Hello everyone! So, this is my first story in the Rise of the Guardian section. I mostly write Percy Jackson and the Olympians stories, but I've loved this movie since it came out and I came up with this idea. If you pay attention while reading this, you will find some very similar lines...I've been watching Rise of the Guardians almost every day this week and I couldn't help but add some in, so those lines I do not own, they are from the minds of the genius screenwriter's who wrote this movie. To my PJO fans who may be reading this, I know I left a horrible cliffhanger on the last chapter of Zayden Blaze, but I felt inspiration and kind of just followed this. Plus, this unfinished idea had been sitting on my computer for quite a while, so I figured I should finally finish it and get this out. Well, I hope you all enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own this movie, anything you see from the movie, I did not create or come up with.
White Christmas
Narrator's P.O.V.
It was just a week until christmas and the North Pole was going crazy, trying to finish up the last few hundreds or so of presents for the children in the world. North was even more frantic than usual, locked in his workshop room for days. This was because the annual Christmas Celebration was tonight; North had been planning it for months, making the decorations, sending out invites, getting the ballroom ready, planning the snacks, music, schedule, and just trying to make it a night to be remembered forever.
For weeks he had locked himself in his workroom, planning and stressing everything to make it perfect. He didn't just want it to be perfect for bragging rights: he had a certain special reason this year. Just months after Pitch's attack, the despair and darkness still lingered in the souls of the spirits, he wanted to give them a night where that darkness could finally be gone.
But, even more, it has been a few months since Jack became a guardian and not only will this be his first Christmas Celebration as a guardian, but his first ever. Jack had never come to one before, feeling as if he was never welcome or would not fit in. North wanted to make Jack feel loved and welcomed, he still hits himself over the head for how he and everybody treated Jack for all these centuries; he never deserved it, all he wanted was to be noticed and to have friends, but no one noticed that, just seeing him as a mischievous and silly sprite who pranked everyone. North felt that a great welcome party for Jack tonight would really make him calm and allow him to fit in.
Despite having been a guardian for a few months now, he was still uncomfortable and awkward around the other guardians, when they came together for meetings he would usually be far away from them, at the window and staring out it longingly as if he would love to be anywhere than there right now. North wanted that to stop, it was not like happy, optimistic, and childlike Jack Frost to be brooding so much, it's as wrong as a dark sandy, a quiet and emotionless Tooth, and a patient and calm Bunnymund. Now just hours before the party was to begin, North was pacing up and down the ball room, yelling at the yetis for every little thing that needed to be fixed.
They were almost done, to everyone's relief, and were about to finish putting up the last and final decoration, a banner that faced the doorway saying, "Happy Christmas Celebration!" and the other guardians were putting the last few ornaments on the enormous tree. North was trying to get the yetis to level the sign out as the yetis were having trouble with it, either going up too high or down too low to the other side. What they didn't know was that Jack Frost was planning a little surprise to get North's and the yetis' moods up and calm them down.
Sadly, this surprise would not go the way Jack wanted, or anyone wanted for that matter. Jack's plan was to set off some fireworks in the workshop as a gift for the yetis and elves, just to relieve them of their stress for a few commotion was to alert North who would come to see what was happening and would, for a while, get to enjoy the fireworks and forget about the things he still had to do. Grinning, Jack lit his match and started to light the fireworks.
Right as Jack finished though, he tripped over a stray toy and knocked into the last bit of fireworks he had lit sending them towards the floor. But, halfway to the floor they lifted off, flying to the left of the toy room, right into an open doorway leading to the ballroom. The Yetis and North got the surprise of their life as ten or so fireworks flew through the room, two going right past the yetis on the ladders, causing them to lean away far enough that it sent them and the ladder to the ground.
The sign, finally pinned to the wall, was hit by one of the fireworks, which burst in a splash of colors, setting the sign on fire. Three of the fireworks flew through the air and smashed into the enormous christmas tree, bursting in the process and setting the tree on fire too, leaving Sandy, Tooth, and Bunny to watch in horrified awe. The rest of the fireworks shot into the sky and went off as told, though of course in a completely different room.
