Reality's Rabbits
Reality's Rabbits, part 1
The man is in the garden again, swinging the axe around and staring up at the windows like he's looking for someone. I'm hidden by the hedge and the branches are scratching at my face and my knees hurt because I'm kneeling on stones, but I keep watching him. He's got a mask on, the kind burglars wear in kids' stories, and he's looking at the rabbits next door. I hope he takes them away; I don't like next door's rabbits. He's making noises, growling and crying and screaming so loud that I'm sure Joey must hear. Maybe the rabbits scare him too. I wriggle out of my hiding place in time to see him bring the axe down on the biggest rabbit. And I cheer because now that it's dead, the rabbit can't control my thoughts.
I run inside, holding my plastic sword tight against my chest. I don't think the rabbit will rise from the dead, but you can never be sure.
"What are you doing?" Joey asks, "Bit old for playing knights aren't you?"
I shrug, racing upstairs to watch the man from the window. He's under the hedge, in my secret place, and he's holding the rabbit and rocking like he can't believe he's killed it. There's no blood. The rabbit doesn't bleed. It doesn't bleed because it wasn't a real rabbit, it was a demon. I go to bed, and I sleep properly now, because the rabbit can't control me.
And I wake up in the morning and know I haven't killed anyone in the night.
"Mum's real mad." Joey says, "Next door's been on the phone all morning. She knows it was you who killed Fluffy; they think you're a right weirdo."
I start shaking because I know that the other rabbits are controlling them, and I'm going to get the blame. And then I cry, because I can hear Mum coming in from the garden and she's walking quicker than usual and breathing differently and I can tell they're controlling her.
"Well at least you're feeling sorry." she says when she sees me, "Mrs. Wallace is in tears next door, and little Maxie keeps asking if Fluffy's coming back. Honestly Jakob, what on earth made you kill the poor rabbit?" Her eyes don't focus, and they're darker than I remember.
"He's a psycho." Joey says.
Mum sends him upstairs and takes hold of my wrist, like she's like to pull my wrist right out its socket. It's too hard, too tight and I'm scared.
"I want you to go next door and apologise." she snarls, "And I want you to explain to Mrs Wallace why you killed Fluffy."
I jerk my hand free and snatch my sword. I hold it in front of myself, waving it at her and screaming. "I didn't kill Fluffy," I say, "But I'm glad he's dead."
She grabs at my sword but I run. I run out to the garden and under the hedge and hunch up against the wall. The man is there too, and he's got his axe. I'm not scared though, he killed the rabbit for me.
"They're looking for you." he says
I can hear them, Mum and Joey and Mrs. Wallace. They're all shouting but their voices sound wrong, like an instrument out of tune because the rabbits are controlling them. And it's getting darker even though it's morning because the earth is spinning faster. Or maybe the rabbits have destroyed the sun. I don't know anymore. Everything is happening too fast and my brain can't keep up, so it jerks and skips and makes the man fade in and out of view. I close my eyes and grip my sword tight. Its plastic bends and it's full of dents but I ignore that. The man realises what I am about to do and grabs my wrist. It's not like my mum; he's the only one who knew about the rabbits apart form me. We are both holding the sword now, and everything slows down until the shouts outside can't be heard anymore. And nothing else matters but the sword.
It stops being a toy bought for $2 one Halloween, and becomes everything that matters. I'm not scared, I want to go first.
"We're going home kid." the man says, "You and me, we're going home."
I take the sword and hold its point against my chest. It's round and blunt and made of cheap thin plastic, but it pierces my heart, spilling blood on the ground and soaking through my jumper.
And it doesn't hurt.
I twist the sword, pull it out and pass it to the man, who does the same thing. He has no blood either. He is a demon like Fluffy.
After a while they find us, Joey is crying and Mum is screaming and Mrs Wallace is shouting down the phone. And then there are flashing lights and people rushing around us, and they're thumping on my chest and blowing in my mouth.
The man is still holding my wrist as they cover me with a white sheet and lead Mum and Joey away. And then Mrs. Wallace screams that the other rabbits are dead and everything stands still and quiet again like a dream.
And I go to sleep, and go home.
I run inside, holding my plastic sword tight against my chest. I don't think the rabbit will rise from the dead, but you can never be sure.
"What are you doing?" Joey asks, "Bit old for playing knights aren't you?"
I shrug, racing upstairs to watch the man from the window. He's under the hedge, in my secret place, and he's holding the rabbit and rocking like he can't believe he's killed it. There's no blood. The rabbit doesn't bleed. It doesn't bleed because it wasn't a real rabbit, it was a demon. I go to bed, and I sleep properly now, because the rabbit can't control me.
And I wake up in the morning and know I haven't killed anyone in the night.
"Mum's real mad." Joey says, "Next door's been on the phone all morning. She knows it was you who killed Fluffy; they think you're a right weirdo."
I start shaking because I know that the other rabbits are controlling them, and I'm going to get the blame. And then I cry, because I can hear Mum coming in from the garden and she's walking quicker than usual and breathing differently and I can tell they're controlling her.
"Well at least you're feeling sorry." she says when she sees me, "Mrs. Wallace is in tears next door, and little Maxie keeps asking if Fluffy's coming back. Honestly Jakob, what on earth made you kill the poor rabbit?" Her eyes don't focus, and they're darker than I remember.
"He's a psycho." Joey says.
Mum sends him upstairs and takes hold of my wrist, like she's like to pull my wrist right out its socket. It's too hard, too tight and I'm scared.
"I want you to go next door and apologise." she snarls, "And I want you to explain to Mrs Wallace why you killed Fluffy."
I jerk my hand free and snatch my sword. I hold it in front of myself, waving it at her and screaming. "I didn't kill Fluffy," I say, "But I'm glad he's dead."
She grabs at my sword but I run. I run out to the garden and under the hedge and hunch up against the wall. The man is there too, and he's got his axe. I'm not scared though, he killed the rabbit for me.
"They're looking for you." he says
I can hear them, Mum and Joey and Mrs. Wallace. They're all shouting but their voices sound wrong, like an instrument out of tune because the rabbits are controlling them. And it's getting darker even though it's morning because the earth is spinning faster. Or maybe the rabbits have destroyed the sun. I don't know anymore. Everything is happening too fast and my brain can't keep up, so it jerks and skips and makes the man fade in and out of view. I close my eyes and grip my sword tight. Its plastic bends and it's full of dents but I ignore that. The man realises what I am about to do and grabs my wrist. It's not like my mum; he's the only one who knew about the rabbits apart form me. We are both holding the sword now, and everything slows down until the shouts outside can't be heard anymore. And nothing else matters but the sword.
It stops being a toy bought for $2 one Halloween, and becomes everything that matters. I'm not scared, I want to go first.
"We're going home kid." the man says, "You and me, we're going home."
I take the sword and hold its point against my chest. It's round and blunt and made of cheap thin plastic, but it pierces my heart, spilling blood on the ground and soaking through my jumper.
And it doesn't hurt.
I twist the sword, pull it out and pass it to the man, who does the same thing. He has no blood either. He is a demon like Fluffy.
After a while they find us, Joey is crying and Mum is screaming and Mrs Wallace is shouting down the phone. And then there are flashing lights and people rushing around us, and they're thumping on my chest and blowing in my mouth.
The man is still holding my wrist as they cover me with a white sheet and lead Mum and Joey away. And then Mrs. Wallace screams that the other rabbits are dead and everything stands still and quiet again like a dream.
And I go to sleep, and go home.