Jack landed lightly on the white expansion of the Serbian Tundra. The island that held the Winter Solstice ball was remote enough that Jack didn't have to worry about anyone finding it, even in the summer. No human was stupid enough to come this far north and sail over the Kara Sea. Then again, she had said that no one was stupid enough to do a lot of things. People had a way of proving her wrong. Looking around, she found the traditional spot and took a deep breath. Her magic spread from her core down to her fingertips slowly, until it was almost all gathered. Opening her eyes, she followed the familiar motions.

Building the Winter Solstice Castle was almost instinctual. The castle was exactly the same every single year, and Jack had been doing it for 200. The movements were almost relaxing as she moved the ice and snow to her will, creating spectacular walls and ceilings. Her mind wandered slightly with each movement. The castle took a lot of energy, but that was why it was one of the last things to be handled. The closer to the Solstice it was, the more power Jack had. But no amount of power was going to help her if the Guardians snooped where they weren't supposed to and figured it all out. She needed to make sure that they kept their distance for the time being and not interfere with anything until the Council got a better handle on the situation.

The second floor of the palace had just settled when Jack spotted a familiar shape in the distance. She smiled slightly. With the final wave of her hand, the designs of the palace exploded with a flurry of motions before finally stopping. The sun hit it in just the right way to make it look transparent and beautiful. As Jack took in the scene, a small thud was heard behind her.

"So Jokul, what do you think? Pretty nice right?" She asked, turning around. Jokul was kneeling in front of her, head bowed.

"Spirit of Winter, I am at your command." He said. Jack sighed.

"Knight of Winter, you may rise." She retorted. Jokul stood up and gave her a once over, his eyebrows furrowing. "What?"

Jokul walked closer to her and reach gently for her head. He ran his fingers through her short hair, making Jack stiffen. Jokul had never really understood barriers or personal space, so she had gotten used to his presence, but she wasn't prepared for it with this new body. After a second, he stepped back. "I thought I had sensed a shift in the season, but I didn't imagine that it would have been caused by this. The rumors are true then?"

Jack's eyes widened at his words. "What rumors? What do you know?" If rumors were spreading through the seasonal community, it was only a matter of time before all of the courts knew and then they would have to hold a Grand Court meeting.

"You have met the spirit form of Fjorgyn and she must have decided to keep the traditions of the polars. There were rumors that she was back. The Court is restless with her return." Jokul informed her. Jack sighed.

"Well, she is back. And she did take matters into her own hands, but we are just going to have to deal with the consequences."

Jokul bowed and immediately sank back down into a kneel. "I swear my allegiance to Lady Jacelyn Frost, Child of the Moon, High Lady of the Winter Court, Lady of Misrule, and Guardian of Joy. I will forever protect every virtue and chastity until my Lady accepts the vows of marriage. I shall be your protectors and loyal servants from this point on. You have my heart, soul and mind at your disposal. All hail the new Spirit of Winter, Lady Jacelyn Frost." He announced. Jack raised her eyebrows at the sudden declaration.

"Why did you just swear your allegiance to me again?" she asked. Jokul only raised his head to answer her.

"While you may still be the same spirit in the soul, you are one of a different physical body. The Winter Court must swear their allegiance to you again in order for you to keep your place as the Spirit of Winter." He explained dutifully. His words clicked with Talayeh's urgency about telling the court and Jack finally understood. Nodding her head, she gestured for him to rise.

"So we should do this at the ball. I'll explain it to everyone and ask for their allegiance. If they don't swear it, then we can hold a meeting in a week after the ball to decide the new spirit." Jack said aloud, making a mental list of everything that needed to be done. They were going to have to get some things settled and change a few parts of the ball in order to make this work.

"They will choose you again, My Lady," Jokul stated clearly. Jack raised an eyebrow at that, making her doubts clear. Jokul continued. "You are the best Spirit we have had in over a millennium. You are fair and make sure the voice of the Court is heard throughout the community. That will be needed now more than ever with Mother Nature back."

