Winters Bite.
Each animal knew the aim of the game – win her heart to have your wish granted. Things were going to plan up until November where a small, female rabbit joined the family.
It had been quite some time since Heejung had last visited the park; it was back when Jisoo was a cat cheekily looking up at her. It had just turned November; the snow had been falling for days and the slowly falling sun was losing it warmth. Heejung was out with Jisoo today, the pair of them happily walking side by side talking to one another. She couldn't help but smile, feeling at peace walking alongside the tall, handsome man. She couldn't deny that he looked better in his human form than his cat form but she didn't dare say this aloud. Her life had completely changed since the summer, the five pets left in a basket for her all having an impact on her. For the better or the worse she could not tell.
"Quiet" Jisoo commanded, halting in his long stride. He looked around, his eyes turning into slits as he threatening glared at a bush several feet away.
"What is it?" Heejung asked in confusion but Jisoo ignored her, approaching the bush with light, careful steps. Jisoo growled under his breath, as if disgusted by his finding, but it was soon cut off by his very own gasp. Heejung instantly ran over to him as he flung himself into the bush, only his waist downwards visible to her. She frowned when he suddenly became very still, slowly backing himself out of the bush. Jisoo turned to face Heejung, stretching his hands out to show her what he had found. Heejung loudly gasped, her honey eyes going wide in shock and horror.
In the palm of his hands was a small rabbit, its body shaking and its eyes tightly clenched shut. It was as black as night, the same colour as Jisoo if he was a cat now, but the little thing was covered in blood.
"She has a broken rib, wounds to her stomach and her hind left leg is… well mostly gone. She's been out in the snow for a good few hours, probably throughout the night" Jisoo informed Heejung as he inspected the rabbit, wrapping the little thing in his clothes to try and warm it up.
"H..how do you know that?" Heejung asked in confusion.
"Cats have sharp eyes and senses" Jisoo replied with a victorious grin.
"We need to take her to the vets then, it's not far from here" Heejung spoke, panic now evident in her voice.
"No" Jisoo blankly said, his eyes looking down at the rabbit.
"No? What on earth do you mean?! That poor thing is suffering, you can't just say no because you dislike rabbits-" Heejung argued but Jisoo silenced her with an enraged look.
"She can't be vetted… she is one of us, someone like me. We're taking her home Foodgiver" Jisoo told her and without another word he walked on, his strides long and powerful. Heejung couldn't help but trot after him, she really didn't need another person in the house but it looked like she had no say in this situation.
All eyes were on them when they got home, heading straight to the bathroom. Everyone besides Jieun followed after the pair, curious to what Jisoo was carrying and why they smelt blood.
"Jiyeon get a clean towel, Jihae get the first aid box from under the sink in the kitchen. Foodgiver we need to clean her up and get her warm as soon as possible, her body is slowly breaking down" Jisoo ordered, heading straight to the sink and turning the warm water on.
"What's going on?" Jiwoo asked, pushing pass Heejung to look at the situation but as soon as he saw what was going on he turned pale. By this time Jiyeon and Jihae had returned with the required items, the pair of them looking over Heejung's shoulder and down at the black rabbit that Jisoo was attempting to clean.
"Oh wow, where did you find her?" Jiyeon asked and Jisoo sighed, trying to explain the story as the black rabbit wriggled in his grasp. It was clear that Jisoo was no good at this, the rabbit was not making it easy for him either, and his frustration was only increasing.
"Let me" Jihae softly said, holding his hands out to take the burden from him. Jisoo seemed offended by this but instead of arguing with him he carefully handed her over, stepped out of the way for him to take his place.
"Foodgiver we should make dinner, let this rabbit do his thing" Jisoo said and before Heejung could express her worries she was dragged out of the bathroom. Jiyeon, knowing he was useless just standing with the rabbits, also left the room. Jiwoo took this time approach the sink again to look down at the rabbit, feeling slightly more comfortable with Jihae being the only other one in the room.
