#the way Frith did El-Ahrairah in Watership Down…

[ficandkaboodle]

I do wonder, though, if another reason (I headcanon) Copia doesn’t think he’s attractive is because he doesn’t meet the male beauty standards that were popular when he was growing up. In the 70s, slim men was where it was at. All the better to jam their flat asses into those tight little pants. And by the 80s, they went the other way with it by advertising real muscle men that were more top-heavy.

At the very least, this was how it was in America but I headcanon Copia grew up watching mostly American media and that would’ve morphed his perception of what a good-looking man ought to be.

Obviously, he wasn’t always physically like this but he’s likely always had a bit more of a “geek physique”. Add in his sharp nose, hair that was thick but couldn’t necessarily grow in the more fashionable ways, and some freckles, and he probably felt the only interesting thing about him was his left eye.

It puzzles him to learn that nowadays, a man with junk in his trunk and a soft tummy is hugely desirable in many spaces. He’s just so used to the pendulum never swinging in his favor. It also took him way longer to realize also that awkward “rodent men” were becoming more of a thing in recent years.

He still can’t quite wrap his head around it and accept it. Still assumes most of the “attraction” directed at him is superficial. Y’know, rather than the fact he’s actually quite adorable, awkward, oozes sex appeal by his confidence and actions, and also has one of the perkiest booties around.

He’s so oblivious, I could bite a wall —

[lepurcinus]

Getting a little dreamy, how far do you think the Watership Down-verse could have expanded? That is, do you think the Watership Down world could (or can) be given to be more extensive and cover more stories? I think so.

It doesn't necessarily have to overextend to 16 books talking about the same thing or something, that would be kind of...annoying. But they can be given for more stories in the same world.

-Maybe a post Hazel and co. story, with the new generation of rabbits as main characters (yes, it's a bit cliché, but they are rabbits, they don't live long, it works). With I don't know, the search for new territories, a war between the warrens that were once allies, there are options.

-Or stories from the past, such as a story telling the story of Sandleford Warren in the times when the Threarah was young!

-Or one about Cowslip's, how it came about in the first place or maybe something post Hazel's centered around those rabbits refusing to follow tha life, being inspired by Strawberry (The TV series did something similar by the way).

-And we can go even further into the past, more El-ahrairah stories, but instead of just the stories (like Tales did) how about El-ahrairah's POV, where we see him live, the events that took place that later became legend. Maybe not only from El-ahrairah, there were probably other rabbits in the past that did interesting things (Rabscuttle, Nur-rama, the other couples and children of El-ahrairah or even other rabbits completely unrelated to them).

-But not just Watership stuff, maybe there could be something about other warrens and completely unrelated rabbits, somewhere else (The TV series did something similar with Redstone and Darkhaven, but unfortunately they didn't get the coverage I would have liked to see).

-Maybe a POV of a domestic rabbit (Could be Clover and company, or another diferent one).

-And I'm going off the deep end, how would another story be with a POV of another animal, a mouse, squirrels, even an Elil? How do they see the world? Do they believe in Frith like the rabbits or do they think of a different deity? How about a story about Kehaar and the seagulls in the sea, inquiring about their culture and life? (The tv also do something with this, but was so, meh)

I don't know, I was a bit inspired today as I was thinking about my xenofiction ideas.

To me it sounds like something very exciting to imagine and see.

[violentmouths]

We Can Do Bad All By Ourselves, Thank you!

So both @clevermentalitybeliever and I love each other's OC's so I thought 'Why not make them a little duo?' So I did! After a few questions I've decided that this is going to be an interesting polyamorous relationship between my oc (Grima Li), her oc (Lanea), and V.

I'm gonna take a little break from my other works to get this one going as I kind of like where this is going.

Idky but I'm gonna tag some people who might like this (idk)

Um, @birdgirl69 @skvaderarts @dhalia111 @krazy06 @lessy86 (I really love your black Harley, girl and hope to get to know you soon) @thedyingmoon

And let the show begin:

***

Chapter 1: The Spider Plant and The Witch

Tick Tock, Tick Tock

Went the grandfather clock, it was the only audible thing in the apartment unless you wanted to count the sounds of pages flipping and the gentle breathing.

Lanea looked up from her book to see her friend sitting on the floor infront of the large clock, unsure if she was meditating or watching the hours tick before her eyes.

