It was a beautiful night. The stars shone beautifully in the sky. I remembered the times when I watched them with Fiver in my last visit. How I adored those memories.

"Remember when we would watch he starts together, Leo?" said Fiver smiling.

"How could I forget?" I said smiling at him.

"So where is Gooseberry now?" asked Silverweed.

"Admiring his reflection in a lake probably," I joked.

"I reckon if he did," joined Hawkbit, "he might scare away all the fish and bring the frogs up."

He laughed at his own joke but we all found it funny.

Dandelion hopped up to us still in his dress.

"Hello-HIC!-all!"

"Well Gooseberry must have brought the frogs up now," groaned Hawkbit. "Hoppy-Hiccup here's already got one stuck in his belly."

"Oh, Dandelion!" I criticized. "This is the third time you've given yourself the hiccups."

"I've always had them since I was young. HIC!" hiccupped Dandelion.

"He meant by coming here to meet us, thick ears," chortled Strawberry.

"This time I-HIC!-gave myself them on-HIC!-purpose," said Dandelion proudly. "As soon as-HIC!-Bluebell hears me hic-HIC!-cup, she will sooth her paw over me again. HIC! I found it really relax-HIC!-ing. The sooner I feel her beautiful-HIC!-paw, the bett-HIC!-er."

"What a lovely night," said Bluebell who was emerging from the burrow. "Aren't the stars beautiful Dandelion?"

"Yes, they sure are," said Dandelion. He hopped up to her and opened his mouth ready for a new hiccup to come out…silence.

"Why is your mouth open?" asked Bluebell giggling.

"Still think my breath is lovely?" he asked, covering the real reason as to why he did it.

"Like violets," sighed Bluebell. "I'll just be in the burrow for a second."

And she hopped off.

"Does really do make a good hiccup remedy don't they, Dandelion?" Pipkin chuckled. "You take only one look at one to stop them."

"Oh shut up," moaned Dandelion disappointedly.

"WHAT YOU MEAN 'LEAVE ME ALONE'?! YOU SPOILED DOE YOU!"

"It's just my choice! Please! I want to be alone for only a while to watch the stars!"

We heard terrible fighting down the hill. Me, Fiver, Silverweed, Pipkin, Hawkbit, Dandelion, Strawberry and Bluebell shot down the scene to see Gooseberry handling Snowflake. Snowflake had a look of terror in her face.

"I only want some peace to myself!" cried Snowflake.

"NO ONE SAYS NO TO GOOSEBERRY! YOU FILTHY BLACK DOE!"

I suspected Gooseberry said something extremely insulting because everyone gasped in shock and disgust. What he said, I expected it to be a racist insult of some sort.

"You didn't mean to call me that?" whimpered Snowflake.

"INDEED I DO!" roared the buck. "FOR A DOE AS STUBBORN AS YOURSELF!"

With that, he scratched her face and pushed hard against a tree trunk and he hopped towards us.

"What are you lot doing here?! Move out!"

We all hopped back to the burrow but Fiver stayed behind to look at poor Snowflake on the floor, weeping. He hopped up to her and licked the cut on her cheek.

"You'll be alright," he said crouching down. "Fiver's here now. He'll take care of you."

"Why did he do that?" she sobbed. "Why did he call me that?"

"He can't be like you that's why," said Fiver.

"What do you mean?"

"He doesn't know how to be as sweet and angelic as you, Snowflake. There are loads of bucks who would give anything to be your mate."

"Not as wonderful as you."

He blushed.

"I was wondering" Fiver hesitated. "When Gooseberry falls asleep, you might want to have a night out with me?"

Snowflake looked shocked for a second but then she said, "Oh yes! Yes! I would love to!"

….

Me and Silverweed settled in ours and Fiver's burrow.

"Where's Fiver?" asked Silverweed.

"Probably helping Snowflake," I decided. "He cares for her deeply and will to anything to keep harm form her. That's why he deserves her."

"Gooseberry will never be her doe," agreed Silverweed. "Fiver is more loving."

"What is a Black Doe?" I asked, remembering the actions of Gooseberry's assault.

"Black Doe or Black Buck", explained Silverweed in a very serious tone, "is a very nasty, disgusting, blasphemous name to a rabbit who is fitting to be taken by the Black Rabbit of Inle. It's a very horrible thing to call someone. Greedy, selfish and violent as some people are, I don't know anyone who deserves to be called that."

"Gooseberry?" I said in an unregretful tone.

"That's not nice," remarked Silverweed. "Horrible and conceited as he is, no one should be ever be called that. If you take Frith as your savior, you wouldn't say that."

"I'm sorry, Silverweed," I said. "I didn't mean to. Gooseberry just makes me really angry."

"I forgive you," said Silverweed addressing me with his usual sweet smile. "I can forgive you for anything. I completely understand your anger."

"So you would agree that we need to get back at him?"

"Mmm, sort of," he said hesitantly.

"What's wrong?"

"When I first came to live at Watership Down, Hawkbit and Dandelion asked me to mess up Bigwig's mind and they told me I should because I'm their friend. I didn't know what I was doing, but Bigwig overheard this and he talked me into playing a trick on them to teach them a lesson for encouraging me to try it. I made them think I have messed up Bigwig's mind to make themselves forgotten by him. I then tricked them into saying they can break Bigwig's mind block by acting like utter fools in front of him and carrying out the orders he has given them."

I laughed very madly but then I stopped when Silverweed looked down regretfully.

