Chapter 4

In the Eyes of Those Around Me


"Hi, do you have any books about getting rid of spirits or ghosts by any chance?" Marley asked, ignoring Martin burying his face in a paw by the corner of his vision.

Redwall Abbey's recorder, a bony hare named Queran, turned with flattened ears. "Now, why would'ja ask that? More importantly, I don't feel like tellin' ya nothin', Marley! When didja get back, anyway?"

"Last night." Marley pointed a thumb towards the dormitories. "Winslow let me in and I spent the night in his room."

Queran snorted. "Ah, he's still head over heels over ya, hm? I say, he's a strange one." Marley tilted their head at the comment. Was that supposed to be an insult towards them or Winslow? The old hare glanced around the empty library and scratched his neck. "Look, I don' quite feel comfortable tellin' ya 'bout this."

"Oh. In that case, do you mind telling me where I can find books about Martin and his sword?"

"I don't think ya get what I meant. I ain't tellin' ya anythin' right now. Maybe come back later when 'tis not just us two alone. I'm gonna eat breakfast. See ya!" Before Marley could say anything, Queran bounded off.

Marley buried their paws in their pockets and stared at the spot where Queran was a moment ago. I'm guessing that's what Martin and Winslow were implying yesterday. Is everyone really still scared about it? I thought banishment meant they would stop worrying. Well, I hope it's just Queran. In the meantime, I should look for information about Martin's sword. It should've been simple, given that Redwall Abbey loved its history and founder, but Marley never read any of the books in the library unless they had to, so they didn't know where to start looking or how to research.

"Maybe I should ask Finn to help," Marley muttered. "Winslow said I should give her some time, but a night is 'some time', right?" They stared blankly at the wall as they tried to figure it out. 'Some time' could mean anything. A couple of minutes was 'some time', but so was a few seasons. Marley scratched their ears and decided they would figure it out later. Besides, Finn liked to sleep in so it was likely she wouldn't be awake right now, anyway.

Thus, Marley began their adventurous search in the library to find information about Martin's sword and how to purge spirits. As if on cue, Martin appeared next to them while they searched and groaned. "I don't mind you trying to learn more about my sword, but I'd appreciate it if you stopped looking for a way to prematurely get rid of me. You will not find anything."

"Good for you, but since you know more about me than even I could know, you should already know I'm going to keep looking anyway."

"Is there anything I can do to make you less scared of me?"

"I don't know how to answer that."

"Fair enough."

Marley pulled a book out of a shelf and stared at the cover titled An Examination of Mossflower's Cultures and its Food and set it back. "Hey, Martin, since Queran won't help me look, do you mind telling me if there are any books here about your sword? Preferably if it goes into its spiritual importance? I think that's what Kanor wanted."

The armoured mouse snickered. "You finally want me to help, and out of everything I could have done for you, you want me to find a book?"

"Yes, because I know you won't tell me how your sword's power works, for some reason."

"Well, honestly, I don't know everything about my existence as a spirit, either." Martin shook his head. "And as tempting as pointing you in the right direction would be, I cannot help you with- go to the shelf behind you, two steps to the left." Marley turned just as the other mouse vanished, leaving them alone in the library. Slowly, they followed Martin's instructions and grabbed the book he pointed out: A Report on Boar the Fighter. Marley shrugged and added it to a slowly growing pile of books on a table at the corner of the room. After that, it was time to strap in and start reading.

They took a break a few minutes later.

Marley got bored and tried balancing the chair on only two of its legs when somebeast slammed a paw onto the table. It was a river otter. This one looked like Winslow, at least if Winslow was smaller, 12 seasons old, and always wore a coif wrapped around his neck. "Hi, Trey." Marley limply waved.

"When did ye get here?" Trey asked.

"Last night. Your brother let me in." Marley pointed their tail towards Winslow's room. "Did you need something?"

"Do I need somethin'? Are ye jokin'? What else would I be here fer?" Trey sneered and folded his arms. "Winslow's busy and told me ye needed somethin' done, so he promised me that he'd give me his dessert if I helped ye. Anyway, tell me what I'm supposed to do, I hear Friar Elliot has leftover pie and I'd kill fer two pieces!"

