Chapter 6
The new day shown bright in the morning sky over Redwall abbey. Abbess Birch had spent the first few hours doing some chores before the hubbub of breakfast began in Great Hall. Hearing some of the dibbuns starting to get noisy over whether to have porridge or oatmeal and which one will be bathed first at the end of the day. With a sigh of resentment, the abbess moved off toward the abbey, and Great Hall. Breakfast that morning consisted of porridge with apple slices, mint scones, and fruit cordial. Or you could have strawberry flavored oatmeal that the friar has been working on since he started experimenting with different foods last season. Most of the dibbuns loved the new oatmeal while the elders decided to have the porridge, remembering when they were dibbuns and experimented with different foods. The room became quiet when Birch appeared. Walking over to her chair at the end of the table, Birch noticed that Trytle the Badger mum was back from her trip to her parent's house. Birch decided to hold a conversation with her friend. "So Trytle. Back from your mother's I see. Learn much while you were there?"
"Well, I did learn a bit more about being the badger mum. But, I still need the experience from actually doing it." Trytle paused, stopping to stop an argument between to young moles about a tunnel design, then continued. "What I really need to do is to do more work with the dibbuns I'm supposed to watch over."
The abbess could understand her frustration, for Trytle was new and still learning how the job goes. "Well, the vermin horde is no longer here, and the dibbuns are getting restless being stuck inside the abbey. I think, an outing with the dibbuns is in order."
The young badger grinned, catching onto the abbess's plan. "Aye, I getcha on that. Hmmm, I think that an outing could be done the day after tomorrow could be just the thing the dibbuns need to relax and shake off the feeling of confinement. I'll need to get together with the friar and get a picnic lunch gathered up, oh! And to also have a little extra on hand, just in case."
Trytle rambled on, and on. Meanwhile, Birch had already said grace and was eating her porridge. Taking a drink of fruit cordial, the abbess cleared her throat, and rang a small paw bell. Which is used to gain attention at table. Everyone at the table went into immediate silence, awaiting their abbess's orders and daily chore allotment. "Everybeast, please pay attention, I have an announcement to make." Everyone paid even closer attention than before. "In a few days there will be a dibbun outing with our badger mum Trytle." There was some noise's being made by the happy dibbuns and it took the paw bell to silence them again. "Ahem, also, while the dibbuns are out, there will be a celebration and a day off from all duties."
This announcement was greeted by cheers from all in attendance, including the dibbuns, who usually don't like that sort of thing. After the daily chores were distributed amongst everyone. Everyone went about their allotted tasks and the dibbuns went throughout the abbey and its grounds, chanting in a singsong tone their outing song.
"Oh everybeast, everybeast, come and join our glee. For we are going to go on an outing glad are we! There will be cake, and there will be glee as we go on our outing we! There will be cake and there will be glee, on our outing glad are we!"
As the dibbuns went about the abbey, they were being constantly followed by one of the elders, making sure that the dibbuns didn't get into much trouble while they were about. After a few hours, the dibbuns eventually scattered and went off to play in the orchard. Trytle was busy in the kitchens, preparing and cooking food for the outing. She had thought of everything that a dibbun would want to eat, and what she would eat. After everything was cooked, she carefully put them all in two whicker baskets. After she had finished packing everything, she took the baskets up to Abbess Birch's room. Where she could hide the baskets till it was time to leave for the outing. Trytle wasn't surprised to see Birch there, working at something on her desk. Trytle's curiosity was just too strong for her to resist, and she went over to see what it was the abbess was working on. Tapping her shoulder lightly, Trytle motioned that she would like to take a look at what the abbess was working on. Birch obliged, showing Trytle some of the translated pages of the book the strange creature owned. Trytle looked it over for a bit, and then, she decided to help Birch with translating the remaining pages. While she did this, Trytle inquired as to where the book came from, who the owner was, where the owner was now, and other questions that the abbess couldn't answer. When Birch pointed out that he didn't really know the owner, Trytle asked the abbess where the owner was at the moment. The abbess didn't really want to let her know, but she had to tell her. After all, there was an ulterior motive to having the dibbun outing. "Trytle, there is something I have been meaning to tell you. The owner of this book is a creature that nobeast has ever seen before. During one of the last battles with the vermin, this creature was caught by the vermin, and this, and a few other books like it, were found in a bag that the creature had drooped during the struggle. I had been leafing through this one when I found something that we both apparently know."
