Moonbeams and Sunshine 7
Okay, I had a rather rude review from someone who complained about my spelling. Now I have no problem with people mentioning an issue with spelling or grammar I just ask for politeness, however, if someone wishes to voice a complaint yet cannot spell for themselves then such complaints are mute and not worth of my time. I am still having issues with the M on my keyboard so hopefully the issues will be fixed but will again I apologize for any mistakes. Accents are hard to write and either will be written how I hear them or just normally. But please, if you do review – and I love hearing from my readers – be polite, remember all writers love encouragement, and creative criticism, rudeness just makes us want to give up and say to hell with it.
Side note: The ice king and queen are not part of the book series but are legends unto themselves and have been featured in numerous books, films and cartoons and I read a kink meme regarding them trying to make Jack theirs. The Queen used to kidnap children, wanting to be a mother but none could survive her cold. Jack, as a winter spirit would be very appealing to her.
Bunny's ears were ringing but that didn't stop him from racing to Jack's room. He had returned to his room to groom himself without Jack's teasing when the explosion happened and knocked him to the floor, his extremely sensitive hearing feeling as if they were blown out. He couldn't hear anything but that ringing but he knew instinctively where the explosion occurred and that his mate was in trouble. He threw open the doors and stared at the carnage beyond. The windows had been blasted inwards and glass and debris were everywhere, but no Jack. There were signs of a struggle and Bunny could smell nearly two dozen new scents, all crisp, all winterish. It sent a shiver down his spine. He didn't say anything when Pitch, Sandy and Nightlight rushed in. He raced from the sitting room to the bedroom and then the bathroom and far too large closet.
"Jack! Jack, where are you?" he yelled, praying that the boy had taken refuge somewhere when the explosion happened. He sniffed the air, hoping to track his mate's scent. The coppery scent of blood filled his nose. His head whipped to the left and his nose twitched. Tracking it he knelt a few feet from the closet where small drops of blood stained the blush white carpet. Getting on all fours he sniffed it. Jack. It was Jack's blood. He followed the trail to the window, mindful of the glass biting into his paws.
Sandy began searching the oversize bathroom while Nightlight searched the closet. Pitch slipped into the shadows under the bed and searched every dark space but with no luck and materialized once more near Bunny. Before anyone could ask, Bunny leapt out the window and continued following the trail of blood until he found a series of scorch marks. There the blood trail ended. His ears rotated from left to right and back, listening carefully for any sound of his beloved but all he heard were that persistent ringing and the sound of his blood rushing through him.
He startled when a large hand landed on his shoulder. He spun around, ready to strike when he came face to face with North's concerned gaze. Surprised he blinked. North's mouth was moving, as if he was speaking but Bunny could not hear a word being said. His ears rotated toward his friend but it changed nothing. He could not hear a word the man was saying. The others crowded around them, all speaking at once yet none making a sound. Sandy, although the smallest, pushed his way through and grabbed Bunny's arm to make him look down. A series of images appeared; an explosion with a big BOOM sign, a pair of rabbit ears and then a cross through them.
"What?" Bunny asked loudly. Everyone took a step back, eyes wide. Bunny gave them a curious look before looking back at his mute friend. The images replayed but still made no sense.
North took his face in his large hands and made him look at him. He spoke slowly, pronouncing each word as clearly as possible so Bunny could decipher what he was saying. All Bunny made out was 'something hearing'.
You must have lost your hearing in the explosion, Nightlight's gentle voice suddenly whispered through his mind.
Bunny wrenched his head free of North and looked at the spectral boy. "I lost my hearing?" he asked, his voice making the others cringe at its loudness, but to Bunny he had barely spoken above a whisper.
The eternal youth nodded and Sandy gave him a thumb up.
"It's temporary, right?"
North winced but nodded, mouthing, "Yes."
MiM approached, motioning for Bunny to kneel down. The Pooka hesitated. "Someone took Jack. We need to find him. They took some sort of ship."
We will find him, Nightlight assured as he, Tooth and Sandy took to the skies to continue their search.
Bunny was still hesitant. He wanted to lead the search for his mate not sit back and let someone else search for him. Nonetheless he did as MiM instructed and knelt before him. Gentle hands stroked the fur of his head before massaging the base of his ears. It was a gentle, almost relaxing feeling them, like how Jack would massage them after a long day of painting eggs or working in the gardens. All fear for Jack momentarily ebbed under those gentle but firm fingers. The ringing slowly stopped as did the rushing of blood until all was silent. Then, as quickly as his hearing left him it returned in a rush.
"Crickey!" Bunny cried, slapping his paws over his ears. Every sound was too loud now.
"I apologize, Aster," MiM said as he let go of his ears and stepped back. "Give your hearing a few minutes to adjust before we continue our search."
North knelt before his friend and carefully lifted his head. "Bunny," he started in just above a whisper. "You said Jack was taken in some sort of ship."
Wincing, Bunny gave a nod. "Yeah. The ankle-bitter's injured, probably in the explosion. Looks like he put up a fight."
