Picks up from last chapter and goes on from there. Things are finally starting to wrap up. I'm getting excited, how about you guys? well, probably not, because then you'd be out of a fanfic to read, but still, there is a certain degree of excitement about nearing the end. ;)
Chapter 60
Moroni remembered hearing a fairly tale he was told way back in his days as a little one that talked about a mythical creature that, when looked upon, had the ability to turn anybeast into stone. Moroni currently felt like he had just seen said beast, because he suddenly couldn't find himself capable of doing anything for several moments, not even breathe, at least until the need to do so grew to be too strong.
That was when the initial shock wore off and a suddenly flood of other emotions washed over him. Nearly overwhelmed by it, he cautiously turned back to look at Sister Daisy, who had hung her head and looked apologetic.
"Ruth's with young?" he repeated hesitantly, unsure if he should believe it.
Sister Daisy, however, merely nodded.
Suddenly feeling dizzy, Moroni grabbed hold of the stairs's railing to stabilize himself, then carefully lowered himself to sit on a step. He looked back down at Sister Daisy standing at the bottom of the stairs for a long moment, still not quite sure what to make with this sudden revelation.
"Are you sure?" he asked after a moment.
At this, Sister Daisy hesitated. "It's the most liable explanation." she confessed. "Like I said, Ruth didn't actually tell me anything. But think about it, Moroni. She's obviously trying to hide something. And given her behavior, this fits best."
Moroni thought about that for a moment. "So you don't know for certain?" he asked.
"Admittedly, no." Daisy acknowledged. "But...it wouldn't be hard to find out. The problem is that..."
"...Ruth's being defensive of it." Moroni finished, which was the fact that puzzled him the most. "But...why?"
"Moroni, look at her position. Her homeland is caught up in a state of civil war, and is currently at a moment where the final outcome could go either way. She's not only afraid for her life...but the life of the babe as well."
Moroni thought this through for a few moments. "She must be a few weeks along by now." he remarked suddenly.
Sister Daisy nodded in agreement. "Hence the robe." she remarked. "She's starting to show. Also, bearing a child is no easy task for a female. It's tiring, stressful, not to mention that it plays tricks with one's emotions."
"That would also account for her actions." Moroni agreed, nodding his head. He fell silent for a moment, then shook his head in a mixture of excitement and disbelief. "Ruth's with young." he repeated.
They were both silent for several long moments.
"But I'm not supposed to know about this, am I?" Moroni asked suddenly.
Sister Daisy sighed. "To Ruth, no." she confessed. "I, however, personally think you have very right to know about this, Moroni, being the father and all."
"Father." Moroni repeated distractedly, but didn't comment further.
"However, I suppose I can see from where Ruth's coming from." Daisy went on. "I think she's worried that if and when you ever found out about it, you'd spend more time...fretting...over her and the child than you would with the rebellion. Where you're really needed."
Moroni thought about this for a moment, then suddenly brightened. "Well, if that's all then..." he commented, then rose and started back upstairs again.
It took Daisy only a moment to put two with two. "Moroni..." she quickly said, hurrying to follow him, "Moroni, I don't think this is a...Moroni!"
But if Moroni was listening, he wasn't paying attention. He purposefully climbed up the stairs and strode over to Ruth's bedroom door. He rapped politely on it to announce that he was there and about to enter, but otherwise didn't wait for a response, and simply entered.
Inside, Ruth was caught off guard, and just had time enough to quickly stand up before Moroni entered, followed by Sister Daisy, but the healermouse simply stayed in the doorway to watch what would happen anxiously.
"Moroni," Ruth began, a little nervously, taking an anxious step back as her husband approached her. "You...you startled me. Is there something wrong? Why...what brings you up here?"
"I can to see for myself if it's true." Moroni remarked calmly, concern etched on his face.
"See? For yourself?" Ruth repeated, at first looked confused. Then she visibly paled. "You mean...you mean you know?" her eyes grew wide, then she looked at Sister Daisy, "Daisy...you told him?"
