Rise Of The Guardians - The Life Of A Spirit

A Guardian

Note: This chapter takes place before the Jokul arc.

Jack waited impatiently outside the hospital, absentmindedly swinging his staff while watching the occasional cloud drift across the sky. He wished she wouldn't show, to simply forget about this particular child and come back later. But she was never late nor did she ever forget. The hairs on the back of his neck rose and he shivered, a strange sensation for him, as he turned to see the robed woman appear from the shadows.

"Which window?" he asked bluntly and she pointed.

Wordlessly, he flew over to it and silently pulled it open to creep into the room beyond. It was filled with people, a mother and father, as well as two teenage boys. On the bed lay a painfully thin and pale young girl who was staring at the ceiling, no more than six or seven, with an oxygen mask over her face and several IV tubes going into her arms. Jack sighed and glanced over at the corner where the woman was now standing, waiting.

Jack moved into her field of vision and the girl whimpered and breathed, "Who are you?"

He sighed, wishing that she wouldn't see him for a change. It meant the time was near when she could see spirits she didn't believe in.

"My name's Jack," he replied, "I heard you weren't feeling too good so I came to make you feel better."

Tears started to drip down her face as she said, "I don't want to die. I'm scared."

He quickly grasped her hand, holding it as tightly as he could without hurting her.

"You don't need to be scared," he assured her, "There's absolutely nothing to worry about. I can tell you that it doesn't hurt at all. It's as easy as going to sleep and when you wake up, all the people that you love the most who left before you will be there."

Her eyes widened and she asked, "How do you know?"

"I'll tell you a secret... I've died too. And I have a friend in the corner who assures me that what comes after is only good things. You won't be sick or weak. You'll be able to run and jump and dance and when the time is right, the rest of your family will join you too."

Her tears had stopped flowing and she stared at him with a faint smile. "That sounds nice... I want to see my Grannie and Grandpa again."

Jack glanced at the woman who shook her head.

"Will you stay with me?" she asked, and he could see the fear in her eyes again.

"Of course," he replied, "And I'll even show you something really cool for being so brave."
He pointed to the ceiling with his staff and tiny clouds stared to form from which snowflakes began to fall. He quickly formed the snowflakes into animals; a dog, a rabbit and a cat who chased each other around the room. She laughed and reached out her free hand. The animals came close enough for her to touch them and she smiled blissfully. 

Silently, the woman came to the other side of the bed and nodded at Jack before gently placing her hand on the girl's forehead. The heart monitor flatlined and immediately the lights in the hallway beyond snapped on as nurses and doctors came swarming towards the room. Jack gingerly extricated his hand from hers and he made his way back to the window. He glanced back as the family was stirring and felt a twist of sorrow inside at the smile still on the girl's face. Silently closing the window again, he floated down to where the woman was now standing.

"She'll be fine now," she assured him, holding out her hand to reveal a warm golden light which slowly faded. "She is with her grandparents now. They will look after her."

Jack nodded, trying to swallow the lump in his throat. "I just wish they didn't have to be so young."

"Life is cruel," she agreed, "But in death there is peace. You don't have to do this, you know. I am more than capable of handling these alone."

He shook his head vehemently. "I'm not going to leave them alone in their last moments. No one should die alone... I hope I don't see you again."

"Oh, Jack. You know I wish the same. Goodbye."

She promptly vanished leaving Jack alone. He sighed and silently started walking down the street, unshed tears burning in his eyes. Unnoticed, a Tooth Fairy shot off to report what she had seen and heard to her mistress.

Tooth was understandably distressed when she heard the report and, after some deliberation, flew towards Santoff Clausen, sending two other fairies to gather Bunny and Sandy. She didn't want Jack to be there while they discussed what had occurred. The other Guardians appeared equally shocked and saddened.

"I had no idea he did that..." North murmured. "He truly is a Guardian."

Sandy quickly created an image of them all going to where Jack was and Tooth nodded.

"We should go. I for one want to know who this woman is so I can start doing it too."

"Tooth is right," North agreed. "We protect children, but when we cannot, we should be there for them in whatever ways we can."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Bunny asked and tapped the ground with his foot, opening a tunnel. Wordlessly, the Guardians jumped into it.

Jack was sitting on his favourite branch in his tree at the lake. Skimming above the water were the icy forms of the girl from the hospital playing with the many other children Jack had sat with over the course of his life. There were too many, and these were just those that would have otherwise been alone. The moon shone down on them and Jack wondered if Manny was reassuring him that they were safe now. Footsteps approached and Jack quickly dispersed the ice images, moving to a crouch with his staff at the ready. He relaxed when he recognised the other Guardians and quickly jumped to the ground.

"Hey, guys. What's going on? Why are you all here?"

"Jack... we heard about what you did tonight..." Tooth started and he immediately closed down, crossing his arms and looking away.

"Yeah? What of it?"

Tooth abruptly shot forward and wrapped him in a hug.

"Oh, Sweet Tooth! We're not angry at you! We're grateful that you would comfort that poor child when she needed it most."

"Yeah, mate," Bunny said gruffly, "You really stepped up to the plate tonight."

"Not just tonight..." Jack sighed and looked back over to the lake before lifting his staff. A stream of glowing frost drifted from the crook which formed into the thousands of children Jack had comforted over his three hundred years.

"Seven thousand, eight hundred and ninety-three," he said dully, "I remember all their names. The girl tonight was called Abigail. The first was called Harrison. I found him alone in the woods one night. I tried to help him but there's wasn't anything I could do. I couldn't help ANY OF THEM!"

By the end he was shouting and angrily waved his staff at the lake, the images of the children disappearing again as he turned away, frost spreading from his feet. A hand on his shoulder stopped him and he turned back to see Bunny, of all people, standing there.

"You helped them, mate. You helped them more than anyone else could."

Shockingly, he pulled the young Guardian into a hug which the others promptly joined, and Jack felt deep sadness replace his anger at himself.

"They were too young..." he mumbled.

"But you were there for them," North said, "And now we all will be to."

Jack stepped back, looking at each of them in surprise.

"Why?" he asked, "You don't need to do this for me."

"It is not just for you," North continued, "Tonight you reminded us again what it means to be a Guardian. We have been neglecting those who needed us the most for hundreds of years. We always claim to be Guardians. Now it is time to start acting like it."

Jack smiled, relieved that he didn't have to continue shouldering this burden alone.

"Thank you."