It took some time, but eventually Silver got her entire story out. She left out most bits about her old life, other than to mention the shadow that had saved her, and spoke instead of this life she's had. Silver told North about trying to find the Pole the first time and discovering that she could grant wishes. North took it all in silence.
"So what does it mean?" Silver asked when her story was done.
"It means that you're the newest Legendary Figure in over 300 years." North said, clapping her on the back hardily.
"Am I? Who was the last one?" Silver asked sipping at the eggnog that someone had set before her at some point. She liked it because it was sweet and she hadn't known she could still eat.
"Jack Frost," North smiled. Silver sat up in her seat.
"He's real too? I never thought!" Silver grinned. "Can I meet him?" She looked at North with those big wide eyes and he nodded. She was happy now that her vulnerability had passed.
"Sure! We'll invite all the Guardians to meet you!" North laughed heartily. Silver smiled. She was excited to meet everyone. It was like she was being entered into some secret club. Besides, she was glad North liked her now that Pitch was gone. She wanted to ask what Pitch had done to earn his ire still, but she didn't dare to just yet.
"I'm so happy, I didn't think anyone would care that I exist. Is that strange of me?" Silver asked taking a bigger sip of her eggnog. North just shrugged.
The eggnog was having a strange effect on her head. It didn't take much more of the drink before Silver was running around and playing with all the toys. North just laughed and told her not to break anything or else the yetis would be upset.
After spending the afternoon wreaking havoc in the toyshop and harassing the yetis and elves, Silver settled into an alcove she found by one of the great windows. This was the time of night that she would normally talk to Pitch about her adventures of the day, but North had insisted she stay the night at the Pole until the other Guardians came to meet her, even though Silver was sure she could find the Pole again if she left.
"You look sad, little one." North said, surprising her.
"I'm not sad," Silver said, still looking out the window. But she certainly didn't sound happy.
"It's a lot, then?" North offered. Silver nodded watching the stars in the sky.
"I usually tell Pitch about my day this time of night," Silver admitted, pulling her legs up to her chin. She sighed. "He wouldn't admit it, but he likes it when I talk to him like that." North frowned slightly.
"How did you end up with Peach?" He asked. Silver shrugged.
"I think he ended up with me somehow. Before I…" Silver frowned. "Before I died, he was there. I couldn't see him, granted, but I knew he was there." She'd mentioned it before, but only briefly.
"That is strange. Do you know why he was there?" North asked. Silver shrugged still watching the sky.
"I never thought to ask," Silver said and sighed again. "I hope he doesn't worry about me." She saw North's disbelief reflected in the window. "Ya, I know you don't think he has such depth. But he does." Silver snorted. "Is it so absurd that the boogeyman has feelings like anyone else?" This was rhetorical.
"Peach certainly seemed," North searched for the word. "Changed." He said with a definitive nod. "You must have that effect on him."
"I wouldn't know." Silver said rubbing her hands together under her shawl. "It's so cold here." She observed.
"I'll find you a blanket." North said, moving away. Silver nodded and went back to watching the sky and the stars. The sky was much bigger here than anywhere else she'd ever been.
"Pitch, I hope you made it back ok." Silver whispered, wishing there was some way for him to hear her. "I'm having fun, and everything's going well. I miss you." She heard a little whiney from near her feet. She started. There was a little white horse with odd little black eyes stamping by her shoes. "What are you?" She wondered. It bounded up to her hand when she reached out to it. It danced around her fingers and she smiled at it.
"That looks like a nightmare." North said coming back with the blanket he had promised.
"A white nightmare." Silver said with a grin, she'd seen Pitch's nightmares a few time, but they avoided her mostly. "Can you find Pitch for me then?" She asked the creature in her hands. It whinnied again as if to say yes.
"You are full of surprises." North said. The little white nightmare ran around Silver's head once, before it ran through the window and off into the night.
"I keep surprising myself." Silver yawned. "Is there somewhere I can sleep?" North nodded and led her off.
The next morning Silver awoke with a handful of elves staring at her. She jumped and almost fell off of the bed she had been sleeping upon.
"Don't you know it's rude to stare?" She demanded angrily. The elves all looked frightened and ran out, jangling all the way. Silver plopped back down. She hadn't slept well away from Pitch. She sighed heavily and rolled off the bed, rubbing her head. That's when she heard new voices coming from down the hall.
"What do you mean?" An Australian said, befuddled. "He was here, and he didn't do anything?" Silver stepped out into the main room and the talking stopped. Silver's eyes went wide as she looked at the group.
"Good morning, Silver." North said with a smile.
"Morning…everyone." Silver said bouncing up on her toes. Her hair was curled in wonder.
