Guys, your reviews are GIVING ME LIFE! I'm so glad you are enjoying the story, because I am sure enjoying writing it! Thank you so much for the support, and if you want, spread the word about this story! It would mean so much.
One of you asked if there would be a love triangle in this story, and here's my answer: I plan on extending this story past the movie, and there might be one there. We'll see. ;) I'm not really good at writing love triangles, so I might change my mind, but I have a small idea going on in my head that I'm playing with at the moment.
Anyway, enjoy this next chapter!
"So what's your story?"
You glance up away from the mug of cocoa a blushing elf just handed you and up at the Tooth Fairy. "What do you mean?"
She considers you as she sips her own cup of cocoa. "You're what, sixteen? Seventeen?"
You nod. "Sixteen."
"Then how do you still believe in us? In Jack?"
"I'm honestly not sure. Is it that rare?"
She nods, and scoots closer to you on the couch she and you are sharing. Turns out there's another fireplace with a sitting area just down the hallway from where you met the Guardians, so that's where you all went. Sandy floats in the middle of the room on a giant golden cloud, dispersing dreams to the children of the world as best he can from the workshop.
When you followed Jack into that alley, you never would have expected it to lead you anywhere near something like this. You had known the Guardians were real, but . . . meeting them is an entirely different experience than believing in them.
"So, how did you two meet?" The Tooth Fairy inquires.
You hesitate for a moment before sighing. "If you don't mind, that's a story for another time."
She nods respectfully, the colorful feathers atop her head rustling as she does. "That's perfectly fine."
A moment of silence passes between the two of you and you breathe in shakily. "So, should I just call you 'The Tooth Fairy', or...?"
Her laugh tinkles like bells throughout the room. "Just Tooth."
"Oh, thank God." You chuckle nervously.
"And don't call North 'Santa,'" she adds. "Whenever Someone does, he ends up muttering in Russian for a week afterward." You nod, and the two of you giggle before settling into another silence, this one much more comfortable than the last.
Your brief reprieve allows you to see just how beautiful the Tooth Fairy really is. She is unlike any depiction the mass media has ever come up with. Due to how most of the good-hygiene commercials depict the Tooth Fairy as a woman in a white dress with fluffy fairy wings, you would have never guessed she'd look anything like she actually does.
As she lowers her head to take another sip of her drink, you see that the feathers of her arms end at about the wrist before dissolving into slim, delicate hands. The yellow plume at the center of her head dips gently and the rest of the gorgeous feathers on her crown ripple with every little movement, just like hair would. Her eyes are a beautiful violet color, with lashes that round out exotically at their ends, and subtle pink eyelids. Beautiful green feathers extend from her forehead and her ears up before fading into deep blue and purple at the nape of her neck. Small yellow feathers loop around where the hairline would be on the back of a human's neck.
She has a tail of many long, purple feathers that give the illusion of a skirt, almost like a peacock's tail. But the most intriguing part of her form are her iridescent dragonfly wings that are now lying still at her back, except for the occasional twitch. When she's flying, they flutter so fast that it's only a whir of color behind her, like a hummingbird. She is beautiful and exotic, and you can't help but feel a twinge of jealousy despite her kindness to you.
Shaking off that unexpected feeling, you smile at Tooth. "Anyway, I babysit regularly. That could be some of the reason why I still believe in you guys."
"True." Tooth nods and places a hand over yours. "You're a very nice girl, (y/n). I'm glad to have met you."
Sandy turns around on his cloud, and smiles cheekily, giving you a thumbs-up that makes you giggle before turning back to his work. "Thank you. I'm glad to have met you guys too, though I'm still a little bit shocked."
Tooth laughs. "Understandable."
You lean closer to Tooth shoulders almost touching hers as you continue to observe Sandy. "I don't mean to be rude, but . . . does Sandy talk?"
Tooth smiles kindly at your question and shakes her head. "Sandy was mute in his past life, so . . . I guess it carried on to his after life as well. And I guess when you're the Guardian of Dreams you have to be quiet."
You look back up at Sandy. "He's very sweet. I had a friend who was mute, and they're usually the nicest people."
Tooth nods. "You don't want to see Sandy angry though. Not very fun." She winks, and you giggle. You're so glad Tooth and you have become friends.
You lean back in surprise when a lone Baby Tooth zooms past your face and chirps shrilly to Tooth. Your new friend's eyes widen in shock, and you jump when she suddenly drops her mug with a shatter. She says nothing before zipping up and out of the workshop through the skylight above.
