C.S. Lewis had a niece named Lucy. She was the inspiration for Lucy Pevinsie. Likewise, Linariel prompted me to do the second chapter, & Hermoine Solo prompted me to do the third chapter. Maybe I need a kick from Steel Toe to do the rest.
Twila Starla, Cylon One, whitem, I've seen your names on review pages all over I'm honored to have caught your attention.
MrDrP--what can I say? U da Epic Sitch Man! I appreciate ALL your reviews, both positive and negative, both public and private. And, literary genius that you are, you have divined the intent of my tale.
Chao-helsing, master of the dA K.P. screencap montage; fear not. The Pevinsies, Tumnus, Jadis, and the Lion Himself, Blessed is He, will find their place in the tale.
To the rest: Darth Comrade, kemiztri, NarnianAslan, pinkymint, Isayssoccer, FAH3, Rongo, The Enduring Man-Child, Calamite --thank you!
Hermoine Solo, don't be sad. I can't stand it when a woman cries.
THE LION, THE TREEHOUSE, AND THE NAKED MOLE RAT
CHAPTER 3
Far west of Narnia, Sinewyn and Melandra had traveled, summoned by the Lion, Blessed is He. They stood before His Glory, their faces averted.
"My dear friends, I am sending you forth. The Children of Adam and Eve have petitioned Me to come to Narnia, and I have heard their petition. Treat them well. Look to their needs and wants. I love them dearly, and you will love them, too. They have a special bond, but the bond grows frail. I have a purpose for them. They will renew the Land, and the Land will renew them. Gather those of My servants whom you need and escort the Children to My Presence. They are not even aware how much they desire Me--as I desire them.
When the Winter is old
And hearts grow cold
Two shall come, never apart
Of two minds, but of one heart
And Melandra and Sinewyn bowed themselves to the ground. "Yes, my Lord," they said. They gathered certain fellow Nanians for a great task--and journeyed to meet the freckled Son of Adam and the red-haired Daughter of Eve.
Sinewyn bowed before Kim and Ron in the treehouse. "I greet you, Prince and Princess of Narnia."
Kim and Ron stood dumbfounded
Ron tried to form words. "Pr--pr--pr--."
"A chill has fallen on the hearts of the Narnians, and you will bear the message."
"Me--me--me--."
Kim groaned. Again with the stutter. "Sinewyn, time out. Ron, we so gotta talk!"
"Time--out?" Sinewyn cocked his head.
"Um--give us a minute, Sinewyn."
Puzzled, Sinewyn lithely dropped out of the treehouse to the ground. He listened intently, trying to decode what Kim had said. He had a mental image of a sundial being cast out of the window of the house of the tree--and then smiled to himself. He realized that this was how Ronald would construe the phrase. How these two Children of Adam and Eve were endearing themselves to him. He was coming to love them as he would his own cubs.
Time...out--obviously it meant a brief moment apart--to confer, to talk, as Kimberly had said. He noticed how informal Kimberly and Ronald were. They addressed each other in the shortened forms of their names. Obviously these were terms of endearment. Ronald even used an abbreviation: K.P. He tried to imagine himself and Melandra relating thus; Syn and Mel, or M.L.--for Melandra the Leopard.
Come now, he told himself, pay attention! We so gotta talk. Gotta--an interesting word. Got-to; ah, that was it; a contraction, a grammatical term, like "have to". We so...the way that word preceded the verb, for emphasis--. Yes! He solved it! Ronald! We must speak in private for a moment! Fascinating!
Sinewyn looked forward to accompanying the Children of Adam and Eve. Praise to the Lion, for allowing himself and his consort the privilege of ministering to these two precious ones.
"What's he mean, 'Prince and Princess of Narnia--come before the Four'?" asked Ron.
"Don't you get? The Four Thrones in Cair Paravel? We're here before the Pevinsies came!"
Ron sat down as though someone had struck him. This was a big thought to wrap his mind around " Before them--how could--?"
"I don't know! But all the Narnia books are gone--and this big--thing--is here!" Kim hefted the huge volume.
"K.P.--don't you get it? Your books turned into--this!"
Kim sat down shocked. This did not often happen, Ron realizing something before Kim.
"K.P.--what's going on? What's happening?"
