Rabbit groaned. He tried rubbing his head, but found that his hands couldn't move. He tried moving them again. Nothing. Rabbit blinked in the morning light. Or what he thinks of as morning light. He soon found himself dangling above a cauldron of bubbling green slime. He screamed. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Rabbit began to swing around and struggle but the ropes wouldn't come loose. His feet smashing and kicking random objects that were close by.

"Don't bother struggling, spy!" A harsh voice reached his ears.

Rabbit looked up to see a large Goblin before him. The green monster wore a greasy black cloak. Bone necklaces and talismans hung from the broad neck. A wooden staff with a Raven carved into it held in bony hands. About to be at least two feet than bigger Rabbit or Owl. It was hard to tell while being tied up. Rabbit gulped as the Goblin got closer. "W-well...You certainly do a wonderful job with these knots. I certainly couldn't get away even if I tried." He laughed nervously.

The Goblin didn't look amused. "You think you're so funny. Living in a lush green land while the rest of us beg for scraps." He picked a random bone and threw it into a wall. It bounced back, causing Rabbit to duck. "Then again, what do I expect from a thief from the Rainbow Forest."

Rabbit gaped at him. Then, he got angry. "A thief?! Me?! HA! You're the one who's the thief here! King Giadon's poor wife cried day and night when her precious seeds were gone." He cringed as he remembered the huge tears he had to dodge upon the visit to the Emerald Jungle. "I don't know what you're planning to do with a wilted rose, but it won't do much good with extremely damp soil!"

The Goblin raised a brow. "You know about the soil? I thought all plants needed water." He shook himself. "Don't mess with me, creature!"

"I'm not!" Rabbit huffed. Suddenly, there was a sigh by the door. He angled his head to see the little Goblin girl from earlier looking at the two of them.

She rubbed her eyes. "Papa? What are you doing to that bunny?" In her hands was the rose that Rabbit saw earlier. The red petal looked slightly withered.

The older Goblin knelt down. "Mageln. You shouldn't be out of bed. You're not well."

"Put Papa. I heard what the bunny said. I know you've been trying to fix my flowers, but can he help?" Her dark eyes grew wide. "Please?"

A sigh escaped from a toothy mouth. He turned back at Rabbit. A blade appeared out of the staff. He grabbed Rabbit's ears, ignoring the grunt of protest. He readied his staff. In one swing….The rope was cut. He pulled Rabbit close to his face. "Make yourself useful." He dragged poor Rabbit over to where he had the plants set up.

Rabbit groaned as he was finally set down. He rubbed his rump. He got onto his feet. He glared at the Goblin. "Well. You could just ask nicely. There's no need to get that harsh. And the name's Rabbit by the way. RAB-BIT!" He knelt by the plants to have a better look at them. Though he wouldn't say it out loud, Rabbit truly was impressed that this Goblin family were able to care for these plants a little past the seedling stage. There was hardly any sunlight around. His hands went over the browned leaves. He felt the soil. Just as he suspected.

Mageln approached him. "Mr. Rabbit? What's wrong with our plants?" Then, she coughed a little.

"Well. It seems that you've put too much water in these pots."

"They do, but each plant requires a varying degree of water and soil." He scooped up some damp soil. "In order to fix this, we should find a way to dry this somehow." He remembered that the ground outside was quite muddy. So, getting fresh soil was out of the question. To his surprise, the Goblin snatched it with great annoyance. He followed him with his little daughter tagging along. His amazement went further when the soil was placed on a greasy cloth and tied slightly above the fire.

The Goblin turned to Rabbit. "An old trick I use when I've gone through the ocean and jungle." He pulled out an old pot. It had a few vegetables that didn't look right. "Though I wouldn't mind living there…" He mumbled.

Rabbit looked over the vegetables. He sniffed. He took note that the tomato was pale green. The potato was moldy and sprouts were growing out. The carrot leaves were the same. He wrung his hands. As much as he needs to keep quiet, his gardening instincts were too strong to ignore. He snagged the moldy potato. He flinched when a hand snagged him.

"What are you doing?" The Goblin growled.

Rabbit cleared his throat. His heart hammered in his chest. "If you're planning to cook, then I really would recommend not using those." He pointed at the vegetables again. "That tomato is not ripe enough and the rest are so moldy I think that they're ready to sprout legs!" He tried to hide his disgust as his face was drawn closer to the Goblin.

"Oh…"The Goblin hissed. "So you're a cooking expert now?" A knock on the door made everyone freeze. There was a moment of tense silence in the house. He shoved a spoon in Rabbit's hand. "Well...I suggest you cook while I take care of some things in this crummy village." He set Rabbit down and walked toward the door. It slammed shut a few seconds later.

"Hmph! He could've asked nicely!" He walked back to the plants to have a better look. He knelt down. Rabbit heard footsteps and coughing. Mageln at his side once again. He looked at the plants. Some were a bit better than others. He pulled out the soil that felt too damp and placed them at the side for later. To his relief, he found some decent vegetables. "Now...This tomato is ripe." He held it out to her. "See how red and plumb it is?" He continued collecting the healthier plants and removing the ones that were already dead. As he made his way to the table, he saw a necklace of bone with a small turquoise in the center. He picked it up. He showed it to Mageln. "What's this?"

