Q-A: Man it's funny how far we've all come through this story huh? XD Jeez, I sound like this is the final chapter or something. O.O …. XDD Naw that won't be for a few more guys don't ya worry. Seriously it'll be like four or five more chapters. :O Damn, That's a lot to sink in. I can tell some of you felt robbed that there wasn't enough Jack and Bridget action in the last chapter so never fear! This one should satisfy you enough. ^-^
Disclaimer: I own none of the characters DreamWorks and The Greater God of Moonbots own or the song Christmas is the time to Say 'I Love You' by Billy Squier.
~Magic~
"I'm just not sure why trolls hate sunlight."
Bridget smiled weakly and shrugged. Annie had been asking questions nonstop since the beginning of the cart ride. She was starting to rival Bridget in being the most curious person out there. "They don't exactly hate sunlight, they just can't come out during the light of day because of getting stoned-Darn it I did it again!"
Annie giggled; the sound was warm like a comforting hug. "You really are funny."
"Funny as in 'funny looking?' Or 'funny sounding,' or maybe even…?" Bridget offered innocently, earning several more giggles from Annie.
"No," Annie shook her head. "Just funny."
"Well I'm happy I can be entertaining for you," Bridget replied with a sarcastic but cheerful ring to it. With one look from Bunny she paid attention back to the empty road and continued steering Petrov.
The road they were on wasn't much of a road but more of a pebbled pathway toward the outskirts of Kildare. From what Bunny had seen since the town itself was very beautiful at sunset. It wasn't like Wexford or Dublin with large buildings and narrow streets and loud cars, everything about Kildare was smaller and more rural. The houses were small with barely more than two stories tall. Buildings and shops littered near the center of the land that most of them looked locally owned. It was also noted that there were several pubs, which Bunny decided not to share that newfound information with Sandy. The Sandman would dry up Tooth's coin pouch from his unquenchable thirst.
It was something that Bunny enjoyed, him being outside from the musky quilt. He preferred fresh air to everything else for the most part. The only downside was that Frost was out too. Annie was apparently not a believer in Jack Frost so he remained invisible to her. On the other hand, she was a believer in the Easter Bunny since she almost squeezed the daylights out of him. The whole thing was a mixed blessing but only without there being a good side to it all. The only positive he could think of was that the Big Ankle-biter kept distracting the smaller ankle-biter with other stories.
"And do trolls really steal socks?"
Bridget nodded, causing her glasses to slip slightly. The glasses soon drew Bunny's attention when he noticed something different about them. He narrowed his green eyes to gaze at them better. His green peepers widened to the size of dinner plates. There was a crack in the right lenses! Out of all the times to have lost his magic powers –DAMN IT! How did he not see it before and more importantly why didn't Bridget drop everything and tell him or the other Guardians personally?
"She doesn't want to draw attention to herself like Frost and me 'ave done." Bunny's logical thinking struck his brain. He gave Bridget an unseen sympathetic look. Nightlight was right along. She was a lot tougher than she looked. She calmly settled a dispute between three girls and probably kept her cool after her lenses cracked. It made Bunny wondered what other things she had to do on her own without anyone else helping. In the past Bunny always preferred doing things (the logical) his way by being on his own and never admitting he needed anyone. Now that he was older and (to a lesser extant) wiser Bunnymund knew that if an egg needed help to be either hatched or painted, so did he.
"But does that mean Shelia knows that she can rely us?" The memories of the Hill of Tara came back into his mind. Bunny sighed. He promised not to dwell his mind on those kinds of thoughts. Bridget wasn't ready to talk so he needed to wait until she was. He did wish he could stop pretending to be a dumb rabbit and just give her a hug though. She looked like she needed some form of comfort and rekindle of hope. Hope that she would always have someone to rely on and that she could be useful to others.
For some reason the idea of eggs being painted came into the pooka's mind.
Bridget was starting to run out of troll trivia by the time they finally arrived at Annie's house.
"Thank you moon," Bridget silently cheered. "Even if you're still the biggest troll in my opinion. Thanks anyway."
"We're here!" Annie cheered aloud. When the cart came to a complete stop she jumped out and motioned Bridget to follow. "Come on, I can't wait to show you to Granny!"
Bridget smiled toward the girl while sighing on the inside for what felt like the umpteenth time that day. She felt a shift in the cart and soon felt a cool presence by her shoulder.
"You don't have to go in there," Jack offered to Bridget. "You could just tell her that you need to leave and be on your way." Bridget responded to Jack's proposal with one shake of her head. "I made a promise and you can't break a promise. I could never imagine doing something like that." She pushed herself off of the cart and walked to where Annie was.
"She can be pretty stubborn sometimes." Jack said to no one. He heard some struggling in the cart and saw moving lumps shifting around under the sheet. He pulled it off halfway. North brought his head out slightly and said to Jack, "Leetle Girl vanted to help other leetle girl. Ve can't say no to that."
"Yeah we should," Jack pointed to Bridget' retreating form. "She can't be gone too long. We need to find that rock and stop the Morrígan." And the Big Day I planned for her couldn't have any interruptions either, was something Jack wanted to add but decided against it.
"And ve vill," North agreed. "But she needs food and rest. Most of us barely get much sleep thanks to the time changes vith all this veather going around."
"Not that I could've helped with that." Jack retorted in irritation. If he had his way, most of Ireland should've been piled with a blizzard along with the rest of the places that needed winter. But with that stupid goddess messing everything with his flying powers that there was almost nothing he could do. He felt so powerless right now; he couldn't even stop Bridget from leaving.
"It seems hard right now, Jack." Tooth began in her usual soothing way. "With us being so close and yet so far from our goal it feels like they're a lot of things in our way. The obstacles Bridget is facing right now is something she can't just simply walk out of. That girl Annie has suffered a lot today and needs a friend. Not a Guardian but a friend and that's what Bridget is being for her right now. By tomorrow things should become less difficult for us."
"But the nineteenth is tomorrow." Jack replied.
"And that'll give us some time left," North countered. "For now let us give Bridget one night for her to comfort the leetle girl. It sounded like to me she had lost someone of great importance to her not too long ago." North narrowed his eyes in deep thought.
Jack sighed and reluctantly nodded. "Okay, but we should keep an eye on her."
"No need to vorry on that. I think I saw the leetle girl grab Bunny before they left for house."
"What?!" Tooth jumped out in shock, completely removing the sheet off of them all. North, Sandy, and Nightlight blinked a few times at her in confusion before the fairy smiled sheepishly. "I mean-he'll be fine won't he?"
North smiled widely and patted Tooth on the back. "If I know anything about Edmund is that he knows vhat to do vhen times look their bleakest. How hard can it be to be vith a child and her grandmother?"
"It's official, I am never getting stuck in this form with ankle-biters around." Bunny groaned in annoyance. Annie giggled excitedly while she attempted to put a blue ribbon in Bunny's hair. He hopped around the room a couple times until he found refuge underneath the sofa.
"Come out, little bunny. I just want to make you look pretty." Annie crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks in annoyance.
"I don't think he really likes to look pretty." Bridget admitted. She could see where Bunny was hiding and noticed the dark look he gave her. Like this was all her fault?
"But he's so cute and he'd be even cuter with a bow."
A new voice came in that held much age but was equally balanced with high wisdom that most others could not see. "Now listen to our guest, Annie and leave that poor rabbit alone. They get frightened by even the simplest of noises."
Annie's grandmother, or Granny as she preferred to be called, was the perfect picture of what an old woman should look like in Bridget's opinion. She never actually paid close attention to what the elderly looked like, with the exception of Ombric. Granny had pale gray hair with a white streak that added only more to her appearance. Her skin wrinkled all over but showed some softness from the years of kindness and affection she had blessed others with. She wore a green woolen dress with red patches for decoration. Over the dress was a dark blue knitted cloth wrapped around her neck like a bandanna. She was hunched slightly, had a wart on her left eyebrow and very yellowed teeth.
Granny was the most wonderful old lady Bridget had the honor of meeting.
"Okay Granny," Annie reluctantly sighed before stepping away from the couch. Bunny breathed out a sigh of relief as he crawled out. Bridget scooped him up as she fallowed the two Kelly women to the kitchen.
Everything about Granny Kelly and her house or cottage was very warm and comforting. Bridget had nearly forgotten what room temperature even felt like since Wexford. There were several differences between the Kelly household and a regular old bar. The cottage was small but filled with many homely things Bridget remembered seeing in the tour of a Santoff Claussen house she had seen. Furniture with upholstered flowers littered the living room while quilts covered half of them. Conjoined to the living room was a tiny kitchen with one stove and oven with three cabinets overhead most likely filled with plates, cups, and silverware. A table set up for three people had a large put over the middle steaming with a warm stew. Even from the living room Bridget could smell the potatoes, fresh herbs, and chicken broth.
"Thank you so much for letting me stay here for the night." Bridget smiled to Granny. "I promise to be out of your hair by morning."
Granny laughed, her chortle sounding soft and slow like a bowl of molasses drooping down. "You don't have to if you like."
"I need to," Bridget explained. "There's this important thing I need to get done by the end of the week."
"Preparing for Christmas?"
Bridget sadly shook her head. "No," she had forgotten all about Christmas since rescuing Petrov at Dublin. At that moment Bridget realized that if fate hadn't changed her and the Bennett's lives they would've been putting up ornaments and worked hard at making the house clean for the big day and play in the snow. There were a lot of things Bridget realized she was missing out on since the trip began. The only thing she didn't really miss was school but that was self-explanatory.
"She could help with the lights and ornaments tonight!" Annie suggested as she pulled her chair to sit down. Granny asked her moments later if the girl remembered to wash her hands. With a sigh Annie walked over to the sink and did just that.
Bridget quietly snickered and whispered in Granny's good ear. "I don't know how you do it but you're good."
Granny smiled knowingly. "Years of practice. But what Annie said earlier can happen if you like."