Lanea rolled her eyes, shaking her head as she went back to reading. Her spider eyed friend gave her the book 'Lord of the Flies' to help past the time, and although Lanea was only a few pages in, she could see why Grima liked the book. Sure it wasn't Watership Down, but held similarities to it, such as the boys having to work together to survive on the island until help came; but most of all, it was dark.

"When do we meet Dante, again?" Lanea asked, flipping a page from the book "At Fu Inlé..." Grima whispered still looking at the clock, the sounds of the cogs inside of the clock ticking somehow calmed the little spider plant. "Rephrase that Ms. Li, I don't understand your language." Lanea grumbled, she couldn't stand when Grima spoke in Lapine. Not because it irritated her, but because she didn't know what any of it meant; it was like going to a foreign country and not knowing how to read, write, or speak the language.

You were in the dark, whether you liked it or not.

"Fu Inlé means after moonrise, Lanea... I don't feel so comfy going out during ni frith... "

"Can't you close your three eyes?"

"I like my five eyes showing..."

"But you close them everytime you're around him."

"I don't like they way he looks at them..."

"But when all are open, it's kind of hard to choose which pair of eyes to look at." Lanea laughed, placing the book mark into the book to stop her from losing the page she was on, she placed a hand on her mouth to cover up her laughter.

"Not really, no..." Grima trailed off, leaning forward and pressing her hands against the carpeted floor, she gently pushed against the ground, letting her legs slowly rise to the ceiling. "Just look at the bottom ones, like Nero does..." she added, Grima has now placed herself in a handstand. But instead of putting her feet on the ground again, she just let her feet touch her head. Lanea shook her head as she closed her book, placing it on the coffee table in front of her.

"You sure like Nero..." Lanea stated, slowly closing her eyes "I'm surprised you haven't stole him from Kyrie yet." She added, slowly opening her eyes and looking at her friend who was placing her feet back on the ground before standing up straight.

"...I see Nero like a brother, we have fun together... Although I must say he does remind me of my brother except more outgoing. I can't steal him away from Kyrie, I like their relationship. It's a sweet bond they have going on there and for me to just take him away from something that makes him truly happy, I. Think. Not..." Grima explained, Lanea couldn't help but put her hand on her mouth from that response, she didn't expect Grima to say such things. The monstress had the boys eating out of the palm of her hand, yet made no moves. "Soooo," Grima trailed off as she put her hands on her large hips, twisting her upperbody to look at Lanea. "You and Dante... He found you, and yet, no moves made there..." She said through certain clicks and croaks, Lanea scrunched her face at what she just heard.

"I could never be with such a man! He's terrible with money, he refuses to use it responsibly; his debts could be paid if he just wasted it on the bills! I could do soooo much better than that! Also- he found me after my village kicked me out... I, owe him that... He put a roof over my head. I- admire his caring attitude, as-is well as his hospitality. Like you see Nero as a brother, I see Dante as a good friend. Nothing more, nothing less." Lanea answered truthfully, looking down at her hands that she now placed on her lap. Grima nodded her head before turning around and looking back at the grandfather clock.

"I... Well, monsters stick together, we have a bond that not alot of humans can put a finger on. I got your back if you got mine, ya feel?" Grima started off, looking at the top of the clock before dusting it off, "I find it awfully amusing how you think I should get with Nero and I think you should get with Dante..." Grima trembled, Lanea's eyes widened as she slowly got up, reaching for Grima "And were both like 'NOPE' to them!" Grima laughed, Lanea sat down and grumbled at how Grima was only trembling because she trying to hold in her laughter.

Grima stopped laughing, gently rubbing at her chest "... But I gotta pay Dante back, I promised him that after the mission with Urizen..." She whispered, Lanea cocked an eyebrow at what she just heard; why does Grima need to pay back Dante?

And for what?!

"How much do you owe him? I can help you if you want, Ms. Li?" Lanea cooed, reaching into her back pocket, Grima turned her upperbody around again "I-it's not with money, Lanea..." Grima trailed off, making Lanea blush really red. It didn't take her very long to figure out what Grima meant by that. "Y-you can't be serious, M-Ms. Li! H-how did you get yourself in such a predicament?!" "I told him 'perhaps when this... Mission is done, I could pay my debt to you on a Thursday at four...? Perhaps?' And he agreed to my payment... But I haven't been able to pay him back..." Grima replied, walking into the kitchen with Lanea following behind her "Ms. Li... So many Thursdays have passed-" "I understand you want me to get this over with immediately, but I kind of enjoy a bit of 'element of surprise' I don't know when... And neither will he, let's put this to rest now shall we?" Grima interrupted, turning around to face her and smiling sweetly, causing her petite friend to blush cherry red. Lanea couldn't believe that Grima would mess around with someone like Dante, after everything she just told the monstress, Grima would still have sex with the great demon hunter.

