The banging had started again, just like the last few weeks, waking every dog in the neighborhood, cajoling them into fits of barking, filling the night sky with frustrated howls. Melanie groaned, sat up out of bed, put her tiara back into her hair and opened the window, leaning out to see where the noise was coming from. Same place as always...Paul. She crossed her arms on the windowsill and yawned.

"What time is it?" she asked, as Paul stopped his banging and looked up at her.

"6:30 in the morning, I didn't wake you, did I?" he asked, and she smiled sweetly, shaking her head.

"What're you building anyway?" she asked as Paul continued to hammer.

"I'm building an Ark," he replied.

"Why?"

"Because he told me to."

Melanie squinted, a bit confused. She stretched and stood up a bit straighter now, rubbing her eyes.

"Who told you to?" Melanie asked.

"Do you believe in angels, your highness?" he asked, and she nodded.

"I believe in some sort of higher power, some sort of power that guides us along a path of eventual..." Melanie said, stopping and scratching her head as Paul set his hammer down and looked up at her, hands on his hips.

"Destruction?" he asked, and she laughed.

"No, that's not it," she replied.

"Redemption?"

"A path of...like, understanding, you know? It'll show us what we're supposed to do, so if this power tells you to build an ark, then you build an ark! It told me to find my kingdom, and that's exactly what I'm going to do! So what's the plan with this ark once it's done?" Melanie asked, checking the clock beside her on the desk.

"Well, hopefully it'll be done before the flood," Paul said, picking his hammer back up, "I'll save you a throne, if you wish."

"Thank you Paul. I have to go now, I have duties to attend to today," Melanie said, and they waved goodbye to one another. She came back into her bedroom, shut the window and looked around before heading to the closet to get dressed. Melanie picked out her favorite frilly dress, pulled her pointy princess hat from the mannequin head on her dresser and placed it lovingly atop her own, and then put on her little black pumps before finally picking up her purse and heading out the door.

Every morning was the same, and she was getting tired of having to take care of herself. She could remember a time when she had servants and castle staff to wait on her hand and foot, and she missed those times, recalling them fondly. Now she was forced to get her own breakfast, mend her own clothes, tend to her own personal cares. This was surely no life for a princess, she assumed. Locking the door behind her, she turned and saw a hispanic man standing there, locking his own door, and she smiled.

"It's such a lovely morning, isn't it my subject? Are you moving in?" Melanie asked, and he nodded.

"Yeah, I took Mrs. Lieberman's place," he replied.

"What happened to Mrs. Lieberman?" Melanie asked, and the man raised his hands, wiggling his fingers.

"Noooobody knooows," he said, "actually she just moved out."

Melanie sighed and leaned against her door, shutting her eyes, appearing wistful.

"One day I too shall leave this dungeon and move back in with my mother and father," she said.

"And really, isn't that the dream?" the man asked.

"I'm Princess Melanie Irres, it's a pleasure to meet you!" Melanie said, sticking her hand out. The man took it, somewhat hesitantly, and shook it.

"Gus Hodges, nice to meet you too," he said, "I'm on my way out to get a drink if you'd like to join me. It's always nicer drinking with someone than drinking alone. My treat."

"Drinking? Meade, at this hour?" Melanie asked, "Do you have a drinking problem, Sir Hodges?"

"Actually no, I just have other problems and drinking makes those go away," Gus replied, swinging his keyring around on his index finger, "So what do you say, you wanna come? Be the welcome wagon for this new tenant?"

"Well, I was going to look for employment, but I suppose I should eat something before heading out for the day. I'd be delighted to join you, Sir Hodges!"

And with that, the two of them headed down the hall and into the elevator. Standing there, listening to the elevator music overhead, Gus wanted to know more about this woman. She seemed somewhat off her rocker, but he found that rather enlightening. What's life without a little insanity, after all? Normal was boring. So, he cleared his throat, folded his arms and, leaning back against the wall of the elevator, spoke.

"So, you don't work?" he asked.

"Oh no, I should be back at the castle, but that's not an option right now, so instead I'm seeking employment out here on my own. I was thinking perhaps something in the Blacksmithing department," Melanie responded.

"Or, and this is just a suggestion," Gus said, "Something plausible?"

The elevator dinged and came to a full stop, the doors sliding open and allowing Melanie and Gus to exit. As they headed down the main hall in the foyer of the complex and out the front doors, it was there that Gus suddenly realized something...his car, parked on the side of the street, was looking a bit low. As they approached, he knew what the problem was. A flat tire. Gus groaned and ran his hands through his hair.

"This is not my week," he mumbled, before pulling out his cell phone and began scrolling on it.

"What are you doing?" Mel asked.

"I'm looking for a mechanic," Gus said, "I don't know how to change a tire, nor do I have a tire. Least he could maybe patch the damn thing up a bit so I can go over to a discount tire place and pick one up if nothing else."

"I'll never understand why you people gave up horse drawn carriages for these steel death traps," Melanie said, running her hands along the car, feeling its coolness on her palms.

"We're just crazy that way I guess, don't know what's good for us," Gus replied, "Yeah, hello? Hi, I'm over here on River and Paumper street, it's the Cortez Apartment Complex...I have a flat tire, and I was...yeah? Alright, thank you very much, I'll just wait out here."

Gus hung up and slid his phone back into his pocket before turning and looking at Melanie.

"How long do you reckon it will take this wizard to come fix your chariot?" Mel asked, and Gus shrugged.

"The address said he was only a few blocks away, so hopefully not too long. It's not like it's rush hour or anything," Gus replied, sitting on the hood of the car, feeling Melanie join him a few seconds later. Together they sat there and watched the other cars go by, watched the birds in nearby trees, and just listened to the sounds of the city.

"Isn't it a beautiful place to live?" Melanie asked, shutting her eyes, letting the wind breeze across her face.

"If you can ignore the police violence and the constant ambulance screeching, I suppose," Gus said as Melanie took her hat off and set it in her lap. She let the wind blow through her hair and Gus smiled a little. It'd been a while since he'd been in the presence of a woman, specifically a woman who didn't expect anything of him or even want anything of him. A woman who just enjoyed being his friend. He really needed a friend right now, and, weird as Melanie was, she was also incredibly easy to get along with and just goofy enough to make him not want to cut his throat.

"I used to live in the suburbs, well, sort of, and it's much nicer than down here but...but down here there's also real life. Everything up there is so...manmade. So perfect and fake. I'm not saying I wasn't comfortable, because I was, but this is much more real, you know?" Gus asked.

"I understand, the castle was wonderful but it too was almost too perfect at times, and I wanted to experience adventure and excitement, things they say a princess shouldn't want," Melanie said, "but I want them, so I guess that makes me a better princess than most."

Gus smirked just as a towtruck came and pulled up in front of them. A man in a plaid shirt and jeans, with short wavy brown hair got out and walked up towards them, smiling as he approached.

"Are you Darren?" Gus asked.

"That I am," Darren replied, "Is this the car?"

"That it is," Gus said, "Sorry to make you come out here on something so...absolutely...pathetic."

"Hey man, not everyone learns how to change a tire, nor does everyone have the money to just willingly keep spares around, so you have nothing to be ashamed of," Darren said, kneeling down and inspecting the rubber, "In fact, if I hadn't been a mechanic I'd likely not know how to do this myself, so we're kinda in the same boat in some regard."

Gus backed up and let Darren do his thing, while Melanie elbowed Gus and whispered to him.

"Gustopher-" she began.

"Gustopher?" he replied, confused.

"That's him, that's my prince charming," she said, "He rescues people in distress, and he's handsome to boot, what more could one ask for? He's classy and elegant, and all he wants to do is bring help to the people in need!"

Gus glanced back at Darren, his asscrack showing a bit from his jeans.

"Yeah, a real dreamboat," Gus remarked.

"Just you wait and see! He's going to take me away from this mundane life and sweep me back to the castle, lickety split! I guarantee it," Melanie said.

Gus didn't push the issue, but come the following morning, he'd almost wished he'd had.

                                                                                       ***

Gus awoke the next morning to the sound of an alarm blaring in his ear. Unfortunately, when he reached for said alarm, he quickly discovered that it wasn't, in fact, his alarm clock on his phone or watch or any such device. He opened his eyes, letting them slowly adjust to the sunlight streaming into the apartment, and realized he'd fallen asleep on the couch. Gus quickly rose as he suddenly became aware that the alarm was actually his cars alarm. Gus rushed to the window and looked out, spotting Melanie downstairs, standing on his car, beating it with a crowbar.

"What the fuck are you doing?!" Gus screamed, and she looked up, waving.

"Good morning Sir Hodges!" she exclaimed, "I'm trying to summon the chariot wizard again! He came when your vehicle was damaged, so this seemed like the most logical way to bring him back, of course!"

"You didn't even break what he fixed, you broke something entirely different!" Gus shouted.

"Well, Sir Hodges, if I did that, wouldn't that just seem a tad suspicious?" Melanie asked, her hands on her hips now, "I mean, let's be rational about this."

"Rationality went out the door when you decided to destroy my car!" Gus shouted, as Melanie climbed down and headed inside, presumably coming up to his apartment. Gus quickly pulled a pair of pants from the floor on and went to open his apartment door. Melanie handed him the crowbar as she entered and headed straight for the window.

"You should get him back over here now, and please, stick this somewhere," she said.

"I tell you where I'd like to stick it," Gus said, looking at the crowbar before going to get his phone.

Melanie sat on the couch and waited, kicking her heels excitedly like a child about to see her crush again, as Gus went into the bedroom to make a phone call. He was gone for a solid ten minutes before coming back out and tossing the crowbar on the couch beside her.

"Well," he said, "It's his day off, but he said we could come by his house and he'll look at it in his garage, though quite frankly this is more aesthetic damage than actually damaged mechanically, so I doubt there's much he'll be able to do. I hope you're proud of yourself."

"I really am," Melanie replied as Gus slipped on his sandals and she bounded off the couch, following him out the apartment and down towards the car.

                                                                                        ***

Gus and Melanie drove his now beat up car over to the address Darren had given Gus on the phone. They didn't say a single thing the entire way over, and Gus was beginning to question his decision to befriend this woman, who he was starting to believe wasn't just eccentric, but was in fact genuinely unwell psychologically. As they pulled up to the house, they saw the garage door already open, waiting for them. Gus sighed and pulled up in the driveway before parking, unsure if he was supposed to take the car all the way in.

"If it takes the rest of my life I swear I'll get back at you for this," he muttered.

"You won't live that long, you're not that fit," Melanie said, making Gus look at her, half laughing, half in shock.

"Ya know, for a princess, you're kinda nasty," he said, "I like it."

Just then the door leading into the garage from the house opened and Darren came out, with a bookish looking woman following him. They seemed to be laughing and holding hands, which made Gus look at Melanie, unsure what her reaction to this new development would be.

"Look, he's a family man too, he keeps his sister close!" she said.

"I don't think that's his sister," Gus said.

Just as he said that, the girl leaned up on her toes and kissed Darren, making him stumble back into his work bench, laughing as he kissed her back.

"Let's hope that's not his sister, or this is a really creepy family," Gus added.

"Maybe it's a family kiss, perhaps they're just more affectionate than other families," Melanie said, still trying to sound optimistic, until she noted Darren's hands running down to the womans backside and squeezing her closer to him, when she added, "I don't think they're related anymore."

"I've never felt a stranger mixture of eroticism and disgust," Gus said quietly.

Gus and Melanie got out of the car and headed up the driveway as the woman went back into the house. Darren waved at them as they approached, and then stared at the car behind them. Gus and Melanie looked back at the car with him, and nobody said a word.

"Wow," Darren said, "Rough neighborhood."

"You don't know the half of it," Gus said, "So what do you think, you think you're capable of fixing that sort of thing?"

"I suppose, sure," Darren said.

"So...that woman your girlfriend, or?" Gus asked, following as Darren approached the car while Melanie leaned against the workbench back in the garage, looking upset.

"Uh, yeah, she just moved in so she's still unpacking and getting settled and stuff," Darren said, "She works over at Tatum Elementary. She's a history major, big history buff, so she's hoping to eventually move up to teaching history at the college level after working in the public schools for a while."

"That's pretty cool," Gus said.

"Um, I'm gonna need to go get a manual from inside the house, cause this is...this is nasty work," Darren said, "I'll be right back."

As Darren turned and headed back inside, Gus walked back into the garage and sat with Melanie. She didn't even flinch at his arrival, thus proving to Gus that she felt a lot worse than he'd anticipated she would. He cleared his throat, pulled his glasses off his face and wiped them down.

"How you doin' your highness?" he asked.

"This isn't fair, he's MY prince, he's supposed to take me back to my place as the rightful heir to my throne," Melanie said, sounding despondent, "This imposter is clearly a witch who has put him under a love spell."

"Well, didn't he say she worked as a teacher? Maybe that means she'll be going to the ren faire that's-"

"Ren faire?"

"The renaissance faire, it's held yearly up in Northfield? It's a thing where people dress up like, well...you, and they act like it's still medieval times. I go every year, but if she's a teacher, she might be taking her class up to it, which means she'll likely need chaperones. Why not weasel your way into her life via the act of volunteering?"

"Gustopher, you're...you're like a...a dark wizard," Melanie said.

"That's the coolest thing anyone's ever called me," Gus said sadly, as Darren came back into the garage; Gus cleared his throat and asked, "So hey man, uh, my friend here was wondering if your lady is gonna be taking her class to the Northfield ren faire, and if she could possibly chaperone?"

"Uh, I'd...I'd have to talk to her about it but I know she has trouble finding volunteers so it's a likely possibility," Darren said, "What are your qualifications?"

"Well, I'm a princess and ruler of my own kingdom," Melanie said, smiling brightly.

"So, she's certainly responsible," Darren said, making Gus chuckle before adding, "I'll talk to her about it and get back to you."

And with that, the seed had been planted.

                                                                                         ***

After giving Gus and Melanie a lift home, the two of them went their separate ways for a few hours. Gus had some errands he now had to run without a car, while Melanie had some chores around her apartment she had been meaning to get to. When she arrived to her small little home, she noticed the answering machine was blinking red, and she sighed before heading over to it and pressing "play". A mans voice came on over the speaker.

"Mel, it's Shane. You really should pick up, we have to talk. I know you keep changing your number, but please call me back. Miss you," he said.

After it ended, Melanie pressed the "erase messages" button and then sat on her bed as her machine told her she now had no new messages. She sighed and laid back before getting back up, taking a shower and then sitting back on her bed in some shorts and a t-shirt. She read for a good while, but it wasn't until Gus came back and walked into her place, unannounced, with a 6 pack of beer that she had forgotten she had a friend now.

"Daddy's back and he's brought beer," Gus said, placing the beer on her coffee table as she came out of the bedroom and looked at him. She leaned in the doorway and crossed her arms, her hair up in a messy bun.

"Why are you helping me?" she finally asked.

"Because you were annoying me," Gus replied, walking into her kitchenette and opening a bag of chips he'd brought with him, "Besides, you seem like you could use a little help, so why not."

Just then they heard a loud crash and looked towards the window.

"What was that?" Gus asked.

"Likely Paul's lumber falling down. He's building an ark," Melanie said as Gus sighed and rubbed his forehead; she continued, "Do you not believe in the lord, Gustopher?"

"If I believed in anything, I wouldn't be living here and helping you break a seemingly happy couple up, now would I?" Gus asked, flopping down on her couch, "Besides, you have to have been hurt at some point in life to recognize that believing in things only ever lets you down, right? People leave, people die, and why would something that supposedly should be watching over protecting you let those kinds of things happen?"

"...did someone you love die?" Melanie asked, and he shook his head, grasping a handful of chips and shoveling them into his mouth.

"No, it was just an example," he said as she sat on the coffee table across from him, looking downtrodden, "...did I upset you? I'm...I'm sorry, I didn't mean to. But hey, look at it this way, even if there's no higher power or whatever, your highness, you still got me."

Melanie smiled, "You're a wonderful jester," she said.

"Jester?! Why can't I be a knight?!"