Marley straightened the chair and rested their paws on the table. "Well, I don't think you'd enjoy it. I'm trying to read about Martin's sword," they explained, leaving out the fact that Martin was watching them right now.

Trey groaned and puffed out his chest. "Ugh, borin'! Ye just got back after killin' somebeast and this is what ye choose to spend yer time doin'? I'd rather stick my face in a beehive." Marley froze and stared blankly at the otter. They didn't know why they didn't expect Trey to be so honest, but it still took them off guard. Trey bared his fangs and raised a fist. "Why do ye always make that face? Stop lookin' at me like that or else I'll punch ye."

"Trey, do you actually think I killed someone?"

"Aye? That's what ye got kicked out fer, wasn't it?"

"I mean, yeah, but… I don't know."

Trey grinned and ran a finger along the old parchments. "Ooh, is that why yer readin' 'bout swords? 'Cuz ye want to do someone else in? Who is it?"

"No, that's- oh, Queran probably thought I was going to kill him. Is everyone here still scared of me?"

"Aye, obviously. They think yer a murderer. I don't even know why ye were allowed back in the first place, but good on ye, I guess." Trey glanced over his shoulder and scowled. "Gods, ye have no idea how annoyin' Winslow got when beasts started raggin' on ye. I thought he was gonna start punchin' everyone. Me and Finn had to calm him down. He was so pissed."

"He almost did that?"

"A few times, aye. In my opinion, I say he should've gone through wit' it instead o' cowerin'. If somebeast made fun o' me, I would've beat 'em senseless."

"Don't do that." Marley stared at the set of books on the table. Suddenly, the idea of going through all of those felt more tiring than it was already. Yes, Martin, this is the beast you chose for whatever quest you have. Great decision. The mouse stayed silent for a moment before abruptly leaving the table and heading towards the library steps.

Trey growled and grabbed their shoulder. "Hey! Where're ye goin'? I still need to help ye so I can get that slice o' pie, damn it!"

"I don't know. I'm going to look for Finn if she's awake."

"Oh, I know where she is!" Trey said with a smirk. "I saw her sneakin' by the east wall!"

"Oh. You don't happen to know what she's doing there, do you?"

"I don't know, I just saw her. Can ye say I helped ye so I get extra dessert now?"

Marley shook their head and left the room. "Not yet." Trey followed the mouse outside, muttering a string of profanity within earshot of Marley. As they made their way towards the lawns, Marley couldn't help but notice the looks the other residents gave them. They ignored it and moved on. Trey led the way to where he saw Finn, eventually coming across her staring at a window high above the ground.

The first thing anybeast would notice about Finn was the strange way she dressed herself. It was hard for the beasts at Redwall Abbey to find clothes that fit her properly, so she either modified existing outfits or made her own, and the style she chose was… unique. A black sleeveless longcoat, purple tunic, multiple bracelets, piercings, boots, and torn pants adorned this overly dressed beast. The second thing beasts would notice was that she was the only ferret living inside Redwall Abbey.

Historically speaking, the treatment of ferrets inside of Redwall wasn't great, something both she, Marley, and Winslow knew all too well. It was about as common to see her spend her time away from the busier parts of the abbey as it was to see her get in trouble. Not that it was entirely unjustified. Finn was a known thief and occasional pickpocket.

Because of that, Marley could only assume Finn was sneaking around to steal something. Not that it mattered right now. The mouse waved and exclaimed, "Hey, Finn! I'm back!"

The ferret jumped and turned before realising it was Marley. As soon as she saw them, she snapped, "Marley, what the hell are you doing here?"

"I don't know. I felt like seeing you."

"Didn't Winslow tell you that I didn't want you to be seen with me?"

"Yeah, but he also said you'd come around."

Finn snickered before quickly hardening her expression. "Go away, Marley. And Trey. You too."

"What did I do?" Trey whined.

Finn fidgeted with her bracelets and scowled. "You two better leave, because I'm about to do something stupid and I don't want either of you to get caught up in it."

Marley tilted their head. "What is it?"

"No, Marley, I'm not going to tell you."

"Okay, that's fine."

The three beasts stood silently beneath the window for a few seconds. Finn shuffled her paws, Trey began to growl, and Marley simply stared at Finn, waiting for her to say something. Eventually, Trey snarled and thumped his tail against the ground. "Nothin's happenin'! Hurry up and let us help so I can get more dessert, damn it!"