"Well..." Daisy hesitated, "...he didn't really leave me much choice."
"Please, Ruth." Moroni pleaded, stepping closer, "Just tell me if it's true."
Ruth stared at him for a moment, looking terribly crestfallen, but then nodded, and bowed her head, and finally pulled off her robe and laid it on the bed.
As Sister Daisy had predicted, she was indeed beginning to show, a small bulge located at her middle. Ruth placed a paw defensively on, and turned away from Moroni, unable to face her slightly hurt husband at the moment.
"I'm sorry, Moroni." she confessed. "But...I felt it was necessary. I mean, with the rebellion and everything, and everything at risk of turning worse, I felt you didn't need to worry about this on top of it all, and I worried that if you knew, it'd distract you, and you need you mind at it's clearest, and..."
She was cut short suddenly when Moroni suddenly grabbed her and turned her to face him. They were both silent for a moment, staring into each other's eyes. Then Moroni pulled his wife in for a kiss, followed by a very heartfelt hug.
"Oh Ruth," he murmured, holding her tight, "I love you with all of my heart. But sometimes, you can be so..." he trailed off, unable to find the right word.
"Stupid?" Ruth asked, and for the first time in a long while, the hint of a true grin flittered across her face.
"I was thinking stubborn." Moroni admitted, pulling away slightly, and holding his wife before him. "But Ruth, you had nothing to fear. I know my place, and right now, I know that the rebellion is more important. And besides, if you had worries, all you had to do was just tell me. I would have understood." he grinned as he looked at his wife, running a claw soothingly through her whiskers, "And you should've known that already."
Ruth returned the grin, and this time, she pulled her husband into a kiss and a hug, looking assured that everything really would work out after all.
From the doorway, all but forgotten, Sister Daisy watched with bemusement, relieved to see things work out. "Well," she remarked to herself, "that worked out better than I expected."
Juniper was a little aggravated at the moment. And most of that aggravation was because of Methusael and his choice of tactics.
First, was the fact that Methusael was more than willing to keep resisting the rebels, even though all the odds were just about against them, save for the fact that they had a fortress in their possession. A fortress that really wasn't doing them any good. But Methusael was convinced that the next step of action was to fight for it, tooth and claw, if need be. But Juniper knew better. He knew that Methusael's cause was all but lost already. They would probably greatly cut their losses by simply surrendering, something he had already suggested to his lordship, but had been rejected.
Second, was Methusael's apparent obliviousness to the gravity of their situation. He kept making it seem less serious than it really was when he was with others, and seemed overly confident that they could still possibly win. Juniper, however, had been watching the actions of the mice lately, and saw that while they had been fairly quiet all throughout the siege, it was clear that they were planning their final move, the decisive strike that would determine who will win or lose. But Methusael either did not know this, or ignored it. Just like how he didn't seem to be aware of the fact that other members of the royal guard were beginning to voice their discontent.
Third was Methusael's sudden and new liking for blackberry wine. He had suddenly been drinking a great deal of it, going as far to scrounge around the castle looking for new bottles of it. The fox never drank so much that it rendered him totally drunk, but he never drank so little that he didn't stay sober either. Whatever the case, Methusael was allowing the drink to cloud his thinking. To what degree, Juniper was unsure of. But Juniper did know that given their very delicate situation, it could prove to be their undoing.
Fourth was Methusael's various orders for keeping them all busy, rather than just sitting around twiddling their claws. Because usually they were nothing more than that. The orders varied (thankfully, Methusael was working to ensure that they were always a little bit different), but it still irked Juniper that he was going around carrying out orders that served no purpose other than to keep him busy and out of Methusael's fur. Still, he did it anyway, as he knew that, for the moment, protesting to Methusael about the matter would only make things worse, and with Methusael being as temperamental as he was lately, it was best to be avoided.
