Hyrrg! Apparently, it doesn't want to be spit out in only two short chapters. This is what I get for not sitting down and actually doing stuff for a while: Writer's backup. Too many ideas, not enough space. And I probably should have split this into two chapters as well.
First Christmas 3
In the shadow of North's Globe of Belief is a short hallway, leading to a room with one of the North Pole's lesser known treasures. It is a 'miniature' globe. That being said, it was still over three meters tall from base to crown. Some of the yeti would argue that this was the important globe, and the other was practically a glorified decoration. As far as North knew or cared, this smaller model didn't exist. And if it did exist, it was because the yeti had made it in a fit of boredom that spanned a decade's worth of post-Christmas vacations. To Jack Frost, it was one of the most beautiful blending of magic and technology that he had ever had the privilege to touch. Ceramic tiles of blue, white, green and brown made the perfect surface, with each tile being less than a centimeter squared. The tiles weren't flat either. There were slight dips and bumps corresponding to the proper geographical features with an accuracy that honestly scared Jack the first time he saw it. And the best part was, it showed the weather absolutely everywhere from the poles to the equator. Perfect replica clouds swirled and moved around the globe, showing exactly where their full-sized duplicates floated around the Earth.
Reaching the weather room, Jack waved to Maurice, who gave a grunt in return as the yeti moved between various weather maps. Touching the cool ceramic tiles, Jack took a moment to admire the pinnacle of yeti craftsmanship before getting to work. Taking to hovering on a breeze so that he could see the northern hemisphere better, Jack tracked down the worrying storm, watching the clouds slowly turn and twist in an angry gray of impending blizzard. "Thanks for calling me down." Maurice nodded, holding out a weather map for Jack to take, sliding his comically small spectacles back into place. "I was hoping that the storm would hold off for a few more hours, but it looks like it got caught up in a jet stream eddy and now it's just building up until I can push it along." The yeti didn't know whether Jack was speaking to the air or to him, so he nodded along anyway, watching Jack practically dance between the chart and globe, studying the patterns.
"Maybe if I move that there… No. Or maybe Wind- No." Biting his lip in concentration, Jack swirled his finger through the miniature clouds, trying out different techniques, moving them this way and that, pushing the wind higher and lower, slower and faster, until he the clouds started reacting like he wanted them to. If only he could make his weather react using the globe, it would make things so much easier.
Taking a look around the whole globe one more time, Jack nodded in satisfaction. He would only have to focus on the one storm system. The others could take care of themselves unless something major came along within the next few hours. "Hey Maurice, thanks again!" The yeti waved Jack off, pretending he didn't just spend the entire time internally praying that the boy wouldn't mess with any of the weather pattern spells permanently. "Last chance, Baby, you staying inside where it's warm, or coming with me?" The yeti didn't hear the response as the door to the room shut behind Jack. Counting to ten to make sure the boy was out of range; Maurice turned his radio back on. '…Könnt ihr mich hören? Wir hören dich Könnt ihr mich sehen? Wir sehen dich…'
Jack poked his head through with a knowing grin. "Rammstein oder? sehr schön." (Rammstein huh? Very nice.) And with a laugh, he left, missing the yeti hitting his head against the desk with a groan of embarrassment.
Making it back to the room where the others were celebrating a successful Christmas, Jack breezed through to the massive bay window, only pausing for a moment to chug some of the drink that Phil had brought earlier and grab a few more of the toast 'cookies', this time handing a whole one to Baby Tooth. Glancing at North, Jack shrugged into his tailcoat. "Hey, North, is it ok for me to use one of your windows? Thanks." Not bothering to wait for North to respond, Jack slammed his hand against the glass, coating the entire thing in frost. The familiar sound of ice crackling calmed and focused Jack somewhat as he stepped back to watch the entire surface become covered in his delicate frozen signature.
First, he drew a life-size stick figure of a girl and breathed life into her. Holding his hand out, the frost form stepped off of the window with Jack's help. What had been a glorified stick figure had become a little girl about four years old with square-cut bangs swept to the side and a simple dress with a diamond pattern around the bottom hem. On her feet were a pair of old-fashioned ice skates. "Watch them for me, can you do that?" He asked softly and the frost child nodded eagerly. They smiled at each other and Jack delicately took her hands and led her in a simple figure eight pattern, tracing a path in frost for her to follow. After a few circuits, Jack let her go and she continued on with a wide grin and a mute giggle.
