The Feast of Frith (A WaterShip Down fanfic)

Chapter 3: Taking Precautions

Walnut rested in his sleeping burrow quietly, his mother, Poppy, was laying beside him, fussing over him like he was a kitten again. Walnut had made it to the warren without trouble, and Dolly had apologized o him. Lungwort, an Owsla officer had even told Walnut he was impressed and that he would be a great Owsla officer when he had come of age. Poppy nibbled his fur clean, and groomed out burrs and thorns from the brambles. "You're lucky to be alive at all!" Poppy fussed, taking out an entangled thorn. "Your father had an accident with a homba!" She said. Walnut shivered horribly, thinking of his father getting attacked by a homba. "Is that why his back leg sometimes goes lame?" He asked his mother. His mother nodded and got to her feet. She hopped out of the burrow, and Walnut heard her hop down a tunnel. He twitched his ears as he heard someone coming. A dark brown muzzle appeared from outside the burrow. Orchid's pretty face poked out from the entrance. "Hello Orchid," Walnut greeted her "what is the matter?" "Oh I just came to see you." She said, hopping into the burrow and settling down beside him. "I can't believe you done that with the homba You know you saved Dolly's life?" The brown doe said, stretching out her back legs to get comfortable. Walnut said nothing, and nibbled absently at a peice of carrot from the day before when the raiding party had come back. "I know!" Exclaimed Orchid "We could go and collect some mistletoe and holly for the Feast of Frith decorations!" She said, already climbing out of the burrow. Walnut followed.

"These are good enough." Orchid said, nibbling off some holly from the stem. Walnut grabbed a different cluster of holly leaves, and started chewing through the roots. There was a snap, then Orchid had a cluster of holly in her mouth. She started gathering more, when there came a loud stamping. Toadstool an Owsla officer, was stood on his haunches by the warren, stamping his foot. Toadstool was well known because of his dark grey and brown fur. "Oy! You two!" The large buck shouted "Get back in the warren, there's homba lurking everywhere!". Walnut looked at Orchid, then they both picked up their holly and crawled towards the warren. The two adolecent rabbits suddenly realized that there was a lt of Owsla on guard. Marigold, a captain of Owsla was stood on her hind legs on the roots of the hazel tree, Saltwort, a lieutenant, was marching slowly around the tree, sniffing, and Bearberry, an officer, was keeping sentry duty on a over-hanging rock (the rock over-hung one of the many runs that led to the warren). Walnut slipped into the tunnel, while Toadstoll nudged Orchid into the hole. "We might as well put up these decorations," he said, wincing as a bit of holly pricked his nose. Orchid nodded, then went to a side of the tunnel, and scratched at the earth. She got to the moist earth, and shoved the holly in. The two rabbits carried on until they had run out of holly. Tired, Walnut and Orchid retreated to their sleeping burrows and slept.