The same dawn sun was coming over the horizon in Mossflower Country. Ash trees, oak trees, pecan trees, and all other kinds of trees and plants decorated the forests of Mossflower. A path that had carved out of the trees and plants led north, and on the right side of the path was a wonderful place of red sandstone, a wonderful place where creatures did chores without a care and lived together in peace. This place was called Redwall Abbey, and today, a particular mouse was writing in his journal. His name was Sarrim the Recorder of Redwall Abbey, but most just called him Sarrim. Today he was writing an entry about the first day of the season:
Extract from the journal of Sarrim, the recorder of Redwall Abbey.
It is Summer of the Singing Sparrow!
Just the other day, in fact, I was strolling along when I heard a sparrow singing a song that sounded much like one of Old Thremma's tunes! (I'll bet he listened to that tune the night when we all had that festival last season.) I just smiled and continued to walk.
Wow, how long I have been recorder, I don't know, but being a recorder is tough work! I literally heard myself creak as I walked up the stairs to my dormitory to write today. I guess all this writing is starting to take its toll on my old figure. Young Jayermi Redleaf cooked his first pie today, though I have to put quite frankly that it didn't taste too good. Ah well, all he needs is some more practice and he'll start cooking like Friar Halbritt! Ha, I can't believe that old fat mouse is still working in the kitchens here at Redwall! Of course, I will not insult his terrific cooking, but in my opinion he is getting a little old for the job, as am I for this job. Maybe someday soon I will pass on my duties as recorder to an eager younger soul, but until then, I shall work, or should I say write, to my best potential.
The Nameday Feast was terrific, though I certainly cannot wait for the Summer Festival. There will be games, a feast, songs, dancing, poems, and much, much more! It's funny that the Nameday Feast and the Summer Festival have been so oddly scheduled to be about the same time. Two great events in two weeks! Well, I think I'm getting a little overexcited here. I'd best go down and have some breakfast before it gets cold. In the words of Friar Halbritt, "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day".
Well, I'll be off now. I hope I can get down those wretched stairs without my legs snapping off.
Sarrim FurashRecorder of Redwall Abbey
Sarrim the old mouse recorder smiled at his newly written journal entry. He looked at it oddly, though, as if something were missing, but shrugged his shoulders and turned towards the dormitory doorway. He closed his journal, slipped on his velvet green robe, the usual clothing of a Redwaller, and tiptoed out of the room, trying not to wake any slumbering creatures. He crept down to the end of the hallway, passing many dormitory doors as he went. The light of the morning sun leaked lightly through the stained glass windows that Sarrim passed on his way to the end of the hallway.
He turned at the end to see a twisting spiral staircase that led down stairs. He looked behind him to make sure that he had not wakened anybody up and then turned back to the staircase to go down. It spiraled downwards to the left. The old mouse went down the aged wooden staircase slowly, for he did not want to go too fast or the stairs would creak and wake someone up. He gingerly took another step down, looked behind him to make sure that the creak had not waken anybody up, and then looked back and…
BAM!"Young Mattlimony, what do you think you're doing crashing into me like that? You must learn to respect your elders! You nearly had me head over footpaws with that maneuver! You need to slow down! I know you are just a Dibbun, but Dibbuns must learn from their mistakes, and that was definitely one of them!" shouted Sarrim.
The shy, but eager, brown mouse named Mattlimony looked at his footpaws with shame. "I'm sowwy, Mista Sawwim. I won't neva do it 'gin! Sowwy, but me 'n the othew babes wewe jus' goin' ta wakey up Mum Kweffin!" he explained, and then pointed at the other three Dibbuns behind him.
"Well, I'm sure that you, Hithra, Fallum, and Glorra have learned your lesson about watching where you are going and not running on stairs, but how can I be mad at you adorable rouges? Go on, just don't come crying to me if Mother Kreffin spanks you for waking her up! Oh yes, and remember to walk carefully and don't wake the other sleepers up, okay?"
"Yes Mista Sawwim!" all four said at the same time. Sarrim looked at them, nodded his head, and then continued towards the bottom level of the Abbey. The four Dibbuns looked behind them to see where Sarrim was going. As soon as he rounded the corner, they were off again.
"Mum Kweffin, Mum Kweffin, wakey up, 's time fow bwekkers!" the four of them shouted. The young badger mother stood up from her bed. She had been a warrior back before she had come to Redwall Abbey and retired from Salamandastron. She looked at them and tried to keep a straight face as she told them off.
"You four aren't supposed to wake Abbeydwellers up before they want to get up! I've had to get onto you for this many times before! Now leave this room before I spank the four of you!" she ordered. They all squealed and dashed out of the room, not wanting to get slapped by the strong badgermother of Redwall.
Other Redwallers had been awaken by the bellowing shouts of the badger, and had dressed in their night robes to see what was going on. A female squirrel named Sofflet entered the room. She had brown fur and blue eyes, not quite as blue as the sea, but definitely as shiny. Right after her entry, she had a dodge out of the way as four yelping Dibbuns came shuffling out of the room. Her gaze immediately came to the badger in bed.
"Mother Kreffin, what did you do to those poor, innocent Dibbuns?" she joked.
"Oh nothing, really, just told them that breakfast was ready. As soon as they heard they shouted excitedly and ran out of the room."
Sofflet knew that the badgermother was just joking around when she had said that. She laughed and exited the room to go down to breakfast, shouting over her shoulder at Kreffin as she went:
"I sure hope you weren't lying like those four young rouges do!" she laughed. The badgermother just smiled and got out of bed to put her white day gown on. She lifted it up and slipped it over her head and then turned to the doorway. In minutes she had disappeared behind the walls.