Heads Up: Find a comfortable seat to read in because it's long.
Final Shout-outs:
Blueberry Ninja: Thank. You.
Caithlinn13: I know! But I just got so sick of staring at that chapter and just kind of wrote gibberish as t get to the part I wanted. All I can say is that this chapter is gonna be good :)
AlexJohnD: Ha! You really think I'd kill off my favorite character? NOPE. Jackie-pooh is off limits from death. The Mark Twain quote actually wasn't used for its full potential since I decided to pull a few scenes back and into this chapter instead. So I guess you can think that it's also for this chapter, too.
Darkblade 2.0: Aw, it's okay, hun. It is addicting, though I've never played the PC versions. :) Haha, glad you liked it, and no that wasn't Jack's suicide attempt. He figured Tooth would catch him. Oh, I'm supposed to die the tips of my hair aqua or turquoise soon! Hope yours turned out okay (my friend has blond hair and added dark blue, and she apparently did it wrong and got green) (Just now realizing my hair looks green in my profile pic. 0_0)
lovepuppy316: See? That dream fits perfectly with Jack and his fear... And Jack is clothed. Sorry to break it to yah XD
Happy 4th of July everybody, USA's Independence day! Red, white and blue all around! (And if you're not American, well, hope you're having a lovely and normal day while we dress up and blow up fireworks tonight.)
After listening Pandora for SEVERAL hours and not sleeping, I've been able to give you the Final Chapter:
Believed In, Feared In
"You can only come to the morning through the shadows" -J.R.R Tolkien
North whipped the reigns to the reindeer, encouraging them to go faster as he gave a roaring laugh. "See, Jack," he called over his shoulder. "Guardians will protect you." Jack cackled with the old man as his chest rose deeply. Just moments ago he watched Tooth about to catch him but then knocked to the side by a fearling. His plan was for her to catch him. She was going to save him.
The boy didn't answer, his fingers fiddling with the old and withered tan long-sleeved shirt. He's always worn it under his hoodie after all these years. He'd watched as three hundred years flashed before him, and he truly thought it would be end to Jack Frost. That is, until North came out of nowhere, and caught him just moments before he would have met his untimely demise. It scared him that after all these years, he'd die so simply from something so mortal as a fall.
The winter spirit was so helpless without his staff. Without it, he couldn't control the wind or his power. He was defenseless, nothing more than a human, except for the fact that he couldn't be seen by other humans. Truly, he was nothing without it. "North, where's Tooth?" Jack shouted to the older man.
"Tooth? She's somewhere! Probably finding Sandy."
Jack quickly looked over the side, leaning halfway out of the sleigh. He had to get his staff from her, unless he wanted to be a sitting duck for the rest of this fight. As he scanned the area, fearlings flew past the sleigh, some turning their attention to the winter boy and Santa Claus. North saw them circling the sleigh. "Jack, you get-..." He then realized that Jack was without his staff.
Jack noticed the hesitation in his voice and looked at the older man. He truly was worthless without his staff.
"Take the reigns, will you?"
When he moved over to take the reigns, he smiled a bit. The last time North let him drive, they basically crash landed. The two switch places just in time for North to slash through an oncoming fearling. And then came another, and another. There were so many that Jack was trying to dodge them while attempting to remain in the air.
Off in the distance he saw in the street the Tooth Fairy with his shepherd's crook in hand. Before warning North, he veered to left, heard the groan gasp of North as he tried to keep his balance, and headed towards Toothiana. This was his chance to get his staff and show the guardians he was still good for this fight. Just a little bit more-
As his mind was stuck only on his staff, he failed to see the three fearlings lined together that came his way and rammed into the side of the sleigh. The force of their hit made the sleigh tilt and wood tore from main structure, splinters flying and Jack had to shield his eyes with his arms, but that allowed the sleigh to spin out less control.
