HELLO TO ALL YOU GORGEOUS PEOPLE!

*ducks from various objects* I GET IT! I get it, I'm horrible for not updating for over a week! Bag me out however you like, I know how you feel. But you would not believe how annoying this chapter was to write! My mind was like: "F*ck you! *gives writer's block*" and I was like "NOOOO! MY BEAUTIFUL READERS WILL HATE ME IF I DON'T UPDATE! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME!" And then my brain was like: "MUAHAHAHAH!"

...

Yeah, an interesting story for you guys...but I do have some good news! :D:D:D
I have chapters 10 and 11 done already! And I'm working on chapter 12!
The only catch...I wanna see how much you want them ;)
*ducks from more objects* Hey hey! Geez, calm down, just leave me a review! That's it! That's all I ask for! Even if it's just one word, I just wanna know if you guys are enjoying it! I'm not talking about my frequent reviewers (you guys are awesome!), just the people who have read my story but haven't left one yet. I don't know if you people like my story or not, and the confusion is extremely annoying! Okay? That's all I ask, please leave me a review guys and I'll upload the other chapters :)

Okay, I've had my say, I've given you a quick story of what goes on it my head, and I'm still holding you up. So, without further ado, I present Chapter 9 of Lost History!

Disclaimer: I don't own Rise of The Guardians (*sobs*)

Chapter 9 – Guilt and Regret

(Atheia's POV)

Sandy's death seemed unbearable for everyone. The sleigh ride was awkward and quiet; no one muttered a word about the incident. Heck, no one muttered a word about anything. Even Bunny was quiet about the fact that he was in the sky…and that's saying something.

When the sleigh landed, the yetis rushed over towards it, mumbling garbled nonsense towards North. When they noticed everyone's grim faces and Sandy's absent form, they quietened immediately and awkwardly moved to the other side of the room.

Jack and the other guardians stepped out of the sleigh and made they're way towards the large doors. It was only when the doors slammed shut behind them that I started to cry. I was wiping my watering eyes when I noticed a few grains of golden sand on the bottom of the sleigh. One by one, the dozen grains of sand darkened, and when they all blackened that I looked up. A couple of the yetis stared at me as my eyes leaked out even more tears. They mumbled out a couple of grunts that probably resembled something like 'Are you ok?'

"Oh, I'm fine," I managed say through my catch in my throat.

The yetis obviously didn't believe me, and the disbelief probably grew as I wiped the tears that were escaping from my watering eyes. I stepped out of the sleigh and pushed open the large doors that led to the workshop.

When I stepped out the first thing I noticed was that it was quiet. And I mean deadly quiet. I looked around, realizing all the yetis had abandoned they're posts. There weren't even any elves around to trip you over. The workshop was abandoned.

I walked through hallways and empty routes of the workshop, for once actually hearing the echo of my footsteps. I didn't really have an area in mind; even if I did I wouldn't be able to find it, so I just kept walking, listening to the somewhat calming silence of the workshop.

Eventually, after walking aimlessly through the workshop for what seemed like hours, I came across what I assumed were guest rooms. Ten wooden doors lined the wall, each one with a little pattern design on the front. I walked along the corridor, looking at each of the symbols. There was a four-leafed clover, a heart, a jack-o-lantern, a bed, a clock, a snowflake, a sun, a leaf and a silhouette of something that looked like a groundhog. On the tenth door was a flower. Giving a curious glance up to the flower, I reached out to turn the nob of the door, which for some odd reason refused to open. I tilted my head to side in confusion and gazed back up to the rose symbol on the front of the door. As if in a trance, I gingerly reached up to touch it. On contact, it glowed green and I heard a soft click from the other side of the door. Hesitantly, I slowly turned the nob again. The door easily swung open with a slight creak, and I poked my head inside.

The room was simple. It had three normal wooden walls along with a glass wall on the opposite side of where I stood. The window-like wall was frosted over, and I could make out the snowy wonderland on the other side of the pane. To the right of the room stood a bare desk, a wooden chair tucked underneath and pushed against the glass wall was a bed, neatly made. A wooden side table stood on the other side of the single bed, a simple lamp sitting on top. Other than that, the room was bare, and a layer of dust seemed to coat everything.

I gingerly stepped into the room, pushing the door closed behind me. I heard the lock click automatically as I padded over towards the bed, the wooden floorboards creaking under my weight. I brushed the dust off the white sheets of the bed before sitting down. I fully faced the window, my arms wrapped around my legs and my chin propped up on my knee. My eyes danced over the designs of the frosted glass, and I wiped some away to gaze through the window.

I didn't even realize the salty tears started to trail down my cheeks again as the visions from earlier that night burned into my memory. As I gazed out towards the snow-covered earth, my mind kept replaying that horrible moment in my head, like a broken record player.

