Chapter Eight - Christmas Day
"Mum! Dad! It's Christmas!" Josh was hopping up and down beside his parents' bed in the Whitting's guest room. Josh had hardly slept a wink from excitement, and he found it difficult to wait until six in the morning to wake his parents, when he could stand the tension no longer.
"Josh, go back to sleep," mumbled Greg. "Nobody's getting up yet." However, the sound from the kitchen of breakfast being made by Mrs. Cane filtered into the room, soon followed by the smell of ham and eggs. There was no sleeping in on the Cane farm, especially on Christmas morning.
Breakfast didn't last long, since Josh and Lucy knew what followed. The two cousins even helped with the dishes, as their parents made it clear that opening gifts wasn't to start until the table was cleared and everything put away.
Finally, the Canes and Whitting's were gathered around the Christmas tree, and Mr. Cane was assigned the task of handing out the gifts. The parents received gifts like clothes, crafts, and chocolates, while naturally Josh and Lucy were spoiled with numerous toys and candies. Josh's favourite gift was a toy stuffed rabbit from his parents, to which he said gleefully, "I going to show you to Hopscotch! You look like twins!"
Josh decided to put off playing with his toys to make a quick visit on his real rabbit friend, with his toy rabbit in tow. After getting some carrots and lettuce from the kitchen, Josh called, "I'll be right back, Mum," as he went out the door. Everyone else stayed in the house.
After Josh left, the telephone rang, and Mrs. Cane answered it.
"Hello?... Yes, he's right here." Turning to Greg, she said, "It's for you. It's that reporter from the BBC again."
Taking the phone, Greg said, "Hello, Mr. Layton. Merry Christmas to you!"
"Thank you, Mr. Whitting. How is your family?"
"Fine."
"That's great. I've got some great news for you."
"What's that, then?"
"It seems there was quite a response from a few people after your story on Monday."
Greg paused. "How so?"
"Well, a Mr. Griffiths in London in particular saw the story, and has made a most generous offer for your family."
Wondering where this was leading, Greg prodded, "What offer?"
"Mr. Griffiths is a wealthy stockbroker with the London Exchange. He has offered your family the use of his summer home in Basingstoke until you find more permanent arrangements. You can move in whenever you wish. He was hoping to meet with you at your brother-in-law's farm tomorrow."
While they were grateful for the Cane's hospitality, the snug farm house was still quite crowded; in addition, Greg and Karen felt somewhat guilty for imposing. They had been planning on telling the Canes that they were going to get a hotel room. Now, this offer was an answered prayer. "Why, that is great news, Mr. Layton!" He smiled at his wife, who was now standing beside him, looking at him expectantly.
"Then, it's set, Mr. Whitting. I'll tell Mr. Griffiths that you'll be expected him tomorrow. This should work out nicely. He was even looking for someone to house-sit for him over the winter."
"Thank you, Mr. Layton. I hope you have a great Christmas; I know I will!"
***
The snow squeaked under his boots as Josh walked to the barn, and he was surprised at how cold it had gotten overnight. The inside of the barn wasn't much warmer, and Josh felt frustrated that his friend had to stay out in the cold. He knelt down beside the rabbit's cage. "Hey, Hopscotch! Merry Christmas! Here's some treats for you!" The rabbit was still asleep, however, and did not respond. Josh knocked on the wire, but Hopscotch continued to lay there, unmoving. This was most unusual. Normally, Hopscotch would be well aware of the slightest noise, such as the front door of the barn opening, and he would at least growl as Josh came near the cage. Josh peered closely at the rabbit. "Hopscotch?" No response still. He began to feel anxious and peered more closely at Hopscotch. The rabbit wasn't breathing at all. Josh got up and ran back into the house, sobbing all the way.
"Mum! Dad! Hopscotch is sick!"
"There, there, dear, what are you crying for?"
"There's something wrong with Hopscotch," repeated Josh as he wiped his eyes with his mittens, "And he won't wake up."
"Well, let's go have a look," offered Greg.
"Let me come, too!" said Lucy, "I've had sick rabbits before." When Josh returned to the barn, followed by his father and Lucy, he saw that Hopscotch was still motionless in his cage. "See?" pointed Josh, weeping.
Greg looked closely at the rabbit. "He certainly doesn't look well. I can't see him breathing, even." No sooner had he said this when Josh started crying full-force. My mistake, thought Greg, I should have said that it was just sleeping.
"He is too breathing," spoke up Lucy, "I saw him breathing just now."
Relieved, Greg added, "Well, let's just take him back to Mr. Clifton. I hope he won't mind a visit on Christmas Day."