"If you weren't so funny looking, perhaps things would be different," Melanie said, shrugging as she sat down beside him and fought him for control over the chip bag.

And the two bickered well into the evening, laughing, plotting, discussing life. It was the first time in a long time either one of them had had a genuine friend in another person, and they both needed the company. Melanie, as she said, needed a jester. And Gus...

...Gus needed a friend. Who cared if she was a princess?

"I did a bad thing," Kevin said, his voice low and weak, his eyes glued to the ground, his ears laid back, "...I didn't...it wasn't intentional, I swear it wasn't, but I...I nearly let Gerald die. That made me sick afterwards, and what makes me feel even worse is I don't think they believe that it wasn't intentional. I was angry at him, yeah, but I would never...I would never do anything to hurt him. Unless perhaps he did something absolutely unforgivable but I don't see that happening. That rabbit's a damn saint."

Kevin glanced at the marker on Number Four's grave and he sighed.

"God, Ellen, things are so messed up," he said, "Everyone is so on edge and tense, THEY are committing complete and total genocide on every burrow they come across, and now my own friends think I'm some sort of traitor or something. I just want it all to be over. I wanna take fire to the lab right now, not whenever our supposed plan is ready. I realize that's impulsive, but I'm just so ready to be done with all of this. I wish you were here, god I miss you. I don't feel like I know what to do without you guiding me."

Kevin laid down on her grave and shut his eyes, crying quietly to himself. He never allowed the others to see him cry about Ellen, but when he was alone with her, he couldn't help himself, it just came out like a tsunami he couldn't hold back anymore. A dam of emotions that had finally cracked. Kevin thought more about Gerry, and he swore up and down that he didn't want him to be taken, that he hadn't intentionally stood by and done nothing while Gerry was so close to being taken by THEM.

...but despite all the times he told himself this...why didn't he believe it himself?

                                                                                               ***

"We're running out of time," Number Two said.

He, Gerry, Richardson, Stone and Six were sitting in Stone's living space, and none of them looked too pleased to be having this discussion.

"You all know it, even if nobody wants to openly admit it, but I will," Number Two continued, "We're running out of time. We have to act, and we have to act fast. If THEY'RE able to find Richardson's burrow, then THEY'RE getting too close to our hollow for comfort. THEY need to be dealt with, before it's too late. We took out Dodger, now it's time to finish the job."

"Nobody is disagreeing with you, Paul," Stone said, "But we...what is our plan, ultimately? I mean, really?"

"I'm thinking I take Salt, and we go into the lab, we figure out where everything is, we figure out a plan of attack, ins and outs, and then we torch it. Simple as that. A line of rabbits, bringing in stick and stick of fire and torching whatever we can, until the place is soaked in flames," Number Two said.

"You don't need to go in," Six said, interrupting, "Mipsy knows the layout. She knows exactly where everything is, she can tell you what every square inch contains."

"Well good, that makes things easier then, doesn't it," Number Two said, "All we have to do is key out a plan of attack from here and carry it out."

"I still think we should go in first," Gerry said, surprising Number Two as he added, "I...I think it's important to tell the new group what's gonna happen, so that when it happens, they aren't shellshocked. They need to know we're coming to get them, that way they'll know what to do when it all goes down."

"Smart thinking," Number Two said.

"I'll go, and I'll take Salt, since she knows every entrance and exit to the place," Gerry said, "We'll be in and out in no time."

"I'll go with you. You'll need me," Six said, and Gerry nodded, agreeing to this.

"Lorna can drop fire from the sky too, dousing them overhead with flaming sticks," Number Two said, "And Minerva and Dice can make sure no attack dogs interfere, though frankly I think we should try and get them out as well. Nobody deserves to die in a fire like that, except THEM. Even if our history with the dogs is...sketchy, at best, I maintain that it's the right thing to do."

"It sounds like we have things pretty figured out then," Stone said, "I say we treat Richardson and his ladies to a nice meal, and a good nights sleep. Sounds like what you all experience was harrowing to say the least."

The group adjourned, everyone following Stone out into the hall and towards the main eating area, but Number Two stopped Gerry from leaving, stepping in front of him and putting a paw on his chest.

"Why are you gonna go in?" Number Two asked, "Let ME go in, you're too important to risk losing over what boils down to an information delivery. They're gonna need you for when it actually comes down to it."

"I...I need to see it, one last time, before we set it ablaze," Gerry said, "I know that must sound absolutely nutty but I have to put some ghosts to rest, if you know what I mean. It was our home for a long time, like it or not, and I wanna say goodbye, even if the place harbors horrible trauma for us all."

"No, no, I...I get that, I do," Number Two said, "Just promise me you'll come back."

"Don't I always?" Gerry asked, smirking, as he passed by Number Two, nuzzling his neck a bit. Together the two rabbits turned and walked out, heading to have their dinner.

                                                                                             ***

Mipsy was sitting alone, eating, away from the rest of the group. She usually ate alone, chewing on berries and whatever other pleasant tasting flora and fauna the scroungers could dig up to eat. She could hear them all, laughing and talking, and all she could think of to herself was how horrifying what she'd just been through had been. She'd nearly died, they'd all nearly died, and yet...here they were, back again, like nothing had ever happened. But then again, what did she really expect them to do? Dwell on it? They may as well enjoy what pleasant downtime they had, since most of their uptime was bathed in constant abject terror.

"Enjoying your meal?" Paw Paw asked, coming around to her side and sitting beside her, holding a big leaf with her own dinner collected on it.

"I...guess," Mipsy said.

"Eating alone?"

"Not now," Mipsy replied, making Paw Paw laugh, before continuing, "I eat alone cause noise bother me. They all too loud. Ears very sensitive."

"Ah, I understand," Paw Paw said, "Well, I'll do my best to be quiet then."

"You okay. You nice to listen to," Mipsy said, immediately blushing after saying it, making Paw Paw smirk as she started eating her own dinner. Mipsy and Paw Paw sat in silence for a bit before Mipsy finally blurted out, "Thank you for carry me."

"It was my pleasure," Paw Paw said, "Not often I get to show off my extreme strength to a pretty rabbit."

"Yes, you very strong," Mipsy said, "We all impressed."

Paw Paw laughed loudly and nodded, "Okay, sure, it's not really the most impressive thing, but hey, it helps in a pinch, obviously. But even with that to brag about, I'm not the one who, from what I've heard, orchestrated a plan to kill your most dangerous and elusive enemy."

"...yeah," Mipsy said, lowering her ears, the wire between her right ear and her temple wiggling as she did, "Yeah...I come up with plan, and it was good, but I don't like killing. I don't want burn lab down either, I want just leave."

"Well, you can just leave, can't you? Didn't some other rabbits leave here recently?"

"Melvin and Crisp, yeah," Mipsy said, "They not come back neither. They must be okay. But...I need stay, they need me. I'm key to lab."

"You're key?"

"I know design of it inside and out," Mipsy said, "I study blueprints and I have photographic memory of everyplace I saw while there. I...I too important to leave. They my friends...I may not agree with burning lab but...but I wanna help my friends."

Paw Paw smiled sweetly and touched Mipsy's paw.

"You're a real sweet gal," Paw Paw said, "That's really nice of you to help them even if you don't agree with it."

"Plus, THEY make me stupid, so THEY do deserve it," Mipsy said.

"You're not stupid, Mipsy, trust me," Paw Paw said, "In fact, you might be the smartest one here."

Paw Paw turned back to her food and kept eating, as Mipsy smiled at this compliment and then continued eating her own dinner as well. The two rabbits sat in silence for a bit, until Paw Paw finished and picked up a small tomato with her paws, admiring it.

"Look at that," she said, "Some real vegetation. Huh. Lucky me. But you deserve it more," she said, putting in on Mipsy's leaf plate, and then whispered, "I'm staying just down the hall. Come see me tonight if you want."

Mipsy had never been that touched by another before, and she really appreciated it. But...she felt she'd also learned her lesson. She'd watched so many other rabbits lose their families and loved ones, and especially after seeing Kevin lose Ellen...she really wondered if it was worth it getting close to someone romantically, if the risk of losing them was forever so prevalent.

Still, she did give her a tomato. How could she say no to that?

                                                                                              ***

Kevin woke up with a start, wiping the drool away from his lips as his eyes focused and he realized he'd fallen asleep, once again, on Ellen's grave. He sighed, shifted his weight and managed to stand up before his metal leg locking up behind him and he groaned. He started kicking it gently before hearing a voice behind him speak.

"What did I tell you last time?" Richardson asked, "Don't damage it. You're gonna need it. Let me help."

"...it's weird having you back," Kevin said, "I never honestly thought I'd see you again, and then we ran into you in the woods and you looked so....so fucking pathetic I just couldn't stay angry at you. But having you actually back here, in the Hollow? That's wiggin' me out, man."

Richardson smirked, nodding, "Indeed, it's wigging me out too. Kevin...I'm so sorry. I've regretted what I did ever since I did it. I didn't do it because I didn't like you guys, you guys were my friends, but he...he offered-"

"Yeah, I know how it is. He offered you something. That's what he did. He always offered, and rarely came through," Kevin said as Richardson toyed with his leg, "I know it wasn't you who made that decision, that you were only doing something to get your little sister back, and as someone who was also trying to protect one they loved, and has lost the one they loved, I think you and I are pretty much par for the course at this point in terms of relating to one another."

"There you go, should be good," Richardson said, stepping back as Kevin wiggled his metal leg and sighed a breath of relief.

"Thanks," Kevin said, "You're good for maintenance, I'll say that."

"Kevin," Richardson said, "I need to ask you something. Soon we'll be going to the lab. A scouting mission, to check things out, make sure our plan, if followed through with, would go swimmingly. I'm planning on going into the lab when the time to bring fire to THEM comes."

"Well, I mean, so am I," Kevin said, "I have unfinished business."

"I need to ask you for a favor, and I understand if you don't want to give it to me, after everything I did. You have every right to say no, but I need to ask anyway. I don't...plan on making it out of the lab. I'm not saying it won't happen, but I certainly don't expect it to. And if that time comes, where I have to give up my life to save others, I need you to lead my group."

"...what?" Kevin asked, astounded.

"Kevin, Gerry built you up into a leader, and you basically kept this group together while the Collective was splintered for a while. Half in the lab, half out here, not to mention all you did trying to save Ellen, and then...you're a leader. Gerald was right. I see it now. I didn't before, but I do now, and I have to ask if you'll do me the honor or looking after my group if something happens to me. I need this, please, I need this reassurance that my Sisters will be okay if I'm gone. With you in charge, I know they would be. They'll help you rebuild The Order and everything."

"...I...I don't know what to say, man, I really...wow," Kevin replied, nearly stuttering, a look of complete and total awe on his face, "I just...wow."

"You said it yourself. We both have felt the same loss, the same pain, so who better to be my successor except you, honestly," Richardson said, "That is...if you'll have the job."

"I'll have to think about it," Kevin said, "Hell, who knows, we both may not survive."

And they laughed at this, despite realizing it was very well possibly the truth. After they finished chuckling about their upcoming potential demise, Kevin lowered his ears and looked Richardson right in the eyes.

"I wanted to kill you," Kevin said, "I swore I was going to, but...now I'm sorry for feeling that way. I'm sorry for what happened."

"I'm sorry for Ellen," Richardson said, "I know the pain you've felt."

"I know you do," Kevin replied.

"...Kevin," Richardson said, "trust me...when you get there, THEY won't know what they're up against. You have the strength to finish this. Gerry, Paul, sure, they're gonna be right there beside you, but only you can really bring the fight to THEM, because of all the things THEY did to you personally. THEY took your leg, THEY took your girl, and now it's time to take something back."

"...you're goddamned right it is," Kevin said with a sneer.

                                                                                             ***

Paw Paw was sleeping, curled up in a corner of a burrow, nestled underneath some large pieces of soft bark. She was breathing easily, dreaming of what life might be like soon enough, without all this drama, when she felt a presence near by. She woke and opened an eye to see Mipsy tiptoeing into the area, and taking a seat right beside her. Paw Paw shut her eye again, and Mipsy nestled right into her side, shutting her eyes too, exhaling quietly.

"I feel safe with you," Mipsy said in a hushed voice, "Thank you."

"I'm glad," Paw Paw whispered back, "All I want is for you to feel safe."

And she did. For the first time in a VERY LONG TIME, Mipsy felt 100% safe. Even with the looming threat of THEM gassing entire burrows and colonies left and right, all around them, in what made it seem like they were zeroing in the Hollow very quickly, she felt safe and completely at ease. Because that's the one thing Mipsy continued to believe in that all the other rabbits seemed to forget. Love. She allowed herself to be close to those around her, and even when it brought pain, she appreciated that she'd done it, because despite how much the pain might have hurt, she felt it was worth the cause. Number Two, Gerry, Kevin, even Ellen had all allowed themselves this brief opening of their heart to others, and eachother, but the thing about Mipsy was that with her brain the way it was, this was all that mattered.

Not revenge. Not closure. Not anything else. All that mattered was that she had another to love and be loved by.

Because everything else in life was uncertain, that she was certain of, but love?

Revenge is temporary. Love is forever.

Richardson has sworn up and down after he created The Order of the Hare that he would never let any harm befall his group of misfit female rabbits, and he was dedicated to keeping that promise, no matter what it took. Even if it meant rationing his own food intake when they couldn't find enough for everyone, he would gladly give his shares to another simply so they could eat. Richardson could barely live with himself for, not only what he'd done, but what he'd lost as well, and he was going to make sure that, no matter what, he didn't lose anyone else ever again. Sitting here with Gerald, the room filled with female rabbits too, all of them eating together...Richardson was as happy as a rabbit of his problematic nature could be, given his shame. He'd tried to right his wrongs, and by the end of the day...

...he'd really be put to the test.

                                                                                            ***

"Are we almost there?" Kevin asked loudly, sounding irritated, "My feet are starting to cramp. The ones I still have, anyway."

"We're almost there, yes," Paw Paw said, answering him over her shoulder before looking back at Mipsy and continuing their conversation, "So you and Richardson were friends before he left?"

"Kind of," Mipsy said, stuttering, "We kind of friend, he always nice to me."

"He said you got brain damage from an experiment in the lab," Paw Paw said, "Sorry to bring that up if it's a sore subject, I just wanted to clarify it was true. Not that I have any reason to disbelieve him, he's never been anything but honest with us."

"Yeah, I got brain damage," Mipsy said, looking at the ground as she walked now, almost as if ashamed of this fact, "I not happy 'bout it, but I do okay. I not talk real good no more, but I...I still have thing to say, you know? I still have a voice and opinion."

"That's right, and you should never let what happened to you make you feel bad about yourself. It was out of your control, and frankly, you seem perfectly capable to me. Much more than Wingus and Dingus back there. I mean, you're the one up here holding a conversation with me, so that says a lot right there. I think you're perfectly fine."

Mipsy blushed and looked away. She'd rarely had the chance to speak to any of the female rabbits in the lab before her accident, and afterwards she was so afraid any of them would always make fun of her that she essentially steered clear of them entirely, only really participating in conversations with Ellen and Six. But Paw Paw...she was different. She was kind and open and very funny. Mipsy liked her more and more as the minutes passed.

"You think Richardson be happy to see me?" Mipsy asked, and Paw Paw nodded eagerly.

"Definitely! He always spoke very highly of you. I think he admired your strength, which I certainly now, having met you, understand," Paw Paw said, "You're quite inspirational. Don't ever let anyone tell you otherwise. The Order is all about lifting up other female rabbits, but I'm not being nice to you because of The Order. I'm just doing it cause I like you."

Mipsy blushed harder and looked away again. She was starting to really enjoy this day.

Just then, they all stopped and looked over the crest of a small hill.

"There it is," Paw Paw, as Kevin and Number two approached.

"There what i...whoa," Kevin said, surprised.

Whoa, indeed. Below them was the field that surrounded the burrow that The Order had built together under the guidance of Richardson, and it was like nothing they had ever seen before. Certainly Stone's Hollow was impressive, but it had nothing on this. This was on a whole other level. Paw Paw smirked and jerked her head in a 'follow me' motion, leading them down the hillside.

