Aaaaaand PART 12! I know you want twelve, you want twelve of them! You want twelve parts! Ask, and ye shall recieve~! Ye shall have twelve, and more than twelve! A LOT! Well, as much I come up with! XD Enjoy, my snowflakes~~~~~~~~~(so many SQUIGGLIES! I have an obsession wif squigglies. WARNING: They WILL pop up in conveniently placed- er... Places.) THE OBVIOUS DISCLAIMER IS SO OBVIOUS THAT I CAN'T EVEN COMPREHEND THAT YOU HAVEN'T NOTICED IT YET. Art thou blind, heathen?! Naaaah, that would be silly~~ then you wouldn't be able to read this piece of awesomesauce shit that I made for you! And then I'd be sad~~~~ and that shit be bad bro. Like drugs and Mexican water. Don't make Azure sad. PostIt note that to your forehead. Mucho importante. Wow, I'm talking a lot. I'm just gonna, ya know, yeeaaaaBYE!


~Previously, in the Guardians' Guardian~

The smile is whiped from his face when you drop the dust-covered boomerang at his feet. "What is this? Bunny's Boomerang? Why would you.." his eyes grow wide with understanding as he spots the sand. "PHIL! Prepare sled. I am going to Warren!"

~And Now, Part 12~

North's Workshop is ripe with hustle and bustle, the Yetis springing -or should the term be 'lumping'?- to prepare the sleigh for North's departure. The big man himself was making his own preparations. You watched, impatiently pacing as he gathered up his coat upon his shoulders and strapped his dual sabers to his hips. When he turned to you, intending to pick you up and take you with him. Normally, you would've already been jumping at the sides of the sleigh, yipping in excitement. C'mon, this sleigh is da bomb~ Everyone loves ze sleigh~ This time, you back away slightly, shaking your head. North looks confused, not understanding. You just shake your head again, this time more vigorously, and proceed to tug him towards the loading dock by the laces of his boots. He chuckles, but moves along and into his seat. Taking the reins, he turns again just in time to see you wave your tail at him in farewell and teleport to the Warren. He stares, aghast, at the spot you'd just vacated. Knowing your strong will, he assures his conscience that you can take care of yourself, and flies off to the Warren. A quick flash of a snowglobe portal, and he's gone.

He arrives at the Warren, swords drawn and scowl blazing, expecting to find enemies ready to attack. He barrels through the tunnel opening, raring to go. Instead, he almost trips over you. Your still in your fox form, staring at his now sprawled position in canine exapseration. Oohhhh, yeeesssss, very threatening. A fat old guy bumbling around, swinging his cute little swords. I've seen better on AFV. And dat shits crazy stupid. You trot up to his upside down face, lick his nose, and then move past to the center of the Warren. Habitually, you morph into your doe form. This little detail is not missed by North, now on his feet, who is already puzzled by your previous 'POOF' trick back at the Pole. He gapes at you, yet attempts to appear discreet.

"Little One? Are you my Malinki Iskra?" He's wary of you, not sure of this new change. You hesitantly nod. Last time this happened, I was stripped of my closest friend. Baby steps... "Did Manny create you?do you have other forms?" A small whisper in your head, most obviously Mim, gives its assent to your decision. Oh, so NOW its okay to spill the beans. Thaaanks, broski. Feelin the love, here. You nod again. Moving to your grotto, you pull out the stash of emergency clothes from a small crevice near the entrance. Carrying the clothes back to the center clearing and finding a proper sized bush, you morph again for North. This time, you take your human form. It has been a long time since you'd used your original body. Your (h/l/c) hair is messy and knotted, and your (s/c) skin slightly smudged with grime. Wrinkling your nose, you dress quickly and come out to confront your excited Russian companion.

"H-Hi Nooorth-th." Your voice is smoky and scratched, not having been used since... Well, lets just say you haven't used it in a while. Sweet Baby Jesus, I sound like a fucking smoker. Uuugggghhhhh. Ew. "Umm, do you remember me?" A look passes over North's face. His eyes flicker, as if watching a movie. Mim must be showing him the memories he took away. I wonder if he provides mental popcorn for the show... Suddenly, a hint of recognition spreads across his features. He smiles at you, coming forward to hug you tightly.

"AhahaHAH! (F/N)! Of course, the wee little devil of Jack's!" you cringe at this, his name stabbing you deeply, "How I forget!" He swings you both in circles, your heels flying and your head going fuzzy. Well, SOMEONE missed me. But if I could just... Move...

