A crisp cold air rushed through the forest as a figure raced through the trees. His feet hardly touched the ground as he seemed to float and glide past the thicket of bushes and shrubbery. Snow fell softly from the heavens, gracing the ground with its crystal blanket. Slowly the figure, a young man named Jack Frost, came to a halt, taking in all his creation around him. Jack Frost was the guardian of winter and it was he who controlled the frigid season with his mighty staff. Twirling the staff in his hands, Jack smirked slightly to himself.
"Not a bad job, if I do say so myself." He laughed before making his way toward the nearby lake. It had been years since he had visited the planet of Murnau. Winter only comes to Murnau once every eight years but when it does the season is a wonder to behold. The flowers on the eastern side of the main city never wilt so when Jack's frosty hand touches them the petals become incased in a thin sheet of ice. The Murnauans call these winter flowers crystal blume.
Jack touched his foot to the edge of the lake, his eyes forward, as the mere touch of his skin to the water froze it instantly. He made his way across the slowly freezing lake, contemplating where the wind would take him next. It was the wind who allowed Jack to fly high into the sky but it was the Man in the moon who instructed Jack where he was to go. The Man never spoke much but when he did, his words were filled with mystery and wonder. As Jack reached the center he sighed, leaning on his staff as he looked up into the night sky.
"Why am I here?" he asked the moon, searching for answers. But as usual the moon remained silent to his pleas. Jack's thoughts were shattered as he heard a scream coming from the forest behind him. At once the young guardian readied himself for whatever was coming this way. Grasping his staff in his hand he inched forward, pointing toward the thicket.
A tiny girl came tumbling forward from behind one of the trees. She looked no older than seven years but her movements seemed to be uneasy and hindered from her stature. Her small hands gripped and searched in front of her for anything to hold onto. Fingers pushed through the snow and ice as long golden hair enveloped her body. Her clothes were tattered and torn while her face was flushed a deep red, hiding the dirt upon them. Every time she tried to stand she would fall forward, her feet catching on her dress. She was breathing heavily and it seemed like she was running away from something.
Jack flew forward, his feet lifting off of the ice before touching down once more on the snow beside the young girl. "Are you alright?" He questioned before rolling his eyes. "Like she can hear you Jack." Glancing back he could see a group of two dark figures making their way through the forest. "Are they the ones who are after you?" Jack questioned again as he watched the girl struggle before she managed to get to her feet. Jack's eyes widened as he could see her face clearly now. "You..You are blind?" His brow furrowed as he tried to make sense of her features. What was a little girl doing out here and why where those figures after her?
The girl took hesitant steps toward the lake. She had never been this far out into the forest before so she knew nothing of her surroundings. Her arms stretched out before her as she looked for something, anything, to hold onto but took an abrupt step forward when her bare feet touched the frozen edge of the lake. She staggered slightly as she fought to gain balance on the ice.
Booming male voices came echoing from the trees behind her, their words unable to be understood. This frightened the little girl, causing her to try and rush forward. Jack jumped up to his full height as he noticed she was trying to make her way across the frosty lake.
"Wait! That isn't safe." He called out as he flew over beside her. He floated around her as he watched her struggle. "Ugh-" he grunted as he tried to figure out a way for her to notice him. His eyes flashed back to see the men were gaining on their target. Turning his attention back to the girl he had an idea. "You won't like this but there is nothing else I can do…" He touched his staff to the frozen cover of ice causing it to become slick.
Slipping on the ice, the girl slid across the ice with immense force as the wind propelled her from one side of the lake to the other. Once she reached the other side she tumbled forward onto the snow bank her head moving from side to side, attempting to take in the senses around her. Jack touched down beside her, looking her over to make sure she wasn't hurt. He was shocked to find a tiny smile on her flushed, frost bitten face. Was she happy? Blind eyes looked at him as if they were trying to piece him together.
"Thank you." Her voice a soft and sweet as she turned her head at first away from Jack but slowly returned to his direction.
"Anything to make things a bit more fu-" He stopped himself and laughed. "Why am I even trying? It's not like you can hear me anyway." Jack looked across the lake to see the figures had gone. They must have changed directions. The girl was safe for now. Sitting back on the snow he found himself looking up at the moon. "You know this is cruel. I hope you understand that. Giving me a life where I'm forever alone, forever invisible, never to be believed in! Why would you do this to me?" Jack called up at the moon. He looked away, knowing he would never know the answers but his questions soon found answers.
"But you are not alone." Jack's eyes widened as he turned his gaze toward the little girl. "You saved me." The girl continued as she got to her feet.
"You…can hear me?" Jack's voice trembled as he got to his knees, his eyes at her level. "You. You can hear me?" He repeated as he watched the little girl nod. "Ha!" Jack fell backward his heart racing as he ran a hand through his hair. "She can hear me. She can hear me!" He cried out as laughter broke into his voice.
"Can people not normally hear you?" The girl asked as she turned her gaze away from Jack. "You know…your aura is very bright. The brightest I've ever seen." She added as she started hesitantly forward. Jack sat up before rushing after her.
"No, not normally. People usually pass right through me. Until now I've been alone. You are the first person who has been able to see me." As he finished his sentence he realized the paradox of his statement. "Wait, how can you see me?"
