Days continued on until the day of the wedding, I started to have fewer dreams of my mother's death, but resume having flashbacks of my abuse by Mark and Mack. I was in my human form during that morning, when I got a call from Mark. He spoke to me about him seeing me. He even told me that he was being accompanied by a band of rabbits. I wasn't so sure about the rabbits he was being accompanied by. I told Hazel and the others about my brother coming to see me and with him some rabbits. Probably it was from The Black Rabbit, I recalled about her saying that I was going to speak with my brother again. Hazel informed me that Campion spotted another human passing by, during an early morning patrol.
When mid morning came, everyone by now was silflaying. I was with my soon to be mate, as she was eating some grass. I wasn't even hunger to eat, as I continued to wait for Mark to come. She stopped eating and noticed that I wasn't eating. She was probably assuming that it was from my dreams.
"Any more dreams recently?" Thethuthinnang asked me, out of concern.
"Most about my older brothers." I answered. "I'm sorry, if at times that I was away. I just want those dreams to end."
"I know they will. It was nice of Holly to sleep by your side outside of the warren at nights." she added.
"Yes, but soon that we're about to wed and I have to get in a habit to stay with you." I told her.
"I understand. There's always times when you're off for a long night patrol, of course." she nuzzled me.
"That too." I nuzzled back.
I than heard Dandelion stomping on his feet. "What is it?" I asked, as he than started to sniff.
"Campion's coming back. With another human." Dandelion answered.
I sighed as my older brother Mark is near. "What if we don't talk to each other?"
"I'm sure your dreams will continue to haunt you. It'll go away, if the two of you make amends." Thethuthinnang stated the possibility benefit of speaking to my brother will rid my nightmares for good.
"Alright." I than nodded my head.
Hazel, Bigwig and Captain Holly came out from the warren and joined with me, as Campion is coming back from morning patrol.
"Another human visiting us rabbits, eh?" Bigwig questioned.
"Yes, and he's my brother." I guessed.
"I'm sure everything will be alright, with the both of you. We'll be able to give you some privacy too." Hazel said.
"Thanks." I thanked.
Captain Holly looked back at me. "Remember Kevin... What makes someone being a brother is not always what makes a good human."
"Yes, Dad." I acknowledged
Campion and some of other bucks, that came to join our warren, returned from patrol. They were all lined up, as they're hiding someone behind them.
"Good morning, Hazel-rah." Campion bowed.
"Good morning, Campion and welcome back. Any news?" Hazel greeted in return.
"No signs of elil. However, we may always have to be cautious, in case they wander around here." he informed Hazel.
"Very good."
Campion turned towards me. "Good morning, Kevin."
"Morning Campion, hopefully patrol went well." I greeted him.
"Yes, the patrol went well. There's someone here is longing to see you." Campion stated. His bucks moved to the side and I than saw my older brother... Mark.
"Mark?" I was surprised.
He looked up with a blank emotionless expression. "Hi Kev."
It was like we haven't seen each other, eye to eye for years almost. At first, we didn't really speak to each other and we looked away from each other. We were than given space from the rabbits. Hazel and Fiver, Bigwig, and Captain Holly kept their distance and watched as me and my brother try to speak to each other.
"Hopefully, the two of them will forgive each other." Fiver hoped.
"We'll just have to see Hrairoo." Hazel spoke.
"How could he forgive him after what that human brother of his done to him!" Bigwig felt a bit of anger of my brother showing his face around me.
"Steady on, Bigwig. I heard of his stories enough and it's only for the two to talk and reconcile." Captain Holly calmed Bigwig down, before the four resumed watching over us.
"How have you been, Kevin?" Mark asked me.
"I'm okay." I said, without looking at him in the face, as my head is down. "At some nights though, I can't sleep."
"Why not?" he asked.
"Bad dreams that's all." I answered.
He sighed. "Really? You ever thought about talking about your dreams to someone. A therapist, one of your college counselors, or even me." I remained silent, as I didn't want to rebuke him. "Yeah... I know. Dreams could be good, bad, strange, even at times funny that it doesn't always make sense. You still reading that book I bet, about them..." he noticed Hazel and Fiver, Bigwig, and Captain Holly watching us. "...rabbits?"
"Yeah. Sometimes, but not much anymore by now because I know they're real. And I believe it."
Mark scoffed. "You believe it? Really?" he than chuckled, as I than shook my head that he seemed to offend from what I said.
"Are you only taken there to live or you'll be going home?" I asked.
"Home? I have no home. Except... I've been living in a group home back at California. They allow me to live and work for them, as long as I stayed out of trouble. It benefits me that I could help others. Try to change myself I guess."