"N-North... Ribs... Fracturing... Internal bleeding... Imminent..." You gasp in his ear. He chuckles again, quickly dropping you to the ground. You bend over, gasping and grabbing him for balance as you hold your aching midriff. After a moment, you right yourself and look to North again.

"North, its great to see you too, but we have to inform the others. Bunny is in terrible danger. Go quickly, I need to have a private converstaion with Mim/Manny... And hopefully get a bath..." North nods.

"Of course, Little One. Take as much time as necessary." With this, he moves off to find his sleigh. You take a seat at the base of a nearby tree, ready for an argument of a lifetime.

"Hey, Mim? Ummmm, I think we kinda maybe sorta have a situation here."

Yes, (f/n), it appears we do.

"Hehehe... Soooo, what're we gonna do? I HAVE to be able to communicate with them, and that is nigh near IMPOSSIBLE while frozen and silent. I-I... I am asking you in the kindest and most supplicant voice right now: Please, lift my restrictions. I won't let my feelings get in the way! I'll be a true soldier and get the job done without any bumps! I promise! Besides, it seems he's moved on quite well..." Mim is silent for a moment, probably trying to decide the best course of action. After a while, he sighs.

My dearest (f/n), I will lift the barriers. But please, you will not be able to protect them all with your heart set on only one.

You breath deep in relief and elation. "Thank you, Mim. I understand."

Just be careful, child. You are worth more than you know.

With this, you feel his presence fade away. Jumping up, you feel a giddy sensation run through you. You squeal, dancing spazzily as you make you way to a small waterfall near the edges of the Warren. You strip quickly, eager to be clean again. CLEANCLEANCLEANCLEANCLEAN Sliding into the cold water, you shiver at the delicious feeling of it against your skin. Taking a small fern from the edge of the pool, you use it to scrub the dirt from your body. God, I must've looked like a fucking leopard or something with all these spots. Finally managing to free yourself of your dirty confines, you move to deeper water. Dipping below the surface, you runs your hands through your (h/c) mane of snarls and tangles. I guess it IS pretty nifty that I don't HAVE to breath anymore~ North must've cracked a few ribs though... Owwwwieeee

Coming back to the surface, you smooth your hair back from your face. Shaking the water from your ear, you decide on a swim. You go for around 12 laps, {hehe~ 12~ get it~ cuz its part 12~ Hehehehe~ STFU author-chan~} before you stop. You aren't tired, you can't get tired. What stops you is how the air had turned almost as cold as the water. You stay very still, feeling the temperature drop behind you. When it drops to about freezing, you turn abruptly, startling Jack and splashing him with water -which turns to ice shards upon impact. He's hovering over the surface of the pool, seemingly stunned, as if he didn't expect you to notice him peeping in on your bathing time~. Your glare is mutinous, ready to make him bald if looks any farther down than your eyes. Both of you stare at each other, a contest of wills. After around 30 seconds, Jack's eyes ghost downward.

"THE FUCK, DUDE." You grab his foot and pull him under the water. He splutters to the surface, but you'd already swam to shore and hidden behind a rock. "DON'T YOU KNOW ITS WRONG TO WATCH A LADY BATH?! PERVERTED BASTARD, POPSICLE DICKFACE, ICE FILLED ASSHAT." You quickly dress as your very UN-ladylike insults fly~, then come out from your hiding place, foot tapping and face thunderous. "WHY I OUGHTTA-" your promising threat is cut short by a familiar and disgusting voice coming from the opposite bank.

"JAAACK! {dis bitch don't deserve mah squigglies} Water you doing here, baby? I thought you current gonna visit until Saturday!" {haha. I made her use stupid water-based puns. Bitch got no swag~~ Only Feferi and her ancestors be dat awesomesauce} DIS BITCH THO. I AM SICK AND TIRED OF HER SLUT-TASTICNESS. I'M GONNA KILLABITCH. The Water Nymph from earlier slips slinkily into the water, wrapping herself around Jack like a disease. With a snort of disgust, you turn and head for the clearing.

"H-Hey! Wait up!" You hear Jack call out from the water. Not bothering to turn around, you lift your middle finger in salute to his Frozen Asshole Highness. Teleporting to North's soul piece resonance, you step quickly into a dark hallway. You wipe the angry tears from your (e/c) eyes, not wanting North and the others to see you weak. You ARE they're protector, after all.

Yeah, some protector. This shit is gonna be interesting...