"Help decorating the tree." Bridget hoped she didn't sound too hopeful in her tone. "Oh I wouldn't want to intrude-"
"Nonsense," Granny cut in. "After we eat we'll get on to it after dinner."
Bridget still felt awkward from walking into the house earlier and nearly made poor old Granny faint that she still felt hesitant. "I don't think…"
"Now I'm afraid you can't say no to us, child." Granny placed a hand on Bridget's shoulder. "You might as well be whistling jigs to a milestone. Us Kelly women are known to be stubborn ladies. How else could my Áine have persuaded you to come here?"
"Granny!" Annie called out in embarrassment. "I don't like being called that."
"Tis' not my fault for you to have that name," Granny defended in mock fury. "It was the name of your great-great-great-grandmother. Lord above how any of us even remembered what her name was."
Bridget laughed quietly under her breath as she kept watching the scene before her. Eventually the two hosts calmed down after remembering Bridget still in the room and busied with preparing the table. Annie went to the refrigerator to acquire a few carrots. "I think your bunny would like them."
Bunny was practically salivating from the sight and Bridget nodded. She soon remembered of five other friends needing food. "Uhm, Granny Kelly, do you think I could grab something from the fridge too? There's…" She trailed off; realizing that asking for more food would sound unusual.
Surprisingly Granny seemed to have understood. "Of course." Noticing Bridget's dumbfounded expression, Granny laughed. "My Daniel always liked having a few extra helpings to give out to the sprites that run around our land. He always thought I didn't notice but I did. It made him go scarlet when I caught him the last time he did it."
Bridget's eyebrows vanished while she slowly put the stew's cooling mat on the table. "So, Danny use to go out for magical beings is what you're saying?"
Granny nodded, her fond smile turning into a thin line. Bunny motioned at Bridget to drop the subject by drawing a paw over his neck. Annie came back moments later with the carrots freshly rinsed and put into a bowl for Bunny.
Dinner was hardly a silent affair, but hardly had much talking either. Annie spent most of it asking Bridget questions about what America was like. Bridget ended up talking more about Burgess since she was more familiar with that town. She told them about her home with the Bennetts, how high school was like, the shops, and a few of the children. Unfortunately her talk about the children ended there when Granny offered a roll for Bridget. She decided not to talk for the remainder of the meal.
"I don't think your granny likes me that much." Bridget confessed to Annie while the elderly lady washed the dishes. The two of them were sitting in the living room preparing to remove the Christmas decorations from their boxes. Annie was busy giving Bunny a scratch behind his ears then gave Bridget a surprised look. "Of course she does. She just has a funny way of showing it."
Bridget craned her neck to see that Granny was still scrubbing down the stew pot and turned her attention back to Annie. "I guess you're right," was the words that Bridget decided to say to Annie but she wished she could've asked about Danny. The boy sounded like he was someone worthwhile to talk with since he must know a lot about the magical sides of Ireland. It sounded desperate but Bridget really had no other ideas.
"I'm almost done with the cleaning," Granny called out from the kitchen. "I'll be there in a few moments."
"Okay Granny!" Annie called back. "We're about to start putting on the ornaments."
"No lights?" Bridget asked.
"We don't have any." Annie sighed sadly.
"C'mon," Bridget ushered Annie toward the tree, every evergreen branch bare and vacant. "I think there's a branch right here that would love to have a red bauble on it."
"They look like they're having fun don't they?" Tooth asked Jack after spotting him staring at the window. The winter spirit chuckled in embarrassment from getting caught but smiled at Tooth nonetheless.
"Yeah," Jack replied. His blue eyes softened when he saw Bridget get into a tinsel fight was Annie.
"There you two are." North exclaimed with Sandy and Nightlight in tow. Petrov was near some trees near the cottage and ate pleasantly. Bridget had insisted that the reindeer wouldn't run off and the cart could be kept outside. Granny had held a look of confusion before it softened into what Jack could have described as understanding. Adults were weird like that.
"Just admiring the view," Tooth explained while pointing toward inside the window. Several eyes now peered alongside Jack as they all looked into the living room.
North sighed happily while watching the three humans interact with one another. He always loved how around Christmas time people seemed to put aside their differences and learn to find the most unique ways to celebrate the holiday. Wherever he went around the world North was able to see the very thing that made Christmas universal; Love. Love was shown to and from people far and wide with much happiness and compassion it warmed his heart to see when people could come together and be joyful despite what little or how much they had to share. The way the little girl Annie smiled while putting the angel on the Christmas tree's top showed much joy and wonder. It was something North regretfully missed from being away from children for so long. Monty was kind enough to show the old bandit king a few things he had missed from the last few centuries but it wasn't enough. Bridget though…. Well she showed much more than North ever thought he could see.
North saw the joy, happiness, wonder from an adolescent's perspective. Sadly he also saw the pain and unhappiness Bridget suffered through since the quest's very beginning. He something needed to be done to make sure she would always have a happy life and seeing her filled with so much wonder brought back an idea that was forming in his mind not too long after the trip began.
"Oh I think she's about to sing." Tooth spoke excitedly. Through the window Jack saw that the grandmother how brought out a device that he recalled looked like an old fashioned radio. It was one of those old looking ones that were shaped like a half-oval with a glass orb in the middle and little knobs to find the airwaves. The radio was old but appeared to work with the radio lighting up moments later. Annie pushed Bridget slightly toward the radio. She smiled nervously and made a motion in her hands to decline. Annie pulled at her arm with excitement in her eyes. Bridget puffed out a breath of air and smiled. She nodded once and turned toward the grandmother who turned on the radio.
"It's such a shame we can't hear it," Tooth frowned. The very moment she said that Bridget turned her attention toward the window. The Guardians widened their eyes in surprise. The redhead gave them a half smile and spoke toward the grandmother. She smiled and gave a Bridget a nod and she then walked over to the window and opened it slightly.
"We're about to do some super cheesy caroling right now." Bridget whispered hastily in a hushed tone. "I asked Granny-erm-Mrs. Kelly to open the window slightly because I said the room was getting a little stuffy." She gave them a wink and walked away.
"Such a clever girl," North chuckled. Jack smiled and shook his head. Somehow Bridget always found a new way to surprise them.
"I'm not sure you two heard this one but I think I found a good song," Bridget replied minutes later after twisting the radio's knob around and smiled when she found the right station. The melody of Christmas is the Time to Say 'I Love You' soon began to wrap around the room and pour outside.
"Good song," North complimented just before Bridget began to sing the first verse. Similar to the situation in Dublin, Bridget sang with a deep passion that almost felt like it was unseen, hidden away until a moment like this came around. Jack couldn't stop the grin from forming on his lips.
"-Christmas is the time to say, "I love you"
And a feeling that will last all through the year~"
Bridget finished the last verse with the sound of Granny and Annie cheering moments later. Bridget smiled despite of her flushed face and bowed mockingly. "Thank you, thank you I'll be here all night."
"That was quite the performance," Granny said before getting up from her chair.
"It was a lot of fun." Annie cheered.
"I liked the chorus singing from you, Annie." Bridget smiled after seeing Annie's grin. "I didn't know you had talent."
"I use to sing in my church's choir," the little girl admitted while placing the last ornament on the tree.
"What made you stopped? You sound like a natural."
"I think it's time for bed Annie," Granny called out suddenly. She turned off the radio moments later and inclined the little girl to take her hand. Annie smiled apologetically at Bridget before accepting her grandmother's hand. Bridget titled her head toward the Kellys in confusion until Granny gave her a sad but tired look. The redhead had a feeling the expression was meant for someone else.
"All right I did I miss something?" Bunny called out after he decided it was safe to speak. "What was that all about?"
Bridget shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno."
"Leetle Girl, Leetle Girl," North waved at her to come toward the window. Bridget walked over and gave her undivided attention to him.
"I have feeling in my belly that there is something troubling this family you've found yourself into."
"Anyone could've figured that one out, genius." Bunny retorted. He stood on his hind legs while using his paws to remove a loose bow from his neck.
"Nice accessory, Bunny." Jack joked with a chuckle. "Makes you look even fluffier than normal.
Bunny gave Jack the stink-eye. "How abou' I tie this around your neck. Do ya reckon it'll make your hair fluff out?"
"Guys, guys," Bridget made a time-out gesture. "Let's focus at the real problem here."
Tooth nodded earnestly. "Something has happen to the people here to make them look so sad moments ago. There must be something wrong."
"It has something to do with that Danny kid right?" Jack titled his head toward North's. "Do you remember a kid named Danny Kelly?"
"Of course." North replied like it was the easiest answer in the world. "He is a very bright young child full of answers and villing to find them out himself. Last year he asked for a book about all the unsolved mysteries out there in the vorld. Because of his situation I decided to give him a more…accurate book from my personal collection."
"What do you mean by 'his situation?'"
"Funny you should ask Leetle Girl. It may not come to a surprise to most of you but like how Burgess has Jamie vith his interest in the magical vorld, turns out so does Daniel Kelly of Kildare. But unlike Jamie who had yet to actually see a magical being before us, Danny had seen several for most of his life here. Ireland is an old land vhere magic and reality are meshed like a veaved cloth Bridget vears stitched to pants. Some people in rural areas can see the fairies here thanks to deep rooted beliefs passed down from generation to generation. The voman, must have passed down her teachings to her grandchildren."
"Too bad she didn't tell them about Jack Frost." Bridget thought sadly. "I wish I knew about this earlier. Would've made a difference for me on the trip I believe."
"But what difference could it have made?" Tooth asked her.
Bridget shrugged. She wasn't sure why she spoke that only that a part of her wished that the Guardians didn't hide important stuff like this from her…only for her mind to trail off to the firepowers. Bridget sighed. "It's late, I'll get something for you all to eat and I'll sleep here tonight. See you soon." Bunnymund opted to stay outside with the others and bid Bridget a short goodbye himself.
The redheaded girl closed the window and turned around to come face to face with Granny. Like the master of words she was Bridget stuttered beautifully. "Oh-um-I-I uh, was just with...um."
