"Hurry, Carrots!" Nick ran from the herb garden in a panic. Who knew what evil imps could bring. His bunny friend ran beside him. She still held her 'sword' as well as her bow, while he held his last spear.

The fox kit leveled his gaze on the cabins in front of him, not noticing Judy had stopped.

"Nick!"

Whirling around at the sound of her voice, the fox kit saw Judy standing just a ways away from him. She stood just at the edge of where the Hopps land dipped into a larger plot. In the past, her father had this area used for melons. But now it was repurposed for another plant.

"What do imps dislike the most?" Judy asked, still gripping her 'sword' and was obviously memorized by what caught her eye. Nick tilted his head in confusion. Bringing his tail into his paws, he stroked it as he thought. He wandered to where Judy stood raising his eyes to her face.

"My mother says they like to play pranks and cause unhappiness in family homes. She also said they like to start arguments and make friends cross with each other. So I should think that they would hate happiness the most. And teamwork. If they don't like people getting along, they must really hate lolli…lolitiy….lollity. Lollity!"

"Lollity?" Judy turned her big purple eyes to him and twitched her ears in confusion.

"You know, when mammals stick together no matter what?" The fox kit drew himself up with pride at knowing something Judy didn't. "Why do you ask?"

The bunny smiled at him and pointed her sword in the direction she had been gazing in. Nick, for all of his more mischievous habits, enjoyed bringing his mother flowers. The ones that grew by the river at their old cottage had been a scattering of pinks, oranges, and blues. And knowing how fond his mother was of yellow, the fox kit would use his nose to sniff out the occasional dandelion to brighten the bunch.

But these plants, these giants…

They stood tall and proud, their heads firmly pointing up towards the midmorning sun. And it was as though they admired the color of it so much, it just had to be recreated in each large petal. Both kits gaped in awe at their beauty and size. These gorgeous flowers and their sweet, delicate scent would be perfect for fighting off imps!

The two had never seen sunflowers before. And the golden sea in front of them was too intriguing to ignore.

"Race you to the bottom!" And in a flash, Nick took off towards the sunflower field. Judy laughing behind him, the two darted in between the tall flowers. Nick seemed to vanish within the tall stems, his bunny friend raising her ears and honing in on his giggles.

"Nick?" She asked, trying to quietly stalk around in the sunflowers. Suddenly one of the flowers tilted down to her. Nick hung from the top, upside down from where he had climbed, giggling as the stem bounced in response to his weight.

"Try it, Carrots! It's fun!"

Judy looked uncertainly at the stems, jumping slightly as her friend released his and landed in a jumble in the dirt. The sunflower rained loose petals onto their heads as it popped up. Shaking himself off, he grabbed her by the paw and brought her over to the one next to it.

She reached above her head to grasp the rough stem, her paws not even reaching all the way around. One hind paw was lifted and braced against base of the flower as she pushed off with the other.

No different than climbing the bed sheet, she thought.

Nick whooped in delight as she climbed higher, before racing to his own and repeating the process. Soon the two kits found themselves side by side, bouncing upside down on their flowers. They giggled and swayed to get as much bounce from the plants as they could.

Nick was laughing as his sunflower stilled, his eyes closed as he let the scent wash over him. Judy could still be heard giggling, though his view of her was blocked by the flower itself. Silent now, just allowing himself to hang in peace with a smile still on his face, he was suddenly brought back to reality by a slight jolt.

His eyes snapped open and he craned his head looking for the cause of it. And there, sitting just above his head, was a familiar little cricket.

"Henry?!" One chirp was the answer before the tiny creature jumped off. And it's momentum was all the stem could take. Nick looked at where it was bent, noting the crack, and yelped as the flower stem broke in two.

"Nick!" Judy released hers and fell in a heap in the dirt, her dress bearing a faint green stain and smudges of dirt from their antics. "Are you hurt?"

The fox kit was still clutching his flower, now broken and missing several petals. With a groan, he lifted his paw to point to the cricket, now happily chipping next to the bunny. The sudden song gave her a fright as she scrambled up and away. But soon her muzzle broke into a grin as Henry gave one final chip before hopping off.

"Henry!" Judy took off after him while Nick rightened himself. Laughing, the todd was right behind her as the insect lead them towards their original destination. "I think he wants to help us fight the imps!"

"That's the spirit, Henry!" The pair ran with Henry leading the way. Across the path and grass, the cricket leaped and chirped, before coming to rest at the side of the Wilde's new cabin. The cricket hopped off into a bush, deaf to the kits whines of disappointment.

Their sudden appearance, however, did startle another. A small white vixen had been standing on a crate looking into a large barrel. At the sound of Nick and Judy chasing their cricket, she had hopped down and stood with her paws behind her back. She gave a strained smile as the two turned their attention to her.

"Skye! Thank blueberries, you're safe!" Nick rushed to his cousin and embraced her. She gave a squeak of discontentment when Judy joined in. "We thought the imps got you!"

"What imps? What are you talking about?" Skye pushed the duo off of her and frowned. "You both are weird!"

Nick frowned at her and crossed his arms while Judy put her paws on her hips and thumped her foot.

"Oh, I'm sorry for being worried about my favorite cousin." The vixen rolled her eyes.

"I'm your only cousin."

