Coulrophobia

by LadyAlambiel

Coulrophobia - The fear of clowns. "The clowns are Fell?"

Disclaimer: I don't own Narnia or any characters you may recognize from the books or the movies, I wish I did but I don't... I also don't own the Narnian Calendar. It belongs to Elecktrum who was kind enough to let me borrow it for my story. Her own stories are awesome and you should go read them too.

Summary: Coulrophobia - The fear of clowns. "The clowns are Fell?"

A/N: This oneshot is part of my A Light in the Darkness universe and was requested by WillowDryad. Enjoy!

Warning: Anyone who suffers from Coulrophobia may want to skip this one since there is a high possibility your phobia will be triggered.

Coulrophobia

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"Oreius, is it absolutely necessary to exhaust every minute of daylight or can we stop before it's too dark to see our hands in front of our faces?"

I chuckled. "Have you grown so weary, Alambiel, that you can no longer keep pace?"

Alambiel scoffed. "Oh very funny. You'd like that only so you can devise some torturous physical labor to "help" me increase my endurance. Like a survival run, which I hate and you know it."

Glancing down at her, I could not help the slight smile at her fieriness. "It was not so bad the last time. You were the first to complete the run."

"Not so bad?" She darted in front of me and stopped, poking her finger against my chest. "You had the horrible awful idea of oh, I'll just make everyone run through the Northern Marshes, diagonally because oh that's more evil, and do you know what is found in a horrifyingly abundant supply in the Northern Marshes? Eels, big ones. Stop laughing. This isn't funny. I, the person who you know and have known for years can't stand eels, had to make my way through those marshes, trying desperately not fall face-first in that eel-infested muck, which was hip-deep in some places, while also being eaten alive by midges."

I chuckled more when my fiery lady balled up her fist and hit me in the ribs. "You were the loveliest of my soldiers to return and if it would not have been most inappropriate at that time, I would have kissed you." I pointed to a clearing next to the river. "We can make camp there."

"Are you trying to bribe my favor?" Alambiel's eyes lit with mischief then she laughed when I decided the wisest reply would be to kiss her.

The warmth of the day lingered into the evening, which allowed us to forego building a fire. After some coaxing, Alambiel moved closer and leaned back against my chest. I wrapped my arms around her, holding her as close as I dared, and kissed her cheek before murmuring, "The stars speak of joy and peace and love tonight."

She turned her head to look at me, a smile playing across her lips. "I seem to recall you telling me that when we were in the Floating Gardens too." She was kind enough not to mention what else had occurred in the Seven Isles not quite a month ago.

"It was true that night." I kissed her hair then changed the subject. "You never told me, sweet, why you decided to accompany me. Will you tell me now?"

"To get away from the matchmakers and their constant staring," she said drily. I huffed and she giggled. "Okay, there is also the fact that Tuulea said I had to go see one of the ancient Black Elder Nymphs. She lives in a grove about a mile away from my Granda's old house and since you said you were going to see some of the Centaur elders, I thought going with you would be more fun." She paused then deadpanned, "And then you mentioned eels."

A chuckle escaped me and then I grunted when Alambiel elbowed me. Dropping my arms, I tickled her side in retaliation making her yelp and push away from me. Her smile flashed white in the midst of the lengthening shadows as she playfully shook her finger at me. "You stop that. Tickling is cheating. Now, if you can behave yourself, Kentauri, perhaps you can tell me why you're going to see some of the elders."

"It is merely some business that needs to be taken care of between my herd and a neighboring herd." I did not add what else I intended to fetch from my family home. "It should take no more than a day to see the matter resolved. Then we can return to Cair Paravel and hopefully those colts will not have stumbled into near-death again."

Alambiel laughed softly. "You worry too much. Those colts will be fine because Susan will kill them if they manage to injure themselves again before Peter's wedding. Not to mention, Marsalla told Tarrin that he wasn't allowed to be in need of the cordial again until he's grey-haired with grandchildren. They may be clowns, but I think they'll make the effort to stay out of trouble."

I frowned. "Clowns?"

"Clowns." Alambiel paused then looked up at the stars before looking back at me. "Oh right, I forgot. Well, clowns are a kind of entertainment. They dress up usually in clashing patterns, rather like Calormene now that I think about it, but their clothing is very baggy. And no, it is not for hiding weapons…unless you count a fake flower that squirts water. The most recognizable clowns paint their faces and necks chalk-white then paint a very exaggerated mouth in bright red around their own mouth either in a smile or a frown and the area around their eyes is painted black usually in a diamond shape."

I could think of nothing to say concerning the repulsive image her words painted. Clearing my throat, I carefully asked, "And these creatures are meant to be entertaining?"

She nodded. "Oh yes, they usually entertain children. But-"

"Foals? And the way they look does not…disturb them?"

Alambiel didn't answer right away. In fact, I thought she hid a smile. I frowned but she spoke up before I could. "Well, sometimes it does. In fact, there are adults who don't care for clowns at all, although that might be caused by the presence of evil clowns-"

"The clowns are Fell?" With the image her words painted, it certainly made more sense for the repulsive creatures to be Fell more than entertainment.

"Some of them but mainly in stories. For example, there was a horribly evil clown who would terrorize a neighborhood and killed a number of people in the course of one story. The protagonists called him "It" but his actual character name was Pennywise the Clown. I do believe he is one of the main reasons a lot of people who read that book were so terrified of clowns afterwards. I mean he had these staring psychotic eyes and creepy needle-like teeth."

