Summary: His name is Death. Before that, he was someone else. GEN

Taken place after the movie.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Rise of the Guardians.

Chapter 1: The Mysterious Stranger

Jack Frost flew through the icy wind, his hand tightly holding onto his staff. His sharp, piercing laughter echoed in the night. Shrouded in moonlight, he landed on the rooftop with feather-like steps. A wide grin formed across his pale face. He pulled an object out of his pocket and hid it behind his back, walking to the edge.

"Jamie?" He floated in front of the window, knocking the glass lightly. "You awake?"

"Jack…?" A boy with brown hair blinked at Jack Frost, not fully awake. A bright smile plastered on his face when the name finally registered inside his head as he scrambled out of the bed and started towards the window. "You're here!"

Jack Frost entered the room after Jamie let him in. He carefully made sure that his friend didn't see the object in his hand. In a joking tone, he said, "Of course, I'm here. Who else would bring snow when winter comes?"

"Well, it'd been months since I last saw you. I thought…" He fidgeted. His gaze was locked onto the floor.

Jack's face softened. Did he not know what he meant to him? "Hey, squirt."

Jamie looked up.

"I'll always come back. You and your friends are the only ones who can see me after all. And, that's something special to me…"

Jamie blushed, a warming feeling filling him. "Okay."

Jack coughed, suddenly embarrassed. He wasn't good at this sort of stuff. The emotional kind. He rubbed his neck with his free hand. "Now that the mushy moment is done with."

He pulled out his other hand from his back and placed the object onto Jamie's palm. He smirked smugly as he saw the boy's eyes widen with disbelief and wonder.

"Wow," Jamie whispered, looking at crystal ball made of ice. It felt cold. "This is amazing. Did you make this?"

"Yeah," Jack replied. "I was messing around with my staff one day and poof this formed. Do you like it?"

"Do I like it?!" Jack's smile faltered, but Jamie didn't seem to notice. "Of course, I love it!"

Jack beamed a bright smile and let out a relieved sigh. "That's great. I-I mean, not that I was worried. I knew you would like it. Who doesn't like a globe made up of ice?"

Jamie snickered. He knew that Jack had indeed worried about his possible reaction to his present. It was sweet of the mythical being to care. "Thanks, Jack."

Jack froze and then let out a small laugh. "Wait, there's more." As soon as he said that, he let his staff tap the ball. Snowy figures that looked exactly like Jamie and his friends formed inside the globe.

"Sweet," Jamie said. He walked towards his desk and pull out a drawer, placing the object inside with care. "I shouldn't let my parents see it, though. They might get suspicious. I'll show it to Sophie later."

Jack hummed approvingly. He glanced at the moon. "I should get going." He hastily added when Jamie opened his mouth to protest, "It's past midnight, Jamie. Kids like you need their sleep."

His eyes glittered teasingly. "Unless you don't want to grow any taller than you are now."

Jamie pouted but yielded. "Alright, you win. Will I see you tomorrow?"

Jack grinned at the hopeful tone of Jamie's voice. "See you tomorrow, squirt."

"I'm not a squirt," the boy responded without heat. He made way to his bed, letting out a yawn.

The winter spirit pointed his staff towards the window, opening it. He floated to the outside and made sure to close it afterwards. Giving the boy who was already fast asleep a final glance, he flied upwards.

He gazed at the neighborhood with a fond expression before opening his mouth to call the wind to take him home. However, no sound came. Jack had noticed a dark shadowy figure that seemed too inhuman walking through the street. Jack felt a chill which was odd since he was unaffected by coldness.

"What… is that?" His eyebrows furrowed the sight. Tilting his head, he slowly coasted downwards. Something in the back of his mind told him to leave immediately. But a larger part of him that was full of mischievousness and fun made him draw closer.

The figure's image became clearer as the distance between Jack and he reduced. Hiding behind a wall, Jack slowly positioned his head around the building while the rest of his body remained concealed. Jack's lips parted as the air grew heavier and heavier. He wondered if the stranger was doing all this.

When the figure stepped under the lamplight, the first thing that Jack noticed about his new object of interest was that he was a child. Well, although he looked like a child, he felt like someone ancient.

Is he a spirit as well….?

The child wore a robe (which was saying much), covering most of his tiny form. It made it harder to pick up his physical attributes. The only traits distinguishable were his boyish face, messy hair, and old – really old – eyes.

His eyes were beautiful though, in a tragic sort of way. They were green but Jack saw something more beyond the color.

He couldn't tell what exactly which surprisingly frustrated him.

His body screamed at him to leave. That the being was dangerous despite his seemingly innocent appearance.

But instead of relenting, Jack stepped out of the dark alley and into the child's field of vision.

The smaller boy didn't seem surprised to see him, his expression blank.

I guess he noticed me then.

Jack felt a bit wary at that and placed his staff protectively in front of him. Still, his eagerness to find out who this mysterious stranger was did not stump him.

"Hi there, I'm Jack Frost. What's yours?"

Really. There was no going back…

A/N: There will be no slash. Friendships, sure. But no romance. This fic is purely GEN.