Mossflower

Animal Adventures Chapter 8

Chapter 8: Ivey's Dream

Ivey had gone to bed. She lay there thinking on what had happened that day. They had had church. Very nice, but it went as usual: Church, lunch, kid’s bible study, and then playtime outside. That, too, had gone as usual. She and Jessie climbed their favorite tree, Aaron had attempted to climb it and ended up in the tree next to it, and Jessie had gotten stuck in the tree. Again. The squirrel rolled over. After church they had had the entire afternoon open, so they went shopping for Christmas presents. Mom had to get some books for the church party, so they went to Border’s Books. There, in the young adults section, Ivey had found the Redwall book Triss. She had read to about page 46, but then they had to leave. Ivey had been haunted by the question “What happened next?!?” for the rest of the day. She rolled over again and fell asleep.

For a few minutes she dreamed she was Eowyn. That lasted for about five minutes. Then a confused dream followed. She was Triss, fighting – Orcs?? That didn’t make any sense, and then the dream completed its change and she really was Triss. And this dream was the most realistic one she had ever had. She was Triss, and everything happened exactly as in the book – until she finished what she had read. Then a small voice seemed to float past her – “The rest is up to you…” dying away to an echo. Ivey-Triss stood confused for a moment, and then realized fully what the voice had said. “The rest is up to you.” That meant that she was who made up the rest. She looked around for an inspiration. Somehow she was on a beach that seemed deserted except for a ship.

Suddenly a hedgehog’s head poked out of the ship. It looked surprisingly like Samuel. “Come on, Triss, we need to get going.” She went into to the ship. It began to go. She was about to ask Samuel where they were going, when it caught her that she was supposed to know, and that Samuel probably had a different name. She saw a vole closely resembling her friend Angela, who solved her problem by talking to Samuel and calling him “Matthias”. And so Angela was? “Songbreeze”, she heard Samuel-Matthias call her. Who else of her friends was on the ship?

Garret suddenly appeared. “Songbreeze, your turn to steer,” he called. Songbreeze answered him as “Deyna”. Suddenly Triss realized something. Each of her friends was an animal from the Redwall books, and so was she! Triss was from Triss, Matthias was from Redwall, Songbreeze from Marlfox, and Deyna from Taggerung! If Jessie was there, Ivey thought, she would be … Mara from Salamandastron, Bella from Mossflower, Auma from Mattimeo, or… Lady Cregga Rose Eyes from The Long Patrol. It turned out it was Auma. Triss found out by hearing Matthias ask Deyna, “Is it Auma’s or my turn to be on watch?”

“I’m not sure, go check the list. I just know that Auma and Triss are supposed to be on the same watch. Triss on the starboard side, Auma on the port.” (Better get this straight right now. Facing forward, starboard is right and port is left.) Matthias ran below to check the list. Triss, who had been exploring the deck of the ship, heard him call, “Auma! Where are you? Hello?” Jessie (Auma) came cautiously up the ladder to the deck. She winked at Triss, and whispered, “I slipped around him without being noticed and when he comes up, you and I’ll be on watch and he’ll wonder how I got up here without him seeing me.” She moved to the side of the ship.

There was a loud bump, and a muffled exclamation from below deck, followed by a half angry, half laughing yell.  “Sloey! Come back here!” Lauren shot out on deck, laughing, and as Matthias ran at her, she slipped around him and ran below. Matthias ran after her.

“What just happened?” asked Triss.

Auma giggled, and replied, “I think Sloey jumped out on Matthias and he fell over, that was the bump, and something like a pillow must have fallen on him, that was just as he said something, and Sloey bolted.” She laughed again.

Triss went back to her own side of the ship. She saw a shadow on the horizon. It came closer and closer, and suddenly was – “Land!” she yelled. Everyone rushed to the side of the ship but Songbreeze, who was still steering. Matthias, Auma, Sloey, Songbreeze, Deyna and Triss stared at the island, which slowly grew to a peninsula with a river running into it.

“I know that place!” said Auma. “That’s the river that goes right past Redwall!” It was agreed to go to Redwall, and Triss kept a lookout carefully, for she had never seen the place. Besides, her friends and she were from different times and books, so she wanted to know if Redwall had an Abbess or Abbot and also which one they were.

The stream flowed on almost lazily. Auma and Triss still had watch, but everyone was out on deck, even Sloey, who sat up in the prow on a blanket “keeping watch” but soon grew bored and set about trying to make a tent out of a pole and the blanket. She finally succeeded and curled up inside. Auma watched the trees go by. Triss was on her side, and they pointed out certain trees to each other, saying, “Do you think I’d get stuck in that one?” or “How high do you think we’d get in that one?”

Matthias was swinging around in the rigging reading a book. Deyna was in the crow’s nest, when suddenly Triss, who had just climbed up the rigging, exploded into a shrill “Redwall! REDWALL AHEAD!!”

Ivey woke up yelling, “Redwall! Red-“ She had woken herself up with her yelling. Allie had climbed up the ladder and was trying to put her paw over Ivey’s mouth. “Be quiet will you? Your clock says it’s 7. Good thing you yelled. Mom thought you got up already!”

Untitled Comment

12:27 PM, Dec. 14, 2005 .. Posted by Anonymous

Wonderful!
Don't you just love dreams like that?
They make sleeping worthwhile. . .so that you don't have to stop what you're thinking about at night!

Untitled Comment

12:28 PM, Dec. 14, 2005 .. Posted by Anonymous

Oh dear. That last comment was by me. . .the Shieldmaiden.
I wonder why it didn't come out that way.

Dreams

5:28 PM, Jan. 19, 2006 .. Posted by Grammy

I loved your dream! I felt like I was there watching everything. I dream a lot, too. Thanks for sharing...Love you!

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6:02 AM, Jan. 20, 2006 .. Posted by Anonymous

What a wonderful narration. I'm going to CA in two weeks. Your narration makes me want to visit the wonderful sites you described. When I get to Pier 39 and see the Ferry Boats it will remind me of you and I shall eat clam chowder out of a bowl made from a loaf of sour dough bread in honor of your narrative!

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