Ah, sorry it's been soooo long. I blame school. Anyway, we left off with the kids were saved but Garret not so much. Actually he got the tar beat out of him. But he has a plan! Let's see if it works!
Chapter Thirteen: Is Revealed In The Light
[3rd Person POV]
Garret opened his eyes slowly as everything came back to him in a pained haze. It was dark where he was with dull gold slits of light coming in only to help the ones that dwelled here see. Attached to the ceiling were several cages made of what looked like a worn bronze; he couldn't be too sure since the lighting was bad. Other than those things, it was mostly dark and the one difference between shadows and objects was the saturation of the black blanket that coated the place.
Holding back a moan he turned his head to the side and for a figure in the darkness staring at him without any eyes. He feared it was Kuroi for a moment and was bracing to be beaten again only to see it was Pitch. The boogieman, upon seeing Garret was conscious, got to his feet and walked over to him, crouching down next to the boy.
"I see you're awake. That's good since I had a question for you." Pitch said while staring with his blank eyes.
"Really?...What is it?" Garret asked with difficulty.
"You're just like me, hated by the children of the world, always blamed for bad things and invisible to everyone minus your fellow guardians. You know more than anyone the pain I've suffered for most of my existence. So why is it, I ask, that you're on the side of "good"? Why do you protect them when they hate you?"
Pausing Garret thought of a way to answer this only to remember his plan. He shifted his uninjured arm slightly to find that the teeth were thankfully still there. Once he knew that he turned his attention back the anxious boogieman.
"There's something in my sleeve that I need you to look at. It's in a pouch and will answer your question, I promise." He told him.
Pitch looked at him and then the sleeve saying, "I see this is a joke to you. Oh-"
"It's not a joke, I'm dead serious and I don't have the strength to argue. Now please just do it."
Pitch, taken back by his rudeness and serious tone, looked curiously at the sleeve that the Spirit of Summer had just moved. Curiously and carefully he felt it, finding the pouch, and reached inside. It was poorly sewn into the fabric and came away easily, soon in his hand with the pale pink fabric shimmering dully. With one last look at Garret the boogieman open the small bag and poured out its contents into his hand.
What he found surprised him greatly; it was teeth all of them tinted a slight gray like his own. It was when he realized that these were his from the Tooth Palace that he was taken back to his memories he'd forgotten soo long ago. Garret, who had been watching through slitted eyes, sighed quietly and rested his head on the cold ground. All he had to do now was wait and see if what he planned worked.
It was just as he woke up again that Pitch was coming out of his long trip down memory lane. And what surprised Garret more than the fact that the boogieman was barely crying was the fact that his gold eyes were back and the gray tinge was gone from his skin. Now he was as pale as fresh snow and his hair was pure black and not engrained with nightmare sand. He was a changed man, literally.
Taking a breath Garret asked, "What did you see?"
"I…I had job as a defender against the nightmares until they overtook me; I protected people from them. I also had a daughter and I loved her so much. Did you know I would see this?"
"Considering that's what your daughter saw, yes it was what I guessed would happen."
"You know her? How is she still alive?"
"Because, she's the Spirit of Spring. Remember that girl with gray hair you attacked and how she deflected your arrows and broke your barriers? She was able to do that because she's your daughter. Hilaria is the Guardian of Spring and Joy."
"But…I thought that…how did she become that?"
"Like hell if I would know. All I know is that what you saw, your family, is what I protect. Keeping families from feeling the pain yours went through is why I'm on the side of good. As ridiculous as this sounds, you can be on that side too." Garret told him while looking Pitch dead in the eye.
Pitch froze, unable to believe what he had just been told. It wasn't for lack of thinking it was possible, which he had a lot of. No, it was because no-one had ever thought or told him that he could indeed be what all the children of the world loved: good. This was the first time he'd ever heard that suggested to him, with a great amount of belief behind it too.
"How could that be possible?" Pitch asked in bewilderment.
"Pitch, you rule over fear and have powerful magic; it can happen. The reason why is because people need fear. What stops kids from doing dangerous things? Fear. What makes a person think twice about taking the dark alley shortcut home as to the long way home? Fear. What is a motivation for people to continue living when their hurt or severely injured? Fear…fear that they won't see their children again. Fear that their family will be in a precarious situation if they die because they were the sole bread winner of the household." Garret explained, pausing every few words to breathe.
"Fear is something that is needed, not all the time, but it is a must have in life. It stops people and makes them think. If it didn't exist, then there would be no world or children to protect because they'd all be fearless and go off doing stupid things that'd get them killed. I should know since me not being afraid about my own life is how I died. Being afraid at the right time, which you can make happen, can save people and protect them. It is that, that can put you on the side of good."
Pitch looked at the Spirit of Summer astonished at his in-depth explanation and surprisingly understood all that he said. In theory he could do it. It would be a thankless job but the current one he has is already like that; there wouldn't be much of a change. What was more amazing was that this young Guardian wasn't asking him to stop what he was doing; he only offered a better option to go to.
"So, if I could be good like you and the others, would I get to see my daughter?" Pitch questioned quietly.
"Yes. She and the others are waiting to see if my plan to give you back your memories and free you from Kuroi works. They're at the Cloud Palace, in case you want to go."
"And what about you?"
"I would very much appreciate it if you took me with you. It is, after all, one of the main reasons I gave myself up and risked dying down here." Garret said quietly. "It's your choice; I can't make it for you. I can promise though, that you will see your daughter and that the Guardians will give you a second chance."
With that Garret shut his eyes and rested his aching self, now noticing how taxing it had been to talk. For a good moment he received no answer from the boogieman as he was still thinking about this odd and very interesting offer. It was only when he felt a thin layer of nightmare sand form under him like a bed that he knew, or hoped he knew, the choice Pitch had made.
Pale sunlight hit Garret and made him open his eyes to find himself and Pitch outside and in the forest that Jack Frost was normally in. He turned towards the boogieman, knowing that he couldn't stand sunlight and instead found the opposite. With wide eyes he stood and stared at the golden sun, feeling odd as he felt for the first time in a long time what the warmth of the sun was. To him, a person who had spent so much time in the dark, it was amazing to feel it and not be burned.
"How does it feel not being burned?" Garret asked tiredly.
"…Amazing. I feel like there's a warmth inside me, replacing the cold I'm so familiar with. Is this what you feel all the time?"
"Only when I do something good or if I'm in the sun…it also happens when I'm around WiS."
"Who is that?"
"The Woman in the Sun; I was the first Guardian she picked. She also kinda sees me like a son to her, which makes sense since I cover summertime and she's always been there for me."
"I didn't know she was that close to you."
"A lot of people didn't. We should get going before it gets dark." Garret said while looking at the sky.
"Yes, that would be a good idea. It's going to hurt though. Are you okay with that?"
"I don't have a choice."
"True. Very well." Pitch said with a nod. Then he carefully picked up Garret in his arms and flew into the sky, looking like a black raven from a distance.
Yay, they escapayed! Sounds just like escape. Anyway, R&R and sorry it took so long. OwO woot!
