When she tried to pull the Fearling out of Jack, she realized it wasn't going to work that easily. The creature was unmoving and seemed to laugh at her pitiful attempt. She tugged harder and the host was pulled up, as if the creature was a part of him. Jack cried out and grabbed Sophie by the knees, pulling her to the ground.
The girl yelped as she hit the snow and ice hard. Jamie grabbed Jack and pulled him back from her. The boy was hostile. His teeth bared and his fists ready to fly. Jack reeled and twisted, throwing a punch that Jamie caught easily. Sophie gasped. "Jack, stop!"
The winter spirit jumped to his feet and threw an expert kick at the man. Jamie blocked it and grabbed the next one throw at him, He pulled Jack's leg up and the boy fell. Jamie flipped him over and pulled his arms behind his back.
When had Jamie gotten good at fighting?
"Sophie. Take us to Tooth's palace. The Baby Teeth can summon her and the other Guardians."
"Right." Sophie picked up the box of teeth and Jack's staff before putting a hand on each of them and taking them to the hanging palace.
Blurs of green flew over and around them. Jack continued to struggle under Jamie's grip, but without his staff, he wouldn't be able to cause too much damage.
Sophie flinched, making herself small as she looked at the fairies around them. The recollection of them attacking her was very vivid. When she realized they paid the three of them no mind, she let out a low breath.
"Hey, girls!" she called to the fairies. A handful of them stopped. They noticed what was going on. The Baby Teeth zoomed down to her and she smiled at them. "Can you get Tooth and the other Guardians? We found Jack." She looked at the box in her hand. "Oh, and…" she held it out for them. The fairies squeaked with delight and two of them grabbed the box while the other three nodded and flew off to find the Guardians.
She turned her attention back to Jamie and Jack. Jamie was struggling to keep the boy down, pressing a knee onto his back. Jack had started screaming for Jamie to release him. He shouted and cursed and squirmed under the man's grip.
This wasn't like Jack… but Sophie knew how the nightmares changed you. Though… this was different from the Nightmares. It wasn't like it became a part of you. It was as if it manipulated your senses and perception. It gave you bad dreams and made you see and hear things that weren't there. It turned everyone against you and played out your worst fears.
Hopefully, when this was all done, Jack could just chalk it up as a bad dream… She desperately hoped it was as easy to brush off as the Nightmares had been.
Sophie set the staff against a pillar and knelt beside Jack, putting a hand on his head. The boy glared up at her. "Don't say a word." he threatened darkly. "Don't you dare ruin her. Whatever you say, I won't listen."
She smiled kindly at him. "Okay, Jack." she brushed hair away from his face. "I'm sorry."
His expression fell. Words choked and he dropped his head to the ground, finally calming down. Sophie and Jamie looked at each other. They watched him take deep breaths and he closed his eyes.
"Jack… don't go back to sleep, okay?" Sophie requested kindly.
"'M not." he slurred. "I just want it to stop."
"It will, I promise…." she stroked his hair. "Soon. Sandy is on his way. He'll help you."
"Sandy's disgusted by me." Jack sighed. "They all are. Because all I can do is cause damage and hurt people." The white-haired boy snorted. "Bunny hates me the most. Because of what I did to you."
Sophie frowned. "Jack, look at me." The boy pulled his face away from her. She framed his face with her hand and forced him to look at her. "Open your eyes." Blue eyes with tiny shadows met her green ones. "What happened to me wasn't your fault. Don't ever think that. Do you understand?" She brought her face close to his, authority coating her voice. "Do you understand, Jack? Don't blame yourself."
"They all said it." he whispered. "Even Jamie." Sophie furrowed her brows and looked to the man who looked just as shocked as she did. He shook his head vigorously.
"No, I told him it was no one's fault."
Sophie looked to Jack. "Jack, those are just nightmares."
He closed his eyes and pulled himself away from Sophie, resting back on the ground. She clasped her hands together, waiting for him to say something. Anything.
"What's even real anymore?"
"Jack!" Sophie looked up and grinned at Toothiana and Sandman as they flew towards them. The fairy had trouble stopping with the momentum she gained and stumbled onto the ground. Sandman hopped out of a biplane and walked over to them.
Jack closed his eyes tightly and buried his face into the ground, as if he was trying to block them out. Jamie relented his grip, pulling Jack into a sitting position. Sophie crawled back and watched Sandman approach Jack. The boy looked up at him, desperation and helplessness shining through as he tried to kick himself back away from him, only to be stopped by Jamie.
"No, shut up!" he yelled. "I don't want to hear it!"
Sandman smile sadly at Jack. Jamie shifted himself as Sandman reached around the back of Jack's neck. Suddenly, the shadows in Jack's vision glowed gold and Sandman pulled the Fearling away. Toothiana sliced through it easily.
Jack looked to the Guardians, drowsy, before slumping back, golden sand dancing above his head. Jamie caught him and laid him back gently before grinning to Toothiana and Sandman.
"He's going to be okay now, right?" Sophie asked them.
Sandman looked thoughtful for a moment, then shrugged. Toothiana bit her lip. "I hope so."
Sophie rubbed her arms. Jamie frowned and looked to the boy. "I think… I don't know, but I think he's actually… lost his grip on reality." Jamie adjusted the boy's sweater, emanating a look that he was tending to a sleeping child. "He might need help. We may need to tell him what's real and what's not. I wouldn't be surprised with the way he was acting if it left him with psychological problems." The man rubbed the bridge of his nose. "He was talking to Sophie like she was a ghost and is convinced all of us are against him."
