Oh yes, we went there! I'm sorry, I couldn't resist. The idea of the Big Four in junior high was just too tempting to pass up. The real question is, how are these characters going to translate into a modern setting? Well, you'll just have to keep reading to find out!
0o0
"Well Jack, looks like there isn't much of lunch left," Merida said, checking her watch. "What class do you have next?"
"Um, let's see." Jack dug into his backpack and pulled out his schedule. "Looks like I have—free period?"
"No kiddin'!" Merida looked pleased. "So do I. Hey how would you like to come my hideaway? You could use a place to lie low for a while, and I'd like you to meet my crew."
"Well…" Jack considered this. Part of him wanted to go find Mrs. Bennett and check in. But then again, he didn't relish the idea of accidentally meeting up with Alexa or Bruce again while wandering the halls. And besides, which he did sort of owe Merida for saving him. "All right," he nodded. "Let's go."
"Great!" Merida grinned and motioned for him to follow her. She led him down a series of hallways, pausing every few minutes to cock her head, as if listening for something, or to sniff the air.
"What are you doing?" Jack eventually asked. "Do you think we're being followed?"
"Nih," Merida responded. "But we can't ever be too careful."
"Why do you regularly have to worry about people following you?" Jack joked.
"Well, let's just say I'm not exactly the most popular person at school," Merida told him with a strained smile.
"After today, I don't think I'm going to be either," Jack responded wryly.
"I have to warn you," Merida said, turning to face him, "if you start hanging out with me an' my friends, your reputation probably isn't going to get any better. If anything, it's going to go through the floor."
"I can live with that," Jack reassured her. "Trust me, I'm pretty used to being invisible."
"It's not being invisible that's so bad," Merida responded. "It's the negative attention that gets to you."
"Well, I've had to deal with my share of bullies and I can handle myself," Jack replied. "And if there's one thing I've learned, it's that there's strength in numbers."
Merida gave him a funny smile. "Y'know, I think you're going to fit in jist fine." Turning to the nearest door, she pushed it open and waved a hand for Jack to come inside. "Welcome to the library."
Jack had seen hundreds of libraries in his time, but somehow he always seemed to have a moment of wonder as he first entered one. Maybe it was because he knew that, within those walls were volumes that told the tales of the guardians and other mythological figure—stories which helped encourage belief in them.
"What d' ye think?" Merida asked, hands on hips.
"I love it," Jack whispered, still a tiny bit in awe.
"Well good," Merida said, slapping her knee, "because this is where you're going to be spending a lot of time. C'mon, I'll introduce you to the others."
"Sounds good." Jack followed her towards the back of the library, but pulled up short as he passed the shelves containing books on myths and legends. "Do you mind if I take a quick look?" he asked.
"Be my guest," Merida told him, waving to the shelves. Then she leaned down and plucked out, a thick tome entitled Scottish Myths and Legends. "This is one of my favorites," she explained. "I've loved these tales ever since I saw my first will o' the wisp in my backyard when I was seven."
"You've seen a will o' the wisp?" Jack asked, looking up at her in surprise.
"Jah. My dad says it was probably just dandelion fuzz, but me mum says it appeared to me because our family's descended from Scottish royalty."
"And you believe that?"
"'Course. Why shouldn't I?"
"No reason," Jack quickly mumbled.
"What? D'ye think I'm crazy?" Merida gave him a fierce look.
"No, it's not that! It's just…I didn't think anyone else believed in them at our age."
"Anyone else?" Merida's eyes lit up. "you mean you do too?"
"Let's just say I've had enough brushes with the mythological to make me a firm believer."
Merida's expression changed to that of awe. Jack wondered if she were actually going to start crying, but then she reached out, grabbed onto his arm, and started dragging him towards a little alcove in the library. "Come with me," she said excitedly.
"Do I have a choice?" Jack laughed, allowing her to lead him. Inside the alcove was a small table, and at the table sat two teenagers: one a blond girl who was painting on a small easel, the other a brown-headed boy who was fiddling with what looked like a mechanical dragon.
"Jack, I'd like you to meet Rapunzel and Hiccup. Rapunzel and Hiccup, meet Jack, the newest member of our little crew."
Rapunzel glanced up shyly. "Hi," she said, her voice barely above a whisper, before hiding behind her very long hair. "Rapunzel is a walking encyclopedia on all things princesses and fairy tales," Merida told Jack, continuing the introductions. "And Hiccup here is our resident expert on mechanics and Norse mythology, although his specialty is dragons."
"Hey," Hiccup greeted him, giving him a one-handed wave with his screwdriver.
"And I'm, of course, the Scottish myths expect," concluded Merida. "So." She turned to him, eyes expectant. "You said you've had some encounters with the mythological. Tell us about them." Rapunzel and Hiccup looked at him with renewed interest.
"Have you really?" Rapunzel asked, her meek voice taking on a note of excitement.
"Um, yeah," Jack admitted. "But I'm not sure I'm really supposed to—I mean, if word got around, everyone would think I was crazy!"
