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Blood dripped down her throat, the pale skin marred by the lines of burgundy slowly flowing downward. As Annis' grip tightened around her neck, the claws puncturing her skin, she concentrated on staying conscious and keeping the seeds from falling needlessly to the ground. With the seconds ticking by, she thought she was certain to die in the clearing, her eternal soul to be borne away on a moonbeam. Being so thoroughly focused on not allowing her body to shut down as the witch tried to crush her windpipe, the older woman found herself surprised when the hag seemed to inexplicably loosen her grip. Falling to her knees, the mortal watched in amazement as Annis seemed to be combating invisible opponents. Grasping a handful of snow, the grandmother gently pressed the cold precipitation against her neck in an attempt to calm the inflamed tissues. If she survived this encounter, she would certainly need the services of the Royal Infirmary herself.
For the ancient spirit, the battle continued to rage. Her grip on the mortal had been broken when the Russian's sabre had sliced into her shoulder. As she had pulled away abruptly, the blade had careened out of his hand, flying through the air into the trees beyond the clearing. He made no move to retrieve it, instead focusing on using the other sword to guide her away from her intended prey. Stumbling backward, she did not see the shepherd's crook that had been placed in her path. As the frozen wood connected with the backs of her knees, she allowed her momentum to carry her down, saving her neck from being cleaved by the cossack sabre.
Her energy ebbed, not only from being famished, but also as a result of the bombardment kept up by the tiny fairies. The seeds continued pelting her skin, the potent oils within them seeping into her being. As she knew the elderly mortal had intended, she began to feel the fatigue of her actions. Growling in anger, she coaxed the wind to blow harshly on the diminutive sprites. The gusts refused to fully obey her command, her control over the elements weakening as she did. Rolling onto her stomach, she found herself staring at fur-covered toes. She slowly pushed herself up, her movements deliberate in the hopes that they would think she was nearly defeated.
The overly tall rabbit she found herself facing as she stood once more simply pulled his arm back, his hand shooting forward in a rapid motion. The jab to her nose caught her by surprise, her single eye watering as the foreign sensation of physical pain threaded through her. Covering the lower half of her face with both hands, the witch glared at the pooka. As he prepared to strike her again, she surprised him. Lowering her head, she quickly rushed towards him, her skull impacting his abdomen roughly. The force knocked the wind from Bunnymund's lungs, the hare staggering backwards as he clasped a hand to his chest, wheezing.
"Kangaroo!"
Jack's devastated shout caused Sandy to look towards the escalating battle. The dream weaver had been standing watch over the boys' grandmother, his special gift being of the least use in their fight. He had noted that North's blades were able to penetrate her physical form once she had siphoned energy from the ice wielder directly. His surreptitious attempt to put her to sleep, sprinkling his sand on her as Tooth's workers had pelted her with the seeds, had proved that his dream dust had no effect. Because of this, Sandy had determined the best use of his time was to protect the lone mortal in the clearing. Annis had fed exclusively from children as long as the Guardians had been present in England, but the glittering spirit recognized that they had no information on her preferences before heir arrival. It was conceivable that she would be able to drain the soul of any mortal, not only the young. He did not want to risk the older woman's life. His diverted attention alerted him to the fact that the witch was headed back towards him, intent on reaching the woman behind him.
Having noted the development herself, the older woman pushed herself up from the cold ground, her clothes soaked through with the moisture from the melted snow. Though she was unclear as to why the hag had been occupied closer to the cave, she recognized the danger inherent in remaining prone. Turning towards the trees, the boys' grandmother vowed that the half-blind crone would have to work in order to consume her soul. Grabbing the strap of Piers' satchel, the older woman headed for the shadowed woods, ignoring the sense of danger she perceived might be present within. As uncertain as she might be about what lay before her, she was quite aware of the malevolent being in the clearing from which she ran, and had no qualms in admitting that she was more afraid of Annis than she was of a potential unknown threat.
Seeing Tooth grasping handfuls of the spice seeds and flying backward alongside the elderly mortal, Jack gave his full attention to his injured comrade. Wrapping his arms about the rabbit's middle, the white haired guardian lifted the lagomorph from the snow.
