literature

Lights to Guide Me Home ch. 1

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    "JACK!"

    My name screamed by a child. 

    That was the last thing I remember hearing before everything went black.

--- 

    The fearlings seemed to pour into me, causing a burning sensation to spread throughout my entire body. My head pounded, my heart beat was erratic, and suddenly I wasn't able to move. Nothing listened to my command, I couldn't even look towards the boy I had just jumped in front of. My first believer. The last hope for the Guardians. The last light. 

    Jamie, oh Jamie. I'm so sorry.

    I wasn't scared for myself as I felt my control slip away. No, I was scared for the boy. I was scared for his sister. I was scared for all the children. I knew what Pitch would have me do if he got the chance.
   
    I wanted to scream to him to run, to get away from me before it was too late. I knew what was going to happen, and I didn't want him to be around to see it. I didn't want any of them to be around when I lost control. I didn't want to hurt anyone, and I knew Pitch would make me. The Nightmare King seemed to know nothing of the word mercy. 

   So it was then I decided to not settle for it. I was not going to let him have the joy of using me to terrify my friends. At least not now.

    Somehow, I managed to sit up. A distant ringing suddenly increased in my ears, causing me to fall back. My head ached now, but I couldn't give up. I turned onto my stomach, trying to avoid looking at my own hands, afraid of what I'd see, and pushed myself up onto my knees. I managed to stand up on shaky legs, leaning heavily on my staff. I noted that it was no longer covered in its usual layer of frost, but now layered under ice, causing me to nearly lose my grip on it. 

    Catching myself, I started to stagger away from the fight, not caring as more and more fearlings rammed into me. Just get away. Get away before it is too late. I can't hurt them. I won't hurt them. 

    Suddenly, I felt someone grab the hood of my sweatshirt and yank me off my feet. My staff clattered to the ground, and I twisted in the air, trying to see who held me. 

    I came face to face with the shadow man himself, his signature smirk sitting smugly on his face. Sudden fear grips me. I'm defenseless, and no doubt under his full control. The shudder that shook the Nightmare King's stature notified me of his chuckling. I hear his voice in my head,

    Ah Jack, it seems that you are now my own personal plaything. Too bad, I'm sure your dear friend Jamie will miss you.

    I glare at him, and with the last bit of energy I had, I kicked him in the shin. Instantly I felt as if something were squeezing my heart, and I let out a scream of agony. 

    I hope you enjoyed that last bit of free will, Frost. Because that is the last time you will ever experience it.

---

    The rest of the battle was a blur. 

    Pitch had kept his word; I had no control over any of my movements. Even keeping control over my own thoughts grew difficult. I lay off to the side, unable to assist in any more fighting, but the others didn't seem to notice. I didn't know where the children had gone either. But I was able to cheer mentally as Sandy returned, watching as he knocked Pitch unconscious. I expected then to regain control, watching the kids and the Guardians celebrate.

    But I didn't, and terror struck me as I found my body moving on its own as Pitch awoke and tried to escape, following the others as they chased the Nightmare King. I no longer had my staff, and I couldn't move my mouth. I couldn't call out for help or tell them what'd happened. I couldn't even laugh as Tooth punched Pitch square in the jaw, a tooth flying from his mouth. 

    The fearlings surrounded us again, but this time they weren't focused on the Guardians or the children or me. Instead, they were staring hungrily at Pitch, sensing his fear. Suddenly I became aware of his fear, and instinctively, I moved towards him with the nightmares. The ringing in my ears stopped, and I became aware of everything around me.

    "Jack...? What are you doing?" I heard Tooth's voice behind me, and a hand appeared on my shoulder. My body shrugged it off angrily, continuing to move forward until I stood next to the Nightmare King. Soon the others voiced themselves, the children joining them. 

