Chapter 9
The two otter brothers Brisk and Valor stared out into Mossflower Woods anxiously from the Abbey roof. Shading their eyes from the bright sun, they scanned the horizon, looking carefully for any signs of Sandfir, Periwinkle, Pimpernel, and Primrose, and possibly Manei. Finally, Valor crossed his arms impatiently like an old otterwife and stomped his feet bad- temperedly.
"Humph, liddle otter Dibbun. It's like she just disappeared into thin air, mate. We've been searchin' all day fer the rascal. Say, Brisk me mate, do ye got any more o' that October Ale that ye took wid ye when we first came up here? I'm thirsty!"
Brisk turned to his hungry brother and smiled sheepishly. "Er, sorry matey, but I already drank all o' it. I was thirsty meself, ye know?"
Valor threw his paws up into the air in frustration as he stomped around the Abbey walltop, complaining to nobeast in particular. "Agh! Y'know what, or should I say, who's the cause of Skipper puttin' us up here to watch and thousand of search parties going out searchin' an' all this thirstiness an' 'ungriness? Manei, that's who! Why can't she jus'.jus' reappear at this moment wid the squirrel searchin' party, wid Treetop runnin' after them, so we won't 'ave to go out and search fer him too?"
Brisk had been staring at an alder tree, extremely bored at listening to his brother rant and complain, when a movement caught his eye. He looked closer, and the otter's scraggy face lit up. Beckoning his brother over, he asked him a question.
"Matey, do ye really wish what ye had just said was true an' really happened?"
Valor threw his hands up in the air again in despair. "Aye, mate, I do!"
Brisk grinned as he pulled his brother to where he was standing and pointed with his paw. "Aye, well then, me bucko, today's yer lucky day, cause there they are right now!" With that, the delighted otter ran down off the roof, leaving his bewildered and extremely surprised brother on the top.
"Well now, there's the Abbey itself," Treetop pointed a paw up at the Abbey weathervane and looked down to wink at Manei. "Do ye know wot yore goin' to tell 'em?"
The little otter nodded in excitement and her voice came out like a squeal. "Yes, mister Toppy, I tell 'em t'at I was goin' to look fer ye cause I didn't like seein' mister Sandy all depress over not bein' able to talk to his old friend."
Treetop nodded in satisfaction at the alibi. "An' ye know wot ye'll say if they ask ye any questions?"
"Yes, mister Toppy, I'll answer just like we practiced."
Treetop ruffled Manei's head affectionately and grinned at the other squirrels. "Mates, she's ready!"
Sandfir threw the last candied chestnut into his mouth and waved back, even though his friend was just a few steps away. "Aye, all chestnuts gone. They won't know nothin' about no candy chestnut tree."
Pimpernel giggled at the three. "You great fibbers. How is this goin' to help anybeast?"
Treetop jumped forward and bowed deeply in front of Pimpernel. "Simple, me lady. Me good friend Manei won't get in deep trouble because they won't know why she really set out."
Pimpernel giggled some more and curtsied. "But my lord, what if they don't believe young Manei?"
Primrose rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. "Okay, you two, stop playing 'Lady and Lord.' We're here."
As the squirrels and the otter strolled in, Birchleaf looked around in surprise. "So, this is Redwall Abbey. Treetop has said many things about this place, but this is nothing like I expected it to be. Hmm.that's probably because all Treetop's ever talked about was food."
The squirrelmaid Periwinkle nudged Birchleaf as they walked past the gatehouse. "Were the things he said about the Abbey good or bad?"
Birchleaf grinned as he quickened his pace. "Good o' course, but this place is even better than he said. Aye, 'tis like a dream. Would ye like to show me around, since we're not part of this lie they're tellin'."
Periwinkle grinned as she turned around, making Birchleaf change his direction also. "First stop, the gatehouse."
"Manei!" River, wife of Skipper of Otters and mother of Manei, ran out to great her daughter and the squirrel search party. The otterwife bent down and embraced her daughter, which giving her a stern scolding as she hugged.
"Where have ye been? Yore father an' I, not to mention the entire Abbey, have been worried sick about ye! Good thing these helpful squirrels found ye, or ye might have been stuck in that forest forever. Ye know what, I think that from now on, I goin' to call ye 'Manei the Mischief.' Aye, that'll suite ye fine." Letting go of 'Manei the Mischief,' River stood up and started shaking the squirrels' paws gratefully.
"Thank ye, thank ye all fer findin' me daughter." River paused as she reached Treetop. She stared at him for a while until she finally recognized him. Pumping his paw up and down, the now cheerful River greeted him also.
