That's odd...
Back in Mossflower, Gonff noticed for the first time that there was a bald patch on the back of his left paw. The skin was white and flaky. He scratched at it and noticed some more hair came out when he did. He knew instantly this wasn't normal. He needed a healer. He looked around. Fortunately, he knew one who lived in these parts of Mossflower. He walked until he came to a small stone dwelling. Poking his head around the open door, he called "Thera? You in? Ahoy! It's me, Gonff!"
A silver furred female squirrel came out from another room. When she saw who it was, her face lit up in a smile. "Well, what have we here? Gonff! You rascal! What brings you to come visiting me?"
"Can't I come for a visit to an old matey?" Gonff asked, holding his paw behind his back.
Thera wasn't fooled. She looked at him sideways. "You're hiding something."
Gonff sighed. "I never could hide things from you, Thera," he said. With that, he held out his left paw.
Thera took his paw and inspected it. She scratched the surface of the bald patch and then sniffed at the bits of skin under her claws and made a face. She pulled at the fur around the edge and it came out instantly. She looked up at him, and Gonff knew it was bad. "I've seen this before, Gonff," she said. "Unfortunately, there's no cure for it."
"No cure," Gonff repeated, as if in shock.
"It's also very contagious," Thera continued, letting his paw drop. "I've seen whole families come down with the disease."
"Could it lead to an epidemic at Redwall?" Gonff asked, holding his left paw in his right.
"It easily could," Thera nodded. "It's transmitted by skin on skin contact. Once that's happened, the other creature has only a matter of time before they come down with the disease."
"Won't you catch it, then?" Gonff asked. "You touched it."
"I touched it with my claws," Thera replied, "not my paws. That doesn't count." She looked at Gonff, "It may be too late to save your friends at Redwall from this. Have you been there recently?"
Gonff shook his head. "Not since I came across the one I caught this from. I can remember who it was. I found this beggar by the side of the path and gave him some of my food. I noticed the white patches on his body but didn't understand what was going on. I must have brushed against him at one point."
"Thank the seasons for small favors," Thera said.
"How can I save them?" Gonff asked.
"You must stay away from Redwall, and everybeast you hold dear," Thera said. "Only then will they remain safe from your illness. Every minute you spend in their company, they are in danger. One touch, just one, and all would be lost."
Not see Columbine again? Not be there when Martin and Rose marry? Or for the birth of their first young one? Never become a father myself? But if I gave them this and it led to an epidemic...I couldn't do that. Gonff nodded. "All right," he said.
"Good," Thera said. "There is a small community of creatures with the disease not far from here. Go there to live. They will take you in." She gave a nod. "The seasons go with you."
"And with you," Gonff replied. He hesitated. "Could I ask you a favor?"
"Anything," Thera replied.
"Could you go to Redwall and tell them?" Gonff asked, "I want them to know."
"I will," Thera promised.
"Come no further!" a raspy voice called out of the trees, causing Gonff to jump.
"Where are you?" Gonff called.
A rustling came, and out of the trees appeared a vole. His skin was covered in white flaky skin, like the patch on Gonff's paw except all over his body and practically all his fur was gone. What was still there was white. He was thin and dressed in rags. "You are about to enter the village of the illness!" he rasped.
"I have been looking for this place," Gonff said, and held out his diseased paw.
At the sight of the spot on the back of Gonff's paw, the vole's face turned sympathetic. "Ah," he said. "I see." He pulled aside a branch. "Welcome," he said, "Brother." Gonff entered and looked around. Creatures in various stages of the disease were clustered around. All were thin and wore rags. Gonff could see that it started with one patch, then more appeared until they were practically covering the creature's body. Any remaining fur (or in the case of the hedgehogs, spikes) turned white. "This is the village of illness," his guide said. "Other creatures know about us and leave food and clothing outside so they don't come in contact with us. We share everything equally among ourselves." He turned to Gonff. "You're one of us now." With that, he wandered off.
"Oooookay," Gonff said. He sat down on a log. He could see the eyes of the other creatures on him. They sure are a gloomy lot, he thought. I'm not gonna be like them, no matter how sick I get. I'll always be me, Gonff Prince of Mousethieves. He gave them all a cheeky grin and wave and then pulled out his flute. He played a tune and sang a modified version of the ditty he had sung that day he had been thrown in Kotir prison and met Martin.
"I knew a mouse who lived out here,
More than a hundred years.
His whiskers grew along the ground,
And right back to his ears.
His eyes grew dim, his teeth fell out,
His fur went silver-gray.
'If my granddad were here,' he said, 'I wonder what he'd say.'"
Everybeast laughed at Gonff's silly song. An otter approached. "Silly mouse," he said, shaking his head in amusement. "The grandfather of a hundred year old mouse couldn't say anything!"
"I know that!" Gonff put away his flute. "But you lot seemed so gloomy, I wanted to cheer you up." He stood and bowed. "I'm Gonff," he said to the others, "Prince of Mousethieves."
Thera made her way to Redwall Abbey. Once there, she was taken to see the Mother Abbess. "Mother Abbess," Thera said, bowing, "I'm afraid I have grave news."
"What is it?" Abbess Germaine asked.
"It's about the mouse called Gonff," Thera continued.
Columbine gasped when she heard that. "Gonff?" she asked. "Has something happened to him in these past few days he went wandering?"
Thera smiled at the mousewife. "Are you Columbine?" she asked.
"I am," Columbine answered. "Is Gonff all right? He's not d..." she couldn't say the word.
"Dead?" Thera asked. Columbine nodded. "No, marm, he's not, but to all who know and care about him, he should be considered as such. I saw him earlier and noticed that he has developed a Roypules rash. He has gone to live in a colony in Mossflower of creatures who have the disease to keep from giving it to those here at Redwall."
Later, after Thera had gone, Columbine sat alone in Cavern Hole, her paws around her legs, head resting on her knees. Abbess Germaine came and sat down next to her. "Mother Abbess?" Columbine asked, raising her head to look at her. "Can't we find Gonff and bring him here to cure him?"
"No, my child," Abbess Germaine said. "Not even I know a cure for Roypules. It's spread through touch, so even if we found him and brought him here, you wouldn't be able to touch him."
Columbine looked down. "I love him," she said. "I wouldn't be able to see him every day and not touch him. I just wish..." Her voice trailed off.
Rose came over at that point. She had heard the conversation. Sitting down on Columbine's other side, she took the other mouse's paw in her own. "Jesus will cure him when he comes back to Mossflower," she said. "Then Gonff will come back here and everything will be all right again. You'll see."
"How will he know where Gonff is?" Columbine asked.
"I don't know," Rose said, "But he'll know. They'll find each other. Somehow. I just know it."
"I wish I had your faith," Columbine said.
Rose laughed and then said, "If you'd had the history with Jesus that I have, you'd have faith in him, too."
A/N: There's a link to a picture of Thera on the profile if anybody wants to see what she looks like.