Story description: An author's new plot bunny might be more than she can handle.

Becoming a Plot Bunny

For Zamora, the scariest part of writing was after a story was complete, when she waited for a new Plot Bunny. There was always that sense of doubt. What if another bunny didn't arrive?

As she directed her energy into non-writing projects, she secretly hoped that Asli would return. That sweet, fluffy Plot Bunny had spent the last few months with her on a children's book, and she'd love to collaborate again on a sequel.

Of course, it might not be a Plot Bunny that visited her next. In recent years Zamora had hosted a Topic Puppy for a non-fiction piece, and there had been a brief encounter with a Lyric Cat who inspired a poem. She was open to working on a play if a Drama Penguin decided to drop in. Really the only thing she didn't think she could handle was an Illustration Giraffe.

Working in her garden, she double-checked under the bushes. A baby Plot Bunny had been snoozing out there for months, not quite ready to hop inside and start writing. Zamora knew better than to try waking it up. Everyone knew you had to wait until a Plot Bunny was ready.

Honestly, though, it had grown to full size already. What was it waiting for? She reached out and rubbed its ears. "Hi," she whispered. "I'm ready when you are." It wriggled its toes, and then went back to sleep.

Zamora was delighted when that same bunny hopped into her home the next day. Like the other Plot Bunnies she'd met, he spent the first day of their partnership exploring her home. He touched his nose to her computer and gently pawed through her collection of pens and notebooks. She showed him the best window ledges for basking in the sun and where she kept the bowl of glitter that Plot Bunnies adored for snacks. In the evening he sat on her lap and revealed that his name was Bunaidh. She nuzzled the creature, reveling in the scent of books. "We're going to be great friends," she promised, before tucking him into a nest of warm towels.

She went to bed full of plans. Tomorrow they'd stroll through the park, enjoying the sights and sounds, and then they'd get to work on her next story.

"Pirates!"

Zamora yawned. "What?"

"Pirates!"

She stretched and sat up, to see Bunaidh literally bouncing off the walls.

"Pirates and mermaids and sea monsters and sirens!" With each word the Plot Bunny hopped to another location.

"That's... interesting." Zamora slid out of bed. "I'm more known for stories about kids going about their normal lives at home and school. I don't actually know much about boats and sea life."

"Pirates!"

"Yes, I heard." Zamora led the way to the kitchen, where she made breakfast.

Bunaidh took a break to roll around on the floor, and nibbled on the glitter.

With a cup of coffee beside her, Zamora opened a notebook. "Tell me about the pirates."

"Vampires!"

"I'm sorry. I thought you were bringing me a pirate story."

"Vampire pirates!"

"How would that even work? I mean, don't pirates have to sail during the day? Well, I guess they could navigate by the stars." She made a note. "And mermaids?"

"Werewolf mermaids. Weremaids!" Bunaidh started hopping again — on to the table, down to the floor, propelling himself around the kitchen so quickly it was a blur.

Zamora kept making notes, trying to bring all of the elements together in her mind. It took all morning, but she finally had an outline that worked. Bunaidh had been napping after its earlier exertions, but he seemed to sense she was ready to talk again.

The Plot Bunny leapt onto the table and sniffed at her notes.

"What do you think?"

"Teddy bears!" he yelled and hopped to the floor. "Polar bears! Grizzly bears!" He hopped circles around her as he yelled.

"How does that relate to the vampire pirates?" Zamora made notes of the Plot Bunny's newest inspirations, her head spinning.

Throughout the day, Bunaidh either slept or yelled out seemingly random ideas.

"Please, can you slow down?" Zamora asked that evening. "I need time to decide where all of these elements go." But she went to bed despairing that she could ever make a story out of Bunaidh's inspirations.

When the pattern continued the next day, Zamora called a friend for help. She described what the Plot Bunny was doing.

"Hobbits!" Bunaidh said. "Santa Claus!"

"Did you hear that?" she asked. "How do those fit with vampire pirates, polar bears, and..." She glanced at her notes, "and race car drivers?"

"It sounds like you have a Wild Hare," her friend said. "By any chance did you wake this bunny up instead of waiting for it to arrive at your door?"

"A Scottish bat!" Bunaidh yelled.

Zamora closed her eyes. "I only rubbed its ears and talked to it."

"That's all it takes."

"What do I do now? I can't..." She lowered her voice. "I can't hurt it."

"I think I can help," the friend promised. And the next day, the friend brought Thawj, another Plot Bunny. "I've been fostering him," the friend explained. "Another writer had too many Plot Bunnies and couldn't give them all the attention they needed, and asked me to find this one a home. Thawj is a darling, but I'm too busy with my Topic Puppy to work on a novel."

Zamora watched as Bunaidh approached the more mature Plot Bunny. "I've never had multiple Plot Bunnies. How does this work?"

Bunaidh nestled up against Thawj and fell asleep.

The friend nodded. "That's what we want to see. Your Plot Bunny needs more time to dream and focus its ideas. Thawj will be a calming influence and can filter the barrage of ideas into the set that's meant for you."

As the baby Plot Bunny slept, Thawj pawed through Zamora's notes, letting her know which ones to keep.

Together, they created a story about young children exploring a dream world filled with scary and fascinating things. The children learned lessons in their dreams that helped them cope with elements of their waking lives.

A year later, with the novel complete, Thawj and Bunaidh snuggled on Zamora's lap one last time. In the final round of edits both bunnies had become increasingly transparent, and now they were fading away. Soon they would hop into the lives of other authors someplace else.

Zamora rubbed their ears. "I hope you'll stay together," she told them. "You're the best team of bunnies ever."

After a couple of years, while Zamora was between projects, she decided to read a romance novel that had been highly recommended by her friends. The reviews mentioned adventures with vampires and pirates, and it was a delight to see the author's acknowledgement of Plot Bunnies Thawj and Bunaidh.

Decades later, Zamora woke under a rosebush. She wiggled her nose and brought her four feet under her. "Am I a Plot Bunny?"

Many of the Plot Bunnies she'd worked with in her life had gathered around. "It's your turn," Bunaidh said.

Zamora frolicked with her old friends, and then they led her back to the rosebush, where she'd dream until she was ready to work with an author. "Why do I have to wait?" she asked. "This is awesome! I have so many ideas! Being a Plot Bunny is the best thing ever!" She was so excited she could barely sit still.

"Remember Bunaidh when you woke him too early?" Thawj asked. "That's what you're like now. You need to get used to the idea of being a Plot Bunny if you're to be of any use to an author." He tugged the end of a rainbow to land on the rosebush.

The rainbow was irresistible. Zamora curled up in its light and dreamed.