"But who would take him?" asked Katherine. Her eyes widened when she took in his cut paws. "Oh Bunny, you're bleeding! Stay still." She had North help ease the him into a sitting position and hold him still as she carefully and gently removed shards of glass he had stepped on in his desperate search for his mate. "Kozmotis, please fetch the antiseptic? Kozmotis? Pitch?"
Bunny glanced up to see that the Nightmare was off in his own world, his eyes closed and deep in concentration. "Pitch?"
"Hush," the shade said, not opening his eyes. Fear and confusion. Those emotions consumed Jack's mind and called to Pitch and while he couldn't see were the boy was he could tell the child was bond, blind folded and gagged, and moving far, far away from the Moon. He felt the boy's growing panic and was able to trace the general destination to be Earth.
Seraphina gave Bunny a smile as she knelt next to Katherine and began healing Bunny's wounds after assuring there would be no infection. "He's trying to attach himself to Jack's mind and track his fear," she explained.
"Has he even noticed you're here yet?" Katherine asked with a tiny grin. Pitch had moments where he was completely oblivious to those around him whenever he sensed large amounts of fear. The hunger of his minions would sometimes over-shadowed him if the fear was strong enough and it took great concentration to keep them under control while tracking that fear.
"Doubtful," Seraphina answered, smiling at her father fondly. "He'll find where they've taken Jack."
"Who?" Bunny asked.
Mother Nature's smile faltered at the fear in the Pooka's eyes. "The Ice Kingdom."
Bunny's jaw fell in surprise. "But we…they shouldn't have awaken yet."
"But they have, Aster," she insisted, her warm amber eyes full of worry. "And they think Jack is their child. They're going to use his magic to ensure the next Ice Age."
. . .
Jack struggled as he was dragged from the ship to wherever it was they were taking him. The soldiers were considerably taller than him and moved at a pace he couldn't keep up with while blind folded and bond. But he wasn't going to make it easy for them. He dug his feet and kicked out, struggled and yelled against the gag in his mouth. He threw his miniscule weight backwards, hoping to break their hold but unlike North's Yetis who he could usually wiggle free from, these men were like statues. Nothing he did worked.
Soon he found himself being thrown to the ground and the blind fold removed. He blinked as startling white light met his eyes. In fact, the whole room – a throne room more eccentric than MiM's – was snowy white with gleaming columns of ice and two raised thrones and what appeared to be a king and queen. The king appeared old and skin tone a pale blue. His eyes were storm grey and his beard long enough to rival Ombric's. He looked frail and older than any being Jack knew. The queen was the opposite. She seemed young but motherly, perhaps in her early to mid-thirties. Her skin was an even paler blue with the slightest hint of purple. Her hair was up in an intricate bun above her head with flowing curls that flowed over slim shoulders. Like her king a crown of ice adorn her head. She wore a flowing blue and white gown that matched the king's trousers and tunic. Jack couldn't help but stare at them. They were quite a sight to behold. He knew without asking who they were. Anyone with half a mind would know the Ice King and Queen of legend although he had always thought they were mere myth. After all, if they were real wouldn't they have come for him before seeing as he was a being of snow and ice as well. In fact, all the soldiers were ice elves; all slim and snowy haired wearing the armor and emblem of the royal court. They were all creatures of myth or so he thought.
Any smartass remark he had planned to make was lost as his gaze met the Ice Queen's. She waved her dainty hand with a flourish, releasing his bonds and gave him a cold smile. "Welcome home, Jack Frost. We've waited a long time for you, my son."
Jack blinked in sudden confusion. "Son?" He hoped it was just some sort of endearment because after 300 years alone he seemed to be swamped with parental figures and the last thing he needed was a pair of crazy ice elves thinking he was theirs. He stood up and rubbed his wrists. Of course, all things considered, this one made more sense than MiM and Mother Nature.
"Come now, don't be shy, Jack," the Queen said, holding out her hand. "Give Mother a kiss."
Jack took a step back instead. "I think there's some sort of mistake." He inhaled sharply as one of the soldiers grabbed his shoulder. "Look, no offense but you've got the wrong guy. I already have a family and parents and you two aren't them."
Her hand fell to her side and she looked to her king. "The Guardians have confused him."
Those storm grey eyes bore into Jack's and it was impossible to look away. "The Guardians have lied to you, Jack Frost," he said in a deep rumbling voice that sounded like a pending avalanche. "You were hidden from us, denied your birth right. You are our child and this is your home."
"My home?" Jack asked, his gaze never leaving the kings. He felt his need to flee subside and the soldier ease up on his shoulder.
The Ice Kings smiled thinly. "Yes. You are home, Jack."
All confusion left him and he gave a small nod. "I'm home."
The Queen stepped down the dais and sashayed up to Jack. She wrapped him in a loose embrace. "And we are happy to have you home, my son," she said, combing her ice cold fingers through his snowy hair. Jack felt a cold he had not felt in many years, a cold so deep it went straight to his bones, but he did not pull away. He returned the embrace, his head resting over one icy breast as all thoughts of the Guardians momentarily fled his mind. The Queen placed a chilly kiss to his brow. "And we will never let you go."
