A/N: I do believe that I am dying with happiness. 100+ reviews. I had no idea that this story would really get so popular, and I've never had people like a story so much! I hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas/Hanukah/Snoggletog/whatever you celebrated and a lovely New Year.
Fun fact: I went to go see Into the Woods on Christmas Day,and it was one of the most wonderful movies I've ever seen. And also, Chris Pine was in it — singing. For those who don't know who Chris Pine is, he was the voice actor for Jack Frost. Who knew our fun-loving Spirit of Winter could sing, right? :D
And also, you won't believe how long I've been waiting to use this chapter title (and write this chapter). :) It has a nice ring to it, don't you think?
Now let's get down to business:
For the follows: Chuckles-Angel, DPNbookworm, isdividedbyzero, TheShinx, Bubblenugget125, Rhyme13kh14Xion8, BBBBGarden Golden, dragonstarize, Diana Luna Night, Reader103, maryam24ish, Nerd-in-a-book, I-am-Carzy-SO-deal-with-it, littlejuliz, xXCrystallicAngelXx, CookieMafiaBoss, Loyal-LeoBlade, Shady Kitsune, SonYukiGoku'sSister, secret shugo chara, DragonkynNatKiasu, MusicAnime31, foxchick1, Katatonic97, and LittleAngelBlue!
For the faves: DPNbookworm, digital hellcat, isdividedbyzero, jamie1711, sakujari-14, seshlover, TheShinx, Bubblenugget125, Rhyme13kh14Xion8, BBBBGarden Golden, June2000, Reader103, maryam24ish, mog the 13 moogle, mollienaturerocks, DarkMoon010, Loyal-LeoBlade, moonlightsuneyes, violinnerd 14, Shady Kitsune, SonYukiGoku'sSister, secret shugo chara, DragonkynNatKiasu, Meerage, Katatonic97, LittleAngelBlue, and truedirectioner511!
And for the wonderful reviews: Ern Estine 13624, Roseflame Crystalheart, Amoureux des Livres, Pikachudragon, White Hunter, LunaArchery, Guest, phoebe . gimenez . 7, kitty . 0, Reader103, Racce0400, Random Reader, and guardianofdragonlore.
Reader Responses:
Amoureux des Livres: Hey! Good to see you back, and I'm glad you're enjoying the Interludes just as much I love writing them. And your new PenName . . . it means "Lover of Books," right? I have a friend who's taking French right now, and so I recognized what language it was.
Pikachudragon, White Hunter, kitty . 0, and Random Reader: Oh my goodness, thanks so much! I'm so glad that the threat was just a false alarm, and it was just social media people getting paranoid.
And a long overdue disclaimer: I don't own anything — not the plot, not the characters, nothing. This is merely for my own entertainment.
Some parts near the end of this chapter may a bit weird, since I didn't have the movie to base off of as I wrote. But enjoy!
"We will watch over the children of Earth,
Guide them safely from the ways of harm,
Keep happy their hearts, brave their souls, and rosy their cheeks.
We will guard with our lives their hopes and dreams,
For they are all that we have, all that we are,
And all that we ever will be."
– The Man in the Moon, to the original Guardians
Chapter Eight: Jacqueline Frost, Guardian
Jackie was smiling at the children's words. Her job was almost finished. All of them had looped around almost the entirety of Burgess, and they were once again back on Main Street. Jackie looked back in front, and stopped, her grin fading.
A cold sliver of fear pierced her heart, but she forced it down. She needed to be strong. She couldn't fail. Never again would she lose another friend.
Pitch's laughter echoed across the night sky, and waves of black sand were rushing over buildings. The cheering vanished as everyone stared up . . . into endless darkness.
The final battle was about to begin.
Jackie stared up at the terrible sight, eyes widening in utter horror. This — this was too much. The feelings of fear inside her were so strong, and she caught the slightest smirk from the Nightmare King from far above. He must have sensed it.
She gripped her staff tighter, barely noticing Monty fleeing back to the end of the group.
"You think a few children can help you?" Pitch called, staring straight at Jackie. She felt a small shiver course through her body, but met his gaze unflinchingly. "Against this?" He gestured to the large clouds of black sand beginning to surround them, and the thousands of Nightmares in its depths.
