"...there is far more in this world than just my darkness."
— Pitch Black
From The Darkness We Rise
and its sequel, Into Shadows We Fall, can be summarised as explicit Rise of the Guardians Slash Fics about Jack Frost and Pitch Black.
This would, however, be an entirely inadequate summary.
Twenty two years have passed since the defeat of Pitch, and Jack lives alone, touch-starved, with only the company of a solitary Nightmare. One evening the Man in the Moon sets him on a path that will lead him to unexpected relationships, draw the attention of the Guardians to a new coalition of villains, and challenge Jack's every notion of what it is to be good, evil, and what it is to live in the shadows.
This is the author's summary, which is much better.
The Shadows And Light duology is much more than Porn with Plot; a combination of elements from the movie and the original books, as well as drawing inspiration from mythology, SAL is an epic adventure story set in a well-detailed verse, an exploration of relationships, and a nuanced presentation of emotional and psychological issues.
Many of the original supporting characters have gotten a Spin-Off series of their own, Fae Tales.
Tropes featured in Shadows And Light include:
- Ancient Evil / Time Abyss: All but stated by the Nain Rouge about what she is, calling the other fae 'young things' and saying that she can't die, but wil simply bide her time, waiting for a chance to rise again.
- Arch-Enemy: The Nain Rouge is this for Jack throughout the story, despite not actually being the Big Bad.
- The Assimilator: The Nain Rouge doesn't just drain the Life Energy of her prey, she absorbs their powers for her own use.
- Ax-Crazy: The Nain Rouge is kind of insane. Augus too, especially in his first introduction.
- Batman Gambit: The plan by which Augus is lured out and trapped.
- BFG: Toothiana has a cannon, and nearly shatters one of Augus's protective shields with a single cannonball.
- BFS: Pitch owns a two-handed long-sword.
- Back from the Dead: Mora. The author originally intended for the character to be Killed Off for Real.
- Battle in the Center of the Mind: Pitch successfully fights one against the living shadows with the help of Jack, Gwyn, and light-amplifying weapons made by North. He also tells Jack about how he fought to keep his sword despite the shadows definitely not wanting a weapon which could hurt them to be kept around.
- Big Bad: Augus Each Uisge. At least until the Nightmare King returns at the ending of the first story, making him the true Big Bad of the story, making Augus The Dragon.
- The Dragon: The Nain Rouge, although she is more of a Dragon with an Agenda in this story, making her seem more threatening than Augus.
- Big Brother Instinct: Augus toward Ash.
- Broken Ace: Pitch. It's implied that Gwyn is one as well, and this is explored much further in later works.
- Berserk Button: Pitch does not react well to Jack finding a certain locket among his belongings.
- Blue-and-Orange Morality: Fae in general, though more obvious among the Unseelie.
- Break Them by Talking: The Nightmare King tries this on Jack through a dream. Jack manages to respond with a Shut Up, Hannibal!. This is also Pitch's contribution to the trap the group sets for Augus.
- The Chains of Commanding: Being the King of the Seelie Court is a thankless job in which he has to confront threats so dire the previous King stepped down rather than face them, keep vigil as fae sundered from their homes die painful deaths before him, and work together with difficult allies. But as a fae whose current heartsong is justice, Gwyn can't not try his best to fulfil his responsibilities, or not feel bad when things don't go well.
- Compelling Voice: Predatory waterhorses have this.
- Cool Sword: Made of a rare metal mined from meteorites, Pitch's sword can repel the living shadows.
- Dark Is Not Evil: Jack’s Nightmare companion, Mora. Pitch gradually becomes this. Unseelie allies such as Gulvi and Ash count as well, for varying definitions of ‘not evil’.
- Determinator: Jack, especially when his center is resolve.
- Did We Just Have Tea with Cthulhu?: Most people find Makara terrifying. Jack is not one of them, to general consternation.
- Distracted by the Sexy: Pitch gets distracted by Jack's proximity and attendant fears, to the point of nearly making out with him, at a very inappropriate time. Namely, while in the Nain Rouge's lair, spying on her.
- Doorstopper: The two stories, taken together, clocks in at over four hundred thousand words; the author has written longer works, but SaL still isn't exactly light reading.
- Even Evil Has Loved Ones: Augus, even at his most unstable, won't fight his brother Ash.