At present, Methusael's orders was to rally all the members of the royal guard that weren't already guarding the castle perimeter to insure none of the mice attempt an attack and take stock of all the weapons Midnight Castle had to offer. So Juniper was systematically going through the whole castle and directing any and all creatures he found to the barracks so to take stock of their weapons. It was slow going, but it was something to do.
"Oi!" Juniper called to one fox standing guard at the door of a dormitory, "Report to the barracks to take stock of weapons."
The guard, however, merely stiffened, and did not move.
Annoyed, Juniper approached the creature. "Immediately, please." he requested, quieter this time, but even sterner than before.
"Sorry, sir, I cannot do that." the guard responded curtly.
Juniper growled, and rubbed at his brow. "I am in no mood for this." he muttered to the obstinate fox. "Now, please, report to the barracks as you have been requested, to help take stock of the weapons."
"I am sorry, Master Juniper, but I have my orders."
Juniper folded his arms hotly. "Whose orders?" he challenged.
"Lord Methusael's, sir."
"Hmm." Juniper was less than impressed. "Maybe I should tell you that the orders to report to the barracks for taking stock of the weapons is also Lord Methusael's orders. And he requested every creature not stationed around the castle's perimeter to participate."
The guard shifted uneasily.
"That would include you." Juniper continued. "So unless you want to take it up with his lordship, I recommend you do what you've been asked."
The guard hesitated. "But sir, I'm not sure you understand..."
"There are a lot of things I'm not sure I understand, but this isn't one of them." Juniper interrupted. "I know my orders, and who they affect. My duty is to make sure that they are carried out, and yours to follow them."
"His lordship asked me to not leave this post..."
"I'm sure he did, but I would not be surprised at all if he did not take into consideration his preexisting orders."
The guard again hesitated, but he seemed closer to agreeing with Juniper now than he had been before.
"But..." he still began to protest.
"No buts. You have your orders, and who gave them. You need to carry them out. Without question. That's part of being a part of the royal guard."
The guard had not considered this already, and it seemed to settle the matter. He saluted. "Yes, Master Juniper." he remarked, then turned and departed.
Juniper stayed to watch and make sure the guard truly did intend to leave, and did not try to double back, then proceeded to leave as well.
It was then that he heard the voices coming from within the room the guard had been posted at.
"This wasn't at all how the plan was supposed to go. If things had gone my way, I would've been undisputedly in charge of the whole land by now."
Juniper paused. He recognized that voice. It was Methusael's. What was Methusael doing in a guest dormitory, talking to himself?
But the next voice revealed that Methusael wasn't talking to himself.
"It is not our fault that your plans did not proceed as you wished." the new voice spoke, one Juniper definitely did not recognize.
"Not that we care, anyway." a third voice added, also unrecognized. "We weren't going to stay here this long, even, and certainly not long enough to see the fruits of your work, if any."
"There must be something that you two can do." Methusael said, almost in a pleading tone. "Something to turn the odds in my favor."
"Not without extra compensation." the first unfamiliar voice remarked calmly, but coldly. "Paid in full."
"No more delays this time." the second voice added. "We want all the money now, and not later."
Juniper could tell from Methusael's tone of voice that he had a problem with that. "I can't pay you with something I don't have." he confessed.
"If you aren't going to pay us, then I fail to see why we should even stay here." the second voice grumbled, and there was a sound of the creature standing up.
"Sais, sit." the first voice commanded, and it worked, as the creature that had stood sat back down. "Now, Methusael, you told us when we agreed to this assignment that you would pay our fee, in full, upon the mission's completion. We have completed the original mission. Even though we have stayed and done much more than originally agreed upon, we have completed the original goal. For that much, we expect to be paid. Now, do you have the money, or do you not?"
Methusael was heard making a frustrated sound. "I did, but then I lost control of the village to the mice." he explained. "The royal treasury is kept there, which means the mice have control over it, not me. You're welcome to try and raid it yourselves, but I'm sure the mice will have it heavily guarded by now."
"There must be something in this blooming castle you can pay us with." the second voice, Sais, commented grumpily.
