There once was a 21st century English-American girl who was strange by the day’s standards. She was a bookworm and not very good at making friends. In fact, she was proud to be called “weird” or “odd”, and even her own relations did not understand this. However, those who knew her loved her, and for this she was grateful.
Now this girl was near coming of age, and she clung to the one child-like obsession of her life, The Chronicles of Narnia. Little did she know of the adventures that she would soon encounter.
One day, as our heroine was preparing for bed, she wrapped herself in her shawl and opened her bedroom window. The sweet spring breeze softly blew upon her face. Suddenly, she thought she heard music far off. She closed her eyes and strained to hear the lovely tune. It was almost magical. The song grew louder and louder as if it were approaching, but still the girl kept her eyes shut. The breeze grew warmer and warmer, and its pauses more often, like a great breath. The music stopped. The girl opened her eyes to find herself in a desert-like place with a few grassy plants dotting here and there. Right in front of her was the biggest lion she had ever seen in her life. But this was no ordinary lion. It was the lion that she had always wanted to meet, and yet feared: Aslan himself. The girl fell on her face before him, weeping tears of joy. Giving her a gentle lion kiss on the head, Aslan said, “Rise, my child, for I have a task for you.”
Obediently getting up, the girl kept her eyes on the ground. “I have been searching for one who could become a princess. What think you? Are you equal to the task?”
“Oh, Aslan, it sounds wonderful, but a princess’s job is to be an heir, and I know nothing about ruling.”
“You always were afraid of large responsibilities. However, you shall learn all you need to learn.”
“Please, sir, who’s princess would I be?”
“You shall be heir to the Pevensies, if you agree to the terms.”
“Oh, Aslan! I’ve always wanted to simply meet the four kings and queens; but to live with them is a great honor! What are the terms?”
“You must rule after them when they are gone, which means that you must bear the burden of their majesties leaving,” replied Aslan. “You will also be completely forgotten, so you must destroy any written record of you.”
“I’ll be their princess,” resolved the girl.
“Then wrap your shawl tight, for you may get chilly,” said the lion, and with that he breathed on her. However, as she felt herself traveling on the air, the girl heard Aslan telling her, “Now you must deliver this message to the kings and queens so that they know your purpose: ‘This is she of whom I spoke.’ Tell them I sent this message, and all will be well. Remember, it is for their ears only.”
Just as Aslan’s words ended, the girl landed in front of the great castle of Cair Paravel. She walked toward the gate, and timidly said to the guard, “I have a message for their majesties.”
The guard, who was a faun, started in surprise. “From who m-might a strangely c-clad girl bring a m-message from?” he stammered
“It is only for their majesties to know,” replied the girl uncomfortably. She looked down at her green polyester pajama trousers and cotton off-white camisole, and realized that her entry would indeed be a most awkward one. “Thank goodness I put on my pashmina shawl,” she whispered to herself.
The faun said, “Wait here,” and left her for what seemed like hours. When he returned, he said, “Come in, and follow the badger, daughter of Eve.”
“Yes, sir, thank you, sir,” she replied.
Down the grand halls the girl followed the badger. It was a cheery place with murals of past battles and merry-making scenes on the walls and beautifully crafted furniture. At last, the badger stopped at a large door. “Their majesties are just finishing a meal, so please wait one moment,” he said. He slipped in the door, but came back in only a few moments. He gently pulled the girl in the door, but motioned to keep quiet. “A traveler with a private message for you, your majesties,” he announced, and then he left the girl with the kings and queens.
Now the throne room was large with a simple dais where the kings and queens sat. All was made of white marble and gold, and the only other color was upon their highness’ clothes. The robes they wore were beautiful, but not complex, and looked comfortable to wear. Their crowns rested lightly on their heads, and they shone like stars. As you can imagine, our adventurer felt quite out of place.
“From whom is your message?” asked the first king.
He must be Peter, thought the girl, and she replied, “Aslan, sir.”
The kings and queens started at the name of Aslan, and looked at one another in astonishment. “Why did you not say so to our guard? Had we known, we would have admitted you immediately,” said the first queen.
That must be Susan, the motherly one, thought the girl. “I thought it best that it be kept a secret to prevent talk from spreading.”