"Trust me, everything here is strictly confidential," Hiccup reassured him. "Besides, everyone already think we're crazy, so they wouldn't believe us if we told them."
Jack still hesitated for a moment, unsure as to whether he really wanted to bring up the past yet again. But the others were looking at him so expectantly that he didn't feel like he could refuse, especially after they'd just opened up to him.
"All right," he sighed. "You could say I've had some experience with Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, Tooth Fairy, and the Sand Man." He winced, waiting for the "boos" and accusations of falsehood. But the others stared at him, unblinking. "Well," Merida said after a minute. "Go on."
"What, you're not going to ask me if I'm lying?" Jack asked, shocked that they were just going to take his word on it.
"If a teenage guy is actually willing to say that he's met the real Easter Bunny, I'd say he's either telling the truth or really desperate to get into a group," Hiccup responded.
"True enough."
"So, how did you meet them?" Rapunzel asked.
"What are they like?" Merida added.
"Well… can I borrow a piece of paper?" Jack turned to Rapunzel, who willingly tore a sheet out of her sketchpad. "Okay, first thing you should know is that these guys aren't just running around willy-nilly doing their own thing. There's actually a group of five of them, called the guardians, and they work together to protect different elements of childhood: wonder, hope, dreams, and memories."
"Well that makes sense," Merida nodded her approval. "Seems to me that there should be a purpose to what they're doing. Otherwise they'd just be randomly delivering candy and presents."
"Right," Jack agreed. He drew a quick sketch onto Rapunzel's page. "So Santa Claus actually goes by North. He's a big ol' Russian guy, and he has these awesome swords that he uses to fight off evil—that is, when he's not making toys."
"Does he really have cute little elves that help him make the toys?" Rapunzel squealed.
"'Help' isn't exactly the term I'd use," Jack laughed. "It's actually the yetis who do most of the work."
"Yetis." Merida looked fascinated. "Cor, that's brilliant! Seems like they'd get much more work done that silly little elves."
"How about the sleigh?" Hiccup asked. "I've seen books where it says the whole thing's some sort of rocket, which explains how he gets around so fast. Is that true?"
"Oh no, it's an actual sleigh," Jack replied. "And the reindeer pulling it are as big as Clydesdale horses. But how he gets around the world so fast is that he's actually got these magic snow globes that can open up portal to anywhere."
"Wow," Hiccup breathed, "what I'd give to have a look at the mechanics holding that sleigh together."
"How about the Easter Bunny?" Merida wanted to know.
"Is he all cute and fuzzy?" Rapunzel asked hopefully.
"Uh, no. This guy is the exact opposite of cute and fuzzy," Jack responded, making another sketch. "Bunnymund's about 7 feet tall and made of pure muscle. He uses rabbit holes to travel around, and he's got this underground cavern on Easter Island where he decorates all the eggs for Easter. Oh, and you do not want to get on his bad side, he's got these huge boomerangs that he an use to take out about anything."
Rapunzel looked a little upset. "Aren't there any of the guardians who are at least kind of cute and bed-time storyish?"
"Ah, bed time storyish, yes!" Jack said, pointing to her. "Sand Man, or Sandy, is a really nice guy. He's probably only about two feet tall, but he's the one who makes all the good dreams. He actually has this magic sand stuff that he can use to make just about anything: unicorns, dolphins—I've even seen ten story tall dinosaurs. And he travels around on a little golden cloud of the stuff."
"Aw, he looks like a little happy sun!" Rapunzel cried, clapping her hands in delight as Jack drew the tiny figure.
"And how about the Tooth Fairy?" Hiccup asked. "I've seen a million and one interpretations of her—or is it a him?"
"Oh, Tooth Fairy is definitely a her," Jack replied, working on the last little sketch. "She's actually kind of hard to describe. She's full of energy, and always moving. I guess the closest thing I could compare her to is a humming bird. Only she's not actually a bird, she's a person, just covered in feathers."
"Um…" Rapunzel said, "does she look kind of like—that?" She pointed to something above Jack's head.
"What?" Jack looked up, only to find himself confronted with— "Baby Tooth! What are you doing here?" He reached up and caught the tiny fairy in his hands before she could fly away. Baby Tooth smiled up at him sheepishly, squealing out what sounded like a cross between a greeting and an apology.
"Great jumpin' Jehoshaphat, is that a real fairy?" Merida cried, leaping back in surprise.
"Yes," Jack admitted. "Everyone, this is Baby Tooth. Baby Tooth, these are my friends Merida, Rapunzel and Hiccup."
"She's so adorable!" Rapunzel cooed. "Can I hold her?"
"Sure," Jack replied, holding the tiny fairy out to Rapunzel. Baby Tooth cheerfully flitted into her hands, buzzing a happy tune and pointing admiringly at Rapunzel's long golden tresses.
