| Subject: Mission #35 |
Author:
Marie Blue-eyes
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Date Posted: 22:27:53 05/26/06 Fri
Name: Marie Blue-eyes
Dorm: Dastardly Dibbuns
Mission: Martin is trapped in the cellars. You have to tell the elders but they won't believe you. You have to get them to believe.
Marie Blue-eyes, the mouseDibbun of Redwall, was very frustrated. She was standing in front of Bella Badgermum and Abbess Germaine in Great Hall, trying to spur them into action. The Dibbun huffed and crossed her paws across her chest as she tried one more time.
“But Mawtin‘s trapped in the Cellars! He told me tae come tell ye, but ye are nae listenin‘, ye stupid-snouts!”
“Now, Marie,” Bella Badgermum wagged her paw sternly at the mouse babe, who was looking more and more frustrated by the second. “I‘m telling you for the last time. We‘re not falling for another one of your little games. And that is no way to speak to your elders. Go and play with the other Dibbuns in the orchard, or I‘ll bathe you until you disappear, you young scoundrel.”
Marie growled dangerously and was about to give a sharp retort when the elderly badger clapped her paws together loudly. “You‘ll disappear. Like that!”
“Huh, stupid elders…” The mouse babe sniffed and held her snout in the air, waddling away from the group in a huff. As she reached the door, she turned and stuck her little pink tongue out at the badger mum before running off in a hurry.
Sighing wearily, Bella sank down in onto a bench, shaking her silver muzzle in mock-hopelessness. “I swear, that little rip‘s going to be the death of me. And all this about Martin being trapped in the cellars…complete nonsense, the lot of it. That Dibbun‘s been on my list for a long while now, always getting herself into mischief…” The elderly badger raised her paws to the sky as if searching for help.
“Hmm…” Bella turned to Abbess Germaine at the sound of her voice. The old, wise mouse was gazing thoughtfully at the stained-glass windows of the hall, a paw resting on the arm of her wheelchair.
“What is it, Mother Abbess?”
“Oh, not much, Bella. It‘s just that we really don‘t have any proof that Martin‘s not trapped in the cellars. It wouldn‘t hurt to look.”
“Oh, please, Mother Abbess. I know Marie; she has no credibility. She‘d lie the birds out of the trees if she felt she needed to.” The elderly badger chuckled at the thought. “Trust me, that little rip is just trying to get us back for some imagined wrong-doing to her or her little friends by tricking us. Don‘t worry.” Bella patted her old friend’s paw gently. “Martin‘s just fine.”
“Oh, you‘re probably right, dear. It‘s probably nothing.”
“Yes, it‘s probably nothing. Now, let‘s head to the kitchens and see if the Friar‘s finished with his apple and pear scones yet, shall we?”
~~~~~~
After her interview with the two elders, Marie had wandered across the Abbey grounds, nursing her wounded pride. However, upon running into a friend in the orchard, she soon came up with a plan to convince the elders.
“Why ‘ello there, me liddle friend. What are you doing in this part of the orchard, eh?”
Gonff the Mousethief bent down from his perch on a low apple tree branch to pat Marie’s head kindly.
“Mouseythief!” Marie lit up at the sight of her friend and tugged on his paw. “Come down, mate! Mawtin‘s trapped inna cellars, an‘ Bella an‘ the Abbes willnae believe me!”
“Alright, alright, calm down, now!” Gonff released his paw from the babe’s grip and climbed down. Squatting in front of the young mouse, he smiled and placed his paws on her shoulders. “There now, that‘s better. Now, take a deep breath and tell me wot ye were sayin‘.”
Marie obliged, taking a deep breath, then began talking only slightly slower than before. “Mawtin‘s trapped an’ they won‘ believe me, Mouseythief! He‘s inna cellars, but Bella thinks ah‘m lyin‘.”
“Trapped in the cellars, eh? That seems rather unlikely. How‘d Martin, the Abbey Warrior, get trapped in the cellars?”
The Dibbun was much calmer now that her friend seemed to be interested. “There was a biiiig rock, an‘ it got stuck by the door, an‘ ah couldnae move it. Please, oh please, come ‘elp, Mouseythief!”
Gonff, looking worried now, stood and took Marie‘s paw in his own. He started towards the Abbey with his Dibbun friend in tow. “Is that so, now? Well, we‘ll have to see what we can do about that. What were you doing down there, anyway?”
The little golden-furred mouse grinned proudly. “Stealin‘.”
The older mouse chuckled and picked up his pace. “No wonder, either.”
~~~~~~
Martin the Warrior was leaning against the cellar door, weary from his attempts to move it, when he heard someone calling his name. With a start, the mouse warrior straightened and called in response, sighing with relief when he recognized the voice. “Hey, I‘m down here!”
“Martin?”