"Stop yer fussin'! I'm fi– ow. Okay, maybe not." The ice wielder raised an eyebrow at the pooka, bemused even as concern overwhelmed him. He glanced toward North, the Russian nodding in understanding before rushing after the hag. The sounds of her growls echoed back to the pair, the hare resting his weight on the youngest guardian's shoulders. "I'll be fine in a minute."
Jack shrugged. "Then we'll make sure you get that minute." He gave the rabbit a mischievous grin in response to the halfhearted glare he was receiving for his efforts. When his blue-furred companion was able to stand straighter, no longer relying on his shorter frame to support the superior height, the winter spirit smiled broadly. "Shall we join the fray?" The hare smirked as they rushed towards North, still holding Annis in the clearing with his attacks.
Turning to avoid another swipe of the cossack blade, the witch noticed that the other two guardians were quickly advancing. Snarling, she ducked under the Russian's next swing. Her fatigued body protested as she drew on her affinity with the elements to have the snow entrench him, effectively trapping him to that spot in the clearing. Her hiss was carried to him on the breeze as she rushed past. "I'll deal with you later."
As she ran for the treeline, a wooden boomerang sped past her, its return arc connecting soundly with her left shin. Tumbling onto the snow-covered field, she snarled, her hands shooting forward to keep her face from impacting the ground. She dared not let her head touch the earth, afraid that the lethargy pervading her body would cause her to succumb to the exhaustion striving to overwhelm her. Rising slowly, she felt the rumble beneath her as energy within the earth itself changed.
Standing beside the Christmas spirit, Jack studied the snow. The dusty white precipitation had been his toy of choice for a long while, so he was well aware of its composition. Encasing North's lower body was a very dense concentration of snow, leaving the ice wielder with only one viable option for freeing his fellow Guardian. Allowing his energy to flow into the shepherd's crook that was his constant companion, the white haired spirit forcefully thrust the base of the staff through the snow drift so that it impacted firmly with the ground below. He focused not on creating the winter elements – his regular purview – but instead on withdrawing them into himself. The Russian grinned broadly as he was freed from the prison in which the witch had sought to leave him.
Picking the other two up on a gust of wind, Jack bore them towards the woods. As they approached Annis, they found Sandy occupying the witch. While his sand would not be able to force her into slumber, his dust was a formidable weapon, limited only by his own imagination. A glittering rope stretched across the forest path behind of the witch. The dream weaver formed numerous simulacrums of the seeds which so vexed the hag, propelling them towards her rapidly. As she stepped back to avoid them, she tripped over the rope, falling roughly to the ground. Landing, she noticed that the ground beneath her was dry. Though it was hard, it showed no other signs of being bound by the winter elements.
Her neck popped audibly as her head spun about to locate the winter guardian. His cerulean eyes glowed eerily, appearing as lanterns in the shadows of the woods. The gust bearing him aloft was wholly separate from the winds swirling the snow and ice about him as it was lifted from the ground. Annis tried calling the elements to her, growling when they resisted her command. Rising from the unforgiving earth, she was met with the dream weaver's frowning countenance. Swiping her talons into Sandy's round body, the witch took advantage of his flinch to push past him. Her path to the mortal only impeded by the fairies, the hag was certain that she would be feeding shortly.
Toothiana and her fairies were quite fatigued after having flown in circles around the harridan, trying to keep the witch at bay. They had run out of the spice with which they had been attacking the hag as the boys' grandmother had fled with the majority of it. Annis had taken advantage of their disarmed state to bypass them, maiming several of the tiny sprites with her claws. The elderly mortal had been able to keep a steady pace, her distance from the harridan fairly constant.
When she had fled into the woods, she had not know exactly in which direction she should head. The only intent she had was to keep the witch chasing her and not to allow her to veer off in pursuit of younger and more naïve prey. The seeds that she had managed to force Annis to swallow had already shown some success. With the elements no longer responding to the hag's call and her growing lethargy, it was clear that the witch was losing her power.
As the older mortal rushed through the trees and into another clearing, she gasped in shock, one hand covering her mouth. The sight before her surprised her so that she had stopped her headlong flight. Standing a short distance away was a young girl, laughing as snow swirled above the ground, the white powder flowing around her ankles as it streamed back into the woods. The ground was left bare, and the temperature in the air was clearly warmer than it had been scant moments prior. Her contemplation of the scene before her ended abruptly as the harridan burst through the woods separating them. Spying the child, her malicious cackle echoed in the field. Looking up to see the malevolent spirit headed towards her, the young girl screamed.
