Elucard hopped off of the rickety old boat with the day’s catch slung over his shoulder. The seaworn planks of the dock creaked as he bent down to tie up his father’s boat.

“Tie the knot tight, Elucard. Last thing we need is to have the boat drifting away. Storms haven’t been too kind to Ravenshore as of late,” the boy’s Father said sternly.

Elucard peered out towards the horizon. Winds blew through his dirty blonde hair. Dark heavy clouds were rolling in from the Eastern Sea and the air was laden with moisture. A cool salty film lined Elucard’s fair skin. His elven ears perked up as he heard his father call over to him.

“Get those fish to your mother before you scamper off and be home before dark.”

“Aw, Pa, but me and Jetta were going to catch fireflies to sell for ca–” Elucard caught himself. Candy wasn’t the ideal way to spend his hard earned coin in his father’s eyes. Angus’ general store had a selection of the stickiest and most dazzling candy in all of Ravenshore; not only this but he also moonlighted as the local ale master. He traded bubble brew and the best mouth watering butterscotch for a jar of fireflies. Angus let them go when the children left, but Elucard didn’t know that. Elucard usually spent the allowance he earned from fishing with his father on peppermint sticks. Not a wise investment, but that was the way of the youth of the old fishing village. And just another reason to keep his trap shut.

“For new trousers? A good idea, since you’ve run those worn.” His father hid a smile as he gave his son a roguish wink, while stroking his bushy dark red beard, “Hurry up now, I’ll convince your mother about extending your curfew since you’re planning a business venture with Jetta.”

“Thanks, Pa!”

***

“Salene, I’m home, what’s for dinner?” River called out as he entered the small cottage.

“River, don’t you dare enter this house without taking off those boots, you know they make this home stink of fish, and I won’t have it anymore!”

River smirked, setting his rubber boots outside the door, before hanging his long coat on a hook. They’d been married for twenty-four years, and every day she scolded him for not taking off his boots. That’s why he never did it; he liked consistency in his life. The cottage was small but cozy. Shafts of light illuminated the old shelves that held wooden figurines. River carved them himself for his wife when they were just children themselves. A carving of a stag or mermaid was a sure fire way to swoon Salene in their youth. These days they collected dust on the shelves, but they also had quite a collection of memories within them as well.

“Elucard went off in a hurry. Gave me a line of fish, pecked my cheek with a kiss, and was gone,” Salene said with a slight quiver in her voice.

“They won’t pick him this year, they didn’t last time. He’s small and skinny. They’ll pick the blacksmith’s apprentice, but not Elucard.” River walked over to comfort his wife.

She embraced him and began to sob. Another visit by the Black Rabbits fast approached and each time she struggled more and more to keep herself from falling apart.

“Why do they have to come here? Why do they have to take our children? We should fight back!” she said almost weeping.

River rubbed her back gently, attempting to calm her down.

“They protect our town and many others. Our country doesn’t have an army. We’re all unfit to fight. We are tradesman, not warriors. Leave the fighting to them. They take our kids and turn them into–”

“Criminals!” Salene interrupted, “They take our children and they turn them into criminals!” She still remembered the day that her brother and cousin were taken by the assassin clan. They were forced to walk the dark path of the Black Rabbits and were never heard from again.

“This is the price we must pay for safety, Salene,” River said stoically. He may not have agreed with their methods, but he couldn’t argue with results. Bandits and raiders hadn’t dared to strike their town since the Black Rabbit clan started providing Ravenshore with protection.

“I know, River. It’s just that…It’s not Elucard’s price to pay,” Salene whispered in a slight daze as she thought about her only child being stolen away.

River cupped her hands as she stared hopefully into his magenta eyes. It was the only feature that Elucard had inherited from his father. Although River’s eyes were steely and had seen a lifetime of work, Elucard’s eyes were as soft as his nature. Elucard’s heart desired no violence or toil, but wonder. He was a child, not a soldier.

“Salene, He won’t be picked,” River reassured her, “They’ll see he is no killer, no assassin, and he’ll be passed by.”

Salene was quiet. She believed him. Not because she knew he was right, but that she needed the hope he was giving her. The same hope that had sustained her for the last four years.

“River, I just can’t do this much longer,” Salene sobbed.

“Come now. We have to be strong for him…for Elucard,” River said softly. Yet he didn’t know if he believed the words himself.

***

Elucard dashed down the gravel roads of Ravenshore. The small fishing village had been the only home he’d ever known. He passed by the old tavern that was down the alley from his house. It reeked of ale and the salty sweat of the sailors that occupied its stools. Elucard wrinkled his nose as he hurried past it and whipped around the corner. He heard the clanking of the blacksmith’s hammer as he and his apprentice worked on various iron wares. The town was especially bustling recently, from the good catches over the past few weeks. New travelers stabled their horses by the Calming Tide Inn and Elucard watched them get settled. Many had traveled a fair distance to taste the only sprite moss chowder on the azure coast of the Eastern Sea.

Elucard ran past the old schoolhouse before finally getting to the outskirts of Ravenshore. He slowed to a walk as he reached the old willow tree with its long drooping branches that hung over a tiny pond that had formed from an inlet. This was where he and Jetta spent the majority of their time together.

