cdchromebook - Jack must've been hallucinating - there's no way Pitch enjoyed that, right? I didn't even realise it sounded like summer spirits until you said that! But not to worry, summer is friendly :)
Joud914 - Yeah, probably best you don't know… who knows what a bored Jack gets up to.
Bunnymund sighed happily, shifting back into the tree he was currently leaning on. Various colours of small paint boxes lay beside him along with an assorted pot of paintbrushes; a line of blank googies running up to the dye river, waiting for their turn to be painted.
A warm, early spring breeze whistled throughout the clearing, tickling the flower petals and shifting the morning dew in the grass. It was quiet inside the Warren, the only sounds emerging from the little pitter-patter of the eggs' feet on the ground. Peaceful, Bunny mused. A rarity in the day and age of Jack Frost, who so often liked to invite himself in and cause havoc.
But so far, Bunny's day was going well; Easter preparations were progressing smoothly, nothing more had been heard of the 'light in the sky' that North was so worried about at the last meeting and, best until last, he had not heard even a peep from a said winter spirit in over a week. No flying in unannounced or uninvited, no messing with his golems, and no freezing any of his beautiful Warren. Which, purposefully or not, he always did. Only the other week he sneezed on a Chorizema bush and froze the whole lot.
No, today was a good day. Countless blank googies ran happily around the lush grass of the Australian outback, minds of their own controlling them as they jumped and swam into the dye river, splashing the green with an assortment of vivid colours. Bunnymund laughed lightly; even the golems looked amused at the sight of the mad eggs. Well, as amused as they could when they had faces carved in stone.
Aster's day took on its usual rhythm; the same schedule of preparations and painting, sprinkled with some gardening when he had a spare few seconds. In truth, he didn't need to hand paint so many of the little eggs, none at all even - Manny knew his magic plants and helpers could finish the work in record time - but it was soothing to him. His train of thought wandered off to senseless nothingness when he picked up a paintbrush and began his designs. His mind became a blank slate, oblivious to the torment of the outside world. His train of thought happily stopped at the tracks.
Framed in exquisitely crafted cabinets sat proudly all of his sketch pads - at least twice as tall as his greatest golem, filled to the brim with countless sketches, patterns and designs. He didn't just paint the eggs. When he had free time (besides caring for his garden), he liked to find a quiet place to rest and draw the landscape. Tooth's palace was one of his favourites to detail, the way the colours sprang to life in front of him, but he was always busier than he liked to be able to go very often.
Somehow, amidst the early season chaos, he'd managed to find a spare moment. So here he was, the bright sun shining down on him, happily bathing in its light whilst doodling, for lack of a better word, on the little eggs.
It wasn't until nearly two hours later that his peace was disturbed. Anyone other than himself wouldn't have been able to sense such a small change, but the slight drift in the atmosphere caught his attention so effortlessly you would've thought someone had lit up a neon sign directly in front of him.
The first thing he noticed was the change in pace of the wind, its temperament now slightly erratic as though trying desperately to convey a message. The second thing he noticed was the heat. Although it wasn't unusual for the Warren to be on the receiving end of the sun's hot rays, being deep within Australia's outback, this wasn't normal heat - it was too hot. Unnatural, even.
Bunny's ears twitched at the change, listening for any sound of a trespasser. Swapping a paintbrush for a boomerang, Bunny was instantly on two feet, prepared for an attack. Yet nothing came. Most surprisingly, his golems acted as though there was no change, and they were usually the first to spot any signs of danger.
Odd, he thought, steadily progressing towards the main tunnel where the disruption seemed to be coming from. He hadn't yet taken two steps before a battery of hot wind assaulted him, swirling around. He recoiled, aiming, but there was nothing there. Bunny tried to fight as the wind howled around him, almost whining at him as he fought against it.
"Get off, ya stupid bloody-" Words remained hanging midair as a scent drifted towards his nose, his whiskers twitching at the familiar smell.
Hints of sea salt, sand and suncream drifted towards his nose. Okay, not a threat, he thought at the telltale signs of the summer spirit. Bunny's curiosity peaked. What on earth was he doing here? It wasn't until the wind calmed ever so slightly, as though sensing the newfound cooperation, that another scent forced its way to his senses, so overwhelming Bunny wasn't sure how he'd missed it before.
Blood.
"Show me," He commanded the wind, which instantly regained its strength, forcing heavy gales behind the Pooka's back and leading the way. Bunny whipped his boomerangs back into his holsters, allowing the howling wind to direct him through the tunnels. Large paws stomped on the ground as he ran with the wind at his aid.
