Hey, guys! I apologize for the long wait, I actually lost my computer and had to write most of this on my phone. Let me tell you, that takes forever.
Huge thank you to CrystalQueen and DarkAzalea for their reviews and constant support! I love you guys, stay awesome! :)
Jack POV
Carrying Leetah into North's workshop, I let out a blast of ice, causing a miniature snowstorm. Seconds later, North came out of his office, yelling.
"Jack! Why you always make it-oh! Who is this?" He asked, gesturing at Leetah with a giant hand.
"This is Leetah. Long story, no time. She needs help." I say hurriedly. The frost was beginning to melt from her arms and the blood was still coming.
"Very well. Follow, we take to infirmary," North said, turning around and stomping off, carefully avoiding toys and elves that may find themselves under his large feet.
"Wait, you have an infirmary?" I asked, having to fly in order to keep up with the large man's stride.
"Of course have infirmary," North boomed. The Russian man kept walking, acting as if all of the chaos around them were completely normal. I guess, in a sense, it was. It is November, after all. Almost Christmas. "Many accidents," he added, as if it were obvious. I suppose it was a valid argument, but the yetis were always very careful and never hurt themselves. North seemed to be able to read my mind, leaning back and putting a hand up to shield his mouth from everyone else. "Elves," he whispered.
Looking over, I saw a group of elves had wrapped a paper tree in Christmas lights and plugged them in, resulting in a fire. Yetis quickly put it out, but the elves didn't seem to understand what they did wrong.
"Right," I said, flying faster in order to catch up with North. He had stopped far ahead of me and was now standing in front of a large white door, gesturing for me to enter. When I did, I found myself face-to-face with the last person-or thing, rather-that I expected. "Phil?"
The largest, most intimidating yeti that I knew was wearing a white candy striper dress and a nurse's cap. Phil looked down in shame, his mustache wiggling as he grumbled to himself. Straightening himself back out, Phil spotted the unconscious Leetah in my arms.
"Opahh!" Phil said, waving his hands by his face as if he were both surprised and distressed. "Dopa tifop!" He took Leetah out of my arms and gently laid her in the nearest bed. He quickly began taking her vitals, listening to her heartbeat and shining a bright light in her eyes. Phil then ran off and returned seconds later with an armful of bandages. He started unrolling the first bandage, getting ready to put it on Leetah's arm when I stopped him.
"Maybe I should do it since you have, you know, fur?" I asked, trying to be as polite as I could. To be honest, I kind of wanted to be the one to heal Leetah, to nurse her back to health since I wasn't able to save her last time.
"Umpah! Grah potah!" Phil said, shaking out the bandage once again. He puffed out his chest and held his head slightly higher. I just got told by a yeti. In a language that I didn't even comprehend. I was about to say something back when an enormous hand came to rest on my shoulder.
"Let him work. Phil very capable of healing her." Phil then began wrapping the long bandage around Leetah's arm, tucking the end under and grabbing a new bandage for her forearm and hand. His hands were moving quickly, his fingers expertly avoiding any of the open gashes on Leetah's arms. Not a single hair fell onto either bandage. Triumphantly, Phil moved to wrap Leetah's other arm. "Come," North said, "Let Phil work. Tell me about friend." North stood me up and started leading me to the hallway. Turning my head around, I tried to catch one last glance at Leetah before trying to explain everything to the leader of the Guardians.
Leetah POV
(In Pitch's lair)
I woke up with nothing but darkness to welcome me. I sat up, rubbing my head. I didn't remember falling asleep. Last I remembered, it was night. Stars never sleep at night, so that would make no sense. My eyes quickly adjusted to the darkness and I looked around, trying to figure out where I was. I was trapped in a small room, the only piece of furniture being the large concrete table I woke up on. There was no door, only a window that was way too high for me to even hope to climb out of. My heart started beating faster, my breathing becoming shorter. I was trapped.
"So you're the star." I whirled around but saw no one. My heart was beating so loud that this person could probably hear it.
"Who are you," I asked, trying to sound brave.
"No one of any consequence." The voice sounded like a young man's, his accent being a strange mix between British and American. Again I looked for the source of the voice and again I found nothing.
"Where are you? Why can't I see you?" I whirled around, afraid to let this person be behind me. I continued scanning the small room for anything that seemed at all humanoid.
"I'm right here." Suddenly a boy appeared out of nowhere. I didn't allow myself to scream, but I couldn't stop myself from falling over in shock. Before I hit the ground, I felt a pair of arms wrap around me. I looked up, straight into the golden-hazel eyes of the boy. He was leaning over me, his shoulder length black hair falling down on either side of his face. His nose was long and thin, his jawline as sharp as a knife. His skin seemed almost as if it were a pale grey color. He was panting, and I could feel every muscle of his twig-skinny arm where it was wrapped around my back. Looking back at his face, I noticed a blush forming on his high, sharp cheeks. Everything about this boy seemed very sharp and angular, as if he was made to look as distrustful and terrifying as possible.
