Guardians ~ Black Plague ch.12

Jack stared in awe at Blacks scyth, watching her carve away at a tree. The scyths curved blade was not ment for this kind of work so it too a while, but eventually the tree fell, causing the ground to give a light tremor. Jack watched in silence as she propped the tree up on a stump, and began making thick disks of the trunk, with a single downward slice of her blade. Jacks head rann with more and more questions, but he didnt want to ask any, for fear of upsetting Black again. Once she had a sufficent amount of disks, Black began spliting them in half, making many semi-circle hunks of lumber. They were odd compared to the normal rectangular logs most people used, but he guess having the scyth insted of a saw created issues with that. He helped now and again with lifting, and moving the wood when she needed him to, but without a blade of his own he mostly sat and watched. When she was finished, she had enough for each of them to have both arms full, and have to make a second trip.

As they trudged back, Jack, out of breath from the heavy lifting, tried to lighten the mood and dispell the ever present akward tension between them. " Do you always carry bach this much on your own?" Black was silent for a moment, then answered with a simple, " Yes. " He was silent for a while, unsure if Black wanted to speak at all. As they re-entered Bodie, and he once again watched fleeting shadows amoung the dead and dying buildings of the old forgotten town, he finnaly asked, in much desperation to break the akward atmosphere " so, how long have you had that scyth? I dont remember seeing it in your past-" He mentally kicked himself for bringing up the fact he snooped around in her past again.

He was afraid she would get angry and shut off again, but to his suprise, she answered calmly. " Iv always had it. Scince the day I first held it." " Oh." He said. The weight of the wood straining his arms brought up another question. " How long did it take you to do this on your own?" He saw her shrug. " About a full day I guess. Time really doesnt mean much to me." He understood her. when your alone, nothing really matters to you. Not even time. Exept, maybe, the years of solitude weighing down in your heart, but you try your best to ignor that when you cant change it.

Once they stacked the first load of wood by the rusted stove, they trudged back into the woods to fetch the rest. Once again, walking through the streets of Bodie Jack couldnt help but keep as clost to Black as possible, which she must have noticed. " You know, thye wont hurt you unless you take something from their land." She said. He chuckled embarrased. " I dont know how you managed to get over them and LIVE here like this." He said, hoping to start a conversation. " They arent so bad. Actually, sometimes I feel like they are watching over me. I live here same as them." Jack remembered the story she told him. They protect their home. Jack began to think that Black thought of these shadows as her neighbors, he family even, all living together away from the world, no one and nothing but each other. Jack watched a fw shadows retreat behind an old crate, and suddenly he didnt feel so uneasy about them. Maybe black found solace in their presence, even though they cant really communicate like he himself found a bit of fun in watching children pay in his snow, when they could not see him.

They arrived back inside the woods, an loaded up with the rst of the lumber. Already exausted from the first load, Jack huffed and heaved with the new weight. as they began walking back, jack asked " So how did you find this place anyway? " " Found it just wandering about. I learned about its past in a book." Jack remembered Blacks enormous library in her upstairs. " Yeha, thats a big collection you have, where did you even get those?" He asked, still trying to keep a conversation going. "...Found them after people threw them out. Took a very long time to get all of those though." " Have you read all of them?" He saw her nod. " Many times over." Jack huffed again, and shifted the lumber around. With all the books he saw, he could hardly believe someone could have read all of them once, let alone multiple times. Then again its not like Black was doing anything else.

" Whats your favorite?" " Harry Potter." she answered almost instantly. " whats that about?" Black went on and on about wizarding duels, and fantastic creatures and spells, describing many of the places in the book with great deatil. She spoke with energy, and excitement, and it amazed Jack that she was still so enthusiastic about it after she told him she had read all seven books ten times. She talked about it for a long time, and Jack listened happily, asking a few questions ocasionally. He had finnaly found something to get Black to open up! Once they reached Blacks old house, and dropped the lumber off, they plopped down on the red velvet armchairs, exausted. Black was just finishing telling Jack about the sith, of the seven books, when she stopped suddenly. She placed a hand over her heart, and grew a pained expression on her face. " Whats wrong? " Jack asked. She shook her head. " Nothing I guess." He nodded, but didnt quite believe her. " So how does it end?" He asked. She stayed silent for a moment, and said " You will have to read them for yourself." He thought she was just being funny, and was trying to get him to read the book, but when she stood to go upstairs, she looked dreadful. She hung her had, and still held her heart, and the rim of her eyes were red and slightly puffy, as if she was about to cry.

When she came back carrying the first book, she didnt look any better. Jack asked what was wrong, but she still said " Nothing" and handed him the book. Before Jack could ask again, she left to start tea, and fix a bit of bread ( where she got the ingridients he didnt know). He began to read, and thinkk of a way to cheer her up, or at least figure out what was wrong, then he remembered something she told him about the books. She kept going on about a hippogrif, it seemed to be one of her favorites that she told him about, and he hathed an Idea. As Black came out of the kitchen, carring two mugs of tea, and a small loaf of bread, Jack carefully took both from her, set them gently down on the table, and took Black by her hand. Before she could ask what he was doing, he dashed off as fast as he could out the door, and into the woods again, back in the direction of the frozon, where he first spoke to her.

