Rabbit: January 1968
Title: Rabbit
Chapter Number/Title: January 1968: Sixth Sense (11/100) [[ Previous | Next]]
Rating: G
Word Count: 899
Workshop?: Suggestions always welcome.
January 28, 1968
Sixth Sense
Flying, flying and an elephant. He’s a nice elephant, but something’s wrong. There’s thunder, and “Hurry, Rabbit, hurry,” says Mr. Elephant. “Your father needs you!” It’s urgent, and Rabbit knows well enough to trust this elephant, and so he mounts a black bird and flies, flies.
He sat up, his heart pounding in the silence and dark of his room. He had fallen asleep, just as he had sworn not to do, and Father was in trouble. Only it was some elephant that had told him this, and he knew very well that elephants do not speak. He knew it had to be all made up but he felt that something was wrong. He clutched Laurens tight and took three deep breaths.
It was a dream. Everything was fine. He only hoped he hadn’t missed Father coming home, because he’d made it too far to fall asleep and ruin it all. Rabastan felt his eyelids drooping again, but he wouldn’t let them fall. The clock by his bed ticked, ticked, ticked, and the boy tried to read the time in the dark. Was it one? Two? It was close to one of those, he knew, and the big hand pointed down. One-thirty, maybe.
He listened as close as he could for any sounds, and for a rare time regretted how very far his room was from the front of the house. There was hardly the pit-pat of an elf walking the hall-just the tick-tick-tick of the clock. His head started to fall, but he jerked it up. But then again it started to fall, and…
It’s dark now. There’s darkness all around and men, robed, standing in a circle. Rabastan isn’t sure if he’s one of them or not, but he feels the cold wind whip around. If there’s wind, they must be outside, but the darkness makes it hard to tell. He feels like he’s spinning, spinning, and something inside tells him, “Father’s all right, and he’s coming home.”
The boy shook himself awake again. Father was all right, and he’d be coming home soon. That meant he had to stay up now. He had to, because it would just be a few minutes. Just a few, but his eyelids felt so heavy. Just a few…
The sunshine is bright in the meadow, and the ground is so bouncy beneath his feet. He walks behind someone else, another wizard, robed and hooded, and very tall. The faster Rabbit hurries to catch up with the leader, the further he falls behind. But then he feels a warm and strong hand takes his, and-
And he felt a rough and brief kiss on his forehead. As he opened small blue eyes, the bit of light streaming in from the hall lanterns blinded him and forced him to squint. Still, he made out his father, leaning over the bed, and his mother, leaning in the doorframe. No time wasted, he dropped Laurens and threw his arms around the long-awaited parent.
He hardly noticed Father recoil in surprise, and certainly didn’t see his eyes opened wide under spectacles. He did feel the fabric of the robes, rougher and not as nice as usual, and the strong arms pushing him back down into bed.
“It’s late, Rabastan. You should sleep.” As Rabastan’s eyes adjusted to the dark he was able to see how tired his father looked.
“But-but I stayed up all night waiting for you,” Rabastan burst out. “And Mr. Elephant said you were in trouble and I didn’t want you in trouble, and he said I should help you.” He breathed here, ignoring the fact that no one else knew about the elephant. He looked up at Father and blinked, eyes wide and earnest. “I want to help you. See, and I was even able to stay up as late as you!”
The faintest hint of a smile came to Mr. Lestrange’s usually stern lips. “Rabastan, you were asleep.”
The boy scrunched his brow, bit his lip, and his eyes darted around the room as he thought. “But, no, I was just-no, maybe I did fall asleep. Only because a dark room is boring, though. If I were with you, I’d stay up, I pro-pro-promise.” The yawn that interrupted his thought probably ruined it, but he did his best to screw up his face to look as awake and serious as he could.
“Maybe you would,” answered his father. “But you can do that when you’re older. Right now the way to help me is to get lots of sleep and devote yourself to your studies so that you are the best when you’re old enough.”
Rabbit nodded and snuggled back into his fluffy blankets. He watched through squinted eyes as Father stood back up, blew out the lantern, and walked back toward Maman. Rabastan could make out their figures, dark against the hall’s light, and he felt happier than he had all day.
“Father?” he whispered.
“Yes, Rabastan?” He sounded weary, and Rabastan felt bad for bothering him. Father never liked being bothered, and today he had been up since early in the morning, and then out since supper, and it was late.
“Oh. Nothing. Just. I’m glad you’re back.”
The bit of flickering candlelight dimmed as the door closed with a click, and Rabastan curled up, satisfied at last to sleep.
