I'm sorry! I'm so so sorry that I haven't updated in the past couple months. I've been busy with school and other projects x.x It also took me some time to finish up and polish this chapter. Even after proof-reading it, it still seems a little rough, so if you feel anything needs revising, let me know.
There's a bit of angst in this chapter. There will most likely be smut...next chapter.
Enjoy~!
Jack and Tooth flew through the sky, hand-in-hand toward the Pole. Jack's hand felt rough, callused and cold in her own, but crimson tinted her cheeks all the same. She had not been this close to him since they had defeated Pitch and she nearly tackled him down with a forceful embrace. She could still feel the softness of his hoodie when she rested her head on his shoulder, his hand resting on her hip as she brought her head back to face him and they looked into each other eyes…
Tooth's face turned an even darker shade of red and shook her head to rid her of her thoughts. Her mind often wandered to that moment. Their eyes had locked for only a split second until Tooth, embarrassed from their proximity and her actions, as well as Baby Tooth interjecting to scold them, immediately pulled away.
Tooth couldn't help but smile to herself as she remembered the look on Jack's face just before she fluttered away from him. It was almost an expectant look, like he was waiting for something else. Did he…want her to kiss him? Tooth's eyes widened from the thought, her face failing to pale from their flush.
Her wings stopped beating for a just a quick moment. She didn't realize until she nearly fell out of the sky, bringing Jack with her and with a "Whoa!" and the help of the wind, he kept them afloat. She shook her head vigorously, coming back to her senses and starting up her wings once again. "You okay there, Tooth?" he asked, looking at her with surprise and distress.
"Fine!" she laughed nervously as she looked back at him, her cheeks still rosy from embarrassment. "Just got lost in a train of thought…hehe…"
They both faced forward just as the lights from North's workshop came into view, just visible through a thick of snow that had just begun to fall, thanks to a certain flurry maker. Tooth nudged his shoulder playfully after a few snowflakes, she was sure, deliberately hit her face. Jack just laughed as they zoomed down into the open window, the wind Jack conjured blowing a whole bunch of a snow in with them. They were both howling with laughter as they landed, bounding onto the carpeted floor.
North was the first to notice their arrival. "Jack! You found her after all! This is good news, we got yeti and elf to play some music for your return!" Said elves and yeti were piping up and plucking their instruments, playing a tune not too different from when Jack was abducted and announced as a new Guardian.
Bunny spoke up just a couple feet away from the window he and Tooth came from, scowling as he shivered, "You just have to make an entrance, don't ya, Frost? Bloody freezing!"
Jack chuckled, "Sorry, Cottontail, didn't even see you there." It was the truth, but Jack couldn't resist teasing the six foot Pooka when he had the chance. "Isn't all that fluff supposed to keep you warm?"
"Why ya ragin' ratbag, I oughta—!"
Bunny was stopped by a giant hand clapping him on the shoulder. "Friends, friends! We are here to celebrate Tooth this night." North boomed. He grabbed Jack with his free arm, ironically his right, tattooed "Naughty" then leant down to their ear level as he whispered menacingly, "If you two don't chum up, I will personally see to that all detail on tattoos," he gestured to his arms, curling them tighter around the two's shoulders, "will be permanently imprinted in brain. Get it?"
They both nodded and smiled tensely at North. He let them go, clapping his hands together. "Good then!" he waved over to the elves and yetis playing their instruments. "Play something with little more swing! We must have some for dance soon, yes?" he bellowed, giving a hearty belly laugh.
The band began to strike up a jazzy tune just as Jack strode back over to Tooth who had been taking in her surroundings, admiring the decoration her friends so devotedly hung up and strung all about the workshop, all topped off with a banner spelling in large, colorful letters 'Happy Guardianniversary, Tooth.' "You guys really did an amazing job! You didn't have to do all of this for me," she told them bashfully.
" 's no big deal at all, Sheila," Bunny replied. "It's the least we could do f'ya."
