Chapter Eight
The sunlight sparkled off the leaves while Tumnus walked along the path and was amazed how many gardens surrounded Cair Paravel. Walking under the arches wrapped with roses, he placed his hands behind his back and breathed in the many scents drifting in the breeze. He stopped suddenly when he saw a group of fairies near a bush as they talked quickly to each other and he saw the fear on their faces. Walking closer, he saw the large spider web and at the center of the spider web was a female fairy with long, white hair and ice blue eyes. She was struggling to get free of the spider web while the other fairies tried to help her and Tumnus looked around, trying to find something to free her. He then heard a high scream when he saw a large spider crawling on the spider web and Tumnus looked down, seeing a stick on the ground. The end of the stick was a sharp point as he picked the stick up and watched the spider moving toward the fairy. Roaring, he swung the stick down as he pinned the spider to the ground then he grinded the stick into the spider's body and the spider wiggled on the ground. A few moments passed until the spider became still and Tumnus let go of the stick. Panting, he went onto his knees as he placed his hands on his thighs and looked up at the sky.
"Is she alright?" he finally asked as he looked at the fairies and saw that the fairy had her eyes closed. Carefully, he brushed the webbing around her away then held her in his hand and brushed the webbing off of her. One of the fairies hovered near his hand then landed on his palm as the little fairy held the other fairy in his arms and was whispered to her. Tumnus watched as the little fairy opened her eyes and the other fairy hugged her. Smiling, Tumnus placed them on the ground away from the spider then stood up and started walking away. He stopped when the fairies flew around him and he titled his head to one side. "What's the matter?"
"What is your name?" one of the fairies asked.
"My name is Tumnis," Tumnus said and the fairies said his name over and over again as they flew around his head. Smiling, he watched the fairies flying away when he placed his hands behind his back and started walking down the path. He stopped when he felt something moving on the top of his head then the little fairy with the long, white hair and ice blue eyes looked down at him as she waved and he held his hand out, allowing her to land on his palm. "Hello, who are you?"
"Tinkleberry," the little fairy said with a nod of her head and Tumnus smiled, nodding his head.
"Are you alright?"
"Yesyesyesyes!" Tinkleberry said four times and Tumnus softly laughed.
"That's good. Now, I want you to be more careful. Spiders are very dangerous," he said as she nodded her head then flew away and he smiled, walking down the path.
The bedroom was semi dark while the fire popped in the fireplace and Tumnus snuggled under the duvet, propping the pillow under his head. He watched the shadows moving on the wall when he saw a tiny, white light shoot by and he sat up, wrapping the duvet around his legs. The tiny, white light sailed around him when he held his hands out and the tiny, white light landed on his palm. He blinked his eyes a few times when he looked at Tinkleberry and she smiled up at him.
"Well, hello, what are you doing here?" he asked.
"I live here now," she said and he gave her a confused look.
"What do you mean?"
"I am yours now," she said and Tumnus' eyes widened.
"You're mine?" he asked, frowning. "Do you mean you're my servant?"
"Yesyesyesyes!" she said and he sighed, brushing some hair from his eyes.
"Oh, uh, I think there has been some misunderstanding. True, I did save you from the spider, but that doesn't mean you have to be my servant. Oh, don't look at me like that. You can still be my friend, if you wish," he said as she looked at him with sad eyes then thought for a few minutes and smiled.
"Friendfriendfriendfriend!" she said as he rolled his eyes, smiled then sighed.
"Well, if you're going to stay, I suggest you find somewhere to sleep," he said as she flew to the pillow and he looked over at her. "Uh, besides there, I tend to roll over and I might squish you."
He watched her flying toward the small, wooden table when he noticed the small house for the first time and smiled, shaking his head. He watched her go inside the small house then close the door and Tumnus slid under the duvet and rolled onto his side. Smiling, he closed his eyes as the fire popped in his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
The torches flickered on the walls as the Elders led Tumnus down the long hallway and he looked at the paintings on the walls. He was given breakfast in the room they had given him and he hadn't seen Orin, Brock, Arayna or Tinkleberry anywhere. They kept walking when they came to a large, stone door and he looked at large, stone door.
"Um, what's in there?" he asked and the first female faun looked at him with a blank look on her face.
"Inside is where you will face the first test," the first female faun said. 'Do you wish to proceed?"
"Yes, but, um, where are my friends?"
"You will see them if you survive this," the second female faun said and he arched his eyebrows up as his eyes widened.
"Open the door and go inside," the third female faun said as Tumnus walked to the large, stone door and pushed the large, stone door open. The large, stone door screamed as he pushed then walked into the semi dark room and looked around. The large, stone door slammed shut as he jumped and sighed. His hooves clicked on the stone floor while he looked around and noticed the webbing hanging from the walls and ceiling. He moved by some rocks when he saw the skeletons of fauns and other beings lying on the floor and titled his head to one side. He walked down a side tunnel when he walked inside a large chamber and stopped short, looking at what was in front of him.
"TINKLEBERRY!" Tumnus shouted when he looked at Tinkleberry hanging from the ceiling and she was wrapped in the webbing. He ran to the webbing when he gently lifted her head up and felt her breath on his face, "Tinkleberry! Can you hear me? Wake up! "
Tinkleberry slowly opened her eyes when she looked at him with sad eyes and he brushed the hair from her eyes.
"Master Tumnus?" Tinkleberry asked with a weak voice as he looked around and found a knife on the floor.
"Don't move! I'll have you free in no time!" Tumnus shouted when something moved in the shadows and he looked around the chamber.
"No, don't, just leave me. It's what I deserve," Tinkleberry whispered and he looked at her with a stunned look on his face.
