Before the Frost

Jack was in his room, looking at his memory box in hand. A single tear slid down his cheek. Suddenly, there was a knock at the door; Tooth came in. "Jack, you OK?" He looked up at her.

"I miss them," Jack said. Tooth sat next to him and put a hand on his shoulder. "So much…"

"Who?" Tooth asked. She looked at him; tears were brimming in his eyes. She frowned.

"My family," Jack said. He looked down and looked at the memory box and held it tighter.

"Oh…" Tooth said. She looked at the memory box in his hand. "Let's relive your past then."

"How?" Jack asked, looking at her. She touched it like Baby Tooth did. He took a deep breath.

"You can do this, Jack," Tooth said. "You can relive your past anytime you'd like. I promise." _

Flashback Begins

It was Christmas Eve in the home of the Overlands. James, Emily, Jackson (Jack), and Emma Overland were sitting around the fireplace with their pajamas, listening to Jack reading A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. The moon outside shone brightly in the windows and Emma yawned and fell asleep on Jack's lap. He smiled, carried her to bed, and kissed her forehead; his parents watched him from the door. He turned to them, kissed them a goodnight and fell asleep next to his sister. The parents smiled warmly, kissed their forehead and slept.

Later that night, James began to have a coughing fit, waking up the whole family. "James, dear?" Jack and Emma woke up and ran to their parents. Emily checked his forehead. "You have a fever." They immediately rushed him to the hospital and doctors went to him. "How is he, Doc?"

He looked at her with deep fear in his eyes; he takes a deep breath. "He has cancer…Leukemia."

Emily's eyes go wide with fear as her children look at her. "W-What? L-Leukemia? C-Cancer?"

The doctor nodded, sadly. "There's nothing we can do, ma'am." They took James back home in a wheelchair. He looked barely unrecognizable to his children, especially his daughter, Emma.

Tears well up in her eyes as she gently touched her father's arm. "P-Papa? What happened?"

He sat up straighter in his wheelchair and held his daughter's hands. "I-I have cancer, Emma."

Her eyes went wide as Jack went up to her. She fell to her knees and cried her heart out. "No…"

Their father died the very next day and a funeral was held for half of the day. Emma looked at Jack, tears streaming down her face. Jack bent down to her height and hugged her tightly. "Shh, sis…" He looked up at the moon and saw James smiling down at him. "He's watching over us."

Later that day, Emma was in her room, looking at the gift her father gave her. A single tear slid down her cheek. In her gift was a pair of ice skates; she held on them tightly. "I miss you, Papa." Suddenly, like a bolt of lighting, her father appeared. She stood up and looked at him. "Papa?" He kneeled down to her height and opened his arms wide. She ran and hugged him. "PAPA!"

Suddenly, the door opens and Jack and Emily appeared and they immediately ran to James.

"PAPA!" Jack hugged him, tightly. James put a tight arm around his son's shoulder.

"Oh, how much I've missed you, my boy," James said, hugging him tightly.

"But how are you here, James?" Emily asked. He smiled and pointed to the moon.

"He saw the way I've treated you," James said. "So in his loving-kindness, he turned me immortal." They hugged him. "I'm so glad to be with you…Merry Christmas…my family…"

The next day, there was a loud bang at the door that caused the whole family to wake up. Jack went up to the door and opened it. Their friend, Jane, falls into Jack's arms. She was fully blind. She accidentally hits Jack with her walking stick. "Oops! Sorry, Jack." She begins to cry as he took her inside. Emma and her parents come in. "My stepfather's…he's after me…I'm scared!"

The woods were quiet…too quiet. Suddenly, a man appears with two shadows behind him. This is John, Jane's stepfather, and his two workers. He motioned with his hands for them to come forward. He looked at them. "Find the girl. Destroy, kill, anything! I…want…her…alive…"

"And if we can't find her?" Jim asked. He gave him a look: Do it or I swear that I'll fire you!

