The Big Oak

Shard stopped and dropped on his belly.

He had reached the edge of the woods and he could see the humans standing in a circle around a hole in the ice crust. He wondered almost angrily why they weren't walking as fast as they could.

Then he heard the distant bay of the wolves, the hairs on the back of his neck bristled and he streaked out onto the snow towards the humans.

Shard made no sound except for the click and screech of his toenails on the ice crust. As he approached the humans, he slid to a halt and came towards them with his tail wagging.

The first one to notice him was the dark haired boy, Shard recognized him as the boy he had seen in the snow three months ago.

"Peter," the boy said slowly, "there's a big white wolf right behind you."

The boy called Peter spun around and unsheathed his sword in the same motion.

Shard plastered himself against the ice, "I'm a friend."

"You're a wolf," Peter corrected him, "What do you want?"

"I came to warn you that the Secret Police are on your tail," Shard said, "Also I have seen your cousin."

"Eustace?"

"Where?"

"Is he safe?"

"What's going on?"

Four voices burst out at once; but the last one seemed to come from under the ground. Shard slipped forward and saw a little girl standing at the bottom of a deep gash in the snow; she was too far down to be pulled up without a rope.

Shard recognized her as the girl that he had seen in Mr. Tumnus's cave.

"There are four of you?" Shard whipped around.

"Yes," Peter said.

"If the witch knew that then your cousin would be no more," Shard said, "The prophesy says that there will be four of you, and if your cousin isn't one of you then he's useless."

"How is Eustace?" Susan interrupted him.

"The witch turned him to stone," Shard said, "But she is capable of unstoning him and she will, he's valuable for bargaining with, that is, if she doesn't know there are four of you."

"You're probably going to go right back and tell her," Mr. Beaver said, gripping his hatchet, "But we won't let you!"

"No," Shard said, "I can't go back, I'm a deserter, they'd kill me if they knew I came to warn you, I'm with you."

Suddenly the bay of the wolves split the air.

"Quick!" Peter said, "We have to get Lucy out!"

"Will this be helpful?" Mrs. Beaver dug a thick rope out of her pack, "It's always good to take your time when packing."

"Mrs. Beaver you're a brick!" Peter said grabbing it.

Mrs. Beaver didn't see a similarity between herself and a 'brick', but she decided that it must be nice the way Peter said it.

Mr. Beaver tied bowline with a large loop in the end of the rope and Peter lowered it to Lucy.

"Sit in the loop Lu," Peter called, "and we'll pull you up."

A moment later Lucy was standing with them on the ice.

They looked back and saw that the edge of the woods was lined with wolfs.

"Quick!" Shard said, "Look over there at that big oak," he motioned with his tail, "If we run we can get there before them, we can put the brachets up in the branches and the rest of us can stand with our tails to the trunk!"

"Come on!" Peter said and started running.

"What's a brachet?" Lucy asked.

"Female hound," Shard said, "Sorry, did I say that?"

They reached the tree and Peter boosted Lucy and Susan up into the branches, Mrs. Beaver declared that she was, 'far too old to go running about a tree like a squirrel,' but Peter, with Edmund's help, finally convinced her to follow the girls by lifting her up and setting her on a branch.

The boys unsheathed their swords, Mr. Beaver pulled out his hatchet and Shard bared his teeth.

"Lucy," Peter called, "Keep an arrow on your string if you can!"

Lucy pulled out her bow and notched an arrow as the wolves started to slow and close in around them. Their tongues hung out and their eyes smoldered. Susan couldn't help thinking how beautiful they were in their silver coats, edged with black.

Maugrim approached and eyed them. "Shard, I'm ashamed of you! You know I won't spare you, even if you are my brother."

"I won't spare you," Shard hissed.

"You won't will you?" Maugrim said, his eyes half closed, "You won't surrender?"

Lucy aimed for Maugrim's heart and let fly the arrow.

It struck the snow right next to Maugrim's paw, he jumped away.

"Attack!" Maugrim yelped and leaped for Shard.

~o*o~

Chibb at first forgot to flap his wings, he was so startled. Directly below him were two centaurs standing next to a fountain, one had red hair and one had black. He fluttered wildly and landed on the first available place, on the head of the black centaur.

"Excuse me?" he piped, "Do you know where I can find King Lune?"

Chibb squeaked with shock as the centaur's big hand closed around him and lifted him off his head

The centaur put him down at the edge of a fountain.

"Why it's a Robin!" the centaur exclaimed, "I'm Flavis, pleased to meet you Mr. Robin."

"Chibb actually!" Chibb said, "Do you know where I can find King Lune? It's a matter of life and death!"

"The king is in a counsel with Equus," Flavis said, "I don't think you can see him right now."

"But it's important!" Chibb hollered, "the four children of the prophesy are in Narnia right now!"

"What children?" the red centaur looked at Chibb like he was a new kind of insect.

"The children have to be rescued or Narnia is lost!" Chibb squeaked.

"I'm sorry Chibb," Flavis said, "We can't rescue your children as much as we'd like to."

"They aren't my children!" Chibb howled, "it's the four children from the prophesy!"

"The Prophesy?"

Flavis and the chestnut centaur looked at each other.

"I think he's dazed," Flavis said.

"I'm not, I'm not!" Chibb squeaked. "There are humans in Narnia! The four from the prophesy that was given long ago! They must have help now!"

The red headed centaur picked up Chibb, "We are going to see the king!"

"But Martin!" Flavis said, "He's in a conference!"

"I don't care!" Martin said, "Let's go!"

Chibb barely managed to balance on Martin's hand while the centaur galloped full speed into the castle's front entrance with Flavis behind him.

Martin skidded down the hallways while everyone in his path plastered themselves against the walls and yelled at him to slow down. A centaur at a full gallop in a narrow hallway is a daunting sight.

Martin clambered up a set of stairs and burst through the door at the top.

The room Chibb found himself in was large and there were two tall windows overlooking a garden. In the center of the room was a large plain wooden desk, sitting at the desk was the jolliest looking person Chibb had ever seen. To the side of the desk stood a magnificent gray centaur, his face was young, but his hair was almost white.

"Martin!" the man at the desk exclaimed. "What's going on? You act like the castle is on fire!"

"Your majesty!" Martin dropped into a bow, "this young Robin has extremely valuable information!"

Chibb fluttered over to the table and landed in front of the man.

"Please," Chibb cheeped, "are you King Lune?"

"Yes, I am!" the man said.

Chibb almost fainted with relief and poured out his story.