The day is slowly progressing, so much work done and work to be done, but it was coming along. Behind the garage had been cleared completely out of parts and cars, and they had asked if it was okay to tear down some trees to make room for the building. It was fine, she did not think a few trees being dislocated would make a big deal. 

It was when they were clearing to the north side of the garage that she noticed something, it was just a little clink at first and she brushed it off, and returned to watching them clear the trees. About five minutes later she heard another noise, this one different from the first, so she pulls back and starts to walk around the garage to circle whatever was making that noise.

No one else had noticed, was she hearing things? Maybe these men could not hear as well as humans, whatever the case may be, she knew that she had heard something. Turning the corner, a pair of men had started to pick up the dog house of an old Fury when a small form darts out and tries to make a run for it.

None reacted as quickly as she, she tore off through the yard like her tail was on fire, nothing getting in her way as she chased after the boy. He was maybe twelve and thin, with brown hair and ratty clothing. He was fast for a kid, but he could not compare to who was following him. 

"SIR!" Someone shouted.

Everyone turned to see Laurel, chasing after the boy with unusual speed, her feet seemed to not touch the ground as she gave chase. It was over before the boy could even make it to the gate on the far south side of her property. Power, strength, speed, where did that come from? They had seen people from this world run before on the TV sets in their rooms, but this, this was right in front of their eyes. These people had strength, different and yet amazing.

"MEASURE THAT!" Winston shouts. "If there are marks, measure it!"  

Many quickly walk to where they had run past, and there was marks in the earth, not deep but noticeable. Men began to pull out rope and mark every foot fall as others pulled out measuring tape. Winston was absolutely enthralled by what he was seeing, those marks were spaced what, five feet apart? 

"I have six feet Sir." 

"Six feet? Six feet!" He turns to where Laurel and the boy are returning, "But she isn't six feet tall, how, how is that possible?" 

"You must go and see the real runners, go to a cross country meet or talk to a coach. I am not even that fast, I am slow compared to so many, shoot I could not even make the track team." She tells him honestly. 

"But, you were quick, we could never move that fast."

"Why? Because you are heavier? Or something else?"

"So, who is this," Vorn asks.

"This is the young man that has been sneaking into my yard and digging up my veggies," She looks at the boy, "Am I right?"

The boy nods slowly, but she notes that there is nothing in his hands. She becomes puzzled at this and then slowly turns him round and notes the look of almost sadness on his face. She tilts her head and tries to figure out why he had come today and why her veggies are still in the ground and not in his hands.

"No veggies today?" He shakes his head, "You always come for my veggies, now what is up with this?"

"You have been complaining for a while now that you have had some missing, glad to know that you were correct. What do you do with him?" Yuri asks.

"My father, he set my rabbit loose because I had poor grades." The boy pipes up.

"Set him loose, where?" Yuri asks.

"Over there, near your fence," He points. "My father hoped that he would come over here and still be fed, but he did not want me to have him."

"What color is your rabbit and what is it's name?" Laurel asks.

"Ginger and she is called Butterscotch." He says sadly.

"Winston, could I perhaps persuade some of your men to build me a hutch for said rabbit?" she asks kindly, "That way, I will have two new friends, Butterscotch and ..."

"Adrian, my name is Adrian,"  the boy smiles.

"Will you guys help me look for Butterscotch? Alexi? Ivan?" She did not have to ask Yuri, she knew he would. "We must be very quiet and very gentle when we find her. Rabbits are very delicate," she tells them, "and very skittish."

The boy looks at her, and she continues, "I am not mad at you for taking veggies, however, it is always polite to come and introduce yourself and ask for the things you need. I would never deny a rabbit or a boy, veggies from my garden."

"I'm sorry." 

"Come, let us look for Butterscotch, and you can tell me all about yourself and about your grades."

"This girl," Winston stops Yuri to talk with him before the great rabbit hunt, "you have been together for a while now. Right?"

"A few months now perhaps, yes. Why?"

