Narnia:

When Children Cry

My first phanphic, so be merciful, I beg of you!

SUMMARY:

Part One: Basically, Tumnus' story of his friendship with Lucy.

Part Two: Their friendship after Lucy becomes Queen Lucy the Valiant of Narnia.

Part Three: Lucy and Tumnus reunite many years later, and how their friendship progresses into love.

Disclaimer: I don't own Lucy, Tumnus, or anything, really, in Part One. I get to own more stuff as the book progresses... but for now, I own nothing; I am simply a phanphiction hobo.

Sorry this chapter's so long; it has three parts to it, and each was too short to be a chapter in itself.

Chapter Ten

What Was Mended

A great shout arose from the army behind Aslan, and flowed down the giant hill to the battlefield. Tumnus, being just a young faun, felt so incredibly lost in this battle, but was determined to fight in this war.

As he reached the battlefield, not a single enemy attacked him. A good sign for certain, meaning that the Witch's army was lessening. However, that was no excuse for him to cease fighting before he began.

A goblin was holding a crude spear to the throat of a large badger who was in no condition to fight. Tumnus leapt forward, jumped onto the goblin's back and seized its spear all in one movement. He wrapped him arms round the creature's throat and kept his grip there tightly. But the goblin was much too strong for that and sank his razor- sharp teeth into Tumnus's arm. Tumnus howled in pain and was wrenched off the goblin's back, toppling to the ground. The goblin glared at him and tore another spear from a dead eagle's chest, grasping it menacingly before Tumnus's eyes. The faun glared at the spear and leapt up, knocking the goblin in the head with a heavy hoof. The goblin shrieked, poising its spear in position to strike, but Tumnus brought out his own. They circled each other in hatred, and began to spar with the broad wooden sticks the spearheads were bound to. This small fight kept on for quite some time, until the badger which Tumnus had saved crept under the goblin's feet. When the goblin stepped backward, it cried out as it fell to the ground. Tumnus grimaced at the goblin and drove his spear through its heart.

He turned around rapidly in time enough to duck a griffyn that swept low to the ground. The gryffin was of King Peter's army, but why then would it attempt an attack on Tumnus? The faun soon came to the realisation of why, and bent down to clutch hold of the sword that the gryffin had dropped in front of him. Tumnus watched him fly away into the sun, and sent out a silent thank-you to the valiant beast. The faun stared at the weapon in his hand and unsheathed it. Made of jewelled silver and mahogany, the sword was surely made from dwarfs and was the most beautiful and fatal thing that Tumnus had ever seen, and truly worthy to fight for Aslan. Then, with hilt in hand, Tumnus ran forward into the heart of the battlefield shouting out,

'FOR NARNIA!'

He raised the sword with his right hand and brought it down upon one of the Witch's minions.

If you had seen Tumnus on that battlefield with your very eyes, I feel certain that you would not recognise him. That once cowardly faun who yielded to the White Witch, who would not wander too far around his corner for fear of what lurked beyond . . . Yes, that very faun Tumnus had become a true Narnian warrior. There was no fear in this gallant fighter as he took on enemies twice his size, no fear as he was beaten down again and again by yet another beast. He would only once again arise from the blood-sodden ground, more vigorous than ever.

This, however, was soon discontinued. Tumnus was holding his bright sword to a rather stupid-looking troll, when the troll turned and ran away. Tumnus was about to chase after it when he looked about and saw that all of the Witch's army was retreating.

Tumnus gave out a triumphant laugh and wiped the beautiful sword on the grass below him. He lifted the sword with tip facing the sky and looked up to it. This sky he was looking upon, the earth beneath his hoofs, the breeze lilting over his perspiring face – it was all now a part of Narnia.

Narnia was free.

❦

'Mr Tumnus!'

Tumnus let out a small oof! as Lucy raced at him and threw her arms around his middle. In return, he bent down and pulled her in tightly.

'Oh, Mr Tumnus, I'd hoped you were all right!' said the little girl.

'I can say the same for you,' Tumnus assured her, releasing her from his arms.

'Why, Mr Tumnus, what's that?' asked Lucy, pointing to his arm. Tumnus covered it quickly. He needn't trouble such a young heart with his own battle wounds.

'Oh, just a scratch.'

