Django
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Post by Django on Jun 26, 2017 23:59:53 GMT -5
Django never had to learn to tiptoe. You couldn't hear him walking, anyway. It was silent as a graveyard in the upper dormitories of Redwall, long past midnight. A quarter moon cast slices of silver through the windows, lighting the way to some unused rooms close to the attic. Django had discovered these rooms a year ago, not that they were well hidden, and had sat in the dusty beds on more than one occasion, pondering life and repeating things he'd heard that day.
"D'ya want some lunch?" he said to the little wooden mouse figure he always had with him. Its nose shone white in the moonlight. He circled his thumb over it. "He's a nice lad. I like him."
Today he'd left a carving for the librarian. It was a little wooden book lying open with a poem carved on the pages, about the size of a small plate. The librarian had not noticed him hiding in the shelves when she'd remarked to someone else who'd seen it on her desk. "What a nice little poem. You should hang it up somewhere," Jan told the mouse.
"Could ya spare a moment," he said to the window panes, tapping them softly. "Fancied a walk this mornin'. Lovely day out." He stood up off the bed, wondering if he could catch a wink or two in his own bed, when he noticed something small push open the door.
"Hullo," he murmured, trying to make out the figure's outline.
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 0:34:31 GMT -5
Kay had been asleep when it happened. Technically she was always asleep when it happened.
A nightmare had crept into the dream she was having.
Startled awake from the sight of dark hands reaching for her, Kay sat up gasping for breath. A quick glance around told her she hadn’t screamed, which was a relief. It had taken a long time to stop that habit. The blanket covered shapes that represented the other dibbuns shifted in peaceful sleep. Kay didn’t want to rejoin them though. That’s how nightmares got you.
Anxiety overtook Kay, and she quickly pocketed her small knife from her hiding place. Her doll watched with beady black eyes.
“Vig,” Kay whispered to her faithful companion. “We need to make a plan. In case we can’t reach that cupboard in time. Plans keep ya safe ya know.”
This declared, Kay grabbed hold of the doll and slipped out of bed. It was easy to creep out of the little room where the youngster slept without making a sound. The little mouse had had lots of practice.
The Abbey was so peaceful at night. No one hurried around; no one scolded her; no one asked her if she’d finished her chores. The whole place just sighed in blissful peace.
“The old rooms Vig, near the attic, no bad guy would go there.”
This logic in mind, Kay walked the hallways, making her way steadily toward the rooms near the attic. Every so often she would investigate a crook to see if it would make a good hiding spot, but none passed her inspection. Her heart was set on the place below the attic.
Wandering the dark halls, time seemed to move strangely. One moment she was near the library, and the next she had arrived. The door was closed though. For a moment, she just stared at it with her wide eyes. Then she looked at her doll.
“Safety’s more importan’.”
With this declared, she pushed open the door.
Hullo.
The voice gave Kay momentary pause. Was it a bad guy? She thought about that for a moment. The bell hadn’t rung, and the Abbey was peaceful. Kay decided it wasn’t a bad guy. But it might be one of the brothers or sisters that took care of the dibbuns. In which case she had only one response: Poking her head inside the door, she squinted at the figure on the bed.
“I’m bein’ safe, so ya can’t scold me, ‘cause safety’s importan’.”
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 0:46:53 GMT -5
“I’m bein’ safe, so ya can’t scold me, ‘cause safety’s importan’.”
Safety? Jan blinked a few times to get a good look at the silvery mousemaid standing in the door. She was clutching a doll. Her face was determined. She was on a mission. For... safety, apparently. Jan tilted his head, wondering for a moment at her big brown eyes. Did his mother have eyes like that?
"I won't scold you," he said. Kids. He didn't know how to deal with them. He was still a kid himself in many respects, but he was also one of the weird kids growing up. Couldn't relate to his peers well. He blamed anxiety.
He sat back on the bed, nodding in agreement with the child's statement. "Yore right. Safety is important." It took him an ear-flick of a moment to process the conversation. They were in a stone fortress, surrounded by thick walls, and in a peace time. Why would a little mousemaid be looking for safety when she was already inside the abbey?
"Is your bed not safe?" he asked. "Um... this one is. I've been on it half the night." He patted the old mattress, disturbing a bit of dust as he did so. The motes floated in a shaft of light, settling on the floor. Safety.
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 1:24:30 GMT -5
I won’t scold you.
