... Okay, I don't really like how the first part of this- with the fight and all- turned out. Not sure why, but I just don't think it's all that... That.
(I don't understand me either...)
But the later half... I actually quite like it.
Oh, and thanks to darlene10104, for not only a fave and follow, but also a review that had me peeking out from behind my curtains, thanks to mandamichelle, Amazing-Thalia-Grace (for following and faving the story, and also adding me to her fave authors list!) and to MatchPoint0-1!
You're all awesome, and welcome to the ride! (Not sure whether I've thanked titanprincess123 and faliara yet, so there it is anyway :D )
Enjoy!
Bunny scowled at Pitch, still tugging at the net, made of nightmare sand, that was holding him against the wall.
"This ain't gonna work mate. The others ain't gonna let ya ruin Easter this year-"
"Oh but they won't have a choice..." Pitch's laughed, and though Bunny would never admit it, it chilled him. "You see, Bunnymund, you may have destroyed most of my newest creations, but I need only a few to spread more fear across this planet than ever before. I don't even need to be at full strength. With the pure, undiluted fear stored in these orbs, even the belief of those irritating little pests from Burgess will not be able to stop me... And neither will the guardians."
"I wouldn't be so sure, Pitchy-"
"Oh really? Maybe you will have changed your tone when you have felt the power I have at my disposal!"
With that, the nightmare king pulled out one of the orbs, smiling in a way that told Bunny this was not going to be pleasant, and pulled a trickle of black sand from the orb.
"All it needs is one touch, and it will cast you into a pit of nightmares and despair so deep that you won't be able to tell day from night or reality from non-reality... And it won't release its hold on you until its full core has been completely depleted... So you see, even the guardian of hope cannot hope to be able to carry through with Easter when he will be in a perpetual state of fear for many days to come... Still want your friends to try and rescue you?"
"Ya won't get away with this, Pitch..."
"Oh, but I already have..."
Then he gestured to a cage that appeared, and Bunnymund cursed as he realised who was inside it.
"Jamie!?"
"Bunny! I was up in the woods, then this creep appeared. Next thing I know, I'm locked in this damned cage..."
"Don't worry mate, the others are-"
"On their way..." Pitch said, mockingly, "Indeed they are... But they will be able to do nothing!"
A sudden blast of black blocked everything from Bunny's sight, and he eventually blinked and opened his eyes to a scene of utter devastation. One that had haunted his nightmares for centuries...
Pitch laughed as the Pooka twisted and pulled at the net, his fear and horror seeping into the air and tasting almost as sweet as the nightmares of the Winter Spirit... Then again, the fear of guardians always did, and as soon as the other guardians arrived, it would be a veritable feast...
Even the fear from the child was nourishing, and he smiled, only to be met with a defiant stare.
He was about to rectify that when one of the nightmares appeared, and warned him of the guardians approach.
"And so it begins..." he said, a gleam in his eyes, and called to his nightmares. "Come... Let's give them a proper welcome party..."
_
The sleigh landed in the clearing and North leapt down from the seat at the same time as the others did. Jack stared with loathing at the small hole in the ground, beneath the splintered bed frame, and felt Tooth's hand on his shoulder.
"You okay Sweet Tooth? You haven't been here since-"
"I'm fine. Bunny's the one we should be worried about... But this is too easy."
North nodded.
"I agree... Should be guards and nightmares at entrance. Must be trap..."
"We don't have a choice."
"Most assuredly, Jack. Very well, then let us go..."
Jack grinned at Baby Tooth, who had insisted on coming with them, before diving into the hole in the ground. Baby Tooth chirped and followed him down, shortly followed by Tooth.
North blinked as he took in the size of the hole, and coughed for Sandy's attention.
"Erm, we have slight problem."
Sandy looked from the hole to North, or, more specifically, his huge belly and face-palmed, before gesturing him forward. North grumbled as he stepped up to the edge, then blinked as the hole widened.
"Ah. Problem solved."
He jumped down, followed by Sandy, and landed with a thump on the ground a few moments later.
He got to his feet, dusting himself off, to see Jack already moving, Tooth right behind him.
He hurried to catch up, Sandy right behind him, before they heard a voice that had them frozen in place.
"JACK!"
Jack froze, and North grabbed him before he could make a run towards the voice. Jamie's voice.
"Jack, is trap! Must stay together-"
"No! I need to help Ja-"
"We will, but cannot help him by being caught! Must be careful!"
Jack struggled for a few more seconds before he sagged slightly, and North took his hand away.
"Then what are we waiting for..."
Jamie's voice rang out again as they got closer,
"Jack! It's a tr-!"
