Narnia:

When Children Cry

Part IV

DISCLAIMER: Don't own Narnia or Tumnus or Lucy... the list goes on.

YAY! After a long, long break (sorry for that, readers, I went to summer camp), I have finally begun Part Four and I love it. There was a bit of a time jump from the last chapter, about a week or two. And the thing with Lucy and Corin... well, I'll leave you all to guess.

Enjoy this new chapter, if you will:

Chapter Thirty-Five

Valiance

Tumnus nervously patted the velvet of his blue ceremonial scarf, then pulled an unruly hair back into place. Then he glanced at himself in the mirror again, realised the scarf was too orderly, and rumpled it terrifically before throwing it over his shoulder again. No, that was too messy-looking; he needed to look exactly perfect. This was, after all, the bestowment of Lucy's title.

'Tumnus, old goat, if you pay that much attention to the scarf, you're never going to get to the ceremony.'

Tumnus frowned and whirled around, then released a breath. 'Baviar,' he sighed upon sight of the fox.

'I know my name; you needn't say it,' he said, revealing a cunning smile full of sharp teeth. 'And you'd best hurry up the preparations, or you'll miss the event itself.'

'Right. Well, I ... This is an important day for her. I should look respectful.'

'You seem to be aiming for more than "respectful", old goat.' Baviar folded one paw on top of the other amusedly.' "Admirable", maybe, or "charming". I would warrant you're even trying for "handsome", if I didn't know you better.'

'Baviar, whatever do you mean by that?' asked Tumnus, frowning, but Baviar just blinked and flicked his tail habitually. Knowing how frustrating the fox could be at times, Tumnus reasoned that there wasn't any use in imploring him, thus continuing to straighten his scarf to a perfect state of 'respectfulness'.

❦

Lucy paced around her room, nervously twisting her hair and wringing her hands in a repetitive motion. She was far too tense, too tense to even finish dressing. It wasn't the title that bothered her – she could easily go through the ceremony without being at all uncomfortable, even at the exact moment she would receive her title. But there was something else, like the heaviness building under a light cloud until it becomes an ominous mass of storm. There was something she had to do. But suppose she was too late?

It had taken quite some time for her to prepare for the ceremony, she knew. Soon, someone would enter and ask her if she was all right. She wasn't, of course, but she dearly hoped that one person would be Corin. They were, after all, engaged to be married, and this couldn't wait.

She had to do it.

Soon enough, there was a slight squeak of hinges at the door. 'Lucy?' asked Corin, timidly entering her bedchamber. Before he could say another word, Lucy appeared in a shining blue gown, not even fully buttoned, and pulled him into the darkest corner of the room.

❦

As Tumnus stood in the audience, he watched as Lucy was escorted into the room by Corin, their arms interlinked. Somehow, though they were engaged, the scene did not appear to be right. But that made no sense; he was certainly taller than she, despite the fact he was eight years younger. His face was pleasant enough and very princely... but it was as though something was misplaced between them.

Besides that, the two looked as though they shared a secret. A terrible secret, one burdened on them shamefully. And yet they must have delighted in it, for there was a happiness and freedom in their eyes, and... mischief?

An unwelcome thought crossed his mind. Certainly not... no... But he daren't say anything.

No, that couldn't be... could it?

The entire event flew by in a blur, for Tumnus paid little attention to it. Thoughts flew about wildly in his mind, colliding with each other and forming more. He was, however, raptly attentive at the very peak, the very end of the ceremony, where Peter lifted a large shield imprinted with a golden gryffin.

'Queen Lucy,' said Peter loudly, grandly, 'the Valiant!'

The room arose with uproar and cheering, many stomping their feet and shouting with wordless approval. Lucy, standing at the head of the crowd, smiled down at the shield and laid a hand on her hip. Tumnus realised with a jolt to his stomach that it was the sword he'd given her on the eve of battle, back in winter. Oh, how they both had grown since. Lucy, now gleaming in all her splendour, was – and there was simply no other word for it – beautiful.

For a moment, their eyes met among the sea of Narnians. Though Tumnus didn't know it, she looked happier in those few seconds than she'd looked all day.

The feast following was certainly fantastic, for all of Narnia had come to witness Lucy receiving her title. There was dancing, oh! such dancing and music will never been seen or heard by human ears again. And while everyone was chattering in a good-natured manner, Lucy crept up to Tumnus.

'Do you want to go somewhere else?' she whispered. 'I'm not too fond of crowds like this.' Tumnus, of course, knew exactly how she felt, and the two adjourned out-of-doors onto the wide, sandy stretch of sea-banks across the Eastern Sea.

Lucy smiled and tossed the circlet onto the soft bed of sand. 'Bother that,' she murmured, and released her hair from its tight coil in the back of her head. She also kicked her shoes onto the ground and tucked the long, billowing blue hem of her dress into the belt round her waist, so that it fell pleasantly just below her knees. Tumnus was shocked that a lady of the court (and a queen, no less!) would be so informal after a royal event. Certainly, it was quite improper. But he said nothing that would pertain to it.

They walked for a while, Lucy sometimes splashing into the low tide to that the water would lap up to her ankles. Tumnus wished, as he had many times before, that he were human. How she enjoyed those feet! His hoofs had no feeling, being quite solid, and yet Lucy would squish the wet sand between her toes and then watch the grains drift away into the tide.

For a while they didn't say a word, but the silence was not uncomfortable. Lucy spoke after a bit. 'You know, this is the first time I've gotten to relax in a long while, what with the preparations for the dubbing and...' Lucy gulped. 'And the wedding.'

There was a pause in the conversation. 'How are things between you and Corin?' Then he again realised that it wasn't his station to ask such a question.

Before he could apologise, Lucy said, 'Well, thanks.' There was another pause before she spoke again. 'You know, after all the time we've been engaged, he never kissed me?'

Tumnus' eyebrows shot up beneath his hair. He hadn't been expecting such a statement. For a moment, he wondered if it meant that Corin had never kissed her, or that he'd never kissed her until recently. A hoard of wild thoughts ran shamelessly through his mind, and he wanted – needed – to ask her a thousand questions.

But all that escaped his mouth was, 'Really.'

'Yes,' said Lucy firmly. 'I just thought–' she began, but saw the reserve expression on Tumnus' face and did not continue. 'Why, Mr Tumnus, I apologise. I do believe I've made you quite uncomfortable. I'm sorry, I don't suppose you care much for the matter.'

'I daresay,' Mr Tumnus began wryly, 'that you'd be rather more excited than I am. You are, after all, the one of us getting married.'

Lucy looked down at her hands in some odd manner that Tumnus could not place. 'Mr Tumnus–'

'Tumnus, Lucy, I am only Tumnus to you.'