*Sniff Sniff* I stifled the urge to cough and plowed through weeds up to my waist. On the other side I let out a whoop that would frighten every bunny in the field. It didn't workk, though it brought some more phlegm up my bronchial tubes and into my mouth. I spit and kept walking. The weeds formed a mat about 6 inches above the ground. 'Well, this will be good once it finally happens...' I beat the top of the mat knowing that very little movement made it all the way to the ground, but kept beating and pressing on. Aquila had done a good job of following along with me and was staring intently around from a high perch in a mature Ash Leaf Maple. Suddenly I was distracted by the sound of jingling bells and movement from behind. I looked to see him dropping from the branch into the brush. I half expected to hear the sound of a dying rabbit, but rather heard nothing but bells trying to get back up. I waited and he got up on his own, reagained a low perch. I walked back around the edge of the field to get under him, but had to fight my way through sunflower plants over my head. They were dying and their heads drooped instead of looking to the sky. I scanned the cover as I walked, emitting a terse cough every once and a while, feeling hotter and hotter by the minute. I looked back to the bird and he was panting too. 'This can't go on too much longer,' I thought. I turned back and HO HO HO there was a full grown rabbit running in the open through the wooded draw. Hawk was down quick, but couldn't make a shot. He flew down once and nearly grabbed it, then they ducked out of my range of vision with the hawk still only a foot or so over the rabbit. I heard a crash, then nothing. Following the hawk I heard him get up, only a foot or so over the cover, then head for a giant Sycamore tree. He was up nearly 30 feet when I pressed across the field. It was very wet and I doubted that much was there. I crossed the two acre or so square then turned to the opposite side. Some small Willows had began to grow on this side, but the cover was still there. As I passed through some tall Goldenrod, I heard bells and looked to see my bird comming in strong. I couldn't tell what he wanted. He wasn't flying hard persay, but still had that determined look. 'Maybe he saw one that was not flushing quite yet.' I decided to stop and wait. Thankfully, he pitched around and then ducked upside down, like a true longwing's stoop, but at about 10 feet. He smashed into the cover and sure enough... waaa waaa waaa! The cries continued as I walked up. I still don't know how that bird caught that rabbit. There was no room in the Goldenrod. Both the rabbit and the hawk were pushing rods out of the way to fit inside. I pushed the ones that were going through the wings aside, then finally gave up and pulled both bird and rabbit up, off the ground and took them to a nice open spot. Then I pulled a front leg off and traded the bird off for it. (he was holding it by the rump. As I was walking to the bare spot I noticed that half the skin of the face had been torn off and there was another puncture on the chest, the bird was holding it by the back legs and six talons were piercing through the skin, I don't know how that happened, but I am glad that I made in when I did, because it was still alive and fighting, despite its injuries, when I came up.) Then we walked back around the edge of the field as he ate the front leg. When he had finised that, I served him the lure, put him in the box, and we headed for home - and I coughed all the way back.
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