The Weeping Willow [Rise of the Guardians]

Chapter 1

~Dedicated to Bohemian_Rhapsody~

The wind rustled through the dainty leaves, blowing wisps of snow across the frosted ground.

She sat on the tree silently, wondering one thought that kept coming back to the front of her mind.

She wasn't a guardian, and she wasn't a human, so... what was she?

Bringing her hand to her face she felt beneath her fingertips the smooth ashen brown skin. In life she had been pale, with blonde hair and hazel eyes, but her spirit had always run with those of a darker toned skin. She had watched and befriended them, so as a spirit, she took their appearance. It was not as dark as their skin had been, but she could never fully leave behind who she was when she was living.

She traced with her index finger carefully along the string of teardrop-shaped beads that fell from her head piece. It was a circlet of slim, silver twigs with beads that cascaded down to her lips. The jewels encompassed her full head, streaming down with her long wavy brown hair.

Her bracelets were made of the same variety beads. She loved to watch the small jewels catch the light and refract the colors into patterns on the snow around her. Her earrings were leaves taken from her home-tree. One side was frosty silver; the other side was green and showed the veins of the plant.

Shivering against another gust, she pulled closer her mossy-green cloak and tightened the scarf around her neck. They were made of a soft velvet-like material that held heat surprisingly well for so thin a fabric. It held heat much better than her dress. The simple chiffon material wafted around her frame in an array of greys.

Her moccasin-like shoes slipped soundlessly across the snow as she walked from one tree to the next.

What was she?

Or better still,... who was she? What was the role she was to play in the grand scheme of everything?

She smiled gently as she watched Santa's sleigh glide across the clouds. She could hear his bellowing laughter as a bright flash of color zipped around him.

She had no doubt it was the Tooth Fairy.

It's true that the Guardians used to see very little of each other, but ever since Pitch nearly killed Sandman, things had changed. Now they spoke more often, though no more than three were to be seen together at once.

She watched as Santa pitched a snow-globe, opening a doorway to the North Pole in the middle of the sky. She had a doorway to the North Pole in her trees, but she'd never used it before. There was no need to.

As Santa disappeared, she caught a glimpse of the moon up above. It shone beautifully down from the sky, lighting the night with its glorious wonder.

"Hello, my friend," she whispered as a flurry of leaves swept by, her eyes planted on the luminous globe. "It's getting chillier by the day."

As always there was no answer, but she never expected one really. To her, the Man in the Moon was her loyal friend, always visible in the sky from at least one of her trees.

"I was thinking again, about what I am- who I am, actually- and I was wondering if you knew. I know who I used to be, that I was once a girl named Willow Lark. I can remember times when I had a family, a home. I had a purpose. But, friend, I have lost my purpose. I know not why I'm here anymore. I've forgotten my reason to wander this earth."

She looked back to the Man in the Moon, but there was no response.