High Rhulain

Having installed herself on top of the gatehouse steps at the west walltop, Sister Snowdrop took full advantage of the generosity of the Abbess and Burbee. Dunking arrowroot and almond biscuits into a steaming beaker of mint and comfrey tea, she indicated a large, thick, green volume she had brought with her.

“Feast your eyes on this, my friends. What do you think of it?”

Abbess Lycian topped up Snowdrop’s beaker from her seemingly ever-full teapot. “Pray, what are we supposed to think of it? The thing looks very much like a dusty old green book to me.”

Snowdrop spluttered on a soggy biscuit, as though she could hardly believe what the Abbess had just said. “Can’t you see? It’s the rare, original Geminya Tome, that’s what it is. Dusty old green book, indeed!”

Abbess Lycian was completely unruffled by the revelation. “How nice, but what exactly is a rare original Geminya Tome, if I may make so bold as to ask?”

The little Sister was wide-eyed with disbelief. “Surely you’re joking, Mother Abbess! You mean to tell me you’ve never heard of it?”

Breaking off, Snowdrop stared around at the others. “Have none of you ever heard of the Geminya Tome?”

Molemum Burbee came out with one of her gems of mole logic. “No, we’m bain’t, moi dearie, an’ oi aspeck we’m never will, unlest you’m tell us’n’s. Boi ’okey, scholarybeasts can bee’s gurtly aggurvatin’, hurr aye!”

Tiria supported the good molemum firmly. “Please, Sister Snowdrop, can you just get on and tell us about your precious Geminya Tome?”

Stroking the volume’s faded green cover, the old Assistant Librarian explained. “This is something that has been lost to the sight of Redwallers since Old Quelt was young. He has often told me of it. Sister Geminya was a mouse who lived at our Abbey in the long distant past. She was a highly knowledgeable scholar, specialising in the solving, and setting, of all types of riddles and puzzles. Many considered Geminya to be the cleverest creature in all Mossflower. However, genius has its drawbacks: She was also renowned as an odd, reclusive and quirky beast, very secretive and annoyingly condescending to all. Just examine her name, it was a title she gave to herself. Look at the name of her book, the Geminya Tome! Artful I grant you, but extremely vain!”

Skipper tapped his rudder impatiently. “Ye’ll forgive us who ain’t scholars, Sister, but wot makes a book called the Geminya Tome so extremely vain?”

Taking a piece of charcoal from her waist pouch, Snowdrop began scribbling on the walltop paving. “Look, I’ll show you. Take the letters of her name, Geminya. Switch them about and it becomes Enigma Y.”

Brinty looked at the writing. “What’s an enigma?”

Abbess Lycian kindly explained to the young mouse, “It’s merely an educated name for a riddle or a puzzle.”

Snowdrop continued writing. “Exactly. Now take the letter Y. It has the same sound as the word we use when asking a question, ‘why.’ Then there’s the word ‘tome,’ which means a great weighty volume. But split it in half, and it becomes two smaller words. Do you see?”

Girry piped up. “Of course! ‘tome’—‘to me.’ Haha, clever, eh?”

The Sister had finished writing on the wall paving. “There you have it. Read it out please, Tiria.”

The ottermaid read out the curious translation. “ ‘Enigma to me. Why?’ ”

Snowdrop drained her beaker and held it out to be refilled. “Exactly! Now we can see the vanity of Sister Geminya. She’s telling us that she could solve anything. An enigma to me, huh, why?”

Abbess Lycian smiled. “She was very clever, though.”

Sister Snowdrop put aside her beaker. “Old Quelt is taking a nap right now. Just wait until he wakes up and I show him this!”

Tiria was still mystified. “I don’t quite understand, Sister. You’ve found this book and translated its meaning, but how does that help me? Is there anything about Rhulain or the Green Isle in it?”

Snowdrop began leafing through the yellowed pages of the ancient work, muttering to herself, “Actually, I believe there is something. Now, which page was it on? Hmm, I should have inserted a marker.”

She stopped at each page she came to, painstakingly inspecting it. “Ah, this is interesting, but that’s not it. Hmm, neither is this. I’m sorry, friends, I’ll get to it sooner or later. One just can’t go riffling slapdash through a work so rare and valuable as this, you know.”

The onlookers began snorting and tapping their paws impatiently at the dilatory old Sister. Feeling rather sorry for her, Abbess Lycian ventured a helpful suggestion.

“We realise you’re doing your best, Snowdrop, but it’s starting to get dusky out here. Perhaps if we go inside, conditions may be more favourable for you to study.”

Sister Snowdrop bobbed a small curtsy to the Abbess. With a speed which was surprising for one of her long seasons, she hopped nimbly off down the wallstairs, calling back as she hurried toward the Abbey, “What a splendid idea! They’ll be serving supper soon. Would one of you kindly bring the book along?”