I teleported to the Tooth Palace.
When I arrived, it was already a half lost fight. Giant black horses were attacking. They flew around the Tooth Palace, grabbing any fairies in their muzzles.
Pulling out my blade, I flew at the horses. The fairies were screeching in fear.
I dove into the fight.
Saw a horse flying past me.
I sliced my blade along it's neck.
The creature barely flinched, flying around to chase more fairies.
The only sign it had even been cut was the black dust on the blade.
Now that just pissed me off.
The cherubs started to arrive as I attacked the second horse. This time I wouldn't stop until the horse was dead. After another minute of fruitless attacks I pulled out an arrow. I slashed it's neck, causing the horse to collapse in a pile of dust. It revealed the fairies and...canisters?
I knelt down to pick one up. Fairies flew up to me, cheering at the sight of the canister. They were cheering.
Two cherubs came up to my shoulder.
"Azeroth, Germael. Keep these fairies and the canister safe." I instructed. Rising to my feet, I searched for my next target. "Don't let them out of your sight."
The cherubs saluted me.
I heard more fairies screaming. I flew after the horse with the loudest screams. The thing was fast so I fired an arrow after it. The horse dispersed again. The fairies all cheered as they were set free.
Were these horses...eating the fairies? And why these canisters?
Slashing the throats of horses should've made me feel bad. Right? That's what emotion it was supposed to cause right?
Except what if they were the problem? How was I supposed to feel then?
Another horse screamed. I noticed there were less of them, and I knew it wasn't because of my attacks. I flew after another horse- seeing it attacking the fairies I saved moments ago.
Only by the time I arrived they were trying to swallow my own cherubs.
"Don't you DARE!" I yelled.
The horse screeched at me. I fired an arrow at it. The horse dodged. I screamed in annoyance when I realized it had taken Azeroth and Germael.
Screaming in rage, I fired arrows at any horse I saw. Except they were flying away. I ordered the cherubs left to fly after them.
Soon there was only one left. I flew after it in a rage.
That's when Santa's sleigh came up behind me.
North hopped up. He chopped at the horse, dissolving it.
"What the heck?! Why did your sword work and not mine?" I asked, landing on the sleigh beside Jack.
"Manny's sword!" North explained. "Your's is less so!"
I ground my teeth.
"They're stealing the teeth!" Bunnymund held up the canister.
"There's teeth in those things?" I grimaced in disgust. Now I was creeped out they were being taken. "What kind of sicko takes teeth?"
"Jack, look out!" North warned.
Jack had the reins on this thing?!
How were these idiots not already dead?
We had a near miss with a pillar. I gripped the front of the sleigh to avoid- hold on was I trying not to fall out when I could fly?
When Jack had the thing righted, I let myself fall out of the sleigh.
"Cupid!" Jack called out.
I flew up, flapping my wings rapidly in a reminder that I was fine.
Jack groaned, running a hand over his face. "Right. Flying."
"Tooth! Are you alright?" North hopped off the sleigh towards the fairy.
I flew up to her.
Tooth was flying around, in a rushed panic.
"They, they took my fairies! And the teeth! All of them! Everything is gone! Everything." Tooth panicked.
The other Guardians rushed to her side, in a show of support.
A fairy came up off of Jack's shoulder. The fairy flew up towards Tooth.
"Oh thank goodness! One of you is alright!" Tooth cheered.
I bit my lip, looking out around the Tooth Palace.
"Cupid?" Jack asked.
"My cherubs. They were here to help." I revealed. "A lot of them were taken. I told them to watch the fairies and the...apparent teeth canisters."
"They took your fairies too?" Jack asked.
I nodded. "Think all of them."
A squeak came from my hair.
"Pelie?!" I gasped. "Were you in my hair the whole time?"
Pelie chittered- embarrassed.
"You little-" I huffed. "Coward."
Still, I grabbed the cherub, holding it close. Peilie snuggled against my chest. The affection wasn't always wanted. Right now it was greatly appreciated.
"I have to say, this is very, very exciting."
I pushed Pelie back in my hair. He squeaked in fear. I pulled out another arrow, searching for the source of the voice.
He was spotted by Pelie at the top of the spiral. I aimed the arrow. Pelie advised against it. I ignored him. Chain of command, and al that.
"The Big Four, all in one place. I'm a little star-struck." The man I assumed to be Pitch, remarked. "Did you like my show on the globe, North? Got you all together, didn't I?"
North grunted in annoyance. Realizing he and the other Guardians had been played.
"Pitch, you have got thirty seconds to return my fairies!" Tooth warned. She flew up to him. He vanished by the time she arrived.