Turning the last corner, he arrived just in time to see the summer spirit deposited gently on the ground, his head limp as blood dribbled onto the earth below. Bunny skidded forward, falling to his knees beside the unconscious form. His clothes, shredded to pieces, revealed dozens of cuts and bruises littering the tanned skin. His dishevelled arm stuck out oddly on his side, a giant purple bruise forming around the broken bone. Wheezing sounded with each breath, accompanied by an unforgivable look of pain on the spirit's face - three broken ribs by the sounds of it, if not more. Angry yellow-purple-tinted bruising formed a handprint on his neck, surrounding a much angrier-looking burn pattern which finely snaked its way around his skin. The skin around it blistered and swelled and looked extremely painful. This confused Bunny - Seth was the embodiment of heat, so whatever caused this must've been a scorching temperature. There were the fire spirits, but they'd never showed any signs of hostility.
But the most worrying part was the ever-growing pool of blood forming beneath his head. Gently, Bunny scooped his paw beneath Seth's skull, lightly holding his neck up to inspect the damage. A gaping wound glared back at him, the thick gash covering nearly half his head. Blood poured out at an alarming rate.
Bunny had to get this sorted and fast. He could ask questions later.
Being careful not to antagonise Seth's wounds any more, the Pooka placed one paw on the underside of his neck, the other occupying his lower spine. Copper assaulted his nose as the dark liquid seeped onto his fur, staining the age-old patterns.
"Sorry, kid," he whispered, bounding his way through the tunnels of his underground home to the medical room, trying to find a compromise between gentle and fast. "This is going to be uncomfortable."
Though, by the looks of it - comfortable was not a word currently in Seth's dictionary.
...
An hour later, countless bloody rags littered the floor, dozens of first aid boxes sprawled open along with the majority of Seth's clothes, which Bunny had cut off to gain better access to his wounds. Concoctions of all purposes lined the drawers next to the bed, filled by the still unconscious auburn-haired boy, looking vaguely similar to a patchwork scarecrow. Stitches littered his skin, the artwork completed by bandages wound tightly around his torso and arm. Bunny had had to snap his bone back into place, and he couldn't help but be relieved the spirit was unconscious for that bit.
His head was trickier to fix, but no one could do it if Bunny couldn't.
And so the Pooka sat beside him in the chair, worry creasing his brow. He'd summoned the Guardians as soon as he'd finished - Seth could be annoying, but he certainly wasn't stupid - he wouldn't have provoked an attack on himself, much less one to this extent. And Bunny knew for certain that Seth knew how to fight, so for him to be coming away this worse off meant something was seriously wrong. On top of that, though the two were enemies, they'd never been the closest of friends - just a fleeting conversation here and there when their paths crossed. So the fact that he'd summoned his wind to bring him here could only mean he needed help from something. Was this a warning?
"Look after him, will ya?" Bunny instructed two golems perched at the door entrance. They have no signs they'd understood, but the Pooka knew they had. The others would be arriving soon, and they'd have no idea where he was. He thought it best he go and meet them by the dye pool: a common meeting place in his home.
Tooth was the first to arrive, Sandy not long after. A loud thud overhead assured them North had found his way.
Toothiana's eyes widened immediately at the sight of the Pooka, whose fur was unkempt with blood.
"Aster!" She gasped, fluttering over to him in concern, checking around his body for any telltale signs of damage. The blood had to be coming from somewhere. "What happened? Are you okay?!" At the same time, a panicked sand image filled above the golden man's head and North, who had suddenly arrived at the layout, swore in Russian.
"Shiela, relax," He held his hands up in a surrendering motion, gently flitting her away. He nodded towards Sandy and North, assuring him he was okay. "It's not mine. Is Jack here?"
She sighed, not thoroughly convinced. "Not yet, he'll probably be along soon. I imagine he wasn't too close, the equator and all." Her eyes never left his fur.
"Okay, he can find us when he gets here. You best see this," He ushered them towards a small tunnel at the back, doors on every side. Pushing one open, he stepped through to reveal the sleeping summer spirit, looking much better than before but still worse for wear.
"I don't know what happened." He explained before anyone had a chance to interject. "Wind dropped him off earlier. I've fixed him up, but he's still yet to wake."
His ears must have been burning, for at that very moment Seth decided to open his eyes. Light assaulted his senses, and a splitting pain filled his head. He groaned loudly, drawing the Guardian's attention.
