
Merie giggled and led me through the crowd to stand by a column near the refreshment table. "My apologies, Miss Ashlynn. I did not know the door would make such a racket! Though, I do believe every eligible gentleman was pleased with what they found when they looked towards the noise." Merie winked at me and I scowled at her.
"Do not get any ideas. I did not appear in Narnia to get married or courted or whatever it's called. And do not mention anything about eligible men around Peter. Aslan knows that will excite him with ideas of arranged marriages for his sisters, and more than likely myself as well." I paused after speaking at the look on Merie's face.
"What?" I asked.
"You used Aslan's name." She replied quietly, with a small smile.
"I did what?"
"You said, 'Aslan only knows.'" She explained, her smile growing wider.
"I did?" I questioned, thinking back on my sentence. "I suppose I did. Didn't I say it right, though?"
"Oh yes! Yes you did!" Merie replied gleefully. I smiled at her enthusiasm and turned away from her. Peter's speech was finished and he and his siblings were all starting the ball with dances together. Peter and Susan paired up first and began a slow Narnian waltz, and were soon followed by Edmund and Lucy. The four danced alone for only a few minutes before other creatures and guests started following suit as well. Colors flew by my eyes and I found myself smiling at the sight. Creatures of all sorts glided their way across the dance floor and my imagination was blown away.
I turned to look at Merie who was eyeing the dance floor with a look of longing.
"Go ahead, Merie. I can see it in your eyes. You want to dance." I smiled and her and encouraged her to go out and dance. She smiled widely at me and placed a flowery kiss on my cheek before darting onto the dance floor.
I found myself alone as I watched the dancers. I looked all over the ballroom for someone I could recognize. Susan was dancing with a dark man who was wearing excessively fine clothing. Lucy was dancing with a faun, and looked very happy doing so. Peter was dancing with a young girl no older than fifteen or sixteen and she seemed completely ecstatic about dancing with the High King. She had a small, gold crown on her head and was wearing a pretty blue dress. I caught Peter's eye and gave him a polite smile and nod and he returned the motion. I couldn't help but laugh at the poor girl's failure to grab the kings entire attention and Peter happened to catch my amusement. He gave me a knowing smile before I lost sight of him in the crowd. I looked around the room nonchalantly, not admitting even to myself that I was searching for a certain someone. I found myself disappointed at not finding him, but told myself he was probably preoccupied.
"It truly is strange to find Narnia's most eloquent dancer playing the part of wallflower." An amused voice commented behind me. I turned and saw Edmund standing behind me, looking as handsome as ever with his cheeky grin. For a split second, I imagined the look on his face if I were pull him in and kiss him hard on the mouth. That would probably wipe off his devilishly handsome and cheeky grin, and hopefully lead to other enjoyable practices. I wiped the thought quickly from my mind with a small blush.
I looked up at him and smiled. "I wouldn't want to outdo anyone on the floor so soon. I'm standing here because I want them to think that I don't know how to dance or I am too shy to dance. That way, whichever potential dance partner approaches me will have confidence. Should I dance now, the eligible males in the room will refuse to dance with me for fear of hurting their ego." I replied jokingly. Edmund let out a hearty laugh before bowing grandly in front of me.
"May I have the next dance, Lady Ashlynn?"
"And demolish your ego, Your Highness?"
"I think, for a dance with you, I shall take the chances with my ego." Our eyes locked and I saw the deep meaning behind his words. My heart dropped nervously from the intensity in his eyes and I blushed and accepted his offer. He led me out to the dance floor and began expertly twirling me around.
"I see your dance lessons were beneficial." He commented with a teasing smile. I couldn't help but smile back, my heart still thumping crazily.
"Indeed. I didn't know you were such a fine dancer yourself, King Edmund."
"Please, just Edmund." He insisted, dipping me elegantly.
"Okay, just Edmund." I replied when he brought me back up. He smiled at my taunt and we continued dancing. I found myself caught in his dark gaze. I looked away quickly in embarrassment, but found him still watching me when I peeked back at him.
"You look beautiful tonight, Ashlynn." He commented quietly.
My face burned immediately after his compliment and I muttered a 'thank you' without looking at him in the eyes. He chuckled at my behavior and we fell silent.
"I'm sorry for my behavior during our duel earlier this evening." He stated after a few quiet minutes if dancing.
"No, no. Really, it's fine. You needn't apologize." I stuttered, shocked at his apology.
"It's getting harder and harder for me to see you and not think you are she." He confessed quietly. My heart stopped and all the heat in my face left. I felt sorry for him, I truly did, but he was only bestowing attention upon me because I looked and acted like his Ashlynn.
I pulled away from him, hurt covering my face. I had known all along that the only reason he let me keep her necklace, and the only reason he spoke to me, and the only reason he even looked at me was because I reminded him of her. That fact didn't make it hurt any less though.
A look of confusion crossed his face as we stood apart with couples dancing around us.