"Why Treetop, 'tis been a long time since I've seen ye. Do ye still like blackberry pie?"
Treetop chuckled and gave the otter a huge grin. "Do I ever, miz River! Say, ye don't 'appen to have some, do ye?"
River was already leading him and the others to the kitchen. She turned and gave him a swift wink. "Some ain't the word, matey. It's more like 'loads!'"
Abbess Sencatina peered at Manei over the rim of her spectacles as she took a sip of her mint tea.
"So, you're saying that you went out to find Treetop because you wanted Sandfir to be happy so he would give you piggy-back rides?"
The young otter nodded nervously as she continued. "So then I was singin' a song to keep me goin' when den I see mister Toppy, an' he asks me why I was in Mossflower. I told him an' he told me that I should go back to da Abbey. So he decided to come wid me, an' when we were on da way back, we bump into dose squiggles." Manei waved a paw at Sandfir, Pimpernel, and Primrose, making it so that the Abbess understood 'squiggles' meant squirrels. The old squirrel Abbess nodded understandingly, a twinkle in her dim eyes. She smiled kindly.
"So you came back with the squirrels and now you are here in front of me. Rambati, faithful warrior, what do you think is to be done?"
The Abbey warrior grinned and patted Manei on the head, receiving a glare from the otter. "Mother Abbess, I think that nothing much should be done at all. She has done both good and bad, making it so that she gets no reward and no punishment."
The Abbess nodded sagely as she thought about the warrior's advice. "You have a point there, Rambati. This is what I think. I would punish you, Manei, because you ran away, but you have also brought Treetop back to us, so therefore, I cannot punish you. I also cannot reward you for doing so, because you ran away. So therefore, I want everybeast here to forget that this ever happened, and go along with your daily chores. Sandfir, Treetop, I want you to aid Periwinkle in showing your friend Birchleaf around. Everyone else, you are dismissed."
Treetop stared at the Abbess in amazement. "Er, Abbess Senca, I ken call ye that right? Anyhow, 'ow did ye know about me friend Birchleaf?"
The Abbess patted the startled squirrel's back, smiling innocently. "Oh, I get to know these things, Toppy. I have my ways."
The two otter brothers Brisk and Valor stared out into Mossflower Woods anxiously from the Abbey roof. Shading their eyes from the bright sun, they scanned the horizon, looking carefully for any signs of Sandfir, Periwinkle, Pimpernel, and Primrose, and possibly Manei. Finally, Valor crossed his arms impatiently like an old otterwife and stomped his feet bad- temperedly.
"Humph, liddle otter Dibbun. It's like she just disappeared into thin air, mate. We've been searchin' all day fer the rascal. Say, Brisk me mate, do ye got any more o' that October Ale that ye took wid ye when we first came up here? I'm thirsty!"
Brisk turned to his hungry brother and smiled sheepishly. "Er, sorry matey, but I already drank all o' it. I was thirsty meself, ye know?"
Valor threw his paws up into the air in frustration as he stomped around the Abbey walltop, complaining to nobeast in particular. "Agh! Y'know what, or should I say, who's the cause of Skipper puttin' us up here to watch and thousand of search parties going out searchin' an' all this thirstiness an' 'ungriness? Manei, that's who! Why can't she jus'.jus' reappear at this moment wid the squirrel searchin' party, wid Treetop runnin' after them, so we won't 'ave to go out and search fer him too?"
Brisk had been staring at an alder tree, extremely bored at listening to his brother rant and complain, when a movement caught his eye. He looked closer, and the otter's scraggy face lit up. Beckoning his brother over, he asked him a question.
"Matey, do ye really wish what ye had just said was true an' really happened?"
Valor threw his hands up in the air again in despair. "Aye, mate, I do!"
Brisk grinned as he pulled his brother to where he was standing and pointed with his paw. "Aye, well then, me bucko, today's yer lucky day, cause there they are right now!" With that, the delighted otter ran down off the roof, leaving his bewildered and extremely surprised brother on the top.
"Well now, there's the Abbey itself," Treetop pointed a paw up at the Abbey weathervane and looked down to wink at Manei. "Do ye know wot yore goin' to tell 'em?"
The little otter nodded in excitement and her voice came out like a squeal. "Yes, mister Toppy, I tell 'em t'at I was goin' to look fer ye cause I didn't like seein' mister Sandy all depress over not bein' able to talk to his old friend."