Chapter Number/Title: January 1968: Sixth Sense (11/100) [[ Previous | Next]]
Rating: G
Word Count: 899
Workshop?: Suggestions always welcome.
January 28, 1968
Sixth Sense
Flying, flying and an elephant. He’s a nice elephant, but something’s wrong. There’s thunder, and “Hurry, Rabbit, hurry,” says Mr. Elephant. “Your father needs you!” It’s urgent, and Rabbit knows well enough to trust this elephant, and so he mounts a black bird and flies, flies.
He sat up, his heart pounding in the silence and dark of his room. He had fallen asleep, just as he had sworn not to do, and Father was in trouble. Only it was some elephant that had told him this, and he knew very well that elephants do not speak. He knew it had to be all made up but he felt that something was wrong. He clutched Laurens tight and took three deep breaths.
It was a dream. Everything was fine. He only hoped he hadn’t missed Father coming home, because he’d made it too far to fall asleep and ruin it all. Rabastan felt his eyelids drooping again, but he wouldn’t let them fall. The clock by his bed ticked, ticked, ticked, and the boy tried to read the time in the dark. Was it one? Two? It was close to one of those, he knew, and the big hand pointed down. One-thirty, maybe.
He listened as close as he could for any sounds, and for a rare time regretted how very far his room was from the front of the house. There was hardly the pit-pat of an elf walking the hall-just the tick-tick-tick of the clock. His head started to fall, but he jerked it up. But then again it started to fall, and…
It’s dark now. There’s darkness all around and men, robed, standing in a circle. Rabastan isn’t sure if he’s one of them or not, but he feels the cold wind whip around. If there’s wind, they must be outside, but the darkness makes it hard to tell. He feels like he’s spinning, spinning, and something inside tells him, “Father’s all right, and he’s coming home.”
The boy shook himself awake again. Father was all right, and he’d be coming home soon. That meant he had to stay up now. He had to, because it would just be a few minutes. Just a few, but his eyelids felt so heavy. Just a few…
The sunshine is bright in the meadow, and the ground is so bouncy beneath his feet. He walks behind someone else, another wizard, robed and hooded, and very tall. The faster Rabbit hurries to catch up with the leader, the further he falls behind. But then he feels a warm and strong hand takes his, and-
And he felt a rough and brief kiss on his forehead. As he opened small blue eyes, the bit of light streaming in from the hall lanterns blinded him and forced him to squint. Still, he made out his father, leaning over the bed, and his mother, leaning in the doorframe. No time wasted, he dropped Laurens and threw his arms around the long-awaited parent.
He hardly noticed Father recoil in surprise, and certainly didn’t see his eyes opened wide under spectacles. He did feel the fabric of the robes, rougher and not as nice as usual, and the strong arms pushing him back down into bed.
“It’s late, Rabastan. You should sleep.” As Rabastan’s eyes adjusted to the dark he was able to see how tired his father looked.
“But-but I stayed up all night waiting for you,” Rabastan burst out. “And Mr. Elephant said you were in trouble and I didn’t want you in trouble, and he said I should help you.” He breathed here, ignoring the fact that no one else knew about the elephant. He looked up at Father and blinked, eyes wide and earnest. “I want to help you. See, and I was even able to stay up as late as you!”
The faintest hint of a smile came to Mr. Lestrange’s usually stern lips. “Rabastan, you were asleep.”
The boy scrunched his brow, bit his lip, and his eyes darted around the room as he thought. “But, no, I was just-no, maybe I did fall asleep. Only because a dark room is boring, though. If I were with you, I’d stay up, I pro-pro-promise.” The yawn that interrupted his thought probably ruined it, but he did his best to screw up his face to look as awake and serious as he could.
“Maybe you would,” answered his father. “But you can do that when you’re older. Right now the way to help me is to get lots of sleep and devote yourself to your studies so that you are the best when you’re old enough.”
Rabbit nodded and snuggled back into his fluffy blankets. He watched through squinted eyes as Father stood back up, blew out the lantern, and walked back toward Maman. Rabastan could make out their figures, dark against the hall’s light, and he felt happier than he had all day.
“Father?” he whispered.
“Yes, Rabastan?” He sounded weary, and Rabastan felt bad for bothering him. Father never liked being bothered, and today he had been up since early in the morning, and then out since supper, and it was late.
“Oh. Nothing. Just. I’m glad you’re back.”
The bit of flickering candlelight dimmed as the door closed with a click, and Rabastan curled up, satisfied at last to sleep.