You look up at Sandy, who looks just as befuddled as you are and he floats down to stand next to you. You stand up and look at Bunny, who is watching after Tooth, as if expecting her to return. "Bunny? What's going on?"
He shakes his head. "Something's wrong." He sniffs the air. "We have to find North."
He bounds off down the hall on all fours, and you sprint after him, doing your best to keep up his pace. Sandy glides smoothly at your side, and as you begin to pant, you're jealous of his ability to float above the ground. Bunny comes abruptly to a halt, and you barely stop yourself from smacking into him. Jack and North stand together in the middle of the room to your right and you notice Jack close his fist around something.
"We have a problem, mate," Bunny addresses North. "Trouble at the Tooth Palace."
North's eyes widen and he stalks powerfully out the door, pushing through you all before beginning to jog down the hallway. Bunny and Sandy follow after him, and you and Jack take up the rear. You want to ask Jack what he and North talked about, but this is neither the time nor the place.
Curse these immortals and their seemingly endless breath supply.
The five of you reach a large elevator, and North hits a big red button with a reindeer head on it before he opens the gate and ushers you all onto the platform. "Where are we going?" you yell as you rush after the others. "Why are we going down?"
North's voice booms back at you from up ahead: "The sleigh, of course!" Your eyes widen, and you glance at Jack, who doesn't seem too happy about the large man's answer. Sandy glances back at you, smiling playfully.
"No no no," Jack protests, "I am not going in a sleigh! No way!"
The Guardians ignore him, with the exception of Sandy grinning back at the both of you again, and the elevator begins to descend. After what has to be ten floors the lift jerks to a stop, and you're off running again down a hallway lined with stone. At the end sits a huge set of double doors. North pushes them open like they're nothing, and you follow behind him.
A pleasant chill envelops you as you walk further into the room, and your jaw drops when you see you're in a hall made of ice. Several yetis rush about, preparing the area for what you suppose must be the launching of the sleigh. Elves are running around too, but they don't seem to be doing anything useful. You turn around in a circle, trying to take it all in and dodge the working yetis as you do.
"This is amazing," you whisper. Jack glances at you and sighs before turning away.
"North!" he yells, doing his best to be heard over the room's chaos. "I told you, I'm not going with you guys! There's no way I'm climbing into some rickety old . . ."
He trails off as the sound of pounding hooves echoes around the cavern, coming from one end of the ice corridor on the left. Before you can prepare yourself for the sight, the giant reindeer appear barely being kept on the ground as they try to gallop into the air. Behind them, they pull forward a magnificent sleigh, and your eyes must be as wide as saucers now that you see the tricked-out hot rod of a sled.
The sleigh is constructed primarily of dark brown wood, but it is painted red, black, gold, and white at the end. A black diamond with a golden reindeer in the middle is painted right on the end of the sleigh, and there is another diamond in the middle adorned with a golden star. Shining tiles embroider along the top lines and huge red wings unfurl from the middle of the vehicle.
The sleigh comes to a standstill in front of your group, and you glance up at Jack, absolutely begging him to go with your eyes. North smirks down at Jack, whose jaw is set stubbornly as he stares at the ride, with a knowing twinkle in his eyes. You can't help but roll your eyes at his stubbornness and you take his arm gently in your hand. "Come on, Jack. When will we get to ride in Santa's sleigh again?" He glances down at you, and you sigh. "We have to help, and this is the quickest way. Please?"
Jack's eyes soften as he looks into your pleading (e/c) eyes and he holds up a finger. "Okay, one ride but that's it." You can't help but squeal as he hops aboard and he extends his hand out to help you in. You take it, allowing him to pull you up aboard the sleigh after him. There are three levels of seats in the back of the sleigh, and you take a seat on the second level next to Sandy. Jack stands to your right, and North takes a position at the reigns, right behind another, smaller globe that rotates lazily in the middle of the front hood.
"Bunny!" he booms, calling your attention to finally notice that one Guardian is missing. You look over to see Bunny still standing next to the sleigh, frozen. "Bunny, what are you waiting for?" North asks.
"I think my tunnels might be faster, mate. And, um, and safer." You can see him physically gulp from nerves, and can't help but let a small giggle slip before you're able to smother them.
North reaches over and hoists Bunny into the sleigh by the back of his boomerang holster. "Ah, get in. Buckle up!" You look around for seat belts, and notice there are none.
"Whoa whoa whoa, where are the bloody seat belts?" Bunny voices your sudden concern. You look over at him to see his forest green eyes wide with panic, as your (e/c) ones now probably are. You're going to be flying, there have to be seat belts. Right?
