XII
Roken walked up the stairs leading into Great Hall by himself. He looked around and saw that Wintergreen was already there, waiting for the others to finish. When her eyes caught his, she called out to him.
"Over here, Roken!" Roken walked over to her, feeling weighed down by the shield and sword. "Ooh, you've got the old shield, haven't you?" He nodded.
"I feel very... awkward with all of this on." Wintergreen smiled and spoke with a chuckle.
"Why is that?" The young squirrel sounded depressed as he responded.
"Well, I suppose it's because I still feel... well, don't laugh." She nodded, no longer smiling. "I feel like a child, I suppose, playing dress up, or pretend. In my head, I still feel like I'm small, but... I guess I'm not any more. It's hard to realize this is actually happening to me." Wintergreen spoke in a comforting way.
"Come on now, don't get like that! I doubt that there's anything to be that worried about. And besides, we're Redwallers! No matter who crosses our path, we'll deal with them!" She smiled and chuckled, as she playfully shoved him. Roken laughed lightly and smiled also, feeling a little better. He noticed that she was carrying a backpack of sorts.
"What's in that?" She raised the arm that was holding it.
"What, this? Oh, it's my medicinal supplies. ...just in case, you know. I think that Andrew will be carrying most of the food and such. I'm also taking this along with me..." she then held up in her other arm, an odd looking and narrow triangular shaped case. Roken's eyes narrowed as he asked about it.
"I've never seen that before. What is it?" She placed it on the ground and in front of Roken.
"Open it up, and have a look for yourself." Slowly, he put down the shield he was holding, inspected the case, and began to undo it's latches. It was sturdy and black, but lightweight. Once the latches were open, he gently lifted the lid, and gasped as he saw what was inside.
"What is... oh, wow!" Resting inside, was a gorgeous looking violin. It was a deep and rich color of reddish brown, and it looked very old, but very well taken care of. He slowly started to pick it up, but then looked at Wintergreen's eyes quickly. "May I?" Wintergreen was smiling very proudly.
"Of course!" He picked it up, and looked it over. It seemed to be handmade, and of the highest quality. He plucked a string, and listened to it's reverberations. Clear and crisp, but not sharp. He sighed in contentment, and spoke up.
"This is amazing. Is it yours?" She nodded vigorously.
"My mother gave it to me. She said it has been in the family for over seven generations, and now, I'm it's newest caretaker. That's something, isn't it?" Roken looked away, and thought hard. He quickly remembered that Wintergreen wasn't actually from the Abbess' family, and found it hard to keep quiet. He swallowed and continued.
"Um... do you play?"
"Oh yes, I've been playing since I was very small. My mother taught me. Her father taught her, and his father taught him, and... well, you get the idea. The parents have been teaching the children for some time!" She giggled and laughed. He hadn't realized it be before, but Roken found out that he apparently loved the sound of her laugh, because his knees started buckling as he listened. "Hey, maybe you could bring your mandolin, and Andrew could get his guitar, and we could play together!" Roken was delighted.
"Of course! I'd love to. ...well, unfortunately, I suppose we don't have a lot of time to play together, since we're to be leaving soon."
"I'm taking the violin with me, and you two should bring your instruments as well." Roken wanted to play with his two friends, but he was still nervous about risking his mandolin. "Your nervous about risking your mandolin, aren't you?" Roken looked astonished at the fact that she could read his mind. His stomach then lurched at that thought. Then, trying to make himself stop thinking altogether, he spoke up.
"Yes, I suppose I am... but, why not? I should go get it before everyone else is already out and adventuring through Mossflower wood, I suppose! I'll see you in a moment, then..." He turned and started walking.
"That's the spirit! I'll wait for you, here!" Andrew then walked back up from Cavern Hole with a bow in his right paw, and a quiver that was full of arrows over his shoulder. He had obviously been within earshot of the two as he called out to the young squirrel.
"Hey, would you get my guitar as well?" Roken stopped and looked back at him.
"Oh, sure thing!" he said happily.
"Ah, thanks bud!" Andrew smiled as he turned and walked over to Wintergreen. "It's nice to see he's in a good mood, finally." Wintergreen nodded in agreement.
"Yes he is. It's hard to stay positive with weather like this, isn't it?" He looked around at the gray clouds that were able to be seen through the high windows in the Abbey.
"Mmm, you're right. Of course, you have a way of cheering others up. You've got a glow about you that does that." Wintergreen slapped him on the arm as she blushed and laughed.
"Oh, stop it! You'll make Sister Carol jealous, you will." He ducked and grinned as she struck him playfully, then stuck out his tongue.
"Now, don't go there. I can't help it if she's infatuated with me, I had nothing to do with it!" Wintergreen laughed as Andrew waved his paws around, and generally acted silly as he spoke. "She may love me, but the feeling isn't mutual, you know. She's just not my type! Too stuffy, and all. I'm not bound to her, nor is she bound to me! I can see and compliment anybeast I wish! Ahh, but you know, I hate breaking her heart. That's why I still bother to be nice to her and actually listen when she speaks. I've always been-"
"A nuisance!" I don't think I have to tell you who walked up, do I? Andrew looked over his shoulder and saw Sister Carol as she approached the two, looking irked.
"Aha, there's the good sister now!" shouted Andrew. The young squirrelmaid held a paw to her red face as she tried to gasp for air and stop laughing.
* * *
Roken walked swiftly through the halls of Redwall and into the Dormitories. He saw that the room was empty, so he began humming to himself. As he spotted his bed, he looked underneath to check for his mandolin. It was there, safe and sound and ready to be played. Roken then jumped on the bed, laid his head down on the soft pillow, and exhaled deeply. He began thinking of Wintergreen, as he often did, and closed his eyes. After a few minutes, he opened his eyes again, with his face blushed. Realizing that he was at the moment too drowsy to risk falling asleep on an important day such as this, he reluctantly sat back up and tried to think of something else, but he couldn't. He reached under his bed, and picked up his mandolin. He played a simple melody on it, and then stopped. Closing his eyes once more, he thought of Wintergreen and began playing, not quite knowing where the song was going. Out of the mandolin came an intricate, beautiful, and melancholy tune. As he listened to himself play, he tried to keep working it out until it was a melody he could remember and play again. Soon, he had written yet another song, only this one was different. This one, for the first time, was truly from his heart. He had spoken through his instrument the way he felt for her. And yet, even though it was wonderful and worthy of praise, he would never play it for anyone but himself. It would go to the grave with him. Whether or not he ever would have the chance to be with Wintergreen, he would now at least have this song to play and remind him of the way he once felt. He opened his eyes again, and looked around the empty room. In the corner was Andrew's guitar. He scampered over to it and picked it up. Looking underneath Andrew's bed, he found it's case. Once everything was ready, he picked them up and began heading out of the room, humming his new secret tune. As his footpaw stepped out of the Dormitory, he heard the abbey bells ring out piercingly. At first, he was curious, but after a few moments, he realized they were ringing out a warning. He then began running at full speed down into Great Hall with the guitar and mandolin cases in his paws.