Chapter 7: The Storm

The snowstorm roared. It was massive, Jamie was nothing compared to it. He continued his steps, but each one grew weaker. The cold air were knives to his spine. He took one wrong step and fell down onto the piercing snow below. He quickly tried to recover from it, but his body caved in. His lungs demanded for a deep breath and his legs demanded for a rest. Up above was the darkest nightfall with no sight of the moon nor the stars. He let out a deep breath and smoke came out of his mouth. It faded as it flew above.

The Winter Fearling watched Bunnymund be consumed by the black sand. Bunnymund let out yells of pains as it took over him. He reached out his hand towards Jack. The Winter Fearling didn't want to be noticed and made the snow grow thicker. He hoped this would be enough to hide. Still, Bunnymund was letting out screams that made the Winter Fearling cover his ears. Jack wondered why he felt this pain in his chest, because it wasn't him that was in pain it was Bunnymund. He was about to leave, but a part of him was curious. He looked back and saw the Guardian of Hope groan in pain. He hopped up into the tree branch above and watched, attentively.

"What are you doing?"

"What are you?"

The voices rang in his head. "Shut up," the Winter Fearling held his head in pain. He didn't understand why he couldn't he leave this place. His job was done Bunnymund could no longer follow him.

"Impressive," Pitch's voice echoed behind him.

Jack jerked back from the tree branch and fell down on the cold snow below. He pushed himself up ready for an attack.

Pitch flinched as the staff was pointed at him. He returned back to his calm state. His arms were behind him, and he circled Jack like prey.

"Hey, d-do you know where sh-she is!?" The Winter Fearling felt himself shaken by fear. This being, just by looking at him, made Jack's legs grow weak. His staff began to be harder to hold, because his hand were trembling.

"A fearling that talks?" Pitch eyes widened in amazement, "well I guess it is more of a possession on the body than a newly created fearling."

"I-I lost her somewhere around here do you know where she is?" he looked away it was easier to face such powerful being especially those haunting golden eyes.

"A fearling that can create other fearlings. That human is more impressive than I could even imagine," Pitch couldn't hide his joy.

"Please, help me," Jack begged.

"These fearlings created by humans are quite emotional though," then Pitch's grin grew wider, "I can help you."

"You know where she is?" Jack felt less afraid.

Pitch smiled,"I will give her to you if you help me." He reached a hand towards his new fearling.

Jack stared at the hand that stood in front of him. There was another feeling in his chest, he felt that they were the same.

Bunnymund let out a yell of pain. Jack turned back and wondered if Bunnymund could see him. They were so far away. Each second it was harder to see due to the storm.

Pitch tested out his new fearling, "You can make more people succumb to darkness just like that pathetic Bunny."

"Why do you want that?"

Jack brushed away that voice and shook Pitch's hand.

Dark, cool colors were everywhere. Everything was so dark even the snow had a gray color. Jamie wanted to get away from the cold ground, so he forced himself up. That force swallowed all of his strength and couldn't make himself take the next step. All around him was just the darkness of the night. The snow started burying his feet and he began to let himself get consumed. Then, a small golden light appeared in front of him. It reflected on his face, but even though it was small it brought so much warmth. He ran towards it.

"Jamie!" the light's voice fought against the roaring cold snow to be heard. He began to see someone behind the light dressed in green. It was Pippa who held onto her green coat that the storm tried to pull away. Her hand shivered as she held the flashlight in front of Jamie. "Hurry!" she gestured for him to come inside the house. For the first time, he noticed the warm lights of the house and rushed inside.

Pippa stayed close to the door. She used her whole body to fight the storm off to close the door, "They didn't say anything about a snowstorm."

Jamie nodded his head and shivered.

"JAMIE BENNETT!" Pippa yelled in realization. Jamie almost fell out of panic, "You are going to get hyperthermia!" She frantically ran up stairs, rushed down with a huge amounts of blankets, and threw them at Jamie. "Put them on! Take off your shoes!"

Jamie wrapped himself with five blankets, but still he felt the overbearing cold. Pippa rushed to the kitchen and made lots of clanking noises.

"Take of your shoes!" she said as she clumsily carried a bucket of hot water.

Jamie nervously did so and his fingers shivered as he touched his icy cold boots. He threw his boots out of his feet. One hit Pippa straight in the nose.

She let out a yelp of pain.

"S-sorry," Jamie gasped.

"Just put your feet in," she answered in a nasally voice and rubbed her nose, "don't worry my nose isn't fractured."

Jamie put his feet in the hot water and slowly, everything grew warmer. The panic had faded.

"Do you feel dizzy, confused, and your heart beating fast?" Pippa got close to touch his forehead.

Jamie felt all those things being around Pippa, "N-no," his eyes darted away.

Still, Pippa wasn't satisfied, and then rushed upstairs for the thermometer. She came back and handed it to Jamie.

He put it unwillingly to his mouth and watched the timer click by below him.

"Don't move okay," she reminded him as it clicked similar to a metronome. Time passed to slowly. Jamie's body wanted to move.

Beep. Beep. Pippa removed it, "Oh, you're fine. Unbelievable! Especially, because you were out there for almost 2 hours."

Jamie raised his eyebrow in surprise how much time he had spent outside in such cold weather, but didn't know what to respond besides that.