The reindeer, spooked and confused started trying to run in any direction they could, taking the winter boy down and through the forest on outskirts of Burgess. Branches scratched and clawed past his face as the caribou went lower and lower into the forest and finally reaching the rocky earth of the forest.
The deer twisted and pulled the sleigh, but it skidded and knocked into the trees. The jolt was just enough to break the hitch connecting the sleigh and reindeer. The sleigh wasn't going anywhere now.
Jack, who'd been pushed into the back out of the sleigh, groggily stood up, his back aching and head pounding. Dear Moon, how many times can a person take of hitting their head until their brain exploides? he mocked while he looked around and saw the glistening of his lake just yards away from he and the ruins of the sleigh. North was going to kill him. Actually, where was the man.
"North?!" he called out, but he was nowhere to be seen. He must've fallen off earlier, hopefully when they were lower to the ground. He could worry about that later though. He ran in the direction he last saw Tooth. The city of Burguess was on the other side of the small pond. He'd just have to pass that and go over there and find her-
Or have her run into him at full speed.
The wind was knocked out of his lungs as her shoulder stabbed into his gut. Not expecting the force, he fell with Tooth on top of him with a wing in his face. "Tooth," he sputtered with a ragged breath. He patted her on the shoulder. "Tooth... Need you off."
She groaned as she sat up and got off of the winter spirit. "Sorry, Jack. A nightmare attacked me and I spun out of control."
"Never mind that. Where's my staff?"
Her eyes widened suddenly, remembering. "I- I lost it when I got hit. It has to be close though." Her wings started to beat, raising her into the air. "Don't worry, I'll find it, Jack." She turned just in time to see the racing fearling and quickly move out of its way. "They just never give me a break!" She buzzed after it as another few started following behind her.
Jack shook his head. If he wanted his staff, he'd have to find it himself. He ran over to where his pond was, and he saw it there. In a tree beside the lake his staff hung in one of the higher branches. Coming closer to it, he realized there was no chance in climbing. The wind whistled around as he started to call to it. "Come on, wind. Just one time. Just a little bit of air to knock it out."
He begged an pleaded as the wind picked up. "Yah, that's it, wind. Just a little bit more."
The branches waved and brushed one another as the staff slipped from them and fell onto the iced pond. He sighed and started running towards after he thanked the wind. But while he was trying to get the shepherd's staff from the tree, he didn't notice the black sand stallion with white puppiless eyes stalking him. It was only when Jack felt the force of its hooves on his back knock him down did he realize it was there.
He quickly rolled to the side to miss the hooves from crushing him, the ice chipping as the stallion stomped on it. Jack tried to get up, but more came and knocked him back down. There had to be a dozen now, all surrounding him on his lake. The one from before raised its front feet once more, and this time there was no place for Jack to go.
Jack squeezed his eyes shut, waiting for the impact of the hooves on his chest that were sure to leave marks.
But it never came. When he opened his eyes, Jack saw the black sand sprinkled on his tan shirt and the ice around him.
"I leave yah for a few minutes, and I find ya on the other side of town and havin' all the fun," Jack heard someone yell as another fearling fell to dust from an unexpected boomerang spliced through it.
The boomerang was caught by a smirking, six foot one Pooka. Bunnymund. One of the stallions huffed, clawing its hoof on the ground before charging. But just as it came ten feet in front of him, a pink egg grenade was thrown at the fearling. In puff of pink, the egg and the horse were destroyed. The rest began to turn their attention to the Pooka. Now was Jack's chance.
Struggling to his feet, he ran on the ice of his pond to where his staff laid, but something wrapped around his leg and pulled, bring him to his hands and knees. He tried to run, but the thing on his leg wouldn't budge. "Dammit!" he cursed aloud, frustrated with how the world refused him to be reunited with his staff.
The thing on his leg yanked him back farther away from his staff. Flipping onto his back, Jack got a good look at the black sand whip that was now rubbing his ankle raw. Black sand. When it was there, Pitch was close by, and oh how right he was.