Out of the corner of her eye, Jackie saw North attempt to lift his sword up, but the struggle was too much for the weakening Guardian of Wonder. As his arms failed him, she and Tooth quickly turned to support him.
Behind her, Jackie heard a gasp from her First Believer.
"They're just bad dreams, Jamie," she said reassuringly, trying to sound convincing. Even though the situation looked hopeless, she knew that they still had to try.
Bunny nodded in agreement, though he didn't look too sure himself. "Y-yeah, we'll protect you mate."
Pitch smirked again. "Aw, you'll protect them? But who will protect you?"
Jackie was taking a few steps forward, clutching her staff close. She would try. She would try . . . for her family.
North was trying to convince her not to go, but Jackie smiled. "I'll be okay," she whispered softly, so only that he could hear.
He shook his head, desperately trying to plead with her. "Jackie, no!" he whispered back, the soft tone causing his typically loud voice to sound harsh. "We will be stronger if we are together."
Jackie's small smile never left her face, but she felt it grow slightly sadder. She placed a hand on his, but then walked forward again, staring straight at Pitch.
But then Jamie stepped in front of her. "I will," he said bravely.
Jackie's eyes widened. Jamie . . .
And then the others came to their side. "I will," Cupcake said, repeating Jamie's words.
"I will!"
"I will!"
Claude and Caleb pushed to the front, chiming in their own agreements.
"And me," Pippa said, her brown eyes determined.
"I-I'll try," Monty stammered.
Jackie glanced down and met Jamie's gaze. She nodded, answering the silent question, and they both began to prepare themselves for the final onslaught.
"Still think there's no such thing as the Boogeyman?" Pitch interrupted, his grin as malicious as ever.
The waves of Nightmares began rushing their way closer to the small group, and Jackie raised her staff, ready to defend.
You're a great friend, Jamie. We'll get through this together, she found herself thinking. And when they got through this, she intended to sit down and talk with Bunny about their past together. She still had a few lingering questions.
"I do believe in you," Jamie responded in such a way that reminded Jackie, once again, of Emma, "but I'm just not afraid of you!"
The sand was pooling together, almost on top of all of them, and Jackie prepared herself to create a shield to protect everyone.
But she never got the chance.
A whoosh of darkness began to close in on them, but Jamie stuck a hand out, and the black sand — all of it! — was transformed into a shining, safe, warm, and familiar shade of gold.
And as the golden sand swirled gently around them, the hearts of seven children resounded the same cry:
I believe.
The children began to cheer enthusiastically, and Jackie laughed and smiled exuberantly. A strange warmth was pulsing in her frozen chest, thawing a little bit of the shield that she had thrown around her heart.
She inwardly lent her strength and belief to everyone, feeling the invisible reality of the power flowing through the air.
Almost immediately, North's pale and wan face regained its ruddiness. Tooth's feathers puffed out and her limp wings buzzed energetically. The two of them broke into identical grins of joy, and Tooth soared high into the air, earning a cry of, "Yeah, Tooth Fairy!" from Pippa.
"No!" Pitch shouted angrily, trying to reign in the Nightmare he was sitting on. His lips were twisted into an enraged snarl as he took in the scene. "Get them!" he growled at the other Nightmares. "Do your job!"
Jackie glanced sideways as she bounded away from the stampede. Bunny, who had his eyes closed, was whispering, "Come on, come on!" Then a herd of Nightmares spotted the Guardian, who then bounded away with an "Oh, crikey!" and hid under a nearby car.
Nearby, North smashed two snowglobes on the road, making colorful, swirling portals come into existence. Soon, yetis poured out, yelling battle cries. Jackie met Phil's eyes and sent him a small smile. He smiled back, but then set his sights on the enemy.
Toys also zoomed out from the portal, making a menacing whirring sound.
Bunny was still scampering away, yelping, "I'm just a bunny!" as he wriggled under a car. The closest Nightmare ducked under it and pulled him out by his tail . . . who was (unfortunately for them) back to his six-foot-one, master-of-Tai-Chi self.