Pippa looked disappointed with the response and held her head low. Then, that silence of words that wanted to be said, but never came. It was suffocating. Pippa looked at the boy in front of him that she couldn't recognize. She began to think there was no point but- "Jamie, did I do something wrong?"

"No," he managed to say.

"Then, why aren't you talking to me?" her eyes met his.

"I just…" the darkness got inside of him and set him up in a place where everything is unclear, "want to be alone."

"Jamie…" she was about to cave in, but continued to fight against the storm of silence, "I heard about your mom, I'm sorry. I'm here for you okay?"

Jamie felt the warmth that Pippa tried to bring to him it surrounded him with all these blankets. "I-I don't want to be alone… I-I'm sorry I said that… I just don't know what is wrong with me," his head began to hurt.

Pippa sat next to him and put a hand on his shoulder on top of all the blankets. "Things are much harder now than back then, huh?"

"Yeah," he answered with a tired expression. Then, he remembered his Dad, "W-well they were always hard."

"I guess because we didn't know as much," she then laughed, "remember when you thought my Mom was a spy."

"Hey, for two years I never saw your Mom, so my theory wasn't that off," he laughed although it caused pain to his throat. Maybe, because he hadn't laughed for so long.

"Oh, you and your crazy theories. I can't believe I fell for them," she lightly pushed him.

"Yeah, back then, I would believe anything," he contemplated on all the things he lost.

"I like that," she blushed.

Jamie felt his heart beat really fast, his head began to spin, and he didn't know what to think. He managed to let out a nervous laugh which turned into a cough.

"Are you getting a cold?" she was about to run off to get something to help, but Jamie touched her arm.

"Don't worry about me," he said.

"Not worry about you? You were out there-"

Jamie interrupted,"Thank you, Pippa, you are always worried about me even if you know I do stupid stuff all the time. You're always there."

"Of course, I'm always there for you," she reached to him and hugged him.

He was covered in blankets and couldn't wrap his arms around her so he put his head on her shoulder. He felt he needed to tell her why he was so scared, but he couldn't. It was that thing that darkness held onto, but he felt it was less.

"I'm fine, thanks," he said because it was easy.

"It's sad that your Mom is having the operation during Christmas Eve, but my Mom talked about spending it with you in the hospital. I'll be here with Sophie," she told him.

"Your Mom?" he was shocked Pippa's Mom willingly wanted to spend time with him especially during Christmas Eve.

"Yeah, it was her idea, also she said it wasn't a good idea for Sophie to be there because you know-" her voice drifted off in the end.

Jamie noticed she was afraid of the end just like him. That fear in his heart came back it felt dangerous. He felt it was better if he wasn't around anyone, but there was warmth being next to Pippa. It made the cold and his dark thoughts become smaller. Still, it was still there. The fear.

The two guardians felt the haunting sound of a ticking clock. North just watched the lights on the globe fade one by one. Tooth was biting her nails as she nervously circled around the workshop. She would usually pause time to time as little Tooths would come to her with messages of her palace's safety, or tooth deliveries. Something was wrong there was no signs of her little Tooth Fairies or the rest of the guardians.

"Still no sign of them?" Tooth managed to say against the never ending silence.

"I can't stand this. We are trapped," she hugged herself, "If we leave Pitch would get to us and who would protect Christmas." She punched the ground below. Then, the ground below them began to tremble.

"Bunny?" North asked. Tooth flew back.

A hole opened on the ground below them. A dark hand reached out of the hole.

"Bunny," Tooth tried to help.

Then, Bunnymund lifted his hand up, "Get away!"

Tooth took a step back.

Bunnymund forced himself out of the hole. He fell down on the floor out of breath. Both of them, gasped when they realized Bunnymund was covered in black sand. "Both of ya, get away," he gasped for air, "Jack is a fearling, too."

"Jack?" North gasped.

"Listen both of ya, Christmas must happen no matter what. Do not help Sandy, Jack and," he clenched his fist in pain, "do not help me."

"You want us to do nothing when most of us are getting hurt by Pitch!" Tooth shouted out of frustration.

"Yes, I'm sorry, but please survive for us," he made a hole appear next to him, "don't look for me." He went down the rabbit hole.

Tooth tried to rush after him, but he was gone before she could get there. She touched the ground where Bunnymund once stood and looked at North.

North didn't know what to say. He was their leader, but there were too many that were fallen it broke his heart.

"I know Bunny is right, but…" she lifted herself up in the air.

"It hurts," North finished.

Tooth looked out the big window. She saw a storm of black sand that was making its way towards North's workshop.

Sorry for the late update, but this chapter was the hardest one I ever written and plus I was super busy. Three different events occurred like The Winter Fearling (Jack) and Pitch, Jamie and Pippa, and Bunnymund's warning. I was thinking of splitting it up, but I felt they fit with each other. Each of them have important dialogue that takes place during a storm. Also, because this is the beginning of the build up. Some of you are wondering about Jamie's Dad or what Pitch is planning to do with Jack. It's all building up to something.

The Jamie and Pippa scene was the one I spent more time writing, because when I first came up with the concept of the story that was a prominent scene. So, I wanted to make it as great as possible.

I'm actually really excited for what is happening next. I will continue for scheduled updates of every week or every other week, but if I'm late it's because chapters are getting really heavy.