Granny laughed slightly. "I have a few unusual quirks myself, but they mostly appeared after I aged."
Bridget bit her lower lip and pulled at her left arm. This was so awkward. Bridget feigned a yawn and stretched her arms. "Well it's late, I'm tired and I'm gonna call it a night if that's alright with-"
"I wish to apologize for how I acted earlier." Granny interrupted.
"Wha…?"
"How I kept evading questions that involved my grandson and the other children." Granny looked at the ground guiltily. "Just them being brought up makes it painful for me to think about."
The Mini-fairies that habitually existed inside Bridget's stomach to evoke ticklish feelings from Jack now jabbed and stabbed the inner walls out of pain. "You don't have to apologize. I'm sorry for bringing it up."
Granny smiled from sympathy and waved it off. "Please I think you ought to know." She beckoned Bridget to sit on the sofa while she sat on a chair opposite from her. The older woman linked her hands together and sighed. "My granddaughter is very shy. She doesn't have many friends because of it. The closest to a friend she had was my grandson, Danny. He was the one that took the initiative to speak with new people and help her make friends. He always held a strong fascination with my stories of the Fey and the unknown. He got his curiosity from my son. Annie inherited her delicate nature and excitement from my daughter-in-law. We lost both of them three winters ago. It was hard for us but my grandchildren learned to manage. And then…. And then, almost a month an ago…. I lost him." The grandmother's usually calm blue eyes began to water. She took out a handkerchief and blew at it rather loudly. Bridget never really understood why people always blew at their noses when they were tearing up. It made more sense to her if they just wiped their eyes instead.
"Do you need a tissue or…" Bridget trailed off when Granny waved off the offer.
"No, no-I'm fine really." Granny grinned through her tears and wiped them away with the hankie. Bridget mentally winced. "Eww."
Bridget gathered enough courage to ask rather weakly. "How did you lose your grandson?"
Granny uncharacteristically shrugged her shoulders. "No one truly knows. He was outside for the afternoon, claiming he was to look for a Will O' The Wisp to learn their traveling patterns and whatnot. If only I was a younger woman I could actually remember what he last said to me." Granny smiled witlessly before her sadden look returned. "It was hours by the time I felt something was wrong. Danny always came back long before nightfall and yet sunset was fast approaching. I called the Gardaí about it but I learned that a few more children were taken as well. Did you hear about the unusual kidnappings that had taken place near the end of November?"
Bridget paled slightly and swallowed hard. "I might've heard about it." Oh she definitely heard about it.
"It's quiet horrible, so many children missing and no one knowing where they are. The kidnappings were so random; no one knew what or why they were taken. It was not like the families could have been able to pay a ransom but I certainly couldn't-" Granny began to choke up while covering her face with her hands. Bridget breathed in and out and made a face full of worry. She honestly had no idea how to help the poor old woman. Bridget was never all that good at comforting someone in her opinion and wasn't sure what to do. The only thing she came up with was standing up to stand near where the grandmother was and patted her free hand gently.
Bridget really wished there was something she could say like, 'I'm sorry for the loss,' but that sounded to harsh and made it sound like she believed that Danny was….not around. Saying, 'I know what it's like to lose someone,' didn't sound very realistic since she didn't have any lost relatives for all she knew. Jamie and Sophie and the rest of the children in Burgess didn't necessarily count since they all weren't related either. Bridget eventually decided to say nothing and opted to wrap her arms around the woman. She felt Granny shake in her arms like a weeping baby gurgling with tears. The redhead was grateful that Granny wasn't crying loud enough to wake Annie up, otherwise Bridget would have to comfort both Kellys and she wasn't doing so hot of a job with the elderly woman.
"Hot of a job, ugh what an awful joke." Bridget thought was she rocked Granny back and forth and side to side. She remembered in books how calming a person down required being gentle and soft so she did that even if it was meant for a toddler and not a grown woman. In the end it surprisingly did the trick.
After coaxing Granny to her bedroom Bridget picked out a few things from the fridge. She carefully closed it back up again, not letting any cold air to come out and slowly walked out to the front door.
"Okay, guys I got some dinner. I hope you're hungry." Bridget struggled with carry so many items but did her best to hide her toil.
"Starving." Jack said moments later as he appeared near Bridget. He smiled at the food Bridget brought and moved his hand close enough to the tray-
SWAT!
"Ow," Jack recoiled his hand away and rubbed at it. He grimaced at Bridget while she gave him a blank look. "Wait your turn like everybody else, Jack. Honestly you can be so childish sometimes."
Jack looked at her in disbelief. "And you're the mature one here?"
"I am now." Bridget smirked as she turned her attention away from Jack. A feat that was easier said than done. She walked to North and happily gave him a mug of warm tea. She soon went to Tooth and handed a cup to her as well. The Fairy Queen's mug was filled with green tea with mint leaves mixed in. "This has some peppermint in here for you North. I figured you'd like it to make you all toasty. It's not fresh unfortunately. Granny Kelly made it two hours ago and I had to reheat it again in the microwave so sorry in advance if it tastes weird."
North chuckled. "Anything varm to touch is velcomed vhen you travel far north like I have." He breathed in the scent of the tea and literally inhaled the drink in one gulp. Bridget widen her eyes in amazement, that drink she gave should've been able to burn the roof off of a person's mouth. She slowly realized that it was North she was thinking about and how it was the same guy who could fight a person with a bent stake knife and was still eating the steak.
"Thank you so much for this, Wisdom Tooth." Tooth and her Mini-fairies drank their tea with much more dignity than North by sipping a spoonful for each intake. "The mint is very good for the breath and keeping it clean."
Bridget smiled, the crinkles around her eyes creased along with the smile. "I had a feeling you'd like it."
"And for Nightlight, a cup of cocoa. Even if it isn't Ombric's Santoff Claussen recipe and this is coming from a powered mix and some water I figured it would be better than nothing." Nightlight took a cautious sip, out of fear of burning his tongue before he smiled and nodded his thanks.
"And because I've never met a better eggnog-chugger, this glass goes to you Sandy." The Sandman smiled widely before he took an eager sip and did what he did best and guzzle the whole thing down. "Don't expect to be getting seconds." Bridget said, earning a pout from Sandy.
Jack waited patiently for his turn as he rested by a tree. When he saw Bridget walking his way with two mugs left in the tray and straightened up and waited eagerly. Much to his astonishment Bridget strolled right past him and turned to where Bunny sat. She walked all the way to the winter spirit just so she could turn around and go the opposite direction of where Bunny sat.
"I can't believe I just did that, again!" Bridget almost felt like doing a victory dance but decided against it. "Here is a tea for you too Bunny. I had no idea how to put carrots into it so I just put them on the side for you."
"No, worries Sheila. I can take what I can get." Bunny blew on his cup and daintily took a drink from it. He noticed Bridget looking at him with an odd smile. "What? Never seen someone sip tea before?"
Bridget covered her mouth, attempting to hide her laugh. "Not from you." She picked up her tray and widened her smile. "I'm can barely remember you as a tough guy anymore though."
"I am still a tough pooka," Bunny insisted. He almost spilled his tea when he jumped up. He pushed it aside as delicately. Bridget's smile turned into a smug look. "This. Proves. Nothing."
The other Guardians did their best to hide their laughter that made Bunny even more irritated.
"You can't find a good excuse Bunny," Jack said after recovering from laughing. "I saw how much attention you were soaking up from Annie earlier."
"He's right you know." North grinned. "I saw that you enjoyed that rub of belly she did for you."
Bunny drooped his ears in embarrassment.
"Now you all stop." Tooth reprimanded them. "He could act like his normal self with Annie babying him." Her eyes started to sparkle in mirth. "Because we all know he looks better with a pink bow."
Everyone started to laugh at this, earning resented looks from a glowering Bunny.
"Someday one of you'll be the size of a toddler and I'll be the one laughing." Bunny grumbled. Bridget patted his little head for good measure.
"Is that a threat I'm hear? Guys I'm being threaten, I feel threatened." Jack waved his arms around in mock worry, earning a few more chuckles.
"Don't worry, Bunny. Even if you're adorable right now remember it's your best arsenal yet." Bridget said in hopes of brightening the pooka's mood.
Bunny chuckled darkly but said nothing as he continued drinking his tea.
"And last, but not least, Jack." Bridget brought her tray to Jack with a one last mug. "This one was the trickiest with having to cool down the tea and putting some ice."
Jack accepted the porcelain cup and took a swig. Bridget noticed Jack smacking his lips and a little bit of pink flesh poke though. A small blush appeared on Bridget while she started to smile stupidly.
"Oh, he can smack his lips with me anytime-WHOA~! What the hell am I thinking? DIRTY THOUGHTS! Dirty thoughts!" Bridget quickly banished those evil cogitations away. "Is it good?" She smiled widely, trying to look and sound like everything was normal. "Did my voice just squeak?"
Jack glanced at Bridget; unaware of what torture he was putting her though and nodded. "Sure. I think you put a little mint leaf in here, right?"
"Mm-hmm," Bridget decided to keep her mouth shut to prevent further squeaking.
"But I can't figure out the other flavor that's in it."
Bridget swallowed and took a deep mental breather to calm her raging heart. "Oh, um I put some blueberries into the mix. I figured it would add a zing to the taste."
Jack licked his lips, clearly showing more tongue than Bridget would admittingly say, and replied, "It's good but," he made a slight face.
"But?" Bridget tilted her head in worry.
"No offense, but I'm not a huge fan of blueberries. I like appl-" his eyes widened momentarily before he muttered something incoherently and turned away from Bridget.
"You like what?"
Jack glanced at her with his face suspiciously looking a tad purple and mumbled something under his breath before taking another sip. The last thing he wanted was for her to know about his fascination with her hair scent.
"C'mon, Jack what is it?"
"Nuthin'"
"Jack, that's not a real answer."
