Bunny
Anastasia had never had a pet before, so she'd been surprised when her father had shown her the little baby bunny and informed her she'd be taking care of it. Over the weeks that followed she learned to feed, groom, and check the bunny for health issues. Her father had told her not to name the animal, but she couldn't help but decide to call the black and white spotted rabbit "Patches". Though she only called him that when she was alone, he was always just "the rabbit" in front of her father. Anastasia watched as the little ball of fluff became a soft, gentle adult bunny. She hadn't really made any friends since they'd come to Reach, but she felt a kinship with Patches. Her father kept the rabbit in a cage at all times, and Anastasia would have liked to let him out and hold him, but she couldn't risk Patches getting away. That would be a surefire way to anger her father. Still, the bunny was the closest thing to a friend that Anastasia had. He was excited to see her when she came to feed him, and he would sit still and let her pet his soft fur. She loved Patches like she'd never loved anything beforeā¦and then she made a mistake. Then she called him Patches when her father was around.
It seemed strange to see Patches outside of his cage, but here he was in the open, sitting on the grass. He stared at her with those big black eyes, his body shaking in fear - maybe from being on grass for the first time, or maybe because of the club that was in Anastasia's hand. Patches had been so excited when Anastasia had come to the cage, but she hadn't shared the enthusiasm. Her father grabbed Patches by the scruff of his neck and roughly had carried him away. Anastasia had followed, biting back the urge to plead for mercy for the bunny. Her father tied patches by the leg to a stick, and had given Anastasia the club. Patches had struggled at first but when he realized he was not going to get away, he curled up and just sat, trembling. Anastasia's father had commanded her to hit the rabbit with the club, to kill it. She was sure Patches didn't understand the threat really, but still instinctively knew danger when he saw it.
Anastasia didn't understand why she was being made to do this, it didn't make any sense. She had never killed any animal before and she didn't want to, least of all Patches. She could see her own fear mirrored back in the marble-black eyes of the bunny before her. How could she possibly bring herself to kill the helpless little animal? But she knew if she didn't her father would be mad, and her back was still healing from the last time she'd disobeyed him. Was avoiding that pain worth killing Patches? She didn't think so. She didn't understand why Patches needed to be killed at all. He was well behaved, he didn't eat that much, and he didn't make any noise. There was no reason for Patches to die.
"Kill it," her father growled. He looked over her like a shadow of death, demanding her to do as she was told. "Kill it."
"But I don't understand why," Anastasia tried to argue. "It didn't do anything to make it a problem, so why do I need to kill it?"
"Are you questioning orders?" Her father barked.
"No, sir, only trying to understand your orders." She fought not to cringe away from him. She was bracing herself for a smack or a strike of some kind for speaking up.
"It is not your job to understand your orders, only complete them," Her father informed her. "You've been told to kill it so that is what you'll do. It doesn't matter if it's done anything wrong, it has to die. This rabbit is tonight's dinner." His words horrified Anastasia. It made her feel sick to think that anyone would eat the gentle bunny. "It has to die for something more important, for dinner."
Anastasia didn't think that was a good enough reason. There was plenty of meat in their house, beef and pork, and she didn't have to kill anything to get that. She would rather not eat than kill Patches, but still she didn't see a way out. Her father would be furious with her if she didn't do what he was ordering, but she didn't know how she'd feel if she killed the bunny. Anastasia weighed how willing she was to risk her father's wrath, and how reluctant she was to kill Patches.
"What are you waiting for? You have your orders, now follow them." Her father's voice was low and threatening, a warning of the possible consequences of disobedience.
Anastasia focused only on Patches, and the fear that she could tell was rolling off the bunny. She frowned as she realized that she was just as afraid as Patches was, and that she was the source of the bunny's fear. Anastasia let her hand go limp and the club fell to the ground.
She didn't see the hand coming, but the force knocked Anastasia off her feet. "Useless child!" her father spat. Anastasia heard a thump and it was followed by the most horrifying sound she'd ever heard. It was like a banshee screaming, a high-pitched cry that struck down to Anastasia's bones. She rolled over to look at her father and realized that the scream was coming from Patches. The first hit hadn't killed the bunny, and it was now screaming in pain and terror. Her father raised the club again and Anastasia acted.
She threw herself at his arm, trying to stop him from striking Patches again. He batted her away with ease and Anastasia fell on her rear. Her father struck Patches a few more times before he finally stopped. Her father stood and turned to Anastasia. She could see the fury in his eyes and knew that she was in trouble. He stood up and reached down, grabbing Patches by the ears. Anastasia scrambled to her feet and did the dumbest thing yet - she dashed to her father and grabbed the bunny's lifeless body. She wrapped her arms around it and pulled it from his grasp, but stumbled and fell back down onto the ground. She instinctively curled up protectively around Patches.
Her father pulled at her arms, trying to pry her off of the bunny, but she held tight. Anastasia cried out as he yanked on her wrist and pain shot through it. But she remained wrapped around the corpse, even as her father hit her and tugged at her arms, trying to get her to let go. She wasn't sure how long he tried to separate her and the dead rabbit, but he eventually grew tired. Anastasia didn't dare look up, and just stayed huddled until she heard him stomp away. She knew that when she went back to the house things were going to be bad, but she still had to take care of Patches first.
Anastasia cautiously got to her feet. Her cheek and wrist hurt, and she could feel a bit of blood on her forehead from where it had been scratched when she fell down. She found a place near some trees that seemed to have soft soil and she dug at the ground until she had made a hole that was deep enough. She sat under the tree, cradling the body of Patches in her arms, wondering what it would have been like to hold the bunny when he'd still been warm. She buried her friend in the hole she'd dug, but didn't mark the grave. She was afraid her father would find it and then dig up Patches just to spite her, to punish her.
The sun was low in the sky when she finally decided to go back home. She made sure to scrape off the dirt from her shoes and hands before she entered the back door of the house. Her mother was in the kitchen, but didn't even look in Anastasia's direction when she entered the room. She knew where her father would be, and she knew she couldn't avoid what was going to happen. She stepped into the living room where her father was waiting for her. She wouldn't run, and she wasn't ashamed of what she'd done; but she did fear what she knew was coming.
