Mala's final Fanfiction

Taken for Granted

It wasn’t something I, E. Aster Bunnymund (A.K.A. the Easter Bunny), nor the other Guardians ever really had to think about. We had all been with the basic necessity for so long that we barely gave a thought about where it came from and having to find more for our survival; it was always just there for our taking.

Although we were immortal Guardians, going without food for too long would weaken us until we were only surviving from the power of our believers. Us elder Guardians were fortunate, however, as our believers numbered in the hundreds of thousands and missing meals never affected us. 

But Jack Frost, the Spirit of Winter, was another case.

After over 300 years of being invisible, he had only managed to gain 7 believers. The energy of 7 believers was definitely not enough to survive on, and after 5 years of being a Guardian, it was beginning to show. We had all noticed the way he practically inhaled his food during Christmas dinner and we would even tease him for his insatiable appetite. 
We never knew how cruel we may have seemed. 

Over 300 years Jack had been alone, and after 5 years of being a Guardian, we only now realised now how rough he had had it. After 5 years of being a family, and we never noticed how much he was hurting.

The day had started out like any other.

I was sat perched atop a rock surrounded by a grassy field, painting the fifteenth Easter egg of the day. I dipped my brush into the small container of white, brought it up to the light blue egg, and gently crafted a snowflake over the curved surface. I paused to survey the egg for a brief moment. 

Suddenly a small snap of a twig had me whipping out my boomerangs and holding them out in a threatening manner towards the direction of the sound. I let out a relieved sigh and relaxed my arms at the sight of a soft white mop of hair and a peek of a blue hoodie.

“Dammit Frostbite! You nearly gave me a heart attack!” At least Jack had the decency to look guilty.

“Sorry about that.” He said with a sheepish grin, floating down with his Shepard’s crook in hand, as usual. “I just thought I’d come to visit my favourite Kangaroo.” He added with a cheeky grin. My eyes narrowed slightly at the not-so-subtle sneaky attempt at a jibe but the anger faded when I got a good look at the winter sprite. The already frail looking and slim sprite was slouched over slightly as if he was incredibly tired. His hoodie hung loosely from his already unnaturally thin frame and the bags hanging from under his shocking blue eyes were so dark they looked like bruises. The last straw was the slight pinched and malnourished look to his pale complexion. Worry filled my mind and I slowly hopped closer to the boy.

“Are you ok?” I asked carefully, surveying the young Guardian’s reaction. Jack looked momentarily surprised before answering. 

“What are you on about? Of course I’m fine. Are you ok yourself?” He touched his staff to a few patches of the grass below and watched the frost crawl over them, but I wasn’t swayed by his distraction. And that’s when it all clicked. 

“Hey Snowflake,” I began gently, “When’s the last time you ate?” Jack’s staff stopped it’s motion and he seemed to freeze before looking up at me, probably trying to figure out what he’d done wrong.

“I think about Christmas time at North’s feast.” He replied, sending my mind reeling.

Jack hadn’t eaten in over 4 months?? No wonder he looked so sick and weak. My ears drooped unhappily. 

“Jack, why haven’t you eaten for so long?” I asked.

“What are you talking about?”

“What? I mean why haven’t you eaten for so long? Don’t you get food or-” I stopped suddenly at the thought of where Jack might get food from. I was fortunate with my orchards of fruit trees, and endless amounts of carrots. The Tooth fairy had a large cellar full of thousands of bottles of nectar at her palace and North, Santa, had elves constantly making cookies and cakes and other various treats at the North Pole. 

Which left Jack. A Guardian with a lake as a home and no way to get food. I frowned at the thought, and Jack must have thought something along the same lines judging by the sudden anger in his expression.

“Where am I meant to get food?! I don’t have a home like you guys, I don’t magically have food appear for me. The only time I get food is at Christmas; the same place for the last five years. And that is fine.”

“FINE? You call this fine?! Look at you Jack! Barely able to keep your eyes open! You are wasting awa-”

“Well what am I meant to do, huh?! There is no place for me to get food-”

“YOU ASK!” I yelled, surprising the boy before stepping forward and gripping his shoulders. “You ask, Jack.” I added more calmly. “I am sorry we weren’t there for you all those years but we want to change that; we want to be there for you. So if you need food, ask. If you need to talk, talk. We are your family now; we will always be here for you. So just ask, ok?” I gently pulled the stunned boy into a tight hug and felt him grip my arm and nod his head before hearing a small grateful “Thanks.”

For over 300 years, Jack had been alone and isolated, slowly wasting away, but I vowed on that day to never let that happen to him. He may have been annoying, but he was my family, and I would do all I could to help and protect him. And that was a promise.