His words shouldn't have had that much of an impact on her, but Jack relaxed a little. She wasn't going to lie and say that there wasn't some worry about the reactions of the court, but Jokul made her feel more confident. Giving him a smile, she thanked him silently. Winter Spirits weren't much of a touchy feely group, but they understood the concept of the silent thanks well. "We should probably get started making the arrangements to include this."

Jokul bowed. "As you command My Lady. Let us begin with a visit to the Yuki-Onna regarding your outfit for the ball."


Bunny rummaged through his library for the third time already. Grunting in frustration, he checked the stack of books again for any information he might have missed. The fact that he had almost no information on the Seasonal Court was extremely irritating. He had books on every civilization to walk on the Earth, both mortal and immortal, and even some on civilizations outside of Earth. But the seasons were the blind spot in all of his knowledge.

"It's like they stole all of the information on them an' got rid of it." He muttered. Honestly, he wouldn't be surprised if that was the very case. From how Jack acted some days, it seemed like the Seasonals would do anything to keep their society a secret. Bunny sighed and set the book down. It was no use. He checked everywhere and there was basically no information besides the little he had found already. His library was one of the most expansive that existed in the Spiritual World, besides the-

Bunny stopped and smiled. Santoff Clausen had the biggest library in all of the Spiritual World and has information on even the most obscure of things. He should be able to find something on the Seasonals there. Tapping the ground twice, Bunny made up his mind. He was going to find out about the Seasonal Community one way or another.


Jack coasted the northern wind with ease as she made her way back to the Pole. She and Jokul had finished a majority of their duties that had to be completed, but she wanted to let North know that she wouldn't be around for the next couple of days due to seasonal business. She didn't want to make him worry, especially with it being this close to Christmas. Circling the building, she found an open balcony window and rushed in. Floating down to the ground, she looked around. Book shelves spanned the giant walls and filled up a majority of the floor space with only tiny walkways between each aisle. This library of the Pole was pretty big, but it was nowhere near the size of the library at the Fall Palace. Treddian had books since the beginning of time that had been handed down by some of the oldest beings in the world, and those out of the world.

Strolling around, she looked for the exit. North had made his library a maze of knowledge that you had to slowly figure out. With all the time Jack spent here in the summer, she had figured it out in a matter of weeks, but even she got lost every now and then. But she could take her time. Jokul wasn't expecting her back til night time anyway so that they could figure out all the logistics of the ice palace.

As she made her way down one of the walkways, she heard the sound of someone ruffling through papers and muttering. Freezing midstep, she turned her attention to the noise. That was suspicious. No one used the library at this time of the year, with North and the Yetis being busy. And he highly doubted that the elves were suddenly yearning for the chance to read. She floated off the floor and made her way slowly towards the noise.

Once she got to the shelf that the rustling was coming from, she heard a very familiar voice muttering under their breath. "These seasonals seem ta be keepin' ta themselves. Ah can barely find anythin' on them."

"Maybe we keep to ourselves because we don't like nosy rabbits looking into our business when they aren't supposed to," Jack called out, turning into the walkway. Bunny's head whipped to face him, the book still in hand. Jack walked closer and crossed her arms.

"Jack."

"Bunny." Jack tilted her head up as she caught sight of the rest of the books that Bunny had piled up. From the titles alone, she could tell that he was trying to find out more about the seasonals. Again. "Talayeh's lesson this summer didn't sink in all the way or something?"

"It's not what it looks like." Bunny immediately replied. "Ah'm just trying ta look out for ya."

Jack snorted. "Well, you have a funny way of showing it. Do you know how much trouble I would get in if word got back to any other seasonals that I knew you were looking into our society and didn't do anything? I already got in trouble with the council this summer when you pulled that stunt in the Amazon." Bunny furrowed his eyebrows.

"Ya got in trouble because of me? Why?"

"I'm responsible for you and the rest of the Guardians." Jack pinched her nose in frustration. It shouldn't be this hard to explain. Taking a deep breath, she continued in a calmer tone. "I am your direct connection to the Seasonal society. When one of you do something like snoop around or disturbs one of us without an audience, it is reflected on me. That's why I am so careful with what I tell you guys and how much I get you involved. If one of you slip up, even the slightest, it will come down on me. The society isn't kind to those who break the rules."