Greg opened the cage and lifted Hopscotch up gently. "Easy, little fella," he said, "We're taking you to the doctor again." Noting yet another vet appointment, Greg mused, At this rate, this blasted rabbit's vet bill is going to be higher than Josh's doctor bill.
*** After the others left, Blackberry spent the rest of the night thinking and rethinking his plan between spells of fitful sleep. When dawn's first light finally showed through the barn windows, he was almost looking forward to the boy's inevitable visit, so that he could finally try his escape plan out.
When he heard the barn door opening, and lay down on his side and closed his eyes. He breathed only as shallowly as possible, and determined to stay like that until the right opportunity presented itself.
He could hear the dreaded boy calling him, and he fought all instincts to hide or even growl. He was careful to not move a muscle, or even twitch a whisker. It seemed like forever as the boy kept calling to him. Hurry up, open the cage, thought Blackberry in growing frustration, I can't stay like this forever. Then, to Blackberry's dismay, he heard the boy leaving again. Maybe this isn't going to work, he thought worriedly, What if they just take me away still inside the cage?
Blackberry looked up for a moment, then heard the boy returning with some other people. He put his head back down and waited again. Maybe that hutch rabbit girl is the only one that can open these cages and the boy brought her with him, he thought hopefully.
He heard the boy, the man, and the girl talking amongst themselves. The boy was crying. So at least he thinks I'm dead. But are you taking me out or not? Blackberry continued trying to take only the shallowest of breaths, but once his lungs began to grow weary, he drew in perhaps enough breath to be noticed. The girl said something and through his nearly-closed eyes, he saw her point to him. Uh-oh. You didn't see anything. However, the man proceeded to open the cage and reach in for Blackberry.
His first response was to spring through the door and into the barn, but his good sense got the better of him. I'm not sure if I know my way right out of the barn, he thought, and what if one of the cats corners me? He suppressed his terror as best as he could as he felt the man pick him up. Another thought struck him. He'll know I'm alive now - I'm not cold. Is it too late already? But the man made no indication that he knew the truth. As soon as the man had taken him clear of the cage, Blackberry's nervousness overcame his senses and he decided to take his chances, rather than wait until he had been carried outside.
As the man wasn't grasping him, only supporting him, Blackberry didn't have to resort to biting or clawing. He simply kicked free, and landed awkwardly on his side on the floor. In an instant, he sprang to his feet and tore off into the maze of the barn. Please, Frith, show me a door. He heard the people shouting in surprise behind him, and he knew that they would be coming after him.
He almost ran right into one of the cats, and scrambled back the other way before the cat recovered from its surprise enough to give chase. Blackberry dodged into a rather large enclosure to avoid the man that was almost upon him. The room was strewn with feathers, but there were no birds to be seen. He turned around, snarling and growling at the man who was now blocking what thought might be the only escape route. The man paused, then reached out his arms to grab the escapee, but Blackberry growled more loudly, and tried to scratch and bite at the man's hand. At that, the man backed out of the place and closed a wire door behind him.
The man stood outside the pen for some time before finally leaving again. Blackberry snuffled at the walls and the wooden floor and soon found that there was no opening large enough to squeeze through. This enclosure was larger than his cage, but it was just another prison. His escape attempt had failed.
*** "Hopscotch! Come back!" Josh paused. "You're not sick!" he finally added in surprise.
"Well, catch him, Uncle Greg!" cried Lucy, "He's getting away!"
Greg was still surprised after the "sick" rabbit had suddenly sprung to life. He tried to follow Hopscotch, but the rabbit bounded through the barn too quickly. Fortunately, Hopscotch failed to find his way to any open doors. It eventually came back towards Greg, then bounded into the large room where the geese had been kept before they were sold at a Kingsclere farmers' market for Christmas. This room was designed to keep out the cats so that they would not pester the birds when they were still small. Greg quickly blocked the opening to the pen, trapping the escapee.
"Let me catch him," said Greg, "I don't want you getting bitten again, Josh." Greg cautiously approached the rabbit, which seemed ready to attack, even snarling and trying to bite him. As Greg wasn't wearing gloves, and didn't want to get scratched or bitten, he backed off. Greg called for the cats, in case any were in the room Hopscotch was. Satisfied that there were no cats in the pen, he closed the door and fastened it. "Well, let's just leave him here, then. He can't get out, and the cats can't get in. We can put him back in the cage later."
"Thanks, Daddy," said Josh, "I thought he was gone."
"You're welcome. We may as well go back to the house now. I've got some good news for you, Josh."
"What's that, Dad?"