It took everything he had, plus North and Tooth to stop him from running towards him right then. As it was, it was only a minute more before they reached the balcony above the cavern.
North cursed as he took in the scene. Bunny seemed to be in the grip of a nightmare, struggling against the black sand chaining him to the wall, and Jamie was lashing out at Pitch, who was holding him by the scruff of his jumper.
"Right. Sandy, Tooth! Get Bunny! I will help Jack and get Jam-"
"JACK!"
The fear in the boy's voice had Jack over the balcony before the others could stop him, and North immediately jumped over after him, Tooth and Sandy doing the same before heading to Bunny.
Jack dodged a few nightmares and hovered in front of Pitch, expression furious and dangerous.
"Let him go Pitch..."
"Or what Jack?"
The young guardians eyes turned Glacier cold, and Pitch smiled.
"And now we again see what anger can do to your powers Jack... Very well."
He let go of Jamie, who plummeted towards the floor, only to have Jack catch him a minute second before he hit and check he was alright before handing him to North.
"Get him out of here... I'll hold off Pitch..."
The older guardian nodded and, ignoring the boys desperate attempts to break free and run after Jack, opened a portal to the sleigh.
"Listen Jamie. You must leave. Jack will be safer if he knows you are safe."
"But I-"
"Want to help. I know, but is not place for you now. Must go!"
The boy glared, but nodded, and North threw him onto the seat of the sleigh, waiting till the portal had closed before turning back to Jack.
The younger guardian blasted Pitch back, and flew down to him.
"Help the others... Pitch did something to Bunny."
North nodded, for once accepting Jack could handle himself for now, and ran towards the others, slicing at nightmares as he went.
_
Sandy was pouring golden sand into the net, and was finally rewarded by it breaking from the wall and disappearing. But no matter how much he tried, he could not break the hold of the orb that was pouring nightmares into the Pooka.
He was relieved when North finally arrived, and gestured to Bunny, before creating a small sand show of North taking him back to the Pole.
The big man nodded,
"Da, but must help Jack-"
He was cut off as said guardian plowed into the ground next to him, yelling out as he sent up a hail of mud and rock.
Jack shakily pushed himself to his feet, ignoring the pain, and cursed as he realised his staff was thirty feet away. He felt a hand on his shoulders, and span, before he realised it was North, who was giving him a concerned look.
"Are you okay?"
"For now. Need to get my staff th-"
"I'll get it."
Tooth flew off before Jack could say anything, and was immediately targeted by a group of nightmares. He started running, pulling out his Sai, and called over his shoulder.
"Get Bunny back to the Pole! I'll get Tooth!"
Sandy gave North a thumbs up, and eventually, after they had fought off the next wave off, agreed to take Bunny back to the sleigh.
He threw an orb, jumping through whilst hefting the weight of the Pooka on one side, and cursed as a dozen nightmares followed him through.
Just before the portal closed, he shouted he could deal with them, and Sandy head towards the other two as he figured that his old friend was more than capable of dealing with a few black horses.
Jack had cut a path through the nightmares to Tooth, who was likewise busy, lashing out at the nightmares with her wings. She smiled as Jack reached her, and held out his staff.
He sheathed the swords and grinned as he took it back, sighing in relief at the faint tingle he felt as it reconnected to his skin.
That felt much better.
Together, the three of them managed to beat back the surrounding nightmares only to have Pitch laugh at them.
"You think you have won? I have already accomplished what I set out to do... I'm afraid that the guardian of hope will be in the grip of those nightmares for weeks to come... Might make Easter a little difficult, don't you think? All of those eggs left to paint... to hide... How could you hope to be up to such a challenge? I had hoped to have you as a bonus, but no matter... My work here is done."
With that, he vanished in a swirl of sand.
The three guardians shared looks, before hastily flying towards the exit.
Yeah, it had all been a trap, but not for them... For Bunnymund.
_
Back at the Pole, Bunny was still thrashing feverishly, and Sandy was busy trying to find a way to still the influx of nightmares as the other guardians discussed what to do.
Jamie had been dropped off at home, by Jack, who had arrived back an hour after them, telling them he had spent quite some time with the young boy, and Jack now had a few bandages around his arms and chest from where he had been thrown into the ground. Tooth was likewise sporting injuries, but North's coat had protected him.
They were now discussing what to do about the eggs.
"But we cannot paint eggs... Not without Bunny. They will be too skittish to-"
Jack shook his head.
"No, they are fine around me. I can paint them... But we'll still need to get Bunnymund back to normal before Easter, otherwise we'll have no chance of hiding them."
Tooth nodded.
"Okay... We'll keep thinking of ways. You head off and get those eggs done Jack."