- The Fair Folk: Well, yes, they're an integral part of the verse and story.
- Fate Worse than Death: Being possessed by the living shadows is not only excruciatingly painful, it can mean being trapped helpless and disconnected in endless dark - or being forced to bear witness as the shadows commit atrocities with your very hands.
- Fighting from the Inside: Even while possessed by the living shadows, Pitch retains enough presence of mind to help Jack get his stolen power back from the Nain Rouge.
- Glamour: Gwyn calls it dra’ocht, and fae can use it to affect the perceptions and emotions of those around them.
- Go Mad from the Isolation: Jack cites concern about this as one of the reasons for his concern about Pitch, as he's got a lot of personal experience.
- Good Is Not Nice: Gwyn is a ruthless manipulator of people when he believes it necessary; Jack isn't happy about finding himself on the receiving end.
- Green Thumb: Ash Glashtyn and Augus Each Uisge, who have living waterweed growing in their hair, and can summon more from their wrists to attack and bind foes.
- Healing Hands: One of the uses Pitch puts his light to.
- Heel–Face Turn: Pitch does one gradually.
- Horror Hunger: Many Unseelie fae have this, most notably the Nain Rouge and the Each Uisge.
- Ice Palace: Jack’s home, when he finally learns how to make a proper one. Though it’s more of a lighthouse.
- Killed Off for Real: Jamie, in the very first chapter, setting off Jack's journey in the process.
- Light 'em Up: Pitch discovers that he still possesses this power, which comes from his past as a Golden Warrior. Gwyn has light powers as well, though of a different kind.
- Holy Hand Grenade: They put said powers to good use against the living shadows.
- Living Lie Detector: Makara is one, and it's best not to lie to him.
- Making a Splash: Implied on the parts of Albion and Ondine, Seelie water fae allies, though never seen; they merely constantly drip water or leave wet footprints wherever they go. Augus, for his part, can teleport from place to place through water.
- One to Million to One: Gwyn teleports by dissolving into light.
- Papa Wolf: North fits this trope for Jack, to the point where he stood up for Jack when Gwyn threatened him and it didn't go well. Gwyn is a King, but not "his king".
- The Power of Love: When they confront the Nightmare King, Jack makes a life-size frost figure of Seraphina to draw Pitch's consciousness to the surface and inspire him to fight off the shadows.
- Protective Charm: Makara can weave scarves enchanted to hide the wearer's fears from a being otherwise able to sense them.
- Psychopathic Manchild: While the Nain Rouge doesn't act particularly childishly, the mere fact that she looks like a human child (albeit one with matted, bloodstained hair and wearing rotting furs) certainly creates this effect.
- Red Eyes, Take Warning: The Nain Rouge.
- Reluctant Ruler: Gwyn was made King of the Seelie Court against his desires.
- Scars Are Forever: Magically induced wounds, such as the Nain Rouge's aborted attempt to steal Jack's power, leave this kind of scars.
- Seers: The water fae Ondine can, by simply taking hold of someone's hand, read their future, though it's neither foolproof nor necessarily informative.
- Sir Swearsalot: The Nain Rouge practically regards profanity as punctuation.
- So What Do We Do Now?: This is the premise upon which FtDWR begins, as Jack is left to himself again in the wake of the Guardians' victory.
- Stern Teacher: Pitch and Gwyn can both be like this, to Jack's consternation.
- Supernatural Gold Eyes: In the world that Pitch came from, those born with these were destined to become Golden Warriors.
- Swans A-Swimming: Gulvi is a swan maiden fae.
- Tall, Dark, and Snarky: Pitch, naturally. Augus Each Uisge as well.
- Teleportation Sickness: When Jack is feeling extremely unwell, Pitch's method of teleportation causes him to throw up.
- There Are No Therapists: Justified, what with the characters belonging to mythology and folklore.
- Tragic Keepsake: Pitch has two, the locket and the sword.
- Unholy Matrimony: There are hints that the Nightmare King and Augus could have been this in the past. They weren't.
- Vagueness Is Coming: The Man in the Moon’s cryptic message to Jack in the first chapter which begins events.
- Vampiric Draining: What the Nain Rouge does, taking a mix of Life Energy and magical ability.