"These are the Guardians." North informed her grandly. Silver nodded, she had guessed as much.
"That's one big bunny." She said a small smile stealing across her face. To think they were really real and to see that they were, were very different things Silver realized.
"Bunnymund, the Easter Bunny." North introduced. "And this is Toothiana, the Tooth Fairy." Silver nodded, transfixed.
"Hello there." Toothiana said with a smile and a wave. Silver smiled back.
"And you're really pretty." Silver smiled broadly. The Tooth Fairy made a cooing sound as she looked at her little fairies.
"Sanderson, the Sand Man." North motioned to the little golden man that stood next to him, not quite making it up to North's knee. Silver waved at him and he waved back.
"It's a pleasure." Silver smiled.
"And Jack Frost." North said. Jack gave her a half wave as he leaned against his staff and she bobbed her head.
"So this is the girl that lives with Pitch." Jack said stepping forward, as if he was challenging her. Silver planted her feet then. The Tooth Fairy gasped, clearly offended by Jack's brashness, or maybe it was the fact he mentioned Pitch. His name alone set them all on edge.
"I am. And you're the boy that never existed, if I recall correctly." Silver shot back. Jack held his arms up in mock surrender.
"Silver," North reprimanded, she probably wasn't supposed to know that but North answered all of her question. Except the one question she hadn't dared to ask. Silver looked at her shoes.
"Sorry." Silver said.
"So what is it you do?" Bunnymund asked. Silver shrugged.
"Lots of stuff, I can fly really fast. I grant wishes. I hang around Pitch…" Silver smiled. "Can I get some eggnog?" She asked. Three different elves brought her cups. "Why thank you!" Silver smiled and the elf she took a cup from smiled like a schoolboy up at her. "You guys should drink some of this stuff, it's fantastic." She drained the cup and took another from another waiting elf. Her hair curled into happy ringlets as she drank.
"Take it easy there." Jack said with a light grin. Silver smirked.
"Oh come on, don't you know how to have fun?" Silver laughed. Jack glared at her.
"Believe me, I know fun." Jack said motioning with his staff. Silver finished her second cup of eggnog with her eyebrows raised.
"Prove it, ice-pop." She snickered. Jack grinned, a snowball forming in his hand. Silver hadn't been around anyone other than Pitch since she became this way, and it was refreshing and very exciting. Silver wondered why she hadn't been lonely until now.
"You're playing with fire now…" Jack said tossing the snowball up in the air and catching it in turn.
"It looks more like I'm playing with ice." Silver was bouncing on her heels again, hair curling and uncurling in tight little ringlets of joy. Jack threw the snowball. Silver caught it and threw it back.
"Silver! Jack! Stop that!" North shouted. Silver ran off and Jack followed her, enjoying the game and ignoring North and the others.
It took the others awhile to get the two of them to come back to the main room. When Silver stopped she had a half-frozen elf clutched to her chest.
"Silver, we need to talk to you for a bit. Is that ok?" Tooth asked. Silver nodded, her hair straightening slightly as her fun was cut short. Something in the way Tooth spoke made Silver feel like she was going to be in trouble. The others were wishing they didn't have to do this.
"Jack froze a couple of your elves, someone should help them." Silver directed at North. North nodded and a yeti took the elf from Silver. She waved at him as he was carried off.
"Jack!" North yelled and the winter sprite landed next to Silver.
"Yes?" He said with a devious smile playing on his face.
"We have business now. Silver," North spoke with a surety of a powerful man. Silver watched him as he approached her. "There are rules you need to know."
"Rules?" Silver asked shooing an elf that was offering her a plate of cookies. "Like what?"
"You cannot hurt the children." North said seriously. Silver frowned.
"Why would I hurt children?" Silver asked, offended.
"We weren't saying that you would," Tooth tried to input.
"You live with Pitch…" Bunnymund spoke up at the same time. Silver shot him an evil glare.
"Pitch has no control over me. You cannot judge me by his sins. Judge me by my own or not at all." Silver sneered at the oversized bunny.
"Why," Bunnymund tried to snap back something about her sass.
"Stop it!" North bellowed. Everyone stopped talking. Silver crossed her arms across her chest.
"I don't take kindly to accusations without merit." Silver said.
"No one was accusing you of anything. But it is one of the rules." North said.
"Ok, ok." Silver relented. "What else?" She sat on the edge of the desk that overlooked the workrooms, swinging her feet.
"You cannot interfere with lives either." North said. Silver rolled her eyes.
"I grant wishes, that sort of interferes doesn't it?" Silver asked. Bunnymund and Tooth were off debating something and Sandy was trying to cut in, but no one was paying attention to him.
