Chapter Four
"Why did they call you "Stick"?" Tinkleberry asked as he smiled and opened his eyes.
"It was because I was very skinny," he said with a smile and placed the wooden box on the table near the bed.
"What happened to your brothers?"
"They died in the war," he sighed then rested back against the headboard and she snuggled against him.
"Are you sure?" she asked while looking up at him and he nodded his head.
"Father told me that he saw them fall in battle and would have died as well if he hadn't been captured," he said when Tinkleberry sighed then closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep. In the dim light of the fire, he watched her sleeping when he kissed the top of her head and wrapped his arms around her. Looking over at the wooden box, he thought for a few minutes then whispered a little prayer and watched the fire flickering in the darkness.
The dining hall was quiet when the large, ivory doors opened while Tilnus walked inside then jumped when the horns sounded and he growled at the centaur guards.
"Commander Tilnus!" the centaur guard said as Tilnus sighed and walked to the small, wooden table and stool near the fireplace. He sat down when he placed the napkin on his lap and the children smiled, looking at him.
"Good morning, Commander," Edmund said.
"Good morning," Tilnus said with a nod of his head.
"Where is Tumnus?" Lucy asked.
"I think he's still sleeping," Tilnus said when the large, ivory doors burst open and they looked at the doorway while Tinkleberry stormed into the room.
"Where is he?" she demanded and they looked at her with confused looks on their faces.
"Where's who?" Susan asked.
"Where is Master Tumnus? I woke and found him gone!"
"What?" Tilnus shouted as they stood up and left the dining hall. They ran down the hallway then up the stone stairs when they came to Tilnus' quarters and went in the room. Tumnus' red, woolen scarf was missing, but his umbrella sat in its usual spot in the corner as Tinkleberry sighed and placed her hands behind her back.
"Do you think he went for a walk?" Lucy asked.
"No, I asked the staff and no one has seen him," Tinkleberry said.
"He must have left during the night," Edmund said.
"I would have noticed."
"Not if he cat walked," Tilnus said.
"What's cat walking?" Peter asked.
"He walked as silent as a cat."
"But why would he leave?" Susan asked.
"He must have thought it would be safer to leave because of what is going on with the fauns," Edmund said.
"That is ridiculous," Susan said.
"He couldn't have gotten far," Peter said as they left the room and Tinkleberry walked to the table near the bed and looked at the wooden box. She opened the lid of the box when she looked inside and saw that the box was empty.
"You silly faun," Tinkleberry sighed when she closed the lid then shrunk down to her smaller size and flew out of the room.
The sunlight woke him when Tumnus yawned and opened his eyes, seeing the purple/pink sky and wiped the sleep out of his eyes. Kneeling on the ground, he started packing the things he brought with him in the blanket then tied the blanket shut and stood up. Placing the blanket over his right shoulder, he flicked the map open as he held the map in his hand and looked around, trying to figure out where he was. He started walking down the trail when he heard something moving in the bushes and stopped, standing with his back against a tree. He looked out from behind the tree when he sighed and started walking again. He looked at the map when he heard something again and stopped, his ears slightly twitching as they tried to figure out where the sound was coming from.
"Hello?" Tumnus asked. He started walking when he came to the lamppost and looked toward the direction of his house, shrugged and headed in the opposite direction. He kept walking when something moved in the bushes and he hid behind a tree. He peeked out when something moved out of the bushes and looked around. He blinked then frowned when he walked out from behind the tree and placed the blanket down on the ground.
"Tinkleberry?" Tumnus asked as Tinkleberry turned around and smiled.
"There you are!" Tinkleberry said as she walked to him and he crossed his arms across his chest.
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm looking for you."
"Go home," Tumnus said as he picked the blanket up and walked down the trail. Tinkleberry ran after him as they walked along the trail and the leaves swayed gently in the breeze. Neither of them spoke for a long while when she looked at him and blinked her eyes.
"I'm not the only one looking for you. High King Peter sent out search parties," Tinkleberry said.
"What? Why did he do that? I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself!" Tumnus said and she was stunned by his anger.
"Well, what did you expect? You go off like some spoiled child and disappear! Your father is very upset!"
Tumnus growled then walked faster down the trail and Tinkleberry half ran to catch up with him. By nightfall they had found a cave as he shared some of the food with her, but neither of them talked. Tinkleberry had found some wood to make a fire and Tumnus laid on the blanket as she watched him then crawled closer, lying next to him and gently placed his hand in hers. He smiled when they closed their eyes and the stars twinkled in the night sky as they drifted off to sleep.
The sun shined brightly on the leaves as they walked along the trail when they came to a stream and Tumnus watched the fast moving water. A cold shiver moved through him while he looked at the map and sighed. He never minded crossing running water, but this part of the stream brought up a childhood fear and he closed his eyes, trying to calm his heart. Opening his eyes, Tumnus sighed and looked at the stones sticking out of the fast moving water.
"What do we do now?" Tinkleberry asked as she looked at the map and noticed the look in his eyes. "Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine."
"Well, let's go," Tinkleberry said as she walked to the shoreline then looked back to see Tumnus standing near the rock and she titled her head to one side. "Master Tumnus, are you coming?"
