The rest of the kits silflay that day was fairly uneventful. Orchid ate her clover, Heather felt very depressed and nervous and didn't silflay much as a result and Goosegrass finished his game of playing El-ahrairah's new companion. When he felt too tired to play anymore, he happily filled his belly with flay. All the time the kits were silf, Celandine watched them from a distance. She had to warn Goosegrass not to run too far from the warren once, but apart from that she thought they were all behaving very well.
Celandine smiled as Frith came out from behind a cloud and shone down upon her. She closed her eyes and smiled. She felt very contented with her life. A rabbit couldn't ask for more than she now had. An excellent warren to live in and her own little family. Cloverdown was such a pretty warren too, she had always thought that though. Even when she had arrived all those seasons ago as a young hlessi with nowhere to go, she had thought the warren was beautiful. It was quite old, but it wasn't one of those huge, sprawling mass of tunnels that old warrens sometimes became. It was compact and nicely set out, with a good sized meeting burrow and plenty of well appointed sleeping burrows. The warren itself was nestled comfortably between a hill and a small stream in a place that didn't have too many elil and man rarely visited, so the rabbits didn't have to be over cautious about going silf.
A strong gust of wind suddenly ruffled Celandine's fur. It was still early in the season and although Frith was blessing the world with his shining light, his warmth wasn't yet stronger than the cold north wind, that was still managing to cling onto it's icy edge from the bad winter they had endured. Celandine got to her feet and took a few steps over to where her offspring were silflaying.
"Come on, kits! Time to go back in now!" she called to them. She looked up at the clouds as Frith disappeared behind them again and she wondered if they'd be getting some rain later on. There was a slight scent of it in the air. She was glad that she had decided to take the kits silf early now.
"Come on now! You too Goosegrass!" Celandine called to them, noticing her son was now trying to catch a moth. He gave up with it as he heard his Marli's second call and ran over to her, beating his two sisters in reaching her first and smiling triumphantly at both of them, even though neither of them had been aware that they were in a race in the first place.
"Heather! Whatever's happened to your ear? You've got a cut on it!" Celandine said, moving closer to examine her daughter's bad ear.
"Oh, she trod on it earlier, didn't you Heather?" Orchid said quickly, before Heather could reply. Orchid shot her sister a cold, threatening stare as her marli's back was turned. "She's always tripping over it, Marli! I feel so sorry for her!"
Heather said nothing. She was afraid of what Orchid would do to her if she told her marli the truth. Celandine licked the ear carefully until she was happy that it was clean.
"It'll be alright, Heather, but be careful where you put your paws when you walk in future, okay?" Celandine said. Heather looked at the ground and nodded her head sadly.
"Yeah, Heather! Be careful where you put your paws!" smirked Orchid. "Perhaps I can hold your poor, bad ear in my mouth on the way back into the warren, Heather dear, that way you'll not tread all over it again."
"No! I don't need any help from you!" Heather snapped back.
"Now, now, Heather, don't get cross with your sister, she only wants to help." Celandine said gently, then she turned to Orchid. "I think Heather will be fine walking back on her own, Orchid."
"Yes, Marli!" Orchid said, with one of her sweetest expressions.
"Alright, it's going to rain out here soon, you can smell it in the air, so lets all get back to the burrow before it starts and I'll tell you a nice story." Celandine smiled.
"An El-ahrairah story?" beamed Goosegrass hopefully.
"Yes, I think we can manage that." she replied, smiling back at her son. Celandine then turned back to the warren and led her three kits inside. Goosegrass walked beside his marli, discussing with her what story he'd like to hear. Orchid walked just behind them, glancing back over her shoulder now and then to smirk at Heather as they walked through the warren. Heather slowed right down and fell back, away from the others. She didn't want to be anywhere near her sister anymore. Orchid had always been a bully, but she had got a lot worse lately. She seemed to delight in making her sister cry. Now she was calling her by that terrible nickname, 'Freakear'. Heather didn't know how much more she could take. She wanted to tell her Marli, but she had a terrible nagging feeling inside her that what Orchid said was true. Her Marli would probably believe her sister rather than her. Then Orchid would get really angry and hurt her. Heather wished she didn't have to go back to the burrow with her family. She wished she had a little burrow all by herself somewhere. A place she could go to get away from her sister and be on her own, but it was not to be and Heather slowly and reluctantly followed the others back to the burrow.
"Come in and sit down, Heather. I'm about to start the story." said Celandine as her daughter appeared in the burrow entrance. Heather whispered an "Okay, Marli.", entered and sat at the back of the large burrow, well away from Orchid who was at laying on the ground directly in front of Celandine. Goosegrass just couldn't seem to keep still for more than two minutes and he was now tugging at the end of a dead gorse bush root that had probably been poking into the burrow since it was dug out. Orchid frowned at him, finding him very irritating.
Celandine then began her El-ahrairah tale. It was the story of El-ahrairah and the snow rabbit. All the kits had heard it before, but as their Marli told it so well, none of them complained, not even Orchid who complained a lot. Celandine told the story well because it was her favourite and her love of it came through in her telling. It was the first story she had heard at Cloverdown. It had been told to her by an old storyteller the night she had arrived as a hlessi. She had been very nervous and frightened that night and the story had brought a smile to her face and banished all her fears. She had been surprised when the old buck had started the tale, as she thought she had heard every tale of El-ahrairah that existed and she had interrupted the story and told the buck so. The elderly storyteller had chuckled and he said that no rabbit, not even the best of taletellers, knew every adventure of El-ahrairah and some of the stories were only told in one or two warrens. A rabbit would have to travel the world and visit every warren in it and befriend and chat to every hlessi storyteller to hear every single one. Celandine had smiled and let the buck return to the tale and she told that same tale now to her little ones and she told it well. Even poor little Heather managed to forget her troubles for a while.
