Chapter 23

Sam poked his head out of the warren and inhaled with a smile. The scent of quickly growing grass met his nostrils. It was early spring and the majority of the snow had been gone for almost a week. There were still small mounds of it here and there from where it had drifted high during the winter, but for the most part, the ground was clear. The grass was benefiting from the sun and newly warm weather and was quickly coming out of its winter hibernation. The rabbits were only too happy to see this, as they had quickly grown tired of the tough, tasteless food of the winter.

The teen hopped out of the burrow, feeling the pleasant sensation of soft grass against his feet after months of nothing but cold snow. The other rabbits followed him outside, though he didn't notice as he gazed around and the surrounding countryside. Everywhere else was showing the same story: snow melting and green reappearing. As Sam was looking, Hazel hopped up beside him.

"Spring is finally here to stay," the chief said. Sam nodded in agreement. "That's good. There's much to be done, and the sooner we start, the better."

As soon as the weather showed signs of warming, Hazel, Sam, and Bigwig started making a list of things to do as soon as the snow melted. They hoped to meet up with Campion soon, to see how Efrafa fared the winter. They also had to check in with Redstone, and eventually, Buttercup's warren. After their forgiveness of his behavior, Hazel found no reason to cut off communication between their warrens simply because of distance. Kehaar assured them that he could lead them back to her warren. Fiver and Silverweed would go see if Bark was awake yet, while Pipkin, Blackavar, Snowdrop, and Gillia would go around to see if the other animals had awoken from their hibernation yet.

"I know," Sam replied. "Where should we start?"

Bigwig hopped over to them, having heard their conversation. "Well, we can't meet Campion until nightfall anyway, so I'd say we should make Redstone our first stop. We can let the others see to their duties as they see fit." Hazel and Sam gave Bigwig an odd glance. He was not usually so…lenient.

Hazel nodded in agreement. "That sounds fine. But are you really sure Pipkin and the kittens should be going all about the down alone? What if something happens? Would it really hurt to send someone with them?" Hazel was naturally worried about his children. Sam and Bigwig felt they would be perfectly safe as long as they stayed on the down, but Hazel could not keep from worrying.

Sam was quick to respond. "Of course they will. Think about it: we never thought twice when Pipkin was going around on his own, so why should this be any different? They'll be happy because you're giving them more freedom, and Pipkin will be happy because he'll be in charge. You know how annoyed he is that we still treat him like a kid."

Over the course of the winter, Pipkin had been hell bent on proving his maturity to the older rabbits. Sam, who had grown up with a younger sibling, was able to tolerate his behavior. But as the end of winter neared, there were no shortage of rabbits that had had their fill of the youngster.

Hazel sighed in defeat. "I suppose you're right. Anyway, let's get started on-"

He was interrupted when Strawberry approached the group. "Hazel, there's someone from Redstone here to see us. He says it's important."

Immediately dreaming up the worst scenarios, Hazel, Sam, and Bigwig rushed to follow Strawberry as he lead them to the messenger. They rounded the tree to find a white, medium sized buck looking around with apprehension. His nervousness only increased as he saw the group approach, but he showed no signs of bolting.

"H-Hello," he began quietly as they approached. "My name is Leafless. I was send here by Hickory-rah and Marigold to ask you something. I, um, they…well, it's Marigold really, but Hickory wants you to come too, and, I…"

Sam gave him a soft smile. "It's alright, you can tell us. There's really nothing to worry about here."

Taking heart at Sam's words, Leafless cleared his throat. "Hickory and Marigold want to invite you to our warren. You see, they had kittens recently, and Marigold wants them to see the heroes that gave us a chance at a real life. They said whoever wanted to could come, but they insisted that Hazel, Strawberry, and Sunf-I mean Sam come."

Hazel was about to respond when Sam interrupted him. "Wait, they want me to come? What about the rest of your warren? Aren't there still a lot that are scared of me?"

"There are still some," he admitted. "But most of us are willing to give you a chance. I mean, you helped us when you had no reason to. I've heard from the chief that it wasn't even Hazel's idea to help us, it was yours. To me, and many others, that means a lot. There are some that are stubborn and refuse to trust you, but Marigold was very adamant. There were complaints, but Hickory-rah wouldn't hear it. He said anyone who absolutely could not stand you could either leave, or take it up with him. You won't have to worry about being hassled while you're a guest at Redstone."

