Chapter 10

The night came over the down. We're pretty much, as a precaution, to remain inside due to owls and night animals hunting for rabbits. I was in my burrow looking at my phone and looking at some of the family pictures I took on my phone and downloaded messages that came from my family for group family pictures. It was a exhausting day: going on my first trip outside the warren with the Owsla, being chased by the gardener's dog, and winning a match of Bob-Stones. Some of the rabbits were still up for their evening meal.

"Are you coming to join us?" a voice came.

I heard a voice and look behind me and was Hazel and Fiver. I stood up from bed and put my phone to the side.

"I don't know, I really had long day today." I was uncertain.

Fiver hopped into my burrow. "Everyone is talking about you."

"They'll like to get more acquainted with you more." His older brother added.

I felt a little of unease from joining social interaction, but I guess I didn't want to be alone.

"I guess you're right. I may not want to be alone, as I'm staying here."

"Come. We'll met you over by the Honeycomb." Hazel said before he hopped away.

"Honeycomb? Like actual honey?" I asked Fiver.

"Honey?" Fiver chuckled. "No, we called our large tunnel 'The Honeycomb' because of the roots' shapes."

I decided to leave my burrow and follow Fiver to this... "Honeycomb".

All the rabbits were finishing up their meals of carrots, lettuce, and cabbage from the garden. I had a few bit of carrots, until I started to think about home and how much I miss it. Fiver noticed that I didn't eat much and saw me I was a bit sad.

"You're not eating much. Are you alright?" Fiver asked.

"Just from eating carrots, I started to think about home." I answered sadly. "Have you and Hazel miss home sometimes?"

Fiver tried to think. "I was only kitten since me and Hazel left, before going to Sandleford Warren."

"Where's that?" I asked.

"Oh... it's gone now." Fiver answered sadly.

"I'm sorry. Do you actually miss there some times or being back where you were before Sandleford?" I asked.

"I don't remember before Sandleford, but I could only remember there, but..."

"But what?" I try to ask.

"I don't feel comfortable talking about it." Fiver said.

"That's alright, I'm sorry if I pushed it." I apologized.

"Don't worry, you only wanted to know that's all." Fiver accepted.

"Just thinking about home, makes me feel like I wanted to be there. Seeing my parents and my sister." I added.

"What kind of things your family do?" he asked.

"We would sometimes discuss about our day, try to watch a movie-"

"A movie?" Fiver asked.

"A movie is a moving picture that shows a film and tells a story. Different from listening and sometimes reading, you could see the story itself." I explained.

"What kind food does 'man' usually eat?" Fiver wanted to ask with curiosity about what man eats beside growing and eating vegetables.

I know a certain food in America that I could always say it is my top favorite. "Well, my favorite food from America is..." I smiled. "Pizza." I even said it as it came to me while thinking.

"Pizza?" Pipkin asked.

I came to notice that Pipkin joined in to listen. Also, Hazel's kittens joined with a few other rabbits following in to listen.

"Pizza is a very delicious food that man enjoys. It has dough bread, tomato sauce, with cheese melted. I like my pizza with triple pepperoni and black olives."

The whole warren of rabbits started to gather around to listen more.

"Besides from pizza, there's cheeseburgers and french fries." I added.

"Cheeseburgers and french fries?" Fiver asked as he laughed.

Pipkin, the kitten rabbits, and the two Captain rabbits chuckled.

"Well, not every man eats meat for their burgers. Some humans sometimes eat Veggie-burgers, burgers made out of vegetables." I explained. I rather not mention about meat because most meat come from animals and I doubt rabbits are part of meat burgers, I just added veggie-burgers to only tell it safe.

"I guess man could be unusual sometimes on their ways of doing things." Bigwig joked.

"Can you tell us one more?" Pipkin asked.

"Yes please. More." Hazel's kittens asked too.

I looked at Hazel and Primrose for approval. They agreed, as their kittens were laying next to their parents. The rabbits now ended up forming like a circle to listen one more thing about what man do.

"How about a story?" I asked.

"A story sounds nice." Dandelion agreed. As the rest of the rabbits agreed.

I took a deep breath and try to think of a story.

Once upon time, A handsome-young prince lived in the castle, he was spoiled, selfish, and unkind. He even tax the village to fill his castle with his own desires. In one night, a beggar woman asked for shelter from the story, in exchange, for a red rose. Prince simply turned her away because of her appearance. However, she warned him 'not to be deceived by appearance... beauty is found within.' The prince turned her away for the second time, the woman transformed into a beautiful enchantress. The prince begs for forgiveness, but the enchantress knew he had no love in his heart. As punishment, she transformed him into a hideous beast, along with cursing the castle and anyone, who lived there. The beast confines himself away with a mirror that looks beyond the world and the red rose, the enchantress rose. Curse lasts until the prince learns to love one another, as the another loves him in return. If he doesn't by the last peddle fall, he remains as the beast.

