The Price of Defeat

[cairn destop]

Chapter Forty-Three
A Wedding

Bruno's sleep ended when several young voices invaded the quiet of his room.  They hissed like a mass of snakes.  He ignored the noise when it stopped as fast as it started.  A few seconds later, he heard a grunt followed by another round of hissing.

He opened his eyes.  Tassel's four youngest charges scurried around his small room unaware that he saw them.  Some had their paws filled with the garments that had hung within his closet.  Others held items snatched from his bedside chest that now hung open.  The youngest clutched his broadsword.

"I'll assume there is some reasonable explanation as to what you dibbuns are doing in my room."

The children gave a slight jump when his soft voice echoed within the small space.  One of the girls let out a startled squeal when she faced him.  Those closest to the door darted outside for a few seconds before peering back inside when nothing happened.  Their eyes displayed a cautious but curious look as several slipped back into the cramped room.

One female vole approached Bruno, though she kept far enough back that she remained out of his reach.  "You're leaving, and we're here to see you out of this abbey."

The young girl displayed such a serious expression that Bruno fought a sudden urge to laugh.  "Tassel and I have been discussing wedding plans for the last seven days, and now you dibbuns are going to evict me?"

When she nodded and several of the others mirrored her actions, he lost all self-control.  Bruno laughed.  Though he smiled, he ordered everyone out of his room.  A few hesitated until he promised to do whatever they wanted if they allowed him to dress.  All of the dibbuns raced outside except for the vole that had spoken to him.  As she backed out, she closed the door.

Bruno rummaged through the disarrayed clothes the children dropped when he startled them.  Once dressed, he folded everything else and laid it on the bed.  He opened the door, and the children raced into his room a second time.  Like vultures at a fresh carcass, they divvied up his possessions among them.

Flashfoot struggled with his weapon.  Bruno relieved the young squirrel of the burden as he slung the sword onto his back.  He watched Flashfoot's facial expression change from determination to dejection.  Bruno slid the sheathed weapon off his back, adjusting the strap to its shortest length.  He draped it over the squirrel's shoulder.  The boy's smile eclipsed the sun in brightness.

All of Tassel's young wards complained about Flashfoot's slow pace.  Each time Bruno called a halt, they watched the squirrel dragging a sheathed sword longer than he was tall.  If any of the others offered a helping paw, Flashfoot snarled.  Elders they passed grinned at the youngster's as he struggled with the heavy weapon.

The group eventually made it beyond Redwall's outer gates.  There, the rest of Tassel's youngsters stood next to a large tent.  Sarweed, Tassel's eldest charge, supervised the others as they placed his possessions inside.  Once Flashfoot shucked off the broadsword, the mouse approached Bruno, her expression grave.

"You will remain here.  The guards will bar your return until the day of the wedding.  We shall serve your meals here, so you'll not have any reason to enter the Abbey."  Her face relaxed into a wide grin.  "We understand it is considered bad luck to view the bride in her wedding gown before the ceremony, and we're taking no chances on that happening."

As the children withdrew, the female woodchuck Nassella dawdled.  Before Bruno had an opportunity to speak, two male woodchucks exited the main gate and made straight for him.  The older male used a cane as the young male lugged several bolts of fabric.  The girl raced toward them, offering her assistance.

The elder leaned on his cane as he eyed the badger.  "Redwall's tailor said his current work load doesn't allow him time for special projects that have to be rushed.  Fortunately, I was the local tailor for Quagland.  Let's get started, shall we?"

For the next hour, Bruno submitted to the elder's commands.  Both the boy and girl hurried to fulfill his orders as they recorded measurements and displayed different fabrics.  With the work done and the cloth selected, the elder sent both youngsters back to his workshop.  He waited until the two dibbuns disappeared within the main gate before speaking to Bruno.

"My wife and I lost our baby daughter to those slavers when that fox gutted her while we watched, helpless to stop him.  Then I took a spear that left me crippled.  Without Tassel's help, those slavers would have killed all three of us."

"So you do this as a way of repaying her?"

The woodchuck shook his head.  "In part, maybe.  Nassella has been such a great help to us since that day, and she thinks the world revolves around Tassel.  Seems only fitting we help her make her Mother T happy." 

