Happy Belated Holidays and Merry Christmas to all

Flicker Chapter 10: First and Last Kiss

North stared out the window as he stroked his beard in thought.

The heavy snow storms outside set his mind at ease. There were no signs of red flames or anything that would announce Flicker's presence, just the constant fluttering snowflakes across the winter plain of the North Pole as the wind howled throughout the air. A sigh escaped from his lips and turned back towards his workshop.

For once, the building was orderly and almost uniformed. Rather than creating and test driving the toys, the yetis were busy strengthening the workshop's defenses, even bringing out some weaponry from his days as a young man, there are some who are brushing up on their own martial arts or mediating. All this for preparation in case Flicker tried to break in and take Jack.

Even the elves were acting on their best behavior, as they have been ever since they witnessed just how injured Jack was. It was no secret that they cared about Jack, long before he became guardian. North was surprised that the elves, along with the yetis, have known him since his countless attempted break-ins in the past, which explains their nonchalant attitude when one of their own was frozen and simply placed the said frozen elf by the fire to thaw him out.

Phil walked up towards North and cleared his throat to announce his presence. The Russian man smiled and walked over to his one of his oldest friends on the furry shoulder.

"Are all the entrances secured?" North asked, there was a hint of authoritative tone in his voice. "Even the secret passageways?"

"Harbla." The chief yeti replied before sticking his thumbs up reassuringly.

This made the former bandit let out a breath that he never knew that he was holding. "Good then…we can relax for now."

North then ventured upwards towards the Globe Room, all while looking around to make sure that everything was under control. However, when he reached the main room, he paused and peek his head past the corner curiously. There in the very center of the room was a large tin tub filled with to the brim in ice and snow, with a certain occupant inside it.

That is if one could pick him out.

Jack's body was almost unnoticeable from this distance, buried beneath the snow with the back of his head resting against the tub's edge. Without his blue eyes or the sweater that he constantly wore, he blended in the snow mixture perfectly. It was hard to make out the thin line that separated the snow from his white locks of hair.

Bunny was seated on the floor at the other side of the tub. He had his arms resting on the edge as he gazed into Jack's unconscious face intently. The same hurricane of spiraling emotions was still alive in his green eyes, making north wonder what the last Pooka could possibly be thinking about. He took note of Sandy's presence in the room as well. The little golden man was sitting at the other end of the room in front of the fireplace in an attempt to give Bunny a moment of privacy. However, he could see that the sandman's face peer back at Jack's tub ever so often in concern.

Bunny leaned his head onto his arms as he stared into Jack's peaceful face.

There had been a snow filled tub made ready for them by the yetis as soon as they had passed through the portal with Jack's unconscious body. Bunny hadn't even hesitated when he practically ripped the younger guardian's pants off and dumped him into the snow and ice-filled tub so that Jack's skin would cool off as quickly as possible. As he thought about it now though, Bunny couldn't stop thinking about the fact that Jack was practically going commando. He had been too preoccupied with placing him into the tub to actually look at Jack's body when he was stripping him. But the fact that his pants were the only article of clothing that he had to take off caused his cheeks to heat up considerably.

Bunny's gaze shifted to where the winter sprite's clothing was folded neatly next to his staff by the tub before looking back at Jack's face. The snow was up to his shoulders and he couldn't help but notice how angelic he looked. His skin was back to its moonlit shade and his breathing was slow and calm. There were no signs of pain as he slept peacefully in his little ice bath. The images of Flicker's hands running over Jack's body were still fresh in his mind, making him to shake his head to try and forget it but to no avail.

Flicker won't lay a hand on Jack ever again…and I'll make sure of it.

He wanted nothing more than to kick that fire demon's face in, maybe throw him in a lake…see how he likes being out of his element. An image of Flicker's body crumbling away into ashes at the bottom of the sea made the Pooka grin with satisfaction.

"Hn…"

Bunny looked up at the gentle sound as Jack turned his head in his sleep. He snuggled deeper into the ice beneath him and let out a sigh of content. Bunny lifted his arms away from the tub as it froze over as vines of frost danced along its surface. He laughed inwardly as he realized Jack was freezing things in his sleep. His green eyes glided along the boy's collarbone and trailed up an arched neck before settling on Jack's fragile face.

Why are you so beautiful…?

But deep down, he knew the answer…he was just too stubborn to admit it.