Knowing she had little hope of being able to stop the evil witch in time, the elderly mortal ran towards the girl. Grasping a handful of the spice, she tossed it towards the hag as she tried to intercept her. Annis snarled as the seeds hit her, their effect minimalized since the contact was external. The child whispered a barely audible thanks, which the older woman assumed was meant for her as the witch's flight stopped when she fell to her knees, her arms wrapped about her mid section.
Though the boys' grandmother was unable to see it, the girl could clearly view the golden rope that had lassoed the hag. A smile lit her face as she watched the five benevolent spirits emerge from the trees. Frost surrounding him as the ice and snow whirled about Jack's form, he truly appeared to be the ice king that the children had named him. A frigid blue hue covered his staff, the cyan color reflecting off of the bits of ice that flew to him. If Bunnymund had not known that his friend possessed a very congenial attitude about most things, he would have certainly assumed the formidable-looking spirit walking alongside him intended to aid Annis rather than defeat her.
As she broke free from the dream weaver's sand-formed rope, she found herself looking down the tempered edge of a cossack sabre. North's jolly demeanor had abandoned him as he glared down at the malevolent spirit. The fairies picked the seeds up from the ground, the hollow sound of the hull smacking against their tiny palms echoing in the air. Annis swiveled about, her knees making a furrow in the dirt as she surveyed each of the Guardians. She rose to her feet, arms reaching for the lagomorph as she intended to make one last attempt to fend them off. Bunnymund quickly unsheathed his boomerang, prepared to attack the witch.
As her claws extended towards him once more, the energy sapped from her completely, her arm falling limply to her side. "You think you've won. You think this is the end of it." Her words came out on wheezes of breath as she fought the effects of the spice. "This is only temporary."
The boys' grandmother approached her, the shadow she cast over the witch's prone form drawing Annis' attention. "You've lost track of time, witch." Pointing to the horizon, the older mortal reveled in the narrowed eyes and frightening grimace that twisted the hag's features. "You spent more time than you expected chasing after an old woman." She leaned down as the sun crested over the horizon, her voice sounding like no more than a hiss. "You'll still slumber, you old hag. But all the winters in the world won't be able to wake you."
As the sun's rays shone brightly into the clearing, the ancient spirit slowly crusted over, her blue toned skin taking on a granite pallor. Unable to stand, she made one last defiant attempt to injure the boys' grandmother with her talons. As her hand reached the upward height of its arc, her face contorted with hatred, sunlight petrified her completely.
The girl approached the stone statue cautiously, her hand tracing the contours of the frozen witch's face. Looking up at the Guardians and the elderly woman, she whispered a thanks, a large smile brightening her features as her eyes landed on Jack. After several moments, recognition dawned on him, and he called her name. "If they give you any trouble now, Bronwen, just bring them here. And don't forget."
Her smile shone even more brightly, knowing that the winter guardian had not forgotten her. "Never, Jack Frost. I'll always remember." She rushed off to the town nearby, eager to spread the tale of Annis' defeat.
"Was a bit anticlimactic, yeah? I mean, sure, she's down for the count right now, but how long does this gargoyle act last?" Bunnymund sheathed his boomerang as he spoke, left hand reaching up to scratch his ear gently.
The ice wielder shrugged, unable to answer his friend's question. North opened his mouth to reply, but his words were swallowed as the elderly woman walked towards his white haired friend. "Jack Frost."
Eyebrows rising, he leaned on his staff, his gaze meeting her own steadfast stare. "You can see me?" She nodded. "Huh."
Shrugging, she smirked at him. "What's so surprising?" She looped her arm through his, slowly walking back in the direction they had come. "I knew the secret to defeating an age-old spirit. Not something I would have bothered knowing at all if I hadn't believed in her – at least a little." She looked up at him, studying his face intently. "No reason I can't believe in another spirit. No surprise to me that you're real. Something was obviously drawing off the snow, and it was either you or the North Wind." Jack chuckled softly. "How often do you come around these parts, child? Your face... You remind me of someone..."