"I didn't know there were actual rules…" Jack interjected.
"Well…" North rubbed the back of his head.
"Did you make these rules up just for me?" Silver said crossly as her hair grew sharper.
"No!" North defended. "Well, sort of. We didn't have rules until somewhat recently." North laughed heartily in the awkwardness of the moment.
"So you made up these rules just for me?" Silver demanded, anger kinking her curls more. Her eyes were flashing like lightning.
"Well after what Pitch did, we don't want to take any chances." Tooth piped up.
"After what Pitch did?" Silver shot at the fairy. Tooth could only nod back. "What did I just say about judging me by his sins?"
"You can do what you want Silver, but know that if you hurt the children we, as the Guardians, will have to stop you." Bunnymund warned.
"What did Pitch even do that has you all so scared?" Silver demanded feeling her anger seek an exit. Somehow she was afraid of the answer, but she needed to know. At least she no longer needed to ask.
"You really don't know?" Tooth asked with wonder.
"No. I don't." Silver huffed and stamped her foot. "I have a right to know what he did that makes you all so quick to assume I will hurt children. I would do no such thing!"
As the story came out, Silver felt everything fall upon her head. Each sentence of the tale hit her somewhere in her heart that she hadn't known was fragile. Pitch had really done something terrible. As the Guardians spoke, Silver's hair began to straighten. By the time the whole story came out, Silver's had fallen and her hair hung impossibly straight, reaching halfway to the floor.
"I…" Silver said. What could she say? Pitch had done more than enough to cause them to be on edge. She couldn't blame them, nor could she defend her Pitch. Maybe there was nothing to say.
"And after we defeated him, the Nightmares drug him away." Jack said. "We hadn't heard from him again until now." Silver closed her eyes as she tried to think.
"How long ago did this happen?" Silver asked quietly.
"About twelve years ago." North said. The math made her seven or eight. Right around the time when something changed in her shadows and the nightmares came to stay.
"Twelve years? And no one knows where he went?" Silver said, trying in vain to swallow the dread that was clawing up her throat. She, though she tried to avoid thoughts of the past, knew that she had had nightmares all through her childhood. She learned later that it had been the boogeyman himself at fault. Was there something…
"That is correct." North said.
"Oh my," Silver choked on the realization that jumped her. She covered her face.
"What is it?" Jack asked crouching down next to her. Her bright eyes met his ice cold ones before her tears leaked out.
"I was his punishment," She whispered. Jack frowned.
"What?" He asked.
"I was his punishment!" Silver shouted as she covered her face again, eyes impossibly wide. "That's why he gave me nightmares… that's why he was there at all. He was angry that he was stuck there." That didn't explain anything that came after though. Silver felt her heart drop again as she realized why she couldn't fight off the yetis. "And, and, my chains…"
"What are you talking about?" Someone else asked.
"When I was little, I started having nightmares. They never went away. It was Pitch!" Silver tried to explain. "He couldn't leave my room, he told me so…he was imprisoned there. I was his punishment." Silver wiped her face. She needed to talk to Pitch. This was too much for her to reconcile in her mind, the Pitch that was kind to her and the Pitch that gave a child nightmares out of spite.
"What chains?" Silver didn't see who asked.
"I accidentally chained Pitch up one time, but when I tried to fight the yetis…" Silver shook her head as if she couldn't believe what she was saying. "I couldn't touch them. My chains only work on Pitch. I'm still his punishment." Silver turned to the window and made to walk towards it. "I need to go,"
"Wait, you can't leave so upset," Tooth said. Silver stopped. Some of the elves were standing there looking confused. They didn't like seeing Silver so upset, none of them did.
"But," Silver tried to protest.
"Besides, the elves want to play more." Jack said with a grin. The group of elves nearby all smiled and nodded, their bells jangling as they smiled up at her. Her hair began to shorten again.
"What about Pitch?" Silver asked, she needed to know his side of this story too, needed to see if he knew what she really was.
"He'll be fine in his hole," Bunnymund shot under his breath.
"Bunny," Tooth reprimanded him. Silver nodded, ignoring Bunnymund's snide remark.
"I wouldn't want him to see me like this anyways…" Silver admitted wiping at her face again. One of the elves tried to hand her a cup of eggnog. She smiled at him and took it. "I don't understand why you all even care what becomes of me." She said, voice small.
"We can't help it," Tooth giggled. "You're just too nice not to care about," She hugged Silver before she could stop herself.
"I'm not that nice," Silver giggled back. "Promise."