The frost spirit remained silent and stared blankly at the ground. Finding no weak points to strike Bridget rolled her eyes in defeat. "Someday I'll know what flavor you like, Jack. You are putting yourself into a really bad situation; keeping a secret of what your taste buds enjoy from me…it'll lead to disastrous effects." Even though Bridget mostly spoke in repartee she still believed in her threat.
"I'm sure he'll take those chances." Bunny replied dryly.
"Whatever," Bridget folded her arms before uncrossing them again. "But I just thought of something."
The Guardians, even Jack, turned their attention to her.
"When I was with the Kellys tonight I felt really grateful for all the things they did for me. And it made me feel bad, I did nothing for them and that's not right. I want do them something real special and I would like your help with that."
"Like vhat?" North asked, his voice full of curiosity.
Bridget smiled, her gray eyes brightened like a glowing tree. It was the very same spark that Jack loved to look at. "Something magical."
"Granny!" Annie's voice clamored through the halls. Granny Kelly opened her eyes lightly before she sighed. "Is there something the matter, Gariníon?"
"I can't find Bridget!" Soft blue eyes were fully opened.
"What?" Granny pushed herself off of her bed, using a hand on the bedpost to lift herself up. Annie came tumbling in with tears threatening to pour down her face. "Calm down dear." Granny went up to her sorrowful grandchild. "Wipe those tears away and tell me everything."
"She wasn't in my room," Annie said distressfully. Her eyes were puffy and red while her voice sounded strangled. "I checked the bathroom but she wasn't there either. I-I even checked Danny's room but she wasn't there at all." The tears fell and Annie sobbed.
Granny frowned and held Annie in her arms as well as a woman her age could. "There, there I'm sure she had her reasons." She really hoped Bridget did have a reason to break Annie's heart. She hadn't seen her granddaughter cry this much since the news of Danny's disappearance was announced. The poor girl didn't stop crying for about a week. Granny did none because she needed to be strong for her only Gariníon.
A few minutes passed and the sound of Annie's cries started to cease. Her shoulders stopped shaking and stilled. Granny brushed a few strands from her granddaughter's face and gave her a soft smile. "Do you feel better now?"
Annie shook her head once.
Granny sighed. "Well let's get something in you. Some food in you should do you some good." Annie clutched her grandmother's hand like a lifeline and followed her.
To say what they saw next was truly beyond belief. The very moment they walked through the living room to pass into the kitchen both of them held looks of awe. Every inch of the room was littered and filled with decorations only found on Christmas cards. The walls were pinned with wreaths stitched with ripened snowberries. Holly and mistletoe dangled over the ceiling without it being excessively extravagant.
Candles build with blue, silver, red, green and gold colors glittered the room in a heavenly glow. Streamers of red and green covered most of the ceiling anywhere the plant bundles could not and remained the most distant away from the flames. Lights from a string of glass balls covered the tree in a multicolor rainbow while each branch sported a modest sized candy cane that Annie had no problem of taking from one and licking at it. From the windows frosted images of lace polished the pane that nearly took Granny's breath away from how beautiful they looked.
"Wow~" Annie gasped in amazement. Her eyes grew wider when she looked under the tree. "Granny, we got presents!"
"Ah," Granny was still in a flummox from the decorations that she didn't even spot several colored wrapped boxes with big bows tied to them. "Oh my Lord and Mary…don't open those gifts, we have no idea where they came from or-"
"There's a note," Annie revealed as she waved an envelope around like a flag. Granny eyed the letter curiously as she gently removed it from Annie's grace and opened to see a note was indeed written inside.
"It's written all funny."
"That's because it's in cursive, sweetie, I am amazed by Bridget's handwriting-"
"It's from her?" Annie asked eagerly. Granny nodded as she skimmed through the paper. Her eyebrows were raised as she started to read. She sat down on the couch (covered with a brand new blanket with candy canes and ribbon patches stitched on the red fabric) then motioned Annie to sit alongside her.
"'Dear, Annie and her wonderful granny…. I apologize for leaving so suddenly. For most of my life I never thought I would find such kindness outside of the books that I so lovingly read. But my time in Burgess and here with you proved that wrong. I was nothing more than a stranger and yet you welcomed me with open arms and treated me like one of your own. If what I just wrote confused you, that is because I was writing to both you AND the Burgess family that took me in, so take that into account.' This girl is quite eccentric." Granny laughed.
"Keep reading." Annie said.
"Right, right. 'I apologize in the future for more weird writing choices. Moving on, I always had a love for Christmas since I was a little girl. It was the first holiday I was exposed to and learned early on that during this time of year people always found a way to be kind and caring to one another. You proved that notion last night for me and gave me a good feeling of joy and happiness. I a part of me almost wished I could have stayed.'"
"And why not?" Annie asked with a pout.
Granny gave Annie a look, the look to silence talkative grandchildren with, and resumed reading.
"'But the longer I was with you the more I realized how many others out there must feel….'" The grandmother felt her eyes grow wet as she slowly dabbed them down. "'Like a piece of them was lost when their child was taken from them this past month. I wish I could tell why I needed to leave but for reasons that cannot be explained under NORMAL circumstances I can't. The friends I spoke of need me to help them with something very important. All I can say about it is that we are doing something that might change everything. If we fail, or bring everything back the way it's supposed to be for everyone else. I had them help me with creating and putting the decorations into your living room, but NO I swear we took nothing from you. All we did was give you what you see here. I know it isn't enough to fill the void of losing your-your Danny Boy,' oh my… 'But let this be my way of saying thank you to how kind you have been for me. I wish the merriest of Christmases and advise you to keep BELIEVING. Don't let what other people say get you down, if they think magic is gone in the world then let them keep that belief, it is their loss for not seeing the true wonder, hope, sweet memories, dreams, and true fun that the world has to offer. Lot's of love, Bridget. Just Bridget, nothing else…'"
Granny squinted at the edge of the paper and looked at it quizzically. "Hmm, I'm not sure what the letters, N. S. T. B. and NL stand for. Oh and aJF is there also. I am assuming these must be Bridget's friends and herself counting the B I believe."
"Or it could be her pet bunny," Annie suggested. "She said the rabbit's name was Bunny."
Granny laughed. "Such an unusual name for a bunny rabbit."
Outside of the frosted window a group watched the heartwarming sight. Sandy was proud to see all the hard work they did make the humans smile. Bridget had come up with a wonderful plan, thought Sandy. It worked out well since North did have a few left over objects in his toy sack. Who knew it would also carry Christmas decorations?
"I still don't get how you were able to glow up those balls Nightlight." Bridget spoke with great wonderment. The spectral boy glowed with a hint of pride and mimed out how he did it, leading Bridget more confused than she originally was.
"I was afraid that we'd wake them up when I almost dropped that one wreath," Tooth spoke out of relief. Sandy was the one who had to catch the wreath before it was an inch from the ground.
"But Sandy caught it just in time." Bunny countered. The Sandman nodded eagerly and gave Tooth a cheering smile. The fairy smiled faintly.
"And ve got it all done before the leetle girl could vake up." North smiled happily. "Oh to see some much wonder in that child's eyes vas a gift all on its own."
"I think her seeing the gifts you left her was my favorite part," Jack smiled. He patted the ground with his staff, creating a few more feathered-styled frost patterns. Sandy rolled his eyes in amusement after hearing Jack's comment.
"It was nice to see both of them happy." Bridget said. "It's not enough to replace Danny but I'm sure-"
"They loved the present you left them," North finished. He smiled kindly at Bridget and adjusted the Santa hat she was wearing. She had worn the cap since they started placing the gifts, claiming it was meant to be festive.
Bridget turned beet red, the color nearly matching her hair and the hat. If it weren't for the white faux-fur lining around the hat her head would look a lot longer than normal. "You guys helped. A lot. If it weren't for you to make those decorations and presents, there would be nothing."
"You came up with the idea," Tooth added while placing a hand on Bridget's back. "You did a very good thing."
"So did you guys." Bridget insisted. She felt uncomfortable with the idea of taking all the credit. "North even wrote the letter for me since I don't know how to write."
"Something we'll also need to work on." Jack spoke under his breath. Sandy looked at the winter spirit in bewilderment. The taller Guardian sputtered something else and spent most of his time not turning his head near the later one's direction. Sandy remained silent. As usual.
"Did ya see how many times it took for him to write it in proper English?" Bunny asked in good humor. "It took longer than the whole decorating project." The pooka chuckled.
North gave Bunny a dour look before changing the subject by announcing that they all needed to leave to start the search for the true Stone of Fáil.
"This is going to be a long~ day." Bridget sighed.
"What else is new?" Jack deadpanned after they both got into the cart. North pulled Petrov by the leash and strapped the reindeer back in place before he climbed into the cart, tilting it with his weight with a great pull downward until he was in the middle.
Sandy raised an eyebrow at North who was climbing up toward the driver's seat. When the former Cossack noticed him, North chuckled sheepishly. "Right. Leetle Girl, you are needed to steer cart again."
Bridget nodded and quickly scrambled to the front seat. "You better put the quilt on again guys. You too Jack. We can't be too careful about kids believing in you or not."
"Should it really matter?" Jack complained. "I'm the most normal looking out all of us. I wouldn't stand out sitting next to Bridget."
"You have white hair and barefoot," Bunny retorted in annoyance. "How is that the least noticeable? And should we mention that the clothes you wear aren't usually what people where during cold climates."
Jack frowned blankly at Bunny but said nothing. He (reluctantly) remained where he was and sat with a slight pout. Sandy fought the urge to laugh. No matter how many years Jack would gain, he would always be the most childish out of all the Guardians.
The next day was nothing less than a failure. None of the Guardians or Bridget was close to finding a clue to where the stone could be let alone where in Kildare it was aforementioned located at. They searched everywhere humanly and magically possible. The land all over Kildare was explored and every stone of any size was left unturned again.