"Or what?" Pitch asked. I followed his voice to another spiral top. "You'll stick a quarter under my pillow?"
"I'll put a quarter of my arrows in his head." I grumbled. Pelie flicked my ear. "Stop it."
"Why are you doing this?" North demanded.
"Maybe I want what you have. To be believed in." Pitch sneered.
Jack tensed beside me. I don't know why. Being Believed-In wasn't that great.
"Maybe I'm tired of hiding under beds." Pitch ranted.
"Maybe that's where you belong." Bunnymund scoffed.
Pitch rolled his eyes while appearing beneath the ledge. "Ah, go suck an egg, rabbit." He deadpanned.
Bunnymund tried going after the Boogeyman. Pitch vanished before Bunnymund could catch a sight.
"Hang on, is that...Jack Frost? And Cupid?" Pitch asked. He laughed when I jumped around. He was hiding in the shadows. Pelie was shivering in my hair. "Since when are you all so chummy?"
"We're not." Jack replied.
"Oh good. A neutral party. Then I'm going to ignore you. But, you must be used to that by now." Pitch remarked.
"I'm not neutral." I added. "Always thought I was more 'chaotic good'."
Pitch laughed. "Cupid. One of the Man in the Moon's newest experiments." Pitch vanished in the shadows.
I moved the aim an arrow behind me before I even knew he was standing there.
He dodged it. "And he gave you so many clever toys. Magical golden arrows, your own army of cherubs. You have Believers. How old were you again?"
"Old enough." I let loose another arrow.
Pitch vanished in the shadows. His laugh echoed.
"Give me back my cherubs!" I demanded.
"Pitch! You shadow sneaking rat-bag! Come here!" Bunnymund yelled.
The rabbit launched himself towards the Boogeyman. Pitch vanished again. That trick was a good one, I should learn it.
He must've reappeared because Tooth flew up after it, screaming like a Berserker and waving around Bunnymund's boomerang.
'Crazy fairy.' I praised her.
Except a Nightmare stepped in between them.
Why did a Nightmare make me want to look at the moon?
Why did that make me want to sing about ponies?
Why did the ponies remind me of Lilac?
Pitch stood between Tooth and the Nightmare. He soothed it, while Tooth hovered away to a safe distance. "Whoa! Hey, easy, girl. Easy." Pitch sneered at Sandy. "Look familiar, Sandman? Took me a while to perfect this little trick. Turning dreams into Nightmares." Pitch turned to the other three. My hand clenched on my bow. "Don't be nervous, it only riles them up more. They smell fear you know."
"What fear? Of you!?" Bunnymund scoffed. "No one's been afraid of you since the Dark Ages!"
Pitch glared sharply. My hand moved to grab an arrow before his sneer changed to a fond smile. "Oh, the Dark Ages. Everyone frightened. Miserable. Such happy times for me. Oh, the power I wielded!" Pitch sneered at us. "But then the Man in the Moon chose you to replace my fear with your wonder and light! Lifting their hearts! And giving them hope! Meanwhile, everyone wrote me off as just a bad dream! 'Oh, there's nothing to be afraid of! There's no such thing as the Boogeyman!'" He leaned forward. "Well that's all about to change."
There was a loud crack. I jumped back, while Pelie and Baby Tooth squeaked in fear. The spiral tops and columns all began...to chip away...falling like dust.
Tooth gasped.
"Oh look, it's happening already." Pitch delighted.
"What is?" Jack asked.
"It's fading away." I realized. "But...why?"
"Children are waking up and realizing the Tooth Fairy never came." Pitch answered. "I mean such a little thing, but to a child..."
Tooth lowered to the ground, her wings drooping.
"What's going on?" Jack asked.
"They, they don't believe in me anymore." Tooth realized.
"Didn't they tell you, Jack, Cupid? It's great being a Guardian-but there's a catch." Pitch began. I turned to look at the Guardians. They were fuming up at Pitch. "If enough kids stop believing, everything your friends protect-wonder, hopes and dreams-it all goes away. And little by little, so do they."
I pulled out an arrow.
"No Christmas, or Easter, or little fairies that come in the night. There will be nothing. But fear and darkness and me! It's your turn not to be believed in!"
I fired the arrow.
Pitch ducked to avoid it. He hopped on the back of the Nightmare while I pulled another one.
The six of us chased after Pitch. He glanced back over his shoulder a lot. The horse was clearly leading the escape. I aimed my arrows at the horse's head, while Bunnymund threw egg bombs at Pitch.
The dust it created made it impossible to spot where they were. That was aggravating.
When we made it the ground, Pitch was gone.
==CR==
AN: Happy Election Day to my American readers! If you're not, then just say I'm using the holiday as an excuse for the late update!