When the green field comes off like a lidRevealing what was much better hid,Unpleasant;And look! Behind, without a soundThe woods have come up and are standing roundIn deadly crescent.
And the bolt is sliding in its groove,Outside the window is the black remover's van,And now with sudden, swift emergenceCome the women in dark glasses, the hump-backed surgeonsAnd the scissor-man.
W.H. Auden, The WitnessesIt was cold, it was cold and the roof was made of bones. The roof was made ofthe interlaced sprays of the yew tree, stiff twigs twisted in and out, over andunder, hard as ice and set with dull red berries. "Come on, Hazel," said Cowslip.
"We're going to carry the yew berries home in our mouths and eat them in thegreat burrow. Your friends must learn to do that if they want to go our way." "No!
No!" cried Fiver. "Hazel, no!" But then came Bigwig, twisting in and out of thebranches, his mouth full of berries. "Look," said Bigwig, "I can do it. I'm runninganother way. Ask me where, Hazel! Ask me where! Ask me where!" Then theywere running another way, running, not to the warren but over the fields in thecold, and Bigwig dropped the berries -- blood-red drops, red droppings hard aswire. "It's no good," he said. "No good biting them. They're cold."Hazel woke. He was in the burrow. He shivered. Why was there no warmth ofrabbit bodies lying close together? Where was Fiver? He sat up. Nearby, Bigwigwas stirring and twitching in his sleep, searching for warmth, trying to pressagainst another rabbit's body no longer there. The shallow hollow in the sandyfloor where Fiver had lain was not quite cold: but Fiver was gone.
"Fiver!" said Hazel in the dark.
As soon as he had spoken he knew there would be no reply. He pushed Bigwigwith his nose, butting urgently. "Bigwig! Fiver's gone! Bigwig!"Bigwig was wide awake on the instant and Hazel had never felt so glad of hissturdy readiness.
"What did you say? What's wrong?""Fiver's gone.""Where's he gone?""Silf -- outside. It can only be silf. You know he wouldn't go wandering about inthe warren. He hates it.""He's a nuisance, isn't he? He's left this burrow cold, too. You think he's indanger, don't you? You want to go and look for him?""Yes, I must. He's upset and overwrought and it's not light yet. There may beelil, whatever Strawberry says."Bigwig listened and sniffed for a few moments.
"It's very nearly light," he said. "There'll be light enough to find him by. Well,I'd better come with you, I suppose. Don't worry -- he can't have gone far. But bythe King's Lettuce! I won't half give him a piece of my mind when we catch him.""I'll hold him down while you kick him, if only we can find him. Come on!"They went up the run to the mouth of the hole and paused together. "Since ourfriends aren't here to push us," said Bigwig, "we may as well make sure the placeisn't crawling with stoats and owls before we go out."At that moment a brown owl's call sounded from the opposite wood. It was thefirst call, and by instinct they both crouched motionless, counting four heartbeatsuntil the second followed.
"It's moving away," said Hazel.
"How many field mice say that every night, I wonder? You know the call'sdeceptive. It's meant to be.""Well, I can't help it," said Hazel. "Fiver's somewhere out there and I'm goingafter him. You were right, anyway. It is light -- just.""Shall we look under the yew tree first?"But Fiver was not under the yew tree. The light, as it grew, began to show theupper field, while the distant hedge and brook remained dark, linear shapesbelow. Bigwig jumped down from the bank into the field and ran in a long curveacross the wet grass. He stopped almost opposite the hole by which they hadcome up, and Hazel joined him.
"Here's his line, all right," said Bigwig. "Fresh, too. From the hole straightdown toward the brook. He won't be far away."When raindrops are lying it is easy to see where grass has recently beencrossed. They followed the line down the field and reached the hedge beside thecarrot ground and the source of the brook. Bigwig had been right when he saidthe line was fresh. As soon as they had come through the hedge they saw Fiver.
