Ainzahreilena's Story

Merry meet!  My name is Ainzahreilena (ain-zhar-eileena), "strong and courageous shining bringer of light."  It's a long and difficult name for most who are not of not of my people to pronounce so most just call me Ainza or Angel.  I was born under the full moon while many of the planets were aligned.  My good friend Caedmon the Centaur, who is many, many moons older than myself and was present on the night I was born, said that the stars sang on the night I was born and that was a sign that I was meant to be someone special in Narnia.  He and my father went to school together to learn the art of war and history.  He is also one of the great leaders of the Centaurs.  Caedmon is very skilled and powerful in the arts of war and prophecy.  He has said that he can see to better than 1000 years hence.  He says that one of his lineage will help the last of the royal line true to the "old Narnians" to overthrow the evil-hearted usurper of the throne of Narnia and that I am to tell none other of what he has foreseen as far as the future he sees coming for Narnia.  It is hard and painful for me to believe that there would be anything but peace in Narnia now that we are rid of the White Witch and her Winter's curse.  Ah, but I digress.  To me he is just Uncle Cade, who taught me to shoot the bow and arrow better than any human man can and who taught me to ride bareback and taught me to read the meanings of the stars as well as any Centaur.  Caedmon says that I am the daughter of his heart.  He has a wife, Caoimhe, who is lovely and kind and wise, but they do not have any children yet.  Yet, I know that Aslan had promised many inthe times to come.  For now, I am their surrogate child.  It is lovely have two families who love me so!

My father and mother are king and queen of the wood nymphs.  I am not a true Naiad or a true Dryad.  My father is of the royal line of the Dryads and my mother is of the royal line of the Naiads.  It is a beautiful and wonderful thing to be able to move among the trees and rivers at will, having both of their bloods flowing through me.  While their pairing is a little unconventional and they had to marry in secret, High King Peter and Aslan officially blessed their union when the reign of the cursed White Witch ended ten summers ago.  I think that one of the highlights of my seven and ten moons of life so far was being in the presence of the great Aslan.  My blood felt as if it were tingling with the power of a thousand bubbling mountain brooks standing next to him.  I was filled with a joy so immense that I could hardly stand still.  He also blessed me in a quiet ceremony under the stars with only King Peter, Caedmon, Queen Lucy, who is my best friend, and my mother and father in attendance.  Aslan told Caedmon that he was to be my tutor and get me ready for my destiny in a few years.  I have yet to know why my destinny is so special or what it is even.  Caedmon has been forbidden to tell me.  The other highlight was meeting Prince Corin of Archenland at the harvest festival held every year at Cair Paravel.  He is the heir to the throne of King Lune.  We have talked and been the best of friends ever since our eleventh year.  He is so handsome he takes my breath away!  I look forward to the harvest festival so that we might see each other again.  Alas, that is the only time we get to see each other.  I am so busy learning from Caedmon and he is so busy learning to be king that I fear we will never have time for meetings other than the fest.  Hopefully he will talk to his father about a betrothal to me this coming year!

I live in a glade next to the Great Forest right between Cair Paravel and the Dancing Lawn.  It is full of flowers and grass and butterflies, and mmmmm, strawberries!  It is hard for my parents to not live with them in their homes in the trees of the forest, however, this house is their loving gift to me.  I am a rather independent person and very capable of taking care of myself.  My home is made of white stone and has climbing roses and ivy growing all over it.  And there is a garden full of herbs and vegetables as well as an orchard full of nut trees and fruit trees.  One of the gifts of being so attuned to nature and having all aspects of it running through the blood in my veins is an amazing green thumb!  My house is large, yet comfortable and cozy and has several windows in it so that I can look out in all directions and see the beauty of nature all round me and feel the wonderful breeze blowing through, cooling the house in the warmth of the days.  It has a great fireplace in the large visiting room.  The kitchen is fairly large as well, as I have friends stopping by all hours of the day and evening.  I love to entertain and I love to cook.  My house has six sleeping quarters and aloft that will accommodate ten more.  Beacuse of the advantageous position between the Dancing Lawn and Cair Paravel, my house is usually full of guests.  Although, truthfully, I do live for the quiet days sometimes so that I can just read some of the books of our glorious and colorful history.  I love hearing about the beginning of our world.  And my dearest friend Lucy once told me right after the end of the White Witch that they actually knew young Digory and Polly from the beginning of our time.  Only, the last couple of times I have brought it up, she says that it must have been a good story that she was pulling my leg with or a dream that she was telling me after reading one of the old books.  I have a balcony at the top of my house where I can look at the stars filling the heavens each night.  The stars say that right now all is peaceful and prosperous in the lands of Narnia and Archenland.  They will not tell me of my destiny no matter how much I ask.  It is not for them to tell me they say.

I wake up with the first light of morning, except on the two resting days after every five.  I go to the brook outside of my house and bathe as the first rays of light pierce the sky, brightening it to a varied kaleidoscope of colors.  I then have breakfast of bread and butter and honey and a bowl of fruit and a glass of fresh milk.  Sometimes I have eggs and bacon and biscuits and gravy. It depends how hungry I am.  After breakfast I will travel a short distance to meet with Caedmon and study archery and swordsmanship skills as well as my tracking.  He then teaches me about war strategies and history.  I have classes in healing and healing herbs from my father's sister, Conoraliae.  her name means wise healer, and she is very skilled at it.  'Tis said that the only one greater at healing in all Narnia is Queen Lucy with her cordial.  Sometime during the middle of all this I break for the mid-day meal.  It usually consists of some tender meat that Caedmon has prepared during my other studies and some vegetables as well as fresh baked bread and fruits and some sort of tart, usually cherry that is my favorite and Caedmon does love to spoil me so.  We usually have mead or milk to drink.  Well, I usually do.  Caedmon has ale always.  After my lessons are over, I will either go home to my guests or out to a gathering at the Dancing Lawn, or sometimes to a place where I can watch the sun finish its daily journey across the sky to sink into the edge of the sea.  Always I give thanks to the wonderful bounty that we have been blessed with and for my friends and family.  How lucky and blessed could one girl be in a lifetime?

The only thing that would make tonight perfect is if my Corin were here to share in the fun and frolicking at the Dancing Lawn as we watch the stars come and sing their song by the firelight.  Oh well, at least he will he will be there in my dreams.

back to
the List