"You'd have to be pretty nice to like someone like Pitch," Jack said. Silver blinked. That might be true. "So how about some fun?" Jack smiled forming a snowball in his hand. Silver nodded, wiping her eyes one last time before she drained her glass. She had never liked being sad.
"I could go for some fun," Silver grinned a watery grin.
"Well then, let's go!" Jack threw the snowball at one of the yetis and Silver ran off with him, the elves that loved her trailing them, bells all ringing.
By the end of the day, Silver was happy again and all the elves were tired. Silver had one napping in her arms as she sat at the window with Jack watching the sky.
"I'm glad to have met you." Silver said quietly, trying not to wake the sleeping elf. Jack gave her a lopsided grin.
"You're not what I expected." Was his reply.
"Did you expect some dark little thing that crawled out of the shadows? I don't think the Moon works like that." Silver laughed a little.
"I didn't know what to think." Jack admitted with a shrug.
"You should come visit me sometime." Silver said perking up. The elf in her arms made a noise in his sleep and she paused waiting for the elf to still again.
"Come visit you?" Jack said skeptically.
"Ya."
"In the Cave with Pitch?" Jack added.
"Um…yes." Silver smiled over at him. "I haven't had fun with someone…well…since I was alive really," Silver looked out at the darkening sky again. The silence drew out then, it seemed that talking about the past, what she had been, wasn't something the others did.
The elf suddenly jumped up, as if he'd been awoken by a bad dream. He jumped from Silver's arms and scuttled off with a comical jingling.
"Wonder what scared him." Silver mused.
"Maybe he had a nightmare." Jack said, watching her.
"I doubt it, Pitch doesn't visit here." Silver said. "I haven't had a nightmare once since being here. Not even a little one." She added.
"Isn't that a good thing?" Jack asked. Silver rested her head on her upturned knees.
"You'd think so, but I'm so used to having them I don't sleep well without them." Silver admitted. "That's strange, I know." She grinned awkwardly and looked out of the window.
"Well, you live in the right place for nightmares..." Jack said. Silver laughed.
"That I do." Silver smiled. "You all think it's very strange that I enjoy Pitch's company." Silver said. There was no question.
"I think…" Jack started. "I think it's weird that Pitch likes you." He said slowly. Silver raised her eyebrow at him.
"I never thought about it like that…" Silver smiled again. "I doubt he'd ever admit to liking me."
"I don't know, you're pretty likeable." Jack said with a grin.
"Peach did seem to like you." North said walking up to them.
"You really think so? He's never said," Silver asked turning with a smile to him. "He might not like me so much when he finds out I'm his punishment though," Silver felt her heart sinking again as her hair straightened.
"I know he likes you. As far as you being his punishment goes, he likely already knows." North smiled back, but Silver could tell he was uncomfortable talking about Pitch as if he was not a bad guy. "Tooth and Bunny are leaving. Sandy already left."
"We should say goodbye." Silver said to Jack unfolding herself from the window. They went into the other room where Bunny and Tooth were standing.
"We wanted to say goodbye before we left." Tooth said when she spotted Silver. Silver smiled at her.
"It was my pleasure to meet you Toothiana, hopefully we'll meet again sometime." Silver nodded.
"You can always come visit me and my fairies one day." Tooth smiled.
"I'd love to." Silver said and they hugged. Bunny stood there with his arms crossed. "I'll hug you too, you giant bunny." Silver smiled at him. He frowned and acted like he didn't care. Silver bounced over to him and threw her arms around him in a warm hug. "Bye Bunny." She kissed his cheek for good measure. He looked a little bemused at that.
"Goodbye you weird little moonbeam." He shot back with a slight grin. Then they were gone. Silver turned back to North and Jack.
"Can I go home now?" She asked.
"Ready to be rid of us already?" Jack snickered.
"Of course I am!" Silver laughed back. "Just don't tell the elves." Silver added, half-serious, in a whisper.
"You're welcome to come visit whenever you like…except around Christmas. Then I'm busy." North said clapping her on the back. Silver's hair suddenly curled tightly in delight.
"I'll have to come visit my little buddies and drink more eggnog." Silver said throwing her arms around North in a surprise hug. She was happy because she was going home.
"Good! Good!" North said as Silver turned to Jack. Her eyes were bright as they looked at him.
"Goodbye Ice-Pop." Silver said.
"Bye Twinkle-Toes." Jack smiled back. Silver bounced on her heels for a second before tackling Jack with a hug.
"You have to come visit me sometime," She said into his shoulder.
"Only if you let me breathe!" He teased. She let him go.
"Now I just have to remember how to get there…" Silver smiled before she laughed, filling the workshop with her happiness as she shot off into the sky. Some of the elves that had been nearby looked after her sadly until North told them to get back to work.