"So much struggling for just a little piece of firewood."
Jack turned around and saw the dark man pick up his staff. His blood boiled and froze all at the same time from fear and anger. Between clenched teeth, he mumbled to the older man, "If you know what's good for you, you'd give that back."
"For what's good for me?" he laughed with that British accent of his, his golden cat eyes watching to frost boy carefully. "I don't think you're in any position of authority. Besides," He twiddled the staff between his fingers, "I'll be calling the shots once the guardians are out of the way. This world will be run on nothing but fear, known by everyone and teach everyone the power of what real fear can do."
"What about all the other spirits?" Jack asked.
"Oh, they'll be given the choice to work for me or let fear swallow them like it will for anyone else who defies me. And a part of that is why I'm here. You were my ally, so my question is if you still are or if you've changed your mind." He held the staff horizontally, stroking the wood, feeling the grooves that shaped its skin. "If you changed your mind, then you'll end up just like the guardians will. But if you choose to come back to me, then we can put this ordeal behind us. You're choice."
Jack almost laughed. Was he really that stupid? To think that he would ever ally with that monster. His shoulders shook as he tried suppress his laughter. "You still don't get it. I want nothing to do with you. Everything about you makes me sick. What you are doing is destroying these kids lives and killing honorable spirits, your own kind." His voice started to rise. "Though the guardians have their rough spots, their still better than you'll ever be, and I'd rather be stuck with that annoying kangaroo than have to listen to anymore of your speeches."
At that, Jack found himself on his side and his cheek burning, the blood rushing to it. His vision blurred as he looked at the Nightmare King that had swung at him with his own staff. "I'm starting to get really sick of you," he sneered as he dropped the staff with a clatter and held his hand out as black sand was magnetized to it. It shaped into his favorite scythe, a weapon that has brought so much death in tales of old and never forgotten. Raising the blade above his head, he added, "You should have stayed with the dead where you belonged."
./../\..\.
Sandy pulled the children along after Jack had run off, trying to get them to a safer location, but those fearlings just had to be everywhere tonight. Crossing a street, he had to quickly jump up to miss from being trampled by a fearling's hooves and hopped on the back of it. As he concentrated during the stallion's bucking, trying to knock him off, he spread his golden sand to it and changed it instead to a unicorn.
One of the children wearing a pink tutu laughed and smiled at seeing the gold animal. But just as he was smiling back at the girl, he failed to see the other fearling which swooped down and spliced through the unicorn, destroying it into a puff of gold.
Another six followed after and all with their sights on the Sandman and children with him. Pulling out his whips, the gold man flicked it towards one of the nightmares and destroyed it, but before the whip could be retracted, another bit onto the end and yanked the whip along with the gold man.
"Sandman!" the children shouted simultaneously.
The gold man was slammed to ground with a thud that vibrated underneath the kids' feet. As the sandman was left in a daze, the fearlings surrounded the man, preparing to finish him for good this time.
Seeing this, Jamie ran towards the dazed Sandman right to where all the black nightmares stood. "No!" the boy exclaimed as he put a hand on the creature. At his touch, gold spread through the monster and giving it a glow in the night. The brown-haired boy, surprised, started to step away as the sand changed from nightmare to dream sand. Before his eyes, the creature morphed from a horse to a gold stingray.
Did he do that?
The others stared at him with the same question in mind. He put his hand in front of him, extending and clenching his fingers. All he did was touch the nightmare, and it changed, just like Sandman had.
But dreamers are even greater than us, Sandy had before. When Sandy had first told him that, he thought Sandy had said it only to comfort him, but now he thought it meant even more than he would have dreamed. Is this what he meant, that he could change nightmares to dreams, change fear to better things?
Jamie smiled to himself as the other fearling turned to him. There was more to him than meets the eye.
./../\..\.
Everything was too fast and too slow. He didn't have time to stop Pitch's raised scythe, but he did the only thing he though he could do, not caring what the after effect could be.