Finn rolled her eyes at the young otter. "Trey, calm down. As for you, Marley, I'm not letting you help, so just leave me alone already."

"Are you sure you don't want help?" Marley glanced at the window that Finn was studying. "If you're trying to get up there, that's a pretty high climb."

"Yes, I'm-! I'm not trying to-! Shut up, Marley."

Trey leaned back and glanced at the window with a sneer. "Isn't that Abbot Athelstan's room? Why do ye want to get in there?"

Finn turned to the otter with a scowl before pulling open her coat to where a secret pocket had been sewn in. Marley recognised it as the spot where she kept a hidden knife, but it was currently empty. "That jerk of an Abbey Champion confiscated my knife in front of everyone the day you were banished, and he promised to give it back when you returned. You're here, but neither he nor the abbot will give it back to me. You don't understand, they stopped letting me near scissors, for Martin's sake, and I need to be able to cut fabric. If they aren't letting me have it, I'm going to steal it back."

Marley's ears twitched as they walked up to the window. "Huh. Sorry Finn, I didn't know they'd do that-"

"Marley, are you thick? Of course, they would."

"- But I'll help you get it back. Please, just let me help."

"And me, too!" Trey butted in. "C'mon Finn, there's pie at stake!"

Finn grumbled and dug her boot in the grass. "Marley, you just got back. I don't want you to get into more trouble because of me."

Marley shook their head. "It won't be because of you. They're the ones breaking their deal, so why do we have to honour their rules?"

"Marley, you know they have a reason to," Finn muttered.

"And so do we. Look, if Trey takes some rope from the boathouse, we can tie a noose and toss it up to that handle by the window and climb our way up. From there, we grab your knife. Easy as that." Marley clasped their paws behind their back, waiting for Trey and Finn to give their thoughts.

Finn shook her head. "You want Trey to steal a whole length of rope from the boathouse? They barely trust him around their stuff as is, and you-"

"On it!" Trey exclaimed before dashing away. Finn reached out a paw to stop him, but he was already gone. The ferret scowled at Marley for reasons they couldn't understand. Maybe they had something on their face.

"Dear Martin, Marley, does anything get to you? I don't want you or Trey to help. Do you know how bad this is going to look for you two?"

"And? You know they're jerks to you."

"Yeah? And so am I to them. That's how it is. Go tell Trey to put the rope back and I'll break into that room on my own. I'm going to say this as bluntly as I can. Go. Away. Leave me to do this by myself."

Marley kept staring at Finn with that same blank expression. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Marley, grab Trey and tell him to leave and that he helped or something. I don't know why he was promised pie, but you know how pissy that kid can get."

Marley stood in place for a moment before turning towards the boathouse and walking away. "Bye Finn. See you later."

"Marley…" Finn growled. The mouse waved goodbye to Finn before making their way to the boathouse.

Trey was already inside the giant wooden shelter, kneeling by an upturned canoe while he struggled to coil a length of rope around his arm. Marley waved and pushed a bucket aside so they could sit next to Trey. The small otter didn't even bother looking up when he asked, "Whaddya want? I'm not done."

"Finn says we don't need to help. You can put the rope back and I'll just tell Winslow you helped me."

Marley was expecting Trey to whoop and cheer that he gets free pie, but instead, he tightened the rope and scowled at Marley. "Why? I didn't even do anythin' to deserve it. Ye can't just drop me in the middle of somethin' and give me a prize just 'cuz ye wanted to."

"I mean, you told me where Finn was. That's helping."

"That's not helpin'! Anybeast could've done that wit' their eyes closed! Take me back to that window and I'll climb up there myself. 'Sides, Finn's not gonna be able to get in there anyway. Let's just do it ourselves."

Marley shrugged. "Sure, but I think it's best if you throw it up and keep watch while I climb. I'm smaller and I think I weigh less."

Trey grinned and slugged Marley in the shoulder, sending jolts through the mouse's arm. "Now that's what I'm sayin'! C'mon, let's go 'fore somebeast sees us!"

"O- ow." Marley rubbed their arm and winced. "I'm guessing you and Winslow have still been sparring?"

