Author: Snow Tigra Pairing: ChristmasCookie (NorthxToothiana)
Series: Rise of the Guardians Rating: PG
He was just so... big!
Toothiana could not get over how positively large Nicholas St North was in person. Sure, the Man on the Moon had warned her he was coming - in his strange subtle language of moonbeams and dreams helped by Sandy - but when the large fur covered frame of the bearded man showed up at her door she hardly knew how to react. Her little babyteeth, of course, took it all in stride, zipping and swarming around him with their cute little peeps of curiosity. They all scattered as his laugh echoed through the caverns and Toothiana found herself stumbling over how white his teeth were and how large his smile was - damn, she always did that when she was nervous.
She was thinking of that moment again, floating now in his enormous home full of elves, yetis and toys that piled up to the sky. She resisted the urge to flutter around all of the toys and marvel at the craftsmanship and think of all the happy smiles when children saw them and instead just couldn't stop staring at him as he laughed with a few of the yeti in their strange guttural language.
"Hey, Tooth, something wrong?"
Toothiana jumped a little in the air and turned a nervous look to Bunny, who easily met her height without floating. "Oh-h n-no not at all! I should go to my room!" With those words sounding a bit too high pitched and fast she flitted off to the next balcony, disappearing out of sight from Bunny so she could catch her breath.
Oh how embarrassing! This was not the way that a powerful Guardian acted, especially not among the others like herself. But she was just a lowly bird chosen to watch over children's most precious memories and their small little perfect teeth-
Toothiana shook her head and shook away the thoughts. No, she was Guardian and this was important. It was time to start acting like it and stop acting like a flighty little moth that couldn't get over how bright those beautiful porch lights were. She wasn't that childish anymore. Honestly!
A few hours later found her staring. Again.
This time she was outside of her room, looking over the railing at the workshop and all the work being done below. Little red robots being painted, cute stuffed bears having their eyes and noses attached and little sweet candies being loaded into brightly painted dispensers. It all seemed like so much work, so different from how her and her little babyteeth kept track of everything...
"You're up late."
Toothiana jumped, turned and was honestly shocked beyond belief that she hadn't heard the enormous man walking down the hallway toward her. How was he so silent?!
"Oh y-yes I was just looking over all of the toys." She flitted a little, lacing her fingers together. "It's a shame you don't get to see their smiles when they open them in the morning."
North graced her with a large smile, hooking his thumbs in his belt. "I hear their laughter in the morning." He nodded up to the top of the large mountain home. "That s well enough."
"Oh, y-yes, of course." Not that she understood what he was nodding at, but she didn't feel right in asking. Instead she focused on moving her eyes around the room and not staring for too long at him, which was quite hard considering how much of her sight he took up.
"Something wrong?"
"Everyone keeps asking me that. But no-no nothing is wrong. Just getting used to this being a guardian and being here and everything. I'm adjusting! Honest... I'm fine."
The large man chuckled at that, the sound rumbling across the railing like a small earthquake. "I see! You have what they call a crush!"
Toothiana swore in that moment that her face along with the rest of her body and feathers all turned a bright shade of red. She couldn't help it, she stopped flitting and stared up at him. Was that it? Was that why she was so nervous? Was that why her body felt warm even if they were surrounded by cold air and thick snow outside?
No, she knew that was right. How incredibly, truly embarrassing!
"No need to be embarrassed little bird, it is fine. It's a compliment!"
Toothiana pursed her lips and zipped up to him. "I am not a bird."
"Then what should I call you?" The question was innocent enough, but there was a mischievous twinkle in his eyes that made her feel warm again and it made her wings quiver.
"Ana." She answered a moment later, her mouth feeling like cotton. "You can call me Ana."
The smile that gained from North was positively the most beautiful thing she'd ever seen and for once she didn't find herself marveling at how pearly white the teeth were - just that he was smiling. And that he said her name.
"All right. Ana."