Frozen Heart

In Pitch’s mind, he had already won.

The Guardians were practically powerless, the humans were waging war all across the Royal City, and Extalia was merely waiting for it’s own destruction.

Watching those foolish Earthland mages try to keep the floating islands from collision, joined by the Exceed and the weakened Guardians, Pitch decided it was time to enlighten them.

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Wendy squeaked as a Nightmare brushed by, shrinking into herself as the shadowy horses neighed and snorted, galloping around the group like a sandstorm.

Gajeel bared his fangs, rock cracking under his hands.

That bastard…

“Well, you all seem to be having fun.” Pitch taunted, looking down on the whole scene with a self-satisfied smirk. “Hoping to crush yourselves in a futile effort to stop the inevitable?”

“Shut up!” Natsu raged, magic flaring around him like a supernova. “We’ll stop this lacrima and turn our friends back! And then we’ll kick your ass!”

“Really? And how do you plan to do that?” Pitch challenged. “You’re almost out of magic, and the Guardians can barely stand from lack of Belief. While I…”

It was as if light itself was being sucked out of the world, shadows lengthening as everything dimmed to ashy colors.

“I have never been stronger.”

“It doesn’t matter how strong you are!” Erza retorted, standing firm as the rock pressed forward in an attempt to make her elbows buckle.

“We’re Fairy Tail mages!” Grey agreed, hands steaming against hardened dirt.

“And we never go down without a fight!” Lucy finished, straining with all her might.

Bolstered by her friends’ confidence, Wendy reached into her pocket, fingers curling around the cool glass-like surface within.

“Jack Frost!”

Nothing happened for a few long moments, and Pitch’s laughter echoed with the hoof-beats of his Nightmare army.

“Did you really think that would work?” He mocked, eyes glowing in the dark. “My new bride is safe and sound in my lair, waiting for my triumphant return. She can‘t even hear you.”

Gajeel snarled, iron claws digging into yielding earth as scales rippled over his skin and red eyes promising a slow, painful death.

“If you’ve touched her…”

Pitch’s answering smile was sinful and pleased, like a wolf that had finally sunk it’s teeth into a deer’s throat.

“It’s a bit too late for that.”

Before those words could register in Gajeel’s mind, could click into place and fill him with wild rage, a high-pitched yowl cut through the din like a blade.

Pitch cried out as a bundle of snow and ice tore into his shoulder, and Gajeel almost could not believe his eyes.

“Fubuki!”

The snow-cat hissed, icicles flashing along her tail as she bit and scratched at whatever bit of the Nightmare King she could reach.

“ENOUGH!”

Nightmare-sand wrapped around the feline’s legs, pinning her dangerous tail and yanking her off the Spirit’s face, still hissing and spitting.

“You’ll be the first thing to go!”

All the Fairy Tail mages went pale at the thought, panicked.

“NO!”

But the dark sand was already burrowing under the soft snow and sharp ice, Fubuki writhing as the corruption ripped through the very magic holding her together.

“FUBUKI!”

The Iron Dragon Slayer saw red, only the constant pressure of the island against his hands keeping the man from trying to rip that bastard’s throat out with his fangs.

“Stop it, you sick bastard!”

Pitch chuckled as the snow-cat mewled pitifully, disintegrating into snowflakes in the nightmare-sand’s hold.

“Or what?”

Enclosed in heavy iron scales, claws piercing the hardened earth, Gajeel bared his fangs in deadly warning.

“When I get my claws on you, you’ll wish I knew the meaning of mercy.”

Pitch only smiled, amused.

“I’ll enjoy seeing you try.”

Choking back a sob, Wendy slumped against the rumbling earth, heart faltering as the entire situation crashed down on her.

They couldn’t do this.

They couldn’t stop the lacrima from colliding with Edolas or help the Guardians defeat Pitch.

Not without Jack.

“Don’t you dare!”

The Sky Dragon Slayer hiccupped, peering up at Gajeel with watery eyes.

“But…”

“If you think something like that would stop Snowie, yer losing it!” He snapped, fierce as any dragon. “She’ll come! Just keep calling!”

Holding fast to this new hope, Wendy nodded, holding the crystalline snowflake to her heart.

“Jack Frost!”

Exceed yelped as hooves passed just over their heads, ducking to prevent being struck.

“Jack Frost!”

A glow sparked to life in the snowflake’s center, unbeknownst to the young Dragon Slayer.

“Jack Frost!”

Heart racing, Wendy closed her eyes and screamed.

“JACK FROST!”

Light burst from the ice-crafted gem, a spray of refracted rainbows that had every Nightmare rearing back, blinded.

For one heart-stopping moment, she thought it had failed, that Jack hadn’t heard-

A great rumbling came from the distance, like storm clouds, and all eyes turned to the horizon, hope sparking.

