The Second Saga: Part Three

A brief ‘ish note or two on the Weaver Family; Bob and Rob Weaver, husband and wife, are in their thirties and are from the eastern side of Fenland. Both were born in the village of Hamreed-next-the-Water. Married at sixteen, Rob has raised seven children, three pairs of twin boys and one daughter. The eldest boys, both called Bob are now sixteen years old, the daughter is just seven months old. As is the custom in the Weaver family, all the boys are named Bob, after their father, as he was after his and the little girl is named Rob, etc. etc.( I think you get the idea). The Weaver’s are a hard working, honest and close knit bunch, they are as “Mad as a box of Frogs”...but always nice with it. Being from east Fenland the whole family speak with a quite thick Norfolk accent and this makes them hard to understand, even harder than the Tosk’s! Like most Fenlanders, they tend to move around a lot and prefer not to stay in any one place for more than a couple of years, the reason for this behaviour has been lost in the mists on the Fens. It should be noted that the term “Fenner” is considered by them to be a pejorative and they refer to themselves as “The People”. Nina, The Wolf Woman calls herself a “Fenner” but in much the same way as homosexuals refer to themselves as “Queers” but then hate it when anybody else does.

Oggin carefully lifted the gate aside and let himself into the garden, the Donkey lost interest and went back to his food. As Oggin got closer to the house he suddenly noticed two dogs, laying almost hidden in the snow, to one side of the garden, one lifted its head and a moment of panic gripped Oggin’s gut, he didn’t like dogs. The dog, a very scruffy looking mongrel, cocked its head to one side and then lay down again.

“You’m tac no notice a they’s....Ma kicked ‘em out fer fighten’ wiv the boys......they’s feelin’ sorry fer theyselves as now...”

Oggin stepped up onto the veranda to face the man and extended his hand in greeting, Bob took his hand in both of his and shook it vigorously. The grip was firm and the hands were the strong, calloused hands of a working man, used to manual labour. Bob was some six feet tall, with a shock of dark curly hair. His tanned face had a light covering of brown stubble but was open and friendly, with a ready smile and twinkling eyes.

“You’m come in Oggin an’ warm you’sell....fancy a cup a tea....Ma’s all’lays got da kettle on....”

“Thank you Bob....that would be really nice...”

“Muther!.....we got us a visit’er...bring us out a spot a tea will ya....”

Bob motioned Oggin to take a seat at the long three-trestle table in the centre of the room. The former sumptuous decorations were all gone and the thick carpets had been replaced with a scattering of reeds. An enormous pot bellied stove had been placed at the rear of the room and two more moth eaten mongrel dogs were sprawled on the floor in front of it. Although the room had lost all its glitz and glamour, it had gained a homeliness the former never had. From the rear of the room a woman entered, she was a slightly plump but pleasant looking person, dressed in a light blue dress and wearing an apron. Her dark brown hair was held back under a blue head scarf. She too had that same look of open friendliness on her reddened face, she was carrying two big mugs of steaming tea.

“Oggin...this yer is my wife...an’ better ‘alf...Rob.....Rob my dear...this ‘ere is Oggin....’eeiss come to make an’ offer o’ some work fer us’es....”

As Rob placed the mugs on the table, Oggin rose to greet her. She wiped a flour covered hand on her apron and shook Oggin’s warmly, a broad smile on her face.

“Pleased ta meet ya Oggin...now you mind ‘e don’t keep ya gassin’ all day now...’e could tork the bak leg offa donkey an’ then convince it ta tak a walk...”

“Thank you for the warning Rob...and the tea.....but my other half would say the just same about me if she was here...”

With another warm smile, she returned to her cooking and left the two men to talk. Oggin explained about the job, as far as he could and that he wouldn’t ‘call a wage’ on it till he’d actually seen it for himself. He didn’t go into too much detail about Nitaa the Cutter because he still wasn’t sure about her himself. Their conversation rambled on and Bob told him something of his travels and Oggin filled him in on a few details about The Village and That Village. Before they knew it a couple of hours had passed and Oggin said he would return tomorrow afternoon to fix the details. Bob said he would let his boys know when they got home from snow clearing and would look out some tools for them both. With a final shake of hands the two men parted company and Oggin made his way home. The day was closing fast as he got home and the cottage was quiet when he got in, so he called out for Kajoa, she answered that she had gone to bed to avoid the cold and for an early night.

Oggin asked if she’d like some ‘company’....she did.