Rise of the Guardians
Lucky Rabbit
Chapter One: Lucky Meeting
The humanoid feline ran on her four limbs, her back legs bent like a feline but her arms straightened like a human's as she tore past the various people in the town called Pleasant Hill, California. She came to a sudden halt, breathing heavily as she pushed up to stand up on her back legs, nose twitching.
Her ears flicked with excitement. She was fashioned after the family's beloved epitome, the Maneki-Neko, or the Welcoming Cat, who originated in Japan and eventually, a long time afterwards, found their race in America. Her grandparents were actually from San Francisco but her parents had moved to a smaller area to help out with the much needed luck.
Actually, her entire family was much like that symbol, though they preferred to be referred as ancestors as well of the Japanese Bobtail cat, as that was the Maneki-Neko had been fashioned after.
She had a pile of curls for her hair, one perfect chocolate curl falling between her crayola blue eyes. The rest of it was alternating between gold and chocolate curls that gathered at the back of her neck. Her fur was cream-colored, with chocolate dipped ears and various chocolate and gold patches on her fur. She had a bushel of fur at her front, one rather puffy bunch at her chest and the other, slightly less puffy at her abdomen that trailed into her nether regions. She had a pert, squat, and rabbit-like tail of cream and partial gold. Her pink nose was surrounded in gold fur that covered up the bridge of her nose and over the curves of her mouth.
And she bore the family heirloom, a crimson red, thick collar with a oversized goldenrod bell.
"It's Easter! It's Easter!" She bounded down the steps of the town hall, diving into the streets and coming to where the park close by was located. Children were laughing as the party was beginning for the morning. Everyone was excited to look for the coveted treasures, one of which was a hollow egg that had a hundred dollar bill.
But she didn't want money. She didn't even want the candy or sweets or even the eggs. She looked around carefully for any telltale signs of the Easter Bunny.
There was a man in a costume as she snickered at the awkward moving of the 'bunny' as he greeted the younger children who reacted with great joy.
She flicked her koban, that is, a gold coin that originated from Japan. It was etched in Japanese symbols and was heavy to hold, as it was solid gold. "Will I meet the Bunny today?" She asked it as she flipped it high.
One side was etched in Japanese symbols, the other not. If it landed on the side it didn't have so, then she wasn't going to be lucky today.
She closed her eyes tightly, not wanting to really see the results. After years and years of wishing and hoping, the only time she never had luck was with this one simple wish.
"Please, please, pleaseeeeee!" She begged out loud, paws clasped tightly. "Just a glance is all that I ask for!"
"Hey! A gold coin!" A little boy yanked up her coin and tore off as the feline stared in utter shock.
"Wai..wait! That's mine! It's a family heirloom! It's worthless to humans, it only works for me! Wait! Give it back to me, you little brat!"
She ran, halfway hopping and running as the kid ran fast, hand held up with his new prize. "Give it to me!"
She hissed, arching her back in rage as she jumped with perfect precision.
Then the boy tripped on an hidden Easter egg and the coin went flying as she tumbled and rolled back onto all fours, gasping as she held her side. Her paws went frantic over the grass, desperate to find it. "Oh, Mom and Dad are going to kill me!" She wailed.
She was hunched over, buttocks slightly up in the air as her tail was twitching. The pooka, or oversized rabbit looked at the back with a scratch to his head. He eyed the coin and easily bent over her hunched form to drop it in front of her.
Her eyes picked up on it fast as she bounded and played with it like a cat would play with a mouse. "Yes! Yes! Ha ha!"
She stood up and spun around. "Thanks so much…"
Her blue eyes met with his green as the E. Aster Bunnymund, or Bunny as he was commonly referred to, stood with crossed arms.
"What're you doing, mate?" He quipped, one ear falling to side as her arm slowly fell back to her side. She huddled down, on her bent back legs as she was wordless.
"Well?"
She really wanted to say something. Her eyes were huge on her face and Bunny was actually quite impressed with how soulful the feline's eyes were.
"Hi." She squeaked. She took her koban and put it into her bell. "Ummm, thank you, Mr. Bunny, for returning my treasure."
"That wasn't intentional, just luck that the kid tripped. What are you doing here while I'm working?"