"Welcome to The Order of the Hare," she said.

The rabbits continued down the hill, now knowing for certain that this was clearly not a trick of some kind, and were in utter awe at what they saw around them. They had all worked so hard together to create The Collective, to work merging their group into Stone's and moving into The Hollow, and here, Richardson had done it all by himself. What kind of sick irony was this, actually? Walking through the field, heading toward the main entrance, Kevin and Number Two exchanged concerned, but hopeful, glances.

"Please don't be afraid," Paw Paw said, "This is a safe place. This is a place for friends. You are all more than welcome here. Please come inside with me. I'll take you to Richardson and your friend. I believe everyone is about to eat, if you're hungry."

The three followed Paw Paw inside and were astounded by how grand the inside was, once more feeling outshone by the rabbit they'd essentially exiled. Inside, everyone was bustling about, just as happy as everyone outside had been. Ironically enough, this only made Kevin and Number Two feel even worse about their efforts. Hell, it had only been mere weeks before that Melvin and Crisp had left The Collective because they were tired of the drama and were unhappy.

"It so pretty in here!" Mipsy said.

"We wanted to make it cozy and inviting," Paw Paw replied, "I think we achieved that."

"It feels like hug," Mipsy said, making Paw Paw chuckle.

"This is a huge fucking bummer, dude," Kevin said to Number Two as they walked a bit behind the girls, and Number Two nodded.

"Yeah, I...uh...I feel it, man, it's kind of a reminder of how bad we are at what we do," Number Two said, "I really hope Gerry's actually here. We need to bring him back and show him how important to us he still is. He isn't useless."

"Nobody ever said he was," Kevin replied, "It's more that...that he thinks he is. And that he hasn't been fighting as hard to keep everyone together as he used to and that he doesn't seem to believe in an eventual happy outcome. He gave us all hope and now he's making us question that hope because he's questioning it himself."

"You're not wrong, and I do agree and understand, but we need to make sure that he knows he's needed," Number Two said, "We need Gerry. We need him to finish this with us, not for us."

Just then they heard the sound of laughter, and as they turned a corner and into another deeper burrow, they saw it. The feast these rabbits were having; laughter filled the cavern and warmed their hearts, as everyone seemed so blissful and happy. And there, smack dab next to Richardson, was their friend. Laughing, eating, and enjoying himself like they hadn't seen him do in ages. Number Two smiled, because simply seeing Gerry be happy was more than enough to make him happy, but Kevin...Kevin grimaced. How could he be so okay here and not okay at home?

"Gerald," Number Two said, catching his attention.

"Paul!" Gerry shouted, "Paul, come here! Kevin! Mipsy!"

The four rabbits wandered past everyone else and sat around Gerry, all each giving him a hug.

"What are you guys doing here?" Gerry asked.

"What are you doing here?" Kevin asked coldly.

"We came looking for you," Number Two said, "We were worried about you. You haven't been very okay lately and we just wanted to make sure that you were alright. Kevin grew concerned when he couldn't find you, and nobody else had seen you, so he came to get me because he knew I could track you down. Lo and behold, it wound up being this nice rabbit here who did the job for me."

"Paw Paw, you're back!" Richardson said, giving her a hug as well, "Yes, Paw Paw is the best tracker we have here. If someone needs to be found or needs something found, she's the gal for the job!"

"We need you to come home," Number Two said..

"Do we, though?" Kevin asked, catching a glare from Number Two as he said it, "I mean, he seems so happy here. Why not just let him stay here?"

"What the fuck is your problem, man?" Number Two asked, turning to face Kevin now.

"Hey, hey, calm down," Richardson said, stepping between them, "There's no need to be angry or upset. Everyone just cool it. This is my home, my girls home, and you will not bring this attitude of negativity into it. Hasn't there been enough anger between you all to last a lifetime?"

"Oh that's rich coming from the guy who got my girlfriend killed," Kevin said, "Coming from the guy who nearly got Number Two killed on a waterfall, coming from the guy who sold us down the river to a mouse all because he wanted his own family back. Yeah, no, there's never enough anger, because none of us ever talk about the problems we have with one another. We just accept things, we just think 'oh, we're a family, we have to work together' but guess what you can't work together if you have too much unspoken pain between you. So, Gerald, Richardson, you guys wanna stay here or what? I'll lead the goddamned Collective myself if you want to stay here, I don't care anymore."

"I know you will," Gerry said, surprising him.

"Wh...what?" Kevin asked.

"I said I know you will," Gerry repeated himself, "Because I taught you to be a leader. You lead them really well when I was still stuck in the lab, and look, you got Number Two and you managed to find me. I have no doubt that you'd finish what's been started if I were to choose to stay here."

"...you can't...just leave," Kevin said, stuttering, "You...you started this. You started all of this. You can't just-"

"I don't intend to leave, Kevin. Actually, after the bit of conversation I had with Richardson while being here, I think I fully acknowledge that it's my responsibility to, yes, see it through to the end. I made myself in charge of everyone, I put our plans of escape into motion and I agree with you that we need to save the new rabbits and take THEM out once and for all. So you and me, we're gonna make fire, and we're gonna burn THEM to the ground and we're gonna leave. And then it's all gonna be over."

Nobody spoke for a moment as the rabbits stared one another down. Paw Paw leaned into Mipsy and lowered her voice.

"Boy, are things between you guys always this tense?" she whispered.

"Yeah, kinda," Mipsy said back.

"But what if you hadn't run into Richardson?" Kevin asked, "What if you hadn't? You would've killed yourself, or left, and nobody would've ever admitted it but we all would've known that you just gave up on us."

"Suicide is rarely that simple, and you know that," Number Two said.

"Abandonment is abandonment!" Kevin said loudly, "He abandoned us, and without Richardsons surprising help, he likely would've stayed abandoning us!"

"Kevin, just calm down. It doesn't matter what I would've done because I'm not doing it, so who cares," Gerry said.

"I care! Because you put so much trust in me! You..." Kevin looked at the floor, "...you're not the rabbit I once knew or admired. I don't...I don't know who you are anymore, but I do know that I don't like whoever it is you've become."

And then, breaking everything up, a rabbit raced into the area, out of breath and covered in dirt. Everyone turned to look at her. She waited for a few moments, then inhaled and screamed at the top of her lungs, "RUN!"

And with that multiple black hoses pushed their way through the ceiling. The rabbits screamed and scattered. Richardson turned and shouted loudly to this flock to use the emergency tunnels, and most did just that. He then turned to Gerry and told him and the others from the Collective to follow him. They did. As they raced down through the tunnel, taking one turn after another, more hoses were breaking through, and behind them, they could see rabbits starting to collapse. Richardson stopped and started to go back, but Gerry grabbed him and pulled him.

"You have to get out! There's nothing you can do!" he said, "Just keep going!"

Richardson nodded and they took off again. Kevin and Number Two were at the front of the pack, dodging falling debris from the roof of the tunnel as it collapsed all around them and arms had begun to reach in, grabbing for, and pulling out, rabbit after rabbit in every direction.

"This is it!" Number Two said, "This is what those rabbits were talking about! The one at the Hollow and the one I met in the woods!"

"What?" Kevin shouted back.

"The black snakes! These are the black snakes!" Number Two replied, and Kevin understood, yes, he was right. These were indeed the black snakes. Just then a large rock fell and separated them, leaving Kevin in a more collapsed part of the tunnel with Gerry and Paw Paw. The three of them, now shrouded in darkness and unsure which direction to go, quickly began digging as fast as they could, pushing through to a nearby tunnel. When they broke through, Paw Paw jerked her head in one direction, motioning for them to follow her. Kevin did, but soon heard Gerry screaming behind him, and turned to see Gerry had been grabbed by an arm.

"Kevin!" Gerry shouted, "Kevin, help! Help me!"

Kevin stood there, and watched. He waited, and watched, hoping this would rectify itself. Paw Paw raced back to his side.

"What are you doing!?" she screamed, quickly racing past him to grab Gerry's paws and tugging him until his body broke free of the gloved hands and together they tumbled back down the tunnel. She quickly got back up, helped Gerry back up and they continued down the tunnel. As they passed Kevin, Gerry slowed down and they locked eyes.

"You didn't help me," Gerry said.

"I thought you could help yourself," Kevin said.

"You better watch it," Gerry said, snarling, "You better watch your goddamned back."

"I better, because I can't trust you to, it seems," Kevin replied, and with that they continued down the hall.

As they reached the end, they broke free and into an exit of the woods. The Order of the Hare's tunnels had run long, and rabbits were scattering all around them into the woods. Paw Paw, Gerry and Kevin stopped and looked around. Some rabbits were slowing down, throwing up, collapsing, their eyes or noses bleeding profusely, while others held them in their last moments, sobbing as their friends drew their final breaths before them.

"This is THEM," Gerry said, "This has to be THEM."

"Where's Richardson?" Paw Paw asked, "And Mipsy? Where's Mipsy!?" she walked forward a bit, stood on her hind legs and shouted loudly, "MIPSY?! MIPSY, WHERE ARE YOU?!"

No answer came. Number Two was also nowhere to be seen. Finally, from a nearby brush, Richardson emerged, and hissed at them to follow him, which they did. They continued through and hid within the bushes branches and leaves, catching their breaths.

"You tried to kill me," Gerry whispered to Kevin.

"I didn't try to kill you," Kevin said.

"You certainly didn't spring to help," Gerry replied, "That was a deliberate pause, you were debating whether or not to save me."

"I...I was mad, I would've helped you," Kevin said, his voice cracking, clearly feeling bad now, "I would've-"

"It doesn't matter what you would've done," Gerry hissed, "What matters is what you did do."

"We need to gather as many of my girls as we can and head to your home," Richardson said, "We need to return everyone back to The Hollow, where they'll be safe. Then we can discuss what to do about THEM at greater length."

Just then, Number Two stumbled into the brush, dragging Mipsy behind him. Paw Paw quickly turned her attention to Mipsy, nudging at her with her nose, but Mipsy wouldn't open an eye. Number Two laid her down and looked around at everyone.

"She's fine, don't worry, she didn't breath any of that stuff. She got hit in the head with a rock. She's just unconscious. Gerald, those were them, those were the black snakes. THEY are trying to kill us. THEY'RE trying to kill all rabbits. It's...genocide."

"Let's just get Richardsons group and head home," Gerry said, "Once we're home we'll be safe."

Paw Paw had Number Two put Mipsy on her back and she, Number Two and Richardson headed out of the brush. While Kevin tried to leave, Gerry grabbed him and pulled him back, their pink noses a mere inch apart.

"If you ever do that to anyone else," Gerry said, "You'll be with Ellen again, do I make myself clear?"

"You better not make threats you have no intention of keeping," Kevin said, shaking free of his grip and leaving the brush.

Gerry sighed, and followed suite.

                                                                                           ***

Walking through the woods, in the dark, heading back to The Hollow (having gathered a good majority of Richardsons girls), Gerry just couldn't shake this feeling that the final problem wouldn't in fact be THEM like he'd always presumed it would be. That the final problem would, actually, be one of his closest friends. He'd need to keep a closer eye on Kevin from now on, that much he acknowledged.

Mipsy eventually woke up lying on Paw Paw's back, being carried through the night.

"You save me?" Mipsy asked, slurring her words.

"Naw, Number Two saved you. I just was insistent on carrying you home," Paw Paw said, "Just go back to sleep. We should be there soon enough."

"Okay," Mipsy said, snuggling her face into Paw Paw's fur, shutting her eyes once again, whispering, "I like you. You nice."

"I like you too," Paw Paw replied, blushing.

Number Two fell back to join Gerry, having been leading Richardson towards The Hollow for a while now. As he and Gerry walked side by side, he could tell something was bothering his friend, and he lowered his voice so nobody else could hear.

"Everything okay? I'm glad we found you," Number Two said.

"Paul," Gerry said, "You're my best friend, you're...well, more than my friend, as you're aware."

"Well aware," Number Two said, smirking.

"...whatever happens, however this ends, make sure Kevin doesn't kill me," Gerry said, "And if he does...kill him."

"...you got it," Number Two said.

It was a promise he intended to keep, no matter what the cost.

"The hell do you mean a grave marker?" Kevin asked, stepping off the mossy mound and walking toward Number Two, who, for whatever reason, refused to look him in the eye.

"Gerald asked me to help him make one, okay? I...I did it so he could have peace of mind," Number Two replied quietly, "He felt terrible about having Dodger killed, and...and while you and I recognize it had to be done, as did he, he had a much different relationship with Dodger than we ever did, so I can't blame him for it."

"That tiny bastard does not deserve a single piece of remembrance!" Kevin shouted, "Does Gerry come here to talk to him, the way I do with Ellens grave? Because if so, that is SICK. Dodger was a monster, and now he gets regular visits from the rabbit who's supposed to be our leader? What's wrong with-"

"Hello," a voice said from behind them, making all three rabbits scream and jump back in surprise. As they turned to look, they saw a female rabbit, a brown piece of fabric covering her, standing between them and the treeline behind them. She backed up, feeling bad for having startled them, and shook her head, adding, "Sorry, I...I didn't mean to spook you."

"Can we...help you?" Number Two asked, stepping in front of Kevin and Mipsy, taking a protector sort of stance.

"I see you're here looking at the lab," the rabbit said, "I'm sorry, where are my manners. My name is Paw Paw. What are you doing out here?"

"We're from the lab," Number Two said, "We were, anyway, before we managed to escape. We're looking for our friend. What are you doing out here?"

"Just taking a walk outside of my community," Paw Paw said, "If you'd like, you can come with me back to my home and talk to our founder, he might be able to help you find your friend."

"...I suppose that couldn't hurt," Kevin muttered, walking past Number Two, who tried to stop him and whispered.

"How do you know we can trust her?" he asked through his teeth and Kevin shook his head.

"Man, at this point, we can't afford not to trust someone," Kevin said, continuing past, Mipsy following close behind. Number Two exhaled and followed close behind, keeping a keen eye fixed on Paw Paw for any instance of suspicious behavior.

"So, who founder?" Mipsy asked.

"His name is Richardson," Paw Paw said, and this stopped everyone in their tracks with shock.

                                                                                           ***

Gerald followed Richardson through the enormous burrow that had been constructed, and was still being constructed in some places, gawking in awe at their efforts. Female rabbits passed him nonstop, and Gerry realized this was what he'd hoped The Hollow would become one day if only he worked hard enough. He began to imagine if he could just somehow migrate everyone over here, they might not even have to worry about THEM or The Black Snakes or anything else ever again...just a life of peace.

"You're so lucky," Gerry said softly, making Richardson chuckle.

"I suppose, sure," he replied, "But it didn't come without great pain. Every wonderful thing comes at a price of one kind or another. That's why, if you want to be safe and protected, you need to pay that sort of price, Gerry. It doesn't happen without payment."

"I still have work to do," Gerry said, nodding, "I know. I just...I wanted so badly to be finished with it, but I know that I will be, soon enough. We're going to burn the lab down, burn THEM to death inside of it, after we get all the new rabbits out of it."

"Are you sure that's wise?" Richardson asked, "Aren't you afraid you'll be just as bad as them if you go down that road?"

"Sometimes you have to pay a price," Gerry said, making Richardson nod in response, "Sometimes you have to do something someone else may consider unthinkable to be free of the horrors done unto you. THEY don't deserve mercy. We're past mercy. THEY did enough horrible things to us that, at this point, THEY'LL be getting off pretty easy, all things considered."

"You realize if you do this sort of thing, you can't take it back, you know that right?" Richardson asked, stopping in the tunnel and looking at Gerald.

"I killed Dodger," Gerry said, surprising Richardson; he continued, "I lied to him, I laid a trap for him, and then, using his trust, I betrayed him and led him directly to his death. I...I hate myself every single day for what I did, but it's what I had to do. But Dodger was only the stepping stone to the rock in the pond, you know? I had to do that to him, so I could do this to THEM."

