Authoress note: Okay – my very first attempt at a Watership Down fanfiction. This has been coming a long time, but I admit, fear kept me from doing it. Now I jump into the cold water. The only thing I can garantie for is a lot of drama and character indepth. Now for understanding:
This story is related to the TV series, rather than to the books, although you get the idea either way. It takes place somewhere after the 2nd series and so is a spoiler or a complete change on the 3rd. I have to say that I am really sorry for committing the crime of having killed off – starts counting but has not enough fingers – way too many main characters. I enjoy doing that. Although noone who knows me will wonder how come Bigwig is still alive. Okay, so based on the TV series Hyzenthlay is called Primrose (yes, Entei-Rah, but you really rubbed off onto me) and Blackberry is gasps a doe. And as in the series, she was in love with Campion. If you have any questions – free to ask them?
„General, you know I am your faithful servant, but..." the unsure voice of Vervain ended abruptly. "But what, Vervain?" General Woundwort inquired menacingly.
"They are traitors, General. And they will turn on you as soon as they get the chance to." "Are you hinting" the booming voice of General Woundwort replied. "That I am not capable of controlling two Owsla officers of my warren."
"That is not what I meant" Vervain quivered, his frantic mind searching for an escape route. "It is just because of who they are." He fell silent at the menacing stare of the huge red eye.
"I know perfectly well that they are not just some youths who try to disobey in their first proof of strength, I am well aware of what Campion and Bigwig are capable of."
"Have you heard?" Clover chattered, but her chatter was no longer cheerful, only an old habit. "No, what are they going to do to us?" a very young, fearful doe asked. Her name was Daisy and she was barely half a year old but had remained very small and fragile even for her age. Her fur that would naturally have been pure white, was tainted with dirt and mud and she was shivering.
"The General is going to give one of us to each Owsla officer!" All five does stared at her.
"We are only slaves to them" an older, pessimistic doe named Windflower replied. "An officer chooses the doe he likes best for his pleasure and can do with her what he wants. Noone is going to keep him from doing it."
They fell silent. "We can not let that happen!" Blackberry hopelessly tried to encourage her companions. "
"And what shall we do against it?" Primrose asked. Daisy had silently started to weep.
"This war has been gloriously won." General Woundwort started his speech from on top of his heightened position, looking down at the Owsla officers. At Thunderbird and Rowans, two very promising young bucks who were looking up at him in admiration. But it did not cause him to miss the fearful looks from Vervain or the judging stares of Moss.
Campion watched him with a remarkably well-kept neutral expression. No wonder he had been able to fool him for so long. Hatred, that powerful soaring feeling rose inside him. But no, he could not kill Campion, could not afford to. Too few capable officers were there at the moment, he needed a new generation of healthy bucks, willing to fight for his ideals, with no mind of their own.
He prefered the open hatred Bigwig directed at him. He was so much easier to look through, not being apt at hiding his feelings of any kind. But had he not too fooled him?
Though none of his officers had dared to say so, he knew that they disagreed with his decision of not killing Bigwig. He had assured them that if the need arose, he could get rid of him any time. But he was not quite as sure of that himself.
But if there was one thing he knew he could count on, it was Bigwigs strong sense of loyality towards those who had remained of the former Watership Down warren. And these were General Woundworts means of pressure.
"But in order to ensure the future strength and this way power and glory of Efrafa, we need a new generation of brave and heroic fighters. These does" and the six scared creatures were brought inside "have been choosen to be loyal and devoted marlis and to give Efrafa as many healthy bucks as possible."
Blackberry felt the poor Daisy keep shivering next to her. She tried calming her, but her own upset kept her from suceeding. Her mind was with all the friends she had lost. The past pained her so strongly that she was not sure if any future was to come.
"Our newest Owsla officers will have the priviledge of choosing first." General Woundwort would have expected more of an uproar than the few muttered remarks. But this was only one advantage of fear. But he had not gone mad, no, it was all a part of his plan.
"Campion choose." For a moment Blackberry began to hope again. Had it not only been a few days ago that he had claimed his undying love for her. If he got to choose first, she would not land in the dirty paws of those young too eager bucks, or, even worse, in Vervains. How she clung to the hope that love could survive a war and all those deaths and sufferings.
But when she met his eyes, he turned away and said "I choose Primrose."
Primrose did not seem surprised in the least and almost smiled as she went towards her former lover. She had onced lived in this place, she would have to try to get used to it again, but with Campion, it all seemed her much lighter.
"Bigwig." Woundwort boomed. "Blackberry" the adressed simply said.
Of course she was grateful towards him. It meant that none of the Efrafans would get her. But the shock was still too recent. She had been sure that Campion would choose her, and not Primrose. And now he had taken his past, instead of his present, into the future.
"Would you have prefered our dear Vervain?" Bigwig asked her. "No, of course not." Blackberry replied. "All of this just does not seem real."
"You will find it real, soon enough." Why did he always have to be so harsh? "I still can not believe it" her voice grew quieter. "That they are all gone." "You better do!" was his last comment before the next does were chosen.
And she felt a pang of guilt with each decision. When Thunderbird took Lillian. When Rowan choose Windflower in an awfully oedipus kind of way.
It lessened with Moss, who she deemed to be a good fellow, who of course asked for Heather.
But it worsened a lot when Vervain, cowardly, ugly, old goat-Vervain as they had called him, longed for Daisy and the small white doe tried to appear strong and failing miserably at it.
Clover was the last to be chosen by a buck named Pepper who appeared to have two times more muscles than brain.
Finally General Woundwort allowed all of them to go into the separate burrows to "enjoy" their new partners presence. She could see how some of the does would have wanted the speech to stretch out into eternity instead.
"I suppose I should thank you." Blackberry turned to Bigwig. And with a sudden force the feeling of reality hit her. Watership Down had been destroyed. And so many of her friends had been killed.
How she wished for them to be alive. Wanted to hear some of Dandelions stories for the hundredths time. Needed to watch Fiver as his eyes opened wide during another vision. Searched for the endless boring adventures Captain Broom would have been telling. Listening to the praises of Owsla honor from Captain Holly. She even longed for Bluebells annoying jokes and Hawkbits constant complaints. And she wanted back their clever and compassionate leader.
"You are not the only one who misses them." Bigwig interrupts her rememberings.
She nods. "I know. But this pain does not lessen at being shared."
Authoress again: Okay, what do you say? Say it in a review?