gertrude - 6. the message of the woman in blue

by denise de santos

illustrated by danny delacroix and eddie el greco

editorial consultant: Prof. Dan Leo

click here for previous chapter of gertrude

click here to begin gertrude

click here to begin the 14th princess

“you are damned,” the woman in blue repeated to gertrude, “i suppose you are going to tell me you do not know what that means.” “that is right,” gertrude replied. “what is right?” “you are right that i do not know what you are talking about.” the young woman’s eyes narrowed. “and i suppose you do not know what it means to be saved, either.” “i know what it is means to be saved,” gertrude told her. “and what does it mean?” “it means - if a sheep is wandering away, or looks like it is going to step over a ridge or somewhere it should not, you stop it .” “ha, ha! so it is only sheep who need to be saved?” gertrude considered this. “i have never seen a person needing to be saved, but i suppose one could be.” “what a ninny! do you know nothing but sheep?” “no. sheep is what i know.” “that is about to change, “ the young woman told her. gertrude did not know what to say. she remained silent. the bright light in which the young woman in blue had appeared had now faded. but gertrude’s eyes had adjusted to the darkness. gertrude stole another look at denise. she still appeared sound asleep. “don’t look at her,” the woman told her, but in a softer voice than before. “go and look out the door.” gertrude hesitated, but did as she was bade. the woman in blue seemed to drift rather than step away to let her pass. gertrude pushed at the door. it opened easily. the rain had stopped, but it was very dark. there was something in front of gertrude’s feet and she almost stepped on it. it was the dog denise had obtained for her - she had forgotten all about it. the dog opened its eyes and looked at gertrude and made one little yip, but did not move. gertrude stepped over at it. she could feel the young woman in blue following her. she took a few steps down the path toward the pen where the sheep had been placed for the night. it was very dark, and she could not see them. or hear them. she moved further down the path. she still could not see the sheep. they were gone! with all the things that had happened to gertrude the previous day and now at night, this was the first one that shocked her. she whirled on the young woman in blue. “the sheep are gone!” the young woman smiled. “yes, they are.” “but - but - where are they? who has taken them. are they all right?” “yes, yes, they are all right. they will be well taken care of.” gertrude had never been so confused, not even by the visions of the “saint” and the “angel”. “but what am i to do? where am i to go? should i go back to the mountain - without my sheep?” “no,” replied the young woman, “you will not go back to the mountain. when dawn comes, you will begin a journey. a long journey.” “by myself?” “no, denise will go with you. and the dog. denise is an even greater sinner than you, and more in need of the journey.” “and the dog - is it a sinner too?” “no, the dog is not a sinner,” the young woman answered, with a slight trace of exasperation. “it is just a dog.” gertrude ran past the young woman back to the hut. the dog was awake and looked up at her but made no sound. gertrude looked into the hut. denise was, or seemed to be, still sound asleep. “why does she not wake?” gertrude cried. “are you sure she is not dead?” “no.” the young woman was right behind her. “she is not dead. she is receiving the same message from me that you are. to her, it is you who are asleep.” gertrude stood in the doorway, bewildered, looking at denise and then back at the young woman, who seemed to be fading into the night. “do you have any questions?” the young woman asked. “yes. where are we going, on this journey?” “south. just go south.” the young woman disappeared. gertrude sat up in the bed. she could see daylight under the door. she remembered everything that had happened and everything the young woman in blue had said. she stepped over denise and went outside. the day was bright and the sky was blue. the little dog was awake and sniffing around the walls of the hut. gertrude ran down the path to the pen. the sheep were gone. to be continued

