"Tumnus, would you care to join me on a walk." Lucy asked the faun, as he leaned against the balcony railing.
"But Lucy, it's already dark out."
"Oh but the moon is shining and the stars are out."
"Lucy, I don't know." Tumnus protested, not because he didn't want to be with her, but he was afraid of the dark. Every time he stepped foot outside while in the dark his heart started to race and his skin grew clammy; it had been ever since he had been in the White Witch's castle.
"What's wrong Tumnus?" Lucy asked, her voice playful.. She had know idea he was terrified of the dark. "Scared of monsters?"
Tumnus forced a smile to his face and said, "All right, all right. I'll go."
Lucy smiled and slipped her hand into the crook of his arm.
They turned and walked down the stairs that led to the field that splayed out in front of Cair Paravel. During the day, when the sun was out, one could see the marvelous green color of the grass, but at night, it just looked dark, like a sea during a storm.
"Wait a moment." Lucy said at the bottom of the stairs. Holding onto Tumnus' arm, she leaned down and peeled off her slippers. Setting them on the second to last step of the stairs, she stood upright and said, "All right, I'm ready."
Tumnus chuckled at her, forgetting for a moment that they were about to venture out into the night.
Lucy smiled and swatted Tumnus' arm. "Don't laugh at me. It's just so nice out, I don't want to bother with silly things like slippers."
And she was right, for it was a beautiful night. The sky was black, but spotted with little specks of light. The air was warm, but not in a sticky, humid sort of way.
The farther they walked, the darker their surroundings grew, for they didn't have the castle lights to shine one them.
"How are you tonight?" Lucy asked after a moment of blissful silence.
"I'm very well; enjoying the warm weather."
Lucy chuckled, "I know how fond you are of the winter."
"Oh yes." Tumnus said sarcastically. "It's my favorite."
He thought about his words for a few minutes before saying, "Although, I don't know why I don't like winter." He shrugged. "Besides the whole White Witch trying to conquer Narnia escapade. After all, I did meet you in the middle of winter."
"That's true." Lucy said, and then she laughed. "But I still prefer summer." She leaned her head against the faun's shoulder and spoke quietly. "I like summer because of all the memories. All of the times you and I have gone on walks, and picnics and just stayed up late talking."
Tumnus smiled as he listened to Lucy talk. Her voice was soothing, for even though Tumnus was still a bit nervous about being in the dark, her voice was calming his jittery stomach.
"You are my best friend, you know that?"
Tumnus nodded, his heart swelling with love for Lucy. "And you're mine. I've never met a kinder soul."
Lucy suddenly stopped mid-step.
"What are you doing?" Tumnus asked.
"I'm sitting down." She replied simply.
And she did just that and once she was comfortable amid the short grass, she looked up at Tumnus.
"Well, are you going to join me or just stand there?"
Tumnus grinned as he sank down to the ground, pulling his legs up beneath his body. Lucy was sitting with her own legs crossed and she was facing him.
"Thank you Tumnus." She spoke softly.
"For what? For sitting down?"
"No silly." Lucy said with a smile. "For spending this time with me. I truly enjoy being with you."
Oh how Tumnus' heart sang. Her kind words made him want to yell out to all of Narnia, and express his happiness, to run through the fields as fast as he could, to laugh and never stop.
"Can I tell you a secret?" Lucy whispered, somewhat shyly.
"Of course."
"I..."She hesitated for a hair of a second before continuing. "I'm in love."
And then his heart dropped. He wanted to cry, to curl up in bed and never leave. He knew she was going to say she loved a Narnian, but he was sure it wasn't him. She could never love him, he was a faun, she was royalty. The contrast between them was too great, everyone could see that, and yet, Tumnus refused to stop dreaming. And besides, she had told him that he was her best friend, nothing more.
He so badly yearned for her love, his heart trembled when she spoke his name, there was no one he loved as dearly as he did Lucy.
"Really?" He managed to say. "With who?"
Lucy giggled as she laid back in the cool grass. Her brown hair was spread out around her head, like the mane of a lion.
Patting the ground beside her, Lucy said, "Come on Tumnus, lay down."
The faun moved across the grass and settled down beside her. With his hands behind his head he said, "You didn't answer my question."
"Looking up at the stars is one my favorite things to do. There is just something so calming about it, and the stars are so pretty."
Tumnus sighed inwardly. She wasn't going to answer him and he wasn't sure if that was a good thing, or a bad thing. He wanted to know, for he hated being kept in the dark. At the same time though, knowing the name of the man Lucy loved would break his heart, anger him, hurt him.
