Watership Down Page #3

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- Are you all right?

- We thought you were dead.

- Let him alone. Let him rest.

- I don't have to rest.

- What do we do now, Fiver?

- Go away from here.

Look. Look.

That's the place for us. High, lonely hills...

Where the wind and the sound carry,

and the ground's as dry as straw in a barn.

That's where we ought to be.

That's where we have to get to.

Pipkin.

Pipkin.

Pipkin!

Why don't we go

and look around the farm?

Farm, Hazel? What for?

- Cats and dogs.

- I've got a little plan.

- Won't it be dangerous?

- Of course not.

- Is it safe?

- Of course.

- Let's all go.

- No.

Just you and me.

I think I see a dog.

Where? It's tied up.

Give it a wide berth. We don't want it

to wake up the whole farm.

This is the BBC Home Service.

They are up. Hazel?

- Let's go back.

- Just a little further.

Rabbits. So, that's your secret plan.

I'm going inside to take a look around.

Is it safe in there?

Of course. You wait here.

- But if you see a cat...

- A cat?

- You will let me know at once, all right?

- Right.

I'm Hazel.

Hazel.

My name's Clover.

- Where do you come from?

- Far away.

My friends and I live as we please.

We eat grass, lie in the sun.

- Do you ever get out?

- Oh, yes.

Sometimes, a child takes us

out on the grass.

- Would you like to join us?

- Join you? But how?

How can we join you?

Hazel! There's a cat outside.

I must go back to my friends.

But we'll be back, and any of you

who wish can come along with us.

- Where is it?

- There. I think it smelt us.

- I'll get you away.

- Thank you.

- Just follow me closely.

- Yes.

- And run when I do.

- Run when you do.

You look hungry.

Rats getting too clever, I suppose.

I bet you can't run at all.

You pie-eyed, saucer-licking scrap-scraper.

Can you run?

You'll see.

I think not.

What's all that, then?

Tab? Tab!

Let them alone. Cruel thing.

What is it?

There's something coming up

the line of the hedge.

- Can you see it?

- I hear it. It's something big.

- A cat?

- I don't know.

Bigwig!

Quiet. I want to listen.

Bigwig!

Bigwig!

It's the Black Rabbit of lnl!

Don't talk like that. They'll go tharn.

We go by the will of the Black Rabbit.

- When he calls you, you have to go.

- Stay where you are.

- Who's there?

- All dead!

All gone!

It's Captain Holly!

- Holly, it's me, Bigwig.

- I found you.

I found you.

He's been hurt.

Look at that wound on his shoulder.

I remember you.

- You're the one that saw it coming.

- But what happened?

Our warren, destroyed.

Destroyed? How?

Men came. Filled in the burrows.

Couldn't get out.

There was a strange sound.

You see, the air turned bad.

Runs blocked with dead bodies.

We couldn't get out.

Everything turned mad.

Warren, herbs, roots, grass...

all pushed into the earth.

- Men have always hated us.

- No.

They just destroyed the warren

because we were in their way.

They'll never rest

until they've spoiled the earth.

I tried to find you.

I wandered for days.

The Efrafans wouldn't let me go.

They ripped my ear.

Ripped it.

I tried to find you.

Efrafans? What's he talking about?

Holly.

Let him be.

He's had a bad time.

He can tell us about it when he's rested.

A young doe has a request, sire.

A doe wants to see me?

Says she represents a group, sire.

I see.

- Your name?

- Hyzenthlay, sir.

Don't be frightened. You're safe here.

Get on with it!

Sir, several of us proposed

an expedition to start...

A new warren somewhere else.

- A new warren? Out of the question.

- But, you don't understand.

The system is breaking down.

Explain that.

We can't produce litters.

We're overcrowded.

I want no further discussion.

- We'll go as far as you like.

- Here or anywhere else.

Thank you, sir.

Campion, have her watched.

That's it, Hazel.

That's where we have to be.

Let me get this straight, Fiver.

- You want us to climb this, is that it?

- Yes!

Come on, Pipkin!

Come and look.

You can see the whole world!

I found a burrow, Hazel.

Under that beech hanger...

With a great hall

and no smell of death or disease.

Frith on the hills!

He made it all for us!

Frith may have made it, but Fiver found it.

- I've never seen anything like it.

- It's some kind of a bird.

Are you hurt?

Bigwig, I've got an idea.

- See if you can find some worms.

- Worms? Me, dig for worms?

What for, for Frith's sake?

I get up plenty soon.

- He's hurt and we want to help him.

- A bird? What for?

We help you.

Piss off!

What for help me?

What happened to you?

Damn cat jump me, farm cat.

We know her.

We take you to burrow.

Go away. Wing no good,

but I walk plenty good.

- Is long way?

- Where you come from?

From big water.

My home by big water.

We go.

I thought everything would be fine

once we got here, but it's not.

Because now we've got here,

I find it's not that simple.

What do you mean?

This place is as safe as Fiver said it was.

I think we've done very well for ourselves.

- But we don't have any does.

- Does?

Does.

Not one, and that means no kittens.

- And after we're gone, no warren.

- So that's why you went to that farm.

I thought we'd be able to get

some hutch rabbits to join us.

What's to be done then, Hazel?

Set off again?

And where?

There's not been a sniff

of another rabbit since we got here.

The bird, Kehaar.

We'll get the bird to search for us.

What home? This hole?

Where are mates? Where are chicks?

Mate make eggs, mate sit on eggs...

Hatch eggs, many eggs. We feed chick.

Egg robbers come, we fight.

You stupid bunnies!

You got no mates!

Where are mates?

Where are chicks?

Plenty trouble for you.

You need mates!

It's working, Hazel.

You got no brains. You no plan.

You need mate for plan.

Listen.

I got plan for you.

Wing better, I go fly.

Fly for you.

I find mates.

What a splendid idea, Kehaar!

How clever of you to think of it.

You very fine bird.

When will you be able to fly?

I fly any time. Stand back.

When I fly... Stand back.

Stand back. Back, back.

I need room.

Wings good.

Feathers clean.

I soar!

I glide!

I circle.

Then, I soar!

Bigwig said you couldn't make

a friend out of him.

- He's probably gone back to the big water.

- I think you're right.

Blackberry, I want you to get Dandelion...

And meet me here

after the others are asleep.

- It's no good asking you not to go.

- It'll be perfectly safe, Fiver.

I'll take the greatest care.

Clover.

Clover!

Who's that?

It's me. We're back.

Hazel.

- What are you doing up there?

- I've come to let you out.

Will you come with us?

- We're all right here.

- Yes.

Good.

Come on.

Come on, move.

- Lucy's rabbits are out, look.

- Let's get them in, quick.

There's a wild rabbit, look.

There he goes.

Keep the torch on them.

I don't know, John,

whether you hit it or not.

- I reckon he's in those nettles.

- Have a look, then.

I hit him, all right.

That's blood down there, see?

That don't signify.

He might be a long way off by now.

I reckon you've lost him.

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