The auroras shot across the sky, waving their many colours like desperate white flags. The stars winked in reply and whispered to the moonlit rays that zipped across the nightsky before they shot off to their designated locations to stir the Guardians of Childhood. One particular moonlit orb zipped back to the Moon to wait further instructions.
The Man in the Moon paced across the silver tiled floor, his white shoes clicking anxiously as he rubbed his naked chin before gnawing on the inside of his cheek. "Five is not enough," The Man in the Moon whispered, realization dawning on him. "We need more to stand even half a chance."
The Man in the Moon knew what he had to do. He didn't like it, but he knew that power came in numbers and what better than to have heroes from several different eras?
The Man in the Moon turned to a crystalline book case on the far side of the control room. He took long strides forward until he stood in front of the book case, his chubby fingers running over the worn titles. He tugged a thick leather spine and opened the book, gazing at the beautifully drawn sketches of dragons in flight and the sloppier Norse letters. He smiled slightly and let his fingers stop on a certain page, depicting a sleek black dragon with a large wingspan, wide curious eyes and glistening scales.
He placed the homemade book on a floating glass side table before snapping his fingers, causing the one moonlight beam to dart forward and push a crystal stepstool in front of the short man. He nodded his thanks as he hopped onto the stool and searched for the next book.
This book was short and sweet, a fairytale classic of a girl with long golden hair that lived eighteen years in a tower until she got her first taste of freedom. The book actually wasn't short, as the story never ended, not for the characters nor the readers alike. The story simply didn't end after one Happily Ever After.
He held the book out and let his fingertips loose grip before his eyes scanned for the last book. The moonbeam flickered in panic and flew forward, causing the book to connect with its light. The light of the moonbeam flowed into the book's front cover which had recieved a direct hit. A drop of golden light leaked from the crinkled pages as the moon beam huffily tossed it beside the first book.
"Careful!" The chubby man scolded, finally finding the dark teal spine of the last book. He flipped through it, landing on a page on Will-O-the-Wisps. He sighed contently and hopped off of his stool before turning to the moon beam and the other two books. "Now, to get to work."
The small man slaved over the three books, flipping feverishly through pages before finding the correct one, scanning through chapters before latching onto the correct paragraph, the correct sentence, the correct word. One mistake and everything the Man in the Moon had worked for would be for nothing.
The man swiped his arm across his pale forehead, causing his wispy hair to flare in odd directions. He sighed, content with the pages before he stood and called upon the moon beam. "The Sands of Time, please," He directed and the moonbeam zipped away for a moment and reappeared the next, this time followed by four floating crystal hourglasses filled with generous amounts of silver sand.
The Man in the Moon took the hourglasses in his hands and turned to the three books.
It was the moment of truth.
He unscrewed the first hourglass and ordered the moonbeam to grab his vials. The moonbeam darted toward the glass shelfings and pulled three vials free before zooming back to its master. The Man in the Moon gingerly took them and placed them on the table.
The first vial he decided on was filled with shiny black scales. He picked a reflective scale from the vial and let the scale flit into the hourglass. The moment the scale and the sand connected, an auburn light flashed.
The first hourglass was placed in front of the leather book full of dragon drawings. The second hourglass was unscrewed, along with the second vial, filled with glowing embers. An ember sparked out of the vial and landed gracefully into the hourglass before flashing a fiery red.
The second hourglass was set before the third book about Will-O-the-Wisps. The Man in the Moon furrowed his brow as he stared at the third vial, gleaming with ice. He needed the hourglasses in order of their historic times.
The moonbeam brightened suddenly, causing the Man to turn and watch the moonbeam dance excitedly in the air. He glanced at the purple book containing the fairytale and smiled with relief. He unscrewed the hourglass quickly and watched as the drop of golden light slid down the lip of the hourglass, flashing the sand gold.
The third hourglass was leant against the purple book as the Man in the Moon picked up the last hourglass, the one he was putting so much faith in. He held it in his hands and peered into it, before lifting the vial of ice and letting the ice shards drop in, one by one, until the hourglass was radiating with blue light.
The Man in the Moon hurried to grab a silver sheet of satin, which he wrapped around the books and their designated hourglasses. He tied the blue hourglass around the sheet with leather cording, before he held the loose ends out to the moonbeam like reins. "Go," The Man in the Moon warned, "before it is too late."
...
Jack wasn't too happy about having to cut his snowball fight short with Jamie and his friends, but even the Guardian of Fun knew when to be serious at times. Jack said his good-byes and promised Jamie he'd stop by for his mom's famous Christmas cookies when he had the chance. He then hopped on the wind and left Burgess with mild flurries.
The first place Jack could think of going was North's. Jack followed the rainbow lights until he spotted the grey smoke curling up out of one of the many brick chimneys. Jack found an unlatched skylight and hopped through, his staff clutched in his fist.