This information stunned Sam. They did that? For me?

Seeing Sam unable to answer, Hazel turned to Leafless. "That…is very generous of them. Of course we'd be honored to come. Just let me spread the word to the others and we can leave."

Hazel shook Sam out of his stupor and the two went to ask the other rabbits who would be interested in going. Fifteen minutes later, the assembled group made returned to Leafless and they left for Redstone. Beside the three that Marigold wanted to come, Glade, Primrose, Blackberry, Bigwig, Fiver, Pipkin, and Clover went along as well.

The walk was pleasant with no encounters with elil. Hazel and some of the others asked Leafless how the warren had fared over the winter, but Sam didn't hear his response. He was too nervous about going to Redstone again. What is Leafless was wrong? he thought. What if the other rabbits are just lying to Marigold and Hickory and biding their time until I'm trapped inside the warren? What do I do if they jump us down there? I don't want to hurt them, but-

Caught in this own thoughts, he didn't notice Glade make her way to the back of the group where he had been walking. She nudged him lightly to get his attention. "Hey, are you alright? You're awfully quiet; I thought you'd be excited about this."

Sam contemplated lying and telling her everything was fine, but decided against it. "I'm just scared. I mean, what if this is a trap or something? I don't think Hickory or Marigold would do anything like that, but I can't be sure about the others. If it was just me, it wouldn't be that big of a deal, but I don't want any of you getting hurt."

Glade gave him a light smile. "You're worrying too much, Sam. Why would they attack you, or any of us? After what you did for them, is it really so hard to believe that they would be grateful, after the initial shock of you being human wore off? You just need to calm down and stop worrying so much."

He sighed. "I'll sure try."

They walked behind the group in companionable silence until Sam saw that they were getting close to Redstone. They came out of the bushes and saw the familiar red boulders that flanked the warrens entrance. There were rabbits out on silflay, some of which Sam thought he might have remembered seeing. As their group got closer, all of the rabbits stopped and starred, which only increased Sam's apprehension. One of the rabbits broke away from the others and came towards them.

"Hello everyone, I'm so glad you came." It took Hazel and the other a moment before they recognized the rabbit. It was Hickory. The last time Sam had seen him, Hickory had been leaner than most of the Redstone rabbits. The easy life of Cowslip's warren had still left him a bit pudgy, but the winter had taken its toll, and had stripped his excess fat way, leaving wiry muscle. He did not look as strong as Bigwig or Strawberry, but he looked like a rabbit that could handle himself.

"Of course we came," Hazel replied. "We had to come and congratulate you and Marigold. Having kittens is…truly wonderful."

Hickory smiled and nodded, then turned his attention to Sam. "And you Sam, it's very good to see you at Redstone. It's been quite a while since you've been here."

"Uh, yeah…" the teen responded awkwardly. Both he and Glade had averted their eyes when Hickory brought up their last visit. The one in which they had to destroy the warren to fool Woundwort.

"Anyway," Hickory continued cheerfully, oblivious to Sam's discomfort, "let me show you inside. Just a few at a time please; the kittens are still getting used to the fact that there are other rabbits in the world beside Marigold and me."

After a bit of deliberation, Sam, Hazel, Glade, and Primrose followed Hickory into the warren, leaving the others outside to converse with the Redstone rabbits. Sam was leading the Watership Down group as they followed Hickory into the warren. He glanced around at the runs, remembering the state he and Glade had left them in the last time they were there. The Redstone rabbits had repaired all the damage, and Sam thought the warren looked better than the first time he had visited it. Because he was gawking around, Sam almost ran into Hickory as he stopped in front of a burrow.

"Here we are," Hickory said proudly. "I'll let Marigold know you're here."

Their burrow was second from the entrance to the warren. In fact, he could clearly see the sky from where he was standing. Well that's…not very good. He was about to voice his concerns to Hazel when Hickory returned.

"Go on, she's ready for you." Sam nodded and led the way in. As they rounded a corner, they saw Marigold lying on the ground with four small figures at her side.

