Toothiana watches as the young woman sleeps peacefully. Her pulse is rapid in her throat and every now and then she flinches. These signs of life make Tooth breathe a sigh of relief. It was a close call for a long time, but North is a miracle worker.
Jack Frost leans in the doorway, his curved staff under his arm.
Tooth glances at him. "She would be dead if it weren't for you. You did a good thing, Jack," she says, her voice a whisper so as not to wake the girl.
Jack nods. After the others lecturing him on his stupidity and irrationalness, it is nice to hear someone was on his side. The half-hummingbird woman stands, her wings flitting behind her.
"She'll be awake soon. Can you go see if North will make her some hot cocoa?"
Jack nods again, his blue eyes never leaving Cassandra's limp body.
Not two minutes after Jack leaves the infirmary, Cassandra's eyes flicker open.
She takes one look at Toothiana, rubs her eyes, and mutters, "Yep. I'm dead."
Tooth grips her hand delicately and helps her shift into a sitting position. The woman is beautiful, but not entirely human as Cassandra can see. Her body is covered in small green and blue feathers and a headdress of sorts crowns her delicate face. Her eyes sparkle an ethereal purple, matching the wings that sprout from her back.
"Did I wake you?" she worries, her voice tender.
"Depends," Cassandra murmurs, "am I really awake?"
Her laugh is airy and pretty, making Cassandra smile. Miniature flashes of bright colors cloud her vision and she swat them away gently. One lands on Cassandra's hand and blinks at her with large eyes. It appears to be a hummingbird, with just as much humanity as the woman flitting around her.
"How cute," Cassandra coos, delicately petting the plush feathers of Baby Tooth's forehead. She looks up at Toothiana, then around the room.
She is on a cot, covered in crisp white sheets. A metal tray with her clothes sits beside the bed. They are freshly washed and show no signs of frost or ice.
"Um, ma'am-"
"Oh, right, sorry sweet tooth. I'm Toothiana, but everyone just calls me Tooth," she smiles, flashing a set of perfect teeth.
Cassandra blinks rapidly. Tooth can practically hear the gears in her head turning.
"Where am I?" Cassandra mutters, mostly to herself.
"Why, the North Pole, of course!" A bellowing male voice replies. The door to the infirmary swings inward.
He is intimidating, with his large height and build, but he laughs joyously and that calms Cassandra a bit. He carries a metal tray with a ceramic teapot and cup with saucer on it. They clink as the man sets them down. Tooth pours a cup of steaming brown and hands it to Cassandra. The girl takes a cautious sip, letting the liquid warm her body.
"Miss Risk, I bet you are wondering why you are here… as are we," he chuckles. His accent is thick and Cassandra places it as Russian. He wears a coat of bright red, trimmed with dark fur. The sleeves are rolled up to reveal tendrils of ink on his forearms. Cassandra tilts her head to one side, then the other to read the tattoos. Naughty, and the other, Nice.
"Oh, my," Cassandra murmurs. Her brown eyes move rapidly as she takes in the man's appearance. His hair line recedes to the back of his skull, but his beard is full and very, very white. His eyes are large, like most of his features, and express the same amount of curiosity she feels.
"Are you…who I think you are?" Cassandra inquires, haltingly.
He laughs, patting the slight bulge of his stomach and she knows without a doubt that she is in the presence of a legend. She doesn't know whether to bow or cry, considering she must have lost her sanity.
"Santa…" she breathes.
"Do you believe, lassie?" Old Saint Nick grins.
Cassandra finds herself thankful to be sitting down. As it is, she reaches out for Tooth's arm and grasps the feather-covered appendage.
"I believe I'm nuts, alright."
He bellows another laugh and she's a bit disappointed it doesn't resemble a 'ho, ho, ho.'
"A sense of humor. Those are nice, aren't they, Tooth?"
The fairy woman sighs, running a hand through Cassandra's hair. "It's been a long time since another girl has been in our midst. I must warn you, this boy's club can be a pain," she explains, her tone conspiratorial. The hummingbirds buzz indignantly and she smiles. "But these Baby Tooth girls keep me company."