"Which means Judy and I need to protect you!"

"Like I need either of you two to protect me. I can take care of myself!"

While the cousins bickered, Judy's eyes strayed to the barrel behind Skye. More specifically to the pair of ears that stuck out of it. Tilting her head and twitching her nose, she crept onto the crate and reached up to grab the edge. The ears shot down as Skye noticed what she was up to.

"Hey!" Two paws grabbed the smaller mammal around her waist and tugged her away. "That's my barrel! Leave it alone!"

"You leave Judy alone, Skye!" Nick rushed to where Judy had been set down and stood protectively in front of her.

"I just wanted to know why your barrel had ears!" the bunny doe stomped her foot and pointed. The ears were back, this time with a pair of bright blue eyes under them. With a small squeak, they disappeared back into their hiding place.

"It's…uhhhhh… One of your brothers!" Skye smiled earnestly and nodded. "Yeah! That's it! One of your brothers and I are playing hide and seek and he's mad that I found him!"

"Yes! Very, very mad!" Said the barrel. Nick and Judy exchanged glances before turning back to the vixen kit.

"None of my brothers have stripes on their ears," the bunny doe started thumping her foot again. Skye's eyes widened, her smile became more forced, as she opened her mouth to retort.

Nick and Judy rushed past her, both fighting for a position on the crate. Two sets of eyes peered down at the mammal at the bottom of the barrel. Two ice blue eyes blinked up at them from a silvery grey face framed with dark black stripes. He blinked once, before giving them a half hearted wave.

"…..hi….." The pair staring down at him frowned at each other.

"You're not one of my brothers." Nick shook his head in support.

"You're the oddest bunny I've ever seen," said the todd. That caused the stranger's ears to shoot up as he stood, the doe and todd being smacked in the face by them. The pair yelped and stumbled off the crate as he pulled himself over the edge of the barrel to scold them.

"I'm not a bunny! I'm a hare. And I would appreciate it if you would keep your nose out of my barrel!" He leaned over the side, reaching for the lid propped up on it. Skye rushed to help him grasp the edge and pull it over his head. "Now, pretend I'm not here. 'Cause I'm not!"

"Yeah!" Said Skye. "Now go play your little baby games and leave my bunny alone!"

"I'm a hare!" Said the barrel.

"Where did you get him?" Asked Nick. "How long has he been here? How come I've never noticed? Is that why you've been acting weird? I knew you were up to something!"

Skye had climbed back on to the crate and gingerly lifted the lid to peek at strange hare inside.

"Keep your voice down, Nick! Or someone shall find out!"

"Find out what?" All three jumped at the familiar voice of Mr. Bogo. Skye was still holding the lid up, but in her fright it was knocked from barrel. There was of course the unmistakable sound of some creature brushing against the sides of it's hiding spot.

Dark brown eyes moved from kit to kit. Judy and Nick stood blinking up innocently at the cape buffalo as his eyes took in the doe's dirty dress, the todd's rumpled fur, and the vixen's guilty expression. Moving to the barrel, he also noted the curious eyes and ears peeking over at him. Bogo smiled as the disappeared again.

"And what, pray tell, is in the barrel, Miss Frost?" Skye tilted her head him and widened her eyes.

"What barrel, sir?" Bogo simply smiled and raised his eyebrows at her. "Ohhhhhh! You mean this barrel! It's a….you know…. just…. barrel…. things…" She stuttered and stumbled.

"Cordial!" Said the barrel.

Skye turned and kick the side. A terrible decision really. She gave a gasp of pain and toppled off the crate while holding her smarting hind paw.

"It's magic cordial!" Cried Judy. Nick nodded enthusiastically.

"Yeah, yeah! Magic!" All three kits nodded unison.

"OOOOoooooo! Be afraid of the all mighty and powerful magic strawberry cordial!" Said the barrel.

Bogo snorted in spite him self. With his smile in tact, he strolled closer to where the voice came from. Each kit was given a glance, their ears all falling as his hoof vanished into the barrel. Skye stood up in alarm, her eyes wide and fearful when Bogo pulled out the strange hare by the back of his dark brown tunic.

Dangling him from his hoof, the hare was brought to eye level. The buffalo gave a small sigh and shook his head.

"Well, well. It seems my week of run aways is not over yet." The hare kit gulped and tried for a small smile and wave. Bogo set him on his feet next to Nick and Judy, who blinked curiously at him. "Let's see….. Blue eyes, black stripes, and wearing the colors of the Leverets." The hare kit's ears snapped up at that.

"How did yo-"

"You must be Jack," once again the hare opened his mouth, only to be silenced with a hoof. "I keep correspondence with your parents. I remember the day I received their letter about your birth. And I know your father well enough to know his eyes when I see them."

"But how did you know about the Leverets?"

"Their colors haven't changed in centuries. All first year cadets are called Leverets. And all Leverets wear that tunic. Salamandastron is not big on change, it seems," Bogo smiled at the shocked look on Jack's face. Judy and Nick both gasped, with the bunny doe suddenly bouncing in place.

"I KNEW IT!"

Bogo looked from the happily bouncing bunny to the small hare who stood with his head down in front of him.

"I'm guessing your family has no idea you're here."

Jack shook his head. The buffalo sighed.

Well, he thought, this should be good.