"Seems you've made up your mind. So long as you can live with yourself," Richardson said.

"I can. It's whether or not the others can, too. I'm going to do what I'm going to do to protect my friends, and my family. And once that place is ashes on the dirt, we'll turn around and we'll walk away and we'll never have to think about it ever again."

"Then it sounds like you know what's best for you," Richardson said, "That's how you get a community like this, Gerald. You...you do what you have to, you protect them at any cost, but you also don't be a leader. You be a guide. There's a difference. A leader gives off an idea that you're somehow in control of them, and people don't like to be led, they like to be taught to lead for themselves. So the real question is, are you a leader, or a guide?"

Gerry had never considered this. He'd always told himself he was a leader, because he didn't realize there was any other option. He'd conditioned Kevin to believe he was a leader too, and Kevin had done what it took to keep The Collective safe once outside, even if he made mistakes. But a guide? That...that sounded a lot more palatable.

"Leadership is just another form of ownership, you just don't feel guilty about it," Richardson said, breaking Gerry from his thoughts, "To be for the people, you need to be with the people. Leadership removes you somewhat from their actions, because you can claim they misconstrued what you said. You can shift and assign blame. You're not a leader, Gerry. You're a guide. You've only ever taken the blame for the things that have happened, even when they weren't your fault, even when...even when they were my fault..."

Richardson looked at the floor and sighed, shaking his head.

"I've felt so bad for possibly letting Number Four die," he mumbled, continuing, "Had we not gotten in your way, maybe Kevin would've-"

"Don't, just don't. She was gone before we even had left the lab again, I guarantee it. There was nothing anyone could do for her, it was all well wishing, and, as you said, you'd do anything for the one you loved. Kevin was acting out of heart, not mind. He was doing the right thing, certainly, but he also didn't recognize that the time to do the right thing had long since passed. You wanna blame someone for Ellen's death? Blame THEM for making her sick in the first place."

"Thanks Gerry," Richardson said, smiling a little, "That makes me feel better."

"What are friends for, right?" Gerry asked, smiling back.

                                                                                             ***

"What do you mean your 'founder' is Richardson?" Number Two asked, "Founder of WHAT, exactly?"

"Our home," Paw Paw said, "The Order of the Hare, where all the Sister Rabbits live together in peace."

"I...am I having an aneurysm?" Kevin asked, making Number Two chuckle.

"He lost his sister," Paw Paw said, "And in the process, feels he had a hand in killing another female rabbit. Since then, he's repented, shunned his past acts and sworn to dedicate his life to helping female rabbits be safe in this world, no matter what it takes."

Richardson...felt bad about Ellen? Kevin genuinely didn't know how to handle this information. But if that's where Gerry was, and what Paw Paw was saying was true, then they had to take her word for it and follow her to The Order of the Hare, wherever the hell that might be. Number Two was having trouble buying it himself, as the last time they'd seen Richardson, he was an absolute muddy mess, cowering in the bushes, begging for forgiveness. He could see Richardson coming to terms with what he'd done, maybe even bettering himself because of it, but leading an entire colony of female rabbits? That...that part Number Two was having some real trouble wrapping his head around. Mipsy, however, wasn't really thinking much about any of this, and was instead focusing on Paw Paw's coloring, and how pretty her eyes were.

"How much of this are you buying?" Number Two whispered to Kevin, slowing them down a bit so they could talk further away from the girls, and Kevin shrugged.

"At this point in my life, it's hard to know what to question and what not to, if we're being honest," Kevin said, "Haven't we been in this sort of situation before? You, me, a female rabbit leading us to a group of rabbits?"

"Hah, yeah, real deja vu there, huh," Number Two said, "Kevin, whatever happens, just follow me, okay? I'll make sure you two get out if something goes down."

"You got it, chief," Kevin said, not one to argue with Number Two when it came to lying his life on the line for him.

"Really does feel like old times," Number Two said, "Wonder how many times we'll do this again."

Kevin thought about it. How very true it was. How often they had just blindly followed someone under their word that they would be lead to something better, somewhere safer. Dodger, Nickel, and now Paw Paw. Hell, even Gerald, to some extent. And while most seemed to keep their word, the Dodger incident had affected them all so tremendously that those involved could never be anything other than wary and cautious, erring on the side of suspicion. Understandably, as anyone involved would tell you. Mipsy hopped up right alongside Paw Paw, keeping pace with her.

"So you from Order of Hare?" Mipsy asked, "How you meet Richardson?"

"I was lost, alone, and stumbled across him back when he had just started up the group," Paw Paw said, "He needed help keeping the place going, and I was more than happy to volunteer my time for a safe place to live, it was the least I could do. I would often find other lost rabbits in the woods and bring them to the Order, so they could see for themselves if it was something they too would like to be a part of."

"It safe there?" Mipsy asked, "Richardson hurt us."

"He acknowledges what he did, he admits how wrong it was, and he mentioned you specifically, by name and markings and speech pattern," Paw Paw said, making Mipsy feel self conscious, before Paw Paw added in a low sweet voice, "But he never told me just how pretty you were."

It took everything she had not to giggle.

                                                                                          ***

"Dodger and I, we would stand at the treeline, looking out at the lab, and we would fantasize about saving all these new rabbits and taking them somewhere safe, somewhere like this, though I don't think the two of us could've managed what you've accomplished here," Gerry said, as he and Richardson made their way into the largest chamber of the burrow and sat on the padded moss covered floor.

"You're never really sure what you're capable of until you do it and find out. Take me for example. Sure, the argument could be made that I'm capable of great things because I created the Order, but the argument could also be made that I'm capable of heinous things because I betrayed you all. Until you're pushed to make that decision, you're never really sure what the outcome will actually be, and if you're able of following through on it or not."

"How the hell did you get so wise?" Gerry asked, the both of them chuckling at this statement.

"I guess when you spend a lot of time on your own you do a lot of introspection, and you learn a lot about life and yourself," Richardson said, "You must be hungry, I'll have someone bring in dinner for everyone."

Richardson turned and, about to leave Gerry alone, stopped at the doorway when he heard his voice.

"Richardson," Gerry said, "Thank you."

"...we're family, as you said," he replied.

                                                                                          ***

"I'm just saying, what if he doesn't WANT to come back?" Kevin asked, and Number Two scoffed.

"Listen, I know the boy's been weird lately, kinda mopey and stuff, but he wouldn't just upright abandon y'all, you know?" Number Two said, "He just...I know him well enough to know he wouldn't do that, out of anything else."

"You can always claim you know what someone might do, but you're not them, so you don't really know what they-"

Kevin tripped and fell face first into the dirt. After Number Two regained his composure and stopped laughing, he helped Kevin up.

"You alright?" he asked, and Kevin shook himself free of dirt.

"Goddamn, I guess, thankfully I tripped on it with my metal leg instead of anything real," Kevin said, "Looks like some kind of big black log."

"Well, we don't have time to inspect it, we don't wanna lose the girls, come on," Number Two said, and the two of them turned tail and rushed to keep up with the ladies.

But if only they'd inspected it.

If only they'd taken the minute to see.

To see just how very close they were to The Black Snakes.

No matter what he did, Gerry simply couldn't shake the story Number Two had told him about the rabbit he and Minerva had encountered in the woods...the one who'd willingly thrown himself off a cliff edge, into the jagged rocks below, simply to escape a terror he didn't even understand. Gerry too couldn't begin to comprehend it, because as of right now, all he had was a mere phrase.

The Black Snakes.

And the worst part was, not that Gerry couldn't escape the thought of this poor rabbit hurling himself to his own demise, but that he could totally understand wanting to do so, even without the context for The Black Snakes. The last few weeks, Gerry hadn't been feeling too great. Actually, ever since Dodger's death, he hadn't been feeling too great, and the rest of The Collective had definitely taken notice. He was mopey, he spent a lot of time alone, watching the lab from afar, and he overall just didn't seem too interested any longer in fighting to keep the group together.

And thus, Gerry too found himself staring at a cliff edge, looking at the large flowing river below, thinking about how freeing it would be to simply give in to his urge and no longer feel responsible for all the horrible things that had ever happened to his friends, mostly because of his association with others. He knew, deep down, that he wasn't completely responsible, but he'd trusted Dodger time and time again in one manner or another, and he'd failed to get the serum back to The Hollow to save Number Four, and he'd hurt Number Two by not letting him into his heart and he'd built Kevin up to believe that he was some kind of hero and now was questioning if Kevin had an ego that was going to become more of a problem than it was a bonus.

Gerry felt like everything, in some weird minor way or some strange large way, was his fault, and now all he wanted to do was escape it. He wanted to leave it all behind, leave his friends all behind, knowing they were perfectly capable without him. Hell, Kevin and Number Two alone could lead The Collective, especially with help from Stone and others. They had Minerva and Dice as added protection and...and really, what use was he to them anymore...

Tears welled in his eyes, and he looked out through the tree branches above him, seeing the sunset slowly lowering deeper and deeper into the horizon, bringing with it the blackness of night, a darkness he felt all too often even without the actual moon being present. If they wanted to be free of problems, if they wanted to succeed, either way, they needed Gerry gone. Kevin had been giving him grief, Crisp and Melvin had bailed and Number Two had decided to live at the foxes tree...everything was falling apart, after so long of working hard to keep it all together. Gerry knew that for things to get better, they'd have to lose him first.

He stepped forward, a few pebbles rolling off, bumped by his paws, down to the water below. He shut his eyes and exhaled.

"Gerald?" a voice asked, and his eyes shot open, his ears perked up, surprised. He turned to see a rabbit standing behind him, some sort of shawl fastened around them. They stepped forward, a dash of the dying sun splashing across their face. Gerald couldn't believe his eyes.

"Rich...Richardson?" he asked.

"Gerald, what are you doing out here?" he asked.

"I...I was just going to leave," Gerry replied, trying to hide the tears on his face.

"The only exit I see is right off that edge and into the water. That the sort of 'leaving' you were thinking about?" Richardson asked.

"Nobody needs me anymore, all I've done is cause pain and I...I'm never going to be satisfied with my accomplishments until it gets everyone I care about killed. There'll never be an end to this. I...what...what are you even doing out here?" Gerry finally asked, and Richardson smirked.

"I'm going to give you something to live for," he said.

                                                                                             ***

"Have you seen Gerald?" Stone asked, surprising Kevin, who was sitting and watching their guest sleep, making sure nothing worse happened to her while she slumbered. He shook his head and she sighed, continuing, "He hasn't been responding to me much, and I'm beginning to worry about his state of mind. Has he seemed okay to you?"

"No, he hasn't," Kevin replied coldly, "And it's bothered the hell out of me, quite frankly. He doesn't seem to care about keeping everyone together anymore, and it makes all his grandiose talk of rescuing the new rabbits feel somewhat hollow in comparison. It doesn't come across as sincere."

"Yeah, I know what you mean, he's felt off for a while. I wanted Nickle to bring him to me so we could talk about things, but she couldn't find him. Turns out nobody has seen him since last night."

This, admittedly, worried Kevin. He perked up and looked back at the sleeping rabbit before looking again at Stone and sighing.

"I'll go look for him," he said, "Just make sure nothing happens to her while I'm gone. I know someone who will be able to find him no matter what."

"Who's that?" Stone asked as Kevin passed by her and out of the doorway.

"Number Two," he responded.

                                                                                        ***

Gerry couldn't believe his luck. Just when he'd finally accepted his failures and was ready to fully embrace the sweet nothing of death, here came Richardson, out of the clear blue sky, and was telling Gerry he had something worth living for. Richardson wouldn't tell him what that something was, rather, he insisted on showing it to him up close. Following Richardson through the woods, Gerry couldn't help but have a feeling of general unease about trusting the guy, considering he'd sold out The Collective in the past. Even with his apology to Kevin and Number Two, Gerry still felt Richardson was a tad shady.

"So," Gerry said, "Where we going?"

"You'll see when we get there," Richardson said, "Trust me, it's worth it. How're things back at The Hollow?"

"Not good," Gerry said, "A rabbit showed up traumatized by something, and then Number Two told me ran into another rabbit traumatized by, seemingly, the same thing. They called it The Black Snakes. We have no clue what they mean by that though, so it's all guesswork right now. Melvin and Crisp took off, and I just...I feel like I'm running out of steam to keep everything going."

"That's understandable, given everything you've been through, but Gerry, trust me, what I'm about to show you will get you back on the right path."

"Well, forgive me if I'm slightly distrustful towards you," Gerry said, "After the whole, ya know, trying to kill us thing."

"I made a terrible mistake. I admit to it. I lost everything. Not only my sister, after all that, but all my friends too. Even if I'd wanted to come back, nobody would ever let me, even with my apology. But it's been a blessing in disguise, turns out, because I was needed elsewhere. That's the one thing I've learned from everything that's happened, Gerald. You're always needed somewhere. If you think you've run your course in one place, find a new place."

This actually made Gerry feel better. He'd never really considered it. Maybe Richardson was right, after all. Maybe it was time to not quit, just move on. He knew The Collective would be fine. He knew Kevin and Number Two and Stone and everyone else could manage things without him, hell, they'd done it for a while when he and the others were still stuck in the lab. They'd survived, so why couldn't they again? Gerry was starting to warm up to Richardson, and feel a sense of trust.

"So where are we-" Gerry began, when he stopped.

Standing in front of them were two female rabbits, also wearing the same sort of fabric Richardson had slung around himself. They smiled at the both of them upon approach, and Gerry felt a sense of warmth fill him up. The three of them continued over the hill a bit and once at the top, Gerry couldn't believe his eyes. In front of him was an enormous burrow, made with interconnecting tunnels, and what looked like a hundred rabbits or more. A community. Richardson had built something special, here.

"Welcome to The Order of the Hare, Gerald," Richardson said, "Please, come inside."

                                                                                           ***

Number Two was sitting outside with Minerva, watching Dice lay in the sun and warm herself. This life...this quiet life, this was what Number Two realized he'd always been missing. He reveled in the fact that he was so fortunate to have met these ladies, and that they'd graced him with their friendship, and allowed him to build a new home with them. This life, away from his friends, away from the problems that constantly plagued The Collective...this was the life he dreamed he'd one day have after everything was said and done.

"It's quiet today," Minerva said, "There's not even birds out. Somewhat unusual, but I prefer peace over noisiness, even if the noise is from beautiful birdsong."

"Fair enough," Number Two said, "It's nice to have the chance to just relax and wind down, not always having to be afraid all the time. I cannot tell you how much I don't miss being constantly terrified."

"Number Two?" Kevin asked, approaching from between the trees, coming out of a bush.

"Well, that feeling's gone," Number Two muttered, making Minerva snicker before turning his attention back to Kevin and asking, "What're you doing here? Is everything okay? Surely you aren't here for a nice quiet visit. That's never the case."

"Gerry's gone," Kevin said, and this got Number Twos attention, as he knew it would. He'd chosen his words carefully. He knew just these two put together would be enough to jumpstart Number Twos interest in the situation.

"What...what do you mean he's gone?" Number Two asked.

"He's missing. He hasn't been back to The Hollow since, presumably, last night, at least with how Stone tells it."

Just then they heard the bush rustling again, and turned, frightened for a split second, until they realized it was merely Mipsy coming out behind them. Kevin and Number Two sighed a breath of relief, as Kevin turned to face her.

"You too fast," she said.

"You need to stop following people," Kevin said, "One day I hope instead it's me following you."

"Where we going?" Mipsy asked, coming up to the others, shaking the leaves and twigs from her fur.

"We're going to find Gerry," Kevin said, "He's missing."

"I think I know where to look," Number Two suddenly said, quietly, surprising the both of them, "I think I know where to find him."

                                                                                              ***

This place...was amazing.

Richardson had taken in any and all female rabbits who'd needed help, safety, security or just somewhere to be and had given them a home. Everywhere Gerry looked were happy female rabbits enjoying themselves, feeling comfortable and happy, and for the first time in ages, he felt like he was witnessing something truly worthy of being alive. He could recall now the feelings he'd always had regarding keeping The Collective safe, and why it always hurt so much when he failed to do so.