"Uh-huh! Now, hurry!" Trey finished coiling the rope with Marley's help and ran outside, stopping right beneath the window. After Marley tied a noose at the end of the rope, the two took turns trying to lasso the window handle. It took a long time and more tries than either would like to admit, but Marley eventually hooked it onto the handle and pulled (Trey snapped that Marley was cheating and that he should've gotten it first). Once making sure the rope was taut, Marley turned to Trey and nodded. The otter grinned. "I'll keep watch, just go up ahead."

Marley flashed a thumbs up and slowly hoisted themself up to the abbot's bedroom. To their surprise, pulling themself up was a lot harder than they anticipated. Whether that was because of the effects of banishment or the fact they were generally in poor shape, it didn't matter. They were already panting violently less than halfway up. To make matters worse, Marley heard something crack above them. They might have overestimated the load the handle would be able to take. Marley tried their best to ascend as fast as they could, but their arms were burning and it became clear very fast that they wouldn't be able to make it all the way up.

Still, that didn't stop them from trying. Their chest, arms, and back burned as they pulled themself up. Below them, they could hear Trey yell, "C'mon, I thought mice were supposed to be good climbers! Even Abbot Athelstan would've been up there by now, and he's old!"

Marley heard a crack and whipped their gaze towards the handle. They weren't sure what to do for a moment, but then something in the back of their mind compelled them to let go and reach for the windowsill.

Marley briefly felt themself fall. They shut their eyes and reached their arms high above their head, hooking their forearms onto the windowsill as a broken piece of the handle along with the rope fell onto the grass below. They looked down and saw Trey staring back at them with wide eyes. Marley grumbled and attempted to pull themself into the bedroom to no effect. Evidentially, they were stuck. "Trey? I need help. Can you get someone?"

"Who?"

"I don't know."

Trey threw his paws in the air and ran off, leaving Marley hanging off the edge of the windowsill. As soon as Trey was out of sight, Martin appeared in the bedroom and walked to the window. The spirit rested his elbows on the edge and asked, "Now, what is going on here?"

"Can you help me up?"

Martin shook his head and reached a paw towards Marley only for it to phase through their arm. "Unless you want me to possess-"

"No," Marley quickly snapped.

"Alright. In the meantime, I suggest you take some deep breaths and hook your footpaws into that crack in the wall. You may be here for a bit."

Marley hissed with effort and did as the spirit advised. "How much longer?"

"Less than a minute. Hang in there."

Marley shut their eyes and tightened their grip. The seconds ticked by agonizingly as they focused all their energy on staying on the windowsill. Sweat trickled down their fur, running down their paws and they could feel themself slipping. They shifted their arms once more, but this time it only made their balance worse. Before Marley could contemplate what it'd feel like to fall, the bedroom door opened and two beasts entered: the abbot, a bespeckled mouse named Athelstan, and the Abbey champion, a muscular mouse named Levi. Marley grimaced and glanced back and forth between their frowning faces. Levi rubbed his forehead with a paw and sighed as Marley spoke. "H- hi. Please help me up."


Unsurprisingly, Marley, Finn, and Trey were all in trouble after attempting to break into the abbot's room. The three of them sat in front of Abbot Athelstan in his armchair while Levi shuffled his paws to the side. Even after all that, Finn didn't get her knife back, which is why Marley guessed she was scowling at the abbot.

Abbot Athelstan cleared his throat and turned to Marley. "First off, it would be remiss of me not to greet you, so welcome back, Marley. I apologise that I could not be there to greet you sooner, but I assumed you would be here at sunrise."

"Hi. Yeah, Winslow let me in."

Levi clutched his arm and nodded. "Yes, uh, hi Marley. I see you're still causing trouble."

"Yes I am, and let me say this before we start whatever this is, this was entirely my fault. Trey and Finn had nothing to do with this and I am completely guilty."

Finn turned to the mouse. "Damn it, Marley! This is what I was talking about."

Abbot Athelstan sighed and rubbed his snout. "Yes, I will hear what you have to say later, but we have not started yet. We're waiting on one more beast."

Marley looked to the side. "What do you mean? It's just us three that got into trouble, right?"

Levi clicked his tongue. "Well… not exactly." The large mouse motioned to the front of the great hall and all three beasts turned to see what he was looking at. Finn raised a brow as Winslow entered the great hall with one of his friends, a chubby otter named Roric. Finn threw her paws up and groaned. "Dear Martin, Winslow, what the hell did you do?"