Kay relaxed a bit at that, and stepped into the room. It would have been terrible to ruin a perfectly good night with scolding. It was dusty in the room. Kay liked that: It meant people didn’t come here often, which meant it was probably safe.
Yore right. Safety is important.
Kay nodded along with this. Obviously this was a smart mouse. He understood the importance of safety. No one else seemed to. No one else understood that she was making a plan so that she could be safe, and that they should all be making plans too. Kay walked further into the room. There was a window, with moonlight shining in. A potential escape hatch, but also a potential way in. Kay hadn’t decided which it was yet.
"Is your bed not safe?... Um... this one is. I've been on it half the night."
Kay had to think about that for a moment. Was her bed safe? The sisters always said it was. The dibbuns acted like the beds in the dormitories were the best place to hide from monsters.
Kay looked down for a moment at her doll. The doll looked back, and she saw truth in those beady eyes.
“No,” she replied quietly, looking back at the other mouse. “Nightmares find you in beds. And what if bad guys come? They’ll check the beds first. Plans are safer than beds.”
With this declared, she finished crossing the room and jumped up onto the old bed. She liked how the dust floated in the air, taking it’s time settle.
“Vig knows that dust means it’s safe, ‘cause dust means no one’s been cleaning, which means no one’s been around. Now you know too.”
After passing along this bit of wisdom, Kay took some time to study her fellow mouse. He looked older, and reminded her of her brother. Hopefully the darkness wouldn’t swallow him up too.
“Is your bed safe? Your real bed?” She asked. She didn’t think this was his actual bed: The room was too dusty for him to be using it. But than again, she could be wrong. He could like the dust too.
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 10:11:37 GMT -5
“Nightmares find you in beds. And what if bad guys come? They’ll check the beds first. Plans are safer than beds.”
Django had to think about that one. He didn't sleep enough to suffer from nightmares, so he didn't really understand how they worked. As for bad guys, there hadn't been a bad guy at the abbey for as long as he'd been alive. Plus, most bad guys would go for the adults first, not the children. Unless they wanted hostages. Hmm, this wasn't a pleasant topic to think about.
“Vig knows that dust means it’s safe, ‘cause dust means no one’s been cleaning, which means no one’s been around. Now you know too.”
Jan simply nodded again, scooting over to give her some room on the old bed. Was he this logical when he was her age? He spent a lot of time playing with his friends at, how old was she? Ten? He'd grown up knowing nothing but safety. This poor child obviously hadn't.
“Is your bed safe? Your real bed?”
"I think so," he replied. "I have to talk lots before I sleep, which bothers everybody else. So I come here." He looked at the doll the child was holding. Obviously one from the abbey. He'd seen a handful of children given dolls to deal with trauma or nightmares. Or both. Had they given his mother a doll? "I'm Django. You c'n call me Jan."
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 12:46:44 GMT -5
"I think so… I have to talk lots before I sleep, which bothers everybody else. So I come here."
People sure got bothered easily by things like that. Kay knew from experience nobody liked it when she had to talk to Vig late at night about important things. Someone had once thrown a pillow, and that had started a whole mess she got in trouble for. So now she stayed real quiet around sleeping people.
"I'm Django. You c'n call me Jan."
“Jan,” Kay repeated slowly, getting a feel for the word. Not many adults wanted her to use their first name. She’d be sure to keep this name close and use it sparingly. Like the rest of her hidden treasure. “Everyone calls me Kay….”
Kay lifted up her doll, so that she could peer at Jan to.
“Her name’s Vigil-Vigilance,” The word came out surprisingly easy this time. Kay had been practicing it a lot. “But everyone calls her Vig, ‘cause it’s easier. Would ya like to hold her? She’ll tell you secrets if ya do.”
Vig knew lots about the world, because Kay was always telling her stuff. Plus the Sister who gave her the doll said she’d been kept in the library. Which meant Vig must have been soaking up a lot of knowledge before Kay even met her.
Holding the doll up still, Kay looked expectantly at Jan.
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 15:26:03 GMT -5
"Everyone calls me Kay..."
"I'll call you that too, then," said Jan.
"Her name’s Vigil-Vigilance. But everyone calls her Vig, ‘cause it’s easier. Would ya like to hold her? She’ll tell you secrets if ya do.”
"Hullo, Vig," Jan said to the doll automatically. "That's a good name. I'd much like to hear a secret." Gingerly, he plucked it from her little paws. Then he realized he was probably being rude. He shouldn't just take something from a child. But what did he have to offer?
