DISCLAIMER. I do not own Rise of the Guardians nor their characters, they belong to their rightful owners.

IMPORTANT. I have changed SERAPHINA'S NAME TO EMILY JANE (has already been edited in the previous chapters) since they have confirmed her real name in the latest book of Guardians of Childhood.

So EMILY JANE= SERAPHINA from the previous chapters.

Thank you that is all! Read on and don't forget to leave a review, it would mean the world to me.

Hunting Down the Thief. Chapter 3. "Here marks a new goodbye"

"Marks a battle, still feel raw, million pieces of me on the floor"

"Toothiana, how could you disobey me yet again"Emily Jane screeched at her, her voice ringing her ears,"look at what mess you've gotten into!"

The once peaceful birds taking a snooze near the window sill darted off as soon as Emily Jane's loud voice boomed the area, startling quite a few critters away.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't help it; you know how I am with staying at home and doing nothing!" Tooth defended herself back." I don't last long"

Emily was sound asleep once the guards brought Tooth through her tent; she was merely scarred for life upon seeing a zombie-like Tooth enter her tent with huge bags under her eyes and blood stains invading her clothes. The sight itself was shocking and terrifying. She swears she had never screamed so hard.

Pacing around the room, arms shaking around in the air was proof of how much it took a toll on her.

"I already apologized like fifty times already, jeeze lighten up!"

"I'll lighten up once I stop seeing you so frequently enter my tent with broken bones and blood instead of having a peaceful tea party with me" Emily frantically spilled the words, roaming back and forth, passing Tooth every now and then. "Look at what you've done to yourself Tooth, you look hideous!"

"Gee, thank you" Tooth merely rolled her eyes and turned her back on her. Emily finally halted and tried to take control of her rapid beating heart.

"Tooth" Emily took a deep breath, trying to regain control of herself "You know it's my duty to take care of the tribe...yours too"

Tooth nodded. Of course she knew, her fate was decided as soon as they found out her wisdom and talent over natural herbs.

"But, I also promised your mother I would take care of you as my own"

Tooth stood silent, and Emily wondered if she had actually listened to her.

"You shouldn't have promised anything", she stated bluntly and cold "I'm okay"

"I'm just worri-"

"DON'T BE!" she spun around on her heel to face her once again with her arms crossed "I'm alright; I can take care of myself Emily, honestly. I know you want to do good, but all I want is for you take care of my sisters, they're…the last I've got"

Emily stood quiet for mere seconds, staring at Tooth who denied meeting her gaze, looking shameful at her outburst.

"I know what you've promised, I was there" She rubbed her shoulders as if she was attempting to calm herself down "But to tell you the truth…I was furious, I don't want anyone to look out for me, and I don't want to feel weak"

"Why don't you want to be saved?"

Tooth gave a pained smile and remembered about the tragic events years before. Her parents weren't the only ones who sacrificed themselves for her; she was forbidden to encounter any life-death situation as she was the leader and the only one capable to take over the village.

Without a royal it would bring chaos. She cursed herself every time she thought about it, more than enough.

"I don't want them to suffer the consequences"

Emily bit her lip and took in her words, catching on quickly to the situation.

"Your our queen To-"

"Don't you get it?" she snapped back,"Everyone who has tried to protect me from those nightmares, have died because of me"

"Tooth it was in hono-"

"Honor of what exactly?" She bit back, her blood ran cold and Emily's breath hitched at Tooth's deadly glare "What does it mean…to die honorable? I don't understand it"

"It was to keep you away from those monsters!"

"The only monster here is me!" She shouted.

"Young lady that's not true!"

"Yes it is! Tell me why people run away every time they see me" she challenged,"Go on, I dare you"

"You are most certainly different, I won't deny that. They just can see it!"

"But they can see me", she gestured to all of herself,"They are able to see what I have become, not what i have been"

"You are not cold Tooth, just because you did-"

She paused, not sure whether she should end her sentence or not. Would her comment be taken as something selfish or disrespectful? The last thing she wanted was for Tooth to leave them.

Her expression sunken once she saw Tooth's eyes widen and brought a hand to cover her mouth. A heart string in Tooth's core had been struck hard.