Then he noticed Jack twitched in his sleep before mumbling something, turning his head back to its original position. This made Bunny laugh lightly in amusement. "Hey, mate, are ya wakin' up?" he whispered gently to him.

Jack's eyes fluttered a bit before opening to slowly reveal half-lidded blue orbs staring back to his green ones. He turned his head around lazily, taking in his surroundings in a sleepy manner. Then something clicked inside of the boy's head and his eyes shot wide open. Jack sat straight up in the tub of ice and a familiar bright smile appeared on his face when he saw his best friend right in front of him.

"Bunny!" He practically pushed through the ice surrounding him before wrapping his cold arms around the Pooka's neck in a death grip. Bunny went stiff in surprise for a moment but returned the hug with a smile as he relished the soothing cool temperature against his fur. His heart continued to beat rapidly when Jack pulled away and looked around the room.

"We're back at the North Pole?" he asked. Then Jack spotted Sandy floating up towards him from the other end of the room and grinned widely.

"Sandy!" he greeted enthusiastically as the dream spirit descended in front of the tub. Sandy smiled up at him before the sand formed into a shape of a small flame along with a question mark above his head.

"Am I…burning?" Jack half-translated but trailed off to place a hand on his chest, as if to test his body temperature. He narrowed his eyes when he felt something vaguely warm inside of him, not seething hot like before but still uncomfortable. Then he began scooping up handfuls of snow and shoved them down his own throat to cool off the remains of the heat that still lingered within his body.

Bunny chuckled as he watched him with amusement. "Easy, mate, yer gonna choke yerself."

But Jack ignored him, settled on continuing on swallowing snow until he confirmed that the heat was extinguished before scooping some away from his shoulders and getting an eyeful of own bare chest.

"Where's my…" He searched the room for his sweater, only to find it folded up neatly next to the tub he was in…along with his own pants. His eyes went wide and his cheeks blushed a deep violet before bringing his arms up to cover his chest. "A-am I naked!?" He practically shrieked in disbelief as he gazed down at himself.

This caused Bunny to laugh and Sandy joined in with silent chuckles of his own.

"Sorry, mate, we had to get ya cooled down pronto." Although, he had to admit…the look on Jack's face was comedy gold.

Jack let out a huff and leaned over the side of the tub to try and reach for his pants, all the while giving Bunny a good view of everything above his hips. It took all of Bunny's willpower not to ogle and stare. Although he had to admit, he always thought that he was scrawny underneath those clothes but now he realized that he was slightly slim…and curvy…NO.

Jack let out a grumble of irritation when he realized that his hand came up short, leaning back in his tub as he analyze the situation. Only one thing to do…

"Wind, get me my pants!"

On his command, a familiar gentle cool breeze blew in softly within the room, probably through the cracks of one of the secured windows, and lifted his pants into the air before hovering it in front of him. Before Jack had the chance to grab them, a dream sand bird suddenly snatched them in its beak and flew off with them.

"S-Sandy! Give them back!" he yelled at the oldest guardian as he chuckled silently from the side of the tub while guiding the bird to fly about the room, waving his hands like a conductor at an orchestra. Bunny was on the ground in a fit of laughter at this point, but Jack looked very distressed as he watched his only pair of pants being dragged across the air. He wasn't going to fly up and grab them though, not while Bunny and Sandy were watching. There was no way that he was going to fly around in his birthday suit.

He then spotted his ice bird perched upon the mantle of the fireplace and grinned when an idea struck him. He flicked his wrist and soon enough, the bird was instantly in the air. He flew by its sandy counterpart and grabbed one of the legs of his pants, trying to tug it away despite its smaller size. Unfortunately, Sandy's face lit up with excitement at the challenge and morphed his sand bird into a shark before it chomped down the brown garment and "swam" away with it. Little Jack let out an angry chirp before flying close behind it, fully intended to retrieve back the most important object back to his master, besides the staff that is. He managed to catch up with the sand shark and tugged whatever little fabric it was stuck out of the jaws which the latter playfully tug back lightly.

"What's all the commotion?" North's voice bellowed out as he entered the room.

