A Family
This was hard. Jack decided for about the thousandth time in two days. He was trying to get better at remembering that no, he didn't need to sneak into The Workshop, he just had to float in through the window.
"Jack m'boy!" North shouted jovially at the winter spirit. "How you been?" He asked happily, making his way over to where Jack stood – floated – hovered, whatever.
"I've been fine North." He smiled at the jovial Santa. "You see me every week." He reminded him with a raised eyebrow. (It took him the better part of half a century to master that).
"Bah! Tis not enough time." North stated dismissively. It made Jack feel all fuzzy inside to know that someone actually wanted to see him. Him, Jack Frost, the prankster, the Sheppard of Winter, the Guardian of Fun, sharing his Guardianship with a quartet of people who liked him (though Bunny was the one who showed it in rougher ways).
"I'll try to drop by more often." Jack promised truthfully, freezing the elf that passed him, Dingle – Jack thought, "Anyway, Jamie asked me to tell you in person that he wants a plushy of each of the five of us." He briefly noted the scratching of pen on paper. "And I decided, what better way to spend time with North? So, here I am!" He finished with a flourish.
North hummed slightly as the scratching stopped with a note of finality. "Good!" North said, finally turning his attention upon the entity of Winter. "Vhat do you say to some carving, mal'chik?" Jack's eyes brightened, azure peering up at electric blue.
"That sounds awesome!" He smirked his signature lopsided smirk, "What are we carving?" He asked, imagining designs of cool new planes, beautiful snowflakes, and whatever else his mind thought up.
"Anyting toy related, mal'chik." North said. "Ve have reign free!" Jack blinked, decided he meant free reign and conjured up un-melting ice blocks ranging from the size of his palm to ice North's height.
"Here you go, North!" He said cheerfully, taking out his ice carving tools. "It doesn't melt." He added, almost as an afterthought.
North stared at him in undisguised awe. "How-? It looked so effortless, eet takes me two months to get dis block!" He exclaimed in an awe filled whisper, taking a medium sized block in his beefy fingers and examining it.
"North, you forget who you're speaking to." Jack told him in amusement. "Winter spirit, remember?" he said.
"Yes, but dis ees incredeeble!" He spoke reverently. "You are very skilled, mal'chik!" He turned his attention back to the – now blushing Jack.
"Ah, it was nothing North!" he insisted. "And besides, you must be skilled yourself, you've been doing this for longer then I have!" Jack returned to his car design, blush gone. North stared at the block again for a minute before picking out a decently sized block to make a plane and another one that he set aside for a train. "North?"
There was a hum of acknowledgement.
"… How long have you been doing this anyway?" He looked expectantly at the wondrous and wonder-filled toymaker.
"Seence de thirteenth century. " North replied absently. "De world was much different then." He said as an afterthought.
"If it wasn't, I'd be very concerned." Said Jack seriously.
They returned to their ice sculptures in companionable silence. Jack looked at his creation critically. He adjusted one or two things, neatened it up considerably and even added tiny windshield wipers.
'There!" Jack exclaimed. "How are you going, North?" He asked, staring at his father-like friend, only to see him frowning in concentration. He seemed to be muttering to himself, Jack noted. He looked at the plane and train combo, and realized what was wrong. "North, look! They're uneven!" He said.
"Ah! Dat's what vas wrong! Tank you Jack." North thanked.
"No problem North." Jack said. He waited patiently for North to correct it. North did so, and together, they rose to walk (or float, if you were Jack) around and see how the Yetis were doing.
They walked into the toy room to see a Yeti, Jack decided to name him Lester, paining some cars yellow.
As North delivered his verdict on the cars, Jack spotted the elves trying desperately to sneak up on him. Jack raised a brow again, what are you doing, you can not sneak up on me clearly written in azure eyes and pale features. The elves stopped, suddenly unsure as to why this was a good idea. This guy could freeze them with literally zero trouble. But then Jack smirked that lopsided smirk and all they were thinking about is how to get him next time.
Jack floated over to North, watching as the Santa said the okay for some red robot toys. North's eyes were filled with pride and merriment, his smile so wondrously joyous and infectious that he found himself grinning in a similar way.
The elves weren't discouraged for long, it seemed. Jack and North shared a look, knowing the elves would mess something up, and toy production would be slowed down. They walked in the direction the elves had. They saw an elf, Kringle, trying to mimic the robots that Lester was painting.
Jack snickered. North shot him a look, that look that parents give you to tell you to behave or you'd be grounded for the next week. Jack stopped snickering, instead opting to watch as a few other elves tried to back away from the room to get more supplies. "Where do you think you're going?" Jack asked in amusement. The elves pointed as one unit to the supply room. North, now that he'd put a stop to Kringle's (bad) imitation of Lester and the other Yetis work, shook his head.
The elves pouted. Who were the big man and the freezer to tell them no? Granted, the big man could be scary, and the freezer could freeze them, but they weren't the bosses! (The big man was, but the elves chose to ignore that). Jack looked at all the pouting elves who's hats were drooping. North and Jack exchanged another look, this one amused and fond. The elves looked hopefully at the two spirits. Could they do it? They wondered excitedly.
"Try not to make too big of mess, here and only here, yes?"
The elves cheered and got to work. They'd make the best robots in this place! They vowed silently. They'd show the big man AND the freezer!
Jack and North left the elves to their plotting. "Never gets boring with them around, does it?" Jack observed. North nodded his head in silent agreement. "Anyway, I've got to go give Greenland some snow. Bye North!"
It was hard, Jack decided. But often the best things are thing you have to work towards.