"Sweet Tooth," the Fairy Queen instantly took on mother mode, flying over and taking his hand into hers. Gently, she stroked his head, running a soothing hand through his hair. Positioning herself in front of the light, she ushered him to open his eyes again. "You're okay, you're safe."
With one eye propped open, his view was too blurry. All he could make out was a haze of blue and green, but the hand on his head felt nice. He forced the other to open, the light less blinding now.
"That's it," she persuaded, squeezing his hand. "Do you want some water?"
His throat tasted like sandpaper. He tried to speak, but no sound left him, so he nodded. A cold glass was raised to his lips, and he relished the soothing feeling of it running down his throat.
Without thinking, he tried to push himself up to sit only to be met with blinding pain. He hissed, clutching his torso with his free hand and letting his head fall back to the pillow. Another mistake: even the soft cushion behind him couldn't stop the nauseous wave he felt as his head made contact with the surface. He squeezed his eyes shut again, a small tear trickling down his cheek.
"Hold on there, mate, ya need to rest," Another voice was speaking to him, but his head was spinning so much he couldn't pinpoint who it was. It sounded friendly.
"Deep breaths, my friend," Another voice, heavily accented. A twinge of recognition filled his senses as he breathed, his ribs protesting at the motion.
They all sat in silence for another ten minutes before Seth made to move again. His head was still spinning, but staying still had seemed to dull it a bit, and his senses were returning. He felt a warm hand over his own and a thumb stroking his palm.
Opening his eyes, he looked around, still a slight mist clouding his sight. But even so, he could now make out the four figures around him: Tooth was the one holding his hand, North was sitting on a chair in the corner, deep in thought, Sandy was ushering waves of dreamsand out the window, and Bunny was casually leaning against the wall, staring at him. The worry in his eyes didn't escape the summer spirit's notice. From the flowers blooming on the rock walls and the small eggs running about the place, he judged that he'd made it to the Warren.
"Hey, Bunny," He croaked, grabbing all their attention. He attempted his best effort at a smirk. "Fancy seeing you here."
Bunny almost snorted; the kid was as sarcastic as Jack, who had yet to show his face.
"Highly amusing, mate, considering ya wind hauled ya unconscious ass in here three hours ago."
"Fancied a visit.," He replied, eyes lazily drifting down to his body, scarce beside his undershorts and a thin blanket. His eyes seemed somewhat misty, as though he were present but not fully there. "Gosh, Bunny, take me out to dinner first next time." He chuckled to himself before letting his eyes slide closed again, the motion aching his sore body.
Bunny couldn't help but snort this time. Yup, the resemblance was uncanny.
"Sweet Tooth," The fairy chimed, "can you tell us what happened?"
"Mhm…" His eyes were so heavy. Light ringing sounded in his ears. The bed was certainly comfier than the ground, and it was taking all of his strength not to cuddle himself up in it and go to sleep. He hurt all over.
"Seth?" Someone gently shook his shoulder, prompting him to wake. He groaned at the motion.
"Head hurts."
Bunny took the lead this time. "We know, mate, but ya need to tell us what happened. Who did this to you?"
"Jack," he whispered, sleep pulling at his mind. "He's in… trouble."
"Why?" Bunny pressed before the kid fell asleep again.
"Oblivion," He answered. Darkness surrounded him, and he was once again lost from the land of the conscious.
…..
"Oblivion, what does that mean?" Tooth flitted about frantically, pacing up and down the room.
"Shiela, quit ya flitterin!" Bunny ushered. "If what Seth meant by trouble is anything like the state he was in when he got here, we need to find Jack asap."
Earlier, Bunny was more than happy at the winter spirit's absence, not caring to think if there was a reason he hadn't seen him in so long. Now that he thought about it, something was definitely wrong. As much as he was a free spirit and anyone was hard-pressed to locate him at the best of times, Jack never went so long without popping into one of the other Guardians. The last time he'd seen him was the night they searched for the light, and he'd seemed fine then.
"I will take sleigh over places near Pole, anywhere cold he may be." His train of thought screeched to a halt as North began speaking. "We will find him faster if we split up and go separate ways."
"Okay, mate, I'll take my tunnels to Burgess." Bunny often found him hanging around there.
They all agreed where to search and were preparing to leave when all light seemed to escape the room, the sun above them blocked out by shadows.
"Or," an all too familiar voice slinked in the darkness, "you could look behind you."
I think this is one of my longest yet but nothing really happens in it. Let me know what you think, I think I need to improve my stuff writing. They all sound waffly and though I like waffles, I'm not a fan of this type!