LilyMoore Louise has her first bell-ringing lesson
RW Abbey: Bell Tower
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The interior of the Bell Tower of Redwall Abbey is cool and
quiet. At least when the bells are not ringing and from inside
the care and workmanship devoted to the rebuilding can easily
be seen. After every forth row of sandstone bricks held in
place by mole made mortar is a row of stout cast iron brackets.
Designed to help support the hollow structure.
The iron work was also carried over into the beautiful wooden
staircase. The steps are made from carved oak planks pinned into
sockets in the wall by iron frames and the bannister has had a
lot of care and attention lavished on it. The hand-rail is oak
to match the steps but the balusters are made from cast iron
moulded into the shape of Mice wearing the robes of the order
of Redwall.
The stair spirals up the length of the tower, a span of at
least two storeys from the ground to the first floor. It is a
simple wooden floor filling the width of the tower and from
here the Bellringers can use the ropes to sound the Matthias
and Methuselah bells.
From the first floor an iron ladder set into the sandstone
wall allows access to the actual Belfry where the bells are
hung. It is possible to climb all the way up to the open canopy
at the top of the building and the huge rafters that support
the twin bells of Redwall Abbey.
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Exits: [Out]side
Contents:
Matthias and Methuselah Bells
Benar the squirrel. LilyMoore the mouse and Butterclaw the Sparra.
Benar is standing in the Belltower, it's a warm early summer day and he is dressed in a light cotton habit and standing near a basket at the centre of the Belltower, one hand idly wrapped around the bell pull of the Matthias bell as he patiently waits for Lily to appear
LilyMoore comes running into the belltower and slides to a stop. "Hi!" she gasps, a little out of breath. "Sorry." A fluttering sound can be heard above, and a male Sparra comes fluttering down and lands beside the mouse, chirruping. "Oh, hi, Butterclaw. Here. Sorry I couldn't get it to you before." the sparrow chirrups and takes the letter, putting it in his bag. "I takefly to Ferravaleplace. Goodhunting!" He bobs a slight bow to the Abbot, then flies off. The mousemaid smiles up at the squirrel. "Sorry."
Benar watches the sparra fly off and then turns back to Lilymoore and smiles "Timeliness is a sign of a good warrior LilyMoore, do try to be on time in the future." he is smiling softly however as he says it, "So according to Lorimis' last wish you are to be taught how to ring my beautiful bells" he places a paw on the rope again, "Do you think you have the discipline, the stamina, the ability to follow instructions to be permitted to ring the Abbey bells?"
LilyMoore winces slightly. Oops. She looks up at the bells thoughtfully, frowning slightly. "Um....I...don't know..." she confesses, looking down at her shoeless feet. She has grown like a weed in the past few weeks, and so her dress is almost too small for her.
Benar chuckles softly, "That is the correct answer, no one should be sure, now the skill of ringing the bells is quite a unique one. You have to have rhythm, strength, and be able to understand the orders the bells themselves are giving you. But first..." he takes a pair of gloves out of the basket, similar to his own, "Try these on."
LilyMoore takes the gloves and puts them on, wriggling her fingers and spreading them wide. "What're these for?" She looks up into his face, then looks at the rope, a thought growing in her mind.
Benar me grins and flexes his fingers then tugs on the bell rope, the rope descends and then he lets it go and Matthias rings! He then grabs the rope and repeats it, letting the coloured hand hold go each time, "They are to protect your hands against the bell rope and as you can see you need to pull..." he tugs down, "Then let go..." he releases
LilyMoore grins as the bell tolls out. "So that way you don't go flying into the air, then crash back to the ground and hurt yourself, right?" She touches the bellrope for the Methuselah bell, slightly awed at the beautiful tones from the other bell.....and that she is training to get the job to make them sing.
Benar says, "Indeed and to stop the bell you can let it ring to a halt which sounds dreadful or." he braces himself and grabs the bell rope and holds on firmly. The rope jerks at his hands but he doesn't go flying up and the bell stops after it's next peal. "And there we have it, simple looking no?"
LilyMoore giggles in a slightly intimidated way. "Just 'cause somethin' looks easy doesn't mean it is." She looks at the bellrope with newfound respect and trepidation. "So....I have to learn how to stop them, too?"
Benar says, "Stopping them comes later for now," he picks up the Methuselah bell rope and holds it out to her, "I want to hear you ring the bell, see how you do.""
LilyMoore stares at the bellrope, her eyes wide. "Um.....okay...." she goes to grab the rope. Copying the squirrel's movements, she goes to pull on the rope and let it go.
Benar watches nodding and steps forward to catch Lily as she mistimes it, her feet lifting off the floor before she can let go, "Remember your size is different to mine, you need to let go at a different moment." he grabs the rope and smiles, "It's all about feeling the rhythm of the bell"
LilyMoore oofs as she leaves the floor. Smiling sheepishly, she stands back and listens to the instructions. "The rhythm of the bell? Oh, you mean watch it's swinging and time it like that, right?"
Benar says, "Oh no, you should never look up, here stand with me" he motions for her to stand before him, "Now hold the rope."
LilyMoore nods and obeys him alacrity. She waits patiently for the next bit of instruction.
Benar says, "Now you have to feel the weight of the bell," he pulls down with her, "Feel it bite... and then bring your arms up and gauge when you need to release it even as you make it chime"
LilyMoore feels the 'bite', as he called it, then lets her arms up and lets go at what she deems to be the best possible moment. She has readied herself just in case she misjudged it again. If she did, she will go rolling safely away, taking the impact on her thighs and shoulder. If she judged correctly, there will be no need for that.
She has indeed judged correctly and the bell peals out, a bit ragged but clear "Note the trick is timing how to grab it, keep the momentum going and then let go again" says Benar.
LilyMoore is smiling with pure joy as she judges, pulls, and releases. She stumbles slightly because she mistimed it slightly, but her happiness is still unbounded.
Benar grins and steps back, "Excellent, keep that up for about ten minutes now." he grins, "That's how long the bells normally ring, we can even do tunes if we want"
LilyMoore smiles brightly as she continues to ring the bell, ignoring her aching muscles and screaming exhaustion in her joy to make such beautiful sounds.
Benar laughs and after a while calls a halt, "That is enough for today Lily, you are doing quite well for a first time."
LilyMoore grins up at the Abbot's face, her arms shaking from the effort. "Really? Thanks!" She rubs her arms with trembling paws, then looks up at him again. "Was Lorimis really, truly proud of me?"
Benar says, "Yes, Lorimis was very proud of you. He said you where learning from the books he had leant you. When you have finished the last book he has another one for you in my care." he grins, "Same time next week for a lesson?""
LilyMoore smiles softly and looks to the floor for a few moments, then she slowly looks up at him and smiles. "Yeah. I think that sounds like a grand plan. Thank you." She impulsively goes to hug him, then turns and runs out the door, waving good-bye. She goes and finds her mother and chatters her ear off for about 10 minutes straight in her excitement.
Benar smiles "Next week we'll continue to practice ringing, once you have the hang of that we wiull move onto music"
Thanks for reading!
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