Home[Cold]Months have past, and a cold November turned into an even colder December. "But still no snow", Leo whispered silently to himself sitting on the Down and gazing into the distance. The trees down the hill were completely wrapped in an icy, fragile curtain, cutting the wind, one could hear up the Hill clearly speaking to one, if only listen to it closely. The time flew by so fast, since he fled from Efrafa and made his way to the Down by pure coincidence. It was so different, like living another life being in their warren. Peacefully, nearly everyone being so kind to him, even tho, he had problems calling it his home. Someone was missing to make this place special for him. Maybe he just needed more time to finally settle down and forget Efrafa including every Owsla, Officer and especially the General. He exhaled and his warm breath crystallized to small clouds, until the wind blew them far away. "Except you."
"What do you see?", asked a soft, heartwarming voice, and a smaller rabbit sat next to Leo. It was Fiver, looking at the grey rabbit next to him with a worried expression in his eyes. Leo smiled, responding his glimpse. Fiver was the only rabbit in this whole small warren, he earned trust to. Not that he just could convince the others, especially Hazel and Bigwig, that he could stay in Watership Down. No, he saw into his heart, and saw the truth. The truth he had been through in Efrafa. The truth, that he really had to flee, and that he was no more welcome there. Never again, as the General decreed to any Owsla that, as soon as Leo was seen, there was the standing command to kill him, immediately. Even tho Leo didn't quite understand how this was possible, how a rabbit, just by touching your chest could see these... things. But he could feel that Fiver saw what he saw, maybe even felt. He felt pure trust as soon as it happened, and the others seemed to deeply respect Fiver's words. Unfortunately, Leo was not allowed to hear it, he was too curious. But he was also kinda afraid of what Fiver knew about him. Everything?
"Just another cold winter's night, Fiver, except... oh it's Frith's Eve", Leos smile broke and he looked back down to the valley. Fiver set up his ears. "I can see your thoughts...", Fiver tried to shove himself into his view, but he was too small for Leo. Though, it was not neccesary. The eyes of the grey widened and he looked back at the foxy rabbit. "Just joking", Fiver grinned. Leo chuckled, giving the buck a small nudge with his paw to his shoulder.
"It's just, you looked so... lost. It's Frith's Eve, no one should be alone on this special night. Is there something you'd like to tell me, Leo?"
For a second, Leo thought about it. But he denied, still being the strong, cold Owsla in his head he was trained to. "Kind of you, but I'm happy as it is.", he lied, not knowing if Fiver knew he wasn't telling the truth, or not.
"Owsla!" A sharp, deep voice cut the dark night that has come over the Down pretty quickly. Bigwig appeared, looking around. "Fiver, Leo! Come on you two! Move your fuzzy butts, it's time for the night-patrol!" Fiver sighed, and Hawkbit came up the warren. "Is this really necessary, Bigwig?", the other grey murmured. He looked like he was just woken up, quite... unfriendly. "Guess the Efrafans can spare a shift this night, don't they?", he looked over to Leo. Leo grinned. "Actually, no, they don't ever spare a patrol, I'm sorry, Hawkbit." He sighed, continueing to murmur something Leo wasn't able to hear as he approached him. Strawberry came up too, followed by Dandelion. "Ready for the night patrol, Sir", he enthusiastically yelled, while they all lined up. An harsh, cold wind rushed through their fur and Hawkbit began to shiver. More intentionally, as it seemed. "Yeah, right for losing my toes, if it gets any colder than this. Let's just move back in and celebrate Frith's Eve, huh." "No one will miss them even tho, when they're for no need, Hawkbit! And now march! Owsla march! Only a safe eve, is a good eve!", Bigwig yelled at the rabbits, drumming on the ground with his hefty hind legs, and they began to run down the hills.
