Rise of the Guardians

New Year's Welcome

Chapter 01

She was still upon the ground, skin turning blue in the deep Northern cold found in Bayfield, Wisconsin. Snow was still falling, getting harder and heavier as the feeble sun shifted down it's path toward the Earth's horizon, disappearing as the moon began to rise. It was a full moon, brilliantly bright and shining like a beacon.

Jack Frost was running, taking to the winds as he made his way to the dark and empty forest. The animals were all silent as the presence of death lingered. The young girl, caught between two worlds and in a lonely limbo, her soul was trying valiantly to revive only to find that her body was no longer usable.

Jack landed heavily as he looked down at the girl. He recognized her as one he had seen often in the winter, playing alone and happily in what seemed like a second home to the girl. He bent down, touching her face lightly. "Poor kid, what happened?"

He looked up to the cliff in front of him, steep and rugged. He could see the slip marks that she had made. One bad fall and a life ended without any thought to the person's future or dreams.

The moonlight called to him as he looked up. "Is that you, Manny?" He had taken to calling the Moon that as North had been doing. It was better than having to say the longer version, Man in the Moon. He couldn't hear the Moon that much but he did seem to understand what it was trying to do.

He pulled away from the girl. "Why her?" He asked but he was given no answer. He stepped farther away, watching her with bated breath. The moonlight gently fell upon her, shining into her as she took a staggering breath.

She pulled up, leaving behind her human body. What was once long, thin buff-colored hair and bright gray eyes were now light goldenrod yellow hair and iceberg colored eyes. Her skin was even paler than her already pale skin, as white as alabaster. She had only a touch of a blush upon her cheeks and nose as well as the tips of her ears.

She tried to walk only to stumble and fall to her knees. She rubbed at herself, feeling different.

"Vera?"

She looked up at Jack. "Who are you?" Her voice, young and thin, trembled as she spoke. "What happened? Am I…"

She looked behind herself and stared at her human form, cold and dead upon the frozen ground. Her eyes moved upward to the cliff. "I slipped… it was an accident… but.. There was such a flood of light.."

"That was the Man in the Moon."

"Man.. In the Moon?"

"Yes, he is the one that granted you a new life," Jack tried to be excited for her as she looked utterly lost. "To make things happen! Like me! I make fun and games for children! To bring fun is what I'm all about!"

"I want to go home," Vera began to sniffle. "I want my Momma and Papa!"

She pushed herself up and tried to walk, turning away from the Guardian of Fun to try to climb upwards. He looked to the Moon, unsure of what to do next. He never had anyone help him out with learning about his new life, though he considered it lucky that he didn't remember anything, even though he had initially wished he could.

"Hey, hey! Why don't you look up at the Moon? Maybe he'll tell you something!"

Jack followed the girl, not exactly wanting to follow but he had a feeling he should keep to her sid nonetheless.

She found her way out quickly, as she began to run, gaining strength. Her feet made no sound upon the earth as she ran swiftly, unaware of how fast she was moving. The snow was picking up as the tips of her hair froze and pulled away from her scalp.

"Momma! Papa!" She came to her home, one of only three in the empty scenario. It was a very sparse street with very little interaction with the main part of the town, just a mile or so away. She reached for the door and felt herself tumble into the home, right into the front hallway as if she had passed like a ghost.

She looked up and around. She heard them, both frantic and upset.

"I don't care about waiting! She's never been out this long or this late! She's easily frightened of the dark! Please, I need help and that's why I called you! You're the damn police, act like it!" Her adopted mother yelled angrily, tears falling. Her black hair was cropped short, her azure eyes darkened with emotion. She rubbed her pale face, her normally pale skin even more whiter.

"Alex, we have to go out there!" She turned to her husband. Round and short, he looked halfway to a representative of Santa Claus, complete with a short, white beard and big green eyes.

"Luv, the storm's too strong. We.. We waited too long.. I'm sure she'll be fine," He added hurriedly as his wife crumbled. "Lizzie, it'll be all right!"