"Don't let her slip away," he looks into his sons face, searching for something or trying to relay something that he could not find the words to say, " She is different from the women I have met, I worry about her and yet fear that she has a dark side that even you could not control." 

His words shot through Yuri, "Dark side?"

"Yes, evil." Winston runs his left hand through his hair, "Everyone has a measure of it, even me." He glances at Yuri briefly, "Even I am evil, and I have done evil things. We don't know the true capacity of what humans are capable of Yuri, we know what our people are capable of, at least you know a little of it anyway."

"You mean, murder."

"That and more son, that and so much more."

"You think she," Yuri begins.

"I don't think, I don't know," Winston seemed unsettled by his thoughts, " I just want you to watch her. I know you care about her, but eventually that darkness creeps out of everyone. One day, it could even be you." He places a finger in Yuri's chest. "I just want you to be aware of her, your brothers and yourself."

"Alright, I can do that."

"And," Winston stops him, "and if anything untowards happens, do not hesitate to call me."

"Untowards?"

"He means, unexpected, inappropriate, inconvenient." 

It was Laurel, she had heard some of what was said, and did not seem bothered.

"So, if I go all Silence of the Lambs, you promise to put me down?" She asked Winston.

"Silence of the Lambs?"

Vorn replies, "He ate his victims, Hannibal the Cannibal ."

"Excuse me? He did what?" 

"He ate the flesh of his victims, he made elaborate meals and drank fine wines and hosted finer parties like any other person, only he ate the flesh of other humans." She told them. 

"Disgusting," Winston spat out, "How long had this been a common thing on Earth?"

"As long as anyone can imagine. It is not so common now, but our ancestors did a lot of it." She tells them, "You seriously need to get a book and read our histories. Cannibalism, human sacrifice, head hunting, you name it. We come from really evil ancestors, but as we grow, we try to become more civilized. I mean we still have rapist, murderers, serial killers, cannibals and many other depraved things in this world. But to me, these things fall into two separate categories."

"Two separate categories?" Vorn asks.

"Well, to me, a murderer only kills one person. A one time thing, and then does not do it again. Thus the name murderer. Now a serial killer," She pauses and looks at them, " he does it again and again and again. It is like a drug to them, they cannot get enough, it is a way for them to feel excitement or fear, " She waves her hand, " or something, I don't know or understand."

Vorn then asks, "And rapist?"

"The same could be said for them. You have men AND women out there, who do it once and then they are done." she says nonchalauntly, "Then you have people, again women have been known to do this too, who get a high from kidnapping and raping others." 

"Kidnap?"

"Okay, you guys really need books!" She exclaims. "We have a rabbit to catch and while I am doing that I will send for some books, you need to do some light reading, all of you. Have none of you really not researched Earth? Our people? Our history?"

No one said anything, they all just looked at her as she walked away.

As she walked towards a group, she was asking a few of the men to do something and they immediately set to work at getting supplies. She and the boy went to the far southern part of her clear area and marked an area where they assumed that she wanted to rabbit hutch to be built. It was such a wonder to watch her talk with and instruct others and how kind she seemed with the boy. 

An hour or so had passed and one of Winston's men, a man called Collin walked up and was shaking his head. "How is she so full of knowledge? She knows exactly how far down to dig, what needs to be under the cage, how big the inclosures should be, and that the rabbits need to be seperated."

"Rabbits?" Winston inquires.

"Yes, she told the boy to go get his cage and they found his rabbit. There are two or three others out there, who are now to be placed in boxes and she said that if you place them together not knowing if they are male or female, they could kill each other. That males tend to assert dominance." 

"She knew that?"

"She also said that rabbits dig and that predators would try to get into the cages, so she even dictated the strength and depth of the fence to keep them safe."

"Smart," Vorn agrees.

"She also ordered a book delivery, said that we should all familiarize ourselves with the history of planet Earth. I think she has a point Sir."

Winston nods, "I would have to say that you are right." He gets lost in thought, "What if, the answer to our problem, lies in their past?"

"Sir?"

"When the books come, let me know, I want to start reading."