Gnofu's Tale

Gnofu hopped away into the forest as quickly as his little rabbit legs would take him. He dashed left, then right, then left again. He hoped to elude any pursuing predators. Perhaps, he’d be luckier than his older brothers and sisters. Claws struck and scraped along his leg dramatically altering his direction of travel. Careening into a rotten stump had been painful to say the least. Yet, dust and debris sent forth into the air had managed to confuse the young puma giving Gnofu time to escape into the stump’s hollow counterpart which had fallen many moons ago. Hopping inside while favoring his right leg, he hoped that the wood of this log would be stronger than that of the stump.

“Merrrrrow,” the puma gnarred. “I shall still get you my precioussss. Come hither my precioussss,” the puma hissed, “And, I shall make it clean and ssssswift. Yesss! Merrrrrow!!” Swatting the end of the log, the puma broke off a good sized piece and Gnofu trembled and retreated as far back into the log as possible. Repeating the process, however, did not yield as much success for the young hunter. The puma laid down and peered inside. Sunlight penetrated much of the log’s narrow opening and touched Gnofu’s wound ever so slightly, aiding the puma’s vision. “I see you my precioussss. A tasty morsel you ssshall be,” the puma promised as it licked its paw tasting Gnofu’s blood. It allowed a drop of drool to drip from one of its sharp, pointed fangs. It knew Gnofu would see it and gave a wicked smile as it watched Gnofu quiver with fear.

The puma wanted to crawl inside but the opening was just too small. It reached its paw inside as far as it could go and unsheathed its claws trying to obtain its treasure. However, Gnofu was just out of reach. Relaxing just a bit, Gnofu grinned. Retracting it claws and leg from the log, the puma saw and exclaimed, “Ahhhh! You ain’t out of the woods yet my tasty treat. As a matter of fact, we’re smack dab in the middle of the woods. Ha. Ha. Ha,” the puma laughed. “A puzzle it issss, my precioussss. But, the day is barely beginning. Hmmmm. What to do? What to do?” the puma thought out loud.

Impulsively, it leapt up on top of the log and jumped up and down hoping that Gnofu would come hopping out and it could snatch Gnofu when he bolted. But, Gnofu remained pressed back in the log as far as he could go. Angrily and with another growl, the puma pounced precariously on the end of the log. Snap! A small piece that the puma pounced upon broke off causing the puma to lose its balance and slam its nose into the ground and bite its lip. Gnarring, the puma reached one more time into the log but with just as much success. “Fine! Fine! Have it your way,” the puma said with a defeated gnar. “Perhaps next time, the odds will be in my favor and I’ll get to further taste your flavor.” And with that said, the puma pivoted and proceeded to return to the meadow where it hoped there would be some scraps still sitting in the sunshine available for its morning meal.

Gnofu licked the wounds he could. It had certainly been a harrowing start to the day. Safe for now, he relaxed a bit more. However, there was no way he was moving from this spot! As if glue securely held him in place, he trembled once more, rested his head on his front paws and closed his eyes.

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It had been a beautiful, warm, summer morning. The sunshine was glistening off of the last few dew drops that still clung to the amber petals of the dandelions in his meadow. Well, it was everyone's meadow. But, it was the only meadow he had ever known. Therefore, he considered it his even though he shared it with his litter mates. They had dared him to take point and see if it was safe to frolic amongst the flowers in the field.

Sensing no immediate danger, he took the first few hops out of the forest and paused. He smiled joyfully as he watched a colorful butterfly settle down to harvest some nectar from a nearby flower. A lite breeze sent a few seeds aloft as his brothers and sisters came up quietly and quickly from behind him and plowed him over in their haste to break out onto the field. He righted himself, shook off the dust and headed for the juiciest plant he could see.

Being the runt of a nine kit litter had been challenging at first. However, abundant early springtime food had allowed his mother to produce ample milk. He liked to think of himself as her favorite for she had always seemed to care for him and even protect him when his siblings tried to pick on him. Thus, he usually tended to try and stay closer to her even when others had hopped further away.