"I'm not Ashlynn." I whispered, not looking in his face. I stared at the ground angrily, my head tilted slightly, and my fists clenched at my side. He was quiet. The dancers around us glanced at us every so often in curiosity.
"I..." Edmund started, but stopped himself. His face hardened as he looked down at me. "Are you sure? Are you one hundred percent positive that you are not the Ashlynn that my siblings and I loved?" He questioned harshly.
"I am one hundred percent positive." I hissed back. He moved his face closer to mine.
"How can you be? Just earlier today you discovered a hidden talent. A talent, in fact, that my Ashlynn was quite good at. You don't just get lucky with a sword." He inched closer to me with every statement, causing my heart to speed up and dance along with the creatures around us. "Not only that, but you discovered the necklace that Ashlynn wore at all times. You did, of all people. You were drawn to it and fell in love with it upon first sight. Ashlynn never took that necklace off. Ever. Enemies identified her because of the necklace she wore, much to my dismay. But let's not forget the fact that you look every inch of her, excluding your eyes and face; you move like her, you talk like her. Ashlynn used to say that torment was way of identifying the truth of feelings. What was it you told me earlier on the practice field?"
My heart stopped momentarily, the second time in only a few minutes. Was I sure that I wasn't Ashlynn? My face must have held some kind of conflicting emotion, because Edmund's face softened slightly.
"You are Ashlynn." He whispered, grabbing my face. I shoved his hands off and left the dance floor as fast as I could without running. I didn't have to look behind me to know that he was following me. I exited the ballroom through a pair of glass doors and found myself on a balcony overlooking the beach.
"Please, Ashlynn, just listen to me." Edmund pleaded when we were away from the creatures in the ball.
I closed my eyes tightly and clenched my fists.
"It can't be possible." I whispered, frightfully looking at Edmund. "I have memories. I do. I'm from Orlando, Florida. My birthday is December 25; Christmas, I know. I'm an only child. My mother's name is Leah. My fathers name is Will. I learned to play the guitar when I was twelve. I played soccer for ten years before breaking my leg and quitting. But I don't remember coming to Narnia before. Ever. I don't remember talking animals, mythical creatures, and tree people. I don't remember Peter, or Susan, or Lucy, or you. How can I be someone and not know it?"
"Aslan works in mysterious ways. There is a reason you are here, and a reason you disappeared last year." Edmund replied quietly with a smile, walking closer to me. I backed away from him.
"I've never been to Narnia before. I am not Ashlynn." I hissed, reminding him that I was not his beloved. His face fell slightly and he took a step away from me.
"You are identical." He muttered, not intending for me to hear.
"Yes. We have established the fact that I look like her already. But, how do you explain the eyes? And hair? Hm? How do you explain those? Did Ashlynn have Aslan's eyes? Was her hair the color of his mane?" I questioned, taking two steps towards Edmund. He stared at me for a few seconds before looking to the ground and shaking his head.
"Aslan works in mysterious ways, huh? Well, maybe all of you are right." Edmund's eyes shot up to mine in shock. "Maybe. I will admit that my eyes and my hair resembling that of a lion's is weird. And the fact that every creature that comes into contact with me has some sort of religious epiphany or has something to say about my appearance or my 'calming aura' is weird too. And, don't think I'm crazy, but I'm pretty sure that I've been hallucinating about my reflection being that of a female lion." Edmund's eyes widened in shock and confusion.
"What?" He questioned taking a few steps towards me. He was close enough now that if I really wanted to, I could have reached up and brushed the curl of dark hair away from his eyes, and close enough that I could feel his breath on my face. I know even now that it wasn't appropriate of me at the time to admire Edmund's height and body as he loomed slightly over me in close proximity, and it surely wasn't appropriate of me to imagine him looming over me in a far more sexual manner; but I did give myself a few seconds of pleasure to do so before continuing.
"I'll explain later. It's weird that I look and talk and act like Ashlynn. It is. So maybe all of you are right. Maybe I am her. I mean, as all of you say, Aslan works in mysterious ways." I paused as Edmund smiled down at me. "But I don't remember anything, and I won't pretend that I do. So, until this Aslan shows up and tells us what all is going on, I'm the Ashlynn you don't know; not the Ashlynn you love." I stepped away from him as his smile faltered and fell.
"And I would appreciate it if you would stop treating me like I am her."
Edmund watched me for a few minutes with a grim look on his face before turning his gaze towards the sea. He stood like that for a few seconds before nodding his head and walking away without saying anything to me. I narrowed my eyes at his retreating back, but didn't call out to him like I had the urge to. Instead, I huffed and returned to the ball.
Edmund was no where to be seen, which didn't surprise me. He had probably turned in for the night. I found myself being led around the dance floor by a few different partners over the course of the night, King Peter being one of them. He had asked me what Edmund and I had discussed that had left him so 'put out,' as he put it. I told him it was nothing of serious consequence and he dropped it.
