Sophia's Story
A Disney crossover by talking2myself
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any recognizable Disney characters. All original characters are my own creations.
CHAPTER 46. Catch a Tiger by the Tail
The little troupe of adventurers continued to make their way along the river. It seemed like the best option for them at the time. They knew where Tanana was going, but they still needed water themselves. They tried to keep a brisk pace, but it was becoming clear that they were not going to make it to the mountain before nightfall. Sophia shivered at the thought of being alone in the forest during the night and it had nothing to do with the cold.
Sophia began to do a mental inventory of their collective survival skills. Mickey had spent his entire life I a tower. The only abilities he truly had to offer were magical in nature and even then he was still an apprentice. Jackie and Elizabeth were even worse, Sophia doubted that firebuilding and foraging were covered in any of the finishing schools they had attended. Jack and Will perhaps had some basic knowledge due to their time at sea and Merlin and Mim had at least lived in the middle of the forest long enough to maybe offer some practical advice. Innoko was perhaps their best hope… which was a terrifying fact. The little woman was at least familiar with the area.
"Lunch time!" Jack announced. He halted suddenly and knelt besides a patch of bright red berries. He plucked a handful of them and held up one with his pointer finger and thumb. "What you do think, Innoko? Good enough to eat?"
"Not particular filling," Innoko said. "But they won't kill you."
Jack shrugs, "Works for me." He popped one into his mouth.
Innoko shook her head. "There's a man who's not afraid of dying."
"He's done it before," Will said. Innoko looked at him in confusion. Will waved his hand dismissively. "It's a long story."
"We can't stay for long," Sophia said. The leaves beneath her feet crunched beneath her boots as she kept walking. "We'll need to… YIKES!"
Sophia let out a shriek as she felt something tighten around her ankle. Suddenly, she felt herself being yanked upwards. She hung upside down, suspended from one ankle. Her shawl tumbled to the ground and her heavy skirts fell over her head. Sophia kicked her free leg and flailed wildly.
"What's going on? Help! Help me!"
"Sophia!" she heard Jackie cry in a panic. This was followed by wildly cackling from Mim.
"Sophia, don't move! You stepped in a hunter's snare," Will said calmly.
"What?" Sophia struggled to gather up her skirts away from her face. She could feel her face burning with blush as she realized that her companions probably had a great view of her tights and bloomers beneath her skirts. She swung gently from side to side like a pendulum. She peered at her concerned and upside down friends. Mim was on the ground clutching her stomach and laughing so hard she could scarcely breathe.
"For pity's sake, Mim!" Merlin scolded. "It's hardly funny."
"No, it's actually pretty hilarious," Innoko argued with a smirk.
"What happened?!" Sophia demanded. She could feel the blood rushing to her head. She struggling to crane her neck upwards and peer at her ankle.
"It's a hunter's snare," Will explained. He gently steadied Sophia by clutching the rope shortly above her ankle. "It was hidden in the leave. You stepped in it."
"Wonderful," Sophia grumbled.
"Hey!" Innoko shrugged, "In the forest, there are far worse things to step in."
"GET ME DOWN!" Sophia hollered.
"Right, right, right," Will said. "Hold on, one second."
"As if I could do anything else!" Sophia cried. Jackie had appeared at her side and was holding up her skirts to try and give her a certain amount of privacy. Sophia could see clearly what she had down now. She hung suspended from a wiry birch tree, half toppled over from her weight. Sophia couldn't remember feeling this embarrassed right now.
Will was searching through his belt for a knife. "I'll get you down. Jack, hold her."
Jack sprang forwards and gently gripped her underneath her under arms while Will gripped the rope. A low growling sound echoed in her ears. "Jeez, Jack eat some more berries if you're that hungry."
Jack looked up and his face paled. "I hate to break it to you, love. That's not my stomach."
Sophia was about to ask further when Jackie's scream split the sky.
"DUCK AND COVER!" Innoko cried before tackling Mickey into the underbrush as a big shape lunged past them. Will and Jack both released her suddenly, causing her to swing wildly in the air. Her skirts falling over her again.
