Vows

The day had finally arrived. Servants were frantically trying to get everything done before the ceremony.

Preparations were being made for Bunny and Calla's wedding.

Strolling about, Sophie slowly takes in every detail.

Servants pass by her as if she were a ghost strolling about the castle searching for a purpose.

Gently touching the flowers, she picks at one lifting it to her nose.

It instantly reminds her of The Warren, and her heart immediately aches.

She could hear herself laughing along with Bunny as they lovingly ran through the Warren.

Looking up she could see a younger version of herself playing with Bunny.

She remembers that day vividly. It was the day she asked Bunny to marry her. She remembered him laughing and making a ring for her out of flowers.

Placing a kiss on her forehead, she could still hear him say,

"I'll always be there for yoos Sophie."

Innocently she asks,

"Promise?"

Laughing he sticks out a finger,

"Promise."

She can hear crying coming from a nearby room.

Rushing over she stops, when she sees herself crying by a tree.

Creeping up on the crying girl a flower is placed by the base of her feet.

She pauses to notice the bluish pink flower.

Looking up the girl is faced with a worried Pooka.

"Don't cry Sophie. You know I don't like it when yoos cry. What's botherin' you?"

"Eric sniffle* from class sniffle* said I wasn't pretty enough to be his girlfriend."

Wiping a tear he proudly states,

"Who the bloody hell is Eric?"

"I guy I liked in class."

"Well I'll tell yoos what. That Eric's a drongo if he can't see how beautiful you are. Doesn't deserve your heart if you ask me. I mean how tall is he? Not one ta brag but I'm 6'1", master in tai chi and I reckon a guy would be bloody lucky to have you as his sheila."

He passes the flower over to the crying girl.

The girl smiles and wraps her arms around the Pooka's neck.

Sound of music forces Sophie to run towards another room.

Pushing open the door she instantly realizes that she was in her room now.

There stood Sophie taking the Pooka's hands into her's.

"Come on! I'll show you how! It's not hard!"
"I don't know. I'm a really bad dancer."

Laughing she positions the Pooka on where he needed to hold her.

"It's easy. There are four steps in all and all you got to do is repeat them. I'll count ok?"

He nervously nods.

"Ok. Ready? 1,2,3,4. 1,2,3,4. 1,2,3-OUCH!"

Stepping back, Bunny worriedly looks down at the girl's foot.

"I'm so sorry Sophie! I didn't mean-"

Laughing she takes his hand again. It's ok! Let's try it again."

Turning around she sees another door that's barely opened.

Walking in her heart quickens. She instantaneously knew what was happening in this room.

There sat Bunny by the lake feverishly painting one of his eggs.

Sophie was nervously playing with her hair, trying with all her might to grab the Pooka's attention.

"So Bunny, do you notice anything different?"

Not pulling his attention away from his egg he simply replies,

"No."

Flustered she gets up and amateurishly models for him.

"Really? Nothing?"

He doesn't even turn to look at the girl.

"Nope."

Stomping her foot she begins to protests his actions.

"You're not even looking!"

Taking a hint he pulls away from the egg and looks at the girl.

"Um…new haircut?"

"No!"

Turning her arm around, he can clearly see an amber green spring emblem tattooed right above her fuchsia butterfly tattoo on her left bicep.

His eyes widen and he laughs.

"Is that a spring emblem!?"

She happily nods.

Pointing to the one on his head he smiles.

"We match! It's like we're one in the same now!."

"Yeah…something like that."

She flirtatiously strolls over to him.

His smile fades as the girl wraps her arms around his neck.

His ears flattened and a blush covers his usually stoic face.

"Um…Soph. What are you-"

She places her lips against his.

Dropping the egg, he freezes.

Slowly pulling away, she stares deeply into his eyes.

She could feel the Pooka gently wrapping his arms around her lower back.

Brushing his ears back, she pulls him into another kiss.

Melting into it, Bunny pulls the girl towards him and deepens the kiss.

Lifting her, he gently lays her on her back as he continues to kiss her.

Digging her fingers into his fur she moans into his mouth.

