Thaw (Jelsa Fanfic)

Confession

The mood of the Workshop had dimmed considerably by the following day. No one had rested easy following the message from Manny...and Jack himself had not rested at all. He'd been diligent, watching Elsa for any signs of nightmares so he could bring her out of it immediately. She'd been restless, but she hadn't cried out in fear...which had been a blessing.

Conversation was minimal at breakfast as duties were assigned. Elsa had given no complaint when it was suggested she work with not only Jack but Bunny and Sandy as well to learn the differences in combat technique. Jack had been uncomfortable with the idea but had known North had been right. Elsa was in tune to him, and her movements were fluid with his own. She would not have the same luxury if she were forced into hand to hand combat with Pitch or Grim, and the practice was needed.

Tooth had agreed to go to Arendelle to check on the prognosis of the plague, and North had volunteered to find the Regilda troops to see how far they had progressed. It was agreed that they would all try to return by the mid afternoon hours, and one by one, they filed out to attend to their assignments.

Jack suggested that they go to the flat, open tundra to the west of the Workshop for practice. When they arrived, Sandy had taken Elsa's hand, clearly wanting to be her first sparring partner.

"Pitch manipulated Sandy's sand before...ain't no telling how he's modified it this time around." Bunny said as he watched the two begin. Elsa had an uncanny knack for understanding Sandy's way of communication, and the two were strategizing quietly in the middle of the barren landscape.

"It'll be interesting to see how her powers work with it." Jack agreed, trying to ease his tension about standing by and letting Elsa fight. He knew Sandy wouldn't hurt her, but it still was hard to force away his fierce sense of protection for her.

Bunny seemed to understand. "It'll be alright mate. She's in good hands." He said thoughtfully.

Jack looked at him, noting the subtle tension in the rabbit's posture. It had been present since that morning, when Tooth had insisted on traveling to Arendelle. "Tooth is too. She can handle herself." He said, testing the waters of that particular topic.

Bunny's green gaze shot to him. "What makes you think I'm worried over that?" The defense in his words was sharp.

Jack shrugged. "I saw the way you took her hand last night. And how you seemed uncomfortable letting her go off on her own this morning." A slight smirk quirked his lips. "And you were the first to know about her nightmare..."

He'd thought Bunny would try to justify those things with excuses, but the rabbit surprised him by falling silent. He stared across the tundra, watching as Sandy began whip sand at Elsa. She shot icy bursts, crystallizing the attacks midair time after time, rendering them ineffective.

"Yeah." Bunny said finally. "I was with her that night. In her room."

Jack was startled by the admission, blue eyes widening as they met Bunny's. "Are you saying..."

"We didn't mean for it to go down that way. She was shaken over what she'd seen in Castor and Pitch's appearance. After we returned from Arendelle, we had a cup of tea and talked..." Bunny sighed, his long ears dropping slightly. "I ain't sure what came over us. We been working together for centuries..."

Jack raised a brow. "Did you have feelings for her? Or was it just..." He trailed off though it was obvious he was asking if it was just a one time event.

"What I am...what I look like...I never entertained thoughts about ever bein' with someone." Bunny confessed. "Tooth's attractive. That ain't hard to see. But I didn't let myself think any further than that. Then you came around, and I quit even lookin' at her, period. Everyone thought it would be you two together."