"How...how did you-" Gerry started, but Richardson just laughed.

"I don't even know, honestly," he said, "It just sort of happened, one by one, until it grew into what it is now. Word of mouth spread I suppose, but most of them just find their way here, almost like they need to find it when they need it most. I failed to keep my little sister safe, so now it is my mission to keep any and all female rabbits safe. Nobody is in charge, it's a communal situation, and anyone can leave anytime they wish. I just want to give them somewhere to be. Somewhere they don't have to worry."

"This is incredible," Gerry said.

"Now they're all my sisters. They can leave whenever they want, return if they so want, the choice is up to them. That's the one thing we were never given, Gerald, was choice. That's why I asked you to come with me. You could've ignored me, jumped anyway, ended everything...but I gave you a choice, and you took it. Because, what I've found, is that when presented with a choice, one will usually take that choice, especially if it can make things better."

"Aren't you...aren't you worried about predators or THEM or anything? God, I know I'm always on edge about whether or not someone can find us, even by accident," Gerry said.

"Sure I am, man. You bet I am. But I can't let that fear keep me from living, either. That fear is what ate so many of us alive. That fear...that fear is what pushed me to do what I did to The Collective. Because I would've done anything to get my sister back and protect her. You have to understand it wasn't personal."

"Oh, I understand. Doesn't mean I condone it, but...I understand, more than you'd know," Gerry said, thinking of Dodger as he spoke.

"This is a safe place, Gerry. A safe place for happy rabbits. There's no pain, there's no evil, there's no horror. There's just peace. So you see? You don't have to die to be one with bliss. You just have to find a better place to be," Richardson said, "Anyone can be a Sister Rabbit. Because anyone can be loved."

Gerry wouldn't admit it, but he wanted to cry. How hard Richardson achieved such calmness in the time since they'd seen him last? How had he gained this semblance of inner joy? How had he created this community? It didn't matter, ultimately. What mattered was that he had.

And Gerry loved him for it.

                                                                                            ***

"Where the fuck are we going, man?" Kevin asked.

"It's just up here," Number Two said, "Right through this clearing."

"Kevin?" Mipsy asked, catching up to him as he followed a bit of a ways behind Number Two, "um...what we do if Gerry not come back?"

"He'll come back, don't think like that," Kevin said, "He'll come back. He...he always comes back."

And that's when Kevin bumped into Number Two, who had stopped at a small mossy mound with a pile of rocks on top of it. Kevin looked down at the mound and then out past the trees, and realized they were at the forest line, across the field from the lab. All the lights were off, and nobody was there. Kevin furrowed his brow in annoyance.

"Well?" he asked, "I don't see him! He comes back here?"

"Often, to watch the lab and think," Number Two said, "He thinks nobody knows, but I have followed him at times and watched him. He sits here, in the dark, and he cries. I want him to tell me what he's feeling, but I know he never would. No matter how much I want him to open up to me, he never will. He's too closed off, thanks to others hurting him, lying to him, betraying him. I just thought this might be where he went."

"Well, he isn't here, so we need to-" Kevin said, stepping on the mossy mound.

"Don't walk on that," Number Two said, and Kevin looked down, cautiously stepping off.

"What is that?" Kevin asked, and Number Two lowered his ears, looking away.

"That's Dodgers grave marker," he replied quietly.

The cool wind against their fur, the warm sun against their face, the lack of any responsibilities whatsoever; yes, it made Crisp and Melvin wonder just why exactly it'd taken them so very long to finally work up the nerve to break with The Collective. Wandering through this small wooded area, the sounds of birds chirping and streams bubbling, they couldn't help but occasionally glance at one another and then chuckle to themselves. They were finally, truly, free.

"I'm so glad we decided to do it," Melvin said, "That place was...just...not for us."

"Thank you for convincing me," Crisp replied, "Lord knows without a friend like you, I might still be there, embroiled in the midst of whatever ridiculous thing they're dealing with now. It's always something with them. And here I'd assumed Dodger's death would've been the end of it, but I guess not. There's always an extra mile to go."

"Well, now we can go any amount of miles we want," Melvin said, making them laugh.

They laughed and snacked and carried on, stopping here and there to look at the various leaves on the ground or pick up new berries, and it was like they'd never been a part of The Collective to begin with. They'd wanted to escape, certainly, and they were happy that The Collective had given them that chance, but they just never really understood why they'd continued to rail against the lab and the people who ran it. They sort of understood it, they recognized the yearning for vengeance certainly, but to put their own lives on the line time and time again, after all the failures they'd faced...it boggled their minds.

"How far are we gonna go?" Crisp asked.

"As far as we want, honestly," Melvin replied, "This is our life now, we can do whatever we want. We're best friends and the world is open to us."

"I feel sort of bad, I admit," Crisp continued, "I mean, they want to save these new rabbits and I...I get why...and I feel bad for leaving before at least trying to help with that. It's a noble cause, certainly. I just...I can't shake the feeling that for everything they try to do, all they're really doing is walking one step closer to the edge of destruction."

"They need a purpose," Melvin replied, "They don't have the lab anymore, they don't have THEM, or the tests, so they need something to fulfill their lives, and apparently they've made saving new rabbits their purpose. You're not wrong, either, it IS noble, but it's also incredibly risky to attempt time and time over. One day they're gonna regret it, and by then it'll be too late to try anything different."

Melvin stopped and sniffed at something on the ground, nudging the fallen nut with his nose as Crisp continued up the hill, finally cresting the top and stopping in her place.

"Oh my god," she whispered.

"What? What is it?" Melvin asked, hopping up after her, gasping as he reached her side.

Before them lay a gorgeous sun dappled field filled with flowers aplenty, and between those flowers...between the rays of beautiful sunlight...were what looked like hundreds of dead rabbits.

"What the fuck," Melvin whispered, as Crisp started to head down the hill, Melvin bounding right after her; "Hey!" he called, "What are you doing?! Is this not creepy enough for you? You need to get a closer look?"

"What...happened, here?" Crisp asked.

The rabbits were covered in dirt and mud and their fur stained with blood. Some of the rabbits, their eyes had tears of dried blood streaming down their faces, others their mouths simply agape at whatever horror had befallen them. Crisp walked past some and looked into a burrow.

"It's full of other dead rabbits," she whispered, "My god there's so many children in here."

Her voice cracked, like she was going to cry, but she fought it back, not wanting to do that here. She'd cry later, in private, where the souls of dead bunny children couldn't hear her. Melvin continued and finally came to a large, long, rounded black tube with ridges all the way around it. He put his paw against it and sniffed it cautiously, quickly recoiling in disgust.

"Fuck that smells awful!" he said loudly, "Whatever this...this black snake is...it smells terrible, my god, no wonder they died. I'd have died too if I had to smell this god forsaken thing."

"There's so many babies," Crisp muttered under her breath, the tears coming on now in full, "There's so many babies. How could this have happened? What happened here?"

"I...I don't know, but we'll keep looking, we'll figure it out, we're smart," Melvin said, "We're no Special 7, but hey, we'll get it. Just try to keep yourself together, alright?"

Melvin continued into the field, looking at every body he could, pawing at some and sniffing at others. They were all dead alright. Some of them stank to high heavens, just like the stench wafting off the black snake he'd stumbled upon. He finally leaned down and smelled another rabbit; a once beautiful female rabbit with large black spots all over her, like a dalmation. He sighed and shook his head, before turning back to face Crisp, who was staring at him in disbelief.

"This is wretched," he finally said, "This is just...beyond wretched. Whatever happened here, it wasn't pretty. This was a massacre of some kind, and I-"

And with that, the female rabbit lying beside him screamed. This, in turn, made Melvin and Crisp scream, purely startled by the fact that one of these rabbits happened to somehow be alive. She took in large gasps of air and looked around frantically, before her eyes fall on them. She opened her mouth, like she was trying to speak.

"You...no, you need to not talk, okay?" Melvin said, "Just relax, and uh...Crisp, go get some water or something, somehow!"

The rabbit mumbled something, but he couldn't hear it. He put his ear closer to her lips, and she repeated herself.

"Death...is here," she said, "Run! RUN!"

Melvin looked at her and then heard Crisp scream from behind. He whipped his head back to see her running towards him, tears flying off her face, and what appeared to be a human in a full body suit, with a pure black reflective visor over their face chasing after her.

"RUN!" Crisp screamed, and Melvin looked back at the female rabbit, who nodded. He took off with Crisp and together they weaved in and out between corpse after corpse, the human in hot pursuit. Finally they found a large rock and hid behind it, no longer hearing the humans pounding footsteps nearby. Melvin peered around the rock and saw the human had stopped and was pulling up the black snake from the ground, tossing it over their shoulder, before looking down at the rabbit Melvin had been talking to. Melvin furrowed his brow, wondering what this person wanted with her. The human opened what appeared to be a pocket on their hip and pulled out a small black pistol, aimed it at the rabbit and fired, with no remorse whatsoever. Melvin was frozen with fear as he quickly ducked back behind the rock.

"Oh my god," he whispered, "He killed her, he...he killed her. We have to hide. We have to find a burrow or something to hide in, Crisp."

"There, right there," Crisp said, nodding at a burrow only a few feet away from them.

"Okay. They seem to be looking around, I don't think they've seen us, on the count of three, we'll go. If something happens to me, just keep running, okay? Get to safety," Melvin said, and Crisp nodded. He counted, and they took off as fast as they could. Within seconds they could hear gunshot after gunshot echoing through the air, dirt clumps nearby flying into the sky around them, showering them with debris. They were so close, so very very close, and that's when he felt it. That blinding red hot pain, as he stumbled into the burrow after Crisp and looked at his back right leg, a hole shot cleanly through it. He winced at the pain from touching it, and decided it was better to leave it be. It hurt, but he could manage.

"What if they...what if they saw us?" Crisp asked, "What if they saw us??"

"There's a hundred or more other rabbits out there, there's no way they could tell exactly where we wound up. We just have to be quiet and keep moving through the tunnels, eventually we'll find safety, okay?"

"I'm so scared, I'm so fucking scared," Crisp whispered, and Melvin nodded, touching her paw.

"I...I know," he said, his eyes squinting from the pain of his gunshot, "But it's okay, we're together and we'll be fine, alright?"

"We shouldn't have left," Crisp said, "We should never have left, why did you make us leave?!"

"Keep your voice down!" Melvin said in a harsh hushed tone, "Keep it cool, okay? We will discuss who's fault all this is later, right now there's a man out there willing to put a bullet through our heads, and I don't know about you, Crisp, but I don't intend to die in a fucking hole in the ground, alright?"

She nodded, and he nodded. They seemed to have an understanding. He walked ahead of her, Crisp now noticing the wound in his leg but not saying a thing about it, lest she upset him even more. Besides, it's not like there was anything they could do right now for it anyway. They had to climb over so many dead rabbits to continue down the path, and they weren't even sure which direction was the right direction to go. This wasn't their burrow, they didn't know where they were, and nobody else knew where they were either.

"It's so dark down here," Crisp said.

"Yeah, it's...uh, not really the best," Melvin replied, "But there seems to be light up ahead, so that probably means there's another opening that we can get out of and head into the woods from there."

"This field was enormous, it wouldn't be that close to the woods already," Crisp whispered.

"Well, we don't really have a choice, now, do we?" Melvin responded, "We either stay here and argue about distance or we-"

And with that, an arm broke through the dirt overhead and grabbed at Melvin. Crisp screamed as Melvins scruff of his neck was tugged, and he reached for her paws. Crisp held onto him for dear life, watching the fear overtake his face.

"Don't let them take me!" Melvin screamed, "Crisp! Don't let them take me, I'm sorry! I'm sorry, this was all my fault! Oh jesus, I'm sorry, you were right, we never should've left!"

"Melvin, bite him!" she shouted back, and he tried, but his teeth wouldn't go through.

"It's...it's too thick! Whatever he's wearing, it's too thick! Crisper!" Melvin said, his voice now a smidge more restrained, his breathing normalized, "Crisper, I'm sorry. Run. Go back to The Hollow, go back to The Collective. You don't deserve to go like this."

"I'm not leaving without you, you're my best friend!" Crisp yelled, "I...I won't go without you!"

"Crisp, we shouldn't both have to die down here! Now when you let go of me, and his hands are occupied, run for that hole, get to the woods and somehow make your way back to them. Tell them what you saw here, okay? Tell them what happened to all these rabbits, to ME."

"Melvin, no, we can still-"

"I love you," Melvin said, "You're my best friend and I love you, man. Now go."

And with a push of his last bit of strength, he shoved her away from him, their paws no longer connected, and he vanished through the dirt above. Crisp stood there, dumbfounded, in shock that her best friend was now gone. It was quiet, no gunshot, so whoever this was, they hadn't killed him she figured. She picked up her satchel and his and quickly took off down the burrow, fast as her haunches would carry her, sprinting to the other hole. Tears streamed from her eyes, she was going to make it back, for him if nothing else. She'd make it back, and she'd tell Gerry and the others what just happened, and they'd rescue him. When they attacked the lab, she was sure that's where he'd be, and they'd rescue him, and she'd be his hero.

She leaped at the burrow entrance, but couldn't grasp it with her paws. She was frustrated, how did these rabbits ever get out of these things? God, they'd spent so long in the lab they didn't know how to get in and out of burrows properly. Suddenly she heard the sound of dirt shifting around her, and glanced over her shoulder. The black snake had been shoved through the dirt, and she screamed, trying desperately to grasp the edge of the burrow entrance and pull herself up. Thick smog like substance began pouring from the black snake, filling the burrow and heading right for her. She sobbed. No, it wasn't going to end like this. She wasn't going to die in this fucking hole, as Melvin had so eloquently put it. Suddenly, when all hope seemed lost, success! Her paws connected with the rim of the opening and with the last strength she had, she pulled herself up onto the ground.

She felt the sunlight on her again, the air was clear and clean, and she started coughing from the smoke in the burrow that the black snake had spewed out at her. She couldn't believe it, she'd made it. Crisp rolled her head to the side and nearly shrieked. A rabbit, their eyes missing, clearly eaten by the birds, was staring directly at her. She backed up a bit and then felt a hand grab her back legs and pick her up, lifting her into the air. She couldn't fight anymore, she just stared in abject terror at her reflection in the black visor covering their face.

Time seemed to stop.

She couldn't hear anything else, her vision beyond her reflection seemed blurred, and she held her breath. Suddenly she noticed they were lifting a hand towards her, and gripped in their hand was what appeared to be a very large needle. She cried silently, realizing whatever was going to happen, there was no stopping it. She felt the point of the needle slide into the side of her neck, and she began feeling woozy. She was then put into a small metal cage, where she spotted Melvins unconscious body. With what energy she had left, with what last working braincells she could manage to use, Crisp crawled across the cage and collapsed up against her friend.

As the person turned and headed off, picking up the black snake and tossing it back over their shoulder, the last sight Crisp saw before she lost all consciousness was that field. A beautiful, sun drenched field, filled with flowers....

...and filled with death.

Kevin had never been a big believer in the concept of revenge, at least not until he was continually done dirty by seemingly everyone around him. When he had his family, he was a fairly peace loving rabbit, content with staying out of the worlds sight and not letting anger take control. But, much like Number Two had gone from being fairly logical to fairly emotional, Kevin had gone from being fairly calm to fairly enraged. He now felt the need for revenge, specifically against THEM, for all THEY had done, and not just to him, but to everyone else. To Ellen, to Mipsy, to Doug and, of course, to Steve.

It all came back around to Steve, eventually. If he thought about it long enough, which he often did, he usually wound up realizing that Steve's death was the moment that something inside of him snapped. From that second on, all Kevin wanted was to make THEM hurt the way THEY had made him hurt.

He was sitting inside the little hovel where the young girl rabbit had taken up residence. She still wasn't speaking much to anyone, but she had at least begun eating. Sitting there, watching her sleep, Kevin felt a burning need to protect her, and protect everyone else around him. That's what made Geralds behavior so confusing to him now...when had Gerald gone from being the leader he so admired to being the wallflower he so despised. Kevin heard someone enter, and turned to see Number Six.

