A/N :
Anie 6142 : Oh, didn't know that fact about the flowers either, that's pretty nice!
Q-A the Authoress : No worries. ^^
Stygian Sparrow : Thank you and yes, totally gotta love Jack!
Firenze Fox : Thanks, he's so much fun to write!
LBIGreyhound13 : Someone else suggested that already, but I still have no idea how North should ground a flying winter spirit. Unless he locks him in a room without windows or takes his staff away from him, but I can't imagine he would go that far. But I'll keep it in mind, maybe inspirations strikes me when I don't expect it.
Auua Ytjoml : Thank you! Alright, since several other people brought this up as well I turned the drink into "lemon soda". Should be alright now, I hope. ;) Haha, yeah, the Bunny from the books is completely different. The people at Dreamworks actually wanted to keep him like this but when they decided that his voice actor should be Hugh Jackman they were like "We can't do this..." and turned him into that badass Australian instead. I'm glad they did. 8)
Natalie : Glad you liked it! I have so many ideas for RotG-Fanart I don't know where to start ( and I'm pretty busy with work most of the time ). I can't promise there'll be an illustration for this story, but it could be.
SaiyanPrincess : I'm relieved it all sounded realistic, that's what I wanted to achieve. ^^
sauara : Eh, yes and no. Of course people can tell me their ideas, but even when it's a good idea it depends on my motivation and inspiration whether I'll actually write it or not. So don't be dissappointed when I don't accept a request.
BookwormBri : Thank you very much for the praise! I never thought I would write that much, but the ideas keep coming. XD
Hanyoualchemist1 : Haha, that surely is a lot to read all at once! Whoops, sorry about the typos, fixed them all ( hope I didn't miss anything ).
Also thanks to sakura-blossoms-26, Frozenjaqulinesfrost, Huskygirl1998, TheTalkingLollipop and Guest!
For the first time since he had become a guardian Bunnymund had to watch his holiday being ruined by none other than the Boogeyman himself. Had to witness millions of his beloved googies being crushed by merciless nightmares without being able to protect them. Had to see the dissappointment in the eyes of countless children who had been looking forward to this day for weeks. Had to experience what it felt like to be walked through, to not be believed in. It had been the darkest hour in his immortal life. Hope seemed lost, they were close to losing the battle.
But sometimes miracles happened when you least expected them. He had never thought that it would be Jack Frost who restored the last light's belief in him. That it would be him and Jamie who eventually saved them all. Despite all the fights he had with the winter spirit Bunny was relieved and grateful that the boy wasn't someone to bear grudges forever and had helped them, even if they had treated him like a traitor. He had forgiven them before they had realized that they had done anything wrong. Before they had the chance to offer an apology themselves.
Bunny owed the frost teen quite a lot, but he had always been rather awkward when it came to social interactions. Centuries of being a loner and avoiding contact with others had left its marks. Actually it possessed a bitter irony. Jack had been longing for someone to finally acknowledge his existence while the pooka had the respect of everyone and yet prefered to stay in his Warren, where he didn't have to deal with unwanted visitors.
Well, until now.
During the past year he had gotten used to the teen showing up now and then. At first he had been annoyed, to say the least, about the icy intruder who disturbed his work and teased him until he was ready to find out if immortals were really immortal. But the more he got to know the young guardian the more he was convinced that he had a heart of gold and was the best friend anyone could wish for. Of course he would never admit that, especially not to the boy himself. He would never hear the end of it.
Two months before Easter Bunnymund's level of stress and irritability reached a new peak. This year his holiday had to surpass everything he had ever arranged. He had to make up for the failure of last year and personally gain back the belief and trust of every single child he had dissappointed. This Easter had to be perfect. And slowly but surely he was driving himself nuts with all the high standards he set on himself. Painting eggs was his number one activity, 24 hours a day, he couldn't allow himself to rest, there was too much work left. No wonder that joy hadn't exactly been the emotion he felt when he sensed the faint smell of snow from across the Warren.
"Awesome timin' for a visit of the lil' bugger." had been his first grumpy thought.