Bunny walked closer to Jack, concern in his eyes. "They can't hurt ya Jack. The Guardians protect our own."

She laughed at that statement and gave him a sarcastic smile. "If you truly believe that, then you obviously don't understand the power of a seasonal." To prove her point, the room began to become colder. Ice spikes grew from the ceiling and the floor began to crystallize. Bunny backed away slightly, but Jack returned to normal. The air slowly started to warm up as she withdrew her ice. "I am the youngest seasonal spirit of the winter court and that was just a taste of my power. I didn't even tap into the powers of the Spirit of Winter. So imagine a spirit that has been around for thousands of years and has developed their powers over time. Those would be the people that would come after me if I slip up."

They were both silent as Bunny processed this information. Jack could almost see the wheels turning. She didn't really want to show the Guardians what she was capable of. One of her biggest fears was that they were going to abandon her, and with how dangerous her powers were, she could believe it if they even got a glimpse of her true potential.

"Why don't ya just leave? Walk away from the society as a whole?" Bunny asked suddenly. Jack wanted to laugh at his question. Did he really think it was that easy?

"I can't."

"Why not?"

Biting her lip, she looked away. If she told him the truth, she would reveal a section of their laws. And that wasn't allowed. "It's a seasonal thing."

Bunny frowned at her words. "It always seems to be a seasonal thing."

"Just drop it Bunny."

Bunny crossed his arms. "Ah'll drop it. If ya tell me what is goin' on."

"I can't."

"Can't or won't?"

Jack could feel her anger rising. "Just leave it alone!"

"No." Bunny's voice started getting louder.

"Why not?" Jack was almost yelling at this point.

"Because Ah'm worried 'bout ya, ya grumbly!" Bunny all but shouted at her. Jack stopped at that. What? Bunny closed his eyes and sighed. In a much quieter voice, he continued. "Ah'm worried. We don't know anythin' about what ya do with these seasonals and from what Ah've seen, it's dangerous. Ah don't want ya ta get hurt and we can't even help ya because we don't know what is going on."

Oh. Well, now she felt kind of bad. Not enough to regret anything, though. Walking the rest of the way, she put her hand on his arm. "I appreciate it Bunny. I really do. But believe me, I can handle myself. Maybe one day, I will be able to tell you guys everything, but I need you to trust me for now."

Bunny gave her a look that she couldn't exactly place. "So there is a chance that ya could tell us everything one day?"

"Maybe. Not many people get a chance to glimpse into the society, but we have allowed it before. Mortica, Chaim, Karma. Kallike I guess since no one can really stop her from messing with people. A few others." Jack said hesitantly. Bunny gazed into her eyes before nodding and turning away.

"Then Ah guess Ah can trust ya until then. As long as ya keep us up ta date on when this seasonal business is so we ain't blindsided." Bunny conceded. Jack grinned and felt a burst of happiness go through her. Bunny's eyes widened slightly and he shivered slightly.

"Thanks, Bunny!" Jack exclaimed. She stepped away and looked outside. Since Bunny was here, she could just tell him about her absence and then leave. Might as well get back to work. "Speaking of which, I'm going to be gone for a bit. Not too long. Just until the 22nd or so."

Bunny raised his eyebrows. "Let me guess, a seasonal thing?"

Jack shrugged and walked towards the balcony. "Its winter what can I say. The Spirit of Winter has a lot of duties to attend to." As she was about to launch, she remembered something. Turning back to face Bunny, she gave him a grin. "Oh, and I don't recommend going out on the 21st after sundown."

"Why?"

Jack laughed. "Because it's the Winter Solstice." With that, she jumped off the balcony, whooping in excitement. Now that was done, time to get back to work.

Ok, so this was done like a week ago, but then I checked my files and the entire chapter was deleted and so after crying because it was beautiful, I had to rewrite it from scratch and I am a little sad it was completely different than from the original, but I couldn't remember the first one and so I had to wing it. I should be able to update more regularly for the next couple of ones because they are already partially edited and they will be ready when its time. So, I'm going to post every Saturday until I have to write new chapters and then it will probably switch to every other Saturday to give me more time. I think that is all. As always, review please, and ciao snowflakes!