"Hang on," he fished his wooden mouse from his pocket and held it out to Kay. "This one's mine. Don't have a name. But you c'n rub her nose. I do a lot, 'n it helps me feel really safe."
He then held Vigilance in an authoritative pose on his lap, making sure he was politely looking at her beady eyes. He couldn't normally make eye contact with living persons, but with a doll, well, what did he have to be afraid of? "Now, uh, Miss Vig. Wot is it ye'd like to tell me?"
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 15:42:09 GMT -5
"Hullo, Vig…That's a good name. I'd much like to hear a secret."
Kay smiled at hearing Jan compliment the doll’s name. It was also nice to see the adult handling her so carefully. Not many adults handled her that nicely. Maybe it was because of what Vig was… Kay hoped it wasn’t because of that. But some adults were scared of what Vig was, and so they didn’t care if they were rough with her.
"Hang on…This one's mine. Don't have a name. But you c'n rub her nose. I do a lot, 'n it helps me feel really safe.
Kay took hold of the little wooden mouse with care. It was someone else’s treasure and friend after all. Gently she rubbed the nose and smiled. It was a good nose, and the texture did make her feel a tad safer. Kay bet this little mouse could sniff out the best dreams for a soul to have.
“I like your mouse.”
Now, uh, Miss Vig. Wot is it ye'd like to tell me?
Leaning a little, Kay listened to the little doll. After a moment she nodded.
“Vig says that she likes bein’ called Miss, and so she’ll tell you some stuff. She says to say that the dark isn’t scary, ‘cause she’s lived there most of her life an’ knows that there’s nothin’ in it that isn’ in the light. But what’s more importan’ is that the good ghosts don’ come out in the light: Only in the dark. An’ that’s why bein’ up at the witchin’ hour is more fun than bein’ up at noon.”
Kay looked at Jan then, head tilted to see what the older mouse made of this bit of knowledge.
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 17:52:59 GMT -5
Jan felt a twinge of... something when Kay rubbed his mouse's nose. That was probably the first time any other beast had done that besides him. He didn't have a chance to dwell on that, though.
“Vig says that she likes bein’ called Miss, and so she’ll tell you some stuff."
Jan nodded, ready to listen. He felt like he was a good listener. He wondered when he'd be repeating all this. Hopefully after she was gone. He'd already admitted to talking before sleep, but he hadn't mentioned it was things he hadn't said.
“She says to say that the dark isn’t scary, ‘cause she’s lived there most of her life an’ knows that there’s nothin’ in it that isn’ in the light. But what’s more importan’ is that the good ghosts don’ come out in the light: Only in the dark. An’ that’s why bein’ up at the witchin’ hour is more fun than bein’ up at noon.”
Well, he could certainly agree with that. In fact, he could agree with everything this little mousemaid said. Her tone held a fantastic degree of confidence that he, at several years older than she, still didn't have. He definitely hadn't been that confident as a child.
"Yeah, that's true," Jan said. "I sure like bein' up now instead o' daylight." He looked out the window, at the stars and the moon. "The dark isn't so scary, once you get used to it." He looked at Kay, the serious and expectant expression on her face. Kids. He hoped he was dealing with her okay.
"Y'know, I think she knows more stuff 'n I do." He let the doll sit down on his lap, still holding its head up. "Not that I really know that much. But, I've never had nobody tell me a secret before. Thank you, Miss Vig."
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 18:30:00 GMT -5
"Yeah, that's true… I sure like bein' up now instead o' daylight."
Those were sensible thoughts. Kay looked down after hearing them, to study her skirt. It wasn’t her favorite one, just something she’d worn to bed. Maybe she should think about going back. Last time she was out too long and the Sisters were really angry. But than again, she was with Jan and Jan was older so it was probably okay. Besides, Kay didn’t want to go to bed just yet.
"Not that I really know that much. But, I've never had nobody tell me a secret before. Thank you, Miss Vig."
Kay nodded absently, picking at her skirt with her free paw. Her other was rubbing circles on the wooden mouse’s back.
“Vig is a rat ya know,” she confessed quietly and quickly. “Like one of the bad guys in the stories. Only, she’s really small for a rat and ‘cause o’ that everyone else picked on her. So she came here, so she’d be the tallest. Only, somethin’ happened and now she’s shorter than everyone again.”
She stopped petting the mouse, and looked up at Jan again.