"Is she okay?" Six asked.

"She's doing fine, she hasn't done anything yet, but I'm going to try and talk to her when she finally wakes," Kevin replied, "...you still want everyone to stay together, right? You still want to take THEM down?"

"Of course, I mean...Gerald has the right to feel the way that he does, certainly, but I also don't take it personally. I think, more than anything else, he's tired. He's burnt out. He's worn down. Whatever you wanna call it, he's pretty much finished, and frankly I don't think anyone could blame him."

"He has done a lot for everyone, I suppose, but still...it just makes me sad," Kevin said, his ears laying flat, "I just want the Gerald we used to have back. The Gerald who would stop at nothing to protect those he loved, the Gerald who swore he'd fix everything. I miss him."

Six patted Kevin's paw and nodded.

"Yeah," she said, "Me too."

                                                                                            ***

No matter how hard he tried, Number Two simply couldn't shake the phrase "The Black Snakes".

What could it mean? He racked his brain for hours at a time, trying to decipher this combination of words and came up empty time and time again. He didn't want to go with the obvious answer, a group of actual black snakes going around and killing entire burrows of rabbits, because that not only seemed unlikely but it was not possible for snakes to do the kind of damage, psychological or otherwise, that that rabbit he found had sustained. Why was everything so goddamned cryptic. Making his way towards The Hollow, he wondered how he was going to explain this to Gerald. He remembered the little girl rabbit who had shown up recently...this had to be the same thing that had happened to her. There was no doubt about it in his mind.

As he approached The Hollow, he spotted Stone outside, chewing on something. He walked up to her and she glanced up from her midday snack, nodding at him.

"How's things here?" he asked.

"Could always be better," Stone replied, "Everyone seems tense, like they're waiting for a bomb of some kind to drop. Then again, that could just be everyones natural disposition once going through a lifetime of fear, so."

"I have to talk to Gerald about something," Number Two said.

"He should be inside," Stone said.

Number Two started to walk into The Hollow when she called after him.

"Number Two?" she asked.

"Yeah?" he responded, turning to face her yet again.

"...I actually need to talk to you about Gerald. He doesn't seem to be well," she said, "I'm worried about him. I've spoken with Nickel about it and, honestly, he seems to be worrying everyone. He's despondent and that's not normal for him. I worry that when the time comes, he won't be capable of leading everyone the way we need him to."

"Gerald feels guilty about Dodger," Number Two said, "Despite all the rivalry between the two of them, he feels terrible about having him killed, and...and I guess on some level I can understand that. I think beneath all the back and forth one upping, the two had some weird mutual respect for one another, and I think Gerald misses that. He should be fine, he always bounces back, but at the moment, yeah, he might not exactly be feeling up to leadership."

"Well, see if you can talk some sense into him. We're gonna need him," Stone said, "Whatever's coming will destroy us if we don't have him."

Number Two nodded and continued into The Hollow, where he immediately ran into Mipsy, who directed him at Gerry. Gerry was sitting in the area where the little girl rabbit had been housed, talking about something quietly with Kevin. When Number Two entered, they stopped talking and turned their attention to him, likely surprised to see him.

"Kevin, Gerald," Number Two said.

"Paul," Gerry replied, "What're you doing here?"

"I need to speak to you two about something," Number Two said, "...the other day, Minerva and I were out and we came across another rabbit, looked a lot like our new ward here. He was covered in the same markings, and even more traumatized than she seems to be. He was capable of speaking, but...he spoke in just nonsense sentences, he kept saying we had to leave the woods, that something was coming, that it was bringing evil to everyone who lived here."

"Gee, sounds a lot different than most of what we deal with," Kevin said, making the both of them chuckle.

"Seriously," Number Two continued, "We followed him to a cliff, and he wouldn't listen to me. I tried to talk him down, but he...he leapt off, took his own life. Minerva and I gathered his body and laid it to rest, but...god it was kind of traumatic honestly."

"I believe it," Gerry said, "So you think the two of them have seen the same thing?"

"Perhaps. He kept saying one thing in particular was coming. The Black Snakes," Number Two said, and this make Kevin and Gerry give one another a nervous glance.

                                                                                              ***

Six was sitting by herself, drawing with her paw in the dirt the layout of the part of the lab they had been in, when she noticed Mipsy come in and stop beside her. Mipsy stood for a few moments, simply watching her sketch it all out, before finally exhaling.

"I think can help," Mipsy said, "I want to help. I not speak good but I remember lots of things about lab."

"Mipsy, we appreciate all that you do, but we really don't want you to get hurt," Six replied, writing the phrase S7 into one area that she'd attached to the main lab room where the rabbits were housed, "You're calming and helpful, we want to keep you here, have you keep everyone else safe and relaxed when things go down."

"That wrong," Mipsy said.

"It's not wrong, and it has nothing to do with your brain, it's-"

"No, that wrong," Mipsy said, pointing her paw to the S7 section Six had added, making Six furrow her brow and look at it, then back at Mipsy as she continued, "That not Special 7 section."

"Yeah, it was, I...I stayed in it at times with the others. Ask Number Two. Even Ellen would've backed me up on this. I remember the place perfectly, that's where it was," Six said, but Mipsy shook her head and started adding a new square to the other end of the lab and wrote S7 into that box.

"THAT S7," Mipsy said, "When I part of Special 7, that where it were. I remember not lot of things, but I do remember that."

That's when it dawned on Six. That's when it finally came to her.

"Oh, my god," she mumbled, "We never freed anyone else. We only freed our group. They...they have other areas, of course. That's how they're fitting so many new rabbits into one building. How did I never realize this before?..." she then turned and looked back at Mipsy, saying, "So, what else do you remember?"

Mipsy smiled and perked her ears up, because, even with her brain issues, she knew Six would be impressed with this.

"I know way in and out," she said.

                                                                                           ***

"Black Snakes?" Kevin asked, repeating the phrase, "What the hell is a black snake?"

"Presumably it's a black snake," Gerry replied, "But if it's not, like Paul is saying it isn't, then I have no idea."

"Could it be THEM?" Number Two asked, making them both uneasy, "I mean, nobody wants to admit it, but could it be? Let's face it, I stated before how empty the woods seem lately, how I haven't seen nearly as many rabbits around outside of The Collective, and then two back to back show up and talk about something evil? Something that's killing them? That sounds like THEM."

"Why would THEY be killing random rabbits?" Gerry asked.

"Maybe it's not random," Kevin said softly, Gerry glancing at him as Kevins eyes became worrisome, "...maybe it's meant for us. Maybe THEY just don't know where we are, and so THEY'RE just killing entire burrows hoping one of them will be ours."

"That's genocide," Gerry said.

"As if that's somehow below THEM," Number Two added.

"Fair point," Gerry replied, "...still, that...I refuse to believe that even THEY would steep to that level. Why would THEY waste time and resources tracking down rabbits that got away, especially when we know for a fact THEY'RE bringing in so many new ones?"

"Because THEY'RE scared," Number Two said, "Let's face it, we're not the easiest group of rabbits to kill, we know everything that went on in that lab. I think THEY'RE afraid of how smart we wound up being, and THEY don't want us interfering with anything else THEY might try and do. Maybe Kevin is right. Maybe it is THEM."

"But even then, how...how could THEY be doing it? What the hell is a 'black snake', for fucks sake?" Kevin asked.

"It's not just one," the girl rabbit finally said, shifting from her sleep, standing up; the three turned to look at her as she wobbled on her feet, clearly still unwell, "...it's not just one black snake. It's four or five of them, these long thick black snakes, they come in from above ground and they make everyone sick. They stink something fierce, and everyone loses their mind. Some drop dead on the spot, others kill friends simply to find a way out, but there is no way out, because if you make it out, you get taken."

"...taken by who?" Gerry asked.

"I don't know," the rabbit said, "I was able to get away through an underground tunnel, all I could see for a moment above me was whiteness, black shiny faces. It was terrifying. They took my friends, the ones they didn't kill first. That's all I remember."

The three rabbits looked back amongst themselves and stood in silence, unsure of how to process this. Was it THEM? If it was THEM, how were they doing this? What were these black snakes THEY were using? Even Number Two, smartest rabbit around, was unable to come up with an answer on the spot. Just as he began to speak again, he noticed Kevins eyes widen and realized he was watching the girl rabbit beginning to bleed from the eyes and collapse to the ground, convulsing. The three rabbits quickly called for help, and huddled around her to do what they could. After a bit she stopped having her seizure, and she fell back into a deep sleep again.

Gerald walked Number Two back out towards the front of The Hollow, neither one of them saying a thing. As they reached the outside, Stone was no longer there, and it was beginning to grow cold, night was approaching. Number Two shook his head, hating himself for not having seen this sort of thing coming. He looked at Gerry and sighed.

"I should get home," Number Two said, "Any darker and it won't be safe to walk there."

"You don't have to," Gerry said, "You can stay. There's plenty of room. There'll always be a place for you here, you know that."

"I appreciate that," Number Two said, smiling a bit, "But I think I need to be away from this for a bit, mull it all over...Gerald, if it's THEM, you know we have to do something. Saving the rabbits won't be enough. We'd have to put a stop to it all. I think...I think Kevin is right, and we have to burn the place to the ground. Who knows if it'd stop them, but...THEY deserve to pay for what THEY have done to us, and to all the other rabbits out there now."

"If we can trap THEM in the lab somehow, maybe, we could kill them all at once," Gerry said, "but...god it makes me feel like Dodger. I don't want to be Dodger. I don't want to do to THEM what THEY'RE trying to do to us. When is genocide ever an acceptable thing to do? Why's it suddenly okay if you're the presumed good guys? It's wrong no matter what, right?"

"Sometimes, Gerald, violence might be the only answer if the other team won't respond with anything other than it themselves. Self defense is not the same as murder," Number Two said, "I know we're both rather moral, but...at some point, and some point soon, you're gonna have to decide what you're capable of doing. If you're not capable of pulling us through this, we'll do it without you. You can leave, like Crisp and Melvin, if that's what you need to do. Lord knows you've done enough. But this has to end, and it won't end until THEY are ended."

Gerry shook his head and shut his eyes, with Number Two resting his head against Geralds.

"Please don't leave," Gerry said softly, "I...I need you."

"Okay," Number Two said, "Just for tonight."

With that, the two rabbits headed back inside and settled into Gerry's quarters for the evening, alone.

                                                                                              ***

Kevin stayed in the girl rabbits room the entire night.

Something about having lost his own family, having lost Ellen...it had made him so much more protective of the women in his life. He guarded Mipsy with an intense closeness, and he wouldn't let anything else happen to this rabbit either. He didn't know her name, but he didn't have to. What mattered was that she had suffered worse in one moment then they had all suffered combined throughout their time together. He let his thoughts return back to Steve, as they always did in these situations.

He'd put Steve to rest, finally, but...but really he just wished his best friend was still here.

He'd failed to protect him, or Ellen, and he'd never forgiven himself for it. Well that wouldn't happen again, he was going to protect these new rabbits no matter what. And if Gerald no longer wanted to do what had to be done, if that responsibility now had to fall upon Kevin, well, he was happy that he'd been taught by the best. He was certain in himself now, sure he could do whatever he set out to do, and all because Gerald had always told him he could. Always said he was a leader, deep inside. Turns out Gerry was right.

Kevin walked to the girl rabbit and laid down beside her, watching her like a hawk, only to make sure absolutely nothing came in the night to take her. He would be there, he would be prepared, no matter what. Lying in the darkness, wondering what came next, he couldn't help but think about what Number Two had told them earlier, about the rabbit who threw himself off the cliffside. Whatever had happened to these two had terrified them so much, they were willing to end their lives simply to escape the memory of it. When he would finally be face to face with these 'black snakes', whatever they were, would he too choose that? The thought scared him, he admitted. He had seen so many horrible things happen already, lost his own foot in the process of everything, seen Number Two's ear ripped in half, what could possibly be coming that was worse than what they'd already endured?

Kevin was curious, and also terrified to find out.

Turns out it wouldn't be long until he did.

Number Two had rarely woken up on a morning that didn't feel like the end of the world.

Living in the lab, waking up was a constant reminder of what possible horrors might await him or his friends, and living in the Burrow and now The Hollow, yes, he got to wake up to a beautiful outdoor scene, the sun warming up their home, was nice...but it wasn't until he moved in with Dice and Minerva that Number Two really began to appreciate these warm summer mornings. These mornings where he could stroll outside of their new home, stand with his eyes shut in the summer morning sun and let it warm his fur, and then get to decide, for the first time he could ever recall, what HE wanted the day to be like. He knew he still had responsibilities, he knew there were still things on the table to be dealt with, but goddamn if it wasn't nice, for once in his life, to just be able to wake up and NOT be immediately shrouded in terror.

This morning he decided to head on down to the nearby stream and wash his fur, before stopping and gathering some berries and fruits to bring back and eat for breakfast. The foxes weren't home, they must've left for an early morning hunt, so he had to place all to himself. Sitting in absolute silence, save for the birdsong he could hear outside and the gentle summer breeze wafting against the leaves off the tree trunk they'd taken up residence in, Number Two was so thankful that he got to eat his breakfast in peace. He was thankful that there was no longer a homicidal mouse out to kill him.

                                                                                          ***

"What do you mean leaving?" Kevin asked, and Gerry shrugged.

"It's a pretty concise concept, do you really need more explanation? They're leaving. Crisp and Melvin decided that, now all is said and done, they want a different life. I can't really blame them, honestly. I think they deserve to be happy, and if the only way for them to be happy is to be away from us and our bullshit, then fine by me. We don't need rabbits here who don't want to be here."

"That's...cold," Kevin said, "Even for you."

He and Gerry continued heading down the Hollow hall, heading towards the main living quarters, rabbits passing them by in both directions; the hustle and bustle of the Hollow flowing as always.

"Where are they gonna go?" Kevin asked.

"What do I look like, a realtor? I don't know. It's not like I'm going house hunting with them," Gerry said, "They're leaving. You want more information than that, ask them yourself."

"You know I remember a time when you fought to keep us all together," Kevin said, stopping Gerry in his tracks, forcing him to turn and look back at him as he continued, adding, "Yeah, that's right. You used to say we all had to stick together, no matter what. Now Number Two lives with the foxes and Melvin and Crisp are heading off into the great unknown. What happened to the Gerald who wanted a family?"

"...you had a family, Dodger had a family, the foxes had a family. Look what it cost them. Look what happened. Having a family only creates collateral damage. Creates something you can lose. It's safer to be alone."

"You say that but you're intent on saving those new rabbits?"

"Yes, because every rabbit should have the right to at least choose how they live," Gerry said, "That's what I'm fighting for. A right. We're not a family, Kevin. We never were. The lab was right, we were coworkers. That's all we'll ever be."

And with that, Gerald turned and walked on down the hall, leaving Kevin dumbfounded at this. He then turned and headed the other direction, realizing he needed to speak to Crisp and Melvin about this. At least Gerry had been right about that much. Hopping down the hall to see if he could find either Crisp, Melvin or both, he heard someone coming up behind him and spied Mipsy hopping alongside him now.

"What you doing?" she asked.

"I'm looking for Crisp and Melvin, you haven't seen them today have you?" Kevin asked.

"No. Why you look for them?" Mipsy asked.

"Because I need to ask them something important," Kevin said, before stopping and looking at her, "...you'd never leave, right? You'd never decide to leave the Hollow and find a new home? New friends? A new life?"

"No, not...not alone," Mipsy said, stammering, her right eye twitching, "I...I like it here, with you guys. You guys my friends. No. I would not leave."

"Thank you, Mipsy, I needed to hear it said," Kevin replied, smiling at her as they continued down the hall.

                                                                                                ***

Number Two sniffed at a fallen berry on the ground and pawed at it for a moment before noticing Minerva coming across the the forest to him. Dice was heading the opposite way, clearly back to the tree. Number Two nodded at Dice, and Minerva glanced back at her.

