The warren--

Chapter one


The wind howled across the moor, whipping up the grass and ruffling the rabbits fur as she hopped slowly along.  Never had she experienced such extreme weather.
The dark clouds above her were heavy with rain, ready to let loose at any moment. She would have to hurry if she was to be back at her warren by nightfall. That was when her enemies came out- the owl, the fox, and the wolf- to hunt for their favorite food. Her.
Her species was considered food, and she knew it. There was little she could do do protect herself.
She was their prey.

She sped up her pace, her swollen belly bouncing. It would not be long now. She needed to be back in her warren and safe for the kits to come.

All of a sudden a shadow swooped over her and she bolted, heading for the safety of her home.
She ducked under the hawthorn bush and shot into her burrow. She was safe- for now.
She would wait here until she had given birth, and then hunger would drive her out to eat.


The rabbit crept out of the shelter of her burrow. She stood up and tested the air, her long ears pricked.
The birth had gone well, and she had four wriggly pink babies waiting for her in their nest of downy fur.

She scrambled up the slope and raced across the grass, skidding to a halt when she reached a patch of long grass.  She nibbled and munched away, her eyes closed blissfully. All her fears of being hunted were gone. She hopped a few paces, and pushed her way through a large clump of chickweed.
Shock pulsed through her as a long pointed snout and gleaming amber eyes met her on the other side.

She turned and bolted, back towards the safety of her burrow. The fox pursued her, getting closer with every stride. She threw a glance back, to see gleaming fangs less than a hops distance away from her face.
All of a sudden the ground disappeared beneath her paws. She tumbled down the slope, rolling over small shrubs and bumping over rocks. She squealed as her leg got caught on a long tendril of wire embedded into the ground, and she was flung headfirst into a large rock. Darkness flooded her vision, and the world went black.

The fox crept carefully down the steep slope, and stopped to collect his kill. It was not often he could get a meal with so little effort.
He picked up the rabbit in his jaws and trotted up the slope to his family.

The happy cries of the fox family were drowned out by the wind, howling across the wind and whipping up the grass.