The Great Cat's Daughter

The Telmarines invaded Narnia 1300 years ago. 1300 years since I have seen my best friends, 1300 years since Narnia had peace and Narnians didn't live in fear. Long ago everyone who had true memories of the Pevensie children died all but me that is. We retreated into the woods and hiding expertly we managed to evade the Telmarines. The trees were all connected to each other; but they had nowhere to hide and at the rate that the Telmarines cut them down they had no time to move. The trees eventually had no choice and retreated deeply inside there very souls. I could wake them if I really wanted to but I would never be that cruel to them. One day I knew they would truly live again but for now we had to wait. At least this way they didn't feel the pain as some of them died.

I had taken to hiding in many places over the years. The most recent was I sometimes lived with the Centaurs or joined Reepicheep on his campaign of fighting Telmarines that had come too close to our homes. I first met him when he was just a small mousling, he was so cute but a bit funny looking without his fur. I smiled at the memory, if he ever knew that's what I thought of him he would have my head. He and I became great friends when he was older and he enjoyed listening to me talk about the Golden Age. Some Narnians believed the Kings and Queens of old as they are now called to just be a myth and that Aslan and Aurora never really existed; I would usually appear sometime around then and prove them wrong. I had made other friends as well like Trumpkin a skeptical but loyal dwarf and Trufflehunter a wise happy badger.

My horse Orion became old even before the Battle between Narnians and Telmarines. One day I knew it was time for him to die and I brought him to his favorite meadow, it's been named since then The Dancing Lawn where us Narnians started to meet once a month. Nothing ever exciting happens during the meeting other than people yelling at each other, even that is getting old. I was walking through it now when I spotted the familiar tree I planted so many years ago as a grave marker of Orion for when he died. I gazed at the large evergreen tree tracing the patterns of the bark moving down to the base of the evergreen looking at the vibrant moss growing over it, I got pulled into a familiar memory.

Orion and I discovered a beautiful meadow one day just a few years after the Kings and Queens left and the Telmarines were becoming violent. He absolutely loved the place and I could never understand why. I realized he would be leaving me soon and wanted this here as his final resting place. I planted an oak tree before I collected him to give the meadow some character seeing as it was bare other than wild flowers growing up from the ground. I searched the surrounding area for any soldiers patrolling the area while keeping my senses on high alert. Some of the Narnians would be waiting around just for a precaution if something were to happen. I waited till the sun set and it was now dark out as I walked Orion into the meadow. He stood eating the grass and flowers in contentment for a while before he lay down on the ground. His head started to sway slightly as he could no longer hold it up. I moved behind him and knelt below his head then gently pulled it down until he rested on my legs.

I felt the tears come down my face but smiled at Orion through them as I gently patted his neck. I listened to his shallow breathing become even less frequent. I burst into tears and leaned my forehead down on his head as I wept pouring all the feelings of love and how much I wanted him to live in my tears. I had lived for so long it was lonely, all the friends that I ever had long since died and the new ones I made would die before I did and here he was dying too. I could never understand why I even made friends and cared deeply for someone when I knew they would die and I wouldn't. I stared down into his coal-black eyes that still held such fire in them but I could slowly see that fire start to diminish.

I closed my eyes for a moment squeezing the tears out before opening them and being blinded by a bright white light emitting from my heart and pouring into Orion. I had no idea what was happening and leaned back slightly as the light stretched away with me, I slowly moved closer to it but felt at peace and let whatever was happening continue as my eyes no longer poured tears. I could hardly describe the light with words, it was like a large thread between us that was sparkling a... what I could only call a pure white light with hints of gold crackling through it. It seemed to flow from me to Orion and from him to me. Just looking at it i could tell that it was something I did not want others seeing but thoughts of my guards or other prying eyes were lost in my awe of this spectacle.

The thread made of light pulsed a few times before exploding around us sending me reeling back into the grass as the light enveloped the entire meadow. I squeezed my eyes shut as they screamed from the brightness. A few seconds later I decided to take my chances and opened them again. The white light was gone but instead I was met with pieces of sparkling drops of light coming down like heavy rain to the flowers. My mind never even registered the lack of weight on my legs any more or anything else. I sat up on my knees and looked around the meadow as pieces of the light touched down in the same place seeming to be pulled towards each other. Trees sprouted up in the places they landed, they started out small and then growing taller and taller. It felt like watching a fast-forwarding movie of trees growing; but it was so fast that i only got pictures of each stage of life before it changed again. The tree I had previously planted grew taller than them all. I stared around wide-eyed from the shock when I heard a loud neighing to the right of me and saw Orion standing tall.