gertrude - 5. the woman in the blue dress

by dorine de santos

illustrated by eddie el greco and danny delacroix

editorial consultant: Prof. Dan Leo

click here to begin gertrude

click here for previous episode of gertrude

click here to begin the 14th princess

the mountain had turned upside down in the rain, like a branch floating in a swollen stream, and gertrude was walking through the clouds with her favorite sheep, the one which had been carried off by a wolf the previous winter. the old woman was a rock and was waiting for her on the other side of the mountain. the rain was not getting them wet, but they had to stay on the clouds to keep it from doing so. suddenly the sheep turned into a gray cat and the clouds disappeared. saint james and the archangel and a third person - a young woman in a long blue dress - appeared out of the rain. saint james pointed to gertrude and the other two laughed. gertrude woke up. she immediately forgot the dream, as she always did. nor did she wonder "was it a dream?" she never did. something was pressed up against her - not a sheep or a dog. it was dark - pitch dark. she was in a hut, and could hear a very light rain beating on the roof of the hut. she remembered she had accepted the offer of denise, the sheep-shearing girl, to spend the night in her hut. it was denise who was pressed up against her, with her left arm across gertrude's back. they were both lying on a straw pallet in the middle of the hut. there were no windows in the hut, and only one door, which must have been shut tightly as no light was coming in from the edges of it. gertrude gently pushed denise's arm off of herself, and sat up in the darkness. she had never slept so close to another person, when the old woman was alive they would sometime sleep together in the hut on winter nights but with gertrude in a corner and the old woman in front of the door. she remembered denise giving her some food on a plate and herself eating more than she had ever eaten at one time in her life before. and denise laughing at her because she ate so little. and denise had given her a little cup of what she called wine. gertrude had heard of wine before, but had never tasted it. she remembered denise talking. and talking and talking and talking. and then something else had happened. she could not remember exactly what. gertrude either remembered things or she did not. denise had kissed her a couple of times, she remembered that much. something strange had happened. life was strange - gertrude accepted that. but what had happened, whatever it was, was really strange. stranger than the old woman dying. or her favorite sheep being carried off by the wolf. stranger than meeting st james, or the archangel. suddenly the room was filled with bright light. gertrude was blinded, and threw her hands up in front of her face. when she was able to adjust her eyes to the light and lower her hands she saw someone standing before her. for a second she thought it must be denise, but then she saw it was the young woman with the blue dress from the dream, who had laughed when st james had pointed to gertrude. denise had not awakened. this frightened gertrude, much more than the appearance of the young woman in blue. was she dead? gertrude reached back and touched denise's arm. "why are you touching her?" the young woman asked her in a sharp voice - the sharpest and clearest voice gertrude had ever heard. gertrude stared up at her. "i wanted to see if she was alive." "she is alive. do not worry about her. pay attention to me." "who are you?" "you do not know who i am?" "no." the young woman laughed. "so what they told me was true. but you do know, do you not, that you are wicked?" "no, i do not. i do not know what that means." "it means that you are damned." gertrude did not know what that meant either. she looked back at denise again. how could she not wake up? "i told you to look at me, not her." *** dorine put her pencil down. she was well ahead of schedule, so she felt no pressure to keep on. but she did not feel like continuing. it was late. she knew she was not going to get to sleep. she got up and went to the window and looked out into the darkness. "anything out there?" marisa, lying on the bed, asked. dorine could never tell if marisa was trying to be humorous. "no," dorine answered seriously. "i just wish i had asked to go out when i had the chance today." marisa had become her regular night guard. she and dorine did not have a lot to say to each other. she was one of the youngest guards and claimed she had never been away from the village. and did not show any great interest in the world beyond it. but she was cheerful enough, and dorine usually let her make herself comfortable in the room instead of having to sit outside in the corridor. "i don't see why we can't be let out for walks when it is dark," dorine said. "how is it that different from the daylight? where are we going to go?" "i told you before, sugar plum, take it up with prue. i can't help you." "i already did." "oh?" "she wasn't very receptive." marisa laughed. "i can just picture one of you getting lost or running off and the whole staff running around in the dark trying to find you. prue would love that." "i wonder if miss prue could even make the decision herself to change the rule." "i don't know. i can't help you there either." marisa sat up on the bed. "you want to sleep?" "no, not for a while." "you want the bed?" "no thanks. i'll let you know if i do." dorine continued to look out the window. dorine liked marisa but was frustrated by her imperturbability. she wanted to draw her out, try to get a hint - just the barest, tiniest hint - that she might be receptive to helping her, not necessarily to escape, but to bend the rules in little ways that might lead to something that might lead to something… almost three weeks had gone by. three weeks! dorine felt that she was getting nowhere, either with the staff or the other girls. but she was resolved not to give up. 6. the message of the woman in blue

