Out of all the bad ideas Jack's had, and he's had a lot of really bad ideas, this one might just take the cake.
Jack awkwardly stood in the middle of the Warren, twirling his staff in his hands. Bunny had yet to notice his presence, and a voice in Jack's head was screaming for him to leave. He silenced the voice, but when he heard large footsteps he panicked, hiding behind a bush.
It had been two weeks since the fight with Pitch, and even though Bunny didn't seem to hate him as much didn't mean he liked the young winter spirit. To be fair, Jack hadn't been around much, spending some much deserved alone time down at his lake. North had insisted he stay at the Pole, but Jack couldn't just give up his freedom like that. No, as much as he didn't want to be alone he would miss the Wind wrapping herself around him while carrying him to his next location. Jack Frost was a free spirit, and no matter how much he liked North, nothing could change that.
Jack watched Bunny for a moment, uncharacteristically still. He peered through the leaves of his savior bush, watching the Easter Bunny pick things up. Jack's gut clenched as he realized what Bunny was doing, and he lowered his head some, remembering his motive for being here.
Bunny was cleaning up after Easter.
It pained Jack, as he knew deep inside it was his fault, ignoring Wind's protests. He looked at the eggshells and wished he had never stepped foot into this bloody Warren. Abort mission, the voice screamed, and Jack took a deep breath causing pain to flare up in his chest. He waited until Bunny's back was to his bush and stood up, darting over to hide behind a tree.
"Who's there?" Bunny growled, and Jack's heart pounded. Bunny had noticed. Damn. How was he going to get out of here now? Jack heard the twirling of Bunny's boomerangs and knew he had to act fast, or else he'd end up with a very painful bruise. His eyes darted around, his back to the tree trunk, trying to come up with a plan.
"Frostbite?"
Jack jumped ten feet into the air, letting out a surprised yelp. He let in a big mouthful of air, causing his ribs to scream in protest. Bunny had found him hiding behind the tree, and put his boomerangs away, looking confused and annoyed at the same time.
"Hey, Bunny." Jack nervously smiled.
"What are you doing in me Warren, Frost?" Bunny narrowed his eyes.
"I, um…" Jack gripped his staff tight in his hand. "I thought I left something here. Turns out I didn't. I'm gonna ask Tooth, bye!" Jack turned and was about to fly off in a panic when Bunny grabbed his hood, tapping his foot on the ground.
"The truth, Frost," Bunny demanded, letting go of Jack.
Jack turned around again, leaning on his staff and nervously running a hand through his hair.
"I was- I thought, I…" Jack sighed. "I… I felt guilty for Easter and everything and I wanted to help clean the Warren up," Jack mumbled, looking at the ground, bracing himself for all of the yelling that was sure to come.
Bunny was quiet, and when Jack looked back up the Pooka's face had softened.
"I'll just… I'll go see if Tooth needs any help," Jack said, walking towards the tunnels.
"It wasn't your fault, kid." Bunny's voice stopped Jack in his tracks. Jack looked at Bunny, who was now leaning against the tree Jack had been hiding behind. Jack gave Bunny a funny look.
"Yeah, it was," Jack frowned, confused. "I got sidetracked and I wasn't there."
"It was Pitch's fault, Jack," Bunny said, his voice slightly rising in volume. "He had it all planned out. He wanted to tear us apart. And from what you've told us, he lured you into his hole."
Jack didn't believe him. He knew it was his fault, no matter how much the Pooka tried to make him feel better.
"You can still help if you want. To ease your conscious, I guess," Bunny offered.
Jack smiled, nodding eagerly. Bunny sighed and shook his head, motioning Jack to follow with his paw. Wind scooped Jack up, depositing him right in front of Bunny, who was holding a trash bag.
"No freezing anything, you hear? Or else I'll tie you to a tree and leave you there for a month," Bunny threatened.
"I hear, Kangaroo," Jack smirked. Together they worked in silence, picking up painted eggshells and putting them in trash cans.
"Shit." Jack cursed. He had twisted his body too much, and now his ribs were painfully throbbing.
"What's up?" Bunny raised an eyebrow, training his eyes on Jack.
"Nothing," Jack brushed the question off, continuing to pick up eggshells. After he saw Bunny's gaze, however, he sighed. "I'm just a little sore from the fight. It'll blow over-"
Bunny's eyes widened as Jack started to cough, but was more concerned about the fact that Jack was coughing up blood.
"Jack? What's going on?" Bunny demanded, dropping the eggshells from his paws.
"Relax, Cottontail, it's just a couple of bruised ribs," Jack frowned.
"Bruised? No, looks like they're broken, mate. Come with me," Bunny ordered, standing up. Jack rolled his eyes and stood up, following Bunny into his den. "Lay down on the couch. I'll be back."
Jack watched as Bunny hopped further into the den, leaving Jack alone. Jack sat down on the couch but refused to lay down. He was not a damsel in distress, thank you very much. He glanced around at the warm, homey living room, neutral warm colors making up the den.
Bunny came back into view, holding bandages. He set the bandages onto a table, kneeling down next to Jack.
"Alright, mate, we need to get your sweatshirt off." Bunny calmly said. Bunny helped Jack take off the hoodie, gently pulling it over Jack's head. Bunny cursed under his breath when he got a good look at Jack's chest, dark and painful bruises covering his skin.
"Damn Jack, what happened?"
"Pretty sure it was my glorious collision with that dumpster," Jack gave a weak grin.
"Well, why didn't you tell anyone, you bloody idiot?" Bunny scowled, making Jack flinch.
"I didn't want to bother anyone with something I can fix by myself," Jack said quietly, lowering his eyes.
Bunny shook his head, bringing a paw up to Jack's chest. Jack winced as Bunny felt the bruises.
"I was right. You've got a couple of breaks there, mate," Bunny concluded. He grabbed the bandages and started to wrap them around Jack's chest. "Bloody hell, Frostbite. Next time tell me, or else I'll cover you in sugar and leave you for the elves."
Jack's eyes widened at the thought. "You wouldn't!" Jack breathed.
"Try me," Bunny smirked.
Bunny finished bandaging Jack's chest, standing up.
"Thanks, Bunny," Jack smiled, following suit and pulling his hood back on. "Let's finish up cleaning."
"In your dreams, Frost." Bunny rolled his eyes and grabbed Jack's arm, leading the boy to one of his spare rooms. "You were just coughing up blood fifteen minutes ago; like hell I'm going to let you move around even more."
Jack frowned but didn't protest, his eyes starting to droop. He fell back into the bed, Bunny pulling a sheet over the winter spirit's body. Jack curled up sleepily, hugging his staff close to his body like a teddy bear.
"You're not half bad, kid," Bunny softly smiled. Jack could practically feel all the tension there ever was between him and the Pooka disappear. Sure, they would still have their spats, but Jack could slowly see Bunny coming to like him a little more each time he saw the rabbit. And Jack liked that.
"Right back at ya, 'roo," Jack grinned tiredly.
"Get some rest, Frosty," Bunny chuckled, turning off the lamp beside Jack's bed. Bunny left the room, closing the door slowly and quietly. Jack sighed contently, happy that he was starting to make friends with the Easter Bunny. He fell into a light slumber, letting the guilt of the most recent events fall off of his shoulders for that moment.
Well, that just happened. There are so many one-shots I want to write for this fandom. This one took about an hour.
Hoped you liked it!