"Besides, this is not even best part," North interjected as he gently guided the fluttering fairy over towards the back area, Jack knowing exactly where North was headed. He could feel the warmth rising in his face clashing with his natural cold, bringing back that purple hue to his cheeks as he followed them.
As the ice statue came into view, so did Sandy, waving in cold air from the open windows to keep it from melting. Jack heard a soft gasp come from Tooth as she flew up to the giant sculpture. "Wow!" she exclaimed breathily, tracing a dainty hand over the intricate detail of the feathers. "North, did you—?" but North merely cut her off with a wave and motioned over to Jack.
Turning her head in surprise, she flew back down, swooping right in front of him, her large and joyous, violet eyes beaming. "Jack, you made this? For me?"
Jack just shrugged stiffly and brought his hand up to rub his neck as his blush took on a pinker shade and tried to look anywhere but her face. "Oh…It's nothing…really," he managed to squeak out.
"It's beautiful." Her face softened from extremely excitable to a tender smile and as she looked back up at the large ice figure, he couldn't help but look at her eyes shimmering with the light reflecting off the glittering ice. All Jack could do was stare at her, the statue nothing compared to the true beauty of the Fairy Queen that flittered next to him, his heartbeat starting to keep pace with the erratic wings keeping her afloat.
Feeling his eyes burning holes into her, she shifted her gaze and a soft flush returned to her face as she crossed an arm over to rub the other anxiously. Being so caught up in their moment, they almost didn't notice a stream of gold, taking the shape of a heart above their heads. One second, Tooth and Jack looked up in embarrassed astonishment and the next, Jack quickly quashed the sand heart, swishing his staff aggressively at it until it was just speckles of golden dust.
Jack snapped over toward Sandy standing behind him, who just gave a silent, chittering laugh and shrugged his shoulders innocently. Jack scowled at him and just as he was about to give him a small blast of ice from his staff, he felt North's hand on his shoulder once again, leading both him and Tooth back in the main room. "Ok, that is enough of that." North attempted to diffuse the tension, chuckling in apprehension. "Come, we have quite the spread, let us eat!" Jack turned once more toward the stout man and stared daggers into him in which the Sandman just smiled knowingly back. The three foot tall Guardian smile turned devilish as an idea formulated in his head. But, that would have to wait for a later time.
Jack roared with laughter as Bunny began dancing around drunkenly, thanks to a good three-too-many of North's "Special Eggnog". Before that, Jack had the bright idea to challenge Bunny to a game of poker in which the loser had to chug down a full cup of eggnog. Bunny gloatingly accepted and didn't figure on Jack's mischievous nature to shine through as he had a few tricks, or shall we say, cards up his sleeves that he slickly swapped with his dealt hand. After a couple rounds, Bunny was getting tired of losing to the white haired hellion and kept challenging him and raising the stakes even higher.
So now here they were, the guys gathered around chortling at Bunny, wearing one of the elves hats while dancing to the upbeat jazz music being played. Tooth, rolling her eyes at the other three, let out a soft giggle trying not to laugh at her friend's expense.
As Bunny fell over, passing out, a louder wave of laughter resounded throughout the large expanse of the workshop. They eventually died down, Jack and North stopping to catch their breath and calm themselves down. Tooth shook her head in half amusement at the boys for tricking the poor Easter Bunny. No one had ever got him to drink like that, not even at their New Year's Parties. That Jack Frost was a complete master prankster.
He glanced over to her, flashing those pearly whites she adored so much. She blushed for the quadrillionth time that night, brushing back a few of her head feathers meekly. Looking away, she fluttered towards the back to admire his statue, once again.
Jack turned back toward the refreshments table, eyeing the eggnog warily, deciding not to partake. Sandy floated up next to him grabbing a glass and looking up at the icy boy. He grinned again, nudging him in the arm. Jack smirked down at his fellow guardian, an idea of how to get him back for earlier flashed in his mind, gripping his staff a little tighter in his hand, but decided against it. Sandy was his friend, even if he did irksome things sometimes. "What is it, Bud?" Jack humored him, seeing his wide grin.