[Uncommon Attack]Wind and cold made it harder than usual to get forward for the group, but they managed to reach the old yew, just as always, and Bigwig let them have a short rest. "Alright, 5 Minutes", he said, "Then we'll split. Dandelion, Hawkbit, to the east, Fiver Leo to the west. And I will check southwards, to see if they're out tonight." He then smiled at the group. "Good work so far, I've thought you wouldn't make it at a night like this, but I'm proud of you Owsla. When we're done, we can have a calm and warm Frith's Eve. You Earned it." Leo rolled with his eyes, even tho he didn't say it, Bigwig didn't even look once at him, as he hold his little festive speech. He was the worst of them all, calling him an 'dirty Efrafan', or unworthy Owsla. Just because Hazel wanted him to join his Owsla, Leo was pretty sure it was not at Bigwig's delight. At all. He felt like a traitor, everytime he spoke with him. And indeed, he didn't trust Leo. Bigwig couldn't say what was worse, the treason to Efrafa, or treason itself. Who could say he would do it again to them?"
Fiver and Leo made it into the forest, as it became nearly pitch black. "Are you still there?", Leo asked quipping, as he could barely see the face of the younger rabbit, with his markings melting together with the dark night. "Guess it's a wonderful ability if you could see now more clearly, eh?" He then stopped, standing on his hind legs, nose in the air. There was something. Common? Uncommon? It was too fast, that he could catch the smell again. "Fiver!", he whispered, trying to make him stop running by putting a paw on his shoulder as he reaches him. "What is it?", the buck asked. Leo looked around, kinda nervously. "Didn't you also smell that?" Fiver rose his nose as well into the air. He became tense. This place was kind of eerie, but he couldn't smell anything. "No. Not really. Hey, are you making jokes of me again?", he grumbled playfully, but Leo shook his head. "No, there was something, something known I'm afraid." "Known as... Efrafan?" Leo looked into the dark in front of them, quickly checking their environment. "Maybe." But there was nothing but pure black, like a menacing void, ready to hunt them down. Here and there Fiver could see some limbs moving, as stick figures, they seemed like approaching them. Suddenly there was a crack, just to the left of them. Immediately both their heads turned into that direction at the same time. "Seperate. Get back to the yew. I will lure it away from us and follow you then." Leo more likely commanded Fiver. "But..." Fiver got interrupted again. "I'm faster", was Leo's short explanation. Another crack, nearer than the one before. "RUN!", Leo yelled, running towards the dark where the sound appeared to come from. He ran as if Inlé himself was chasing him, ready to fight whatever it was making these sounds. But there was nothing he ran into. No rabbit, no Elil, and especially no Owsla, or even Efrafa. Just the cold air brushing his fur as he was running. While that, he completely lost Fiver out of his sight. He kept running, still not sure if he could hear steps like his following him, or just his own blood running through his own ears. He heavily breathed, and the cold ground beneath his paws began to hurt quite a bit, as suddenly - he ran into a bush, and immediately as he stepped out of it, a huge light hit him hard, illuminating the whole environment in a cold but beautiful white, blinding him. It took him some seconds before he could open his eyes completely. It was the moon, high above a huge pond. "Dear Frith...", Leo spoke out loud. It was breathtaking, deeply hidden in the woods, like a shelter in that dark and surreal wood they've been all the time in. He stepped closer to the water, approaching the mirroring surface with his face. He could see himself, just as another rabbit could see him. Never has Leo seen water that clean and shiny. He was amazed at how nearly no sound was audible around him. The trees around the pond seemed to seal anything else off this place.