He held her in his arms tightly. "She's always been so good out in the snow, remember? She's probably found herself a hollow tree and is waiting out the storm."

"No.. I'm.. I'm right here! Papa! Look at me! Please, look at me!"

She tried to reach for him, standing just at his side in the kitchen. And watched her hand go through him.

She looked to her hand, aghast. "Why.. Why can't I talk to him? To them? What's wrong with me!?"

She turned, stretching upward as she looked at the empty hallway. Jack wasn't able to enter as he waited outside.

And ended up there for the rest of the night. Her parents were unable to head out to search, nor the police as the storm took to its worst and as the morning broke, the snow finally let up.

Their voices rose and fell as the parents and police searched worriedly. She trailed after them, trying still to get their attention. The only one that paid any attention was the blood hound who looked at her at first from the first scent. It then listened to its master and took off with a mournful howl.

The policeman was the first to find her. Her mother was next and she screamed as her husband pulled her back tightly, holding onto her for his own support.

The policeman looked down at her and then gently guided the parents away.

"No, no! I'm right here! Momma! Please… don't leave me here! I don't want to be alone!"

But there was nothing for her to do as the police milled around and then, her body was taken. She stood alone in the cold wind as Jack slowly approached.

"Vera?"

"Why… why did I have to die? Why am I dead?!"

"It was an accident," Jack said softly. "But.. You have a second chance."

"For what?" She fell to her knees, holding her head. "It hurts so much.."

"The Man in the Moon raised you, like he did me. I was once like you."

"You were a person?"

"Yes."

"What happened?"

"I died.. Saving my sister."

"I can't leave my parents. They're all that I have and I'm all that they have. They told me and told me… they can't…"

He opened his mouth only to feel the sting of a angry wind. It spun around them as Jack pulled Vera to his side.

"What's this?" He muttered. "It feels like the dead of winter…and old."

Jack pulled back and took Vera out of the forest. She looked to her home and took a lingering step. He stopped her gently. "I'm sorry."

"I can't ever go back?"

"You can. But they won't see you."

"Why?"

"Because.. To them, you're gone."

"But I'm right here!" The confusion was clear upon her gaze, tears welling up. Jack began to wonder why the Man in the Moon rose her, for he finally remembered things about the girl and why she was always alone. She wasn't exactly the smartest as Jack fretted. He wanted to know how to explain things to her but no matter how much he repeated things, she was still insistent that she needed to go to her parents.

Again, he felt the bite of the strange wind. He hefted his staff as he looked around. Snow was beginning to fall again as he turned to the girl and realized she was crying.

"You.. You're making it snow with your tears.." He said finally. "I'm the one of winter, how are you doing that?"

Before there was anything more, a hole opened below them as they fell into the warren. The sudden change from cold to warm was notable as Jack and Vera landed hard.

"Jack, there you are! I've been looking for you! You're supposed to be at your pond!"

"Not always, Bunny," Jack stood up and brushed off the melting snow from his sweater. "What's the deal?"

"It's bad, mate, Baby New Year's gone dark."

"I'm sorry, what?"

'Baby New Year! You know, that who brings in the New Year?"

"And… he's gone.."

"He's gone like Pitch!"

"Well, wonderful. So what, we gotta take him out?"

"No, mate. We're not gonna touch him. North says that the Moon has chosen a second welcomer."

"And this must be her. Snegurochka." Even Bunny had trouble getting that out.

Jack snickered as Bunny glared. "In other words, the Snow Maiden."

Vera was touching the very large, stone eggs, looking at the intricate detailing. "Did you make this?" She asked in a hushed voice. "It's… beautiful."

"Heh, someone who likes my work," Bunny said snottily.

"What's she supposed to do?"

"Well, you know about Baby New Year and how he brings in the new year?"

"Uhh… he pulls something."

