~Come around my friends, and I'll tell you a sweet tale.~
Nicholas Saint North, although the Guardian of Wonder, was a practical man above all else, and Jack Frost's moping around the workshop was putting a dent on even North's usually cheerful mood. When asked, the young spirit would just laugh it off with "its just winter blues North! I'm fine. Really!" and North might have been convinced save for the peculiar look in Jack's eyes. Longing. A feeling North was more than familiar with.
"Dingle!" North bellowed, and a small elf jingled to attention, "Prepare your finest cookies! We entertain guests tonight." He then rushed off to look for Jack in the only place he new the man would be, the North Star tower.
As he climbed the stairs North thought of the time since Jack's acceptance into Guardianhood. The boy had surprised them all, earning even Bunnymund's, albeit grudging, respect.
Cool and level-headed under pressure, Jack had recruited the help of winter sprites, given them a place to call home in the Antarctic, and created a well-functioning system in which the sprites helped Jack bring winter, fun, and joy around the world.
The best part (in North's opinion) was that Jack was finally able to specialize in his craft. The shepherd's staff, although a staple in Jack's everyday attire, was no longer needed for Jack to access his talent.
With the growth in control and power, Jack had also experienced a side-effect in his physique, North chuckled under his breath. However, MiM knows that the young man did not even have the slightest clue how he affected the young ladies he met, especially the sprites; much to Tooth's consternation, on how they "disgraced the uniform." But that had resolved itself when Jack had gently made it clear that he was not lonely. and nor was he looking for anyone special.
North shuddered remembering his newest gossip from Saint Valentine, surrounding the cheerful tooth fairy and rather grumpy Easter rabbit.
Finding himself in front of the door to Jacks's apartment (hide-out), North steeled himself for the conversation and opened the door only to stop and take a moment to marvel at the room. Jack's power over winter never ceased to amaze him.
The walls were covered in a geometrical frost pattern with flower-like designs here and there to accent the space. Jack had crafted the furniture out of ice and hand carved the designs on the tables, chairs, and couches. The vaulted ceiling showcased Jack's greatest (in North's opinion) work, a five foot hanging chandelier that boasted around 6000 ice crystals that refracted the light coming in from the windows all over the room. The windows had a sleek, if not simple frame, with curtains out of the finest frost and snow that billowed and moved with the slightest wind.
Jack, however, was nowhere to be found. Despite his Ice-palace (Bunnymund's idea) at the south pole, Jack had asked North for a small apartment near the workshop. North had always thought it was Jack's way of staying close to other people. Jack claimed that the sprites were not good conversationalists, the Yeti's at least responded.
North went to a bookshelf and slid it aside to open up Jack's true hide-out. The room was smaller than the previous, and opened to a huge balcony to the right of the entry. It was sparse in decor, save for a large ice table in the middle.
This would have been normal except for the fact that North's belly always told him that this table was different from the other furniture in the apartment. North was always astounded at the design on this table, and had vainly tried to mimic its delicate frilinge on some of his toys, to no avail.
Asking for Jack's help had only gotten him a sad smile and a blunt, "No."
The intricate swirls and frost patterns were nothing like Jack had ever produced, but the carvings around the edges were similar to Jack's style. Looking to the spacious balcony, North finally found Jack sitting on the end of a chaise lounge (which possessed the same intricate patterns of the table), the only furniture in the room, with his staff resting next to him.
Jack's back was to him and did not seem to notice that North was in the room. Not wanting a repeat of the last time he surprised Jack (gust of snow to the face), North approached while making his steps heavier. Jack stiffened in his seat and turned around with a small grin, "Hi, North."
"Jack! We have guests tonight. Why don't you dress, eh?" North said as he made hi way next to Jack.
"I am dressed North, and besides I can get ready in barely anytime," he responded as he tapped the floor with his foot, and instantly a snow chair formed from the ice on the ground behind North, "grab a seat North. You look like you need a break." Jack laughed as North sank into the chair.
