This is my first fanfic. So keep that in mind when reading it, hence I may make some mistakes.
We all enjoyed Watership Down the TV version. Most of us. However I felt slightly let down at Season 3. There wasn't anything severely wrong but compared to the other two it felt really rushed and at the very least left a feeling of emptiness. So this is my version which takes place a couple of days after the finale of Season 2, so sit back and enjoy.
Previously on Watership Down.
"A warning comes from the lonely and brave!" cried Fiver, quite unaware of anyone around him "The one who shall save us is the one we can't save!"
...
"We have a secret ally inside Efrafa" said Hazel to the onlookers. Bigwig nodded "Captain Campion.
...
"Campion this is Blackberry our digging genius" said Hazel, pretending not to notice the look in her eyes. "I've heard stories of your courage, Captain Campion" smiled Blackberry"It's a privilage to meet you at last"
Primrose and Bigwig shared a look which said to one another she's in love. "The honour is all mine Blackberry" said Campion, clearly smitten.
...
"And so it ends Bigwig" Woundwort proclaimed, with his paw raised to deliver the killing blow. But then a flash of brown knocked into him, sending him back into the cavern wall. "Campion!" exclaimed Woundwort. "Forgive me General" Campion told him with a catch in his voice. And then: the boulder wobbled and started to fall "Nooooo" Campion shouted, shoving Woundwort out of the path of the boulder. And as the cavern collapsed around him, Campion spared one last look at Blackberry, who's eye's filled with tears as the brave Owlsa captain was buried beneath a ton of rock. "Campion!" she cried as Woundwort stared then turned away...
...
She woke up with a start. She was in her burrow. Surrounded by some pieces of Clover and Flayrah Primrose had given her, Blackberry looked at the wall, Campion was still in her mind.
Ever since the Tunnel had collapsed she had had those dreams, dreams that had told her it was her fault. It had been her plan to bring the rocks down to collapse the tunnel, that had led to Campion getting...
No she wasn't going to think about it, she had tried all night, digging away at the stone face with determination, until Primrose had pointed out gently that there was no point. Blackberry had collapsed into cries of emotional pain. Primrose had helped her back to her burrow and had spent most of the night trying to talk to her. Blackberry had needed some time alone and Primrose had respected her wishes and left her alone. Now she had her privacy she could think...
...
"...And furthermore Hazel, unless we start to crack down on our Owlsa, We'll be toast. Dandelion and Strawberry wouldn't be able to hurt a mole, Captain Broom is really to old to do any major harm and as for Hawkbit..." Bigwig trailed off complaining about his Owlsa as he noticed Hazel staring far out across the downs. "Hazel?" No reply. "Right, then Hazel, wake up" waving his paw across Hazels face. Hazel started "Of course Bigwig, excellent idea about asking Buttercup to join us.
Bigwig looked at him "Hazel, that was 7 minutes ago, I've just finished giving you a detailed report about why Hawkbit and Dandelion need more training and you haven't been listening!" "No, and I'm sorry Bigwig, but all I can think about is Campion and Blackberry."
Dandelion was just ending a story, as he overheard Hazel "How is she? he asked. Although not a lot of rabbits knew this, Dandelion had been good friends growing up with Blackberry before working with Hawkbit. He still had a few repressed feelings for her and he was worried.
Hazel sighed "She's eating, which is an improvement" Hawkbit, idly walking by, could not help making a comment "She's mourning for a buck who only knew her and vice versa for about 1 minute?"
Bigwig spun round and growled at Hawkbit, who lept back in fright. "Can't you be a little bit more tactful? She saw him die in front of her! Can you imagine what it must be like for her!"
"STOP!" the sound of Hazel yelling was enough to make all three rabbits look at him "It will not help us fighting like this" Hazel continued more controlled "Woundwort could sneak in here and kill us all while we all bicker" Hawkbut looked abashed and muttered a half hearted "sorry" before running along with Dandelion to the enterance of the warren.
...
Meanwhile Blackberry was thinking, why was it she had fallen in love with Campion so quickly? Was it because he was brave? Was it because she had heard so much about him? It was all of these things but Blackberry had one other reason in her mind. He loved her back, and if he did she would have been proud to be the mother of his kittens. Suddenly a memory flashed in her mind, a memory which she had tried to block out. The reason why she was so desperate to have kittens with Campion...
...
(Authors note, this now takes place at Sandleford just a few days before the journey to Watership Down.)
Blackberry was cold, very cold. And the pain. Unimaginable to any rabbit not with kittens. Where were they? Surely they had heard her cries. "Nightshade?" she called out for her mate. Her father had pressured her into mating with him, so she didn't love him, but any comfort over no comfort. "Mother? Father?"
"Ohhhhhhh... ow" the pain was growing horrendous now, she started to scream begging for it to stop. The pain grew and grew until finally she blacked out...
When she woke up, it was over. She saw her kittens, near her body. Blackberry gave a great big sigh of relief and lay down by her kittens listening for their breath and heart beats.
There wasn't any noise.
She lept up, nuzzling them gently. "Don't... Don't go! Please!" It was too late. They had been born dead. She sobbed and then started crying uncontrollably. She was crying for herself a bit, but mostly she was crying for those lives the kittens, her kittens, would never have...
...
Blackberry' stopped the memory of what happened there. She already knew what happened next. She had absorbed them and had gone out for a breath of fresh air. The next day Fiver's vision had happened and she had made her plan. She came along with them, because she believed, because she knew Fiver, but mostly to get away from the warren that had ruined her. She had blanked out the memory's straight after the event. And there they had stayed until she had seen the accident: the Trauma reawakening the memory.
She let out a deep breath. It was time to move on
Turning out of her burrow, she remembered Hazels word whenever someone asked him what they would do next after a crisis. "What our ancestors did before us. We go on."
On her way up she passed Blackaver who looked at her curiously "Are you okay Blackberry?"
And for the first time since the accident Blackberry smiled. It was a sad tiny smile, but also a smile that felt like she was moving on
"Yes Blackaver, just fine" She moved out, towards the sun. The dawn of a new day.
Whew that was hard. So hears the deal: 24 chapters and each one is a episode. Blackberry will be one of the main characters and we'll see Efrafa in the next chapter.
Review! Good? Bad? Tell what needs be improved on in the next chapters and all that stuff.
Until next time then.