Next, Jack drew a bunny and brought it to life, sending it bounding over to the real Bunny to circle his ears. Bunny tried to catch the creature, but as soon as his paw brushed its frozen fur, it exploded in a puff of blue-tinted snowflakes, startling the party. "Don't touch her, please. I'll know if you do." He stated, not looking at the elder guardians as he gestured to the girl, so he wouldn't see their confused expressions. He didn't want to talk about his actions quite yet. If he didn't look at them, he could pretend that he didn't have to explain anything.
"Baby." Jack crouched on the bay seat and pushed the window open, holding his free hand out for Baby Tooth. The duo quickly slipped out and Jack closed the window, frosting the outside as well. "You draw the ram; I'll do all the sheep, ok?" Baby chirped in acknowledgement and started drawing in a corner with her tiny fingers, able to get much more detail than Jack's basic drawings. His sheep actually looked more like cotton ball clouds with upside-down eggs for heads and a pair of upside-down 'V's for legs. He wasn't going for quality but quantity. The more he had, the more he could control the storm system, but on the other side of the coin, each frost creation took a chunk out of his energy reserves. Normally, he wouldn't bother using the frost creations except for possibly one or two to help with larger systems, but he wasn't anywhere near the storm this time. The more energy he put forth now, the less cleanup that he would have to deal with later. As he finished each one, he summoned it from the glass to float around his feet. Spotting Tooth on the other side of the glass, Jack laughed and poked the glass in front of her nose, 'nipping' it and clouding her vision with thick frost.
"Ready Baby?" The fairy nodded and floated back for Jack to inspect her drawing. He nodded in approval; it was indeed a fine drawing of a curly-horned ram, better than Jack could have drawn. "Very nice. Now, there's a pocket on the right side of my vest on the inside. I want you to stay there so you can stay safe, ok?" Baby chirped and gave a salute before burrowing into Jack's clothing, crawling around until she was settled into the pocket. "You good now?" He felt a nod and patted over the lump in his vest gently before buttoning up his tailcoat for extra security. Hopefully everything was snug enough that he wouldn't have to worry about Baby being torn out of her perch by a powerful gust by Wind.
Absently summoning the ram, Jack looked at his flock of frost-sheep. As they were, they would only last a half hour, maybe an hour if they were lucky. Focusing his magic, Jack's eyes fluttered closed and he gripped his staff with both hands. With a sharp commanding whistle, Wind shot him straight up into the clouds, the flock following closely behind. He would use the local clouds to give the sheep more 'substance' so that they would last the journey to the storm system. Ice-lightening cracked through the clouds from his staff, outlining his and the flock's forms. Using his staff he pushed and prodded the sheep into the formation that they would need to take when they got to their destination, whistling sharp patterns like that of a shepherd to his sheepdog the entire time. It had taken until regaining his human memories for Jack to understand why he moved as he did to control the storm systems. While his mind had no idea of what he was doing, his body remembered the years of helping tend to the village's flock of sheep and the work involved. Satisfied that the frost sheep knew what they were doing, and had accumulated enough energy to last the trip, Jack summoned Wind with a sharp whistle only meant for her and off the flock flew.
Watching the flock leave, it took a moment to realize that all of Wind went with them and that he was falling, along with his remaining strength. His eyes fluttered shut and he curled up, his free hand resting protectively over Baby's pocket as he plummeted.
Inside, the guardians watched Jack as long as they could before he disappeared up into the clouds. Instead, they were content to watch the little girl skate her figure eight out of the corner of their eyes.
"Might as well get the rest of the gifts out of the way while we wait." Bunny shrugged, pulling out the last two baskets from under the tree. A purple and green basket went to Tooth with a selection of fresh fruits for the girls and a jar of sugar-free preserves for the Queen.
"Thank you, Bunny. But I really do think we should wait." Tooth said, picking through the basket anyway. Bunny shrugged, handing a yellow basket with only one (exceptionally large) egg to Sandy.
"Suit yourself, but there isn't anything else under the tree anyway."
"Ah, there is my gift for Jack." North piped up, checking under the tree one last time. "Oh-ho, what is this?" He pulled out four more gifts, beautifully wrapped.
"I thought you already gave him something, mate. That book." Bunny eyed the presents as well.
"Ah, yes, that was from me, but Birthday present." North waved his hand dismissively, "Very different. This is Christmas present, from Santa. For being on Nice list." The gift from 'Santa' wasn't actually wrapped, but had a satin bow tied around its' neck. Getting a good look at it, Bunny choked on a laugh.