Both of the creatures were startled by the large Russian man's entrance and quickly dropped the pants they were fighting for, causing the garment to fall down through the air and flop onto North's bald head in a comical manner. Sandy and Bunny were on the floor now, clutching their sides in a fit of laughter (well, Bunny, at least, Sandy was letting out movements that showed laughing) while Jack shrunk back in the ice tub in complete embarrassment, his cheeks were adorning an interesting shade of violet. North then pulled the pants off of his head to examine them before letting out a boisterous laugh of his own.

"I'm glad to see you doing well, Jack," he spoke up, wiping away a tear as he chuckled. "How are you feeling?"

Jack gave the older man a sheepish smile and reached out towards his pants a bit, indicating for North to hand it over to him. "I'm fine, North, could I have my…"

"Excellent!" North cuts him off, not noticing Jack's body language. "We were all getting worried, not knowing the real effects of that flower and whatnot."

Hearing the keyword "flower" made Jack recoil in response and his face fell as he remembered what had occurred while he and Bunny were trapped in Flicker's crevice. He hadn't been in a lucid state of mind at the time, but he could still recall hearing North's fight with Flicker, and the words that the fire demon had called out before he disappeared.

"I'll be seeing you again soon, Jack!"

Jack couldn't help but shudder at the promise that he made, making him sink a bit deeper into his snow bath. Bunny soon stopped laughing and straightened himself when he saw the look on Jack's face. Sandy took notice at the silence as well and fluttered back onto his feet. Both of them didn't know what to do or what to say to distract Jack from remembering that whole ordeal, how can you tell someone who was kidnapped by an insane demon that it was alright but it wasn't? That is until Jack's eyes suddenly widened and darted his gaze around his friends as he sat a straighter from his bath.

"Where's Jamie?"

Bunny's long ears perked up at this. Now that he thought about it, he had completely forgotten about Jack's first believer when he dove into the portal to Flicker's cave. He didn't know the answer to that question either, so he turned to North for an answer as the Russian chuckled softly before walking over towards the tub to (finally) return Jack's pants.

"No need for worry, he is safe," he reassured him as he handed Jack his pants. "He is back home with Tooth watching over him."

Jack nodded and looked down at the ice surrounding him while fiddling the leather straps of his pants.

"I…I want to go see him." He spoke up softly, while glancing towards Bunny, almost as though he was asking for his permission. Jack knew how much he made the Pooka worried sick by practically pulled off the Leeroy Jenkins to face Flicker on his own to save Jamie. And for that, he felt guilty, the last thing he wanted was to cause the older guardian any more stress than he already has. Sandy and North both looked at each other with uncertainty, debating on whether or not that it was a good idea since it was now twice that their youngest member barely survived the ordeal. Bunny leaned forward upon the tub and allowed his arms to resume their post upon the edge, not at all bothered by the cold.

"Are ya sure yer feelin' up to it, mate?" he asked, while his green eyes examined the winter spirit's body. While it was mostly healed, he wasn't sure that he should be moving about sometime soon.

"Sure I am!" Jack replied with a bright smile, attempting to shove his pants down into the snow so that he could place them on without anyone seeing. "I feel fine, fit as a fiddle." He spoke the last part in a sing-song tone while flexing his thin arms, imitating North a bit to show his "gun show".

Bunny chuckled at his antics. "Well, in that case, I'll go with you. We'll take the scenic route in the tunnels."

North stepped closer and was about to protest at the decision but Bunny put a paw up to silence him.

"He'll probably be looking for Jack here." He whispered to him in a low tone while Jack was busy tugging his clothes back on, which is a bit difficult since it was ice and snow that he was dealing with. "And if somethin' goes wrong…" he gestured over to Little Jack that returned his spot upon the mantle. North followed his gaze and nodded in understanding. Sometimes he has forgotten that out of all of them, Bunny has the most logic and experience. Next to Sandy of course…

"We're gonna go see Jamie and Tooth, then we'll be right back." They heard Jack make his statement as he jumped out of the tub before buckling his belt and tugged his trademark blue sweater over his head. North nodded with a smile, but still eyeing Jack with caution.

"Alright, we shall await your return," then his tone and expression became serious as he pointed a large finger at him. "Be careful, Jackson, and don't go flying off into the sky!'

Jack gave him a reassuring smile. "I won't."

Then he shifted his gaze towards Bunny.

"I promise."

Bunny ran on fur legs through the terrain of one of his tunnels as he tried to keep up with Jack, who was flying at a rather quick pace with his staff in hand. He could see the eagerness written all over Jack's face to check up Jamie, wanting nothing more than to make sure that he was okay.