“Speak, and give us your message,” King Peter gently commanded.
Taking a deep breath, the girl said, “Aslan says, ‘This is she of whom I spoke.’ ”
The second queen, Lucy, put her hands over her mouth in surprise and joy. Putting her hands down, she said, “Oh, my dear, come hither so that we may see you better. There. Oh, she is so wonderful! Our princess has come!” Queen Lucy embraced the girl as if she’d known her all her life, and they’d been separated for years. King Peter and Queen Susan soon joined their sister in a group hug. The second king, Edmund, stood back and stared at the scene in hesitation.
“What is your name, child?” King Edmund asked
Too overwhelmed with joy, the girl answered, “Oh, I don’t care! Call me whatever you like. Then you can claim me as your own.” King Edmund’s hesitation melted away when she said this, and he embraced her with a smile. “What shall I call all of you?” asked the new princess.
“Well, I suppose that you could give us nicknames or affectionate titles,” said King Peter.
“Might I call you my aunts and uncles?” offered the princess. Smiling, the four agreed, and that is what she continued to call them.
Now giving names is a rather careful procedure in Narnia. One does not give their child an ugly name unless they truly hate them, and that rarely happens. After days of much debating, the kings and queens came to the princess and announced to her, “We have decided to name you Esterami, which means ‘beloved star’.”
“If you don’t mind, we’ll call you Amy for short,” added Aunt Lucy.
“It’s a beautiful name. And I don’t mind being called Amy, for I had a very good friend by that name,” replied the girl.
“Well, your presentation awaits you,” said Aunt Susan. “Come, we’d best find you a good dress for you to wear.” She then took Esterami to her new chamber to do just that.
The presentation was a grand announcement to Narnia that the kings and queens had an heir. This ceremony had not been performed for over a hundred years, due to the White Witch’s reign. People from all over Narnia came, and some from Archenland too. There were fauns, dryads, naiads, dwarves, talking beasts, and humans. All were well dressed and adorned, and much chatter and excitement went about. Many questioned each other, “Where did this heir come from?” “Did they choose Tumnus?” “Have they adopted an Archenlander?” Suddenly, all chatter stopped as silver trumpets announced their majesties. The kings and queens gracefully strode onto a balcony, led by Mr. Tumnus the faun.
King Peter said to the people, “Narnians and Archenlanders, you have gathered here to be presented our heir. She has been sent by Aslan, so no harsh judgment should be made against this choice. I now present to you Esterami!”
Upon this, Esterami walked onto the balcony in regal clothes. As she looked on the crowd, Mr. Tumnus approached her with a starry silver crown on a pillow. She knelt down, and King Peter placed the crown on her head as she swore an oath to study hard in training for her future position, to be forever kind, just, and forgiving to the people, and to respect the alliances wit the surrounding countries. “I give you Esterami, Princess of Narnia, Duchess of Beaversdam, and your future queen!” announced King Peter. A cheer went up from the crowd, and all were happy. After the presentation was a grand feast with fewer persons attending, but still a great deal of introductions. When the feast ended, all said their goodbyes and went to bed.
This night was the first night that Esterami spent in her chambers, and it was very special to her. Once in her nightgown, having bathed and dried her hair, she hopped into bed just in time for their majesties to say goodnight. As they entered, she said, “You’re so kind, you don’t have to put me to bed. Besides, I haven’t been put to bed in years.”
“Well, we’ve never had a child of our own, so we want to at least keep this up,” said Aunt Susan. The other three looked at each other and smiled in agreement. The five of them talked of the day’s happenings cheerfully. However, Esterami noticed that every once in awhile one or more of their majesties would stare lovingly at her, but she said nothing.
At last, Aunt Lucy said, “Well, we’d best go to bed ourselves. Would you mind if we kissed you goodnight?”
Glancing nervously at her uncles, Amy slowly replied, “No, I don’t mind, just restrain it to the cheek.” Accepting this, the four sequentially kissed her cheek with a “good night”. This became a nightly tradition between them.
Just as they were leaving, Uncle Edmund said, “We’ll take you to meet some people on the morrow. Good night, Amy.” The door closed quietly, but left ever so slightly ajar to let a little light in. That night, Esterami slept a sweet deep sleep.
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