Tooth and I were working together side by side, fighting a herd of nightmares that completely surrounded us. We slashed through what seemed like hundreds. During the fight, we sent each reassuring smiles as we sliced through the growing numbers of the corrupted sand horses. I blasted groups of them, each herd exploding into a shower of green sparks. Tooth sliced the nightmares one by one, either with her razor sharp wings or with her hidden dagger, each one crumbling to dust as she slashed through it.

"Whoo! Go Tooth!" I shouted, pumping a fist into the air as The Guardian of Memories grinned and repeated the action.

Almost immediately after uttering the words, I ducked, a nightmare whizzing over my head. It slowed to a stop in the air and turned towards me; snorting in frustration when it realized it missed its target. I gave it a smirk as its glowing eyes glowered at me. It pawed at the floor, preparing to charge.

"That's it…" I murmured, though not loud enough for the nightmare to hear.

I gripped my staff tighter as the nightmare reared up and charged. The sparks crackled at the hook of the staff and I prepared to swing it as the nightmare advanced closer. I smirked as the nightmare came in range, snorting in anger.

"See you in Hell!" I cried, as I swung the glowing rod, causing it to cut through the stallion's body. The black sand of the nightmare glowed green, before exploding into a shower of sparks. "Say hi to Hades for me," I murmured as the remains of the nightmare fluttered towards the ground.

I held my staff up menacingly as I looked at the herd of nightmares in front of me. Strangely, they weren't advancing towards me. I tilted my head in confusion as the herd of nightmare stallions seemed to evilly grin, not at me, but at something behind me.

I turned and to my horror, noticed Sandy in the middle of a whirlpool of nightmares, fighting them off in vain as the swarm grew bigger and bigger. But that's not what terrified me. Hiding in the shadows, I barely noticed the Nightmare King watching Sandy's futile fight against the nightmares. He grinned evilly, and I noticed he was conjuring up a corrupted sand arrow, aiming it at Sandy.

My eyes widened in horror as I almost dropped my staff in shock. Ignoring the herd of nightmares behind me, I scrambled through the wind, asking it to help me get to Sandy.

"SANDY!"I shouted, trying to get the Guardian's attention.

Unfortunately, my cry fell upon deaf ears. Frustrated and scared as hell, I urged Wind to get me there faster. After several terrifying seconds, I eventually reached the swirling storm of nightmares, each one snapping at me as I tried to break through the barrier of black sand. Irritated, I flew up so I hovered above Sandy and the whirlpool of nightmares.

"SANDY!" I cried again, this time getting his attention.

The Guardian of Dreams turned to me, a reassuring, yet confused smile on his face. My eyes widened in panic as I realized that the Guardian was paying attention to me and not the blackened arrow that was aimed at his now perfectly vulnerable back.

I was about to utter a warning just as Pitch let go of the arrow. My breath hitched in my throat as the arrow glided through the air and disappeared in Sandy's back.

The Guardian jerked upwards in shock. He looked me straight at me and gave me a fearful and pained look. Tears pricked my eyes and my heart dropped to my feet as I saw a hint of accusation glimmer in his golden eyes.

"Don't fight the fear, little man!" Pitch laughed, as Sandy turned to face the Nightmare King. I covered my mouth to stop myself from screaming as sand from the wound in Sandy's shoulder blades started to spread through out his entire back.

"Oh and thank you Atheia," Pitch's voice jeered as it echoed throughout my head. I gripped my head in agony as his voice boomed throughout my thoughts. "It makes it so much easier for me to kill my enemies when they aren't paying attention towards me."

His laugh echoed through my head, and I pushed both of my palms against my ears to try and block out his voice, unintentionally letting go of my staff in the process. I clenched my eyes shut as Wind's gripped loosened on me and I plummeted towards the earth. I felt my feet slam onto a floor, and I fell back into what I guessed were the seats of the sleigh. I opened my eyes and picked up my abandoned staff from the floor, cradling the smooth wood in my arms. I curled into a ball in the back of the sleigh as Pitch's words echoed through my mind.

"I'd say sweet dreams…but there aren't any left."

My head jerked up as I heard soft knocking at the door of the room. Uncurling from my position on the bed, I curiously looked towards the closed door as I wiped stray tears from my cheeks. Sliding off the bed, I walked over to the door as the person on the other side knocked again. I grabbed my staff, which stood abandoned near the door way as I cleared my throat. I turned the nob and peaked through the open crack in made. Jack stood on the other side, leaning against his staff. When he saw me he gave a small smile. I noticed his normally mischievously filled eyes now held a look of somewhat depression.

"Hey, I was coming to check up on you," He said awkwardly, while leaning on his staff. "Uh, can I come in?"

I hesitated for a second, before opening the door wider for him, giving him a slight nod. Jack causally walked into the room, glancing around.