Mageln teared up. She wiped her face. "Mommy's. She left me and Papa...Never came back." She started breaking down and cry.

Rabbit nervously, but gently stroked her. "Now. Now. Let's make a nice meal." He found the knives and began chopping. In a matter of minutes, he removed the dry soil from the fire and began to cook. He stirred with ease and created a nice vegetable soup. He set up three bowls and tried to find what would be considered clean spoons. As for the chairs, he helped Mageln up on hers before sitting down. As much as he needed to get out of here, the state of the plants were starting to bug him.

"Mr…" Mageln sniffed. She took a bite of the soup and her eyes lit up. "MMMM! This is yummy! How do you cook like that?"

"Well...I own a vegetable garden back home." Rabbit smiled. He was starting to like the little Goblin. She reminded him of Kessy when she was a little chick. His mind wandered to the day he met Kessy and the friendship they forged. He then fiddled with his spoon. "I wonder if the garden is alright?"

"How were you able to do that with all the dinosaurs around?"

Rabbit looked up. "Pardon?"

"Don't you live in the Emerald Jungle?"

Rabbit shook his head. "No dear. I live in the Hundred Acre Wood."

"What's that place?"

Rabbit soon began to relax as he told Mageln about his home. The lush trees. The sun. His time fighting off Tigger and crows. His work. His gatherings with friends. When he started to talk about Christopher Robin, Rabbit found himself having a hard time speaking. "Christopher Robin is a person...He was once this...little boy...who would come visit us whatever the chance he got. He would smile. Make our problems go away." He could feel his eyes sting with tears. "Then, he grew up and had a little girl of his own. It was so wonderful. But...things don't last forever…He got sick and then...He left…" Rabbit finally broke down. He hadn't been this sad since trying to find Christopher Robin in a veil of mist. Now, he doesn't know where his friends are and he still hasn't come up with a plan to escape. He felt one hand on his shoulder and another on his ear. He looked up. To his surprise, the older Goblin and Mageln looked at him with somewhat soft eyes.

"I'm sorry for your loss." The Goblin said. "I know what that feels like."

In the silence, no one said anything. Rabbit felt better with his bowl of soup. It seems a lot of surprises are popping up since he stumbled in this realm. A family that lost one of their own. He knew just how hard it is to move one. Even when it's only been months. Once he was done with his soup, he checked the soil. He put it back in the rose. He soon noticed it was starting to look a bit better.

Mageln smiled. "Yeah!" She jumped up and down with joy only to have a coughing fit again. Her father, who's name was Kuml, took his daughter back to bed with the potted rose in his hand. Once he was gone, Rabbit searched the house. As he looked at his possible escape routes, the thoughts of the plants kept crawling into his brain. They still needed soil. Better yet, an escape from this place. He soon found that the grounds were heavily guarded by Goblins. All of them, sickly, thin and irritable up to the point where they would push and bite each other!

Rabbit cringed. He was going to have to wait until everything dies down. While he had some freedom, he went back to the plants that needed attending. He put some of the dry soil into the other plants. The wet soil that he pulled out earlier was soon hung above the fire. He saw a dying flame. He shivered. As Rabbit glanced around, he found a small stack of twigs that would keep the fire going for at least half the night. Rabbit put a few of them there. It raised the fire slightly. He shivered again. Not long after he saw a broom and realized that nothing's been picked up. With that, he started to clean everything.

He was so preoccupied with his work, Rabbit didn't realize that Kuml was right behind him. Rabbit jumped back in surprise. "You certainly move around quietly don't you?"

Kuml laughed. It was waspy. Probably because he hasn't laughed in a long time. "A skill I've picked up over the years. Though it's always annoying to avoid twigs to make sure they don't snap under your feet." He looked over at the potted plants. "I see you managed to get most of my plants alive. Including the herbs."

"Herbs?" Rabbit asked. Then, he remembered what Ester said. "Is that why you have so many plants?"

Kuml was silent for a moment. His dark eyes filled with thought. Then, he spoke. "Partly...My wife and I headed to the Emerald Jungle for the first time under the order of our general, Ingva. I'm a shaman. The only magic user among our kind."

"Why's that? I thought you guys all do shadow magic since it's so sinister and difficult?"

Kuml raised a brow. "Is that what those rainbow twits told you?" He rolled his eyes. "Shadow magic is a lot more difficult than you can imagine. You have to have an unbreakable will or you'll turn to stone." He shuddered. "Anyway, my wife found a strange tiny blue flower." He rubbed the back of his head. "Can't remember the name though."

"Oh! Those are Forget-Me-Nots! I've seen Christopher Robin's wife in her own garden all the time. They really are pretty, though they don't usually grow in a jungle."