"Is that," Bunny's ears were twitching in amusement, "A yeti?" It indeed was a small replica of a yeti, but with unique coloring with pale fur on the head, shoulders and torso, darkening to a light tan on the extremities.
"Yeti insisted." North turned the stuffed toy in his hands. "Was going to give him stuffed bunny," North gave Bunny a smirk, "made to look like little you."
"Oi, you trying to start a blue?" Bunny puffed up. Tooth stifled a giggle and exchanged a look with Sandy before taking the little yeti to inspect herself.
"I haven't seen this coloring on any of your yeti before." Tooth murmured, looking at its uniquely shaded blue eyes and the carefully embroidered loincloth before passing it to Sandy. Most of the yeti at the Pole didn't bother with any decorative clothing, unlike their Himalayan cousins.
"Da." North turned away from smirking at Bunny. "This one," North gently took the yeti from Sandy when he was finished taking his turn, "I have only seen once or twice. Was told that yeti with this color was only visiting." He poked the doll in the belly before running a finger over the square loincloth. He noticed absently that it was made out of white lambskin suede with a blue snowflake embroidered in a hexagon. "Was small and quiet, even for yeti." Passing the doll to Bunny, whom declined the urge to look closer, North settled it on Jack's chair. After a moment, he arranged the rest of Jack's gifts in the chair as well. The yeti was placed inside the basket, between Tooth's dental kit and Sandy's bag of sand, leaning against the large book of poetry to keep it upright.
"Is not enough." Frowning, North turned to the others. "Jack is child. This is not enough." He tried to breathe through the knot in his heart.
"No, it's not." Bunny agreed, staring into the fire. Sandy floated lower with a solemn expression.
"No." Tooth bit her lip, trying not to cry. "But that's what we have next year for, right?"
"And the year after that." Bunny nodded.
"And after that." North agreed. Sandy popped up a calendar, the years increasing quickly before the picture faded out. "Maybe we can make up for past mistakes, yes?"
Tooth nodded and opened her mouth to say something when the little girl in the corner exploded, sending blue sparkles everywhere. "Ah!" Flying to the window, Tooth managed to shoulder it open just in time to see Jack fall past the cliff edge. "JACK!" She didn't bother looking back to see if the others could follow.
Grunting, North looked out the window to see if he could jump out safely when he spotting a yeti with grey and tan fur carrying a blanket and a mountain-to-mountain arrow gun strapped to its back already trudging through the soft snow in the direction that Jack fell. "Sandy, follow Tooth. Bunny and I will prep the infirmary. Just in case." With that, the golden man flew after Tooth. Bunny was given no choice as North grabbed his upper arm and steered him out of the room.
The first thing that Jack noticed when he regained consciousness was that Baby Tooth was making a ruckus, chirping like someone had died. "Shh, Baby, I'm trying to sleep." Jack murmured, curling further on his side.
SPLAT!
Abruptly sitting up, Jack spat out the remnants of the snowball that had fallen on his face, trying to shake out the errant flakes that had found their way into his ear canal. "Ok, ok, I'm up! I'm… Ugh." Curling forward, Jack pressed his forehead to his knees. He was only vaguely sore, but not near the soreness that would have resulted from hitting ice. Or rocks. Or solid ground in general. Instead, he had somehow managed to aim his fall into the middle of a nice deep snow drift. Yay, and a 9.8 from the judges! Point-oh-two point penalty for losing consciousness upon dismount.
Managing to open his eyes, Jack was surrounded by blue and white. Yep, a deep snow drift, alright. Had to be at least a meter deep, maybe a meter and a half… or two. At least with it being in the middle of the arctic night, Jack didn't have to deal with the sun reflecting off the snow as well. Speaking of, Jack spotted streamers of golden sand float across the sky. Was it time for Sandy and Tooth to leave already? He didn't get to see them open their gifts! Not like they would know that they were from him, but still, he liked to see people's faces when they were surprised. "Jack! Where are you!" The voice was thin because of the distance, but it was easily recognizable.
All Jack could manage was a grunt upon recognizing Tooth's voice, not having enough energy to give a proper response. Baby, on the other hand, immediately zoomed out of the Jack-shaped hole in the snow and toward her mother, squealing the entire way. "Baby! There you are! Where's Jack?"
