"There he is, see, runnin' along behind the bushes!"
They followed the direction of Gonff's outstretched paw. A young gray-brown rat was barely visible amid the foliage. Then it emerged onto the bank, pointing back at the Mousethief and mimicking his voice in a nasty manner.
"Runnin' along be'ind the bushes, be'ind the bushes, heehee!"
Martin's grip relaxed on his swordhilt. "Ignore the little villain. He's only trying to annoy us."
The rat flung another stick, but the raft was now too far away from the north bank to be hit. He stuck out his tongue at Martin. "Ignore the liddle villain, liddle villain, heeheehee!"
Chugger looked stern, and shook a tiny paw at the rat. "Go 'way, naughty mouse, or I biff ya!"
Martin took hold of the little squirrel, who was about to jump from the raft, and held him wriggling in the air. "Now now, I told you, ignore the naughty mouse!"
But something unlikable in the creature's swaggering attitude caught Gonff's attention. He stood up. "I thought that was a mouse at first, but he's a sneaky young water rat. Look at that thick tail, mates!"
The rat stuck his claws in both ears and waggled them impudently at the Mousethief, dancing up and down provokingly. "Oh, look at 'is tail, mates, look at 'is tail. Heehee!"
Gonff whipped out his sling, fitted a small pebble to it and lobbed it expertly off. The stone, which Gonff had not cast with any great force, caught the rat a stinging blow on the tail. It leaped up and down, clinging to its tail and howling tearfully.
"Owowowowow, the mouse nearly slayed me, o wo wo wo wow!"
Gonff returned his impression of the whining vermin. "Owowow, naughty mouse nearly slayed me, owow!"
The rat stopped wailing, his face a picture of fury. "You shut ya face. Think ya funny, don't ya?"
Trimp came to stand beside Gonff. "What's the matter, rat, don't you like a taste of your own medicine? Be off with you, go and boil your ugly head!"
The rat kept running along the bank to keep up with the raft, throwing twigs, mud and anything he could lay paws upon. But they fell far short of the travelers. He was livid with rage, shrieking out at them, "Oh, you done it now, wait'n'see! Nearly slayed Riddig, son of mighty Girfang, Boss of alia streamrats!"
Gonff fitted another stone to his sling, a proper-sized rock this time. "Ah, stop whingin' an' run off home to yore daddy. Quick now, or I'll show ye what a real slingstone can do. I'll give ye t'the count o' three, rat. One, two . . ."
Riddig stopped running and ducked off hastily into the bushes, still calling out threats to his enemies.
"Don't go 'sleep t'nightbetter not turn yer back. Youse lot are all deadbeasts, wait'n'see!"
Martin sighed, shaking his head at Gonff. "That's all we need, more trouble. First the Flitchaye, now streamrats. Didn't I tell you to ignore him?"
Gonff shrugged apologetically. "Nasty liddle vermin. Couldn't 'elp myself, mate."
Trimp was about to agree when Dinny interrupted.
"Burr, nor could oi, Marthen, tho' oi'd 'a' gotten ee vurmint a gudd crack furst toim wi' moi slinger!"
Chugger thrust out his little jaw truculently. "An' I woulda swimmed over an' bited 'is tail off, too!"
Martin tickled Chugger behind the ear fondly. "I wager that would've made him jump, eh, Chugg? Personally I felt a desire to kick that young horror's tail up and down the bank a bit, just to teach him a lesson in manners. But keep your eyes peeled, mates. I've a feeling we haven't heard the last of this little incident."
The remainder of a pleasant day was spoiled for Trimp. She watched every rustle of bush or reed along the banks, expecting at any moment to see a mob of rats come springing out at them. However, the situation did not seem to bother her companions a bit. Chugger curled up amid the food packs and snored like a holtful of otters, while Martin, Dinny and Gonff chatted amiably, lying back and trailing their paws in the water. Had Trimp observed them more closely she would have noticed that the three Redwallers were alert as hunting hawks, keeping their weapons close by at all times.
Evening fell, and still there was no sign of rats. Martin took precautions by nosing the raft onto a rock, which jutted up in center stream, and making a rope fast to it. Dinny fished about until he located a broad flat stone close to the rock. Hauling it aboard, the clever mole built a small fire on it. Martin chopped vegetables with his sword, while Trimp dug out dried watershrimp and herbs from a haversack. Gonff filled their small cauldron with fresh streamwater, and Chugger sat warming his paws by the fire. Martin tossed the vegetables into the pot and wiped his sword clean.
"A fire at night isn't the best idea in these parts, Din."
The mole watched his soup carefully as he stirred it. "May'ap 'tain't, zurr, but if'n anybeast be a-goin' to attack us'n's, they'd do et, foire or not. Breezes on ee water be a bit chill. Nought loik a gudd drop o' soup, noice an' 'ot, to keep ee warm an' 'appy!"
Gonff cut a loaf of ryebread into chunks. "Can't argue with mole logic, mate, ole Din's right."
Dinny's soup was good, and they sat around the cauldron, each with a wooden spoon and a chunk of bread, sharing the meal in true traveler fashion. Martin set up two oarpoles and brought the sail forward, draping it over them as a precaution against rain during the night. Trimp found a narrow flagon of elderberry wine and they passed it round, each taking a few sips.
The hogmaid smiled. "There, that should keep the chills away. What now, mates?"
Gonff smiled back at her. "Now you give us a song, missie."
"No no, my voice would carry over water. Let Dinny sing."
A look passed between Martin and Gonff, and they both sighed.
"Never heard a mole sing before, have you, Trimp?" "No, I can't say I have. Why?"
"Oh, nothin', mate. You're sure you want t'hear molesong?"
"Of course I do, that's if Dinny would be kind enough to oblige us with one of his songs."
The mole's homely face creased deeply with pleasure. "Hurr, 'ow cudd oi refuse a pretty maid loik ee, miz!" Then he placed a paw over one ear in traditional molesinger's manner and launched into a mole ballad.
"Ho doodlum roodlum wurdilum day,
All on ee broight zummer morning!
l Bold Doogul mole were gurtly brave,
As oi wurr told boi moi muther,
Furr maidens boi the score ee'd save,
Loik chesknutts wun arfter anuther,
Each morn ee rode owt frum 'is abode,
A-mounted on a milky whoit toad,
Surchin' ee danjeruss forest road,
A-lukkin' furr ee maidens.
Ho doodlum roodlum wurdilum day,
All on ee broight zummer mornin'!
Ee spied a gurt fat molewoif thurr,
An' doffed 'is 'at to 'er proudly,
Which froikkened ee molewoif out'n 'er wits,
She'm started to wail roight loudly,
Ee shuvved 'er up onna back of 'is toad,
An' troid t'ride off down ee road,
But two fat moles was an 'evvy load,
An' ee toad wurr crushed loik a beekle.
Ho doodlum roodlum wurdilum day,
All on ee broight zummer mornin'!
Then oop cumm ee gudd an' stoutly mole,
Ee croid, 'Woe thurr bless moi loif,
Thurr be two villyuns tryin' to steal,
Moi dear ole fatty gurt woif!'
So pullin' owt a knotty ash club,
Bowth toad an' Doogul ee did drub,
Ee gave 'em black'n'bloo lumps t'rub,
An' 'is woif gave 'im cabbage furr supper."
Trimp and little Chugger were laughing so hard that they had trouble trying to join in on the chorus. Gonff shook his head at them sadly.
"Don't encourage him, mates. I've heard that song there's still another forty-seven verses t'go yet!"