The next morning, we are all round Nutsan’s house, he has the manuscript—as he calls it—laid out on the kitchen table. Next to it is the old book, the cover and the title have been burnt away but this has protected the loose manuscript that is inside. This is very fragile, and the edges have crumbled away. He has carefully laid it under a sheet of glass to stop it breaking up any further, it could almost blow away to dust if it was caught in a draught. 

Next to it on the table were all his notes, there are so many, he must have spent hours poring over the fragile paper. How on earth he made head or tail of it, I will never understand. He has managed to work out most of the manuscript, and a little bit of the book. He says it was partly in pictures, very much like the ancient Egyptians used.

“See these big birds drawn here at the top, I never noticed them at first, they look like Ravens to me, and I realise now, that the noise we heard the other day was just like a Ravens warning call. I’ve started looking at the old book that the map was hidden in, and there is a bit about Ravens, it says they are the best guards because they are very clever”.

Up the top of the big oak tree that stands just outside Nutsuns house, Bran and Bronwen, are listening, Bran’s eye sparkles with pride as hears this.

“Do you hear that Bronwen, something like that makes it all worthwhile. The people who wrote that book all those years ago, knew what they were talking about. It makes us proud to be Ravens, why else are Ravens chosen for all the top jobs”. 

Back in the kitchen, Thunder says.

“See, just as Kingy told us, it’s all falling into place”.

This made Wadie laugh.

“You’re not going to tell us the treasure is guarded by blooming birds, are you Thunny”

Wadie is always the one who asks the questions that have no answers, as for me, all I can say is my goose pimples are back again.

Nutsan was one of those boys who may look a bit slow, but he has a far better brain than the rest of us, he has a different way of thinking, it’s quite spooky how he knows the answer in crosswords, when we don’t even understand the questions. He’s reading these old pictures just like reading a book. He looks up, as if he has another surprise for us. Sure enough it certainly is a surprise.

“The book mentions the stones, but nothing about the Abbey, or Stangarthe, it goes back much further than that. There is a lot in the book about this manuscript that I am still unravelling, but unbelievably, what I think is coming out of it all, is that St Anne’s Hill was a giant burial ground going back thousands of years, even before the Egyptians were building the pyramids “.

Wadie laughs again and shakes his head, he thinks this is just too much to believe, but keeps quiet this time.

Goldilocks, who is the quiet one of the gang, says.

“There is a big stone down the bottom of our garden, and it’s got one of those pictures on it, but you can only see the top of it sticking out in Dummies stream”. Wadie sighs.

“I live next door to you Goldie, and I never knew anything about that stone, I bet the picture is just some kids drawing, we all do it don’t we. I think we should have a look at it, just to stop this silly story”.

Wadie is not the only one who knows nothing about this other stone, Bran and Bronwen are very surprised, they follow the boys and if it truly is one of the special stones, they will have to report it to the Conspiracy.

Goldies garden is much longer than Wadies, the stream is dead straight—which is very odd, it usually wanders all over the place, and at the end, where it turns, we see the top of the stone. It is very big, and there, just above the water line is part of a bird’s head carved deeply in the stone. Wadie, for once is speechless. 

We laugh, and start splashing water over him, and it soon becomes a water fight, we are all soaked through in seconds.

I hear a ladies voice, it’s very familiar.

“He’s coming round Effie, sprinkle a little more water on his face, it always works when someone goes under for a few minutes. it’s just the shock of it all“.

“Alan, can you hear me love, yeah there he is, he’s still a bit woozy, don’t you worry Effie my dear, he’ll be alright now”.

I am sitting on the ground in Mrs Salmons garden, mum is looking down at me, she’s smiling and gives me a hug.

I hear a man say.

“You see, he’s just making out he’s hurt, just up to old tricks again”.

He may be right, that was the sort of dream that I have quite often, and it is in some of the fairy tales I tell to everyone, I hope I can go back to dreamland and hear the end so that I can write it down as full story one day.