"So…you okay?" He asked, turning to me.

"Hmm? Oh, yeah," I lied, avoiding eye-contact with the winter spirit.

"You sure?" He asked, walking closer. "You seem tense."

'Yeah, I feel tense alright; Sandy's dead because of me!' I didn't say that though. Instead, I turned my attention towards my staff, using my free hand to trace the green swirls that were dimly glowing on the wooden surface of it. I didn't notice the depressed frown that automatically overtook my features, but Jack sure did. Jeez, you'd think after 291 years I'd learn to hide my emotions? Nope!

"Is it because of…" Jack coughed as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "…recent events?"

I looked up into his icy blue orbs. The gleam in his eyes that was normally filled with curiosity, fun and mystery was gone, and was replaced with a look of sadness and genuine concern. He gripped my shoulders so I wouldn't look away.

"Please tell me what's wrong. I heard you crying before, so don't just tell me you're okay; it's obvious you're not."

"Seriously, what's up with you?" I joked, attempting to steer away from the topic of conversation. "Since when are you so compassionate?"

"Ever since my best friend started crying and won't tell me why," Jack deadpanned, letting go of my shoulders and crossing his arms across his chest.

I cringed. So much for that... I looked away from his piercing orbs and turned to the window. The fluffy snow swirled and danced around in the wind, eventually settling on the white, snow mounds. Through the corner of my eye, I saw Jack raise an eyebrow at me. I sighed, turning back to him and staring into his worrisome orbs.

"Sorry, it's just been…a rough night," I said, leaning on my staff.

The winter spirit eyed me for a little bit longer, probably attempting to find any sort of lie in my excuse. Well, it's not like it was a complete lie; it just wasn't the total truth….

Eventually, after a couple seconds of painfully awkward silence, Jack sighed, leaning on his staff. "Yeah, I guess it has," He looked into my emerald eyes, giving me a small smile.

I forced a smile on my face in return, trying to ignore the feelings of guilt swirling in my stomach. Before anyone could say anything else, Bunny scrambled up to the still-open door frame, causing our heads to jerk in his direction.

"Trouble in the globe room; you gotta see this!" He breathed, sending a panicked look our way. He gestured towards the hallway, and Jack jumped into the air to follow him.

"You coming?" He asked, noticing I hadn't moved.

"Yeah, you go, I'll catch up," I said, gesturing my hand towards the door. He gave me a questioning look, before muttering an 'ok' and disappearing down the hallway.

When I was sure he had disappeared, I turned back to the view out the window. Holding back tears, I cupped my hand together and clenched my eyes shut, conjuring up the power in my palms. I felt something soft and light appear in my hands and I opened my eyes to a deeply green coloured leaf about the size of my two cupped hands. Before my eyes, a thin line of green magic etched over it, creating a humanly figure. I walked over to the pillow of the single bed, placing the leaf memorial down just as the glowing lines finished off the silhouette of Sandy's figure. Scrawled at the bottom in curved writing were the words: Sandy; Guardian of Dreams. A single tear slid down my cheek as I swirled my hands around, conjuring up exactly fifteen, yellow roses, tied off with a blue bow. The bouquet floated in the air for a couple of seconds, before descending down and placing itself next to the memorial leaf.

"I'm sorry Sandy," I muttered to myself, glancing out the window again, hoping he might magically appear on the other side of the frosted glass. Sighing, I took one last glance at the leaf memorial and the bouquet of flowers before jumping up into the air and zooming off towards the globe room, asking Wind to shut and lock the door behind me.

"North! What happened? Is everything okay?" I asked when I reached the globe room. I inwardly cringed at everyone's grim expression, before my eyes caught sight of the globe. I gasped as I noticed the giant decrease of the golden lights that would normally have been covering the globe. Now, hundreds seemed to go out in mere seconds. "The believers…"

"Look how fast they're going out," Tooth cried out in an almost painful way.

"Its fear," Jack mumbled, floating over to the globe and hovering above Asia. "He's tipped the balance."

"Well, what are we going to do? We can't let them all die out!" I cried, but North and Tooth just replied with sad and defeated looks.

My eyes widened at the two guardians as there shoulders slumped in defeat. It was then that I realized that Pitch was right; the believers did take their toll on the Guardians. It was obvious that they were getting weaker and weaker as each light went out. I opened my mouth to say something probably really awe-inspiring when Bunny beat me to it.

"Ey, buck up ya sad sacks!" He cried, hopping over to stand in front of all of us. "We can still turn this around! Easter is tomorrow, and I need your help." A wide grin spread across my face as Jack curiously floated down from the globe. North and Tooth's expressions brightened at Bunny's words, and with a smile, he continued. "I say we pull out all stocks and get all those lights flickering again!"

Jack, Tooth, North and I exchanged looks, nodding towards each other.

