Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen or Rise of the Guardians.
Thank you to BaeKat101 for the following this story! Also, thank you to the guest that reviewed. I always appreciate your thoughts! I hope you all had a happy Thanksgiving and I hope you enjoy this chapter as well.
Elsa was waiting with a smile on her face. The next fairy she had caught was released, used to bring the Guardians here. She knew Pitch would be satisfied with the results, seeing all of those precious protectors of children gathered here. It was her job to send as much fear into them as possible while Pitch spoke with them. Things were going to be very interesting, that was something she was certain of. Even as she thought this, she once again began to have minor doubts about the plan. Did she really want to embrace being a monster? Did she really want to give up fighting to control herself?
Pitch glanced at her, seeing the troubled look on her face. "Don't worry too much, Elsa. As long as we are together, you will always have someone who understands you, who knows your deepest fears and can help you overcome them." he told her with a grin. He was having so much fun manipulating her and his words always seemed to do the trick. Her face seemed to clear of doubts and she looked reassured and relieved. It was so obvious that she longed to be accepted even with her powers. That made it easy to keep her by his side.
Pitch grabbed her hand and pulled her with him, riding towards where the Guardians had landed and were grouped together. "I think it is time to announce our presence, don't you?" he asked Elsa. She glanced at his yellow eyes and nodded, feeling confident in his plan. He knew this group better than she did, so even if she didn't understand his methods she would follow his lead.
Pitch turned his attention away from her and towards the group below them. He was surprised to see two extra individuals, one human and another spirit, with the Guardians. It did not matter at this point; It didn't interfere with his plan. "I have to say, this is very, very exciting. The Big Four, all in one place. I'm a little starstruck. Did you like my show on the globe, North? Gotcha all together, didn't I?" he called out, smiling as he thought back to the first stage in his plan. They truly were all together and they had even brought extras, a bonus for him.
North heard his yell and was disappointed with himself for falling for this trap. This had been exactly what Pitch wanted, but it was clear that Tooth was even angrier than he was. "Pitch! You have got thirty seconds to return my fairies-" she began, but Pitch was already laughing, amused with her near-threat. "Or what? You'll stick a quarter under my pillow?" he responded, clearly not thinking it was worth the effort. Elsa had been watching in the background, but her eyes were stuck on one individual down below. Anna was here, alive and well. It wasn't possible, Pitch told her that Anna was dead. She could feel panic rising in her, creating snow around her and increasing in power.
Pitch ignored the snow, continuing in their banter. He had already told them what he wanted but now he wanted answers for the newcomers. He wanted to know why they were here. "Is that…Jack Frost? Since when are you all so chummy?" he asked, glancing at the winter spirit. It might be interesting to see what he would do when he met Elsa, but it would not cause a problem with his plan. "We're not." Jack responded, making Pitch feel slightly relieved.
Elsa was angry, though, angry with Pitch and angry with the Guardians. All of them had betrayed her at one point and she was done. She was done being good, done keeping her power contained. "You lied to me." she said, one small statement but it held all of her fury in those words. Pitch glanced back at her, slightly distracted by her comment. "About what? Never mind, we can deal with this after we deal with them. As for you, Jack, I'm just going to ignore you, but you must be used to that by now." he commented, realizing that this was not the right time to discuss this with Elsa.
Anna had seen her sister now and she tried to run forward, past the circle of Guardians in front of her. Two arms held her back, specifically the arms of Jack Frost. "Anna, hold on a second. Something isn't right about her." Jack told her, looking into the eyes of the girl above them. They did not look like the eyes of the girl he had seen last year, the eyes that were kind and gentle, but frightened. These eyes looked angry and hateful, like they wanted to destroy everyone in front of her.
"I am done listening to you! You lied to me, told me my sister was dead. You betrayed me and now it is my turn to show you what I can do." Elsa yelled, feeling her powers begin to rage out of control. "Bunny, go help her!" North yelled, seeing that this girl was about to fight. Perhaps she would be a good Guardian, one that would be good with helping children.
"Haven't you figured this out yet, girl? You are no match for me. My nightmares smell your fear and they feed on it, just like me." Pitch told her, preparing for her attack. To prove his point, a nightmare by his side was clearly riled up, scraping its hooves across the ground as if it wanted to charge forward. Elsa looked at the horse and took a deep breath, calming her fear. She had lived with fear for so long, for almost her entire life. Now, she was embracing it and her power, turning that fear into anger and hatred. The horse calmed down with her, and she smirked at Pitch, glad that she had control over something at least. The blizzard was still raging out of control, making it almost impossible to see anyone in the snow but she could see Pitch. His black hair was a stark contrast against the white of the snow. Even so, it was a bad idea to start a fight with limited visibility, so she reduced the strength of the storm.