"Well, I cant exactly see you. I can only see the haze of your aura which lets me hear your voice. I've been able to see colored lights around people lately. My mommy said I had a gift." She smiled softly as she lifted a tiny hand toward Jack. "Mommy never let me go out this far. I need your help. The bad men will find me if we don't hurry."
Jack felt his heart twist in his chest as he knew the feeling of a human passing through him. It took his breath away with such great pain. Would she be the same? Swallowing hard he tentatively reached for her hand. He stopped suddenly as her tiny fingers wrapped around his hand with great strength. His stopping caused the girl to be pulled back as he kept a grip on her hand.
"Is something wrong?" She asked, not looking at him but keeping her dull gaze forward. Jack's hand trembled as he looked down at it. She wasn't phasing through him. He could feel her warm touch on his frost bitten hand. How was this even possible? She spoke of not being able to see but still being able to sense auras. None of this made any sense. Why was this little girl all the way out here all alone?
"Oh.." Jack muttered as he snapped back into reality. "I guess I'm not used to people believing in me."
"I know that feeling." She began. "My mommy always had a hard time believing I can do things on my own-" She paused for a moment. "well, until now that is. It's nice to feel believed in huh?" She smiled once more as her grip tightened. "My name is Starina but my mommy calls me Stellie. You can too if you want." The innocence of this little girl reminded Jack of someone he knew, or at least he thought he knew. The memories ate at his mind for a moment before he rid them from his thoughts. He couldn't burden Starina with his troubles. She was far too young to understand anyway.
"You can call me Jack Frost, or just Jack if you prefer." He laughed slightly as Starina smiled.
"Jack Frost? My mommy told me a story about him. She said he is the guy who brings winter to Murnau. Without him we would have no winter. Are you really him?"
"The one and only." As he answered he felt Starina's pace quicken. Her excitement could be felt all around them. He had never had someone believe in him before. "But Stellie, why were you running from those men?" As Jack asked he pulled her to a stop before kneeling down to her level. He watched as her face got uneasy and sad.
"The bad men were going to hurt mommy. She told me to run, run far away from there and to never come back. But before that she gave me this letter." Starina reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a crumpled letter. She lifted it up above Jack's head as she offered it to him. Smiling, he took the paper from her hand and began to read. His eyes moved over each word and felt a deep sickness in his chest. Who could be so mean to a child? The letter spoke of Starina's mother wanting to secure a future for her daughter and now she would threaten to reveal Fiaro, the king's, secret child to the kingdom. Starina was Fiaro's illegitimate daughter. Jack shook his head as he folded the letter back up. He needed to see things for himself, that way he could better understand what he was dealing with.
"Stellie, I want you to stay here ok? Don't move alright? I'll be back as soon as I can. I need to find out where those men went."
"Please don't leave me Jack. Please." Starina pleaded as she fell forward into his arms, clutching at his hoodie with chilled hands. "I don't want to be alone again." Tears fell from her face as she buried her head into his chest. Jack knelt there, his body frozen from her touch. His breathe left him as his lips parted. Hesitantly he placed his arms around her, holding her in a gentle embrace to soothe her crying.
"I promise I will be back. I need to make sure you are safe alright? I'll be back before you know it." He felt her form move away from him slightly as she started to wipe her tears.
"Promise?"
"I promise. How about we make this into a game alright? Can you build a snow man? I bet you by the time you finish the snowman I'll be back." Jack laughed as Starina smiled softly.
"Ok." Jack sighed to himself as he stood up and began to head back toward the lake. He needed to understand this mess for himself. He would start by finding the mother.
Dashing forward Jack's feet left the ground and he was propelled by the wind into the night sky. His eyes scanned all around him, searching through the barren branches of the trees for any sign of Starina's mother. The woman could not have been far off. It was at that moment that Jack noticed a small cave of a home on the side of a hill. That must be something at least. With a deep gust the wind let Jack drop to the roof of the make-shift hut. Broken pieces of wood and torn scrap metal were all that were used to compose the building. Leaning off the edge of the house, the curious male peered through the only window. Nothing. Flipping backwards off the roof he landed softly on the ground.
"Stellie…" a female voice choked from behind him. Jack's reflex took over as he took a firm grip on his staff and pointed it directly at the source of the sound. His staff dropped from one of his hands as he noticed the woman before him was dragging herself through the snow and was heavy bleeding. Jack stood there, motionless for a moment as the moment spoke in gibbering to herself as she struggled to get closer to the house. "Sa-save..st-…st…st-ell..ie." She gasped as crimson blood trickled from her mouth and splattered upon the crystal snow. Jack's heart twisted within his chest as he took steps toward her. There was nothing he could do to help her. For adults, there was no hope in them ever being able to see him because they never believed or had stopped believing. The woman was calling out for Starina. She must have been the young girl's mother. It tore Jack apart inside, seeing the reason why the woman had told her daughter to run.
"What did they do to you?" Jack asked as the woman laid her head in the snow. A crimson trail behind her would have been a clear sign of her vulnerability. Lifting his staff to the sky, Jack sent a burst of blue crystal ice into the heavens. As he lowered his arm it began to snow. "The least I can do is keep you safe." Jack knelt down as the woman exhaled for the last time. Her face would soon be hidden by the falling snow. Soon she would be just a memory. But how would he tell Starina? Standing Jack shook his head. He wouldn't tell her, at least not yet.
Once the mother's body was blanketed in snow Jack took his attention to finding the King responsible for Starina's fleeing and the man within the letter.