Aravis Tarkheena

"My name is Aravis Tarkheena and I am the the only daughter of Kidrash Tarkaan, the son of Rishti Tarkaan, the son of Kidrash Tarkaan, the son of Illsombreh Tisroc, the son of Ardeeb Tisroc who was decended in a right line from the god Tash."

- Aravis (Chapter 3)

Aravis was a Tarkheena, a female member of the nobility of Calormen.

After realizing she was being married off to an old man she didn't love when she was barely out of childhood, she fled with her horse Hwin, a talking Narnian horse. Their plan was to reach the land of Narnia. She eventually came to live in Archenland, married its Prince Cor, and thus became Archenland's queen.

Early Life
The only daughter of Kidrash Tarkaan, Aravis spent her youth in the heart of Calormen. Her mother had died from unknown causes, and her father had married an unkind woman, who made no attempt to disguise her dislike for Aravis. Aravis's already difficult home life was rendered intolerable when her father announced her engagement to Ahoshta Tarkaan, an ugly, loathsome man whom she despised:

"Now this Ahoshta is of base birth, though in these latter years he has won the favour of the Tisroc (may he live forever) by flattery and evil counsels, and is now made a Tarkaan and the lord of many cities and is likely to be chosen as the Grand Vizier when the present Grand Vizier dies. Moreover he is at least sixty years old and has a hump on his back and his face resembles that of an ape."

- Aravis (Chapter 3)

Feeling she had no other option, she decided to ride out on her horse to a nearby wood and commit suicide. One of her brothers, with whom she was very close, had also recently died fighting in the Western Rebellion, contributing to her decision. However, her attempt on her own life was interrupted when her horse, Hwin, began to speak:

"O my mistress, do not by any means destroy yourself, for if you live you may yet have good fortune but all the dead are dead alike!"

- Hwin's words, retold in Aravis's story (Chapter 3)

Taken aback on hearing the horse's pleas, Aravis thought she was now suffering hallucinations due to her fear of death. Ashamed, she attempted to stab herself again, only to have Hwin rebuke her once more, placing her own head between the girl and the dagger. Hwin then revealed that she was no common mare, but a talking horse of Narnia, kidnapped in her youth. Upon hearing about Narnia, Aravis was determined to go there, and she and Hwin planned to escape Calormen.

After deceiving her family into thinking she was happy to be getting married, she escaped by drugging her stepmother's slave into sleep so that no one would notice her absence.

Travels
During their journey, they met Shasta and Bree (a talking horse, like Hwin), fugitives also making their way to Narnia. The four reached Tashbaan, where they were separated.

Aravis eventually found an old friend named Lasaraleen, a fellow Tarkheena who helped her. They eventually came to hide in the secret room of the Tisroc himself. There, they overheard a conversation between the Tisroc, Prince Rabadash and Ahoshta. Rabadash was furious that he had been rejected by Queen Susan of Narnia, and wanted to lead a force to Narnia to capture her and force her to marry him. The plan involved conquering Archenland, a kingdom on the border of Narnia. The Tisroc agreed, but after Rabadash left, the Tisroc told Ahoshta that it made little difference to him whether Rabadash succeeded or died.

After saying her thanks and her goodbyes to her friend, Aravis fled the city, and eventually reunited with her friends.

''"Good-bye, and I thought your dresses were lovely. And I think your house is lovely too. I'm sure you'll have a lovely life – though it wouldn't suit me. Close the door softly behind me."

- Aravis (Chapter 9)

She told her friends about Rabadash's plans, and the four set out across the Great Desert to warn Archenland. One step ahead of Rabadash's army, they barely reached Archenland in time, but with the help of a pursuing lion, the fear of which gave the horses the extra burst of speed they needed, they succeeded. This lion used its claws to tear into Aravis' back, terrifying her and Hwin.

Aravis and the horses were left behind with the Hermit of the Southern March's house, while Shasta went on ahead to warn King Lune. During her recovery, Aravis and the horses were visited by Aslan. Aslan said that he had chased them so they could reach Archenland in time, and told Aravis that he had scarred her so she would understand what her stepmother's slave went through when she was punished for the drugged sleep into which Aravis had put her.

Shasta, who was later discovered to be Cor, the lost son of King Lune, was able to warn the Archenlanders in time, and a combined Narnian-Archenlander army defeated Rabadash at the gates of Anvard. Rabadash was captured, and later sent back to Calormen in the form of a donkey by Aslan.

Aravis accepted the offer of both Cor and King Lune to stay with them in Anvard.

"Oh stop it, or we'll have a real fight. Of course I'll come."

- Aravis (Chaper 14)

Later Life
Aravis later married Cor, and became queen of Archenland when Lune died, and Cor took the throne. She became the mother of King Ram the Great.

She was also one of the persons seen in Aslan's Country at the end of Narnia.

Character
Aravis was both brave and intensely loyal. However, she was also very arrogant (probably a result of her upbringing as an exceptionally privileged noblewoman), and at times very manipulative.

Bree states that Aravis was an amazing storyteller, which is partly due to her upbringing; the art of telling stories forms part of the education of the nobility.

Aravis Aravis In the beginning of the story, Aravis shows contempt for those who are beneath her in birth and social rank, such as Ahoshta and her maid. Similarly, she treats Shasta dismissively and disdainfully. However, over the course of her journey to Archenland, she repents of her treatment of her maid at Aslan's bidding, and comes to respect and even love Shasta. Indeed, it is ironic that her noble blood is less relevant to her new home of Archenland and Shasta himself turns out to be the missing prince Cor, thus reversing their initial roles. It is noted that she made a good queen of Archenland as Cor's wife; no doubt her cultured upbringing and education, familiarity with giving orders, her skills in diplomacy, oratory, writing, poetry, horse riding, etc. were an important foil to Cor's rough upbringing and educational neglect.