"I… wanted to see what you do?"
"Are you saying or asking me?" He bent down himself and scratched his ear with ease. "Kind of small, aren't you?"
"It's the breed," She fiddled with her puffy-furred fingers. "I'm.. just small. I'm fully grown!" She added hurriedly.
He was ignoring her at the moment, distracted as the last of the eggs were being found. "Heh, I love watching the children. I forget how much fun it is to see their joy. So much hope and love."
He glanced at the girl and looked awkward at the worshipping gaze that the girl had. "Ummm…"
"Oh!" She bounded around him, hopping on all four legs like a kitten would. "I'm Fautine Bobtail, the Lucky Cat!"
"Oh, one of those that migrated from out of state, right?"
"Actually, out of state. My grandparents came from Japan, who brought my parents with them. I was born JUST as they came to America. Literally, on the boat ride!"
"Ah, I see."
He straightened. "Last one collected! Wait.. There's one more.. Ahh, I'm afraid I hid it too well."
"No, you didn't!" He turned to see her bounding off as she dived under the bush, into the tree trunks and dug at the very thick foliage as she pulled out the last egg. "Right here! I can keep it, right?"
"Why would you want to keep it?"
"What, oh, yea… no, I don't have, like, a keepsake of them.. At all.." She trailed off. She walked back to him and dejectedly offered him the egg.
"Do you even celebrate Easter?"
"Of course I do! I'm sort of the only one who does but.. I love Easter!" She blurted out, face tinting red.
His ears went back in confusion as he stared down at her. She came just to the middle of his chest and was so young looking, it was throwing him off. But his nose in overdrive kept reminding him that this wasn't a kitten at all.
He wiggled his nose in irritation and rid himself of her scent. "Yes, well," He took the egg gingerly from her. "It was nice meeting you… Faustine."
She beamed when he said her name and then huddled down as he took off, making a hole in the ground as he disappeared in seconds.
She looked at her empty hand. "I guess… he just didn't want to notice me." Faustine felt disappointed and rejected.
"I have all the luck in the world to give.. To everyone but me. How ironic." She sat down heavily, stretching out her limbs as she was dimly aware of how happy the children were being.
She pulled back out her coin, then flipped it as she sighed. "Will I ever find love?" She asked it sadly as she flipped it and closed her eyes tightly. It hurt, in her chest. She finally, finally, finally got to see her most beloved icon and he didn't even seem to care about her. He was so happy with the children, that seemed to be the only thing that made him smile.
She peeked out and frowned suddenly. "Where did my koban go!?" She felt panic begin all over it.
She spotted it then, unnaturally rolling away from her as she bounded after it on all fours as a hole opened up underneath the stunned bobtail as she shrieked as she disappeared into the rabbit hole.
She landed hard, the scent of spring strong in the air. She pushed up and made a face. She then watched her coin lazily roll by her side, as if teasing her before it quickened and went down the hole toward the beacon of light. "Hey! What are you doing, you stupid coin!?"
She bounded off the ground, making a nosedive as she skidded on the ground, paw grasping the running coin as her face went into the back heel of Bunny. He hopped on one foot, crying out as she tried to think past the spinning in her head and vision.
She was hefted up by the scruff as he glared at her. Her vision slowly returned as she stared into the darkened green eyes. "Ummm.. Hi again?"
"Crikey, what're you doing?"
"My coin was acting funny."
"You.. Your coin? How does it do that?"
She shrugged. "I asked it a question and then it just… sorta rolled off into the hole."
He dropped her unceremoniously on the ground. "Well, I'm busy so if you don't mind.."
He took off. And every time he returned, he found Faustine still there. As the night began to fall and Easter day began to end, he was very tired of her beaming face.
He went to his carrot patch and began to nibble, pulling more to make carrot soup for dinner. He was aware of the big blue eyes on his backside as he rolled his eyes.
"You're not doing a very good job at hiding your feelings," He told her without turning. "I've got nothing to get you to eat either so why don't you go on home, huh?"
"I can eat carrots!"
"Right, and mice and fish isn't up your alley."
"I'm versatile!"
"Look, mate, how about you leave, huh? I've had a long day and you're just pushing it."
"I can make you dinner."
