Orc and Bunny

Chapter 1 - The Daydreaming Bunny

Anne Hilcrest was surrounded on all sides by bandits. Bandanas covered their faces, the worn black clothing marking them as up to no good. Their leader (at least she assumed he was their leader based on his size) held a beautiful, struggling woman hostage. Her long furry ears standing straight from the top of her head twitched, as she drew her father’s rapier silently from its sheath.

The autumn forest clearing was cool, even in the afternoon sun. A breeze rustled the leaves in the trees. A handful falling from bare branches as Anne and the bandit stared each other down.

“I will not allow a cretinous villain such as you to harm a single hair on this fair maiden’s head,” she exclaimed, before dashing at the man causing him to move back startled. She deftly caught the woman, slowly lowering her to the ground before spinning to deal with the curs.

What followed was a lone girl swinging and stabbing a rapier skillfully through an empty forest clearing, her long rabbit-y ears bobbing with her movements. She parried, and pirouetted through the grass, stabbing invisible enemies one after the other. After a moment she stopped, breathing hard, she sheathed her father’s rapier, and put a couple of loose hairs back in their place.

“That should do it,” Anne said to herself before bouncing across the clearing and kneeling by the stump holding her journal and ink. With a deft dip and gentle wipe of the pen, she began scribbling furiously, only pausing occasionally as she tripped over what would be the right word or to get more ink.

With a flick of her wrist, she crossed the last t, and spun around onto her feet. Her rapier in hand, she was ready to slay the last villain and rescue the damsel, who would naturally reward her with a kiss. Anne felt the heat rise in her face at that thought, before she shook her head to clear that thought away.

Behind her came a gentle clearing of a throat. With a startled eep, she spun around pointing her rapier at the sound. She immediately lowered it when she saw who it was.

“F-father,” Anne quickly tried to hide his sword behind her back, “how long have you been standing there?”

“Oh, ‘round about, let me see here,” her father held a hand up to his chin and looked up as though appraising the sky, “‘cretinous villain’ I believe you said.”

Anne’s face grew unbelievably hot, and she wanted nothing more than to run. She was so embarrassed, she found herself wishing to be struck by a random bolt of lightning, but the sky was perfectly clear. She silently cursed her luck.

“Is this the sort of thing you are up to when you skip out on your lessons?” her father asked with an innocent pointedness that only parents are capable of.

“Sophie fell asleep,” Anne explained, “and I did finish my lessons before I snuck away.”

“And how many times have I told you not to take my sword?” her father continued unswayed.

“What sword?” Anne tried hopefully.

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Lord Hilcrest simply sighed and moving his glasses rubbed his eyes. After a moment he looked at her sheepish grin, and chuckled.

“Did you at least slay whatever ‘cretinous villain’ you were fighting?” He was obviously regretting the fencing lessons her mother had convinced him to allow her to take.

They were meant to curb her "inappropriate tomboyish nature.” Her mother had said that many young ladies engaged in fencing as a pastime. Her father had stopped the lessons after her mother had passed. Since then, she had taken to practicing the basics on her own in the forest, and stealing his sword to do so.

“Ahaha. Yeah. I was just about to take out the bandit leader, and save the innocent woman,” Anne laughed nervously, kicking a pile of leaves on the ground. She knew deep down that a lecture was coming, but she knew that nothing would really change.

“I see. And were you planning to come to dinner?” He continued.

“Is it,” Anne checked her watch, “Oh no! I’m so sorry, I lost track of the time.”

“Anne,” Lord Hilcrest sighed, “This dinner was important. I managed to cover for you, saying that you had fallen ill. Lord Hermcrest understood, though his son was hoping you would be present.”

“Why?” Anne asked, puzzled, “I’ve missed plenty of dinners and he hasn’t minded.”

“I’ll explain on the walk home, gather your things,” her father was strangely solemn so she did as she was told.

The two walked silently through the forest, her father leaning on his cane a little more strongly than usual. His ankle had been broken in an attempted uprising when he was a young man, and it hadn’t healed quite right. Since then he had limped along with a cane, but Anne knew better than to offer to let him lean on her. Anne did feel bad that her father was clearly hurting because he had to come get her.

“Lord Hermcrest wasn’t here to visit me,” her father finally broke the silence, “he was here with his son, George. They were here to finalize your betrothal.”

Anne stopped in her tracks stunned.

“Does that mean…,” she finally said after her father didn’t continue.

“You are now betrothed to George Hermcrest? Yes,” her father finished for her.

“I don’t want to marry him,” she said softly. Her father pretended to not hear her.

“I know that he was not your first choice, but they have more power than we do,” her father squeezed his cane until his knuckles were white, “I wasn’t able to block the engagement any longer, you are twenty-one, and no one else even offered knowing that the Hermcrest’s wanted you.”

“They don’t want me, they want your land,” Anne said, barely hiding her disgust.

“Oh, I know, but unfortunately, with no son to make my heir, you and the land are a package deal,” he said through gritted teeth.

They had just cleared the last rise, when the town of Hilcrest came into view. The hill it was built onto made the town picturesque in the glowing orange light of the sunset. They both stood at the top admiring the view.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t able to stop this, Anne,” he said softly, before continuing his slow descent down the hill. She stood, tears flowing down her face at the top for a few minutes. She wiped her eyes, and was about to catch up to him, when something strange caught her eye.

A strange green beam of light interrupted the idyllic scene as it flashed up into the sky. Anne squinted at it. It seemed to be coming from the center of town. A sudden booming noise followed by a gust of wind hitting her forced her to close her eyes, and shield her face with her hands.

When she opened them again, the beam had grown wider, and pieces of the houses and bricks from the street were floating up with the beam. Anne screamed as everything turned a bright green, then white.

As suddenly as it had come, it stopped, and Anne felt herself falling through pitch black darkness.