Jack Frost burst into the room just in time to see the last firework explode and the tree, still burning, tilt to the right, falling and crushing the tables of refreshments, decorations, chairs, and other party arrangements to the floor. It was silent as the fireworks finished and the smoke went out the few opened windows and doors. North, completely and utterly shocked, finally recovered and exclaimed:
"WHAT HAPPENED?!" with terror all over his face. Jack, shaking himself slightly, opening his mouth.
"S-sorry North, I-I didn't mean to-I…" The usual charismatic, happy, and mischievous Jack Frost was nowhere to be seen now, in his place was a nervous, awkward, scared, and horrified teenage boy who couldn't believe what he had just done, though unintentional of course. Turning around, North stared at Jack in sadness.
"Jack, what did you do?" Tooth questioned.
"I-I noticed you and the yetis were really stressed so-" He started, but was interrupted by North.
"So you play prank on us?" North demanded, eyes narrowed.
"N-NO! I-I just-" He stopped abruptly, not knowing what to say.
"What Frostbite? Why would ya do somethin' so stupid?" Bunnymund demanded, glaring at him. Jack looked down.
"It was an accident, I swear, I really didn't mean to...ruin everything, honest." Jack said after composing himself. The other guardians didn't seem to accept that though.
"What were you doing playing with the fireworks?" Tooth wondered in curiosity.
"I saw how stressed you all were so set off the fireworks to make the day a little better." He shrugged, calming down, "But I tripped over a toy and knocked into some of the rockets, sending them flying into here and…" He trailed off, pointing to the destroyed decoration. It was silent for a while till North sighed, walking over towards Jack.
"My boy, I know you did not mean to make mistake, I understand. Decorations are too ruined though, we have no time to fix; we will have to make some snacks, have party around pole." He resigned and the other guardians nodded in agreement. North sighed as he looked around in dismay at their ruined hard work, "We clean tomorrow. For now! We go improvise on party." And with that, Sandy, Tooth, Bunny, and North left the room. Jack stayed, staring out at the demolished decorations around him in shame.
He just wanted to help, to show them that he was useful and could help, that he cared about them. But, like always, it went wrong. Growling in frustration, Jack flew up and sat down on one of the window ledges. Pulling his hood up, he thumbed his head back against the wall and closed his eyes. Why can't I, for once, fit in? When I try, I just manage to either make people mad or ruin everything! He exclaimed mentally to himself. Sighing sadly, he looked out the window up at the sky, just seeing the moon appear between the clouds.
"Are you sure you picked the right person?" Jack questioned, staring up at his creator, "Sometimes...I wonder if you really did, I don't seem to be able to help any of them, just make matters worse." He glumly stated before sighing and jumping down to the floor below. Walking the room slowly, he started to halfheartedly clean it up, after all, he did cause the mess. Great, now the parties ruined because of me, they all worked so hard too...He thought to himself. He stopped abruptly though as a thought came to mind. I have to fix this, and I have just the idea how to… And with that, Jack started his plan.
~~~~~~time skip~~~~~~
It was time for the party to begin and the first guests were arriving.
"Hello North, ready to celebrate?" Daisy Fern, a spring spirit, asked, smiling happily. North looked at her and smiled slightly.
"Of course, but this year will be slightly different." He stated.
"How?" The groundhog questioned. Bunny snorted.
"I'll tell ya why?" He started, getting up from leaning against the wall, "The ballroom-" But, Tooth interrupted him before he could continue.
"We had an...accident with the ballroom so the party will instead be held around the workshop." She explained, leaving out that Jack caused the accident. Sunny Palm, the summer spirit, looked worried.
"What happened?" She wondered.
"Oh, just fireworks gone wrong." North casually stated, "Now! Time to enjoy party!" And with that, music started and they broke off, each going in different directions while North stayed to greet people at the door with his crushing hugs. After a few minutes, most of the guests had arrived and were being gathered right in front of the globe where North would speak.
"Welcome friends to Christmas Celebration!" He exclaimed, spreading his arms out wide, "Though party will not be in ballroom this year, we will still have fun!" Everyone clapped and cheered at that, "Now!...Has anyone seen Jack Frost?" He inquired. Everyone was confused, wondering why Jack Frost would be here at a party, he'd never come to one before so why now? Noticing the confused looks, North looked confused himself before understanding filled his expression, "Ahh...none of you know?" He lightly questioned.
"Know what North?" Father Time asked.