Kim shrugged helplessly. "I don't know," she mumbled.
"K.P.--what do we do?"
Kim answered frantically. "You're asking me? What did I just tell you? Why do you think I know?" Frustrated, she began to cry.
"Sorry, K.P. I guess I'm just used to you taking charge."
"Sometimes, Ron, you just tweak me so badly."
Just like earlier, Ron drew Kim into his hug. And for a moment both thought how odd that the "anything is possible for a Possible" girl should need comfort, but how sweet and comforting this was, just like earlier, much earlier, that first day, more that half a decade before, when they met at ABC Daycare.
Her parents had assured her that she would find the new experience enjoyable and fulfilling. All she wanted was to stay home and take care of Mom until her baby sister was born. But here she was. And the three bullies had stolen her ball and pulled her hair. The teacher didn't seem to care. By naptime she was a bundle of nerves, quivering in fear under her blanket. But the new kid appeared, with the ferret shirt, the freckles, and the invisible friend Rufus. He demanded that they leave her alone, so they ganged up on him. Without knowing why, her spirit flared up. She flattened all the bullies. The teacher didn't seem to notice that, either. The two kids shared the ball and the swings and their lives from that moment. She would lead and he would follow--sort of. He would talk and she would listen--sort of. It puzzled Kim, later. Why had she done it--suddenly grow a spine? Was it because he dared do for her what she felt she couldn't do for herself? And then she did the same for him? Kim would decide that Daddy was right--anything is possible for a Possible; but Ron was right, too. You have to add the proper ingredient to the recipe. And that ingredient was a Special Friend.
"K.P.?"
"Hmm?" Her voice was muffled
"I think I know what's going on."
"What?"
Well--this sounds really dumb, but--we're dreaming. We read the Narnia books last night and we're in a dream about Narnia. And you know how sometimes you can't do stuff in a dream--like the bad guy is coming and you can't run away? Well--we can't say the name of the Lion, As--Asla--whatever, even thought we remember it--we know that we know it."
It was a moment before Kim spoke. "Okay, genius. Are we both having the same dream, or just one of us, and the other is in it?
"Well, it depends on who's sleeping the deepest--or the least--what your mom told us about--that ream thing."
"R.E.M., Ron--Rapid Eye Movement--it's the state dreams occur in. There's light sleep, R.E.M. sleep, and heavy sleep--like you do in class." Kim frowned. "So tell me. How do we know which one of us is having the dream?"
Ron's head spun. He supposed he would have to study the human body someday--in high school. Until then he could feel safe in postponing such heavy duty subjects--and napping in class--or so he thought. If the other students were more like Kim than him, he was in deep trouble. "Uhh--the one could lift up the other's eyelid and look?" Dumb answer. He knew it even before he said it.
"That's in cartoons, Ron. And since I sound like I'm doing the thinking, it must be me having the dream." Sarcastic answer. Kim could so kick herself. Ron meant well. Why did she have to be such a mean little thing?
"Well, not really. It could be me imagining that I'm you." How did Kim manage to have it so together? Must be nice to have a rocket scientist and a brain doctor for parents. His father was an actionary--actually--actuary--numbers guy--whatever.
It was often enough that Kim was exasperated with Ron. It was no fun when she was also crying. "That makes no sense! How could it be you imagining you're me when I'm looking at you and having my own thoughts inside my mind?
"Waitaminute, lemme think! It could--it could be that--" Ron clapped his hands "--It could be that I know you so well that it could seem like it's you with your thoughts. And the other way could work, too. I could be looking at you and think it's me with my own thoughts, but it's really you having the thoughts because you know me so well that it could feel like you're me when you're really you."
It was pure Ron-logic. Kim smiled even as she sniffled. She grinned. She couldn't help it. She chuckled. She broke into laughter, clear, pristine laughter. Ron began to chuckle, too. In a moment, the treehouse and the whole forest around rang with it.
From the ground Sinewyn listened. It was even as the Lion, Blessed is He, had said:
"I love them dearly, and you will love them, too."
By the fire, the rest looked up. Turnskillet shrugged and returned to his work. Kalderion sneered and shook his head.