I found myself sitting alone near the end of the ball at a table hidden in a corner. I was still irked from mine and Edmund's confrontation and found I couldn't stop thinking about it. As I was sitting there, the young girl I had noticed Peter dancing with earlier approached me. She had a scowl on her face, but didn't seem to notice me sitting like a recluse at my table. As she was walking by me, she tripped on her dress and would have fallen down had I not reached out and steadied. Her golden crown, however, fell off of her head and rolled away.
I chuckled as she stood up and jerked her arm out of my grasp with a huff and took off after the crown. I shrugged my shoulders at her grouchiness and sat back down at my table to continue pouting. A few minutes later, I heard footsteps approaching me. I turned and looked behind myself only to see the young girl from before, her crown back on her curly brown head and her scowl replaced with a guilty look.
"I'm sorry about my rudeness earlier." She apologized quietly, looking at the gold heels on her feet.
I watched her for a few seconds before nodding and saying, "No harm, no foul."
She looked up and gave me an odd look. "What is your name?" She asked.
"Ashlynn. Uh, Lady Ashlynn, I mean." She nodded her head in acknowledgment and we were quiet for a few moments.
"My name is Rebecca." She said, without my having asked for her name.
"Princess Rebecca of Archenland?" I asked, connecting her crown to the gossip I had heard in my dance lessons about the monarchs of Archenland coming to the palace. Apparently, Princess Rebecca was eligible for marriage and her parent wanted her married into the Narnia royal family.
"Unfortunately." She mumbled before flopping into a chair beside me in a very un-princessly manner.
I looked over the young girl and couldn't imagine her actually being eligible for marriage. She was way too young.
"May I ask why you were so upset earlier?" I asked cautiously.
"Father wants me to get married and move away from Archenland!" She exclaimed unhappily. I was only now just informed that he is currently trying to choose for me a husband." She pouted and crossed her arms.
"Shouldn't it be your decision when and who you marry?" I pointed out.
"Yes! Which is why I'm upset. I'm not eligible to take the throne now that my mother has had a son, so now my father wants to marry me off! He says that I'm too immature and silly and that if he doesn't marry me off now, I'll never be married. It's unfair! Not that I ever wanted the throne. I don't even want to be a princess."
"I thought every girl wanted to be a princess." I said jokingly, trying to lighten the situation.
Princess Rebecca gave me a pointed look. "Do you wish you were a princess?"
I shook my head. "Well, I wish I weren't. And that's exactly what I told my father and because I was being "childish" I have to leave in the morning! We were supposed to stay in Narnia for a week and tour the country, but now I'm being sent home!" She exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration. "All of my cousins have been all over Narnia! It's just so unfair!"
I gave her a sympathetic look. "Maybe if you try and act more mature, your father won't try and marry you off."
"I'm not immature!" She yelled, tears filling her eyes.
"That was very mature." I said sarcastically.
"Fine. How does one act mature?" She asked, still pouting.
"Well, I know this is going to be hypocritical of me, but pouting isn't mature. Neither is telling your father, who is king, that you don't want to be a princess. You were born into privilege and with that comes certain obligations." My mind recalled the conversation Lucy, Edmund, and I had in the throne room a few days ago about arranged marriages. "The duties of a king, or queen, or even princess requires sacrifice."
Rebecca watched me with watery eyes. "How do you know all that if you aren't royal?"
"It doesn't take royalty to know that those with power have to make sacrifices if they want to be good."
She nodded her head and looked down at the ground.
"I do suppose I could do better in my lessons. And I should probably apologize to Father."
"Maybe if you promise to try and act mature, he will revoke his marriage plans." I offered. She gave me a hopeful smile.
"Perhaps you are right, Lady Ashlynn." Princess Rebecca stood up and flattened out the fabric on her dress. She wiped her face gingerly and looked back at me.
"Do you mind if I write to you for advice, Lady Ashlynn?" She asked nicely.
I smiled at her. "Of course, Prince Rebecca."
"You can just call be Becky." She smiled back.
"Princess Rebecca!" I heard a voice shout. I looked over and saw a maid come running towards Becky. "Princess, your father has been looking for you! You should go find him before you get into more trouble.
"Thank you, Louise." Becky turned to me and smiled. "Thank you again, Lady Ashlynn. I will write you as soon as I return to Archenland!" I smiled at her and said goodbye.
I ended up leaving the ball immediately after Becky had left me alone at my table. I was looking forward to having a friend outside of Cair Paravel. The thought of having a new friend brought my mind back to Edmund. I scowled at the thought of him ruining my first ball. Of course, I knew the reason I didn't enjoy it was because a certain absent dark king was on my mind, and dirty thoughts weren't the only thoughts I was thinking about him.
I hope you don't mind that I used the name "Becky" and "Rebecca" for your character, Bexxii. I needed a princessly name and I figured as Ashlynn's and Princess Becky's friendship developed, Ashlynn would come up with the nickname "Bexxii" for Becky. :) Thank you again for being such a loyal reviewer! I will name the next Reviewer of the Month (for November) next update! REVIEW, REVIEW, REVIEW and maybe YOU will be the next character in my story! (lol.)