"You all know of Pitch and his attack, yes?" He said instead. Grim faces filled the room as everyone nodded, "Who defeated him?"
"What sorta question is that? You and the other guardians of course!" The leprechaun stated, his thick accent clearly showing.
"So that would be…" He trailed off, wanting them to specify.
"Oh stop being mysterious North: you, Tooth, Bunny, and Sandy of course!" Jack O'Lantern, the halloween spirit, exclaimed impatiently.
"Yes, we did. But, there was one other person: Jack Frost." North revealed and everyone gasped at that.
"Why would Jack Frost help, he doesn't care about children!" Groundhog exclaimed and other people nodded in agreement. Bunny snorted which drew attention to him.
"I said the same thing too." He stated, "But, I gotta hand it to frostbite, he knows when to be serious." He reluctantly stated.
"When Pitch first attacked, we called guardian meeting and Man in Moon, chose another guardian." Everyone gasped at that as it was incredibly rare.
"Another guardian?" The Grim Reaper gasped, tightening his grip on his scythe, "Who would Manny choose? I mean, you have all defeated pitch before, why would you need help?"
"That's what I thought too, but Pitch had learned some new tricks over the years since we last defeated him." Bunny stated, grimacing.
What new skill?" The Groundhog whistled, scratching his head.
"He learned how to change dream sand into his own dark sand, changing children's dreams into nightmares." Tooth stated, her fluttering slowing at the memories. Everyone gasped at that.
"Final push was when he," North paused as all three turned to look at Sandy who smiled sadly, "killed Sandy." Everyone was shocked at that, "Yes, we needed new guardian, very much."
"Who was this new guardian?" Mother Nature wondered.
"That person, was Jack Frost." That shocked everyone into silence; the thought of Jack Frost as a guardian was unbelievable, he would be the last person anyone could think of to be a guardian.
"Why him?" April Cloud, another spring spirit, asked.
"I ask myself same question. I figured, if Man in Moon chose him, then he must have something special inside of him, at his center." North exclaimed, shrugging.
"What is it? I mean, you stand for wonder, what does Jack Frost stand for?" Daisy wondered. North looked at her and smiled.
"It took a while, but we figured it out. He stands for...Fun." North admitted.
"...Fun?"
"Yes. After all, what is a child's life without fun?" North questioned which got them to think.
"I guess so." Autumn Ash, the, you guessed it, Autumn spirit, slowly admitted.
"But, he couldn't have been too happy about Manny's decision. I mean, to be guardian is a serious job, with a lot of responsibilities. It doesn't seem much like Jack Frost to have such a serious job." Father time admitted.
"Well," Tooth chuckled, "We have recently learned to throw out all our previous assumptions about Jack Frost." The other three nodded in agreement, "He is definitely not what we expected."
"What do you mean? He's Jack Frost- the annoying sprite who loves to play pranks and mess around, right?" Frain, the sprite of peace, questioned.
"Yes, but there is much more to Jack Frost." North stated.
"We recently found out that for the past three hundred years, he has had no idea that he was human before he became Jack Frost." Gasps started at Tooth's guilt-ridden words.
"N-no memories at all?" Damian Mclaughlin, the sprite of laughter, stuttered.
"He thought he was only Jack Frost, since beginning." North stated, staring at the floor.
"B-but he was always so carefree and happy! H-how..?" Mother Nature questioned, shocked beyond belief.
"I have no clue how Snowflake stayed so happy all these years. Being alone with nothing other than his name? It would drive anyone mad." Bunny said, shaking his head. Everyone grew silent here, taking all this information in.
"Hey, what are you all standing out here for? Aren't you going to enjoy the party?" A happy, boyish voice stated from behind everyone, causing everyone to turn around to see who had spoken. Jack Frost was standing behind everyone, leaning on his staff, hood down, showing his mischievous and proud grin to everyone. Some people's eyes immediately narrowed, figuring that look was because he had finished planning a prank on them.
"Ah! Jack Frost!" North exclaimed, making his way over to him and throwing an arm over his shoulder, "We were talking about you becoming, a guardian." He stated, as dramatic as always. Jack seemed surprised.
"Why?" He wondered.
"They apparently didn't know you'd become one, frostbite." Bunny stated, shaking himself back into his usual persona around Frost.