I stood up and hesitantly turned towards him and walked closer, I reached my hand out which he moved his brow into forcefully making me stagger backwards. After regaining my footing I looked him over and noticed his chestnut coat had reclaimed its shine and his back had straightened out again not sunken in from old age. I looked down at his black legs greeted with healthy looking joints no longer swollen. I moved to the side and ran my hand down his neck using the other to run my fingers through his once again silky black mane. He looked so much stronger than i had ever seen him, I looked in his eyes and could see the fire back even brighter than before. I laughed happily at how healthy he looked not yet comprehending what had just happened. I wrapped my arms around his neck and hugged him realizing he would never leave me...

I let that memory drift away as I heard a soft neighing come from behind some of the trees. I walked over to the sound greeted to the sight of Orion walking towards me. He still looked the same as he did that night... the night I made him immortal like me. I later discovered I had tethered his life to mine, meaning as long as I lived he would live and as I aged he would age seeing as I now looked about nineteen he looked around eight. I liked to believe I had joined our souls together.

I heard from the Narnians who had seen the event that it was like nothing they had ever seen before. It was such a 'Devine' event as they called it that they had the scholars who depicted the entire events of the golden age and to the battle we had with the Telmarines, which basically told it as a story added it into their books. The picture of it in the books that the scholars had drawn from what the witnesses said they saw, came nowhere near what the events felt like to me. However the picture was still beautiful I would give them that.

I was wearing a dark blue dress, my golden hair cascading down my back with my crown on my head. The picture was wrong on what I was wearing, in reality I was clad in my battle armor with dirt and blood on my face and my hair tied into a messy long braid. I let it go though seeing as it looked much nicer the way they had drawn it. The caption below was written in old Narnian script and if I could recall it said "Aurora the leader of the Narnian army shared her soul with her longtime friend and companion Orion effectively making him Immortal." A bit cheesy but it was to the point. I think below was a more detailed script of what happened; but i never bothered with reading it.

I had not seen the books of Narnian history in a very long time, they were lost when we went into hiding but I could still picture the rest. The top edges had the night sky with stars shining brightly and below us was the grass and flowers, Orion and I contrasted with the white that surrounded us. The only part that they did not include was the thread I saw coming from my heart and going into Orion's. When I asked them why, they said no one saw such a thing. I realized Orion and I had been the only ones to have seen it and I was glad of that. It was such a personal experience I didn't want the world to see. The Narnians were so amazed by the spiritualism of it they even put the event at the end of the pictures written on the cavern walls leading to the stone table.

I pushed those thoughts away from me and met Orion halfway as we walked to each other. I patted his nose a few times then went over to his left side and grabbed a handful of hair in one hand and then pulled my self up and on him bare back, I rarely used a saddle on him unless we were going to battle. It was more comfortable riding bare back with him, A saddle felt like a barrier between us. I urged him forwards in a gallop towards the Telmarine castle. I went there about once a month to spy on their dealings and make sure that we were still fairly safe. Most of the Telmarines believed us a myth and from silly stories, others still believed in us mainly the council of lords. I often watched the professor Cornelius as he tutored the Prince, sometimes listening to the way he taught about us made me guess he knew we were real. I was curious about where he found the books but never got any clue from him.

The last time I was there I had seen Lord Miraz wife Prunaprismia and she was very pregnant. I knew Miraz had killed his brother who just happened to be king, leaving the heir to the throne Prince Caspian alive. Over the years he grew into a handsome young man. I shook my head roughly compelling that thought away. Really Aurora? You want to think about his looks now I scolded myself. Miraz would not want to have risen any more suspicion by killing the King and then have the Prince die some time later leaving behind no heir. Even he was smart enough to realize there would be even more chaos if there was no heir left. That is why I knew if Prunaprismia gave birth to a son Caspian would be killed not a minute later.

I was not entirely sure why i cared so much for him to live, maybe I did like him just a little. Even though he didn't know I was watching him, or that I am real and not a myth.. I don't think that's the only reason i wanted him to live, I had noticed he was different from the other Telmarines. Some part of me hoped he would be the one to unite everyone in Narnia. I hated the Telmarine people for a very long time but then realized we were both being selfish wanting Narnia to ourselves. Narnia was always meant for those worthy of being here and somehow the first Telmarines had come here which would not have happened unless the deep magic allowed it. I had denied it for a long while thinking that the deep magic that governed all worlds was broken in some way. In the beginning we tried to make peace with them and live in harmony but they denied us and we went straight to war. If they had accepted peace then our world would be very different from the way it is now. I knew I could never change the past; but I could always try to help the future.

I slowed Orion down close to the edges of the woods. I dismounted and then rubbed his neck whilst whispering."Go back to Trumpkins, you know the way. Be safe and remain unseen by any Telmarines." I told him in which he complied running off back into the woods. I turned and ran outside the forest changing mid-stride into a golden eagle and flying off towards the castle.