But he should have known better. Jack Frost hadn't come to be a nuisance, no, he asked if he could help. This had caught the anthropomorphic rabbit off-guard for a moment, and yet he couldn't deny he was grateful for the offer. Some time ago the teen had begged him to teach him how to paint eggs and turned out to be a fast learner. Although the eggs he decorated looked different from what the Easter guardian produced they were beautiful in their own way. That's why he had no objections when the winter spirit lend him a helping hand. A little social interaction was nice after weeks of staying in his Warren and being up to his neck in work. He had to chuckle lightly at this simple thought because it sounded so foreign.
Even if it was possible, the Guardian of Hope couldn't have chosen a better day for Easter Sunday. Only a few white stray clouds lazily floated over the clear blue sky. Flowers in all kinds of colours blossomed, spreading their sweet natural scent through the air. Birds happily twittered their unique songs, bathing in the warm sunlight which shone brightly on the joyous scenario below.
Pretty much all of Burgess' children had gathered in the park for the Easter egg hunt after they had been awaiting this event for days and weeks. Their expectations after the dissappointment of the preceding year were mixed. Some of them had high hopes and brought big baskets with them while others humbly wished they would find anything at all.
None of them were prepared for what they encountered. There were so many eggs, chocolate and already decorated and filled baskets that it hadn't been possible to hide them all. Some of them were peaking out of bushes, tall grass and patches of flowers, immediately assuring everyone that this Easter was completely different than the last one. Cheers and laughter filled the air as soon as the children realized what lay ahead of them.
Jack crouched on the heavy branch of an oak tree and watched the bustling activity with vast amusement. It felt good to see children so excited and overjoyed. The old kangaroo had seriously surpassed himself this time. That should regain even the most stubborn kid's belief in the Easter spirit. Despite Pitch being the bastard who ruined this holiday last year the frost teen still felt guilty. If he had returned in time instead of chasing that mysterious voice and letting the Boogeyman distract him he could have fought with the guardians and maybe they could have saved at least a small percentage of the eggs. Even though Bunny had forgiven him, Jack would never forget the crestfallen look in his eyes, the hurt, the anger, all directed at him. Sensing its master's discomfort the wind engulfed him and softly ruffled his hair, eliciting a weak smile from the young man. No matter how much he regretted it, what had happened, happened. He had learned from his mistakes and would do his best to never repeat them. And if he was honest with himself he was the slightest bit proud of having been allowed to assist Bunny during the Easter preparations. Granted, he had only painted a tiny amount of eggs, but still, he had managed to help.
"Hey, Jack!"
From his perch high up in the tree the winter spirit curiously glanced down at the owner of the familiar voice.
"Hey, Jamie! Having fun at the egg hunt?" he asked but the wide grin on the 11-year old's face and the basket full of eggs and chocolate were answer enough.
"You bet! This is awesome, there are eggs everywhere! How did Bunny do that!?"
"Haha, no idea. Although this explains why he didn't come out of his Warren for months." Jack chuckled and jumped down to join his first believer on the grassy ground.
"Do you know where he is? That's the best Easter ever and I wanna thank him!" the brunette boy inquired excitedly.
"I guess he's making sure that the egg hunts are going according to plan all over the world."
"Oh, yeah, that makes sense. When you see him, can you tell him what I just said?"
"Sure thing." Jack smiled.
"Jamie, Jamie, Jamie!" a high-pitched voice shouted from afar.
Blue and brown eyes stared at the little blonde girl who was running towards them with a huge smile on her face and a full basket in her tiny hands. As soon as she had noticed the Guardian of Fun's presence the impossible happened and her smile grew even bigger.
"Look what I found!" Sophie beamed and presented them her current loot which consisted of half a dozen painted eggs, many small chocolate eggs and a medium-sized chocolate bunny.
Jack had to chuckle. When had the rabbit created those?
"Wow, that's impressive! But I'm sure there are much more goodies waiting for you." he winked with a knowing expression.
The children were lucky that the town supplied empty baskets because the Bennetts weren't the only ones who had filled theirs after a short while already. So everyone hurried to the spot where more bast baskets were distributed.
