Part 1
Once upon a time there was a little boy whose name was Alfred Jones. He lived in the woods in a small house with his mother and father, and he was very happy to be living there. Everyday he would work hard to help his parents. He would fetch water from the well, work in the little garden outside the house, feed the chickens, and even milk the cow. When he was done with is work, Alfred was allowed to go play.
The forest was like a second home to Alfred. He had played init for as long as he could remember. He loved the way the sun filtered down between the branches, painting the whole world with spots of light. He loved the way the old leaves crunched beneath his feet making a noise like the voice of a thousand Autumns passed. He loved the way the birds sand, and the way the wind would blow, and the way that streams would slip silently over rocks off on some endless journey all their own. But of all the things Alfred loved about the forest, he loved the animals most of all.
If he was quiet, which took a great deal of effort, he could see all sorts of creatures. There were squirrels and chipmunks, porcupines and deer. Once when he went home after dark he had even seen a skunk waddling along just a few feet in front of him like a fat old cat. There were rabbits too, and they were Alfred's favorite.
On one particular morning, when Alfred was not making the effort to be quiet he had an unusual encounter. He was tramping through the woods and making up a song about pirates, when he saw a little rabbit struggling on the ground. He approached it cautiously only to discover that its foot was caught in a hunting trap that probably belonged to Alfred's father.
Alfred bent down before the creature unsure if he should help it or not. If his father found out he would be very angry. But it was so small and helpless, and anyway it was too small to make much of a meal. He couldn't just ignore something that was so terribly cute. It was fluffy, with dirty blonde fur, and the biggest green eyes. Alfred hadn't even known that rabbits could have green eyes.
Alfred inched closer, shuffling his feet in the leaves. The rabbit stopped struggling and looked up at him with fear. Alfred smiled at him.
"It's all right, little fella. I'm not gonna hurt you." Alfred reached out his fingers and gently pet the tiny animal's head. He imagined that this was what clouds would feel like if he could ever jump high enough to touch them.
Carefully he undid the trap, the way his father had shown him how. He gently removed the rabbit and snuggled it close to his chest.
"See? You're gonna be alright."
OoOoO
Alfred took the rabbit home and hid it in the bushes where his parents wouldn't find it. He took a strip of cloth from his mother's sewing basket and bound the animal's leg up. He also snuck a carrot from the garden and made sure that the bunny had something to eat.
Alfred took care of the rabbit carefully everyday. He changed its bandage and fed it vegetables. He would sit outside, where his mother couldn't see him from the window, and stroke the rabbit's fur and tell it great stories about knights and kings that he had heard from when he was just a baby. When the air was beginning to get a chill that warned of coming winter, the rabbit's leg healed and it ran away.
Alfred had to remind himself that big boys weren't supposed to cry.
Part 2
The winter was long and hard. The stores of food were beginning to run low by the time that spring began to warm the air again.
Normally Alfred would have run outside to play at the first hint of warmth, but his parents had fallen gravely ill. He tried very hard to take care of them. Whenever they croaked out a request for water he would fetch some from the well. He even tried to make them soup from his mother's old recipe, but they were never hungry enough to eat.
By the time the first spring crocus appeared in the yard, Alfred's parents had passed away.
It would have been terrible to lose his parents in any situation, but it was worse because Alfred was completely alone. Even through his tears he had to take care of himself. There was wood to be cut, food to be found, clothes to be washed, dishes to be cleaned, bread to be made, and animals to be cared for. It was all too much for one small boy all alone in the forest. Every day he felt more and more tired, and every day less and less work got done. Until one day when he simply sat in the doorway of the house and cried. He wished for only just one other person, someone to talk to help him with the work and to be his friend. He only wanted someone to talk to.
Alfred didn't know that a little rabbit, who had come to check up on him, was sitting in a nearby bush.
OoOoO
That night as Alfred tried his best to repair a tear in the knee of his breaches, there came a knock at the door. Alfred had never had a visitor before, and so he was confused as he approached the door.
Standing on his front stoop was another little boy who was wearing a very serious expression and a very silly hat. It looked as though he had placed a large sack over his hair. The hat was tied bellow his chin and was bigger than his head.
The boy cleared his throat meaningfully.
"Uh, hello?" Alfred said, moving his gaze down to the other boy's face. He had very thick eyebrows that lay below a tuft of dirty blonde hair. His eyes were a deep forest green, and he had a tiny pout on his lips.
"How do you do? My name is Arthur. I am here to be of assistance." He stuck out a stiff hand.
Alfred grinned suddenly, as his shock faded and a strong relief from loneliness overcame him. He took the offered hand and shook it enthusiastically.
"I haven't seen another human in a month practically! I've been real lonely. My name is Alfred. It's great to meet ya, Arthur!"
The other boy's face turned red for a second before he pushed passed Alfred and into the house.
"So what needs to be done here?"
"Well, I was trying to fix the hole in my pants but I'm not much for sewin'."
"I'll take care of that, and you can just relax for now. We'll talk until you fall asleep."
And they did talk. Alfred told all about himself, particularly about how lonely he'd been recently. Arthur was a good listener, although he did not volunteer much information about himself. As they spoke, Arthur worked through many of the household chores. He was dusting the mantel when Alfred dropped off to sleep.