"It looks like we can move into our own house in Basingstoke - for a while, anyway. A generous fellow in London offered us his summer home to stay in, for the winter. We might be able to move in as soon as I meet with him tomorrow."
Josh jumped up. "Oh, boy! Is it a big house?"
"More than big enough for the three of us."
That afternoon, around the Christmas dinner table, the discussion continued.
"Yes, this is turning out to be a blessed Christmas, after all," Karen was saying, "We get to spend it together with family, and now we get to move into a veritable mansion, from what I've heard. Oh, I do hope we can move in tomorrow! I just hate imposing on you nice folks."
The Canes waved this off. "You're not imposing at all - we're glad to have you," replied Mark.
Karen acknowledged this with a smile and nod. "Anyhow," continued Karen, "I'm sure we'll have a permanent home again by spring, with the insurance."
*** The four rabbits crept quietly toward the barn just as the sun was rising. They quickly scrambled for cover behind a fence as they saw a boy emerge from the man burrow. The boy made his way to the barn and disappeared inside.
"Hazel, what do we do now?" whispered Vilthuril, shivering.
Before Hazel could reply, Fiver said confidently, "Just wait here. That's all we need to do. Trust me."
Bigwig opened his mouth, but thought better of it and remained silent.
After a short while, the boy ran out of the barn and back to the man burrow.
"Just wait," Fiver repeated.
As the rabbits watched, the boy appeared again, this time with two others accompanying him.
"What are they going to do? What are they going to do?" whimpered Vilthuril.
"They're not going to shoot him, are they?" Bigwig wondered aloud.
"There's no gun," replied Hazel.
"Blackberry will be fine," assured Fiver, "Just wait here."
After some time, the people finally emerged from the barn and went back to their burrow. The other rabbits looked at Fiver expectantly. Finally, Bigwig asked, "Well, Fiver, what are we to do?"
"I think we should go into the barn now," Fiver said quickly.
Upon returning to the barn, the rabbits quickly went back to where Blackberry's cage was. They found it empty. "Where is he?" cried Vilthuril, "They've taken him away!"
"Calm down," said Hazel, "They weren't carrying Blackberry with them. He must still be in the barn somewhere."
"Blackberry, where are you?" called Vilthuril.
"Quiet!" scolded Bigwig, "You shall wake all of the cats!"
"The cats will know we are here by scent, anyhow," observed Hazel, "so let's be quick about finding him."
Just then, they heard Blackberry reply from somewhere back in the barn, "I'm back here! Come quickly!"
The rabbits made their way to the wire door behind which Blackberry sat. "What are you doing in there, for Frith's sake?" asked Bigwig.
Hazel didn't worry about this, and got right to the point. "Can you get out of there?"
Blackberry put his paw in a small hole just to the side of the door. "I managed to dig up a rotten board in the floor here. It's all dirt underneath, and it's not frozen very much yet. I've already dug a bit out, but it's slow going."
"What are you doing that for?" cried Bigwig, "Are you digging a burrow right under the barn?"
"I'm digging under the wall, Bigwig. And I could use your help."
Fiver looked at the ground. The floor was all dirt outside of Blackberry's makeshift prison. Since Blackberry had managed to get past the wooden floor on his side... "Yes! That's it! he exclaimed, "If we dig from each side, it will be much quicker to get him out!"
After that, the other rabbits also caught onto Blackberry's plan. As a doe, Vilthuril was the more efficient digger, so she took the lead in the digging from the free rabbits' side. The others helped to claw away the edges and remove the dug-away dirt. It wasn't long before a sizable hole had been formed. The rabbits were so busy with their work that they didn't notice a ginger, black, and white cat sneak up behind them.
Bigwig had no warning before the cat leapt onto him and bit into the back of his neck. He instinctively rolled onto his side and tried kicking out at whatever was assailing him, but he wasn't able to reach it. After recovering himself from shock, Hazel leapt onto the cat, kicking into its side with his hind claws. The cat released her grip on Bigwig and was about to turn on Hazel when Bigwig was back on the cat, biting its ear and scratching it as deeply and viciously as he knew how.
Discouraged, the cat yowled and backed away from the rabbits, hissing. Bigwig advanced again and made ready to attack, but the cat cursed bitterly, turned, and ran back from whence she had appeared. The rabbits could hear other cats in the background, chuckling and offering insults at the once-again defeated cat. "Just any of you try us, and you'll be lucky to wind up as well off as your friend," shouted Bigwig defiantly. He then turned to his friends and said quickly, "Keep digging. I'll keep watch."
