Christmas Morning

The tunnels were always fun to travel in, and today was no exception. They smelled of warm earth and springtime, and the dirt crumbled softly between his toes. Jack raised a hand to brush the ceiling, sending a rain of dust down on little Sophie. The earth was sturdy; Bunny assured them too much to let them fall. Jack chuckled as the toddler complained, rubbing her eyes free of the black. She looked up and stuck a tongue out at him, pouting for the moment before smiling. She showed her gap-toothed smile; the Tooth Fairy would visit her shortly, after the holiday ended. Sophie grinned with childish innocence, too cute to regret it. All these years passed by so fast… Already, the young girl seemed to grow, even though less than a year had passed since the battle with Pitch. She sprouted like a vine, shooting upward two inches within the last month. Growth spurts started early, and then became stutters. Yet the girl's smile remained the same, even with the ever-changing line-up of teeth.

Jack understood why Bunny loved her so much.

Then again, Jack felt he understood a lot about Bunny.

The smile in Jack's eyes softened as he thought of the Pooka. His expression appeared almost sad. He thought of all the fights, and all of the endless arguments that carried over centuries of grudges. And yet, it seemed behind him now. Bunny had shunned himself from the world during the summer and early fall months. Jack assumed the seclusion was recovery from the failed Easter, and the battle from Pitch. North's reaction to his questions told a different story, however, even if that mental binding remained firmly closed, the tome lost to Jack's view, covered by blushing stutters and changed subjects.

In short, Jack completely understood Bunny's isolation.

And so he took it upon himself to renew Bunny's strength. After the fight with Pitch, the number in Bunny's believers dropped significantly, only the small stragglers renewing their Hope in the patron Guardian. Bunny's fighting and energy, sapped by the summer heat, only worsened over time. Just the ebbs from North's Globe told him that. And since the winter months were over, and spreading snow across the Northern Hemisphere seemed pointless, Jack turned his attention to other activities.

Needless to say, it was difficult at first. Having no means to contact children that didn't believe even believe in him made it hard to encourage them to believe in Bunny. So he started in the Southern Hemisphere, where the winter blew across Southern Australia and South America. The frost images he painted came to life before children's eyes, creating their sense of Wonder, and then sheer Joy. Finally, their Memories of childhood caught up with them, and Hope returned to their senses. And Sandy proceeded to fill their Dreams, keeping the spirit alive. In this way, Jack helped more than Bunny.

But he didn't notice the others returning to normal. His whole focus on the Pooka became almost obsessive, and he couldn't wait until the Guardian of Hope emerged from his burrow, finished with his annual self-protection.

Around Halloween, Bunny finally did return, and much to his surprise, the Globe shined with bright lights, dotted all over the Southern Hemisphere. He had noticed strong tugs at his strength, but other issues kept him from really focusing on the changes. And yet, it was far more than he expected.

Jack remembered watching Bunny's reaction from the rafters above the Globe Room that lined the edges of the observatory. North seemed unable to hide his smile, glancing up at the winter sprite with pride in his eyes. Tooth, though still busy as ever, but finally loosening her control slightly with trust, whizzed around, giving orders to her smaller-than-normal clique of buzzing fairies, and suddenly stopped when she noticed Bunny's frozen expression. Even Sandy lowered his hands for a moment from the shimmering waves of the evening's dreamsand to silently giggle at the Pooka's stance.

The bunny himself simply stared in shock at the globe, eye twitching in the erratic way it always did. For a fearful moment Jack thought he was angry, unreasonably angry just because he knew Jack did it.

Then he stuttered, foot thumping softly against the floor, "H-how? What's this?"

North laughed his bellowing laugh, clutching his stomach. "Bunny! It's good to see you again after long months! I'm sure they very long for you, am I right?" Another large guffaw, "You've been away for so long, Jack help with your believers. Is good, no?"

Bunny's head whipped around in surprise, then shot up to eye the winter sprite.

"Frost did this…?" He raised his voice, "Oi, Frostbite! Get your arse down here!"

Jack laughed, hiding his disappointment. His efforts seemed in vain; Bunny's anger seemed to seethe within his words. But he obliged, drifting down slowly to touch the floor.