The kiss abruptly ends with Bunny pulling away and getting up.

Confused, Sophie watches Bunny as he frantically walks away from her.

"What's wrong?"

"You gotta go."

"What? Why?"

"This…this isn't right."

"I don't understand."

Wiping his hand across his face, he bites his lip as he disapprovingly shakes his head.

"I'm sorry Soph. What yoos want from me I can't give you. You'll always and forever be me liddle ankle-biter."

Stomping his foot he creates a portal leading back to Sophie's house.

"Go home Sophie."

Not waiting for the girl to leave he hops off back towards his den.

Leaning against the door it pained her to see the imaginary Sophie sit there and cry as she desperately tried to make sense with what just happened.

Closing the door, Sophie takes a deep breath before making her way back to her room.

Singing blissfully at her reflection, Calla enjoys the day of pampering as her servants prep her for her wedding.

Her long hair placed up into a bun.

A knock at the door grabs her attention.

"Come in."

She is surprised to see that it is her brother.

The servants immediately stop what they are doing and bow before the king's presence.

"I need a moment with my sister."

He needn't ask twice. The servants immediately leave closing the door behind them.

"What is the meaning of this?"

"We need to talk."

Rolling her eyes, she attempts to finish her makeup herself.

"I'm not hearing it. I know what you're going to ask of me and the answer is no."

"Very well then I won't ask. I'll tell you instead. Don't marry him."

"And why not? Do I not deserve to be happy? I've finally found somebody that makes feel alive despite this cruel way of living. Don't take this away from me Dante. I won't allow you!"

Taking her hand he tenderly says,

"You deserve so much more, but unfortunately those are not the cards we were dealt with."

Near tears she pulls her hand away from her brother's.

Despite her attitude he continues,

"He's not one of us Calla. We're ghost lost in limbo forever to live out these days and these days alone. Tomorrow we will once again live out these days unaware that 500 years have passed from yesterday."

Wiping a tear, she stares at her reflection to see a crying bride.

"We've already lived out our lives. We went on to finding our mates and getting married and having our own little Pookas, creating a world outside of this. Bunny is our legacy. If you pull him into this world, you would have ultimately ended our race. He is the last of our kind. He is hope and without hope we have nothing."

"What if I go with him?"

"We're only alive because we live within this magical barrier."

Placing her hands on her face she sobs.

"If you truly love him, then you'll let him go."

Getting up to leave Dante places a kiss on his sister's head leaving her alone to cry away her sorrows.

The group sat anxiously contemplating on today's events.

Sadly sitting down Tooth informs what she had learned directly from Sophie.

Jack angrily approaches the group demanding answers.

"So we're just really going to let him stay? Do you even know what that means!? No more Bunny! No more Easter! NO MORE HOPE!"

Jamie rubbing his forehead tiredly replies,

"They know that Jack."

"Then what's the plan?"

Tooth sadly replies,

"There isn't one Jack. We have to respect Bunny's wishes and if marrying Calla will make him happy then we need to be there to support him."

North was of no help.

He had found the kingdom's stash of milky liqueur and has been red faced all day.

"Woopla! Idea! WE hic*stop the wedding!"

Tooth gives man a stern look.

"Don't you dare North! The last thing Bunny needs is for us to make a circus of his wedding."

An evil smirk creeps up on Jack's face.

"You know what Tooth you're absolutely right. We guys are going to get ready. You should go check up on Sophie. It's been quite an emotional rollercoaster and she's going to need a friend more than ever."

"You're right Jack. I'm going to go check up on her, but before I go mark my words. If any of you do something to ruin today I will be the one to personally thank you with one of these."

Punching directly into her fist, she makes eye contact with each of them.

Sandy nervously looks over to North who was laughing.

"No worries Tooth! We hic* got this!"

Walking out Jack makes sure the door closes behind her.

Crossing his arms Jamie gives Jack a curious stare,

"What are you really up to?"

"I got a plan on how we can put a stop to this wedding."

Sandy panics and images begin to appear over his head.

