[Glory Brats 34] New Arrivals

Eventually the tears stopped, and she wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. She stared into the darkness down the track and quickly got to her feet. There was a faint light bobbing in the distance. She supposed she should run back and warn Glory, but her feet took her towards the light, not away from it. There was a hollow space carved out in the side of the wall a bit further along, just wide enough and deep enough for an engineer to stand in while a train hurtled past; plenty of room for a small girl. 

She could hear their footsteps crunching on the gravel as they approached. It didn't sound like just one or two people - more like a crowd. She shrunk back against the brickwork; maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. The first few soldiers passed the hole in the wall without noticing her, their attention focused ahead. Suddenly a light shone in her eyes, and someone grabbed her by the arm and hauled her out into the open.

[Glory Brats 33] A dangerous mission

The basement was quiet, and dark. Sparrow risked a sweep of the torch she'd brought with her. It revealed boxes stacked two or three high. She ducked back down into the tunnel and whispered to the others to follow her up. While they were scrambling up the ladder, she walked over to the boxes and cracked open one of the lids with a crowbar that was lying on top of the first box. She shone the torch over the contents. Picking up one of the packets, she chucked it to Zed, who caught it awkwardly.

"Hey, check it out - it's army rations. They must have stopped a supply run."

[Glory Brats 32] Glory Brats

"You brats worked hard today."

Sparrow nodded, her eyes half closing again. Any elation she had felt earlier had disappeared and now she just felt tired through her whole body. She shivered and hugged her hands around the edge of the warm plate. Carter shrugged his jacket off and draped it over her shoulders. It smelt of sweat and smoke, but she didn't mind. The weight of it was comforting.

"Eat up, kid, you're a Glory Brat now."

The Muckle Cauldron

Is it a tale of witches you're speering after now? Ach, awa wi you, you've had all my tales. Well, mebbee not all. You've heard about the brounies and the bogles, and you know well enow to poke a hole in your eggshells so as the witches canny use them to sink ships. And about elf-shot cattle that sicken and dinnae thrive when a witch puts a spell on them. But I've ane tale left that you've no heard. Pull up that wee stool then and mind you dinnae stop peelin those tatties.  When I wis a wee lassie, I was aye slipping off to do ma ain thing, or threepin at the auld folks to tell me a story - aye, jist like you now, altho I flatter mesel that I'm no as auld as they yins.

But this time I'd been caught and told to clear out the auld threshing barn. It was a richt stoorie place - fu o spiders. So I wisnae best pleased and I didnae tak ower much time wi my task. I carried out all the sticks and stalkies to the midden at the back o the yaird, and swept a bit stoor an oose oer the threshold. This still left a wheen o trashtrie frae the hoose at the far end, and I amused mesel by luikin through it. Maist o it was trashed - a luggie that had tint it's chain, a yoke wi a muckle crack in it, twa bits o a bowl I mind my sister brak on the hearth. But there was ane thing that caught my een - a muckle great cauldron, fat and blackened wi fire. It had unco marks around the rim, and seemed to grow in size before ma verra een. All o a sudden the air aroun me grew derksome an I shivered in the cauld. I ran oot the barn screaming o bogles and lang leggity beasties.

They gathered roun and speired at me what the matter was but not ane o them ever minded seeing the cauldron afore. All but the auldest auld yin who nodded and minded a story she'd heard as a wee lassie, jist like I was. A loon wha minded the plough was makin his way hame frae the smiddy, an the road took him along towards the auld Kirk o Alloway. It was an eerie place then as it is now, wi hoolets an siclike craturs, an weel-kent as a place o ferlies an unco doings. The nicht was mirk, the rain was plashing and spattering doon, an the wind squalling amang the trees. As he drew close to the Kirk he noted a bricht glow glimmerin roun the auld stanes. His thochts turned to witches, and the verra Deil himself, wha was said tae sit in state in the ruins.