"What's wrong with that?" I asked. "You did the right thing tricking them like that. You should never grant requests like getting into Bigwig's mind even when you are begged to do it. That's peer pressure."

"I know," said Silverweed. "But after the truth was revealed, they were very angry with me. I just don't know which path to follow. I feel I might do something wrong again. I don't want any part of a wrongdoing I am blind of."

"I will let you know what's right and what's wrong Silverweed," I said. "You are a very nice, considerate buck who always cares for his friends. You would do wrongdoings if it were for the sake of others like how Dandelion did for Fiver with his water witch prank. But there are times we prank each other for a little joke."

"Will you stick with me so I know I go on the right path to teach Gooseberry a lesson? Please?"

"Of course I will," I smiled.

"Thank you, Leo," he said, smiling gratefully.

We hugged and then suddenly he gasped.

"We shall face danger very soon!" he said in a way of hypnotism.

"What?" I said. "What was that all about?"

"I don't know," he said. "That's why I'm so scared of myself sometimes. Reading the trail of tomorrow haunts me."

Snowflake hopped back into the burrow with Fiver. She had a doc leaf over her face. She told Fiver she would see him later as she hopped into Bluebell's burrow.

"Oh you poor daffodil," sympathized Bluebell looking at Snowflake holding the doc leaf to her cheek."

"I saw Gooseberry as a pest at first, Bluebell," said Snowflake. "But now I'm scared of him."

"This may sound poor," said Bluebell. "But despite his size, you should hide from your fears behind Fiver and let him protect you from elil like Gooseberry."

"Oh I couldn't possibly," said Snowflake. "Fiver's brave I agree, but with him being a runt, I hate to imagine what would become of him if he confronted Gooseberry."

Fiver hopped into our burrow smiling rather proudly.

"We are so proud of you, Fiver," smiled Silverweed. "You stayed there for her even when Gooseberry snapped at us to go."

"Someone had to help her. She's sweet, gentle, angelic and beautiful. She shouldn't be treated like that. She deserves someone like Hazel or Dandelion; not a psychopath like Gooseberry. How could he call her a dark rabbit?"

"We'll pay him back, Fiver," I promised. "I swear by Rosie we will."

"Who's Rosie?" asked Silverweed curiously.

"A girl I love," I explained. "I am hopelessly in love with her except this other guy Elliott Edderdeen tries to convince her that she is the one for him which he clearly isn't. He's everything Gooseberry is: he's arrogant, he's conceited, ridiculously pompous, and he thinks he is the best of everything to do with playing parts in productions. But Rosie is soft towards me. I pray one day, I will ask her out."

"I've asked Snowflake out," said Fiver shyly.

Me and Silverweed looked in shock and then we smiled and hugged him very proudly.

Later, me and Silverweed combed Fiver's fur with our nails which felt very nice to him.

"Stop laughing, Fiver," I smiled. "You're fidgeting so much, you are ruffling your fur out of line."

"Sorry, Leo," laughed Fiver. "It just tickles."

"Nearly done now," said Silverweed.

"We are really impressed with you, Fiver," I remarked. "It takes courage to ask someone out like that."

"But suppose I did something embarrassing on our night out?"

"You'll be fine," I said.

"How do you know?" asked Fiver.

"Have faith," said Silverweed.

"Let's look at the facts how everything will be fine," I said. "Do accidents ever happen to you when you are with Snowflake?"

"No."

"Do you ever get the hiccups when you are with her?"

"No."

"Did you ever belch in her face?"

"No."

"Is she sweet with you?"

"Yes."
"Do you make her laugh?"

"Yes."

"So there you are," I finished. "Just because Dandelion gets many of those calamities I mentioned earlier doesn't mean it will happen to you."

"What is it like when you are with Rosie?" asked Fiver.

"I always feel awkward because I don't know how to impress her, in spite of how content she is."

"I'm almost like that with Snowflake."

"We'll get our girls together," I smiled.

"I'm just nervous, Leo," said Fiver.

"Here's an idea," I said. "Let me and Silverweed rub our ears onto you."

We rubbed our ears onto his fur and I said, "So now part of us will be with you all the way, and when you feel confident enough, you can shake us off."

"Thank you, both," smiled Fiver as we all shared a group hug.

"Good luck," said Silverweed.

Fiver hopped out of the burrow where he had met Snowflake who was exactly like him: straight fur and a fresh red rose in between her ears. The hopped up to each other and smiled at each other and they hopped away from the burrow.

Me and Silverweed watched in happiness at the lovely couple.

"Do you think they will live happily ever after, Leo?" Silverweed asked me.

"Of course, Silverweed," I smiled. "Happy ever afters don't only exist in stories; it comes to those who deserve it like those two."

…..

The night was perfect for the lovers: They hopped through a field of beautiful moonlit flowers, found wonderful flayrah and danced with the fireflies. Eventually, they lay on the field looking up at the stars.

"Beautiful aren't they, Fiver?" said Snowflake.

"Aren't they though?" smiled Fiver. "Stars are filled with nothing but beauty. Snowflake, how do you like your new home?"

"I live it," said Snowflake. "Everyone there is so kind. Hazel, Primrose, Blackberry, oh, Blackberry is my favourite, she's sweet and gentle."

But then she had a look of pain in her face. "But there are times I am too shy to confess what I feel for others."

"Feelings of love for me," said Fiver.

"Same here," said Snowflake.

"I know I'm just a runt," said Fiver, "but I keep faith that I shall make my own dreams come true just like you."

They looked up into the stars before drifting off.