“You’re late.” A small girl said doing her best to look angry with her skinny arms folded across her chest and her face squished up in a pout. She was about two years younger than him. Her auburn hair was wild and messy, a stark contrast to when Elucard first met her. When they were toddlers, Jetta was a squeaky clean girl with her hair always tied in a yellow ribbon. She would never dare get her favorite dresses dirty – or any dress for that matter. They were all her favorite. However, over time her exposure to the rambunctious Elucard caused Jetta to come out of her shell. From then on it would be Elucard who needed to keep up with her.

“Sun’s still out! I say I’m on time.” Elucard plopped down by the roots near the pond’s bank. He inspected two makeshift fishing poles perched in the grass, “You remember to use bait this time?”

Jetta thrust her hands to her hips, “Yes! You take me for an idiot?”

Elucard cracked a smile as he playfully leered at his friend.

“Well, I couldn’t find any worms…” Jetta mumbled.

“Jetta….”

Jetta raised a fishing wire out of the water; a round chocolate ball had a hook poking through it, “Malt ball. Fish gotta like chocolate!”

Both kids burst out laughing.

The sun dipped beyond the farthest reaches of the horizon as it made way for the night. Fireflies flickered over and around the pond. A few bobbed inside a jar that rested in the grass while crickets chirped in the reeds and Elucard lay lazily on a bough.

“Elucard, my grandma says the Black Rabbits will be here in the morning,” Jetta said softly.

Elucard nodded, his parents had told him the same thing the other day. They attempted to reassure him by saying that he was too scrawny for the Black Rabbits. However, he wasn’t. He was twelve, and he was growing stronger every day. His back might have been weak compared to Myler, the stable boy, but it was stronger than Jetta’s. His parents thought he’d stay in Ravenshore forever, but he wasn’t so sure.

“Elucard, are you scared?” Jetta voice was tiny now. The older they got, the more likely they were to end up with the Black Rabbits.

Elucard feigned a smile, “Scared? Me? I’m not a fraidy cat, like you!”

“I’m not scared!” Jetta protested.

“Ya, I bet you still sleep with your stuffed bear!” Elucard teased poking Jetta in the side.

Jetta paused shyly.

“You do, don’t you?” Elucard laughed.

Jetta’s voice cracked as she shivered, “Elucard, I don’t want to leave home.”

Elucard slid over to wrap an arm around his little friend, “Remember what I promised you?”

Jetta harkened back to the day her father was being buried. It was only three years ago, but she was still old enough to experience the pain of losing a parent. She remembered how her mother couldn’t handle the sudden loss of her husband, and how she failed to take care of Jetta. And even though her grandmother took her in, it was Elucard that made Jetta feel safe. It was he who made her feel like everything would be alright.

“You said you’d always be there for me,” she said in a still small voice.

Elucard nodded, hugging her tighter, “I meant that promise. No matter what happens tomorrow, we’ll still be together and I’ll always be there for you.”

Jetta smiled brightly, once again comforted by her best friend, “Thank you, Elucard.”

***

“Come again?” Dest stared blankly at the trio of bandits. Her comrades scanned the scene as they sized up their situation. The bandits were clad in green leather tunics with iron rivets studded along the seams. Two of them stood by their horses, blocking the wagon’s path. The third pointed his dagger at Dest’s face.

“This here is our road that you be usin.’ Gotta pay a toll if’n you want to pass,” the bandit spat.

Dest looked back at the two men in her wagon. Vemrick smiled thinly, the other did not look amused. Dest looked back at the highwayman, “We have to make Ravenshore by morning. It would benefit us all if we were on time. Please remove yourself.”

The three green-clad men burst into a loud belly laugh. The bandit grinned, showing off his yellow teeth. His breath stunk of wine and rot, “You talk slick. Pay up. You don’t want to mess with the Black Rabbits, do you? We be the most feared men in these lands. Cross our path, we make widows of yer wives and orphans of yer children!”

Dest raised an eyebrow, “Oh, you be the Black Rabbits? I’ve heard of your exploits. You are certainly not to be trifled with.”

Vemrick was a bit younger than Dest. He slicked back his red hair and twitched his elven ears. He nudged his companion before poking his head out next to Dest, “Ya know, Dest. We should just pay these fine men. The last thing we want to do is evoke the wrath of the spooky Black Rabbit clan.”

The bandit’s grin grew wider, “Aye, pay us and ye can live.”

Dest fidgeted with her haversack taking out a few gold coins from a small pouch within it, “We never wanted any trouble…” she said coyly.

The bandit scrunched his face in confusion, “Weren’t there three of you?” he said pointing at a missing body in the wagon.

Vemrick mockingly raised his brow, “Weren’t there three of you?”

The bandit whipped his head around and gasped in horror. His two compatriots were sprawled out on the ground. Their necks were slashed and their thick red blood soaked into the earth. A single shadowy figure slowly moved himself closer to the remaining thug. In his hand he had a long two handed sword dragging in the dirt.

Dest spoke calmly as the mysterious individual raised his weapon, “We would have paid your silly tax. We would have left you alone. We would have gone about our business, but then you had to claim to be Black Rabbits.”

The sword drove through the cowering man in a wild blur. Blood spewed from his mouth as he crumpled onto his back.

Dest continued as the victim slowly died, “Legion doesn’t appreciate our name being dragged through the mud. None of us do. We earned the right to be called Rabbits. You did not.”

The bandit gurgled as blood sputtered and dripped from his mouth.

“We’ve wasted enough time. Ravenshore awaits our arrival,” Legion said flatly with little emotion in his voice.

“No rest for the weary, eh, Legion?” Vemrick asked.

“None.”