DSotM Ch 3: The Angel

The town was busy with people going about in every which way to do their work, or their shopping, or whatever they were attempting to do for the day. Shoppers, sellers, and even the occasional artists were slowly becoming more and more frantic as the clock ticked closer and closer to Valentine’s Day. People were busy preparing something special for their loved one, whether it was their spouse, significant other, crush, or child.

It was this atmosphere that had brought Q out to the town. Somewhere, wandering the streets, looking for a gift, was a young man with quite the crush. He was a shy boy, which made it difficult for him to attempt to move it all forward on his own. So, Q was here to help, though the boy did not know it.

The target of the crush was a mysterious girl who, as far as Q could tell, had suddenly shown up out of seemingly nowhere a couple weeks ago. The bringer of love didn’t quite know where she’d come from, or what she did, but neither of these things were particularly high on his list of concerns. Right now, he had a job to do, and that was to try to turn this one-sided crush into something more.

Crossbow in hand, he found a perch from which he would have the best shot at his intended target. As he crouched on the rooftop, his long coat flared behind him, picking up every so often with the wind, which tussled his short, blonde hair. His crossbow came up as his eyes focused on his mark; a young woman with long, shining auburn hair, and golden-brown eyes. He could see how the poor lad could get tongue-tied with just the thought of trying to speak to her.

A bolt was drawn out of one of his two quivers, looking quite small and pitiful, until it was fitted into the crossbow and resumed its full size. He pulled the bolt to the required tension, and brought it up to a firing position. Then, he waited. He kept completely still as he watched his target, waiting until she remained still long enough for him to focus in on her location. That was when he pulled the trigger, and sent the bolt flying.

Most humans believed that Cupid’s “love arrows” create love instantly. That was far from the truth, as it would be a severe breach of the free will that was one of the greatest gifts to humans. Instead, his arrows opened up a person’s mind to the one crushing on them, or gave them the small push that might be needed to say something to the one they were crushing on. Sometimes, he’d give current lovers a shot to help try to rekindle a small flame of passion. The bolt would feel like a small sting for a moment, and then it would disappear as its magic got to work.

At least, that’s what would normally happen.

What happened this time caught Q by complete surprise. Not only did the bolt simply bounce off the woman with absolutely no effect, but she turned with a start when the bolt hit her. Her eyes searched for a few moments before landing on a stunned Q, still sitting at his perch on the rooftop. He could tell that she was looking directly at him, and knew that he was there, as she was making full eye contact with him from street level.

“Well, this is certainly new…”
* * *
“This is just great…” With there being a big rush to find the person Pitch had told Jack they would need the help of, North had decided, much to Bunny’s dismay, that they would take his sleigh to get close, as well as to scope things out. “Are you sure this is the right place?”

Jack laughed a bit, knowing how much Bunny disliked flying. “I’m sure it’s the right place, Bunny. What makes you think otherwise?”

“Your laugh.” Bunny replied, which made Jack laugh again.

“Come on, Bunny. I’m not that mean.”

It was Sandy, sitting between Jack and Bunny, who noticed the approaching figure. He gave a tug on Jack’s sleeve as he pointed to the figure, directing Jack’s attention to them.

“I see them, Sandy.” Jack replied, before moving closer to where the Guardian of Wonder was sitting at the front of the sleigh. “Hey, North?” He called, getting the Guardian’s attention. “We’ve got incoming company.”

North nodded to Jack. “Yes. Tooth and I saw him. She is going to greet while I find place to land, which I think I have found. Now, hold on and fasten seat belts1”

Bunny groaned as the sled lurched into a decent. “Again with the bloody seat belts…”

When they landed, Tooth and the newcomer, who turned out to be Q, were already waiting for them. “Is one of you psychic or something?” Q joked, his jacket lightly resting over his shoulders. His wings, while they did not have to remain physical all the time, were still formed, as he had simply not bothered to dissipate them when he’d landed. “I was just coming to speak with you about someone I’ve recently met who’s looking to see you. By the way,” He turned to look at Jack, a teasing smirk on his face. “Jack Frost, congratulations on your promotion. Have fun with it, and good luck.”

Catching the small joke, Jack let out a chuckle. “Yeah, I plan to.”

“Hey, can we speed the chit-chat up a bit, lover-boy?” Bunny asked for the sleigh, having chosen to not get off it because he knew he’d have to get right back in. “We’ve got someone we’re supposed to find.”

Q rolled his eyes in response. “If you’d been using those two over-sized strips of fur that you call years, you’d have heard me say that I just met someone who wants to meet you. As in she saw me, and requested to see each of you by name.” His wings gave an annoyed ruffle before he continued. “Her name’s Anja, and as far as I can tell, she’s an angel.”

“What helped you come to this decision?” North inquired.

“My powers don’t work on her.” Was the bringer of love’s reply. “And she could see me, even though she’s above the age where she should have stopped being able to see any of us.”

“I think,” Jack chimed in, leaning on his staff a bit, a thoughtful expression on his face. “That we just found who we’re looking for. Did she say if she had a dad, Q?”

Cupid gave a shrug. “Didn’t ask her. Figured I should find you five first so all of that could get taken care of, whatever it is she needs to talk to you about.”

North grinned, climbing back into the sleigh. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

Bunny let out a groan, sinking further down in his seat. “I hope this flight’s shorter than the last one.”

“Still haven’t gotten over that fear of flying, Bunnymund?” Q teased as he hopped into the sleigh.

“I am not afraid…” Bunny grumbled in response, though he clung to the sides of the sleigh once more as it lifted off, making Jack snicker as he climbed in.

“Here, Q. Catch!” North’s words distracted Q from his playful teasing of Bunny as the magical snow globe was tossed to him, the blonde man making sure he caught it. “Is your home, so you can have honors.”

Jack gave a small, playful pout as he watched the event. “How come you’ve never let me use it?”

North laughed. “Alright, we make deal. You get it on return trip to workshop. Fair?”

Pretending to think about it for a moment, Jack grinned. “Fair enough. Deal!”

Sitting next to him, not having left the sleigh when it was on the ground either, Sandy could not help but silently laugh at the teen’s antics. It was good that, despite the possible severity, everyone could still keep a bit of youthful humor about them. He cherished it, as something was telling him that the feeling wasn’t going to last. A part of him couldn’t help but wonder if it was what was left of his connection to Sister Moon, buried under Man in the Moon’s power.

“Alright, then.” Q tossed the snow globe between his hands a couple times before holding it in front of him. “Lover’s Grove.” He whispered, then hurled the globe as hard as he could in front of the sleigh. A portal opened up to allow them through, closing behind them, so as to leave the area as quiet as they had found it.
* * *
“They found her! I thought the reason you sent her down was so that she would be unable to cause any interference!”

Silence.

“Alright. We’ll do it your way. After all, you’ve done a good job of orchestrating this so far, save for a few unavoidable hiccups. But, I suppose that is to be expected when dealing with the Guardians of Childhood, isn’t it, Man in the Moon?”