The wolves that prowled the woods of Blackwell forest were not from around here. Folks knew they were just strangers, hagglers who came looking for land to conquer. The Beasts of Blackwell forest know for certain that there was a time before the wolves, but those who remember it are long dead from time. The Wolves, their singular pack that just kept growing over the years, was located out in the middle of Blackwell, in an open clearing that served as a meeting ground for Beasts and Wolves.

Peter had never been to the Clearing before. He had never had a chance to visit, or any means to. Dead Men were the only reason anyone went to start a fuss with the Wolves, and Peter remembers well the way those meetings ended. The Beast who came to start a fuss would return to town, dejected and sad, totally defeated in their argument by the Wolves. Nothing ever changed in Blackwell, lest you count the weather. But both Zach and Peter doubted the weather had anything to do with the Dead Men that came hours ago. Zach was still shaken, he crawled on the dirt floor, like an Animal, not like a proper Beast at all. Peter had a mind to yank him up by his collar, and force him to walk normally, but he knew Zach would shake out of this frightened stupor soon. They were miles from the Clearing, they wouldn’t make it to the Clearing for hours now. So to pass the time, Peter began to talk.

“Hey Zach,” he said. “Remember that time Dylan snagged two pies off’a Mama’s window sill?” He said, a grin spreading on his face. Peter hopped a little while he walked, imitating an Animalistic Bunny. “He went around pretending to be a normal hog,” he continued. He hopped up onto a low hanging branch and swung from it, landing on the ground next to Zach. Leaves were everywhere. “An’ then he snatched ‘em up! Right when she weren’t lookin’ !” Zach nodded solemnly.

“Yeah, I rem’mber.” He sighed. “Pete, why you gotta make a mess while ya walkin’?” He got up, and brushed the leaves out of the path way. “We walkin’ through some folks’ home, ya know?” Peter silently high fived himself, mentally, for making Zach stand up. Peter just shrugged.

“These folks don’t mind a little mess, now.” He said, kicking up an anthill. “Do they?” Zach shook his head. He was now walking right on his hind legs, just like a proper Beast.

"Well I reckon they do mind, otherwise they wouldn't cut those branches so high." Zach said. Peter stopped and looked at him sideways, wondering what kind of lawn sorcery he was seeing. All Peter saw were a bunch of brambles and thorns that needed a trimming.

"I don't know what yer' talkin' about Zach, buddy, but okay then. These branches are so low, I can make a fine toy out of 'em." He said, swinging one away, rattling the leaves. Peter ran up ahead, knocking more leaves down from the branches. It looked like the sky had opened up and rained down spring on their heads. Peter was laughing at the sight, in total awe of the simplicity of its beauty. Zach just cleaned up the mess he left behind, sweeping the leaves out of the pathway with his tail.

"Ya keep this up, yer' mama won't need no new broom. She can just have my tail, what with how ratty and matted the fur is gonna be when I'm done cleaning up this mess." Zacariah grumbled. Peter wasn't listening though, he was too far away.

"What was that?" He asked absent mindedly knocking more branches. Zach growled.

"I said-"

"Speak up, I c'aint hear ya all the way over there!" Peter said. Zach growled louder, and ran up to Peter, blocking his path.

"Godamn it Pete, can you just take this seriously for a second!?" He said. He was on the ground floor again, not walking like he was supposed to. Peter flicked his friends nose gently with his paw.

"I am taking this seriously. Them Ferals in the Clearing is gonna change all this Dead Man business soon." He said, walking past Zach. Zach turned around to follow Peter, close behind.

"They ain't Ferals Pete, you know that." He said. Peter waved him off.


"Ya only saying that 'cause you afraid of 'em over hearin' us." He said. "Those Wolves are as Feral as any other Feral I done met in my life."

