It was in the dead of winter, far off in the forest, well away from the city. Hills, covered in snow and dotted with trees stood tall and proud in the cold, a magnificent sight, though a deadly trail to walk. Especially now, with a blizzard not too far off. A wave of snow shoots in all directions, forming a trail as a white and blue blurr shoots through the path, waving and curving alongside the land. " WOO HOO! " A tall, thin teenageboy zoomed by a group of trees, causing the branches to quake and shake off the heavy snow. The boy caught the top-most branch of the tallest pine and let himself be twisted back, landing on the branch. He was dressed in a simple blue sweater, and a pair of tattered and worn khakis. Though the tempeture was freezing, he wore no shoes. He looked out upon the fresh new blanket of snow covering the woods and smiled. The beautiful white crystals shone in the sun, creating sparkling patches of white across the hills.
Jack was his name, Jack Frost. Many stop believeing in him, as they grow older, just like santa clause, or the easter bunny. Count yourselves lucky that you still believe now. He stood on that tree, resting after along day of work,chilling things and creating another snowday for the kids, ah but he found no greater pleasure than his work. He took another long look at his handywork,gazing over the almost illumenent sheet of white, covering the entire forest, when, something caught his eye. A small movement of black, flashed behind a tree. His first throught that it was some kind of animal, but, he knew somehow that it wasnt anything that was supposed to be here. Clutching a worn wooden staff, he glided on the chilly wind into the forest, to the tree. At first he saw nothing, but, looking around, he noticed the same flash of black dissapeare further on ahead of him.
He treded forwrd cautiously, on guard for anything that might attack him. When he reached the next tree, he saw it again, flittereing down the path until it vanished behind a hillside. He's seen that kind of movement, the swirling darkness, the fleeting blackness, only it couldnt be. There was no way iT could be! " Pitch." He thought. He snuck as quietly as he could to the hillside, slinking around it carefully, ready to run or fight if he should have to. Pitch was the boogy man, the nightmares that plauged even you at childhood. The last time Jack had seen HIM he'd been chased by his own nightmares. But Jack knew what he saw. He came around to a clearing, a small, frozen pond sat isolated from everything else, surrounded by only snow and the company of a single dead tree. It would have seen almost pretty to Jack, but he was more interested in the lone person, almost gliding over the lake.
It was a small person, dressed in a long black cloak, clutching what seemed to be a long piece of dead and rotting wood, a thin piece of pure white cloath wrapped near the head. The end of the cloak seemed to fade and wither away, to be replaced by an all new shade of black, like whispes of smoke from a burning log. its sleaves mimiced this, obscuring the hands compleatly. The figure had waist length, shaggy black hair, tied back in a loose ponytail. Bangs that reached the chin ghosted ofer its eyes and almost hid its pale white face. At first glance, all Jack could think about was Pitch, but, this figure was much shorter than he was. Then it struck Jack, this was a girl! It couldnt have been an ordinary mortal girl, not with the cloak whisping away like that. She walked or rather floated over into the center of the lake. Her legs barely disturbed the cloak as she walked. The more he watched her, the more sad he felt, through he could not place exactly why.
Perhaps it was the fact that she was all alone, miles from the city, that reminded Jack of himself in the past, before he became one of the guardians. He soon realized the sadness he felt soon turned to queasyness, and he began to feel sick, like he was going to collapse at any moment. He shook it off. " Where did that come from?" He thought. He watched the girl for a few minuets as she paced back and forth almost gracefully across the lake and back. Maybe the man on the moon sent her? Maybe he was ment to find her? But she was shrouded in darkness, could she be another form of the boogyman now that Pitch was gone? Was that even possible? She wasnt doing much, just pacing there. After a few minuets, He decided to chance it. " Hey!" He called. The girl jumped and stared almost fearful in his direction.
The first thing Jack noticed about her face was her eyes. Blood red, almost glowing, like embers in a fire. Her face was thin and pale, as if she had been sick, and her thin lips were a dark purple, like she was frost bitten, but with that long cloak she should have been fine? Jack wondered. He opened his mouth to say something else, but the girl raised her staff, and swung it in a circle, sweeping the air infront of herself. In a wave of black smoke, she dissapeared, only a small pool of black in her place, like a displaced shadow. It looked much darker for a shadow, if that was possible, like an endless abyss that held no bottom. It shot off away from him before he could blink. He couldnt even follow it it was so fast. " Wait! " He called after her, but she was gone. " You're not a mortal," He looked at the ground where she apparently vanished." but you look like Pitch, but he's gone..." He stared off into what he guessed was the direction she was heading. " So who are you? WHAT are you?"
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Jack weaved through a bunch of hyper elves playing with tinsel, trying to attract the attention of his friend. A large , red suited man walked through his workshop, inspecting countless many toys being tinkerd with by large, furr covered Yetis. " Oh lovely colors zere... Oh vonderful!" Santa complimented the Yetis work, refusing to slow or even stop. Jack twirled on one foot trying to shake off a line of tinsle that the elves ensnared him in.
"But, but she was dressed in this wierd cloak that-that.."
Jack continued to manuver through various obsticals caused by either mischioious elves or working Yetis.
" No, I dont like that color, Paint zem red!" He ordered, ignoring Jacks inquisitions.
" It was weird, when I watched her it-it was like I got sad for no reason!" Jack barely managed to avoid tripping over a few toy stacking logs.
" just add more oil, wheels WILL spin ." Santa continued his final inspections on his gifts for the children.
" But she, she looks just like PITCH!" Jack froze with one leg in the air, trying to avoid being lassoed by tinsel again.
At Pitches name being called, eveything seemed to freeze in time. No one, not Yeti or Elf would budge. Finnaly, Santa himself stopped. He finnaly aknowlaged Jack, grabbing his arm rather hard and dragging him into his office. " NO worries now, everything is o.k. go on back to vork da? " He called to the Yetis. He shut the door behind him, and locked it. " Vhats this about Pitch lad? Vhats happened? " Jack explained about the girl he saw on the lake, and about the way he felt sad and sick when there was no actual cause. When he mentioned this, the old mans eyes, normally friendly and inviting grew cold and hard. " YOu stay avay from her Jack, she brings nothing but trouble. " He stated. " b-b-ut who is she? I mean is she like us is-is she another gu-" " There is NO WAY that girl could EVER become a guardian. She brings nothing but death." Jack froze. Santa sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose. He dropped down on a large wooden work chair and rubbed his face.
" Her name is Black. Black Plague. She infects hundreds of people vith illness, many dont make it." Jack heard of the Black Plague before, or the bubonic plague as its true name is. It killed millions of people in the middle ages. " I didnt know-" " That it vas an imortal that caused it? " santa said coldly. " Not just the Black Plague son, she has may names for many Plagues she has caused. She isnt somevone you want to make friends vith." With that, He stood, and marched back into his workshop, leaving Jack alone wiht may questions." If she is so bad, why havent we gone after her?" He thought. It was the guardians jop to protect the children, surely they had reason enough to go after Black. It has been many years scince the last plague, had the guardians already done something to quiet her or scare her enough to stop?
He didnt know what it was about her that intersted him, but, he didnt feel like she was as bad as she was made out to be. He had no idea why he thought this, he knew she caused the deaths of millions, but, she didnt seem bad, just, lonely. Or was that just his past, his own rememberence of what it was like alone that gave him pitty for this girl, this, Black Plague. Even saying her name gave him shivers of dread, but he could not shake the feeling that something was wrong. He knew Santa, or any other of the Guardians wouldnt approve, but he knew, he was going to find Black himself.