"Do you recognise her?" Jihae asked, surprised by his interest in the black rabbit. He was thankful that Jieun was still in the living room, uninterested in the events taking place in the bathroom. Jiwoo was silent for a minute, watching Jihae carefully wash her even as she weakly struggled against him.
"No" he simply replied as Jihae moved onto her leg. Jiwoo turned his back to them quickly and left the room in a hurry. Jihae glanced over his shoulder as he watched him leave, frowning at his sudden reaction. He shrugged, deciding that Jiwoo was not accustom to the sight of blood let alone the sight of half a leg.
"Well…" Jihae sighed, gently washing her wounds.
"Let's see what we can do for you little one" Jihae continued on.
Forty minutes had slowly passed and Jihae left the bathroom, a towel wrapped around the female rabbit in his arms.
"How is she?" Heejung asked, leaping out of the chair at the dining table. Jihae tiredly sighed, looking in her direction.
"I cannot say for sure My Lady, I have done the best I can to ease her pain but tonight will be a hard night for her" Jihae honestly replied with a forced half smile. Jiwoo, Jisoo and Heejung seemed uneasy from his words but did not speak. They watched as he walked over to the living room, sitting himself next to Jieun on the couch. Jihae did not question where Jiyeon had gone to, he barely cared, all he could do was look down at the small animal wrapped in the towel with a strained expression. The three of them had joined them on the couch once they had finished eating; Heejung had tried to get Jihae to eat something but he politely declined. It was some time later when Heejung decided to go to bed, later than usual Jihae noted, but once she disappeared into her bedroom for the night the others seemed to leave the room too. Jieun left for the kitchen while Jiwoo left the house; Jisoo seemed to be the only one who lingered for a moment or two before following Jiwoo out the door. Jihae wasn't surprised he was left alone now; he doubted anyone would want to babysit the mysterious animal throughout the night. He didn't mind though, he was fine staying up to keep an eye on her.
It was the early hours of the morning. Jihae had managed to check her bandages and swap her into a blanket to ensure she warmed up. He was relieved that she was still alive, her eyes not as harshly clenched and her body less shaky. He knew she hadn't slept at all though, her breathing was harsh and she had constantly been fidgeting the whole time. Jihae had tried to sooth the troublesome thing with gentle, soft strokes but the attempt only seemed to make her worse. He had resulted to softly whispering to her, his voice seeming a good choice as she slowly settled down. Jihae had lost concentration though, his thoughts elsewhere as he grew silent. The only thing that broke the silence was the noise of the television that quietly played in the room. Jihae snapped back to reality when he heard the black rabbit harshly inhale, its body falling still. Out of panic Jihae looked down at her, his heart loudly beating as he was met with soft, ocean blue eyes.
She stared up at his face, her ears lifted up towards him for the first time. Jihae masked his emotions quickly, he had been stared at for all of his life and for the most part the looks were not kind. Either way Jihae couldn't help but sigh in relief, he was worried she would not survive the night. He didn't know what to say to her, all he could do was look down at her until words came to mind.
"You should rest, you must be exhausted" he quietly told her and the rabbits ears instantly dropped, as if afraid to do such a thing. Jihae went to move his hand towards the blanket to pull it more away from her mouth but at the movement she flinched making him pause for a moment. He held his hand there, the flinching rabbit relaxing again when she noticed no harm came to her. Slowly Jihae moved the blanket in a better position for her, retreating his hand away from her once he was done.
"You are safe here My Lady, no harm will come to you" Jihae continued on after watching her reaction. The female rabbit did not speak but merely relaxed in his arms, her eyes softening. She remained awake though, her eyes analysing him carefully. Although her eyes bothered him in more than one way Jihae couldn't help but become curious. She did not look up at him in disgust or anger, not even when her eyes lingered on his long silver hair, instead she looked up at him in wonder. A low sigh escaped her lips though, her eyes slowly closing against her will. Jihae weakly smiled down at her, he hoped she would sleep well. He turned his eyes towards the television, thankful that she had stopped fidgeting for now.