North laughs heartily as he wraps the reins around his thick arms. "That was just expression!" You begin to get nervous about this whole ordeal, and look up nervously at Jack, who is perched on the top of the sleigh. He shrugs, which doesn't make you feel a whole lot better. "Are we ready?" you hear North ask, and you glance over just in time to see a yeti frantically shaking his head no.
That solidifies your fears. Almost all of your previous excitement is now gone.
"Good! Let's go! Clear!" North shouts, ignoring the frantic yeti's attempts to stop him. He cracks the reins ("Hyah!") and the sleigh lurches forward. The momentum propels you into your seat's back with a thunk, and you grasp one of the golden handrails on the left side of the seat so you're steady. Elves and yetis scatter out of the way, and suddenly Jack is seated next to you, on the opposite end of the sleigh from Bunny.
Bunny, who is clutching the edge of the sleigh with his nails, absolutely terrified.
You hear Jack laugh next to you, and your nervousness gradually fades away. This is turning out to be fun rather fun, and you know Jack would never let you get hurt. Sandy throws his arms in the air like you're on a rollercoaster as the sleigh enters a corkscrew made of ice. You would be out of your seat by now if the sleigh wasn't magic, and if not for Jack's hand over your lap holding you down.
North looks over his shoulder at the four of you, beaming. "I hope you like the loop-tee-loops!"
Bunny gags. "I hope you like carrots!"
North ignores him once again. "Here we go!" Daylight appears up ahead and the sleigh shoots upwards off of a rickety wooden ramp, launching you into the bright blue, arctic sky. Jack whoops as the reindeer climb higher and higher and you turn around in your seat to watch the magnificent North Pole fade into the distance. Who knows if you'll ever see it again.
Jack perches back up on the top portion of the lashing and he grins mischievously. You frown. This can't be good.
"Hey Bunny, check out this view—" he cuts off with a scream, and every memory of Jack flying in front of you suddenly seems to exit your mind as you watch him tumble over the railing.
"Jack!" you shriek, scrambling up onto the seat and leaning over the railing. You feel Bunny arrive next to you only to see Jack lounging on one of the sleigh's skis, staff drifting lazily in the wind. He smiles cockily and focuses on Bunny as he coos, "Aw, you do care."
Bunny's green eyes narrow at Jack's antics. "Ah, rack off ya bloody show pony!" Jack snickers and floats back up to the sleigh, sitting in your previous spot. You let go of the railing and plop down next to him, giving him a solid hit to the arm. "Ow!"
"Don't scare me like that!" you yell. "I know you can fly, but I'm still a human."
He abandons rubbing his sore shoulder to put a comforting hand on your leg. "I'm sorry, snowflake. It won't happen again."
"Hold on, everyone!" North yells, taking Jack's attention off of you. You're grateful that he doesn't see you blush—He's never called you snowflake before. "I know a shortcut!" North adds. He takes something out of his pocket, and when you lean just the right way, you see that it's a spherical snow globe.
He holds it up to his mouth, winking at you teasingly before whispering, "I say . . . Tooth Palace." An image of a colorful palace with beautiful, exotic architecture appears in the globe, and North throws the sphere far in front of the sleigh. A giant vortex appears in your path and you gasp in surprise. North cracks the reins once more before driving towards the portal.
A surreal light surrounds the sleigh as it hits hyper-drive and gets sucked through the vortex with a loud whoosh. After a couple of seconds, the lights disappear, and you peer past the reindeer to see the life-sized version of the palace that appeared in the snow globe. It's beautiful—A palace of colorful columns and small houses carved into a hollowed out mountain.
"Do you see that?" Jack's leaning forward slightly in his seat, blue eyes narrowed in concentration. You originally think he's just talking about the palace but when you follow his gaze, you notice the streaks of black fleeing toward you. "What is that?" he mumbles. You shake your head.
Before you can figure it out, you find yourself surrounded by hundreds of black horses, and thousands of terrified Baby Teeth jetting past. It's like a meteor storm. North yanks on the reins and the sleigh veers sharply to the right to dodge the oncoming slew of obstructions, and you roll out of your seat. You nearly tumble out of the sleigh, but Sandy grabs your hand just in time. He pulls you down to the floor just in time to miss being hit by a crowd of fairies and one of the horses. Bunny crouches next to you on the floor, green eyes taking in your surroundings with confusion.
"They're taking the tooth fairies!" Jack shouts. You glance up just in time to see him fly out of the sleigh, chasing after a lone fairy with one of the black creatures snapping at its heels. He snatches it out of the air just in time before descending back down to you. He crouches next to you, cradling the small, colorful bird in his palms. The poor thing is trembling with fear and you lean over his shoulder to get a better view. "Hey, little baby tooth," he coos, "you okay?"