"What are you talking about?" Tumnus asked when something moved closer and he looked around. He found a long spear on the floor when he picked the long spear up and something clicked in the darkness.
"I failed you," Tinkleberry whispered when a large spider with two, red eyes and thick black hairs dangling over its body came out of the shadows and the pincers clicked together. "Just let it kill me.".
"No!" Tumnus shouted while he watched the spider come closer and held the spear tightly in both hands. "I didn't let it kill you then and I will NOT let it kill you now!"
The spider moved closer as Tumnus jabbed the spear at the spider and the spider moved back. The spider moved around the chamber as Tumnus watched the spider and the spider came at him. Tumnus got out of the way as the spider moved into the shadows and he looked around. He heard something when he looked up and saw that the spider had climbed onto the ceiling and jumped. Tumnus got out of the way when he ran to the broken pieces of stone scattered around the room and climbed up onto a stone while using one hand to hold onto the spear. The spider followed as he jabbed the spear at the spider and the spider tried to knock the spear out of his hand. Tumnus held on when he jabbed the spear at the spider and poked it in one eye. A green blood shot into the air as the spider roared and the roar echoed in the chamber. Tumnus shook as he pulled the spear out of the spider's eye and the spider came at him again. He jumped out of the way as he landed on the stone to his left and the spider screeched, the pincers clicking wildly back and forth. After poking out the remaining eyes on one side of the spider's head, Tumnus kept on the blind side of the spider as he jabbed the spear into the spider's side and the spider roared, turning toward him.
"Oh dear," Tumnus said when he pulled the spear out of the spider's side then saw the other spear and picked the spear up. He jumped to the next stone when the spider turned and roared. After blinding the spider with a few well aimed spear thrusts, he watched the spider then noticed a higher stone near the stone he was standing on and softly smiled. Though he was sweaty, dirty and bone tired as well as every muscle in his body aching, he placed the spears up on the stone then climbed up to the top of the stone.
"This would be a lot easier if I was half mountain goat instead of half deer," Tumnus thought as he smiled then pulled himself up and picked up the spears. He watched the spider moving around the chamber when the spider moved right under him and he sighed, looking up at the ceiling. "Well, I am either going to get killed or do something really brave!"
Tumnus roared when he jumped onto the spider's back then drove the first spear into its back and the green blood squirted into the air. The spider roared as it tried to buck him off, but Tumnus held onto the spear and pushed it down farther, causing more blood to squirt into the air. The spider bucked as he kept his balance then turned and raised the other spear into the air, keeping out of the way of the sharp barbs on the spider's legs that were trying to hit him. Tumnus roared as he rammed the spear into the spider's head and the green blood shot into the air. He held on as the spider roared and thrashed about then he jumped and the spider crashed to the ground. He rolled on the floor when he sat up while watched the death of the spider and panting, waiting for his heart to slow down.
"Please don't let me pass out!" Tumnus thought as he went to lie on the floor and felt the coolness of the stone tickling his skin. He watched the shadows when he carefully sat up and felt a bit dizzy. He shook his head out when he got up and walked to Tinkleberry, picking the knife off the floor from where he dropped it. He walked to the webbing when he used the knife to cut the webbing and Tinkleberry looked at him with such sadness in her eyes. Tinkleberry slid down from the webbing as he caught her and they sat on the floor, holding onto each other.
"Why did you do that?" Tinkleberry whispered in his ear and he gently held her away from him and locked eyes with her.
"What do you mean why did I do that? You are my friend, that's why!" Tumnus said as she brushed the sweat off his chest and he slid her into him, gently rocking her, "Now, will you PLEASE tell me why you wanted to die and how you failed me?"
"I failed you when I didn't save you at the stream. I wanted to, but…"
"You can't swim, can you?" Tumnus teased, but noticed the look in her eyes and blinked his eyes a few times. "You can't?"
"No, I can't. I can jump over stones, but I can't swim. I never learned how," Tinkleberry whispered and he softly rocked her back and forth. "You must be so ashamed of me."
"No! No, I'm not! Why didn't you tell me?"
"Because we would have never made it across if I had. I looked at the map and there wasn't a bridge nearby, so we had to cross there," Tinkleberry said then looked at him with a small smile on her face. "Why were you afraid to cross?"
"Well, um, it has to do with something that happened when I was small. I nearly drowned in a stream and have been afraid of running water ever since. Now, the Eastern Ocean doesn't bother me, but running streams, fast running ones, do. Silly, but that's why," Tumnus said as he smiled and she smiled back.
"Silly faun," Tinkleberry whispered when she placed her head against his shoulder and he stroked her hair.
"Silly little fey," Tumnus whispered when the large, stone door opened and the Elders came in the room. They looked at the dead spider then at Tumnus and Tinkleberry when he let go of Tinkleberry and stood up. "How dare you?"
"Pardon?" the first female faun asked.
"I cannot believe you would do this to her! Don't you understand that she is afraid of spiders?" Tumnus shouted as he came closer and the Elders looked at him with blank looks on their faces.
"It was a part of the test. You passed. Now, come and pick the next test. That is if you wish to continue," the second female faun said as he walked closer and looked at the cloth bag. She jiggled the cloth bag as he heard the clicking sound and sighed. She opened the cloth bag when he reached inside the cloth bag with his right hand and felt around the cloth bag. He took something out of the cloth bag as he opened his hand and saw the heart shape rock in his hand.
"Ah, you picked the Test of the Heart," the first female faun said and he sighed, looking at the stone.
"And what is the Test of the Heart?" he asked.
"You will see soon enough. Now, come, you need to eat and rest," the third female faun said as he nodded his head and they left the room while the torches flickered in the green blood on the floor.