Author's Note: I know I said I was gonna upload it the other day, but mother nature was against it. B[ It was thunderbooming all day here, so I was sitting thinking to myself, "Well, fuck. My readers are gonna put me in the cone of shame after this."

And then after that I just got lazy. :\ So yeah.

Well, I hope this (albeit incredibly crappy) action scene makes up for it's lateness :D

Oh and uh thank you to a reviewer who gave me this really interesting idea as to how the next chapter should go…

lol I call it ice bending. XD

Warning: Brace yourself. This chapter contains excessively descriptive scenes of violence and ideologically sensitive material, as well as language, cutting/self-harm, blood, and some seriously messed up feels.

Oh, and did I say that Bunny's sort of a jerk in this chapter? It may not seem that way in the beginning, but we all know how Bunny can get… Jus' sayin…

In an attempt to reduce his building sense of uncertainty as Bunnymund replaced his boomerangs, Jack halfheartedly asked, "What, no rules? That's a first, especially when it comes to you."

"Maybe one," Bunny replied as a sly smirk crept onto his face. "Don't cry like a lil' baby when ya lose,"

Jack clutched his staff with an iron grip. "Oh, you are so dead." Alright, no rules. This would be FUN.

Armed with a war cry and a fierce look of determination, Jack was the first to attack, nimbly expelling a powerful surge of ice energy towards Bunny only to have the Pooka dodge it easily. The rabbit just as quickly withdrew his boomerang and chucked it towards the winter spirit with all his might.

Knowing that the enchanted weapon would track him down until colliding with a solid source, Jack slammed his crook against the ground and caused a thick sheet of ice to rapidly manifest in front of him for him to use as a temporary shield. The boomerang rammed into it and became lodged in the ice, and Jack, in spite of the seriousness of this situation, couldn't help but to laugh as he balanced on top of the ice wall. "Oops." He shot the equally laid-back spring spirit a feigned I didn't do it expression before returning his attention to the weapon in the ice. "That's, uh, that's gonna be a bitch to try and dig out, bro."

"So will this," Bunny commented coolly, and Jack looked up from the wedged boomerang just in time for something to stab through his left shoulder. He let out a surprised cry as a wave of pain shot through his arm. His seemingly carefree stance faltered as, with a shaky hand, Jack forcefully tugged the sharp projectile out of his shoulder.

"A ninja star? Are you kidding me!?" Jack hollered at the smug-ridden Pooka who simply stared back at him haughtily. Well, whaddaya know? He thought to himself despite the deep wound incessantly throbbing in his shoulder.

"No rules, mate." Bunny shrugged with a grin. "An' I never said anythin' about goin' easy on ya."

Jack glowered, lightly tapping his cut with his staff so that it would freeze over. "Yeah? Well neither did I."

With that, Jack flew toward Bunny menacingly, only to come to a halt about a foot in front of him and incessantly twirling around him. His flying circles around him dizzied the rabbit as Jack dragged the tip of his staff against the ground. He quickly flew out of the way when Bunny slipped on the ice patch that formed beneath his feet, and used his temporary disorientation to his advantage. With a lighthearted chuckle, Jack tapped the tree beside Bunny and the snow that had gathered there came crashing down on top of him, obscuring the pooka entirely and causing Jack to laugh out loud. "Sure hope you don't catch a cold, Cottontail!" he joked, and with the swish of his hand, blew the snow away from Bunny, only to see that he was no longer there. "What?" he asked to himself, quizzically staring at the spot on the ground where, as the snow hesitantly dispersed, a small bright yellow flower gradually sprouted from the dirt.

"Hiyah!" A shout bellowed from behind him, and Jack immediately took to the air to avoid being pelted by a ninja star again. Even when one swiftly caught him on the leg, he swallowed the pain and acted as if the injury hadn't hurt him, and instead looked down with a light chuckle as the bunny hopped from his new tunnel. "Now's the time to sprout some wings, Thumper," his comment was cut short as something wrapped around his ankle and yanked him back down to earth, slamming him against the ground with a thud.

"Well, tha' didn't last long at all, did it?" Bunnymund sneered. Jack froze the green vine before it could consume his leg and gave it a sharp tug, shattering it into a bunch of pieces and kicking them aside aggressively. "Oh, it's wabbit season." he snarled, aiming his staff like a gun to the Pooka.

The Pooka couldn't help but laugh at his playfulness in spite of his injuries. He always found ways to make a dead serious battle seem like a game of tag. "Crikey, chill out, Jack. All in good fun."