"No, you can't. You don't know how to work with carrots. I do, so bug off."
"But.."
"I said get lost!" Bunny yelled. He towered over her, glowering at her. "Now get on home. You're probably missed!"
"I am not a child! I've been on my own for at least twenty years!" She shouted back, pushing up so that their noses met. "Don't you dare treat me as such! Don't you know what I do? I bring good luck, fortune, and happiness! Not unlike yourself, either," She bit out. "I thought you'd be a better man than this but.. You're.. you're… a meanie!"
She then bounded off with a broken hearted sob, diving into a rabbit hole and popping out back in town. She tore off and eventually found the Cat's Haven, a place were the mystical felines lived in safety. Not quite existent on Earth's reality, it was a pocket of space, just one of many, where her kind lived.
She found the cat scratcher where her family lived. Their homes were literally fashioned after the various cat scratchers that existed, her home was the tallest at four stories tall and filled with many rooms. She claimed one floor herself as home, and it was the fourth. Where she could easily jump into from the outside but climbing the high tree next to the window of her bedroom as well as the front door, which was what her family's preferred entrance.
She pushed through the door and was quickly greeted by her frantic mother. "Where have you been?!"
She was slightly taller than Faustine, and nearly all white save for barely black tipped ears and a tiny splash of black on her right toes. Her black hair fell heavily down her back, all the way to nearly the ground. This would be Faustine's mother, Anabella, who controlled almost everything in the household.
Her daughter not being counted.
"I was out."
"For all day?! You usually come to lunch! You must be hungry!"
Faustine's stomach grumbled loudly as she became embarrassed. "Whoops. Forgot to eat."
Her mother dragged her to the family table where her father, a tortoise calico of gold, brown, and black, majority of him being gold, sat at the head of the table. Like most of the males in the family, he didn't have the 'human-like' hair going for him. He did have a lot of fur on his chin in a pseudo-beard.
"Erik, you need to have a talk to with your daughter!"
"She's an adult, dear, she doesn't have to listen to us," He responded, reading the newspaper. "Huh, there's my good fortune! I knew it'd end up on the papers. Wait'll I tell Steve!"
Anabella rolled her eyes. Her husband had a tendency to have competitions with the other neighbors on who could bring the best good luck to people.
"Erik.."
"Now, now, she's home, now isn't she?"
"Dad, I want to move out."
He choked on his coffee. "Augh..! What? Wait! You love it here!"
"I do but.. It's not my place. You made it with the other neighbors. I want my own home, my own space. I've collected a LOT of good luck and I think I have enough to make my own home!"
"Honey, talk to her!" Anabella begged to Erik.
He lowered his cup with a low sigh. "I suppose you're right, Faustine. You've been independent for years. We've only kept you here to be kept safe, because there are things that can go wrong or bad. But.. You'd been doing a great job at bringing luck and fortune and most importantly, happiness. It's time you made your own happiness, my dear."
His chin trembled with both pride and sadness as both looked at each other with tears in their eyes.
Until Anabella burst into loud, violent tears and beat her hands on the table. "No! No! I will not! Remember what happened to Uncle Ledge?"
"You mean Great Uncle Ledge who drove himself insane by trying to bring good luck to an insane asylum?" Erik asked skeptically. "Honey, Faustine is not like that at all. Trust me, we'd have figured that out by now."
"It's not that! What if she finds a place that she cannot bring good luck to? And keeps trying? You know once we've started, we have to finish what we have done!"
"I know what to avoid, Mom! I'm not an idiot!"
"You are not leaving! You are not ready at all!"
"God, Mom! You have no faith in me! At all! Well, I'll show you! I'll do it and bring the bestest luck to the world! Watch me!"
She tore off and bounded up the stairs until she was puffing at the fourth floor. "Phew.."
Her stomach grumbled even louder. "Crap. I should've ate something."
She heard it then, a squeaking, familiar noise. "Hmmm… " She watched the mouse scurry away in fright. "Maybe I won't have to go back downstairs."
She laughed softly as she went on the hunt and sure enough, she had her dinner that night. And she found it absolutely delicious. She was cleaning her paws as she though on it. "Well, maybe I wouldn't have liked carrot soup.. But it's not like I never tried it so how would I really know?"