"Crud." Jack planted his face into his hands before blindly groping his way around to find his staff. Apparently, he had actually landed on it. So that was the bruise he could feel running from his shoulder to his hip. That would be a fun one to explain. Not wanting to be mothered by Tooth (Phil would be bad enough, once the yeti-sized mother hen found out), Jack managed to stand up, his head barely higher than the edge of the snow bank. The next thing he knew, he was being hauled up by the back of his jacket. "Y'know Phil. We have got to stop meeting like this." Jack stated, proud that he only wobbled a little as he was set on his feet. "Oh, hey Tooth… Sandy? You guys didn't have to come get me. I would have made it back… eventually."
Quickly patting Jack down for injuries, she held on to both of his arms, a moue on her face. "Jackson Overland Frost, don't scare us like that!" She huffed, giving the boy a hug. "At least you weren't hurt."
"Uh, yeah." Jack nodded, managing not to wince. Yep, there was going to be a staff-shaped bruise there come morning. At least it wasn't the crook part. He'd had that happen before and it ended up looking, and feeling, worse than it actually was. While he had managed to convince Tooth, and thus Sandy, Phil was a harder sell. The yeti took his turn patting Jack down, carefully and thoroughly before wrapping the boy, without warning, in the blanket he had brought and handed the staff to Sandy. "Phil! Buddy, you don't have to do that." Phil snorted, promptly picking the Jack burrito up and making sure the blanket was tucked in a way that he couldn't move without Phil putting him down first. Grumbling something softly, Phil ran a soft hand over Jack's eyes, telling the boy to rest.
"Yeah, fine, but just until we get back inside." Jack acquiesced, turning his nose to be buried in Phil's fur and closing his eyes. He would just close his eyes for just… a…
Next thing that he knew, Phil was laying Jack on one of the infirmary beds. "Huh?" Phil chuckled, unwrapping Jack. "Oh, we're back." Phil nodded, pulling over some of the supplies that North and Bunny had pulled out while they were waiting. (Really, plaster strips for casts and a hot water bottle weren't necessary) Gesturing for Jack to remove his jacket, vest and blouse, the boy blushed. "Umm…" He looked around, spotting the other guardians. Tooth had a shawl wrapped around her shoulders as she talked to North. "Phil, I'm fine. I just used all my energy at once." The yeti bobbed his head, saying that he knew, and gestured once again for the clothing to come off.
"Yeti say that you needed checkup anyway." North called from across the room, as if he didn't know that already. Pulling a face, Jack sighed and hitched the blanket he had been wrapped firmly in higher on his shoulders. "What better than the present? Will be quick about it."
"Yeah, but do I need an audience too?" Jack was glad that his blush wasn't noticeable across the room. Over three hundred years of solitude hadn't changed his attitude from his colonial sense of propriety.
"We will not disturb you." North answered, oblivious.
"Tooth, you too Baby, could you, please, maybe, step out for a moment?" Jack didn't face them, but didn't hear them leave either. "Please? All of you. It'll go faster if I'm alone. I'll be back really soon, ok?" Finally, North got the hint after a look from the corner of Jack's eye and a tug from Sandy on his elbow. "Thanks." A moment later, the infirmary door clicked shut and Jack looked around to make sure that he and Phil were alone.
Reluctantly shedding everything from the belt up, Jack turned to let Phil see the developing bruise. The yeti gave Jack an unimpressed look and muttered something about how he shouldn't attempt to hide injuries anymore, that it was a bad habit around people you trusted. "It's only a bruise." Phil snorted, carefully prodding along the line, feeling knots developing in the muscle already and gently working them out. Grabbing two different paste jars, Phil applied one along the bruise to numb the area and keep the swelling down. The second, Jack gave a curious look. Soon enough, Phil switched to the second jar and let Jack get a good whiff. It had a mint and aloe smell to it. Gesturing to Jack's dominant arm and chest, Phil explained that it was a good burn ointment.
"Oh, this." Jack grimaced, figuring out that Phil was, in his own way, asking what happened to cause the inflamed pink streaks crossing his arm and chest that looked disturbingly like a series of handprints. "It was a couple of months ago. Apparently summer was supposed to run long this year and nobody saw fit to tell me about it." Jack shrugged, the fresh burn tissue crinkling and shining in its own unique way. "Don't worry about it. It's practically healed by now. See?" Phil didn't look impressed and slathered the burn ointment on the scar tissue anyway, giving Jack the jar with instructions to reapply once a day for the next week. He wanted Jack to come back when the jar was empty to see how the scars and bruises were fading.