Noo there are twa thochts as to why he did what he did next. Ane says that the Almichty above gave him courage; anither has it that he'd got unco fou at the Smiddy. For whatsoever reason, he took ae step towards the Kirk, an anither, an reached the windae afore he knew what his ain feet were daein. An eerie glow cam frae a fire made up in the middle o the ruins. The place was empty. He heard a soughing noise frae ahint him, and turned tae see derk shapes o men, and wimmin, in the field by the Kirk. Ane by ane, they each pullit up a stalk o the ragwort and cried out some word or words that he didnae catch. An ane by ane each rose into the sky wi shouts and skirls. The ploughboy was left alane. 

The flames frae the fire still danced though, sae he loupit up through the windae an drapt doon intae the empty Kirk. Atop the fire he saw a muckle cauldron, black as pitch. The contents seethed and jouked - heids o bairns no yet blessed by a meenister, lang banes o those hangit on a gibbet, an ither foulsome things. He seized the side of the cauldron an rocked it back an forth on its chain, makin the foul liquid spill oer the lip. He poured oot the contents onto the hearth an unhooked the jinkin chain. Empty noo, the cauldron didnae seem sae heavy, sae he raised it oer his head and tuik it hame, where it stayed in his faimly doon through the years tae this day.

The ithers aw laughed an clappit the grandame for the tale, an slipped back awa tae field and fireside. My fright almaist forgotten in the sun, I spiered at grannie to go wi me tae the barn, an see the muckle cauldron for herself. She hirpled oer the yaird an in at the barn. The corner was still derk an fu o shadows. A wee mousie rin oot oer the stanes but she paid it no mind. The cauldron sat there, lowring at us. 

"Thon's but a gey guid parritch kettle," grannie said, an seized it by the handle to swing in the crook of her arm. She scoured it and rinsed it, and set it on the hearth and cooked her sowans in it on the morn. An afore ye ask, she didna dee til some years after that, an ne'er took ill afore her last. Sae mayhap it was but a tale. An what happened tae the cauldron ye ask? Whit did ye think ye were peeling tatties intae?

Glossary

speering (asking)

elf-shot (flint arrowhead thought to be made by fairies)

threepin  (insisting or persisting)

stoorie (dusty)

midden (rubbish pit)

oose (fluff)

wheen (indefinite quantity)

trashtrie (worthless rubbish)

luggie (bucket/pail with 'lugs' or ears rising up from the staves)

tint (lost)

muckle (big)

unco (strange)

loon (rascal)

hoolets (owls)

ferlies (unusual sight)

mirk (dark, gloomy)

fou (drunk)

soughing (noise as of wind through trees)

skirl (shrill, piercing sound, shriek)

loupit (hopped)

jouked (bobbed)

jinkin (making a chinking noise)

clappit (pat affectionly)

grandame (grandmother or great grandmother)

hirple (to walk slowly, to hobble)

lowring (scowling)

parritch (porridge)

sowans (a dish made by soaking oats in water) 

[Glory Brats 31] Sparrow's Mission

"Follow the main passage to the end and take the stairs up to the street level. The gate up there will be open." Glory handed Sparrow the torch. "You should find the survey team over where we came across you lot. Keep to the smaller streets and come back this way when you're done." 

Sparrow clicked the torch on and cast the beam of light along the passageway. It stretched off into the distance.

Glory patted her shoulder. "You'll be fine." 

[Glory Brats 30] The Battle Begins

Sparrow grabbed Zed's hand and they ran down the slope, skidding in the dust and debris. Behind them, there was an explosion, and the tunnel entrance was hidden in a cloud of smoke. As it cleared, they could see the radio operator lying on the ground by the gate. They ran back to see if they could help.

He was coughing as they approached, his body shaking with the effort. He shook his head from side to side as if trying to clear ringing in his ears. His lower trouser leg was torn open, with a gash on the skin below. A shard of metal jutted out from the wound, blood seeping around the edges.

