The Golden Age - Narnia fanfiction (Edmund x oc)

1. Goodbye Carissa

Diana could feel the eyes on her and the whispers that ran through the servants as she walked through the corridors to the throne room. She was always careful not to show any emotion even though she was terrified. Her father only ever called her to the throne room if she had done something wrong to punish her. She clenched her hands together in front of her to stop them from trembling.

She stood in front of the giant doors to the throne room feeling very small in comparison. She took a deep breath and nodded to the guard that he could open the doors.

As the room was slowly revealed in front of her she made sure that her expression was neutral and her eyes were downcast. She walked in to the room and stopped in front of the steps leading up to the throne. She curtsied deeply and still didn't even dare look at the kings feet.

He cleared his throat. "Diana dearest, there are good news for you today." He said in the softest tone that Diana had ever heard her father speak in toward her. She was so surprised that she for an instant forgot herself and looked up directly at the king, but quickly looked down again. There was someone next to him that she did not recognize, and she had noticed that he was a faun. She guessed that the reason the king had not lashed out at her for looking up, was because of the stranger next to her father.

She internally thanked the stranger simply for being there, and then mustered up the courage to speak. "What are these news that you speak of father?" She said with her usual monotone voice that she had mastered to perfection, not showing any emotion.

"This here is a messenger from the kingdom of Narnia, he says that the rulers of Narnia wish to forge a bond with our people, and propose a marriage arrangement. I thought you would be our best candidate since you are of marrying age now my dear." Diana was devastated, and her heart stopped for a second.

They just want to get rid of me so that they don't have to take care of me anymore. I'm just a waste of space to them. Only good for one thing: marriage.

She snuck a peak at the guest, and noticed that he had a warm smile.

"You will accept, won't you my dear?" Her father spoke in such a way that Diana knew it was a command rather than a question. "Of course father." She said and curtsied deeply.

"Excellent! Now this dear faun here has offered to bring you with him on a ship that leaves for Narnia tonight, so run along now and pack your things, i will send a servant to escort you to the harbor." She curtsied again and left the room quietly.

As soon as she entered her small room and closed the door behind her, tears started to flow down her cheeks. She wiped them away with the back of her hand and with a determined look on her face she started to pack. She didn't own much, even though she was a princess, but the king had barely ever spared a copper coin on her, all the dresses she owned were from her older siblings who had grown out of them, or had simply gotten something that was better.

She packed the little clothes she had, a leather bound notebook that she used to sketch in, which was almost full, and her pencils that were all getting quite short as she was not able to replace them.

She reached for her most treasured item in her room. It was a stuffed unicorn that she had gotten from her mother when she was still alive. She squeezed the soft plushie and put it in her bag before closing it and waiting for a knock on her door.

It had felt like hours she had been sitting on her bed, just staring through the window, watching as the sun slowly dropped to the horizon.

A gentle knock on her door ripped her out of her spiraling thoughts of despair and she stood to open it. "I will escort you to the harbor your highness." Carissa her best friend, who was one of the maids that worked in the kitchen was standing in front of the door, with a sympathetic smile on her face, as she curtsied.

"I told you to call me Diana." The princess said with a sweet voice that she would never let her father or siblings hear. Diana mustered a pathetic smile, which just made the maid burst into tears. "I will miss you so much! This castle will be unbearable without you around." She said as she went in to hug the princess. This also caused the princess to cry again and she nestled her face on the maid's shoulder. "I will miss you too Carissa. You are my only friend in the whole world." She whispered.

After a bit they slowly let go of each other and the maid held the princess' shoulders while stretching her out at arms length. "Now I'm sure you will make lots of friends at Cair Paravel, I have heard wonderful things about Narnia, even though they are a savage people. I even heard a rumor that the kings and queens are quite attractive." She said this last bit with a teasing wink, as she picked up the princess' luggage.

On the way down to the harbor, barely any words were exchanged between the two, and the princess' luggage was loaded unto the ship. Diana stood at the harbor staring up at the magnificent ship that she was about to board. She had never been on a ship before and was therefore very nervous. She gave the maid one last hug and then was helped on board.

Diana stood leaned over the reeling and waved till she couldn't see Carissa anymore. She then went under the deck and entered her cabin where she spent the rest of the night sobbing while clenching her unicorn plushie in her arms.