"Nothing," Bridget sighed for the millionth time that day. She paced back and forth with each step adding more for her irritation. "Nothing was found and we only have until the day after tomorrow, which-may I remind you-is the Winter Solstice." She groaned in frustration. "How can we be so close and yet so far at the same freakin' time? This is so not fair." The redhead glowered in irritation before she stared at the sky. Even with the ghoulish barrier enveloping the sky Bridget could see the near waxing gibbous moon. It was almost full but wasn't fully visible on its right.
Like all the other nights the moon stayed silent, its presence being there but never speaking. Bridget didn't know why she bothered talking to it-him but somehow she felt better after a good rant. It was venting toward an-what she always thought was-inanimate object that made her feel better after a long day of falling short. She did sot of wish that the moon did talk to her or at least give a sign of what she was going was right. Maybe even a moonbeam to lead her to the right direction could be of use? Bridget needed some kind of answer.
"Maybe I'm asking the wrong person?" Bridget looked pitifully at the earth's round satellite. "There could be some answers from the Guardians. I should really learn to ask help from them more often anyways…but what good could that do for me either? Someday (meaning the day after tomorrow) I'll become a…grown-up." Bridget shuddered at the use of that word. "And there's the possibility that I won't be able to…to," her mind trailed off as she felt a lump thicken around her throat again.
"Nothing is going to happen," Bridget repeated to herself. "Nothing is going to happen. Nothing is going to happen."
"You okay?" Bridget lost her train of chanting the moment Jack's voice came into her mind. She opened her eyes to see Jack standing right near her.
Bridget tried to sigh but her throat was too sore from her yelling earlier. She was even too tired to jump away from Jack. "I guess." Her voice sounded like her throat had been grinded with sandpaper; it even felt like it was.
"Hard day?"
"Probably one of the biggest understatements ever said." Bridget sighed. "How can we win if we only have three of the four treasures?"
Jack shrugged. "I don't know." He smiled pleasantly. "Maybe things will look up in the morning. It'll be a new day."
Bridget looked at him with a tired expression. "I doubt it." She stretched her arms over her head and yawned loudly. "It's late…. I think I'm calling it a night."
"Okay, then." There was a hint in Jack's voice that Bridget believed sounded like reluctance. She wasn't sure what he was reluctant about but she decided to not go into it.
The campground that North had set up was perfect to say the least. It was a good distance from the village with no one being able to find them. The group slept soundly with no disturbances to affect them in sleep. Or at least for everyone except for Bridget. She was sleeping soundly inside her sleeping bag; enjoying the warmth it gave her until she felt something prodding. Her weight shifted around before she realized who the intruder was. Sal crawled out of the bag with little effort by pushing his tiny toes out and slipping out of the bag. He blinked one eyelid at a time and then looked over at Bridget.
He was giving her a look as if asking permission to leave. It had become apparent to Bridget and Jack that Sal was a little more intelligent than they originally thought. While he was a sentient being he didn't talk or show much signs of being smart. In fact Sal barely showed signs of being brainy unless Bridget paid close attention to see that he was. The gazes he gave her, like the one he was giving her now, was a subtle example.
She smiled sleepily at him but nodded her head like she was saying 'go ahead.' The salamander hopped away and scurried near the dying fire. He lay over the burning embers and glowed a bright blue.
"Perhaps he's smarter than he leads on?" Bridget thought lightly before she started to doze off.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The voice of Jack was heard moments later. Bridget sighed. She decided that sleeping was never going to be in her graces again.
"And why not, if I may ask?" Bridget muttered while trying to not sound annoyed.
"For a surprise," Jack spoke in an almost singsong voice. He grinned widely before he pulled her arms up.
"Whoa, whoa." Bridget struggled into a downward position and pushed herself back in her bag. "The fist night we actually get a cold front and you want me get out of the comfort of my sleeping bag?"
Jack nodded, his grin still visible. "Of course."
"I am going to regret asking this, but why? Why is it so important that I come out of the comfort of my sleeping bag into the cold weather?"
"Do you want to know how it got so cold?" Jack appeared very giddy when he said that, with his grin still apparent, causing Bridget to realize something.
"You made it cold out." It wasn't a question but a statement.
Jack nodded once again. "Took me a while but I think if you get up and let me show you what I did you'll be impressed."
Bridget smiled despite of herself, but didn't want to be defeated so easily and decided to play along. "Oh really? And what pray tell could it be?"
"A surprise." Jack answered before adverting his eyes and turning away. "If you need to get dressed that's fine with me, I won't watch."
"What a gentlemen." Bridget rolled her eyes but didn't hold much sarcasm in her voice. With slight reluctance Bridget dragged out of her sleeping bag and pulled her coat on. She sighed gratefully at how clean it felt since Granny placed it in the watch less than two days ago. She was even more grateful that she got to take a shower that took much of the grime and dirt that pasted her skin and hair since the last time she bathed.
"Okay," Bridget brushed her hair, using her fingers and placed her glasses on. "But first things first I WHOA-" she was startled the moment Jack grabbed her hand and led her down a path. "Where are we going?"
Jack led the way with a huge grin. "Someplace fun."
Bridget frowned momentarily and deadpanned, "You do remember we have an important mission."
"Yeah," he gave her a soft look before continuing. "But you've stressing out since the…rock incident. The only time you actually acted like your old self was back with Annie and her grandma."
The frown remained on Bridget's face, this time not out of exasperation but more slightly unhappy. "I had to be around them. I couldn't look all serious or it would lead to questions."
"No excuses," Jack rebutted. "I can't have you being all gloom and doom. Sometimes a person needs to let go when they're too stressed out, and I'm going to help you with that."
She wanted to disapprove at what Jack said but clamped her mouth shut when she realized how right he was. Bridget had been worrying too much over everything lately. Her constant screwing up at practice, her weird connection with the spear, the bizarre visions, and firepowers…
"When will the answers finally come?" Bridget thought to herself. Sometime later she began to notice the sky wasn't very dark anymore. Stars began to fade in and out while the sky gradually turned a murky gray. "Sunrise is approaching." Bridget thought gloomily. She was going to miss it. The first time in, who knew how many years and she was going to miss seeing the sunrise.
"Here we are." Jack proclaimed minutes later. Bridget eyed him curiously as to where they were. All they did was walk even further into the forest their camp was in. Trees surrounded the two and went all different directions with only one path in front of them. She eyed the pathway curiously, wondering where it might lead.
"What exactly is 'here?'" Bridget squinted her eyes. She mentally sighed after seeing the crack in her glasses again. She swore that the crack was getting longer.
"Well not here but further there," Jack pointed toward the path. "I'm gonna need you to cover your eyes for the next part."
Bridget pursed her lips and then quirked a smile. "Is this going to another training location?" She almost sounded hopeful when she asked that.
Jack shook his head. "No. No training is happening today. I told you. You need to re-learn the fundamentals of fun." He gently took her hand. "But first I need your eyes closed."
Bridget sighed but complied. With closed eyes she allowed Jack to lead her to whatever destination he had planned. Their fingers laced each other in a comfortable mold that brought goosebumps on her hand. It was not the cold that brought shivers down Bridget's spine. "I have to tell him." Bridget thought determinedly. "Tell him how much I missed this."
"Almost there. Just a few more-oh watch that root-yeah the one right there and~ stop!"
Bridget halted abruptly and nearly bumped into Jack. He held her steady and told her to open her eyes. The moment she did, she saw what she would remember the rest of her days as the most beautiful sight of all.
Sunlight cracked over the land in a triumphant dawn. The sun glowed brightly as each wave of light manifested over the horizon and inched the grassy ground. Only instead of grass the light beamed over white powder that Bridget knew well enough was snow. Snow covered the entire landscape like flour that somehow also found a way to glitter like diamonds. More light covered the ground as it reached a long sliver that Bridget realized was a frozen river the very moment sunlight ran across it. Despite her desire to never stop looking at the breathtaking countryside Bridget needed to thank the very person who made all this.
"This was all you?" Bridget was certain Jack did it but she still wanted to know for sure.
Jack smiled sincerely and nodded. He placed his staff to the ground and waved his arms. "Surprise! I made this an importune-Your Day for you!"
"'Your Day?'" Bridget quirked a brow, confused by the choice of words.
"Everything you want to do today, we'll do it." His smile lessened but did not go away completely. "Think of it as the last day of full-on kid fun. You did say that…December 21st was the day you were found right?"
"You remembered that?" She almost felt like choking in disbelief. Bridget didn't think Jack had paid that much attention when she talked about her depressing past.
Glacier blue eyes looked at her with great sincerity. "Yes, I'd never forget. Not when it's the last day before you…well you know."
"Turn 18." Bridget finished sadly. No one still knew what would happen on that day. Whether she would still be able to see the Guardians was a great conundrum. None of them could even remember the last time they had someone believe as long as she had.
"Well," Bridget started up with hopes of brightening up the mood. "We should get started then shall we?"
Jack teasingly bowed to her while he picked his staff from the ground. "If that's what milady wants."
"Oh honestly," Bridget moaned mockingly despite her reddening face. She needed a moment or two to calm down until she suggested. "I know you just showed me this awesome view of your…work but do you think we can go into town? I didn't get to see much of it the other day and I would really like to see it with all of this snow on it." She furrowed her forehead momentarily. "If you did put snow there."
"No," Jack admitted before he grinned widely. "But you can see me do it. Making the snow I mean."
"Really!" Bridget widened her eyes in excitement. She never did see him bring out actual snow before. She saw him frost and ice the ground back on their first training day but never seen him form one snowflake. None of the snow in Santoff Claussen counted because that appeared on its own according to a disgruntled Jack ("How can snow just appear like that by itself?" He had asked the second day they appeared in the enchanted village, noticing snow falling without him conjuring at first. "I didn't make any of this. I didn't even know this place existed until yesterday." The remainder of the day nearly came with a blizzard if Tooth hadn't reprimanded him).
Again Jack nodded. "But why don't we take the scenic route?"