Grima Li and Dante? What a nauseating if not luscious thought?

Lanea could just imagine her friend being ravaged by such a man, her gentle gasps and moans escaping her lips as she claws into the desk. Dante holding onto her love handles as he starts off slow before he begins to pick up speed causing her Ms. Li to moan louder. Yearning for more as he slaps her caramel colored ass again and again, making Grima moan louder.His calloused hands would go straight to her medium sized breasts, squeezing them enough to make marks while Grima's moans get louder and louder as the minutes ticked by as they'd exchange kisses whenever they got a chance. But those kisses would become sloppy, the thrusting will get harder, and Dante's cock would go deeper.

It would probably be a night Grima would never forget, but a thought Lanea wishes she could throw away as it already plastered itself to her brain...

Grima walked to the first cabinet she saw and opened it up to see endless labeled mason jars of tea leaves. "I'm feeling... Earl Grey." She said to herself as she got on her tiptoes to reach for the mason jar above her head.

Lanea stood four feet behind Grima to give her space, she still couldn't shake that image out of her head.

Lanea's eyes traveled all over her friends body, following each dip, and every curve "Then again... I bet she likes those breasts of hers squeezed." She thought "Or spanked until her round ass is black and blue..." such thoughts didn't sit well with Lanea, and she wanted to remove it so badly!

Lanea swallowed as she closed her eyes "W-what about V?!" She blurted out, waiting for Grima's response. It was silent for about two minutes before Grima slammed the cabinet door shut.

"The Black Rabbit of Inlé is not allowed to be talked about in this house!" Grima growled, slamming the mason jar down "S-Surely you'd rather have him in bed than Dante... V is really sweet to you Ms. Li, you should give him a cha-" "No, no, nope. I refuse to be seen with that mole-snouted, muckraking, hutch-hearted sheep tick. Remove this piece of the conversation away from my ears." Grima boomed, Lanea put a hand over her mouth, letting it drop after.

"But he likes you Ms. Li... You can hear it in his voice." She whimpered, Grima put her hands on her hips "A-any man who gets with you would be very lucky..." Lanea's voice started to soften, Grima sighed before looking at Lanea, "I don't just like men, Lanea... I go for women too." She mumbled, catching Lanea off guard "S-she likes women too?" Lanea thought, she could feel the warmth in her cheeks rise again. "Lanea... Do you like El-ahrairah?" Grima asked "I can hear it... In the tone of your voice." She added.

This made Lanea blush harder than she ever could, the idea of being with V never really came to mind as they were always on the battlefield; not a place to be thinking such.

Grima walked up to Lanea, placing a hand on her shoulder "Anyone who ends up with you is gonna be one lucky fella..." she whispered, smiling after. Both women were staring into each others green eyes, causing silence in the kitchen. Lanea's lime colored eyes widened as she kept a pale hand over her mouth, quickly putting the other hand over it.

"Now, tea Lanea? Or no?"

***

I'm quite fond of this little series here, more chapters soon, as well as for the V Experiences since Grima's birthday is coming close... See you all soon, and I hope you enjoyed!

Oh! Pay no mind to the darkened words, my girl Raunchy likes doing this... 'Thing' where she writes it all down to receive some type of 'hidden message' when there isn't any (I think)... Anyways by now!

[mysweetetc]

Watership Down

I just finished listening to Watership Down, after reading it just once before in my...early teens? So about fifteen years ago!

I HAVE SO MANY THOUGHTS, including on its parallels both with 

The Good

Such great world-building! I love how seriously Adams took the lives of rabbits without any supernatural abilities other than talking and a decent level of intelligence and awareness. It was especially interesting to me how the unusual rabbits were explained and how others reacted to them: Blackberry (the particularly intelligent one who was the only able to identify and make use of tools) and General Woundwort (the ultimate villain with totally un-rabbit-like levels of bloodthirstiness, strategy, and lack of fear).

Moreover, all the main rabbits got distinct personalities, such as being a good storyteller, or a natural comedian, or particularly excellent judgment.