[Glory Brats 29] The Station

The base turned out to be in the depths of the station. There were more young soldiers guarding the gates at the bottom of the stairs down from the square, and even more spread around the concourse in various stages of uniform. Some were sitting around playing cards, others were sleeping on thin mats between the pillars.

The returning soldiers laid their guns down and took off their helmets and jackets. Beneath their camouflaged faces they were young. Older than Bee of course, but not that much older. The captain looked to to be one of the older ones. "Carter, take that kid to Medic right away. The rest of you, stop standing around staring like you've never seen a bunch of kids before."

[Glory Brats 28] Exchange

Getting through the outer ring of forest was easy this time. From the outside of the fence it looked as though something large had ploughed through the metal and trees taking everything in its path. All they had to do was pick their way through the mass of twisted metal and broken tree stumps. This alone took some time, but at least they knew which direction they were going. Sparrow and Zed helped Bee find her way through the tangled mess underfoot. She was surer when she could use her hands to clamber over things, but on the flatter stretches her hands were no use, and Sparrow and Zed took an arm each to help her along.

"I feel like a baby. Being led by the hand."

"It's just for a while, Bee." Zed comforted her.

Character interviews! With Weasley_Detectives!

OK so it's interview time again! This time round I'm doing a question swap with Weasley_Detectives at Weasley_Detectives - so head on over there to read her amazing Tintin fanfic, 'Tintin and the Seal of Cagliostro': A spate of mysterious high profile robberies by the gentleman thief "Kaitou Red" have captured the public's imagination. Tintin is hot on his trail, but when jewel of the opera, Mademoiselle Castafiore, is kidnapped, the infamous reporter fears he has stumbled upon a far deadlier plot. 

She also has a Tumblr account for the story: https://kaitou-red.tumblr.com (yes, that cover artwork is hers; she's ALSO an awesome artist.) 

Weasley_Detectives has chosen to interview Bee, so without more ado, let's get on with the questions. I've chosen to interview her OC Gideon Stark, and my questions and her answers will appear after Bee.

BEE from Glory Brats

What is your earliest memory?

I don't know how old I am in the memory, but I was still small and weak. I remember hearing the babies crying, and wishing they would stop because I wanted to sleep. So I got out of my bed and went towards the noise, but before I could get there one of the older children tripped me up and pulled my hair. The others joined in, kicking at me on the floor and I could only curl up and wait for them to stop. Eventually one of the wardens came in and pulled them off me. We all got punished though. I can remember thinking it wasn't fair, but then life isn't fair, is it?

Do you have any pet peeves? 

I don't like when people grab me without warning, or push and pull me around. 

If you could have any superpower, what would it be and why?

I'd like to know what other people are thinking, because then I would know how to react to them and how to manipulate them better. And if you can manipulate people then you can get them to leave you alone.

Which member of the Glory Brats are you closest to and why?

Probably Zed, because I met him first. He's quiet and thoughtful. I like being around him because he treats me like a normal person, and focuses on things that I can do, rather than making me feel different just because I can't see.

Do you consider Sparrow a friend?

I wouldn't say we're friends. I think Sparrow is bossy, thoughtless and naive. She only thinks about what she wants to do. I don't even know at this point if we could ever be friends. I don't like her and I don't think she likes me. Not that I care.

How do you think your friends would describe you?

Prickly. Quiet. Blunt.

If you could change one thing about your personality, what would it be? 

I'd like to be able to trust people more. But I know I can't. People are always selfish in the end.

Do you consider yourself a follower or a leader?

I don't like this question! I guess I'm following Sparrow, because I don't want the responsibility of being a leader. Being a leader means people depend on you, and I don't like depending on others, or having others depend on me. But being a follower is a weak position, and I don't see myself as weak. So I suppose if  Sparrow wasn't here I'd be a leader, since no one else could be.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you go and who would you take with you?