Jackie let a smile slip onto her face as Bunny greeted the enemy with a sly "G'day, mate" and obliterated it with one throw of his boomerang as he flipped and somersaulted in the air.
When the Nightmares vanished, Bunny tapped his foot on the ground, summoning numerous egg golems from the Warren. As he and his small army charged, Jackie ducked with a grin as the toys from earlier sliced into other Nightmares.
"Let's get 'em!" Cupcake then cried, leading the other children to another dark shadow. They all placed their hands on its body, and Jackie stared in astonishment as gold raced across the Nightmare, purifying it.
The power of belief . . .
Jackie smiled after getting over her shock, then reluctantly turned her head away from the children. She had wanted to protect them from getting hurt, but after that display — she discovered that they weren't entirely defenseless. Rather, they were the strongest out of them all.
After sprinting away from the battle, she called Wind to bring her to where Pitch was located. It was time to truly end this.
Right as she alighted on the building's rooftop, she sliced her staff through the air, blasting wave after wave of ice at Pitch. The bursts of bright blue lit up the night sky.
The Nightmare King kept avoiding the strikes, but he eventually turned back around to retaliate. He moved quickly through the air, and Jackie struggled to keep up as she raced around the rooftop.
And before she knew it — Pitch was right in front of her. Preparing to throw a dark spear as cruelly pointed as the arrow that had embedded itself into Sandy's body.
Jackie couldn't help it. Time seemed to slow as she watched the spear made of nightmares hurtle its way toward her. She raised her staff in a meager attempt to shield herself —
And then Tooth was there, quickly destroying the weapon with her sharp wings. As the warrior queen shot into the air with her momentum, Jackie grinned.
Thanks, Tooth.
Then Bunny popped out of the chimney with a puff of ash, wielding his boomerangs and saying, "Ho, ho, ho!" with a wicked grin as he threw them.
Jackie and the other two Guardians took chase when Pitch leaped off the building, but then North arrived with his swords, slashing the Nightmare and making Pitch tumble to the ground.
The fight continued there, sword against scythe, the echoes ringing across town. Then Jackie and the others landed by North's side — Bunny throwing his boomerangs, Tooth shooting faster than a bullet, and Jackie putting a good bruise in Pitch's side with a well-aimed kick.
They all fought Pitch together, seamlessly fighting as if they had been for centuries.
When they had cornered him, Jackie spoke. "It's over, Pitch," she said with narrowed eyes. "There's no place to hide."
But Pitch's wild eyes became malicious and gleeful when Jackie said those last words. He dropped into the ground, melting into the shadows.
Hiding.
Jackie growled quietly in anger, but slowly swiveled around, looking for any sign of his reappearance. When she had made a full one-eighty turn, Bunny's green eyes became alarmed.
"Jackie, look out!" he yelled, throwing one of his boomerangs behind her.
Jackie's eyes widened and she quickly turned, only seeing the sharp blade of a scythe rushing toward her and Bunny's boomerang harmlessly deflecting off it. Why was she always being targeted so underhandedly?
But just as the weapon pierced the fabric of her hoodie, a long tendril of gold wrapped itself around Pitch's arm, flinging him high up into the air. He was dragged across the snow, to a bright, glowing cocoon of golden sand.
And the only person who could've formed whips out of said sand was . . .
Jackie probably never smiled as joyfully as she did now. Sandy was back.
She saw him waving to the other kids, and then slamming Pitch back into the snow. Jackie and the others sprinted to the Guardian of Dreams, Jackie's eyes growing strangely moist.
Jackie joined the other Guardians in squeezing Sandy. Don't ever leave us again.
When they released the newly-resurrected Sandman, Jackie noticed that Pitch was sleeping in the snow, golden butterflies dancing around his head. She was tempted to laugh, but the symbol was a bit familiar to her.
"Mother doesn't like talking about her father," Jacob had told her once.
Jackie frowned as the memory bubbled up in her mind. Why would Pitch be —
But Sandy then flew up high in the air, sending strands of dreamsand all over the world, letting all the children believe again. The air around the Guardians seemed to be thrumming with power as the belief began to grow with each passing minute.