"Tooth… you're the-" Cassandra sputters.
"Tooth Fairy, at your service, malady," she giggles.
Santa reaches forward and pats Cassandra's hand gently.
"A friend of mine brought you here, but, you see, that is a problem." He leans forward and she can smell peppermint on his breath. "No mortal has been to the North Pole in centuries. It is forbidden."
Cassandra gulps audibly. Great, she's in trouble now.
"I'm sorry," she squeaks.
The door bangs open again and in saunters the largest rabbit she has ever seen in her life. He's over six feet tall and muscular, his chest broad and expression annoyed.
"I don't blame you. I blame the frostbite-in-the-arse that brought you here," he grumbles, his voice distinctly Australian.
"You talk, too," the human girl says in awe.
He scoffs. "Thank you for speaking the obvious."
Cassandra glances down at the warm red robe wrapped around her body. She scrambles from the bed, noticing that while aching, noting seems broken or terribly injured. She approaches the rabbit and his bushy dark eyebrows lift.
"The Easter Bunny? Seriously? I thought you'd be…" she makes a motion with her hands resembling something the size of a house cat.
"Do you think something that small could be so powerful?" He sticks his nose in the air and it twitches proudly. "I think not."
"My sister is going to flip. She adores you," Cassandra grins.
He smiles back, his long grey ears tilting in though. "Julie, right? Cute kid. Always leaves me carrots."
Cassandra suddenly grips her hands to her chest and turns wide eyes on the others in the room.
"Oh, no," she gasps. "My sister. If I'm dead-!"
"You're not dead, honey bunny," the rabbit snickers, playfully tapping his paw to her cheek. "You're very much alive."
"But, why-?" It comes out loud and aggravated.
"Because of me."
Cassandra whirls around to face him. He leans against a curved wooden staff, the picture of casualness with his ruffled white hair. She holds a hand to her head and tries to breathe evenly.
"North, I think she's going to faint again," the Tooth Fairy murmurs.
"Nope. I'm just trying to wake up," Cassandra grumbles.
"Sandy has assured us that you aren't dreaming."
"And Sandy would be -let me guess- the Sandman?"
The white-haired boy smirks. "She's smarter than you think, Bunny."
"I never said anything to the contrary. I think I was insulting your brains at the time," the Easter Bunny fires back.
"They argue like children, how lovely," Cassandra says to no one in particular. The Tooth Fairy giggles and links her arm through the human's. Idly, Cassandra notes that they are the same height when Tooth's wings aren't giving her a boost.
"Tell me about it," Toothiana huffs.
The boy grins and Cassandra catches her swoon a bit.
"He does have a beautiful smile, doesn't he?" she whispers to Cassandra. The brunette blushes in spite of herself and glances away, to the man in red himself.
"Um, Santa?"
He grins. "Please, my dear, call me North."
"North," she repeats. "I need some answers."
"Right. Come, take a walk with me," he ushers, shooing the bunny and fairy out of his way. The teenager turns and takes the lead down the corridor.
"Jack, why don't you start?" North urges.
The boy turns to her. Without a doubt in Cassandra's mind, she knows his name. His hair like freshly fallen snow and eyes of the coldest blue give him away. Frost.
"You should be dead," he says without preamble. "However, I couldn't let that happen."
"Well, thank you for that," Cassandra murmurs, toying with her long brown hair that won't stay behind her ears. "But, um, why?"
He narrows his blizzard eyes at the girl, the answer obvious in his mind. North walks silently behind them, glancing anxiously between the two. He wishes he had one of his broadswords to cut the tension between them.
"If I may," North interrupts, stepping forward so he creates a blockade. "The Man in the Moon spoke to me last night-"
"I think we need to stop conversing with him," Jack grumbles, glancing up.