"Sam, everyone, I'm so glad you came," she said softly, so as to not wake the sleeping kittens. "I was worried you wouldn't after the rest of the warren stormed off of Watership Down."

"We wouldn't miss it, Marigold," Sam reassured her, setting his worries aside for the time being. "Congratulations. I'm sure the two of you will make great parents." The other rabbits agreed and spoke to the two for a bit before sending in the next group.

Sam held back at the entrance to the burrow. "Glade," he called after the doe, "will you make sure Bigwig comes in with the next group? I need to talk to him."

Although she did not understand, she agreed. Sam waited, but it wasn't long before Bigwig came into the warren, followed by Clover, Blackberry, and Strawberry. Bigwig stayed with Sam while the other three went into the burrow.

"Glade said you needed me for something, Sam?"

"Yeah, thanks Bigwig," the teen replied. "Quick question, and maybe this is just me being paranoid, but isn't this a bit close to the entrance for them to be keeping babies in?"

Bigwig looked behind him and saw what Sam meant.

The captain nodded his head. "You're absolutely right it is. Why would they make such a foolish mistake? Didn't they listen to anything we taught them?"

"Well hold on Bigwig, let's just talk to them and let them know our concerns. For now, why don't you head in there and give your congratulations to the new parents."

Bigwig nodded and went into the burrow just as Clover and Strawberry walked out. Sam went outside and joined the other rabbits from Watership Down as they conversed with the Redstone rabbits. Leafless had been telling the truth: most of the rabbits were perfectly friendly with Sam, even if they were a bit shy at first. Many of them said the "thank you"s they had not had the chance to before the winter started: so much so that Sam was getting embarrassed. While he mingled with the rabbits from Redstone, Sam noticed some of them looked ragged and frequently darted their heads around, as if looking for elil. Before Sam could mention it to Hazel, Hickory came out of the warren, followed by Fiver and Pipkin, the last of the two to see the new kittens. Seeing the chief's exit, Sam and Bigwig exchanged a nod and approached him.

"Hickory," Sam said as they approached, "we need to talk to you about something."

"Of course, what do you need?"

Sam was about to continue when Bigwig interrupted. "Do you care about your new family, Hickory?"

Sam's head fell. Damn it Bigwig…

Hickory's face hardened noticeably. "I don't quite understand what you're talking about, Bigwig."

"Well see, what he means is-" Sam began, until he was interrupted.

"What I mean is that you have them living where elil could make a quick meal out of them! They're in an utterly undefended burrow right at the entrance of your warren!"

While Bigwig talked, Hickory grew more and more serious until he stood straight and glared back at Bigwig with a severity Sam would not have thought possible from the lanky chief.

"I have heard enough from you, Bigwig," Hickory said in a commanding voice. "If this is the kind of gratitude we can expect from you, I think you should just go. Leave Redstone, Bigwig. Now."

Bigwig was about to snap back when Sam clamped his paw over the captain's mouth. "Just do it, Bigwig," Sam whispered. "Just go, talk to Hazel, and head back to the down. You need to cool off before you say something you'll regret." Bigwig looked insulted, but Sam pressed on. "Just trust me. I'll talk to Hickory and get him calmed down. Please Bigwig, just, leave this one to me." The captain and Hickory glared at each other for a moment, and Sam was worried that Bigwig would not listen to him. But Bigwig just nodded and left the warren. Sam breathed a sigh of relief as he turned back to Hickory, only to be met with the same fierce stare he gave Bigwig.

"Don't think you will receive special treatment just because you helped us, Sam. If you make it necessary, I will have no problems excusing you as well."

Sam took a deep breath before he spoke. "Not at all Hickory, I just want to talk. Even though he lacks any sort of tact, Bigwig is right you know. And I agree with him. To be safe, Marigold and your kittens should be further back in the warren, where they wouldn't make such easy targets for elil."

"I know what I'm doing, Sam," Hickory said. "We have yet to meet with any elil that our owsla couldn't deal with. There is no danger inside the warren."

Sam decided to try a different approach. "Do you have to deal with elil here often?"

"No more so than Hazel says a normal warren does," Hickory responded. "But like I said, our owsla has been able to drive away any elil, and we haven't lost one rabbit."

