Sorrel

“You underrate trickery and whispers in the night, but wars can be won with much less than tooth and claw.”

Gender: Female
Warren: Darkhaven
Voice Actor: Emilia Clarke [think Daenerys Targaryen; Game of Thrones]
'Verse: TV Series

Rank: N/A

Sire: Shale
Dam: Roseroot
Littermates: Ragwort; Skullcap; Stonecrop

Mate: Ash
Kittens: None

Personality: Sorrel likes to take charge, no matter the situation. Even though she's not that high in rank, and even though she's not physically powerful – quite the opposite in fact – she uses words and wit to get what she wants. The years growing up in Darkhaven have turned her cold as stone, but there is some warmth in her heart. She knows how to be merciful, when it suits her, and kindness is, if rarely seen, one of her strengths.

When Ash comes to Darkhaven, Sorrel's skill at domination comes into play, in an attempt to usher him under her wing. She becomes more demanding, and lesser rabbits fear her, but she believes she's doing it for the greater good. Her instinct is to dominate – it's all she knows – and if she can't do that, she'll use her words to get her foes onto her side. She rarely shows fear, even if she is terrified, and many doubt she even possesses emotion. If she ever gets into a difficult situation, she handles things at her own pace, never rushing, and but never going too slow. When speaking, she comes across as very sarcastic and insulting, but she reserves her softer side for Ash and her brothers.

Relations:

Shale: Sorrel fears her father; he's strong, and even more cruel than she is. For as long as she can remember, he's looked down on her for being a 'weak female', favouring her three brothers. She never sees much of him, but silently hopes that one day he'll rue the day that he decided to reject her. After the Black Rabbit takes him at the Battle of Watership Down, Sorrel feels as though a weight has lifted from her shoulders.

Roseroot: From what Sorrel remembers of her mother, she was kind and loving, and the two shared a close bond. Unfortunately, Roseroot was killed early on in Sorrel's life, but Sorrel always remembers her mother.

Ragwort: The eldest of her siblings, Ragwort is the strongest, and never forgets to remind Sorrel of this. He follows the same dark path his father took, taking control and bullying the weak. He isn't cruel to Sorrel like their father is, but it's clear that he doesn't truly regard her as one his family. They speak with each other often, but they're short conversations, and never worth much anyway. Sorrel could care less.

Skullcap: The second eldest in the litter, and second only in wits to Sorrel, Skullcap is never seen far from his sister's side. Skullcap looks out for her, protecting her from the stronger few of the Darkhaven rabbits, and because he is a high-ranking warrior, he shares with Sorrel whatever privileges he can. Sorrel loves him for his generosity, but dislikes the path he chose, following Ragwort and their father. She knows that fighting is his life, but she can't help but feel a little bit hurt that he would take the side of two monsters in her family.

Stonecrop: Sorrel treasures the runt in her family, keeping him close at all times. The protection Skullcap offers her helps Stonecrop survive, but just to be safe, she makes him promise that he will become a student under the Speaker – it's the only way he'll truly be safe from the Code of Battle. She knows he has an innocent heart, and is quite soft in the head, but she wants to protect that innocence for as long as she can.

Spartina: The two are like sisters, but their noticeable age gap sets them apart quite far. Spartina is a born warrior, as well as a thinker, and the way of the Darkhaven warrior is more appealing to the darker doe than it is for Sorrel. Still, the two are close, and Sorrel is immensely happy when Spartina settles in Watership Down.

Ash: At first, Sorrel isn't sure what to think of him, after he left and returned with the intent to lead Darkhaven. She harbours a deep distrust for him, and manages to worm her way to the position of Advisor. Being so close to him now, she would have killed him and taken leadership for herself, but after talking to him alone, she learns about him, the hard life he's led, and feels sorry for him, and this is what brings her closer to him, so much so that her hate is replaced with love. She might adore him, but that still doesn't stop her distrusting him.

History: Born third in her litter, Sorrel was often overlooked in favour of her three brothers. From an early age, she was often seen with her mother, along with the runt, Stonecrop, unlike Ragwort and Skullcap, who spend their time with Shale, their brute of a father and Captain of Darkhaven Owsla. His dark eyes were always on the two eldest of his kittens, which gave Sorrel windows to escape and experience Darkhaven on her own.