Cassandra glances around. With a bit of common sense -albeit, unbelievable sense- she knows where she is now. Santa's workshop at the North Pole. Large, furry creatures amble about, carrying parts of toy robots and tiny tools. Elves dash here and there, no taller than mid-shin. One grips onto the hem of her robe and won't let go. She picks up to the tiny being and cradles him in her arms like a baby. He wears a Christmas tree outfit, making him distinctly triangular in shape. The bell upon his head jingles loudly as he shifts to get comfortable in Cassandra's arms. His round green eyes blink closed and he begins to snore.
All eyes are on Cassandra. She flushes with embarrassment, not sure what to make of the sudden spotlight. Jack smirks. She looks beautiful with a bit of color in her light skin.
North smiles, his bushy mustache raising.
"You are gentle and kind. That is good," he says softly, then clears his throat. "Come along, now. No time to dilly-dally."
He leads up the subtle spiral of the staircase that wraps around the workshop. In the center of the room is a giant, whimsical globe. Specks of golden light flicker and shine on every continent.
"What is that?" Cassandra gapes in awe.
Jack grins slyly at her. "Planet Earth."
She feel like socking him in the arm, magical being or not.
"I gathered that much," she replies dryly.
North places a heavy hand on each of their shoulders. "No bickering. I have had enough of Bunny and Jack, not you too."
Cassandra glances at her feet, murmuring, "Sorry."
Jack sticks his tongue at her and she resists the urge to punch him in his gorgeous face.
"Every light represents a child, one who believes in us," North's words boom with power. "It is a symbol of the belief in us Guardians."
"Guardians," Cassandra repeats, the word weighing on her tongue. It means something imperative, she can tell by the way Jack stands up just a bit straighter.
"Come," North says. "We have much to discuss. Jack, why don't you go keep the yetis out of trouble?"
"Why do you have yetis?" the girl asks, softly so none of the great creatures can hear.
"Who do you think makes the toys?"
She holds the elf in her arms a bit higher and raises an eyebrow.
"That's what we let them think." North winks a glittering blue eye. The color is softer than Jack's, more childish that mystical.
"Catch you later," Jack says, mock saluting and turning on his heel. Cassandra watches him leave. Almost out of nowhere, a long wooden staff appears in his hand, the top curved in on itself. Jack drags it along the banister of the stairs and a light dusting of snow trails behind it.
"No, no, no," North bellows, shooing her along. "No goo-goo eyes for Jack. We have work to do!"
She begins to protest but the elf in her arm coos slightly and she lowers her voice.
"Sant- North," she corrects herself. "This doesn't make sense. Why did Jack bring me here?"
"As he said, you should have frozen in that lake. When he fished you out, you were dead. No pulse. Then, you opened your eyes."
Cassandra knows she should be more interested in hearing her return to the living, but really all she wants to do is explore the fortress. She wants to see what every door leads to, what the windows reveal.
They come to a large wooden door. The doorknob is brass, polished until she can see her reflection in it. North opens the door and shuts them inside. The room is triangular, the opposite wall consisting of a giant window. The view is breathtaking, nothing but snow-capped mountains for miles. In front of the window is a cherry wood desk, covered in red pens, thick paper, and trinkets of all kinds. Cassandra shifts the elf to one arm and delicately hold a nutcracker to the light.
North takes his place in the spacey, forest green wing-backed chair behind his desk. With a motion of his hand a small red loveseat appears opposite him.
"Have a seat," North invites.
As the others have done, he inspects the young girl for any sign of why she is able to be in his office. The Man in the Moon decreed long ago that mortal were to be kept away from the homes of the Guardians. North can't remember the last time a human was in his palace. He feels guilty for it, but North sees the girl as…normal. There is nothing about her that makes him suspect she is anything important. Jack has hinted that she is beautiful, and she seems sweet, but does she have powers, is she immortal? The answer is a puzzling no.
Cassandra fidgets in her seat.
"So I am dead, then. Is this where all girls go when they die?"
