Down the Rabbit Hole

The Pocket Watch

A sigh. An alarm was blaring as the curtains opened, letting in the bright sunshine. Piper groaned, pulling the covers over her head. Her mother insisted on getting up. After a few minutes, she threw a pillow at her mum and got up on her own. Another morning of another day, that's all that she could think of. Piper hated mornings, but she hated going to school even more. Getting to the kitchen, she found there was pancakes sitting on the table, as well as bacon and eggs and French toast.

"Surprise!"

"What is this for?" Piper asked, confused by her parents. "Did I miss something?"

Her dad nodded. "It's officially been a year since we've moved here! That's a great reason to celebrate!"

"That's a crazy reason to celebrate. What's so great about this stupid small town?"

"Don't be like that, baby."

Piper ate a bit, and got up. "I have to get to school. Bye."

Her mother handed her a bag. "Here, your lunch. It's got cake in it. Enjoy."

"Bye."

Getting to school, she sat down at her assigned seat. Piper wasn't one to be too social. There was only one person that she really didn't mind associating with. A classmate of hers named Tristan. He grabbed her shoulders and wrapped himself around her. She didn't bother moving, because by this time, she was used to it.

"Hey girly! Happy anniversary."

"The anniversary of when you first annoyed me. Such a happy day."

"Don't be like that, Piper."

One of her classmates walked past her and spilled her drink on Piper. "Whoops. Now you look like a clown. I thought you could use some more colour."

"Dottie, stop it!"

Piper shook her head. "She's not worth it, Tristan. Just let her go."

"You'd think she'd have gotten tired of it by now. You don't even show any emotion at what she says or does."

"It's fine. It's just a little cold. It really doesn't bother me anymore."

It was just before lunch, and Piper just couldn't focus anymore. She looked out the window, trying to find anything more interesting than the bore of the history of the founding fathers. Day after day, it was always the same thing. Uninteresting subjects taught to teenagers who didn't care about anything the teachers were saying. There was nothing more boring than hearing about old guys who committed unspeakable acts to the minorities. She refused to listen about how the founding fathers were 'heroes'. They didn't even find this land, they stole it. If they were going to teach history, Piper believed they should be teaching the real history.

Something caught her eye. A glint of something shiny. Focusing her eyes a bit more, she found it was a pocket watch. It was just floating there. The lunch bell rang, and the pocket watch started moving. Her curiosity got the best of her, and she ran out of the classroom as fast as possible. Tristan followed her out, worried about his friend. She ran out, following the floating watch. As they went, she noticed this yellow dust floating all around in a trail. It shone like diamonds. The pocket watch made it into the forest, and Piper didn't stop for anything. Jumping over rocks and ducking under branches. Tristan shouted to her, but she couldn't speak. She had to focus on the pocket watch.

As she ran, it seemed as if the forest itself changed. The skies looked purple, the leaves brighter than before, and there was this glow to the forest. There was suddenly no longer just a floating pocket watch. In front of her, was now a five and a half foot tall rabbit in a blue and white waist coat, a monocle over his left eye, and a shinning gold pocket watch in his paw. He wasn't running like a person, but jumping around like a rabbit. Though, it seemed almost human like. Out of nowhere, the rabbit stopped. Now that he was stopped, she could finally see his face. It was a rabbit's face, with bright pink eyes.