"Scenic-" Bridget only had that much time to react when Jack grabbed her by the waist, earning a surprised giggle, and sat down on a flat plank. The redhead looked at what her rear-end was sitting on and gasped in surprise.
"Is this a sled made from ice?"
"Made it myself before bringing you here." Jack answered rather smugly. His expression soon became serious as he lean down behind her. "Now keep your hands on the front of the board and have your back lean down slightly."
Bridget complied and bended down. "Don't worry I've done this before, remember?"
"To be honest I though you were joking about the whole 'sledding while still blind' thing."
"I didn't always go by myself." Bridget defended.
"'Always?'"
Bridget brushed the question away. "Okay, so I lean to the left to go left and the same thing happens if I lean right, right?"
Jack smiled. "You do know your stuff."
Bridget smiled in return. "Let's really see what I got." With a shove Bridget pushed the sled down as it slid over the snowy ground and into the snow. Almost like a well-oiled machine Bridget and Jack slanted to the right to avoid the icy river.
"Whoa," Bridget gasped in surprise as they neared the edge and started to slide over the wall in a bobsled-like fashion.
"Keep low and wait until we get low enough to land on the ground again." His voice was surprisingly even when he whispered in Bridget's ear. Under different circumstances Bridget would've fainted or shot fire, whichever came first.
"Right," Bridget squeaked in reply. Seconds of ice and snow passed through them until the sled gradually began to lower down.
"Now," Jack called out. In a matter of seconds the sled landed on the flat ground with a minor bump. Bridget laughed in relief and sighed. "That was pretty good."
"We're not done yet." Jack grinned mischievously as he lowered his staff in front of the sled. Ice shot out of the wood and formed onto the ground creating a perfect ice road. Their sled glided over the ice with precision and agility that Bridget never felt from sledding before.
"If this is anything like the sled rides you give Jamie, I better not lose a tooth." Bridget warned playfully while they took off over a freshly made ramp. She felt his arms around her tightened slightly which honestly made her feel a lot happier than anything.
Jack laughed and smiled reassuringly. "Nothing like that will happen, I promise."
"I believe you."
She really did.
"SNOW DAY!" Jack called out while the two rode on the sled through town. With each wave from his crooked staff Jack created snow flurries to fly everywhere around them. The air became nipping cold that made people their sled dodge around wrap around their coats tightly.
Bridget gawked in amazement at how much snow appeared. Clouds covered the sky, as more snow appeared overhead. "I didn't know you could make snow appear while on the ground."
Jack grinned cockily. "Yeah well I can make snow happen anywhere that's cold enough for it." He enjoyed that he was impressing Bridget, another added bonus from giving her the Best-Last-Day-Before-You-Have-To-Grow-Up-Day, or the 'Your Day' as Jack had aforementioned earlier. They traveled across the countryside around Kildare snow and ice following Jack at every way. More and more children came pouring outside to play in the snow as their watchful parents looked on with slight concern and worry.
"Should've known." Bridget rolled her eyes and shook her head. When the sled finally reached the center of town Jack slowed the sled down enough for him and Bridget to get off. The moment they did Jack waved his hand over the sled and it faded away into the freshly fallen snow. "That's something I don't see everyday."
"Just one of my tricks that I only show to a select few." Jack waved his staff a few times and more snow began to fall around. "So, what do you want to do first?"
"I don't know." Bridget answered after a few minutes of thinking. "I guess walking around could be a start. I really would like to look at the village. We didn't get the chance to do that at all the others we passed by before coming here."
"If that's what milady wants." Jack bowed again and smiled in amusement when he saw Bridget getting flustered again. He loved seeing her reaction the first time and had to say it again.
"Oh honestly." Bridget blushed a deep shade of red and looked at everything that wasn't Jack. "Where do you come up with stuff like that?"
That question made Jack taken back slightly. It was his turn to get slightly flustered. "It was…something my dad use call my mom, okay." Bridget looked at him with a look he was unfamiliar with. He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly until felt something warm and soft on his…cheek? He turned his attention back toward Bridget and saw her blushing deeper than before.
"I think that's very sweet." Bridget blinked several times and was breathing heavily. She was about ready to burry her face in her hood when Jack took her hand.
"Weren't we going to look around town first, before you decide to pretend you're a turtle I mean?" He asked in what he hoped was in a smooth voice. Jack felt bold enough to stroke his thumb over her fingers. Exactly as he imagined Bridget became a shade of apple red and attempted to act calm. "S-sure, let's get going." Her voice sounded very adorable tried to sound composed even when her ruffled appearance said otherwise.
Walking around Kildare village was probably more fun than Wexford in Bridget's opinion. Despite there being no ocean view Bridget thought the town had charm with being smaller more peaceful and less noisy. The people were very polite and nice to her when she asked for directions on specific places, even a few suggested different routes that would be less difficult for her to walk. And with that newfound knowledge Bridget and Jack had an enjoyable morning and afternoon. Bridget was the one mostly in charge of the places the duo went to and from. Jack did lead her to a shop that sold sweets, making the girl go very hungry and into realization that she didn't have anything to eat. That was when Jack brought out Tooth's coin bag from his hoodie-coat pocket. Bridget was mad at him for a while after that but her stomach won the war and made her submit to eating a meal 'paid' by Tooth's patronage.
After eating, the two spent time walking around Kildare Village with all the shops. Bridget enjoyed browsing around them with all the Christmas decorations on display in the windows and colorful atmosphere surrounding the area. When she suggested checking out the Japanese Garden next Jack had a ball there. Freezing the ponds, creating icicles on the red bridge, he even got to cover an entire cheery tree in ice and snow that made the whole tree appear to be pure white. Bridget unfortunately did not get to witness any of it because the garden was closed due to the unexpected snowdrift. Still, the rest of the day was eventful with plenty of more sights the two got to see together.
The last place they saw was the Cathedral with the lone tower. Bridget wanted to save that place for last when Jack mentioned there was going to be a 'Part 2' of his surprise.
"I'm sure it'll be great," Bridget said optimistically.
"You bet it will." Jack replied with a smile. "So why do you want to see this church so badly?"
Bridget thought feverishly for an answer. "I think because I haven't exactly seen one like that before." Her steps faltered for a moment before she added. "I also felt something..."
Jack slowed his walking too. "Like what?"
Bridget pursed her lips. She almost wanted to talk about the weird déjà vu-vibes she had been getting since arriving in Ireland that was part of her flashbacks. But a part of her insisted that wouldn't be a good thing to bring up, fearing it would ruin the mood and all. "Nothing. Never mind."
Jack didn't look all that convinced. He examined her momentarily but soon shrugged it off. "Fine, usually most girls would think old things are boring anyway."
"I think you personally prove that to be wrong, Jack." Bridget grinned and smiled widely after seeing his reaction moments later.
Going to the Cathedral wasn't as bad as Jack had originally thought. Okay, he did admit that he didn't hang out around churches for a reason, with them being creepy looking and a weak number of kids running around, but at least the church was warm with a few tourist crowds still hanging around.
"As you all know, Kildare Cathedral was founded 1223 A.D., even though it was dedicated several centuries earlier in 430 A.D. by the original saint that had built a more modest wooden establishment here." A tour guide spoke to his group with well-knowledgeable esteem. Bridget and Jack sat not too far from the group while the redhead listened animatedly during most of the tour. Jack kept his attention every once in a while by staring at random objects. He smiled widely when he spotted one stone carving that most people in church would frown upon seeing. He was about to show Bridget his finding when a tourist raised her hand at the guide.
"Is it true that one of the Saints of Ireland made her home here?"
The tour guide smiled as if the woman asked the right question. "That is certainly true. Just as I was about to say, this very church we are standing in is the very same abbey that was led by one of the three patron saints of Ireland."
"And wasn't that the name of a goddess also?" The same person asked again.
"Yes in," the guide trailed off, trying to find the right word and said, "pagan mythology there was a goddess the Celts had worshipped with a similar name-but entirely different existences-now if I can direct your attention toward…" the guide dropped the pagan god conversation after that and focused more of the architecture.
"But isn't there a well in the outskirts of town? And is it meant for the goddess or for the saint?" The woman asked persistently. Jack did look at the woman in slight confusion. He never spent time looking at women before but he could have sworn that the woman was a blonde by looking at the back of her head but was now sporting a hairdo of black instead. Bridget seemed to notice the same thing too and glanced at him in confusion. He shrugged his shoulders, signaling that he had no idea for the oddity either.
The tour guide sighed; attempting to not sound exasperated continued to ignore the woman, and resumed talking about what was so important about the buttresses in one corner of the church and why solid oak stalls were essential for the singing choir.
"Boy that guy looked like he was about to blow his top," Jack snickered, his previous bewilderment having gone away.
"I wonder why that woman wanted to know about the comparison of the saint here and a goddess?" Bridget asked after what looked like deep thinking to Jack.
The winter spirit shrugged, "Probably some wiccan enthusiast or a historian buff, who cares? There's still Part 2 of the day we need to do."
Bridget laughed as Jack half-dragged her down the front doors while avoiding a few nuns along the way. "Okay Mr. Bossy away we go!"
The two of them laughed even more when a passing nun shushed Bridget for her inability to hold her tongue.
A long day of fun soon rolled into a late afternoon as the sun began to set behind Bridget and Jack. The winter spirit lead Bridget through a path in-between the town and the campsite that seemed to go on and on in Bridget's opinion. A part of her wished Jack could just make another sled to ride down on.
"But that would ruin the surprise, and we don't want that." Jack said right after she suggested that.
"Can we at least use it the moment we're done?" Bridget asked nervously. "The others must be upset that we wasted one of searching the stone." She groaned after realizing what she just said. She slapped her forehead, "We were gone all day and they spent it worry over us."
"Not exactly," Jack drawled out with a slightly smug look. Bridget eyed him curiously until Jack said, "Someone could've, hypothetically, asked a favor from the Sandman and, hypothetically, had him put a trunk load of dreamsand over everyone, and, hypothetically, convinced Nightlight that waking them up would be a very bad thing to do."