Vilthuril resumed digging, with Hazel and Fiver helping in any way that they could. Blackberry was doing well on his side, and had almost disappeared into the hole in the floorboards, which was surrounded by an ever-growing pile of dirt. Soon, Vilthuril was able to poke her nose through a small hole in the dirt and see Blackberry's eye. "We're almost there," she said encouragingly.
"Hurry up! I can hear the men again!" Bigwig's ears were twitching and he was looking towards the door on the other side of the barn. Sure enough, the door opened, and the voices of the people became suddenly louder.
"Oh, Frith and Inlé," cursed Blackberry, "I'm not failing again." With that, both he and Vilthuril tore desperately at the dirt, rapidly enlarging the hole. As soon as it looked possible to squeeze through, Blackberry dove into it, but became wedged in. He desperately kicked out with his hind feet, and just managed to propel himself through, barging roughly into Vilthuril.
Taking no time to celebrate, Vilthuril backed out of the hole, followed immediately by Blackberry. All five of the rabbits immediately bounded towards the door, right by the feet of the surprised people. In an instant, they were out the door and didn't look back.
*** Greg was walking back to the barn, this time wearing gloves, and with Josh in tow. "Hopefully I can get Hopscotch back in that cage without too much fuss," Greg was saying.
"Daddy, are we really moving tomorrow?"
"Yes, as soon as we meet with Mr. Griffiths."
"Can we take Hopscotch with us?"
"Of course, son. He's one of the family, you know."
Once in the barn, they made their way toward the goose pen that was Hopscotch's temporary quarters. Just as they were nearing the pen, they were surprised by several flashes of fur that scrambled by right underneath their feet. "What was that?" Greg wondered aloud.
"Look, Daddy, more bunnies!" Josh pointed, but the rabbits were already gone.
"That's odd. I wonder why they were in here?" Then Greg looked at the door to the goose pen. "Well, what's this?" flustered Greg, seeing the hole and the displaced dirt. "How did this happen so quickly?" Thinking that perhaps a badger had gotten into the barn with the hope of stealing one of the geese that were no longer there, Greg looked into the goose pen. Hopscotch was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Hopscotch, Dad?"
"I don't know, Josh." Greg paused. "I know rabbits can dig, but... That can't be..." He added incredulously, "I think those rabbits that just ran past us dug Hopscotch out of there."
After leading a heartbroken Josh back to the house, Greg explained the events to the others. Lucy was quick to offer her sympathy, as well as one of her own rabbits. It took Josh all day to warm up to Lucy's offer, as he only wanted his heroic bunny back. However, when the Whitting's left for their temporary home in Basingstoke the next day, Josh had another pet - Laurel the hutch rabbit.
*** Blackberry was speaking in the Honeycomb, with the rabbits of Hazel's warren crowded around. "Well, I suppose they helped me. I don't know what happened to me out there. I just woke up and was in their burrow. I can't imagine that I went in there myself, so they must have found me somewhere and taken me to their home. I suppose if I was hurt out in the middle of nowhere, I would've stopped running." He paused. "But, wait. Bigwig, I remember that we were out there looking for something. Did you see what happened?"
Bigwig cleared his throat. "I'm glad you asked. Those helpful humans hit you with their hrududu, and then they took you away. That's what happened to you. We all thought you'd stopped running for certain." Blackberry gasped in response.
"Everyone except Fiver," corrected Vilthuril, nuzzling her mate.
"Well, thank you for not giving up on me - Fiver, and the rest of you. I owe you all so much."
"You owe us a story, at least," observed Hazel, "You must have quite a tale for us."
"Ya, ya, you owe us story!" called Kehaar, who had made his way in to join the rabbits, "And make 'im a plenty good story!"
So, Blackberry began telling his tale to his rapt audience. It went on well into the night, and even Clover and the other hutch rabbits, who for all their time with men had never actually seen the inside of a man-burrow, were amazed at what they heard. Dandelion was also impressed with Blackberry's story, and thought that it rivaled any of his tales of El- ahrairah. Everything from waking up beside the hrududu, to being in the man- burrow, to the awful boy, to the fire, to being in the cage in the barn - all was told in vivid detail.
When the story was finally finished, Blackberry waited to receive the thank- you's for the story and answer the questions, before announcing that he was going back to his burrow for the first time in too long a time, and having a very long nap. Nobody argued.
"Blackberry," said Bluebell, the merciless jokester, "I'm afraid I was daydreaming just then. Could you tell me that story again? It was probably fairly interesting."
Blackberry hopped over and cuffed Bluebell mildly. "I guess I'm part of the warren again if I'm the target of your jokes."
"You were always part of our warren," assured Hazel.
With that, Blackberry went off to have the soundest sleep that he could remember - and free of any bothersome children.
