Jack looks nervous, hesitantly tapping the floor. he hoped the Warren would take him to Bunny.
he opens a tunnel and lands in a dark room just barely big enough for all the guardians to fit in. he swallows looking around, before his eyes come across Bunny in the corner.
the once proud looking Pooka looks rather weak and sickly now. his bones are poking out as though he hasn't eaten since the incident. his fur is matted as though he hasn't bathed in weeks. there are long, scabbed over deep claw marks from the base of his ears to the tips, the jagged edges on the wounds suggest that Bunny had repeatedly reopened the wounds. he has similar wounds on his arms and legs, as though he's been repeatedly hurting himself since the day it happened. Bunnys face is in his knees, arms tightly around his legs, knees in his chest. he's trembling in the corner.
Jack feels his heart break, this was not the Bunny he knew.
"Bunny?" Jack calls softly. the reaction is immediate.
Bunny jerks up from his curled position, slams himself against the wall furthest from Jack. his eyes are manic and lost. he's trembling as thorn covered vines surround his wrists, ankles, and waist to keep him put. he's terrified of hurting Jack. he doesn't say anything, though Jack wouldn't be surprised if he couldn't speak anymore. it had been almost four months since the incident.
~
Jack had been sleeping in his room in the den, Bunny had heard him scream and come running. a nightmare fairy, run by Pitch, had infiltrated his dreams, causing horrid nightmares of the Pooka attacking the Frost Guardian. Jack didn't realize it had been a nightmare, he didn't have nightmares, at least not made up ones. his bad dreams were all real things that had happened to him.
Jack hadn't understood Bunny hadn't been there to hurt him, like he had in his dream.
"Jack! hey! wake up! s'nightmare!" Bunny shouts.
Jack jerks awake, screaming, frosting over the room and freezing Bunnys arms. he's halfway across the room, back slammed into a corner, and staff held protectively in front of him before Bunny can understand whats happened.
"Jack?" Bunny asks, worriedly.
"get away from me!" Jack shouts. Bunny looks confused, putting his paws up quickly.
"m'not gonna hurt ya Jack, ye were havin' a nightmare." Bunny tries.
"GET AWAY FROM ME!"
Jack hadn't been convinced. he was sure Bunny had attacked him, hurt him. couldn't register the pain he was feeling was from slamming himself into the wall so hard his back had bruised from his shoulders down to the back of his knees.
he'd run off, cried to the other guardians about the things Bunny had supposedly done... and Bunny had spiraled from there. the others had asked questions and Bunny began to question his recollection of events.
he'd cut off the other Guardians, blocked entrances to his Warren, stopped eating, stopped sleeping, stopped taking care of his garden. Jack had been so sure in his details of the nightmare, that after a few days, Bunny could no longer trust what was real and what wasn't.
had he actually attacked Jack?
had he actually done the awful things Jack had said?
had Jack not actually been having a nightmare?
had Bunny dreamed it up to make himself feel better in the end?
Jack was so sure, Bunny couldn't trust his memories. couldn't trust himself. he had to be a monster. Jack was so sure in his details his regailing. Bunny doubted himself. he didn't know what happened anymore.
