Sodor Cats Lore #3: Mail.
The Sodor Cats’ Postal System:
Name and concept:
Official name: The Sodor Forest Postal Service.
Motto: “Feelings at the tip of the quill, a message on the wings of the wind.”
Organization:
The pack includes a special group of cats — the Postal Cats. They are not just couriers but a kind of poets and psychologists of the forest. Their main task is not just to deliver a letter but to help those who cannot write to put feelings and thoughts into words.
Hierarchy of Postal Cats:
Apprentices (underage): help with sorting and delivering within the settlement, learn the art of formulating thoughts. Salary: 12 gold.
Novice Postal Cats: take simple orders — short letters and notes. Salary: 42 gold.
Experienced Postal Cats: handle long and emotional messages, can advise clients. Salary: 50 gold.
Professional Postal Cats (word masters): the most respected members of the SFPS. They are entrusted with the most important and delicate letters — declarations of love, farewell words, and official communications between settlements. Salary: 92 gold.
Client visit to the Postal Burrow (the main post office, located in a large natural cave or under the roots of an old oak tree).
Consultation with a Postal Cat: the client explains what they want to convey. The Postal Cat asks leading questions to capture the tone and depth of feelings: “Do you want the recipient to feel your longing? Or to emphasize that you will always be there?”
Message composition: the Postal Cat writes the text on specially prepared bark or dried broad leaves (depending on the importance of the letter), using ink made from berry juice and charcoal.
Decoration: the letter may be adorned with a simple pattern or symbol (a heart, a star, a paw print) that reflects the essence of the message.
Within the settlement: the letter is delivered by the Postal Cat or an apprentice.
To other settlements or distant parts of the forest: a rolled‑up message is attached to the leg of a specially trained postal bird. The birds know the main routes and postal burrows (“stations”) across the forest.
Postal Burrows: main offices where Postal Cats work. Located in natural caves, hollows of huge trees, or under roots. Inside, there are shelves with letters, supplies for writing, and a resting area for birds.
Postal Stations: small shelters along the routes of postal birds. Here, birds can rest and wait out bad weather. Usually, these are niches in rocks or secluded spots in tree crowns, equipped with a roof of leaves and moss.
Signal Trees: tall trees decorated with bright ribbons made of bark or feathers. They serve as landmarks for postal birds, showing where the nearest postal station or burrow is.
Pigeons — for long‑distance routes;
Robins and jays — for short and medium‑distance routes;
Owls — for night mail (a rarity, used only for important messages).
Paper: not used. Instead:
smooth bark of young trees (for important letters);
dried broad leaves (for short notes);
thin slates (for very important and durable messages).
blueberry or blackberry juice (blue/purple);
oak bark decoction (brown);
red raspberry juice (red).
Writing tools: thin sharpened sticks made of hardwood or bird feathers.
Currency: gold — small shiny pieces of pyrite or quartz found in caves and streams.
The First Letter Ceremony: when a kitten writes a letter independently for the first time, they bring it to the Postal Burrow, and a Postal Cat solemnly attaches it to the “Tree of Messages” — an old oak near the entrance of the Burrow. This symbolizes entering adulthood.
Day of Gratitude to Postal Birds: once a season, all settlements hold a festival in honor of pigeons and jays. The birds are treated to the best berries and grains, and their nests are decorated with flowers.
“Silent Message”: if a letter is very personal and confidential, it is sealed with a drop of resin and marked with a special sign — three intersecting lines. No one but the recipient has the right to open it.
Note:
- Inspiration — Violet Evergarden.