“Gonff! Did Marie find you?”
Marie piped up. “Yessir, Mawtin, ah got the Mouseythief! Bella an‘ ‘ee Abbess wouldnae believe me!”
“Good job, Marie. I guess I‘ll have to find some extra candied chestnuts for you when I get out of here, won‘t I?”
“Yeah! Ah like candied chestnutters!”
“Good.” The warrior addressed Gonff. “Mate, there was a bit of a cave-in. I‘m stuck and I can‘t move the door.”
Gonff’s usually cheery voice sounded slightly worried to Martin, though he could tell his friend was trying to make light of the situation for Marie’s sake. “I can see that, friend. There‘s a huge boulder blocking the door. We‘ll have to get Dinny‘s crew down here to clear it out.”
“Alright. But hurry up, why don‘t you? I‘m hungry!”
Gonff grinned impishly and hurried up the tunnel, shouting back. “Marie, stay with Mister Bottomless Pit here, while I go fetch Foremole Dinny.”
“Yes, sah!” The little Dibbun saluted and puffed her chest out proudly as her mouse thief-friend rounded a corner and was lost to sight. She began pacing back and forth military-style, holding a piece of wood she had found over her shoulder.
~~~~~~
About fifteen minutes later, Gonff came back with Foremole Dinny and his crew in tow. It didn’t take the mole crew long to get to the Abbey Warrior, and he was soon free. While they worked, the hard-working moles put more stable beams in place so that a repeat of the disaster would not occur. Half-way through the process, the badgermum and the Abbess were informed of the happenings, and they made haste to reach the tunnel.
~~~~~~
The cellar door swung open and Martin stepped out, dirt caking his tunic and matting his brown fur. “Phew! That was too close.”
Immediately, he was greeted with relieved pats on the back and shouts of triumph. The mousewarrior tried to get through the tunnel, but was intercepted by a triumphant-looking Marie.
“Mawtin! See, Bella? See Motha Abbess? Ah told ye!”
“Aye, that you did, Marie. I‘m sorry I didn‘t believe you.”
Marie puffed her chest out proudly as Bella smiled at her. The silver-furred badger turned to greet Martin, and recoiled in surprise. “My goodness! You need a bath, Warrior!”
The mouseDibbun giggled at Martin’s dismayed look and whispered in his ear as he passed by to follow Germaine and Bella. “Donnae worry, Mawtin, ye‘ll find a way tae ‘scape. Bella ‘ates it when ye splash ‘er.”
“I‘ll keep that in mind, matey.” The Warrior winked at his little friend and strode on by and out into Great Hall, where a bath was waiting.
~~~~~~
That night at dinner, Marie was basking in the spotlight. She recounted the tale in increasingly unbelievable versions to her fellow Dibbuns, and by her latest rendition, ten rats and an adder had someone gotten added into the mix. While she told her tale, the mousebabe enjoyed the extra helping of dessert she received from the Friar, and fingered the blue ribbon that Bella had given her--“For heroic actions and bravery to tell the truth, even when no one believed you.”
Now, as she told the story for the eleventh time--Did I mention the giant eagle that flew down out of the sky and tried to kill Gonff?--a newly scrubbed Martin approached, holding something behind his back. Marie grinned and bounced out of her seat to give the Warrior a big hug. “Mawtin! Wot‘ve ye got there, eh?”
Martin patted his friend’s soft head gently and revealed a bag full of candied chestnuts, which he offered the mousebabe. “Here you go, Marie. Like I promised.”
“Oohhh…” Marie’s eyes got huge at the sight of the bag-full of sugary nuts, which she held with reverence. “Thankee, Mawtin.”
“Thank you, Marie. I owe you my life.”
The Dibbun blinked at him openly and hugged her candied chestnuts close. “Aye, but anyDibbun woulda done the same in mah place. A‘specially fer sugar.” With a twinkling grin, Marie turned back to her Dibbun pals and offered to share the chestnuts. Martin shook his head in admiration, then turned back to the feast.
~~~~
That night, Bella Badgermum was jolted awake from her sleep by a flying bundle of golden fur. Marie bounced on the badger’s stomach to wake her up, yelling and waving her arms dramatically. “Bella, Bella!! The Abbess is drowning!”
“Wha-- Wha-- Marie? What… the Abbess?!” The silver-furred badger got up and pulled her robe on over her nightshirt. “Where? Where‘s the Abbess?”
“Inna pond!” Marie pointed expressively out the badgermum’s window.
“Alright, stay here, Marie. You‘ve earned my trust, so I‘ll go check it out. But if I find you‘re lying, so help me, I‘ll…” The elderly badger let her threat hang in the air before hurrying out the door in her nightshirt and robe. Marie sat on the edge of Bella’s bed, a smirk on her golden-furred face.
“Stupid-snout.”
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