He was feeding, alone. A few fragments of carrot were still lying about near thespring, but he had left these untouched and was eating the grass not far from thegnarled crab-apple tree. They approached and he looked up.
Hazel said nothing and began to feed beside him. He was now regretting thathe had brought Bigwig. In the darkness before morning and the first shock ofdiscovering that Fiver was gone, Bigwig had been a comfort and a stand-by. Butnow, as he saw Fiver, small and familiar, incapable of hurting anyone or ofconcealing what he felt, trembling in the wet grass, either from fear or from cold,his anger melted away. He felt only sorry for him and sure that, if they could stayalone together for a while, Fiver would come round to an easier state of mind. Butit was probably too late to persuade Bigwig to be gentle: he could only hope forthe best.
Contrary to his fears, however, Bigwig remained as silent as himself. Evidentlyhe had been expecting Hazel to speak first and was somewhat at a loss. For sometime all three moved on quietly over the grass, while the shadows grew strongerand the wood pigeons clattered among the distant trees. Hazel was beginning tofeel that all would be well and that Bigwig had more sense than he had given himcredit for, when Fiver sat up on his hind legs, cleaned his face with his paws andthen, for the first time, looked directly at him.
"I'm going now," he said. "I feel very sad. I'd like to wish you well, Hazel, butthere's no good to wish you in this place. So just goodbye.""But where are you going, Fiver?""Away. To the hills, if I can get there.""By yourself, alone? You can't. You'd die.""You wouldn't have a hope, old chap," said Bigwig. "Something would get youbefore ni-Frith.""No," said Fiver very quietly. "You are closer to death than I.""Are you trying to frighten me, you miserable little lump of chatteringchickweed?" cried Bigwig. "I've a good mind--""Wait, Bigwig," said Hazel. "Don't speak roughly to him.""Why, you said yourself--" began Bigwig.
"I know. But I feel differently now. I'm sorry, Bigwig. I was going to ask you tohelp me to make him come back to the warren. But now -- well, I've always foundthat there was something in what Fiver had to say. For the last two days I'verefused to listen to him and I still think he's out of his senses. But I haven't theheart to drive him back to the warren. I really believe that for some reason orother the place is frightening him out of his wits. I'll go with him a little way andperhaps we can talk. I can't ask you to risk it, too. Anyway, the others ought toknow what we're doing and they won't unless you go and tell them. I'll be backbefore ni-Frith. I hope we both shall."Bigwig stared. Then he turned furiously on Fiver. "You wretched little blackbeetle," he said. "You've never learned to obey orders, have you? It's me, me, meall the time. 'Oh, I've got a funny feeling in my toe, so we must all go and stand onour heads!' And now we've found a fine warren and got into it without evenhaving to fight, you've got to do your best to upset everyone! And then you riskthe life of one of the best rabbits we've got, just to play nursey while you gowandering about like a moonstruck field mouse. Well, I'm finished with you, I'lltell you plain. And now I'm going back to the warren to make sure everyone elseis finished with you as well. And they will be -- don't make any mistake aboutthat."He turned and dashed back through the nearest gap in the hedge. On theinstant, a fearful commotion began on the farther side. There were sounds ofkicking and plunging. A stick flew into the air. Then a flat, wet clod of dead leavesshot clean through the gap and landed clear of the hedge, close to Hazel. Thebrambles thrashed up and down. Hazel and Fiver stared at each other, bothfighting against the impulse to run. What enemy was at work on the other side ofthe hedge? There were no cries -- no spitting of a cat, no squealing of a rabbit --only the crackling of twigs and the tearing of the grass in violence.