Is that…?

The wind screeched in her ears as Jack pulled her fist making, spinning in one tight circle-

Her fists collided with a thunder-crack, and a shockwave trembled through Gajeel’s chest as the massive lacrima was forcibly knocked back, almost tilting under the blow.

As the island righted itself, the winter-girl let out a bated breath, turning to survey the group in concern.

“Are you okay?”

The Fairy Tail mages collapsed in relief, exhausted from the entire series of events.

Gajeel just smirked in reply, his great iron heart lifting at the sight of his snowflake, blue eyes bright and still wearing his cloak.

A strangled mewl brought her attention around, and Jack gasped at the sight of her snow-cat, half-gone and limp in the black sand’s grip.

“Fubuki!”

Wind lashed out like a whip, curling around the poor creature to pull her away.

“Oh, my poor baby…” Jack cooed, fingers gently petting through torn fur and over triangular ears so the snow-cat let out a weak purr.

Seeing how deeply the nightmare-sand had dug, she closed her eyes, resigned.

A soft breath rustled the delicate whiskers on Fubuki’s face, and the snow-cat went limp as wintry light spread over her body, those stone-black eyes blinking up at her creator before turning to Gajeel, almost glistening.

“Fubuki…”

The feline meowed, as if in reassurance, eyes closing as she fell apart in Jack’s hands, sand-riddled snow slipping through the half-Spirit’s fingers like the contents of an hourglass.

She watched this happen with dull eyes, like seeing Sandy’s death all over again as sand and icy snow slipped from her lax hands in just the same way.

“How…?”

Turning her head just the slightest bit, Jack faced the Boogieman with an icy glare that would have killed any mortal man.

“H-How did you do that without your staff?” Pitch faltered, a flash of fear on his face.

“Idiot.” She seethed, fingers curling to fist the heavy fabric at her sides. “Did you really think that staff was the source of my magic?”

Judging by the stricken look on his face, the Nightmare King had thought just that.

“That staff…”

Jack set her jaw, though whether against rage or tears no one could honestly tell.

“That staff was a gift from my father to help channel my powers.” She explained, forcibly calm. “Unfortunately for you, I haven’t needed it for more than eight hundred years.”

Raising both hands in crossing arcs released sprays of icicles, spear-long projectiles that hit Pitch’s defenses in wide explosions of sand and buried themselves more than halfway through.

Leaping clear over the writhing nightmare-sand, Jack brought her leg down in a brutal ax-kick that would have shattered Pitch’s skull if he had not thrown up a shell of sand and dodged.

Following through in a tight spin, she lashed out with both legs, just barely missing her target as he side-stepped, a massive scythe forming in his hands.

Twisting to avoid being sliced in half, the winter-girl aimed a palm straight at the Nightmare King’s face as a seal formed, blindingly white.

“Snow Magic: Blizzard!”

Sand clashed with snow and ice, a stalemate between cold and dark-

Jack cried out as a tentacle of black wrapped around her ankle and tugged, yanking her in an uncontrolled upward arc before snapping down.

Extalia’s surface buckled in an explosion of debris at her impact, and even Bunny, little as he was, tried to run to her aid.

“Larrikin!”

A breathless cough echoed from the dust cloud, a figure growing visible through the settling haze as Jack rolled onto hands and knees, head bowed as she panted for breath.

“Snowie!”

Pitch’s laughter rang through the darkness like a death knell, a bit hysterical, his grin full of shark’s teeth.

“Is that all?” He taunted, confidence swelling to new proportions as he looked down at the battered Winter Spirit. “Is that your great strength, girl? Snow?”

Jack said nothing as she started to rise, knees locking to keep from crumbling back to the shattered ground.

“Foolish child! I am fear and darkness! I am the thing that goes bump in the night, what every human dreads! I am a god of terror!”

The Exceed shrunk back as the whole world darkened to shades of grey, as if all the color had been drained away, and the Guardians moved in front of the winged cats protectively.

“Do you really believe you could ever defeat me?!”

“I don’t care.”

All eyes turned to Jack at her words, stunned.

“You may be bigger than me, stronger than me, and I might be afraid…But I couldn’t care less.”

Wiping blood from her mouth, the half-Spirit finally raised her head, eyes flashing with ice and blue fire.

“You threatened everything I care about. The children, the Guardians, Fairy Tail…”

Wind shrieked as her magic saturated the air, a rapid hum of cold through every bone in Gajeel’s body.

“I’ll never stop fighting, because they’re all counting on me! Even if I die, I’m taking your ass with me!”

Pitch sneered, a sheen of madness and rage in his eyes.

“If that’s how you feel…”

Nightmare-sand rose up in waves, licking the clouds as they curled forward, like snakes waiting to strike.