"Stupid Children of Adam," Rimduffle grumbled. "Those two will draw the spies of the Witch like a candle draws moths. We are all in deadly peril."
"That is why we are here, friend Rimduffle," Melandra gently said, "To defend them to our last drop of blood, if need be."
"I am here because you needed my skill as an armorsmith, leopardess--and because my friend Kalderion prevailed on me."
"And I am here to uphold the vow of my fathers," said Kalderion.
Melandra sighed silently. Even among the faithful Narnians, there was a coldness of spirit.
The children couldn't stop laughing. When Kim's laughter was starting to level off, she would look at Ron and break into laughter all over again--and likewise with Ron. Then they both got hiccups. When one hiccupped, the other giggled.
Rimduffle was losing patience. "Children should be seen and not heard!" he said loudly, intending to be overheard. It didn't help. Like all children whom adults try to reprove or shame into silence, it only caused another outburst of giggling.
"He can be seen," Kim whispered.
"And heard," whispered Ron.
"And smelled," Kim answered.
Which caused another spate of giggling--and caused the dwarf to glare at the treehouse with an air of injured pride.
Melandra came and curled up near Sinewyn. "Do you remember, love? When our own cubs were young? The more we would reprove them, the worse it became."
"Truly the Lion, Blessed is He, has granted a sense of the ridiculous and the gift of laughter to children. I used to grow so exasperated. But I would give much to have those days again. Yes, dearest, I look forward to minding these two human cubs." They touched heads and purred.
Finally the laughing fit tapered off. "K.P.--Dad says--numbers don't lie."
Kim was puzzled. "How do you mean?"
"I'm trying to think like you--or my dad--or even your dad--"
"Don't give yourself a headache," Kim said with a smirk.
"Oh, are you dissin' the Ron-dog?" Ron stood and moved toward her.
"Ron Stoppable! What are you gonna do? Stop! Don't you dare! Eeek!"
A tickle fight erupted, prompting a new session of giggles in the treehouse.
"Do you remember, my sweet? We used to play thus in our youth," said Melandra.
"Before we even courted. We were but cubs ourselves. I feel the years roll from my back. Truly they are a joy to me," said Sinewyn.
The sounds of play also prompted more glares of disapproval from the rest, Kalderion in particular, after listening to something whispered from Turnskillet, stared at the treehouse with such naked hostility that Melandra's hackles went up.
The centaur slowly approached the leopards at the base of the tree, frowning darkly, his guilded hooves thumping the ground heavily. "Friend Sinewyn--I would not begin to presume--but these woods are not secure. If you intend to deliver these frivolous little creatures to someone of importance--be it the Lion Himself--Blessed is He--we should do so quickly. Otherwise give us leave to depart and let some wandering predator that is not a Speaking Animal find a scrumptious evening meal.
Melandra's eye's blazed.
Kalderion saw the wrath in her face and bowed stiffly. "Your pardon, Consort of Sinewyn, but I have never known a mate or raised cubs. I have little patience with such little ragtags." He turned and went back to the cookfire
"My consort," she warned, "Note Kalderion's behavior. If it were anyone but him, I would suspect hostile intent."
Sinewyn also saw. "We must double our vigilance over these precious little ones."
Melandra sensed Sinewyn's unspoken thoughts, and Sinewyn chided himself for his brief careless attitude. It was a sad fact that as the Witch's Winter wore on, many Narnians entered her service, as paid informants, spies, and saboteurs. Even some of the dryads, the tree, rock, and water spirits had followed the Witch into corruption, and had become Hags, Demons, and Sorceresses themselves.
Sinewyn thought he had selected well, but the terrible truth was that there might be a traitor in the camp. No centaur in the history of Narnia had ever stooped to such villainy, but again, such assumptions were no longer safe. Still--Kalderion Goldenmane?
It broke Sinewyn's heart to think about it, and caused him to dread the prospect. Could even he and Melandra's combined subdue as mighty a creature as Kalderion Goldenmane?
"Blessed are thou, oh Emperor Over The Sea, and Blessed is thy son, the Lion. Make us strong in Thy service and in the defense of the Chosen," he prayed quietly.
The sounds of the tickle fight dwindled. Ron and Kim lay exhausted, disheveled, but free of care.
