Two months later and I was finally starting to differentiate certain syllables and gaining a primitive understanding of basic Pookan. I realized this whilst watching Bunny weed his garden (he muttered a lot) and it also gave me a chance to just sit and observe him. He was planting something one by one, poking a finger into the damp earth and taking a single seed from a leather pouch about his waist and then dropping it in before gently covering the hole. It never ceased to astonish me that he could be that gentle. I'd seen him countless times in battle, or skirmishes, and even sparing with him, throwing his 'rangs with expertise. His hand to hand was even fiercer, I'd watched him and North grapple on more than one New Year's Eve, and until then I never would have thought someone could best North without weapons. I felt a smile grow as I remembered the first time it happened.
It was three and a half years after we defeated Pitch, and Sandy and I were watching Tooth flitting about directing her fairies. He hovered about shoulder height to me and we traded small talk about how I was coming along as far as getting used to my new title.
"It's not really that much different than what I was doing before, to be honest. But being able to be seen… It's intoxicating; the winters are never long enough anymore." I told him, smiling, and then took a sip of the hot coco that he handed me. This stuff was amazing, and I had it as often as I could get away with.
"Winter is plenty long as it is." Bunny piped from his burrow of blankets on North's red patterned couch. He always sat on the left most side leaned against the arm. The one time I tried to sit there he grabbed me up and plopped me down on the middle cushion before informing me that the arm was his spot and would not be taken from him. To which I replied something along the lines of him not having his name on it. Many schoolyard insults followed.
Tooth laughed and flit over to land next to the blue-grey burrito, "It's not so bad, the snowball fights are so much fun! And you can't deny how beautiful some of the winter scenery is can you?" She winked as if daring the artist in him to nullify her claim. All he did was huff and shift deeper into his blankets as I flew over to hover above him. Twirling my staff I turned myself upside down and descended to peer down into the open hole of the blankets.
"You can't deny it Cottontail, I've seen you paint tons of winter wonderlands! Not as good as what I do, but… no one's perfect." I chuckled. He growled lightly at me, but I could see the amusement in his eyes. It made me frost a little bit.
"There you are! I was wondering if everyone had skipped out on party." North boomed, making me loose balance and topple onto the couch between Tooth and Bunny with an 'AH!'
Santa guffawed at the display and walked over to wring the quilts away from the Easter Bunny, clapping him roughly on the shoulders, "Come now old friend, do not be letting your b-rated holiday get you down. Is time to celebrate!" Out of nowhere came a yell and crash. Tooth and I jerked in response, as did Sandy if the coco drenched sand was any indication.
It was amazing. North, huge, strong, charismatic North was spread out on the floor in front of the couch. Bunny was standing with North's wrist in a vice grip.
"What was that 'bout a b-rate holiday, mate?" His grin dripping confidence.
The grappling match that started after was epic. They were both strong, with North being built like an Olympian body builder, unfortunately had to sacrifice some speed, and Bunny… built for speed, quicker that I'd like to admit. He easily dodged the bigger man's hands, instead jumping and twisting in the air much like I do in the wind. It went on like that, Bunny getting quick, sharp jabs on North; while North attempted to seize any part of Bunny he could wrap his fingers around.
Twenty minutes later Tooth, Sandy and I looked on the scene before us in bewilderment: North was on his knees huffing and puffing admitting defeat, and telling furniture to stop moving. Tooth trotted to him with a giggle, "You alright sugar?" she said as she rubbed circles on his back. Sandy floated in between the two holiday makers then lifted his arm and brought it down ten times forming a 'KO' over his head while his twinkling laugh flowed from his mouth, and me? I let out a 'WOOOO' that rattled the windows.
"That was awesome! No wonder you can keep up with me, 'Roo!" I quipped at Bunny.
From the floor I heard North flop to his back and say something along the lines of Easter being much finer than a b holiday, then promptly called for Phil to bring out the 'good eggnog' telling Bunny "To the victor, go the spoils my friend." Everyone laughed, even Bunny. I tried not to make my staring obvious, my peripherals showed me his shoulders rising and falling with his mouth grinning wide, and I decided then that I loved his laugh.
A splash brought me out of the memory. Bunny had filled and then dumped a bucket of water over his head, washing a good bit of the soil from his fur. He shook his head and then hopped to a patch of clover a few yards away and proceeded to fling himself down and roll in it. He really did look like a rabbit and I couldn't help the laugh that bubbled past my lips. He froze, and sensitive ears perked up before he called out my name in confusion.
