Kids Can Fly: The Innocent Rabbit

not-too-smart rabbit came hopping along the field and stopped right in the middle near the bottom, between the two unnaturally large rabbits. It cleaned its ears and nibbled some grass, then it yawned and lay down flop in the sun, with it's back legs sticking out, and it's head on it's paws. The safest place a rabbit could be, in the whole wide world, was near to Ivan and Belowski.

Both the large rabbits tilted over slightly towards each other. This was because their eyes were slightly lower than their giant rabbit eye-holes so the only way they could see things lower than their noses, and down near their feet was to tilt. They both saw the not-too-big, not-too-small and not-too, bright rabbit not many strides from them and they both had a similar idea. Together they unzipped their suits and pulled out their guns, which they had treacherously hidden inside their rabbit-suits, and took careful aim at the not-too-big, not-too-small, really dumb rabbit. The rabbit paid them no heed, but merely sighed with a satisfied little rabbity sigh and closed its eyes.

Blam! Blam! went the guns. Two never-seen-before, absolutely-lucky, bewilderingly accurate shots peppered the sleeping rabbit so thoroughly that there was very little left of it.

"I hit it first!" shouted Ivan.

"So did !" shouted Belowski.

Neither of the men realized that it was impossible to both be before the other, but this conundrum had no effect on their excitement.

The townsfolk, who had been watching secretly from a distance, stood up and cheered.

"You are both incredibly good shots!" cried the butcher, glancing quickly at his wife. When he saw that she approved of what he had said, he marched up to Ivan and Belowski (taking care not to stand on the remains of the rabbit) and presented both men with an award and a certificate.

"As our champion rabbit-shooters," said the mayor, who had come along specially to make a speech, "We wish you both well in the Far Eastern Rabbit-Shooters Olympics. In order to enter this world-famous event, you will have to travel to the other side of the planet, a journey which may take you ten years at least, but the effort will be worth it, because if you win, you will return here, to your village, and you will be famous!"

The townsfolk cheered so loudly that the questions which Ivan and Belowski were trying to formulate into words were obliterated, and their pride and vanity won the day. Any doubts they might have had were completely