**********
End **********
"Mum! Dad! It's Christmas!" Josh was hopping up and down beside his parents' bed in the Whitting's guest room. Josh had hardly slept a wink from excitement, and he found it difficult to wait until six in the morning to wake his parents, when he could stand the tension no longer.
"Josh, go back to sleep," mumbled Greg. "Nobody's getting up yet." However, the sound from the kitchen of breakfast being made by Mrs. Cane filtered into the room, soon followed by the smell of ham and eggs. There was no sleeping in on the Cane farm, especially on Christmas morning.
Breakfast didn't last long, since Josh and Lucy knew what followed. The two cousins even helped with the dishes, as their parents made it clear that opening gifts wasn't to start until the table was cleared and everything put away.
Finally, the Canes and Whitting's were gathered around the Christmas tree, and Mr. Cane was assigned the task of handing out the gifts. The parents received gifts like clothes, crafts, and chocolates, while naturally Josh and Lucy were spoiled with numerous toys and candies. Josh's favourite gift was a toy stuffed rabbit from his parents, to which he said gleefully, "I going to show you to Hopscotch! You look like twins!"
Josh decided to put off playing with his toys to make a quick visit on his real rabbit friend, with his toy rabbit in tow. After getting some carrots and lettuce from the kitchen, Josh called, "I'll be right back, Mum," as he went out the door. Everyone else stayed in the house.
After Josh left, the telephone rang, and Mrs. Cane answered it.
"Hello?... Yes, he's right here." Turning to Greg, she said, "It's for you. It's that reporter from the BBC again."
Taking the phone, Greg said, "Hello, Mr. Layton. Merry Christmas to you!"
"Thank you, Mr. Whitting. How is your family?"
"Fine."
"That's great. I've got some great news for you."
"What's that, then?"
"It seems there was quite a response from a few people after your story on Monday."
Greg paused. "How so?"
"Well, a Mr. Griffiths in London in particular saw the story, and has made a most generous offer for your family."
Wondering where this was leading, Greg prodded, "What offer?"
"Mr. Griffiths is a wealthy stockbroker with the London Exchange. He has offered your family the use of his summer home in Basingstoke until you find more permanent arrangements. You can move in whenever you wish. He was hoping to meet with you at your brother-in-law's farm tomorrow."
While they were grateful for the Cane's hospitality, the snug farm house was still quite crowded; in addition, Greg and Karen felt somewhat guilty for imposing. They had been planning on telling the Canes that they were going to get a hotel room. Now, this offer was an answered prayer. "Why, that is great news, Mr. Layton!" He smiled at his wife, who was now standing beside him, looking at him expectantly.
"Then, it's set, Mr. Whitting. I'll tell Mr. Griffiths that you'll be expected him tomorrow. This should work out nicely. He was even looking for someone to house-sit for him over the winter."
"Thank you, Mr. Layton. I hope you have a great Christmas; I know I will!"
***
The snow squeaked under his boots as Josh walked to the barn, and he was surprised at how cold it had gotten overnight. The inside of the barn wasn't much warmer, and Josh felt frustrated that his friend had to stay out in the cold. He knelt down beside the rabbit's cage. "Hey, Hopscotch! Merry Christmas! Here's some treats for you!" The rabbit was still asleep, however, and did not respond. Josh knocked on the wire, but Hopscotch continued to lay there, unmoving. This was most unusual. Normally, Hopscotch would be well aware of the slightest noise, such as the front door of the barn opening, and he would at least growl as Josh came near the cage. Josh peered closely at the rabbit. "Hopscotch?" No response still. He began to feel anxious and peered more closely at Hopscotch. The rabbit wasn't breathing at all. Josh got up and ran back into the house, sobbing all the way.
"Mum! Dad! Hopscotch is sick!"
"There, there, dear, what are you crying for?"
"There's something wrong with Hopscotch," repeated Josh as he wiped his eyes with his mittens, "And he won't wake up."
"Well, let's go have a look," offered Greg.
"Let me come, too!" said Lucy, "I've had sick rabbits before." When Josh returned to the barn, followed by his father and Lucy, he saw that Hopscotch was still motionless in his cage. "See?" pointed Josh, weeping.
Greg looked closely at the rabbit. "He certainly doesn't look well. I can't see him breathing, even." No sooner had he said this when Josh started crying full-force. My mistake, thought Greg, I should have said that it was just sleeping.
"He is too breathing," spoke up Lucy, "I saw him breathing just now."
Relieved, Greg added, "Well, let's just take him back to Mr. Clifton. I hope he won't mind a visit on Christmas Day."