Tooth's would probably bash my head and call me stupid with tears in her eyes, he thought as the pain took over his torso and shot through all the way to the tips of his ears.
./../\..\.
Jack couldn't move for himself. His body was frozen with fear, his blood run cold. His heart ached with every beat, and his lungs screamed for him to release the breath he'd been holding. He watched with crystal clear vision as the black sand scythe came down and Pitch smiling with satisfaction at the fear radiating off of him.
His vision though blurred from one side with grey, but then it grew and and covered his entire vision. When his eyes focused on the grey object, he realized he recognized the tribal tattoos along with the tall ears of the Pooka in front of him. He watched without moving as his friend stepped between he and Pitch Black.
And instead of moving or screaming, he only watched as the black sand scythe went through the Pooka, protruding through his torso. He heard the cry of pain from the grey rabbit, long and echoing in the late and cloudy night. It pierced the winter spirit's ears. His icy blue eyes widened as he saw the blood on the end of the scythe and dampening the grey fur to a deep red. He smelt its noxious and empowering stench, burning his nose and closing his throat.
Stop.
The dark man smiled greedily as he dug his scythe deeper through the Pooka, bringing more screams and cries of pain from the one with shocked emerald eyes.
Stop it, Jack wanted to scream, but his lungs still held an aching breath.
Bunny grunted once more as the dark man pulled the scythe from his body, and Jack watched with unblinking eyes as the Pooka slumped forward. His blood spread to the ice, slipping to the crevasses of scratched and chips in the ice as well as pooling below his body.
Please, stop it!
Jack watched as the ashen skinned man put his foot on the back the Pooka and knelt down beside him, grinning ear to ear. "Oh, did you care for this worthless boy?" he mocked in false concern. "You should have known better than to just let me kill you so easily. You're only helping me by dying and leaving the boy completely defenseless."
Bunny's body racked with a cough but remained compressed by the cat-eyed man's foot. His voice hoarse, he spoke, "At least I can pay back my dept to him... If I die, then I can go without regret."
At that, the man laughed wickedly. "No regret? You really think that you dying will erase all the hurt, all the silent and lonesome years that you put him through? And what about the mental and physical abuse? All the put-downs and that punch to the face. You really think this is an equivalent exchange?"
The Pooka, though lying on his bleeding stomach, shook his head. "It doesn't, but my life is all I have for payment. At least I'll know that I...I did all I could."
A chuckle escaped the dark man as he removed his foot and pulled the Pooka up by his ears. "You all are so useless, always following your emotions instead of your head. It's the reason humans have such short lives and spirits, too."
Shut up.
With what seemed like only a simple flick, Pitch threw the Pooka and knocked him into the cliff side on the ice. His blood still stained the ice where he once laid.
Stop it.
Pitch's eyes turned back to the young winter spirit who still laid on his back, his arms back bracing him and eyes too wide to be comfortable. Sneering he asked, "Aw you didn't like seeing that, did you?" He crept over in front of the boy, still holding the staff comfortably in his hand and not caring that it was so close to the winter spirit. "Aww, don't be upset, Frost. It's not your fault that this pest decided to kill himself because of you-"
In a flash, Pitch's face was pushed to the side with lightning speed and a clap of skin on skin echoed in the clearing. Jack's hand and Pitch's cheek burned from the slap the winter spirit had given him. The cat eyed man's eyes widened in shock, not expecting the boy to have such courage.
"Shut up!" Jack screamed at the man with anger burning through him. As his anger raised, things around started to frost or freeze more, including the black whip on his ankle. "You don't get it, do you? I don't care about payment! We're friends, allies! I don't blame him anymore. I'm not going let him die just because of payment or because I'm weak!"
The whip froze completely and with a tug, it shattered which allowed the boy to leap the dark man. The older man raised the staff in front of him horizontally to stop the boy, but that's what Jack expected. The white-haired boy grabbed onto the staff, boosting his power and ice formed on the hands of the nightmare king. Yanking his hands off the staff, the ice stopped growing on his hands, though the temperature had dropped.