Treetop nodded in satisfaction at the alibi. "An' ye know wot ye'll say if they ask ye any questions?"
"Yes, mister Toppy, I'll answer just like we practiced."
Treetop ruffled Manei's head affectionately and grinned at the other squirrels. "Mates, she's ready!"
Sandfir threw the last candied chestnut into his mouth and waved back, even though his friend was just a few steps away. "Aye, all chestnuts gone. They won't know nothin' about no candy chestnut tree."
Pimpernel giggled at the three. "You great fibbers. How is this goin' to help anybeast?"
Treetop jumped forward and bowed deeply in front of Pimpernel. "Simple, me lady. Me good friend Manei won't get in deep trouble because they won't know why she really set out."
Pimpernel giggled some more and curtsied. "But my lord, what if they don't believe young Manei?"
Primrose rolled her eyes in mock annoyance. "Okay, you two, stop playing 'Lady and Lord.' We're here."
As the squirrels and the otter strolled in, Birchleaf looked around in surprise. "So, this is Redwall Abbey. Treetop has said many things about this place, but this is nothing like I expected it to be. Hmm.that's probably because all Treetop's ever talked about was food."
The squirrelmaid Periwinkle nudged Birchleaf as they walked past the gatehouse. "Were the things he said about the Abbey good or bad?"
Birchleaf grinned as he quickened his pace. "Good o' course, but this place is even better than he said. Aye, 'tis like a dream. Would ye like to show me around, since we're not part of this lie they're tellin'."
Periwinkle grinned as she turned around, making Birchleaf change his direction also. "First stop, the gatehouse."
"Manei!" River, wife of Skipper of Otters and mother of Manei, ran out to great her daughter and the squirrel search party. The otterwife bent down and embraced her daughter, which giving her a stern scolding as she hugged.
"Where have ye been? Yore father an' I, not to mention the entire Abbey, have been worried sick about ye! Good thing these helpful squirrels found ye, or ye might have been stuck in that forest forever. Ye know what, I think that from now on, I goin' to call ye 'Manei the Mischief.' Aye, that'll suite ye fine." Letting go of 'Manei the Mischief,' River stood up and started shaking the squirrels' paws gratefully.
"Thank ye, thank ye all fer findin' me daughter." River paused as she reached Treetop. She stared at him for a while until she finally recognized him. Pumping his paw up and down, the now cheerful River greeted him also.
"Why Treetop, 'tis been a long time since I've seen ye. Do ye still like blackberry pie?"
Treetop chuckled and gave the otter a huge grin. "Do I ever, miz River! Say, ye don't 'appen to have some, do ye?"
River was already leading him and the others to the kitchen. She turned and gave him a swift wink. "Some ain't the word, matey. It's more like 'loads!'"
Abbess Sencatina peered at Manei over the rim of her spectacles as she took a sip of her mint tea.
"So, you're saying that you went out to find Treetop because you wanted Sandfir to be happy so he would give you piggy-back rides?"
The young otter nodded nervously as she continued. "So then I was singin' a song to keep me goin' when den I see mister Toppy, an' he asks me why I was in Mossflower. I told him an' he told me that I should go back to da Abbey. So he decided to come wid me, an' when we were on da way back, we bump into dose squiggles." Manei waved a paw at Sandfir, Pimpernel, and Primrose, making it so that the Abbess understood 'squiggles' meant squirrels. The old squirrel Abbess nodded understandingly, a twinkle in her dim eyes. She smiled kindly.
"So you came back with the squirrels and now you are here in front of me. Rambati, faithful warrior, what do you think is to be done?"
The Abbey warrior grinned and patted Manei on the head, receiving a glare from the otter. "Mother Abbess, I think that nothing much should be done at all. She has done both good and bad, making it so that she gets no reward and no punishment."
The Abbess nodded sagely as she thought about the warrior's advice. "You have a point there, Rambati. This is what I think. I would punish you, Manei, because you ran away, but you have also brought Treetop back to us, so therefore, I cannot punish you. I also cannot reward you for doing so, because you ran away. So therefore, I want everybeast here to forget that this ever happened, and go along with your daily chores. Sandfir, Treetop, I want you to aid Periwinkle in showing your friend Birchleaf around. Everyone else, you are dismissed."
Treetop stared at the Abbess in amazement. "Er, Abbess Senca, I ken call ye that right? Anyhow, 'ow did ye know about me friend Birchleaf?"
The Abbess patted the startled squirrel's back, smiling innocently. "Oh, I get to know these things, Toppy. I have my ways."