"Am I going too fast for ya, Kangaroo?" Jack looked behind him playfully.

This made Bunny smirk at him. "Ha, too fast? I thought you were flying slowly because of yer injuries, Mate. I've been stayin' behind in case you collapse."

It was a light jest as Jack scowled at him but laughed nonetheless as the Pooka raced past him to prove his point. Accepting it as a challenge, he flicked his staff behind him and bolted forward on a gust of wind to try and catch up with his friend. Bunny looked back to see him rocketing after him and let out a chuckle, unable to forget the familiar sped up thumping of his heart whenever he saw that bright smile on his face.

Before they went through the tunnels as Jack prepped himself by shaking some excess snow out of his clothing, Bunny had pressured North to let only himself and Jack go because he wanted some alone time with him…that doesn't involve him being pinned to a wall while watching his best friend being molested. He didn't notice his pace was slowing down as he looked back on that day, deciding to wait for Jack to catch up with him.

"Getting tired already?" The younger guardian teased as he swooped by him and landed on his feet. However his smile quickly fell when he noticed how solemn Bunny looked as he gazed back at him.

"Are you really…ok?" It was a hesitant question, Bunny's voice was soft but Jack was able to pick it up.

Jack smiled at him and nodded, patting himself on the chest for a slight emphasis. "Yeah, that ice fixed me up good. It must have made the flower's effects wear off."

Bunny's face darkened as memories of previous events washed over him, clenching his paws tightly. "I wasn't talking about the flower…" he trailed off as he unclench and re-clench his paws a few times, as if trying to ease his temper by doing that.

"Oh…" was all Jack could say. He knew what the Pooka was referring to, he unconsciously brought his own arms up to wrap around himself as he thought back of how that demon ran his hands all over his body and fought back a shudder.

"It's ok…" he finally spoke up after a moment of silence. "I'm ok. He didn't get too far…I could barely even make out the feel of his hands compared to the burning pain everywhere." It was actually half-true, but in a way, he was rather thankful that he had to focus on the searing heat the entire time.

Bunny looked into his eyes in sadness and took a step closer to him.

"I'm sorry." He stated.

Jack gave him a confused look and let out a half-hearted laugh. "What are you sorry for? It's not your fault, Bunny."

"I know…" Bunny scratched behind one of his ears in a self-conscious manner as he looked at the ground in shame. "But I was right there…I couldn't do anything."

But Jack smiled at him nonetheless and leaned down so that he could peer back up into the Pooka's face. "That's ok. I'm glad you were there, even though…" Then he trailed off from there but neither of them felt the need to speak any further as a moment of silence washed over them. They both continued stand in place stiffly until Bunny couldn't take it anymore and reached out to tug on the front of Jack's sweater. This caused the latter to stumble forward against his chest with a startled yelp.

He felt Bunny's arms wrapped around him comfortingly and Jack couldn't help but allow himself to snuggle into the soft fur in front of him with a deep sigh. He knew that Bunny wasn't the type to give affection so easily, but as sudden as his behavior was, it was really touching to know that he cares.

He did need a hug right now…

That was the first thing that ran through Bunny's mind, inhaling Jack's fresh scent as he encased him tightly in his arms. His nose twitched in delight at the smell and his whiskers tickled the winter sprite's neck, causing him to giggle as a result. Then it happened again, that rapid beating feeling inside of his chest, only difference is that it somehow sped up to three times the speed to the point that he was worried it would burst out of his ribcage.

"Ah, well…" Bunny spoke a bit nervously before gently pulled away from him to place a firm hand on his shoulder. "We should go see Jamie and Tooth."

Jack nodded in understanding, although feeling a bit disappointed that the embrace had ended quickly just as it had started. But as the humans always say, savor what you have.

"Race ya there!" he stated cheekily before leaping up and darted off into the tunnel.

Bunny chuckled at the impish behavior as he followed suit and began racing through the burrowed dirt to catch up.

Tooth fluttered around the top of Jamie's roof, speaking quickly to each one of her fairies as they darted through the forest and sky to approach her, ready for their new orders since their mother was holding a brief base of operation at the moment. She sent them off before glancing downwards to see Baby Tooth still observing Jamie's sleeping form through the window. There had been quite a commotion when she fluttered into the house with the boy in tow. She had him settled into his bed before purposely tipped his bedside clock over to that it would create a noise to alert his family.