"And this did not trouble you?"

Alambiel shrugged. "By the time I read about Pennywise, I had learned that there was so much worse than an evil clown in the world. Pennywise was child's play compared to the Monster. Although, Charlie was in a lot of trouble with his wife when she found out he had let me read the book." She looked around then shrugged again. "I don't want to talk about it anymore."

Neither did I. "Then it would be best if you slept. We shall continue our journey at dawn." Caressing her cheek, I quietly added, "I will wake you from any night terrors, I promise."

She kissed me. "Good night, a chara." Alambiel moved away and curled up on her side. I watched the stars for a little longer, still astonished by these clowns and how Alambiel had described them as being entertainment. It sounded more like the entertainment that had been found in Veri.

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I wasn't certain what had disturbed me enough to pull me from my sleep. It was still in the deepest hours of the night but now clouds hid the stars and the moon. Perhaps Alambiel was suffering from the memories of her Monster. I looked but I couldn't see her. Scanning the clearing, I realized Alambiel was gone.

Alarm coursed through me as I surged to my feet. "Alambiel!" Something was wrong; I could feel it. "Alambiel!" There was no answer. "Alambiel! Where are you?"

If something had happened to her, I would never forgive myself. A muffled sound came from the woods. It sounded like a cry of pain. "Alambiel."

Another muffled cry answered, but this time I discerned one word, "Oreius."

Alambiel. I galloped toward her call, but was soon forced to slow as the underbrush was much thicker as I moved further away from the clearing where we had camped. Fear filled my heart as her attempts to call out to me ceased. "Alambiel! Call out and I will find you. You just need to call out one more time, Sweetheart."

One of the bushes rustled to my right. I pushed through the underbrush, ignoring the way the thorns tore at my legs and tangled in my tail. I had to reach Alambiel. A soft laugh sounded. I stopped.

The laughter came again, but it was not Alambiel's. This laugh was high and cold and mockingly cruel. "Call out! Call out, Sweetheart!"

I grabbed my swords but the thorns had tangled around the hilts, locking the blades within their sheaths. No. "Show yourself!"

The laughter echoed through the trees and I shuddered at the evil clinging to it. Then a shadow detached itself from the others. The clouds shifted and I could see a face white as death with a blood red mouth and eyes painted black. The creature opened its mouth, revealing long, sharp, needlelike teeth, and snarled, "Your sweetheart isn't here anymore, Oreius." It raised a bloody knife and pointed to an oddly-shaped still form just in front of me. "She's lost her head!"

"No!"

I jerked up, panting, and immediately rose to my feet. The clearing was dappled with moonlight and Alambiel was still curled up on her side a scant yard away from me. She stirred, rolling over and opening her eyes a sliver, as she murmured, "What's the matter?"

It had been a dream. I shook my head, flicking my tail, as I looked down at Alambiel. "It was nothing. Go back to sleep." I didn't wait for her reply before I moved to inspect the woods beyond the clearing. The underbrush was filled with nothing more dangerous than wildflowers. Unable to settle back down, I circled the clearing making sure, yes, making sure that Alambiel was safe.

The memory of a death white face pushed to the fore and I could not keep from shuddering. A hand touched mine and I whirled to face the threat, already drawing my swords. "Oreius!" Alambiel's wide eyes flickered from my face to my half-drawn swords. "It's me, just me, Kentauri."

Embarrassed, I turned away from her. She followed and cut in front of me. "Oreius, talk to me. What's wrong?"

"It is nothing. I apologize for disturbing you, but you should attempt to sleep a little while longer. Dawn is yet a little ways off."

Alambiel's brow furrowed as she touched my hand. "You were shaking. Why?"

I shook my head, unwilling to admit anything. "You are mistaken, Alambiel."

She frowned but slid her fingers from my hand to my elbow. The movement was more comforting than I had any desire to admit as it further proved she was here and she was alive and unharmed. "No, I don't think I am. Something bothered you…a lot." She stepped closer, eyes searching mine. "What was it? A dream? Oreius, tell me please."

The words came reluctantly. "You were dead." I cradled her face between my hands. "It had killed you and I could do nothing to protect you."

"It? It what?"

"A creature like the ones you described, the Pennywise."

Alambiel closed her eyes and then her mouth curved into a smile. I dropped my hands and stepped away as she giggled. "Oh Oreius, wait!" She grabbed my hand, still giggling. "I'm sorry! I really am, it's just you're scared of clowns!"

"I am not afraid of these clowns," I stated stiffly. She giggled more. "Nor do I mock you for your fear of eels."

Alambiel covered her mouth. "No, but you do tease me." She wrapped her arms around me. "Oh, I am sorry. I didn't mean to scare you with the clowns. I just... Ahem, that is, the good thing is you'll never run into a clown in Narnia."

"You are not funny." Then I tossed her in the river. "At least, there are not any eels in there, Alambiel." Her laughter filled the night air and I smiled. However, I never allowed her to speak of clowns, most especially the Pennywise, again.

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A/N: Please Read and Review! How do you introduce a phobia in Narnia? Kat tells the creepily detailed story. The Pennywise description is taken from an infamous 2011 McDonalds commercial you can see on YouTube as I've never actually read or seen Stephen King's "It" but I do know I have no desire to read or see it and "It" does not belong to me. Leave a review and let me know what y'all thought about this one and if you have any requests for other KnockOut stories. But the Pennywise can't be included. ;)