Zach gulped, he didn't want to admit he was afraid of the Wolves. He was a Meat Eater himself. As far as Zach knew, Meat Eaters shouldn't be afraid of other Meat Eaters. They were civilized Beasts, not those wild Animals that looked like them. "Yeah...you right." He said. "Still..." It was always better safe than sorry. The Wolves did risk their hides trying to protect them from the Dead Men. When they felt like it. Soon, night began to fall. And Pete had timed their departure perfectly.

"Well I knew we weren't gonna make it in one full day, so I planned ahead!" He said. Instead of reaching the Clearing they instead made it to a small shack. The lights were on, and Zach could here the chatter of a happy family from inside. Peter walked up to the shacks creaky front porch, and knocked twice. The door was answered by a ruff looking rabbit with scars and scraggly whiskers. His fur was gray as smoke, and he was blind in both his eyes. That didn't stop the old rabbit from hugging Peter and shouting "Why shoot me dead, and tuck me on a humans wall, it's my little nephew!" He said laughing. He patted Peter's back fondly. Peter smiled back.
"How you doing, Uncle Dreasby?" Peter said. Zach walked up to the porch as soon as he did, Dreasby had a look of shock and surprise on his face. "

"Well I'll Be Damned. Zacariah Gumphrey is that you?" He said. He shook Zach's paw fondly. "I thought you went off to one of them Colleges up in Westwell?" He said. Zach smiled back warmly.

"I did, Mr.Dreasby, I done finished my classes there are already." Zach said. Peter patted Zach's back proudly.

"He sure did! I saw every single one of his grades! He's as a smart as crow now, ain't he Uncle?" He said, as if he was the one to go to Westwell for three months. Zach rolled his eyes, and Dreasby laughed.

"Well I reckon he is." Dreasby said.

"Who's out there, Dill?" A female voice from inside yelled. And then she was rounding the corner, and at the door herself, ready to greet the guests.

"Peter B. Migsby!" She said. She was a brown rabbit with curly fur rolled into pins randomly all over. She had on a dusty apron, and her ears were in curlers. Only thing not trying to be curled were her whiskers and her lashes. Peter opened his arms and she returned the favor.

"Aunt Thula, how you doing?" He said. She pinched his cheek, and he yelped.

"You promised me you was gonna come visit and help at the farm!" She said. Peter shrank about five feet into the ground. He gulped.

"Uh... whoops. Looks like I done forgot about that..." he laughed nervously. Aunt Thula turned one last glare on Peter, before turning a warm smile to Zach.

"Zacariah Gumphrey, it feels like ages since I last saw your hide around here." She said. "Come on in, y'all. It's cold, and I can't believe Dill didn't let y'all in earlier."

They all went inside to the warm burrow, only to find a cramped household filled with a lot of bunnies. Zach and Peter knew each face, but to name all of 'em would take too long. They sat at the table with three other bickering bunnies, stuck in a heated argument over something political. A few kits were running around, playing some game causing even more of a ruckus. Peter started up a talk with his Aunt and Uncle, one glaring daggers, the other smiling as warm as pie at him. A radio box chattered on in the drawing room, and the den was full to the brink with the old bunnies, snoring away. Zach sat there at the table, realizing for the first time since the incident at the diner that he wasn't shaking or looking over his shoulder any more.

Peter came up to him, a grin on his face, and paw outstretched. "Come on, Zach!" He said. "Aunt Thula's about to take out the records, and you know how I get down at that floor!" Zach laughed at him, the first he'd laughed that whole day. A genuine one that felt good. Zach took his paw, and let Peter help him out his seat.

"Alright I'm comin'. But don't expect to steal the show, now. I may be three months rusty, but I can still tear it up!" He said. Peter grinned.

"Is that a challenge, fox face?" He called out to Zach.

"You know it, cotton tail." And the two of them danced the night away to Aunt Thula's records. And for a moment, just a few hours, it felt like there were no Dead Men in the world at all. Zach went to sleep that night, happy, and smiling. Peter slept on a cot next to his, ears all in his face and snoring away.

The world may have been ending, but they still danced on.