The tailor laughed.  "Redwall's resident tailor now talks of retirement, my son spends his free time with the scribes, and my wife adores Nassella.  When winter comes, we shall adopt her.  Keep it a secret; we have it planned as a special surprise."

Bruno assured him he would say nothing.  Over the next five days, the tailor frequented the badger at his tent home.  Both youngsters did whatever they could, helping the elder as he made the necessary alterations.  When the boy delivered the finished suit the day before the wedding, Bruno thanked him and watched as he ran back inside the gate with Nassella at his side.

He examined his outfit, a well-tailored suit colored ashen grey.  The collar and cuffs had a ruffled, antique-white lace that gave the male badger's bright white fur a softer look.  His matching grey trousers came down to the top of his high-gloss polished leather boots.  While he modeled the outfit, females working in the nearby field shouted out several complimentary comments about his finery.

The next morning, Tabeston came dressed in a suit that matched his.  Bruno smiled as his former traveling companion tried to maintain a serious demeanor while he ushered Bruno to the Abbey's main building.  As they walked between the outer and inner gate, the warriors of the Pine Tar tribe formed an honor guard on either side of the connecting tunnel.  Each squirrel snapped to attention as Bruno passed.  Captain Karteel held his salute until he acknowledged him with a slight bow.

Inside the Abbey, the groom and his best beast proceeded straight to the Tapestry Room.  There, Father Hughnaught waited.  As Bruno strolled into the large room, he noted how few residents attended.  A female hedgehog he remembered sitting at Tassel's table held a basket filled with rose petals, her face showing a less than joyous expression.  Before he passed her, she tapped his arm.

"Most here have called Tassel mother at one time.  Many of the others we invited said they wouldn't come to a vermin wedding."

Bruno saw her pout and hesitated.  He leaned down so he could keep his response as private as her initial comment.  "Then it is their loss, not ours."  The girl's smile returned as the badger moved to the opposite end of the room.

Tassel arrived.  She stood in the doorway behind her flower girl.  Bruno found Tassel's eggshell-white gown stunning.  Her mask, gloves and stockings were of a grey color that matched Bruno's outfit.  A white lace veil covered her head while a matching train trailed down her back.  The vole who evicted him stood at the end, holding it aloft.

The female badger approached them with a regal grace.  The bride held her head high.  As the masked badger drew nearer, Bruno noted the lace pattern displayed a series of light delicate chains running the full length of the train.

Bruno bade the Father Abbot to delay the ceremony for a moment.  He lifted Tassel's headpiece and eased her mask off her head.  He offered Tassel a comb from his inside pocket while Tabeston fetched a small looking glass. 

"Your flower girl said you cared for most of those here.  All will only see a beautiful bride.  There is no reason why you should hide your face on this special day."

Tassel combed her facial fur.  Bruno once again placed the veil and train on her head.  Before he took her paw, he moved to her right side.  He smiled at his bride, noting how she first tried hiding her disfigured face with her paw.  Tassel giggled.

"I'll not be wearing this mask every hour of my life.  As you said, most of those here know my face, and something tells me it doesn't matter to you."

The Father Abbot raised his paw and the guests quieted.  A quartet of Tassel's youngsters serenaded everyone as they awaited the exchange of vows.  Even Darlow sang a solo ballad about two lovers during the exchange of rings.  When the master of ceremonies pronounced Bruno and Tassel a mated pair, the newlyweds kissed.  The audience joined the choir in a rousing song of joy.

Father Hughnaught leaned closer to the new couple.  "I regret there will be no bells.  Our bell keeper said emergency repairs were scheduled for today, and he forgot about this wedding."

"I know the vole who tends to them," said Tassel.  "During the battle with those slavers, I faced a terrible decision.  I could guard his mate's back or help the defenseless slaves.  It is no secret he blames me for her death."

Bruno leaned closed to his mate's ear.  "She was a warrior doing her duty.  If your places were reversed, she would have done the same.  Let's not have such gloomy thoughts."

Tassel nodded.  "I'll always be haunted by my choice, wondering if I did the right thing.  I'll not let him ruin such a beautiful ceremony on this special day.  Within my mind, I hear those bells ringing loud and clear."

As the wedding feast wound down, the newlyweds prepared to return to the dormitory.  Markus cornered the new couple as they spoke with Father Hughnaught. 