"No, there isn't." Methusael said, and Juniper knew he was being truthful. Due to security reasons, all of the royal money was kept outside of the castle, where it would be less-obviously hidden. "I'm sorry. I can't pay you right now. Surely you can understand that and compensate."
"Unfortunately no. The contract you signed dictated that you pay us at the mission's completion, and you agreed to it, Methusael." the first voice remarked.
This left Juniper's head spinning. Contract? What contract?
"Well, you're going to have to." Methusael argued, rather lamely. "Because you aren't getting paid anytime soon. You're just going to have to work for free for now."
"Oh no, we're vermin mercenaries, not charitable woodlanders!" Sais objected.
This sent Juniper's mind reeling even more. Mercenaries? Under Methusael's employ? In Angola?
"I'm sorry." was the only answer Methusael could give.
There was a moment of silence, during which one of the two creatures, probably Sais, growled.
"I say we gut him now, Grim." Sais remarked, and could be heard pulling out a weapon and standing again. Another creature also stood, and stumbled in the opposite direction. It was probably Methusael, acting in self-defense.
The first voice, apparently called Grim, was hesitant for a moment. Finally, he said, "Put up your weapon, Sais. Spilling his blood won't do any of us much good, not given present circumstances." He fell silent while Sais could be heard reluctantly obeying. "But be warned, Methusael. You had better discover a way to pay us soon, your I will do much worse than merely gut you."
Methusael was heard cursing, then he made a comment that caught Juniper totally off guard. "I knew I should have had Kani slain when I had the chance!"
Stunned, Juniper jerked away from the door he had been unknowingly eavesdropping through, and backpedaled away from it and the creatures in the room beyond it. Breathing starting to elevate, and breaking out into a cold sweat, Juniper hesitated for a moment, scarcely believing his ears, then turned and fled in the first direction that would take him as far from that room as he could go.
As he ran, despite trying push the whole matter out of his mind, the clues to the puzzle the overheard conversation allowed for everything to click together. Juniper suddenly realized how it had all happened, what had led up to this moment, and what the awful truth implied.
That Methusael was a traitor.
"This had better be important Hyrum." Moroni grumbled as he followed his fellow mouse out to the edge of the village, trudging along begrudgingly. Bluejay, Adah, and Mordecai were getting close to coming up with a plan to end this all. I should be there to hear it." he paused, thinking about what he had learned about his wife today, and grinned. "The sooner we can end all of this, the better."
"I understand that, Moroni." Hyrum stated with a nod. "But I really felt you should see these two. They were asking for you by name, after all. It shouldn't take long."
Moroni sighed, but nodded. "All right, I'll see the two."
They eventually arrived just before where the flat plain the village sat in ended and the surrounding woods began. There, sitting on the ground, tied back to back, and their muzzles bound with leather straps, but looking unworried, where two otters, one male, the other female, and both easily the same age as each other. They were guarded by two mouse guards, but the guards seemed more precautionary than necessary, and the two were extremely relaxed. As Moroni and Hyrum approached, the two otters locked their eyes on Moroni hopefully, both grinning broadly despite the bindings.
Moroni surveyed the situation, and frowned. He leaned closer to Hyrum. "Did you really need to tie them up?" he murmured in his friend's ear.
"Probably not, but they just wandered into our borders, as pretty as you please, and were quite determined to enter the village." Hyrum explained. "I probably would've let them, too, if they would've just told me why they're here. But they refused, said they'd only talk to you, asking for you by name, like I had said. And since otters tend to be slippery beasts, tying 'em up was done only to ensure they didn't go anywhere while I went to get you."
"And the muzzles?" Moroni inquired, then grew worried. "They weren't trying to call for help, where they?"
"Oh no, they just kept on jabbering and wouldn't shut up, the pair of them." Hyrum explained. "Finally put an end to it when they started a singing contest to pass the time. The two couldn't carry a tune to save their lives with."
Moroni couldn't help but grin. "Well, I'm here now." he said stepping forward and kneeling down before the male, and working to undo the straps silencing him, "Let's get these off of them so they can explain who they are and what they're doing here."