She had watched from the window as every member of the Bennett family came up to his room and embraced him with relieved faces. They had woken him up and started questioning him immediately, although there wasn't much that Jamie could say about his disappearance. After all, who can believe him if he told them that he was literally spirited away?

The only thing he could do was look around the room in confusion as his mother squeezed the daylights out of him with constant hugs and kisses while his father allowed himself to cry.

Sophie had noticed Tooth in the window and gave the fairy queen an appreciative smile. She returned the smile and waved at the little blonde girl, who was growing up fast the last time she saw her. She was taller now, and had cut her hair short but still maintained the same hairstyle as she had first seen her long ago. There were only two more baby teeth for her to loose, and Tooth would cherish those nights when they eventually come.

But she still had a job to do, so she asked Baby Tooth to keep a close eye on Jamie while she directed the rest of her fairies and waited for North to send back some form of message to her. Tooth was busy giving information to one of the fairies about the teeth in India before something near the ground caught her attention. She zipped forward and perched upon the chimney before observing down carefully as several of her fairies were swarming around a hole that appeared in Jamie's yard in curiosity.

Then two familiar gray ears popped out twitched around a bit before Bunny leaped out of the hole, looking around as Jack appeared right after him. Tooth's violet eyes widened and she barely contained her squeal of excitement before racing downwards to tackle Jack with a hug, knocking him off of his feet.

"Jack! Oh, I'm so glad you're alright! How are you feeling? Are you hurt? What happened?!" the way she spoke was in rapid fire speed.

"I'm good…" Jack mustered out but Tooth squeezed the breath out of him. Bunny chuckled at the sight before the fairy queen finally released Jack and hugged him around the shoulders, more gently, and released him to examine them carefully for any form of injury, thankfully she found none. But that fact wasn't enough to ease her worries one bit.

"What happened? Why was Jamie with North? And where were…"

"Easy, tooth, don't lose a feather." Bunny interrupted her when he noticed that Tooth's feathers were ruffling up to the point that it made her almost fluffy. "I'll explain everything while Jack checks up on Jamie."

That is when Tooth turned around to see Jack already floating up to Jamie's window. She had so many questions to ask but realized that some certain things had to come first. She let out a sigh before following Bunny to the roof to give their fellow guardian some privacy.

Jack smiled in greeting at Baby Tooth as the tiny fairy chirped happily and flew around his head. Then his eyes fell on Jamie, finding him wrapped up in his covers and sleeping soundly in his bed. Jack opened the window with ease before slipping inside and floated over the bed, looking down at the boy's sleeping face in fondness before settling down next to him, placing his staff to lean against the bedframe. Jack stroked the brown hair out of Jamie's eyes, watching as he shifted in his sleep from the cold temperature of his hand. Brown eyes blinked open before going wide when he saw Jack's smiling face came into focus.

"Jack!" he cried out, through his voice was a bit groggy. He jumped up from his bed and wrapped his arms around the winter spirit, hugging him tightly. Jack chuckled as he squeezed him back, relieved that his favorite believer was alright.

"Y-you're ok!" Jamie muffled a sob into the winter sprite's sweater.

"Of course, I am. I told you I would be." Jack replied softly.

After a moment of embracing, Jamie pulled away and tried his best to hold back his sobs. The last thing that he wanted Jack to see was him crying like a baby. What surprised him was that Jack brought a hand up to gently brush a tear out of his eye. He swallowed a lump in his throat, gathering his bearings before mustering up the courage to speak.

"Was…was that Pitch?"

Jack's brow furrowed in confusion when Jack asked that question. Could it be…?

"No…you couldn't see him?" he questioned in curiosity.

Jamie shook his head and rubbed the tears out of his eyes. "All I could see was fire…but that was it," he murmured.

Jack nodded, feeling somewhat relieved that not only Flicker was invisible to children, but to the very few who still believed in them in teen to adult years.

"Well, it wasn't Pitch. It was a different guy, but don't worry." Jack reassured him before smiling. "North beat the crap out of him for taking you." To make his point, he playfully punched a hand into his fist, making Jamie laugh a bit. Then Jack's face softened as he smiled at him. "But really, you don't have to worry…he's gone for good."

