I am a HORRIBLE procrastinator! When was my last update? ... Point and case!

Anyways, who's up for a bit of angst?

The day had begun as normally as one would expect at the North Pole. Yeti's started up the machines while the elves ambled about the workshop thinking they were helping when in reality they were just getting in the way. The reindeer padded their hooves in their stable stalls begging for their breakfast of oats and hay. Even Pippa had decided to wake Jack with her efforts of jumping on the bed and licking his face, to which the winter spirit awoke with a startled yelp followed by a noise of disgust as he pushed the young wolf off of him.

"I'm up, I'm up." Jack groaned as he slowly slid out of the bed and grabbed his staff leaning against the bed frame, Pippa pranced around him as they exited his bedroom. The two promptly headed towards the kitchen for their own breakfast to start the day.

Jack filled Pippa's food dish and the wolf dug into her food while Jack searched for his own breakfast. A few yetis passed by and Jack greeted them, "Hey guys, is North busy this morning?" The yetis looked between each other and shrugged, one indicated that North hadn't been seen in the workshop yet. This confused the winter spirit as North was usually one of the first to work, commonly looking over the morning procedures and designing toys in his office. The yetis continued on their way leaving Jack to wonder just where North was.

With breakfast finished, Jack called Pippa to his side and the two wandered down the workshops hallways towards North's office. Perhaps he had decided to get an early start and was locked away in his office?

Upon reaching the door, Jack knocked, "North? You in there?" he turned the door handle and pushed open the door, "Because I was wondering if-" Jack's voice fell upon a silent room and the immortal boy looked around the room confused. A block of ice sat atop North's desk with no carving marks yet etched into and the toys on the shelves were still and quiet. North's carving tools remained in the same places they were left from yesterday's work and the orchestra records that normally played clear throughout the office daily were oddly silent. Pippa whined and Jack glanced down at her as the wolf seemed to fidget uncomfortably in the silent atmosphere. She stepped back away from the empty office and began walking back down the hallway, stopping to look back at Jack waiting for him to follow and the winter spirit obliged as he too sensed something was not quite right.

Jack followed Pippa all the way through the halls having no idea where the wolf was going but he kept pace with her nonetheless. He soon realized that they were nearing the bedroom quarters and Pippa quickened her pace and stood in front of North's bedroom door, scrapping a paw against the wood and whining. However, before Jack could reach her, North's bedroom door opened and the man himself stepped out looking rather ragged and sluggish with a hand massaging his temple. He grumbled under his breath as Pippa stepped back yet the Russian did not seem to register that the wolf was even there.

"North?" Jack said, "Are you okay?"

"Huh?" North seemed almost startled, "Oh, morning Jack. You're up rather early, no?"

"Actually, no."

"… What time is it?" North checked a nearby clock and his eyes nearly doubled in size, "What?! That cannot be! Clock must be broken; I will see that it gets fixed."

"It's not broken, North. That's the actual time."

North fell quiet for a moment as he stared at the clock with a furrowed brow; "Bah!" he waved his arms in annoyance. Jack had just enough time to skip a step out of the way as North started down the hall; the winter spirit's gaze followed him until he turned the corner grumbling the entire way.

"What was that all about?" Jack wondered aloud to himself and Pippa's ears drooped slightly. "I hear you, girl. C'mon."

The pair took to searching the workshop in hopes of catching up with North who in turn did not seem to be himself. While Pippa poked her head through the bars of the railings, a gust of air lifted Jack up to a banister as he scanned below for any sign of the Russian. He sighed in mild frustration when he could not identify North amongst the bustling working yetis and scampering elves. A few barks from Pippa drew Jack's attention to the wolf below as Pippa barked and pulled her head back out from the bars, suddenly jogging away and down a flight of stairs. Jack leaped through the air from banister to banister, following Pippa's trail from above and when the wolf finally slowed Jack floated down to her.

Pippa weaved passed the working yetis with ease as she trotted towards a work table that held the familiar scent of cookies and chainsaw grease. Pippa lifted her front paws to settle on the wood of the table and yelped a greeting at North who was currently focused on completing the construction of a model train set. North glanced up from his work and stretched out a hand to pet Pippa's head. "What are you doing wandering the workshop, little one?"

Jack soon neared the workspace, "North! There you are!"

North gave a confused look, "Where else would I be?"

"Well… to be honest, you seemed kind of out of it earlier. I wanted to check in."

"It is nothing. I am perfectly fine."

"You sure?"

"Absolutely! Now, I have much to do today so why don't you run along?"

"Okay, I guess I'll see you later?"

"Of course."

Jack turned to leave but Pippa did not follow, instead she lowered her paws from the table and planted herself at North's feet. The winter spirit was about to call her but North waved it off, "It's fine. You go on and have fun."

Jack shrugged and waved as he left.

If North was not as stubborn, he would have admitted to himself that he was not feeling well but being the tough Russian man that he was, he brushed it all off. If he had been more honest with himself he would have admitted that he hadn't been sleeping well the past few nights, constantly waking in the middle of the night and tossing and turning. Work had been piling up the past few weeks and there just weren't enough hours in the day to even come close to finishing all that had been left over. The restless nights were spent in attempt to complete the unfinished work by wandering between his bedroom and office in the countless times he woke in the middle of the night. Not a single being had noticed as everyone had been asleep, just as North should have been as well. Apparently it must have caught up with him enough for Jack to notice that something was amiss.

Pippa was particularly keen on staying by North's side at all times as she followed him throughout his daily duties. The headache he woke up with had not left him and it showed no sign of leaving anytime soon. Over half of his joints ached and his feet sent a jolt of pain up his body with nearly every step. The only reason he was able to keep walking was Pippa laying on his feet whenever he sat down as the warmth of her body soothed his aching feet if only for a few moments of relief. He forced all of the pain and exhaustion aside as best as he could for he had a job to do and he was more than capable of finishing it. He was Santa Clause after all!

Not long later, North was working in his office chipping away at a block of ice while Pippa watched from her favourite spot under the desk. It was a slow process but eventually the Guardian of Wonder began carving the details of a castle and it seemed to be coming along quite well. That is, until North's sharp straight lines suddenly began to appear blurry and he blinked a few times before trying again. He brought the chisel close to the ice but the lines blurred once again and North pulled back placing the chisel down, he shook his head in the hopes of his sight going back to normal but it did not last for very long.

Pippa perked up from under the desk as she stood up and pawed at North's leg while whimpering, North glanced down at her with a sigh, "Perhaps it is time for a break."

Using the desk to steady himself, North managed to walk around his desk and slowly maneuver to the door with Pippa close behind. His headache seemed to pulse heavily against his head and it only encouraged the rest of his body to respond in jolts of pain and his eyelids squinting. By the time they made it to the corner rounding down to the bed chambers, North had begun to stagger in his steps and as he nearly stumbled Pippa nudged his side in an effort to keep the big man upright. North braced a hand against the wall while the other pinched the bridge of his nose to relieve the pressure against his head.

"Just need some sleep, that's all," North assured himself, "Just a short nap."

Pippa fidgeted as she whimpered and whined, clearly not liking the situation at hand. North took two staggering steps and Pippa began to bark loudly and frantically. "Not so loud, Pippa," North demanded though instead of his normal booming voice it came out raspy and mildly slurred which prompted the wolf to howl some more, "Why are you so loud?" his hand began to slip from the wall, "Can't you see I need rest?" his knee met the floor as his body gave way and a cold breeze blew through the halls, Pippa howled. "I… just need… "

His entire body fell to the floor and North's vision blurred and faded to black, barely registering Pippa's howls and a voice cried out.

"NORTH!"

TBC…