10: Reunited

As they travelled back to Watership Down on Vilthuril's back, the Watership rabbits watched across the land amazed at the high view they had, and at how quickly the world went by. But otherwise their journey was uneventful, and much faster than when they went to find Vilthuril.

"This has been quite an adventure," Spoke Hazel-rah to the others, "Eth of our friends becomes really huge, she kills hrair humans with barely a scratch on herself, we get introduced to a human who speaks Lapine and now we're riding on her back." The others nodded in agreement, the Fiver piped up.

"Elén is a human of uncommon things; she hates seeing animals in pain, yet she seems to cope well with seeing humans in pain." They all shrugged their haunches.

Elaine listened in on their conversation, she could recognise some of the words, but a few were ones she hadn't learnt. She wondered what their home would look like for a while.

They stopped halfway for the night, whenever the other Watership rabbits were worried by elil Vilthuril would take care of the problem. Elaine greatly admired Vilthuril's size, capability to teach humans the Lapine tongue and her level of reason that she shared with the other Watership rabbits.

They arrived back at the Down by midday; Vilthuril & her passengers all looked down on the rabbits at silflay; who were unaware of Vilthuril for a while.

As Hyzenthlay-rah nibbled at the grass on the down she became aware of a sudden dimming in the light, quite unnatural for ni-frith, it wasn't even cloudy. She slowly turned her head to look up and spied Vilthuril; she gasped with fear & awe, then she gasped again with recognising the rabbit & awe.

"Vilthuril?" She inquired, timidly. "Is that you?" Vilthuril smiled and stretched out her forepaw towards Hyzenthlay-rah, in the manner that someone would extend their hand in greeting.

"IT IS, HYZENTHLAY-RAH!" Vilthuril replied. "SOMETHING HAS MADE ME GROW TO THIS SIZE, I'M NOT SURE IF IT'S GOING TO UNDO ITSELF OR NOT." At hearing Vilthuril, Hazel-rah & Fiver moved forward to Vilthuril's neck. Hazel-rah peered over her shoulder and did whatever the rabbit equivalent is of a wave to Hyzenthlay-rah. Fiver, on the other hand (or paw), leaned forward to Vilthuril's ear and told her.

"Your size shall end by sunset," Fiver told her, "This is your last day at such a size." At this Vilthuril carefully plucked her passengers from her back and set them down on top of the down.

"HAZEL!" Cried Hyzenthlay-rah, rushing towards him. "You're alright!" She didn't slow down soon enough to prevent her from colliding with him; he nearly fell over from the collision.

"Nice to see you again, Hyzenthlay." He replied, he then indicated the des humans and told her about them.

"Wow!" Cried Hyzenthlay-rah. "She," Indicating Elaine, "Can speak Lapine!" Hazel-rah nodded and replied.

"Only the basic, she didn't have enough time to learn the hrair of the dialect."

The day passed by with the other Watership rabbits gazing in wonder at the giant Vilthuril, and being introduced to the des humans. Then came sunset and the entire warren, with the des humans, watched Vilthuril shrink back to her normal size as the anti-cancer drug wore off. It was steady and long, but by fu-inlé she was the old Vilthuril; shorter than Hyzenthlay but taller than Fiver, with a mouth that the end of a carrot could fit in rather than an entire hrududu's worth and with a paw she could pat Pipkin with without squashing him like an ant.

The next morning Elaine & the other two were ready to return to Basingstoke, they had enough money for bus-fare. Before they left Elaine made their goodbyes; she said 'Frithaes!' to all the Watership rabbits, with royal respect for Hazel-rah & Hyzenthlay-rah. When she came to Vilthuril, whom she could only just remember the original size of, she asked her a question.

"Mul i tring mon na - koi mi lay nos-nyt-nyt-nyt - naylte sisi?" Vilthuril looked into Elaine's light brown eyes and replied.

"Nahl, bleth a lay yen lay bleth a drao lay. An me laynt vao blair me laynt kimthile." Elaine patted Vilthuril's back thinking 'This is the same rabbit back I rode on for a few days?' and so she finally said.

"Frithaes, Vilthuril! A laynt dray a laynt - naylte, zoth a veth lay - asith mi. An, a lay bral - on layth sai sisi." Vilthuril lifted her forepaw and placed it on Elaine's chest and replied.

"Elén, on layth nahl-nyt koi dayn ol eth aisi eth. A layth lay thrang hli!" They then hugged each-other and Elaine went with the others to catch the bus, the Watership rabbits observed their way of getting down the hill, but some watched them leave with a more emotional reason for doing so.

Not one of them, not even Elaine looked back; but Elaine couldn't help but shed a few tears.

During the afternoon Vilthuril went up to Fiver who was at silflay, she was wide-eyed & staring (what I call 'Fiverish') and she asked him.

"Do you think such an event will happen again?" Fiver looked up at her with a more determined version of her expression and replied.

"Who knows, reality has variables for some are of probability and others are true when in another they are untrue tales. We might have lives that are governed by the untrue tales of another reality." Vilthuril could not comprehend this, she just sighed and thought to her self.

'Everything is back to normal.' She went off to silflay by herself, Watership Down was at it was.

THE END