"Yeah, I was pretty hesitant about it at first. You know, after the fact that they snuck up on me, shoved me in a sack, and tossed me through a magic portal." Jack drawled, glaring over at North who, oblivious to that, was grinning in pride at the 'genius' of his idea.
"Yeah, as I remember it, you insulted us, yelled at Manny, and then said no offense as if we were expected to forgive you." Bunny muttered.
"Aw, no need to be so angry about that, Peter Cottontail." Jack said in mock pity, leaning against
his staff, staring at Bunny with wide, innocent blue eyes. Bunny glared at him as a few chuckles sounded around the room at Bunny's new name, "Though to be fair, the insult was more towards you and North, you know with the whole 'new ways to bribe kids' thing so Sandy and Tooth have no reason to feel offended. Neither does North really..." Jack continued, appearing as if he was seriously thinking about that fact. Bunny rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to retort, but North stopped him by slapping both him and Jack on the back, laughing loudly.
"Enough with the taunting and poking, we have a party to begin!" North exclaimed holding his arms up high. Jack stood up straight at that
"Yeah. Let's go!" Jack exclaimed, turning and flying a bit down the hallway, though he stopped when he saw no one was following him, "You guys comin'?" North and Tooth exchanged glances as did everyone else.
"What do you mean Jack?" Tooth softly questioned, "To where?"
"To the ballroom." He swiftly answered, hovering in the air slightly.
"The ballroom was destroyed Snowflake. Or do you not remember that?" Bunny commented dryly.
"Yeah, it was. Just come on." He stated vaguely, turning around to fly the rest of the way down the halls to the ballroom. Everyone turned to look at North and, at his shrug and nod, they followed him to where Jack went, Bunny muttering along the way. They all stopped to see Jack standing by two large closed doors, resting lightly on a rack of coats, gloves, hats, scarfs, and boots.
"As a warning before we go in, anyone who does not like cold," He glanced over at that to the Summer and Springs sprites as they grimaced, "Feel free to wrap yourselves up as warm as you want before you go in." At that, the Summer sprites, followed by the spring sprites, and a few others who don't fancy the cold. Some, bundled up as much as they could, looking oddly like walking marshmallows at the word 'cold'. Others just put on a jacket and gloves, figuring it wouldn't be too cold. When they had finished, Jack smiled at everyone.
"I welcome you all to what I call 'Winter Wonderland'." And with a quick turn, Jack pushed open the doors. Soft and beautiful music emanated from the room as everyone gasped at what they saw.
"Jack, this is…" Tooth started in awe. Everything in the ballroom was white. To the far left of the room was a table wrapped in a white lace tablecloth and covered in different foods, ranging from breakfast to dessert. And in the middle was a large glass bowl of a steaming brown liquid(Hot cocoa). A beautiful white Christmas tree stood in the middle of the room, so tall that it almost touched the roof. Entirely made of ice, it was decorated in multiple snowflakes of beautiful designs, ice figurines, and chains of crystallized icicles that reflected all the white around the room to make it seem as if they were alight like actual Christmas lights. And on top, sat a practical replica of North's sleigh, reindeer, toy bag, North, and all.
It soon moved though, spiralling around the tree, up and down in a corkscrew, tiny snowflakes flying behind it before it reached the top where an ice form of Santa's workshop sat. And around the tree in a big circle, lay an ice rink, lined by a beautiful fence both around the tree and another around the actual rink. Lining the walls around the room and behind the food table stood ice statues of all the Guardians, sprites, and legendary figures who came to the party and even some who couldn't make it. The floor around the room was lightly covered in snowflakes.
Other snowflakes fell from the sky, but disappeared before they could touch the ground or anything else, a non-stop gentle flow. Lines of smooth ice at the line where the ceiling and walls met rose through the air to meet together in the middle of the ceiling, like streamers. Where the streamers met, in the middle of the ceiling hung a glittering chandelier made of ice, rainbow colors covering it from where the moon above shined on it. And lastly, the walls were covered in beautiful swirls of frost from floor to ceiling. Even to the Summer sprites, this was one of the most beautiful scenes they had ever seen.
"I felt bad after destroying the room this morning, so with the yetis and elves help, we cleaned it up and came up with this." He commented, walking into the room.
