Author's Note: Okay, I took so long to update due to serious writer's block. I have written the final chappyter, just to let you know, so I know what shall happen and such, it's just the whole 'getting there' aspect that I need to work on.

Oh, and I happened to forget the chronology of my own story, and so had to re-read and map out a brief timeline and so forth. Ehe o.o;

So, stay with me, it shall (eventually) wrap itself up and all shall be explained and stuff, but now, on with the story!

Disclaimer: Bleh, see previous chapters.

And the poem in Honeysuckle's part is not mine. It was written by Barrie Wade and is just something that I borrowed briefly. Thank you.

Only Memories

The ground was hard, the sticks, stones and pine needles littering the floor cut into her footpaws, but she did not care.

Sticks and stones may break my bones

The flashes of red and grey over head, showed her where the two squirrels were flying ahead of her, propelled by desperate paws.

"Hurry," she heard one of them call out "They will be there! Honeysuckle, they will kill every last hare if we don't get there in time!"

But words can also hurt me

"Can't run any faster," she gritted through her clenched teeth as she ran in a dead sprint, her food forgotten. Her foot paws were now flecked with blood, as sharp objects from the forest floor pierced flesh.

Sticks and stones break only skin

Only a few more strides away now. Only a…few…more…breaths. She had never been the best runner, never galloper material.

Your sire was a great runner. An old hare, telling her stories on a winter night If only he and your mother could see you now

While words are ghosts that haunt me

That scraped tree there, and that scratched trunk there; marks she had left to guide herself back to the cave. The squirrels were there now; on the ground ahead of her. She had almost lost the flashes of their fur as they dashed ahead. Bizarrely, she smiled as she ran full pelt. They hardly knew her yet they were risking their lives to help. It was something Tula and her vermin would never understand.

Slant and curved the word-swords fall

But, yet, something was wrong.

To pierce and stick inside me

She burst from the trees and doubled up, catching her breath. When she opened her eyes, it was to see the squirrels' mournful faces in front of her. One opened his mouth, but she pushed past him, to see.

Bats and bricks may ache through bones

Blood stained the grass. The still forms of hares littered the ground around the cave where, before, thirty had hidden.

Tears pricked at her eyes and one of the squirrels laid a comforting paw on her shoulder.

"I'm so sorry," he said, pity dripping off every word.

But words can mortify me

She shrugged him off sharply and bent to examine the bodies, moving through them silently. She entered the cave, seeing another four bodies strewn on the soft sand. She clenched her paws until the knuckles grew white and then exited. She stalked past the squirrels, who were talking quietly and went to the edge of the forest and sat.

Pain from words has left it's scar

Come now, hares, your resistance is futile. You can never expect to hold out against my mighty horde. It would be in your interest to surrender.

That cave, lies directly in the path of the vermin!

The sounds of cries of pain and mad laughter…the blood-red eyes of Tula…blood wrath taken hold…battle cry ringing in her ears, the pounding of their paws down the mountainside.

So many dead. So many bodies. So much blood.

On mind and heart that's tender

She ran her hand up and down the thin scar on her right wrist and stared into the woodlands.

What should she do now? Her entire life had been slowly dismantled before her eyes and now she was left with nothing.

Cuts and bruises, now have healed

She looked up to see the three squirrels standing over her. Elmdar looked like he was waiting to speak and she forced a smile and wiped the tears that had inexplicably appeared on her cheeks.

"Honeysuckle, I'm so sorry," he began and she discovered that she had a voice and replied "Thank you." It startled her that she sounded so normal.

"Honeysuckle, how many were there here?" The question startled her, but she replied "Thirty, though I think five died this morning." Was it really only that morning that she had left?

"Twenty-five, twenty-four, mis-counting you," she smiled weakly at the weak joke.

"Then, how do you account for the fact that there are only thirteen bodies here?" Elmdar gestured around the area.

Honeysuckle sat up straight, her eyes suddenly very bright. She sprang up and counted up. She came to the same total.

"So, that means there are twelve hares missing," she said slowly, emotionless.

"We'll track the army, if you wish?" Elmdar looked at her questioningly. She nodded slowly, but caught his arm as he turned to go.

"But first I shall bury my dead."

Its words that I remember.