"Jack? That you, ya gumby?" He looked this way and that, not being able to pin point where I was. My answer was a snowball to the back of his head. It made a beautiful explosion of white powder as it connected.
"Damn it Frostbite!"
Laughing, I jumped from my perch and sauntered over to him, plopping myself down on the edge of the clover. "Get all your seeds planted and labeled?"
"I did, ahead of schedule too." He looked pleased, then perplexed, his thick brows furrowing, "When'd you get here?"
"This morning a little after dawn." I said while resting my arms on my crossed legs, my staff across my lap.
His ears twitched as he looked at me with wide eyes, their green almost put his warren to shame. I fought down another frost and stood up, might as well try circling him now while I have the courage to; but to hide my nervousness I threw out a jibe as I walked around him, "Cat got your tongue 'Roo? I'm not all about pranks and tricks; I can sit still when I need to."
His eyes didn't leave me as I finished the circle around the patch of clover, "No," he said, "I guess you're not, mate."
What flimsy hold I had not frosting was lost. I laughed, probably harder and louder than I needed to in my jittery state and called the wind to take me away. I almost wanted to look back, but refused to be that obvious. I couldn't get the quiet tone he used out of my head, so I decided it was high time to go talk to Tooth. She always gave good advice. Like a big sister.
She saw me coming and a smile graced her face. "Hey there sweet tooth, haven't seen you in a while. Let me find Baby and we can go chat." She flit off and I wandered to her guest area.
Her sitting room was huge. And bright. The colors were all sunny oranges and yellows, with shimmering pinks and slips of light blues. The couch I planted myself on felt like it wanted to swallow me whole with how plush it was. Not to mentions the mountains of pillows on it, small compared to the enormous lounge cushions on the floor.
"So," She starts, perching on the arm of the carnivorous couch, "what do you need, Jack?"
"I like Bunny." I blurted; might as well get that part over with, at least this piece of news won't be as shocking as the second. I peeked over at her, hands gripping my trusty staff tight. I was expecting a shocked gasp, but what I got was and excited giggle.
"I know you do. It's great that you decided to tell me, though I wish you would have come to me first instead of Pitch."
"Well he seemed to know more abo- what?!" I blanched, bringing my staff close to my chest; frost covered my cheeks and neck and my eyes felt like they would pop out. "How do you know about Pitch?" I demanded, why wasn't she mad? The sneaky smirk made me weary as she held out her hand, showing me a dull, flat tooth.
"This is Pitch's molar, the one I knocked out. I've been using it to keep an eye on him, imagine my surprise when you started showing up in his memories hehe."
"I wasn't- I'm not helping- he-" All I could do was stutter. Intelligent thought refusing to help me, and damn her- she was immensely enjoying this. She took pity on me and put a hand on my shoulder after I managed a distressed 'How?' and explained.
"I first saw you a few years after we regained the balance. He was targeting foster homes and you put him back in his place, but you didn't show up often until a few months ago. All I was able to make out was a list of courting behaviors and a few… lessons, I guess, he was trying to teach you. Are you really starting to court Bunnymund? How far have you gotten? Are you seriously going to tell him how you feel in his native language?" She was squealing with glee by the end of it.
"I was planning on it, yes, and so far I've only circled him once. While I was over there earlier today, actually. How were you able to see all that though? I thought memories only worked for baby teeth?"
"Nope. Adult teeth are different though, they aren't supposed to be lost so in a way they stay connected, in a way, to the rest of the adult teeth. I'm able to see into the memories contained in the intact teeth by having a lost one." She explained.
"So, because you clocked Pitch and kept his tooth you can use that like an enamel cell phone to connect to the rest of his adult teeth, and see his memories that way?" I asked. Man, that was almost creepy. Who knew teeth could be that advanced.
"Exactly. I try and keep an eye on everyone who gets a blow to the head when we have to fight, just in case they lose any. It may be my job to keep teeth safe, but anyone who knows the right magic can go through someone's memories if they have the teeth; either to gain knowledge about weaknesses or to make them relive things."
"That's really terrifying." She nodded at me with a grim look.
"It happened to Bunny a few hundred years after I met him. We were fighting bugbears that were getting to close for comfort to a small village over the mountains. One caught him and threw him into a rock face. He didn't tell me he had lost one until we got back to North's infirmary, but by then it had been found.
It took North and Sandy a week and a half to magically track down who took it. I don't even remember who it was… But they obviously didn't like us. Poor Bunny was put through some horrible memories before we found and took back his tooth. He stayed holed up in his warren for months after, even locking us out. It took me almost a whole year to convince him to let me keep his tooth safe."
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