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.
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The Rabbit Collective follows a group of lab rabbits struggling with their purpose, and hopeful eventual escape. Archives
October 2020
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