The rest of the Guardians were already there, which didn't suprise Jack. Within a year, Jack had gotten used to the Guardians and how they almost always were early to these sort of things. He had the habit of being fashionably late unless he was really intrested, which at the moment, he was very intrested at the odd circumstances and rude ending to his game with Jamie.
Bunny was perched in a ruby red loveseat with his large feet inches from the roaring flames of the fire, his claws finding purchase in the armrests as his furry ears twitched nervously. Sandy floated forward, patting Bunny's paw in an encouraging manner.
Jack dropped from the ceiling's wooden rafters, landing gracefully on his bare feet. Bunny jumped and shot Jack a spring-green glare which Jack smirked at. Tooth and the four little fairies she'd brought along to North's quickly encircled Jack in a tight hug and suffocating chittering. North eventually made an appearence, entering through a thick set of doors, followed by two anxious Yetis. He walked down a few stairs and addressed the room grimly, "There is problem. Big problem."
Jack sighed and nodded. "Sort of figured, North. When those lights turn on, there's never a medicore problem."
Bunny shot Jack a stony glare. "This isn't the time for jokes, frostbite."
Jack flared his nostrils, about to retort, when Tooth's voice broke, "North. What is it?" Her wings fluttered and whirred as she zipped about impulsively before settling on floating in front of her dear friend and offering him a comforting hand on his large shoulder. He smiled through his evident worry and his salt-and-pepper mustashe before addressing the room once again, "Pitch Black is back."
The news caused an uproar, mainly from the boomerang-weilding oversized rabbit. Bunny leapt to his feet, forgetting at once that they were still numb with cold. "Did I hear that right, mate? Pitch Black ... back? We just defeated him last year! He couldn't have gotten power so fast!"
Sandy motioned to the globe covered in golden blips of light and a golden question mark materalized over his flared crown of hair. He shrugged and pointed at the globe in confusion.
Bunny nodded feverishly and hopped toward the globe, throwing his furry arms into the air. "Exactly!" Bunny yelled. "We have all of the belief! It's doubled since we defeated Pitch! He-"
"Aster," North interuptted. His forehead bore new worry lines as he rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I know. Let me finish." North strode forward, his boots the only sound in the room besides the Guardians' panicked breathing. "Manny says Pitch is in power, but not here. Not exactly."
"You're making no sense, North!" Bunny roared, his voice growing shrill. He could barely understand North's accent after decades of fighting side-by-side with him; his accent grew even less intelligible when North talked absoluete nonsense.
North was about to continue his argument with Bunny when a moonbeam darted through the skylight Jack had left open. A silver bag wound of satin floated down behind the moonbeam and the bag was set on the G crest. The Guardians fell silent at the glowing stranger.
A kindly voice echoed from the beam of moonlight, which brightened with each word. "Hello, my friends."
North, Tooth, Bunny and Sandy bowed in harmony; the Yetis dropped the toys they had been cradling to crouch into a half-kneel. Jack was left standing, his staff slipping through his fingers at the voice. His staff clattered to the floor and his mouth slid open as he gaped at the orb of light.
"Man in Moon," North said, standing to his full height.
Bunny nervously rubbed his furry arm, standing as well. "Manny, mate ... How can Pitch be back?"
The Man in the Moon chuckled, although there was barely any humor in the sound. "Pitch has many methods, Aster. This is only one, one with, sadly, disastrous consequences.
"In order to level the playing field, I believe we must resort to the Defenders of Childhood," The Man in the Moon paused, noting reactions. Bunny's ears drooped slightly. Tooth's wings froze mid-flap. North stared at the moonbeam in partical disbelief. Sandy glanced at Jack and nodded firmly.
Jack noticed the glances from the other Guardians. "Wh-what are Defenders of Childhood?" Jack asked, suddenly suspsious.
"Well," The Man in the Moon's voice began, "the best answer to that is you, Jack. You and the three other chosen heroes."
Jack raised a speckled eyebrow. "Whoa, what? I'm finally getting used to this Guardian thing! You can't just slap a new label on my forehead!"
"Jack," Tooth struggled to keep a calm tone of voice, "as a Defender of Childhood, you'll have partners more ... around your age."
Jack narrowed his eyes. "I don't need anyone around my age!"
Bunny hated to see Jack go, but he knew he would need to man up and join the Defenders if they would have a chance against Pitch. "Manny, what should Jack do?"
Jack couldn't believe his ears nor his eyes as North and Tooth nodded in agreement. Jack couldn't help but feel a growing sense of disappointment in himself. The Guardians were all set for getting rid of him.
Jack felt a growl rise up his throat. "Fine! When do I leave? The sooner, the better!" He leaned down, grabbing his staff and holding it readily, trying his hardest to fight back tears while avoiding eye contact and keeping composure.