"You wanna search eggs with us? We can get you a basket, too! Pleaaase?" the toddler begged and gazed at him with sparkling green eyes.
Jamie groaned quietly. He was going to have a lot of trouble looking out for his younger sister once she hit puperty when she already knew how to twist guys around her little finger at age 4. But while he could see what a hard time his spirit friend had to resist the little girl's charm there was obviously a silent battle raging in his head, reminding himself of why he should resist.
"I'd love to, but the eggs are for you and the other children. I'm too old for this anyway."
In fact, he had been wanting to join an Easter egg hunt for hundreds of years. Though the last and only time he collected a few eggs had ended with getting a good telling-off from Bunnymund himself. Jack had forgotten when exactly that happened, he only remembered it was several decades after he rose from the lake. But the anthropomorphic rabbit had made it clear back then that the eggs and chocolate were made for and belonged to the children and no one else. Of course he had used a far more colourful language but that was the essence of his lecture.
Right now, the importance of this day outweighed the immortal teen's desire to take part in the cheerful activity. This was Bunny's holiday, he had worked so hard for its success and Jack was not going to take a single egg away.
Exactly that had been the reason why he had stayed hidden in the treetop, well, until Jamie had spotted him. Only the boy's friends and a few other children in Burgess believed in him, and yet, he didn't want to distract any of them from what this day was about. He could always play with them but this day belonged to Bunny.
Maybe he could have given his favourite siblings pointers where more eggs could be found, but a glance at the amount of eggs and candy in their baskets proved him that they weren't dependant on his help. So he would just lean back and enjoy the happiness around him.
"You sure?" Jamie asked unconvincedly.
"Yep. Now come on, those eggs aren't hunting themselves. You don't want the other kids to snatch them all away from you, do you?" Jack raised an eyebrow and smirked at the two children.
"Noo! I want another chocolate bunny!" Sophie stated determinedly and bolted a few feet away before coming back just as fast.
"Bye, Jack!" she yelled, waved her hand and hurried to the center of the park.
"Bye, Soph!" the winter spirit waved back smiling, his attention turning towards the brunette boy now that his sister was out of sight.
"What are you waiting for, kiddo? Go get 'em."
"Okay, but I'll see you around later, promise?"
Jamie's voice sounded unsure, a tiny bit of worried even. The Guardian of Fun refusing to join the fun just didn't make any sense. Being the observant child he was he hadn't missed the longing look on his best friend's face while he watched everyone searching for eggs and candy. But knowing him there had to be a good reason behind his decision to stay on the sideline.
"Promise. Gotta check how much of Bunny's googies you found." Jack winked and the young Bennett let out a honest laugh.
"Then I won't dissappoint you! See ya!" he shouted and ran to Sophie who had gotten two empty baskets in the meantime and was already searching for more eggs.
They were all so happy, as odd as it might have sounded, he felt a little lonely watching them from afar. With a sigh he flew upwards and landed back on the branch he had been perched on earlier. Maybe, if Bunny was completely satisfied with the success of this Easter Sunday and if he was in an extremely good mood, Jack would dare to ask him. Maybe he would be allowed to join the spectacle next year. Maybe he would get his own basket and find eggs and chocolate. That would be nice. Really, really, nice.
Hours later, after the last child had left the park and evening approached Jack was still sitting on the tree. Nothing hinted at the delightful commotion which had taken place here only a short time ago. He was relieved everything had gone fine and without any incidents. If the egg hunts all over the world had been only remotely similar to this one then Easter definitely could be called a huge success.
Jumping down from his hiding place the white-haired immortal had the sudden urge to look for leftovers. There was a chance that they children had missed one or two eggs, probably even more. It would be a shame to let anything Bunny created with so much love and effort go to waste. A spark of excitement lit up inside him at the thought of finding one of the colourful googies himself. If he did, he would bring it to Jamie and Sophie since he was going to pay them a visit anyway.
He had literally turned every stone and examined every bush in the whole park when he came to the conclusion that there was nothing left at all. The young citizens of Burgess had seriously discovered everything the furry guardian had hidden for them. Jack was impressed but if he was honest, also a little dissappointed. Well, he still had hope for next year.