Greg opened the cage and lifted Hopscotch up gently. "Easy, little fella," he said, "We're taking you to the doctor again." Noting yet another vet appointment, Greg mused, At this rate, this blasted rabbit's vet bill is going to be higher than Josh's doctor bill.
*** After the others left, Blackberry spent the rest of the night thinking and rethinking his plan between spells of fitful sleep. When dawn's first light finally showed through the barn windows, he was almost looking forward to the boy's inevitable visit, so that he could finally try his escape plan out.
When he heard the barn door opening, and lay down on his side and closed his eyes. He breathed only as shallowly as possible, and determined to stay like that until the right opportunity presented itself.
He could hear the dreaded boy calling him, and he fought all instincts to hide or even growl. He was careful to not move a muscle, or even twitch a whisker. It seemed like forever as the boy kept calling to him. Hurry up, open the cage, thought Blackberry in growing frustration, I can't stay like this forever. Then, to Blackberry's dismay, he heard the boy leaving again. Maybe this isn't going to work, he thought worriedly, What if they just take me away still inside the cage?
Blackberry looked up for a moment, then heard the boy returning with some other people. He put his head back down and waited again. Maybe that hutch rabbit girl is the only one that can open these cages and the boy brought her with him, he thought hopefully.
He heard the boy, the man, and the girl talking amongst themselves. The boy was crying. So at least he thinks I'm dead. But are you taking me out or not? Blackberry continued trying to take only the shallowest of breaths, but once his lungs began to grow weary, he drew in perhaps enough breath to be noticed. The girl said something and through his nearly-closed eyes, he saw her point to him. Uh-oh. You didn't see anything. However, the man proceeded to open the cage and reach in for Blackberry.
His first response was to spring through the door and into the barn, but his good sense got the better of him. I'm not sure if I know my way right out of the barn, he thought, and what if one of the cats corners me? He suppressed his terror as best as he could as he felt the man pick him up. Another thought struck him. He'll know I'm alive now - I'm not cold. Is it too late already? But the man made no indication that he knew the truth. As soon as the man had taken him clear of the cage, Blackberry's nervousness overcame his senses and he decided to take his chances, rather than wait until he had been carried outside.
As the man wasn't grasping him, only supporting him, Blackberry didn't have to resort to biting or clawing. He simply kicked free, and landed awkwardly on his side on the floor. In an instant, he sprang to his feet and tore off into the maze of the barn. Please, Frith, show me a door. He heard the people shouting in surprise behind him, and he knew that they would be coming after him.
He almost ran right into one of the cats, and scrambled back the other way before the cat recovered from its surprise enough to give chase. Blackberry dodged into a rather large enclosure to avoid the man that was almost upon him. The room was strewn with feathers, but there were no birds to be seen. He turned around, snarling and growling at the man who was now blocking what thought might be the only escape route. The man paused, then reached out his arms to grab the escapee, but Blackberry growled more loudly, and tried to scratch and bite at the man's hand. At that, the man backed out of the place and closed a wire door behind him.
The man stood outside the pen for some time before finally leaving again. Blackberry snuffled at the walls and the wooden floor and soon found that there was no opening large enough to squeeze through. This enclosure was larger than his cage, but it was just another prison. His escape attempt had failed.
*** "Hopscotch! Come back!" Josh paused. "You're not sick!" he finally added in surprise.
"Well, catch him, Uncle Greg!" cried Lucy, "He's getting away!"
Greg was still surprised after the "sick" rabbit had suddenly sprung to life. He tried to follow Hopscotch, but the rabbit bounded through the barn too quickly. Fortunately, Hopscotch failed to find his way to any open doors. It eventually came back towards Greg, then bounded into the large room where the geese had been kept before they were sold at a Kingsclere farmers' market for Christmas. This room was designed to keep out the cats so that they would not pester the birds when they were still small. Greg quickly blocked the opening to the pen, trapping the escapee.
"Let me catch him," said Greg, "I don't want you getting bitten again, Josh." Greg cautiously approached the rabbit, which seemed ready to attack, even snarling and trying to bite him. As Greg wasn't wearing gloves, and didn't want to get scratched or bitten, he backed off. Greg called for the cats, in case any were in the room Hopscotch was. Satisfied that there were no cats in the pen, he closed the door and fastened it. "Well, let's just leave him here, then. He can't get out, and the cats can't get in. We can put him back in the cage later."
"Thanks, Daddy," said Josh, "I thought he was gone."
"You're welcome. We may as well go back to the house now. I've got some good news for you, Josh."
"What's that, Dad?"
"It looks like we can move into our own house in Basingstoke - for a while, anyway. A generous fellow in London offered us his summer home to stay in, for the winter. We might be able to move in as soon as I meet with him tomorrow."