Celandine smiled as Frith came out from behind a cloud and shone down upon her. She closed her eyes and smiled. She felt very contented with her life. A rabbit couldn't ask for more than she now had. An excellent warren to live in and her own little family. Cloverdown was such a pretty warren too, she had always thought that though. Even when she had arrived all those seasons ago as a young hlessi with nowhere to go, she had thought the warren was beautiful. It was quite old, but it wasn't one of those huge, sprawling mass of tunnels that old warrens sometimes became. It was compact and nicely set out, with a good sized meeting burrow and plenty of well appointed sleeping burrows. The warren itself was nestled comfortably between a hill and a small stream in a place that didn't have too many elil and man rarely visited, so the rabbits didn't have to be over cautious about going silf.
A strong gust of wind suddenly ruffled Celandine's fur. It was still early in the season and although Frith was blessing the world with his shining light, his warmth wasn't yet stronger than the cold north wind, that was still managing to cling onto it's icy edge from the bad winter they had endured. Celandine got to her feet and took a few steps over to where her offspring were silflaying.
"Come on, kits! Time to go back in now!" she called to them. She looked up at the clouds as Frith disappeared behind them again and she wondered if they'd be getting some rain later on. There was a slight scent of it in the air. She was glad that she had decided to take the kits silf early now.
"Come on now! You too Goosegrass!" Celandine called to them, noticing her son was now trying to catch a moth. He gave up with it as he heard his Marli's second call and ran over to her, beating his two sisters in reaching her first and smiling triumphantly at both of them, even though neither of them had been aware that they were in a race in the first place.
"Heather! Whatever's happened to your ear? You've got a cut on it!" Celandine said, moving closer to examine her daughter's bad ear.
"Oh, she trod on it earlier, didn't you Heather?" Orchid said quickly, before Heather could reply. Orchid shot her sister a cold, threatening stare as her marli's back was turned. "She's always tripping over it, Marli! I feel so sorry for her!"
Heather said nothing. She was afraid of what Orchid would do to her if she told her marli the truth. Celandine licked the ear carefully until she was happy that it was clean.
"It'll be alright, Heather, but be careful where you put your paws when you walk in future, okay?" Celandine said. Heather looked at the ground and nodded her head sadly.
"Yeah, Heather! Be careful where you put your paws!" smirked Orchid. "Perhaps I can hold your poor, bad ear in my mouth on the way back into the warren, Heather dear, that way you'll not tread all over it again."
"No! I don't need any help from you!" Heather snapped back.
"Now, now, Heather, don't get cross with your sister, she only wants to help." Celandine said gently, then she turned to Orchid. "I think Heather will be fine walking back on her own, Orchid."
"Yes, Marli!" Orchid said, with one of her sweetest expressions.
"Alright, it's going to rain out here soon, you can smell it in the air, so lets all get back to the burrow before it starts and I'll tell you a nice story." Celandine smiled.
"An El-ahrairah story?" beamed Goosegrass hopefully.
"Yes, I think we can manage that." she replied, smiling back at her son. Celandine then turned back to the warren and led her three kits inside. Goosegrass walked beside his marli, discussing with her what story he'd like to hear. Orchid walked just behind them, glancing back over her shoulder now and then to smirk at Heather as they walked through the warren. Heather slowed right down and fell back, away from the others. She didn't want to be anywhere near her sister anymore. Orchid had always been a bully, but she had got a lot worse lately. She seemed to delight in making her sister cry. Now she was calling her by that terrible nickname, 'Freakear'. Heather didn't know how much more she could take. She wanted to tell her Marli, but she had a terrible nagging feeling inside her that what Orchid said was true. Her Marli would probably believe her sister rather than her. Then Orchid would get really angry and hurt her. Heather wished she didn't have to go back to the burrow with her family. She wished she had a little burrow all by herself somewhere. A place she could go to get away from her sister and be on her own, but it was not to be and Heather slowly and reluctantly followed the others back to the burrow.
"Come in and sit down, Heather. I'm about to start the story." said Celandine as her daughter appeared in the burrow entrance. Heather whispered an "Okay, Marli.", entered and sat at the back of the large burrow, well away from Orchid who was at laying on the ground directly in front of Celandine. Goosegrass just couldn't seem to keep still for more than two minutes and he was now tugging at the end of a dead gorse bush root that had probably been poking into the burrow since it was dug out. Orchid frowned at him, finding him very irritating.
Celandine then began her El-ahrairah tale. It was the story of El-ahrairah and the snow rabbit. All the kits had heard it before, but as their Marli told it so well, none of them complained, not even Orchid who complained a lot. Celandine told the story well because it was her favourite and her love of it came through in her telling. It was the first story she had heard at Cloverdown. It had been told to her by an old storyteller the night she had arrived as a hlessi. She had been very nervous and frightened that night and the story had brought a smile to her face and banished all her fears. She had been surprised when the old buck had started the tale, as she thought she had heard every tale of El-ahrairah that existed and she had interrupted the story and told the buck so. The elderly storyteller had chuckled and he said that no rabbit, not even the best of taletellers, knew every adventure of El-ahrairah and some of the stories were only told in one or two warrens. A rabbit would have to travel the world and visit every warren in it and befriend and chat to every hlessi storyteller to hear every single one. Celandine had smiled and let the buck return to the tale and she told that same tale now to her little ones and she told it well. Even poor little Heather managed to forget her troubles for a while.