They both looked out at the aurora borealis North had sent out to invite the other spirits for a yearly meeting. Turning to say something, North noticed the small snow puff in Jack's hand. It was small, about the size of a good snowball, but it seemed alive somehow. Hoping that Jack would oblige his curiosity, North asked, "Jack what is that?"
Looking down at his hand slowly, Jack sighed, and sent the ball gently to North with a small breeze.
Taking the snowball North instantly inspected it and his breath stopped. The snowball was not snow, it was ice. Like the glass of a snow globe, the ice protected the contents of the globe. The scene inside the ice globe took North's breath away.
A beautiful snow maiden danced with a snow man surrounded by a swirling storm of snow and ice. As North regained his breath he noticed that the snow and ice subsided with his emotions. It was enough to get a glimpse of the snow maid and notice that she was made out of frost, in the patter of the table and chaise. Her dress was made out the same pattern, but her crown was pure ice.
The snow man was made out of Jack's signature frost, and wearing an old military style uniform, as he guided the maid gently and twirled her around in a waltz.
North took a deep breath, "This is beautiful, Jack. Where…How….How did you make this?"
Leaning into the chaise, Jack looks somberly at the ice globe, and responds, "I had help. A long time ago."
Tuning to the ice globe, North once again looked at the couple. The maid bowed to the man and he, in turn, gave her a polite kiss on her knuckles as they both dissolved into snow. The ice globe cracked and splintered into a fresh powdering of snow.
"Who is she?" North whispered, disbelief and fear written in his face, as he looked at Jack.
Jack's eyes turned sharp, and rising gracefully from the chair, his ice-blue eyes causing North to shiver in his seat. "No one the others need to know about."
Never had North been more aware as to why Jack was considered the strongest out of all the Guardians, as in that moment. He was suddenly reminded of what MiM had whispered into his ear the night Jack was chosen as a Guardian.
"He is more than what he seems. Kind-hearted and with the greatest capacity to love, but he is also broken. Help him, for he is the strongest out of all the Guardians. Guide him, for his and everyone's sake."
North had dismissed the idea as MiM being dramatic. But, over time, he found that not only did Jack have power beyond anyone's imagination, he was frighteningly cunning, and yet the most kind-hearted soul North had ever met, and one of the fiercest leaders he had known.
All these were also facts MiM had told him about Pitch Black as well.
This was thought that disturbed North more than anything else, and something he had neglected to mention to the other Guardians, except for Sandman, who had already known.
Taking a deep breath and hoping to MiM that what he said next did not scare away his young friend, "You still not answer question, Jack. Who is she?"
Jack looked at North once again, but with pain-filled eyes, and sat down at the edge of the seat, away from the lounging end; something which North had noticed every other time he had found Jack here.
North scrutinized Jack as the young man took a couple of seconds to compose himself. His concentration was broken with Jack's voice, hollow and sorrowful.
"She was my first believer, technically. But she was not 'exactly' human," Jack said bitterly, "so she did not count. She was sort of like me, and had power over winter, but she was not a spirit."
North's eyes widened, "She was mortal? How is possible?" It also did not escape North's notice that Jack had used "was."
"Ah, well, that is partly my fault." Jack said with a blush.
North just sat there dumbfounded, struck with the mere thought that a mortal had Jack's powers.
"Her mother got lost in a forest, she was pregnant and I was curious because I had never been so close to a pregnant woman before, so I was standing right in front of her. She cried for someone to help her." Jack looked at his right hand. "I guided her out by using the joy snowflakes and an invisible snowball fight. Once out of the forest she turned around and yelled: 'Thank you, Jokul Frosti!' So I sent another joy snowflake towards her but it hit her stomach, she laughed and continued on her way."
North let the story sink in. 'So Jack had unknowingly given some of his powers to a baby.' Remembering the ice globe, North thought, 'a baby girl'.
"Her name was Elsa." Jack continued. North looked up only to be shocked as he watched Jack wipe his eyes
'So she is dead' North thought to himself.
"She was the queen of Arendelle. My best friend…" Jack choked on his breath.
North bowed his head.
"My lover…" Jack's tears ran down his face.