0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0

They had had a break and a breath of fresh air, but were now back hard at work. Tyg had taken the challenge that Arren had set him and was paying full attention to the line 'One is the other once they are seen'. So now, the other had progressed onto explaining Martin the Warrior to Ayila and Rose. Tyg had looked up distractedly to wave a paw vaguely at the large, heavy, dusty volume, which contained Martin's Story, as told by Aubretia.

They did not feel they had the time to read the entire story to the two maids, so they gave them a concise overview, with selected parts read out by Arren.

Rose smiled sadly when the ending came. "That was so sad. Poor Rose, poor Martin."

"Ah, but now I see what our esteemed Recorder saw when he first saw you." Arren announced, to some confusion among his listeners "See this," he tapped an illustration at the corner of the page "This is a picture drawn by Abbot Saxtus, of the mousemaid Aubretia. It was said that she was of the exact same appearance of Laterose. And you are of the exact same appearance of Aubretia. There must be a connection. Many beasts believe that Rose was the one maid that Martin truly loved."

"Yes," Rose now leant forward, excitedly "That must have some link with the line 'A debt repaid, a descendant seen.' if Martin is referring to himself."

"Yes, there are many links in these lines," Mother Tamlin smiled indulgently at the two young mice. "Much symmetry," she repeated, thoughtfully, looking at them both.

"Eureka!" Tyg's exultant shout put a stop to any more conversation. "That is the answer. So simple, not a line that is really needed, but very puzzling."

Ayila raised her eyebrows, "Well why don't you share your wisdom with us, so that we may better understand?" she asked impatiently.

"It simply means that the two wolves, Tehera and Tula, are twins," Tyg explained triumphantly " 'One is the other once they are seen' merely means once they are seen, one is the other. In other words, they are the same ergo, they are twins!"

"Well done Tyg!" Mother Tamlin gave the excited hedgehog a warm smile "So, we go onto the next line. What is it 'Flashing steel and questing swords'?"

"Well, that seems pretty simple," Skipper stated, sounding disappointed "It means what it says. Doesn't seem to be anything needing solving there. Same with the next line 'Silver fins stir white foam fords'. They may be lines that we will need to refer to later. What does the next one say?"

No-one questioned his theory and Ayila read out the next line " 'Red, red rose climbs bloodied walls'"

"That must be the Laterose at Redwall," Log-a-log offered "See, it mentions the rose and 'bloodied walls'. Redwall's walls are red, the same colour as blood. That seems pretty simple. The next line?"

Ayila obliged " 'Petals close, petal falls.'"

"Again, the Laterose." Mother Tamlin said "Most likely referring to Redwall's…possession. See, it ties in with the next line, 'Sorrow falls upon sunset walls.' Again, it mentions Redwall falling."

They all nodded in agreement. Tyg read out the next line in a puzzled voice "Listen to this 'Friendship halted by killer keen.' I have no idea what to make of that."

Now, it was Rose who answered "That means Laterose. You say that she was killed by Badrang? Well, there you go. And one step further, look at the next line 'A debt repaid, a descendant seen.' I must be the descendant, though I don't know what the part about the debt being repaid means."

"Now, look at this." Arren, clearly quite satisfied with that explanation and very impatient to move onto the next part of the verse "It begins to tell us where to find the sword. Where is the last record of the sword, Tyg?"

The old Recorder began to bustle around the study, raising yet more dust. Mother Tamlin, perhaps envisaging a repeat of the dust storm that heralded their arrival, hastily put up a paw. "I think we should clear the room, Tyg, to give you more room to find the documents. We shall retire outside and try to solve this part of the riddle, if that is agreeable with you?"

There was no argument from anyone at this suggestion and so, Rose, Ayila, Skipper, Arren, Log-a-log Wurren, Mother Tamlin and Foremole Deeper were sitting gratefully outside the small passage, stretching and listening with much amusement to Tyg's mutterings and coughs.

Suddenly, a young otter came pounding across the room towards them.

"Mother Tamlin, Skipp, ye'd better come. There are some beasts asking for ye. You'd better come, they're badly beaten up!"

OK, so not particularly long, but I am typing this at four in the morning. Anyway, it is my birthday tomorrow, I am going on holiday in a week and I haven't any sleep for two days. I am finding it hard to concentrate.

Well, anyway, review my pretties, review! –cackles and disappears in a mysterious swirl of…purple smoke-