"Stupid Fiver and his stupid mate!" Hawkbit griped. He had gotten lucky-since Blackberry was helping out with Fiver, so he had gotten out of digging for the day and now all he wanted to do was rest.

He still needed to get his wounds patched up, but was forced to wait, while Blackberry tended to Fiver.

"I don't see why he gets such special treatment!" He continued on.

"He is just useless, but everyone praises him anyway."

Hawkbit sighed. He had made it back to his burrow, only to find that his mate, Clover, was gone, probably helping out with Fiver.

So he decided to just lie in his bed, thinking over how to get back at the little runt. But all the ideas he came up with just ended with him getting in more trouble.

"Great, so I really can't do anything to him, and if I do, I'll get in trouble!" He shouted, slamming his head on the soft grass he was resting on, then letting out a loud groan.

"Why would you want to do anything to him anyway?" A mysterious voice asked.

Hawkbit looked up to see his best friend standing in the entrance to the burrow. It was Dandelion, and he didn't look very pleased.

"Well...because..." He answered, frowning at him.

Dandelion just sighed, and walked into Hawkbit's burrow. Seeing that his friend needed some comfort, he decided to lie down next to him.

"Please tell me, Hawkbit. Why do you hate Fiver so much?" Dandelion continued, but sadly, he didn't get a response.

"Hawkbit, please, you have to tell me so I can help you!"

Hawkbit still ignored his friend, looking down at his own paws.

"If you keep this up then everyone on the Down will hate you. Is that really what you want?"

There was no reply, only silence.

Dandelion sighed. Obviously, he wasn't going to get an answer this way.

"Fine then, if you don't want my help, then that's your choice!" Dandelion said. Fed up with Hawkbit's rude behavior, he started to leave.

"I am jealous of him, okay. I am jealous!" He finally answered, stopping his best friend before he left.

"See? Was that so hard? Now, tell me why you are so jealous of him." Dandelion replied.

"It's just that...I do stuff around the Down, more than Fiver!" Hawkbit shouted.

"And I do mostly good things, but Hazel and Bigwig only see the bad things I do!" He continued.

"For some reason they only care about Fiver. They praise him like he was El-Ahrairah himself!"

Soon, he finally calmed back down.

"Hawkbit, you can never beat Fiver in a contest like that!" Dandelion told him.

"Thanks. You know, I thought you were here to cheer me up!" He replied.

"You didn't let me finish."

"It's Hazel's little brother. Of course they care about him more…but you don't know what he has been through in his life."

"Like his mother dying to the white blindness…not to mention, while he was still at a young age, his father and others siblings hated him…but luckily, he had Hazel to save him."

"So the reason everyone watches out for Fiver isn't because they love him more, it's because they can't risk losing him. Especially Hazel." Dandelion finally finished, hoping he had gotten through to his friend.

Hawkbit just sighed again.

"It just feels like no one would really care if I was just gone." Hawkbit told him, letting his face hit the soft grass again.

Dandelion didn't say anything. He just stayed with his friend, who really needed some comfort and love right now.

Dandelion closed his eyes; he too was feeling a little tired, just like his friend.

Turns out Dandelion had fallen asleep, and when he awoke Hawkbit was gone, hopefully to apologize to Fiver.

"Well, I should find him before something else happens." He thought, getting up from the very comfortable bed.

Dandelion decided to first check in Blackberry's burrow to see how Fiver and Molly were doing, and to see if Hawkbit was there. When he arrived, he saw that Hazel and Larch were guarding the front entrance, most likely to keep Hawkbit away from them.

"Hello, Dandelion." Hazel greeted him.

"Hi, Hazel. I was wondering if I could go and talk to Fiver." He replied.

Hazel nodded and let him inside. He saw that Fiver and Molly were awake and talking to Blackberry, but stopped when they saw him standing in the entrance.

Fiver was looking a lot better now that his new wounds were patched up. Luckily, the three claw marks missed his eyes, but for now he was forced to get regular checkups with Blackberry to make sure his new wounds didn't get infected.