I'd go somewhere sunny and dry, because I like feeling the sun on my skin, and I've had enough of being soaked through by the rain. I'd have a house all on one level where nothing would ever change position and I'd be able to find my way around without help. Zed could come with me, if he liked, I suppose.

You and Sparrow are stuck on a desert island together. You discover a pack of creatures who appear to treat you as gods. Do you and Sparrow share power, or do you divide the island into two warring nations?

Stuck with Sparrow?! I might start off by sharing power because I couldn't care less what other people do, as long as they leave me alone, but eventually I'd get so annoyed by her that I'd run off to be on my own, followed by like-minded individuals who'd worship me from a respectful distance. And we'd probably end up fighting over something stupid.

GIDEON STARK from The Seal of Cagliostro

What was your childhood nickname?

I don't believe I could repeat any of them in polite company. In any case, they were less nicknames, more threats of violence from an angry mob.

What would be your food heaven and food hell?

Caviar and cigarettes! As for food hell... Fish head stew. Don't ask.

You're a stylish chap - who are your style icons and why?

Josephine Baker. She's simply marvellous. Do you think I could pull off a leopard?

What makes you get up in the morning?

The call of sowing seeds of chaos wherever I may roam.

We know you're a bit of a gambler, but do you always win? Tell us about a time that you lost a gamble.

Well there was that time in Izmir with Archie, a fine vintage Château Lafite Rothschild, and that damned Sicilian. Oh, and the Goat. *sighs* We.. We don't talk about Izmir.

We all have something we hold dear - what would you consider your most treasured possession?

Tintin. *dreamy sigh* He's such a delightfully trusting plaything...

It's fair to say that you're a hit with the ladies - what do you look for in a woman?

Strawberry blonde hair. Freckles. Honest blue eyes. A sense of adventure. Charming recklessness. A world famous reporter and staunch activist for the common good... *dreamy sigh*

Do you have any bad habits? (Apart from gambling and womanising, we know about those.)

Only espionage, treachery and the intricately detailed planning and execution of 101 notoriously high profile thefts. Ha! I jest, of course. I suppose telling bad jokes would be one of my many bad habits.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

I've always rather fancied donning one of those old German handlebar moustache-beard affairs. Oh you mean about my personality? I suppose I can be a tad too self involved...

What would you consider the lowest depths of misery?

Oh, jolly good question. But what to pick? A comfortable marriage of convenience? Becoming an upstanding member of society? Sobriety? Good god, so many to choose from.

[Glory Brats 27] The house in the valley

They were following the same road that had led them to the trading post, but it curved away to the right and led them through fields on either side that were overgrown and filled with weeds and saplings. The hedgerows curved over the road like a tunnel and protected them from the worst of the rain.

The road sloped down into a small valley, with abandoned houses scattered across the landscape. The hedgerows petered out and were replaced by wood and metal fences that were half sunk into the grass verges as though they were being swallowed by the ground.

One of the houses loomed ahead, and Sparrow looked around at the others following her and relented. 

"Hey," she called out, "We'll shelter in this next house until the rain stops."

[Glory Brats 26] The Trading Post

Sparrow approached the stall with the least amount of people around it. Even so, she had to push her way to the front. The vendor looked down at her.

"Bit late for you to be out, eh?"

Sparrow said nothing, only held up the coins in her hand. The vendor shrugged and waved his ladle over the stall contents.

"What you want? Stew? Noodles? Rice?"

"Rice please. For six."

The customers around laughed. The vendor scowled, "That's six bits - you got that much, kid?"

[Glory Brats 25] Back on the road

They drove all through the morning, only stopping briefly to wolf down some food that Caris and Jem had packed for them. Mattie had a sandwich and some water from a battered metal canister. Then it was back on the road. They were driving along winding roads, with high hedges on either side, the bushes almost forming a tunnel above their heads. Occasionally there would be a gap where they could see overgrown fields of long waving grass, dotted with the last of the summer flowers.