“Then die!”

Gajeel felt his heart lurch at the sight of all that sand bearing down on her, sharp as knives, and she wasn’t moving-

“Damn-!”

Black sand turned gold as it touched frosty skin and iron scales, splintering off into twisting ribbons that lit the dark with butterfly wings and flashing dolphin tails and the triumphant roar of dragons.

Blinking at the sudden flashes of light through her closed lids, Jack lifted her head from Gajeel’s chest as a great plated dragon curled around them, bearing sword-like teeth in warning at the stunned Nightmare King.

“Metallicana…”

The name rumbled through Gajeel’s chest in a purr, misty red eyes staring up at the familiar dragon constructed out of golden sand looming over them.

“Grandeeney!” Wendy cried, throwing her arms around a great feathered sand-dragon’s neck as tears stung her eyes.

“Igneel!” Natsu choked out, leaping onto the spiked snout of a golden dragon in a hug that could have crushed stone.

Erza fell silent, staring into the beautifully-replicated eyes of Jellal as he leaned closer, whispering words for only her to hear.

Grey swallowed back tears as Ur’s sand-construct smiled, voice soft as butterfly’s wings but loud in his ears.

A sob escaped Lucy’s mouth as she leapt to envelop her dream-sand-mother in a hug, tears of joy sparkling like diamonds against the shifting grains.

“Yuki…”

Breath caught in her throat like hooks, and Jack whipped her head around, blue eyes wide.

A little girl stood a few feet away, dream-sand shifting as she smiled, bright as sunshine.

She looked no older than Wendy, with a soft face and big eyes, long ringlet curls tumbling over her shoulders and obscuring the hemline of her sundress with ease.

Bare little feet padded closer, and tears made Jack’s vision swim a name stuck deep in her heart.

Hikari?

“NO!”

The trance was broken, like fragile glass against stone, as all attention snapped up to witness the Nightmare King’s epic tantrum.

“I’ve come too far, suffered too much, to fail here!” Pitch snarled, that scythe forming in his hands once more. “You’ll all die if it’s the last thing I do!”

Gajeel reacted to the threat immediately, turning his armored back and crushing Jack close, not a single thought to his personal safety registering at all.

Heart thundering, the winter guardian yanked him over, twisting so the Iron Dragon Slayer hit the ground first and she spun in a crouch, ice forming like armor over her forearms as Pitch bore down on them-

Golden sand caught the Boogieman’s wrists like a vice before he started the downward swing, yanking him up like a child might a yoyo.

Stunned at the sudden shifts, Jack lowered both arms, eyes starting to sparkle.

“Is that…?”

Gajeel was distracted by the sight of her, practically straddling his chest and still wearing his coat, but only for a moment.

The giant cyclone of dream-sand suspended in the night sky was kinda eye-catching.

A familiar form began to take shape in the epicenter, and Jack Frost let out a teary laugh, Bunny falling back on his feet in awe.

“Oh Moon…” Tooth breathed, hands covering her mouth as tears streaked down her face. “Is that really…?”

Sanderson Mansnoozie fully materialized, as unharmed as he had been before what all of them thought was his last battle, a smile on his face that bode ill for the Nightmare King trapped in his whips.

“Is Sandy!” North boomed, crushing at least ten Exceed in an excited hug as color returned to Tooth’s feathers and her wings buzzed anew.

Jack Frost yelped as the little weight against his toes suddenly grew, laughing heartily as he was wrapped up in a furry embrace.

The children were starting to believe again.

Wagging his finger, as if to reprimand a naughty child, Sandy proceeded to uppercut Pitch straight into the cloud cover before yanking him straight down in the same move used on Jack.

Floating down serenely after him, Sandy gave the group his signature sleepy smile, materializing a bowler hat to tip in greeting.

“SANDY!”

It took a moment for Gajeel to process the winter-girl’s sudden relocation from here to there, where she was now crushing the dream-weaver against her chest in a hug, curling around him in a tight ball.

He might have been a little jealous, considering Sandy’s placement, but it evaporated the moment he smelled her tears.

Just this once, he’d let the Sandman get away with it.

“Don’t you ever do that again.” Jack choked out, her tears darkening the sand of his shoulder. “If you even think about it, I’ll…”

Sandy smiled, patting her hair comfortingly.

He could not promise her such a thing, even if he could speak.

The other Guardians crowded in before she could say much else, and Jack released her grip so Tooth could fuss and North sweep them all up in a hug.

Levering himself up, Gajeel watched the dream-sand swirl and take new shapes, dispersing to renew Belief in Edolas’ children.

“It’s beautiful isn’t it?”

Red eyes landed on Jack’s face, her profile far-off and almost dreamy, as if recalling a good memory.

