Disclaimer: 'Frozen in Time' is a non-profited, fan-based fiction. 'Rise of the Guardians' is owned and produced by Dream Works Entertainment. 'Frozen' is owned and produced by Walt Disney Pictures. I am only credited for the plot and the original character 'Father Time'. Please support the official releases.
❄Chapter 3❄
Father Time
Father Time is a complicated old man. Hunched back, bushy brows, and a long white beard that dragged on the floor as waddles along. The large staff he cradles an hourglass in its' crook that neither gains nor looses sand. Forever frozen in time, just like the old man.
However none of this is what makes him the enigma he is.
It's the little things, like that rare smile that seems to smooth all the wrinkles on his dark coca skin and make him appear almost like a child. Not to mention the fact that despite his aloof nature, he can be so kind.
Even his odd love of string seems perfectly normal because, the most puzzling fact still remains the biggest mystery.
How does the man who can never be caught off guard, get robbed?
At least the is what Jack thought and his fellow guardians seemed to feel the same, if their stiff and agitated body language was anything to go on. Though perhaps it was Cronus' senile tendencies that were slowly grating on the other's nerves like sandpaper on raw, enflamed skin, Jack thought to himself with a smirk as his eyes gazed around the hypnotic sanctuary the timekeeper called home.
"We're all simply taking part in fate." The old man's said plainly as thought the vague response was a completely logical explanation for the current events.
North rubbed the bridge of his nose with a sigh; his normal chipper attitude had dissolved after long hours of trying to coax information from the ancient figure before him. "I am not understanding." He said wearily. "You are telling me, that a break in of one of our most secret and hidden places… it is nothing to worry about?"
"Precisely."
The collective wilt of the four guardian's frames was so dramatic that Jack would have laughed if the old time keeper's staff hadn't been shoved in his direction. "The only one that needs to worry is you lad."
Jack balked, looked behind him and then pointed to himself, "Me?" he asked in disbelief. Cronus nodded and pulled back the staff, returning it to its place beside him. "Now, I have said my piece. If you wish to stay and look around for any clues, you are welcome to. No more questions. I have things to do."
With Father Time's permission and then departure the guardians began investigating the pavilion After about fifteen minutes of fruitless searching, Bunny growled and turned to the others. "What are we even bloody looking for?"
They all blinked, looking at each other for answers and something became painfully obvious: they had absolutely no clue what exactly they were looking for. Actually they didn't even know where to begin! Nothing seemed to be disturbed or out of place, no obvious signs of a break in at all. Perhaps it was just a false alarm? It was strange, but it msust have been since the only thing that seemed to be missing was-
"Hey," Tooth piped up, "where's Jack?"
❄F❄in❄T❄
Jack had been stealthily tailing the old man, too curious for his own good about what the geezer could have possibly meant about him needing to worry.
Father time hobbled quite far from the pavilion where the others dwelled and into what appeared to be a tower. The ancient figure stopped in the center of the ground floor and tapped his staff twice. The stone shuddered and growled as it began to separate and sink into a set of stairs that trailed far below the ground.
The winter spirit peeked from behind the doorway, watching Father Time's decent down a spiral staircase for about two minutes before he thought better of it before some movement caught his eye.
The walls stood tall, several hundred thousand feet from the floor if Jack had to spit-ball it. But it is what covered the walls that made his jaw drop.
Tapestries hung on every inch of the, what looked to be, polished sand stone. Each one shimmered in the light. Pastels, earth tones, bright colors, and bold hues all intermixed into diverse patterns that never repeated. They seemed to go on forever, the ring of fabric disappearing far above of the line of clear vision.
Jack ignored the upward staircase, instead allowing the air currents to take him higher into the tower and he discovered that many of them appeared to be at different stages of complete, colored thread being fed to them from seemingly nowhere as they wove themselves rhythmically.
The other tapestries, some much smaller than others, swung lifelessly as the air encouraged the delicate fabric to move with it.
One in particular caught Jack's eye and he noted that it seemed abnormally long compared to the others and was still being woven oddly enough.
It was a breathtaking creation that glittered with, dare he say, magic. The top lines of the tapestry were bright and playful, but almost too quickly they became dark and stayed that way for many lines down. There was break of bold, but it was still woven tightly with a few dark threads which increased in intensity until they suddenly overpowered everything with an entire section of pure ebony.
There was more, but the void of black thread swallowed Jack to the point where his mind wouldn't allow him to focus on anything else. His heart constricted painfully and he instinctively reached out to comfort the fabric, but when his fingers brushed the woven threads, a loud shuddering broke the spell and startled the young man so greatly that he lost his connection with the current. His gut leaped into his throat and he hit the ground with a thud.
Jack groaned and slowly sat up as a deep throated chuckle sounded from the center of the room. Sure enough, there stood father time, watching the other figure with a twinkle of mischief. As he slowly made his way over, Jack hurried to his feet, dusting himself off only coaxing another chuckle, although it sounded faintly like a giggle, from the ancient. "I-I was uh," Jack fumbled as he picked up his staff." I was just-"
"Admiring the tower of life?" Father time said knowingly.
The younger blinked and looked around. "Is that what this is?"
Father time nodded sagely. "Indeed it is." He then turned, making a large gesture with his staff. "Every bit of fabric you see on these walls is a life lived. The delicate threads you see being woven into them are their joys, their sorrows, and everything in between." Jack looked around the tower with a renewed sense of awe as the elder continued. "Some are ending while others are just beginning." The he urged Jack to look up a little father to see three women carrying scissors. He hadn't noticed them before. "They are my daughters." Father time explained with fondness. "Their duties are to thread new spindles for new coming life," the smile then slipped off the old man's face, "and also to cut the threads at the close of another."
Even though Jack was intrigued by this, there was something else that pressed more urgently in his mind. "What did you mean exactly, when you said I should worry about the break in? What was stolen? Why does it effect me?"
A beat of silence and then Father time turned to the man full of questions. "Why tell you these things, when I can show you instead?"
A/N: I want to warn you all that future updates will probably not be as quick since as this one since I actually wrote this chapter at the same time as ch 2, but I wanted to review it a little before I posted it.
Another shout out to Eadane, Nerokin4, Sayza, Mere888, and More1weasley for the follows and favorites. I hope you will continue to enjoy the story as it unfolds.
Stay awesome!
-Dolly