"Yes, sir." Jack pouted, ducking his head. "Are we done now?" Phil snorted, lightly cuffing Jack on the head. Holding up a finger, Phil quickly checked Jack's back and shoulders for marks before handing the boy back his shirt.
Mid way through buttoning his shirt, Jamie's borrowed watch started chirping and both boy and yeti froze, staring at the other. Gesturing to the watch, Phil didn't need to ask. "I… think I'll stay with the guardians this year. I don't think I'd be much company down in the village anyway, sorry." Phil nodded his head in understanding, telling Jack that he'd give the others his apologies. "I just really want to see what the others think of my gifts, if they haven't been opened already." Biting his lip, Jack gave Phil an apologetic look, which was quickly waved off.
Asking if he'd be able to make it back up to the others on his own, Jack nodded, sliding from the bed. "Yeah, I'll be fine. Merry Christmas Phil." Phil nodded and gave Jack a soft smile before pressing their foreheads together gently. Jack pressed back briefly before stepping away. Waving the boy out the door, Phil said that he'd bring up Jack's gifts from the yeti after he cleaned up here. Jack's grin lasted the whole way back to the room.
"Jack! We did not know if you were going to join us again tonight!" North greeted, saluting the boy with a cookie. "How was checkup?"
Jack shrugged, curling up against the frosted over bay window. He was away from the fire, but he still had direct sight with most of the goings-on in the room. "The usual: I need to eat more, stop playing with the summer spirits because they don't play fair and get a flying partner that can actually catch me if I decide to jump off the top of a cloud again. You know- the same thing that Phil's always telling me." He said it in such a nonchalant way that Sandy had to think about what the boy said. He couldn't tell if Jack was telling tall tales or if that's what Phil really told the boy.
"Ah," North finally just let it slide with a nod, "Come, we still have gifts."
Shaking his head, Jack leaned against the glass and closed his eyes. "I'm good. You guys go ahead." The elder guardians exchanged looks, but couldn't say anything to get Jack to come closer. While the boy was out, they had spoken about the four mystery gifts, easily determining that they weren't from any of them, and the wrapping was too decorative for the Yeti's usual style. The only other option was that the gifts were actually from Jack. And in the off-chance that they weren't, they didn't want to upset the boy by opening gifts when he was obviously left out.
"If you are sure…" North gave Jack one more chance, then took up the smallest of the quartet of presents. "Sandy." The Sandman took the small box, immensely amused by the mass of curls literally taking over the present. He deftly removed the ribbons and plopped them on his head like a bad wig. The box itself was nearly impossible to open, with it being plastic foil wrap instead of the standard paper. And whoever had wrapped it had taped every. Single. Fold. and exposed edge down. He had no doubt that the box was practically rendered water, and sand, proof. And after a minute of scrabbling, Sandy finally managed to slip a nail under the tape's edge and pulled with an exclamation mark floating over his head. Finally, the box was unwrapped with a round of applause from his audience. Taking a small bow, Sandy was ecstatic to find that the box itself was not taped shut.
Jack hid a smirk while watching Sandy's progress, congratulating himself on the wrapping job. He made a mental note to wrap ALL his gifts in the plastic foil wrapping paper next year. Yeah, he liked the sound of next year. It had a promising ring to it.
Actually, that was a bell, now that he was paying attention.
Having opened the beautifully embroidered satchel, Sandy let out a question mark as he took out the small hand bell. Was this some sort of joke like the wrapping foil? Shaking it, he heard nothing and looking inside the bell itself, he expected it to be without a clapper, but was surprised to see a felt stopper wrapped around it instead. He easily removed the stopper, seeing that it was simple to slip back on and would stay in place, and gave the bell an experimental shake. Letting out an exclamation mark, Sandy was happy to find that the little golden bell was distinctly unique from the bells the elves wore on their hats. Looking closer, Sandy noticed that the bell was hand-pounded, not cast, and acid etched with little swirls and stars. The handle itself was white ceramic painted with a silver crescent moon and golden swirls of dots. The entire thing was perfect for Sandy's small hands to wield, and not too heavy. Blinking in satisfaction, he gladly passed it around for the others to look at the details.
"It's a beaut, mate." Bunny complimented, turning the delicate thing in his paws. "Jack, you want to take a gander?" Holding his hand up, Jack shook his head, content to watch. Nodding, Bunny handed it back to Sandy. "Suit yourself. North, who's next?"