Waving him off Jack confidently replies,

"We'll deal with Tooth later. Alright guys! So here's the plan…"

Curses can be heard coming from his room.

Wearing a full on Pooka tuxedo, Bunny once again struggles to get his tie on.

A knock on the door forces him to yell,

"Damn it- COME IN!"

He is surprised to see Calla standing behind him in her wedding dress.

Truning around he gasps,

"Calla! ? What are yoos doin' here? We're not supposed ta see each other until the wedding!"

"We really need to talk Bunny."

His heart sinks when he notices that she's been crying.

"What's wrong?"

Taking a seat on the bed, tears stream down the side of her soft rosy cheeks.

"I need to know why you're really doing this."

Wiping a tear he lovingly replies,

"It's because I love yoos. Why are you askin' me this?"

Taking his hand she places a soft kiss on it before asking.

"Is this what you really want Bunny? What you TRUELY want?"

He pauses.

She sobs.

"I feel like there's someone else taking a spot in your heart."

"There's…"

"Is it Tooth?"

His eyes widen.

"What? Tooth!?"

"I see how close you are with her and the other night she was in your room…"

"No nah nah no no! Trust me! There is NOTHING goin' on there."

"Then who?"

Taking her hand he kisses it.

"Nobody. Just yoos Princess."

A smile pushes pass her sobs.

"I want you to know that I don't want you to feel bad for me Bunny. I want you to do whatever your heart tells you to do."

"But…this is what I want. This is always what I've wanted."

More tears flow from her violet eyes as she asks,

"Is it Bunny, is it really?"

Looking away he ponders over the question.

"Yes…yes it is."

Laughing she smiles.

He gently wipes away her tears.

"Now don't cry Princess yoos know I don't like ta see you cry…"

For a second he could have sworn that it was Sophie herself sitting in front of him.

She wraps her arms around him and places a kiss on his lips.

"What are we waiting for? Let's get married!"

Taking a moment he nods and joins the Princess.

Guests gather filling every available seat.

Dante takes a seat by his father in the front row.

Tooth stands among several female Pookas as one of the bridesmaids.

Jack, Jamie, and Sandy stand with several male Pookas as the grooms.

Looking around Tooth looks over to Jack and whispers,

"Where's North?"

Signaling her that North was drunk she gives him a look of disapproval.

"Jack!"

He signals for her to be quiet. He points over to the door to signal that the wedding was starting.

A soft melody fills the room indicating for everybody to take their seats.

The door opens revealing a little girl Pooka in a gorgeous spring dress. She happily hops about while throwing various flower petals on the floor.

Next up was a little boy Pooka in a tiny Pooka Tuxedo.

He opens a box releasing a swarm of butterflies of various colors.

A string of dancers beautifully dance down the aisle as they make their way towards the alter.

Soon a line of soldiers line up against each side of the benches and raise their swords.

Pulling down their swords, a ravishing looking Bunny reveals himself and walks down towards the alter.

Taking his place by the alter, he smiles and winks at Tooth who was already happily crying for the Pooka.

He turns around and gives Jack, Jamie, and Sandy a firm handshake.

The music changes and everybody gets up on their feet.

A little girl Pooka steps forward and begins to drop rose petals as Calla makes her way through the doors.

Guest can be heard swooning and gasping in delight upon seeing the Princess looking absolutely stunning on her wedding day.

Several wipe tears as others bow in her presence.

Bunny could only sigh nervously and smile as the blushing bride slowly walks towards him.

Turning towards her brother and father, she gives a small curtsy.

Bunny rushes down and takes her hand and leads her over to the alter.

They smile at each other and lovingly take each other's hands.

The pastor raises a book and asks for the pair to place a hand over it.

"These two have acknowledged that they have accepted each other as mates and are forever bonded by their love for one another. Let us begin."

The Pastor reads out several long passages that nearly knock Jack and Jamie to sleep.

Sandy tugs on their suits to rest assure that they stay awake long enough for their plan to work.

The pastor then goes on about a personal experience he had on his wedding day causing several guest to laugh.

Jamie nervously whispers to Jack.

"Where is he?"