"Oh, I get it, ha." He pretended to laugh and gestured to himself, kicking off and hovering in the air just in case Bunny tried to sprout any more vines. "Chill out because I'm a winter spirit and the fun 'cause... Okay, I see how it is!" By this time, Jack was no longer angry or overly determined; he forgot – or rather, he disregarded – the fact that this battle would be the difference between being babied for the rest of his Immortal existence or being left at peace for as long as he liked. To be frank, he was riled like a little boy hopped up on sugar, willing to play any game as long as it meant being able to crack jokes and puns, being able to cause unnecessary mischief and move around with no boundaries or restrictions. And as of right now, that's all this was, regardless of Bunny's ninja stars, for it was all in good fun…

This was around the time when Jack began to feel lightheaded. He stopped hovering in the air and shakily stood his ground, but it still felt like he was floating. Despite the small thorns that were in the dirt digging into his bare feet, he felt like he was being tossed around in slow motion, like trying to move underwater. He took in deep greedy breaths, his chest rising and falling, heaving as his lungs filled with as much air they could possibly hold; but he felt like he was holding his breath, felt like he wasn't breathing at all. The lightheadedness worsened, causing him to stumble backward slightly before regaining a little sense of balance. His staff slipped from his hands. He clutched his head as the unbearable pounding began to commence, and despite the sweat rolling down his temples, he felt cold, shivers of dread creeping down his spine.

It wasn't right. It didn't feel right. Something about this feeling just didn't feel right to Jack. In all of his 319 years of existence, the all too familiar feeling of cold never returned until now. The full moon watched from his space in the sky as the winter spirit released a small moan.

For the first time in his immortal life, Jack Frost felt cold.

And it was causing him pain.

Noticing this abrupt change in Jack's demeanor, Bunny replaced his stars and took a step closer. "Jack? Are ya feelin' alrigh'?"

I can't fight like this. Jack's mind reeled. He'll win if it's one-on-one combat. Distance. I need distance. He tried to tell himself as he clenched his jaw and began to lean a little to the left, barely catching himself as he nearly toppled over.

"Jack!?"

In an effort to keep the Pooka at a distance, he summoned the winds of the Burgess area and blasted them at him, sending him skidding backward a good few yards before the wind ultimately lost control and whirled around Jack in disarray. Come on, listen to me! He beckoned silently, Keep him away from me! I can't fight right now and…His train of thought drifted as the world he knew began to tilt sideways… or was he falling? He honestly couldn't tell. As of right now, he could only hear a high pitched ringing in his ears and he could only see a miscellaneous slur of colors as they unwillingly blurred together, blending into incomprehensible hues and mutilating his perception. His limbs tingled all over and he found that he had no control over them. Ultimately, they were numbing, as they would after spending too long out in the cold. As Bunny's cries grew louder and his sideways vague impression grew nearer, Jack's eyes closed.

I can't lose this game…

"Jack... I'm scared..."

His eyes shot open.

Jack couldn't determine how long he was out, but after squinting past Bunny's blurry, fright-ridden face and saw that the color of the sky was still the same, he concluded that it couldn't have been too-

Wait. Bunny?

Jack rapidly blinked as the colors finally began to separate themselves, and came to realize that Bunny's face was hovering above his own worriedly. His voice slowly reached his ears, and when they did, they were distorted and muffled, as if they were underwater.

"…ack? Can ya hear me? Jack, answer me! C'mon!"

"Bunny?" Jack murmured. The Pooka's voice sounded foreign, his words blurred and run together.

"Jack! Are ya alright, mate? How ya feelin'?"

Seeing that he was being cradled (like an infant, like a helpless baby) the winter spirit attempted to sit up, slowly recovering their ability to move at a normal speed again, but still a little too delayed for his liking. "What…happened…?" he breathed, rubbing his eyes as the drowsiness continued to linger.

"Ya jus' passed out, mate. Fainted righ' in the middle of tha field. Ya don't look too good, Frostbite."

"Are… is it paused?" Jack mumbled.

"What? Is what paused?"

"That game we were playing," As Jack reached up to rub his eyes, his blue sleeve slid a little ways down his arm, and something dark red caught Bunny's attention.

The bunny didn't even bother to ask him where they were from as he grabbed Jack's wrist and inspected the cuts. Jack didn't even notice that his biggest secret was out until he found that Bunny was staring at them funny. It took him a little bit longer to react, seeing that he was still putting the pieces together in his mind.

Jack didn't say anything as he tore his wrist from Bunny's grasp and stood, upon his face a look of disbelief and utter shock. He couldn't even bring himself to say something. He could just stare at the equally surprised pooka as a number of thoughts crossed both of their minds.

Bunny softly broke the silence with a gentle tone of voice. "Jack…"

To the winter spirit, it was like breaking the ice beneath him, threatening to swallow him up whole, paralyze him, deeming him unable to move or to breathe.

Bunny stood up as well, still somewhat crouched so that he didn't come off too angry or intimidating. "Jack, why-"

"Shut up!" He shouted back before he could stop himself. Regardless of his present weakness and dizziness, he scowled at the rabbit, his fists clenched and his bright blue eyes piercing through the sympathetic bright green ones. Rage emitted from every action, every word he spoke, every move he made. "Just shut up! I haven't lost yet, so fuck off!"

Before Jack could allow Bunny to justify his (unfair, unneeded, stupid, stupid, stupid) concern for the winter spirit's current state, Jack bellowed a battle cry.

There was no way he was losing this game.

There was no way.

Faster than he thought he could, Jack's fist slammed into his makeshift ice shield and used his magic to form its remnants into sharp shards of ice, commanding them with a flick of his hand to fly towards the dumbfounded bunny. Despite Bunny's attempt to dodge the shards, a few found themselves lodged into his skin, one even going through the thin skin of his erect ears.