Holding up the round box, North read the tag. "Me." With a nod, the others sat back to watch. This one was significantly easier to break into after removing the ribbon. Peering inside, North blinked in surprise. "Ah, a belt. I have been needing new one." He laughed, patting his belly before taking the belt from its resting place. The buckle was a simple silver design, polished to a high shine, but it was the leather itself that was special. What had started as a simple length of matte polished black leather was now tooled with several designs, and in the middle, the sleigh and reindeer, painted a metallic red, bronze and copper. Tooled holly bunches decorated most of the rest of the belt, painted in a dark metallic green and red as well. 'Naughty' and 'Nice' were burned into the leather over each hip, so that while the paint would fade with use and time, those two words would not. There were even stylized Christmas boxes, much like the tribal work on his tattoos, interspersed between the hollies.
With a shout of joy, North easily wrapped the belt around his cummerbund and showed it off. "I am knowing perfect place for belt! Will go with coat always! Will need belt loops on coat now, but does not matter. What do you think?"
"I think it looks wonderful." Tooth flew closer, admiring the subtle colors and the careful manipulation of the leather itself to make the pictures. She couldn't help but to glance over at Jack, who was hiding his smile under crossed arms propped on his knees. The boy was tired, but was enjoying the reaction from the others' gifts. If she wasn't sure before, she was now, that Jack had indeed made these wonderful items.
"Next is for Jack!" Plucking the stuffed yeti from Jack's pile of new gifts, North settled it next to Jack's hip. "Merry Christmas, from Santa. And thank you."
Jack's brows furrowed. "For what? And shouldn't I be the one saying thank you?" Taking up the yeti, he inspected it, recognizing the handiwork and the fur pattern. It was actual yeti fur, he absently noticed, running his thumb along an arm. "You already gave me a gift."
"Bah. Yes, but that was birthday gift. This is Christmas gift, from Santa, completely different! Is for being on Nice list." North said with a wide grin, crouching down to Jack's height and resting a hand on the boy's shoulder with a squeeze. "And for that, I should be thanking you. And for this." North whispered in the boy's ear with another shoulder squeeze before turning back to the others. "Bunny! Is your turn!" Taking up the rectangle, North shook it lightly, hearing movement. "Ah, I do not know if you can have it. Sounds broken, da?"
"Give it here, North." Bunny sighed, holding out a paw, tired of his eldest friend's antics. Eventually, North did hand it over, after a few good rattles to confirm that whatever it was, was well and truly broken. Snagging it from North's meaty grip, Bunny turned it in his paws, trying to figure out how to open it. Frowning lightly at the single Narcissus woven through the colorful threads, Bunny carefully removed it and set it aside. While it was indeed associated with spring, new beginnings and rebirth, it was also unlucky if there was only one present. While he appreciated the sentiment of the flower itself, Bunny hoped that Jack didn't mean ill will when he picked the flower. Knowing the galah, he probably just thought it was pretty and 'spring-like'.
Turning the box over one more time, hoping that it'd reveal the secrets to being opened, Bunny finally decided to pick at the largest knot. It slipped undone surprisingly quickly, loosening all the threads so that he could slip the box itself free. Setting the colorful string aside, Aster gleefully tore through the paper, like should be done properly to such a gift. Trying to save the paper was just a waste of time in his opinion. Popping open the box revealed… another box, carefully nestled in tissue paper.
"Ah…" Bunny hummed, taking the wooden box out carefully and pushing the spent wrapping aside. The sides and bottom were sanded buttery smooth and only a light lacquer was applied, only enough that there wouldn't be any worry that splinters would peel off over time. The box itself was dovetailed at the corners, exhibiting the carver's skill and the two shades of blonde wood used. The lid itself slid smoothly from the cut grooves and secured shut with a small click. A low relief carving was the only decoration on the box, but the detail was astounding. Each hair on the small bunny was visible, every petal of the aster flower rounded to buttery softness and each of the three eggs as detailed as some of his most prized hand-painted googies. "That's adorable." He murmured with a cheesy half-smirk, tracing the bunny's ear with a delicate claw.
Finally opening the box to find out what had been rattling around inside, Bunny was gobsmacked to find four brand new brushes. Taking the largest one out, he inspected it carefully, running a paw pad over the bristles and testing the ferrule that held them to the handle. Finding the important part to his standard, Bunny finally took in the detail on the handle. It was carved as well, but was covered with thick layers of clear sealant so that he couldn't feel any of the details he could see. This was good, it meant that paint couldn't work its way into the cracks either, making it easier to wipe off. Each of the handles had a different design, from a stack of painted googies, to a vine wrapped around the handle, to several asters, to the last one simply being a tall, skinny rabbit with ears that literally took up half the handle's length. "Oh, ha ha." He said dryly, holding up the bunny brush and 'hopping' it slightly, earning snickers around the room.
