Part two of the Look Where You're Going arc.
Bunny stared numbly as Jack froze his flowers, giggling happily like a small child. He had first wanted to try flying, but the pooka had firmly tugged him back down to the ground when he started to flail around, clumsily zigzagging through the air with none of his usual grace. The last thing he wanted was for Jack to fly into something else. Things were bad enough as it was.
It had quickly become clear that Jack remembered exactly nothing at all. Not his own name or Bunny's or the Guardians or his past life. Nothing. The kid was a blank slate. Like he must have been, when the Man in the Moon had first made him the Spirit of Winter.
That thought hurt Bunny more than anything. That this was what Jack had been like, originally. Before three centuries of loneliness had taken their toll on the boy who would become the Guardian of Fun. It hurt because he could remember. He could recognize the innocent look in Jack's eyes as the same from so long ago, when he had first seen him. He could remember the wide, hopeful smile when he realized Bunny could see him.
But Bunny had left him there alone, as had all the others, and that childlike innocence now hid under the mask of a snarky teenager. And the child under the mask was so damaged it made him want to cry. They did not glimpse the real Jack Frost often. No matter how much the boy wanted company and love, he was hesitant of letting the others too close. Afraid of being hurt.
To be reminded of how he had been once, long ago, was painful and filled him with guilt. He wondered if, maybe, it might be for the best that Jack didn't remember anything anymore. Like this was some sort of second chance they were getting, to make things right. He would have had a family for as long as he could remember.
Bunny shook his head. This scenario was so wrong to him he did not want to think about it any more. That was not the way to go about this. They had to fix their mistakes, not hide them and pretend they didn't exist. Jack would recover, Bunny knew. Guardians always recovered. And when he did, he would remember. And Bunny wouldn't try to stop it from happening.
And it wasn't just that. Jack had not just forgotten the centuries he spent alone and abandoned, he had forgotten everything they had done together since. Their first fight against Pitch, that time, more recently, when they had helped him fight the Boogeyman again and recover his broken staff. Bunny felt like the newest Guardian had finally started to open up to them, then. Like he finally understood that they really were his family. He did not want to lose that for a false happiness. Jack might not remember, but they would.
He made his way to through the frozen flower field to sit in front of Jack. The boy looked up at him with a big grin.
"I see that you're having fun."
"I am, mister rabbit-man. But I'm a little confused. You still didn't tell me who I am or who you are or where we are."
"You're Jack Frost. I'm Bunnymund. This is the Warrens."
Jack raised an eyebrow, obviously expecting a bit more of an explanation.
"Look, you'll remember everything soon enough. You're a Guardian. We can heal from anything that doesn't kill us, and some things that do, too."
Jack clearly didn't understand most of what he said, but he nodded and smiled anyway. Bunny took a deep breath for at least the seventeenth time that day and carefully placed a hand Jack shoulder, mindful of the bruises he knew covered it. The winter spirit didn't look the least bit bothered by them. Bunny reminded himself that he wasn't a fragile porcelain doll, even if he looked like one.
"Jack... I—I need you to know something. I know you're happy right now. Everything is beautiful and nothing hurts. Okay, not really. You're hurt physically, but I know you can handle that."
The winter spirit tilted his head to the side. His smile started to fade an a slight hint of worry entered his eyes. Bunny tried to find the words to say what he meant. He had never been great at that kind of things.
"Soon, you're going to remember, and the pain is going to come back. I'm sorry. Things should have been different, but we can't change the past. Just... just remember that we're here for you, now. We'll fix this. Somehow. We'll make the pain go away. You just need to trust us, alright?"
Jack's smile had disappeared. He just stared at him, his eyes wide, his face even paler than usual, making the bruises that much more obvious. Bunny wondered if he was starting to remember. He both feared and hoped that he was.
He pulled the boy against his chest and stroked his messy white hair. It felt like he was holding an ice statue. He was cold and stiff in his arms and he did not relax one bit. Jack let himself be held for a moment before pushing away from him.
"Jack? Talk to me, Snowflake, you're worrying me."
"I'm sorry."
"What do you have to be sorry for? It's not your fault you—"
"I'm sorry!"
Jack stood and took a step away from him, clutching his staff to his chest. Bunny stood as well and stared, wondering what was going on now.
"I just wanted to have a bit of fun, I never meant for you to feel so bad. I-I wasn't thinking clearly."
"You better start making sense very soon, mate."
Bunny had a feeling he knew exactly what Jack was trying to say, but he didn't want to believe it. Jack just lowered his head and repeated his apology in a small, quiet voice.
"I'm sorry... I should not have taken this joke so far."
Bunny had to take a deep, calming breath again, but this time to keep the cold anger in check. So this had all been a joke to him. A game. He walked up to Jack and curled his fingers into the blue fabric covering the Guardian's shoulders. Jack raised his head and finally looked at him, his eyes full of guilt. He lifted him until their noses almost touched.
"Get. Out."
He did not need to be told twice.
And now I'm off to draw things. I'll be back tomorrow with the last part of this story!