'Mr Tumnus, you're bleeding; show it to me at once!' said Lucy, and Tumnus was so surprised at her fierceness that he lifted his hand from the injury. Lucy gasped. 'Oh, that looks simply awful,' she whispered, and brought something out of her pocket that Tumnus couldn't see. 'Bend down just a little bit; that's it. Now, just a drop of this and you'll be as right as rain.' Lucy touched a finger to Tumnus's lower lip.

Tumnus's head buzzed, and he wasn't sure if it was her touch or the strange concoction that she'd placed on his mouth. He bit his lip and felt an unusual (yet not unpleasant) taste seep onto his tongue that was incredibly sweet and delicious. What was even more stunning was the bleeding gash on his forearm was disappearing. He watched in amazement as the severed skin melted together, the swelling slowly decreased, and all other aches on his body altogether vanished.

'Lucy –' gasped Tumnus. 'What was that?'

'Oh!' said Lucy, glancing at a little blue bottle in her hands. 'It was – I mean, it is – my present. From Father Christmas.'

Tumnus laughed out loud, not in a ridiculing way, but out of joy. 'Did Christmas really come while I was gone?'

'Yes. I saw him.'

Tumnus raised an eyebrow. 'Who? Father Christmas?'

'Yes, that's right.'

Tumnus grinned. 'Summer, Christmas, Aslan . . . What else happened while I was a statue?'

Lucy told him.

❦

'. . . And you really saw him come back to life?'

Lucy smiled. 'Well, I didn't really see him, but one moment he was lying on the Stone Table, and then Susan and I were just ever so tired and very sad of course, so we left to go back to camp. Then there was this rumbling noise, like the earth itself was being shaken. And Susan and I turned around, and Aslan wasn't there anymore. It's not like he was dead and then was alive again, it's just that he wasn't there, and the Stone Table was broken in half like a great crack in the ice. Su and I didn't know what to make of it, but then . . . we turned around again, and he was there! I could see him, and he was alive.'

From the little girl's vaguely outlined storytelling, Tumnus could picture what happened. 'And then?'

'He was just so . . . happy. More than happy. And then he was so happy that he gave out a giant roar.'

Tumnus grinned again. 'How loud?'

'Well, I couldn't really tell, he told us to cover our ears!' said Lucy, and Tumnus laughed. Lucy continued. 'And then we got on his back and flew over to the Witch's castle. Oh, that was amazing. Of course, you know where the story goes on from there.'

Tumnus's grin abruptly vanished. 'Yes, I do. But how –' The faun was interrupted as a boy wandered over to the two friends' conversation.

'Lu, I'm sorry to interrupt, but Susan – oh.' The boy's eyes turned to Tumnus.

'Edmund,' Lucy began, seeing that his gaze lingered on Tumnus and that neither of them were saying anything. 'This is Mr Tumnus the faun. Mr Tumnus, this is –'

'We've met,' said Tumnus stiffly.

'Oh, have you?' said Lucy happily, but silenced at the sight of Mr Tumnus glaring daggers at her brother.

'Ah . . .' Edmund mumbled. 'Look, I'm . . . I'm sorry, and –'

Tumnus was about to say something very rude indeed, but remembered Lucy's presence and held his tongue.

Lucy.

In truth, Tumnus intended to never forgive that traitor. Never forgive Edmund, this bully, this barbarian, who had betrayed him, who had betrayed Lucy.

Yet Tumnus, too, had betrayed Lucy at one point.

And Lucy had forgiven him.

Even though he presently didn't believe he deserved her forgiveness, she'd forgiven him. Now it was up to him – one deceived in the stead of a deceiver – to forgive Edmund. For Lucy's sake.

Tumnus cleared his throat. 'It's all right.'

Edmund's worried brow softened. 'Really?'

'Yes. All forgiven.'

'I really do apologise, I didn't –'

'It's all right, Edmund. The past is forgotten.' Tumnus thought for something more stable to say. 'Let's be friends, shall we?'

Genuine smiles flourished on both their faces. 'Yes,' said Edmund. Then: 'Thank you.' He needn't say anything more. The two had reached a silent understanding of peace.

After Edmund had departed, Lucy turned to Tumnus. 'What was that all about?'

Tumnus smiled yet again. Today was a day for mending things. 'That's a story for another day, Lucy.'