"Honeymoons must be spent somewhere other than home.  What say you hole up inside one of the towers?  The uppermost room houses a dozen officers during battle.  They should prove quite spacious for two badgers.  I bet you would love one on the east side so you can enjoy the rising sun."

Henrietta's voice interrupted whatever response Tassel had.  "Markus told me about reserving the tower, so my mate and I will watch your youngsters.  Consider it an additional wedding gift from us."

"An excellent suggestion," said the Father Abbot.  "If you bar the battlement doors from the inside, you will be guaranteed privacy.  Stay as long as you wish, I'm sure Henrietta and her mate can handle those youngsters of yours."

Markus led the two newlyweds across the night-shrouded courtyard to the tower.  He followed the newlyweds to the uppermost room and stood outside.  Bruno cleared his throat and pointed down.  The hare caught the less than subtle hint.

"I hoped our father abbot would accept my suggestion.  I left the two of you a special wedding gift by the bed."  With that, the hare meandered down the stairs while humming the notes of a bawdy love song loud enough that Bruno had no trouble hearing the melody.  Moments later, the newlyweds had their privacy.

Henrietta greeted them after their honeymoon seclusion.  She reported no problems from any of the children.  The vole left them at the door to their private quarters just as the last notes of the dibbun bell sounded the end of another day.

Inside, they checked out the oversized bed built special for them.  It dominated the bedroom, leaving little room for any additional furniture.  Tassel removed the mask she wore when they left their honeymoon suite, dropping it, and her gloves, on the bed. 

"Are you ready, Bruno?"

"After all the work we did before coming here?  I've been eagerly anticipating this moment.  Lead and I'll follow you, my dear wife."

The newlyweds left their living quarters together via the connecting door leading into the dormitory.  The lively banter the youngsters traded before lights out died.  Each child retreated to their bed, their young faces reflecting some concern.  Tassel shooed Darlow away from the bed next to Markus.  She sat facing the male hare.

"We enjoyed the two bottles of October Ale you left us and thought your gift most generous.  We were even more pleased when we saw a glass had been poured for each of us."

Markus turned toward his sister.  Darlow chewed her knuckles while she backed up several paces.  The male hare faced them.  He smiled an impish smile.  "I guess you enjoyed the two bottles?"

Husband and wife grinned as Bruno reached into his pocket and produced a badger-sized hip flask.  Passing it to Tassel, she in turn gave it to the hare.  Tassel ordered the hare to drink.  With a swaggering salute, Markus took a small sip of the proffered flask.  He gagged.  His eyes watered as he tried regaining his breath.

"That's right; we decided to return the favor and filled that flask with pure hotroot extract.  The same hotroot extract you used spiking the two glasses of October Ale you left for us.  Good thing the other two bottles retained their seals.  Tassel and I knew they were not tainted."

"You might think you're being poisoned, but Healer Fazbee assures us drinking such a strong and spicy extract will cause no permanent harm," said Tassel.

"Other than the memory of a horrible burning sensation," interjected Bruno. 

Markus glanced at Bruno, his eyes begging for compassion.  Bruno hovered over the hare, while both of his paws rested on his hips.  The other children remained at their beds, as far from the hare as possible while keeping vigil.

The male hare kept a brave expression and took another full swallow.  He gagged.  Markus tried lifting the flask for a third swig.  He couldn't do it without an uncontrolled shaking of his paws.  His eyes watered each time he glanced at the flask.  Markus started to tip the flask over, but Bruno held up a second flask.

"Spill one drop and I will sit on you and pour this flask down your throat as well as whatever remains in that one."

The hare squeezed his eyes shut.  The flask came halfway to his lips before he lowered it.  Twice more he lifted the flask, but could not bring it closer.  Markus offered his abject apology for his latest prank.  While speaking, he offered the flask back to Tassel, who accepted it without any comment.  Bruno retrieved the resealed flask from his wife and returned it to his hip pocket.

Tassel reached over and grabbed the boy.  She yanked him off his bed and over her knees in one fluid motion.  The other children stood nearby as Markus received a firm spanking.  When she finished, she walked away without a backward glance.