"Hello, Dandelion!" Molly shouted, obviously happy to see another one of her friends.

Dandelion just laughed a little and greeted her with a little nod.

"Hello, Fiver. I see you are doing better with those wounds." Dandelion pointed out, hoping Fiver wouldn't be too mad at Hawkbit for that.

"I really am sorry that Hawkbit did that to you," he tried to apologize, but Fiver just shushed him.

"It's not your fault, and I honestly don't blame Hawkbit for it either. If anything, I blame myself." He replied with a smile, reassuring Dandelion that he didn't need to worry about it.

"I let my emotions get in the way. Sure, I hate how he calls my mate names, but that's no reason to lash out like I did."

"I never could understand why he was so nice to everyone. Eventually it could get him killed, but I guess that's why Hazel and everyone else love him so much." Dandelion thought, but he still needed to talk to Fiver.

"Hey, Fiver? I was wondering if I could talk to you." He asked as he lay down next to the two love birds.

"Alright, what is it?" The little seer replied.

"Well…I was kinda hoping we could speak privately."

"Come on, Molly; let's go have some fun outside while they talk." Blackberry told her, as she headed outside the burrow.

Molly wasn't very keen on leaving Fiver, but he did want some privacy, and she was getting cooped up in the burrow. So she left Fiver with a kiss and followed her friend outside to a run that led to the Honeycomb, laughing all the way.

Larch decided to go as well and have fun with the two does, mostly to keep an eye on Molly for Fiver's sake…but Hazel didn't move. Obviously, he was still watching over his little brother.

"Don't mind him, he is just worried that Hawkbit might come in and do something to me, but I think he is just being a little paranoid." Fiver explained to his friend.

"I heard that, Fiver." Hazel joked with him.

"I know. You were supposed to." Fiver replied, sticking his tongue out at him, making Hazel laugh a little.

"Don't make me come in there, little brother." Hazel continued, seeing that he was making his brother laugh.

"Sure you will, Hazel-Rah." Fiver replied, both trying to contain themselves from their little fun argument.

"I am so glad Fiver has a loving older brother like that," Dandelion thought as he watched the two brothers laughing and pretending to get mad at each other.

Once they had started to calmed back down, Dandelion was able to ask his question.

"Well, that was kinda what I wanted to talk to you about. I've figured out why Hawkbit hates you so much, Fiver." Dandelion told him.

Immediately after this was said, Hazel came in and lay down next to his little brother with a very serious face.

"Um…Hazel? Dandelion wanted to talk to me alone." Fiver told him, trying to gesture for him to leave.

"Fiver, I need to know as well. I can't risk you getting hurt anymore!" He yelled. But without intending to, he hurt Fiver's feelings with that sudden outburst.

"I am sorry. I didn't mean to yell at you, but right now I really need to know you are safe at any given time." Hazel apologized.

Fiver being one of the nicest rabbits on Watership Down, it didn't take Hazel too long for his apology to be accepted.

"Alright, Hazel, but please don't overreacted to what is said." He told him. Luckily, Hazel nodded in agreement.

"Alright, I was talking to Hawkbit about you, Fiver." Dandelion told them.

"What did he say about him?!" Hazel demanded.

"Hazel, please, you said you wouldn't do this." Fiver pleaded to his older brother.

Hazel sighed, knowing Fiver was right. He calmed back down so Dandelion could finish.

"I am sorry, Dandelion. Go on." Hazel apologized.

"Well, I was trying to figure out why Hawkbit hated you so much, Fiver. Turns out he is jealous of you!" Dandelion told him, shocking Fiver.

"Why would he be jealous of me?" The little seer asked.

"Well, he thinks that no one would care if he just disappeared forever…he thinks no one would miss him." Dandelion answered.

"That's not true. I care about him!" Fiver replied.

"Sure, we have had our fights." He said, referring to his new wounds. "But, in the end, I would never hate him!"