"My wife should've met her. After that she stole some back because she thought it would bring color to our gloomy home. As well as show a world of color to our girl." He frowned. "However, our general wasn't pleased. She smashed them. They weren't relevant to our cause or service to the Bad Dream King. We suffered some nightmares after she reported our little venture."

"That's awful! What happened?"

"After a few more missions, she couldn't take it anymore. I tried to tell my wife to stop but she refused to let our general bully her. So, she kept coming back with flowers and plants that I can't quite name. I had to use a special spell to keep them alive." He showed his arm and revealed several welts.

Rabbit felt a knot in his throat as he dared to ask the question. "Mageln said her mother went and didn't come back. Did she-Had she-"

"Been tossed into the void?" Kuml asked. He shook his head. "I don't know. All I know is that she was planning to get a few more of those thorny flowers like the one Mageln has in her pot, but never returned. Even now, I still struggle keeping these plants alive."

"Perhaps I can give you some gardening tips in turn...for uh...sticking around a little longer until I can go see my other friends from the Hundred Acre Wood." Rabbit knew that being this friendly with an enemy that tried to eat him but if it kept him alive then he may need to choose his words carefully. However, there's something about this company that reminded him a little bit of himself. How could residents of the Hollow Realm that were supposed to be harsh and cruel, have some reasonable souls?

Throughout the entire "day", the two were talking about plants. How they grow. What tools to use. How to fight off crows. Or Ravens in Kuml's case. Rabbit began talking about the herbs that he learned during his travels with Ester. How to tell when vegetables that grow under the ground were done. Avoid mold. When it came to light, Kuml stiffened and didn't mention how that was done. Rabbit decided not to push that any further unless he incurred the magic user's wrath. As the night drew near, Rabbit started to grow tired.

Rabbit yawned. His eyes began to drop. Who knew that talking about gardening and trying not to get eaten was very tiring. He didn't argue when Kuml brought him over to a spare bed made purely out of dead leaves. Rabbit curled up. His eyes closed in a matter of minutes. However, his dreams were far from sweet. Rabbit returned home to a ruined garden. His house was uprooted. Kuml lay on the ground by his daughter unmoving. Honey Maple and Pooh were there as well. Then, an angry King Moonvoice stood before him.

The white dragon growled at him. "Why did you make friends with the enemy?! They kidnapped my daughter and now look." He pointed a wing at Honey Maple. "She's dead! Along with the rest of your friends!" He got his face closer to Rabbit. "Tell me traitor! Was it worth it?"

Rabbit was speechless. His mouth went dry. He shook. Almost to the point where the ground vibrated underneath him. His ears flat against his head. How could this happen? All he did was be nice and share his passion. Even Tigger was nice to him despite trampling all over his garden.

"Was it, Rabbit?"

Rabbit froze. He turned to see Christopher Robin standing behind him. The young boy had a grim expression on his face. His eyes looked betrayed. "Was it worth being friends with someone that tried to hurt you?"

Rabbit reached out to him. He screamed when the ground began to swallow him whole. He twisted and clawed. He kicked. Then felt firm hands on his wrist. He opened his eyes to see Kuml and Mageln kneeling over him, concerned.

"What happened?" Kuml said. "Did you have a nightmare?" When Rabbit nodded, the Goblin's eyes grew wide with horror. "You need to get out of here! Now!" He quickly got Rabbit up from his spot. "No time to explain! You must run the back door before-"

Bam! The door opened to reveal a female Goblin with a large scar on her face. An eye pure white. A fierce snarl on her expression. She glared at Kuml. A whip in hand. She wore thick leather armor. A dinosaur skin draped on her like a cloak. "I knew you were hiding something! You said you didn't see a yellow rabbit, yet here it is! Kuml, I warned you multiple times about your foolishness. Now your family will pay!" In one fluid movement, she unleashed her whip. It hit Mageln in the back.

The little Goblin screamed in pain. "Owie!" She began to cry.

Rabbit got angry. He glared at the hard Goblin. "How could you do that to her?! She's done nothing wrong!"

"As General Ingva, I will punish anyone that gets in my way!" She arched for another whip. "Starting with you!" She was about to unleash the whip when a small blur of orange red attacked her from behind. Snarls and growls soon followed. The crowd of Goblins soon began to disperse.

Rabbit braced for the worst and picked up Mageln. He could feel an angry welt on her back. Kuml raised his staff. It began to glow an odd light. To Rabbit's surprise, the crowd began to disperse. General Ingva laid on the ground and was knocked out. Standing in the doorway was none other than his dear old friend Pooh.

Pooh gave him a simple smile. In his arms was Honey Maple. The baby dragon kept growling and growling until Pooh patted her neck. Behind him, all the Goblins vanished with neighs and roars filling the air. "Hello Rabbit. I see you made some new friends. They can come and join us. We're going to find the others and talk to King Moonsoul."

That's a wrap! I tried to make sure this chapter still hung onto Rabbit's character, but also wanted to show that some of the residents in the Hollow Realm aren't as cruel as they appear to be. Review!