Title: through the years and far away
Fandom: Rise of the Guardians
Characters: Jack, Tooth and mentions of the other Guardians
Genre: General/Romance
Warnings: Author is not a fluent english speaker. This came out sounding sort of stupid and clichéd, sorry.


berry blue

dear moon shining bright on the sky; I think I might have fallen in love

It wasn't really a surprise for him when he discovered Tooth loved fruit. Her favor for shiny white teeth probably speaking louder when she said she preferred freshly picked strawberries than the harmful chocolate and other mouth watering sweets that Bunnymund took so much pride on. It always ended on a small quarrel between them - quite amusing to watch if you asked him - with lots of "it's your sweets that make all the cavities appear!" and "bloody hell Tooth! They would all fall out anyways". It was always like that, they would throw daggers at each other before properly apologizing with something like "I know it's just your job, sorry".

The real surprise came much time later.

When winter season was over Jack would always visit one of his Guardian companions to kill some time and help them out if ever needed. Since last time he visited Sandy – which was quite disastrous, since he slept for almost two weeks in a row thanks to all the dream sand on the island – the boisterous winter spirit decided he would visit Tooth instead. Maybe she needed help with the teeth collecting again, she could always use an extra pair of hands.

Arriving at the palace he was almost instantly greeted by a horde of smiling little fairies, some even checked his teeth to see if he was taking good care of them, it was as awkward as it was endearing.

"Baby Tooth!" Jack called out and the little one automatically sat down by her favorite spot on his shoulder. "Do you know where Tooth is? I wanted to ask if you guys need any help."

The fairy chirped, a smile on her face while pointing to the palace's gardens.

"Oh, she's taking a break?" The fact that he never failed to understand what the little one meant was a pleasant surprise to him. "Great, I'll go talk to her then." Baby Tooth waved at him before returning to her duties, a knowing tiny smile gracing her lips while doing so.

Jack went down to the gardens, a strange anxiety tightening his chest. Weird, pleasing, it went from his heart until his tiptoes and it was a never-ending mystery to him, why he felt like that when he was around her. Three hundred years alone probably took its toll on his perception of his own feelings, he guessed. The boy knew he felt good when Tooth was around, so he always tried to keep in touch, it was as simple as that and complicated at the same time.

That was why he always choose to ignore the feeling instead.

"Tooth! Are you there?" He called while looking around. The place never failed to make him gape in awe, fruit trees and flowers everywhere, the falling petals dancing with the Northern Wind and the faint smell of freshness and summer in the air. It was one of his favorite sights on Earth, but his favorite part was the mural on the rock walls: a beautiful, colorful painting that represented everything that Tooth was. He always caught himself staring at it for some reason.

Just like he was doing right now, the details and the story he was too afraid to ask for making his chest feel just a little bit tighter.

"Oh! Hi, Jack!" The sudden appearance on her voice startled him, not that a prankster like him would ever admit it out loud.

"Hi, Tooth!" Jack greeted her scratching the back of his head sheepishly. It was almost embarrassing, the fact that for the briefest moment he was at a loss of words.

"So, what brings you here?" The fairy queen asked tilting her head to the side. "You are not much of a fan of warm weather."

"I just wanted to ask if you needed any help?" He laughed a little. "Winter season is over and I'm getting bored."

"Bored? That coming from the Guardian of Fun is quite something! I could always use your help, Jack!" The way she brightened up was terribly endearing and made that warm feeling appear again inside his chest. Ignore it. "I was going to pick some fruits and blossoms right now, do you want to do that or do you prefer to collect teeth with the fairies?"

"That's okay for me." The boy gave her a quizzical look. "The fruit I understand, but what are the blossoms for?"

"To make syrup! It's delicious, you'll see! The fairies love it, and I always give some to North, Bunny and Sandy." Tooth paused for a bit. "What makes me remember, this will be the first time I'll give it to you too!"

"You give some for me too?" Receiving gifts wasn't something he grew used to, and the sad look she gave him told so many things, but mainly "I'm sorry you were alone for so long". Jack didn't like it when she looked so sad, so not Tooth, and he instantly brightened his expression. "Thank you!"

"So, shall we begin?"

Something Jack learned that day was that Tooth was an awesome teacher. She told him what fruit and blossom to pick, how to look if they were ripe enough, if they were poisonous or not. It was interesting, and the excited way she spoke about everything was so contagious it was way too hard to not have fun.

While picking some berries from a tree the boy looked at the mural again, now more closely. He realized some tiny details that weren't there the first time he saw it and a whole new part added to it. He wondered if Tooth painted those by herself.

"That mural is beautiful." He said out loud before giving the thought proper thinking. "I'm glad it's not damaged from that time"

"Thank you! I love it…" Tooth flew to his side, tiny elderberry blossoms on her hand. "I was so happy when Bunny said it could be fixed."

"What?" It escapes and he dreads how his own words can be so uncontrolled sometimes. "Cottontail fixed it?" The old nickname now sounding just two tones bitter, something Jack himself couldn't understand.

"I never told you?" She looked at the painting on the wall so fondly it made him hurt. "He was the one who painted it."

"Oh…" And somehow the boy could imagine it; Bunnymund painting that wall with the same fondness Tooth was looking at it, brush strokes precise and with a never-ending thirst for perfection. Green eyes looking for the right hue of pink and lilac and Tooth.

"Sometimes when it's not Ester season he comes here to visit." She looked around while giggling. "He planted all those trees and flowers, actually. He says that if he didn't it would be a waste of good land."

Jack looked at the berries on his hand and at the mural on the wall, an ugly feeling building up inside of him. It was frustrating, to not know what that meant. If he stopped to think about it, it only made sense that they had more memories together; they were friends for more time than he could ever imagine. But the logic didn't stop the darn unpleasant feeling from spreading throughout his body.

Bunnymund was spring and hope. He could give her flowers and fruit and beautiful paintings. And what could Jack ever be able to offer her? A snow day that would melt as soon as the first layer of ice reached her palace? He was just a winter spirit and the thought made him hurt more than he would like to admit. The worst part was that he didn't even know why all these feelings were passing through him; the ugly one that made him resent Bunny – a friend –, the good one that made him feel happy when Tooth was around and why he was thinking about what he could ever offer to her?

What was going on with him?

The elderberry blossom syrup Tooth made was delicious; sweet and welcoming just like her.

dear moon, please make her fall in love with me too.


Author's Notes: Couldn't resist writing confused and jealous Jack, sorry. I apologize for any mistakes regarding grammar, spelling or language in general. So, this is my first drabble for the Rainbow Snowcone week on tumblr, I just hope I can make one per day like I was planning to.