"I remember as a child asking my mum what the stars were. I didn't know at the time that they were stars, I just thought there were people up in the sky with candles. My mum told me that heaven was up there, and the lights were the angel's windows. See, they had windows so they could keep an eye on us from the comfort of their rooms."
Lucy didn't need to explain heaven to Tumnus, for it was a subject they had talked about before.
"Now, even though I know what a star is and that my mum's explanation was just a story, stars still seem somewhat magical to me."
Tumnus smiled as Lucy told her story and he noticed with a small pain the fondness in her voice when she spoke of her mum.
"Look." Lucy said, pointing up at the night sky. "See those stars right there?"
Tumnus looked to where she was pointing and replied, "Yes, I see them."
"Do they look like a faun and a girl to you?"
"Eh, not really. Why?" Then it hit him, and he asked, "Lucy, who do you love?"
"Haven't you figured that out by now?"
"Lucy, please tell me." He was begging her to answer him, every fiber of his being screaming for an answer.
But no words came from Lucy's mouth, and instead, she propped her head up with one hand and gazed into his eyes. To Tumnus, it felt like she stared at him for an eternity, but in reality it lasted but a few seconds.
Whenever he looked into Lucy's eyes, it was like he was drowning in their soft, brown liquid. They had a warmth to them that tugged at his heartstrings.
Lucy, without a moments hesitation, leaned forward and kissed Tumnus, her lips landing at the corner of his mouth. It wasn't a friendly peck on the cheek but a heartfelt kiss from one person in love to the other, one that was badly aimed but gladly accepted.
When Lucy pulled back and saw the shocked look on Tumnus' face, she sat up quickly, worry instantly wrinkling her brow.
"Did I do something wrong? I shouldn't have done that, I'm sorry."
Tumnus scurried to sit up next to Lucy, and taking her hands, he replied, "No, no, no! It was..."He chuckled happily. "It was perfect."
"Really? You're not upset?"
"No, why would I be upset?"
Lucy shrugged. "I've just harbored these feelings for so long, and I can't even begin to count how many times I've thought about telling you."
"I've had the same feelings." Tumnus said. "But I never in a million years thought you could love me."
"Why not Tumnus?" Lucy asked.
"Because...because...well look at me Lucy. I'm not human, and I'm certainly not royalty like you." He sighed. "What do you think your siblings will think of us? Of me?"
"Oh Tumnus, you needn't worry about that."
Lucy reached up and traced the faun's jawline with her thumb.
"You're so handsome." She spoke gently, a grin on her face.
"You're so gorgeous." Tumnus replied, a playful note to his tone and then, with more seriousness, he said, "I love your eyes, they have this twinkle in them. It's like..." Tumnus looked about him, his eyes casting a quick glance to the sky before he finished his sentence. "It's like you hold the stars in your eyes."
Lucy's cheek blushed to a pretty red, barely noticeable in the dark. "Why Tumnus, I didn't know you were so poetic."
Tumnus chuckled, "That's about the extent of my poetic talent."
Cradling his hands to Lucy's face, her hair beneath his fingertips, Tumnus drew her closer and kissed her. This kiss was full on the lips and lasted a lot longer than the one Lucy had given him.
Pulling Lucy into his lap, he held her in a warm hug. He was shivering from joy, and as he ran his fingers through her luscious, soft hair he knew he could not be happier. His heart was about to burst as it was.
"Are you cold Tumnus?"
"No." He replied. "I'm just happy."
Throwing her arms around the faun's neck, Lucy squeezed him briefly before saying, "We should probably go back to the castle now."
Tumnus nodded even though he didn't want to leave their heavenly moment behind.
Standing up, he held out a hand to Lucy. She took it, allowing him to help her up.
Hand in hand, they slowly strolled back the way they had come. The walk back was silent, for they were both content to just be in each other's presence.
Once they had reached Cair Paravel though, and were inside, Tumnus said, "I'll walk you to your room."
Upon reaching the door to Lucy's room, Tumnus kissed her cheek, saying, "Goodnight my love."
"Goodnight Tumnus." Lucy said as she reached up and brushed her fingertips across the faun's brow. "Sleep well."
Tumnus turned and started to walk away, a smile on his face. He could hear Lucy open and close her door, and by the time he had reached his own room situated at the end of the corridor, he figured Lucy was probably already in bed.
Entering his room, Tumnus pulled at he scarf around his neck, releasing it's hold on him. He set it on one of the armchairs in front of the fireplace as he passed it by.
Climbing into bed, he drew the covers up around him and sighed contentedly. The night had been a pleasant surprise and, he realized with a jolt, Lucy had been able to take his mind off his fear of the dark.
"Thank you Aslan." He whispered before closing his eyes and drifting off to sleep, his last conscious feelings that of excitement for the days to come.