“Most people don’t like that Vig is a rat. But I think it’s good, because that means Vig can scare off bad things. ‘Cause she’s a scary bad thing herself… Only, I think she’s losin’ her badness as she gets more knowledge, ‘cause now not even nightmares are scared of her. So I have to teach her to be safe now, because she’s not scary and she’s so small for a rat…”
Kay looked down, and touched the wooden mouse’s nose.
“She’s different, and that’s hard for her, ‘cause there’s no where now that she can go where she won’t be different.”
Shyly Ky peered at Jan from the corner of her eye.
“Do ye get that?”
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 20:46:01 GMT -5
Jan listened carefully as Kay explained Vigilance's origins. He nodded thoughtfully as he arranged the doll to sit between him and Kay on the bed. Everything she said made perfect sense for a child searching for safety and dealing with nightmares. In her mind, this was logic. Kid logic, but very strong logic. Then, she said, “She’s different, and that’s hard for her, ‘cause there’s no where now that she can go where she won’t be different.”
Jan blinked. Different. He'd understood that as a child, too, but implicitly. He couldn't recall ever putting a word to his distance from his peers. Not like Kay could. She already knew it, and could articulate it. He felt like that could be sort of a good thing and a very bad thing, too.
“Do ye get that?”
With a long exhale, Jan nodded. "I do." He inhaled again, ready to speak, then decided against those words. Tried again. Still not those words. Third time. "I'm different, too. I can understand Miss Vig. It's hard for me, too." He pointed to his wooden mouse in Kay's paw. "See how shiny her nose is? You could say that's how hard it's been for me."
He looked at her and wondered if some of the things she'd said about Vigilance were actually about her. She didn't need to tell him that. "Do you like comin' here to feel, y'know, safer?"
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 22:02:20 GMT -5
It was nice seeing Jan continue to treat Vig kindly, even after the revelation. After all, it wasn’t really her fault she was a rat. Or that she was small. Sometimes, things just happened. Sometimes you couldn’t help who you were.
"I do."
Kay knew he would. After all, he was a late night wanderer like her. And that meant they knew things other beasts didn’t.
"I'm different, too. I can understand Miss Vig. It's hard for me, too…See how shiny her nose is? You could say that's how hard it's been for me."
For a moment, Kay didn’t understand what Jan meant by the shiny nose. Quietly she rubbed it, thinking the words over. Still didn’t make sense. She rubbed it again, and then it clicked. Jan was saying that it was shinny because he rubbed it a lot and he rubbed it to feel safer because it felt unsafe to be different sometimes.
Kay glanced at Jan, worried suddenly. If beasts were mean to Vig sometimes because she was different, were they mean to Jan? She didn’t like the idea of people being mean to Jan. He was nice, and quiet, and wasn’t mean to different people. So that meant everyone should be kind to him.
"Do you like comin' here to feel, y'know, safer?"
“I haven’ been here before,” Kay told him quietly. “But it’s not bad. There’s an escape hatch, so the plan’s a good one. Only, it’s a bit far, so ya’d need time ta get down all the halls real fast, and that’d give bad guys a lo’ of time to catch up. I have other plans though. There’s a couple o’ spots in the library good for hiding. I thought about the kitchen, ‘cause there are snacks there, but bad guys like snacks too, so that wouldn’ be a good place.”
She paused for breath, then continued talking.
“Outside’s got good trees for climbing, an’ people don’ look up a lot, so tha’s good. I think the Bell tower wouldn’t be bad, but the cellar’s a no go even though it’s dark because it’s got all the drinks adults like and baddies always like adult drinks.”
She glanced at her doll suddenly. Those beady little eyes were looking straight ahead at nothing in particular. Obviously offended.
“Except for Vig of course: She doesn’ drink tha’ stuff anymore.”
This clarification made, Kay shifted and Vig slumped happily against her. Smiling she looked up at Jan.
“’Course, ya should know, places aren’t safe. Plans are safe, but places are like beds. Bad things get into places.”
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 27, 2017 22:48:15 GMT -5
Django was pretty sure Kay had this abbey mapped out almost as well as he did. Certainly better than any "bad guys" would, and possibly even better than an abbey champion might at this point. He made a mental note to have the Abbess consult Kay should an attack against the abbey arise.
“’Course, ya should know, places aren’t safe. Plans are safe, but places are like beds. Bad things get into places.”
Jan nodded, a bit slack-jawed. He felt an emotion he didn't really have a name for. Pity? Sadness? Worry? A mixture? He slid his thumb over his index finger rapidly, used to having his mouse for emotional turmoil. Kay still had it. That was okay. It was fine. Um.