"Is she okay?" he asked.

"She's fine, she's just not very social," Minerva said.

"She doesn't mind this arrangement, does she? In a way I feel partly responsible for what happened to your family and I wouldn't blame her if she didn't like having me around because of that."

"Don't be silly, she likes having you here. We both do," Minerva said, patting him on the head with her paw, "I'm alive and home because of you, so, yeah, I think she appreciates that whatever wrongs you may have inadvertently caused, you're doing your best to right them."

"I have to admit," Number Two went on, picking up the berry and eating it, speaking while chewing, "It's a bit weird not being with The Collective. I spent so much time with them that not being with them seems strange, and yet...kind of...welcome? They're exhausting. There's always a problem, always an issue, always bickering and infighting and...sometimes you just want to be away from all that sort of stuff. Don't get me wrong, I love them, they're my friends, but goddamn some days I am glad I get to wake up here with you two in solitude."

"Well I'm glad we can give you peace of mind," Minerva said.

"Yeah, it's just that-"

But he stopped, noticing Minerva was looking over his head behind him. Number Two turned around and backed up to her side, the both of them now staring at what appeared to be a rabbit, much like the young one who'd shown up at The Hollow, covered in blood and dirt, their eyes red as mars itself. Number Two cautiously approached, keeping his ears low to show he wasn't a threat, his voice soft to show he was a friend.

"Are you okay?" he asked, and the closer he got the more they backed up.

"Paul, I don't-" Minerva started.

"I got this, don't worry," Number Two responded, cutting her off, "Hey, my name is Paul, we're not dangerous, okay? Do you need some help? Are you hurt?"

"They're going to kill us all," the rabbit responded quietly, his voice shaky and labored from heavy breathing, "They're going to...to kill every single one of us. You have to run. You have to RUN."

"Who's...who's going to-"

"My friends, and my family...everyone I knew and loved...they're all gone, and they'll come for you too," the rabbit continued, before turning and running the opposite direction. Paul and Minerva quickly took off after him, dashing through the woods, darting between trees. He screamed at them to stop following him, but they wouldn't back off. Finally he came to a sheer drop off a hill, nothing but jagged rocks and ground below. He stopped and looked back at the both of them.

"It's not safe here. Someone brought evil to us," the rabbit said, "Someone brought evil into this place. The snakes...these big black snakes...they'll show up, you'll see. They'll come into YOUR burrow next, and everyone you have ever cared about will bleed from their eyes and scream in agony before dropping dead. The ones who don't...they'll be taken somewhere else. You have to leave these woods. You HAVE to leave these woods."

"Buddy, buddy, calm down," Number Two said, very slowly approaching him, "Black snakes? What are you talking about? What happened? Just come back with us, we have a safe place for you to go, and you can tell us all about what happened, we can help you, it doesn't have to be scary like this."

"Get out," the rabbit whispered, staring Number Two right in the eyes, "Get out before the black snakes come. They're coming. They're near. And you'll die if you don't. If you really love those around you, take them and leave."

Number Two was completely flummoxed with how to respond to this. This rabbit was clearly traumatized about something. Black snakes? What black snakes? What could that possibly mean? And then, before Number Two could respond, the rabbit turned and hurled himself off the cliffside.

"Jesus christ!" Number Two screamed, himself and Minerva rushing to the edge to watch as this poor terrified rabbit slammed against rock after rock, his neck breaking on impact, until his body lay motionless on a rock at the bottom. The two of them stood there for a moment, unable to process what had just happened. Finally Number Two looked at Minerva, who looked unnerved as all hell.

"What just happened here?" she asked.

"I have NO idea," Number Two replied.

                                                                                         ***

Melvin and Crisp were very busy gathering their belongings and sticking them into slings they could carry around their necks when Kevin and Mipsy came in. Melvin gave them a nod of approval, but didn't stop or say anything. For a moment, nobody said anything, and they all just stood in the quiet until Kevin finally exhaled and spoke.

"Are you kidding me?" he asked.

"Look," Melvin said, "There's nothing saying we HAVE to stay here, okay? Crisp and myself, we're not even really that interested in this group or...or what you plan to do. We're not part of anything, okay? Whatever your problem with THEM is, it's your problem, not ours."

"It's everyones problem!" Kevin shouted, "THEY did this to allll of us!"

"No, Kevin, THEY did this to you. To Gerald. To Number Four. Not to me. Not to Crisp," Melvin said, "Listen, we appreciate all you guys have done to keep everyone safe and getting us all out of the lab. We really are grateful, but at this point, it's time to leave. It's time to part company. We don't want to be here when whatever is going to go down goes down. It's not our fight."

Kevin couldn't believe what he was hearing. He stood there, somewhat shocked at this conversation.

"What happened to everyone? First Gerry and now you two? Why is everyone suddenly turning away from the only family we've ever really had?" Kevin asked.

"Because we're NOT family, Kevin," Crisp said, finally speaking up, "...we...we just...live together."

And with that, she and Melvin picked up their satchels and left the room. Kevin watched, dumbfounded as they left, while Mipsy came to his side and touched his paw.

"We not JUST live together," she said, "She wrong."

"...yeah," Kevin muttered, "Yeah. She is."

He said it, but he was beginning to wonder himself if even he believed it anymore.

                                                                                       ***

Number Two and Minerva had made their way carefully down the rocks, Number Two clinging to the fur on the scruff of her neck as he rode down on her back. She was wary of slipping, and managed to keep them both as safe as possible during the descent. Once they reached the poor rabbits broken body, Minerva picked him up in her mouth and they began climbing back up. Once they reached the top, they found a nice quiet spot in the woods, and she put him down and began digging a hole. Number Two didn't like looking at this poor rabbits destroyed corpse, but he couldn't tear his eyes away either.

"Something happened to him," Number Two finally said softly, "Something BAD. Something so awful he couldn't even accurately tell us what it had been. Something that petrified him into thinking we all have to leave the woods. What did he say? Black snakes? What do you think he was talking about?"

"I gotta say, Paul, I really don't know," Minerva replied, pausing from her digging momentarily to discuss this, "And frankly, I'm only doing this for you, because you're too noble to leave his body there. I commend that, I do, but I wouldn't have the guts to be involved otherwise. I don't know that I EVER want to discover whatever the fuck it was he was talking about."

"...if it's something that's threatening entire burrows, then...maybe that's why I haven't seen as many unfamiliar faces in the woods lately. If it's something that bad, I HAVEto know, so I can be prepared and in turn prepare The Collective. This sort of thing doesn't just happen, Minerva. Rabbits don't just snap like this. Someone did this to him."

Minerva finished digging the hole and nudged the dead rabbits body into the ground, beginning to cover the grave back up with dirt and leaves. Number Two looked at the grave, when finished, and sighed, placing a paw on it and bowing his head.

"I'm going to find out what happened to him." he said, "I just hope he can rest easy now, now that we've put him at peace."

"There's no peace," Minerva said, "Not even for the dead."

She turned and headed back for the tree, leaving Number Two alone with the grave.

The term 'black snakes' clung to his brain like sticky candy. What could it possibly mean? He just couldn't figure it out. Did he mean actual snakes? But Number Two had rarely seen snakes in these woods. And no snake could do all that damage to an entire group. Plus, he had said something about the surviving rabbits being hauled away, and, again, no one snake could do that. A group? Maybe. But that was unlikely. Snakes rarely came in packs, and from what Number Two understood were fairly solitary creatures. He then thought about the poor little rabbit who showed up at The Hollow recently, and decided that his next stop would be in talking to her. Maybe she would have some knowledge she could share to shed some light on whatever a 'black snake' could be.

"I'm sorry," Number Two said under his breath, "I'm sorry this happened to you. I didn't even know you, but...but I feel like it's somehow our fault, and for that I'm sorry."

Number Two turned and headed back to the tree as well. At least he had a plan now.

                                                                                          ***

The next morning, Melvin and Crisp set out for a new life, with Gerry and Kevin wishing them luck as they left. As the two friends watched them leave into the wilderness for something different, Kevin couldn't help but have knots in his gut, like he knew he should be trying harder to keep them here. He spoke, not even looking at Gerry.

"I want you to do one thing for me," Kevin said.

"Yeah? And what could that be?" Gerry asked in response.

"Never leave," Kevin said.

"Don't worry, you and I are going to be together until the bitter end," Gerry replied, making Kevin chuckle.

"Do you think they'll be okay?" Kevin asked.

"They know how to take care of themselves," Gerry said, "And they have every right to leave if they so choose. You and I both wish they wouldn't, but we can't stop them if it's what they wish to do. But we CAN stop THEM from hurting anyone else. We need to discuss the plans for gaining entry and exit, not to mention distractions and fire."

"You're still on board then?" Kevin asked.

"I'm reluctantly on board, yes," Gerry replied, "I don't necessarily want to kill THEM, but at least distract THEM long enough to get the new groups out here. I'm thinking Lorna could be of some help in that regard. We can't save everyone, Kevin. Some have to choose to save themselves."

Gerry turned and headed back into The Hollow, leaving Kevin alone, outside, watching more of The Collective leave the safety of the home they'd all built together and head off into the dangerous unknown. He knew Gerry was right, he knew they couldn't save everyone. He also knew he should've tried harder to keep them from leaving, he just didn't know why.

                                                                                         ***

Number Two had rarely woken up on a morning that didn't feel like the end of the world.

But now, after watching that rabbit throw himself off a cliff to his death, he didn't enjoy waking up anymore. He knew this feeling wouldn't last forever, but he was hoping it would've lasted at least a smidge longer than it had. Now his mornings were once more tinged with fright and unease. Now he awoke not to the feeling of sun on his fur or birdsong in his ear, no, now he awoke to the thoughts of death and destruction that could only have been so bad that they caused this rabbit, this unknown rabbit, to throw himself off a cliff in order to escape even just the memories of it.

Number Two no longer woke up in the mornings feeling happy and rested.

Back to business as usual, he supposed.

Gerry hadn't had the dreams since the lab. The ones with the birds flying overhead, as he lay in a field of grass and flowers, bleeding profusely, or at least covered in blood. He wasn't sure. Whether it was his blood or someone else's was something else he was unsure of. Either way, he hadn't had the dreams for what felt like ages, until now. Once Dodger was gone, he began having them again, and quite frequently. He didn't tell anyone about them, but they always bothered him and left him, once he woke, with a sense of dread and mild terror.

Every morning he rose, everyone was happy and enjoying themselves, but Gerry couldn't allow himself that. He was stuck with the lingering fear from the dreams. And more often than not, on the rare occasions he didn't have the dreams, he was instead left wishing he could speak to Dodger again. He didn't even know what, he just knew that he still had too much to say to him, and unlike Kevin, who could regularly visit Number Four's grave, there was no headstone marking the resting place of his treacherous friend. Gerald was left, alone, with his thoughts. His feelings. And this only made him feel worse.

He often visited the spot he and Dodger frequented right before he was killed, the spot they could see the lab, see the new trucks arriving weekly with new rabbits. Rabbits Gerald had promised he'd rescue. Rabbits Dodger had told him about. Gerald felt he now owed it to Dodger, oddly enough, to actually carry through with that act, but to what end? To what end does the rescuing continue? When have you rescued enough? Or did it, like the fear that coursed through his body every single day, never end?

                                                                                             ***

"All I'm saying," Number Two said, "Is that there's other burrows out there. Other homes. So if this is the case, and we know this to be true for a fact, then where are all the rabbits who live there? Why haven't we seen them around lately?"

Kevin shrugged and pawed at his ear, cleaning the tips, dipping his paws in the stream they were standing by to wash off the mud and dirt.

"I don't know, man," Kevin said, "It's not like I've kept in touch with them. We're not penpals."

"I just think it's strange," Number Two said, "I mean, we used to see them around every now and then, remember? Now...now I don't see anyone that isn't from our group. Where IS everyone?"

"You're actually complaining about being left alone?" Kevin asked, "After all the interference we've had to deal with? Are you really complaining about being alone in the peace and quiet?"

"Well, when you put it like that, yeah, it sounds ridiculous," Number Two said, the two of them laughing a little.

Still, Number Two couldn't shake this feeling he had. This feeling of unease. He knew eventually the Collective would have to discuss the plans Dodger and Gerald had made the rescue the other rabbits, but he felt a more pressing matter at the moment was what had happened to all the rabbits that had been around them just recently? He almost had the urge to hike out to find a new burrow and make sure they were still there. He just couldn't shake this feeling that something was happening to those around them, and that soon, whatever it was, it would come for them as well.

When Number Two and Kevin returned to the Hollow, they found Gerry already there, speaking with Six in a secluded area. The four of them stopped together, but nobody spoke. Finally Gerry just motioned with his head for them to follow him, and so they did. The four of them headed off down the Hollow and into the area Gerry called his own. Once he was sure they were alone, he sighed and looked at them.

"We need to discuss THEM," he said.

"What about THEM?" Kevin asked.

"When are we rescuing the new recruits?" Gerry asked, looking at Number Two, "Paul? Any ideas?"

"Not particularly, no. Frankly, I'm starting to wonder if it's even the right thing to do right now. I'm beginning to grow a bit concerned because the forests feel a bit empty right now. We're not seeing a whole lot of other rabbits from other burrows or anywhere around, and I'm feeling worried that something might've happened to them."

"Maybe they moved," Six said.

"All at once?" Number Two snapped at her, "That's highly unlikely. Either way, I think we need to focus on that first."

"We need to get those rabbits out of that lab," Gerry said, "It's the one thing I swore I would do. We get them out, we burn it down and we move on."

"It's not going to be that simple, and you know it," Kevin said, "Even if you have Lorna fly around and cause a distraction for the dogs so you manage to get back inside, it's still not going to be that simple. I mean, I guarantee you security is going to be very much heavier, especially since we last went to get you guys. We need to make sure that things aren't that secure before we even begin to discuss actually getting inside."

"Every single day a truck or two is coming with more and more rabbits," Gerry said, "We promised we wouldn't let THEM do anything to another group like THEY did to us. Remember? We made that a promise. A pact."

"Sure, but-" Kevin started.

"Let me," Number Two said, interrupting him and looking at Gerald, "You're not wrong. We made that a pact, yes. And we fully intend to follow through with it, but we have to ask ourselves are we really willing to torch the place? Is that a thing we're willing to do? Because...because frankly, at what point are we going to have to wonder if we're better than Dodger by doing that. You had reservations about killing him because you thought it lowered you to his level and now you're willing to just walk in and wipe out an entire group of humans, no emotions attached to that decision whatsoever?"

"I liked you better when you were cold and logical," Six said, making Number Two chuckle.

"I admit, being more open has certainly made me more hesitant to do things that generally would likely improve our lives, but the people in there, THEY have families too, children, significant others. And I know you're going to say 'well so did we!' and yes, we did, and yes, that doesn't make what THEY did to us right by any means, but I...I just feel it's still something we need to address."

Gerry and Number Two stared at one another for what felt like ages before finally they all turned to see Crisp and Melvin standing there, both looking worried. Gerry walked past the others and approached them.

"What? What is it?" he asked.

"You're gonna wanna come and see this," Melvin said.

The six of them headed out of the Hollow and, sitting outside, was a young rabbit. She appeared to be just a bit older than a child, and had black marks all over her body. The group were confused, until Gerald realized what they were. They were smears of mud and dirt, mixed with blood. He looked at her and she looked up at him.

"Are you okay?" he asked, "What's your name?"

"everyone...is...dead," she said, her voice stilted and wavering, "they...they're all dead...you have to help me."

"What do you mean everyone is dead?" Gerry asked, but she wouldn't speak anymore. She was clearly traumatized. Gerry told Number Two to take her inside and give her a safe space to relax, and that they would talk to her more tomorrow when she was perhaps in a bit more of a stable mind. The rest of them dispersed, except for Melvin, who stood there with Gerry and watched the others go.

"I think I should tell you that Crisp and I are going to leave," he finally said.

"What?"

"We...we can't be around this anymore. We're going to head out and find somewhere else to be. We appreciate all you guys have done for us, it's just...we're not cut out for this. Neither of us are. I hope you understand."