"Ta," Bunny carefully spoke to the room in general. "I've been thinking of replacing some of my brushes and these should do in a pinch." It wasn't an outright 'thank you', but it wasn't a rejection either, so Jack could take it. He was worried, with how closely Bunny was inspecting his gift, that it would end up rejected. Brushes weren't his usual project when he decided to take up the chisel. Not to mention getting the bristles to work how they were supposed to was a minor miracle in itself. Let alone acquiring the hairs themselves was a nightmare in and of itself. That boar would never look at him in the same way ever again.
"AAH!" Tooth screeched, snapping Jack's attention back to the present; just in time to watch Tooth drop her present back into the box like it burned her.
"Tooth, what is matter?"
"I-I can't take this." She stuttered with wide eyes, shaking her head. "North, I can't."
"What do you mean, 'can't'?" Bunny asked, leaning forward on the couch in surprise.
"Its too beautiful. This can't be for me." Dry-washing her hand, she didn't feel Jack's stare of panic, but Sandy did and turned to watch the boy, whom was already half-off his seat and ready to escape.
"Of course you can." North objected, grabbing the box lid and checking the tag to make sure. "Says 'To Tooth'. Right here." He held up the broach with the tag attached for everyone to see. "Take it." North said with a gentle smile, his eyes flashing briefly over to Jack.
Finally mustering up her courage, Tooth ran a finger over the delicate embroidery along the collar before finally pulling it fully from the box. "It really is too beautiful, North. I don't want to damage it." Indeed it was beautiful. It was a robe of some sort in lavender chiffon, or some other material that felt like it would float away on its own if not for the embroidery weighing it down. The edges were hand-rolled to a little over a thread's breadth and sewn with golden thread. Beside that was a border of a chain of life-sized molars rendered in gold thread. Looking closer, occasionally, there was even a 'filled cavity' rendered in silver thread. All over the body of the robe were outlines of teeth in all varieties, connected with a continuous running stitch. Each tooth was about five centimeters long, so the design didn't overwhelm the entire garment.
The gentle tinkling of a bell drew the guardian's attention to Sandy, who signed that Tooth should try the robe on. "Ah, yes, is rule, is it not?" North nodded with sage importance, "when clothing is given, must be worn at least once!"
Biting her lip, Tooth nodded, holding the robe delicately, still afraid to damage it. "Ah, yes, of course." Turning to Jack, Tooth caught him mid-escape, halfway across the room. "Jack, can you do a favor, and help me put this on?" She asked gently, politely ignoring his skittish movements.
"Uh…"
"Yes, come help. Maybe you can show us how this goes?" North encouraged, giving Jack no chance to actually leave.
"I, uh, was actually going to check on the elves, yes, the elves! And… and see if they were going to bring any more… cookies…?" His excuse was weak and he knew it. Slumping, he walked over to the others and quietly received the robe from Tooth, helping her land so that she could dress. Undoing the small catch on the mandarin collar and unthreading the ties on the front, Jack carefully helped Tooth thread her wings into the hole designed into the back. Now that it was on, she noticed that the entire robe wasn't lavender, but was dyed so that the end of the bell sleeves and the trailing ends of the robe faded to the same green as her feathers.
Now able to see the design clearly, the robe was designed with a collared choli blouse in mind. The front was closed with a mandarin collar with a long and narrow keyhole which stopped over Tooth's bust line. It was secured shut by a ribbon tied through six small hand-sewn green eyelets, allowing the rest of the fabric to drape gracefully open in front, exposing her belly. A doubled-over strip of chiffon was sewn into the garment, directly under her bust and wrapped around the back, securing the top snugly. In the back, the fabric draped loosely from the band to about her hip in a solid piece, before separating out into individual thin strips, much like her tail feathers. Down the middle of each strip was embroidered a single peacock feather that was so realistic, it looked like it had been plucked straight from the bird itself. The embroidered feather gave each strip just enough weight that they weren't fluttering around needlessly, but weren't heavy enough to get tangled in Tooth's feathers while she flew.
