Final Goodbye

The room felt suffocating and lonely. The shadows quivered in reaction to her wild emotions. They were moving the same fluid way when Pitch was mourning in the room with her three hours ago. They were reacting to her anger, to her loneliness and pain, to her confusion and guilt, and to her hatred towards the Guardians. Everything still felt so raw and fresh. It was as if Jackson's death happened yesterday and not a week ago. The pain was still all too real.

She sighed as she stared at the small shrine in front of her. On a small wooden table laid three portraits. The portrait on the left was a group picture of Jackson (when he was a baby), Pitch (when he was human), and a younger Emily. The one on the right was another group picture. Only this one was from the Thanksgiving Dinner, which was taken by a sprite. The picture had Jackson, Flee, herself, Mother Nature, Father Time, Pitch, Blaze, Flora, and Autumn. The picture in the middle was a single close up picture of Jackson.

Susanna smiled sadly at the picture. Jackson was so young and playful. He was the heart of their family. The heart of their lives. He was what kept them together as a family.

She stared at the picture of her dead son. Brown eyes stared at her with mischief, love, and warmth. Jackson loved to play pranks on the villagers, especially bullies. He was a very lovely boy. He was loved by everyone at the village. Jackson loved everyone and tended to act very childishly at times, but that was who he was. Always playing, always cheerful and fun, always making sure everyone was safe and happy. Jackson was everything.

Susanna stared at the picture as tears fell down her cheeks. She ignored the droplets freezing into ice and then shattering when it hit the ground. She was filled with so many different emotions. She didn't know what to do. She sighed as she looked at the empty vial in her pale hand. Flee should be at the village by now, telling the cover story she told her to say. Susanna felt guilty for having her child to live several more years without her, but it was for the best. Flee had someone to love her and care for her. She knew Flee didn't want to leave Jamie behind, not yet anyway.

Susanna sighed as she placed the vial necklace back around her neck. She had made this choice. Jackson's death crushed all of them. And there were only three individuals to blame: the Guardians.

Jagged ice formed under her knees and spread slowly across the floor. Susanna gritted her teeth as she thought about those spirits. They will pay. They will pay with their lives. Susanna looked at the pictures and lifted a hand to gently touch it. Her fingertips gently caressed the glass that covered the picture of Jackson's cheek.

"Goodbye, my dear," she whispered softly. "No matter where you are…I hope you are happy. I will avenge your death." Susanna bent over and pressed her lips to the glass. "I love you, Jackson."

With a sad smile, Susanna got off her knees and walked into the shadows. The shadows swirled around her as she seemed to melt into the shadows. Susanna could feel herself being everywhere at once and yet, only being in one place. Susanna didn't try to understand it. She went along with it as she exited through the shadow in Pitch's library. Pitch was sitting at his desk, plotting his revenge.

The both of them had lost everything. They were both hurting. They were both angry. They both wanted revenge. Susanna wrapped her arms around Pitch's neck, resting her cheek on her head.

"How are the plans coming?" She asked him as he paused writing in the strange language of symbols.

Pitch sighed and gave her a tired glance. His quill fell out of his hand, however, when his gaze fell on her new form. Susanna smiled softly at him. After taking the potion, her appearance had completely changed. Light brown eyes had changed into a dark shade of blue that looked cold and threatening. Her naturally fair skin had turned pale, but not the type of pale that suggested that she was dead. Her brown curly hair had changed to the color of snow and had black highlights in them. Replacing her normal colonial brown dress was the beautiful light blue dress that Pitch had given her for Christmas. On her feet, she wore glass shoes that sparkled like ice.

"You look amazing," Pitch said as he turned to face her. Susanna laughed softly as she was pulled into his lap.

"Why thank you, my King," she said with a smile.

Pitch smiled as well before kissing her cheek. "So my Nightmare Queen," he said with a soft smile that briefly reached his eyes. "I have a lot to teach you about the Spirit World, but first things first." Pitch gently lifted his finger to tuck a white strand behind her ear. "As you know, to both the Spirit and Physical Realm, I am known as the Boogieman and the Nightmare King and how Emily is known Mother Nature, Gaia, and Mother Earth ." Susanna nodded. "What would you like to be called outside these walls?"

Susanna furrowed her brows for a moment. As of today, she was no longer Susanna Overland. She was a Winter Spirit and the Nightmare Queen. She had powers over ice, the harsh part of winter, and powers over shadows. Several names popped into her head, but only one made her sound fearsome to all who would cross her path. Susanna looked at Pitch with a smile. She had the perfect name.

"Call me the Snow Queen."