"Your stepfather?" Emily asked. She nods and hugs her tightly. "It's alright. We'll protect you."

"How?! He and his men are after me!" Jane said. "Who knows where they can be now!" She looks at the family members, fear in her eyes (unnoticeable from the glasses) "I'm scared!"

"You'll be fine, Jane," James said as he opens his arms wide. She runs into his arms.

"Can I live with you guys for the rest of my life?" Jane asked. They hugged her tightly.

"You're more than welcome," Emma and Jack said. Jane smiled. Both she and Emma fall asleep.

"I'll take them to bed," Jack said. He takes the two girls to bed and they fall asleep on him.

In the woods, Jim's brother, Jake, looks at him. "Where would that girl be?" then he remembered. "The Overlands!" Immediately, they ran into the village square. They look around and see smoke coming out from one of the small cabin homes. "There! C'mon! Let's go!" They get closer to the home and look at each other. They put their hoods up over their heads "Now!"

The children were all asleep, except for Jane, who looked out the window. She screams in fear.

"Uh?" Jack said, waking up. "What's wrong?" She points to the window. "MAMA! PAPA!" They came running in and Emma wakes up. "What do we do?" Emma and Jane hug him tightly.

"Hide in the basement!" Emily said. They looked at her in fear. James turns to them. "NOW!"

"You heard your mother, children!" James said. "Hide in the basement!" They start to leave.

"But what about you guys?" Jane asked. She turns to them in fear. "They'll kill you too!"

"Don't worry about us," They said. "GO!" The children run into the basement and remain silent.

The men burst into the home, guns in hand. "WHERE IS THE GIRL?!" Jim screamed.

"TELL US NOW OR WE'LL KILL YOU!" Jake screamed. They remain silent. "TELL US!"

"If we told you, you wouldn't be able to find her," James said, calmly. Jim hits him in the chest with his rifle, but it goes right through him. Jim and Jake stare in shock. "See?" he touches his chest and nothing happens. He gets out his gun and points it at them. "Get out of here! Now!"

"Oh, yes," Emily said. "And tell your "Master" that he'll never be allowed here ever again."

James shoots a bullet at the wall as a warning and both men run out of the house, dropping their weapons. James takes the two rifles and puts them in the closet. "This is for safe keeping." They run and go to their children and Jane. "It's safe to come out now, children. They're gone now."

"Am I your daughter now?" Jane asked. They looked at her, hugging her tightly. "Thank you…"

The men ran back to the cabin that was located in the middle of the woods. John looked out the window, tapping his fingers impatiently. His eyebrows furrow in anger. They come in, breathing heavily. He looked at them, and walks, trapping them against the wall. "Well? Where is she?"

"Uh…" Jim started. John grabs their throats, lifting them off their feet. His eyes go dark.

"TELL ME!" John screamed. He threw them across the room. "I'll find her myself then." He then kills them and heads to Pitch's lair…Pitch, the man who "created" John. He laughed darkly.

Suddenly, Jane looks at the family and her eyes are filled with tears. "H-He killed her…"

"Jane, you OK?" Emma asked. She and Jack took her by the hand and led her to their room.

"What's wrong?" Jack asked as he and Emma rubbed her back to comfort her. She buries her head into Jack's chest, tears streaming down her face. He and Emma hug her tightly in comfort.

"M-My stepfather killed my mother…" Jane took her glasses off and rubbed her eyes and put them back on. "I was there when he killed her…he burned her…after beating her. It was awful!"

Jane's Flashback

The moonlight shine through the glass window as screams of pain echo throughout the small cabin. Jane hid behind a barrel of gunpowder as she watched her mother being whipped by her stepfather. She covered her ears, not wanting to hear any more screaming. Suddenly, she sees her mother's lifeless body thrown into a pit of fire. "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

End of Flashback

When she finished, Jane fell to her knees and cried her heart out. Jack and Emma hugged her tightly. Her body shook intensely; her lips were quivering with fear. She didn't even dare to look up of fear seeing a dead corpse or burned body of her mother, lying in front of her. She could feel the hands of her friends rubbing her back to comfort her. "Jane, dear?" said Mr. Overland.