Sand began to swirl above the small man's head, another heart taking form. And then another swirl began to form and take shape. It took the shape of Tooth. Jack's stomach flopped and did turns inside of him as he quickly glanced around to make sure she wasn't near. The message was clear enough. It's a good thing Sandy never spoke a single word because he might as well be screaming, "You like Tooth, don't you?"
Jack kept opening his mouth to say something, anything to convince Sandy he was just imagining it, but could come up with nothing. It was just too obvious and Sandy could read him too easily. Jack just slumped and gave a slight defiant pout and mumbled, "Maybe…a little…" Sandy quirked an eyebrow at him, his smirk turning into a thin line and his eyes unconvinced. "Ok, ok, a lot. I like her a lot. But…"
Sandy gave him a puzzled look, giving a shrug and forming a question mark above his head, "But what?"
Jack went through any excuse in his mind to get him off of his back, any kind of little anecdote from any of his previous encounters with Tooth. But then, that image got pushed to the forefront of Jack's mind. His face pink-purpled once again as he became exasperated, trying his best to keep his cool. But instead, Jack gave Sandy a spluttering scoff saying, "Nothing. Just forget it," and stomped away from him, a cold breeze whipping past the stout man.
Sandy scowled at the boy's back as he stormed off. He was going to have to put his previous plan in motion to try and push the troubled Guardian of Fun in the right direction.
As Tooth flitted over to the back to get a good look at the glimmering ice sculpture that Jack so thoughtfully made for her, she felt a cool breeze roll by her. Thinking he had followed behind her, she turned around quickly, expecting to see the Frost boy standing next to her, but saw no one, her eyes instead falling upon the open double door-like windows, leading out to a veranda. Another gust of cool wind whipped gently by her from the window, drawing her in as she fluttered out onto the balcony, her hands reaching out to hold the railing and leaning into the calm breeze.
The feeling of the fresh air ruffled her feathers slightly as she relished in the cold of the winter air. It reminded her of the times she had spent with Jack. The cold air that often emulated from the snow spirit hardly bothered her. She liked how different it felt from the usual warmth she was surrounded by in her Southeast Asian home. It had a refreshing quality, like if she had been having a long day and the heat eventually got to her, a small draft would blow by and there would be Jack, bringing a cool batch of oxygen into her lungs.
She inhaled deeply and let out a heavy sigh. The snow had ceased but the wind still whipped up the piles of fluffy snowflakes around the mountains and they danced and swirled in the air. Tooth thought it was beautiful. Jack really made it all the more special when he would create such gorgeous, intricate ice and snowflake patterns.
Tooth gazed down at her feathered arms and made a small grimace. The feathers on her wrist began to ripple away, slowly making its way up her forearm revealing sun-kissed, peach skin. She sighed, looking down at the rest of her feathered form as a thought raced around in circles in her mind.
Jack gave a short huff as he headed towards the center hall and continued stomping forward until he nearly stumbled into North hauling a drunken Bunnymund over his shoulder. The large man startled and turned to the shorter boy with a stunned look which then softened into concern when he looked into the pale boy's face. "What is wrong, Jack?"
Jack, still redish-purple in the face, just sighed aggressively and turned his head away, refusing to look at or speak to the 7 foot, bearded man. The Guardian of Wonder didn't pry, he just exhaled, adjusting the 6 foot rabbit hanging over his shoulder and reached a hand to gently clap the boy on the shoulder and giving him a reassuring grin, which Jack attempted to return weakly.
Then something caught the corner of the tall man's big, blue eyes, spotting a certain fairy through the window, out on the terrace. Nudging the frost covered boy, North nodded his head, motioning over toward the window.
When Jack turned to see, all his embarrassment drained and was replaced with worry when he saw the usually floating fairy on her feet, standing in the frigid air. Jack immediately strode quickly over to the open stain glass doors, leaving North, who looked on knowingly at the boy and then proceeded to carry the unconscious Bunny into the guest quarters.