“It’s been a long time since I’ve seen this.”

Before the thoughts could connect-She’s seen this before? Where? Had she come to Edolas years ago? Or…?-, a new voice broke in.

“You all…You all really did it.”

Snapping out of her thoughts, Jack stared up at the massive Exceed in obvious surprise.

“Whoa…”

“Course we did.” Gajeel retorted, smirking proudly. “Never doubted it.”

The great black Exceed nodded thoughtfully, as if readjusting his whole view of the world, and Jack glanced between the two before starting to smile.

“Figures you’d choose the one Exceed I have to look up at.”

Gajeel only ‘gi-hi’ed in response.

The whole world shook at that moment, like a great suction, and the next thing anyone knew, the gargantuan lacrima was gone in a beam of light.

“…Is it just me, or was there a lacrima in that island a second ago?”

“There was.”

Everyone in Fairy Tail perked up at the new voice, overjoyed.

“Mystogan!”

The massive beast of a mount roared in greeting, and the S-Class mage smiled as the island and Dragon Chain Cannon disintegrated.

“It’s returned to Earthland.” He assured calmly. “I apologize that my search for a large enough Anima vestige to restore everything back to normal took so long. I would not have made it in time had it not been for you. You have my gratitude.”

The Exceed exploded into cheers, proud of themselves for helping to save their homeland, and Jack smiled, shoulders finally relaxing.

“Everything’s as it should be back in Earthland.” She noted, snowflakes dancing in her eyes. “The hole that Anima left…It’s been filled again.”

“Lily…You once saved my life.” Mystogan started, meeting the massive Exceed’s eyes firmly. “I’m glad I could defend your homeland.”

“Yes, thank you…prince.” He replied, a bit teary-eyed.

Even Jack did a double-take at that.

What?

A faint buzzing sound distracted from the discovery, and Tooth gasped in pure joy.

“My girls!”

A cloud of green and blue and gold crested the horizon, and Extalia was soon enveloped in a twittering, chirping storm of mini-fairies, all of whom rushed to greet their mother or gush over Jack Frost’s teeth as he laughed.

A little white blur broke free of the pack, and Jack smiled, cupping her hands so Baby Tooth could land on her covered palms, beaming up with those big blue-and-purple eyes.

“We did it!” The little white fairy chirped, an icy blue feather that had once been gold curling into her face. “I got all my sisters out of the cages, and all the tooth boxes are safely out of his lair and activated!”

“Good girl.” The half-Spirit praised, petting down her feathers gently.

Gajeel eyed the fairy, immediately noticing the color change and wondering…

The joyous moment was shattered as a beam of magic cut through the air, ripping through the massive black Exceed’s torso as blue and red eyes widened.

“LILY!”

Jerking forward, Jack caught him below the armpit, straining to keep him off the ground as Baby Tooth zipped around his face in a panic.

Gajeel moved to guard them as an army of Legion rose up, the royal army and it’s leader, Erza Knightwalker, on their backs.

“We’re not finished yet!”

The mini-fairies squeaked as a strange energy blast zipped through their ranks and struck an Exceed, turning the surprised creature into a lacrima instantly.

An exclamation point burst into being over Sandy’s head in response, dark-gold eyes wide.

“They’re going to turn all the Exceed into lacrima!” Wendy shouted, hugging Carla close.

“Not if I can help it.” Jack growled, passing the Exceed’s limp form to a couple others as she hopped into wind’s grasp.

“Hey!”

“Snowie!” Gajeel snarled, just barely missing as she swooped past to face the army alone.

“You want magic?” Jack challenged, ice shards glowing in her eyes. “Then have some!”

Two massive seals appeared over her palms, white as snow-glare.

“Winter Magic: Twin Dragons!”

A pair of serpentine dragons escaped the circles with ice-crushed snarls, crashing into Legions and coiling around them like snakes, ice-sharp claws and spiked tails creating chaos amid the ranks.

“Get a hold of yourselves!” Knightwalker ordered her panicking men as she blasted one of the head’s clean off. “Turn her into a lacrima! Now!”

Jack danced around the shots with ease, soaring and diving and weaving between bulky Legions to lead a merry chase through the sky.

“Don’t you dare!”

Every Fairy Tail mage paused in joining the battle, practically shrinking under Tooth’s fierce glare.

“We’ll help her! You should worry about protecting the Exceed!”

“But-!”

The furious buzz of her wings cut through Gajeel’s words like they had Nightmares, and he fell silent.

Damn it, but she was right.

The whole world seemed to rumble right then, and all the mages stared down at the arena below as a great robotic dragon rose up from below.

The three Dragon Slayers shared a look, silently communicating between themselves despite the others’ panic.

It was about time they earned the title Dragon Slayers.