Pitch quickly jumped back as a shard of ice shot into the frozen surface of the lake in front of him where he once stood. Jack now had his staff. The game had changed from victory in his hands to a challenge. Even he understood the physical power that Jack held.
He he managed to cast a shield of black sand before magic from Jack's staff could touch him though it froze the sand. Jack came again with fury in his eyes, swinging his staff only a second too slow for the raven haired man's head was barely missed.
Pitch formed a dagger in his vacant hand and thrust forward, yet the younger boy was quicker. Now with more distance between one another, Pitch manipulated the nightmare sand towards Jack just as Jack sent a wave of magic towards Pitch.
The two clashed, sending pale smoke in the aftermath that blinded the winter spirit.
After feeling the dark presence behind him, he moved only a second soon enough before the scythe could impale him. It instead embedded itself into the ice of the lake to a point where Pitch yanked but couldn't pull it out. This was Jack's chance. He swung his staff at the man, managing a good hit to the man's face which caused him to stumble back. Jack came again though Pitch was ready this time with that dagger in hand.
With one short move, Pitch aimed the thin dagger right at the boy's gut
Pale hands wrapped around the wrist of the dark man, the the end of the blade only going through his tan shirt and a hint of flesh.
The two fought for dominance, trying to push the dagger towards the other, never ceding in fear of where the dagger will end, though in the rush of the moment, Jack had forgotten the dagger was made of black sand, Pitch's element.
Suddenly, the dagger was gone, and Jack fell forward on the ice, giving the other enough time to get back on his feet and ready his weapon again just as Jack grabbed for his staff.
The two weapons clashed. Again they fought for dominance. Jack's arms started to shake as Pitch added more stress between their weapons. Pitch's size gave him the upper hand from where they stood. The dark man laughed as the boy's knees bent from the pressure. "All that talk for nothing? Don't tell me you're going to die so easily. I thought you would be an actual challenge." Jack continued tremble as time passed, fire burning through then painfully. "No matter. You need to die, anyways."
In a quick attempt, he stomped his foot on the ice beneath him, magic surging through the bottom of his foot, and the ice reacted to it. Like a spring, the ice jolted the dark man back by suddenly raising. As Pitch slid on the ice of the lake, Jack shot more and more spike of ice from his staff, yet each and everyone was stopped by black sand or dodged.
Jack was really getting sick of this game of going back and forth. His body wasn't doing well with the all the energy used physically and of using his ability. He could only take so much more until his body gave in.
./../\..\.
The tooth fairy had spliced each and every fearling. Black sand sprinkled the streets from the remains. Now she had to find Jack and the others. Heading back to the forest, she saw the red coat and touched down beside the man who was lying face first in the snow.
"North?" She called to the man as she knelt beside him.
He moaned in the snow but slowly listed his head with snow sticking on his face and a cherry red nose. "I'm going kill Jack," he grumbled, pulling himself to his feet. Rubbing his head, he looked around confusingly. "Eh, Where's Jack?"
"I-I don't know. That's why I'm here. Where's your sleigh?"
"Good question. Why don't you ask Jack that?" He mocked dryly.
She sighed. "That's why I'm here. Where is Jack and the sleigh?"
"Probably crashed," he replied without looking at her as he started walking into the forest with Tooth following behind. How hard did he hit his head? she asked herself.
The two walked through the forest until they found the ruins that once were the sleigh. Scratches and dents line the side of the sleigh. Inside of it, there were branches and leaves that must've fallen with the crash. Along with that the hitch connecting the sleigh with the reindeer was broken. Actually, the reindeer were nowhere to be seen. North at the sight, didn't widen his eyes or lift his eyebrows, but only said four words:
"I'm gonna kill 'em."
./../\..\.