She was leaning into the banister, her head hung low, making Jack stop dead in his tracks, just one step away from the outside. The wind picked up around them, rousing Toothiana from her thoughts, knowing exactly who made their way over and she quickly willed back her feathers to cover her now chilled arms before turning around and meeting steely blue eyes filled with distress. She was taken aback before stuttering, "J-Jack, is something wrong?"
"I should be asking you that." Jack said, concern lining every word, walking closer to her. "What are you doing out here all by yourself in the cold?" He was about to put his arms around her shoulders but then stopped, realizing he would only make her colder and he slumped in defeat.
Tooth gave Jack the sincerest half-smile, noticing his attempt to comfort her. "I'm fine, Jack, really. It's not that cold out, so don't worry." She kept smiling as she looked back in front of her, her eyes following the snow fluttering in the breeze. "In fact, it feels nice. I really needed some cold, fresh air for just a bit."
Jack let out a soft sigh of relief and smiled back, leaning on the banister next to her. But he still couldn't shake off the feeling that something was bothering her, her stature giving off an uncomfortable air. He had felt like there was more she wanted to tell him apart from the story she had shared with him earlier. He just didn't want to press it any further and wanted to bring her to the party they prepared for her, to ease her thoughts and spend time with friends.
He didn't want to be a bother to her, but standing there twiddling his thumbs in the silence was killing him. "Is there something else bothering you, Tooth? You just seem a little…off."
Tooth's face fell as her previous thoughts swam back into her mind, contemplating if she really wanted to tell him. These thoughts had burdened her for so long, she just didn't know if she wanted to tell anyone, let alone, Jack.
Jack didn't know how to read her expression. He shouldn't have asked, but, at the same time, he wanted to help her. He wanted to be there for her. "You can tell me anything, Tooth. There's no room for judgment in my mind and I won't tell anyone, it can just be between us. You can trust me."
Tooth let out a long breath she didn't realize she was holding and turned to face Jack, her expression deadpanning with a serious furrow in her brow. "Jack, do you ever long to be…human again?"
Jack didn't expect to be taken aback by her question, but he was. This was a question that had always wrapped around his head like Boa Constrictor, tightening its grip around his brain and suffocating his thoughts. Why was he made to walk this earth for an eternity and what would his life had been like if he hadn't fallen through the ice? Jack's hands tightened, one around his staff and the other balled in a fist but then he quickly loosened them. His brows creased together as he tried not to answer in an anguished tone. "Yes…all the time."
Tooth could hear it anyway, the sadness behind his voice, a desperate longing for a life he could have had. She was about to apologize, but Jack continued as he stared out distantly at the mountainous expanse.
"But, as much as I miss my sister and as much as I wish I could have been there for her and to be with my family, this is where I belong. Protecting the children of the world." He turned back to Tooth and gave her the warmest smile she had ever seen and her face softened as she smiled back at him. "What's this all about, Tooth? Asking that kind of question," Jack returned, once again with a look of concern plastered on his face.
"I…I guess I just…" Tooth began, trying to search for the right words. She took a sharp breath in and out before continuing. "Every year on this day, I look at myself in the mirror and I change to my human form. And I just stare at it. I just stare at my reflection for a good long while. And every single time, I wonder to myself, 'What if I had chosen this instead? What would my life have been like?' And then I think about my parents. Would it have been insulting to their sacrifice to let me live and then eventually die having led some ordinary existence?" She paused for a few moments, staring down at her hands, her feathers rippling back, once more, to reveal skin on her wrists and up her forearms.
"But what I think about more than anything is…am I truly beautiful the way I am?" She stopped right there, leaving the question hanging in the air between them, not wanting to say another word.
Jack looked at her flabbergasted. "What are you talking about?"
Tooth let out a frustrated breath, "Look at me," she let out in an exasperated puff gesturing to herself while beating her wings furiously and hovered so her eyes were level with Jack's. Her feathers flared out all along her shoulders all the way up to the back of her head and her eyes glared forlornly into his.
