Curse Of A Witch (Book 1)

Ch. 32 Are You Worried?

*No One's P.O.V.*

Jack's mind was fuzzy. He sat in the living room alone. The children were at school, the Guardians were trying to find Pitch, and Gen was called in for an important meeting.

So there Jack sat, blanket over his lap and hot cocoa in his hands. Baby Tooth was forced to check inventory today so she wasn't with him. He went to take a sip of his cocoa, but realized it had turned cold. Yesterday felt like some weird fever dream.

He had somehow lost 3 days of memories and he was quite aware of his bruises, they ached constantly. He even managed to sleep through the night with no issues. He sluggishly stood and brought his cup to the sink, emptying the cold liquid into the drain and washing it thoroughly.

He paused as his mind went back to speaking with Pitch, a subconscious reaction at this point. Every time the events came to mind, his body would tense up and he'd pause whatever he was doing.

He blinked and put the cup away, looking at the time. "Half past noon..?" He asked himself, he had been alone for 2 hours now, and Gen wasn't going to return until the kids got out of school, which is another 2 hours from now.

He rubbed his temples with a sigh, he knew something was wrong, he could feel it. But what was it? He went back to sitting in his spot on the couch, watching the crackling fire.

"Warm?" Came a voice from behind him, and with quick reflexes he swung around, knocking a strong punch to the voice's face. "OW!!" came the shout as the fist collided with the furry face.

"The bloody hell was that for?!" Bunny shrieked, Jack gasping in surprise. "I'm sorry! You spooked me!" He shouted in defense. "Are you okay?" He asked trying to see if there was any damage to the Pooka's face.

Bunny groaned and checked his hand for blood since Jack got him in the nose. "No, thankfully. You've got one hell of a swing though." He cuckled but that statement seemed to affect Jack.

What Bunny didn't know, was that a tiny peice of what Jack figured was a memory, surfcaced. The boy's face scrunched slightly in confusion as he looked at his fist.

"Mate?" Bunny asked, kind of weirded out by Jack still staring at him until looking at his hand. "I.. hit him." He mumbled, making Bunny confused as well. "What?" He asked for clarification.

"I hit him. I punched Pitch.. but why?" He replied, rubbing his temple and sitting back down. Bunny sat down with him, astonished at the sudden progress. Jack wracked his brain for anything else, anything at all.

"I was.. angry. I don't know why but I was so angry. And when I hit him he said 'You've got one hell of a swing,'" he looked up at Bunny who was staring at him eagerly listening. "Do you remember anything else, mate? Anything at all." He asked, Bunny was eager to get answers, to find out what happened to his friend, his little brother.

Jack seemed to think even harder, trying to remember anything. His eyes almost lit up, "I remember that there was something around my wrists- i think cuffs or something! Uhm-" he rubbed his temples again, hoping the action will ease the details out more.

"There was a dark room- no windows. It was really really cold, and only one door. I.. think thats how I escaped..? I-I don't know-" Bunny interrupted Jack at this.

"What do you mean 'escaped'?" He asked, earning a confused look from Jack. "Was he holding you there against your will?" He asked, knowing that Jack said that he and Pitch were going to his cave, but they ruled out that it probably wasn't what actually happened.

Jack blinked and nodded slightly, "I think so.." he found it odd that he said 'escaped' as well as Bunny. That gave a big clue as to what happened, but Bunny didn't want to put more strain and stress on Jack so he decided to change the subject.

"You didn't answer my question, earlier." He stated, earning a really confused look from Jack. "Are you warm?" He asked, pointing out the thick blanket on the boy's lap, the thick sweater he was wearing and the fireplace that was lit.

"Oh! Well.. no, not really. Ever since yesterday I just haven't been able to get warm." He replied with a small shiver. Bunny frowned, feeling the boy's forehead and frowning even more. "Well, no fever. Your skin's on the chilly side but not too bad." He informed as the boy sighed.

After a few moments of silence Jack spoke up. "Are you worried..?" He didn't look at Bunny as he spoke, just stared into the fire like he had been before the rabbit arrived. Bunny tilted his head, "about what Pitch did to you? Yes. I am." He replied blatanly.

Jack shook his head, "no, about when my time's up? Are you worried I might die?" He still didn't look at his friend, but Bunny looked down at his lap and then at the fire. "Yeah, of course. I don't want to have to deal with any of your work." He tried to make light of it but was having trouble, though Jack let out a dry chuckle.

"Is it bad that I'm kind of okay with it?" Jack looked at Bunny this time, with a look Bunny had never seen on the frost boy's face before. It was as if he fully accepted that he'll die, and this upset the Pooka. "What?" He asked but before the boy could reply, he started talking again.

"Do you even think you have a chance? You make it sound like you're for sure gonna die! Which you won't! You have been put through more bull than you should have had to experience! At this point you should already be an icicle again!" Bunny shouted in defense, Jack's eyes were a bit wide from surprise.

"What I don't understand, is why the witch hasn't shown her bloody face at all! You deserve to have your powers back, " He growled out with a huff. Jack couldn't help but crack a small smile, "Aw, you do care." He rested his head on Bunny's shoulder as the Pooka rolled his eyes and shook his head.

"Maybe, ya show pony." He pat Jack's leg in reassurance, only to find he'd fallen asleep. Bunny smiled and brought the boy into his arms, who snuggled into him immediately. "Sleep well, kiddo, you need it." He whispered, making sure to keep good watch over him.