Housepets!

"So what's it like, eh?" Owain asked Aleexander. "Mean Brum bach 'ere's prydferth an' smart about the abbey bu' yer prob'ly th' one who c'n tell me about the Mossflow'r beasts, eh? Who's fun an' who's a flin... uh, grump."

((prydferth = beautiful))

"Thanks" Aaron says to Brum and then turns and follows Aldryd to the bathrooms.

"Um, I don't know. I don't usually talk to many people." Alexander admitted.

Owain put his free hand on Alexander's shoulder. "How's tha', 'Lex? Y' don't seem t' lack the confidence, aft'r all." He nodded to the table. "Y'want t' sit next t' us in th' feast'n talk?"

As Sara starts to wobble, Gurrtrude tightens her grip on the vixen and Foremole move in to support the vixen from the other side.
"Do you'm be farncying a rest yurr fer a whoile, Sara?"* enquires Gurrtrude.
"There b'aint no need t' be a-rushen' abowt loike."**

*Do you fancy resting here for a while, Sara?
**There's no need to rush about.

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The vole takes Charle's clothes and replaces them with new ones according to the mouse's request and then leaves the mouse to it, telling him to call if he needs anything.

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Welsh Halfwit wrote:Owain grinned as he watched the life around him. "So much lie 'ere," he told Brum, "more'n I'm used to. Bu' I'll manage."

"Aye, most creatures do although there's definitely been the odd one every now and again who couldn't cope with this number of creatures.

Welsh Halfwit wrote:"So what's it like, eh?" Owain asked Aleexander. "Mean Brum bach 'ere's prydferth an' smart about the abbey bu' yer prob'ly th' one who c'n tell me about the Mossflow'r beasts, eh? Who's fun an' who's a flin... uh, grump."

((prydferth = beautiful))

Brum is stumped by the word "prydferth" but she decides not to press the issue, instead letting the mouse and shrew chat.

Welsh Halfwit wrote:Owain put his free hand on Alexander's shoulder. "How's tha', 'Lex? Y' don't seem t' lack the confidence, aft'r all." He nodded to the table. "Y'want t' sit next t' us in th' feast'n talk?"

"Yes, why not? You'd be most welcome." she assures the shrew.

Aldryd looked over his shoulder briefly, "You are following me? Why is that?"

"Sure, I'd love to." Alexander replied, smiling.

"I need to clean up." Aaron replies.

As Charles bathes himself, he replies to the vole. I can repair my clothes, but I wouldn't mind a fresh set of trousers. Charles replied.

Peter watched the grains as they poured through the glass and spun his smaller, personal, hourglass idly whilst he waited for it to get down to the hour.
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"Let's go find three seddi...seats, shall we, bach?" Owain asked Brum as he leaned on her.

"Yes, let's, before the hares get all the good ones!" Brum agrees. She leads the way out of the abbey and across to the orchard where the tables have been set up. The cold foods like fresh fruit, salads, cheeses, cakes, preserves and breads are already on the tables and barrels of drinks are standing on their special stands, tapped and ready to go. The hot foods will be brought out later when it's time for the feast to actually begin. At Redwall, no distinction is made between entrée, main course and dessert, rather all courses are served simultaneously, sweets alongside savouries, salty alongside bitter and sour, and hot with cold, and creatures are free to pick and choose whatever foods they choose and to help themselves to as much as they like. Of course, none of them would be so rude as to do so until they're invited by the abbess though.

Several other creature are already beginning to drift in and take their seats as the shadows begin to lengthen and it won't be long before the torches and the giant bonfire are lit to provide light and warmth to the revellers late into the night. A low, raised platform has been erected to one side for the band to perform on, and the ornate Abbot's/Abbess's chair has been brought out and set behind one of the tables and an extra large chair for the Badger Lord set beside it.

"Where do you fancy sitting, Owain?" asks the squirrel-maid.

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"You can certainly do that. Shall we wash them for you first?" queries the vole as he pulls a fresh set of clothes from a nearby cupboard.

"No it's fine mam" Sara answered "I just feel little dizzy that's all"

"How's 'bout yere?" Owain remarked, nodding to a seat conveniently close to both Apples and Cheeses. "Bit've th' best of both worlds, eh?"

"I'm fine with sitting there." Alexander told Owain.

"Why not? That spot is as good as any. There's more food to come though. The hot food will be brought out once everybeast is ready, or nearly so so that we can eat it hot." Brum walks Owain over to the suggested spot and pulls out the chair for him.

