Chapter 16

Trying to Say

Bunny walked back in exactly as the clock began chiming the hour. The three guardians watched him carefully, North still playing with the rock, Jack fiddling with his staff, and Sandy strumming his fingers.

"Is Tooth not here yet?" asked Bunny calmly as he looked around. "Strange, it´s not like her to be late. Maybe she´s forgotten-I´ll go get her," he said quickly, not quite making eye contact with anyone as he nicked his satchel and started thumping the ground with a large foot. Just then, Tooth fluttered in, chattering to the twenty or so fairies that accompanied her. Sandy noticed Bunny´s ears droop for the smallest second before he walked up to greet her.

"Ah, Tooth, we were starting to worry. Can I get you something to drink?"

Tooth paused her ordering to raise her eyebrows in surprise.

"Oh, sorry Bunny! I didn´t realize I was late; I must´ve gotten distracted. But no thanks, I just ate." She continued her babbling as she floated past him and up to the other three.

Bunny followed slowly, almost haltingly. When he reached his chair, he stood behind it, his hands clasped at his back and his gaze on the ground. His eyes soon crept to the clock, and he started to speak.

"North, it´s time. I´d like to give my report first; I´m still in the process of getting things back to normal in the Warren, but there seems to be-"

"Hiya Tooth," cut in Jack. "Bunny promised to tell me about his girlfriend named Primula."

Tooth stopped her prattle and looked at Bunny, who was now staring intently down at the armchair he was standing behind, his lips pursed slightly.

"Aw! That's such a pretty name! What kind of spirit is she?" asked Tooth with interest. Sandy´s worry was morphing rapidly into curiosity and North was still as engaged as before.

Bunny looked directly at Tooth and smiled. "Never mind that, it doesn´t matter. Now, I know we´re all busy, so I´ll make this short. As I was saying, I´m beginning to think that there was more—"

This time North interrupted him. "-We have time, my friend, no need to be nervous!" he chuckled. "You did promise Jack that you would answer all of his questions, and now we are all very interested. The spotlight is all yours! When you finish, we will start giving the reports."

Bunny looked back and forth slowly, his gaze not quite reaching their faces.

"So..?" pressed Tooth.

Bunny said nothing.

Jack narrowed his eyes.

"Is Primula actually a man's name, and you´re gay?" he asked.

Bunny´s head jerked back as his brows furrowed.

"No, absolutely not!" he asserted as he shot Jack a stern look.

Jack laughed freely, breaking the tension.

"Well then, spit it out Lover-bun!"

Bunny stammered some more before looking away and clearing his throat.

"She-she´s no one you would ever cross paths with, so there´s no need to worry about it," he said carefully. His facial expression relaxed, becoming neutral.

Except for his eyes. They looked very intense.

Sandy was surprised when North pushed further. The Russian was usually quite easily distracted (second to Tooth, of course), unless his belly was involved. A glance toward his bearded friend solved that mystery, as North had his hand on said belly, rubbing it like a gypsy caresses a crystal ball as he spoke.

"That is not whole answer, my friend," foretold the Russian.

Bunny´s stare shot to North´s deep blue eyes as he took a breath. "It´s none of your business, and it has nothing to do with this meeting," he said evenly. His left ear fluttered like a candle´s flame when a door opens. "Now, I think we should get on with what we´re actually wasting our time here for," he spat.

Tooth fluttered closer to him, ignoring the jab. "Bunny, you don´t have to talk about it if you don´t want to, but I think I speak for all of us when I say that we would love to know a little more about you!"

"And you promised!" said Jack.

Bunny smiled stiffly at Tooth (it looked painful), but then his eyes went back to roaming over the space in front of him; giving no indication that he would speak. His ear kept shivering.

Jack decided to stir the metaphorical pot a little more.

"No need to be shy, Kangaroo. Even you need some lovin´!" he said with an easy grin.

Bunny´s only movements were his eyes shifting to stare at the young man.

"It doesn´t matter, Frost. Just drop it," he said evenly as his nose wrinkled on one side.

"I will once you tell me who she is. I´m betting she´s a new girlfriend because all the spirits I know say you´re a long-time loner. But hey-" he turned conspiratorially to North "-they say the quiet ones are the real romantics!"

"You´ve had your fun, Jack. Now belt up," said Bunnymund as his nose began competing with his squirmy ear.

"But she is important to you, no? I can feel it in my belly," said North seriously.

Bunny´s breathing was more noticeable now, but the Russian was too busy prodding his stomach for more information to notice.

"W-was, b-but that is—isn´t—has nothing to do with the reports. . ." His stare went to the fireplace. "Anyway-"

"Oh, I see," said Tooth sympathetically. "She´s an ex-girlfriend. Well, it´s ok Bunny, you just have to make sure the next girl you have your eye on knows how you really feel. In fact, you could even send Primula some flowers, like the beautiful ones that you planted for me that one time, remember? I´m sure she would love them and give you another chance!" she enthused as her fairies sighed dreamily.

