[Illustration: HE WATCHED AND HEARD THE AWAKENING OF THE WOOD] [Illustration] Before he had been lured by Hope, now Terror thrust her goad at him. He leapt two thorn-stumps blindly, and, stumbling, plunged head-deep into the ant-hill. [Illustration] The ant-hill covers two square yards of ground, and every inch of it is peopled. Though soft, it is no place to fall on. Its citizens resent intrusion--nay, more, resent it actively. When Bunny Rabbit reached the grass he felt the pricking of a thousand needles. The pain and smart of them half maddened him. He rolled upon his back; he scraped his neck on stones; he writhed; he bit himself. [Illustration] The pain eased as his torturers dropped off him. Once more he tried to run, but in ten yards his strength was gone. His fore-paws flopped and stumbled, his hind paws dragged, his nose was bruised, his coat was hot and steamy. So he flung down bewildered, scraped an imaginary bed (a poor half-hearted scraping), slid out his feet, and lay full length, eyes closed. [Illustration: BERUS THE ADDER] Nothing now seemed to matter much. The hornet moth came whirring past his ears, he never heard it; the drone fly danced upon his nose, he never felt it; the Man lay almost at his side, he never saw him. Poor tired-out baby! Nature had ordered sleep and so he slept. * * * * * The Man woke slowly. Nature had been his comfort, too, though sleep had not refreshed him. He rose half-dreaming, with a smile. "All right, little girl," he said; then his face tightened. "It's the same place," he muttered, "just where we lost the locket. First bluebell, then foxglove, then ragwort; blue, purple, and gold. It was the gold she loved." The woodland rang with voices, but Bunny Rabbit slept until man spoke. Then he leapt up and found himself a prisoner. "You sha'n't be hurt, Bunny," said the Man. Bunny Rabbit ceased his wriggling, and lay quite limp, his eyes upturned, his nose a-quiver. "Why lying in the open?" said the Man "foolish, foolish Bunny. What's to be done with you? Stoats and foxes and hawks, Bunny. You can't be left, that's certain. You can't be taken to your Mother, for I don't know your Mother. You can't be taken to your hole, for I don't know your hole. Hungry, Bunny? You look as though you'd travelled. Try some grass." Bunny Rabbit knew nothing of grass and kept his teeth tight-clenched. "You must eat something," said the Man. He loosed one hand to reach a groundsel-top, and Bunny Rabbit, squirming clear, slipped deep into his pocket. "Well, it's your own choice, Bunny. Now you come home with me." It was dark and warm and soft inside the pocket. The Man took swinging downhill strides, and, at each stride, the folds changed shape. Now they were loose and twisty, and Bunny Rabbit stretched full length to fill them. Now they were tightened to a ball, and Bunny Rabbit tightened as the centre.