"I, uh, I can't."
"Why? What's the matter?"
"I just can't."
"Can't you swim?"
"Yes, um, I can," Tumnus said and she smiled, walking back to him, took the map out of his hand and placed the map in the blanket that was strapped to her back.
"It will be alright. I won't let anything happen to you," Tinkleberry said then jumped to the first stone and Tumnus looked at her. Sighing, he took a deep breath when he jumped to the first stone while she took his hands and smiled at him. She jumped to the second stone as he watched the water splashing against the stone and he felt his heart slamming hard in his chest. He took a few steps back then jumped and landing in front of her. She caught his hands as they laughed and she brushed the hair out of his eyes. She jumped to the third stone when he saw the water rushing by and the moss clung to the stone.
"No," Tumnus whispered when something soared through his mind and he shook harder.
"Come on!" Tinkleberry said with her hands out and he felt like he was going to faint.
"I, uh, I can't!" Tumnus said as the water roared around them and she looked at him.
"Well, I'm not going to leave you here. Come on!"
"Come on, Stick, you can do it!" a voice echoed in his head as Tumnus sighed and moved back. He jumped as he reached for her hands when he missed the stone and fell into the water.
"MASTER TUMNUS!" Tinkleberry shouted as he came to the surface and gasped for air. The water started carrying him away as Tinkleberry jumped from one stone to the other then landed on the shore and ran after him, "SWIM TO THE SHORE!"
Tumnus tried to swim to shore as the water carried him along and Tinkleberry stopped, watching him vanish from sight. She sat on the ground when she started crying and the clouds floated slowly across the sky.
The leaves moved in the wind as a female faun, a wolf and a bear walked along the path when they saw something lying on the bank of the stream and they ran down the hill. Tumnus was lying on his front as the water pooled around him and they stopped next to him.
"Is it still alive?" the wolf asked in a growling voice when the female faun flipped Tumnus over and looked at him. She placed her head on his chest when she sat up then arched his head back and pinched his nose closed. She breathed into him a few times, pushing down on his chest over his heart, when he coughed and she gently turned him onto his side, letting him spit the water out. She gently rolled him onto his back as he breathed hard and fast through his nose and she gently placed her hand on his chest, feeling his heart pounding.
"Brock, come here!" she said as the bear came closer and the female faun gently picked up Tumnus, placing Tumnus on the bear's back. They headed for the trees as the sun started to go down and the clouds moved across the sky.
The days turned into weeks as Tumnus slept and his skin shimmered in the firelight. He barely breathed as the female faun gently washed his chest with a soft cloth and sighed. She looked at him when she gently brushed the hair from his eyes and he softly smiled. He did smile when she touched him and she placed the cloth in the bowl. She picked up the wooden bowl when she carefully lifted his head and opened his mouth. He swallowed as she let him drink what was in the bowl then placed his head down and moved the blankets up.
"Is he getting any better?" the voice asked as she looked to her left, looked at the wolf and sighed.
"His skin feels cooler, but his breathing is still too shallow," she sighed when Tumnus moved his fingers and she took his hand.
"I think it was wrong to bring him here," a voice growled and she turned, looking into the shadows.
"What did you want me to do? Leave him there? He had water in his lungs! He would have died!" she half shouted and felt Tumnus squeeze her fingers.
"I am just saying that he might be dangerous," the voice growled when Tumnus slowly opened his eyes and she looked at him. He blinked a few times when he looked to his left and into the bright eyes of the most beautiful female faun he had ever seen. He looked at the light dancing in her blue eyes and shimmer on her white hair. He felt soft fingers move through his hair as the female faun smiled at him and he slowly titled his head to one side.
"Don't talk," she said while pressing her soft fingers on his lips and he sighed then coughed. She gently brushed the hair from his eyes as he softly smiled at her and she smiled back.
"Wh-who are you?" Tumnus whispered in a harsh voice and she hushed him, wrapping her fingers around his fingers.
"I am Arayna."
"I, um, am Tumnus," Tumnus said then coughed loudly and made a choking noise. She gently rolled him onto his left side when he gagged and water came from his mouth onto the floor. She let him cough up the water then laid him on his back and placed her hand on his chest. His heart thumped hard and fast against her fingers as she gently rubbed his chest over his heart and sadly smiled at him. "What is, uh, wrong with me?"
"You have water sickness. Do you remember falling into the stream?"
"Ye-yes, I was, uh, traveling with a friend and I, um, fell off a rock," Tumnus whispered then half closed his eyes.
"When I found you, you weren't breathing and your heart was barely beating. I was able to get you breathing again and you coughed up most of the water. I'm afraid you still have water in your lungs, but the medicine I'm giving you will take care of that."
"How, uh, long have I been here?"
"You have been here for three weeks," Arayna said when Tumnus closed his eyes and sighed. She looked at him when she felt his heart slowing down and he softly breathed. She brushed the hair from his eyes as he smiled and she gently stroked his cheek.
"I still think this was a mistake," a voice growled and she looked into the shadows.
"I don't," Arayna whispered and smiled, watching Tumnus sleep.