"He doesn't believe that. He thinks that everyone would be better off if he was gone…and, sadly, I think that's what he did!" Dandelion exclaimed.

"Wait, what do you mean, he did?" Hazel asked, a little worried.

"I went to go talk to him earlier today. I fell asleep, and when I woke up, he was gone."

"I really hope he hasn't done anything foolish." Hazel thought, since Hawkbit wasn't the smartest rabbit at the down.

"Don't worry, Dandelion, we will start looking for him right now." Fiver reassured his friend, along with a warm smile.

"Well, we should check inside the warren first. He could just be hiding somewhere." Dandelion suggested.

Hazel and Fiver nodded in agreement. So, without wasting any time, the group made their way to the Honeycomb.

When they arrived, they found Bigwig, Holly, and Larch talking amongst each other, probably about some combat moves or new types of training to introduce to the Owsla. Larch was constantly glancing over to Molly, showing that he was keeping an eye on her like he had told Fiver he would. She was with Blackberry, Primrose, and Clover. All four of them were talking to each other, but when Molly saw her mate, she immediately jumped over to him, obviously very excited to tell him something.

"Fiver, I am so happy to see you! Also, you're just in time! We were actually talking about you." Molly told him, jumping up and down with excitement.

"Happy to see you as well, but I was kinda doing some...!" Fiver shouted, but was soon cut off, since now he was being pulled towards the group of does by Molly herself.

Hazel and Dandelion laughed a little at the sight. For such a small doe, Molly still seemed to have more muscle then Fiver, but the two of them just watched, and slowly made their way over to the group of does.

When Molly arrived with Fiver, he was forced into the center of the group. They were smiling and staring at him for some reason, and it scared him a little.

Before Fiver could do or say anything, Molly was lying under him, pointing her paws upward. Soon, Fiver was lying on his back on top of Molly and all four of her paws. She soon started to do pushups with his body. Up and down, up and down, over and over.

"See, I told you girls I could do it!" Molly exclaimed, as she continued to do more and more with him.

"Um, sorry to... interrupt your...workout, Molly, but I was... kinda in the middle of something with Hazel and Dandelion." He told her, hoping to be put back down on the ground.

"Alright." She agreed and laid him back down on the ground. Luckily, before Fiver could throw up.

"Why were you doing that anyway, Molly?" Hazel asked as he sat next to his brother, starting to help him back on to his feet, while Dandelion snuck off to continue the search without them.

"Well, since I am a part of the Owsla now, I have to get in shape. And with these new kittens coming, I don't want to be seen as being any less than a buck!" She answered as she patted her stomach.

"To be honest with you, I am kinda worried that you are now a part of the Owsla." Fiver told her, a little concerned that she might get herself into some trouble being with them, since right now the Watershippers were at war with Efrafa, and she was going to have kittens soon.

"You don't need to worry, Fiver. I will be alright." She told him, giving him a little kiss to destroy any doubts in his mind.

"Yeah, Fiver, and I won't be too harsh with the training either!" A mysterious voice told him. Turns out it was Bigwig. He, Larch, and Holly had made their way over to the group to see what Molly was doing lying on the ground.

"What, no! You can't give me any special treatment!" She told him, playfully glaring at him.

"Alright, alright, I won't." He replied, but gave a secret wink to Fiver, knowing he would be worrying all the time for her sake.

"Wait, Molly, I thought you were going to go outside with Blackberry?" Hazel asked, since that is what she had said before they left the burrow.

"Well, we were, but when we went outside it was dark, raining, and very cold, so we decided to stay inside." she replied, showing them to the entrance. It was true, and it was still raining down very hard.

"What about you, Larch? I thought you were going to watch Molly for me." The little seer asked.

"Well, since I knew they weren't going anywhere, I decided to go talk to Bigwig and Captain Holly…but I still kept an eye on them two, like I promised you." Larch told him.