Jamie sniffed a bit before running his eyes along Jack's body in confusion. "But…you ate that thing…" he whispered. Before he was placed to sleep by Sandy, the last thing he saw was the flower forcing itself down Jack's throat and the sight of him in pain. Then next thing he knew, he was at home, with his family relieved to see him, and finding out that he had been gone for at least two days. He had been getting texts and voice messages from his childhood friends, feeling somewhat relieved that they still remember him and each other.

However it was Jack that he was worried about. Considering that he is associated with winter, who knows what kind of effects that flower had.

The white-haired guardian smiled at him in reassurance. "Turns out that it was just a gross tasting flower, it didn't do a thing." He hated lying to Jamie, but the last thing he wanted was to make him worry more, especially since it was all over now. It wasn't fair for him to be involved all of this…

"S-so…you're ok?" Jamie asked as he tried to keep his voice calmed but it came out somewhat cracked. Jack nodded but the latter's eyes continued to water and his body racked with sobs. Without a word, Jack pulled him into another hug and petted his hair soothingly as Jamie tried to speak further.

"I-I thought you were gonna…I th-thought I was never g-gonna get to tell you…" Jamie muffled into Jack's ear.

"Tell me what, Jamie?" he asked, even though he was pretty sure that he already knew the answer while rubbing slow and soothing circles upon Jamie's back to try and calm him down.

"Th-that…that I love you!"

"So that's what the flowers do…" Tooth trailed off thoughtfully.

While Jack was comforting Jamie inside, she and Bunny took refuge on the roof. There she was filled on what happened two days ago. From Jamie's kidnapping to the battle on what seemed to be an undiscovered part of the earth (which is impossible, even for her), all the way to the battle and the eventual force-feeding of Jack by the flower.

Bunny nodded before continuing in a gruff tone. "But I'm not sure they all do the same thing." He certainly hoped that the other two flowers didn't have the same painful effects as the first, not that he was going to allow Jack to eat any of them just to find out. As he continued to explain the events from earlier, Tooth became more and more concern about him.

"So, what happened after you woke up with Jack in the cave?" she asked, her violet eyes were searching his face as she fluttered over to him.

Bunny bit his bottom lip when she asked that. He wasn't sure just how much detail he should tell her. Despite her seemingly hyperactive nature, she had such a soft and gentle heart. He just didn't know what to say.

"I…I woke up stuck to the wall by the same statues…while Jack was laying on some platform in front of me. He couldn't move…and Flicker came…" then he trailed off and glanced at Tooth, who seemed to be hovering on his every word, urging him to continue. "Then Flicker talked for a while…but then Sandy and North showed up and took him on before anything happened so…"

"Bunny." He recognized that maternal yet stern tone in her voice.

The Pooka looked at the fairy queen nervously, looking into her hardened eyes. She waited for him to tell her all the details, he was avoiding certain parts of the story and she knew it. Bunny let out a deep sigh as his ears dropped backwards. There was a look of pain in his green eyes which quickly filled Tooth with concern.

"I…I just couldn't do anything!" he confessed, raising his arms in front of himself to not only emphasize his words but also his frustrations. "Flicker came and started touching Jack all over while the poor anklebiter was still in pain from the flower! Jack was screaming…and I just…I couldn't…" Then his voice broke off as he breathed heavily, emotionally exhausted from his outburst. Tooth placed a gentle hand upon his shoulder to comfort him, reminding him that it was all over.

Needless to say that she wasn't surprised when she hear that from Bunny's mouth. One would have to be blind not to see the way Flicker looked at Jack at her palace, a look of pure hunger and lust. It still filled her with dread though, knowing that Jack had been touched in such a way, that it would even make her skin crawl underneath her feathers. What even amazed her was how well Jack looked when she saw him, after having gone through such an awful experience.

Unless he was THAT good on hiding…oh, sweet MiM, no…

"He didn't…I mean, did he get so far that he…"

"No." Bunny had cut her off. "North made it before he could get Jack's pants off."

Tooth instantly flushed at how bluntly the Pooka stated it, but she could still see Bunny's green eyes glazed over with a turbulence of emotions. Then he took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, placing himself at ease, at least a little.

"It's ok…" he said. "Jack's fine now, that's all that matters."

The fairy queen nodded, smiling softly at the way the Pooka said Jack's name.

He really does love him.