She looked up. "Yes, sir?" Jane asked, remembering what her mother had taught her. Respect

"What happened to your father?" Emily asked. Jane took one long, ragged breath. She sighed.

"He died…in war…" Jane said. "He was captured by the enemy, tortured, and then…killed."

Each of them looked at each other, then back at Jane, hugging her tighter. Suddenly, the moon shines upon the group and speaks. "Jackson Overland, I'm assigning you a job. Your family is already immortal; from now on, I want you to be a guardian by night and a human boy by day which means you'll work with the big four: Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy, Easter Bunny and the Sandman." They smile. The moon changes Jack's hair white and his eyes blue. "Are you ready?" Jack nods. And with that, Jack's staff gave him the ability to fly and to freeze things. He flies to the Guardians. Suddenly, Pitch appears and grabs the girls. He smiles and disappears. Just then, Wendy and Christopher (Chris), Jane's parents, appeared, both of them immortal. Both families looked at the moon in fear. "Do not worry, because Jackson was chosen for this specific reason."

"We believe in you," Both of the set of parents said, holding each other tightly. "We believe…"

The Guardians wait anxiously for the new Guardian: Jackson Overland. Suddenly, the window opens wide. Jack lands on the floor gently and looks at them. "I'm sorry if I'm late. It was far."

"No, you came at the nick of time, Overland," North said. Jack sat down to catch his breath.

"You OK, Mate?" Bunny asked. Tooth sat next to him and handed him a cup of water.

"Yeah, I'm fine, Bunny," Jack said, drinking the water. "It's just I've never done this…flying."

"Do you know why you're here, Jack?" Tooth asked, putting a hand on his shoulder.

"No…not really," Jack said, turning to Tooth. He raises an eyebrow. "Why am I here?"

Suddenly, Pitch appears with Emma and Jane. "JACK! HELP US! PLEASE! WE'RE SCARED!" Jack pointed his staff. Tooth put his staff down. "LET US GO, PITCH! PLEASE!"

"Ha-ha!" Pitch laughed. His face turns cold. "No." He turns to Jack. "You want them back?"

"Yes, they're my family," Jack said. Pitch snaps his fingers and John appears. Jane goes pale.

"F-Father…" Jane said. "What are you doing here?" He grabs her hair. "OW! PLEASE!"

"He works for me, of course," Pitch said. The girls looked at the Guardians in fear. He turns to John. "Let's go," Jack freezes them and were never heard from ever again. Jane ran to Emma.

"You OK?" Jack asked, holding her tightly. She shook her head; Emma and the others came.

"Are they gone?" Jane asked, her body shaking. Jack and the others nodded. "Thank goodness."

"Yeah, they are," Emma said. Jane collapsed into Jack's arms; he took her and Emma home.

When Jack and the girls got home, they collapsed on top of each other and fell asleep, snoring. The parents came in and covered them with blankets. "Sweet dreams, children," They whispered. The children smiled and they head outside in the kitchen, talking to each other about tomorrow.

Suddenly, Jane began to toss and turn; her body curved upward as if she were being electrocuted. She began to mumble something. "No…please don't hurt me and mother. Just let my father go." Jack woke up, rubbing his eyes. He turned to her...no response. He went back to sleep, knowing full well what would happen if you woke up a sleepwalking person. He put an arm around her and Emma; immediately, Jane stopped shaking and fell asleep, smiling. He and Emma smiled…

The Guardians looked at each other. "Wow…" Bunny mumbled. All heads turned to him. "Didn't know that Overland had that in him." They looked at him in confusion. "Protection."

"Well," Tooth said. "He is a brother." North then brought out the Naughty and Nice list and changed Jack from the Naughty list to the Nice List. Tooth looked at him. "He deserves it."