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"You'm be low on blood, marm. You'm needs t' rest an' lift 'ee feetpaws so 'ee blood can be a going back t' yer 'ead."* advises Gurrtrude.
"We'm be nearly down naow. You'm c'n be restin in the Gurt 'all. Does you'm think 'ee can be a-gettin' there?"**

*You're low on blood, mark. You need to rest and lift your feetpaws so the blood can go to your head.
**We're nearly down now. You can rest in the Great Hall. Do you think you can get there?

"Is... isn' tha' suppos'd ta be what I do fer you?" Owain asked as Brum held the chair out. Still he accepted it and gave a small sigh of relief as he took the weight off his feet and contemplated the table in front of them.

"yes mam , I think I can" Sara said with a weak smile "I wouldn't want to arrive late , when everybeast are eating after all"

Aldryd returned to the dining area, now visibly much less scruffy looking. The otter sought out a place to sit near a face he had already met and settled himself. He rubbed his wrists, sore as they slowly decompressed in the absence of his fist wraps

If its not too much trouble, then yes please. Charles replied.
He finished up his bath, got the new set of clothes and put them on.
These are some pretty nice clothes! Charles remarked, feeling the texture of the material. The fur on the top of his head had a little cow-lick in it, but he didn't mind.

Alexander silently sat down next Owain and looked at the table.

Aaron sat down at the table a few seats down from Brum. He looked a shade lighter after losing so much dirt (maybe even more than Owian).

"It's no trouble at all." assures the vole, dropping the dirty clothes into the laundry basket.
"Er... you've missed a smut. May I?" With Charles' permission, the vole wipes a smudge of mud off the mouse's face that hadn't quite scrubbed off in the bath.
"There. Much better. Is there anything else I can help you with?"
Meanwhile, Evelyn has finished cleaning herself up and is waiting patiently in the hallway for Charles to emerge.

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Brum giggles as she seats herself next to Owain.
"I suppose it is really but you're my guest so I'll do everything in my power to make you comfortable tonight." She giggles again as she watches some of the elders chasing a group of dibbuns around the tables in a futile endeavour to get them to go upstairs to bathe.

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"You'm 'ave nowt t' be afeared of, marm. They'll not start wi'owt 'ee."* assures the mole-nurse. Reaching the bottom of the staircase, she and Foremole support Sara to one of the long benches and after helping the vixen lie down, Foremole lifts her footpaws to allow the blood to flow back to her brain.
"You'm c'n be lyin' there 'til 'ee 'ead is steady-loike agin, marm."** instructs Gurrtrude as she places a paw on Sara's brow to make sure that the vixen isn't feverish.

*You have naught to be afraid of, marm. They'll not start without you.
**You can lie there until your head is steady again, marm.

"If'n you don' watch it, I'll be contin'lly sayin' ddiolch i chi... uh, thank you." Owain leant back and tried to use an arm to halt or grasp a dribblun but the youngster squealed and shifted out of the way. "Cyfflym little things... uh.... fast." He smiled, showing his teeth this time.
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The hour counted down slowly for the Vole on sole bell duty...

"Thank you , maybe I will just for a moment" Sara said , smiled at both moles , her head was a little warm , but not that noticable

Alexander got up out of his chair and chased after two of the dibbuns. He scooped the two up in his arms and carried them over to the elders. "Here you go. Now you two go upstairs and bathe okay?" Alexander said gently, giving the dibbuns to the elders and ruffling one of the dibbun's head.

Charles winced as the vole scrubbed the mud from his sore face.
I think I need a new bandage before I go down to the feast. Charles remarked.
He thanked the vole and left the room, waving as he did. Charles turned around to see Evelyn standing there.
Hey, I think I got my bandages wet in the bath. Do I need new ones, or is that okay? Charles asked.

The last few grains of sand dribbled through the glass to land on the bottom half and Peter chuckled as he turned both the main glass and his little one over and grasped the rope to sound the bell the once. There was something he'd not told Charles and that was his favorite bit about this. The rope lifted and took his feet off the floor for several seconds which he passed with a whoop. Just for a moment he fancied he felt like the Spara and he envied them as his stomach lurched back down and he stopped the bell ringing again. That done, he grasped his portable hourglass and set off quickly to find Charles and join the feast. Before the Hares scoffed everything.
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"Spoilsport," Owain chuckled good naturedly.

Alexander stuck his tongue out playfully at Owain as he sat back down in his chair.

After much time of watch and finished tasks Trevor and james both in the hooded cloaks with hoods covering there faces did the two mve to join the feast both were hungery but it didnt show unless someone opened the cloak to see james grabbing his flatened stomach. the only thing that ahowed hunger was when they passed a small mouse working to finish and trevors stomach let out a loud sound that frightened him. it sounded like that of a beast growling before an attack. james could only chuckle since he was used to the sort.