Sam nodded before responding. "Fine, I see your point, but may I show you how we do things on the down?"

Hickory gave a guarded nod so Sam continued.

"We have one entrance, just like you. And flanking that one run are four burrows, two on each side. We have the owsla live there. Me, Glade, Bigwig, and Strawberry are in the first two, while Hawkbit, Dandelion, and Strawberry are in the next two. The reason we do that is so that if any threat ever comes to the warren, it has to go through our fighters first. And in the very back of the warren, even behind where the does, and the bucks that can't fight live, are Hazel, Primrose, and their kittens. It was Bigwig's idea, although he had to argue a long time with Hazel to get him to agree. The chief and his family are the most important members of the warren, and they must be protected. And unlike you, we don't even deal with elil. We have never had any threat come to the down, but we still have those precautions set up."

Hickory's face softened. "If that's the way you choose to do things, that's up to you." He averted his eyes. "But I don't want anyone in Redstone to think that Marigold and I value our own lives over theirs. We live close to the entrance to show our support of our owsla's skill."

"And that's a fine sentiment, but I think you should ask your owsla about it. While I was waiting for everyone to finish visiting Buttercup, I had a chance to speak with some of the rabbits here. Your owsla is exhausted, Hickory. They're so worried about you and Marigold that they're working themselves too hard. I imagine you having the new kittens isn't helping any either."

Confusion spread across Hickory's face. "That can't…are you sure?"

Sam nodded. "Ask one of the rabbits from your owsla if you don't believe me. Make sure it's someone that will tell the truth, though."

"Fine, I'll do that. Wait here please." Sam nodded and Hickory exited the warren. In no time, he returned with the rabbit that had accompanied them to Redstone, Leafless. "I believe you already know my Captain of Owsla?"

Sam gawked when he heard that. He's their owsla captain?"

Hickory chuckled at Sam's reaction. "I know what you're thinking, but he's really the best one for it. Though he might be soft-spoken, and a bit nervous at times, he's the best fighter in the warren. And he had a sharp mind for defense." Sam shrugged and nodded his agreement. Who was he to judge a rabbit he barely knew? "Now Leafless," Hickory continued, turning to the captain, "I brought you in here to ask you honest opinion on something. I want you to tell me exactly what you think; you won't be punished in any way." Leafless nodded. "Alright. What do you think about Marigold, myself and our kittens living in the burrow we do now instead of, say, the burrow in the back?"

Leafless looked a bit nervous at the question and glanced Sam's way. The teen gave him a small nod, which Leafless returned. "Well Hickory," he began hesitantly, but his voice shifted to one filled with authority, "I think it's absolutely foolish." Hickory's eyes widened in surprise and Sam had a small smile on his face. "Having the two of you so close to the entrance, so close to any potential danger was bad enough when it was just the two of you, but with your new kittens? It's so reckless that if I didn't know you better, I'd think you were trying to put yourselves in danger. The rest of the owsla feels the same way. Because you're so close to the surface, we have to be on perfect guard all the time. One slip up could easily be devastating. If it were up me, the two of you would have been in the furthest burrow in the back of the warren the very day you made me captain. Is that a satisfactory answer?"

Hickory had a passive look on his face and nodded his head. "That will do, thank you Leafless." The captain nodded and left the run. Hickory turned back to Sam with an embarrassed look on his face. "I…guess you were right. Again. I'm sorry I didn't listen to you, Sam."

"Don't worry about it Hickory; I'm just glad we were able to help before anything bad did happen. With your owsla running out of energy, it was only a matter of time before a mistake would have been made. And in your defense, Bigwig wasn't really the best one to help convince you that there was a better way. He knows what he's doing, but he can be very abrasive sometimes. But I still wouldn't have anyone else in charge of the owsla."

Hickory hung his head at the captain's name. "Right, Bigwig. I suppose I should apologize to him."

"He's already on his way back to the down. And for right now, that's probably for the best. It will give you both a chance to cool down, and when you see each other next, you'll both have level heads."

Hickory nodded and the pair exited the warren. Hazel decided it would probably be a good time to leave for the down before it got too dark. The rabbits all said their goodbyes and the group from Watership Down turned to leave. Before they went too far, however, one rabbit approached them from the Redstone group. It was Leafless.