At this she flipped through a few pages and pointed at the symbols on it. "Wow!" exclaimed the badger mum. "This is the old Riftguard script from long ago! I thought that nobeast knew it anymore!"
The abbess was a bit surprised at Trytle's exclamation. "Aye Trytle. It is indeed the ancient Riftguard script. I sued that, and the strange alphabet and I managed to figure out what some of this book says." With that said, she pointed at some of the translated pages.
The badger looked them over, satisfied at the results. "I take it then that there was a different reason for the outing than just to get the dibbuns out of the abbey for a day?"
The abbess was a bit surprised! She hadn't expected Trytle to figure her out. Deciding that there was nothing left to hide, she put down her plan. "Okay Trytle, the creature, also known as "Wyatt", is with the vermin leader. They both fled the battle after leaving Glen with a nasty leg wound. What I want you to do is to look for this creature and the vermin leader. Bring back the strange creature. He is the one I want, I don't really mind about what you do with the vermin leader, but don't kill him unless he threatens on of the dibbuns, then kill him on the spot." The abbess's eye's were a bit saddened at the thought.
Trytle understood and after telling Birch she would do so. Then after leaving the room, Trytle had to ask herself that one question, what was going on? She had only been out for a few days and now she was on a rescue mission! But, she would do it as she promised she would do so. And with that, Trytle went downstairs to see that her dibbuns were doing ok. You could never tell with dibbuns sometimes!
The new day shown bright in the morning sky over Redwall abbey. Abbess Birch had spent the first few hours doing some chores before the hubbub of breakfast began in Great Hall. Hearing some of the dibbuns starting to get noisy over whether to have porridge or oatmeal and which one will be bathed first at the end of the day. With a sigh of resentment, the abbess moved off toward the abbey, and Great Hall. Breakfast that morning consisted of porridge with apple slices, mint scones, and fruit cordial. Or you could have strawberry flavored oatmeal that the friar has been working on since he started experimenting with different foods last season. Most of the dibbuns loved the new oatmeal while the elders decided to have the porridge, remembering when they were dibbuns and experimented with different foods. The room became quiet when Birch appeared. Walking over to her chair at the end of the table, Birch noticed that Trytle the Badger mum was back from her trip to her parent's house. Birch decided to hold a conversation with her friend. "So Trytle. Back from your mother's I see. Learn much while you were there?"
"Well, I did learn a bit more about being the badger mum. But, I still need the experience from actually doing it." Trytle paused, stopping to stop an argument between to young moles about a tunnel design, then continued. "What I really need to do is to do more work with the dibbuns I'm supposed to watch over."
The abbess could understand her frustration, for Trytle was new and still learning how the job goes. "Well, the vermin horde is no longer here, and the dibbuns are getting restless being stuck inside the abbey. I think, an outing with the dibbuns is in order."
The young badger grinned, catching onto the abbess's plan. "Aye, I getcha on that. Hmmm, I think that an outing could be done the day after tomorrow could be just the thing the dibbuns need to relax and shake off the feeling of confinement. I'll need to get together with the friar and get a picnic lunch gathered up, oh! And to also have a little extra on hand, just in case."