Jack smiled sadly as he placed both hands on Jamie's shoulders, gently pushing him back a bit so that he could see him. He looked into those brown, tear-filled eyes and tried his best to keep his composure as much as possible. This is it…he had to say this before either one of them regret it.

"Jamie…I love you so much, but you know we can't be together." He swallowed before continuing. "Not like that."

Jamie squeezed his eyes shut and shook his head, not wanting to believe what he was saying as he continued.

"You're going to grow older. You're going to want to get married and have a family. I can't give you those things, Jamie." He could hear the sadness in his own voice, and was quite sure that Jamie could hear it too.

"I-I don't care about those things." The brunet spoke quietly, forcing his voice to stay steady as he peered back into the blue eyes that he had always loved gazing into, even in dreams.

"But you will…I know you will someday."

Jack smiled at him sadly as Jamie shook his head again, trying to fend off the sobs that crept over him. It was hard to accept but it was one of many parts of the harsh reality not only Jamie had to face but him as well. As much as he wanted to, Jack knew he couldn't give him the happiness that Jamie deserves. However, he knew what to do to bring back the smile on his face.

"Come on, Jamie," Jack cooed softly, brushing the hair out of the boy's eyes. "There is still something I want you to have from me."

This made Jamie's sobs cease and his head snapped up to look into his face curiously. The winter spirit let out a chuckle as he hovered upwards and softly floated in front of Jamie on the bed, settling in a kneeling position. He leaned in close, looking into Jamie's wide brown eyes.

"I've never kissed anyone before." It came in a soft whisper, but it made Jamie's face lit up and smiled widely. He turned and scooted closer to Jack so that their faces were only inches away.

"Really?" he asked, sounding excited, like the night when he had seen all guardians in one night. "You…you really want me to…?"

"Yup, I want you to be the first one to kiss Jack Frost!" Jack spread his arms out in a dramatic fashion that would rival North's and Jamie laughed at his antics. He wiped the remaining tears out of his eyes as soon as he calmed down, looking at Jack with gratitude. When Jack shifted closer to him, Jamie looked down at the blanket nervously before glancing back into Jack's eyes shyly.

"To be honest…I never kissed anyone either." It was true. Despite having compliments on his good looks, he was a firm believer to share his first kiss with someone he truly loved. So the thought of Jack being the one, he had to thank Sandy for it.

"Good," Jack replied, feeling his own heart swelling with joy. "That means I get to be your first kiss too."

Jamie nodded, his breath hitched as he moved his face closer to Jack's. He watched in fascination as the winter spirit's beautiful blue eyes fluttered closed and his face relaxed. Jamie moved forward slowly, he never wanted to forget this moment. He wanted to keep it locked away in his heart for the rest of his life.

When he gave Jack a chaste kiss as a start, he noticed that his lips were icy cold against his own. But he liked it…he liked being cold, because that meant it was Jack Frost and Jack alone.

Jack was the one he was with right now, and nobody else.

Jack Frost!

Jamie couldn't hold back much longer as he pushed his lips more firmly against Jack's, bringing up his hand to tangle in the white locks. He shifted his head and moved his lips against the cold ones.

Jack was uncertain a first, only moving his lips slightly. But he soon followed Jamie's lead, meeting each graze of the brunet's lips with his own movements. He felt the bed shift a bit as Jamie moved, not once releasing from the kiss, and feeling himself being pulled closer when Jamie curled his other arm around his waist. Jack wasn't sure what to do with his own arms, so he let them lay there as he focused on moving his lips. He didn't know when it happened, but somehow Jamie got his warm tongue inside of his mouth. It searched around his teeth and prodded his own cold muscle. While not sure how to react, he experimented by grazing his own tongue with Jamie's, feeling tingling sparks dance up in his spine as he does so.

After a while, they both finally pulled away at the same time, both of them panting for breath. He took note at the fact that Jamie's cheeks were beet red.

Jamie laughed a bit as he examined Jack's face and the effects of his kiss. His cheeks were tinted with a lovely shade of violet and his hair was out of place. His lips looked swollen and had a reddish violet color to his lips. He also noticed that there was a thick layer of frost branching out of his own legs an over the covers to his bed. Jack noticed this as well, examining the frost that he had created with surprise.

"Whoops." He breathed in between pants sheepishly. Jack suddenly realized that his own temperature had dropped dramatically and he could see Jamie's breath as the latter breathed in and out.