"Did bad things get, um, into your place?" He almost didn't want her to answer. He could feel friction beginning to warm up his fingers. "Because, um, if they do..." If they do... what? What should she do? What could he do? What could he do that wasn't being done for her? She had a doll. She had the Sisters and Brothers. But if she was strategizing an escape from "bad guys," it obviously wasn't enough.
"You can come find me," he decided finally. "And I'll. Um. Try to scare them away. I'll, um. I've got a carving knife. I can... carve... them." The knife was small, couldn't do much damage other than make vermin mad, probably. What would he do? Carve a poem into them? Your blood is red like autumn leaves, dripping like ice from abbey eaves...
Kid logic. Help her understand. "Good guys. I can carve. Lots of good guys. Keep you safe." He nodded decisively. Confidence. Safety. "Safety is important." He bit his lip. Had he repeated her or actually meant that?
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Post by Luna Broadblade on Jun 27, 2017 23:30:46 GMT -5
Kay watched Jan’s hands, saw him rubbing his fingers. Why was he doing that? It looked uncomfortable.
Oh, she still had his mouse. Obviously he was feeling unsafe. Was Kay making him feel unsafe? Maybe it was all the talk of bad guys. That made people feel unsafe sometimes.
Wordlessly, she placed the wooden mouse on his leg. After all, he’d returned Vig to her. It was only fair she return his friend.
"Did bad things get, um, into your place?
That… that was a scary question. The kind of thing she warned Vig about. Bad beasts getting into places they shouldn’t. Her thoughts drifted to her family’s covered wagon. They had gotten in there. Kay knew they had, because there was a bunch of stuff missing and everything was ruined.
"Because, um, if they do... You can come find me…And I'll. Um. Try to scare them away. I'll, um. I've got a carving knife. I can... carve... them."
Kay could hear the tension in his voice, could see how nervous he was. Was he offering to fight for her? That was nice, but he didn’t look like a warrior. Quietly, slowly, Kay pulled out her brother’s knife. The Sisters hated that she had it, but they couldn’t take it away. They just couldn’t.
Absently she touched it, careful of the edge. Knives weren’t toys, or dolls.
“Stab any hand that reaches in…” she echoed her brother quietly. It was dark that night too, but there hadn’t been a moon out. No light shining past the camp fire. Definitely no light in those bushes she waited in .No light till the sun came up. No light… The moonlight caught on the edge of the small blade, and pulled her out of the darkness. “Remember that. Stab any hands that try to grab you.”
"Good guys. I can carve. Lots of good guys. Keep you safe.
Jan sounded confident now, less scared. That was good, because Kay didn’t want him to be scared. If he went to bed scared, there would surely be nightmares, and Vig could barely keep away child nightmares. She didn’t think the little rat would scare away adult ones. Maybe they could play a game, or maybe they could play some music real quiet. If there was music, Kay could dance, and if she danced there was no way Jan would be scared.
“Safety is important."
“It is,” Kay agreed amicably. At least that was still clear. “And good guys help. Don't worry Jan. We've got enough plans that we'll be okay. Even if the bad guys come, we'll be ready."
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Django
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Post by Django on Jun 28, 2017 0:22:20 GMT -5
Instinctively, Jan picked up his mouse from where Kay laid it on his leg. He rubbed its nose and almost immediately felt a sense of relief. His ears flattened briefly at the sight of her knife. He had never seen anyone younger than himself hold a weapon like that.
“Stab any hand that reaches in… Remember that. Stab any hands that try to grab you.”
As someone who lived his life repeating things, Jan could tell this was an echo of something Kay had been told. But he didn't press it. It was fairly solid advice, all things considered.
“And good guys help. Don't worry Jan. We've got enough plans that we'll be okay. Even if the bad guys come, we'll be ready."
Jan nodded, unable to stop a smile. Kay had enough plans to keep the abbey safe from the worst warlord. Gingerly, he placed a paw on her shoulder, feeling the need to do something of that nature. He was bad with physical interaction, so he removed his paw a moment later. He felt he should offer at least a semblance of a plan of his own, so that this poor child didn't think she had to do this all by herself. Maybe she'd feel better if they... did something...
"Tell ya what," he said, leaning back against some old pillows, his elbows on his knees, "tomorrow, couldja help me pick up sticks so I can carve some good guys?" He glanced out the window and noticed the faintest halo of light on the horizon, far below the moon. Technically, it was already 'tomorrow,' but it didn't need to officially be tomorrow until they slept.
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