"Sorry I didn't keep my promise by staying with them, but I did at least keep an eye on her." He continued.

"It's alright, Larch. Thanks for watching her anyway." Fiver told him, putting an arm around Molly.

"So, Hazel, what were you doing anyway, and shouldn't Fiver be resting?" Holly asked, as he looked over the little rabbit's wounds. Fiver was staring down at his feet. Now that Holly had pointed it out, it seemed that everyone was looking at his new wounds.

"I know, Holly. I don't want him outside of the burrow either. I'd rather he rest, but me, Fiver, and Dandelion were trying to find out what had happened to Hawkbit." Hazel answered for Fiver, seeing that he was ready to run and leave.

"Clover, I actually need to ask you a question, if you don't mind." He continued.

"Alright." She agreed.

"You guys go find Dandelion. I need to talk to Clover alone." Hazel told the group. As they all left to go search, Hazel stopped Bigwig, Larch, and Holly.

"Bigwig, Larch, Holly, keep an eye on Fiver for me. I don't want him in be in any danger, alright? And especially be sure to keep him away from Hawkbit!" He told the three, who nodded in agreement.

"Don't worry, Hazel. You can count on us!" They replied and left for the search party. Once they were out of earshot, Hazel started to ask his questions.

"Alright, Clover. You and Hawkbit are mates, correct?" He asked.

Clover nodded.

"Has Hawkbit been acting strange lately?"

"Well now that you mention it, lately I haven't seem him too much, and he always sneaks off in the middle of the night, if you would think that is strange." She answered.

"Alright, do you know of any place he could have gone?"

"Well...there is a secret place, he likes to hide in when he is either sad or mad."

"Where is this place?"

"I can show you right now, Hazel. Come on, follow me." She said.

With no better clues, he decided to follow Clover, who started to lead him down the run to her and Hawkbit's shared burrow.

When the two arrived, Fiver, Molly, Bigwig, Larch, Dandelion, Blackberry, Primrose, and Holly were already there. They were already starting to look around the burrow.

"Hazel, what did Clover say? Any leads for us?" Bigwig asked.

"Yes, and she told me that there is a secret place somewhere in here that Hawkbit likes to hide in!" He answered, lightening all their spirits.

"Yes. Here, let me show you guys." With that said, Clover started to go to the far end of the burrow and started to push against the hard dirt. It looked like she wasn't going to make any progress, until she pushed her way through the dirt and arrived on the other side, probably some part of the underground cave.

"I didn't know this was here!" Fiver exclaimed, as he looked around inside. It was pretty dark, but it looked like the cave went on for miles.

"That's strange. I never remembered it being this big before. Usually it was just this small opening with a wall on the other side." She told them, as she looked in with Fiver.

"Then I guess we need to be careful. Something may have dug its way in here," Hazel told them all.

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go find him!" Molly shouted as she started to enter the cave, but was stopped Larch, who pulled her back out.

"Hey, what are you doing? I thought we were going to go find Hawkbit?" She said to her large friend.

"I know. But I need to go first. We don't know what might be down there." He answered as he took the lead role and went in first, while Molly followed.

"Blackberry, Primrose, Clover, and Holly, I need you watch the entrance." Hazel told them.

"Are you sure? What if you need me to talk to Hawkbit?!" Clover replied, worried that something might happen to Hawkbit.

"I am sure we can handle it, and until I return, Holly will be in charge."

"Alright, Hazel." He replied.

"Please, Hazel, don't get hurt." Primrose told him, and they both shared a small kiss, just in case.

"Are you sure you want me to come, Hazel?" Fiver asked, a little concerned with how dark it was inside.

"I don't want you to come, but we might need your visions to save us once we are in there." He told him.

"Just stay in my line of sight. I would never forgive myself if you got hurt, or... I don't even dare say it."

With that said, Fiver hopped in and waited inside for Hazel to come, seeing that he didn't want to go alone anyway.

"Don't worry, I will come back. We all will." He reassured his mate, giving her a last smile before entering.