"Jack, this is...Incredible." Bunny admitted, too amazed to care about their rivalry. As everyone stepped into the room, taking everything in, Jack slid around the floor, as if he was wearing a pair of the ice skates that sat by the doorway to the ice rink.
"Jack?" At North's inquiry, he stopped in his spot and turned to look at him, "How did you make…" He pointed at the sleigh going around the tree. Jack smiled and shrugged.
"It's not too hard, it just takes a little concentration. I used the same technique to keep Jamie's belief alive." He stated casually, holding his hands out and focusing. Suddenly four feet appeared, and then some legs, a body, tail, a bunny head, and finally the ears. Everyone watched as the bunny shook a bit before leaping out of Jack's hands and hopping around the room before exploding into a flurry of snow that quickly disappeared. Jack gasped as North laughed loudly and hugged him tightly, lifting him off the ground.
"Well done Jack! This is going to be epic!" North exclaimed, racing to the food table to get a cup of hot cocoa. At North's actions, everyone started to branch out. Some headed over to the statues around the room staring at the detail on each, some went to the food table as the food was practically calling to them, while most put on ice skates and started skating or went to stand by the tree and admire the different ornaments. Jack smiled, looking around at everyone enjoying the winter fun, even the summer sprites were relaxed and having fun. Sighing, he decided to join the ice skating fun.
Stepping out onto the ice, he weaved in between each group or pair of skaters, smiling or nodding when they said hi. Someone smaller and shorter than him suddenly crashed into him though as he looked away for a second. Not wanting them to fall, he caught them around the waist as the girl wrapped her arms around his neck, her feet slipping, her skates finding no grip on the ice. Finally she righted herself. Jack flushed, recognizing those colorful feathers anywhere.
"You ok Tooth?" Jack questioned. Tooth froze, glancing up at her fellow Guardian.
"Jack! S-sorry about that, I don't walk much which, I guess makes me even less able to ice skate." She quickly apologized, making Jack chuckle and smiling. Tooth looked away, blushing, fighting the urge to check his teeth again for the preservation of her own dignity- if she took her hands from his neck, she would fall.
"It's ok, skating's a hard thing to get used to and takes a while to learn. Do you...need any help? I could teach you." Jack hesitantly questioned, his face turning blue in embarrassment.
"A-ah, sure." Tooth accepted, taking a deep breath and giving herself a pep talk, ok Tooth, pull yourself together. Just skate, she encouraged. With that, the two started along the ice, side by side as they slowly went, Tooth desperately trying to keep her balance so she wouldn't make a fool of herself in front of Jack. Come on Tooth, just one foot in front of the other- it's not so hard, she tried to convince herself. But, when she stumbled on her next step and Jack caught her, that thought went down the drain.
"S-sorry about that." She apologized again. Jack just smiled, tightening his grip on her, making her blush.
"It's ok, you are only just learning how to skate. You're doing pretty good for a beginner." Jack commented. Tooth smiled in thanks at him before they continued on ice skating.
"Everyone!" A loud voice yelled, causing everyone to stop in their tracks and conversations and turn towards where the voice came from. It seemed while everyone was having fun, North and all the yetis had finished the gifts and placed them in Santa's toy bag, which North was now carrying on his back, at the bottom of the Christmas tree, "It is present time of our Christmas Celebration!" Everyone grinned at that; it was a tradition of North's to spend Christmas day making the last few presents of Christmas for all the legendary figures that came to the party and, during the party, he would hand them out.
Luckily, he always brought the bag out during the party and didn't just leave them sitting under the tree all day, otherwise they would have all been burned in the fireworks explosion this morning. As Jack watched everyone stumbled around the ice, trying to get closer to the tree, he decided to help. Skating over to his staff which he had left lying against the outer ice fence, he tapped his staff against the ice rink floor and watched as all the ice become a lot less slippery and shiny, the ice fence around the tree melting away. He smiled at everyone's grateful looks and watched as North started handing out the presents, loudly yelling out the names and embracing the person with one of his famous hugs, laughing joyously.
They'd open it, gasp at the surprise inside, and be sent on their way with a slap on the back. When it was Tooth's turn, she smiled, hugged Jack(making both of them blush), and walked to get her present from her old friend. Hers was a beautiful clock, designed to look just like her palace, with a small baby tooth that flew out the top when they clock struck twelve. After hugging North, she raced to set the gift in a different room, before meeting back up with Jack, a few gift handouts later. Finally, it came to Jack's turn. Hesitantly, he made his way to North. Stopping in front of him, he returned the smile given to him and took the gift presented to him.