"Don't worry. He'll be here."

The Pastor wipes a tear from his eye as he laughs at one of his own jokes continues,

"And then I said-"

A crash can be heard in the back along with several Russian words.

The crowd confusingly stares at each other as the noise grows louder.

Jack looks over to Jamie and smiles,

"And here we go."

Bunny's ears perk upon catching a Russian word here and there.

"What the bloody hell?"

The Russian burst through the door, with a bottle in hand.

Jack gives the man a questionable look.

Jamie nudges him and nervously says,

"Um…is that what we originally said he was supposed to do?"

"Uh oh."

Chugging down the milky liquor North hiccups as he sloppily makes his way down the aisle.

"St-STOP THE WEDDING!"

Dante and his father turn around and are surprise to see North in such a sloppy state.

Gasping Tooth looks over at the trio who nervously wave back at her.

Mouth gaped open Bunny shouts,

"North!?"

"Yes! It is I Bunny!"

Taking note of the bottle in North's hand he irately asks,

"Are yoos drunk?"

Pausing, North looks at the bottle and raises an accusing finger at the Pooka.

"No!"

Chucking the bottle, he wobbly walks towards the alter.

The Pastor takes over and demands for North to explain himself for disrupting the Princess' wedding.

"Good sir, why on Eden have you asked to stop the wedding from proceeding?"

The drunken man looks over to Jack and Jamie who were cheering him on and giving him a big thumbs up.

"It's because HIC* Bunny's heart desires someone else!"

Calla looks over to Bunny who was too busy giving North a death glare to notice.

"Excuse me!? North yoos gumby! If you don't shut that trap of yours I swear -"

The Pastor intrigued asks for North to continue,

"Who is this person you speak of?"

Strolling over North looks down at Bunny and grabs him by the cheeks,

"What the hell do you-"

His amber green eyes widen to its full extent when North pulls the Pooka into a kiss.

Everyone in the room remains speechless.

Tooth, Jack, Jamie, and Sandy stand there mouths gaped open as Bunny remains still from a state of shock.

Calla could only stare in disbelief as her future husband kisses another man right there in front of her.

Pulling away, North places a hand over Bunny's shoulder and proudly states,

"With me of course!"

Snapping out of the kiss, Bunny pushes the man away.

"Have yoos gone mad!?"

Looking over the Pooka stomps over to Jack and Jamie who were now nervously hiding behind Sandy.

"I knew I shouldn't have trusted yoos two fools ta be me groomsmen! You told him to say that! Didn't you!?"

Jack nervously shrugs his shoulders and says,

"Well, not exactly."

"NOT EXACTLY!?"

The pastor rings a bell in an attempt to bringing the room in order.

"Please! May we continue?"

The soldiers force North to take a seat for the remainder of the ceremony.

Rubbing his head, Bunny heatedly answers,

"Yes! Can we!?"

Meanwhile a small commotion occurs as a girl makes her way towards the front.

Tipping toeing pass the guards and not wanting to add to the drama, Sophie takes a seat by North who is now tied up and gagged.

Still flustered over what North had done, Bunny shakes his head in a disapproving manner.

Glancing over to where North was sitting Bunny's eyes perk when he notices the girl beside him.

He lingers as his eyes makes contact with hers.

A soft smile forms around her lips.

The Pastor sternly asks the Pooka,

"Shall we continue?"

Pulling himself together he turns around and faces Calla.

"Ye..yes!"

Calla looks over at Bunny with a worried expression.

"Are you ok?"

Despite looking a bit uncomfortable Bunny assures the Princess that he is ready and able to continue.

"I'm fine. Can we PLEASE continue?"

The Pastor prepares to close the ceremony asking for the pair to hold hands.

"As these two prepare to commit to love and to cherish each other, I will ask for them to repeat several words. I will start with you Calla."

Nodding she happily takes Bunny's hand's and waits for the Pastor to recite the words.

"I Calla Terra Hope take E Aster Bunnymund to be my mate for now and forever and always."

Smiling, she lovingly repeats the words to Bunny.