Jackie watched contentedly as the children, yetis, elves, and Guardians began to happily throw snowballs at each other. Sandy was back, children believed in her, Pitch was defeated . . . what more could she ask for?
A crunching caused the winter spirit to glance over. "Your center?" North asked gently, gesturing to the group joyfully playing and . . . having fun.
"It took a while," Jackie said with a soft smile, "but I figured it out." Because bringing joy and happiness to children was what she did best, no matter if she was invisible or not. She knew what her purpose was now.
And she liked it.
North then tossed a blue object to her, which she reflexively caught. Uncurling her fingers, Jackie chuckled when she saw what the older Guardian had given her.
A matryoshka doll, small, white-haired and blue-eyed, a frost-covered staff painted close . . . and with a kind smile that still somehow managed to radiate mischievousness.
It was her.
A snowball then hit the back of North's head, and he turned around, exclaiming good-naturedly, "You're all on naughty list!" He formed a snowball of his own, crowing, "Bunny, think fast!"
The unsuspecting Guardian was knocked down into the snow by the force of the throw, but he took the blow with an amiable grin.
As Jackie kept watching the scene, she noticed that Pitch had woken up. Narrowing her eyes, she made a move to warn the other Guardians, but the Nightmare King said threateningly, "You dare have fun in my presence? I am the Boogey—"
His sentence was cut short when Jamie ran through him.
Jackie's glare softened slightly with pity. She knew what it felt like to not be believed in, but she had taken her own path, and Pitch had taken his. She kept the children happy and bright, while he made them feel afraid.
Pitch had made his choice.
He fled the area, Jackie and the Guardians close behind. When they were all assembled on the ever-frozen lake, Pitch spat, "You can't get rid of me — not forever! There will always be fear!"
And as he spoke, Nightmares began to creep out from the swirling mist and shadows.
"Well, they can't be my Nightmares," North said flippantly. "I'm not afraid."
Jackie grinned triumphantly as she walked closer. "Looks like it's your fear they smell."
Pitch's eyes widened as he realized this, and he began to run. The shadows he had created turned on their master, and pulled him into the depths of his lair.
Then he was gone.
Jackie stared up at the moon, its brilliant glow being uncovered by the dark storm clouds. She squinted as the light shimmered over her, but then she smiled.
Jackie's smile was still present on her face as the Guardians made their way to her, the children not too far behind. Bunny broke free of the group, tall and strong again, and with that gentle look in his green eyes that she loved to see.
The Guardian of Hope stopped short in front of the winter spirit, taking her hands in his. "I'm so sorry, Jackie," he mumbled, releasing one of her hands to cup her cheek — the one that had the bruise on it. "I was being stupid, and I should've known that you'd never betray us. And . . . could you ever forgive me? I won't hold it against you if you never do, I mean — I was a pretty nasty bastard to ya and said some terrible things . . ."
Jackie leaned into his chest, her eyes closed. "I don't know how long it will take me to forgive you for what you've done," she whispered, "but I do know that you've loved me in your own, Bunny-like way. I only recently got my memories back, so I saw how much you cared. Maybe soon, we'll get to start over."
Jackie let a few tears leak out onto Bunny's fur, and she felt his warm arms wrap around her. She felt safe.
Loved.
She sniffed once, but then laughed quietly when she heard Baby Tooth's familiar chirps.
"All right, sheila," Bunny chuckled, letting go of Jackie. "Frostbite's all yours now."
Baby Tooth tweeted once, then perched herself on Jackie's shoulder. She stroked the fairy once on her downy head, gently fingering the individual plumes.
"Are you ready, Jackie?" North asked, distracting her from rubbing an affectionate Baby Tooth. "To make it official."
Jackie merely stared wide-eyed at him, not comprehending until an elf moodily smacked its trumpet on its palm. And when she understood, she smiled softly.
"Then it is time you take Oath," North decided, his voice gentler than she'd ever heard. He took the book from a yeti and thumbed through the pages until he found the one he wanted. Then he began to speak.
"Will you, Jacqueline Frost, vow to watch over the children of the world?
