After the Surrender

I'd just dumped my timidity and fear in the surrender box but when the painted tangle of snakes on the door began to writhe, I passed through very quickly and did not look back.

"Ah, sunlight!" I found myself sighing in relief.

"They were just trying to get a rise out of you," rabbit offered, but I noticed it gave a furtive little shiver.

"Will you be coming with me?" I was surprised to see it still by my side.

"Uh, well, I guess that's up to you and your ride," it answered as we dodged out of the way of a camel who'd nearly plowed into us. Several dromedaries and twenty or so braying donkeys were milling about the wide roadway trying to connect with excited tour members. I noticed a few old friends among the many new faces, but conversation was impossible amid the noise and chaos of people, animals and belongings.

"Who ya' looking for?" my new friend asked.

"Oh, someone who's not here, I guess. I traveled with Geraldine last year and I'd so love to see her again."

"She's uh, out to here right now," it told me, sitting and patting it's belly,” but her daughter's around somewhere, I just saw her hat." Rabbit sat tall, all of fifteen inches or so and scanned the crowd.

"Georgina?" The moment I called, an adorable little jenny in a straw hat with red flowers whinnied and pushed her way through the crowd toward me. "Oh, my gosh, you look just like your mother! How is she?"

"I hope not, " she giggled, "she's having twins, but she's content and told me to look for you. Hey, Belinda!"

"Hey, Georgie Girl, first trip for le enchanteur, whoo hoo, this should be fun!"

I was wrapping my mind around "Belinda" as a most unlikely name for this feisty rabbit, when suddenly the noise ceased, the chaos evaporated, and we three remained alone with nothing but the dusty road serpentining into the distance. Poor Georgina looked about to faint and I felt a bit dizzy, but rabbit was grinning like a Cheshire Cat.

"That was so cool!" it said, thumping its' back foot in exuberance and breaking into song, "On the road again, it feels so good to be on the road. . . . . . . . "

This was going to be one interesting trip!