She nods and titters softly up at him, and suddenly the sleigh enters the vast chamber of the Tooth Palace. Millions of boxes are housed by pillars and columns stacked from floor to ceiling. North spots a horse up ahead, and gestures for Jack to take the reins. "Here." Surprised, Jack passes the still-shaking Baby Tooth to you and steps forward, taking control of the sleigh. Bunny barely has time to protest before Jack grins and snaps the reins.
You hold Baby Tooth carefully and watch North ready his sword, slicing through an oncoming horse. It disintegrates into black sand, covering the bottom of the sleigh. You frown at the golden cylinders that spilled out of its body. "What are those?" you ask.
"They're stealing the teeth!" Bunny shouts loudly. The teeth?
You stand up and out of your crouch, holding onto the side of the sleigh with one hand for balance. The other clutches Baby Tooth to your chest.
You don't notice Bunny and Sandy exchange a concerned look at the black sand.
"Jack, look out!" North's voice cuts through the wind.
Whipping your head around, you see the sleigh is heading right toward a giant magenta pillar. You scream as Jack yanks up on the reins, narrowly missing the column and barreling to a nearby platform. The sleigh skids to a rough halt on the beautiful tiled floor, and you're propelled backwards, hitting your head on the first row of seats. A sharp pain erupts in the back of your skull and you groan.
When you open your eyes a couple seconds later, you see Tooth fluttering high above you in a panic. You look down at your chest to make sure Baby Tooth is still there cupped in your hand, but your palm is empty. Gasping, you forget the pain in your head and struggle to your feet, searching frantically for the fairy.
Jack suddenly appears in front of you and grasps your shoulders. "(y/n), are you okay?" he asks.
"Yeah, I'm fine," you reply distractedly. "Where's Baby Tooth? I can't find her!"
"She's fine," Jack assures you. "She's in my hood." You sag in relief and let your forehead drop onto his collarbone, all of the fear and adrenaline from the past couple of minutes disappearing. He wraps his arms loosely around your shoulders.
"You know," you start, "when I was little and I imagined meeting Santa and the Easter Bunny . . . this was not what I expected." Jack chuckles, and you pick your head up off of his chest to smile at him.
"Tooth!" North yells. "Are you alright?"
Jack and you look away from each other and back at Tooth, who is still flying back and forth in a panic. "They-they took my fairies!" she yells, eyes wide with shock. "And the teeth! Everything is gone!" She sags to the floor, sinking onto her knees as her wings droop in defeat. "Everything."
The other Guardians rush forward to comfort her but you and Jack stay behind. The two of you step out of the sleigh and watch the four of them somberly. Watching their close dynamic, you can't help but feel that you're intruding in some way or another. Out of the corner of your eye, you see Baby Tooth pop her small head out the top of Jack's hood, scanning her surroundings curiously. She catches sight of her mistress and shoots out of his hood with an excited twitter.
Tooth's face visibly brightens upon the Baby Tooth's appearance, and she holds out her hands for her to land in. "Oh, thank goodness! One of you is alright!"
Despite the display of hope in front of you, a sudden sense of fear and unease overwhelms you, and you stumble back slightly. Jack catches your hand. "(y/n), what's wrong?"
"I don't know," you mutter. Your whole body is suddenly incredibly tense and a feeling of fear grips your heart. You grit your teeth and clutch your head at the sharp pain that seems to cut right through your brain. "My head," you groan.
A voice that sounds like silk, yet still manages to make you feel like you're being poked by a thousand needles, emerges from all around you, filling the open chamber: "I have to say, this is very, very exciting."
You, Jack, and the four guardians all look up at a dark figure standing on one of the platforms above you. A thin, sickly-looking man in a black cloak stands looking down at all of you, a pleasant smile adorning his gray, pointed face. His very appearance is like a living nightmare and you shiver as his yellow eyes flicker over you.
You could swear you've seen those eyes before.
You know who this is. "You're the Boogeyman," you find yourself whispering.
"Pitch Black," Jack growls.
Alright, let me know what you think of chapter four! This one was one of my favorites to write. If you have any ideas/suggestions for the story, please let me know! I absolutely love hearing from you guys.
By the way, I have a tumblr account called fandom-what-ifs that is completely dedicated to x Reader oneshots/stories! I write for just about every fandom on there, including Rise of the Guardians! If you have a tumblr, go ahead and give me a look! I have a couple of Jack Frost x Reader oneshots ;)
Review please!