Jack ran so fast Blacck could barely think. She was confused on whether or not she should break away and run, or just let him drag her off. When they found the pond, Jack let go, and she almost fell forward they were going so fast. Jack stood on the very end of the frozen pond, sliding slightly on his bare feet. Blacks hands flailed as she regained her balance, and she clutched her staff unsure. " Jack what in the-" " Just watch." He said softly. She still stood unsure, and he lightly tapped the frozon ice with the curved end of his staff. Almost instantly, white laces of ice, curved and itertwined with each other, slowly moving outward, and forming a shape. Black watche with wide eyes as it took on the silouetted form of a creature that seemd half bird and half horse. Its beautiful elegant wings outstretched, as if ready to take off in flight, and its claw raised in a fierce stance. Black laughed with amazement at Jacks work. He smiled and gestured to it. " Beaky, y'know? that thing you were tellling me about? from those books?"

She laughed again. " Buckbeak!" she corrected him playfully. they both laughed again. Jack saw Blacks smile again, and that same warm feeling washed over him. He tapped the ice again, and a few more creature emerged in white strands of ice over the pond. Orgers fought wizards, drgons took flight, a pheonix spread its wings wide, and with each design, Blacks smile grew more peaceful, and her eyes sparkled with joy and wonder. After a time, the pond was covered with beautiful creatures that Black had described to Jack. Though she had decided on not trusting him, she could not help the overwhelming feelings of happiness and peace that came over her. She finnaly had someone to talk to, that listened to her. she was able to forget her fears of hurting Jack, and lose herself in his beautiful ice creations. she had never seen anything so wonderous, or beutiful in all her life, and for someone as old as her, that was saying something.

When there was no room left for anymore designs, JAck sat back in the snow, and admired his wor, but he stole glances at Blakcs smile now and again. He smiled as he watched her eyes, never losing their amazment, folowing every curve and every line f ice he created. " Alright, you've seen what I can do." she watched him curiously. " Let see what you can do." He challenged friendly. " Jack, I-I cant do much anymore," She gestured to the white wrappings on the edge of her staff. He felt a bit guilty again, he seemed to have a knack of bringing up the worst inn Blacks past, now he reminded her that she cant do as much as she could, and after all the iced artwork he had done. He was brought out of his thoughts when Black began coughing.

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Pitch clutched the crystal in his palm, and watched, disgusted as Jack created all sorts of designs on the forzon lake for Black. He grew sick to his stomach with every line Jack drew out, and his hatred for him grew with every hayy little laugh Black made. Black was HIS. No one else was allowed to be with her. As his hatred grew, he suddenly felt his everygy lashout within the crystal, and Black began to cough wildly. He stopped, and tried it again, and Black fell over, clutching her chest in one had and covering her mouth in the other. He had done it! He smiled and laughed darkly. After all these years he had done it, he coud reach Black directly through her lost fragment of crystal, and maybe he could do more.
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Black bent over in pain, clutching her chest and gaggin on nothing. " Black!" Jack lunged for her, and fell to his knees at her side. " Are you alright? " She nodded, but by the coughing it was obvious she wasnt. After a time, the coughing ceased, and Jack held her in his arms, though with many protests from Black.  They stood and Jack helped Black back though the woods, tword Bodie.

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Pitch watched, and waited, a devilish smile playing on his lips. He watched as Jack held Black in her arms, and began stumbling with her back through her snow. " How sweet." He mused. He pinched the shard of crystal between his fingers, adn concentrated on it. He could see Black fall into the snow, coughing. He could see little scarlet dots between her fingers as she held her mouth in one hand, ans tried to wave Jack away with the other. He let his grip on the shard losen, and Blacks condition lightened up.
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Black fell into the snow, conulsing in another fit that brought blood from her mouth. she wanted Jack as far away from her as possible. She didnt know what was going on or why, but she didnt want Jack anywhere near her. JAck ignored her protest, and helped her up again, pressing her forward back to the town. He wanted to get her inside so she would be out of the snow, and have a place to lie down. He wasnt sure what was going on, she was fine a minuet ago, but now it looked like she was dying. Sh was the Black Plague, did this happen often? Was it his fault? Did she supress her powers so much that it infected herself? They didnt take two steps before she fell back to her knees, and coughed up more blood.
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Pitch laughed as Black struggled to stand, and Jacks pathetic attempts to help her. He pinched the crystal more, and the more Black coughed and struggled the stronger he felt. Every drop of blood that fell from her body excited him, made him want more, wanted her to suffer. He didnt stop until he heard distand trampeling of hooves on stone. " NO! " He cried, the nightmares had found him! He reluctantly placed the crystal back on the pedestal, not willing to risk loosing it in his escape. He cured himself for shattering its caseing, and darted from the room, wanting to get as far away as possible from the thundering gallops.
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Black gave one more lurch, one more cough, and ceased all. A single stream of blood leaked from the side of her mouth into the snow. The scarlet stood out on the snow and her pale skin. Jack held her shoulders, not wanting her to fall into the snow, and waited as she cought her breath, gently rubbing her back in circles. After a while, he knew that she would not be able to move very far on her own, and picked her up bridal style, carrying her back into Bodie.
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Pitch practically flew down the stoney corridors, going as fast as he could back above ground into the frozen earth. He was running, for now, but he would be back, and next time he wouldnt go so easy on Black, he thought.