"Wait, Sam," he said as he approached, "I just wanted to thank you for helping me convince Hickory-rah to move to the back of the warren. I had been trying to think of a way to tell him for a long time."

Sam flashed him a smile. "Happy to help, Leafless. If I may offer one tip that I picked up from Bigwig? Never be afraid to tell your chief your concerns about safety or defense. You are the captain because you think of things others don't. If they tell you to stop worrying, it probably means you're doing your job perfectly."

Leafless nodded. "That's good advice, thank you. Oh, and thank Bigwig for me too, will you? I didn't get much of a chance to talk to him before he left."

Sam nodded and the group continued on their way.

A few nights later, Sam, Hazel, Bigwig, and Glade waited in the familiar place in the woods by Efrafa. They had come every night since the snow melted, but Campion had yet to show up. Every night he did not come increased their anxiety.

"Do you think he'll come tonight?" Sam asked, just as he had every other night.

"I hope so," Hazel responded.

Sam was about to respond when they heard a rustling in the bushes. Fearing the worst, Bigwig, Sam and Glade all stepped in front of Hazel, taking fighting stances. The rustling got louder until a large, brown rabbits appeared from the foliage.

"Campion!" They all yelled simultaneously.

The Efrafan captain gave a chuckle. "I don't think anyone's been that excited to see me in seasons. But I will admit, it's good to see some friendly faces for a change. Aside from Moss, of course."

"We were getting worried, Campion," Sam said. "The last time we saw you, you weren't looking so good. I'll be honest, I didn't know if you'd have time to recover before winter. I'm glad to see I was wrong."

Campion sobered at Sam's words. "I don't know if I can ever thank you for what you did for me. You saved my life."

"And we would do it again," Hazel responded immediately. "Always remember Campion: even though you're staying in Efrafa, you're still one of us. You're our friend, and we don't let anything happen to our friends."

"That means a lot to me Hazel, thank you." He looked as if he was going to continue, but instead averted his eyes.

Sam noticed.

"What's wrong, Campion? You seem a bit…off."

Campion gave a weak chuckle. "It was that obvious, huh? It just…feels good to be out of Efrafa. It was a bad winter. Very bad."

Bigwig and Sam exchanged a knowing look. There were so many rabbits when they had infiltrated Efrafa, there would be no way they would all make it through the winter without human assistance like Buttercup's warren had. "How many?" Bigwig asked quietly.

"Hrair. From every mark. Almost all non-owsla."

Sam was shocked. He had not realized just how big the warren was. Sam remembered five or six marks from when he had been there, and even if just five from each mark passed away…

"I'm so sorry Campion," Sam said sympathetically. "Is there anything we can do?"

Campion met Sam's gaze with renewed fire in his eyes. "There is: we can finish this. Woundwort needs to be taken out of power; the sooner the better. Over the course of the winter, I've been talking with Moss and some of the other good-hearted rabbits in the owsla. They don't have any proof that I'm working with you, but I'm sure they've figured it out by now. As soon as you decide a time to attack, we'll be with you."

"Hold on now, Campion," Bigwig said, "a frontal assault won't work."

"Why not?"

Sam took a quick tally of the number of soldiers each warren had. Efrafa had had about forty soldiers when he had been there, and that number can only have increased. Meanwhile, Watership Down had exactly seven fighters, though he himself could count for ten or more. "It's just a numbers issue Campion, trust me. I can count higher than four, so I'm aware we're vastly outnumbered."

"But…" Campion said desperately, before he looked away again. Seeing Campion so riled up was unsettling to the Watership Down group, who were used to seeing an unshakable soldier. To make Campion react in such a way, Woundwort must have really begun going over the edge.

Sam stepped forward. "Don't worry, Campion. Woundwort will be defeated, you have my word as Prince Rainbow's Messenger. It may take us some time to find a plan that works, but we will free Efrafa."

A/N: I'm really sorry about the insanely long wait! On the plus side though, it honestly should not happen again. The next three chapters are all with my beta reader, For The Kingdom, so the next bunch of updates should come quicker.