The incompetence of palace security is amazing. We had prior knowledge of the threat, and the new lady was still kidnapped. My Queens Susan and Lucy have been shut in their rooms in grief, which astounds me considering how little they interacted with the lady. I tried to remind my Queen Lucy that she is called the Valiant, but as usual I am ignored.
And so my Kings Peter and Edmund are gone with the royal army, scouring all of Narnia for the girl. If only my monarchs accorded this care for all those who have lived under their reign these past fourteen years…
I do have to admit, though, that the palace has been a much more pleasant place these past few days. With my monarchs either absent or indisposed, my Lord Tumnus and I have the authority to enact the legislation and settle the court cases that have accumulated over the past fourteen years. And the common people are certainly enjoying the quiet as well, especially the seamstresses.
But there is no such thing as peace for a lord and counselor of Narnia. Since my kings left the castle, there has been a sharp rise in incidences of men attempting to break our regulation, or more exactly King Peter's regulation, that no foreign men between the ages of twenty and thirty-five are to be admitted to the palace except during balls. He was quite insistent that this be maintained, for Queen Susan's protection. And so I must continue to enforce this onerous law, despite the fact that I would have been required to take my own leave, when I first arrived in Narnia, had the law had been in effect. The Galmians and Terebinthians are complaining that we accorded special privileges to Prince Rabadash simply because he was Calmorene. They say that we are ignoring their rights simply because, unlike Calmoren, they pose no threat to us. I am afraid that they are right. From the day I became a squire, and even as a young page, a code was impressed on me that one should protect and favor those less fortunate or capable than oneself. I do not understand why my monarchs cannot be made to see this injustice; after all, they were knighted by Aslan himself, an honor that no others, and certainly not myself, can claim. And so the strong take precedence over the weak, and life and our isolation continue.
But I dread the day when the lady returns, as she must eventually. I wish that she could disappear more often. I say…perhaps young Prince Corin could assist me in this matter…
But no, I cannot ask him to go through such torture. I am afraid having that lady at his side would dampen even his fine young spirits.
Perhaps I could enlist a marshwiggle?
This is not meant to attack any story or author. I have and will continue to poke fun at things in my own AU.