Taking a deep breath, he pulled off the bow, tore off the wrapping paper, and opened the box. Inside the box, was snowglobe; one made of glass with a blue tint. The stand was decorated as if with frost, a few snowflakes covering the stand. And, inside the snowglobe was a moving scene familiar to Jack: it was the snowball fight after they had defeated Pitch, starting when Jack and North talking and watching the snowball fight and ending before Pitch came it. Then jumping to when Jack took his oath, the guardians in front of him, and the children behind him.
Looking up with tears in his eyes, he beamed at North, his smile matching his own, and hugged him tightly. With his snowglobe cradled to his chest, he made his way back to Tooth. A little bit later, all the gifts had been handed out and the party continued, Jack fixing the ice. Turning back to Tooth, he held his hands out to Tooth, silently asking her if she wanted to continue to learn how to skate. With a shaky breath and a hesitant nod, they started out again across the ice.
"Sorry! I'm so, so, so, so sorry!" She exclaimed, after slipping, losing grip of Jack's hand and crashing into one of the fall sprites who was talking. Desperate to keep herself on her feet, she had clawed at him and pulled him down with her. Jumping back up, she had pulled him up, all while muttering these apologies(A/N: The same thing actually happened to me. It was my second time out skating and I was going around the rink, trying to learn how to keep my balance. There were groups of teens standing around the edge of the rink, so I would have to avoid them as I tried to stay close to the wall in case I fell. In one of these instances, I cut around a group talking, but a girl suddenly came around my other side, not paying attention to me. So, I moved to avoid her, slipped, and ended up clawing onto one of the girls talking and dragging her down with me. It was really embarrassing… Anyway, back to the story!). As she moved along, she quickly elbowed Jack, who was laughing hysterically at what just happened, but he just laughed harder as that action caused her to slightly lose her balance and almost fall.
"You know, you could have just used your wings to catch yourself, right?" Jack questioned, raising an eyebrow with a grin on his face.
"I know, but that would be cheating. I want to learn this the right way." Tooth firmly stated.
"Ok…" Jack concluded, still grinning. Tooth blushed at the look on his face, his blue eyes sparkling. So you have a huge crush on him; don't let him know, just act like your usual self, don't think of this as a d-date, just as two friends spending time together, Tooth quivered slightly at that thought, that this could possibly be a date, no it wasn't, just Jack being nice; just focus on the fact that you aren't alone, that you are out with all your friends. Yeah, that did not help... At Tooth's shiver, Jack slowed to a stop.
"Are you ok?" He asked in concern, "It is pretty cold in here I guess, and you aren't wearing any winter clothes. Do you want to stop?" Jack wondered. Tooth opened her mouth to say no(she was determined to get this), but changed her mind after her right foot slipped and almost sent her to the ground.
"Sure; let's take a break. I can learn later." She decided. With that, the two Guardians made their way off the ice. Taking off her skates, Tooth furrowed her eyebrows, wondering what they should do next. So lost in thought, she did not realize that Jack had disappeared until he returned, holding a jacket out to her. It was as she took it, that she realized just how cold she was-Not too bad, but enough to make her slightly uncomfortable. Pulling it on and zipping it up, she looked around the room. Suddenly she froze at something she saw. Walking away, she stopped in front of a statue of herself along the wall. She was standing right in between North and Sandy, Jack and Bunny to North's right. Stepping closer to analyze her own statue, she was amazed.
"Jack...this is amazing." She whispered, stunned by the detail and beauty that went into the statue. Jack flushed at that, leaning against his staff.
"It's not too hard to make." He casually stated.
"But it's still beautifully done." She countered at the exact replica of herself. Looking at her, Jack got an idea.
"Hey...can I show you something?" He wondered. Looking over at him in confusion and curiosity, she nodded. Grinning shyly, Jack lightly grabbed her hand before pulling her across the room and out the open ballroom doors. The further they got away from the celebration, the more the music faded until they couldn't hear it anymore. Finally, they made it outside. The part must have been going on for a while now because it was dark out, the sun having disappeared a while ago. Tooth gasped as Jack suddenly wrapped his arms around her waist from behind as they were slowly lifted into the air, as if by the wind.