Sandy furrowed his eyebrows and looked quickly between Bunny and Tooth. Images of flowers, teeth, eggs, hearts and a question mark flashed above him.

Meanwhile, Bunny scoffed and shook his head. His nose turned a darker shade of pink.

"Th-those were-No! No, there was no break-up!"

"Is good! You are still together! I can tell you have deep feelings for her. You must bring her here so we can meet your friend!

"Or just give us a few details and we´ll let it go, Twitchy" offered Jack.

Sandy now had a suspicious expression on his face as he looked again between Bunny and Tooth, but he simply waved to the others and made an image of Cupid shooting an arrow at Bunny, and then a pulsing heart.

North laughed at this, "Yes, my friend, Cupid is very serious about his job!" he enthused, and then he turned to Bunny again. "Is she blonde?"

"Nah," intervened Jack. "She´s got to be a carrot-top!"

"It´s-I-I don´t-no! No, let´s just move on—there-there are other things we should be talking about," stuttered Bunny, slightly louder than before. He was blinking rapidly now as he looked away from them and to the side. He changed position so that his arms were now folded in front of his chest.

"Two details, that is it!" cooed North, holding his hands out as if negotiating.

"Please, Bunny? I´m sure you´ll feel better after talking about it!" soothed Tooth.

"Heart, fireworks!"

"You promised," sang Jack again.

"She was my wife, and she´s dead! Happy?!"

He turned and stared daggers at all of them as he breathed heavily through his flaring nostrils. His claws were now showing as his hands choked his upper arms savagely. His ear was now perfectly still.

Sandy thought that he could hear his friend growl but was too surprised to focus on that.

He and the others were frozen in silence just long enough for tears to form in two shiny pink eyes. Then they were all overcome with a balanced blend of shame, regret, confusion and curiosity.

"Bunny, I´m so sorry-I shouldn´t have pushed like I did," said Jack earnestly. Sandy nodded along and showed a broken heart above his head.

North just stared at his friend with wide eyes and a furrowed brow, opening and closing his mouth like a fish a few times.

"It doesn´t matter, damn it! Just leave it alone!" cursed Bunny with a growl. His head snapped away and his hands flexed harder, driving his claws further into his coated arms, resulting in various gentle ripping sounds.

Tooth wiped her eyes and floated over to Bunny, reaching out and touching his shoulder.

He jerked away with an airy snarl, making her gasp and retreat with her hands covering her mouth.

He took a few deep breaths in the thick silence before speaking again.

"As I was trying to say, Pitch did a number on the Warren; more than I originally realized. I´ll be busy with repairs and re-planting for the next months, probably years."

The others were still statues. Only the furry ear, the fire, and a few drops of saltwater moved as the rabbit continued.

"If there´s an emergency, send out the lights," he enunciated with a hiss.

The aura he expelled thickened.

"Otherwise, leave me damn well alone."

Then he slammed his foot on the ground and disappeared. . .

But not before muttering something under his breath. Jack Frost was the only one present enough to hear the exhaled scorn just before the tunnel closed.

"Why do I even bother?"

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Leave a review!

Guest!: I love reading your replies. I have to disagree with you about the dentists. Though the foam was extremely uncomfortable, it wasn´t painful, and the college kid didn´t make me suffer on purpose; he was just an idiot. I would rather have that than have an enormous man practically ripping my teeth out in the name of dentistry several times- and one who should´ve known better! I´m sorry friend, but I think your story wins. Also, crackers?! Why?! I´m sorry that happened to you, but I'm glad that you didn´t take the crackers. Has that experience put you off of eating those caramels? I love those things, but if I´d nearly died from one as a child, I don´t think I would enjoy eating them as an adult. Anyway, I´m dying to know what you think of this chapter and where things will go. Things progressed quickly since the last, and I hope that it didn´t disappoint. Thank you for sharing your thoughts on this story!

Go Outside: Hello again! I think you´re right, North AND Jack means big trouble for Bunnymund. Hopefully this chapter shows that well enough. Anyway, I hope you leave a reply on this chapter with your thoughts. Where do you think the story will go from here?

Shellycat: You called it back in More Than Bare Minimum. Well done! What do you think about this chapter?

What do you think?

Be sure to leave a review!

1. Why do you think Bunnymund didn´t just leave? How could he have handled this situation better? What would you have done if you were him?

2. Do you think the other guardians were right to press him the way they did? If you had been there, what would you have done?

3. How do you think this event will effect the group dynamic?

4. What feelings passed through you as you read this chapter?

5. Have you ever been cornered like this, or cornered someone else? How did it end?

6. Any advice for how I could have made this chapter (or previous chapters) better?