"Didn't they teach you that it's dangerous wandering all alone in the dark?" A deep voice sounded from the back. He turned around, trying to recognize it. The former Efrafan could clearly say he has heard this voice before, but the wind might distort his senses. "Who's there?", Leo yelled. "Step out of the dark!", his voice became louder. Nothing but silence. Leo grumbled. Was someone trying to hoax him? "Leo~", the voice clung right next to him. He startled up onto his hind legs, and his eyes grew wide, as he could see a brown-blackish rabbit standing just a few inches apart of him now. It took him some moments, as he couldn't believe what he was seeing. "Hawk?", he asked, although he knew the truth. The sinister black of this buck's fur he once lost himself in was standing there in front of him. An Efrafan officer, who commited treason just to bring him out of that hell of a warren, before it got too dangerous to stay. "Dear Frith I never would've thought I would..." "See me again?", the Owsla cut his sentence and looked with empty eyes at the grey buck in front of him, as if he couldn't believe it either. There they stood for quite a few seconds, motionless. Then, slowly, Leo rose one paw, reaching out for Hawks to touch it. "You saved me.", the former Efrafan whispered. Hawk looked at Leo's paw, questioning himself for a few seconds, but then remembering their time in Efrafa. All that time, all bad, but even more the good things that happened after their... rough start. He smiled and now touched Leo's paw as well, looking him right in the eye. "I've missed you", Leo said. "Couldn't you try to scare me earlier again?", he chuckled. Hawk grumbled playfully, "Not until all traces have been erased. It was pretty hard to get rid of my patrol, Greyish. Also I had to make sure it was you, I was following since you stepped into this forest." Leo grinned, until he pulled the officer a bit closer to him, their noses touching each others. He purred, and as strange as it sounded, his heart made a jump, feeling a little bit of home again, as Hawk rose another paw, touching his chest softly. The Owsla ran his nose through Leo's fur. "Funny. You smell like them, an Outsider", Hawk whispered. "Free?", Leo asked softly. After a few seconds, Hawk nodded, "Free."
"So glad you heeded my counsel, and headed westward. I mean, I wasn't sure they were there, but I was always assuming it, as all incidents came from there."
Leo closed his eyes and rubbed his neck along the Owslas. "That's how you saved me, otherwise I don't know what might have happened." He wish he could stay here with him forever. Time would stop, and there would be just Leo and him, being at this paradise of a night. He felt a strange warmth inside of his chest. He was wondering if this was the spirit of Frith's Eve, Pipkin was all about the last days?
Suddenly there was something cold. Something wet. Leo opened his eyes and saw a snowflake that landed between both of their heads right on their noses. As he looked around him, he couldn't believe what happened. It started to snow, heavily. The white splendour coming from up their heads started to coat their whole environment into a deep white, only the stars beyond the pond protruding, flickering like candles in the black of the sky. Within these few seconds it just must have started. "Hawk, look", he said, raising his eyes. "It's Frith's Eve", Hawk said. "Once a year, a rabbit has a wish, don't they say?" Hawk asked looking over Leo's childish face, visibly enjoying the falling snow. He was happy to see him this way. Never has he seen him like this at least in Efrafa. The Greyish looked him deeply into the eyes. "There is only one wish, but I'm afraid to ask for it."
"You want to go with him, don't you?" Another rabbit came through the same bush that Leo once stumbled through. Fiver appeared right in front of the two lovers. Leo immediately took a few steps aside, loosing the closeness to Hawk. "You must be Hawk", Fiver just said, as if he had known him already for quite some time. "Leo?", the officer asked confused. The stranger didn't look dangerous, but how did he know his name? "Don't worry", Fiver said before the Grey could answer and stepped up to them. "I'm Fiver", he introduced himself and smiled at the Efrafan like an old friend. "He's their seer", Leo said. "He convinced the others to let me stay, otherwise they would've imprisoned me - just like an Efrafan."
"I've seen it. I've seen everything", Fiver began, "Everything you did to him." Hawk's ears dropped. "But also what you did for him. I also saw you, Hawk, who you were, are and could be." Fiver smiled, "And I can now see, that you'd like to join Leo, don't you? Come with him, to our Warren. To Watership Down." Normally Fiver should've been afraid of that idea. Another Efrafan to their warren? That's more than redicilous. But nobody can tell what and how he saw his things.
The Efrafan silenced, not daring to speak the truth. Leo looked at him, smiling. "And now you know my wish for Frith's Eve", Leo whispered. Hawk remained silent, as the snow became more to a storm now. The fur of the bucks coated in a slight white tone. "They're right to fear you in Efrafa, Fiver. Knowing the truth might be the most important weapon in times like these. Yes, you speak true, but I know, that this isn't possible." "How so?", Fiver asked, kind of naive nearly. Hawk, quite confused about this question, started to wondering himelf. "Why shouldn't you too left Efrafa and leave their warren and start another life. With Leo by your side. And why shouldn't this place be Watership Down? Everyone is welcome here, who is not up to any evil." Even without using his special ability, Fiver knew that both, Leo and Hawk's most desire was what he has just spoken out loudly now.