He kept his eyes on the ground as he started, "Hey, Cottontail, if I had known it'd get your ears in a twist, I wouldn't have even bothered. I'm sorry—"

Bunny interrupted, "You're sorry? Why the hell do you need to be sorry?"

Jack looked up, blue eyes shining, "What?"

The next thing he knew, grey arms wrapped around his shoulders, snuggling him in a warm embrace. The fur felt soft against his cheeks, brushing them slightly. Bunny's neck stretched over Jack's, nuzzling protectively into his back. Jack hesitated before falling into it, burying his face slightly into the thick fur on Bunny's neck. It felt so warm, so safe, and he didn't want to let go.

"Thank you," Bunny murmured barely loud enough for Jack to hear.

He backed off of Jack, breaking the contact all too soon. Jack's blue eyes found his green, but he only saw friendship glittering in them.

That didn't heed Jack's affections from growing, however.

Sophie coughed next to Jack, struggling to get dirt out of her hair. The winter sprite broke out of his reverie to kneel down next to the girl.

"Hey, you okay there?"

The girl nodded. "Dirt." She gestured to her hair.

Jack laughed, "Yeah, there's dirt." He reached up to brush it away, clawing through the loose strands.

After the offending earth fell away, he leaned forward, and nipped at the child's nose. She shrieked, giggling, batting her hands at her nose like a cat, and then fleeing away from Jack down the tunnel.

"Hey! Sophie, wait! We don't want to wake him!" Jack followed after her, quickly catching her right before she entered into the Warren. It seemed Bunny sensed everything in his domain and noise was definitely no exception. The girl laughed at being caught, but quickly quieted down. Jack smiled, "Do you remember the plan?"

Sophie nodded vigorously.

"Good, now, let's go slowly."

The Guardian of Fun led her out into the opening clearing. He picked the girl up by the waist and hoisted her up to carry her on his hip. Clutching his staff, Jack rose high into the air, almost to the Warren's unreachable ceiling, and drifted above the very tops of the many trees, and after a moment of not thinking, decided to sprinkle a bit of snow down, just to annoy the Pooka when he awoke.

Sophie clutched onto Jack's chest for dear life, but still looked down at the wonder. She smiled when they flew over the River of Coloring, the color's shimmering in the Warren's warm light. They lit up her face like stained glass, the translucent hues painting her skin and blonde hair with the colors of Toothiana's feathers. Her eyes widened as she noticed the lines of egg buds along the paths, the buds closed for the winter. Her grin stretched to her ears, and she released a hand from around Jack's neck to point at them, bouncing in his grip.

"Whoa there, girl! Don't want to fall, do we?"

Laughing, Jack brought them down to the path. Sophie ran back and forth, gazing at the closed, pastel-colored buds. She knew not to bother them, and to only look, but her wonder and amazement almost burst. She grinned, running ahead again, and Jack followed. He knew where the path led.

Bunny's den was hard to spot if you didn't know where you were looking. It hid behind the greenery of more bushes and flowers, the actual entrance covered in vines like a fairytale castle. The cave itself dipped into a cliff face, one of the towering structures in Bunny's domain. Sophie rushed past it, but then returned when she noticed Jack stop.

He lifted the vines out of the way carefully. They draped along his arm, catching the glow of the Warren's light like green jewels. Inside the den was warm and comforting, much warmer than the air outside. Yet, Jack never felt uncomfortable here. The heat seemed wrap around him, comforting the chill that enveloped his body. Like Bunny's hugs, it was protective, safe, and Jack almost disappeared back into his memories if not for the loud snoring that suddenly erupted from another room.

Jack put a finger to his mouth, shushing Sophie, who nearly ran off to wake the poor Pooka. They walked through the small foyer, into the kitchen. The dirt floor felt smooth underneath Jack's bare feet, stamped down by centuries of Bunny's living here. The kitchen itself was large, with a stove, island counter, and bar, with pots hanging from the ceiling, chrome metal shining in the candlelight that filled the whole burrow. The small kitchen table could hold four, but as far as he knew, Jack was the only one to sit down at it besides Bunny. The empty chairs held ghosts of what could have been, though…

Jack shook his head, glancing down at Sophie who also looked at the table.

"We should have a tea party," the little girl said.

Jack's eyes brightened at the thought. "Yeah, we should, Soph."