Bridget stared at him in disbelief. "You didn't?!"
Jack smiled innocently and placed his hands behind his back. "Maybe?"
Instead of yelling at him for doing something so stupid Bridget felt a tug of admiration inside her. Probably from all the snowball fights they got themselves into earlier was finally catching up to her, or remembering all the other times Jack tricked around came into mind made Bridget look at him with a sort of devilish awe. "That is so evil of you. I'm worried that my interference in your life is making you behave this way."
"So, you're not mad at me?" Jack smiled slightly.
Bridget shook her head. "Oh I am. I really am. So much that I might yell at you for being so reckless and stupid but I'm in way too much of a high from today to be angry right now."
Jack grinned in relief. "Good, because you need to save your energy for one last fun thing for today."
"Should I even ask by this point?" Bridget raised an eyebrow.
"Nope, but I do like the reaction you give me for it." Jack feigned a wince when Bridget nudged his shoulder. "I'm not sure what the right name to call you by this point either."
"Again, good." Jack lead Bridget to a hill covered his snow. "Over this hill is something that took me all night to make so you better not getting all nip-picky at what looks nice and what isn't."
"I don't do that," Bridget defended as she started to walk. Jack stopped her and clasped both of her hands. "I know you don't," he spoke softly. "Just don't be too negative about it, okay?"
Bridget could hear how vulnerable when he asked. "He must've put a lot of effort for today for me. I better not say anything bad then." She nodded to his request and agreed to close her eyes when he asked her to moments later. "All part of the surprise no doubt." His hands laced themselves around her again as he walked forward, leading her to whatever the surprise was. But before she closed them Bridget remembered seeing the crack on her glasses. A pang of worry mixed with guilt swirled inside her. "I really hope that if I close my eyes I can still see after this."
Her dark thoughts went away when Jack whispered, "Open them." When Bridget opened her eyes she was graced with the most magnificent sight she had ever seen. It was even more beautiful than what she saw this morning. A pond surrounded by trees enveloped Bridget's gaze with the ice being so clear and bright that it was like literally looking at a mirror. Everywhere she looked the landscape was covered in snow. The trees were covered with ice that glistened in the same manner as the cheery tree did. The only difference was that these trees where actually white on the outside. No snow was falling around them but the air felt crisp and cold with the fresh air. Bridget looked over at Jack as he smiled and jerked his head foreword almost like he was saying, 'Go ahead' himself. She took a step forward and took in the familiar feeling of shoes crunching in the snow. After another step passed and she couldn't contain herself as she ran down the hill and stopped only a few inches from the ice. She grinned widely as she looked down at the water. Her reflection looked crystal clear, as did the rest of the ice that clung to the tree branches above her. They gleamed so brightly that Bridget almost mistook them for stars except she remembered that the sky wasn't even dark yet.
"This is…" Bridget trailed off; no words could describe how she felt about the beautiful sight before her.
"A good present huh?" Jack walked beside her, completely pleased with her reaction.
Bridget could only nod. She turned to him with a surprised expression. "This is all for me?"
Jack could barely hold his laugh. "Yeah, this is Your Day after all, but it's not the whole thing."
"What could be better than this?" Bridget asked. Jack kneeled down to where Bridget's shoes were and looked at them. "Why are you staring at my feet?"
"I'm gonna need you to sit down." Jack spoke casually.
"Why?"
"It's part of the surprise."
Bridget sighed. That was his excuse for most of the day. "Fine, I'll sit."
The moment she sat Jack went toward her feet and blew on the soles. In a matter of seconds two perfectly carved ice skates appeared made completely out of ice. If Bridget had not seen more bizarre or incredible sights she would have been floored by what Jack just did. The only thing she took notice of was that despite wearing the frozen blades she was still shorter than Jack. "You want me to ice skate?"
Jack nodded. "Yep."
Bridget looked at him incredulously. "You should know that I've never ice skated before."
"That's why I'm going to teach you." Jack smiled once more, ignoring the worried look on Bridget.
"Oh this will be a blast," Bridget said sardonically. "Falling butt first onto solid ice sounds like loads of fun."
"You won't fall," Jack promised. "I'll make sure of it."
"I'm going to fall, fall, and fall. And a whole lot of pain will follow."
Jack rolled his eyes. "Now you're just being negative. It's so easy-compared to your training-it'll be a piece of pie."
Bridget couldn't help but smile at his choice of words. She quickly scowled afterwards. "All that training I did, didn't involved walking on ice."
"Bunny's Tai-Chi taught you how to keep balance along with the spear handling." Jack pointed out. "I'll be with you the whole time, I promise."
Bridget looked at him, seeing no signs of mirth, and nodded. She pushed herself up and placed her feet on the ice.
Worst. Mistake. Ever.
Less than a second later Bridget slipped and fell to the snowy ground. Dizzily Bridget groaned in frustration.
Jack smiled weakly. "Sorry," he quickly apologized. "I didn't expect you to fall so fast."
"Oh really?" Bridget eyed him, not believing a single word. She breathed out a puff of air and flicked her braid away from her face. It always landed on her face at the worst times.
"I was supposed to hold onto your hand." Jack explained. He offered his hand to her and she reluctantly accepted it. He pulled her up with both hands and adjusted her so that one foot was one the ice while the other was on solid ground. "Let's try this again. I'll go on the ice first and pull you in, does that sound all right?"
Bridget nodded. Jack stepped onto the ice effortlessly and barely faltering to either side. "Now I need you to walk forward and slide." He kept his hands intertwined with hers leaving no need of her falling again. With shaky legs Bridget pushed forward, her entire body shook violently.
"Don't look at the ground, look at me." Jack commanded gently.
"Easy for you to say." Bridget muttered. "Not everyone has had 300 years of practice."
"Yeah but I wasn't a pro on the ice either," Jack admitted. "I needed sometime before I could properly skate. Just move your feet forward like you're walking."
Bridget gulped nervously but did as he said. Surprisingly she didn't slip down as she thought. Of course her feet felt like lead and she feared her suddenly fat feet would cause her to fall into the ice but Jack showed no signs of worry. "How thick is this pond with ice?"
"About four feet." Bridget widened her eyes in amazement. Jack shrugged. "I spent some time here before coming to wake you up like the other spot."
"Do you ever sleep?"
Jack laughed full heartedly. "Not that much until you joined our group actually."
"Oh," Bridget drooped her head down.
"Hey that's not a bad thing," Jack said reassuringly. "It gives us Guardians plenty of rest and energy." When he saw her smile softly Jack continued with the lesson. "Now let's try moving a little more."
"You won't let go of my hand right?" Bridget asked quickly.
"I won't." Jack held to her left hand and squeezed it comfortably. "Now let's move around a bit." With a push from his bare feet Jack led Bridget through a silent but graceful dance.
With every glide and pull Jack directed Bridget through a series of movements where no music was needed. Bridget didn't wobble or shake as much while time rolled on. They moved forward and back. Sideways and zigzagged across the ice and even jumped once in the air. Bridget almost didn't stick the landing but Jack caught her in the last second. She was in no league near Jack but she did get some sort of hang of it. She was even starting to enjoy herself truly until her braid got stuck in a lower branch.
"I did tell you to duck." Jack defended himself after Bridget glared at him.
"Ugh, I hate when this happens anyway." Bridget growled through seething teeth. The branches were thin and narrow but not thin enough for them to break. Even Jack had some trouble pulling at the braid without hurting Bridget.
After a few minutes of gentle tugs and pulls Jack looked at the braid with a closer look and spotted something rather obvious. "I don't know how to say this but I'm going to need to unclasp the clip and let your hair down."
Bridget widened her eyes. "Seriously. I really don't mind my hair like this. I can just stay like this until spring."
Jack frowned, though his eyes twinkled in amusement. "C'mon you can't stay here forever."
"I can." Bridget insisted.
"I can just-" Jack leaned in until Bridget pushed him away. He gave her a shocked look of surprise.
Bridget bit her lower lip and turned her head away. "I have seen what my hair looks like with it down and it's not a pretty sight."
"It can't be that bad."
"Trust me, it is." Bridget looked at him and sighed. "I'm not what you'd call pretty and my hair looks really weird with the color it is already so-"
"I won't laugh." Jack honestly didn't think there was nothing to worry over. Girls always worried over the most unusually things. First it was getting dirty from his sister, cleaned teeth from Toothiana, and now this? He really didn't expect Bridget to worry over something so, so normal. "Let's just pull it out and we can braid it right after if that'll make you feel any better."
Bridget looked at Jack hesitantly as she slowly brought her hand over her hairclip. She touched the silver metal and mentally winced the moment her hair was freed. She looked over at Jack and sighed when she saw he was staring at her like she had two heads. "I know my hair looks really weird."
If Jack thought Bridget looked cute with her hair tied up before, he didn't have a valid argument anymore. The moment Bridget's braid fell apart a red veil replaced it. All he saw was a river of flowing satin reaching the middle of Bridget's legs. It was smooth as it was thick, every strand looked so soft and touchable that Jack wanted to pull his fingers between each strand. The only thing that made the heavenly image spoiled was the unhappy look on her face. "It's really weird with it like this, right? Who even has this much hair am I right? I bet even Rapunzel had shorter hair than this." She sighed exasperated. "Will you please stop gaping at me like that? I know this looks-looks-"
"Beautiful."
Bridget blinked several times, trying to comprehend what Jack just uttered. "I'm sorry what?"
Jack grinned, his perfect teeth shinning brightly as the snowy backdrop around them. "Beautiful. You hair I mean." His eyes shined an unusual brightness that Bridget never thought she'd see from him. "Though the rest of you aren't bad either." He circled around her a bit with a small smile on his face that soon grew. "And guess what?"
"What?" Bridget had her tone barely above a whisper.
"You're skating all by yourself."
