THE WHITE WONDER
A-ha! Another glorious update! Goes to show that this story is not dead; merely very slow-going. I solemnly swear I'll get this thing done, one day or another, if it kills me.
I've received a great deal more inspiration from the movies. In fact, I just finished watching "Prince Caspian", and not merely a few scenes, but the whole thing. It's been a while since I watched a Narnia movie all the way, and I felt this powerful urge to watch all three films (that are out so far) in chronological order. While they are all fantastic, I still say the first one is and always will be the absolute best.
Characters (except Terence) © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media
Terence and Story © unicorn-skydancer08
All rights reserved.
Any theft or copying of this story is prohibited. Your honesty is sincerely appreciated.
CHAPTER 10
Before either Tumnus, Lucy, or Terence had a chance to say anything more to one another—or say anything at all—they realized they had company. Turning their heads simultaneously in the same direction, they saw Oreius emerge from the thick of the wood, followed by several fauns, dwarves, and satyrs. The leopard and at least two big bloodhounds were at their feet. Everyone pulled up shortly at the sight before them. Even the leopard stopped dead in his tracks.
Not too far away, Lucy could hear her sister's griping: "I swear, when I get my hands on Lucy, I'm going to…" But before Susan could complete her threat, she and the boys and the remainder of their troupe had caught up with the others, and there was a sudden hush.
Complete silence fell over that area. You could have heard a pine needle break.
Terence was tempted to turn and flee on the spot, but having heard Lucy's name among the group, he knew that anyone in league with the girl couldn't be too dangerous. Besides, he had never seen a group like this, this close up before. There was something oddly intriguing about these people, even though the young stallion found the sight of horses' bodies merged with the bodies of men a downright ridiculous one.
"By Aslan!" one of the dwarves said at one point, his voice low and husky with disbelief.
Edmund blinked several times, then rubbed the back of his wrist over his eyes, as if to make sure they weren't fooling him. Had Susan's eyes been any wider, they would have popped straight out of her head. Peter was as awestruck as the rest of them. He'd always had a hunch that there had been a unicorn lurking about, but this proved it beyond a shred of doubt.
Even Oreius looked amazed. There was an expression of complete astonishment and wonder on the centaur's dusky face that was seldom seen before.
Presently, Lucy smiled at her siblings and the rest of the group—a smile that clearly said "I told you so"—and made a grand gesture at Terence.
Terence did nothing at first, but in a moment he bowed to them, lowering his horn just enough to be polite.
"So," said Peter, breaking the uncanny silence. "This is the beast."
"His name is Terence," said Lucy. "Isn't he simply beautiful?"
"You mean, he's handsome," Susan found herself correcting her. "Males are known as handsome."
"Well, I say he's beautiful."
"A pleasure to meet you all," Terence told the group outright, which caused quite a few of them to jump a mile.
Oreius, however, stood perfectly still and remained calm. "So he can speak," the centaur declared.
"As well as you can, man-horse," Terence countered. "Or horse-man, or whatever they call you."
Edmund struggled to repress a smirk.
"I take it you're all convinced now, aren't you?" Lucy stated. "You know I've been telling the truth this whole time, don't you?" She looked meaningfully at her sister at that last bit.
At a loss for words, Susan at least had the grace to lower her head and look embarrassed.
"You're right, Lu," said Peter quietly. "You've convinced us."
He then turned to Oreius and gave a single, brief nod. Understanding the signal, Oreius sidled a little closer to Ares and secretly dug into one of the bags that hung from the black horse's sides. From it, he produced the special bridle that Peter had demanded earlier. From the moment Terence's sharp eye caught that first glint of gold, he knew in an instant that something was up—something that he didn't particularly like.
Without hesitation, without another word, the white beast wheeled around and bolted out of there as if the place were on fire. "Terence!" Lucy cried after him.
"Wait!" Tumnus hollered as well. "Where are you going?"
"Quickly!" Peter bellowed to the others. "Follow that unicorn!" Then he goaded Ares into a full-fledged gallop, while the leopard and the dogs took off in a flash, the dogs barking wildly the whole time.
"What are you doing?" Lucy shrilled at her brother as he rode past her.
Peter didn't answer, nor did he acknowledge her in any way. He was focused solely on the way in which Terence had gone. He cracked the reins and dug the heels of his boots roughly into his horse's flanks to make him go faster, even though Ares was already stretching himself to the limit.
Edmund and Susan seemed just as surprised as Lucy, but the rest of them didn't hesitate to join the chase, one after the other, with loud whoops and a rolling pulsation of hooves.
"STOP!" shouted Tumnus at the top of his voice, though the others neither could nor would hear him.
Up ahead, Terence knew without needing to look back that he was being pursued. He smiled to himself.
He knew these people couldn't catch him if their lives depended on it, but he could certainly lead them on a merry chase!