The Wandering Flame
Chapter 5: A Destined Meeting
Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians, only this fanfic and my OC.
"Does the walker choose the path, or the path the walker?" -Garth Nix, Sabriel
Rose
The ride through the portal was, at best, bumpy. It was a rather swirling and jostling way of travel, and if it hadn't been for the countless times she'd just let the wind tumble her around for fun she'd have let the bile that'd started at the back of her throat to end up on North's well-kept floors.
And for the first time, she didn't exactly appreciate the aroma of hot cocoa and freshly baked cookies that filled the air. It only made her stomach clench.
Jack yelled throughout the entire thing, and let out a loud yelp when he collided with the floor once it was over. Not that she could blame him; if it was her she'd be screaming at the top of her lungs inside that stupid sack.
"They're here." North declared once Jack, herself and the yetis had made it through.
She immediately hopped off of the yeti to rush over to Jack, who was finally free thanks to a couple of little elves. But the spirit stopped short when she realized that North, as well as Sandy and Toothiana, were right in front of them.
"Hey, there they are! Jack Frost! And the ever lovely Rose!" North exclaimed warmly, holding his arms out to welcome the troublesome winter spirit and the shocked summer spirit.
Jack began to emerge from the sack with Rose's help, who had finally snapped out of it to give him a hand.
"Are you alright?" She whispered, gazing down at him in concern.
He sent her a reassuring grin. "Yeah, thanks."
"Wow, you gotta be kidding me." The white-haired teen muttered, looking up at them in astonishment.
Two yetis roughly grabbed him by the shoulders to hoist him up onto his feet - an act that was totally unwelcome for said spirit.
"Hey, hey! Whoa, put me down."
"I hope the yetis treated you well?" North commented, earning a snort from Rose.
"Oh, yeah. I love being shoved in a sack and tossed through a magic portal." Jack replied sarcastically.
"Actually, they were kind enough to give me the option of either going with them or going in the sack. How polite." Rose remarked, lightly rolling her eyes.
She knew North meant well, but he could've at least warned them or something before practically kidnapping them to some sort of clandestine meeting.
"Oh, good! That was my idea! You know Bunny, obviously," The jolly man beamed, gesturing to the rude, grouchy rabbit.
"Obviously."
"Inconsiderate, grumpy, arrogant, oversized stuffed rabbit..." Rose muttered, shooting a glare at the Easter Bunny.
His ears twitched, evidently catching her negative adjectives thrown his way. He didn't say anything - for now - but his lips upturned in a deep scowl and returned the glare.
"And the Tooth Fairy?" North continued, causing Rose's eyes to light up.
"Tooth!"
The mini-fairy zipped over to her, happily greeting her back with a nuzzle against her cheek.
"How are you? I didn't think you would come here! Did Toothiana call for you?" The redhead asked, earning an earnest nod from the little fairy as she chatted away.
Rose chuckled a little at Tooth's concern for her well-being. "I am fine - just a little rattled at the sudden 'invitation' from North."
Jack got swarmed by more of Toothiana's mini-fairies and the Tooth Fairy herself, who baffled the spirit whilst talking about his teeth. She even hastily opened up his mouth to inspect them, leaving the summer spirit at the side to begin simmering. Rose had just found him to possibly make him a friend, and already another spirit was ogling over him. Not that there wasn't sound reason not to, but...
Ugh, she had to calm down; she was starting to steam again.
"Oh, they really do sparkle like freshly fallen snow." Toothiana commented with a dreamy smile. Her mini-fairies fluttered around a confused Jack, acting like a bunch of crazed popstar fans.
"Girls, pull yourselves together...Let's not disgrace the uniform." The beautiful fairy ordered, surprising Rose by speedily flitting over to her.
"Ohmygoshmyfairieshavetoldmesomuchaboutyouit'sgreattofinallymeetyouinperson!"
The summer spirit was speechless, astounded by Toothiana's speed, even in talking. In all honesty, no amount of preparing could've made her ready for Toothiana's nature and zero sense of personal space.
"Ah, er, um...it is a pleasure to meet you as well?" Rose was starting to feel like a total moron, but after being 'proper' as Jack put it for so long this was all new to her.
Especially the lack of personal space.
"Is it true what they say? I hear your teeth are absolutely beautiful!" She squealed, forcing Rose's mouth open.