[Frith's Eve]"It's Frith's Eve", Fiver said. "Frith's Eve~", Leo answered and took a few steps towards Hazels little brother. He looked over his back, giving Hawk a glance to signalize him to follow. Nothing more he'd like to spend the night with him in a cozy warm warren. Especially now, as the snow gets through his fur, and making him start to freeze. A felt eternity, and Hawk nodded. After all the time as an Owsla officer of Efrafa, he knew what was upon him. But this was strange. He moved towards the two and the group slowly startet its way back through the forest, to get to Bigwig and the others, yet waiting for them.
"Tho, you have any idea how to convince Bigwig?", Leo asked while running with Fiver. "The Truth?"
Again he was not allowed to stay with Bigwig and Fiver, as they were discussing what to do with Hawk, as they finally arrived the yew again. One could clearly say, Bigwigs expressions were clearly saying 'Are you mad?!" at Fiver. But as time passed, and it became more urgent to finally get home into the warm, the expression of the Owsla Captain became gentle. Kind of compassionate? Leo wish he could know what they were talking. Hawk was leaning towards him, as they were sitting next to each other under the yew. "Now I understand, that's Bigwig, eh? Name says it all." Hawkbit suddenly began to laugh loudly to Hawk's comment and was immediately silenced by Bigwig again, "Hawkbit!" "Better a whole Hawk, than just a bit", Leo whispered and the Officer smirked as well, while Hawkbit was pouting.
Fiver and Bigwig came back to the others. Bigwig looked deep into Hawk's eyes. They both were face to face, standing in front of each other, while not saying any word. The harsh wind brushed their fur, and the snow danced around their heads like wild. Hawk smiled, hoping to relax the situation a bit. Then something happened, Leo didn't expect at all. The Owsla Captain smiled as well, nodding. "You can come with us, for today. Tomorrow we'll have a lot to speak about." Hawk and Leo instantly smiled. "Thanks, you won't regret it", Hawk bowed slightly. "Now lets get back to the Down, before we're freezing."
Finally, in the middle of this cold winters night, they arrived back home, and as soon as they came into the cozy warmth of the honeycomb, Leo understood why they called it their home. For the first time ever, passing the entrance together with Hawk, he also felt like it was his home. Okay, not yet completely. But it could become. He smiled at a few kittens playing tag, their laughter, filling the burrow with joy and love, it was kinda contagious, as Pipkin took a bit of snow into his face, while Leo was shaking it off his fur while screaming "Yay, it's even snowing inside now!" The others explained everything to Hazel, while Leo and Hawk settled down in a bit of distance to the kittens. Hawk was fascinated, and could understand why Watership Down fought so hard in the past for their freedom. Deep in his heart he always might have, but now for sure. It was Love. He then saw the piles of Flayrah, the rabbits have gathered for this night. In Efrafa, there wasn't anything like Frith's Eve at all. "Frith's Eve... I wonder how long it's been, since I've celebrated this. Gathering food, and having a nice evening with our beloved ones", Hawk asked himself. "Leo smiled at him and snuggled up to him softly. "You know, they just don't celebrate it among rabbits, all animals of the fields are invited tonight, that's why we collected all these gifts the last days. It was quite of a work, you know?" The Greyish looked over to the others, still talking. He was wondering what for Frith's sake Fiver was telling them. Tomorrow they would surely have a lot of questions to Hawk, just as to him earlier this year. But today was today. Leo thought he should really thank Fiver for this opportunity later. In a shadow of a war like this, can love shine. But he better wouldn't risk anything yet, so he first checked no one was looking at them. "But do you know what is the best?" Leo came closer to Hawk's face. "Among all those gifts we've gathered for this night, the best one just came to me all by itself." He gave Hawk a small lick.
Topic: Writing event #2: Christmas (Read 2078 times)