He nodded, and decided to take a shortcut, tapping his staff and opening a tunnel to the warren, nodding goodbye to the others before jumping through, the Warren seeming to welcome him with open arms...
North sighed as the tunnel closed.
"He is good guardian. Man in Moon should have chosen him sooner."
"Yeah, but he's here now, and that's the important thing. Now we just need to think of a way to help Bunny."
They jumped as golden arrows appeared in front of them, and they turned to where Sandy was trying to get their attention.
Tooth hurriedly translated what he was trying to say.
"The dream... amulet from Christmas, yeah... You managed to... It's fighting the nightmares...? That's great! Wait... still won't be able to... drain the fear orb for... almost a month! Sandy, it's Easter in less than three weeks!"
North aha'd, taking his own charm from around his neck.
"If we give him ours, will it speed up process? They are not dreams for him, no, but still happy..."
Sandy thought for a second, then nodded, smiling widely.
Tooth spoke again, as she tried to figure what he was saying.
"Should... Will work... Will be able to wake him in about two weeks... That's still cutting it close..."
Sandy shook his head.
"It... will be in time. Okay, shall we go get Jack and-?"
Sandy shook his head ferociously, and Tooth gave him a confused look.
"Wait... No? Just me and North? But he will want to- Okay... Wait, he needs it? Pitch keeps focusing nightmares on him?"
Sandy nodded and Tooth gasped.
"He never told us..."
Sandy shrugged, with a sad sigh, and North rested a hand on her shoulder.
"Will deal with this later. Must help Bunny now."
"Yeah..."
Tooth pulled off her chain and handed it to Sandy, who began to connect hers' and Norths' to Bunny's.
They both sat back with a sigh.
This day had just been one thing after another...
_
Jack popped up in the burrow, and was immediately swamped by anxious eggs.
"Hey! Hey, calm down. Listen..." They quietened down, and Jack spoke calmly. "Bunny is going to be okay. But he won't be here for a while, so you need to let me get the painting finished... Will you let me do that?"
One of the eggs chattered and rubbed against his leg, causing him to smile lightly.
"Good... Then let's get a move on."
He quickly got the different paints and paintbrushes and got to work.
He lost track of how long he had been painting for, as egg after egg got covered in flowers, chicks, ribbons, patterns, spots and stripes under his quick, yet nimble and delicate fingers and artistic eye. Though the eggs couldn't tell him so, it was work that Bunny would have been proud of.
He kept track under his breath of how many he had done, and it had reached 372 before Tooth arrived.
"Jack! Sorry we took so long... We have found a way to wake Bunny. It'll be a close call, but he will be okay by Easter. How is it going?"
"At last count, 372 eggs painted... Nope, make that 373..." he added, as another one scampered away and a new one eagerly jumped into his hands. "If I can keep this pace up, I'll have them done with a couple of days to spare, meaning I can take the odd hour off to do my own work... Unless you need me at the-"
"No, no, we're fine. This is important. Here, let me help for a while..." she tried to catch the eggs, but they scampered away, wary of her touch.
Jack shrugged.
"It's okay Tooth, they're nervous without Bunny. I'll be fine."
"You're sure?"
"Yeah."
"Okay. But go straight to the Pole if you need anything, and don't forget the snow..."
"Okay. Keep me updated on Bunny?"
"Sure Sweet Tooth. I left Baby Tooth at the Pole, and she'll fly down every couple of days, or if something changes."
"Thanks Tooth..."
His attention was drawn back to the eggs, and she watched as a loving, gently intense look took over his eyes.
"No, Thank you Jack..." she whispered, before giving him a quick hug and flying away.
_
The time passed quickly for Jack. Eggs, Snow, messages from Baby Tooth, eggs, more eggs, more snow, yawning as he got over his newly acquired sleeping pattern and relaxed into his old 'sleep when desperately needed' routine, and yet more eggs.
Hours passed to days, and it all swamped into a blur for Jack.
He didn't sleep, he only had odd bites of food when the eggs dragged him small biscuits and carrots from the warren, and only had the odd drink, when Baby Tooth appeared carrying small bottles of water or when Jamie gave him a passing glass or sandwich whenever he made it snow in Burgess, which was only twice over the entire two and a half weeks.
He found it easy to return to this steady functioning pace, but knew that if he let himself stop, he would sleep for hours until his body recovered. So he kept going.
Unbeknownst to him, the two times Bunny had broken from his nightmares and woken, Sandy had been reassuring him about Easter by showing him memories of when he would absently hover over Jack, making sure he was okay. He was astounded by the dedication that the youngest guardian was showing, and could sense overwhelming gratitude and pride, but also worry and concern as Bunny realised that Jack had been doing his own work, plus Bunny's, without sleep for days... None-the-less, as much as they both hated to admit it, Jack could keep going for as long as he needed and, although he would need a lot of rest when it was over, he was more than capable of handling it.
