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Lagomorphs
Copyright © July, 2015, FurryWurry
All rights reserved

Chapter 27 -- Breakfast and Dinner Plans

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"Trav?"

"I [i]really[/i] prefer being called Jeff, but I made the mistake of telling them what it means."

Sky looked a little disappointed. "You didn't tell me what it means."

Jeff sighed. "My full name is Jeffrey Benjamin. Where I'm from it has several meanings. One of them is 'Traveling-Son-of-the-Right-Hand,' so of course Singer now calls me 'Trav.'"

"Oh. But you actually prefer a meaningless sound like Jeff? Even though you've traveled a lot?"

"Yes," Jeff said firmly, "I do." And he wasn't about to tell the Rabs any of the other meanings.

Sky shrugged. "OK." and headed around to the back of the entrance mound where there was a gentle slope to its top. "I told Swimmer and Diver to meet us up here. They shouldn't be too long. They better not be!"

From their position on top of the mound, Jeff could see only a few Rabs out and about. Most of them seemed to be keeping a nervous eye on the treeline while they got breakfasts. Clouds were blowing in from the West, so it wasn't quite as bright as it had been earlier. He wasn't sure if that was good or not. There was no need to squint, but the shadows under the trees seemed that much darker.

"There don't seem to be many Rabs out this evening. Do you think the wolves are still around?"

"No, probably not. When a couple passed by a few months ago, they didn't stay. Nobody got caught that time, though. And the Sheps were around then, too." Despite what he'd said at first, Sky looked worried. "They prob'ly came by during the day and chased the wolves away. I'm sure they did. They wouldn't let a little thing like a fight with Gran'Sir keep them away. They wouldn't. They couldn't!"

"Well, is there something you Rabs could do to scare the wolves away? Throw rocks at them, maybe? Or do you have some spears?"

Sky stared at him, puzzled. "Rocks? Spears? No, of course not. What do you mean? You aren't making any sense."

"Well, if you hurt the wolves, they wouldn't like coming here, would they?"

Sky just shook his head. "We couldn't do that. When predators come, we go inside. Or we hide. Fast. That's what we do. Sheps chase them away. That's what they do. That's the way it is." He went back to watching, shrugging off Jeff's suggestion.

"But..."

"No. Now help me watch. By the time Diver and Swimmer get here, somebody else'll be watching and we can all get some breakfast before sundown."

Gradually more Rabs came out of the various entrances to get breakfast. Most of them weren't quite as exuberant as they'd been in the morning and were staying close to the Warren. Gemma, however, shot out of the entryway like a rocket, yelled something up at the two of them, then dashed toward the eastern side. Flower and Garland showed up, too, although they were moving much more slowly than the kit. They smiled and waved up at Sky and Jeff, then relaxed in the entryway as Sunny and Cloudy got hay and vegetables for them. Jeff hadn't noticed Singer and his friends leaving, but they were gone when he thought to look for them.

Eventually Diver and Swimmer sauntered out of the entrance below and waved up at Jeff and Sky. Sky just rolled his eyes and waved in the direction of the deasil mound. A Rab who'd been sitting there waved back and stood up, taking over the watch.

To Jeff's relief, there had been no sign of the Dire Wolves.

"It took you long enough," Sky finally admonished the brothers. The two of them had waited for him to get down off the mound, making no effort to come up.

"Sorry." Unlike his brother, Swimmer actually looked apologetic.

"Let's get some food, then meet on top of the mound. We need to decide what we're going to do in the morning. Be back here as fast as you can." He glared at Diver. "You, too."

"Of course!" Diver tried to look quite innocent.

Jeff headed to the garden where he'd been given tomatoes at sunrise. Maybe he'd get something a little more chewy. Grows'm was actually pleased to see him this time.

"What'll you have? Tomatoes again? Some of the cherries have ripened!"

"Didn't you mention you had some parsnips and carrots? If I could have a couple of them, that'd..." The older Rab took off before he could finish.

He was back before Jeff could spend much time admiring the well-tended gardens. "Here you are! I hope they're OK." The Rab handed Jeff two of each, all rather large and fragrant despite it still being early in the season for them. They'd already been cleaned and had had their stems removed, too.

"Thanks! Just what I wanted." Although maybe not quite so many.

"Are you sure that's all? Some of the onions look to be ready, too."

"Nope, these are fine. Thanks again."

"You're very welcome. Just let me know whatever you want. I'll make sure the other gardeners keep an eye out for you, too."

"Thanks!" Jeff waved and headed back toward the entrance mound.

Sky and Swimmer were already waiting when he got there, but there was no sign of Diver.