Marley tilted their head. Both otters' fur was dishevelled, blood trickling out of Winslow's nose while Roric sported a black eye. Roric turned to Finn and said, "Before ye say anythin' else, we both agreed to this, so I don't see why we should be in trouble."

Abbot Athelstan sighed and leaned against the sides of the chair. "I understand, Roric, but do you mind leaving for a moment? I want to talk to these four as a group."

"Oh." Roric turned to Winslow and grinned. "Good luck dealin' wit' this, matey."

"Aye." Winslow waved Roric goodbye and took a seat between Marley and Finn, patting the mouse's paw as a greeting. "So, uh, what are ye three doin' here?"

"We tried breakin' into the abbot's room!" Trey exclaimed.

"What?"

Abbot Athelstan clapped his paws and addressed the four beasts sitting in front of him. "Alright, be quiet for a moment, please."

Silence filled the hall as the four beasts stopped talking. Noticeably, none of them were facing the abbot. Marley turned to the left and saw their friends sitting next to them, all together as if this wasn't anything new. Winslow tapped his footpaws while idly examining his knuckles, Finn crossed her arms and stared at her boots, while Trey kicked his legs and gazed off into the sky. Marley glanced back and forth between each of them, wondering how they were feeling right now.

Marley was taken out of their thoughts as the old abbot cleared his voice and spoke in a gravelly tone. "What am I going to do with you four? So, before anything else, Winslow, do you mind explaining what happened?"

The otter chuckled softly, rubbing the back of his neck. "Um, so Roric organised a game of pawball in the lawns, score got a bit close, she was on one team, I was on another, I had the ball, she tried to take it and failed, she punched me, I punched back, and… aye, it kinda got intense from there. We had fun, though, and it wasn't like we didn't know what we were doin', so… aye."

Abbot Athelstan rubbed his eyes beneath his glasses. "Now, Winslow, you know what I've told you about violence."

Winslow chuckled softly and ran his thumbs over his knuckles. "Aye, and ye know what I said about… nevermind."

The abbot then turned to the other three. "And Finn, you know what I've told you-"

"Yeah, yeah, don't steal, blah blah. Can I leave now? I've heard this a million times already, what do you think one more lecture is going to do?"

"Fine. Trey, I thought we told you that you can't break the rules just because you don't feel like following them."

"'Tis not my fault yer rules are stupid and dumb! Maybe ye should tear down the rules and make new ones that don't suck."

"And Marley…" Abbot Athelstan trailed off as he turned to the younger mouse. Marley sat, unblinking as they returned the gaze. The abbot grimaced and turned away, much to Marley's confusion. "Anyways, I think 'tis no secret that you four get into trouble the most out of everyone currently living at Redwall Abbey, and I just wanted you to know that if there is ever anything we can do, that you can always come and talk to me."

"Yeah," Finn sneered, "You can climb to the top of the abbey and jump off."

"Finn!" Winslow scolded.

Abbot Athelstan rubbed his snout and continued. "I don't want to fight you four. You can either listen or not, and although I reckon all of you will choose the latter, I will still say this: we just want all of the residents to be safe and happy, and that includes you four, even if you don't think it does. We aren't trying to hurt or demean you." To Marley, Athelstan's speech fell on deaf ears. Finn and Winslow seemed to be actively ignoring him while Trey was staring at a ray of light from one of the stained glass windows. Abbot Athelstan clasped his paws and leaned back in his chair. "That being said, a punishment is still in order, and while I know that all four of you tend to circumvent or skip them, I highly suggest you attend this one."

"Why?" Marley asked.

"Levi, explain?"

The large mouse stepped forward and clasped his paws in front of his chest. "So, your punishment is to patrol the walltops. That is all. I won't even make you stay the whole time. The reason we suggest you take it is that… um… let's say there are more than a few beasts dissatisfied that Marley can return in the first place. We're going to address that tomorrow, but for now, I think 'tis best if you stay away from all that."

Marley and Finn exchanged a glance. The ferret's eyes widened as she began to pick at her fur. Marley turned to the abbot and muttered, "What are you going to tell them?"