Making a mental note to ask him how exactly he always did that, she took a breath as they landed on the roof of North's workshop, Jack stepping away and sitting down. Following his example, she followed his gaze and gasped again at what she saw. Being so far away from any city with lights, the sky was crystal clear, like how Tooth remembered it being so long ago, a sight she hadn't seen in so long. Thousands of stars littered the night sky, making the constellations that she had always been fascinated about. But her focused quickly changed from them to the brightest sight tonight. Way up in the sky, sat the Man in the Moon. Clearly happy, he glowed with a peaceful and shining light, his full moon touching every inch of the earth around them. The snowy mountaintops glistened as if they were made of only the purest ice and crystals, creating one of the most beautiful scenes Tooth had ever seen.
"Back when I was still wandering around, years before now, I was always so curious about North's workshop. So I often snuck up here and trying to break in." He chuckled, a slightly sad sound, "I was always stopped by the Yetis, I don't even think North knew I was doing it, but I did it often throughout the years. Christmas was always one of my favorite holidays when I was human, and though I didn't know that then, I think I felt that love even then. But, after each failed attempt, I would spend the rest of the day flying around this place, creating ice and snow. And at night, I would stop, come back here, and just sit on the roof, looking up at the sky and just watch the stars and the moon." He paused here, eyes focused only on the sky above, lost in the story he was telling.
"My life was always so confusing. Here I was, not knowing my purpose, or my past, or who I really was. All I knew was my name; something I was told right after I rose out of the frozen lake," Tooth grew curious at that. Jack arose from a lake? Not wanting to interrupt though, she sat back and listened, "I was lost and confused, not knowing who or what I was. I found my staff, discovered my powers, flew around, and then I saw a town a little bit away." He lightly chuckled here, eyes wet, "I was so new to everything. I just saw people gathered outside and introduced myself. I got quite a shock when people started walking through me, as if I didn't even exist."
It was silent for a while as Jack just stared at the moon, lost in thought. Tooth wondered just what was going through his mind. Even though she had lost all her believers in Pitch's attack, she had luckily never had a child walk through her; she couldn't even imagine how it felt- especially going through it often.
"I felt so...cold. It was wrong, strange that they were able to walk through me. Here I was, just before, thinking I was one of them, when it turned out I wasn't at all. Over three hundred years, I went through so many of those, of trying so hard to get people to see me and failing every time, all of them ending in that feeling." Jack's voice broke here, but he continued on, "Over time, I became so angry. Angry at the people who couldn't see me, angry at the spirits who saw me as nothing more than an annoying brat, and mostly angry at the Man in the Moon, for never answering my questions and pleas." His voice softened here, almost to a whisper.
"I asked him constantly why he had put me here, what I was supposed to do, what I was meant to be, but all I ever got was silence. I resented him, for giving me these powers and expecting me to find my own way through life with no guidance. I'd talk to myself constantly to fill the emptiness around me. Every person I ever talked to, would regard me with suspicion as if the second they would let their guard down, I would prank them and pelt them with snow- that's what the rumors told them." He shrugged here, sighing, "No one wanted to be around Jack Frost…" He was barely audible by now.
"Sometimes it got to be too much, I often wished I could just disappear; wondered why I had not already quit and went to live forever in an icy wasteland in Antarctica or something. It wasn't like the world needed me...it was a depressing way to live. And when it got to be too much, too lonely, I would try to break into North's workshop. I saw it as a place of hope, of happiness. I envied that happiness in a way, it was something I yearned to feel so much, and I sometimes got to experience when playing in the snow with the children around the world. But I would get pulled back down to reality when one ran through me and the emptiness hit me again." He sighed here, blinking away the tears that threatened to fall.
"I figured somehow that, if I broke into the place, I would get to feel that happiness. But, each time I tried I failed. But, when I came and sat on the roof, I would stare at the moon above me and, just like my first moment as Jack Frost as I was caught in the moon's rays, I felt peace. All the anger, all the pain, all the loneliness drifted away as if they were never there in the first place. I was renew."