Years later, there lived a young girl named Belle, who lived in France. France is another country what man called it. She lives with her father, who's a inventor, a person who makes things. She was usually been called a "odd" girl by her village. One person in the village named Gaston, wanted to marry her, but she knew how conceited he was. However, her father left the village, but his horse came back that Belle wanted to know where her father is. She traveled to a castle that was cursed.

She ventures inside the castle and finds her father in the dungeon. Belle than discovers that the Beast locked her father in the dungeon for trespassing and stealing a single white rose. Belle decided to take her father's place. After her father was escorted back to the village, she was welcomed by The Beasts servants, who were under the curse, as well as household antiques and made her welcome...

After she was rescued by the wolves, she took the Beast back to the castle and nursed him back to health. After his recover, Belle and the Beast started to have feelings for each other, after Belle was shown the Library in the castle by the Beast...

Belle and The Beast danced in the Ballroom and went out to the balcony to watch the stars, afterwards Beast handed her a mirror to view the outside world. She wanted to know how her father was and he was about to be arrested by an angry mob. The Beast let her go so she could rescue her father and let her keep the mirror to look back...

As Belle tried to save her father from the angry mob, as he was telling the village, who the beast was, until Belle showed the mob, the mirror to see the Beast that frightens the villagers and Gaston thought it was a threat to the village...

"Come Back! Please don't leave me! I love you." Belle sobs at the lifeless body of the Beast. Seconds later, the Beast was transformed back into the handsome prince and she remembered, who he was as the Beast. After their true love's kiss, the Curse was broken as they expressed their love for each other.

And they lived happily ever after. The End.

"What a beautiful tale you told!" Blackberry complemented.

"Very well told." Hazel added.

Everyone else thought it was a wonderful tale as it was a love story.

"Is it one of the stories that man tell?" Fiver asked.

"It's one of them." I answered.

"I think the children should be off to bed." Primrose added.

The kittens started to hop to bed, as the rest of the rabbits started to follow. I even started to yawn, as I was really tired. I hopped back to my burrow and laid comfortably on my bed. As I about to go to sleep, I hear a rabbit was near my burrow and it was Mallow was a little spook.

"Mallow... what's wrong?" I asked the kitten.

"I'm scarred." he said.

"Of what?" I asked.

"The Beast." Mallow answered.

"Oh Mallow, it was only in the story. But the real morale of the story importantly is that, The Beast has a gentle heart. You could see that everyone always look what's outside of themselves."

I even placed my paw by his heart. "The real character and the true self comes from their heart."

He still doesn't understand. I tried to think more.

"You know your Uncle Campion right?"

"Yes, who looked after Mother, before Father freed her." Mallow said.

"Well that's an example. You could see the scars he had endured that most of the rabbits would think... I mean for the rabbits, who may not know him could see him as scary." I made an example.

"He was wounded as he was defending this warren from General Woundwart." Mallow explained about Campion's scars.

"Campion's heart shows the gentleness of a rabbit and how much he cares for this warren." I further explained.

"Now I understand." Mallow realized.

I rubbed the young kittens head. "I'm still a little frighten from the story a bit, despite how lovely the story is."

"Show me where your burrow is, I know one more thing how to fight off fear of the night for the young." I said.

Mallow leaded me away from the burrow and showed me where his siblings sleep.

I could already see his siblings were fast asleep. He ended up lying next to them and he was still afraid. I stood over on watch to make sure he falls asleep.

"You're not going to leave Watership Down... are you?" Mallow asked.

I couldn't be to answer it in full. I tried not to have it worry him for the night.

"I don't know, unless I found my way home." I answered. "More importantly you should try to get some sleep."

"I can't be able to fall sleep right away." he said.

"Why don't you lay down and I know just what to do." I told him.

As Mallow was comfortable in his bed, I tried to come up with a lullaby that I used to remember my parents used to sang to me when I have night terrors and/or I couldn't fall asleep.

A gentle breeze from Hushabye Mountain
Softly blows over Lullaby Bay,
It fills the sails of boats that are waiting,
Waiting to sail your worries away.

I started to see Mallow was closing his eyes and he was near fast asleep. Unknowingly, Hazel and Primrose was watching over their kittens, as I was singing Mallow a lullaby.

It isn't far to Hushabye Mountain,
And your boat waits down by the quay.
The winds of night so softly are sighing,
Soon they will fly your troubles to sea.

So close your eyes on Hushabye Mountain,
Wave goodbye to cares of the day,
And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain
Sail far away from Lullaby Bay.

I came to his side and gently rub his head and he smiled and snuggled in his bed. Than I started to slowly leave their burrow as I was finishing the song quietly.

So close your eyes on Hushabye Mountain,
Wave goodbye to cares of the day,
And watch your boat from Hushabye Mountain
Sail far away from Lullaby Bay.