Pooh's Friends

by Jendra

Hi everyone. Here's the third one in the Adventures of Tigger and Pooh, but it's not the Station one. I'd planned on it being, really, I just couldn't get it in there. Next one will be, I promise . You do kind of need to read the first ones, Tigger and Pooh and Pooh Corner.

Thanks to everyone that wrote, especially TAE, Winnie and Kari for giving me ideas on other characters.

I was trying to get more ideas for the characters so I went and rented the movie, and found that I really enjoyed it. I hope you enjoy this little story too.

Not mine, not beta'd, can be archived and C & C always welcomed.

"Hey Jim, read this," Jim heard, even before Blair opened his door and came rushing out. He read from the book he was holding. "'It was a Captainish sort of day, when everybody said "Yes, Rabbit" and "No, Rabbit," and waited until he had told them.' Doesn't that sound like someone to you?" Blair grinned.

"That's what I thought when I read it," Jim agreed, also grinning.

"Yeah, I can just see Simon as Rabbit," Blair settled down on the couch to read some more.

"Simon? Where's your brain, Tigger?" Jim looked in surprise at Blair, causing him to glance up. "That whole paragraph is Cassie to a T. Going around, getting in everybody's business, trying to be in control of everything even when it has nothing to do with her, that's Cassie all right."

Blair reread it. "Hmm... maybe you're right. Simon's not 'that' bossy, I guess."

"Simon might be our boss, but Rabbit and Cassie are bossy, it's an entirely different thing."

"You're just saying that because you're his friend," Blair said grouchily. "But if he's not Rabbit, he's got to be Christopher Robin. After all, he is always helping us out of tough spots."

Jim nodded as he got up and got out his wallet. "I can see him as Christopher Robin. By the way, I ordered Chinese," he said as he went to the door just as the bell rang. He barely heard Blair's whispered end to his previous sentence. "Even if Simon would get me lost in the forest if it would stop my bouncing."

Jim chuckled. "He probably would," he agreed with a grin as he put the food on the table. "You do wear on his nerves sometimes. I still think he's a better Christopher Robin, though. Cassie's just such a good Rabbit."

"And I know that Simon's not really that bad. He even likes me a little," Blair grinned. "He did make that clear. Okay, so we have Simon as Christopher Robin, Cassie as Rabbit. Joel can be Gopher, always working underground and with explosives," Blair added.

"Gopher?" Jim asked. "I don't remember him."

"I don't think he shows up in the book, but he's in the movie," Blair told him. "Of course, Joel's not so bumbling."

"If you say so," Jim said. "I can't think of anyone better from the characters we have left."

"Isn't it strange how once we established persona in a realm, we feel it necessary for all our friends to have ones as well?" Blair said thoughtfully following him into the kitchen. "I mean once I started identifying with Tigger, I immediately tried to identify you with one of the other characters in the fictional realm that Milne and Disney created. Now that we're both identified there, we're trying to bring our friends into it as well. It's probably a human's natural need to..." Blair started.

"Hold on, hold on," Jim held up his hands. "I'm sure you can get several papers out of it if you want to, but you're wrong about one thing. I have 'not' identified with Winnie-the-Pooh!"

"Yes you have, Pooh Bear," Blair grinned.

"No I haven't, Tigger," Jim snapped back.

"Then why did you put out a jar of honey when setting the table?" Blair asked, still grinning madly.

Jim looked down. Sitting there in the middle of the table was a jar of honey. "I don't remember putting that there!"

"It's okay, Pooh Bear," Blair patted him on the shoulder. "I'm sure it was just an unconscious slip." *Oh, that was way too easy,* he thought gleefully.

"If it was just an unconscious slip on my part, why is your heart beating so fast?" Jim said suspiciously.

*Okay, Blair, time to obfuscate,* Blair thought. "Are you kidding? Do you know what that says about your own thought processes? That you are identifying with another person, even a fictional one, so well that you instinctively pattern your behavior after his? After all, we have shown already that Sentinels are more instinctive than other people." Blair silently congratulated himself and decided to continue. "I wonder which sense you used to find the honey. I don't think you've ever used it before, have you? I use it occasionally in a couple of recipes but spaghetti doesn't call for it, does it? Maybe you smelled it back deep in the closet. That's probably it, there's probably some on the side that you smelled and you just automatically grabbed it as you were going by. It probably didn't even register what you were doing."

"I don't think so, Sandburg," Jim disagreed. "I think I know exactly what sense was used, your defunct sense of humor."

Blair's eyes went wide and he put one hand to his chest. "Are you saying that 'I' had something to do with this? Man, that's reaching a bit don't you think? I mean, blaming your instinctual behavior on me, really Jim, that is so not fair."

"I don't think instinctual behavior had anything to do with this little practical joke of yours, Sandburg," Jim warned. "You keep this up and I'll be the one losing you in a forest, and knowing your sense of direction you'll never find your way back home."

"I'm hurt Jim, I'm really hurt," Sandburg did his best to look put upon. "I can't believe you'd think something like that of me."

Jim sniffed deeply. "You're right," he told his friend. "I can smell the honey. So much so, that there must be some on the outside of the jar, since it would be a lot harder to smell if it was all inside. And since I'm a detective, I'm going to try to detect how this jar of honey got here. Now, since the outside of the jar has honey on it, it's only logical that the person who touched the jar would have honey on his hands, don't you think?"

Blair nodded hesitantly while trying to unobtrusively slide backwards as Jim raised his hands to his face and sniffed. "That's interesting," Jim said, staring right at Blair. "There's not a trace of honey on my hands."

"Maybe the smell from the jar is overwhelming the little bit that's on your hands," Blair said, sliding backwards a little more.

"Oh, I really don't think so," Jim stepped forward quickly. "You've taught me very well after all. I think I can tell the difference. Let me check your hands just to be sure."

Blair backed away even more. "My hands? Why? I never touched the jar."

"Just so I can be sure, Tigger," Jim grinned evilly. "And if I'm right, I'm going to call you Tigger all day tomorrow at the Station."

"You wouldn't!" Blair gasped, putting his hands behind his back.

"Oh wouldn't I?" Jim asked, still grinning. "Besides, you don't have to worry, you never touched the jar, remember?"

One more to go. The station will be out on Thursday.