They continued through the house, into the hall behind the kitchen. Jack rarely came back here. Whenever Bunny had guests, he never let them past the kitchen, generally, especially since the other Guardians and spirits usually only visited to deliver messages. They all assumed the Pooka became too caught up in his duties or his other animal instincts such as hibernation to waste time on trivial things like an afternoon tea. Jack snorted at the thought of Bunny being busy; the Guardian of Hope usually spent his time relaxing or painting. Jack suspected the bunny procrastinated until late February, and then leapt into overdrive and panic to finish his job before Easter. And yet he still had the sass to complain whenever North interrupted his 'work'.

Over the past few months, however, Jack became one of the few exceptions to the metaphorical barrier beyond the kitchen. He visited nearly every week, often more frequently than that. The autumn months were generally boring for the winter sprite, and so he needed something to occupy his time when he wasn't above 60˚N latitude spreading the measly snowstorms to the unsurprised Russians, Nordics, and Eskimos. Honestly, he found more amusement tripping penguins. Bunny became used to his spontaneous drop-ins, and even seemed to enjoy them. That might have just been Jack overanalyzing things, though. Three hundred years of isolation created a very socially awkward winter spirit, no mater how snarky he appeared.

No matter, Jack had visited enough to know this hallway. He knew the first door on the right led to the guest bathroom, and the door after led to the living room. Jack called it the family room once, but Bunny's face dropped so heartbreakingly that he changed the subject. He hoped to change that expression soon enough, though.

Instead, Jack turned to the second door on the left, right after Bunny's weapon's closet. He made sure to keep Sophie well away from that door, and instead cracked open the bedroom ever so slightly. This was the one room Jack had never entered, too nervous to look into Bunny's privacy.

The warm earthen walls rounded, not unlike the rest of the house. There was a lantern bracket mounted on the wall, but it currently remained unlit, and the room stayed shrouded in darkness. Jack could smell the familiar scent of Spring, the same scent that filled the rest of the house. He opened the door the rest of the way, the candlelight from the hallway flooding the room with a gentle glow. The unconscious form of Bunny stirred at the beam of flickering light across his face, and he rolled over. This late into December, the Pooka was in hibernation, still waking up daily, but sleeping longer than usual.

Jack and Sophie both felt a need for a change in routine.

Jack approached the side of the straw bed slowly, beckoning Sophie forward from the door. The straw poked out unevenly, but appeared padded, with bits of fluff and other soft materials mixed in as well. Bunny rolled over onto his stomach snuggling into the warmth of his pillow, and curling the large green comforter around himself. Jack found it slightly odd that Bunny slept with a blanket, considering his fur, but it made some sense.

The Pooka's face appeared peaceful, but his face twitched slightly, and as Jack watched, the bunny's eyebrows creased, lost in his dream. Concern filled Jack, and he leaned in closer, unaware that his scent filled Bunny's mind. The Pooka hugged the pillow closer to his chest, curling around it protectively, and his face relaxed again. He breathed slowly. Jack peered into Bunny's unconscious face, noting the flat nose, the thick eyebrows, and the tufts of fur at his cheeks. He reached forward, about to brush them, when Bunny stirred.

The Pooka mumbled, "Urgh… Snowflake… Sleep…"

Jack froze. Snowflake; did that mean him? He pulled away, shocked.

Sophie, however, took no note of Bunny's words, and bounded forward, the 'plan' forgotten as she leapt onto Bunny's form. She crashed on his back, and Jack winced at the audible crack of his joints.

Bunny awoke with a start, yelping and crying, "Oof! Augh, wazzat? Who's there?"

He sat up, knocking Sophie of his back. "Snowflake? Oh, my head… and my back… What time is it?"

Sophie giggled from being tossed and leapt up into Bunny's lap. She clutched her arms around his neck and swung, dragging the animal back down with her onto the straw. Bunny winced at the force, but then his eyes brightened at the sight of the little girl.

"Hey, there, Sheila. What are you doing here?"

Jack laughed, warmed by the sight of Bunny holding Sophie. "I brought her."

Bunny froze, ears pressing flat against his head. He looked up at Jack sheepishly. "Oh, hey, Snowflake."

Jack tilted his head questioningly. "Snowflake? Since when have you called me Snowflake?"

Bunny stuttered, amending, "Oh, y-yeah, I meant F-Frostbite! How're you doing? Why are you both here?"

