Warren of Mistwood Activities

That day, she had no idea her life would change. She would lose everything she ever knew. Ash cluelessly hopped around the farm field as her owner disappeared inside the house. She nibbled on the fresh grass then hopped onto the stone doorstep to peek through the glass door. She yawned and sprawled out on the warm stone, her black coat soaking in the midday sun. A shadow overhead made her drowsy eyes open. Looking up, she expected to see the familiar face of her owner. But instead, a large bird flew overhead. It had been watching. Now was the time to strike. She quickly glanced inside to see what her owner was doing. Talking to their parents. Distracted. Ash quickly darted into the long grass, hoping she hadn't been seen. Too late. The bird swooped down, talons stretched out. She ran for the door again, hoping someone would notice her. Cut off by the bird, she was forced to turn unless she wanted to be in it's grasp. She bolted in a blind panic. Hopping over the fence, she was out in the open grassy clearing. Her heart was pounding as she ran. Her black fur stood out and the bird trailed her until she hit the tree line of the forest nearby. Darting between the trees, the bird struggled to keep up and lost interest. But the doe didn't look back. She kept running. Only when her legs could no longer carry her did she stop.

The former pet rabbit cowered in a bush. Each noise startled her. Ash tried her best to calm down, trying to control her breathing. She attempted to come up with a plan to get home, but the sounds around her snapped her out of it whenever she tried. Deciding she couldn't stay in the bush forever, she had to move. The lone rabbit wandered the misty woods for days. Shadows in the fog spooked her, sending her running. Noises had her rush for cover, even the calls of harmless songbirds birds that sometimes visited the farm. She lost hope. With how many times she had blindly ran, she had no way to keep track of where she had and hadn't been. Giving up, she decided to dig out a small burrow under the roots of a tree. Exhausted from days of traveling, she only dug enough to hide herself in. Surely they'd come looking for her?

For the next few days, Ash moped around the tree she settled under. A few hops were as far as she went, to look out into the forest behind the tree. She nibbled at the grass just outside her burrow; she hadn't been feeling hungry for the past few days. More just sick to her stomach. It seemed to rain every night. The doe would lay with her head resting on her paws; watching the rain drip down from the leaves overhead until she was too cold. Then she'd shuffle deeper into her shallow burrow and try to stay warm. The forest seemed quiet. Perhaps she was just comfortable with the calls and rustling now that she'd been here for a while. It was easy to tune out and stare into the seemingly empty shadows. She wasn't alone. Not for the past few days. Only now did she see the long-eared figure staring back at her. The black rabbit jumped to her feet in shock. Frozen. The figure turned and ran, sinking away into the dark woods.
"You!" she gasped after a fighting to gain control of her body, "come back!"
Ash followed. Reaching the bottom of the slope her tree rested on, she glanced around and realised she had already lost track of the other rabbit. Her heart sank and she loped back to her burrow.