"What's your name?" I asked once the boy placed me back on my feet. He wasn't a lot taller than me, not like Jack was. My 5'3" frame came up to his mouth whereas with Jack, my head fit perfectly under his chin. Or at least it would, if... Nevermind.
"My name is Neal. I already know who you are, daughter of the moon." Guilt flashed in Neal's eyes and he turned his head so I couldn't see his face. "I'm supposed to kill you."
"What?" I took a step back, not believing that this boy who couldn't be any older than me would actually kill anyone.
"I don't want to, Leetah Starheart, trust me. It's just that my father isn't giving me a choice. He said that I could kill you quickly and painlessly or he would do it slowly and in the most painful way imaginable." Neal's voice was frantic, but I could tell that he was telling the truth. "See, your heart is special. Whoever possesses the heart of a star will be immortal, unstoppable. My father wants me to take it so that I can join him and rule by his side. I don't want to, Leetah, but what else am I supposed to do? My center is hate."
"How do you know?" I asked, interrupting Neal before he got too far into self-loathing.
"What?" He asked, confused.
"How do you know that your center is hate?" Neal opened his mouth and shut it a moment later. I let him do this a couple of times before I continued. "Tell me, do you feel hateful?" He shook his head no. "Do you enjoy the feeling of hatred? Does hatred make you happy?" Again, Neal's head shook no.
"But my center is hate. It has to be, that's what my father always told me." Neal sat on the concrete table in the center of the room.
"Maybe it's not hate. Maybe it's something good and your father has simply been lying to you." I walked over and hauled myself up onto the table, sitting next to Neal.
"But I've never been good. Even though I try not to, I always destroy every good thing I see." He dropped his head into his hands in despair. I thought long and hard about what that might have meant.
"Maybe your center isn't hate, but balance." Neal's head popped up, his eyes filled with confusion. "It doesn't mean you're evil, necessarily, it just means that you're the other side of a coin. Don't you see? There can't be good without bad, just as there can't be light without darkness. You're what people here call karma. I believe that if you try, you can be good while fulfilling your duties of being bad. That made no sense, did it?"
"No, that made perfect sense!" Neal exclaimed, shooting up off of the table to pace around the room in excitement. "That explains why I've never actually felt like being evil is my thing-because it's technically not!" Neal came running to me, grabbed my shoulders, and planted a kiss on my forehead. He flashed one more smile at me before practically running out of a door that appeared out of nowhere.
"It seems you had no problem convincing my son to believe your lies," came a cold voice behind me. "It seems I'll have to kill you myself."
I woke up with a start. I didn't know where I was, but I was glad that I was no longer in that horrible dark room. This new place was bright, light streamed in the windows near the top of the large circular room. The ceiling was pointed, made out of light colored wood that matched the airiness of the room. The walls were painted a deep, crimson red color, which somehow reflected just enough light to make the room seem even brighter. Sitting up dizzily, I realize that I was laying in what looked to be a fancy hospital bed. A small mattress was placed on top of a tall bed frame, thick red and white sheets replacing the thin grey sheets of a normal hospital. Looking around, I see that there were multiple beds like mine set up all around the room. My train of thought was interrupted as I saw something move out of the corner of my eye.
Whipping my head around, I discovered what had moved. It was Jack, asleep in an uncomfortable looking chair placed next to my bed. His staff was placed leaning against the wall, his body looked cramped, as if he had been sitting in that chair for a long period of time.
"Jack?" I asked, slightly afraid. As welcoming as this place seemed, I still had no idea where I was. Jack's eyes shot open, his hand immediately reaching for mine.
"Leetah! What's wrong?"
"Where am I? What happened?" I asked as I try to stand up.
"Woah, woah, easy, Leetah," Jack said, pushing gently on my shoulder so that I was sitting back down, leaning against the headboard. "You're at the North Pole, my home. You were kidnapped by Pitch." The image of Neal's father flashed in my mind. "Thank the Moon I got to you out of there in time. Who knows what would have happened if I didn't find you when I did."
I tried telling myself not to get too excited, but I couldn't help it. Jack actually saved me? He was worried about me? He must have stayed here beside me the entire time if he was asleep in the chair like that. My heart felt like it was going to burst. I looked up at Jack, his face filled with relief and something else that I couldn't quite identify.
"Thank you," I whispered.
CrystalQueen, I tried. I really did. Thank you so much for your suggestion, if you have any more, feel free to share them! :)
We have a new character: Neal Black, Pitch's son. I honestly have no idea where I am taking his story, but I mean, as long as I'm making up the rest on the fly, why not? I kind of pictured Neal's hair to be like Bucky Barnes' in the Winter Soldier and his eyes to be more of a golden brown than a pure yellow like Pitch's. What are your thoughts on Neal? Yay? Nay?
I love you all so much, and thank you a ton for reading! If you like it, leave a review! Each review is treasured like Gollum cherishes his precious. Okay, too far? It's late, I'm sleep deprived. Anyway, see you next chapter!