"He rings the Bell. That which ends this year and starts the next. However, he is refusing to touch the Bell and wants to bargain."

"What could he possibly want?"

Bunny shrugged. "North didn't say. We gotta go, mate. Hey, there, little one, how about we go for a walk?"

Vera looked at him. "Am I going home?"

Bunny glanced at Jack who shrugged.

"We're going to see Santa Claus."

"But Christmas is over."

"I know but.. This is going to be special." Bunny leaned to Jack. "Didn't you tell her about the Man in the Moon?"

"She's.. not exactly the brightest bulb in the house. She's got a good heart, though."

"Does that even help in this case?"

"I don't know! Look, the Man in the Moon doesn't talk to me so I don't know what he was trying to say! She ran right into her home and wouldn't even leave her parents side!"

"Wait, wait, she.. She saw herself dead, right?"

"Yes, she did."

"And she's still in denial?"

Jack glowered as he threw his hands up and turned. And then blinked. "Hey, where'd she go?"

Vera had found the unpainted Easter eggs, the very few that had been left from the last year. She plucked one up and looked at the pastel river. She dunked it several times, dying it as she examined her work afterwards. "Pretty."

She then tried to take a bite out of it.

"Hey, hey, there!" Bunny hurriedly took it. "Not to eat, mate. They're supposed to become hollow when they leave, filled with fun things. You eat them, well, you'll get sick."

"Oh, okay." She poked at him. "You're too big."

Jack snickered as Bunny rolled his eyes.

"Let's go!" Bunny picked her up and placed her over his shoulders as she sat on him. She held onto his ears in surprise and then laughed with glee as he began to run, halfway jump to hole. Jack followed at they disappeared.

North was stuffing his face with cookies as his elves were eating the large crumbs off the floor.

"Dingle! Go get self your own plate!" He poked a booted toe at one of the elves and then sighed as they only scurried away to look for more crumbs.

He heard the commotion and got away from the door in time as Phil slammed it open. North glared at him as Phil looked apologetic. "Must you?!"

Phil spoke in garbled tongue.

"They are here already? Good!" North pushed back. "Bunny, bring the child forward! Bunny?"

Bunny had let Vera down and regretted the second he did as she tore off to run into the plushies. She found one that looked like a Yeti and squeezed it and then frowned. "It doesn't make a squeaky sound."

"Come in, come in," North's voice boomed. "You must be excited! You've been chosen, by Manny!"

She looked up at him. "For what?"

"For great adventure! You ring bell!"

Vera dropped the Yeti toy. "Can I go home?"

North glanced at the other two guardians. "You have been chosen… umm…"

"Vera," Jack offered.

"Vera, to be a new Guardian… of sorts. Not full-blown but you get idea."

She looked at him with a blank look.

"You ring bell."

"I believe you said that already," Jack stage-whispered.

North frowned. "Come, to the window high above. See?" He pointed to the rising Moon and its light that fell downward onto her.

It was the first time the Man in the Moon spoke to her. And unlike the others who couldn't get through to her, he did with whatever it was that he told her.

Vera's eyes glossed over as she received her message and details of her new life. She looked away as the light fell from her and she looked to the ground.

"I have to bring in the New Year and to Christmas."

"End my holiday?" North glanced at the moon. "Not too quickly, right?"

"He.. He said that when I died, I was.. Supposed to go to Heaven but because I.. was stuck, he revived me for a meaning. He said he didn't want me to wander alone."

"And now I have new meaning. And.. My parents will never see or hear me again.. But because they believe in me, I am here."

Her eyes filled with tears. "I wanted to grow up… and get married.. And be happy. Can I be happy here?"

North held out his arms and gave her a bear hug. "You be happy here! You help me with Christmas, right? Then you be new family!"

"Just call him Grandpa," Jack offered.

Bunny and Jack snickered at that as North shook a finger. "I put you both on naughty list if you're bad."

"I'm always on it though," Jack grinned widely.