There's No Place Like Home, There's No Place Like Home

Nothing but a rabbit,

With a rabbit's courage.

(He's) Nothing but a rabbit,

Who can never fail.

No one but the pure of heart can find the Golden Carrot.

(Oooh yeah)

From the canticle of Flash, attributed to "Queen"

--*--

Gorden burst into the head bucks office.

With a snarl quite unlike a rabbit he threw the broken carrot at the table.

"Bertram!" He shouted banging his fist on the table, "The hedgehog!" Bang! "David." Bang! "A ferret." Bang! "Two weasels." Bang! "The swans!" Bang! "Sly!"

Gorden threw both paws at the desk and stared the Head Buck in the eyes.

"Why?" He spat the question, then "When does it stop?"

"Nora." The Head Buck said quietly.

"What?" Gorden said. Then he looked up and saw the other occupant of the room. It was Larry the monk! He was holding a satchel. Gorden recognised it as Nora's. His eyes widened.

"Larry just arrived. He was telling me how they found her body a short way from their monastery. They buried her but decided to return her belongings here." He took a deep breath. "They were worried that you had befallen the same fate."

Gorden looked at the floor and shook his head. "How many more? When does it stop?" He looked up again, this time at Larry. "Were there any clues? Do you know who, what did this?"

The mole shook his head. "Her body was devastated. Slashed badly. If we had not met her before-hand we wouldn't have recognised her species."

"But she'd travelled with *us* for the first few hours."

Larry nodded, "Yes, she must have been attacked shortly after leaving you."

"Gorden," The Head Buck said gently, "Did you say you'd lost David?" Gorden nodded. The Head Buck looked down. "I'm very sorry, Gorden," he said with feeling, "I feel for your pain."

"It's cost a lot of lives, this broken carrot." Gorden said, a tear in his eye - Talking about David had brought it all back. "It all started then. When the hedgehog laid the geas on me." Gorden collapsed in one of the chairs.

"Why me?" He asked.

The monk gave a snort of a laugh.

"Why you? Why you? Why have *you* been left alive when all around you die?"

"No, I didn't mean it like that."

"We are taught, in our Order, that the universe is mean and capricious, but, thankfully, not personal. The things that happen to us, or not as the case may be, are not our fault. There are no malicious entities rolling dice on our lives. Just 'Us' and the 'Universe'."

The Head Buck picked up the pieces of the carrot.

"Doesn't look much good now?" Gorden said, "But it was necessary to break it. It was Evil, not Good."

The monk shook his head, "Things are not evil nor good, just the use they are put to."

"I don't see how this could have been used for good purposes." Gorden said.

"Tell us about it, Gorden. I'd like to hear it from you rather than what that reporter got out of you."

---*---

An hour or so later the Head Buck pulled a bottle and three short glasses out of his bottom drawer. The monk shook his head and so he poured a shot for himself and another shot for Gorden.

"There's just one last thing." He said. "I'm afraid I've had to let your room out. I thought you may be able to find somewhere else to stay."

"You haven't let Cola's rooms out too have you?"

"No," The Head Buck said smiling, "I'm devious, not cruel. Go and find Cola and have dinner. You'll have a lot of organising to do."

"I need to start off back home," Larry said. "It's a few day's journey and I'd rather start sooner than later." He shook hands with the Head Buck and left with Gorden.

"It's good to see you again," Gorden said, "Your monastery was one of the high spots of the trip."

"Thank you." He said smiling. "Let's find Cola so I can say Hello-Goodbye."

---*---

Cola shook her head at the mess in her burrow. Gorden had a lot of things. None of them seemed to have any use, but there were a lot of them. It had taken them most of the evening to move his things in and she was exhausted.

"Gorden," She called, "I'm shattered and I need to go to bed."

Gorden popped out from behind a pile of boxes.

"I was just looking for my playstation." He said. Cola tutted.

"Bed, Gorden." Gorden's face broke out in a huge grin. Cola slumped her shoulders. She stepped over to Gorden and put her paws on his shoulders. "No, Gorden," She put her school teacher tone of voice to use, "Not tonight. We need rest."

She padded over to here bed and Gorden followed.

"Just hug me." She said, "Help me sleep and forget all the bad things." Gorden's arms enfolded her and they slid down to the bed.

And slept.

---*---