"You think she's afraid of you? Ha, no one's been afraid of you since the Dark Ages!" Bunny commented, stepping forward to help. He had his boomerang ready, waiting to strike whenever the time was right. Elsa glared at him, knowing that even though Anna was alive he should have come sooner to help. When they were children, Elsa had struggled so much and been so afraid. She had needed them then, but now it was too late. She was done depending on others for protection. It was her job to protect herself and her sister. No one would stand in her way, not Pitch and not these Guardians.
Pitch sighed, remembering the good days when everyone believed in him. He was invisible to the world now, but that was going to change. He was determined to do so, even if Elsa refused to help. "Oh the Dark Ages! Everyone frightened, miserable, such happy times for me. Oh the power I wielded! Then the Man in the Moon chose you to replace my fear with your wonder and light. Lifting their hearts and giving them hope. Meanwhile everyone just wrote me off as a bad dream. Oh there's nothing to be afraid of! There's no such thing as the Boogeyman! Well that's all about to change. Oh look, it's happening already." he said, glancing down towards Tooth.
Elsa could see the changes to the area around her and the Tooth Fairy below. Perhaps belief truly was everything to the magical beings in this world, but she was not from here. She did not need belief to be strong, she was strong on her own. "Who cares if you are real? I am going to make sure all of you disappear from the world, never to be seen again. All of you abandoned me or betrayed me. This belief you are all so desperate to have will vanish completely for all of you." Elsa claimed, blasting both Bunny and Pitch with her ice magic. Pitch stumbled back slightly, but remained on the platform. Bunny was the one that flew off, falling through the sky as he clutched his stomach that had been struck.
Bunny gasped when he felt the cold strike his stomach hard. He was ice for just a moment, until Jack flew over and caught him. The motion of flying reminded him of the sleigh and he suddenly wished he was back in the Warren, where he didn't have to worry about falling out of the sky. Luckily, it was only a brief flight and he was brought back to the others safely, where Tooth was looking pretty down about her lack of belief.
North was staring at the girl, the girl that clearly was lost. She needed their help, but he did not know what to do for her. He had not heard of her before today, which was strange. He brought toys to the children of the world, he should have known her when she was younger, before she was chosen. "Elsa, stop! Please, I know this isn't you!" Anna yelled, still trapped behind them. Elsa looked up, hearing her sister's voice. Her anger vanished for just a moment, thinking about how innocent her sister was, how strongly she believed in these people. Even if she didn't know how the Easter Bunny suddenly could fly, she knew that Anna had some explanation.
"Anna?" she asked, her voice quiet compared to the storm around her. It had begun raging again when she decided to attack, but she could still find her sister in the snow. Looking at the group around Anna, Elsa realized she had to get her sister away from them. No one could protect her, not like Elsa could. None of them would do it, either. They were too concerned with getting belief to actually protect people like they were supposed to. "Yes, it's me Elsa! Calm down and let me talk to you, please!" Anna begged, seeing the storm lessen slightly.
Elsa heard her words and backed away, realizing what she wanted. Anna didn't understand, she didn't realize how these people had abandoned them when they first came here. They had needed them far sooner and Anna didn't care. Anna accepted them and clearly wanted to stay with them. This betrayal stung even more than Pitch's, the betrayal from her own sister. "You do not understand, Anna! They tell nothing but lies, all of them! Anything to get just a shred of belief!" Elsa yelled, desperate to bring Anna to her side.
Anna looked at her sister sadly, not knowing what had happened over the last year. Her sister would never have been this angry or upset with anything. Clearly this man, Pitch, had done something to her. Glancing at the Guardians around her, she knew that they would help her sister recover from whatever was wrong. "You are wrong, Elsa. They protect anyone who believes, and that includes you and me!" she called back. Elsa heard those words and it felt like a knife to her heart. Everything around her got even colder and the storm grew worse, shaking some of the buildings around her with the strength of the wind. "If that is what you believe, then you can be destroyed with the rest of them! All of you are liars and betrayers. Next time we meet. I will destroy all of you!" Elsa yelled, knowing that Pitch would weaken them for her. Once he had finished his usefulness, she could kill them all. Glancing at the nightmare next to her, she began stroking its mouth just like Pitch did before. He had taught her to tame these creatures and this one would be hers, her ride of darkness that would take her through the skies and to her new home. After all, a lair of darkness did not fit a snow queen.
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