Chapter 24

Oh boy. I'm so sorry. Its been a long while ,a super long while.

Its been so long that I don't even know if anyone who was reading this and wanting updates is still out there and waiting .

But anyway thanks to Tootsie tart for showing there is some still wanting an update nearly 4 (5?) years later. I did mostly explain why I haven't written for ages on my Loki drabble but to summarise, shit happened and then uni happened and life was just way more complicated and busy that if I'm honest I kind of forgot about this story.

That's not to say I ran out of ideas , I still (vaguely remember the endgame and the plan) , just that there were other more pressing things to do. I will try to keep updating but I'm not making any promises.

Also its been years so if you see or read inconsistency within this story , which is probably going to be writing style , its been 3 years of nothing but lab reports so I'm very rusty at writing in a creative manner.

Also, I haven't re-read my previous chapters in 3 years and I'm probably not going to , mostly due to the cringe, so I may contradict or forget something.

"Looks like it, we've no idea how or why Pitch is back but all we know is he is" Bunny replied unusually solemn.

The feeling of dread grew stronger in my stomach. For Pitch to have reformed was bad enough, but to be going after Manny… Manny was the strongest of all, the creator of the guardians. It was he who bestowed us our powers and provided us with the gifts needed to bring joy to children. If Pitch was going after Manny, he was stronger than ever.

Sofia spoke up then, a barrage of questions tumbling out ,her face twisted into a knot of confusion and fear , voice pleading.

"What's going on? Who's Manny and Pitch? What is going on with the Moon? And why do you have to go now?"

I turned to Sofia and grasped her hands, feeling her pulse still pounding at her fingertips.

"I'm sorry I can't stay, but we have to go help Manny, the Man on the Moon" at least one question could be answered.

"But the Moon is a –"

"Jack" Bunny cut in, tone full of warning, he was twitching all over with ears constantly swivelling, eyes darting back up to the sky, his body practically screaming we don't have time for this.

"ALRIGHT" I snapped back at him. "Sofia, there's no time to explain but I'll be back before you know it" trying to soften my face of dread into what I hoped was a reassuring smile. The look on her face clearly showed she was not convinced

"But what about me? Where will I go, you destroyed my house" she gave me a pointed look at that " and I dropped the return snow globe North gave me when I was running"

I silently cursed my short-sightedness at destroying the house, even though those no good rotten so-called family definitely deserved it. Where would she go? She couldn't come with us, we were heading into dangerous territory. It had been hundreds of years since Pitch last fought Manny, trying to crush the dreams of children, and feed his need for darkness and fear.

"The Warren" Bunnymund supplied, his feet thumping in anticipation.

" I can get Sofia there in a jiffy, just a thump of my old hindlegs . It's as safe as North's place would be in a time of crisis such as this. And I can get back to the rest of the Guardians quicker than a shake of a rabbit's tail."

It was a smart plan.

"That's actually a good idea Bunny. Sometimes, I forget you have a brain in there and not just balls of hay". I tried to lighten the mood.

"That's just because yours is half frozen most of the time. Now hurry up and say goodbye"

I pulled Sofia into a tight, fierce hug trying to memorise the feeling. It was such bad timing , she'd just been through another horrible ordeal and then I'd finally been able to kiss her , only to have it snatched away. But Manny needed us, I was a Guardian and I wasn't going to let him down. I pressed a quick kiss to her forehead, as I pulled away fingers lingering slightly as I let go.

"Don't worry Lover Boy, she'll be safe with me "and with a loud thump , a hole opened up between Bunnymund and Sofia disappeared below.

Taking a deep breath, I leapt across the sky underneath the flickering light of the moon.

I screamed nearly the whole way down.

With limbs flailing and eyes watering as the wind whipped my hair and ripped the screams from my throat , the all too familiar feeling of fear filled me. I did not know how much of this my heart could take. My brain was mostly filled with the imminent possibility of being squashed upon arrival, that I'd failed to pay attention to the nattering voice of the actual fricking Easter Bunny.

You would have thought I'd be used to it by now. What with meeting Jack and practically moving in with Father Christmas, that the sight of the Easter Bunny would of unmoved me. Maybe it was because he was the first non-human guardian I'd met. Maybe because he was about three times bigger than I'd anticipated.

I had always thought that the Easter Bunny would appear as the cards had depicted him , a small cuddly sweet looking woodland rabbit , perhaps with a small bow around his neck darting about with a small basket of eggs. I had not expected a large muscular, almost kangaroo like rabbit who looked like he could kill a man by simply drop kicking him in the face. Not to mention there wasn't an egg in sight and instead he carried two giant looking boomerangs, which from his accent he could probably throw with extreme accuracy.

Said rabbit was currently shouting at her , as they plummeted down.

"Sorry about the lack of warning, but there's only so much googly eyes I could take and we are working on a time crunch"

As the ground came into view, I braced myself for impact screwing my eyes shut and trying aim myself in a way to reduce broken bones.

"North mentioned your surname was Thornton's, don't suppose you're anything to do with the well know chocolateries. Their Easter stuff is alright, but they never could get my nose right."

"NO" I screamed out.

"Pity"

Instead of feeling a large jolt through my body from crash landing, I was embraced with by warm strong arms and enveloped by thick downy fur. Before landing, Bunnymund had grabbed hold of me and landed squarely on his feet. I hadn't even felt the slightest judder from landing.

Setting me upright on my feet, I deemed it safe to open my eyes and was greeted by a vibrant sight. Lush green plant's and glistening trees , colourful spring blossoms bloomed all round and a soft spring breeze whispered through the undergrowth.

Ancient egg temple statutes loomed above them, with large 5 large tunnels behind where we landed. Above each tunnel a continent was carved on large blocks of stone.

"Welcome to the Warren"

Okay going to end it here because its late. I know its kind of fillery but I'm easing myself back into it.

Stay Safe in these strange lockdown times.

UTF