"What's going on?!" she cried in a panic. Sophia pulled her skirts back and caught sight of what had frightened everyone. A massive tawny colored cat stood before them with yellow eyes and long white fangs. It was a sabretooth tiger.
The creature growled menacingly at them. Will had pulled out his sword and brandished it, but he moved too slowly. The tiger lunged before Will could do so much as scream.
Another shape leaped forwards knocking the tiger aside at the last minute. A blue and black striped tiger with Merlin's white whiskers and glasses knocked the cat flat before he could reach them. Will took advantage of the moment and swung his sword slicing through the rope.
Sophia let out a cry as she plummeted roughly to the rocky ground. The air was knocked out of her lungs as she hit. Sophia could feel scratches on her face. The rope was still tied around her ankle. She felt Jackie's cold fingers haul her to her feet as quickly as she could. Sophia wobbled on her throbbing ankle unsteadily.
Merlin and the tiger were circling each other. "Run! Run!" Merlin yelped in a panic.
"D-d-do something!" Sophia cried frantically.
The tiger leaped at Merlin, pinning him to the forest floor. Merlin let out a cry of fright as the tiger raised a menacing paw and was about to claw his face. Without thinking, Mim sprang forwards and grabbed the tiger's tail and gave it a mighty pull. The tiger roared with rage and turned to glare at Mim.
Mim looked terrified. "Uh oh." She cried. There was a poof and she suddenly disappeared as the tiger stalked towards. The tiger snarled in confusion and anger swiping at the air. Sophia could hear Mim's invisible form as she let out a yelp of alarm. Sophia couldn't tell what had happened, but she suspected that lost blow was a bit too close for comfort. Merlin took advantage of the moment to transform into a blue hawk and flapped up towards the tree.
Suddenly, a new shape flew out of nowhere. Something whizzed through the air and struck the tiger square in the jaw. The tiger turned its attention on Will, Elizabeth, Jack, and Jackie who stood around Sophia's limp form. Sophia painfully struggled to get to her feet.
Sophia was convinced that this was the end when suddenly she saw something whiz through the air. The object struck the tiger hard in the jaw, leaving it temporarily stupefied. It was a moment that Sophia desperately needed. Pulling her wand from her belt, Sophia waved it frantically and moments later, a striped pink cupcake sat where the sabretooth tiger had been moments before. It sat next to the object that had struck it moments earlier, a heavy boot designed for cold weather.
For a few moments, Sophia just struggled to catch her breath and ignore the intense pain in her ankle. A few moments later, she heard a friendly voice cry out.
"My! That was a close one!"
The little group whirled around and Innoko and Mickey appeared out of the underbrush while Merlin and Mim transformed into their normal forms once again. The silver-haired figure that Sophia had seen in the water reappeared. She limped along bootless, smiling at them. "I'm going to need to get myself a new pair of boots once I get back to the village," she said as she hopped along. She stooped and pick up her boot. "Good morning," she said cheerily as she tugged it onto her foot. "What are all you lovely folks doing out here?" she asked conversationally.
"Hey Tanana," Innoko said in a dry voice. "Long time no see."
"You're Tanana?" Jack cried.
Tanana gave them a small curtsey, "The one and only."
Merlin had been staring at Tanana in surprise, when he suddenly turned towards Mim. "Did you save me?"
Mim crossed her arms, "I didn't save you."
"You caught a tiger by the tail… quite literally," Merlin cried in surprise.
"Don't get all sappy on me!" Mim snapped awkwardly.
"C-c-can we have this c-c-conversation somewhere else?" Jackie asked. Her eyes were riveted on the cupcake which was beginning to hop about as Sophia's spell was beginning to wear off.
"Oh yes, of course," Tanana said very matter-of-factly. "Right this way. I imagine he'll be quite cranky when he wakes up. She delicately stepped over the cupcake. "Come along now," she said cheerfully.
Will immediately scooped up Sophia. A fact that Sophia was incredibly grateful for and without another word, the little group trailed after Tanana as he lead them further into the forest.