"Huh? Who sai-"
"Okay, open up~oh wow, they really are as radiant as the sun! Super sparkly, too! I can't believe there's not one, but TWO sets of flawless rows of teeth that I get to see!" Toothiana sighed happily, her mini-fairies admiring Rose's teeth just as much as Jack's.
Well, without as much fan-girling. That was something she was grateful for.
A wisp of sand streamed across her face, prompting her to turn and look at Sandman, who waved at her groggily after getting yelled at by North.
She smiled at him, though confusion prevented her from introducing herself properly. This was too much to absorb. Why were they even here? Meeting so many spirits at once was making her head spin!
"I knew I should've just entered combat against that Australian egg-painter. That would have been a lot more entertaining and less bemusing. Besides, Bunnymund totally deserves it." Rose thought as she backed away from the Guardians, feeling too overwhelmed.
"Hey! Ho! Anyone wanna tell us why we're here?" Jack asked, putting some distance between himself and the others.
"Agreed...I do not mind visiting, North, but I was in the middle of something important when we were suddenly abducted." Rose added, feeling as if she were just some kind of extra or something.
She was important too, right?
Sandy offered to explain, but watching all of his Dreamsand pictures was like trying to decipher a fast-pace movie without sound or subtitles.
Jack had crouched down to try and further understand to no avail. "That's not really helping. But thanks, little man," He wandered away, freezing a poor little elf with a platter of cookies that Rose immediately thawed. "We must have done something really bad to get you four together. Am I on the naughty list?"
"Am I? What did I even do that is so horrible?" Rose wondered, looking to the Guardians for answers.
"...Am I on the naughty list?"
North chuckled. "On naughty list? You hold record! Well, Rose you are up there, probably about tenth now as associate to crimes with Jack, to answer question. But no matter. We overlook. Now we are wiping clean the slate."
"How come?" Rose asked, befuddled as to why she was in the Top Ten of the naughty list and why North was willing to take both herself and Jack off said list.
"Ah, good question." Bunnymund oh-so-cheerfully chimed in, his tone dripping with sarcasm.
"How come? I tell you how come! Because now...you are Guardians!" North exclaimed, the yetis flanking him raising brightly lit torches.
Elves blasted silver trumpets surprisingly well, crowding around the two new Guardians who were in too much of a state of disbelief to really feel like celebrating. Toothiana's fairies attempted putting necklaces of paper snowflakes and flames around their necks, which they rejected in varying degrees of politeness.
"What exactly is happening right now?" Rose yelled at Jack, deciding to stick close to him because everyone else at the moment was only spiking her panic.
"I really have no clue," He called back, only to find her right beside him. "Oh, hey there. You know, I could do without the trumpets."
She smiled, her quiet giggles lost to the horns and drums filling the room. "Tell me about it; I think my ears are starting to ring!"
The sound was getting to her - she had not been surrounded by such loud sounds in a long time - so she covered her ears as best she could while attempting to remain focused, despite her oncoming disorientation.
Rose saw North shout something in elation right before she watched an elf point at her and Jack's feet. She frowned until a pair of elves walked in carrying what looked like...ceremonial boots? There was a pair of blue and silver ones for Jack, and a golden and red pair for her. What was even the point of those?
"Huh?" She barely heard Jack utter.
The next thing she knew, North was reading from a large tome and the other Guardians were staring at her with differing reactions. She didn't like it; she never asked for this. Sure, she appreciated what North did for her, but this was too much. She never wished to be a Guardian; she wasn't a good fit for the job description.
Rose didn't have any useful powers aside from warming people up, setting things on fire, and healing - which she discovered only half a century ago. At least Jack could help children experience joy and wonders. All she ever did was cause misery.
She didn't belong here. Not with these Guardians that everyone knew about, that were treasured, and loved, and believed in. And those blasted horns kept blaring in her ears. The drums made her woozy and infuriated at the same time. The happy smile on North's face made her insides squirm.
That was when she lost control and saw red.
The Summer Spirit slammed the butt of her staff down, shooting out tendrils of flames with a heat wave that instantly melted the ice on the floor Jack had caused. The temperature of the room shifted from cold, to uncomfortably hot, then back to freezing again. Steam emanated from her form, which only added to her intimidating appearance.
"What makes you think I want to be a Guardian? Or Rose for that matter?" Jack asked, displeased with the entire event.
