"Put. The. Weapon. Down."
"Or what? What will you do, Santa Claus?" A dark chuckle escaped pale lips, wicked smile edged its way over sharp white teeth that once matched the snow white locks.
He was no longer the same Jack Frost they knew. Pitch had sank his claws into the boy, the shadows invaded his doubtful soul and took possession of his heart. His hair had turned a jet black, his skin still a deathly pale. His ice blue eyes were surrounded by blackness that bled into the veins of his cheek bones. The ice that usually covered his sweatshirt and staff had turned black, his ice powers were laced with darkness. His staff had become jagged and knotted, sporting long pikes of sharp ice. It had turned from a conduct to a deadly weapon. His fingers and toes were blackened as if the ice and now inside him began to cause hypothermia.
"Jack, why are you doing this?" Tooth cried. Her wings fluttered within the ice cage he had put her in, the bars came up from the ground like spikes and curved over head so that the ends all came together in a mess of sharp promise.
"Why should I have a reason, fairy?" He sneered, the wind picked up around the group, snow blanketed the ground outside the jolly mans work shop. "I shouldn't have a reason to do what I want!"
A wave of icicles shot out at the guardians, Sandy was quick to counter them with a wall of golden dream sand. The dark ice prince growled. He opened his hand and blew into his palm, creating a jagged crystal ball of ice, the black nightmare sand swirled within it. With a hard throw it slammed against one of the sandman's hands. The sphere incase the small appendage, holding it captive within the confines. The black sand ate away at the dream sand so he could not break free.
"You are Guardian, Jack!" The Russian yelled over the howl of the winds.
"I was the practical joke of the guardians!" Jack countered, "Manny got creative and gave me new life only send me into 300 years of loneliness! Where were you then? You're supposed to be guardians right? Helping people? Where were you when I cried myself to sleep? Where were you when I had no one? I watched my family die! I watched everything that mattered die for 300 years! So where the fuck were you?!"
The winds picked up with his anger, a whirl wind of ice and hail surrounded them in a tornado of the boys sorrow. A maniacal laugh echoed through the snow storm, sharp white teeth shone as he tilted his head to the side, watching the fear on their faces.
"Oh right, you had each other. In order for you to care, I had to join your little club. And what happened when I did? You took everything away from me again. All of the sudden what I wanted didnt matter! Some how becoming a guardian took away every freedom I had, shackling me to a job I never signed up for. And when I found the few people who mattered, the few humans who made it all worth it, you took them away!"
A flurry of sharp ice headed for the three of them. Tooth ducked her head behind her ice cage, North stood in front of the disarmed Sandman and blocked him from the onslaught of cold edges. His swords countered the attacks but unlike the nightmare sand, ice was not so breakable. His arms and chest were covered in small cuts, thick cloth was ripped and exposed open wounds to the harsh environment.
"We could not allow you to get too close to the humans Jack!" He yelled over the winds. "They do not live like us, you must guard the children but children grow up!"
"The were my believers! Mine!" He screamed, with a sweep of his staff snow wolves manifested from the ice. Their bodies looked solid, their teeth bared and black eyes glowed against white fur. They were manifestations much like Pitchs nightmares, made from darkness and snow. Each wolf ducked their head, haunches readied as they stalked toward the guardians.
"You fell in love with one Jack! That's against the rules!" Tooth added, backing to the far wall of her bird cage.
"I'm tired of your rules." Jack sneered. The wolves started for the guardians, making a rounded formation. Predatory growls echoed within their personal snow storm. Fear was evident in their faces and the darkness inside the ice prince reveled in it. They deserved to feel fear. Deserved to feel afraid and alone. They deserved to feel what he felt when they took her away from him.
To his own surprise a large hole appeared in the very front of the troupe, the snow parted and allowed a figure to jump up through it. Jack glared, he knew one was missing. He readied his staff, pointing the sharp dagger of ice toward the rabbit but stopped when a small hand reached up and clasped the large paw offered down to it. Jack paused, dark brows furrowed.
Blue irises trapped in black seas widened, staff lowered. He watched gold hair whip around in his storm, the soft pink winter jacket glow in the whiteness of the North Pole. A beautiful girl stood next to the Easter rabbit, her face full of worry. She looked at him with shock, her hands coming up to her mouth as she took in her friend. He was monstrous. She watched him with tear filled green eyes, her small brown boots sinking in the snow.