"Guys!" Sandy and Baby Tooth exclaimed. "TODAY IS JACKSON'S 17th BIRTHDAY!"

"HO! HO! HO!" North laughed. "LET US GO AND CELEBRATE!" He and the other Guardians went to the sleigh. North brought out a snowglobe and off they went to the house.

A few hours later, preparations began for Jack's birthday; Emma and Jane headed downstairs and when Jane saw her parents, tears well up in her eyes. "Mama. Papa," They smiled, hugging her tightly. They swung her around as tears streamed down her face. "I've missed you so much!"

Emma goes to her parents and they smiled at her. She looked up. "Should I go wake Jack up?"

"Go ahead," James said. The Guardians appear as Emma and Jane run upstairs to wake Jack up.

"Well," North said. "Where is the birthday boy?" They greeted each other and wait for him….

Emma and Jane slowly tiptoe to Jack's room and shake him gently. Jack mumbled, rolling over, and falling off the bed. "WOAH! OW!" The girls giggled. He looked up with eyes wide open. "What…just…happened?" Jack mumbled. They burst out laughing. "I fell off the bed, didn't I?" They fall to the ground, laughing hard. "Alright, you two! Out of my room…I need to change," The girls run downstairs and when they saw the Guardians, they ran and hugged them, tightly.

The sound of rushing water is heard as Jack took a shower…a few moments later, he gets out of the shower with his brown hair wet and a towel around his waist. He looks in the mirror, grabs the comb and combs his hair while humming his favorite song. After combing his hair, he put on his brown stripped jeans with the belt, beige undershirt, and brown button-up vest. He checked his teeth…clean, and as Tooth described it: "Sparkle like freshly fallen snow." He then heads downstairs only to see complete darkness. He calls out. "Mama? Papa? Emma? Jane? Hello?!"

They turn on the lights and screamed. "SURPRISE!" Jack fell back, eyes wide open. They smile and help him up. He smiles and hugs them tightly; he twirls Emma and Jane around. Tears well up in his eyes when he sees Jane's parents and the Guardians; he turns to his parents. "Happy birthday," He hugs them, tightly. They circle around him and hug him more tightly than before.

Suddenly, Jack gets a pair of antlers; the Guardians and parents sit down, knowing full well of what will happen next. Emma and Jane get their wooden swords up and ready, but before they start their "fight", Jane falls to the ground. Immediately, her eyesight returns, and she throws her glasses to the side. They celebrate. The girls look at each other and smile. Jack gets his sword ready. "En garde!" they begin to fight. Jack jumps on the couch and both girls attack him and "stab" in the chest. He falls to the ground in "pain." They look at him with swords pointed. He puts his hands up. "Surrender now, fine moose!" He looks down at the "swords" in his chest.

"Oh, …no…I've…been…defeated…by…the…mighty…queen…and…her…right… hand…the…princess…" Jack said in a mockingly defeated tone. "You have won, your majesty."

The Guardians and parents stand up and applaud as Jack and the girls bow. "Bravo!" Tooth said.

"Encore! Encore!" North said. They laughed and hugged them, pushing them to the ground. Later that night, Jack opened all of his birthday gifts; he and the girls fall asleep on each other.

"We'll take them to bed," North and Bunny said, picking the children up. Tooth and Sandy were already there before them. After tucking them into bed, Manny looked down and smiled warmly.

"No duties for him tonight…" Manny said. "He needs to rest…" The Guardians went to work…

The next day, the family went to the colonial settlement. The children run playfully down a hill. "Come on Jack, you can't have fun all the time," Emily and James said. Jack hangs upside down.

"Jack, get down from there!" Emma and Jane said, laughing. Later that night, the happy family sits at a roaring fire as Jack jokes around with antlers on his head. "You're funny, Jack." A few days later, Emma asked Jack if they could go ice skating, while Jane spent the day reconnecting with her parents. Jack walks toward the woods with his sister. James and Emily call out to him.