He looked back at Jamie with wide eyes.

"That was one Hell of a first kiss, Jamie." It was the first thing that he could think of out loud.

Jamie laughed harder and pulled him back into his arms. "Yeah, I want you to remember it forever." He spoke softly into his ear.

"I will," Jack promised, returning Jamie's hug and snuggled in his arms. "Now, you'll always be my first kiss…even when you're gone and I'm still wandering around this world."

Jamie nodded, smiling in Jack's hair.

"And you'll always be mine."

Bunny's nose twitched as he turned away from the window. He felt terrible about spying on Jack when he was having a private moment with Jamie, but he was just too curious for his own good. He somewhat regretted watching them kiss, though.

He was proud of Jack for how he handled the situation. If it was Bunny who had to turn down that sweet boy's love, he was sure that Jamie would be bawling his eyes out at the end. But Jamie looked happier than he ever was.

Jack had done well…but Bunny's chest felt heavy as he remembered seeing those two shared their first kiss.

He couldn't deny the fact that they looked good together. Jack was a human after all. If Bunny were to ever kiss Jack like that, it would just look weird, unfit, and unnatural. But after seeing Jack's beautiful face in a blissful state after the kiss had ended…

He sure wanted to kiss him.

He wanted to tackle the boy to the ground and drown him in kisses.

Then the Pooka shook his head and leaped upwards from the windowsill to rejoin Tooth, who made herself comfortable on the chimney as she waited for Jack to finish his visit with Jamie.

"Jack, why are you blushing?" Tooth giggled as she continued poking him in the cheeks.

"What? I'm not blushing!" He let out a huff as he crossed his arms. "Jack Frost does not blush."

The three of them were traveling in the tunnels at the moment, taking their time on heading back to the North Pole. Jack and Bunny chose to walk while Tooth zipped around them in a delighted frenzy, though it was downplayed whenever she was around a fallen baby tooth. She had been like that since Jack finished up his visit, and noticed him smoothing out his hair and the tell-tale blush on his cheeks.

"Yes, you do!" She chimed playfully. "Your blood is purple and you've been blushing ever since we left Jamie's house!"

"Hmmph." Jack stuck his chin up and pretended to be offended, causing the fairy queen to laugh even louder. There was no point of denying it, if Jack had a mirror, she would be right. Even so, he would still not tell her why. However, Bunny was the only one who wasn't amused.

"Jamie probably did somethin' embarrassing." He grumbled.

Jack shot him an awkward look before shaking it off and jumping into the air.

"Hey, Tooth! Race ya back!" he called as he flew forward through the tunnel.

Tooth laughed merrily as she grinned at the possible challenge. Her wings fluttered a moment before shooting off through the tunnel, zipping past Jack which took him by surprise.

"Last one there has to floss North's teeth!"

Typical of her and her complete obsession with teeth and dental hygiene, but that's one of the few quirks of hers. Bunny let out a chuckle before getting down on all fours to race behind the fairy queen with Jack right in front of him. Jack looked down and stuck his tongue out impishly as he directed the wind to move him faster.

"Ha! Is that all you got, Mate?" Bunny laughed as he leaped in front of him, dashing through the tunnel at full speed.

"Careful, I'm catching up to ya, Kangaroo!" Jack smirked as he picked up the speed, following close behind the Pooka.

Both he and Jack are getting into this mini game, and when they took a sharp turn, Bunny skidded roughly to a halt when he saw Tooth just hovering near the ground just before the hole above that served as an entrance to North's workshop.

"Tooth, what…" Then Bunny yelped when Jack crashed into his back, causing them both to fall onto the dirt floor. Both of them recover with a groan and Jack noticed a look of distress on Tooth's face. Feeling concerned, he hovered upwards to stand in front of her while Bunny rubbed his nose, checking to see if it was broken.

"What's wrong?" he asked, before noticing that her feathers were ruffling frantically. She didn't answer to him right away. She quickly turned to Bunny who looked back to her in confusion.

"Bunny, take Jack to the Warren. Now!" It was hushed, nearly a whisper but he could pick up panic in her voice as he pushed himself back onto his feet.

"What? What's goin' on?" His gaze shifted back towards Jack, whose face had hardened in understanding. He knew what Tooth had seen at the top of the tunnel.

"…Flicker's here."