North chuckles slightly. "No, child. You are mortal and of the living. The vitality radiates from you, like the glow of a fire." He motions to his right to the fireplace she hadn't noticed before. It crackles to life with the snap of his fingers and she finds herself smiling. He's magical and very much real. Santa Clause is real.
"My parents told me when I was small that they were behind the whole 'Santa'," she holds up air quotes, "thing."
"That is true. As parents got older, they stopped believing. They focused on careers and money. Not the important things like the spirit of Christmas. To save their children from the same fate, they left presents and gave me the credit. But I always leave something special for the good boys and girls."
Cassandra's mind flits to the previous year. She wanted nothing more for Christmas than a cat. Her mother had refused, believing a canine would be more meaningful to the newly formed family.
"Go check your room," she had told Cassandra with a smile.
Julie was overjoyed, and Cassandra was happy she was happy.
On Cassandra's bed, the two girls had found the box, holes carved into the sides. Julie lifted the lid and tenderly plucked the wiggling yellow dog from the box. Cassandra peeked in the box and gasped aloud. Curled in the corner was a tiny black kitten. He mother had blamed Justin, but Justin to this day claims his innocence.
"Thank you for Manhattan," Cassandra tells North.
"A good name for a kitty, yes?" he chuckles.
After a short pause, Cassandra meets North's eyes.
"Why am I here, if I'm not supposed to be?" she finally inquires. "Why did Jack bring me here?"
"To keep you safe." North sighs heavily. "Pitch has resurfaced. For some reason, he came after you."
"And Pitch is…?"
"You may know him as the Boogie Man."
"Right, of course." Why should she be surprised at this point? Cassandra half expects Cupid to fly in with his arrows at the ready.
"He tried to kidnap you, and almost succeeded." North stands, resting his hands flat on the surface of his desk. "You are a very lucky girl, Cassandra Risk."
They are silent for a moment as this sinks in.
"But I'm still not supposed to be here, am I." It comes out in a monotone, more of a statement than a question.
North settles into his seat once again, patting his belly in thought.
"No mortal has ever stepped foot here before, as far as I can remember. Very few have seen us. You have to truly believe to see."
"Believing is seeing," she whispers, as if reciting a line from a cherished poem she heard long ago. "I think my father used to tell me that."
"William Risk was a smart man, and a kind father to you. He always believed even when others did not. That spirit is alive in you.
"The Man in the Moon has allowed you to be here for some unbeknownst reason. I am not one to argue, although Bunnymund…" North chuckles.
It's safe to assume he has called the Easter Bunny by his full name. Strange, Cassandra never thought of the Spring Rabbit having an actual name.
"We shall keep you safe here. As Guardians, it is our duty. After all we may need your help to defeat Pitch again."
Cassandra frowns at this. She has no clue how she would be able to fight a dark entity, especially one with magic. North believes the same. However, he knows the Man in the Moon sent her to him for a reason. And a good one at that.
But there is that word again. Guardian. It seeps into Cassandra's being and wraps around her soul.
"Your guard the children of the world," she murmurs with sudden realization. She gently traces a finger along the sleeping cheek of the elf in my arms. He opens his eyes and yawns adorably.
"We guard those who believe, be it smallest of child or eldest of adult. We protect their hopes and dreams, memories and wonder, and fun." He smirks. "Walt Disney had a light on my globe until he passed away."
"Where do my parents think I am? My sister-"
"All will be taken care of once this blows over," North waves his hand noncommittally. "In the mean time, I am putting everyone to work. That includes you, Cassandra. I hear you are quite the artist."
Cassandra blushes as North rises and holds the door open for her. The elf hops from her arms and trails behind them, stretching groggily.
"Just a hobby of sorts," she murmurs modestly.
"Nonsense! Yetis, get the girl a paint brush!" North demands. The workshop is now a chaotic swirl of bright colors and rushing yetis. Cassandra's eyes dart to and fro, sensing the adventure to be discovered in the room.
I was finally able to figure out the spacing on this website :D hurray!
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