Chapter Text
It had taken the rabbit a week and a day to be able to walk without constant stumbling or losing its balance. Even after all that time, it would still occasionally trip or stop in its tracks, dropping to the floor and panting and shaking. Techno had tried to get it to eat more, had spent each day spoon feeding it mashed vegetables or fruits, but it was stubborn.
Techno would have admired it, if it didn’t make things harder for him.
The rabbit followed after him as he put the clean towels away, pausing to make sure it was out of the way before he closed the bathroom door. It kept close to his heels as he walked back to the kitchen. When he stopped, the rabbit headbutted his leg.
“Alright, alright,” said Techno, turning to pick up the water dish that was tucked into the corner. It wasn’t empty but it was close. He rinsed it out and refilled it. The rabbit took a few sips, watching Techno with one eye as it did so. “D’you want some food while I’m in here?”
The rabbit wiggled its nose.
“C’mon, man, you know I don’t speak bunny. Is that a yes or no? I got some melon if you want,” he said. Already he was opening the ice chest. “Phil brought it back, figure you might like some.”
Standing on its hind legs, the rabbit looked up at the piece of melon he was holding. It swayed slightly and when it went back down on all fours, it slipped a little then struggled to right itself. Techno sighed. The missing toes and nails made it difficult for the rabbit to do basic things and he could see the frustration in how it pinned its ears back.
He might be reading into it, seeing human emotion where there was none, but the strange, tickling thought at the back of his mind wouldn’t leave him and Techno knew what it was like to feel things, only to have them denied.
“Here.” Techno placed the slice of melon onto the plate next to the water bowl. “You better actually eat that, Gary, or Phil’s gonna complain that it’s goin’ to waste.”
The rabbit had taken a few bites but stopped at Techno’s words, thumping its back leg twice.
“Bruh… Do you really gotta be like that?” asked Techno, dropping his arms to his side as he realized what was happening. “You keep it up and I’ll let Phil turn you into stew.”
The rabbit butted its head against his leg again and then flopped onto its side. Techno smiled, shaking his head. Its ribs were still visible and it was still missing fur in places but most of the wounds had scabbed over.
“Alright, alright, you win.” He pulled the lever over the sink, listening to the chugging sound as the water was brought up, and washed his hands. “I don’t want to get bunny fur all over my hands.”
Picking the rabbit up, Techno went to sit in his chair. It settled in his lap and he reached for his book, flipping to the page he had marked. He pushed his glasses back onto his snout with one finger. The rabbit shifted and began chewing on the bottom of the page.
“Seriously, Gary? Why are you like this, man,” he said and held the book up a bit higher, out of the rabbit’s reach. He had lost his place, having to start over on the same paragraph. The rabbit tugged on the hem of his shirt for a moment before it rested its head onto its paws. An exasperated grin tugged at the corner of Techno’s mouth.
The rabbit was feeling more like itself.
It liked when the pigman would groan and roll his eyes and tease him.
(The voice caught the slip up and ignored it, pushing it down as far as it could.)
It was familiar.
The rabbit wasn’t supposed to think that, either, but it did. Laying in the pigman’s lap, it felt safe and it was warm. That was what mattered.