And of course, the exploration of dysfunctional and totalitarian communities and dystopias! SUCH great educational material, so powerful and effective.

Related to worldbuilding: mythology!  El-ahrairah, Lord Frith, the Black Rabbit of Inlé! All very cool (and the story about the Black Rabbit was genuinely terrifying AND unfinished, what the hell)

The writing is so good! I was genuinely drawn in and held in suspense on multiple occasions, especially with the final climactic siege and battle. 

The story feels pretty timeless, except for the absolute hilarity of it being about a bunch of rabbits that inexplicably speak with mid-20th-century upper-middle-class British vocabulary. “There’s a good chap” and so on. 

The Bad

Three-quarters of the book elapsed before a female character spoke! Argh!

Even worse, there’s this godawful line after a doe rabbit is snatched by a fox, where a buck rabbit shrugs and says, “What’s one doe more or less?” FUCK THIS COMPLETELY.

“But they’re rabbits, not people!” Fuck you, the whole reason this story is so damn powerful is because they’re analogous to people. That’s why the dysfunctional societies they run into are so frightening, why certain lines and images stayed with me over fifteen years.

I was forcefully reminded of one of my favorite movies, Mad Max: Fury Road, several times during the final plot arc, because this was basically a more shitty version of that story: a group of male rabbits working to bring a group of female rabbits out of a terrifying dystopian community ruled by a brutal warlord. Except their whole reason for the mission is to breed with them! At least the does consented and were quite ready to leave. But yeah, the danger involved in the initial escape and the following pursuit and attack back on the home warren (Watership Down), the warlord’s demand that they return all the stolen does or else every one of them will have their throats torn out -- very scary, powerful, effective. (This point is really both Good and Bad.)

The “foreign” dialects are probably pretty racist, though I’m honestly not sure if that might have been the fault of the dude reading the audiobook? He seemed to vary between a German and a Jamaican accent for Kehaar and the mice.

The Freak Camp parallels

Look, Freak Camp is always in my head with literally everything I encounter, especially in media. 

So I have this very lovely image of Sam reading this book within the first two years he gets out of FC, and telling Dean about it (much to his baffled amusement about the idea of a long-ass story about rabbits), and eventually reading him parts aloud, because that is something they do.

After Sam finishes reading it, he probably goes back and reads the last battle aloud to Dean, and maybe other parts about Efrafa (Woundwort’s terrifying warren), because there are things about it he doesn’t even know how to discuss yet, but he wants Dean to know about them.

Like the whole concept of marking (scarring) every newborn rabbit on a certain part of their body to assign them into a group for the rest of their lives! And the fact this isn’t any kind of prison but just how every single rabbit is treated their entire lives, not because they did anything wrong, they were just expected to live that way.

Not to mention MUTILATING the ears of a rabbit who dared to try to run away! And parading him about for everyone to see what had happened to him, forcing him to recite his crime, and it revealed he would ultimately be killed after this ghastly tour!

Sam would, of course, be powerfully affected by the high-stakes, deadly escape plan, how it nearly goes awry a dozen ways, and the pursuit that follows. Even when they think they’re home safe in Watership Down -- the discovery that Woundwort had tracked them there with the demand that they return every single doe, and hand over Bigwig who had betrayed him and gotten the does out, or else he would kill every single one of them. Holy shit yes, Sam has feelings about that.

Near the end, Bigwig is so scarred from battle that Bluebell (the comedian rabbit) jokes, “If you were back in Effrafa, they wouldn’t know which mark to assign you to, you have them all!” and I can just see Sam pausing at that, then saying lightly, “Just like me,” before going on. He doesn’t make eye contact with Dean, unsure how he might respond, but it’s one of the first times Sam tries to joke about his past, which is a really important thing -- it’s how he takes ownership of it, tries to get power over it.

[sparkylurkdragon]

First episode of the Watership Down Netflix miniseries is looking gooood so far.

The closed captions are a little dodgy - I think they must be based on the script rather than the final line readings - and a few of the changes have made me go 'hmm', but mostly they seem to be in good service of the adaptation and I don't have any major problems with them yet. It's all trivia about a new take on the story rather than 'oh Frith and Inlé what the hell were you thinking' to me, which is better than what little I know about the cartoon series.

More spoilery thoughts below the fold!

I'm surprised they already reached Watership Down by the end of the first episode! But, no, they've hit all the important beats on the way. I've known this story for so long that I'm never quite sure how long it takes.