gertrude - 4. witches and friends

by dorine de santos

illustrated by rhoda penmarq and roy dismas

editorial consultant: Prof. Dan Leo

click here to begin gertrude

click here to begin the 14th princess

the sky grew darker but the rain held off. gertrude and denise continued to shear the sheep. denise gradually grew quieter as gertrude made few replies except nods and grunts to her flow of talk. they were almost done. denise stopped and stared at the methodically working gertrude. "well, i must say you do an excellent job. fast, and right down to the hide too! and look how quiet they hold for you! how you do it?" "they are my sheep." "yes." "they are used to me." "i suppose so. but - ha, ha! if sister louise saw you she would say you were bewitching them! what do you think of that?" "i am not a witch." "oh, i should hope not! but at least you know what a witch is, eh? i half expected you to say you did not know what a witch is. that is your answer to half the things i say to you, ha ha." "i know what a witch is." "who told you what a witch was?" "the old woman talked about witches sometimes." "oh, she did, did she! i do not suppose she was a witch herself, was she? ha, ha!" gertrude thought a bit before answering. "she was not a witch." "oh? how do you know? that is what sister louise or brother august would ask you." "she could not do anything," gertrude answered. "she could not do anything?" "she could not do anything witch-like. she could not stop or start the rain or the sun. or make the grass grow faster." "hmm. did the sheep always obey her? did she have a way with the sheep?" "she was a shepherdess." "ha, ha! you do not have to make a face at me! i am only telling you what sister louise or brother august would say." gertrude scowled and did not answer. "ha, ha. well, that is enough about that, if it makes you make faces. look here, we are almost done, are we not. i see that you are done, and i only have to finish this fellow." gertrude put her shears down and began picking up the wool from her last sheep and stuffing it in a bag. "do you know what?" denise asked. "what?" "you are a funny little thing, even though you are a terrible heathen. and do you know what else?" "what?" "i like you." gertrude just grunted. "do you want to be my friend?" "what is a friend?" "ha, ha! there you go again. so you do not know what a friend is?" "no." "a friend is someone one likes to talk to, and just be around. what do you think of that?" gertrude thought before answering. "but i am up on the mountain, and you are down here." "yes, but not all the time! i could visit you, and you could visit me some time. when we are not terribly busy." "mmm." gertrude looked up at the sky, which was now almost completely dark. denise finished with her last sheep, and began putting its wool in a bag. gertrude started to help her. "you see! you help me without even being asked. the lout of a boy never does. i have to tell him to do everything. and kick him most of the time too. so you are half way to being my friend already." gertrude just nodded. "look here. look how dark it is. and the rain will not hold off forever. stay here with me and you can go back up the mountain in the morning. my hut is right over there - see it - and you will be nice and warm. and that worthless rascal caesar is not back with the dog yet. " denise sighed . "i will have to go looking for him, and who knows how long that will take. you do not want to leave without the dog - after driving such a hard bargain to get him, ha ha!" gertrude looked at the hut denise had indicated and stared at it. "what about the sheep?" "they can stay right here in this pen. they will get a nice rest after being shorn." "i only brought a little piece of bread, and i have eaten it already." "silly! you will be my guest and i will give you something to eat. there you go making a face again ! you do not know what a guest is, do you?" "no." "ha ha! you have so much to learn. i know we are going to be good friends - like sisters. even sister louise could not object." denise put her arm around gertrude's shoulder. "here, let me give you a kiss." gertrude was startled. she rubbed her cheek where denise had kissed it. "ha, ha! that was very rude! here, i will kiss you again - don't rub it this time." denise kissed her again, a little harder. gertrude refrained from rubbing her cheek again, and denise let her go. "come", denise cried happily, "let us gather up these bags and bring them over to the hut. no, we do not have to take them all at once. take three or four and we will come back for the others - and for the shears too, so they will not be out in the rain. and then you can rest while i go find caesar and the dog. when i come back we can eat and then we can have a jolly time talking." denise gathered two bags in each hand, shouldered aside the gate of the pen and set off for the hut. gertrude took four bags herself, a little awkwardly as her hands were smaller, and followed her. it was now completely dark. gertrude felt bewildered, and tired. she had never spent a night off the mountain before. suddenly the sky cleared a little, and a bright star appeared in the sky. both girls stopped and looked at it. "look, " shouted denise, "a lucky star. what a good omen! oh, how jolly!" gertrude followed her down the road to the hut. she glanced back at the sheep, but they were quiet enough. 5. the woman in the blue dress

