Edmund's transition from spoiled nuisance to King of Narnia is not without a major catalyst. Upon his rescue, Edmund is brought before Aslan who secretly speaks with him and thus begins a radical change for the better. The text of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe tells us that no one ever heard the words Aslan said which were part of Edmund's change, but through a close reading, one may deduce a significant part of the content of that talk.

There are two pieces of evidence (and I grant you that such scanty evidence hardly presents undeniable proof of my position, rather it opens a door for additional discussion) which need to be examined in order to briefly see into the conclave between Aslan and Edmund. The first such evidence is found in Book 1, The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. Jadis, the White Witch, challenges Aslan with the fact that the Deep Magic gives her the right to a kill, the right to Edmund's blood. After Susan's appeal to Aslan to work against the deep magic, Edmund "felt a choking feeling and wondered if he ought to say something; but a moment later he felt that he was not expected to do anything except to wait, and do what he was told (emphasis mine)." What was Edmund told? To say nothing and to keep his eyes on Aslan. And by whom? The only others to whom Edmund had spoken since his return were Aslan and his siblings. Aslan had instructed Peter, Susan, and Lucy not to talk to Edmund about past events so they would not have said anything about this situation. The only other possibility is that Aslan told Edmund what would transpire. Their only conversation prior to the arrival of Jadis was the secret meeting early in the morning.

The second piece of evidence is found in The Voyage of the Dawn Treader. When the voyagers land on Ramandu's Island, they find the remaining three Lords in an enchanted sleep. When morning dawns, Ramandu's daughter tells the story of how the Lords fell into their sleep as a result of touching the stone knife which lay on the table nearby. Eustace asks the origin of the Stone Knife, to which Ramandu's daughter responds, asking if none present recognize it. Lucy states that she saw a knife quite similar to this one when the White Witch slew Aslan on the Stone Table. These lines are important, but the next lines are the evidence I present. "Edmund, who had been looking more and more uncomfortable for the last few minutes, now spoke. / 'Look here,' he said, 'I hope I'm not a coward - about eating this food, I mean'." Why would Edmund feel uncomfortable? He knew about the Stone Knife and its former purpose. Why did he change the subject so quickly and punctuate the change with "- about eating this food, I mean (emphasis mine)? Would you want an entire ship's crew to know that you were directly responsible for the Lion's sacrifice? It would certainly lead to some questions that Edmund would rather not have to answer besides having to discuss a part of his life that he would probably rather forget.

In Lion Aslan had instructed Peter, Susan, and Lucy not to discuss past events with Edmund. Perhaps Edmund want to include Caspian and his crew in that instruction. In addition to this charge, Susan and Lucy discussed whether Edmund should be told of Aslan's sacrifice and decided that they would not tell him for fear of hurting his feelings (the decision, I am aware, was never finalized, Lucy having left open the possibility of telling Edmund). It is quite possible, then, that the only one who could have (and would have) told Edmund about Aslan's sacrifice is Aslan Himself.

It is possible to conclude, then, that the discourse which Aslan had with Edmund consisted of several points: 1) The White Witch would come and demand Edmund's life as a penalty for his treachery. 2) Edmund was to say nothing and keep his eyes on Aslan. 3) Aslan Himself would take the punishment demanded by the witch (not necessarily naming the punishment specifically; Lucy did that in Voyage.). The conclusion reached here may not be definitive, but they certainly do provide food for thought for the detail-minded Narnia scholar.