Trytle rambled on, and on. Meanwhile, Birch had already said grace and was eating her porridge. Taking a drink of fruit cordial, the abbess cleared her throat, and rang a small paw bell. Which is used to gain attention at table. Everyone at the table went into immediate silence, awaiting their abbess's orders and daily chore allotment. "Everybeast, please pay attention, I have an announcement to make." Everyone paid even closer attention than before. "In a few days there will be a dibbun outing with our badger mum Trytle." There was some noise's being made by the happy dibbuns and it took the paw bell to silence them again. "Ahem, also, while the dibbuns are out, there will be a celebration and a day off from all duties."
This announcement was greeted by cheers from all in attendance, including the dibbuns, who usually don't like that sort of thing. After the daily chores were distributed amongst everyone. Everyone went about their allotted tasks and the dibbuns went throughout the abbey and its grounds, chanting in a singsong tone their outing song.
"Oh everybeast, everybeast, come and join our glee. For we are going to go on an outing glad are we! There will be cake, and there will be glee as we go on our outing we! There will be cake and there will be glee, on our outing glad are we!"
As the dibbuns went about the abbey, they were being constantly followed by one of the elders, making sure that the dibbuns didn't get into much trouble while they were about. After a few hours, the dibbuns eventually scattered and went off to play in the orchard. Trytle was busy in the kitchens, preparing and cooking food for the outing. She had thought of everything that a dibbun would want to eat, and what she would eat. After everything was cooked, she carefully put them all in two whicker baskets. After she had finished packing everything, she took the baskets up to Abbess Birch's room. Where she could hide the baskets till it was time to leave for the outing. Trytle wasn't surprised to see Birch there, working at something on her desk. Trytle's curiosity was just too strong for her to resist, and she went over to see what it was the abbess was working on. Tapping her shoulder lightly, Trytle motioned that she would like to take a look at what the abbess was working on. Birch obliged, showing Trytle some of the translated pages of the book the strange creature owned. Trytle looked it over for a bit, and then, she decided to help Birch with translating the remaining pages. While she did this, Trytle inquired as to where the book came from, who the owner was, where the owner was now, and other questions that the abbess couldn't answer. When Birch pointed out that he didn't really know the owner, Trytle asked the abbess where the owner was at the moment. The abbess didn't really want to let her know, but she had to tell her. After all, there was an ulterior motive to having the dibbun outing. "Trytle, there is something I have been meaning to tell you. The owner of this book is a creature that nobeast has ever seen before. During one of the last battles with the vermin, this creature was caught by the vermin, and this, and a few other books like it, were found in a bag that the creature had drooped during the struggle. I had been leafing through this one when I found something that we both apparently know."
At this she flipped through a few pages and pointed at the symbols on it. "Wow!" exclaimed the badger mum. "This is the old Riftguard script from long ago! I thought that nobeast knew it anymore!"
The abbess was a bit surprised at Trytle's exclamation. "Aye Trytle. It is indeed the ancient Riftguard script. I sued that, and the strange alphabet and I managed to figure out what some of this book says." With that said, she pointed at some of the translated pages.
The badger looked them over, satisfied at the results. "I take it then that there was a different reason for the outing than just to get the dibbuns out of the abbey for a day?"
The abbess was a bit surprised! She hadn't expected Trytle to figure her out. Deciding that there was nothing left to hide, she put down her plan. "Okay Trytle, the creature, also known as "Wyatt", is with the vermin leader. They both fled the battle after leaving Glen with a nasty leg wound. What I want you to do is to look for this creature and the vermin leader. Bring back the strange creature. He is the one I want, I don't really mind about what you do with the vermin leader, but don't kill him unless he threatens on of the dibbuns, then kill him on the spot." The abbess's eye's were a bit saddened at the thought.
Trytle understood and after telling Birch she would do so. Then after leaving the room, Trytle had to ask herself that one question, what was going on? She had only been out for a few days and now she was on a rescue mission! But, she would do it as she promised she would do so. And with that, Trytle went downstairs to see that her dibbuns were doing ok. You could never tell with dibbuns sometimes!