Chapter Text
Euca hunched over, his hands on his knees as he keeled over panting. Where was Sissel? He had searched everywhere and yet Sissel had still remained unfound. Euca heard Jinny behind him, her voice shaky and weak as she caught up.
"Have you found him yet, Euca?" She asked, resting herself against a tree while she tried to catch her breath.
Euca shook his head. "Not yet. We're bound to find him though, there's only a few more places he could be." Euca ran a hand through his hair, a deep unsettling claw reaching through his gut. "I know we should give him space, but we're dating now and I've got a bad feeling about this whole thing."
Jinny nodded, letting out a cough as she still tried to recover. "Yeah, I do too," she took a deep breath before continuing. "We should probably split up so we can cover more ground. I'll go check the cottage, and you check the lake. If we don't find him at either of those spots, we can meet up back here and talk about where we go next."
Euca nodded, that feeling of despair working its way through his body. He shook his head, stopping himself from continuing down that dark path.
"That… sounds like a good idea. Let's go, then. We don't have any time to lose." Euca started jogging again, working his way through the deep forest.
This wouldn't have been a problem, normally, but due to the fear of the situation, Euca couldn't tell which way he was facing.
Panic gripped his chest, his heart pounding against his ribcage and his brain working overtime. A thought struck him, and he wrapped his paw around the camera that hung around his neck.
"Echo! Is there any way that I can get out of here? I'm completely lost, and I need your help!" He whispered to the camera, still scrambling around the clearing that he was in.
"Olay, Euca, calm down. I can't just teleport you to the lake, but there are a few things that I can do to help." Euca spun on his heel quickly, facing the shattered remnants of the wish.
"Echo, are you alri-" he tried to ask his friend, only to be met with a hush.
"Don't worry about me. I'll be fine. As I was saying, there are several ways that I can help. For example," Echo pointed a finger at the tree, it branches long and tall as they reached into the sky.
A creaking sound emanated from the roots, and it began to tetter, winds picking up around the clearing and sweeping leaves along the ground. Euca covered his face with his arms and closed his eyes, getting ready to be assaulted by the leaves in their flurry.
A loud thud echoed through the woods as the tree hit the ground, bark and limbs shattering from the impact. Euca opened his eyes, staring at the tree that landed inches from his body. Any closer and he probably wouldn't have had the opportunity to find Sissel.
"W-woah! Echo, you can't just do that!" He cried, feeling his ear tufts to check if they'd been damaged at all.
"You whine too much, it wasn't even close to hitting you." Echo flicked Euca on the nose before crossing his arms. "Now, if you go in a straight line the way the tree fell," Echo pointed with a finger behind Euca "You'll make it to the lake. Don't take too long though. I've got a bad feeling."
Euca was about to ask why Echo couldn't just point in the direction of the lake, but decided that answers weren't important right now. Something told him it was a race against time at this point, so he calmed his racing heart and began to sprint.
Euca felt the constant attack on his arms and legs. Branches and thorns constantly striking for his body, only batted away by the swinging of his arms. The trees leered closer, almost devilish in the way that they forced Euca to push and claw his way through the trees.
Suddenly, there was light. Euca stumbled forwards into the opening, where the murky lake could be seen shimmering in the light of the afternoon sun. Euca's eyes scanned the scene, a sigh of disappointment escaping his lips as he saw that Sissel wasn't anywhere to be seen.
Euca looked over the lake once more, now seeing a stream of bubbles slowly rising to the surface of the lake. They were small, and very hard to spot. It was a wonder he even saw them in the first place. The stream continuously diminished, the bubbles growing fewer and far between before finally they stopped.
Euca was about to turn around when he noticed a dark, grimy brown float up among the grey. His eyes widened, and before he knew it his legs were forcing themselves forward, his mind in a numbed state while his body trudged on.
Before he could blink, he was next to Sissel, pulling him out of the water and on to dry shore. He tried to call out to Jinny, to Echo, to anyone who could help him, but his voice wouldn't work. No matter how many times he tried to get himself to say something, it got stuck in his dry throat.
Euca pulled at Sissel's body, not knowing where to start. Did he start with compressions? That should be the first thing he does, but he didn't know how to. A rustling sound could be heard from the bushes, roses and marigolds and daffodils parting ways as Jinny peeked through the path. Her eyes narrowed on the two boys before she started running, dropping down to her knees and pushing in on Sissel's chest.
"J-jinny! Thank God you're here. Is he gonna be okay?!" Euca quaked, voice finally coming back to him when he needed it the least.
Jinny kept pushing, the steady rhythm almost calming despite the situation they were in. A drop of sweat dripped off her brow, and her gaze remained focused on the rabbit.
"I hope so. It's been a while since I practiced my CPR skills, but they should still be alright." She kept her eyes on Sissel's face. "Have you called Hershal yet? Tell him to get here as soon as he can." Jinny went in for rescue breaths, giving two before pulling back and continuing the compressions.
Euca pulled out his phone, tapping to Hershal's number and giving him a call, steadying his breath before the older rabbit picked up.
"Yo, Euca. What can I get for ya?" He asked, jovial tone unbeknownst of the horror that Euca was about to tell him.
"Hershal, please hurry." He mustered out, breath still shaky despite his best efforts. "Sissel was drowning- in Bradley lake." He choked out, eyes dampening with tears as he fully came to terms with the situation.
Hershal yelped at the news, almost dropping his phone. Euca could hear footsteps and the slamming of doors in the background before Hershal spoke up again.
"Okay, kid. I'm gonna need you to keep him alive. Y'all doing CPR, right?" He asked, the revving engine of the truck noticeable when Euca strained his ears.
"Yeah, we are. Or, uh, Jinny is, at least." He looked back to his friend, who was still hunched over Sissel's limp form.
"Okay, that's good. Keep that up until I get there, alright? Make sure he stays alive, please. I can't talk now, I'm on the road, but I'll see you in 10." The line abruptly cut with a beep, and Euca put his phone back in his pocket just in time to see a small stream of water exit his boyfriend's lips.
Euca gasped, and Jinny let out a small noise of hope before continuing with the compressions.
Something in Euca's gut told him that Sissel was going to be okay.