"I don't need you to babysit me!" Jack hollered as he flew over to the frozen lake and hovered over it, completely disregarding the makeshift arena boundary formed by the vines. "I don't need you or any of the others to constantly watch over me! I can take care of myself! I'm not a fucking baby!"

Bunny took a step forward, holding his anger inside as much as he could manage. "Butcha still a child, Jack! Ya still a new spirit, an' ya need some guidance! What you're going through isn't natural!"

Jack clenched his eyes shut. With a holler, he slammed his foot into the ice, raising a fist to bring up a frozen chunk of the lake and throwing it at Bunnymund. An overwhelming surge of anger consumed Jack after seeing that the spring spirit merely avoided it and resumed talking.

"Let us help you! You're sick, Jack! Ya don't know what-"

"You don't know! You don't know anything!" Jack shouted, throwing another hunk of ice at Bunny. "You don't know what I am!"

At this point, Bunnymund was fed up. After seeing that he couldn't try to reason with him – couldn't get through to him in general – Bunny snarled and chucked his boomerang. He had to make him see it.

"Ya damn right I do! Ah know that you're incompetent!" His next boomerang hit him on the side, pushing him off the lake and into one of the trees beside it, which he used to pull himself back up as Bunny advanced on him.

"You're destructive!" Jack paused in the midst of his recouping and listened to the words as he came closer. "You're blinkin' daft! Ya reckless, careless, immature!" Now Bunny was up to his toes, forcing him to back up against the tree. For a brief moment, Jack was… well, frightened. But he quickly masked his anger and discomfort, glaring up at the equally infuriated bunny.

"I don't care." He stated with a low venomous tone, his pale face looking up defiantly at the guardian of hope. A deep blue flush began to obscure his white cheeks as his anger intensified and his jaw clenched. "I can take care of myself. I'm not helpless."

In an instant, an indescribably excruciating pain emanated from his shoulder. Jack clenched his eyes shut and screamed at the sudden pain, his face contorted with agony as the sensation spread throughout his arm and the left uppermost side of his body. When he opened his eyes he saw that Bunny had stabbed through the cut on his shoulder with one of his boomerangs. The unwilling tears immediately froze against his cheeks once escaping the corner of his eyes. His body shook as he racked a sob. "Bunny!"

"Wha' was that you said 'bout being helpless?!" Bunnymund scorned angrily. "If ya are watcha say ya are, then get out! Fight!" He gave the boomerang a twist inside the boys arm.

Jack screamed and writhe in pain, using his opposite hand to grab the rabbit's wrist in an attempt to pry it off. Frozen tears covered his face as he cried out weakly. "Bunny stop! Stop!"

"Ah will when Ah hear ya say it!" he growled aggressively over Jack's feeble pleading and his futile attempts to wriggle out of his grasp. "Say it,"

The bawling winter spirit, whose shaking hand now clung to Bunny's arm more for leverage than to try to escape, spoke with a raspy and sobbing voice. His words came out almost inconceivably, sounding more like a giant mass of vowels and sniffles than anything. "I don't know wha-what you-you-you want, want m-me to say, just please, please st-stop,"

Bunny ripped the bloodied boomerang from Jack's shoulder, earning another howl of pain from the sprite.

"Can ya fight like this?" Bunny asked calmly, almost as if he were reprimanding a bad child.

After a few more light sobs, Jack shook his head. "N-no…" he whimpered.

"Can ya defend yourself like this?"

"No,"

"Now wha' does that make you?"

Jack thought to himself silently, looking up to the Pooka's face before looking down at the ground in defeat. "…helpless…"

Bunny agrinned. He saw it.

"If I were ta do this ta ya back in '68, ya woulda kicked my arse, mate. Do ya see what I'm getting' at?"

Jack was unresponsive for a moment or two, barely nodding to his words. "Can-can we please just… finish this game?"

Bunny sighed. "Are ya sure ya wanna do that?"

"I-I can't walk out on-on games…"

Before Jack could confirm Bunny's decision, he was thrown to the ground, his back colliding with the earth with a muffled thud. One of Bunny's humongous feet pressed against Jack's chest, and began counting down from ten.

"Wha-? He-hey!" he protested softly, seeing that the foot on his chest restricted him from crying out too loudly. "Y-you dick! That's cheating!"

"No rules, mate." Bunny reminded dryly, crossing his arms as he counted aloud mockingly.

"Six… five…"

"Bunny! That's not fair! Get off!" he attempted to freeze the Bunny's feet in an effort to get him off, but it was in vain; even if Jack was strong enough to form the ice, it would've taken too long to spread.

"Three… two… one…"

Jack shouted in objection. "That's not fair, Bunny!"

The pooka leaned forward and faced the upset angry sprite with a look of smug satisfaction.

"I win."

Author's Note: Like I said, sorry for the late update. Hope this wasn't too bad ^^; but hey a review should tell me how I did quite nicely : )

I love you all to a certain extent (cold but true; hey, at least I love you!)

969~696