"After a while, my North Pole break-ins grew less frequent. Instead I came up here and spent the whole night, staring at the sky to find the peace I felt when I first became Jack Frost. It was silent, even the work of the Yetis was dim. And when I found that peace, I would fall to sleep. And in the morning, I would wake up and fly away from the Arctic back to spread winter around the globe." He took a deep breath here and turned to look at Tooth for the first time since he started to speak, expression vulnerable.
"And now here I am; I remember my past, I am a Guardian, and I finally found out why I was put here. After all the years of confusion, I'm not quite sure how to change from all of that. Life it so much better; I have believers, friends," He smiled slightly at Tooth at that, "And a home now that I accepted North's request to live here and even help out the Yetis," At Tooth's surprised look, he smiled, "When I ran to get you a jacket, North stopped me and asked if I would; I need a home and I always wanted to be in here, so I accepted and he said I can help the Yetis with making toys when I'm not needed, like when it's fall or spring mostly around the world." Having explained, he went back to the topic he was talking about before, "It's so suddenly though, but I'm determined to change- I don't want to live alone anymore. What I really want to say though, is thanks." Jack smiled at Tooth's shocked and confused look.
"When I was chosen as a Guardian, Bunny definitely wasn't happy and didn't believe I was the new Guardian. North accepted it, and helped so much and Sandy accepted me too. But I felt like I had something to prove to those two, that I had a center and that I was right for this job. With you, you didn't question anything; you knew Manny had chosen me, you knew you would find out why soon, and you didn't push. You were the only one who treated me like everyone else, and not like some annoying kid who couldn't be serious for a second."
"You immediately accepted me in as a Guardian and, with you, I didn't have to prove anything be something I wasn't. You didn't listen to the rumors about me like everyone else who has met me did. You saw me as a friend, something no one had ever done before. Well, other than the wind." He pointed out. At that, the wind flew by them as if in thanks for the mention.
"You saw potential in me, knew that I was destined to do something important, that I was Guardian material, and...you believed in me." He stopped here and breathed a heavy sigh of relief, as if he had gotten everything out. Turning to Tooth,he unexpectedly reached over and hugged her tightly. Her eyes went wide at that, not expecting Jack to do that. At him tightening his grip though, she smiled, closed her eyes, and buried her head in his shoulder, sighing at the chill she felt coming off him.
As she breathed, the scent of peppermint and crisp air, filled her with a warm completely opposite the feeling that came from it's origin. They sat still for a moment, seeking comfort and warmth from each other, peace filling the Guardians of Memories and Fun. Finally, they slowly pulled back and smiled at one another. Looking away, Jack sighed and stood.
"I better get going, it's probably around bedtime in Burgess and Jamie and Sophie wanted me to read them a story before they went to sleep." Not knowing what to say, still speechless after all Jack's words and his thanks. Smiling, He once again wrapped his arms around Tooth's waist and placed her on the doorway of North's workshop.
"Bye Jack." Tooth whispered. He smiled peacefully here. Tooth gasped lightly and her eyes widened as Jack leant down and lightly kissed her on the cheek. Pulling back, he grinned at her, his cheeks blue.
"Bye Tooth." And with that, the winter sprite had disappeared into the sky to visit the home of his first believer. Reaching up to touch her cheek, feeling the chill the kiss had left behind, Tooth was sure that her face was bright with a love-struck grin. She definitely didn't expect tonight to go the way it did at all, but she was definitely happy that it did. As she looked where Jack went off, she was excited to see what else she could learn about her fellow Guardian, she was sure there was a lot more to Jack Frost than meets the eyes. With that last thought, she turned around and walked back into North's workshop, ready to enjoy the rest of the party before one of the best days she had had in a long time ended. She couldn't wait to see Jack again soon…
Song I'm listening to right now: 'Jack's Memories' from Rise of the Guardian(I've been obsessed with the soundtrack lately- and it definitely helped with writing this…)
Yes! I've finally finished this! I seriously started writing this back in December of 2013 and made it about halfway through this story before getting caught by writer's block. I tried to finish it since then, especially at last Christmas, but I could never sit down and finish it with enough motivation and ideas. But I finally had time and motivation(I've been in a Rise of the Guardian obsessive mood lately) to finished this before Christmas of this year so yay! Thank you all for reading this, I hope you enjoyed it all. Maybe soon I will write more Rise of the Guardian stories it this mood continues, but until then, good luck in life everyone!