"He's probably trying to persuade one of the gardeners to give him something special. He's always doing that, but they know better by now," Swimmer admitted to Jeff. "It looks like you were successful, though."

Jeff shrugged. "Unfortunately, I can't eat hay or grass, although yours smells pretty good. Grows'm was kind enough to give me these."

"Grows'm? Kind? Wow, he must really like you. Diver has to be careful to stay out of his sight. They had a serious run-in when we were kits. Something about a whole row of peas being destroyed, as I recall. He's gonna be really jealous when he sees those carrots." Swimmer grinned.

"Carrots?! Where'd you get those?" Diver had come up the slope rather quietly, but his exclamation wasn't.

"Never you mind. We've got more important things to talk about," Sky mumbled around a mouthful of fresh grass.

"Please? Can I have one, please? Or a parsnip? You don't really need all of them, do you?" the Rab whispered in Jeff's ear. His hay did look a little dry.

"Maybe later," Jeff murmured. "Maybe half of one. Let's see how the meeting goes, first."

"OK, ok. Sure."

"How do you think we should go about the hunt, Sky? I haven't been around here enough to know where Rabs like to go when they're away from the Warren. Do you know where Runner might have headed?"

At the mention of his friend, Sky looked miserable. "Not really. We just wander around when we're looking for strawberries. He was on the down-hill side of the path when the Raptors found us. I suppose he might have headed down past the stream. That was before the rainstorm, so his footprints probably got washed away. It's gonna be really hard to track him. He should be back by now! The Warren's easy to find! Something must have happened."

"Well, maybe he stayed hidden until the rain stopped. Like you did. His tracks'd be easy to follow then, wouldn't they? In all the mud?"

At that suggestion, Sky brightened a little. "Yeah. That sounds right. Sure. Then we'd be able to find where he went. And maybe what happened." He looked upset again, almost ready to cry. He must have been really close with the lost Rab. Jeff remembered Cloudy's warning about him getting depressed.

"I'm sure we'll find him. His tracks will be easy to follow. He must have been just as scared as you were. He's probably holed up next to a really big strawberry patch, wondering why nobody's come for him. We'll find him and bring him back. I'm sure of it." Jeff got up and went over to where Sky was sitting and hugged him. Hugged him tight. "I'm sure of it."

Sky hugged him back, burying his nose against Jeff's shoulder, breathing deeply. "You're right. We'll find him."

"So how do we do it?" Swimmer wondered. "When do we leave? How long will we be gone? What do we take with us?" He'd obviously been thinking about it.

"In the morning, maybe?" Jeff asked, still holding onto Sky.

Sky nodded against Jeff. "Yeah. We'll be safer then." He pulled back, grimaced, then said a little more clearly, "Well, at least we'll be able to see things coming, even if we're tired. We should probably try to get some sleep before dinner." Jeff stroked his back, then let go and went back to his supper. He'd noticed Diver eying what was left of the carrots.

"I think we should find some Sheps." Diver was emphatic. "They know the crater better than anybody. And they'll be able to protect us."

"But where's their Den? I've never heard anyone say they've seen it. The Sheps always come here," his brother pointed out. "None of the strawberry hunters have mentioned coming across it, either. It must be hidden pretty good. Hunting for them is no different from hunting for Runner or the other Rabs. We're just as likely to get Taken while wandering around."

Diver pouted. Obviously Swimmer was supposed to follow his lead, not argue sensibly.

"Yeah, you're right. I don't like it, but you're right." Sky thought for a little. "Maybe we should plan for just two or three days. That'd be enough to get half-way across the lowlands and back, right?"

"You tell us. You're the one who's been going out a lot," Diver pointed out.

"I think it's long enough. And I want to be sure to be back before Flower and Garland kindle. That's important, too.

"OK, then. We should try to take enough food for a couple of days, in case there's not enough grass to eat. I think we've got some old grass baskets we could carry it in, or maybe I can persuade the Warren to make us some knapsacks. Maybe it'll give us some winter pellets, too."

"What about water? Do you have something to carry that in?" Jeff asked.

"Water? We'll only be gone a couple of days. If we drink plenty before we go, that should be good enough, I think."

Jeff blinked. "Well, I can't go that long. I'm glad you can. I've got my own bottles, though."

"OK." Sky sounded like he'd made up his mind. "Let's meet out here right after we eat dinner tomorrow morning, after the sunrise song. Then we can head back down the hill to the last place I saw Runner. That sound good?"

The two Rab sibs nodded.

"Sure," Jeff agreed. It really didn't sound like much of a plan, but it wasn't as if they had a lot of choices.

Diver really appreciated the carrot. "It's almost as good as your thumb!"