Peppy was in the kitchen. All the stainless steel looked especially glinty this morning – though morning was relative, was just when they got up, not when the sun rose – but all the shelves and the drawers and the knobs were sparkling cold.
Got kind of fascinated by it, the lines in the steel as he waited for Jim to arrive. This was the one ritual that wasn't causing them problems. Meet up and eat.
He was early, and Jim was right on time, as he strode in through the double doors, the sound of them shutting behind him seemed especially loud, clanging, starting that darn echo effect Peppy hated so much.
Jim looked irritated by it too, his tail bristled, started thrashing around a bit, and Peppy nodded in greeting before heading for the pantry. Needed to go fish some more rations out of there.
Still had plenty, but it wasn't unlimited, hoped this storm would pass soon, that someone could get here soon and get them out of here. When he turned to head out, he was surprised to see Jim standing at the door. Hadn't heard him come in.
"What's up, Jim? I wasn't fast enough for you?" Peppy tried to lighten the mood, but he already felt his own fur start to bristle, his tail raise up, his ears going straight up and facing straight ahead, at Jim and to match Jim, in this case, whose ears were also up at attention, his tail high and twitching, and there it was, his lips were raising up, not a snarl yet, but real close, hadn't seen that since the first night Peppy knocked on his door, and Peppy instinctively started looking around the room. There were some shelves he could maneuver around, but there was only one entrance and exit and Jim was standing right in front of it.
Jim didn't answer, just slowly closed the door, the heavy latched door that someone figured was necessary to keep people from snitching food, and for a moment they just stared at each other, both standing stock-still, a moment that dragged on forever and ever, went so long that Peppy thought for sure nothing more was going to happen, that Jim was just getting a bit stir-crazy, was normal for people to get on each other's nerves, anybody would be, in this situation, 'cause normally when people said they felt like they were the only two people on the planet, they were talking metaphorically. Weren't actually the only two, not like he and Jim had been for the past month and a half.
Wished Jim would take those damn shades off, could get a better idea of what was happening if he could see his eyes, and then in a lightning quick motion, he got his wish, along with a whole bunch of things he had never wished for, things that were more like a nightmare.
Jim took the shades off, tossed them carelessly to the side, and what Peppy saw terrified him. Wasn't any of the man he knew in those eyes, and he didn't get the idea that what Jim saw when he looked at Peppy was anything he recognized. Wasn't looking at him like the friends that they were, instead looking at him like he was prey, and Peppy, to his own horror, had to switch from seeing Jim as his friend to instead someone who was hunting him.
Bared his own teeth. Felt all the adrenaline building up in his legs, like it always did, coiling up so he could make a dash for it, and he would, since Jim had to move away from the door at some point.
Except that wasn't what the Jim did, he grabbed one of the rolling carts in here and knocked it over, put it in front of the door, and then he had Jim running at him so fast, full out growling now.
Peppy dashed out of the way, but was beginning to panic. Speed wasn't as big an advantage when there was nowhere to go, and there was nowhere to run in here, though they did play a macabre version of chase, around the remaining shelves, though Jim started knocking things down onto the floor, making it harder to maneuver.
He was biding his time now, had Peppy cornered, and he knew it. And Peppy had had all the signs for this, knew this kind of thing happened to people, from time to time.
Nobody liked to talk about it much. Was kept hush-hush when it did. We're all supposed to be civilized, after all. But there were a few different things people called it. Reverting. Animal instincts run amok, or most common, that somebody had gone wild.
Tried again to get through to Jim, saying his name, saying his own name, wasn't doing any good. Was debating whether he should throw something at him, but Jim made another lightning quick move that Peppy wasn't ready for, was still trying to get through to him, but now they were in a full out tussle, and Jim had every advantage, was taller, stronger, had Peppy flat on his back in no time, had even grabbed his legs out from underneath him, and was pressing them down towards his shoulders, couldn't move 'em, and Jim was too far out of reach for him to get hands on him, and Peppy's mind went blank, frozen, staring at those slitted pupils, and heard a scream, except it wasn't like any scream he'd ever heard.
Was primal, and it was distress, but it wasn't for help, it was a last scream, a final warning to other rabbits to stay away, except there weren't any other rabbits to hear it, but then he heard someone saw his name regardless, through gritted teeth, rougher than he was accustomed to, but he recognized it. Thankfully, blissfully, recognized it, and when he looked up, saw in those slitted pupils something he also recognized.
Still, had to check.
"Jim?" Hated how small his voice sounded.
"I'm going to let you go, and you're going to run." Jim barely managed, garbled, but coherent.
"You're going to let me go, and I'm going to run." Peppy repeated, when Jim failed to move, failed to do anything except hold them where they were, but then Peppy felt the pressure on his legs give way, and he took the opportunity, burst off the ground, threw that cart out of the way then ripped the door open, with a strength and speed he didn't know he had, barreled through the double doors out of the kitchen, then just kept running.
He didn't look back. Didn't stop, not until he got to his room, locked the door, grabbed the gun from his pack, then leaned his back against the door, listening for any sign that he'd been followed.
He heard nothing.
Only his ragged breathing, the erratic beating of his heart, and the ever present wind.
Then he felt sick, absolutely sick. What was he doing? He had his gun and was thinking of using it on Jim.
Wasn't long after that that he started to shake. Got under the covers and weathered it out.
Got woken up by shrieking howling, and for once, it wasn't the wind. Was Jim, and the sound sent more than a chill down his spine. Downright froze it. Sounded as weird to him as his shrieking had probably sounded to Jim: ghastly, spooky, unearthly.
His brain was trying to tell him he didn't know what it was – could have been a lot of things – but his gut said he knew just fine. Was doing what Peppy had been doing. Calling to another of his kind.
Except, it was a little different. Foxes didn't live in groups. Only time they were calling out for one another was to find their mate.
But just like there were no other rabbits here, there were no other foxes, and Vickie was long gone.
Was getting strange around here.
Wished Pigma was around.
Slept heavy as a stone, once he got back to sleep again. Didn't know what time it was, what day it was, where he was. Only woke 'cause of a persistent knocking on the door, and someone calling his name. Voice wasn't garbled this time. Was rough, but with something else this time.
Shame, sadness, regret.
Went to the door, but didn't open it. Wanted to open it, stared at it, but couldn't do it. Just couldn't do it.
"I… I'm alright, Jim, but I… I don't want to come out yet." Tried to make that sound casual, not a big deal, like they weren't really in the situation they were in. Like he wasn't really afraid to open the door.
"I'll leave some food out here for you, then." Jim replied, doing a little better keeping his voice steady, giving a bit better of an act, he was just letting Peppy work it out on his own, standard protocol, except he couldn't keep the uncertainty entirely out of his tone either, the hesitancy out of his reply.
Managed a quick thanks, then heard Jim's footsteps as he walked away.
Used the restroom, washed up a little.
Grabbed the food after that, but couldn't bring himself to eat it. Wanted to eat it, stared at it, but couldn't do it. Just couldn't do it.
Instead, just got back in bed again.
Fell right back asleep too.
Like a stone.