"North!" Tooth said, happy when she saw the man. She glanced around, and noticed that all the other Guardians had already arrived. She fluttered closer. "Why'd you gather us all together, North?" she questioned curiously. "The aurora was up."
Bunny scowled. "Me and Sandy asked already. We were told to…"
"Wait," North supplied. He smiled, somewhat sheepishly. "Was told by Jack. Is important, imperative we wait for him. Boy has speech for us all to hear." The man downed a cup of eggnog. "Not even I was told - but trusting Jack is given, yeah?"
Bunny rolled his eyes. "If he comes."
"He has."
As one, the four Guardians turned to look at the boy sitting above the fireplace. He grinned, waving at them, his arms resting on the crook of his staff. It didn't touch the ground, rather, it was held up by his legs that were interwoven with the handle.
He'd switched out his blue jacket for a brown cloak that each of them vaguely remembered from roughly 100, maybe 200 years ago.
That wasn't what had them gaping, though. What startled them was the healthy flush to his skin, the deep brown color that permeated his hair and eyes. As they stared at these things, his grin grew. "So…" he said casually, "Do you notice anything different?"
Sandy instantly formed an exclamation mark, followed in quick procession by a snowflake, a jacket, and a question mark.
"Mate," Bunny said finally, finding his voice, "everything's different! What in the blazes happened to you?!"
North sputtered, "Only minutes ago, you were… were…"
"Normal?" Jack suggested.
"Your usual self is what he meant!" Tooth corrected.
Jack rolled his eyes. "What's wrong with how I am now?"
Sandy repeated his images from earlier.
"Okay, so I look different. So… what?"
"We're eternal, Jack," Tooth explained, her feathers ruffled. Literally and figuratively. "Especially as Guardians - we are the way we are, as symbols for the children to believe in. How did you change? Why?"
Jack blinked. "Huh. Is that a problem?"
Sandy nodded vigorously.
"Mate," Bunny cut in, "Why're you wearing your old clothes? And what happened to your hair?!"
"What do you mean?" Jack said, innocently. "My hair's always been this way."
They were silent, confused.
Sandy spoke for all of them, forming a question mark.
Jack chuckled.
"Oh, you thought I was Jack Frost, didn't you?" He shook his head, the humor draining from his laughter, leaving it dry. "Sorry to disappoint you."
"Then who are you?" Bunny demanded.
The boy leapt down, twirling his staff carelessly. Bare feet padded towards the four. Unconsciously, they all backed away slightly. As soon as they did, he stopped, his smile turning sad. "I'm Jackson Overland." He shook his head. "The boy who died… to make room for Jack Frost."
Sandy formed an exclamation mark, followed by a question mark.
"Is this possible?" North asked, echoing Sandy's sentiments.
"No!" Bunny insisted vehemently. "It's not!"
"It is," Jack said suddenly. He stared them down, his unfamiliar brown eyes hard. "I am Jackson Overland."
He exhaled. "I have a favor to ask."
They could only listen in silence, too shocked to protest.
"Don't deny I was here."
Suddenly he vaulted backwards, into the flames. Before the Guardians could do more than yell in alarm, he vanished without ever touching them. In his place was a piece of parchment, drifting slowly to the floor. Tooth snagged it, reading the script scrawled across the page rapidly.
Wordlessly, she passed it to the others.
Veins of ice through weathered wood
Shattered from the force of night
Shadows come and nightmares go
Permeating the weakest of winter light
Split into the living and dead
Neither truly alive nor there
So they went to war to decide
Which deserved to breathe the air
The one who won
The one who lost
The one who lived
The liar's cost