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The_Complete_Chronicles_of_Narnia_(volumes_1-7,_in_order_of_publication)

The_Complete_Chronicles_of_Narnia_(volumes_1-7,_in_order_of_publication)

The_Complete_Chronicles_of_Narnia_(volumes_1-7,_in_order_of_publication)

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"LOOK at what?" said Edmund.<br />

"Look at the device on the gold," said Caspian.<br />

"A little hammer with a diamond above it like a star," said Dr<strong>in</strong>ian. "Why, I've seen that<br />

before."<br />

"Seen it!" said Caspian. "Why, <strong>of</strong> course you have. It is the sign <strong>of</strong> a great <strong>Narnia</strong>n house.<br />

This is the Lord Octesian's arm-r<strong>in</strong>g."<br />

"Villa<strong>in</strong>," said Reepicheep to the dragon, "have you devoured a <strong>Narnia</strong>n lord?" But the<br />

dragon shook his head violently.<br />

"Or perhaps," said Lucy, "this is the Lord Octesian, turned <strong>in</strong>to a dragon - under an<br />

enchantment, you know."<br />

"It needn't be either," said Edmund. "All dragons collect gold. But I th<strong>in</strong>k it's a safe guess<br />

that Octesian got no further than this island."<br />

"Are you the Lord Octesian?" said Lucy to the dragon, and then, when it sadly shook its<br />

head, "Are you someone enchanted - someone human, I mean?"<br />

It nodded violently.<br />

And then someone said - people disputed afterwards whether Lucy or Edmund said it first<br />

- "You're not - not Eustace by any chance?"<br />

And Eustace nodded his terrible dragon head and thumped his tail <strong>in</strong> the sea and<br />

everyone skipped back (some <strong>of</strong> the sailors with ejaculations I will not put down <strong>in</strong><br />

writ<strong>in</strong>g) to avoid the enormous and boil<strong>in</strong>g tears which flowed from his eyes.<br />

Lucy tried hard to console him and even screwed up her courage to kiss the scaly face,<br />

and nearly everyone said "Hard luck" and several assured Eustace that they would all<br />

stand by him and many said there was sure to be some way <strong>of</strong> disenchant<strong>in</strong>g him and<br />

they'd have him as right as ra<strong>in</strong> <strong>in</strong> a day or two. And <strong>of</strong> course they were all very anxious<br />

to hear his story, but he couldn't speak. More than once <strong>in</strong> the days that followed he<br />

attempted to write it for them on the sand. But, this never succeeded. In the first place<br />

Eustace (never hav<strong>in</strong>g read the right books) had no idea how to tell a story straight. And<br />

for another th<strong>in</strong>g, the muscles and nerves <strong>of</strong> the dragon-claws that he had to use had<br />

never learned to write and were not built for writ<strong>in</strong>g anyway. As a result he never got<br />

nearly to the end before the tide came <strong>in</strong> and washed away all the writ<strong>in</strong>g except the bits<br />

he had already trodden on or accidentaly swished out with his tail. And all that anyone<br />

had seen would be someth<strong>in</strong>g like this - the dots are for the bits he had smudged<br />

out I WNET TO SL EE . . . RGOS AGRONS I MEAN DRANGONS

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