"I-I don't…"

Her words were caught in her throat, the more she thought about it, and the more she saw herself as a cold-hearted person. Tears were starting to well up in her eyes, but she pushed them away with the back of her hand, preventing them from falling. She wouldn't cry now if she hadn't cried back then, there was no use in it.

Emily immediately noticed for her distress and regretted almost immediately bringing up the topic. She brought her hand out and wrapped it around Tooth's wrist to reach in and pull her into a hug she so craved at this moment. It looked like she needed it.

"Tooth I didn't mean…it slipped out"

But Tooth didn't listen as she forced her wrist out of Emily's grip. She took one glance at her and another at Jack before she sprinted out of the tent towards who knows where.

"Be careful",she said dryly.

Emily Jane slumped back on her stool, bringing a hand to her forehead. Turning her attention away from the situation. Had she finally messed up?

A faint voice prodded her out of her thoughts.

"You know…you were a bit too hard on her"

She turned around to the patient on her table who was none other than Jack. He had a wet cloth on his forehead, stitches on her chest where Tooth's blade met his skin. His other wounds were covered up in bandages. He had a look of distraught but was out of danger.

"She was scared" His voice croaked.

"How much did you hear?"

He pulled himself up onto his elbow to face her properly.

"Only enough to know what buttons you pressed and it's effect on her" he shifted slightly in his bed to get himself in a comfortable position without affecting the stitches. "What was her name? I didn't quite catch it"

Emily's eyes widened and when she thought about the consequences he might bring since he was looking for Toothiana. Maybe he didn't recognize her?

"Well her name is…Anabelle"

She mentally slapped herself for thinking of such an obvious name, one with a great similarity to Toothiana. But she was shocked to see Jack nod, completely buying it.

"I like it…it suits her"

Seraphina stayed quiet with astonishment on her face, Jack raised an eyebrow at her, questioning her silence. He shrugged it off and thought of a different topic to come up with to relieve the tension.

"So…how did I get here?"

He glanced around, taking in his surroundings. The tent was rather small, but enough to fit a family of four. There were lanterns hanging near the ceiling, paintings and wood carved into the shape of a bird. Emily paced towards Jack and removed his now dried up cloth from his temple, proceeding back to her desk to dunk it in a new bowl.

A gold shimmer did catch his eye, which shone at the corner of the tent, well hidden in a wooden box. What was inside there?

He was snapped back to reality once Emily spoke up once again.

"You see, Anabelle found you lying unconscious in the dark woods at the break of dawn, which is when she usually heads out to train" she explained while pouring a jar of warm water in a tray, damping a towel inside,"This would mostly be forbidden, but she brought you in, having no idea of your intentions to this village."

Jack gave a faint smile, his conscious soon leaving him once again. He must have been more tired than he thought he was. Next time he will make sure to get a good rest before battle.

"I-I have nothing against this village. I just came to sort out a mission, I'm not a threat. But…thank you"

Emily gave him a small smile re-placing the damp cloth on his forehead.

"Oh you must thank Anabelle"

"I will…once I…leave this tent…I'll find her"

That was the last sentence he was able to get out until he fell into slumber once again. Emily Jane looked pleased at his behavior and walked towards him, making his last check-ups before leaving the tent to warn the others.

Crowds of people and families made it difficult for Emily to reach the end of the lane towards the improvised stage. She scurried gracefully and ran past many, occasionally tripping people over, but apologizing as she did.

"Sorry, excuse me, whoops!"

She found her target and didn't budge to reach for it. She didn't expect to see a certain man standing out among other for his huge body figure. Once she recognized the face, rosy cheeks, crystal blue eyes and a long white beard.

"NORTH?"

Said person stopped the conversation he was having with a woman and turned to see who called. They both looked at her, giving her warm smiles once they recognized the face.

"Ah, Miss Emily Jane, it's been a long time, no? How are things?"

The big man cried louder than necessary, catching the attention of many around them. Emily didn't reply as she tried to pull herself up on the stage. North extended a hand towards her at seeing her struggle and Emily Jane gladly accepted.