Josh jumped up. "Oh, boy! Is it a big house?"
"More than big enough for the three of us."
That afternoon, around the Christmas dinner table, the discussion continued.
"Yes, this is turning out to be a blessed Christmas, after all," Karen was saying, "We get to spend it together with family, and now we get to move into a veritable mansion, from what I've heard. Oh, I do hope we can move in tomorrow! I just hate imposing on you nice folks."
The Canes waved this off. "You're not imposing at all - we're glad to have you," replied Mark.
Karen acknowledged this with a smile and nod. "Anyhow," continued Karen, "I'm sure we'll have a permanent home again by spring, with the insurance."
*** The four rabbits crept quietly toward the barn just as the sun was rising. They quickly scrambled for cover behind a fence as they saw a boy emerge from the man burrow. The boy made his way to the barn and disappeared inside.
"Hazel, what do we do now?" whispered Vilthuril, shivering.
Before Hazel could reply, Fiver said confidently, "Just wait here. That's all we need to do. Trust me."
Bigwig opened his mouth, but thought better of it and remained silent.
After a short while, the boy ran out of the barn and back to the man burrow.
"Just wait," Fiver repeated.
As the rabbits watched, the boy appeared again, this time with two others accompanying him.
"What are they going to do? What are they going to do?" whimpered Vilthuril.
"They're not going to shoot him, are they?" Bigwig wondered aloud.
"There's no gun," replied Hazel.
"Blackberry will be fine," assured Fiver, "Just wait here."
After some time, the people finally emerged from the barn and went back to their burrow. The other rabbits looked at Fiver expectantly. Finally, Bigwig asked, "Well, Fiver, what are we to do?"
"I think we should go into the barn now," Fiver said quickly.
Upon returning to the barn, the rabbits quickly went back to where Blackberry's cage was. They found it empty. "Where is he?" cried Vilthuril, "They've taken him away!"
"Calm down," said Hazel, "They weren't carrying Blackberry with them. He must still be in the barn somewhere."
"Blackberry, where are you?" called Vilthuril.
"Quiet!" scolded Bigwig, "You shall wake all of the cats!"
"The cats will know we are here by scent, anyhow," observed Hazel, "so let's be quick about finding him."
Just then, they heard Blackberry reply from somewhere back in the barn, "I'm back here! Come quickly!"
The rabbits made their way to the wire door behind which Blackberry sat. "What are you doing in there, for Frith's sake?" asked Bigwig.
Hazel didn't worry about this, and got right to the point. "Can you get out of there?"
Blackberry put his paw in a small hole just to the side of the door. "I managed to dig up a rotten board in the floor here. It's all dirt underneath, and it's not frozen very much yet. I've already dug a bit out, but it's slow going."
"What are you doing that for?" cried Bigwig, "Are you digging a burrow right under the barn?"
"I'm digging under the wall, Bigwig. And I could use your help."
Fiver looked at the ground. The floor was all dirt outside of Blackberry's makeshift prison. Since Blackberry had managed to get past the wooden floor on his side... "Yes! That's it! he exclaimed, "If we dig from each side, it will be much quicker to get him out!"
After that, the other rabbits also caught onto Blackberry's plan. As a doe, Vilthuril was the more efficient digger, so she took the lead in the digging from the free rabbits' side. The others helped to claw away the edges and remove the dug-away dirt. It wasn't long before a sizable hole had been formed. The rabbits were so busy with their work that they didn't notice a ginger, black, and white cat sneak up behind them.
Bigwig had no warning before the cat leapt onto him and bit into the back of his neck. He instinctively rolled onto his side and tried kicking out at whatever was assailing him, but he wasn't able to reach it. After recovering himself from shock, Hazel leapt onto the cat, kicking into its side with his hind claws. The cat released her grip on Bigwig and was about to turn on Hazel when Bigwig was back on the cat, biting its ear and scratching it as deeply and viciously as he knew how.
Discouraged, the cat yowled and backed away from the rabbits, hissing. Bigwig advanced again and made ready to attack, but the cat cursed bitterly, turned, and ran back from whence she had appeared. The rabbits could hear other cats in the background, chuckling and offering insults at the once-again defeated cat. "Just any of you try us, and you'll be lucky to wind up as well off as your friend," shouted Bigwig defiantly. He then turned to his friends and said quickly, "Keep digging. I'll keep watch."
Vilthuril resumed digging, with Hazel and Fiver helping in any way that they could. Blackberry was doing well on his side, and had almost disappeared into the hole in the floorboards, which was surrounded by an ever-growing pile of dirt. Soon, Vilthuril was able to poke her nose through a small hole in the dirt and see Blackberry's eye. "We're almost there," she said encouragingly.