Jack had an idea though he didn't know how well it would work. Ducking, a scythe barely missed his neck, a strike that would have sliced his head clean off if he hadn't moved quick enough. After getting a bit of distance between the two of them, he snuck a glimpse towards the small cliff where Bunny had been thrown to, but Jack had to do a double take.
The blood. He hated the sight of seeing it beneath the Pooka. It mocked the winter spirit, telling him of his weakness and his selfishness that brought this mess.
Focus, he ordered himself as he jumped back from the swinging weapon in Pitch's hands. These thoughts are what gets people killed. With Bunny there, he had to be careful not to overdue it, but even with that in mind, he wasn't fully sure how he was to pull it off.
He guessed that it was his only option at the moment. If he didn't try something soon, who knew when the tides would turn for the worse. It was only a matter of time before he slipped up.
"Jack!"
His eyes turned to the familiar voice but quickly moved back as he jumped away from the scythe though not quick enough. It went across his chest, no deep, but still painful, and it shredded the cream shirt he wore. The wind was knocked out of him as Pitch landed a kicked to his chest, causing him to fall on the ice. As Pitch raised his scythe, a gold arrow came his way which caused the dark man to dodge, missing his chance to finish the frost boy.
"Jack," North called as he pulled the boy to his feet. "Sorry, lad."
"It's fine. Go check on Bunny by the cliff. He's injured." And with that, the boy went back to his fight with Pitch, shooting spikes at the dark man. Tooth had already gone to the Pooka's side the moment she came in sight of the lake. The blood. So much blood. She put her ear above his lips, hearing his rasping breathing. Feeling it against her cheek, she released a breath she didn't realize she was holding.
The cat eyed man caught her attention with his laugh. "A final showdown, is it? Is this where we figure out you all care for one another, and you all die just after making up?" His eyes gleamed in the early morning. "What a tragic story." His smile grew even wider. "But, unfortunately, guardians, I'm still in the middle of dealing with Jack Frost. I'll come back to you in few moments. In the meantime," he flicked his hands, calling fearlings from the forest's shadows. "You can play with my-"
The man stopped his speech as white covered his vision, the object cold on his face. Wiping it away, he realized it was snow.
"I thought I already told you," Jack threw another snowball, hitting the dark man again, "I'm sick of your speeches. Let's have a little fun instead."
The fearlings charged for the guardians while Pitch lifted his scythe above his head, and bringing it down where Jack stood only moment before.
Now was Jack's chance to put his plan into action. Hopefully, the guardians will watch out for Bunny.
The scythe impaled the ice, reaching deep to where the lake was not frozen.
Focus.
He hit his staff on the surface of the ice, bending it to his will.
Crack. Split. The ice broke into pieces all around.
Focus.
More cracks until the ice beneath Pitch's feet shattered. The nightmare king's golden eyes widened as his body submerged into the freezing water.
Concentrating and using all the energy he had left, he lifted the staff once more and slammed it down on the cracking surface of the ice. Like wounds, they healed, threading together, smoothing the surface of the pond again, but Jack wanted to freeze more than just the surface. As energy drained out him, the water beneath the surface, thickened until the entire bottom of the lake was frozen with Pitch Black within it, freezing him in a place.
Jack's body trembled before his knees buckled beneath him though he slumped against his staff in an attempt to refuse the exhaustion.
You did it, he told himself with a weak smile on his face as he gave up on keeping himself up and simply sat on the ice. Around him, fearlings were going down much quicker than before, especially with the kids helping. Pitch was their leader, a general who knew the the best tactics. With out him, they had no structure, no form, and they were easy to fall. Sure, they were smart, but they had no leader.
Jack would join in if he could, but was on the verge of falling asleep. Putting him in a fight now wouldn't end well. Each and everyone of the fearlings were destroyed in a matter of minutes from slashing swords, slicing wings, golden whips, and the hands from the children.
One of the children, one with chocolate eyes and matching hair and a toothy grin walked over to him holding something blue. "I found your hoodie," Jamie said, holding the jumper out to the white-haired teen.