[Glory Brats 24] Preparations for departure

Over the next few days, Zed slowly began to get better. Sparrow began to think about leaving. She packed and re-packed their bags several times, trying to make them as light as possible. Reluctantly, she left out the book of stories that Jem had given her. She'd already read it several times over anyway, sometimes reading aloud to the others before they went to sleep at night, if there was a stub of candle to be spared.

If Caris and Jem noticed her preparations, they said nothing. Although Jem did mention that the weather seemed to be taking a turn for the worse. Sparrow cleaned and checked over their collection of footwear and realised that something needed to be done. Zed couldn't carry on wearing sandals through autumn, and Dee's canvas shoes had holes in. She found some tape to patch the holes, but the sandal problem would need some thought.

[Glory Brats 23] Peppermint and sunglasses

Sparrow wandered off to explore the rest of the market while Caris and Jem were busy haggling over prices with some last minute customers. She turned the coins over in her pocket, wondering what to do with them. All around her, the different sights and smells were vying for her attention. She stopped in front of a stall selling clothes and other things, and picked up some sunglasses. Dee was always complaining about the sunlight hurting his eyes. 

First Mudlark of 2021

 Last week I went out mudlarking for the first time in ages. I have one spot that I go to, near me, that is at the mouth of a river where it meets the sea, and then spots along the beach that I know I regularly find stuff at. Mudlarking, if you don't know what it is, is an obscure sort of hobby where people look for things in mud, or in my case, sand. I think of the things I find as little historical treasures, but I suppose they are essentially the rubbish of history. In some cases, literally, as often collected rubbish was dumped on beaches to be taken away by the sea.

I find old pieces of pottery and china, sea glass, bits of old broken bottles, bottle stoppers (glass and vulcanite) and plastic figurines. I've even found what could possibly be a small stone cannonball, but that's a story for another blogpost.

On this mudlark I found 19 pieces of blue and white pottery, 3 pieces of pink transfer ware, one piece with tiny hand-painted gilt detail, one piece of black transfer ware, one piece of a Staffordshire slipware mixing or kitchen bowl, the handle of a brown teapot, a highly detailed piece of brown pottery that probably came from a teapot, two necks of old bottles with corks still in, the top of a clay ink bottle, a glass bottle fragment with embossing on it, two vulcanite bottle stoppers and one glass bottle stopper.

The slipware fragment is terracotta with a mustard yellow glaze with brown decoration in an elongated wave pattern. I'm very excited by this piece as it's only the second piece of Staffordshire slipware I've found, and is probably mid nineteenth century. 

The vulcanite bottle stoppers are mid twentieth century, and can be dated fairly accurately to that as one is 'war grade' style, with the middle hollowed out to save on rubber, and the other has text on it that allows me to research further. 'Vulcanisation' was a process that hardened the rubber to make it stronger.  These stoppers can often be found with a softer red rubber seal still around them that made the bottle stopper airtight. The second vulcanite stopper I found was marked with 'Wm. Murray & Co. Ltd/Craigmillar/Edinburgh'. A quick internet search later and I discover that William Murray & Co. was a brewing company founded in 1880 and closed in 1963. So my little bottle stopper is nearly 60 years old. My glass bottle stopper will be even older, and would have had a cork seal around the glass.

The glass bottle fragment has '...AYLOR/...ERBALIST/...REET/...K' embossed on the side, which probably was a Herbalist, called Taylor, who worked out of an unknown street, and then the town, which would end in K (either Kilmarnock or Greenock?) but I've been unable to find out anything more. 

[Glory Brats 22] Chickens, and a theft.

"Hey, what do you think this is for?" Dee asked, holding out a strange knife with a large square blade.

"Put it back!" Sparrow hissed as the door from the washroom creaked open.

"That's for chopping off the heads of nosy little chickens..." Caris said, pushing Tekla and Rat in front of her.

