THE PRODIGAL

This next part was a bit tougher to write. Luckily, it didn't take me too terribly long to figure it out. This was another especially satisfying chapter to put down. Read on, and you will see what I mean.

Characters (with exceptions) © C.S. Lewis and Disney/Walden Media

Story © unicorn-skydancer08

All rights reserved.

Part 7

You can well imagine there was a great deal of commotion at Cair Paravel, when word spread that Puck had finally returned.

Many came rushing to see the boy for themselves, to know that the rumors were true, to welcome the young faun home.

Some nearly opened their mouths to tell Puck of the nerve he had to show his face around here again, to chastise him for being away from home so long and causing Tumnus so much grief and letting so much money go to waste—but when they saw Puck more closely, when they saw his starved, battered body and the look of guilt on his face, they changed their minds.

Tumnus said nothing whatsoever of the lost money, or of Puck's long absence. Instead, he ordered the servants on the spot to prepare a full tub of hot water for his son, as well as special salves and ointments for Puck's sores, and scissors, blades, and sweet-scented oil for his hair and beard. While Puck enjoyed a long, soothing, much-needed bath, Tumnus set the servants to work on preparing hot bread, and he ordered for the sweetest milk they had to be poured into their finest goblets. After Puck ate bread, along with a bit of fruit and cheese, after he had drunk his fill of milk, and his ravenous hunger was somewhat appeased, Tumnus made his son lie on his own bed for a well-deserved nap; for his bed had the softest mattress and pillows. He covered his son himself, with a warm, clean blanket. While Puck slept, Tumnus and everyone else at Cair Paravel, Terence included, spent the rest of the afternoon organizing a splendid feast. An enormous hunk of meat was set to roast over a radiant fire. In no time at all, its tantalizing aroma filled the whole castle.

Puck must have slept quite soundly, for when he awoke some hours later, toward early evening, it took him a minute to remember where he was.

With a groan, the youth groggily rolled himself onto his back, placing a hand over his eyes and rubbing his whole face several times. With a start, he realized someone was sitting beside him, watching over him—quite literally—and the faun gave out a shout of surprise and nearly jumped right out of the bed.

But it turned out to only be Terence. The white-haired man chuckled heartily.

"Take it easy, kiddo," he said gently, smiling down at his godson. "After all this time, this is the sort of hello you give your uncle Terence?"

Blinking rapidly, Puck could only bring himself to say, "Uncle Terence."

"Hello, Puck," said Terence warmly, now leaning down to embrace him. "You and I never truly got the chance to greet each other properly today, out on the beach." He kissed Puck tenderly on the forehead. With one hand, he playfully ruffled the boy's blonde curls, the way he used to when Puck was a very small faun. "It's good to see you again, little pal. Welcome home!"

A painful lump lodged deep in Puck's throat at the mention of his old pet name. His eyes immediately welled up.

"Uncle Terence," he said again, his voice thick with emotion. "I—I missed you so much."

Terence's face grew solemn as he helped Puck to sit up. "I missed you too, Puck," he said softly, "more than words can say."

He pulled Puck against him, enfolding him in his sturdy arms. "I thought about you every day, little mate. I was hoping you would come back to us, eventually…and you have."

Not trusting himself to speak, Puck merely closed his eyes and laid his forehead against Terence's shoulder, while Terence held him close, one hand lightly rubbing the nape of his fur-lined neck.

They sat wrapped in each other's arms for a good while. When at last they drew apart, Puck asked, "What's going on, Uncle Terence? What is this?"

He could detect delicious smells in the air, and unless his ears were deceiving him, he could have sworn he heard music playing.

"It's the party your father promised you earlier," said Terence. "Remember? We spent all day getting things ready. It's just about time for the celebration to begin."

"Party?" Puck repeated disbelievingly. "Celebration?" He shook his head in dismay. "Oh, no, Uncle Terence—surely, Father can't be serious!"

"Of course, he is," Terence countered. "You don't think Tumnus would waste his time with all of this if he wasn't serious about it, do you?"

In abject shame and utter despair, Puck just closed his eyes, and let his face drop into his hands. Terence heard the young faun draw in a rattling gasp, saw his thin shoulders begin to shake erratically. "Hey, hey," the white-haired man soothed, never hesitating to slip his arms gently around the boy's heaving shoulders once more.

"No," Puck whispered tremulously, without looking up from his hands. "No, Uncle Terence…no! This cannot be! I don't deserve this. Father doesn't understand. I betrayed him! I ran away from home, squandered my whole inheritance on wasteful, licentious living. Father would have died if he had seen me! You, yourself, would have been literally sick to see the way I'd lived and behaved these last three years. I have brought nothing but disgrace to my father. How could he do something like this, for me?"

His emotions got the better of him, and he sank further into Terence's arms and wept harder.

"There, now, little pal," Terence whispered as he cradled him, caressing him, just as if he were comforting his own child, "it's all right. All that's in the past. You are here now; that's all Tumnus cares about. You can't imagine what these three years were like for my mate, having you gone. We feared his grief would get the better of him. And he never stopped praying for your safe return. We all missed you dreadfully, Puck. Even Oreius was crushed when you left us, believe it or not."

Puck said nothing, but only kept his head down and continued to sob inconsolably into his palms.

"Come on," Terence encouraged him, "please don't cry, Puck. It's okay, it's all right. You're home, with us, and you are alive and in one piece. Nothing else matters. Easy, there…easy…"

When Puck finally managed to pull himself together in the end, when he lifted his dripping face to his godfather's, Terence wiped his tears for him before saying again, "Come on. Take some time to freshen yourself up a bit, then come and join us. Everyone is waiting for you. Oreius, Giles Fox, the Beavers…"

"And Selena?" Puck croaked. "I want to see Selena. I want to see my sister."

Terence frowned, but his frown was not one of anger, or disbelief.

"That's strange," the white-haired youth murmured, "I don't recall seeing your sister at all today. I think I'd better go look for her."