Once Hazel was inside, he started to trail down the opening. Fiver was right next to him. He held a paw at Fiver's side, making sure that nothing could steal him away. Larch was leading with Molly in tow. It looked like they were trying to race to find Hawkbit first.

"Hawkbit!" Hazel shouted, his voice echoing down the long run. But, sadly, he didn't get any type of response.

As they continued on down the run, it got smaller and smaller and soon they were forced to go in a single file line. Larch was in the lead, followed by Molly, Bigwig, Dandelion, Fiver, and Hazel. Since the run was shaped like this, Hazel forced Fiver to be in front of him, so he could still keep an eye on him. He constantly put a paw on Fiver's rump to reassure Fiver that he wasn't alone, and occasionally gave him a little push to keep him going forward. Every time he touched him, he could feel his brother shaking in fear.

For the large rabbits such as Bigwig, Larch, Hazel, and Dandelion it almost felt like the walls were going to crush them in a matter of seconds. Hazel could feel the walls brush up against his side, making him feel like he would soon be stuck and left behind. Luckily, they had reached a large open section…but it was on the other side of a rather small hole compared to the larger built rabbits.

Since Larch was leading, he tried to go first, but had gotten stuck immediately, stopping the whole group in their tracks. Since Molly was next, she had trying to push Larch through, but it ended in failure. His hips were squishing up against the small opening, preventing him from moving. Molly had another idea. She angled her hind legs right at his stump of a tail and then shot all of her might into her hind legs and then kicked his rump, sending him flying through.

Since the entrance was clear, she was next to enter. It was easy for her since she was smaller, and she slipped through with ease. Next was Bigwig. Of course, he had the same problem as Larch, but this time Molly and Larch pulled him through with his front paws while Dandelion pushed. Luckily he popped right out, leaving just Fiver and Hazel in the small run.

Fiver was supposed to slip in with ease, like Molly...but for some reason, he had gotten stuck. Some of his tail fur was caught in a small wedge in the side of the wall, preventing him from moving.

Before he could tell them, Larch and Molly both took a paw in their mouths, while Bigwig grabbed him by the scruff of the neck. All of them were pulling at once, while Hazel pushed with all of his might on his brother's rump not realizing what he was stuck on. After some time of pulling and pushing, Fiver was lucky, since he didn't lose his tail.

Fiver sat on the ground, watching as they pulled Hazel though. But he was more focused on the fact that some of his fur was gone. A little embarrassed, he didn't really want to move from the spot he was sitting at, but was forced to continue on with the rest of the group. But to his utter horror, there were three different paths, which meant they would have to split up.

"Alright, it looks like we have no choice...but to split up." Hazel sighed.

"I want everyone to have a buddy! Don't need anyone getting separated and then being lost forever." Bigwig told them all. They immediately started to get into groups of two.

They had Molly and Larch, Bigwig and Dandelion, and last, Hazel and Fiver. Three groups, since there was three runs to choose from, any of which that Hawkbit might be in.

"Molly and Larch, take the one on the right. Bigwig and Dandelion, take the middle, and me and Fiver will take the one on the left. Make sure no one splits up, and if you get lost, come back here." With that said, everyone started to walk down their runs, other than Larch and Molly who both started running. Obviously, this was more of a competition to them.

Fiver and Hazel were the only ones left, staring down at their empty and mysterious run.

"You ready, little brother?" Hazel asked, staring down at him. Fiver was still shaking in fear as he stared down the run.

"Fiver, it's alright. I won't leave you, no matter what." He continued on, trying to reassure him. Seeing that it wasn't really working, he gave him a warm hug. It did the trick. It looked like he wasn't afraid anymore, or else he was really good at hiding his fear.

"Alright, let's go." He told him, and soon they plunged into the dark corridor, hoping to find Hawkbit. But what they didn't know was that there was something else lurking in the shadows as well, waiting for the right moment to attack...and eat.