Dee's eyes widened and he shoved the knife back into the drawer and slammed it shut. 

"But not actual chickens, right?" Sparrow asked, "Not for killing actual chickens?"

[Glory Brats 21] The Shambles

There were only three of the earthenware cups, so Sparrow dug around in their packs to find the tin mugs and set them out on the table so there was enough for everyone.

"Good." Caris said, setting the third cup in front of Sparrow. It was an earthy brown colour, with a scrawled pattern in red glaze and a red rim. It had no handle, so Sparrow used the ends of her sleeves to hold the hot cup in her hands. The fragrant tea made her feel sleepy, and she wondered if Caris was a witch, like those in the tales her father used to tell her, casting a spell on them all. A nice witch, obviously, but tricksy, like all witches. Sparrow looked at Caris with her black layered dress and wild dark hair pulled back by a flowing red scarf. Caris caught her looking and raised an eyebrow. Sparrow ducked her head over her tea and took a sip. The tea tasted like a summer afternoon, warm and lazy, with a hint of thunder.

[Glory Brats 20] A Gruesome Discovery

The floor of the shed was littered with bones. Human bones. A skull rolled around the wooden boards where it had been knocked by the door opening. Sparrow took another step backwards, dragging Dee with her. They bumped into Jem coming down the garden path. She peered past them into the shed.

"Hmph, thought as much. They must have missed one. Best leave it alone." She stumped back towards the house and they followed her quickly.

[Glory Brats 19] A problem

She started the fire in the ashes of the previous one, and told Dee to get the powdered milk packet from the bags. The hot malty drink had been a staple of school camp suppers, drunk around the evening campfire before the whistle blew for bedtime. Sparrow mixed it up and poured it into one of the few enamel cups. She got Zed propped up against the wall, and pressed the cup into his hand. He shivered, "Sparrow? I don't feel so good..."

[Glory Brats 18] Nightfall and Dinner

By this point, Zed had finished emptying tins into the pan and stirred it all up. He pushed it over to Sparrow who balanced it on top of the embers. Jem reached into her coat and pulled out something. She offered it to Sparrow. "It's not much but we can all have a bite if we roast it over the fire."

Sparrow looked down at the dead thing in horror. She recoiled from it like she had from Rat's dead bird and looked at Jem as if she was mad. "We can't eat that!"

Jem shrugged, "All the more for me then." Watched by the children with half disgust, half fascination, she pulled a blunt looking knife from the inside of her coat and began to skin the rat. It was hard going and  Sparrow offered her sharper knife to do the job instead. Jem nodded her thanks and wiped her own knife on the side of her coat before stashing it away again.

[Glory Brats 17] Firewood

"We need to be quiet!" Sparrow whispered, gripping her knife tighter as her eyes scanned the inside of the building. The roof had collapsed into the middle, leaving space around the edges. Splintered wooden beams and twisted lengths of metal lay scattered on the floor, while other broken pieces of roof hung precariously overhead. Sparrow inched her way around the outside of the room, listening for any noise that might indicate a further collapse. Bee followed slowly, using the wall to guide her, and sliding her staff across the floor to check for anything that might trip her up.

Sparrow darted into the centre of the room, and tugged a length of wood from underneath some shattered plasterboard. The pile in the middle shifted and she jumped back quickly as more plaster and bricks fell to the floor with a crash and a cloud of dust. 

"What was that?" Bee asked, flattening herself against the wall. 

"Just...getting some firewood..." Sparrow replied breathlessly, hugging the piece of wood to her chest.

[Glory Brats 16] On the run again

The first step creaked under her feet and she winced. But no one called up from downstairs so she continued, the others following her to the top of the stairs. The room where they had eaten was in darkness; the only light came from the moonlight shining in through the window. She could hear the others fumbling down the wooden steps as she made her way to the door. The door wasn't locked, and she inched it open to glance up and down the road outside. A small brazier of fire was burning down to embers at the top of the road close to the tower.