The most major  material change for me is Bigwig already using the -rah suffix with Hazel, right when the reach the Down; I could have sworn he indeed only does that when he 'stops fighting' after the climax, like he grumbled about when they first left Saddleford.

"Corva/Corvil" as a Lapine word seems kind of an ill fit in the language, but I did like an inclusion of a Lapine word for 'crow'. (Kind of wish we'd heard 'pfeffa' alongside 'homba' in the tale of the Blessing, though!)

And I was kind of disappointed we didn't get Bigwig mistaking Holly for the Black Rabbit.

All the other little changes I'm fine with so far, from how exactly the Blessing of El-ahrairah went to the Saddleford Owsla prompting Blackberry's understanding of floating to Strawberry getting a gender swap. (Though that second one makes me wonder how "There's a dog loose in the wood" will show up/how Fiver gives Hazel that idea, if he does.) And oooooh the Warren of Shining Wires gave me chills. That entire sequence is one of my favourites in the story and it was certainly done justice here.

I'm enjoying myself so far! :D

[punwolf]

Watership Down

Why do people insist on making media for this and market it to children?

Bunnies. Yes, bunnies are cute and fluffy.

Not always, though...

Bugs was much more of a smart ass, playing tricks like this guy.

Bugs was known to explode, hit, trick other characters into outlandishly dangerous situations and lead us through a merry slapstick kind of routine as he outwitted his fumbling opposition. B’er Rabbit and Bugs had a lot of things in common when it came down to it, as did the folk hero El-ahrairah in Watership Down.

Rabbits meant tricks and cunning.

I stumbled onto an article awhile back on a remake of Watership Down. So I checked Amazon and there was a cartoon series made in the early 2000′s based on it. I did a little more digging and found there’s going to be a CGI version on Netflix made with the BBC.

So there was a cartoon series that I missed. I checked into it and it’s ... cute. It’s very ... cute.

The 1970′s cartoon traumatized a generation. People are still freaked out it to this day. It probably shouldn’t have been made, or else it was ahead of its time. Western people think “cartoon” and automatically assume “it’s for children.” Here’s some irony. The Warner Bros. studio didn’t make their cartoons for kids. One of the creators can be found on record saying this somewhere out there in the archives of film history. They “made them for themselves.” They were often political in WWII and weren’t created with children as their target audience.

There’s a few really notable exceptions where cartoons were definitely not made for children. Heavy Metal and Heavy Metal 2 come to mind, but mostly cartoons are assumed to be for kids. The 70′s Watership Down was terrifying to small children. It was an early Jurassic Park except Jurassic Park was PG13. People who took their toddlers hoping for Barney were idiots. People who let children see Watership Down didn’t have much in the way of warning.

What medium except animation could have brought the rabbits of Richard Adams’ novel to life? There wasn’t one in the 70′s, but the honest portrayal of the novel wasn’t good for young viewers -- and young viewers were what were drawn to it. Perhaps had they waited awhile when people were used to ratings on cartoons on TV or after Heavy Metal they could have done more. As it was, the 70′s cartoon is remembered with horror by numerous kids who saw it too young.

The problem is Watership Down was a novel which was a thinly veiled story about a small band of primitive people fleeing their doomed city. It wasn’t The Jungle Books, Oz, or Chronicles of Narnia. Those talking animals were written in a way which was child friendly. Narnia was intended to be a fairy tale, dedicated in the forward.

Watership Down is beautiful, seat gripping and brutal. Rabbits died and it was implied that was intrinsic to how they lived. They were descended from “The Prince of a Thousand Enemies” because their god, Frith had told them the first rabbit overpopulated. So Frith gave their enemies tearing teeth, keen eyes, and sharp ears. There are comments in Eferafa like “If you see a doe, take her. You’re not an officer for nothing.” Presumably that’s when a rabbit is in heat because they don’t have sex for pleasure. That was later shown with things like a doe telling Bigwig, “You must be mistaken. It’s not my time.” It still treads pretty close to rape. The Black Rabbit is Death. He’s impartial and takes no joy in in taking rabbits away, but he tends giant vats of disease and is there when the hunter sets the snare. Tyranny, abuse, death and other adult content are part of the novel.

It’s a beautiful story, but not for kids. It also doesn’t have any female characters in the initial part of the book. Rather than because of misogyny, it’s the heart of some of the story. Hazel’s warren take huge risks because the Warren would die without does to populate it. When females are introduced to the story they’re just as intelligent and engaging as the rest of the characters.