Jack chuckled at the flustered behavior. "You okay, Cottontail? It's Christmas! Or did you really forget?"

Bunny sat up with Sophie still giggling in his arms. "I try not to pay too much attention to Christmas, if you didn't notice." He leaned down and tickled the little girl's stomach, not relenting as she shrieked laughter, tossing around until she rolled away from his grasp, catching her breath. "I might just make an exception for you, though, you little ankle-biter." He glanced up at Jack, "And you too, you know?"

Sophie grabbed his paw. "Presents!"

"W-what? Presents? I'm sorry, Sheila, but I don't think there are any presents down here for you."

Jack laughed, following him out the bedroom. He glanced back once at the straw bed. It looked warm and inviting, the imprint of Bunny's body still inlaid in the straw. Maybe he'd return here… Jack shook his head, dispelling the thought.

He turned to follow Bunny and Sophie into the living room. The Bunny seemed in shock behind the plush woven couch, staring at the fireplace. Stockings hung from the mantel, three of them, each stuffed to the brim with goodies. A large Christmas tree stood next to the blazing fire, strung with colorful lights and egg-shaped ornaments. The star on the top barely brushed the ceiling, just the perfect height. Jack smirked; it looked better than he had hoped.

"You like it, Cottontail?"

"W-What is this?"

"I called North last night. Asked him for some last minute room service. He didn't mind, actually laughed about it, saying something like," Jack imitated North's Russia accent, "'Bunny finally realizing Christmas better than Easter, yes?'"

Bunny turned on Jack. "You did this? Why I ought 'a…"

Jack backed away, carelessly swinging his staff. "Hey! Sophie wanted to do it too!"

Bunny's ears rose, and he turned to the little ankle-biter. She had run to the tree, scooping up a few presents and looking at the nametags expectantly. She excitedly began to move them into piles: one for Bunny, one for her, and one for Jack.

Bunny muttered to Jack, "What about her family? Won't they…"

"Time zones, right? We've got time before she needs to get back. I'm pretty sure it's still nighttime back in Burgess anyway."

Bunny's smile was almost too much, and Jack looked down at his feet shuffling awkwardly away to the pile of gifts.

"Hey, Frostbite, don't open them until she's finished, okay?"

Jack laughed, "Don't worry, I won't."

He sat down next to the girl and attempted to reach for a gift. She swatted his hand away, pouting. "I do it!" Bunny laughed and sat down next to Jack. He draped his arm over his friend's shoulders and hugged him close. Jack stiffened, and would have frozen Bunny's arm off if not for the relaxed pressure of Bunny rubbing his thumb gently on his biceps.

"Thank you, Snowflake."

Jack leaned into Bunny's touch, unsure of where this was leading. "That's the second time you've called me that. You sure you're okay, Bunny?"

Bunny breathed a deep sigh, his fur rising slowly with the air. He wrapped his other arm around Jack as well and pulled the boy close, while Sophie continued to sort the gifts, struggling to read the names and oblivious to the two Guardians. Bunny sniffed at Jack's hair, and nuzzled his head. Jack hesitated, before moving his arms to Bunny's shoulder blades, pulling the Pooka closer and burying his face in his chest.

Bunny exhaled one more time before releasing Jack. Jack didn't want to let go, but backed up anyway. Bunny kept his hand around Jack's arm, and smiled. The winter spirit's breath hitched.

Bunny chuckled, "You know, I think it's time I started calling this the family room again, you know?"

Jack smiled, and he nodded, unable to find a reaction. He looked back at Sophie, and then a thought occurred to him.

"Hey, want to have a tea party after presents?"

"A what?"

A/N: So, this was a request by my friend flytoreador, and it fit with a prompt by crystalemi. You can find them both on Tumblr!

So... this was really insightful. :P Yeah, this is my headcanon for how I now think that Jack and Bunny's relationship started.

I think that I might write a sequel for this eventually. However, I have two multi-chapter Jackrabbit fics planned already (one of which is AU), and then I have another really long Big Four fanfiction planned. I'm hoping to God that no one steals my idea from my head. :P And then I have another Jackrabbit oneshot planned. And possibly a sequel for this.

Oh well, I'll get it done (after many procrastinations and chocolates). )

Reviews are appreciated!

~Renoku