     Even through his own terror, Pitch smirked at the children and the Guardians as the fearlings advanced on us. His arm flew to my throat,  pulling me close to him, making me face away from the group. I heard Tooth gasp, saw the reflective glow of Sandy's dreamsand whips, and I recognized the sound of North unsheathing his swords along with Bunny pulling out his boomerangs. Pitch's only response was a laugh, putting up his free hand to wave them off. The Night-Mares drew nearer, closing in on us.

    "You may have won this battle, Guardians. But it seems I have gotten the better prize..."
    
    And just like that, I found myself being dragged into the forest by the Nightmare King as his fearlings pulled us to his lair and underground, engulfing the both of us in darkness.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

    The next time I got to have the slightest amount of self-control was ten years later, and Pitch had simply left his guard down. By this point my memory was gone; I had forgotten most of the battle of that Easter long ago, and the last light was only a child Pitch had told me to freeze on sight. 

    We had been above ground for the first time in at least six months, my master finally gaining enough strength back to go out in daylight. Why he had taken me along, something he hardly ever did, I'm still unsure on. However I didn't complain, and eagerly went along with his plan. 

    We were to simply ruin Christmas for a small town, to send out nightmares and night-terrors that would prevent any children from even wanting to celebrate North's holiday. My job was to layer the roads in black ice, clog chimneys with snow, and layer the entire town in the thickest snow fall I could muster. I was even allowed to freeze a few cars completely solid. I'd be lying if I said I didn't enjoy that. 

    I was also to make a blizzard that would last all Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, which wasn't hard for me to do at all. Pitch had taught me how to feed on the fear I induced, and it came easier to me then my old self would've liked. My power had tripled using his methods, and in no time a full-on blizzard surrounding the town. There was no way North would be able to deliver presents, let alone for the residents to leave their houses. 

    My part was done, and now without anything to do, I was allowed to wander as Pitch finished his. 

    I had no clue where I was going, but I didn't mind. Wandering the streets, I gazed into a few houses and store fronts, and unfamiliar guilt struck me. Inside, families huddled together for warmth, unopened gifts lay forgotten under the Christmas trees. But they were still together, and part of me hoped that was enough for them. 

    The more I explored the town, the more something nagged at me. I felt like this place had been important to me once. Perhaps before I worked for Pitch. Was there even such a time? I asked myself, unsure. My head started to hurt, something I had grown used to happening whenever I tried to remember anything from my past. It was almost like a security system, and almost as if on queue, the Nightmare King's voice returned to my head.

    Acting out a bit are we, Ice? 

    I grunted; his voice only made my head hurt worse. "N-No, master. Stupid emotions, you know. Getting me to think. I am sorry." 

    Good. Now, meet me back in the forest in an hour. I'm nearly completed. 

    "Alright, master."

    Instantly the pain stopped, and I slumped over, cradling my head. "Ugh...I hate when he does that." 

---

    Half an hour had passed, and I was still wandering the neighborhood, unable to shake this feeling. There is something here I need to see, I just know it. 

    That's when I saw it. A red house trimmed in white and a black roof, all the lights out except one. The feeling grew stronger as I crept up to the window where the light escaped, and peered inside. 

    Inside there was a family of three, an older teenage boy with chocolate brown hair and eyes to match, and a young girl with blond hair and eyes as green as the grass. An older woman was with them, and she had brown hair and eyes to match the boy's. 

    Again the nagging feeling returned, but much stronger. Strong enough that it actually hurt. I gasped, and pushed away from the window, causing frost to form on the glass. I recognized them, I know I did! But I couldn't place their faces, and I had to keep from trying; Pitch could find out. 

    But...what if he doesn't? What if I simply hear their names, not come up with them myself?

    Convincing myself it'd be okay, I flew up to the window I guessed to be the boy's bedroom and flew inside through the window he had left ajar. I looked around the room, once again feeling the sense of familiarity. I debated for a minute if I should go downstairs, but decided against it. I'd only turn the whole house into a mini-winter wonderland. 

