CHAPTER I
The salty seawater licked at the badger's fur as she slowly gained consciousness. Very numb, but alive, she took stock of her surroundings. With hills in front and water to the back, she decided to look for shelter from the rain in the hills. With much effort and pain the badger maid slowly walked into the dunes, half dragging her battered body.
Warmth. The badger maid slowly gets up and looked around, she was laying in a pine grove by a fire surrounded by three hares. "What ho badger me young maid? Come have a tucker, wot, wot?", one of the hares said as he passed her on oatcakes and a gourd of dandelion cordial. The hares watched as she wolfed down five oatcakes, only pausing to drink.
Once the badger maid finished eating the older hare spoke up, "So what's your name missy?"
"Bluestripe, badger of Sunblaze the Kind and Lady Gorse, who are you?"
"I'm Colonel Sapwood, she's Breeze, and this young scamp is Swiftpaw. We're the jolly old long patrol from Salamandastron."
"How did you get here?" Bluestripe asked gesturing to the woodland.
"We brought you here Bluestripe me badger. Found you layin' in the flippen dunes," Sapwood said.
"So where are you from and where you headed, Bluestripe?" Breeze enquired.
"I'm from the northern coast, but I don't know where I'm going. Burr, I'm cold," Bluestripe answered.
"Well, then you should jolly well move closer to the flippen fire, wot?"
Deciding this was the sensible thing to do, Bluestripe slowly walked to the fire where the hares sat eating oatcakes. Swiftpaw looked into the badger's sparkling blue eyes, noticing for the first time that the Bluestripe had a blue stripe on her muzzle that matched her eyes.
"Bluestripe is a jolly good name for ya! Ya got a blue stripe on ya nose!" Swiftpaw said in amazement.
"Well, I say we get some bally sleep. It's gonna be a long journey to Salamandastron on the morro," Colonel Sapwood said settling down to sleep. "Breeze, you take the first watch."
The salty seawater licked at the badger's fur as she slowly gained consciousness. Very numb, but alive, she took stock of her surroundings. With hills in front and water to the back, she decided to look for shelter from the rain in the hills. With much effort and pain the badger maid slowly walked into the dunes, half dragging her battered body.
Warmth. The badger maid slowly gets up and looked around, she was laying in a pine grove by a fire surrounded by three hares. "What ho badger me young maid? Come have a tucker, wot, wot?", one of the hares said as he passed her on oatcakes and a gourd of dandelion cordial. The hares watched as she wolfed down five oatcakes, only pausing to drink.
Once the badger maid finished eating the older hare spoke up, "So what's your name missy?"
"Bluestripe, badger of Sunblaze the Kind and Lady Gorse, who are you?"
"I'm Colonel Sapwood, she's Breeze, and this young scamp is Swiftpaw. We're the jolly old long patrol from Salamandastron."
"How did you get here?" Bluestripe asked gesturing to the woodland.
"We brought you here Bluestripe me badger. Found you layin' in the flippen dunes," Sapwood said.
"So where are you from and where you headed, Bluestripe?" Breeze enquired.
"I'm from the northern coast, but I don't know where I'm going. Burr, I'm cold," Bluestripe answered.
"Well, then you should jolly well move closer to the flippen fire, wot?"
Deciding this was the sensible thing to do, Bluestripe slowly walked to the fire where the hares sat eating oatcakes. Swiftpaw looked into the badger's sparkling blue eyes, noticing for the first time that the Bluestripe had a blue stripe on her muzzle that matched her eyes.
"Bluestripe is a jolly good name for ya! Ya got a blue stripe on ya nose!" Swiftpaw said in amazement.
"Well, I say we get some bally sleep. It's gonna be a long journey to Salamandastron on the morro," Colonel Sapwood said settling down to sleep. "Breeze, you take the first watch."