The early 2000 version made Blackberry a doe. They handled it fairly well, glossing over the need of breeding to keep the colony going. They also only took 2 rabbits from Eferafa, one who became Hazel’s mate and Blackavar. They skipped the brutality on poor Blackavar and how he was beaten down, his ears ripped to shreds, and how he was going to die soon.

It’s probably the only place I’ll ever say anything like this, but Watership Down doesn’t need more female characters on the onset. Normally I’m 100% behind more female characters and representation. I’m all for more female characters, but unless they’re going to change the entire early cast to does (which would work to a point. The problem with that is that it only takes 1 buck to breed all the does. Would the rabbits know about inbreeding?)  Tossing in a female Blackberry made the plot lose something vital.

It’s very child friendly. The colors are soft and rich. The violence is minimal and off screen. There are plenty of very human moral lessons about getting along with ones neighbors, making friends, sparing your enemies from compassion, and that sort of thing.

Basically nothing like the novel which was bloody and final when it came down to a fight. The CGI version is also promising that it will be more children friendly. I’ll probably watch it, but I wish they’d let go of the warm and fuzzies and relent to the fact that those bunnies weren’t ever made for children’s entertainment.

It’s like saying Lord of the Flies is for children because it had kid characters. Or that Animal Farm should be for children because it was about talking animal characters.

There are books out there which should be remade because they were intended for children to start with. Narnia has been, Oz (in it’s original form, not the bullshit from Once Upon A Time), Charlotte’s Web (despite a bittersweet ending) and lesser known stories like Birth of the Firebringer. Like Watership Down it’s more about people than unicorns. It’s the story of a young man struggling to find his place in the world as a warrior and follow his destiny. The young “man” just happens to be a unicorn in a rich, vibrant fantasy world full of gryphons, pans, wyverns and magic.The first novel has no humans in it at all, and is populated by the band of unicorns as the main character embarks on a rite of passage.

So I suppose I’ll conclude with the 2000′s Watership Down has been entertaining enough. It’s like drinking skim milk compared to whole milk, or your favorite beverage watered down if you love the book. Great for kids, but basically tears out about half of what the original material was about.

[violentmouths]

We Can Do Bad All By Ourselves, Thank you!

Chapter 2:

Sorry I took so long, I got a lot cooking, but hey, here's another chapter. Idky but I like when people get to know the characters before we get to the fighting and conflict.

I'd like to thank you all for the support on the last chapter. I'm deeply touched.

So here's to my buddies @clevermentalitybeliever @birdgirl69 @skvaderarts @krazy06 @dhalia111 @lunafreyastrophywife @lessy86 @thedyingmoon

And let's begin.

***

Chapter 2: El-ahrairah

It was a quiet tea time, Lanea and Grima sat themselves back in the livingroom, waiting patiently to drink their Earl Grey. They were still waiting for moonrise, as well as the call from Dante to receive a mission. Lanea stared at the amber liquid in her tea cup, thinkin of the nickname her five eyed friend said.

The Black Rabbit of Inlé.

It gave her shivers down her spine, yet it tingled on her tongue. She wanted to ask Grima about the name but was hesitant, then again, why should she be hesitant with plant demon? "Grima, " she called out to the demon. Grima, who's eyes were closed, quickly opened and shot in Lanea's direction.

"Yes?" Grima answered, looking around to see of anything was out of place, "That name... 'The black rabbit of inlé' why did you give such an interesting name to V if you don't like him?" Lanea asked calmly, Grima looked around, clicking hoarsely, such a sound rang in Lanea's ears.

"The black rabbit of inlé represents death, if he calls to you... You must go. That 'thing' is quite like him, and yet like many others..." Grima explained, holding up a finger, only to quickly drop it. "He reminds me about El-ahrairah more than anything." She added, "El-ahrairah..." Lanea trailed off, she looked down at her tea before taking a sip, "Who's that?" She asked, quickly looking back at Grima, who brought her legs onto the couch, nuzzling into the soft cushions "El-ahrairah is a character in my favorite book, Watership Down, his name literally means 'prince with a thousand enemies' he was arguably one of the great rabbit leaders." Grima informed, taking a sip of her tea and placing it onto the coffee table. Lanea nodded her head before turning it back towards Grima "Any stories about him?" She asked "If there are any, I'd like to hear one. It'll make time go by faster." Grima began to slouch, she looked at the ceiling.