"I can speak for myself, Jack, if you do not mind," She nearly snapped, surprising him with her newfound ferocity. "I have no interest in becoming a Guardian, North. I appreciate what you did for me many years ago, but I do not desire such a position."
The jolly man burst out laughing with the tome in his hands, then looked at them, stone-faced. "Of course you do!"
He cued the elves for more music, which was quickly cut short by an irritated Winter sprite.
"No music!"
It petered out, ending with an elf effectively giving up by storming out of the room, having thrown his trumpet on the floor. North, evidently miffed, glowered.
"Look, this is all very flattering, but ah...you don't want me. You're all hard work and deadlines, and I'm snowballs and fun times. I'm not a Guardian." Jack stated, looking to Rose for her answer.
"I might be...'proper', but that does not mean I am meant for serious labor and commitment. I do not belong here - no one has even heard of me. I am not good for anything, all I do is warm things up and set things ablaze. I am better off on my own." The Summer Spirit admitted with a clenched jaw and balled fists, still steaming with the ends of her hair flaming.
"Yeah, that's exactly what I said!" Bunnymund so rudely added in. A pity, Rose almost forgot he was present.
"Jack, Rose...I don't think you understand what it is we do." Toothiana said, flying over to the giant globe behind them.
She explained how every light on it was a child, with North continuing the explanation by saying how regardless of whether or not they were good, as long as they believed, they were protected by the Guardians.
"Tooth...fingers out of mouth."
Rose was trying not to watch Tooth examine Jack's teeth, who was more than happy when she finally stopped.
"Oh, sorry. They're beautiful."
"Okay, no more wishy-washy! Pitch is out there doing who knows what!" North announced, catching Rose's attention.
"Pitch? The spirit who gives children nightmares? I thought he was eliminated." Rose frowned, still finding the persistent aroma of baking cookies and steaming hot cocoa unsettling to her stomach.
"You mean the Boogeyman?" Jack scoffed, unaffected by this new information.
"Yes! When Pitch threatens us, he threatens them as well." North exclaimed, pointing to the globe.
"All the more reason to pick someone more qualified!" Jack argued, turning to the Summer Spirit and catching her attention. "Right, Rose? You've made it pretty clear you don't want the job, either."
He and North stared at her expectantly. The female felt her hair starting to flame again, an embarrassed bout of steam escaping her ears, her previous bout of anger all but forgotten. She fiddled with her staff, drawing curling flame patterns on the floor.
"I...well, yes. I mean, no?" She stuttered, wincing at her stumbles in eloquence. "I'm certainly not qualified by any means for such a position. I am not even believed in, not even heard of. At least Jack is mentioned in a winter song. All I do is bring misery - chaos, even, if I get too upset or out of hand. I...I could never perform a job like any of yours. Please, go pick someone else, North."
"Pick?" the jolly man snorted, "You think we pick? You were chosen like we were all chosen. By Man in Moon."
Rose's eyes widened. "Pardon?"
Jack was equally stunned, whipping around and asking "What?" a few seconds later.
"Last night, Jack. He chose you. And Rose right after." Toothiana replied, her amethyst eyes filled with compassion and warmth.
"Maybe." Bunnymund added, earning a heated glare from the spirit of summer.
"Does he truly talk to you? All of you? The Man in the Moon - you speak to him?" Rose questioned, earning a slight nod from North.
"You see, you cannot say no. It is destiny." The Russian told them, desperate to get them to understand.
It only made Rose increasingly confused. Why didn't the Man in the Moon tell her himself? Why didn't he tell Jack? Why did he never speak to them? Why was it her destiny to become a Guardian when she had nothing to offer except instruments of destruction? Why was it fated that she be here at this meeting?
"But why, why wouldn't he tell me that himself? Rose, did you know?" She heard the winter sprite question, but she only stared up at the glowing disk in the sky.
"For so long, all I have wanted is answers. Why can I not receive that?" Rose wondered, unsure if she should feel upset or infuriated.
"After 300 years this is his answer? To spend eternity like you guys cooped up in some, some hideout thinking of, of new ways to bribe kids? No no, that's not for me!" Jack yelled, then added in a calmer tone, "No offense."
"How is that not offensive?!" Bunnymund shouted back, snapping Rose back to her senses.
She felt a spark from her hand, jumping a little at the contact. Glancing up, she saw Jack's ice-blue eyes boring into her own pair. "Come on, let's get outta here."