"That may have been the Fearling talking." Toothiana offered hopefully.
"I don't know." Jamie shook his head. "But… we might as well be prepared for whatever when he wakes up. Hey, I might be wrong and he could wake up just fine."
"We… we don't want to overwhelm him, either way." Sophie rubbed her arm.
"You're right." Jamie stood up. "We're going to leave him to you, okay?" He looked from Toothiana to Sandman. "You need to earn his trust and help him calm down. Don't overwhelm him with any extraordinary news. Keep it simple and mellow. I suggest a calming atmosphere." Jamie looked around. "Here is good. Or the Warren. Though, if he's going to stay here, I suggest taking him to the ground."
"Wait, 'we?'" Sophie squeaked.
"Sophie… if he wakes up and sees you, he'll freak out. He still thinks you're dead." Jamie said softly. "It's okay. Just a little longer, alright?" he put a hand on her arm. "You'll be together in no time."
"Okay, me, by why not you?" Sophie furrowed her brows.
"He'll probably attack me." Jamie ruffled his hair. "Seeing as how he thinks I did something to my own kids… he's probably furious. Tooth and Sandy can handle anything he throws their way."
Toothiana put hands on Sophie and Jamie's shoulders, looking from one to the other. "We'll take care of him." she promised. "Thank you for bringing him to us." She smiled. "You guys are going to have to tell us how you found him!"
"We will," Sophie grinned at her. "Promise!"
Jamie took Sophie's hand. "We better go before he wakes up." Jamie chuckled. "We'll see you two later, alright?"
Sandman held up a hand for a high-five that Jamie took with a grateful grin. "You're the man, Sandy."
Sophie pulled Toothiana into a hug. "Take good care of him for me, okay?"
The fairy chuckled and rubbed her back. "Of course I will."
With one last look at the Guardians and a longing glance to Jack, Sophie took Jamie home. She felt a strong arm wrap around her shoulders and she buried her face into Jamie's shirt. This sucked. She felt extremely selfish. This whole game of cat and mouse was exhausting her. She just wanted to be with her closest friend and because of Pitch and his Fearlings, she couldn't.
Thank goodness he was done for. Finally.
"He's going to be okay, Sophie." Jamie assured her.
"I know. I'm just being selfish." she mumbled.
Jamie chuckled and held her tighter. "But, hey, we found him. And he's safe now. And all the nightmares are over."
She wrapped her arms around the man and sighed. "At least I have you."
"Yeah," Jamie rubbed her back. "Yeah, you do."
Sophie hung around her brother's home for the next few days. She sat with each member of the family while they explored their creative sides. She sat with Laura as she helped sketch out a website for a small business and with little Sophie as she wrote poetry. She helped Elliot create horrific monsters for a game he was working on and listened to Tyler as he wrote a song on his guitar for a girl he liked. Finally, she sat on the couch behind her brother as he wrote the start of a new Guardians saga. It wasn't something to be published, he said. It was going to be on his website; just a little something for the fans.
Sophie learned how Jamie was able to take down Jack. He and Tyler had been in Tae Kwon Do classes for about ten years. Sophie joined them the one night, failing horribly and embarrassing herself in front of her nephew and brother. Of course, no one could see her and neither of her family members could correct her. They just held back laughter as she flailed and fell.
And, for the first time in nineteen years, Sophie was able to sit down and paint. Jamie had bought her tools and set up a space for her. She almost cried. Instead, she sat and painted. The end result was a cohesive representation of this beautiful family that accepted her and believed in her.
Sophie continued to get pulled though. She had been away from her job for too long. Sophie bid her family farewell with promises to be back sooner rather then later. She would visit just a few people and come back. She would also see if she could check on how Jack was doing, if he was awake, if he was doing okay… if he wasn't compromised.
She didn't want to think about it. What if Jack was never the same after what happened? What if it changed him, damaged him? She knew the voices she experienced was haunting, and she couldn't say she was the same after that. No, she hadn't changed much, but she just felt… different. There was still the lingering thoughts fears those Nightmares whispered. They stuck, no matter how hard she tried to shake them.
But if he was exposed to something much worse then what she had gone through.
Sitting in the classroom of the boy she promised, she smiled and watched his work during his art period. He was trying explain to his friends who she was, and that she was really real! They had to believe in her! But they were at that strange stage where you sort of believe, but the faith was fading.
She stopped by a ballerina who had been working on a piece for a show. Sophie danced with her, learning more steps and tricks. She felt the girl's pain and sweat. She learned grace and fluidity. She praised deaf ears for her hard work.
And then a folk singer who was writing a song. The song was powerful. Sophie found herself singing it along with the girl. "To love somebody is to feel their pain—is to go insane when they're not okay—Are you cold?—Then I'm cold, too—Are you whole?—'Cause I am broken, too—We are all just puzzle pieces."
She was strongly tempted to visit one more artist, but she promised the family she would be back soon. So, one last visit to a very large rabbit was her last stop.
"Bunny?" she called as she trekked through the Warren. "Bunny?"
"Is that you, Ankle-biter?"
A/N: We'll see how Jack is fairing next chapter, eh? -.o
I stole some lyrics from a song called "Puzzle Pieces" written by a wonderful folk singer Brittany Ann. Please check out her music! She's super talented.