North blushed but understood, somberly thinking of his two friends, Nightlight and Katherine.
"And she was my wife, and the mother of my child." Jack whispered as his voice cracked at the end.
North's head shot up. Jack had a child? "Wait, Jack! How you still immortal?"
"She wasn't exactly mortal, nor was she immortal, so it did not affect me like Nightlight." Choking back a sob, he continued, "She died just like everyone else, old age. But she did live a fulfilling life…I made sure of that." Smirking slightly in sadness.
North's face, once again heated up but this time he granted Jack a proud smile.
A comfortable silence set in between the two, until North remembered something crucial, "But…when I first meet you, you 17!" Blushing slightly North inclined his head and whispered conspiratorially, "Age not problem?"
Laughing loudly, Jack shook head no and smiled warmly, "I aged for her, North."
North just sat there dumbfounded. Guardians could not age. Nor could they reverse their age, so how was it possible for Jack?
Seeing North's confusion, Jack chuckled, "There's a lot more to snow and freezing things than most spirits understand. I could and I did, for her. It's as simple as that."
"But, Child?!"
"Yes, Heinrich. We called him Henri for short. Drove Elsa just about nuts a couple of times." Jack chuckled proudly, his until eyes clouded with sorrow, "We only had him. Could only have him. But I suppose he did give me enough grandkids, and through them great-grandkids, and through them… well you get the picture."
Coming to his senses, North jumped from the chair and bellowed, "Jack, that is wonderful news! You have family! We…Jack what wrong?" North had not noticed the snow that swirled around Jack.
The snow stopped and froze in space around the two Guardians. In a shaking voice, Jack rose from his seat and said, "I am afraid, North. It hurts too much." Looking at something past North's shoulder Jack continued, "I lost my Elsa, and for a while I did not have the heart to continue or even to help Henri." Breathing heavily Jack fought to keep the tears at bay. "But I did it. I helped Henri with everything I could, but when he became sick he asked me to leave and never return."
"Jack…" North, grief stricken for his friend, placed a hand on the man's shoulder, but could not find anything to say to comfort him. "Surely he explain."
Tears running down his cheeks, "No, none." But a smirk twitched at the corners. "But, I do know the reason. Elsa asked the same thing of me, when she was near her end, and I refused." Wiping the tears away, he shrugged off North's hand and walked to the ice railing. "I didn't refuse for Henri because I knew that he didn't want me to break down like I did for Elsa. What he didn't figure was that I wouldn't leave him alone. I stayed and he pretended that I wasn't there, until the end, when he told me that he loved me, and that he would pass my love along to Elsa in the after life."
North was frozen in place where he stood. He couldn't say anything to Jack to ease his pain. "What about grand-children?"
Jack barked out a laugh and North felt a bit better, "Little rascals, the lot of them. From the day olds to 100 year olds, they all believe." He turned his head around to look North in the eye, "and they all have my mischievous streak," he added proudly.
North was then reminded, "Arendelle, it's in Sweden, no?"
Jack only smirked.
"That would explain the history of "naughty" children, especially among the royals," he sighed and massaged the area between his eyes. "Klaus was one of yours, no?"
Jack's smiled only broadened, "He was the most similar to me in character, at least that's what Elsa used to say." Turning pensive, he looks at the borealis, "I visit them a few times a year."
North could not imagine how Jack must feel. North and Mrs. North had always tried for a child of their own but were never lucky, so they treated the children of the world as their own. But to have children, and grandchildren, but not his beloved…North did not know how Jack could be so strong. "Jack, I am glad you have your family. Perhaps you can see them soon?"
Jack nodded, and graced his friend with a sad smile, "I am visiting for Elsa's anniversary tomorrow. But I guess I better get dressed for the gathering." It suddenly hit Jack that he did not know what the gathering was about, "Speaking of which, why is everyone coming?"
Watching Jack closely, North tried to explain without agitating him, "Manny has chosen new Guardian, Jack. This will be the final Guardian."
Thanks for reading, everyone! Reviews are much appreciated! :D