Not being totally sure of the ettiquette here, Owain chose to test things by picking up one of the plates of food just outside of Brum's reach and offering it to her. As he did so, he noted several Dribbluns watching him, unsure of what to do or say. "I think they not'd I's new yere, Brum?"
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Peter headed for the baths to wash his forepaws.

"They are quite perceptive. Fast too." Brum giggles, shooting out her arm and catching a young hedgehog as he barrels past her, passing him squealing up to one of the elders. Turning back to the table she sees the plate of food offered to her by Owain.
"No, thank you, Owain. I prefer to start my meal with the hot pastries. Besides, it's polite to wait until the abbess has said grace and invited us to eat." Brum gently pushes the plate away, winking at the mouse as she does so.

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The observant molewife does notice the slightly increased temperature but decides it's not elevated enough to worry about, so she intructs the vixen to rest until she feels capable of moving on.

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Evelyn checks Charles' bandage and decides that it does indeed need changing. She leads him back to the infirmary and sets him on the same bed as before and then busies herself collecting bandages and a clay jar. Unwrapping the damp bandage, she uses a clean towel to dry the young mouse's headfur gently before uncorking a clay jar that releases a pungent odour.
"This will help to kill off any infection that might be trying to get in there and it'll help with the pain too. Might sting a little as it goes on though so just hold still for me, okay?" She takes a small glob of green goo from the jar and rubs it gently into the wound, trying not to disturb the clot. Next she reties Charles' head in a clean bandage and then washes her paws.
"There. All done. You're very brave. Shall we go down to the feast now?" Taking the mouse by the paw, she leads him back downstairs and to the orchard.
"Where would you like to sit?" she queries.

"Ah course," Owain said, feigning that he knew that and putting back the plate. "If'n it's stori's an' straeon...um, tales they wan', I got some f'later but only fer th' Dribbluns do as they's told an' be good, eh?" He grinned to the one Brum had caught. "Tales f'r be'aviour, yes?"
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Having washed, Peter headed out to the orchard in search of Sister Evelyn and Charles.

Charles made a "yuck" face as the goop was applied, but remained silent.

Outside, Charles looked over at all the new faces he hadn't met before.
There are a lot of people here, Mrs. Evelyn! Charles remarked.

Aldryd sat still save for his rubbing his hands and wrists tenderly, "It does me no good to keep myself wrapped up so tightly." He grumbled, "I would do well to remember that..."

Sara nodded , while she felt that perhaps she was capable of going now , a little rest to prepare herself so she wouldn't be as scared while being among other beasts wouldn't be a bad idea

"That there are. It looks more than we normally have because we have quite a few woodlanders with us tonight as well as, of course, the hares. Oh, look. There's Peter over there. Why don't you go and say hello to him? I'd rather like to find my husband."

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The moles patiently wait by the vixen's side, endeavouring to make small talk as they do so she doesn't feel awkward.

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"Be they good tales, Mister? Good tales for good behaviour, aye?" queries the hedgehog before he's whisked away by the elder, being scolded for his cheekiness.
Brum, shoulders quivering, manages to hold in her laughter until the hedgehog is out of earshot.
"AAAhaaaahaahaaaa! OOhohahaahaahaahaa!!! He'll be a shrewd dealer, that one! Takes after his father! That's him, over there, in the bright cloak." The squirrel points to a hedgehog dressed in garish colours.
"Runkle Spearback, that is. His prices are steep but nobeast grows or sells better thyme or sage and he knows it. He's a welcome figure around here for the most part although some creatures find him slightly overbearing." She turns to the otter on her other side, having heard his complaint.
"Speaking of herbs, if your paws are sore I'm sure Sister Evelyn can give you something to help them." She indicates the healer who is locking her headspikes with a large male hedgehog who's just knocked a spigot into a cask of drink. The hedgehog is none other than her husband, Ambrose and the spike locking is a sign of great affection amongst their kind.

Okay... Charles said. He turned around to see Peter approaching. Charles met him half way.
That was a quick hour. It only felt like minutes! Charles remarked.

Owain joined Brum in the happy laughing. "I know of a few tales sh'uld do him, from life an' leg'nd. Perhaps the tale've Begor. Hmm, that'un'll do." He looked over at Evelyn. "Lat'r, per'aps. Let'm have their private time."
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"Oh, I'd never ring the bell early, Charles," Peter said with a smile. "You just must've enjoyed your bath. I always do." He leaned in close. "But don't tell Sister Evelyn or she'll try to get me having them every day and I'll never have time for anything!

"Ah, I may have to ask her about that, come the proper time." Aldryd replied, looking over to Evelyn as well

Charles nodded and looked around.
So where do you wanna sit? Charles asked.