Rose glanced back at the Guardians, then to Jack. She let him start to pull her away, not even looking over her shoulder in regret. This was not her world, nor did she wish for it to be.
"You know what I think? I think we just dodged a bullet. I mean, what's this clown know about bringing joy to children anyway?" Bunnymund asked rather loudly, causing Jack to whip around with a peeved expression.
"Uhh, you ever hear of a snow day? I know it's no hard-boiled egg, but kids like what I do."
He was still holding Rose's hand, which made her steam a little. That, and her growing ire towards Bunnymund.
"That's right. Children love what Jack does - they laugh, and play, and hope it never ends. I highly doubt you have ever played in the snow, Bunnymund, but I can tell you that it is quite entertaining and joyful." She added, though she intentionally left out that she had nothing to offer to bring joy to kids.
"But none of 'em believe in you," Bunnymund pointed out, leaning in closer. "Do they? You see, you're invisible, mate. You and sheila there, it's like you don't even exist."
"Bunny! Enough!" Toothiana cried as silence fell.
"No, the kangaroo's right." Jack admitted, much to the surprise of Rose.
Of course the irritating rabbit was right, but she didn't think he'd admit it. She thought he would fight back. Then again, it was smarter to remain calm and quip back over overreacting and losing the argument.
"The, the what - what'd you call me? I am not a kangaroo, mate." Bunnymund glared, stepping closer.
"Oh. And this whole time I thought you were. If you're not a kangaroo, what are you?" The winter sprite demanded, sizing up to the bunny just as much.
"I'm a bunny. The Easter Bunny. People believe in me."
Just a few seconds later, a fist lashed out to punch the oversized rabbit across his furry face. He stumbled back, nursing his slightly burnt cheek in shock. Everyone's eyes locked onto the attacker: Rose.
She panted, feeling adrenaline course through her veins. She was incredibly stung by Bunnymund's words, though even Jack seemed surprised by her violent reaction. Her hair turned into flames, tendrils of smoke rising from her body.
"You think I don't know that? You think Jack doesn't? If I am indeed proper, then you are the most uptight, rudest creature in the world - no, the galaxy! Just because snow happens sometimes on Easter - yes, even blizzards - you hate us for it? At least children still care, at least they still celebrate it despite the weather changes! But me? Who would ever want to hear about the summer spirit? I do not bring joy like the rest of you; I only bring uncomfortably hot months for everyone to endure!"
"Whoa, Rose, calm down." Jack said calmly, grabbing her hand that she had wrenched out of his grasp to punch the rabbit.
She snapped her head to face him, her eyes beginning to glow a bright, fiery orange. "What if I do not want to calm down, Jack? I have not done anything wrong except let you and the kids have your fun! I let you do your pranks and mischief and snow days! And for that and my wandering, I am taken here and harassed?"
The room began to swelter, leaving the Guardians to perspire in the rising heat. It was strange for Jack to finally feel his skin warm, but he found that he did not exactly dislike it.
"I am sure that 'kangaroo' will call this whining, but he has not had to live 200 years wondering why in the world he was brought into being! I have had ENOUGH!"
Her hair flared, the new wave of heat heightening the temperature further. Jack grabbed both of her hands, using his staff to shoot out flurries of cold in an attempt to bring down the heat.
"Hey, hey, hey. Look at me, okay? I feel the same way - I've been asking the same questions you have for an extra century. But blowing up at the kangaroo won't solve anything, alright? It's really tempting, I know, just...try to hold it in." He said in a gentler tone, his ice blue eyes gazing into hers imploringly.
Rose felt herself begin to calm down, the humid, unbearable heat dissipating from the room. Her hair ceased flaming and the steam disappeared, leaving a rattled and ashamed spirit in its wake.
"Jack. Rose. Walk with me." North stated suddenly, noticing that the tension had not completely left the room.
Jack started to follow North with Rose in tow, who glanced back at the other Guardians to see expressions of shock and unease. She bit her lip, ashamed of her actions.
"I just proved my own point; I have nothing to offer but destruction. Obviously the Man in the Moon got my destiny confused with someone else's. How could I ever bring joy to children when I'm capable of something so terrifying?"
A/N: And done! Sorry it took so long to give you guys this new chapter, I've been so busy I have no idea how I'm still alive. Also, this is kinda late but MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE! As always, please review, favorite and follow! Oh, and fan art is encouraged! Thanks!