His mother had warned them to always use caution when out in the open meadow. “Danger can descend upon you at any moment and usually when you least expect it,” he recalled his mother saying. “Stay in a group and help one another out especially when eating for your crunching can hide the sounds of an approaching predator,” his mother had taught. Ahh, but, it was advice just like so much other advice that went in one ear and out the other. To stay awake during lessons, the kits had nudged one another occasionally. Yet, it was still inevitable that one or more of them would fall asleep especially during the telling of endless rabbit lore. However, Gnofu was always alert during all the lessons. Furthermore, he thoroughly thought that the tall tail tales were absolutely gnomazing!

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Today was his third day of coming to the meadow with his siblings. Their mother had given birth to another litter and Gnofu had to learn to make it in the world. His mother could no longer afford to nurse him and the new kits too. So, he’d been shooed off to learn to eat plant food. He didn’t like it at first. But the hungrier he got, the better the dandelions tasted even though their leaves did have a bitter aftertaste and the flowers tickled the roof of his mouth. If he dug just a bit around the base of the stem and was successful at pulling it up, he could even enjoy the roots. He saw where a worm had retracted itself back down into its burrow, losing the soil near a particularly beautiful plant. He dug there, pulled on the plant and was rewarded. Yum! He thought contentedly as he bit into the tender morsel.

He watched his big brothers and sisters join another small group of rabbits in the middle of the field where other varieties of plants grew such as shrubs and wild strawberries. They had said that the tastiest vittles were way out in the open. Yet he also remembered from his rabbit safety lessons, that the middle of the field also made you the most vulnerable to eyes in the sky. Of course, he’d been the only one fully awake during that particular lesson. While he was putting on the pounds, he only weighed about six pounds. His brothers and sisters on the other hand, all weighed more than nine pounds. Although eagles rarely attacked fully grown rabbits of his species, they were still young and vulnerable. And even large four foot long, fifty pound adult rabbits were still no match for a drake or dragon.

As he enjoyed his root, he watched them play, throwing caution to the wind. He didn’t feel the need to explore that far out in the open yet. He had all the dandelion he could eat near the edge of the forest. There was even a lilac in bloom which he sauntered over too and enjoyed a few bites of.

Nope, danger wasn’t his middle name. And a good thing too. Puma roars broke the serene scene. Chaos erupted in the middle of the field as rabbits scattered. He watched several pumas burst out of the forest toward the fleeing rabbits. As they had a coordinated attack coming from three different directions staying upwind of the rabbits, numerous bunnies became breakfast for the hungry pumas. Transfixed momentarily, he felt as though he was back in one of his lessons learning first hand about the food chain. And, the rabbits weren’t on top. Nor, were they fairing very well here.

As soon as he hopped away from the lilac, he was spotted. The chase was on! But, he had the jump start and was only a handful of hops away from the edge of the forest. After running for quite a while, he’d managed to escape with mostly minor injuries. While his leg, the most severe of his wounds, was throbbing where the mountain lion had slashed it and he had a massive pounding headache, gnomazingly enough, he was alive.

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Gnikki activated a levitation spell and drifted to the upper branches of a lilac bush overlooking a gorgeous meadow and watched as dawn broke the night’s hold. She found a perfect perch on which to sit so that she would be concealed in the upper branches of a lilac bush while still being able to observe the morning activities of the creatures coming casually to feast. She herself had just recently finished a simple, yet succulent Smooth Snake Egg Omelet with wild scallions and aged almond cheddar cheese. Mmmmm, yummm, she recalled! Additionally, she decided to gather a pouchful of fresh, wild strawberries, which she could nibble on throughout the day. She had found them growing near the bank of a small stream not too far away. While there, she had bathed in the cool waters to help mask her scent and also refilled her water flask.

She felt the warmth of the morning sun lightly touch the tips of her pointed ears, which protruded slightly away from her head and through her long silvery hair. Her hair cascaded down to the middle of her back and highlighted her silvery eyes. She smiled as she brought her hair over her left shoulder and wrung a bit more water out of it and watched a few drops fall to the ground along with some dew drops that had been clinging to the lilac. She picked some flowers and began crushing them into her hair until it more closely resembled the lavender color of the flowers. While her camouflage spell would be useful, actually camouflaging herself in the foliage she was trying to hide in was better. Moreover, this helped her smell more like the lilac as well. Thus, she also rubbed the purple oil on her pale skin and her greenish-brown leather tunic and breeches. to assist with the effect.