"North, it's a pleasure to have you in our presence once again, but I need to inform something fairly urgent to the people of the tribe"

"Dah, but of course, please go on!" His heavy Russian accent roared. Emily Jane bowed gracefully and turned around to face the crowd before them. People were heavily gossiping about an important topic, she assumed they must of heard of the newcomer and their queen who was seen harmed. When one thing comes up, the word is passed on and within minutes everyone would be informed.

"Fellow people, I must inform the lot of you something very important"

A few glanced at her but soon went back to their business, not sure to have heard her. The crowd continued to speak at high lengths, many worried about their queen's well-being.

This was a worry, Emily Jane didn't want the royal family to know about Tooth being attacked, Tooth's sisters would panic about her much more than they already do. It was too risky for them to be informed about her injuries, let alone see it. She attempted to catch their attention again, but her soft voice led her to no avail.

"People! Please listen to m- I need everybody to stay silent. Please i-"

"SILENCE!"

Most stopped talking and only soft mumbles could be heard. Their attention was put to Emily and all ears were on her.

Emily Jane rubbed the sides of her head, slightly irritated from North's loud voice erupting against her ears. He was a good man yes, but he never knew how to control himself at times like these.

"Uh-w-well, I am here to inform you about the newcomer, I am sure you are already aware of who I am talking about"

The atmosphere of the crowd was chattering once again, through mumbles there could be heard excitement, encouragement and yet fear. It also seemed that others had no idea to whom she was referring to.

"Well, this boy has…um…attacked our queen an-"

A loud gasp filled the area.

"THAT BASTARD MUST DIE!"

A voice from far away boomed. The crowd was outraged and started yelling at the top of their lungs.

"We must execute him immediately!"

"He might kill us all in our sleep!" a mother cried carrying a newborn in her arms.

"NO! You all know what Lady Toothiana thinks about that"

Silence.

"I instead have thought of another way to protect our queen, we must change her name. The newcomer has seen our Lady in her form of a hybrid, but he has yet to see her as a human. We must use this to our advantage and treat him well, I have also found out that this boy is a-"

She paused. She knew Jack, they have met before. But if she informed them that he was a guardian, it might just ruin his reputation. She fiddled with her fingers and North noticed, suspicious as to what this commotion was all about.

"He…he has a good heart and is no threat, he is like our great friend sir Aster Bunnymund from the Pooka tribe. Therefore I suppose to hide our queen's real identity and fake her name, for now she shall be called Anabelle until this boy leaves"

The crowd muttered and looked at one another, seeming to agree with the request.

"It zeems as if they approve, no?" North brought a large hand to rest upon Emily's shoulder. "Now tell me…who iz this lad?"

With wide eyes Emily looked at North, not sure whether to smile or not.

"You'd be surprised"

Jack awoke to the smell of honeydew and oatmeal. He sat up and looked around him, recognizing the small tent he was currently in. He heard chuckles to his side and saw a fairly small group of people chatting, completely unaware of his presence.

"Jackson Overland?"

He jolted and his head snapped towards the voice behind him. His sight met a small girl with messy brown locks of hair. In her hands, she was carrying a tray with a bowl of freshly picked fruit and a glass of water. His gaze wouldn't tear away at her eyes because each was a peculiar color. Blue and violet.

Violet reminded him of that girl.

The child brought out the tray to his face and Jack couldn't comprehend the message she was sending, she nudged him once again and mumbled "take it". Jack finally understood and grabbed the ends of the tray with his bare hands.

"Thanks" he muttered. The child gave him a bright smile and looked around, grabbing a stool and bringing it up next to him, watching how he ate his food.

Jack felt tense with the girl eyeing him and instead took the bowl and brought it to her face, offering some. She gleefully accepted, grabbed a handful of strawberries and threw them in her mouth. A face of satisfaction roaming across her face.

"Thank you!"

His laugh was hoarse and cracked, his body yet not having recovered from last night.

"BT, where have you gone?!"

The girl perked up at the sound of the voice. She slipped off the stool and fled from the tent without bidding Jack goodbye. To his curiosity not too far from him, Emily Jane also shot up from her seat, seeming to recognize the voice and ran after her. His brows furrowed in doubt, why was everyone reacting like that?