"K.P.--I'm sorry I tweaked you. You're right. Like Dad would say, I gotta pull my weight and I have this idea. It's like that time your dad helped us with our science fair project--which, I guess--you did all the work on."
"So not," said Kim with wry grin. "I let you write the label--and you at least put my name ahead of yours: 'Project by Kim Possible and Ron Stoppable.' "
"Thank you--I think," said Ron, doing a double-take. "But here's my idea. Like Prof. Kirke told the Pevinses about logic: Lucy always told the truth, and Edmund always lied. So if Lucy was telling a really far out story, and Edmund said she was whack, then the Professor said to believe Lucy, 'cause Ed was always the bogus one. We do the same thing; we use logic. Everything that's happened to us could be a dream. First, we read about Narnia last night, so it's what we were thinking most about. Second, we--uh, argued before we went to sleep, so we were like, all tense and stuff. I saw this show--or something--that said you dream as a--um--." Ron clutched his head, trying to recall.
"--'Outlet'?" ventured Kim. She had seen the same program on the Science Network.
"Yeah! What you said! Dreams are outlets when you're worried--thanks, K.P."
"No big. Go on."
"Okay. Third, we can't recall the Lion's name--but we just read the story. Fourth, dreams can seem really lifelike--even with talking animals and centaurs. We even ate the meal. Now, how do we figure out if it's a dream or real life? We make an experiment, like in science class. We state our hypothesis: we're in a dream. We test the hypothesis by testing the variables. Do things seem lifelike? We already know that won't necessarily work, like we could try pinching ourselves. That program told how people's brain waves showed they were experiencing real pain or pleasure in dreams. Sometimes, people could even do terrible stuff while they were sleepwalking, like killing someone, because they were having a dream about something dangerous. Here's my idea. How do we tell it's a dream? The first is if we wake up. We would just look out the window and see my house, or hear Mom call us to breakfast. The second is--we are supposed to be 'the foretold messengers', like we're predicted. If we appear in the Book," he said, pointed to the large volume, "We know it's not a--wow--dream The third is--we're all hung up on the Lion's name. If--big if--we remember the name, or if we hear one of the others mention the name, or if we even see the Lion--" Ron swallowed "--We know it's not a dream. We know we're in real life. Those are our tests."
From under the tree, Sinewyn and Melandra listened intently.
"Can you comprehend what they are saying, dearest?" asked Melandra.
"I can hear their words plainly, but what the words mean mystifies me. Our young Prince has a greater head for wisdom than he or our little Princess has ever supposed, but they are sceptical. That much is evident. They speak of a man called Kirke, a professor, a scholar--can this be the Digory Kirke?
Melandra's eye's widened with awe. "That was the Creation of the World! Are these little cubs that old? Can Digory Kirke still be alive on their world?
Up in the treehouse, Kim was impressed. Her head spun as she tried to follow all the points Ron propounded. "Ron--that's the awesomest idea you ever came up with! It's like hearing my dad talk!"
"So it's settled. If we meet the Lion and His Name's Asl--Asla--" Ron grew frustrated with the seeming paralysis of his lips. He tried to spell, silently mouthing the letters. A-S-L-A...his mind couldn't grasp. It was like in a dream when he would try to make his legs walk somewhere and his legs wouldn't obey. But it was a comforting sign that he still might wake up. Still--
Kim looked longingly around the treehouse.
Ron could feel her angst. "K.P.? You okay?"
Her eyes were sad. "Ron, I can't help but wonder. If this is all real--will we ever see Middleton again?"
"Kim, I don't know how to play the game, but--Truth or Dare."
"Truth."
"The truth is--last night, when you were talking about high school, I was jellin' so bad, I could hardly stand it."
"Ron--why?"
"Because you're gonna do all these things--swim team, student council--heck, K.P. you're gonna be class prez, student council prez--even Prez of the United States!"
"But you could--do things--too!"
"No, I can't! You've got the brains, the looks--you're gonna be Popular. You're gonna be a Cheerleader! You're gonna have boyfriends!"
"Boyfriends? Eww! With these braces?"
"Kim! Don't you ever see yourself in a mirror? You got this red hair--these green eyes--you're gorgeous! You think you're gonna have those braces forever?"
"Well--I hope not."
