༄ ⍴һ᥆ᥱᥒі᥊ ᥕᥲrrі᥆r sһ᥆r𝗍 s𝗍᥆rіᥱs ༄

A Warrior's Tragic Beginning

Decided to make changes to Ana's Backstory. This is a bit sadder, but the continuity is better and makes more sense. The other part(s) are because I thought readers would like to know more about Ana growing up. (Originally meant to be the part that shows up in Book 4 but idk if I'm gonna get around to rewrites for it).

᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽᯽

Summary: The story of how Ana came to be begins.

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~Part One of Ana's Backstory~

A baby slept soundlessly in her cradle. Her mother lay asleep in a nearby room, barely breathing. It had been a difficult pregnancy and afterwards, the Queen had lost a lot of blood. The physician and nursemaids weren't sure if she would make it through the night if the birth of the princess would cost them their Queen.

The King awaited anxiously for news, but none was forthcoming. At first, all he heard were the screams from his wife which were finally broken by a baby's cry. When the crying stopped, a woman carried the baby from his wife's room and towards the nursery. He didn't know if the child or his Queen were alive. Everything fell silent and he began to pace the halls. The physician hadn't made an appearance which told him the news likely wasn't good.

Finally, as the midnight bell rang, the physician gave him the dreaded news. They had done all they could to save the Queen, but she was dying. He would be able to spend her final hours by her side, but that was all they could offer him. They apologized and bowed in sorrow. Then the physicians and nursemaids left to allow the King some privacy.

Pushing open the doors to the bedchamber, he saw the Queen, his wife lying pale amongst the bed sheets. The rise and fall of her chest was shallow and barely noticeable. He quickly went to her side. Falling on his knees, he grabbed her hand.
"My love," he said. "My beautiful Isabel."
"Promise me," the Queen rasped and he tried to shush her. But she was desperate to get the words out. "Promise me you'll tell our daughter about me. Tell her it wasn't her fault."
"Our daughter?" the King frowned. Too worried about his wife he had not thought to inquire about the status of their child.
"Our little Ana," the Queen continued, not noticing her husband's plight. "She'll be a wonderful queen someday and I know she'll make me proud. I only wish I could see it."
"Don't say that," he soothed. "You'll be alright."
The Queen let out a short laugh that ended in her coughing. "You don't have to lie to me. I know what the physician told you. I know I'm dying."
Hearing her say it brought him no consolation. "I had hoped for a son," he muttered quietly.
"I know how much you wanted a son. But Aslan gives us what we need. You mustn't be angry with Him. This is all part of His plan." The Queen coughed again and was unable to elaborate.
"Shh..." the King soothed. "Just rest."

This time the Queen obeyed, having lost the energy to speak. She could barely hold her head up. The King stayed by her side throughout the night, but as the sun awoke only one rose with it. He had sobbed when she passed but let her go when the physician came to check on them. He fled the room quickly, leaving the physician alone. It was just too painful to look at her. His love, his light was gone. He didn't understand why Aslan would take her, leave him alone in this world.

At those thoughts, he remembered he wasn't quite alone. He had a child now. Quite by chance, he looked up and found himself outside the nursery. He opened the doors and discovered the room void of anyone, except the sleeping baby. The King approached the crib and stared down at his child. He had heard crying coming from the room earlier in the morning but had been too overwhelmed with grief to bother checking on her. One of the nursemaids must have come to soothe her, as was their job.