"I'm not sure," the abbot admitted. "I'll have to rethink it because my argument relied on you not getting into trouble on your first day back. Anyway, meet up at the gatehouse at the first morning bell. Levi will bring you breakfast. Does that sound like a plan?" Neither Marley, Winslow, Finn, nor Trey responded. Marley couldn't tell how much they were supposed to worry, and they couldn't glean anything from Winslow or Finn's expressions, either.

Trey eventually raised a paw and asked, "Can we pick what we have for breakfast?"

Winslow snickered. Levi rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "Might as well. Yes, you can tell me what you want when we meet up tomorrow."

"Yes! I'll be there!" Trey slammed a fist into his palm. "In that case, can we leave now?"

The abbot nodded. "Yes. Winslow, tell Roric to come back as you leave. You are all free to go."

As soon as he finished, Finn and Trey pushed their chairs aside and left to do other things. Marley was about to do the same when they heard Levi mutter to the abbot behind their back. "Is this really a good idea? There's no way those four are going to change. None of them care about us at all."

A strange chill flooded Marley's chest. They almost went up to say something to Levi, until Winslow lightly nudged their shoulder. "Aye, do ye mind if we just grab lunch and stay by the pond or somethin'? I'm kinda worried fer ye."

"Winslow, how bad is it? You said yesterday you'd tell me."

"Aye, I did, didn't I?" Winslow sighed and motioned for Marley to follow them to Cavern Hole. "Pretty bad. Like the abbot said, there's quite a few beasts who think yer too dangerous to keep around."

Part of Marley wasn't sure if they even wanted to learn more about this, but what little remained of their long-term planning skills knew it would be important going forward. "Tell me more about it tonight. I don't want to go into the details when everyone here could hear us."

"Aye, that's fine."


True to their word, Marley and Winslow decided to discuss Marley's return later that night as they got ready for bed in Winslow's room. Marley was already dressed (or undressed, to be accurate) while Winslow was in the process of undressing to put on his night clothes. The mouse lay on Winslow's bed, resting their paws on their chest when they asked, "Do you know who here doesn't want me around?"

Winslow raised his head and mouthed a long list of names, filling the room with tension as he kept going on and on. "Lemme see… a lot of the older beasts don't, a couple of yer classmates, a few of the newcomers, some other names I can't remember. I don't know, just know that 'tis prolly more than ye'd be comfortable wit'."

"Oh. Well, do you think it's going to get better?"

"Maybe. Supposedly, we're supposed to be fergivin'. Then again, I've heard a few morons say that yer gonna hurt someone else, and… Gods, I wanted to punch 'em in the face then and there. Do those oafs really believe that ye of all beasts would do that? Are they insane? There was this one thing somebeast said about ye and-"

"Hey, Winslow, it's fine, alright?" Marley propped themselves up on their elbows to get a better look at Winslow. The otter was clutching his nightshirt tightly, mouth twisted in a snarl as a low growl rumbled in his throat. "I can handle it. I did what I did knowing this might happen." I mean, not to this extent, but I thought of it a little. Kind of. "I don't care what they say about me. If anything, I should be the one asking if you three were alright. Finn told me they took away her knife and I'm guessing things weren't good on your and Trey's end, either."

Winslow lightly dragged his claws across his nightshirt before tiredly pulling it on. "Not really. Everyone was scared of Finn and took it out on her in dumb ways, I got a bit… unstable, and Trey was the same as usual, by which I mean very mouthy and cranky. All in all, it wasn't a fun 70 days fer us, either. Especially fer Finn." Once he was done getting dressed, Winslow padded over to the bed and lay next to Marley, wrapping his arms around the mouse and pulling them tightly against his chest. Marley snuggled closer against the otter as Winslow nuzzled their neck, staring off into the air. "So, are we goin' to that punishment tomorrow? We could just skip it, but I dunno if we should if the abbot's gonna talk to everyone."

"I am. I don't think it's a good idea for me to be anywhere else."

"Aye, then I'll go wit' ye so yer not alone. I just hope Finn decides to come, too, and I know Trey said he was gonna come, but there's a chance he'll just ferget. Plus, I'm worried I'll get really pissed if I watch the abbot address everyone." The otter sighed and buried his face in Marley's fur. "Gods, what's wrong wit' me? Mate, I don't know what to do."