gertrude - 3. denise

by dorine de santos

illustrated by rhoda penmarq and roy dismas

editorial consultant: Prof. Dan Leo

click here to begin gertrude

click here to begin the 14th princess

time passed. days and nights. on some days it rained. on others the sun shone, but never too brightly. gertrude took her sheep to market when it was time. the old woman who had sheared her sheep was no longer at the shearing station. a younger woman had taken her place. she looked at gertrude with suspicion. "don't come down here too often, do you? mother anna has been gone for a goodly time, almost a year. i have never seen you before." "i come down when it is time." "i guess you do. this is not the best looking batch of sheep i have seen this week. but not the worst either. " the young woman looked sharply at gertrude. "you missed your chance. the lord sent his man over here not so long ago, buying up sheep for a great feast. you could have got a good price for some of these beauties then. too bad you missed it." gertrude stared at the young woman. "but if i sold a sheep for a feast, then it could not give wool for next year, could it? " the young woman laughed. "what an attitude! have you not had new lambs this year? new sheep for new wool? well, not so many, by the looks of this group. but , you have to look for opportunities when they arise, eh?" gertrude did not quite grasp the young woman's meaning, and smiled politely. "look here, you have not asked me what happened to mother anna, where she has gone." "if you want to tell me, you may." "she went to her eternal reward. do you know what that means?" gertrude thought for a little while. "do you mean she died?" "yes, she died - and her soul was taken by our lord and the blessed virgin to heaven - because she was one of the faithful." gertrude remembered her encounters with the saint and with the archangel. some of the words the young woman was using were familiar. but she was not sure of their meaning, so she remained silent. "but you are not a member of the faithful, are you? i have never seen you at congregation. unless you belong to another congregation, on the other side of the hill?" "no, " gertrude replied. "i do not." "who do you talk to, then, when you do not come down to the village?" "to the sheep. and to the sky, and the clouds, and the rain and the grass." "what a heathen!" cried the girl. " look at you - you dress in a sack, not even a ribbon in your hair - and even so, you are a heathen, with no hope or faith. do you not feel alone up there, in the wind and rain and fog?" "no, i have the sheep. and i like the wind and the rain, as long as they are not too strong." "ha! well - to business. i can give you five coins for the wool on these beasts. will that suit you?" "mother anna would have given me six," gertrude replied. "why not shear them first, see what you get? they have nice thick wool, thicker than it looks. " "are you a trickster, little heathen? do you think you can play your tricks on me? ha ha!" the girl laughed good-naturedly. "i am an older hand than you might think, and did not roll down the mountainside yesterday. i think i am being generous with five - i only offer you five that we can get off to a good start, eh?" gertrude stared at her uncertainly. "look here, do you have a dog? i see you did not bring one with you." "not any more. the old woman had one. he ran away when she died." "i see. would you like one? i can put you in the way of one. so i will give you five coins and a dog. surely you could use one." "perhaps." "she is not full grown, but she is not a puppy either. you will have to train her yourself to look after the sheep - can you do that?" "i can do that." "very well, then. is it a bargain?" gertrude hesitated. "yes, it is a bargain." "good! i will get the dog after i shear our friends here. i suppose you want your coins now, eh, so you can get to the market? as you only come down here once a year." "i can help you with the shearing if you have an extra pair of shears. it will make all go faster. i used to help the old woman." "why, that is excellent. i am sure you will do better than my usual assistant." the girl looked at an inert lump on the ground about six yards away that gertrude had thought a pile of rags. "caesar! get up, i know you are not sleeping." she went over and kicked the lump, hard, and it turned into a big-boned lad of about thirteen years, who sat up bleary-eyed but without protesting, and gawked at the girl and gertrude. "go find merlin and get one of those dogs he is giving away. get the half-grown female one he told me i could have. and give me your shears." "yes, mistress," the lad answered in a sarcastic drawl. he glanced again at gertrude, with a trace of a leer. then he pulled a pair of shears from under the rags he had been lying on and handed them to the girl. after a tremendous face-splitting yawn he got up and moved away toward the center of the market. "a worthless rascal," noted the girl, "but what can i do? i can find none better. many of the sturdier lads are moving away from the village, enlisting in this lord's army and that. some of the sharper lads are taking up preaching the gospel." gertrude accepted these confidences with her usual imperturbability. the girl handed her the shears. they looked a little rusty. "he doesn't keep them in the best condition, does he? but what can i do? he is getting almost too big to beat, and then i do not know what i shall do." "these are good enough," gertrude replied. "let us get to work then. my name is denise, by the way. what is yours?" "gertrude." "well, gertrude, let us make quick work here, and you can get back up to your mountaintop in time for some good wind and rain - as that is your pleasure." gertrude looked up at the sky. it was indeed getting dark. denise continued to chatter as they set to work on the sheep.

4. witches and friends