I turned towards Bunny with the biggest grin on my face. "Let's do it."

The Pooka smiled back, and a look of determination swept over North's features as he walked over to the wooden doors.

"Bunny is right!" North declared, pushing open the old, wooden doors with ease.

The rest of us followed him out, with me hovering over the jolly guardian's shoulder. North led us to the wooden elevator I had seen on my first day at the workshop, and we all squeezed in it as it started to descend to the lower floors of the workshop.

"As much as it pains me to say old friend," North continued as the elevator stopped on the lowest floor. "This time Easter is more important than Christmas," North kicked open the gate and we all walked out of the tiny elevator towards the stables.

I looked over to Bunnymund to see his mouth drop open and his eyes to nearly pop out of his head. "Hey, did everyone hear that?!" He cried, looking around as if to find someone who denied him. I giggled at the Pooka, before jogging up to the others.

"We must hurry to the Warren! Everyone to the sleigh!" North cried, before stopping short as Bunny hopped in front of him.

"Oh, no way, mate. My Warren, my rules. Buckle up," He said with a smirk as he tapped his foot on the ground.

North's eyes widened as we all stood still for a terrifying moment. "Shostakovich!"

I felt the ground under me give way, and the Guardians, Jack and I fell. I screamed as I slid along my mossy surface of the tunnel, slipping and falling on my stomach. I could hear Jack laughing behind me, and I flipped my body around to see him sliding up the sides of the tunnel with ease.

"Show off!" I yelled, struggling to keep a hold of my staff while attempting to stand up, only to fall back down again.

I saw Bunny hopping along behind Jack, winking at me as we all slid down the tunnel. Eventually, the ground of the tunnel gave way, and I was launched into the air for a couple of seconds, before landing on the grass.

Yep, note to self: learn how to freaking tunnel surf. I groaned as I stood up, using my staff as support as I brushed some of the moss off my shorts.

North laughed as he struggled into a sitting position. "Buckle up…is very funny."

"Welcome to the Warren!" Bunny cried, as a couple of egg statue things came to stand next to him. I stood, gazing at the Warren with wide eyes as I scanned every inch of the area I was in.

Suddenly, Bunny straightened up, pulling me out of my trance. He turned around, ears pricked up and twitching. "Something's up…"

I turned towards another tunnel, which seemed to have an army of eggs running out of it. I gave them a quick, confused glance before turning my attention back to the tunnel as high-pitched noises started coming from it. Bunny pulled out his boomerangs as did North with his swords, both pointing their weapons towards the tunnel. Jack and I stuck out our staffs defensively as the noises seemed to get closer and the egg statues' heads rotated around, showing an angry look towards the tunnel. Bunny let out a battle cry and we all charged forwards with our weapons out, only to abruptly stop as a little girl emerged from the darkness of the tunnel, clutching a couple of the eggs to her chest.

Instantly, I recognized the small girl. I gazed at her in confusion as one, emerald green eye stared back at us, the other one hidden under her messy, blonde bangs. Her mouth was agape as the eggs squirmed in her arms.

"Sophie?"

There ya go!

I really felt the feels in this, and I wrote it! Again, apologies it took forever for me to get this on paper (? or the computer ?), it was really being a bitch to write! Next chapter is The Warren! Remember...you have to prove to me that you want it ;)

On with the responses!

Review Responses:

storygirl99210: Ahahaha! Sorry, I'm evil, the Warren chappie is after this one! Remember, review if you want it sooner!

booklover1598: Thanks! Glad you like it! Thanks for reviewing!

JustPlainOldMe: Thanks, I'm happy you liked it, like this one, it was a little difficult to write, but I appreciate your patience. I also thought it would be hilarious if Atheia tried to drive the sleigh, ya know, considering her first reaction to it ;)

Guest/Jenny: No problem! I love talking to my reviewers! Glad you liked the chapter! "Best Authors Ever"? Awww really? *blushes* Thank you! Happy to be of service! ;)

Guest: No problem! I really don't mind, it helps make this story better! I absolutely hate confusion when it comes to my stories, so I'm glad I cleared that up for you. But if you ever get irritated by it, just tell me and I'll edit it :) I'm glad you like fluffy friendships too! They're so adorable! But keep and eye out for clues in the story, I'm sneakily planting little clues of her identity through out the story, see if you can spot them! Guess if you have an idea! ;)

ctem335: I'm sorry that there's no romance, but after this story I've got a little plot bunny written down for a romance story, which I might start after I finish this, I hope you could read it when I publish it! I'm glad you like my story, update for more :D

Well that's all from me folks! Remember to review for more, and if you're new to this story please favourite and follow if you like it so far!
Updates are soon to come, and I only own what you don't recognize in the movie!

Farewell all you lovely people!

CrystalxRose