"About what?"

"About a lotta things."

Marley nodded slowly. "Yeah. I've been a bit confused about a few things, myself."

"Glad we're both clueless, then. Makes me feel like I'm not just bein' stupid." Winslow chuckled softly and ran a paw through Marley's fur. "Love ye, mate. Goodnight."

"Love you, too. Goodnight."


Marley didn't want to be here. They would've preferred to still be in bed instead of a weirdly glossy version of the abbey pond, but at least the water looked pretty. The mouse sat at the shore and gazed at the lights reflecting across the surface while waiting for Martin to arrive.

They didn't have to wait long. Martin's heavy pawsteps crunched the grass behind them as the armoured mouse approached and sat next to Marley. "Well, you've certainly had an eventful morning."

"Uh-huh." Marley picked a blade of grass off the ground and wrapped it around their finger. "So, what was it that you wanted to tell me yesterday?" They asked, wanting to get this over with as fast as possible.

"Ah, right. I've been debating how much I wanted to tell you in regards to your goal, but I'm starting to think that unless I give you more explicit instructions, you are going to continue to waste time trying to figure out a way to get rid of me."

"Yes, that is exactly what I'm going to do."

"And today, you proved that." Martin sighed and straightened his longcoat. The armoured mouse seemed to hesitate a bit before finally addressing the smaller beast next to him. "Marley, if I may be honest, one of the reasons I haven't been all that clear to you is that I am not entirely sure what we're dealing with, yet. Normally, I'm able to get a good picture by now, but this time, 'tis still very fuzzy."

Marley scratched their ears as they processed the implications of that statement. "So, we're screwed."

Martin shook his head. "No, not necessarily, because even the lack of information can tell us something important. This has only happened a few times before, and it was always either because we were dealing with a powerful seer or another… actually, I'll save that for later to not complicate things. Anyway, my guess is that 'tis no different here. As for who, how, or what exactly is causing this? I still don't know."

"Hm…" Marley had no idea what that meant, partially because they didn't believe in seers but they couldn't wrap their mind around how any of this worked. What were the rules around spirits, possession, dreams and stuff like that? At the mention of spirits, however, something from a few days ago flickered in the back of their mind. "Do you think what Kanor was talking about is related to this? She said somebeast wanted to know more about your sword for its spiritual properties, or something."

Martin placed a paw on his chin. "That's what I am assuming. Something tells me that whatever is about to happen to Redwall Abbey is currently affecting someone else, so if we want to figure out what is going on, we best look outside of Redwall."

Marley tilted their head. "I guess I can kind of see why you picked me instead of our abbey champion. I don't think he travels outside the walls that often. Still, is it really just because of a seer? I thought they were all fake."

"Some of them are real, but I'll have to look more into what's happening. I suggest you do the same. That being said, 'tis interesting how much we can see that's not actually there. Do you ever wonder how much more there is to the world around us that we don't know about because we lack the capability to see it?"

"I'm going to punch you," Marley deadpanned. A few seconds passed until Marley clarified, "Sorry, I thought I would take a page out of Winslow's book and say that, I didn't actually mean it. I mean, I do wish you would stop asking me questions but I don't want to punch you that much."

"You're alright, I understood that. Funnily enough, you wouldn't be the first beast to try to punch me."

Marley stiffly turned to the other mouse. "You've worked with a lot of beasts, huh?" I wonder if the abbey records mostly talk about Martin and how amazing it was that he came to the abbey's rescue when recounting their great deeds… wait, stop thinking about this. Martin can read your thoughts and he's sitting right next to you. He can also hear this right now. How do I make this stop?

If Martin heard what Marley was thinking about, he certainly didn't show it- they actually didn't know if that was a good thing or not. Instead, Martin glanced at Marley with a strange gleam in his helmeted visage. "You know who you are and what you believe in better than everyone. 'Tis not my place as somebeast among the dead to say whether you're right or wrong, but just be ready to fight for it if you want to protect the ones you care about." The armoured mouse finally left Marley alone and walked into the distance. Marley sighed, lay down on the grass, and waited to fall back asleep without thinking over anything Martin had told them. They would have time to do it later when they were stuck patrolling the walltops, anyway, and if what Winslow said about their reputation was true, then they would have a lot of time to think about it.