Toothiana

I swear, if I'd smiled any wider my face would've split open. I didn't know what it was about him but Pitch always managed to make me smile. Even five hundred years ago, when I'd first met him and the others, he was so sweet and calming. Without thinking, I placed my hand on his. He looked down at our hands, curiously, before smiling and entwining our fingers. I looked up him, as he lifted his head, smiling at me.

"If they pash, I'm gonna puke," Bunny told the others, quickly.

I blushed, looking away from Pitch, embarrassed. I returned my gaze to the river, tightening my grip on Pitch's hand as I did. "My fairies…" I gasped, staring down at them.

They tweeted, looking up at me, desperately, bubbles floating from their mouths. I released Pitch's hand and moved closer to the river, only to be pulled back by Bunny. "It's too deep, Tooth and you can't swim." He told me, calmly, knowing my thoughts.

"I can't leave them there," I snapped, moving towards the bubbling river. I froze, staring at it, frightfully, as the bubbles increased, as though the water were heating up. The water stopped as fast as it started, clearing to its normal colour. I looked in it again, searching for my fairies. "We have to get them back. He'll kill them." I told them, quickly.

"We need a plan first," Pitch told me, stiffly, as though he were holding his breath.

I nodded, forcing myself to calm down, "Okay, okay, so what do we do?"

"I thought he was too dangerous," Jack said, walking down to us.

"That was before he took my fairies." I told him, "Now I'm more dangerous than him."

He looked surprised by my seriousness and glanced at North, who looked just as shocked, if not more. "You are also emotional," North pointed out. "You need to calm down and think about the situation carefully."

I frowned, "I need to get my fairies back." I retorted, impatiently.

"And we will," Pitch reassured me, "But first you need to stop panicking."

I shook my head, "How? My fairies are being tortured by that ape and it's all my fault."

"How is it your fault?" Bunny asked, dubiously.

I stopped, avoiding their eyes, "He's after me." I offered, shrugging.

"We knew that," Pitch pointed out, "But why else would it be your fault?"

I mentally cursed his cunningness and sighed, "Because my father was Haroom. He stopped Maharajah from killing the sister by jumping in front of the arrow. The sisters were so surprised that a human could be so selfless, so compassionate. The sister he had saved was my mother, Rashmi, she healed him and by doing so lost her wings. When they had me, I was human but there were no other mortals in Punjam Hy Loo, so they decided to raise me outside of the village with the mortals. When I was twelve, I lost my last baby tooth and grew wings and feathers, the villagers thought I was an evil spirit that had to be killed." I told them, "Some wanted to use me to enter the Maharajah's Palace and steal his jewels, but some thought I should be caged. They were so blinded by fear and greed that they hired hunters to capture me. There was one hunter, he never spoke nor did he remove his hood, but he was skilled."

"It was him, wasn't it?" Jack asked, knowingly.

"Yes. The parents of the children who helped keep the hunters away, began to get suspicious and followed their children, leaving a trail of coins. He was the only one who followed, ordering for my parents to be kidnapped, and if I didn't show they'd be murdered." I explained, "I found them but I was too weak to help them, so they sent me away, giving me this," I pulled my bag from my side, opening it and taking out the ruby box. "They are my childhood teeth, they contain all my memories. My parents told me that if I held them close or placed them beneath my pillow, I will be reminded of my childhood and that one was not mine but of a being they did not know. They said it would protect me when the need arise. That's when I began collecting the teeth. I wasn't aging and the children around me were losing their goodness, so I took their teeth and preserved them, reminding them of who they used to be."

"That is… depressing," Jack frowned, leaning against his staff, intently.

I ignored his comment and continued my story, tucking my box back into my bag, "One night, a boy named Aleka lost his two front teeth, I had planned to give him two uncut diamonds but when I got there the mysterious hunter jumped me, locking me into a cage. He took me back to the Punjam Hy Loo, and told the sisters of Flight that he had captured the half-girl of Haroom and Rashmi. I held the box over my head and saw my parents, laughing, smiling, and sacrificing themselves for me. When I opened my eyes the cage was gone and my fairies were there, they all fought him off. I was so angry at him for killing my parents, I thought of ending his life but their memory stopped me. I let him go. The animals chased him into the jungle and I never saw him again."

"Can't these Sister help? If they fought him before they could do it again, right?" Bunny asked, hopefully.

I shook my head, "No, they are dead. After Maharajah had left, they asked me of my mother. When I told them she had been slaughtered, they turned to wooden statues. They told me that when one of them dies, they all die. So I became queen, protecting the children's memories. That's how Manny chose me." I shrugged, tying my bag back around my waist. "Anyway, I think he is still looking for revenge and now that the Sister have gone, he's at an advantage."

"Ah, but you have us now, Tooth." North reminded me, confidently.

I smiled at him, opening my wings and sighed, "Thank you, North. But I don't want to risk your lives."

"We do that all the time for the children," Jack pointed out, stuffing his hands in his pocket. "And we're family. This is what we do."

"He's right, mate." Bunnymund nodded, giving me a crooked smile.

Sandy nodded, slowly, a heart appearing above his spiky hair. I felt my eyes prick as I looked around at them. "Thank you guys." I sniffed, wiping my cheek, touched by their kind words.

North gave a loud laugh, wrapping his large arms around all of us. We all laughed at him, before we all pulled away, remembering the situation. I pushed the feathers out of my face and looked up at the sun, which began to set in the distance.

"We should go," I told them, "We only have a few hours."

"We will take the sleigh," North decided, adjusting his Cossack hat. "Unless it will be faster through Bunny's tunnels?"

I shook my head, "It will be faster using the snow globes." I told him, "Have you got one with you?"

"Always," He smiled, pulling it out of his coat and handing it to me.

I took it from him, drumming my fingers on it as I looked over at Jack, "You won't like it there. It's rather hot."

He grimaced but forced a smile, "I'm sure I'll be fine." He strained, hugging his staff closer.

"And don't cause any blizzards, please. Any sudden weather change could affect the elephants." I explained, quickly.

"I'll be fine, Tooth," He gave me a genuine smile, "Just throw the globe already."

I nodded, turning away from them and sighing. "Amazon rainforest." I whispered, before throwing the globe. The portal spiralled quickly, a blurry image of the forest appearing. "Let's go." I breathed, walking into it, the other Guardians following me, warily.