"Be careful," Emily said. Jack shakes his head like he's heard it a million times but never pays it any mind. Emma continues to tug at Jack's hand, pulling him closer to the door. She laughs.

"We will," Jack said, laughing. And off the two went into the woods. Jack smiles at his parents.

At the lake, he is staring directly at her. Behind him, dark winter trees and snow come in to focus. "It's okay. It's okay. Don't look down, just look at me," Jack said, calm and serious. Jack reaches slowly down and removes the second of two rudimentary ice-skates, leaving him barefoot on the surface of the frozen lake. Emma stands in her skates, rooted to the spot. She looks down at the ice; a spider's web of cracks emanates from where she stands. She looks up.

"Jack, I'm scared," Emma said as the ice below her splinters more. She wobbles as it starts to separate. Jack steps towards her, only to have the ice crack underneath his foot. He looks down.

"I know, I know...but you're gonna be alright. You're not gonna fall in," Jack said. "We're gonna have a little fun instead!" Jack stood up with his arms spread out. She looked up at him in fear.

"No, we're not!" Emma cried. She couldn't believe that he wanted to have "fun" at this moment!

"Would I trick you?" Jack asked with a slight chuckle. She looked at him, tears in her eyes.

"Yes!" Emma screamed. "You ALWAYS play tricks!" Jack chuckled to himself. She was right.

"Well, alright. Well, not-not this time," Jack said. "I promise. I promise you're gonna be...you're gonna be fine." He fixes his gaze...holds it...there's nothing but the two of them. "You have to believe in me." Emma pauses a moment, then smiles through her fear. And just like that, Jack's demeanor changes. A light is switched on inside him and the last thing that could be happening is actually happening. He becomes more casual and playful. "You wanna play a game? We're going to play Hopscotch! Like we play every day!" Emma looks more reassured. "It's as easy as…one…whoaaaa…" And Jack shows his sister the first leap, but mugs for her, almost losing his balance then catching himself. She laughs. "Two..." He takes the next jump. "Three!" He turns toward her with his arms spread out. "Alright…" He reaches down to pick up his staff lying on the ice. He extends it towards her… "Now it's your turn." Emma looks down as she tries to gather her courage. Jack, never breaking his gaze with her. "One..." She hops, wobbling, but catching her balance. "That's it, that's it...two..." She's almost there, Jack's staff just beyond her reach. "Three!" She grabs hold of Jack's staff and in one massive effort, he slings her with all his might to safety. But the movement propels him into the cracked ice. He looks up to see his sister safe - smiles - and then plunges into the dark cold water. "Whoa…" She calls out his name. Jack falls back into the icy water. Emma falls to her knees, crying her heart out. What am I gonna do?

Flashback Ends

Jack looked at Tooth and she hugged him. Suddenly, his whole family, (Jane too) along with the other Guardians appears. Tears well up in his eyes and stream down his face. He runs to them, hugging them tightly. He looked back at Tooth who smiled warmly at him. He whispered: Thank you. While hugging, she whispered back: You're welcome. And for the rest of the day, they hugged, none of them wanting to let go of the other – especially Jack – who hugged the tightest.

The End

Do You Believe?

Kristina Haddad

5/11/18

"Ohana means Family, Family means nobody gets left behind or forgotten." Stitch – Lilo and Stitch.

"Some people are worth melting for." Olaf – Frozen.

"Love is putting someone else's needs before yours." Olaf – Frozen.

"If there ever comes a day when we can't be together, keep me in your heart. I'll stay there forever…" Winnie – Winnie the Pooh.

"If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you." Winnie – Winnie the Pooh.

"You are braver than you believe, stronger than you seem, and smarter than you think." Christopher Robin – Winnie the Pooh.

"For I know the plans I have for you," Declares the LORD. "Plans to prosper you and not to harm you. Plans to give you a hope and a future." Jeremiah 19:11.