The wolf had been married for fifteen minutes before he was hauled out of the woods, and now he was standing in the throne room of Cair Paravel and staring up into the face of a snarling Lion.
"The Queen had no right to help you."
"She was tryin' to heal me," said the wolf. "She used one drop of her cordial on me. Just one—"
"I told her to keep her distance from you, and she refused. I told her I will not have my subjects wasting time and resources on a bollock-brained mouth-breather like you."
"It was her choice to make," said the wolf. "She wanted to help me."
"She had no right," said the Lion. "My kingdom has no place for you; my plans have no room for you. She disobeyed a direct order, and that has consequences. If I do not carry out the sentence, the Queen will think she can rebel against me with impunity."
"Aslan, please," said Lucy with a teary voice. "Iain was suffering so badly—"
"Enough," said the Lion. "Your throne will be emptied by midnight tonight."
"Sir, ya can't!" said Iain. "She's our Queen!"
"She's a girl who needs to learn a lesson. Since she refused to obey me, she will be sent back to her own world and the horrors therein. Her sister and brothers will rule without a Valiant Queen. Narnia will suffer in her absence, and it will all be your fault."
From behind him came the sob of the Queen. But then Aslan paused and glared down at the wolf. "There is a choice you can make," he rumbled. "You can let the Queen be banished to her own world, and watch all Narnia fall into anarchy and despair. Or I can wound you, and I can undo what she undid."
The wolf's stomach revolted in terror. "Ya mean yer gonna break my leg..."
"I have to put you back the way you were. If I don't, she will think she can rebel against me with impunity."
The wolf blinked back tears and glanced at Lucy's horrified face, then turned to Aslan and scowled at him. "If that's what it takes, then go on and break my leg. Because if that's all it takes to keep Narnia from spiralin' into anarchy, so be it. And while I'm hollerin' in pain and writhin' on the floor, I'll have the satisfaction of knowin' I was a better man than you—"
"STOP!"
Everyone turned to the guards at once. A wolfess burst into view from behind the centaurs, her face going miserable. "GET BACK HERE!" said a centaur, but she swung in front of Iain and said, "Aslan, please! Don't hurt him!"
"Stay out of this, woman," said the Lion.
"He's right, Fiona," said Iain. "Ya've gotta let 'im do it—"
"You have your life back," said the wolfess. "You have a job. You have an income. We just got married. I can't let you give all that up!"
"Fiona, please—"
She sobbed and swung back to Aslan. "I'll leave Narnia and take him with me."
"You are in no position to be making demands," he snarled. "Do you remember what you were like? You were a drunk and a whore until I returned to Narnia. I saved you and made you someone to be proud of, and this is your gratitude?"
"You threatened me out of that life," said Fiona. "But Iain loved me for who I was. If I shaped up for anybody, it was him. And if you really care about making the Kings and Queens shape up, you're going to let us leave. Shouldn't they be reminded that people don't always get what they deserve? Isn't it mercy that seasons justice, and not the other way around? Won't they be better Kings and Queens knowing that you kept them here in Narnia?"
The Lion stared furiously at them, then slapped a paw on the floor and began to pace, snarling as he went to and fro. "Smooth tongues and wicked hearts," said the Lion. "Just what I expect from Children of the White Witch. I should strike you dead right here. However, as I have a lesson to teach these children, striking you down will be for naught."
And with a whip of his mane and a swing of his muscular bulk, he padded away and barked at a centaur, "Get these two out of my sight!"
The half-beast rumbled a sigh and glared at the wolves. "Right away, Sir."
Cair Paravel was a sentinel lighting up the horizon in a hundred flickers of candlelight, and Iain sat on the border of Narnia and stared into the crackling fire as his breath clouded around his head. "Ya shouldn've interfered, luv."
"I couldn't let him break your leg."
"Ya coulda had the weddin' ya wanted. Ya could've 'ad flowers and song and dance, and music and feasts and friends—"
"But I have all that," said Fiona. "You, Iain, are my flowers and song and dance. You are my music and feast and friend."
"But ya didn't just lose a weddin'. Ya had to leave yer whole life behind on account o' me."
"It was my choice to make. Besides, all my friends (if you ought to call them that) were the biggest gossips in the world. They did it with me, and they did it to me."
"But it's Narnia, luv. We've been tossed outta our home, and we have to walk the world alone. I cannae let ya do that, not for me."
There was a pause, and she let out a frosty breath and laid a paw over his. "Remember our vows, Iain?"
In wilderness and home,
In poverty and wealth,
In tears and laughter,
You will always be mine.
In illness and health,
In danger and safety,
In loneliness and company,
You will always be mine.
She gave him a teary smile. "In danger and loneliness. That's where we are now. We are headed for some hard times, but not even Aslan will split us apart. You know why? Because you're the one I want to be with. You're loyal. You're strong. You're intelligent, and you're brave. You're always ready to speak your mind. You fight for what you believe in, no matter how unpopular it is. You care about me more than anyone I've ever known. You'll do whatever you can to protect me. You're willing to suffer if it helps someone else." The wolfess had a playful look in her misty eyes. "And it doesn't hurt that you're pleasing to the eye..."
He chuckled tearily and nuzzled her neck, feeling her soft fluffy fur against his head. "We may not have Narnia or Aslan, or weddin' rings or a home, neither…" And he pulled away and smiled straight at her. "But ya know what, luv? I'm as wealthy and as happy as any king, if not more. And it's all because I've got you. Yer strong and brave. Yer tough as the dickens. Ya stand up for me and fight for me. Yer the prettiest lassie of all, and not just because ya've got the charm that makes a battle-hardened chap go wobbly (although ya've certainly got that). It's because yer good. Yer the kind o' lassie that the bards oughta be writin' about—the kind that could lose all her fur and not be any less beautiful."
"Oh, Iain…"
"And let's not ferget, yer batty enough to marry a bollock-brained mouth-breather like me…"
She gave a weepy laugh and nuzzled his cheek, and he let out a chuckle and sighed happily at the sky. The stars were twinkling overhead, as if they were joining in the laughter.
"I don't understand him," said Fiona. "In all the old stories, he's a friend to the outcasts. He puts orphans in families. Why didn't he do that for us?"
"I dunno," said the wolf with a heavy sigh. "But no matter what, we still have each other. And I reckon that's all we'll ever need."
He laid a paw over hers and shared a nuzzle, and the fire kept crackling into the winter night.
THE END