"Blah, much obliged, sir!" the male commented the moment Moroni got the straps off his muzzle. "Cap'n Moroni, I presume?"
"That's me." Moroni confirmed with a nod. "Who are you?"
"Me name's Tobias, cap'n." the otter remarked brightly. "Pleasure t' meet ye." he jerked his head at the female, just as Hyrum pulled off the bounds on her muzzle, "That's me twin sister, Illia."
"'ello mate." the female remarked brightly. "I'd shake yore paw if they were free, but they ain't at th' moment, so..." she shrugged.
"Well, we'll fix that in moment, once you tell me why you're both here." Moroni promised.
"Oh, well, that's easy, we're scouts." Tobias explained. "Twas sent on ahead t' see wot th' situation 'ere was like." he paused, thinking for a moment. "Though, I suppose that by now, th' others will 'ave just 'bout caught up with us, or will soon."
"The others?" Moroni asked. "Who are they?"
Illia, however, interjected with a comment. "They won't just waltz in 'ere, though, will they?" she asked. "Surely not without our report?"
"I ain't called Shirley." Tobias quipped to his twin sister with a grin.
Illia furrowed her brow in disapproval, but couldn't help but grin herself. "Just couldn't resist that 'un, eh?"
"Aw, ye're just jealous ye didn't get t' do it. But t' answer yore question, I honestly dunno wot th' others will do. They might assume th' worse and just come bargin' expectin' t' fight."
"A fight?" Moroni repeated, alarmed. "Hold on, back up a moment..."
But the two otters were no longer paying any attention to him.
"I dunno if they'd really want t' fight though, that sort of defeats th' purpose o' why we came." Illia commented. "We want t' try an' solve th' issue by spillin' as liddle blood as possible. Mebbe they'll 'old off an' investigate further first, afore they do anythin' rash."
"Mebbe, but they also just got 'ere from a long journey. Mebbe they'll want t' rest first."
"Sink me rudder, Tobias, it ain't that long a journey. Southsward is farther an' harder t' get t' than this place."
"Aye, but we'd normally take a boat, cut the journey in 'alf, an' anyway, just because it ain't such a long journey for ye an' me, doesn't mean it ain't like that for everybody else. 'specially that Gemini lot. Melody said it 'erself, they never been up this far east before."
"What?" Moroni commented, trying to follow the conversation and butt in. "Who's Melody? I...er...argh!" he pressed a paw to his brow, frustrated.
"Now you know why I gagged them." Hyrum commented with a dry grin.
"All right, both of you, BE QUIET!" Moroni commanded suddenly.
The two otters, who had been in the middle of arguing how hard a journey it really had been to get here, and fell silent, looking at Moroni. Moroni waited long enough to ensure that he had their attention and that they both wouldn't start talking suddenly again, then started speaking again.
"Now, I have some questions for you two." he began. "Now, let's start off with an easy one. How do you know who I am?"
"Oh, well, that's easy mate, we were told t' ask for ye if we met up with any mice, an' only talk t' ye." Tobias explained.
"You were told." Moroni repeated. "By who?"
"That would be me, captain."
Caught off guard by the sudden new voice speaking, the mice all jumped and looked up into the woods, the two guards, who were armed, going on the defensive. But when they saw who it was, they all stopped dead in their tracks, surprised, but also pleased.
"Your lordship!" Moroni exclaimed, clearly relieved, and quickly dropped into a respectful bow.
The other mice followed his example. Tobias and Illia looked at the mice for a moment, surprised at their behavior, then at each other, before finally twisting their heads around to look at the newcomer standing at the fringe of the woods, greatly amused by the sight before him, but trying hard not to laugh.
Tobias didn't help. "Nice timin', there, Kani." he commented. "Suppose ye brought company, too. Great. Mebbe, if these gennelbeasts would be kind enough t' untie us, we can 'ave a liddle get t'gether t' celebrate. With cake. I like cake."