"Hurry up! I can hear the men again!" Bigwig's ears were twitching and he was looking towards the door on the other side of the barn. Sure enough, the door opened, and the voices of the people became suddenly louder.
"Oh, Frith and Inlé," cursed Blackberry, "I'm not failing again." With that, both he and Vilthuril tore desperately at the dirt, rapidly enlarging the hole. As soon as it looked possible to squeeze through, Blackberry dove into it, but became wedged in. He desperately kicked out with his hind feet, and just managed to propel himself through, barging roughly into Vilthuril.
Taking no time to celebrate, Vilthuril backed out of the hole, followed immediately by Blackberry. All five of the rabbits immediately bounded towards the door, right by the feet of the surprised people. In an instant, they were out the door and didn't look back.
*** Greg was walking back to the barn, this time wearing gloves, and with Josh in tow. "Hopefully I can get Hopscotch back in that cage without too much fuss," Greg was saying.
"Daddy, are we really moving tomorrow?"
"Yes, as soon as we meet with Mr. Griffiths."
"Can we take Hopscotch with us?"
"Of course, son. He's one of the family, you know."
Once in the barn, they made their way toward the goose pen that was Hopscotch's temporary quarters. Just as they were nearing the pen, they were surprised by several flashes of fur that scrambled by right underneath their feet. "What was that?" Greg wondered aloud.
"Look, Daddy, more bunnies!" Josh pointed, but the rabbits were already gone.
"That's odd. I wonder why they were in here?" Then Greg looked at the door to the goose pen. "Well, what's this?" flustered Greg, seeing the hole and the displaced dirt. "How did this happen so quickly?" Thinking that perhaps a badger had gotten into the barn with the hope of stealing one of the geese that were no longer there, Greg looked into the goose pen. Hopscotch was nowhere to be seen.
"Where's Hopscotch, Dad?"
"I don't know, Josh." Greg paused. "I know rabbits can dig, but... That can't be..." He added incredulously, "I think those rabbits that just ran past us dug Hopscotch out of there."
After leading a heartbroken Josh back to the house, Greg explained the events to the others. Lucy was quick to offer her sympathy, as well as one of her own rabbits. It took Josh all day to warm up to Lucy's offer, as he only wanted his heroic bunny back. However, when the Whitting's left for their temporary home in Basingstoke the next day, Josh had another pet - Laurel the hutch rabbit.
*** Blackberry was speaking in the Honeycomb, with the rabbits of Hazel's warren crowded around. "Well, I suppose they helped me. I don't know what happened to me out there. I just woke up and was in their burrow. I can't imagine that I went in there myself, so they must have found me somewhere and taken me to their home. I suppose if I was hurt out in the middle of nowhere, I would've stopped running." He paused. "But, wait. Bigwig, I remember that we were out there looking for something. Did you see what happened?"
Bigwig cleared his throat. "I'm glad you asked. Those helpful humans hit you with their hrududu, and then they took you away. That's what happened to you. We all thought you'd stopped running for certain." Blackberry gasped in response.
"Everyone except Fiver," corrected Vilthuril, nuzzling her mate.
"Well, thank you for not giving up on me - Fiver, and the rest of you. I owe you all so much."
"You owe us a story, at least," observed Hazel, "You must have quite a tale for us."
"Ya, ya, you owe us story!" called Kehaar, who had made his way in to join the rabbits, "And make 'im a plenty good story!"
So, Blackberry began telling his tale to his rapt audience. It went on well into the night, and even Clover and the other hutch rabbits, who for all their time with men had never actually seen the inside of a man-burrow, were amazed at what they heard. Dandelion was also impressed with Blackberry's story, and thought that it rivaled any of his tales of El- ahrairah. Everything from waking up beside the hrududu, to being in the man- burrow, to the awful boy, to the fire, to being in the cage in the barn - all was told in vivid detail.
When the story was finally finished, Blackberry waited to receive the thank- you's for the story and answer the questions, before announcing that he was going back to his burrow for the first time in too long a time, and having a very long nap. Nobody argued.
"Blackberry," said Bluebell, the merciless jokester, "I'm afraid I was daydreaming just then. Could you tell me that story again? It was probably fairly interesting."
Blackberry hopped over and cuffed Bluebell mildly. "I guess I'm part of the warren again if I'm the target of your jokes."
"You were always part of our warren," assured Hazel.
With that, Blackberry went off to have the soundest sleep that he could remember - and free of any bothersome children.
**********
End **********