"I Calla Terra Hope take E Aster Bunnymund to be my mate for now and forever and always."

The Pastor brings his attention to Bunny.

"I E Aster Bunnymund take Calla Terra Hope to be my mate for now and forever and always."

Smiling he proudly says,

""I E Aster Bunnymund take Calla Terra Hope ta be me mate for now and forever and always."

Raising the book the Pastor loudly says,

"I then pronounce these Pookas as soul mates and they may now address each other as husband and wife!"

Smiling Bunny pulls Calla into a loving kiss.

Guests begin to cheer and clap.

Tooth wipes a tear as she applauds for the couple.

Sophie sadly watches the pair as she slowly claps for the newlyweds.

The ballroom filled to near capacity as Pookas gathered and dance celebrating the Princess' wedding.

Laughter and cheers were in abundance as Calla made her rounds in hugging and dancing with guests.

Meanwhile outside of the balcony stood a somber looking Pooka,

Walking over North places a hand on his shoulder.

Half smiling the Pooka goes back to looking out towards the ocean.

"I wanted to apologize for earlier."

"It's quite alright mate. Nah hard feelin's."

"Then why do you continue to look so sad my friend?"

"I don't know. I guess it's all beginnin' ta feel too real."

"Is that such a bad thing?"

"Do yoos reckon I'm makin' the right decision in staying?"

"I can't make that decision for you Bunny, only you and you alone know the answer to that question."

"Bunny?"

The pair turn around to see Calla raising a hand towards the Pooka.

"It's time."

Swallowing hard he looks over to North who signals for the Pooka to go with his bride.

Dragging him towards the dance floor, Calla takes his hands and positions him.

"I don't know how ta dance."

Not believing him for a second, she asks,

"Really?"

"Yeah, really."

The music starts and the dance already starts off awkward.

Taking a step forward he accidently steps on Calla's foot.

"Ouch!"

"Sorry!"

She repositions him and tries again.

He gets through 3 steps before stepping on her.

Embarrassed Bunny is about to stop when he suddenly feels a hand being placed gently against his lower back.

Turning around he makes eye contact with a pair of big beautiful sea green eyes.

"May I?"

Calla smiles and passes Bunny's hand into the girl's.

"Maybe you'll have better luck than me Sophie."

Just like before Sophie positions Bunny and gently places one of his hands into her's while the other is positioned against her lower back.

"Ready?"

He nods.

Whispering loud enough just for them to hear she takes count,

"1,2,3,4. 1,2,3,4. 1,2,3,4."

The pair beautiful glides through the dance floor not missing a step.

All eyes were fixated on them now.

"Ok for this one just give me a small twirl and you're done."

Nervously he does as he is told executing the dance to near perfection.

The guests clap, cuing Calla to step in and retrieve her husband.

"That was wonderful! And you said you couldn't dance."

"I can't. Thank yoos Sophie."

Letting go of his hand she uncomfortably clasps them together before saying,

"Anytime. Congratulations again on your wedding."

Walking away she goes off to join Jack and Jamie who were dancing on the dance floor.

He keeps his eyes on her even as he is pulled back towards the dance floor by Calla.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Please rise as The Bride and Groom dance together for the very first time."

Laughing, she repositions Bunny.

"Let's try this again."

The music starts and this time the pair start off on a good note.

Beautifully gliding across the dance floor Bunny couldn't help but look up to find Sophie looking over at him with eyes full of sorrow.

He could see the girl mouth the words,

"Bye bye Bunny. Hop Hop."

She turns around and vanishes through the crowd.

A hand is placed against his cheek as his face is pulled towards Calla who was lovingly staring back up at her husband.

"I love you."

She leisurely pulls him into a passionate filled kiss.

Pulling away he smiles. Taking a moment he looks around and realizes that he can't find any of his friends. Children were laughing as couples got up to dance. He was surrounded in a sea of Pookas.

It was in that moment that he had truly understood what it meant to feel alone.

Bringing his attention back to Calla he hesitantly replies.

"I love yoos to."

She adoringly rests her head on his shoulder as they slowly sway under the moon's light.