"Well thank you!" Rapunzel giggled. "Your feathers are very pretty too!" She smoothed down the little crown of feather's on Baby Tooth's head, making the fairy let out something that sounded like tiny peals of laughter. "Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't realize you were ticklish," Rapunzel apologized. "Ooh, but I think I have something in my backpack for you!" She dug into her book bag and with a tiny maroon gown, just Baby Tooth's size. Baby Tooth squeaked with delight and a moment later. Rapunzel was helping her put it on.
"So," Hiccup said, turning back to look at Jack. "Is that the real tooth fairy."
"No, that's just one of her helpers," Jack replied.
"Ye seem to know an awful lot about these 'Guardians' for someone who's only had brief encounters with them," Merida said slowly. "Are you sure there isn't anything else you'd like to tell us Jack?"
Jack glanced at her and Hiccup nervously. He hadn't expected to tell as much as he had, and now he seemed to have talked himself into a corner. "Uh, you could say we used to be kinda close."
"How close?" Merida asked, her eyes flicking over to the fairy that was now modeling Rapunzel's creation. "You must be pretty familiar with them if the Tooth Fairy is sending her baby out after you—oh goodness!" She clapped a hand over her mouth. "Tell me you aren't married to her?"
"What? No!" Jack cried. "It's nothing like that!"
"In a magically binding agreement?"
"No!"
"Dating?"
"NO!"
"Seeing her on a regular basis?"
"Not anymore."
"Oh sweet, merciful heavens!" Merida's eyes went wide and she looked around the room in terror. "You broke up with her! You've crossed a fairy, and now she's sending her minions to bring destruction upon us and all the land!"
"No Tooth and I do not have any sort of romantic relationship!" Jack shouted. All four of the sets of eyes in the room stared at him.
"Then how—" Merida began slowly.
"Because I'm a guardian, all right?" Jack huffed. "Or at least I was one, until a couple of days ago."
"You're what?" Rapunzel asked. You could have heard a pin drop in the room.
"My real name is Jack Frost," Jack told them, trying to keep the frustration out of his voice. "Two days ago I was at a birthday party for Jamie Bennett. I'd promised him I'd come since he was the first person ever to actually believe in me, but I stayed out in the sun too long and it caused me to completely unfreeze, turning me back into a normal human. I've been trying ever since then to adjust to having a normal life, but no matter where I go I keep getting reminded of everything I left behind. Are you happy now?" Throwing his hands up, he stormed off into the children's picture book section, coming to a stop at the tiny stage where kids could sit and read or act out their favorite stories. He slumped down onto the bottom step, burying his head in his hands. He couldn't believe he'd just done that. He'd been trying so hard to keep all of these feelings pent up inside ever since he'd woken up just an ordinary teenager two mornings ago, but now he'd just blurted them all out for the entire world to hear. He'd also possibly lost the only friends he was ever going to have at this school.
"Jack?" Jack heard a gentle voice calling his name a few minutes later. "Jack, we are so sorry that we pushed you like that." He looked up to see Rapunzel, Merida, and Hiccup circled around him with concerned looks on their focus.
"It's okay," Jack sighed. "It's just…I'm processing through a lot right now."
"No kiddin'," Merida said with a wry smile.
"Do you know if there's any way you could refreeze yourself?" Hiccup suggested. "Like, if you stayed in a freezer for a really long time, maybe it could set off a reaction that would allow to be Jack Frost again."
"I'm honestly not sure how I could get my powers back," Jack admitted, "and even if I could go back, I'm not sure that I would do it."
"Why not?" Merida looked at him like he was crazy. "I'd give up everything I owned if I could be a guardian."
"That's the point," Jack told her. "You do end up giving up everything, willingly or unwillingly. Before I was Jack Frost, I was just a regular human kid with a family and a fairly normal life. But when I was transformed, I lost all memories of anything before being frozen. It was only a month or two ago that I finally got those memories back, and by then it was too late to even say goodbye. So now that I've finally found a family again, I'm not sure I want to lose them. I don't think I could go through that twice."
"Cor, that is a predicament," Merida said, putting her head in her hands.
"Well," Rapunzel spoke up after a minute of silence, "I think the choice is really up to you, Jack. What do you want?"
"That's the problem," Jack groaned. "I don't know what I want! And even if I did, how would I know if it's the right choice?"
"I honestly couldn't tell you," Rapunzel responded. "But I do know this: whether you choose to be Jack, Jack Frost, or even Jacob, like the teachers keep calling you, you'll always have people who will love and support you."
Jack jumped up. 'Wait—say that again!"
"What?" Rapunzel asked, wrinkling her brow in confusion. "That you'll always have people who love you?"
"No, before that," Jack replied, his eyes going wide as the pieces fell into place. "You said 'Jacob'."
"It was just a joke," Rapunzel said, shrinking back a little.
"No, I think you were right on target!" he raced over to grab his backpack. "I have to go. I'll see you guys later, okay?"
"All right," Rapunzel said.
"Later" Hiccup called after him. Jack barely heard them as he rushed out of the library and down the hallway. He didn't care who saw him running in the halls: he was on a mission and he needed to get to Mrs. Bennett's room before free period ended.