Curiosity got the better of him and he slowly slipped from the bed. He limped across to the other side of the tent, only to be stopped by a large hand on his shoulder, pulling him back. A rather large man eyed him wearily and Jack visibly shrunk.

"And what do you think you are doing?"

In all his life, being a quick thinker of excuses he never thought he'd go for the lamest one.

"Going to the bathroom?"

A booming laughed left the man's lips while Jack struggled to get out of his grasp. To no prevail he laughed along with North but it came out forced, awkward and fake. To his surprise, the large man didn't seem to notice his sarcasm.

"W-W-Why are we laughing?" He croaked out.

"Because mai boy, there is no bathroom here!"

"Excuse me?"

"That's right lad, you're going to have to go de old way" He let go off Jack and said boy stumbled to the floor wincing at the battle scars. "Whoops"

Annoyed he pushed himself back up. He supposed this nightmare would be all over soon the quicker he left.

At least, he hoped t would.

"Well, I better ge-"

"Jack Frost, before you leave, I must ask you why you have put up with this mission to hunt Lady Toothiana since you are a guardian last time I recall"

Jack stood frozen still and his shoulders tensed up at finding out that this man knew of him. He knew of his job…and his given guardian name. Does that mean he knows his past?

"How do you know me?" he squinted "I don't remember seeing you before…"

"But of course you haven't seen me Jack, I live at the other side of the world!" He roared proudly, seeing Jack's troubled expression. He leaned down and whispered, "Guardian 03"

Jack's eyes widened, still troubled for not having recognized the face.

"...Your name?"

"Nicolas Saint North, pre-bandit" he said, his look stern and calm,"we have met before Jack, I do believe so"

"You're-" Jack softly spoke, recognizing the voice, "North..."

"Get down Jack!"

"North, to your right!"

"But how-"

"I find it strange you don't remember well Jack, but more importantly...you haven't aged a bit"

They both stood still stunned in silence, Jack could locate North in his memories. But this North was old, the one he was used to was a bandit around his early thirties. He used to have dark short hair, young and buff, he was sure of it. What did he mean by aged?

But then it led him to a whole new question. How long has it been?

He couldn't answer it for himself, both men snapped their heads around abruptly as soon as the heard the sound of a gunshot going off.

Tooth was once again miles afar from her people; she had the need to leave for a while. She ran towards place where she could feel alone, safe, consoled and happy.

She had engaged this place a while ago, shortly after her parent's death.

It was hidden between a forest of thorns and bushes, a great little meadow with flowers soon to bloom; beside the small garden was a lake that led to a waterfall. It reminded her of the warren, only that this place had a much more tropical kind of weather. A pain for many, but she honestly didn't mind it one bit.

It reminded her of her old home in Asia which was destroyed by bandits and Pitch's army of nightmares, forcing her village to leave and walk for months until they sought out another beautiful valley.

Birds chirped from afar but they could be echoed to this place which would bring a sweet melody to her ears. She inhaled the sweet, yet refreshing tropical scent at her nose. If she wasn't given the important role of a queen, she would happily run away to hide from the others to live here peacefully.

She found herself laying across her back peacefully, enjoying the soothing harmony the birds sang and whistled when she needed comfort. A twinge of guilt twisted in her gut, it was wrong to leave Emily like that, especially since her unnecessary outburst. She made note to apologize to her personally as soon as she went back to the village.

The bird's noticed her distress as soon as she got here, ever since that day Tooth never knew if it was a curse or a blessing. The animals appreciated her more than they did then, they approached her and comforted her in her darkest hours.

They chirped joyfully trying to get her mood back up.

Shrugging and twisting herself in a fetus position she gazed at the blooming spring time, life coming by slowly, the dead and cold slipping away. Cold was never her up lift, she despised the cold, it reminded her how lonely she was. Shaking the thoughts from her head she stroked a peculiar leaf, noticing it's gorgeous texture.

Oddly enough, a flower had made it's way to her hair from the force of the strong breeze. Gently she held it in her hands and rub it's soft petals, losing herself in thought.

Forget-me nots.