He seemed to have some change in his life that it was the first time that I looked at him and said. "That's very good. Good for you."
"Thanks. And I agree with you that it's good for me too." he thanked. "What about school? You still going or... you're living with them rabbits?"
I than turned my head away from his question that he wanted to into detail of what I'm been doing. He than started to shake his head for disapproval. "You can't just expect to travel across a country and lived with rabbits that are nothing but fairy tales!"
"I have to go Mark." I said.
"And now you're probably about to marry to a female rabbit?!" he questioned, as he tries to stop me. "Oh no, you're not! You're going to listen to me, Kevin!"
"TO WHO MARK?! WHO?! TO YOU?! REALLY?! AFTER ALL I HAVE BEEN THROUGH YOU AND MACK SHUT ME OUT, NEGLECTED ME!" I shouted. "ABUSED ME! How could I even listen to you, as my older brother, since long after on how you treated me? You never really cared for me, when I needed you or Mack!"
He started to see tears in my eyes. "Please Kev. Please." He tried to calm me down. I than sat on the steep of the hill. "I messed up, Kevin. I freakin' missed it all up. And I know that and admitted, as you did too. Since you spoke to me on the phone. I knew it was you, who killed Mack. He was equally worst like me. We failed each other as brothers. Worst of all we failed you, when you needed us." his voice started to broke from him starting to sob. "But your heart doesn't have to be like ours or other people in the world."
I started to feel a bit shaken.
"I love you, Kevin. I do. I really do. I love you little brother." he sniffled. "You don't have to love me in return and/or even forgive me. By God, He knows that I didn't give you enough love and comfort when you needed it. So you don't have to love and/or forgive me. However, I'm letting you that I love and forgive you. Just like you said to me, over the phone."
Tears fell from my eyes that both us really failed each other as a family. "Did you hear me, little brother?"
I cleaned the tears from my eyes. "Yes... I hear you Mark. I remembered I spoke to you on the phone that I said I love you both: you and Mack. Also... I wanted to forgive you in return."
He than had a cigarette in his mouth and tried to lighten it with a match. It kept failing because from the winds. "Mark..." I than took the cigarette away from and his lighter, that he had from his pocket.
"I'm sorry, Kev. I even told them that I wasn't going to do it again." he voice broke from him sobbing again. I cleaned the tears from his eyes.
"Come here, brother." I than came over to him and gave him a hug. The two of us shared a forgiving and loving hug.
After our long hug, we broke from our hug. We than noticed Captain Holly was heading towards us and smiled at us proudly. I smiled back at him.
"So... Captain Holly?" Mark cleared his throat.
"Just Holly, son. Just Holly." he told him to simply call him Holly. "Sometimes I still do grow a bit weary from your brother calling me Captain." I chuckled, as I remember that I kept calling him "Captain" Holly.
"I mean... Holly. How do you know my brother Kevin? You traveled together or worked together?" he asked.
Captain Holly looked back at me and I grabbed his paw and held it tight.
"He's a friend yours?" Mark asked me.
"He's more than a friend. He's my 'dad'." I answered.
Mark became distraught at the same time happy for me. "You're lucky to have another father."
"It doesn't mean that he's just mine. He could be yours too." I told him that Captain Holly could be his father also.
"I can't call you 'Dad'. I prefer to have one dad and that's it." Mark stated.
"You don't have to call me 'Dad' like your brother does. You could simply call me Holly and I could go by that." Captain Holly spoke gently towards him.
He shook his head. "No... I'm already better for where I am now than before. We still have a few relatives back at home giving me support. They really missed you, Kevin. Although, I know they took a bit of disliking to you."
"I know, but now I'm home. And you're more than welcome to be with us." I invited him to join us.
He smiled and shook his head. "Naaa... I'll be fine, however I wish the best of luck to you."
"Thanks. I love you." I thanked him.
"I love you too Kevin." Mark said back, before he started to vanish. "I'll miss you and hope to see you again."
A tear fell from my eye. "We will someday. I hope."
"You'll see him again." Captain Holly nuzzled me. "You'll see."
"We didn't say goodbye." I said.
"No, but you two forgave each other and brought back the brotherly love again." Captain Holly spoke.
"Yeah... I guess you're right."
"Well... we better get you and Thethuthinnang ready for tonight." He than told me about the wedding tonight.
I looked to see the sun starting to set, as I started to change into a grey rabbit. I was than on my fours. "I guess he won't have to see me like this." We both chuckled, as we than headed back up to prepare the wedding for Thethuthinnang and myself.