By an effort of courage against all instinct, Hazel forced himself forward intothe gap, with Fiver following. A terrible sight lay before them. The rotten leaveshad been thrown up in showers. The earth had been laid bare and was scoredwith long scratches and furrows. Bigwig was lying on his side, his back legskicking and struggling. A length of twisted copper wire, gleaming dully in the firstsunlight, was looped round his neck and ran taut across one forepaw to the headof a stout peg driven into the ground. The running knot had pulled tight and wasburied in the fur behind his ear. The projecting point of one strand had laceratedhis neck and drops of blood, dark and red as yew berries, welled one by one downhis shoulder. For a few moments he lay panting, his side heaving in exhaustion.
Then again began the struggling and fighting, backward and forward, jerking andfalling, until he choked and lay quiet.
Frenzied with distress, Hazel leaped out of the gap and squatted beside him.
Bigwig's eyes were closed and his lips pulled back from the long front teeth in afixed snarl. He had bitten his lower lip and from this, too, the blood was running.
Froth covered his jaws and chest"Thlayli!" said Hazel, stamping. "Thlayli! Listen! You're in a snare -- a snare!
What did they say in the Owsla? Come on -- think. How can we help you?"There was a pause. Then Bigwig's back legs began to kick once more, butfeebly. His ears drooped. His eyes opened unseeing and the whites showedbloodshot as the brown irises rolled one way and the other. After a moment hisvoice came thick and low, bubbling out of the bloody spume in his mouth.
"Owsla -- no good -- biting wire. Peg -- got to -- dig out."A convulsion shook him and he scrabbled at the ground, covering himself in amask of wet earth and blood. Then he was still again.
"Run, Fiver, run to the warren," cried Hazel. "Get the others -- Blackberry,Silver. Be quick! He'll die."Fiver was off up the field like a hare. Hazel, left alone, tried to understand whatwas needed. What was the peg? How was he to dig it out? He looked down at thefoul mess before him. Bigwig was lying across the wire, which came out under hisbelly and seemed to disappear into the ground. Hazel struggled with his ownincomprehension. Bigwig had said, "Dig." That at least he understood. He beganto scratch into the soft earth beside the body, until after a time his claws scrapedagainst something smooth and firm. As he paused, perplexed, he foundBlackberry at his shoulder.
"Bigwig just spoke," he said to him, "but I don't think he can now. He said, 'Digout the peg.' What does that mean? What have we got to do?""Wait a moment," said Blackberry. "Let me think, and try not to be impatient."Hazel turned his head and looked down the course of the brook. Far away,between the two copses, he could see the cherry tree where two days before hehad sat with Blackberry and Fiver in the sunrise. He remembered how Bigwig hadchased Hawkbit through the long grass, forgetting the quarrel of the previousnight in the joy of their arrival. He could see Hawkbit running toward him nowand two or three of the others -- Silver, Dandelion and Pipkin. Dandelion, well infront, dashed up to the gap and checked, twitching and staring.
"What is it, Hazel? What's happened? Fiver said--""Bigwig's in a wire. Let him alone till Blackberry tells us. Stop the otherscrowding round."Dandelion turned and raced back as Pipkin came up.
"Is Cowslip coming?" said Hazel. "Perhaps he knows--""He wouldn't come," replied Pipkin. "He told Fiver to stop talking about it.""Told him what?" asked Hazel incredulously. But at that moment Blackberryspoke and Hazel was beside him in a flash.
"This is it," said Blackberry. "The wire's on a peg and the peg's in the ground --there, look. We've got to dig it out. Come on -- dig beside it."Hazel dug once more, his forepaws throwing up the soft, wet soil and slippingagainst the hard sides of the peg. Dimly, he was aware of the others waitingnearby. After a time he was forced to stop, panting. Silver took his place, and wasfollowed by Buckthorn. The nasty, smooth, clean, man-smelling peg was laid bareto the length of a rabbit's ear, but still it did not come loose. Bigwig had notmoved. He lay across the wire, torn and bloody, with closed eyes. Buckthorn drewhis head and paws out of the hole and rubbed the mud off his face.
"The peg's narrower down there," he said. "It tapers. I think it could be bittenthrou............