A/N: Takes place about two months after the fight at Darkhaven

Three Little Words

It was a beautiful autumn day on Watership Down. Rabbits were lazing about around the hill, and Hannah and Scree were off on a joy flight. Flayrah was plentiful, and it was pleasantly warm for the time of year. By all accounts, it was the perfect day.

But still Sunflower sighed in despair at the foot of the hill, away from the down.

What the hell is wrong with me, he mentally berated himself. How could I just…ugh! He buried his face in his paws, trying to shut out the world around him. Suddenly, a weight pressed against him as an unseen rabbit lay down next to him.

"Sunflower, what's wrong? You've been down here for a while now."

Sunflower lifted his head briefly and saw Hazel with a concerned look on his face, before burying his head once again. "I ruined everything, Hazel, that's what's wrong. I messed everything up."

"Does this have anything to do with Glade running into the warren in tears a while ago? I tried to talk to her, but she wouldn't speak to me. I think Clover is with her now."

"Yes," Sunflower said miserably, "it has a lot to do with that."

"Care to talk about it?" Hazel asked.

"Well…"

Flashback

Glade and Sunflower were taking advantage of the beautiful day with an early morning walk through the woods. It was a habit they had gotten into ever since Darkhaven: simply taking some time out of the day and enjoying each other's company. The pair stopped by the stream for a drink when Glade pressed against Sunflower and nuzzled him under the chin.

"I'm so glad you stayed," she said with a smile.

He chuckled. "You've said that every day since Darkhaven."

"Well it's true! I don't know what I would have done if you had decided to go back to the human world."

Sunflower bit his lip every time she mentioned his going back. He hadn't had the heart to tell any of his friends that they would have forgotten about him if he had gone back. It wasn't important, and it could only cause them pain if they knew.

Glade looked up into Sunflower's eyes. She seemed hesitant. "When I saw you wake up at Darkhaven, it was one of the happiest moments of my life. Just to know that you were okay…it was such a relief. But when you surprised me with the news that you were staying with us for good? I was so, so happy. I knew that we'd be able to be together forever. I…Sunflower, I love you."

Sunflower's eyes widened in surprise, and his mouth opened slightly.

But nothing came out.

A panicked look crossed Glade's face as she stepped away from him slightly. "Did…didn't you hear me, Sunflower? I said I loved you."

"I…I…" was all Sunflower was able to force out.

Glade let out a pained cry as tears began to flow from her eyes. She ran towards the down, leaving a speechless Sunflower behind her. He could not even bring himself to call after her.

"…and so, my life is ruined. Glade probably hates me for what I did, not that I blame her. How could I have just stood there and said nothing?"

"That's…quite the story, Sunflower," Hazel replied. "And you've been down here since then?"

Sunflower nodded. "I couldn't bring myself to go back to the down just yet. I needed some time to think."

"Well I think the issue here is obvious. Do you love her?"

"Of course I do!" Sunflower exclaimed. "I…I've never met anyone like her, either rabbit or human. She's funny, she's smart, and she's kind. You remember back when we were trying to free Primrose and Blackavar from Efrafa? Well when you and Fiver were in the warren, Bigwig remarked about how Primrose looked attractive, and I told him that as a human, I didn't understand how rabbits could be attractive. I do now. Because of Glade, I now understand what he was talking about, because she is the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. She's…she's just perfect, Hazel."

"Then what's the problem? Go tell her!"

"I just…I don't know if I can."

"Why?"

Sunflower sighed again. "I don't know think you'd understand, Hazel."

"Sunflower," Hazel said with a nudge against his shoulder, "I've been your friend since the first day you came here. Please, let me help you if I can."

Sunflower sighed. "Alright. I just…feel like I'm a freak for being a human in lo-love with a rabbit. The feelings I just told you are real, but I'm not sure if they're allowed, you know? Back in the human world, if someone had feelings like this for an animal, they would be considered crazy at best. I guess I just don't know if this is…okay."

A flash of intense sadness passed over Hazel's face as Sam spoke. He replied in a voice just above a whisper. "Is…is that really how you think of us? As just talking animals?"

"No!" Sunflower jumped to his feet and faced Hazel with a pleading look on his face. "Please, Hazel, you have to believe me when I say I don't think that! I care more about you, about all of you, than I do about most humans. You're all people I love; it doesn't matter that you're in rabbit bodies. I don't care about that."

"So you're saying that you love Glade for the person that she is?"

Sunflower, caught off guard, stuttered, "W-well yes, but-"

"And you care about who a person is, not what they look like, right?"

"Yes, but that's not-"

Hazel pressed on before Sam could come up with an excuse. "So what reason do you have to not love Glade? Why can't the person you are, and the person she is, be happy together?"

"I…" Sunflower sat in silence while he processed what Hazel said. "Is…is it really that easy?"

Hazel smiled. "It is if you let it. If you let silly things like this cloud your view, then you'll never get anywhere."

A smile began to appear on Sam's face as well. The first that afternoon. "Thank you, Hazel. I can't believe I was being so stupid."

"It was my pleasure to help, Rusatitha."

Without another word, Sam bolted up the hill. He crested the top and made immediately for the warren.

Clover met him on her way out.

"You…"

"Clover!" Sunflower replied. "Listen, I'm really sorry, but I need to find Gla-"

His words stopped dead as she cuffed him across the face. "Listen carefully, Sunflower. You have one chance to fix this, or not even Frith will be able to save you from me. Got it?" Sunflower nodded meekly. Clover sighed. "She's in the burrow the two of you share." Then she left without another word.

Sunflower walked to the burrow that his and Glade's burrow. Lying at the back of the burrow with her back to him was Glade. Sunflower sighed. "Glade…can we talk?"

"What's the point?" she replied, her voice heavy from crying. "I know what you're going to say. If you didn't want to be with me, you could have at least had the decency to tell me before I made a fool of myself."

Sunflower hopped closer to her. He laid a paw on her back, but removed it when she tensed up. "Glade, I never meant to hurt you. Honest I didn't. When you said you…love me, I got scared. I didn't know how to react, and I froze up."

Glade whipped her head around to face him. "Scared? It's me, Sunflower! What could you possibly have to be scared of?"

"I was scared I didn't feel the same way. Glade, back in the human world, I wasn't very popular. Sure I had friends, but I never had a girlfriend or anything like that. I never really knew what it was to have someone care about you that much. But when I came here…things changed. Suddenly I had this group of friends who would go to the ends of the earth for me, and I found I would do the same for them. We had some adventures, but the best was still to come. When we freed you and Clover from the farm, things suddenly started to click. You weren't scared of me, you didn't hate me, you were interested in getting to know me for who I was, without our species getting in the way. Meeting you…was the best thing that ever happened to me. But-"

"But you don't care enough for me to be with me," Glade interrupted, tears again running down her face.

"Don't say that!" Sunflower yelled loud enough to make her jump in surprise. "Glade, I care about you more than anything. I left my friends, my family, my home behind to have a chance to come here and be with you." Tears began to leak from Sunflower's eyes as well. "I left behind everything, and I would do it again in a heartbeat, as long as I knew you were waiting for me on the other side." He moved forward and hugged the doe tightly to his chest. "I do care about you, Glade. You have to believe that. And I will never, ever leave you."

Glade sniffled and nuzzle deeper into the fur on Sunflower's chest. "I love you, Sunflower."

…

"I love you too."