"Hey, thanks kid," Jack laughed weakly. It hurt to even breathe, as if he ran a marathon. Quickly, he put his favorite signature item back on, feeling the soft material on his cold skin. After he got the collar of the hoodie over his head, he found that Jamie was already gone.
A shadow loomed over him, but he didn't worry until he saw the sadness in the blue eyes. "North?"
"It's Bunny."
Bunny.
Jack looked over to the Pooka and saw the blood soaking his usually grey fur. Every was surrounding him, even the younger kids who were getting a real look at a life threatening injury. The winter teen tried to rise to his feet, but his body wouldn't allow it.
North, seeing the boy's struggle, without a word, lifted the boy into his arms, carrying him to where the Pooka laid. Tooth sat with the Pooka's head in her lap, her eyes rimmed with red from crying. Sandy stood with the children, putting a comforting hand on Jamie's shoulder. As the old man set him down, Jack notice just how deep and uneven the Pooka's breaths were, shaky and threatening to be a last. Jack was already counting his breaths.
One. Two. Three.
"Jack," the Pooka choked out. "Pitch didn't hurt ya, did he?" he asked almost pleadingly. He must've seen how he had to be carried over.
"No, I'm fine, Bunny, thanks to you."
Bunnymund sighed in relief. "Y'-Ya're the one who ended all of this. I spent most of my time hoppin' around," he laughed which ended in a cough.
"Listen, we're gonna get you out of here and patch you up-"
"Nah. It's okay, Jack... I've been around for hundreds of years. Thousands. At some point, every spirit has their life end, same for humans. And now- now is that time."
"B-but what about hope?" Jack pleaded to him. "What about spring and new beginnings. Who'll be the guardian of hope if you just give up?" Tears welled in his pale icy blue eyes. A lump grew in his throat. "You can't just leave us."
"I'm not givin' up hope... Hope lives in everyone and is never fully gone. Anyone can bring hope, which is why I have to ask you to do something for me."
"Anything," he replied, though his voice cracked at the end.
"... Bring hope. Don't give up. Bring fun and hope like you always have."
His eyes widened.
"Live on in my memory, Jack. By the way, you still have a guardian initiation to do." He smiled weakly at the teen. "I know how powerful ya are, and ya're a good person. Ya're good with kids like an older brother would be. Ya're perfect for the spot... That's why I always acted bad to ya. I envied ya, and caused all of this... I'm sorry."
"I should be, not you. I-I help Pitch. I attacked you without thinking. And I- oh Moon- I destroyed your home. I should be the one who's sorry."
"But I drove ya to it..." He huffed. "Some guardian I am."
His breaths were becoming more spaced between on another, his heart slowing, Jack could tell.
"North, Tooth, Sandy?" The three moved to his side. "We had some good years, but mind keepin' Jack out of trouble? And bring hope to the kids?"
Sandy silently chuckled with tears in his eyes. North smiled. "Of course." Sandman then realized how strange and horrible this must look for the younger children, and he created a ball of dreamsand, though it had lost most of its glow, and put each of the children to sleep. Concentrating, he used his dream sand animals to carry them back to their beds before their parents could wake.
Even more, his breaths lengthened. He closed his eyes, hiding his emerald irises as he mumbled, "Thank you, all of you." For a time, it was quiet except for his shallow breaths, and then it was silent. His chest no longer rose, neither did his eyelids open.
It wasn't Tooth he cried first, but Jack Frost. Sobs wracked his body as his eyes streamed with tears. The winter teen hardly noticed the hand that wrapped around his shoulders as he sat with his head in his knees. He caused this. He did this to all of them. If he'd just said no to Pitch when he came to Antarctica, Bunny would still be alive. If he hadn't taken his toothbox, he wouldn't be dead.
He killed Bunny. He killed the Easter Bunny.
