Note: Nothing in this fic is mine except Star and her peoples, oh and Ruby and Boomer! All others are property of Brian Jacques.
Deyna jumped as cold water disturbed his stolen nap, he frowned as his sister the Mother Abbess of all Redwall smirked at him. Deyna leapt up, roared then dashed after his little big sister as she ran away shrieking, Deyna had to halt rather quickly as the Dibbuns thought it great fun to try and jump on his footpaws as he ran by them.
He smiled as he let them drag him down then swamp him, Mhera wandered back to see an otter rudder poking out from a pile of Dibbuns, she shook her head as she lightly tugged on her brothers tail. Slowly the pile of babes began to take an otter shape; Deyna's head appeared with a mole maid holding onto his ears.
Mhera reached for Ruby chuckling as she protested pulling on Deyna's ears, she managed to coax her free only for squirrel babe Boomer to take her place. He sat proudly on the Warrior's head grinning happily.
Boorab came bounding up his jesters bells tinkling with each step, he laughed at the sight of Mhera and Deyna almost wrestling with the babes. Each time Mhera put one babe down to remove another, the last one rejoined the pile. He soon took control of the situation.
"Right Chaps and Chapesses! Front and centre! Hop to it! Hop to it!" The Dibbuns jumped up laughing and got into formation eagerly. Boorab went to the back of the group and started them marching off towards the dormitories for their unknown baths.
Mhera brushed a paw across her brow, then held out her paw to her brother. Deyna grinned as he took it.
"Why thank you Mother Abbess."
Mhera frowned at him and pushed him back down only to have him pull her down also.
"Mother? You cheeky pup. My baby brother!"
Mhera finally untangled herself from him then began brushing dust and dirt from her habit. Fwirl looked at them from the wall, she chuckled to herself as she called across to them.
"Well Abbess and Warrior have you finished acting like a couple of Dibbuns? Filorn sent me to fetch you."
Deyna jumped up, scooped up his sister and began running to the kitchens almost all in one movement. Fwirl shook her head and began her dash along the wall tops to catch them. Deyna beat her but only just, he still held Mhera in his paws she sat in them stone faced, very unimpressed at being carried so undignified.
She soon cheered up as they passed a big bowl of meadow cream. She carefully scooped up a paw full then readied herself to push it into Deyna's face. Filorn soon put a stop to that she rescooped it from Mhera's paw with her wooden spoon.
"Now then there is work to be done, the autumn nameday feast is less than four days away. Mhera have you thought of a name for this new season yet?"
Deyna let her down finally, Mhera hung her head and shook it. Filorn rolled her eyes she expected as much, she looked to Deyna, and he also shook his head.
"I can't think of anything other than 'The Autumn of Pesky Dibbuns' I'll end up with ears like a hares soon!"
"And what is wrong with my ears may I ask wot?"
Filorn quickly recovered the situation before Boorab could take offence as he so often did at harmless remarks of that nature.
"I'm sure Deyna didn't mean it like that but a hares ears on an otter wouldn't look right Mr. Boorab."
Boorab melted as Filorn smoothed things out by also giving him a scone smothered in meadow cream and two strawberries.
Deyna drifted while all this was going on and he suddenly remembered the dream he was having before being so rudely woken. He beckoned Mhera to one side.
"Martin was talking to me before you woke me earlier, but I can't remember what it was he said to me…….."
Mhera smiled at her brother and patted his paw that had once housed the speedwell flower birthmark.
"Don't fret my brother I'm sure Martin will remind you when the time comes, or try not to think about it and it may return to you."
He nodded then excused himself, he wanted to try and find Nimbalo. He didn't have to look too hard when Nimbalo wasn't with Boorab or himself he was sitting on the north wall deep in thought.
Deyna lightly tapped his friends shoulder so as not to alarm him, Nimbalo smiled at his friend then sighed. Deyna looked at him questioningly, but his friend tried to shrug him off.
"What's the matter?"
"Have you ever thought that you remembered something but you weren't sure if you'd imagined it for it was a real memory?"
Deyna was quite shocked by his friend's bluntness; he was usually so private it was hard to get a straight answer from him.
"I had that my entire life until I found this place and it all made sense, why do you ask?"
"Well…I….Ummmm no I cant you will think I'm being silly."
Deyna shook his head and placed his paw on Nimbalo's shoulder.
"My friend I have known you long enough to know you are neither silly nor joke about things like this. Tell me what is bothering you."
Nimbalo starred at the sunset for a while before answering.
"I keep having a recurring dream, I see this dream while I sleep and while I am awake it's starting to haunt me. I see a mouse maid and I see my father and a baby. I'm not sure if it is really my mother with my father and me or if it's an image I dreamt of as a Dibbun."
Deyna thought for a while before he responded.
"Well when I was with the Juska I had dreams of otter maids. This dream kept coming back to me as I got older it became stronger. I was told it was all just a dream but when I came here I realised it was my mother and Mhera. The thing is there isn't anyway for you to find out the truth, and that's what's really bothering you. Isn't it?"
Nimbalo nodded and he looked at the floor, Deyna could tell he was holding back tears, tears for the mother he never knew and the father he lost, tears for the life he was forced to lead all the bruises and marks left by his fathers belt.
Deyna hugged his best friend close to him, that was all it took to push Nimbalo over, his tears began to fall.
Well theres chapter 2 finally, sorry its been so long i had a complete brain melt down. Please R+R thnx!