"Long ago, the great Frith made the world. He made all the stars, too, and the world is one of those stars. He made them by scattering his droppings over the sky and this is why the grass and the trees grow so thick on the world. Frith makes the rivers flow." Grima spoke, she got up and went into the kitchen leaving Lanea on the couch to ponder the information she just recieved. "Frith?" She questioned, "Is Frith God, Grima?" Lanea turned her head towards the kitchen doorway "Well, it's the sun. The rabbits personified it as a god!" Grima called out, she quickly came back with a cheese board filled with many different cheeses and grapes on it.

Grima placed the cheese board down on the coffee table; Grima loves cheese.

Lanea reached over to the coffee table and grabbed herself a handful of grapes as Grima grabbed a block of cheese, sitting back down in her spot on the couch "Continue with the story, Ms. Li, you've got my attention." Lanea advised, Grima nodded her head as she broke off a piece of cheese.

"Let's see um, ah, the rivers..." Grima mumbled, pointing a finger at the ceiling "They followed him as he goes through the sky, and when he leaves the sky they look for him all night. Frith made the animals and birds, but when he first made them they were all the same. The sparrow and the kestrel were friends and they both ate seeds and flies. And the fox and the rabbit were friends and they both ate grass. And there was plenty of grass and plenty of flies, because the world was new and Frith shone bright and warm all day." Grima went on, Lanea snacked gently on her grapes, letting every little fruit burst in her mouth; sweet, crisp, and juicy the grapes were.

"Now El-ahrairah was among the animals in those days and he had many wives. He had so many wives that there was no counting them, and the wives had so many young that even Frith could not count them, and they ate the grass, the dandelions, the lettuces, and the clover. And El-ahrairah sas the father of them all." Grima muffled as she chewed on her block of cheese, the sounds of it mushing between her teeth and lips snacking made Lanea scoff at how much the demon enjoyed the taste of something creamy, salty, yet zangy.

"After a time the grass began to grow thin and the rabbits wandered everywhere, multiplying and eating as they went. Then Frith said to El-ahrairah, 'Prince Rabbit, if you cannot control your people, I shall find ways to control them. So mark what I say.' But El-ahrairah would not listen and he said to Frith, 'My people are the strongest in the world, for they breed faster and eat more than any of the other people. And this shows how much they love Lord Frith, for of all the animals they are the most responsive to his warmth and brightness. You must realize my lord, how important they are and not hinder them in their beautiful lives.'" Grima continued, Lanea took a sip of her tea.

She was astonished how Ms. Li remembered the story so well, but with every good story, there's bad pieces to it. And Lanea was ready for what Grima's story had to offer, "Seems like El-ahrairah is going to put his rabbits through hell with what he just said to the great Frith, huh?" She asked, putting a hand on her face and resting her elbow on her knee. "Now now now, Lanea. I don't do spoilers, I refuse to have unlimited questions during my story telling." Grima replied, she rested her back against the arm rest and looked at the ceiling.

"Frith could've killed El-ahrairah at once, but he had a mind to keep him in the world, because he needed him to sport, jest, and play tricks. So he determined to get the better of him, not by means of his own power but by means of trick. He gave out that he would hold a great meeting and at that meeting he would give a present to every animal and bird, to make each one different from the rest. And all the creatures set out to go to the meeting place. But they all arrived at different times, because Frith made sure it would happen so. And when the black bird came, he gave him his beautiful song, and when the cow came, he gave her sharp horns and the strength to be afraid of no other creature. And so in their turn came the fox, stoat, and weasel. And to each of them Frith gave the cunning and the fierceness and the desire to hunt, slay, and eat the children of El-ahrairah. And so they went away from Frith full of nothing but hunger to kill the rabbits." Grima kept on going with the story, one of her legs were hanging off the couch, swinging back and forth.

She had all of her eyes closed and sometimes opened two on the right side to see if Lanea's face changed. But it remained aloof. "I had a feeling Frith was up to something. Then again, he'd have to be, after what El-ahrairah has said. I'd be out for blood too." Lanea said putting her cup down, she held a finger up and pointed it at Grima, who only nodded her head and waited patiently for the little witch to finish.

"I think most of us would be... Where was I, hmm...?"

"Well, you stopped at carnivores being out for rabbit blood..."