"Jack.." She whispered.
Jacks mouth opened, his hands trembled. Within seconds the on coming wolves disappeared in a burst of snow flakes. It was her. Why was she here? Why could she see him again? He looked at the petite blonde, watching as she took a step toward him.
"Stay back." His voice cracked.
"Jack what happened to you? Was this Pitch? Please tell me you didn't—" she stepped toward him, not fearing him but felt a deep worry. The only thing he could see in her was a flawless love shining through. There was no fear or hate. He didnt move away but didnt move toward her either.
"They took you away from me!" He yelled, she jumped. "They made you forget me the night you turned eighteen! I was alone again!"
"You're not alone anymore, Jack. See? I'm right here." She gave him a smile, opening her arms to the winter spirit, tears falling down her reddened cheeks, "I remember. I remember when you brought me flowers when I was home alone. I remember how you would tell me stories before bed when my mother left again. I remember the night you kissed me for the first time. I remember everything and I never stopped loving you."
A dam broke inside him at her words, his dark eyes filled with tears as black as the nightmare sand in his body. She remembered him. He wasnt alone. He felt his feet move without his consent, his body begged to be closer to her. She smiled and moved toward him as well until they met in the middle, arms wrapped around each other as if the pieces of their soul found the right fit.
The winds began to die down until it was just them standing on settled snow. His face was buried in the crook the of her neck, both held the other as if they were disappear at any moment. The guardians watched, their hearts lightened for a moment only to be crushed
"Jack!"
"Shelia!"
Jack pulled away and looked behind Rapunzel, her body had become ridged in his arms, back arched and still. His blue eye met gold and he felt dread fill his stomach. Sharp teeth pulled into a sinister sneer,
"I will not lose!" Pitch hissed, "I'll watch you crawl back to me once more, my pet."
With a burst of nightmare sand he was gone.
Jack blinked for a moment, his black hair whipping in cold air of the north. He saw the guardians faces, all of them looked at the girl in his arms with despair. He pulled away and looked down at the girl.
"No.." He whispered.
Darkness bled against the pink and white of her coat along her abdomen. He pulled his hands back and saw his pale skin covered in dark blood and blackness. She looked at him with fear for the first time but it was not of him. He let em fall to the snow, holding her against him, hand pressed over the spreading darkness that threatened to consume her.
"No no no no.. I just got you back, you can't leave me…" He whispered, black tears streaming down his cheeks. He looked to the guardians but they looked at dejected as he felt. He knew they could do nothing. If it was a normal wound they could treat her and bandage and she would be fine. But the darkness was inside her, heading for her heart and trying to take her soul. Even if they saved her body, she would only fall into the darkness. An empty fearful shell of what she once was.
She looked at her winter spirit and gave a strained smile, her boy felt like it was slowly being consumed in a heavy weight.
"It's okay Jack. We got to see each other again right?" She said. Her skin began to turn pale, blackness flowing through her veins.
"It wasn't supposed to be like this." Jack bit out.
"Remember those fairytales you used tell me when I was little? About the princesses?" She watched him nod. "The prince would give the princess loves true kiss and they would live happily ever after."
He watched her smile even as her body trembled. He pulled her closer to him, holding her like a child in his arms before pressing his cool lips to hers. It was sweet and chaste, full of sadness and longing for time. Every human begged for more time. Time was not something that could be wasted for they had little of it. He had eternity and all he wanted was to spend it with her.
He pulled away and watched as her eyes opened to look into his one last time, a small smile graced her blackened lips, before her head lulled back and her last breath expelled. He felt panic set in.
"No! Open your eyes Rapunzel! You can't leave me alone again!" He held her head up, looking at her soft face as snow fell onto their heads and eyelashes. "Please don't leave me alone again…"
He pressed her forehead against hers, sobs racked his body.
"I love you…I love you…don't leave me…"
The darkness began to fade from his hair, the black lines that cracked along hi face and body began to recede. The guardians watched as he slowly faded into the boy he once was, all pure and white. The darkness had been chased away by the only emotion pure enough to purge the nightmares from ones mind.
He was just a guardian again, his tears were pure and clear as they fell onto her skin. Ever so slowly purging the darkness in their wake.