To guard them with your life, their hopes, their wishes, and their dreams.
For they are all that we have, all that we are,
And all that we will ever be."
Jackie was still very overwhelmed by everything, but she turned to her First Believer, meeting his brown eyes and asking him a silent question. And when Jamie nodded with a bright grin on his face, she said, "I will."
North was smiling as he said, "Then congratulations, Jacqueline Frost, for you are, and forevermore — a Guardian."
It was Jamie who started up the cheering, and who was the loudest. North came up to Jackie, easily picked her up, and kissed her on both cheeks, signaling his joy. She was then set back down on the ice, slightly dizzy. The mini-teeth formed a dreamy heart, with Tooth gently reprimanding them.
When Jackie looked up, she saw North's sleigh being brought down to the group. Jamie, holding Sophie's hand (wait, when did she get here?), ran to the flying vehicle as it landed, in awe. The other children quickly joined them.
"Everyone loves the sleigh," Bunny said quietly to North, though Jackie still heard.
The winter seasonal felt a little bit more in tune with the world now that she had taken the Oath. She felt like a missing piece had been set into her heart, like she was a little more complete. Jackie knew her purpose now, and would no longer wander the world lost and alone.
She had a family now, one that had somehow made its way back into her frozen heart.
And she had Jamie . . . the Last Light, her First Believer, and someone who was very special to her.
"It's time to go," North said gently, patting her shoulder.
Jackie stared at him, astonished. She wasn't ready to say goodbye yet! She barely had time to even say hello . . . She bit her lip as she followed North to the sleigh, and as Sandy shot dreamsand fireworks into the sky. She kept her eyes downcast to avoid meeting Jamie's eyes.
It would make the farewell hurt more.
But she risked a glance back, spotting Bunny saying his own goodbye to Sophie. "Happy Easter, ya little ankle-bitah," he said fondly, handing the little girl an egg.
Sophie giggled in response, placing a small hand on his nose. "Bye-bye, Bunny."
But when she met Jamie's eyes, a hurt pulsed in her chest, and it was clear that the boy felt the same as he ran up to her. "You're leaving?" he asked, disbelief coloring every bit of his voice. "But what if Pitch comes back? What if we stop believing again? If I can't see you . . ."
"H-hey, calm down!" Jackie said with a small laugh, crouching down to see him better. "Are you telling me that you stop believing in the moon when the sun comes up?"
She wasn't sure where she was getting these strange analogies from, but it was clear that her words were doing the trick.
". . . No," Jamie admitted.
"Okay, so do you stop believing in the sun when clouds block it out?"
"No," he said again, laughing a bit at his worry.
Jackie placed a reassuring hand on Jamie's shoulder. "We'll always be there, Jamie. And now, we'll always be here," she said, poking him where his heart was. "Which kinda makes you a Guardian, too."
Jamie's center would be a very important thing to the world, if it was ever needed to be found. But if Jackie had any say, she would think that he would be the Guardian of Belief, or Trust. His light shone strongly, even in the face of doubt.
She then shot him one final smile, and stood up to walk to the sleigh. Bye, Jamie. See you again.
Then . . .
"Jackie!"
She turned, hearing her name, and stumbled slightly back as a blue, green, and brown blur crashed into her waist. Jackie's eyes widened at the sudden contact, the warm hug, and the love that flooded her entire being. She knelt and closed her eyes, squeezing Jamie tightly.
And much too soon, Jackie hopped onto the sleigh. North flicked the reins, and they were off — flying higher and higher and away from Burgess. Jackie glimpsed the children running after the sleigh and shouting goodbyes, and she made her way to the back to wave.
The pain in her chest was fading . . . because she knew she'd see them again one day.
My name . . . is Jackie Frost. And I'm a Guardian.
How do I know that?
The moon told me so.
And when the moon tells you something . . .
Jackie smiled at Baby Tooth as she formed a small snowflake to descend on Burgess.
Believe it.
A/N: Hahahaha, we're not finished yet, as Racce0400 was hoping for a bit more! *evil grin* There's still a few loose ends that need to be tied up.
Hope to see (and hear from, hint hint) you all soon!