"Oh yes, everyone's gift, thank you."

"I wonder if El-ahrairah will receive a gift..." Lanea trailed off, she leaned forward and rested herself on Grima's large thigh, slowly crossing her arms and resting her chin on them. Ms. Li did nothing, she didn't mind it. "Now, all this time El-ahrairah was dancing and mating, boasting that he was going to Frith's meeting to receive a great gift. And at last he set out for the meeting place. But as he was going there, he stopped to rest on a sandy hillside. And while he was resting, over the hill came flying the dark swift, screaming as he went, 'News! News! News!' For you know, this is what he has said ever since that day. So El-ahrairah called up to him and said, 'What news?' 'Why,' said the swift, 'I would not be you, El-ahrairah. For Frith has given the fox and the weasel cunning hearts and sharp teeth, and to the cat he has given silent feet and eyes that can see in the dark, and they are gone away from Frith's place to kill and devour all that belongs to El-ahrairah.' And he dashed on over the hills. And at that moment El-ahrairah heard the voice of Frith calling, 'Where is El-ahrairah? For all the others have taken their gifts and gone and I have to come to look for him.'" Grima informed, cutting herself another block of cheese. She quickly bit into it, chewing it quickly before swallowing it, then repeating what she did.

"Then El-ahrairah knew that Frith was too clever for him and he was frightened. He thought that the fox and the weasel were coming with Frith and he turned to the face of the hill and began to dig. He dug a hole, but he had dug only a little of it when Frith came over the hill alone. And he saw El-ahrairah's bottom sticking out of the hole and sand flying out in showers as the digging went on. When he saw that he called out ' My friend, have you seen El-ahrairah, for I am looking for him to give him my gift?' 'No,' answered El-ahrairah, 'I'm busy. The fox and the weasel are coming. If you want to bless me you can bless my bottom, for it is sticking out of the hole." Grima muffled, Lanea let out a chuckle. "Bless his bottom, eh?" She groaned "Now now Lanea, the story is coming to a close." Grima cooed, Lanea placed her chin on her forearms, continuing to stare at the spider plant.

Waiting for her to finish another block of cheese.

"Then, Frith felt himself in friendship with El-ahrairah, because of his resourcefulness, and because he would not give up even when he thought the fox and the weasel were coming. And he said, 'Very well, I will bless your bottom as it sticks out of a hole. Bottom, be strength and warning speed forever and save the life of your master. Be it so!' And as he spoke, El-ahrairah's tail grew shining white and flashed like a star: and his back legs grew long and powerful and he thumped the hillside until the very beetles fell of the grass stems. He came out of the hole and tore across the hill faster than any creature in the world and Frith called after him, 'El-ahrairah, your people cannot rule the world, for I will not have it so. All the world will be your enemy, Prince with a Thousand Enemies, and whenever they catch you, they will kill you. But first they must catch you, digger, runner, listener, prince with a swift warning. Be cunning and full of tricks and your people shall never be destroyed.' And El-ahrairah knew then that although he would not be mocked, yet Frith was his friend. And every evening, when Frith has done his days work and lies calm and easy in the red sky, El-ahrairah, his children, and his children's children come out of their holes and feed and play in his sight, for they are his friends and he promised them that they can never be destroyed." Grima finished, leaving her doll faced friend in awe.

The story made her feel, strong. Although a rabbit is small and weak, it was strong in it's own way.

"Are there anymore?"

"Hmm?"

"Are there anymore stories Ms. Li, surely that can't be the end of El-ahrairah's story."

"There are more stories, but all in do time."

Lanea sighed before getting up from the couch. Grima got up and dusted off her black silked backless romper before looking at the clock; it was passed moonrise. "Alright girl, put ya suit on. We're going out for a little fun." Lanea nodded her head before retreating to her room, as she changed into her outfit she wondered what other stories of the Rabbit Prince Grima would tell next? What made him so great? Were there any other rabbits just like El-ahrairah? But like Grima said.

All in due time.

***

Well, there's that, off to the next chapter with me. Hope you liked it, I thought it be nice since Lanea likes stories. Watership Down is both Grima and my favorite story (It took me four days to read it completely) so you will be hearing her reference a lot of insults, stories, and words from the book alot. Once again, thank you, and I will see you again soon...

Oh, and don't forget to check out @askmrvandmsli any questions you got for them they'll answer as best as they can. So ask 'em whatever... Bye now!