Markus whimpered, his paws rubbing his sore bottom.  Bruno moved to the hare's bed as his wife walk back into their room at the far end.  Tears still streamed down the hare's face when Bruno seized him, pinned his arms behind his back and spanked him a second time.  Despite his painful howls, the other children heard Bruno's calm voice.

"Since your offense was against both of us, it seems only fitting that we each punish you."

[cairn destop]

Epilogue
And in Closing

Hassellick threw down his chalkboard.  His one paw snatched the slate while the other grabbed a sodden cloth.  In seconds, the scrawl written earlier melted like butter within cake batter.  The pristine shine mocked him, and the woodchuck snarled at the inanimate object. 

"Such anger doesn't suit you, brother.  Perhaps you should find a sword and challenge the slate to a duel.  Better yet, grab one of the blacksmith's hammers and see how many pieces you can make with just one mighty blow."

He laughed.  "This story is so frustrating, Nassella.  I'm almost ready to burn every page of writing that I have."

Nassella squeezed the water from her fur as she joined him.  "I've had enough of the swimming hole for today."  The girl turned her head back to the pond.  "Mother's right, I'm old enough to be called an elder now.  Time I start acting like one."

The girl joined her brother, enjoying the cool breeze.  "I see a mound of written pages, which should have you dancing with joy.  So what's bothering you?"

He brushed his sister's arm away from his knee as he stared back at the pond.  His eyes noted how his favorite sunny spot had changed to one deep in shadows.  Through the foliage, the sun now hung in a clear sky but a finger's width above the outer walls.  In another hour, the dinner bell would summon everyone to Cavern Hole for the evening meal.

"Perhaps that is one of the drawbacks to history.  Too many things remain incomplete.  I wanted to mention how Kurella left here the day after the wedding.  She travels with itinerant healers, learning their secrets, and sending us her journals each year.  Our healer has five scribes cross-referencing the medical knowledge she gathers.  Her experiences have saved so many lives, yet that doesn't quite fit as an ending."

Hassellick grumbled while his fingers drummed the clean slate.  "Should I mention the horrors Madame Sultakka faced while imprisoned, or the fate of the captured slavers?  It would act as a good lesson on morality.  Does anyone care that Major Eytomin left Redwall within the hour after his dispute with his daughter, never to return?  Would anyone find Dusty becoming the Pine Tar tribe's most desirable male of any interest?  Maybe I should mention how Bushface joined a troupe of actors, or how Markus and Darlow are now members of the elite Long Patrol.  All of that is good to know, but it doesn't close this story."

When he faced his sister, he saw something beyond her that changed his gloomy mood.  His sister turned as well.  Foremole and his mate, Loamripper, walk alongside the two otter youths they adopted years earlier.  Though Hassellick and his sister could not hear their conversation, the four moles laughed and smiled as they followed the path to the Abbey.  Sometimes one of the elders gave the nearest teen a squeeze, which the teens returned.

"I remember overhearing others talking about how those two elders visited their daughter's grave every day and spent countless hours there before the Festival of Many Joys.  Now they go every full moon for an hour.  After ten years, those two have helped Foremole and his wife heal after the death of Terranoir.  Maybe that would be a fitting end to my tale.  It would show how life goes on, and that sometimes good things come from tragedy."

Nassella faced him.  Her lips curled back revealing her teeth.  Her expression duplicated a picture he saw of a warrior going into battle.  The girl's voice reminded him of a bully from his youth, who challenged him to a fight.  A fight he lost to a more determined foe.

"Do you know I still wear the key I got that first winter after Mother T's wedding?  That special present started a treasure hunt.  It ended when I found our new home and learned of my adoption.  Tell me our becoming a family isn't worth mentioning.  I dare you."

Hassellick paws mimicked the actions of a warrior holding a shield.  "A worthy ending to my tale, but like the others, it just doesn't feel right."

The girl's hackles remained up, though her voice lost most of its sharp edge.  "Perhaps you can read me your story, and together we can come up with an ending worthy of Redwall's newest historian."

Hassellick gathered his papers and strolled back to their home. 

* * *

Tassel sat on the grassy field watching the gaggle of children frolicking in the swimming pond.  As she looked about, she could see not just her own charges, but also the many youngsters that heralded another generation at Redwall.  They celebrated the end of one more successful school year and the start of a summer full of play.  Elders watched from the shore, smiling whenever their youngsters squealed.

