Jenny’s smile faltered; she sighed and turned around. With Yuki held in both hands, the blondie entered the manor. She strode past the foyer and dining room to the kitchen. Yuki still couldn’t move other than jerky, uncontrolled spasms. The more she tried, the firmer Jenny’s grip got.

Now, near other servants, Jenny’s gentle smile and demeanor returned. She bowed and smiled and waved. Inside the kitchen, she turned right and stopped in front of a countertop. There, Yuki saw a cutting board. Tied to a wall was Yuki’s current worst nightmare. Knives of every type and shape. Cleavers, carvers, boning and paring.

“Not the knives! Anything but the knives!” Yuki yelled as loud as she could.

“Hush,” Jenny said, voice soft, “it will be over in a moment.” Jenny covered Yuki’s eyes with her hand, pinning Yuki’s head to the countertop.

Yuki tried to bite or buck away. She tried to invoke magic, but they all needed the damn hand-waving mystic bullshit. She willed herself to teleport away. Nothing happened. She abandoned all her pride and begged. “No, please. I’m too pretty to die! Don’t do this, please!”

A moment later, Yuki heard and felt it. Metal scrapping against metal. The tugging in her fur and no pain. She stopped still as a rabbit, waiting for the inevitable.

“There, all better now,” Jenny said, removing her hands from Yuki’s eyes. The girl had scissors in her hand. Nearby, a mangled and tangled patch of white fur. Jenny hung the scissors on the wall and then threw the fur away. Gently, she picked Yuki up and left the kitchen.

Yuki didn’t even complain; she was too tired.

Jenny crossed corridors and doors, all a blur to Yuki. Finally, the girl opened a dark room. The air was damp and stale; wood crates rested against the wall. Yuki saw bags that smelled of seeds, tools to work the land, and other farm equipment. Jenny walked to one of the crates, opened it, and placed Yuki inside. She hesitated for a moment, then sighed. “I’ll come get you later.” The blondie closed the crate, leaving Yuki alone and in the dark.

A few moments later, Yuki heard the door closing and the keys jiggling. She closed her eyes and took a deep, calming breath. The dark helped, even if she was still trapped. Against her best judgment, she fell asleep.

Yuki woke up startled. It was dark, and the floor texture was strange. The smells were all wrong. Old musty wood, manure, soil, and seeds. She could move and got up to her four paws. Another scent reached her. Something she recognized but not from this life. Old memories surfaced, and she remembered the tantrum when her nanny insisted Yuki ate the damn thing. Across from her was a low bowl filled with water and a carrot.

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Not believing her nose, Yuki first walked to the water. She drank deep and long. She sat by the carrot, nibbling at the treat. She needed to think about this whole situation. On the one paw, she was alive, which surprised her at this point. On another paw, she’d been kidnapped and locked away. On the third paw, the girl left food in the crate, and now that the fear had subsided, Yuki realized her bias made things worse than they were, at least with the girl. On the last paw, Yuki missed the other buns already.

But this was also a good opportunity. Now that she wasn’t paralyzed, she had choices. She could dominate any of the humans to take her away from here. Did the magic work even without a shared language? That was something she could test. More than that, Yuki was curious about the scent in the Lord’s room.

Yuki nibbled the carrot. It was good, the taste, the smell, the crunchiness. Not as good as the damn poison seeds or magic ‘shrooms, but still good. She sighed again. If she kept with the sighing, she’d become a granny rabbit soon enough. The decision was a poor one. She wanted to stay, even if the logical thing to do was to escape. She shook her head. She also needed to ensure no one realized she was more than a rabbit. If these people burned innocent girls in the pyre, she didn’t want to think what they would do with talking magic rabbits.

She was still mulling over things when she heard the jiggling of keys and the door opening. Yuki prepared the spell. If the blondie tried anything, Yuki would not hesitate this time. She crouched, ready to jump away at first notice.

Footsteps got closer, then the crate lid slid open. Jenny peeked inside. Yuki stared back at the girl. With slow, deliberate movements, Jenny extended a hand toward Yuki. She didn’t try to hold the rabbit; she just presented the hand.

Yuki realized this was the famous pet bonding technique. You let them smell you and get used to your scent. She had a strange feeling bubbling in her chest. The blondie was pretty enough; she wouldn’t mind playing the pet part in another life. But now?

The hand edged closer until it almost touched Yuki’s nose. Yuki closed the gap and sniffed the offered hand. A strong scent of soap with a hint of something sweet and flowery. Did the girl wash her hands before coming here? That was an excellent detail. Yuki gave the hand a lick, then edged away. The soap tasted funny.

Jenny giggled. With the back of her fingers, she caressed Yuki’s fur. “Aren’t you a sweety?” She whispered. “I know it was Boris’ fault. The idiot doesn’t know how to handle a cute thing like you.”

Yuki recognized the word. Boris, that was the boy’s name.

“Tomorrow, I’ll go into town and get a proper cage for you. Until then, I’ll need to keep you here.” The blonde placed her hand on the crate, palm up and open. With her other hand, she tapped her palm.

Yuki sighed, so much for being a pet. For survival and research, she walked into the girl’s palm. The fingers gently stroking her sensitive ears and the involuntary leg thumping were things Yuki decided she would never talk about.