    And then, I waited, perched on the bed post.

---

    It only took five minutes for the boy to come up to his room. As soon as I heard footsteps, I jumped off my perch and ducked into the corner, part of me hoping that he would see me, and yet another hoping he wouldn't.

    He didn't notice me. Instead, he was arguing with the blond girl, talking about something he owned.

    "But, come on!" the girl whined, "Why can't I use your camera? I won't break it!"    

    "I said no, Sophie. Just go draw or something, since there is nothing else to do with the power out I'm going to do some of my history homework." 

    The girl, Sophie -that rang a tiny bell somewhere in my head- sighed and rolled her eyes, pouting. "Jamie! Please!" 

    Jamie.

    It was like alarms were going off in my head. 

    I definitely knew that name.

    Jamie sighed heavily and crossed his arm before rolling his eyes. "Ugh, fine. Its on my desk."

    The girl squeed happily and raced over, picking up the teen's camera. She held it in her hands in a position that from my hiding spot I was able to see it. It looked expensive; I understood why the boy did not want the girl playing around with the camera. Who knew how much it cost. 

    "Now be careful, Soph. You break it, I tell mom about-" 

    "I WILL!" the girl interrupted, and I chuckled silently; her whole face had flushed a deep shade of red. "You said you'd never tell Momma about that!" 

    Jamie laughed. "Alright, alright. Just be smart, okay? What are you even going to take pictures of anyway? It's nothing but white outside." 

    "I just wanna take pictures, okay?" 

    He walked over to her, and ruffled her hair slightly. "Heh, alright. Now, get out of my room before I change my mind, sis." 

    She smiled and raced out of the bedroom, yelling as she went, "Thanks, Jamie!" 

    The teen simply laughed, walking over to the desk and sitting down. I watched him for a bit as he picked up a pencil and took out what I guessed to be a notebook with his school work. After about five minutes, I decided to come out of my hiding spot, and slowly walked towards him. I needed to know why I recognized him. I just needed to know.

    I reached my hand out to touch his shoulder, only to have him spin his chair around, wide eyed. I jumped back, unsure if he could see me or not. It looked as if he were staring straight at me, and I felt myself hoping dearly that he was.

    "Um...Hello." My voice cracked, unsure of myself. The teen only continued to look at me with a surprised and...confused, expression. He can't see me, what am I doing? I sighed, and started to turn around when Jamie did something that surprised me.

    He stood up, still looking straight at me. He was nearly as tall as me, only short by one or two inches. I felt his eyes burning into mine, and then his hand reached out and promptly tapped on my arm. Gasps left our lips simultaneously, and we both took steps back, shocked. 

    Jamie rebounded first. "J-Jack?" 

    "...Who?" 
Hey guys! Haha I know, I shouldn’t be starting a new story until I finish my other two, but this one has been waiting patiently in my sta.sh for over a month now and I simply couldn’t wait any longer! That and I needed a Beta-Reader, who I now have. Thank you ~Shoyzz! :heart:

This story I’m not sure how long it is. It’s not exactly a short story like House Call and Old Friends are, those are nearly completed and sitting at four-five chapters. This I already have two other chapters typed up (well three isn’t done yet but it’s about 1-2/4s), but it’s nowhere near the ending yet!

I think I can really flesh this one out and make it my first, true fan fiction. It is also the first one I plan to update regularly. Weekly is what I am shooting for, but I can’t promise it completely.

I’m super psyched for this guys, and I hope you all like it! It’s just my spin on the ever-popular idea of Evil!Jack. It is rather fun.

Thanks for reading and perhaps toss a review my way! :)

---
Story (c) *XxPurpleStarGazerxX
Rise of the Guardians/Guardians of Childhood & all related characters (c) William Joyce and DreamWorks animation
© 2013 - 2024 TheStarsofPines
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ravencrowwolf's avatar
Cool 
This is the interesting way to play the plot
ME LIKES