"K.P.--all I've got is you! I swear, if we weren't best buds, I would so crush on you--"
"--Omigod--Ron--"
"--And that's why I want to go on this Narnia thing. When you're Popular, I'll be hanging with geeks like that Malcolm Nevius kid, or Ned with the glasses--y' know, we always see him at Bueno Nacho. But if I get to go with you--to see the Lion--to have an Adventure--then I can be content. For the rest of my life, I can remember."
"Ron, you'll always have me! We'll always be tight! And no stinkin' Boyfriend is gonna change that!"
"Pretty words, Kim--we'll see." But that topic was for another time. Ron leaned out the treehouse door and called out to Sinewyn and Melandra. "Guys? K.P. and I are done talkin'. We've decided."
Melandra stared puzzled at Sinewyn. "My dear, your familiarity with the Children of Adam and Eve is greater than my own. You have taught me that males and females are referred to as 'guys' and 'gals'. Why does he call us 'guys'? Do I look so much like you? And who is this 'Kay-Pee'?"
Sinewyn smiled. "Apparently, I am less familiar than we thought. I shall apply myself to becoming an able interpreter." Both leopards scaled the tree and entered the treehouse. They sat respectfully and waited for the children to speak.
Kim had gotten over her first terror. Melandra's blue eyes reminded her so of her mother's eyes. But, still, it was a strange sitch. She had once seen the leopards at the Denver Zoo, but they were safely enclosed. The nearness of these two still made her nervous.
Ron cleared his throat. "We--K.P. and I--want to go with you to see--the Lion. We figure it's important, or we wouldn't have come here--or you, either"
Kim rolled her eyes. It was a simple thing to say, but leave it to Ron to mess it up. How would they know "K.P." meant "Kim"? And the Narnians walked here--heck, they already lived here. They didn't wake up in a new place on their tenth birthday, like--bang--there they were in the morning. Even Dorothy could see the tornado coming. Even the Pevinsies got to walk through the Wardrobe.
Sinewyn nodded approvingly. "It is well, Children of Adam. Your courage does you, your people, and your entire world credit."
"Sinewyn, besides the book, what should we bring with us?"
Sinewyn gestured with his forepaw toward their sleeping bags and backpacks. "If you wish to bring your bedrolls and cache of food, you may, but you need not if you wish to travel unencumbered. All will be provided."
Ron gathered his courage. Time to put the hypothesis to the test. "Sinewyn, there's something we gotta tell you. This book that tells the history of Narnia? Last night, when we were still in Middleton--um, our world, this was a storybook--a bunch of storybooks. In our world, Narnia is like a fairy tale. It was written for children--like us--almost a hundred years ago."
"Slight exaggeration, Ron," as K.P. nudged him.
"The point is, Sinewyn--even if some of the story has disappeared, we're not in it."
Sinewyn smiled slightly. "Are you sure, my young prince? Look carefully at the last printed page."
Kim opened the book to the page and showed it to the leopards.
When Adam's flesh and Adam's bone
Sits at Cair Paravel in throne
The evil time will be over and done
"So? Sinewyn, I'm sorry, but it's the same as before--." And even as Ron spoke, Kim tugged frantically on his sleeve, and he finally looked over at the book. It was as though the words appeared with such suddenness that they were already there.
When the Winter is old
And hearts grow cold
Two shall come, never apart
Of two minds, but of one heart
Kim gripped Ron's hand as though she would never let go, and Ron gripped back. "Omigod, omigod, omigod..." she muttered. Their eyes grew wide. Their breath stopped and they could feel chills down to their toes.
"We are here, my dear hearts," Melandra whispered. "Fear not."
"In a story that you or I would tell, we may choose what to include and what to delete. But in the Great Tale that the Lion writes, everyone who lives and everything that happens has a part. Your courage will be tested--and it will not be in vain. We pledge our lives to protect you. In peace and safety shall you travel," said Sinewyn, "As we bring you--to the Lion's Presence." In a louder voice he called to the dwarves and the centaur. "Let us break camp! We are about to embark on a great journey!"
And Kalderion said nothing, but only went about his work in sullen silence.
TO BE CONTINUED
(I know--lotsa talk in this chpt.--more action in the next one.)