Tooth nodded slowly, not willing to cut their gazes just yet. Her knees ached and her mother helped her get back on her feet carefully .Haroom kept battling the nightmares with great force in his sword, but he knew all too well they wouldn't last. He already knew what his wife had done; he didn't need to hear it again.

Knowing she lost this fight as many others, Tooth turned around; she took a step and looked up. Her tribe was close, but it wasn't enough.

"After this is over…may we make flower crowns together again?"

She was greeted with silence and realized she must have sounded pretty weird. Had she lost her mind?

Haroom spoke up.

"We will Toothie, I promise"

Liar.

"Okay…I'll be waiting for you two at the hill like always, I'll see you there"

"We'll be the ones waiting for you" Haroom chuckled, never failing to leave her a warm smile. "See you there Toothie, we love you, don't talk to any strangers along the way"

"And be careful" Rashmi added,"Remember, forget me nots are my favorite"

Her father grunted and Tooth then knew he had been attacked by a nightmare, the smell of his blood draining right up her nose. Fighting the urge not to cry, her head screamed, telling her to get out.

"Don't blame yourself Toothiana"

Tooth's feet left the ground and she darted off into the dark woods, never once looking back.

She panted heavily and crashed into tree branches along the way, but she eventually brought herself back up and kept going, not exactly knowing where to go. She made it out the other side of the forest, scratched and bruised. She saw the flickering lights coming nearer, but they were too late.

Home? No, she didn't want her sisters to find out. To her tribe? What for? To see her cry?

Where is home?

Where is she needed right now?

Why shouldn't she blame herself? She had the fault; her parents are dead because of her, because of this curse, because of that man. That man...

The words echoed in her head, not willing to leave her. She heard the voice of her mother…

"You did this"

Her father…

"How could you?"

She knew none of it was true, but her heart dropped to her stomach. Why couldn't she block them out?

Don't listen. Don't let it get to you Tooth.

"You're a monster"

She didn't cry, not even tear up, instead she let out a piercing scream, one that wasn't human or of a bird in the forest. Once it was over, her throat burned like a flames.

But she didn't care, what was the point?

She was a monster. She just had to accept it.

That man's voice.

"Pure hearts"

She blinked awake at the sound of crows chattering and the animals scattering to hide. It wasn't a good sign, actually this was a very bad sign.

...

...lop,...llop

Curious as to what was happening she brought her ears to the ground, concentrating to listen what was about to come.

...allop, ...allop, gallop.

Gallop, gallop, gallop.

Gallop, gallop, gallop.

Shebolted up in alarm as soon as she realized those were gallops of various if not hundreds of horses.

She darted from her personal space and fled the place, running as fast as she could to the village.

Danger.

As soon as she made it back the guards have already picked up that something was off and very wrong. They stood proud and determined, calling men to scatter around and guard various sectors around the village. The knights were sweating and from her spot she could see why.

From a few miles a black army of nightmares were coming their way. Tooth swallowed a cry, turning around she found herself with Nightlight. She nodded when Nightlight waved her off to go look for her sisters.

People were running around, trying to seek their loved ones in this urgent matter, Tooth was knocked over and pushed a few times, but it was no use of telling them off. She understood. To her relief her sisters were already lined up to emergency headquarters, she counted the heads but her heart stopped as soon as she noticed one missing.

"BT, Where have you gone?!"

Chapter's Soundtrack : "Exit Wound"- The Script.

Sorry for the overdue chapter :,U moving around and switching countries does kill time, especially since your laptop starts malfunctioning.

Reviews make my day 8,D

Follow/fav/review please, let me know you are enjoying it.

Also in case you missed it, I have changed Seraphina's name to Emily Jane since Guardians of Childhood books have just confirmed her real name, this fic came out before i knew it.

I also edited grammar errors in previous chapter and added soundtracks, same for my other fics.

Seriously, I was cringing every time I passed by an error, I want to improve and I guess I am slowly.

So things are spicing up now! I am really excited and looking forward to share with you guys what i have planned for the characters and this story, i fully gained inspiration just last night.

Oh also, I have updated my other fic "When Summer meets Winter" not too long ago, in case you missed it or you want to check it out. I also have made a series of one-shots, more info on "Our little Wonders" or just ask me or send in prompts.

Until next time~