While he took a deep breath and gazed at the moon, which had already appeared in the early evening sky, he failed to notice the dark grey shadow rushing from one spot to the next behind him. At least at first. It came closer and as soon as the winter spirit caught a glimpse of it from the corner of his eye he automatically switched into defensive mode and pointed his staff at whoever dared to sneak up on him.
"Crickey, mate, put that thing down unless ya wanna poke someone's eye out!"
"Bunny? What are you doing here?" Jack asked flabbergasted and lowered the shepherd's crook.
The day had come to an end in this part of the USA but in many other countries the Easter was still going on or hadn't even started yet. Surely the spring guardian had more important things to do than show up here where everything had gone smooth already. Cerulean orbs were focused on the large rabbit who just stood there, more relaxed than Jack had seen him for weeks, and sent a noble smile in his direction.
"Well, I had ta hide a few more of my googies."
"But...the kids are gone already, their baskets were so full they had to get second ones. You should have seen them, they were so happy! Oh, and Jamie wanted me to tell you that this was, I quote, the best Easter ever!" Jack explained with a grin.
"Glad ta hear that. But these eggs ain't for the lil' anklebiters."
"Uhm...who else?"
Bunnymund crossed his arms and shook his head in a light-hearted manner, silently snorting.
"Ya really are sorta dense today, Frostbite. They're for you."
Jack was taken aback. Was this some kind of weird joke he didn't understand? Was the old kangaroo going to burst out in laughter and yell 'Just kiddin', mate!' any moment?
"M-me? But...why?"
"'Cause ya helped me with the preparations and I figured ya never had a real egg hunt. As the Easter Bunny I can't leave it at that." he smirked with determination written all over his features.
"You mean you...hid those eggs just for me?"
"Ya finally got it."
Jack still couldn't believe it. He never anticipated this, it was too good to be true. But after getting to know the Guardian of Hope during the last year he slowly started to be convinced that he was indeed serious and not taking revenge for countless of pranks.
"Wow, this is awesome!" he suddenly blurted out with joy Bunnymund would have expected from a small child rather than a 300 year old teenager.
It made him smile.
"Stop blabberin' and start searchin'." he said matter-of-factly and handed him a white basket.
The winter spirit didn't have to be told twice. With an excited grin plastered on his face he grabbed the basket and started looking for whatever goodies awaited him while Bunny watched him in mild amusement. Soon enough the first egg was found and shortly later many others followed. They were all decorated with more or less abstract patterns resembling winter, painted in many different tones of blue, silver and white. Jack loved ever single one of them.
Eventually, just when he thought he had spotted every hideout, the large rabbit stated there was something else left for him. After putting the basket, which was filled to the brim with eggs, next to his friend he continued to sift through every part of the park anew.
When he finally discovered the final Easter gift, hidden under two lush currant bushes, his eyes widened in amazement. It was a pale blue bast bowl that had white snowflakes embroidered on it. In the middle throned a chocolate bunny with shapes of snowflakes, made of white chocolate, adorning its surface. It even had a blue ribbon with a silver snowflake ornament wrapped around its neck. Around it lay several chocolate eggs of all sizes and various sorts of fillings, but it were exactly those fillings Jack liked most. He never thought the pooka cared to remember them.
"Bunny, this is...I..." the teen started stammering and then looked his friend straight in the eyes, a honest smile forming on his features.
"Thanks."
"Don't mention it."
"No, really, it means a lot to me. So, well, thank you."
"Ye're welcome, Jack. Glad ya like 'em."
there was a moment of silence and mutual understanding between the two guardians, both of them smiling sincerely at each other. Until Bunny decided this was enough sloppy sentimentality for the day and cleared his throat.
"Well, gotta go now, there's still a heap of countries waitin' for their egg hunts. See ya, Frostbite." he explained and then added with a smirk.
"Oh, and thanks for not causin' a blizzard again."
Jack chuckled and sent a half-crooked grin in his direction.
"Hehe, my pleasure."
A/N : HAPPY EASTER, everyone! *group hug* ^_^