"At least discuss it with me a bit more first," Gerry said, and Melvin nodded.

"Sure," he said, "I just wanted to give you a heads up is all."

Gerry soon found himself, once again, alone. The Collective was somewhat falling apart, splintering off, and it worried him. This was the time they needed to be closest the most. They needed to remain a Collective, a strong front, ready for whatever was about to hit at any moment. He didn't want Crisp and Melvin to leave, but he also did understand why they felt the way they did. He certainly was growing weary of dealing with things, and was wondering every day if Number Two and Kevin and Stone could handle things perfectly fine without him.

                                                                                             ***

He often spent most of his alone time back in that clearing, watching the lab. He didn't know why. Closest reason he could come up with was that it made him feel closer to Dodger, being that was the last place they spent time together at. Why he wanted to be close to the creature that had tried to kill him and his friends multiple times he was also unsure of, but he did, he couldn't deny it. Watching the lab, Gerry couldn't help but feel like this was the last thing he and his friends would wind up doing together. That after they got this group out, the Collective would see its job as being 'done', would continue to break away, and move on, and Gerry would soon be left all alone, always wanting to save just one more group. How many groups was enough? Would he really be willing to risk himself coming up a martyr for the sake of new rabbits he didn't even know?

He heard a branch creak overhead, and spotted Lorna landing there, cleaning her wings before softly hopping down each branch until she reached the ground and was stood beside him. He smiled, appreciating her company.

"You're here a lot," she said, "I see you from above. You come here quite often, a sort of...home away from home?"

"I'm not homesick, if that's what you mean."

"No, of course not," she replied, "But you sit here and you watch THEM, you watch new rabbits being brought in, new rabbits you clearly feel obligated to protect somehow, am I right?"

"Nobody else is going to," Gerry said, "I know that Number Two is right, that it'd make us no better than Dodger, that...that those people have families too, but...nobody is going to stop THEM if we don't. But then, yes, THEY'LL rebuild, and bring in even more new rabbits and...how long do I keep it up for? I can't save them all. I can't...am I obligated to dedicate my life to the safety and rescue of new groups?"

"The only one who can answer what your life should be used for is you," Lorna said, pecking at the ground, eating a bug or two, "Nobody else can make that decision, and those why try should be punished. Those who try to exert control over others should have their own control taken away from them to see how it feels. Those like Dodger. Like THEM. I can't answer that for you, Gerald, only you can."

A soft breeze blew through and rustled the leaves, blowing his ears back a bit. He squinted and looked at his paws.

"Did Dodger ever talk about me?" he asked.

"Many times, in the bit of time we spent together, yes," Lorna said.

"What did he say?"

"The thing he said the most, surprisingly enough, was how he envied you," Lorna said, surprising Gerry; she went on, adding, "How you really could connect with others by being yourself, how you didn't have to hide who you were or how you felt. He couldn't do that. He always lost those he cared about, and he found it easier to pretend than be honest. But I don't think he was pretending with you. I think he really liked you."

"I miss him," Gerry said, sighing, "It's...wrong, I know, but I do."

"Many survivors often miss their abusers, for reasons they cannot really explain. It's a part of the path that leads to the healing process," Lorna said, "...but you're NOT Dodger, Gerald. Believe me. As much as you two may have had in common, as much as he thought you two might've had in common, you're very much his opposite. He did what he did out of selfishness. You're doing what you're doing out of sympathy. That's the key difference. The ability to feel for others. Kevin, on the other hand, seems to have a personal axe to grind, but you...you really just want what's best for these new rabbits. He wants to burn THEM down because of what they did to him, not what they're going to do to the new ones."

Gerry nodded, understanding Lorna was completely correct. He exhaled and looked up at her, and she smiled at him, patting his head with her wing.

"Don't worry so much," Lorna said, "You'll do the right thing, because that's what you've always done, is the right thing. I'll be around to talk, if you ever feel the need."

And with that, Lorna hopped back up a few branches before taking off full flight into the sky, leaving Gerald alone once more with his thoughts. He felt Lorna, and probably others, thought too highly of him, but how could he know, really. All he had were his doubts to go off of, anyway.

Gerry wound up having a dream that night. The same dream he'd used to have in the labs, with the field and the birds and the blood. He woke in a cold sweat and looked around, feeling terrified that he was seeing something he shouldn't be somehow. He stood up and, stumbling a bit, walked over to where Six was lying. She opened one eye as he very casually snuggled up beside her, and together they went back to sleep. It didn't matter how many bad dreams he had. Once he'd had to weather them alone.

Now he had all the friends in the world to weather them with.

Kevin found himself sitting outside The Hollow, staring at a bird up in a tree and thinking "what a marvelous creature". Watching this bird twitter about and flit its wings, he sighed and looked down at his paws, covered in mud and blood and dirt and muck. The paws of a rabbit who'd orchestrated something terrible. Something horrid, but necessary. Suddenly he heard breathing beside him, and he shivered, surprised by Number Two's presence, who looked just as bad; his eyes bloodshot and his face scarred. They nodded, acknowledging one another, but not saying a word, choosing instead to both watch the bird. After a few moments, Number Two cleared his throat, his voice still hoarse from all the screaming, and he looked across the way, at Mipsy, who was asleep in a spot of sunlight.

"It hurts," he said softly, "Having to kill the ones you know. I never knew how deeply it could cut, but it cuts, and it cuts so deep that I doubt these scars will ever fade. None of us wanted that. But we did had to be done. He...couldn't be saved. I hope you know that."

"I know," Kevin said, calmly but coldly, "I know that. Just like Number Four, just like everyone else before us, it's never been my fault. Hell, I think you were more associated with him than I was. But still, you're right, it hurts. I feel like there's...there's this void inside of me now that was once filled with goodness that's now just a pit of tar, and I'm drowning in it, and I'm wondering if I can ever be rescued."

"We did the right thing, Kevin," Number Two said, "We have to move on. We have to move forward. We have dealt with him, and now we have to deal with THEM. We trusted him, and...it was always a lie. This was bound to happen eventually."

Number Two rested his head on Kevins shoulder and shut his eyes, enjoying the bird song. Kevin knew that he was right. He knew that it had to happen, and that they'd done the right thing, but that didn't make him feel much better. Actually, seemed like everytime he did the right thing, he felt worse and worse.

After a while of sitting together, Kevin excused himself to go and speak to Number Four's gravestone, and left Number Two sitting there alone. Number Two relaxed his ears and looked up at the sky, watching the clouds roll overhead. Kevin hadn't even been part of the planning, and yet he felt so ashamed of being associated with what they'd done to Dodger, and Number Two certainly understood why. He was a bad mouse. He'd hurt a lot of other creatures. But they'd had a shared history, they'd both come from a place that had wanted to hurt them, and that made them like minded in a sense. Number Two suddenly felt a shadow near him, glancing to see Minerva standing there.

"Well," Minerva said, taking a seat, "You said you'd do it, and you did it. I guess I owe you some sort of thanks. If only I could've eaten some of the little bastard myself would it have been slightly more rewarding."

"You don't owe me anything," Number Two said, slightly smirking, "We did what we had to do. Try not to rationalize it, I know I am. I think, in the entire time that I've been associated with this group, that we have never calculated a murder before. But...but the things he did, the things he would've continued to do, they would've been so awful and he'd already gotten away with so much, it wouldn't have been right to let him go free."

"You are right, of course," Minerva said, clearing her throat and scratching behind her ear with a paw, "Dice and I will be leaving shortly. We'll be sticking in this neck of the woods, obviously, as going back to the old home would just be counter intuitive and painful. We need to swim, not tread water. I just figured I should tell you in case you woke up and we were gone."

Minerva turned and started to head back inside the Hollow when she heard Number Two ask her a question.

"Can I come with you?"

She stopped and turned back around, but he wasn't facing her.

"Wh-what?" she asked.

"Can I come with you?" he asked again, still not turning to face her, "I think...I think it'd be beneficial to move from this situation and to something new. I'd like to help you and Dice get back on your feet, set up a new home, and be a part of it. I could help you with all sorts of-"

"Paul," Minerva said, "You are more than welcome to come with us. You knew the answer to that before you even asked."

He finally looked back at her and the two smiled at one another before she continued heading into the Hollow, shouting over her shoulder at him.

"We're leaving tomorrow morning!" she said, "Be ready by noon!"

                                                                                              ***

Gerry was lying on his side, staring at the wall, when Stone came into the section of hollow he'd taken up residence in and looked at him. She sighed and shook her head, coming to stand next to him, Six walking in behind her. Stone pawed at Gerrys shoulder, but he just mumbled and continued staring.

"This has to stop," Stone said, "We need you back on your feet. You're necessary around here for guidance. I know it hurts, and I certainly don't want to tell you to stop grieving, but don't let it consume you, alright?"

She turned and headed out, leaving Six alone there with him. Six sat beside Gerry and looked at the wall.

"You miss him," she said.

"Of course I do," Gerry said, "And I'm not sure what's sicker; the fact that I miss him or the fact that I miss him despite all he did to me. Why are we so attached to those who hurt us? Why can't I let go?"

"Because...he lied to you, and he made you think he was your friend, when-"

"That's the thing though," Gerry said, "I don't think he ever did lie to ME. I think he lied to everyone else THROUGH me. When we were in the vents, he asked me if I wanted to go with him, leave you all behind, but I told him of course not. When he showed me THEY were bringing in new rabbits to the lab, he asked me once again. He'd come up with this whole new life where he and I rescue these rabbits and we take them into a totally different section of woods, wherever that was, and we started a new life. He...he genuinely liked me, because I think he thought I was the only one who could really see the reasons why he did what he did."

"Seeing those reasons doesn't make you agree with them," Six said.

"Of course not," Gerald replied, "But it still gave him something to grasp at. Someone else who understood him, even in the worst possible way. No, I don't agree with him, and no, we're not alike in that way, but I did understand him. He was right about that at least. I just wish he'd been more upfront with me about what he was planning instead of putting you all at risk within the process."

"Wait, does that mean that you would've gone with him if he had?" Six asked, and Gerry shrugged.

"I...I really don't know, Six. I feel like Kevin and Number Two have a much better grip on this group than I do at this point, and I don't feel like I'm really necessary, so-"

"Gerry, god, if you hadn't worked as hard as you did back in the lab, if you hadn't pushed Kevin and Number Two down that hole, they never would've gotten out, and they never would've come back for us and none of this would've happened. YOU did that. YOU got us out, just as you always said you would. Don't undermine your accomplishments just because you think others are doing more than you are now, okay?"

Gerry sighed and rolled over, looking at the other wall now, away from Six.

"You don't get it," Gerry said, "Nobody will get it."

Six stood up and flapped her ears, heading towards the opening of the area before glancing back at him, sighing, and then exiting.

                                                                                             ***

Kevin was sitting by Number Four's gravesite, one paw on the dirt mound that covered her body, but he was looking off into the distance. He sighed and then smiled, shaking his head.

"You should've been there," he said, "God I wish you'd have been there. It was amazing. I'm...I'm not usually one to condone murder of another animal, but it was incredible. The feeling in the air, everything, it was just glorious. I'm so happy that he's gone. He's why I couldn't get back to you in time. You're not here because of him. I feel awful for being so giddy, but still."

He looked down at the gravesite and his smiled faded, as he put his other front paw on the dirt mound, exhaling.

"Ellen, I miss you so much," he said softly, "I hope that wherever you are, you know that, and that you know that who was partially responsible for you being gone has gotten what's coming to them."

He knew he'd never hear her voice again, but Kevin had found coming here was rather therapeutic. It allowed him to get his feelings out in a way that was healthy, it allowed him to express his deepest emotions, without judgement or shame. In a way, Ellen would always be with him, because she would always be here.

                                                                                               ***

Number Two came into the area Gerry was lying, scuffing at the floor with his paws, unsure of how to broach the subject of his sudden departure so quickly after Dodger's death, but he knew it was necessary, considering how imminently he'd be leaving.

"Gerald," he started, "Um, we need to talk."

"I don't want to talk about him."

"It's not about him," Number Two said, "I'm leaving tomorrow afternoon. I'm going with Minerva and Dice. We're going somewhere close by and I'm going to try and help them set up a new home. I owe it to them, for what we got them involved in. I just wanted to let you know before I left."

Gerry didn't respond, and Number Two sighed, wondering what else he could say to elicit a response.

"I did it for you, you know," Number Two said, "I mean, I did it for the foxes too, and Lorna and everyone else, and because he let me fall off a waterfall, but I...I did it for you. He hurt you, and he deserved what he got."

"No question about that," Gerry said.

"Everything I've done, I've recognized in hindsight, was done for you. I know I fought with you about leaving the lab, but at this point, can you blame me for it? I just wanted to keep you and everyone else safe. Gerald-"

"I'm so sorry," Gerry said, finally sitting up and facing him, "I'm so sorry about everything I ever put you through. I hope you come back and visit often. We still need to do something about the new rabbits in the lab, and I'm going to need your help with that."

"I know," Number Two said, smirking, "I'll always be there if you need me."

"Thank you," Gerry said.

A silence passed between them, as Number Two tried to understand why he was thanking him.

"Thank you for doing it," Gerry said, "I never could've done it without you."

"Believe me, it was my pleasure," Number Two said, "Now come on out and have something to eat. We can discuss more plans before I leave tomorrow."

Gerry stood up and hopped up to Number Two, both of them facing one another but neither one wanting to say it, before they both finally turned and headed out of the area and down the hallway towards the main section of the Hollow. It felt nice, Gerry realized, however bad it might've felt to have done what they did to Dodger, it did feel nice to finally, after all this time, have eaked out some sort of a win. They'd only managed so many, and this was by far the best. This only bolstered in Gerry's mind that, if they could do what they did, then they could do anything, including dealing with THEM.

So Gerry ate and sat with his friends, and spoke to his group, and for the first time in a long, long time, felt happy.

                                                                                              ***

A small brown rabbit nudged its mother, who was fast asleep, but did awaken at the feeling of its young nosing at her. The mothers eyes fluttered open, and she looked around, her eyes not yet adjusted.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"I heard something," the little rabbit said, visibly shaking, "I thought I heard someone talking."

"I'm sure it was nothing," the mother said, "Come here. You can sleep with me."

The little rabbit nestled up to her mother and together they tried to go back to sleep, but the mothers nose picked up a weird scent. Before she could say anything though, multiple large black plastic hoses broke through the dirt above them and into their burrow, spewing enormous amounts of gas out, smothering them. The mother tried to get up, but it made her woozy, and before she knew it, she couldn't think clearly, and fell to her side, dead. The daughter tried to run, hopping quickly down the burrow halls, trying to escape all the hoses that continued to burst into the ground around her, only to come to a dead end, unable to get out without the help of her mother.

After the dust settled and the gas died down did an arm reach in to collect her body and hauled her out of the ground, looking at the man standing across from her, holding the mothers corpse. The woman removed her mask and shook her hair out.

"I hate these fucking masks," she said, "I doubt this is even that poisonous to us."

"I know, but it's better than not being prepared," the man replied, "Seems to do the trick though. Where's the next one?"

The woman reached into her back pocket and pulled out a map, then put an X over the burrow they were standing by right now. She then turned a few times, and then finally pointed in a direction with her marker, shaking her arm.

"Alright," the man said, "Put these ones in the bag, and we'll do that one and then we'll meet up with the others for lunch."

"Are you...are you sure this is the right thing to be doing?" the woman asked as he passed her the mother rabbits corpse.

"We made them what they are, we made them withstand whatever we could do to them, we made them more intelligent than they should be, and we need to deal with that. So yeah, it's the right thing to be doing, and even if it weren't, it's the only thing we can do anyway," he said, "Now hurry up. We've got a lot of other burrows to gas this afternoon."

The woman nodded, tossing the two bodies into the bag before slinging it over her shoulder and following her partner towards their next destination. They'd already done this a few times, and they'd keep doing it until they found the ones who had escaped.

The Collective didn't know it yet...

...but war was coming.