Bridget looked down and much to her surprise saw that indeed she was standing on her own. Her legs barely wobbled when she took a step forward. "Heh, I'm doing it. I'm actually skat-" she spoke too soon as she flailed with a twist from her feet and fell. Jack caught her in the last minute. The redhead blushed from the sudden contact as her heart beat widely. A lump formed in her throat before it melted away as Jack smiled at her. Their noses barely touched while didn't feel that cold in Jack's embrace anymore.
"Hello." Jack whispered in what Bridget could describe as his sexy voice that he was so aware he was using on her.
"H-hello." Bridget whispered back.
"Why are you whispering?" Jack smiled.
"Why are you?" Bridget replied in the same cocky tone he just used.
Jack ignored her counter question and asked cryptically, "Why don't you shut up one moment and look up?"
Bridget was ready to retort until she saw something fluttering above them. She looked up and gasped in amazement. One single snowflake, much larger than normal ones, flew around with life all on its own. Bridget temporally removed her gaze at the frosted flake and raised a curious eyebrow at Jack.
"Take it," Jack said moments later as the snowflake started its descent and drew closer to the couple.
"But it'll melt." Bridget said dumbly right before Jack snickered.
"It won't, trust me."
With one last look Bridget grabbed the snowflake and delicately caught it. She kept her palm flat as possible and made a small noise in surprise. The snowflake did not feel cold on her hand like previous ones, nor did it melt on contact. It was almost like holding glass, only much more beautifully made. The patterns and designs on the flake were so intricate and complex that Bridget had some trouble to believe that the snowflake was made by anything less than a miracle. The six-pointed snowflake had an unusual design on each tip was a three forked tongue image that almost looked like a flame. Below the recognizable images Bridget saw more familiar designs with knots woven into intricate lines that weaved into one another. Connected to the snow crystal lied a thin chain with a hook attached to it.
Bridget was at a loss for words. "I-I-I." Well, words that had more than one letter in them.
"I hope you like it," Jack replied. "'Cause that snowflake is very special."
"How is it special?" Bridget eventually asked.
"This one," Jack pointed at the snowy flurry, "Is the first Snowflake of Winter."
"'First Snowflake of Winter?'" Bridget looked around at the snowfall around them with a confused expression.
"I mean the first snowflake to fall the moment winter officially starts." Jack brushed his fingers against Bridget's while she took in the sudden revelation.
"It's the first…. It's midnight?"
Jack nodded and squinted toward the sky. "According to the alignment of the moon it became midnight at least a few minutes ago technically but you understand, right?"
"I think so," Bridget honestly didn't know much about the moon's movements as well as the sun so part of what Jack spoke was difficult to follow. But what became more difficult was her trying to look at the chain and figure out its meaning. "What's the chain supposed to be for? Not that I don't like it or anything but I'm sure why it's needed."
Jack held a look that was a cross between nervousness and excitement as he explained, "The snowflake is what you would call a charm, if you will, and the chain you can wrap it around to anything."
Bridget frowned slightly while staring at the snowflake. "That makes sense only the problem is I don't have anything pretty to-what are you taking out of your pocket?" She noticed Jack was pulling something out of his hoodie and her jaw dropped the moment she saw what it was.
In Jack's hands was the golden torc bracelet. "Now you do have something pretty for the charm."
For several minutes Bridget couldn't find any words to speak. Every type of feelings swelled through her that it was impossible to comprehend anything else. Why did Jack have her bracelet? How did he get? How long had he had it in his possession? Why did he have it in his possession? These questions with no answers kept swarming in her head.
"How did-how did you-where did you-why is it," Bridget was unable to speak properly. Jack raised a hand up, silencing the girl for a moment.
"I know this looks really confusing but if you just let me explain that would be really helpful."
Bridget nodded and kept her mouth closed.
"This was why I wasn't able to be around anyone for the last few nights."
"Wait, wait!" Bridget suddenly recomposed herself. "You mean to tell me the reason you kept avoiding me was because you went on a possible little game of find the shiny?"
"Well I-" Jack started.
"Don't you dare!" Bridget glared. "I am on a roll right now. You spent every night looking for my gold bracelet? How could you think that the Leprechaun would even waltz around near after the fiasco we had with-" Bridget became silent when Jack pulled out another object from his pocket. It was something she had never seen before and looked rather unusual. A cylinder made from what appeared to be gold with a flat side with colored tiles over it. On the circle side showed an image of a brown haired boy with hazel eyes who Bridget could only squint at to figure out whom it was. "This is…was this you?" Bridget looked at Jack with disbelief.
Jack nodded, one hand still in the coat. "That was me from when I was young. Before I became Jack Frost."
Bridget smiled slightly. "You really did look a little like Jamie."
"Can was focus on the tooth box?" Jack asked in slight amusement, not once sounding impatient.
"Sorry I-wait 'tooth box?' You mean this box here holds all your baby teeth that Tooth collects?"
Jack nodded. "All the memories of my childhood are in there. I like to have it around because…it's all I have left of them and Emily." Jack stared toward the ice with a downcasted look.
"This is," Bridget felt completely stunned. "You used this to lure the Leprechaun? Because it's made out of gold, that's how you got my bracelet back?"
Jack nodded again. "It was the only thing I had but I wanted to make you happy again. So I used it by laying it on the ground at every place we went to every night and wait to see if he would buy the bait. Two nights ago he finally did and the second before he could've grabbed it I frosted his feet and took the bracelet from out of his hands." Jack started to smile in amusement. "Can you believe that he carried that bracelet around in the open like that? I mean come-"
He was silent by a sudden embrace from Bridget. Her arms wrapped around his waist. She sighed softly while her voice came out muffled. "This is so wonderful. You did all this just for me."
Jack smiled, slowly returning the hug. "You deserved it."
"Yeah, but you put one of your most treasured possessions on the line for me every night so I could have my bracelet back." Bridget removed herself away from the embrace and slowly accepted the bracelet. Tears were threatening to fall down her face but Bridget wiped them away. "No one has ever done anything like this for me. It's a total cliché but I really don't know what to say."
"How we start with thank you, and we work our way from there." Jack suggested
Bridget laughed and nodded. "Thank you, for everything. And this," She caressed the cool metal over her hand and held her snowflake in the other. "This is, I have no idea how to describe this."
"Here," Jack grasped her right wrist. "Let's put you're old piece of metal back where it rightfully belongs." He took the snowflake by its chain and wrapped it around the torc. Gently, the bracelet was then slid over Bridget's wrist, fitting like a glove.
Bridget admired the treasured gift while raising it over her head to see the forever frozen ice shine in the moonlight. She breathed out a sigh, as she felt so happy from this moment.
"Wanna ice skate some more?" Jack extended a hand to her. Bridget smiled, her grin beaming widely. "I'll take that as a yes."
Each of them laughed as they started to be in their own little world again.
"Well I hope you're happy, Sandy." Bunny scowled toward the little man. "You made us all pass out for who knows how many hours."
Sandy frowned. He had his reasons for putting the others to sleep, thank you very much. It wasn't like he was forced to do it either but Jack did beg the Sandman to help out with one little favor.
"I'm sure Sandy had his reasons." North rallied up to the Guardian of Dreams' defense. "Even if I don't know vhat they are they must've been good ones."
"Can't we just focus on finding Jack and Bridget?" Tooth asked worriedly. "They've been gone all day and we still have no idea where they are." Nightlight nodded with worry.
The whole group was traveling along in the forest while searching in vain. It was getting excruciatingly difficult that they had not found one sign of where the two teenagers were. Just one sign would be more than enough.
"Yes, of course." North agreed. "There must be something ve could-ah Petrov there you are." The ex-Cossack chuckled when his reindeer came trampling through the snow. He held a very proud look on his while walking near the bearded man. "Have you found Leetle Girl and Jack?"
Petrov gave a snort while nodding once. He jerked his head toward the direction he just came from and urged the Guardians to follow him. The reindeer lead them through a path that carefully avoided several trees and stood near a clearing.
The moment they stopped running Sandy was the first to see an adorable sight before him. Bridget and Jack were playing over the ice with some makeshift skates and laughing around each other happily. He almost had trouble seeing it was Bridget at first because she had her hair down. She looked really pretty with her hair in the wind.
"Hello, hello." Bunny smirked at the sight. So that's where the bloody show pony was. He was busy playing handsies with the Big Ankle-biter. And her hair was all loose too no less. Who'd thought she could pull a look like that.
"My, my, my, vhat do ve have here?" North chuckled in amusement.
"Not much of a surprise to be honest." Tooth smiled widely, her Mini-fairies matching the grin while chirping happily. She was glad to see Wisdom Tooth and Jack safe but she never thought that the redhead would ever unbraid her hair. Seeing it flowing around Bridget like a curtain was wonderful to watch. She looked so free. "Hush girls, don't let them hear you."
"You're making as much of a racket as the rest of us, Tooth." Bunny chuckled in amusement.
"Do you think ve should let them be, yes?" North asked while stroking his beard.
Nightlight smiled from watching the sight and nodded. His face was slightly blue from observing the ice-skating couple and felt rather embarrassed that he was watching them.
Sandy nodded in agreement. The group made their return trip to the campsite with hearts full of joy. It had been a long time since any of them saw something so sweet.
It was a shame it would be a long time again until another sight like that would be seen.
Q-A: O.O DUH-DUH-DUHN! What could it mean? Well you'll have to wait next Sunday for it. I am SO sorry for how long this one took, but to be fair this chapter is 40 pages long and I had to do this college thing with my dad the other night so I barely had time to work on this. XP Super sorry again!
The reference of North's steak-knife fighting/eating skills comes from the first book in the Guardians of Childhood series. XD Young North was hilariously enjoyable to read about by the way. Bunnymund too for being so stuffy and uppercrust, NOTHING like the movie version. XDDD
Gariníon – granddaughter in Irish Gaelic.
The Sheelagh-na-gig (or erotic carving) does indeed exist in the Church. XD It's one of the few places where there is more than one exactly.
Keep on Writin' and Rockin'