Roseroot had always sugar-coated her description of the warren, saying its inhabitants were, yes, a bit rough, but would be accepting of a kitten, and would be kind and helpful towards her. The reality was the polar opposite; everywhere Sorrel roamed, she received dark looks from most of the rabbits here, and some even tried to attack her. She fled to an abandoned piece of machinery and hid there, trying to regain composure, when another rabbit stumbled upon her hiding place. Sorrel didn't bother to hide, but was shocked when she found out the doe's intent was not to kill, but to befriend. Her name was Spartina, and though she was quite a bit older than Sorrel, she claimed that she would help her fit in around the Darkhaven warmongers.

Approaching adolescence, Sorrel had already gained a name for herself as a trickster, and a manipulative thief. With Spartina's help, she learned how to make other rabbits fear her, and she trained for battle often. She wasn't the best of fighters, but her crafty nature was very beneficial. One day, though, returning to her burrow, she found a group of brawny males making their way over to Roseroot, saying that Shale had dishonoured them in the Battle Pit. They wanted to exact their revenge on him, and would do so by injuring her. Roseroot was not born in Darkhaven, and so was a stranger to war and fighting, and even with Sorrel's aid, could not fight off the males until Shale and Ragwort returned, driving them off. Roseroot had received nasty injuries to her eyes, and within a day they were infected. Sorrel's mother died within the week.

What really rubbed Sorrel the wrong way was the fact the Shale was completely unaffected by Roseroot's loss; in fact, he simply pretended he never knew her, and this gave him even more cause to ignore his younger kittens. Skullcap was of a mind with his sister, also believing that Shale was being unjust, and made a vow to protect her from the darker sides of the warren. He did so until they were adults, until the Dark One made his return. Woundwort was too powerful a foe to manipulate, and even though Ragwort and Skullcap made it to his Owsla, Sorrel could to little to impress him and thus earn protection. In fear and awe of their new leader, she spoke to the Speaker of the Past, and ensured Stonecrop a place under her teachings and protection. With her family's security all covered, she could finally relax a little.

When Woundwort led his attack on Watership Down, Ragwort went with him, as did their father, but Skullcap remained, on account of a wound from battle training. Neither of them knew the real fate of the warriors that left that day, assuming that they would return victorious. They were wrong. All that was left of the force sent to destroy Hazel's warren were wounded cowards, including Ragwort, who had led the survivors home. He tried to worm his way to the top, but Skullcap was always there to dash his hopes. Spartina, who had been spying, also didn't come back.

And then Ash returned.

Sorrel remembered little of Ash, a rugged warrior who left just before Woundwort arrived. He was in good condition, much stronger than any of the rabbits in the warren, and all its members – even the Speaker – wanted him as Chief. He gladly took the position, but Sorrel distrusted him. He could be one of Hazel's followers, an infiltrator sent to take over Darkhaven and root out all those who escaped the 'wrath of the Black Rabbit', as Ragwort put it often. The thing was, Ragwort was half-mad, raving from his experiences, and had been confined to a guarded burrow.

Sorrel worked her way to Ash's side, telling him truthfully that she was the best spy he could ask for, and a very influential rabbit in the warren. He was impressed, and asked if he might take her into his service. Sorrel agreed, becoming his Advisor, and many times tried to overthrow him with her words, wit and mustered strength. He thwarted her attempts, but admired her courage, and, outdone, Sorrel vowed to stand down. Ash honoured her decisions, and allowed her to remain as his Advisor. They spoke often, and Sorrel was let in on his life story, hearing of all the hardships he face. She pitied him, and this pity soon blossomed into a deeper feeling.

The two courted, and later became mates, and as Ash's mate, Sorrel became Co-Chief of Darkhaven. She believed her life to be almost carefree since the day, after she and Ash decided to relax the laws regarding the Code of Battle, but all that changed when Spartina made her return, along with the very rabbits that both her and Ash's warrens had fought to destroy...