The Pooka had also seemed surprised, no, more like downright astounded, when he had found out that, unlike they always had with the other guardians and various spirits he had known over the years, the eggs were treating the Jack the same as they did Bunny. Or pretty damned close to it... He could even sense that the warren had fully accepted Jack...
But this would all fade as the nightmares took him again, not as bad as they had been at the beginning, but still some of the worst he had ever had... Memories of fire and blood and death... Of having no-one believe in him... of guilt and hopelessness and danger and then back to the fire... A circle of pain and fear that only ended o the odd times he managed to break free for a few moments, and be reassured that everything was fine...
It took a long time, but eventually the last of the sand trickled away and Bunny gasped, leaping upright, only to end up dragging two yetis over with him as he landed on the floor.
He groaned as he got up, his muscles trying to get over the shock of moving again, and North hurried in.
"Bunny! You are finally awake! Is good-"
"Yeah... Damned stuff finally left my head alone."
"Good... Pitch has failed again in-"
"Wait, what's the date!?"
"Relax. Is still two days till Easter-"
"Two days! That's no time! I have to-"
"Bunny!"
The Pooka froze at the volume, and North gestured for him to sit. He did so.
"Good, now listen. Eggs are all but done, and Jack is finishing off last ones. They are as good as you could do yourself. He has not stopped since we got back from Pitch. Is in state we do not want to break him of. Has done his own job, has sent nightmares from Warren twice, has barely eaten or drank anything. Has not had sleep... But he has got eggs nearly all finished. We do not distract out of respect for his want to help. I have not seen such dedication or display of friendship in long time..."
Bunny blinked.
"Ya mean the little blighta did it?"
"Da... But Sandy says you must rest for another hour at least to let mind rest before you go. Will all be fine. Will be at warren by Noon."
Bunny, surprising even himself, didn't argue, and slumped down.
If he could escape all the hassle with just another hour, then he'd do it. Then he was going to go and find the little Frostbite and do something to make everything up to him... Somehow.
He had no idea how, or what it would be, but he'd sure as hell find something...
Two hours later, Jack-having been completely astonished when Bunny arrived and pulled him into a hug, swept aside the thankyou's and gratitude and handed Bunny the last egg, which he had kept back.
"Does this mean I'm forgiven for the blizzard of 68?"
Bunny laughed.
"Mate, you're forgiven for every prank and disaster you've caused for me since the day we first met. Except for the prank crusade. I still intend to get payback for you turning this place into a winter wonderland."
Jack grinned, and finally allowed himself to yawn.
"Looking forward to it..."
He blinked as he realised that he was more tired than he had first thought, and sank to the floor, sighing.
"Good luck with... hiding the... eggs..." he said, and before Bunny could say anything, he was asleep.
Bunny gave a sad smile as several of the eggs snuggled up to the winter spirit before scampering away, and he swiftly painted the last one.
He was touched by the gesture, and the fact that Jack had thought of it. It really meant a lot, and it was a shame he wouldn't be there to help share them out... Heck, he'd probably be sleeping for the rest of the week, if not two...
A quick tunnel to the Pole, and he was laying Jack in his own room.
The younger guardian didn't so much as stir, and Bunny sighed, ruffling his hair.
"Thanks Frostbite. I owe ya one mate..."
He quietly left the room and told North Jack was there, before heading back to the warren to arrange the final preparations.
He grinned as he saw the various patterns that adorned hundreds of the eggs, and shook his head.
Damn, the kid had talent...
Looks like Bunny had found him a spring job from now on...
Yeah, Sorry if the characters seemed OOC... They seemed that way to me sometimes in this chapter...
I know I could have gone into more detail of when Bunny got back to the warren, but I didn't want it to drag into a whole other chapter, so hope this will do?
Oh, EMERGENCY! I am in the planning/start-of-writing stage of, as per a lot of requests, a fic where Jack meets April Fool. I won't give spoilers, but when those two team up for revenge... But that's the problem.
I NEED PRANK IDEAS!
I'm all exhausted after the prank crusade, and need a lot of them... Pretty please...?
*sweet innocent look of sheer awesomeness worthy of Jack himself...*
Even the smallest thing... ?
Speaking of which, I NEED GENERAL IDEAS! Even a one word prompt will do! Actually, I'd really like to try a couple of those...
Please review and let me know what you think and to give me any prompts or ideas or pranks or requests or whatnot!?
Okay, Now Im done :D
Till next Time, Raven xx
