A/N: Yes, yes, it's been a while. On the bright side, I finished my English project! Now I just have to write that speech... hmm...
Anyway, I'll cut the rambling and go right to the story.
Disclaimer: I do not own.
When Jack opened his eyes, he felt the bright light burning at his pupils. He blinked several times, taking away the blurriness of his vision. The ceiling above him was laced with intricate frost patterns, spiraling out from a point directly over his head. Of course, he recognized it. It was his room, at the Pole.
He slowly sat up, albeit with effort. His limbs felt like lead, his chest was full of sawdust and his head seemed to be mummified in bubble wrap. The room was too warm, and his usual energy failed him.
"Glad to see you back with the living."
Jack turned, startled. In the armchair on his right sat Hazel, smiling faintly. There were dark circles under her eyes, and her ankle was in a brace. There was a book in her lap, and Jack recognized it as Peter Pan, one of his favorites.
"Wha- what happened? How did…" Hazel held up her hand, stopping him.
"Eris's arrow. It contained dark magic. We didn't see it at first, but it started to take effect when you had that nightmare. At the cave, you started getting feverish, and we called the Guardians to bring you back here. You've been out for two days."
"Two days?" She nodded. Jack groaned, sinking back into the thick layer of pillows. Two days of lying there, doing nothing. Two days of Mother Nature getting sicker. Two days they couldn't afford to lose.
Hazel seemed to sense his feelings, and she moved next to him, touching his shoulder consolingly. "Hey, don't worry about it. It wasn't your fault. We've been doing a lot of investigating, and we have another idea. I think we might know where the Phoenix really is."
Jack sighed, and sat back up. He drew a hand to the clean bandage on his left arm. The wound didn't feel so deep anymore, and there was no more evidence of the inky black substance. He grabbed his blue hoodie, which was neatly folded on his bedside table, and put it on. He placed a hand around his staff and immediately felt better.
"I want to go upstairs."
Hazel hesitated. "Um, Jack, I'm not sure if—"
But he was already standing. He was leaning heavily on his staff, as his legs wobbled beneath him. Hazel took one arm, guiding him out the door. A soft breeze supported him as well, making him feel lighter as he walked. It was slow, but he successfully reached the Great Room.
When North saw him, he gave a big grin. "Ah, there he is! You are well now?" Jack smiled, nodding.
"Jack!" squealed Tooth. She spun him around, almost knocking him over, and felt his forehead, her motherly way of checking to see that he was okay.
"Don't do that again," said Bunny from across the room.
Jack smiled innocently. "Aw, you do care."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah. We still need your power to defeat Eris." It sounded indifferent, but Jack knew by the way Bunny was smiling at him, he was glad for Jack's well-being.
Jack turned to Hazel. "Where are Lilly and Sunny? Are they—"
"They're fine," she cut him off. "They went back to Madagascar to check up on Mother Nature. Actually, they should probably be back any minute."
As if on cue, a tunnel opened up, and out jumped the Jackalope, Sunny and Lilly. They looked worried.
"She's worse," Hazel guessed. "Isn't she?"
Jackie nodded solemnly. "Yes. I've been doing all the herbal remedies I can think of to slow it, but she hasn't got much time. We need to hurry with the cure."
Bunny stepped in. "We might have another idea as to where the Phoenix is. It'll be dangerous, though. How much time do we have?"
"Three days, if we're lucky." Jack's gut sank even lower. If he hadn't been careless and let Eris get him with that stupid arrow…
North spoke up. "Let us go to room with map, no?" Everyone nodded and filed in, taking a seat at the long table facing the large world map. Bunny stood at the front with a pointer.
"So," he said, "last time we went looking for the Phoenix, we went looking here." He pointed to the Himalayas. "We weren't completely wrong. The Phoenix, as it turns out, has been known to reside there, but not all the time. There is at least one other location that it calls home."
"Where?" Jack urged.
"Well, that's the slight issue. It's here." Bunny pointed to a spot in southern California.
"That's Death Valley!" Hazel half-yelled. "It's probably 90 degrees out there! I'll start crinkling in the sun, Lilly would dehydrate, and Jack would melt in minutes."
Bunny sighed. "We know. That's what we're trying to work out." Jack looked around the table. Everyone wore grave expressions, except for Sunny, who was smiling.
Jack narrowed his eyes at her. "What are you so happy about?"
She leaned forward on the table. "You guys are so not getting it. Southern California? That's at the heart of my territory."
"Okay, so…"
"So, I have almost complete control over the weather there. Maybe even more than usual now, since Mummy Dearest is in such bad shape."
Never in his 300 years had Jack thought he'd be grateful to the hotheaded summer spirit. "So what you're saying is… you can control so it's not so hot."
She sighed. "I'm not entirely sure how much I can do… but yeah, pretty much. The problem is that being the summer spirit, my powers are meant to make places hotter, not cooler."
"Why not?" Jack was on his feet, caught up in the moment.
Sunny stood as well. "Have you ever tried to stop a blizzard you've created? Have you ever been able to stop innocent people from freezing?"
This hit a soft spot, and Jack backed down. Sunny had taken a hit to his dark side. Sure, all he ever wanted to create was snowballs and fun times, but it didn't always work out that way. Like in '68, when he let his powers get out of control, but was powerless to stop it once it started. Like all the people who perished on cold winter nights, clinging together in a futile attempt to get warm.
After a moment of silence, Hazel stood up. "Do you suppose I could help?"
"What do you mean?" Sunny inquired.
"Well, even if Death Valley is at the heart of your territory, the entire Northern Hemisphere is at the heart of my season. It's possible that I could still have influence, even there. It's not something I've ever tried before." Everyone perked up at this suggestion.
Sunny appeared to be considering that option. "I don't know… it's really hard to change the weather in certain places such as this. Even in the dead of winter, it stays pretty warm."
"We have to try. You're not going in there alone. Besides, if it were easy, everyone would do it." She added that last comment with a faint smirk.
The summer spirit nodded. "Very well. We should probably wait until nightfall, when it's not as hot. The sun probably just rose there, which means it'll be another 10 hours or so."
Another delay. Jack groaned. "We can't just sit here. Mother Nature is getting sicker by the minute. We have to…" He trailed off. There was nothing else they could do.
Jackie stood up. "I should go back. Stay with her, in case…" There were tears in her eyes. Bunny patted her on the shoulder.
"I'll go with you."
"No, Aster. You have to go with the others."
He smiled. "I think they can handle it. Trust me. The four seasons… that's a force to be reckoned with."
She looked up at him gratefully. "Thank you. It's just… she took me in. Not a lot of people even know my legend anymore. Mother Nature gave me a new purpose as her handmaiden. The least I can do is be there for her the way she was for me." Bunny nodded, like he understood.
After the two departed, Hazel got up as well. "I'm going home for a bit," she announced. "I'm in need of a powernap and a stiff cup of tea."
As she started toward the door, Jack called after her. "Be careful."
Hazel nodded. "I know."
He rose to follow her. Before she reached the window, he grabbed her arm. She shivered at his touch. "Are you okay?" he asked softly.
She gave him that sad smile that he could never quite read.
"I'm always okay."
Then she hopped out the window and disappeared.