The collar and sleeves also had a matching peacock feather motif. The collar had an 'eye' on either side of the clasp, with the rest of the feather winding around to meet in the back. While the sleeves held a handful of embroidered feathers each, with the 'eye' of the feather pointing down and the end of the shaft stopping somewhere between Tooth's bicep and elbow.
Carefully threading green silk ribbon through the series of eyelets, Jack couldn't help but murmur that he was glad that it fit. He was worried that it would fit badly, or that Tooth wouldn't like it. He still was. "Thank you Jack," Tooth smiled and gave the teen a hug. "It's absolutely stunning." Taking flight, Tooth twirled around a few times, showing off her new robe. It was so light that she barely noticed the rub on her feathers. In fact, the only places she could actually feel anything was the beautiful collar around her neck and the band under her small bust, and even those barely felt like anything. If she wasn't careful, she could easily forget she was wearing the beautiful item and damage it somehow.
Shaking his head and stepping back, Jack looked away. "Don't thank me, Tooth."
Hovering in front of the frost child, Tooth took Jack's face in both of her hands and gently turned him to look. "I love it, Jack. I mean it." Speaking softly, she gave Jack a peck on the forehead. "So thank you."
Snorting, Bunny hopped over and bopped Jack on the head. "Yeah, Ta, Frostbite. Yer not completely useless after all."
Ducking out of Tooth's grasp, Jack absently ruffled his hair back into place and sat back in his window seat, taking up the stuffed yeti and fiddling with it, hiding his face the best he could without his hoodie. Watching the boy retreat into himself more than he had in months, Bunny walked over and absently tapped on the glass where there now was a sheep-shaped blank spot in the frost. "You've been holding out on us, eh Frostbite."
Shrugging, Jack fumbled the white yeti in his hands. "Dunno what you're talking about."
"This," Bunny tapped the window, then gestured toward the others, "That. Everything."
Giving the yeti a small smile and holding it close, Jack looked up with his cocky mask on. "Well, you didn't ask."
"What were we supposed to ask, 'name your five best talents'?"
Jack shrugged at Bunny's snark and gave a half grin, "Snowballs, fun-times, snow days, freezing water pipes and messing with your egg hunts." He ticked off a finger for each item, enjoying the way Bunny's ears started to twitch in annoyance.
"Then what do you call this?"
Looking at his frost drawings, Jack realized that he was sitting closest to Baby Tooth's ram drawing- or what was left of it. "Fun." He said simply, shrugging one shoulder absently.
Bunny looked at Jack from the corner of his eye before taking a closer look at the remnants of the sheep, weighing his next sentience. Either it would push the boy away or draw him back out from his shell. Yep, they still looked like marshmallow clouds with a couple of sticks sticking out of the bottom. "You can't draw worth shit though."
"Hey!" Bunny had to hide a grin as Jack took the bait. "You try drawing on a window with only your fingers and let's see how detailed you can get!"
"I bet you can't paint either." Bunny stuck is nose up, crossing his arms.
"Is that a challenge, Cottontail?"
"Yep," Bunny popped his 'p' with a smirk, "scared?"
That had got him. Rolling up onto his knees, Jack was closer to Bunny's height. "Fine, I'll prove that I can paint. Anytime, anywhere."
"Oh? Any time, eh?" Bunny tilted his head to the side, pretending to roll the idea around in his head. "You know… Easter's coming up mighty soon. Plenty of opportunity there." Jack was so caught up that he didn't notice what Bunny had done. Inviting someone to come paint Easter eggs was just something he did. Not. Do. Unless it was an emergency like the Pitch debacle several years past. But this, this was for the sake of fun.
"Fine."
"Fine." Bunny nodded, pleased with himself. "Lookin' forward to it, mate."
"Did Bunny just…" Tooth hovered by North's shoulder, her eyes wide in shock.
"Da, he did." The Russian's arms were crossed, impressed with Bunny's technique.
"Ah." Now that the show was over, Tooth went back to her perch, where Sandy handed over her mug of cider. "Then I propose a toast then." She waited until she had her boys' attention and at least North had a drink in hand. "To the New Year and all of the years to come. That we continue to grow, thrive and learn more about each other every year."
"And Happy Christmas!" North called out, hoisting his mug.
"Happy Christmas!" The Guardians echoed.
Ever get to that point where you go 'what now'? I swear, the tension was so thick, I couldn't cut though it with my knife of words! Gah! So, yeah, bad cliché ending. I just want this thing DONE and OVER with. Time to move on to another storyline.