Jack startled and stumbled back a step from her sudden outburst. That's not what he meant at all. He must not have said it right or she might not have heard it right. He didn't ask it like he didn't know what she was talking about. He was asking like she didn't know what she was talking about. How could she not see it? Jack straightened, reaching out to her balled up fist and cupped it gently, his eyes not leaving hers and said in the most amiable tone, "I am."
Tooth's eyes widened, her hands relaxed, unclenching them so her hand fit snuggly in his palm. Her wings calmed and her feathers flattened back down so they lay neatly against her form. "W-what?"
Jack smiled his dazzling smile once again, making her heart skip a beat and she gazed at him in anticipation. Her heart was thumping in her chest, waiting for what he was going to say next. "I am looking at you. And what I see an amazing, courageous, and passionate person. But most of all, I see the most gorgeous girl I've ever met. Feathers and all." He let out a soft laugh as Tooth's face softened from the remark, her eyes still locked with his.
She could feel her cheeks getting warmer and warmer the longer she gazed into his bright, blue eyes, looking back at her amorously. "You…you really think so?"
"Yeah!" Jack exclaimed, a breathless laugh escaping his lungs, smiling even brighter and gripping her hand tighter. "I mean, look at that statue I made you. You said it was beautiful. And I made it just that way because the actual thing is even better than the sculpture. You are beautiful, Tooth. At least…you are to me." Tooth became speechless and all she could do was stare at him.
And then it was like Jack was no longer in control of his movements anymore as he brought his hand up from its grasp on hers and cupped her cheek. He stepped forward, his body just inches away from hers, her eyes widening and feeling her face burning with every second he got closer to her. He closed his eyes first and hers began to flutter until they were half-lidded. Jack was unable to stop himself as he felt himself lean down, his nose about to brush hers, closer and closer, about to capture her lips with his.
BANG. CRASH.
"Oh, NO!"
The loud Russian could be heard all over the North Pole after the resounding clatter of broken glasses rung throughout the workshop. Jack and Tooth parted and rushed back into the main hall where they found North standing over a broken punch bowl and various ornaments shattered all around the floor.
"You little—Pointy-headed scoundrels!" Looking past the large man, Jack and Tooth saw various elves littered all over the refreshment tables and the floor. Sandy could be seen floating in the far corner, snoozing through all of the craziness. The elves began to scatter about to evade St. Nick who now brandished his swords and let out a loud yell, rousing Sandy from his sleep.
Jack shielded Tooth with his staff as the hulking man came forward when a few elves ran underneath and through Jack's legs. North stopped short at the site of the two, lowering his weapons right away. "Whoa whoa, easy there, North." Jack laughed breathlessly, despite himself. "What happened?"
North scratched his head angrily, cutlass still in hand "Augh… Elves get into eggnog then knock over decorations and dishes. I'm sorry, Toothie. I didn't mean to startle you and ruin party."
"Hey, nothing's ruined," Jack lowered his staff and relaxed.
Tooth flew over to North and rested her hand on his shoulder, "Yeah, don't worry, North. We'll help clean up."
"No no," North interjected. "Leave cleaning to me. We should end party anyways. Bunny's passed out, elves have smashed up everything. I think is time we call it a night."
"Ok, then" Jack responded, watching as the rotund man got up and lumbered off to pick up the mess, Sandy floating up by him to offer a hand. "Hey uh, Tooth," Jack turned looking up at her sheepishly and pushing some of his silver locks back. "I'll escort you back to the palace then?"
She smiled back at him, pink returning to her cheeks, nodding and gripping his hand in hers.
As they flew out of the open window into the icy tundra, Sandy glanced over his shoulder and smirked. He signaled North, telling him he would be right back, that he had a present for Tooth he forgot to give her. "Ok, Sandy. I finish up here. You have good night." The littler man nodded at him and floated out the window, following Jack and Tooth.
Oh, he had a present for her alright. A present that she would be sharing with Jack. Sandy conjured bright, golden dream sand in his palm, waving it around in his hand until a light flash of pink flickered in the particles for a split second.
He had a special surprise in store for the two guardians.
What are you up to, Sandy? Hmmm.
You will find out next chapter ;D