The Man in the Moon noticed this, as well as the hurt expressions of the Guardians. He cleared his throat slightly before his voice hummed from the moonbeam. "The bag, Jack, contains four hourglasses and three books. One of these hourglasses is yours. The hourglasses are trackers, almost; they glow when you get close enough to the other Defenders. The Defenders are in three seperate eras, but with the Sands of Time at your fingertips, it shouldn't be too horribly difficult to find them and convince them of your existence and then their help."
Jack, who had been busy fiddling with his own hourglass, which painted his palm and face a soft blue, looked up with bewilderment reflecting in his eyes. "Let me get this straight. You want me - an irresponsible ex-Guardian of Fun - to find three Defenders, who don't even believe in me and live in completely different times and convince them that they've been chosen by a Man in a Moon to defeat The Bogeyman? Has living in the Earth's atmosphere since The Golden Age fried your brain cells?"
Tooth gasped and raised a thin finger to scold Jack, but all the Man in the Moon did was chuckle. Jack noticed the humor leaking through the moonbeam which had been dormant for how many lunar eclispes, Jack couldn't begin to guess. "Well, the Moonship does have several leaks," The Man in the Moon said in an undertone before replying in a slightly louder voice, "Jack, you are a Guardian and a Defender. I am placing all of my faith in you. I know you can do this; no feat is too impossible for Jack Frost. I've seen you face the impossible before and you won."
No pressure or anything, Jack thought absently.
"There is a catch," Jack let out an audible groan at the Man in the Moon's words. "One of the Defenders is in a book."
"Oh, great," Jack sighed. "Now I have to find some fictional person, too? That's just awesome."
"You will also need to do some reading, other than the fairytale-"
"What? You've got to be kidding!"
"You didn't let me finish. It's only so you can meet the Defenders alone, as conversing with an invisible person is considered socially unexceptable within these eras-"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," Jack huffed and crossed his arms. "Is that it?"
"Actually, you also have to find them in order of their eras. What came first, Jack? The Viking, the rebel or the lost princess?" Jack could sense the smug smile on the Man's face by his voice.
"Is this a trick question?" Jack asked suspiously. He could hear Bunny's groan from behind him and Jack smiled before growing serious. "Could you give me a hint?"
"It's the bloody Viking!" Bunny shouted in annoyance.
Jack turned and pursed his lips before saying, "I knew that." He bent down, grabbing the silver bag which morphed into a satchel in Jack's hands. He smiled, unlooping the silvery leather to peer inside the bag. He mentally counted the books and the hourglasses before he turned to the Guardians and the moonbeam. He exchanged good-byes and good-natured taunts about Bunny's 'cold feet' and waited expectantly for instruction.
"The hourglasses work like North's globes. Just shake yours and say where you want to go," The Man in the Moon explained and when Jack continued to stare at his moonbeam, he quickly added, "The Isle of Berk, Meridian of Misery."
Jack nodded, grabbing his staff and clutching his blue hourglass in his fist. "I'll see you all later, then," Jack added as an afterthought and waved slightly before he gave the hourglass a vigourous shake. The Sands of Time swirled and Jack barely had time to give the address of where he was headed before the portal sucked him in, leaving the Guardians and the moonbeam alone in the workshop with only their thoughts and the grumbling of the Yetis as company.
"Now, vhat?" North asked, breaking the uneasy silence.
"Now," The Man in the Moonbeam began, "We find Pitch and give Jack more time. He'll need it where he's headed."
So, this is my first ever Big Four fanfic and I hope you guys liked it. Here's how the Guardians/Defenders go:
Jack Frost: Guardian of Fun/Defender of Winter
Hiccup Haddock: Guardian of Change/Defender of Fall (or Autumn, whichever)
Merida DunBroch: Guardian of Bravery/Defender of Summer
Rapunzel Fitzherbert: Guardian of Creativity/Defender of Spring
Most of these titles have ultimately been selected by the fandom (via Tumblr because I have no life) and seeing them as Defenders of the seasons just seemed pretty cool to me. (Lame explanation)
Most of this should be correct, movie-wise and grammar-wise, but if it isn't, be sure to tell me and I'll go back and fix it.
On the topic of ships, I'm either planning on just Hijack or no romantic ships at all and just strong friendship; this is mostly because I really love Rapunzel and Eugene together and by now, they'd most likely have been married for a while, as the fictional world goes along in tune with ours. Merida isn't all for marriage and there was some hinting at the end of the movie that the boy from the Dingwall clan fancied her (hinting as in he started making out with her hand before looking imploring into her eyes before setting off to his ship; you know, if I remember right). Hiccup also has Astrid, whom I might keep, but it depends on her attitude to Hiccup talking to Jack, which she would see as air for the better part of the fanfic.
So, yes. And, I have to thank for this inspiration either Rapunzel or 8Tracks which is the best goddamn thing in the world (psst Big Four mixes psst)
I'll see you all in the next chapter!