Feeling smug with the achievement of her overall appearance, she leaned back on a branch and nibbled on a wild strawberry. She licked the luscious fruit, thoroughly enjoying its flavor as the first rabbits appeared in the meadow opposite her location. She heard them before she saw them due to the distance. Quickly and quietly she uttered the incantation of a spell that granted her the vision of an eagle. Being a beastmaster certainly had its perks she thought as she brought her vision into focus on the emerging group.

For about a week, she had been observing this meadow watching the young kits along with some of the older rabbits as well. She fancied a young buck probably about a year old with brownish-blackish fur that would blend in well to the foliage of most places. It looked like he was probably about twenty-five pounds. He had a somewhat playful attitude with the younger and older rabbits alike. Yet, he seemed to be alert and a bit cautious too, which would be a good thing on the adventures she had planned and expeditions she would be sent out on as a scout for the Gninth Legion of the Gnoman Army.

“Oh goody! He’s here,” she thought as she rubbed and clapped her hands together silently in eager anticipation. Today, they’d bond. And, that would be gnomazing!

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An eagle's scream broke the silence of the meadow. An elderly rabbit that had recently emerged seemed unaffected by it as she proceeded to hop toward a rose bush she’d been eating parts of for quite a while. Perhaps, she just didn’t hear as well as she used too. But when it screamed a second time, she twitched an ear in its general direction and adjusted her body so she could see it. Yet, she was still not overly concerned as she dug up a large clump of dandelions and feasted on their amber flowers and green stems and leaves. She liked to save the roots for last, Gnikki noted. Probably, Gnikki thought, because they tasted the best. Even Gnikki didn’t really care for the bitter taste of the leaves. But, she’d definitely eat them in a pinch.

The other rabbits, being much younger and smaller were rightly terrified by the eagle’s calls. They had scampered back into the safety of the woods leaving the doe by herself. After a bit though, the other rabbits gained courage from the older doe’s defiance and hopped out to join her for breakfast. Gnikki noted the sandy-tannish color of this eagle, which marked it as a youngster interested in a morning meal just like the rabbits. Gnikki wasn’t sure if this young predator would try to quickly snatch one of the young kits that had recently come out of the woods from another location to join the other rabbits or not.

Gnikki tried to connect and communicate to the eagle. It wasn’t as if she was concerned it would try and go for the young buck she wanted with kits out on the field. But, she knew a successful attack would spook all the rabbits and make it much more difficult for her bond to hold. While she was able to reach its mind, it was too intent on filling its empty stomach. “Hungry! Hungry,” was the overwhelming response the eagle communicated. It shook its head; broke the bond; and cried out again.

“Oh, you foolish bird,” Gnikki said quietly as she watched the elderly doe prepare for combat. She took a gentle hop toward the youngest and smallest kit. Then, she pretended to eat while tensing up her mussels. She was baiting the bird! She wanted it to attack! Unbelievable! Gnikki had seen these rabbits in action. Heck, she had even bonded successfully with a few of them over the years. That was why when she came once more into this region, she wanted to obtain another one. While the wingspan of the eagle was a little more than the length of the elderly doe, it weighed a tenth of the doe. Granted, it could be faster, especially in a dive and snatch. Furthermore, the adult eagles often feasted on these rabbits, especially the younger and smaller ones. But, this was an inexperienced hunter and obviously unfamiliar with these “gentle” giants.

With an idea of what was going to unfold, Gnikki watched dumbfoundedly as the eagle folded in its wings and dove. It angled itself towards one of the kits furthest away from the elderly doe and other rabbits. The doe took a couple more hops toward the kit and wiggled its tail eagerly. The eagle, intent on its prey, didn't notice. The eagle opened its wings and talons to grasp the kit while the doe took three giant, lightning quick jumps and leapt into the air with claws and teeth bared. Bam! Gnikki blinked as the two animals collided in the air. “Caa kaawwaaggh ggh,” were the last sounds uttered by the eagle as it fell to the ground snapping one of its wings instantly under the weight of the doe. But, the doe didn’t let it suffer as it slashed it quickly and repeatedly. The doe had protected the kits. Immediately, the doe began teaching the youngsters a valuable lesson, which Gnikki listened to and thought was absolutely gnomazing!

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