Part 3
The next morning Alfred awoke to find himself alone again. He sat up in bed and called out Arthur's name, but there was no response. He ran outside and looked around the premise was empty. There were only a few old rabbit tracks left in the spring mud.
Alfred walked slowly inside with tears running down his face, but then he looked around and took in his surroundings. The house was perfectly clean. Every surface was dusted and every window was cleaned. His mended pants hung over a chair, and there was a plate of burnt scones on the table. They tasted like rocks and Alfred loved them.
That day he went about the daytime work. He covered for cared for the chickens, milked the cow, and worked in the garden. He fixed the fence and even went fishing. That night he had his first substantial meal in a long time.
Just when he had finished eating, there came a knock at the door. Almost not daring to believe it, Alfred ran to the door and swung it open.
"Arthur!" he cried, and he threw his arms about his visitor. The other boy pushed away after a moment, his face red, and mumbled something about almost having his hat knocked off.
"Boy, am I ever glad to se you!" Alfred told him grinning.
That night Alfred rested while Arthur did any available chores. They talked again, this time about their dreams. Alfred said that he wanted to see the whole world. Arthur just wanted to live a peaceful life taking care of the people he loved.
"That's not much of a dream. It's 'sposed to be something that's 'stravagent. Something that's hard to make happen!" Arthur huffed. He went back to churning butter with a vengeance.
Alfred watched him in silence for a moment before saying, quietly, "I'm sorry Artie; it's a beautiful dream."
OoOoO
Arthur was gone the next morning.
But he came back that night.
The pattern continued, until Alfred came to expect it. He would make sure any chores that had to get done during the day were complete and then Arthur would come to do the nighttime chores. He would be there every night on the stoop, looking serious and wearing his silly hat.
The two boys became very close. They would laugh and joke, and tell each other stories while Arthur worked. Sometimes, Alfred would help with the nighttime chores, and the two of them would back together, which generally made the food more tolerable.
On one night, which felt very much like all the others, the boy's were baking bread for the coming week. Alfred was feeling particularly boisterous and had spent the evening teasing Arthur lovingly.
"Stop jumping around, would you?"
"I can't. I'm too happy," Alfred told him. Arthur scrunched up his face disapprovingly, but said nothing. He bent down to put the bread in the pot bellied stove, when Alfred bumped into him causing Arthur's head hit against the edge of oven. He bounced back unhurt, however:
"Your hat's on fire!" Alfred shouted in fear. He reached forward and ripped the hat off his friend's head before hurrying outside to throw it into the well.
"I'm so sorry Artie!" Alfred said rushing back. He stopped in the doorway when he noticed that Arthur had buried his head under the bed.
"Whatcha doin'?" Alfred asked.
"Nothing! Go away! Arthur shouted, his voice high and panicked.
Alfred approached him curiously before bending down and dragging his friend out by the ankles. Arthur looked up in terror. Alfred stared back in disbelief.
Two large floppy rabbit ears fell on either side of his head, framing his face. They were the same color as Arthur's hair and they looked wonderfully soft.
"Golly…" said Alfred. He didn't know what else to say. Arthur burst into tears. He got up off the floor and hurried out the door faster than Alfred could think.
Part 4
Alfred had spent the night wandering the woods in search of his friend, but to no avail. The sun was rising on a warm summery morning, but he still felt cold and desolate without his friend.
Exhausted, Alfred sat down to rest wiping a tear of frustration from his eye. He had lost his only friend in the world, all because he couldn't think of something better to say than 'Golly'.
Suddenly he heard a rustle in the leaves and he turned to see a little rabbit sitting nearby. It was dirty blonde bunny, and Alfred recognized it as his own rescued rabbit from the previous fall.
It looked up at him from its sad green eyes and hopped closer, until it sat just by his leg looking up mournfully at him. Alfred scooped the tiny creature up and held it out in front of him. Suddenly he gasped.
"Arthur?" he whispered in wonder. The rabbit's eyes grew wide and it started to struggle.
"No! Please stay!" Alfred begged and hugged the Arthur-rabbit close. "You're my very best friend. I need you!"
Alfred held the rabbit up and kissed its head gently. Suddenly the rabbit shuddered, it shook, its eyes grew wide and then "POP" Arthur was sitting in Alfred's lap.
He looked at Alfred in surprise before bursting into joyful tears. He hugged Alfred close, and the human boy could feel the soft warm ears of his friend draping over his shoulders like a blanket.
"I wanted to help you," Arthur said through unsteady breaths, "Ever since you saved me, I've wanted to help you. I wished and wished that I could help you and then one night, I turned into a human like this and I knew I'd got my wish, even if it was just for the nighttime."
Alfred stroked his friend's soft ears as he talked, and made soothing noises to calm him.
"But I got greedy, Alfred. I wanted to stay and help you all the time. I thought it could never happen, and I thought if you knew the truth I'd frighten you. But you're so wonderful that you don't mind at all. And now…"
"You got you're wish!" Alfred finished gleefully, flashing an endearing smile at his friend.
"Yes," Arthur murmured, "I got my wish." The rabbitchild stood up and wiped his eyes. He reached out a hand and helped Alfred up, before giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek.
Together they walked home hand in hand, Arthur's ears flopping with each step and Alfred's joyous laughter ringing from tree to tree.