She sat apart from the other parents fearing many would shun her but felt no animosity.  Gossiping with others her age held no attraction.  Tassel found her duties as badgermom fulfilled her need for purpose.  She savored the last warm rays of the dying day, wishing it could continue for the youngster's sake.  Yet she knew the bells would soon signal the end of this special day.

The folded garments of her charges as well as their towels sat in neat rows within easy reach.  Sometimes her paw would brush the clothing of one child.  For just an instant, she savored all those special memories she had of that child.  Tassel knew every dibbun she cared for came to her when they most needed the security of a loving pair of elders.  With Bruno at her side, the two became the bedrock the children needed.  Such thoughts never failed to make her smile.

Tassel envied those parents who could join their young as they frolicked in the water.  She consoled herself by counting the multitude of towels that surrounded her.  Her sharp eyes wandered over the pond as she ticked off each of her charges yet again.

As her eyes scanned the swimming hole, she searched for two specific dibbuns.  The first one proved no challenge.  The four-year-old male badger stood in water that came to the top of his knees.  Like a living statue, he did not move from his post, yet Tassel saw how his eyes swept the toddler section of the pond, ready to assist Redwall's nanny.

Like his mother, the boy possessed a fierce protective nature.  No older child ever teased any toddler within his sight.  The male badger defended them with all his might, something many older dibbuns learned the hard way.  His aggressive nature came to the fore whenever some younger waif faced a bully.

Next to him sat a squirrel.  Tassel recalled how the kit squirrel joined their special family after the birth of her own children.  What started as a pledge soon became a deep friendship.  At eight springs, the squirrel towered over her child.  It made Tassel wonder if her son would ever match her mate's stature.

Far out, in the deepest part of the pond, the water churned like a boiling pot.  From the depths of the water, a black and white striped head emerged.  With flailing fists, the creature thrashed the water as if she fought a ferocious enemy.  In short order, she vanquished her imaginary foe.

A female badger emerged from the pond.  Like her twin brother, her small size fooled many who tried to guess her age.  Unlike her brother, the girl displayed a rebellious streak.  She always tested whatever boundaries her parents erected like an invading army.  Tassel sometimes found her daughter both a source of pride and exasperation.

She watched the young sow shake the water from her fur coat.  Having dried herself as much as possible, the giggling girl ran to her masked mother.  Her happiness kept her tail swishing back and forth, as she approached.

She opened her paw and showed her mother the great treasure extracted from the depths of the pond.  A simple reddish colored stone, of no value whatsoever, sat nestled in her paw.  Tassel could see her daughter waiting for some comment on her discovery.  She made a show of examining the simple stone then returned it to the small sow.  The child grasped the stone and placed it against her mother's masked muzzle.

"Pretty.  Like mother.  Can I keep it?"

Tassel hugged her child and then gave her a growl.  The two tussled for a while before she spun the girl about and with a playful pat to her rump, sent her offspring back into the water.  The child raced to the pond.

As she entered the water, a male otter of sixteen shook his head.  Waterwing gave a sheepish grin and a shrug of his shoulders.  He followed the badger sow into deep water, but never too close to the adventurous tyke.  Tassel didn't worry.  So long as things went smoothly, the otter left the girl alone.  If a problem arose, the otter could intervene.

Though Tassel knew her young charges enjoyed the swimming party, she looked forward to tonight's dinner.  A river otter family needed an additional deck hand for their raft.  The family patriarch considered Waterwing an excellent candidate.  If Waterwing accepted the offer, he would accompany the otter family back to their home stream as a new elder in their clan.  The Mother Abbot claimed the boy would have his choice of many eligible females.

At that moment, Tassel felt teeth give her left ear a light nibble.  Without turning, she swung her paw about and swatted the thigh of her mate for startling her.  Even as her paw connected, she gave a girlish laugh before leaning onto the hip of her toothy assailant.  Bruno kneaded one of Tassel's exposed ears with a gentle caress.  Tassel purred.

"How about telling me what is making your eyes sparkle so brightly?"

Without looking up, Tassel replied.  "For the first time in my life husband, I am happy here at Redwall.  I have never before felt such true contentment.  I want to savor that feeling for as long as I can."

[cairn destop]

Look for the next installment in this series in March 2013.

Thank you to all who followed the story.