North held the boy tight in his own tense arms, trying hold back his own tears. Bunny was his best friend, his brother. Sandy, too, had just lost a brother. The two of them would work together on Easter, and they never argued. And Tooth. She was special to him. All of them cared for the Pooka, and now he was gone.
The group all mourned until the first rays of the early morning touched his skin. His body, filled with exhaustion, finally gave in to sleep. He didn't even notice that North had picked him off the ground again. Pulling a snow globe from his coat, the two stepped through the vortex back to the North Pole while Tooth and Sandy watched over their lost friend.
./../\..\.
Days had passed since Bunnymund's funeral. It'd been strange for Jack how only days before, they were having Sandy's funeral. But instead of going into despair, instead of hiding in Antarctica or his lake like he usually would, he only reminded himself what that Pooka had told him to do:
Live on in my memory.
Yes, he was gone, but people die everyday. And when they die, there is a new generation to take their place.
Jack had a choice to forget what Bunny lived for or to continue his teachings, to change someone else's life because of what Bunny did for him, to do something because of the life he still had. That's why Jack now stood in North's workshop with a smile on his face, the other three guardians standing around him. North held a large and old book in his hand.
"Do you, Jack Frost," the old man started after opening the dusty pages.
Jack's heart thumped loudly in his ears. The yetis and elves lined the upper floor and on the main where they stood, surround him. He breathed deeply to calm himself, but his smile never left his face.
"Vow to watch over the children of the world, to guard them with your life, their hopes, their wishes, their dreams," North continued. "For they are all we have, all that we are, and all that we'll ever be?"
Jack looked at the smiling faces around him. Tooth violet eyes gleamed from threatening tears. Sandy nodded at him with his own smile.
Even though Bunny did not stand among the crowd, the winter spirit felt the Pooka with him. He is the reason Jack stood there, because he wanted to bring fun and spread hope, just like his friend would want.
Live on in my memory, he had said to him, and Jack promised to do so.
Staring up at North, a father figure to him now, he said only two words:
"I will."
./../\..\.
Overall Moral: With every action, there is a consequence to be payed.
Moral Detail: From the very beginning, Jack and the guardians had done things that all led to haivng to pay for a price. Jack taking the toothbox from Pitch, Bunny punching Jack, Jack joining Pitch- it all led up to a huge consequence/price that Bunny had to pay with his life. After all, nothing in this world is free, and never has anyone allowed a sin to go unpunished. At some point, it'll catch up to them. (Also with Bunny dead, someone has to do the job of bringing hope which means someone else must bear the work. It's like debt. If you can't pay it, they take what you have or if you die, the burden falls on your kids.) Now, I do realize that I suggested differently in this chapter, but that is only what the characters believe, their truths and thoughts. They only say what they think, but that may not be the real truth.
PS) New Poll on my profile. PLEASE GO AND VOTE!
I'm sorry, my ending is crap...
BAH! I'm sorry if Bunny's death made you mad. From the beginning, I planned for either Jack or him to die, and I figured no one would guess Bunnymund to die. My brain hurts after writing this. The dialogue for all this seriousness is... difficult. I wanted to add comic relief (especially with the Guardian of FUN being the main character), yet it just didn't work. :P
Now, I thank you all who ever chose to click that little follow button. Each and every one of you are the reason that I love doing these fanfics and make me want to get better.
Special Thanks to:
lovepuppy316
Darkblade 2.0
Aeona Liz
ObsidianLove
Thanks to Top Reviewers:
Darkblade County
AlexJohnD
lovepuppy316
Thanks to other reviewers:
ObsidianLove
RoseZemlya'sfavoritefan
Night-Fury1
vividRegulator
To everyone who's pressed the follow button, thank you. I really appreciate you and making me want to become a better writer. I love you all just because you decided to open up this page and look at my story.I hope to see you in the future when I write other stories (which may take a while...), so until then (or until you PM me), this is goodbye.
... Bye *crying and sending you hugs*
-Janazza
PS- Please write a final review to me :) Love ya!
