A/N

I know! Back so soon! What has happened XD

Hey guys, I have returned because this idea was eating at me for days and I really just wanted to get it out there. It also fits into the nameless Guest who left a review/request back on chapter 34 saying: Jack gets beaten and attacked and even assaulted the guardians help him through it. It's a different kind of "Jack gets hurt and the Guardians comfort him." It focuses more on WHY and WHO attacked Jack and the angst between them.

Anyway, I still hope you like it! Enjoy!

Grief Between Frozen Spirits

Clara was lost, and she was cold and scared. She shouldn't be out here. She shouldn't have strayed so far, and now she was lost and freezing.

Clara and her family had been traveling to the countryside where the fresh mountain air, as her daddy had said, would help mommy feel better. A few days ago, her mom, her dad, and her two little brothers had packed their chosen possessions into the big wagon daddy had brought and set out for their new life in countryside. They had stopped for some rest tonight and were going to camp outside because they were too far away from any town where they could rent a room at an Inn. But it still sounded fun, and Clara had offered to go collect some firewood while dad, Tommy and James set up camp and looked after mom.

She thought she had memorized her way back. She thought she had known where she was going and how far she was from them.

But the snow storm made it really hard to tell where she was.

Clara was so confused. When she had set out she hadn't seen any signs of a storm coming in. It was still a few weeks before the worst of winter was suppose to hit. Now she was lost and cold, her long traveling gown not quite thick enough to keep her warm in this blizzard. The wind howled harshly, screaming into her ears, it's freezing touch like needles against her face. Clara hunched in on herself and kept trudging through the accumulating inches of snow, hoping she was heading the right way.

Clara wished desperately she hadn't lingered so long. She wished she hadn't have seen those flowers, but mother would have loved them. She wished she had stayed closer to her family.

The clattering of her teeth became painful and Clara realized that her pace had slowed. But then again, everything seemed to have slowed. The winds howling sounded so distant and the sharpness against her skin didn't sting as much anymore. Maybe she could rest for a moment since everything seemed to be calming down.

Clara sat in the powdery snow, hardly feeling how cold it was. She touched the fine stuff with her hand, vaguely realizing that her fingers were tinged blue, almost black at the very tips. But she wasn't shivering any more. That horrible, uncontrollable trembling was over and all she felt was exhaustion.

Somewhere, in the back of her mind, Clara knew this wasn't good. Her father had told her never to fall asleep in snow, because people who do don't always wake up.

Clara pulled her hands into herself, hugging them close to her chest. The movement took most of her willpower and she felt her eyelids drooping. She was so tired and all she wanted to do was sleep. Getting up and walking seemed impossible. She couldn't do it.

Tears leaked from her glassy eyes as she realized what this meant. She wouldn't be seeing mommy, daddy, or her brothers again.

Death was a word that had no place in the mind of an nine-year-old.

As she felt all her strength leave her, Clara looked up into the storm one last time, desperately curious to see how close she had made it back to her family, wondering if the outline of the wagon would mock her through the haze.

Instead, she saw a boy.

A snow white haired boy.

And he was laughing. Laughing into the storm, and the storm seemed to laugh with him.

He didn't even spare her a glance.

It was a well-known fact that Jack Frost loved forests. Centuries of only having himself to rely on gave him the freedom to travel the world, and the places he loved the most had always been where nature was free to grow wild and untamed.

Nature was always shifting and changing, and forests always held Jack's interest. From the way trees could grow tall and straight, kissing the sky, to the way they grew wide and daunting, overtaking meters of land and intimidating the shrubbery beneath it. How branches could grow up or out in twisting directions, curling around neighboring trees, or how they could grow big enough in diameter to build a house on. He loved the way moss gleamed on bark, and how vines twisted up the trunks of trees. Yes, forests were wild and beautiful, but there was one forest he hadn't returned to in years.

This forest was nothing all too special. It stretched pretty far, consisting mostly of pine trees occasionally giving away to clearings covered in wild flowers. But to Jack, the memories in this forest held a lot of pain. This is where he would go when he wanted to get lost. Where he needed to go when the world seemed against him and he couldn't hold in his grief any longer. For his first decades as the winter spirit, this forest was his grieving ground.

Antarctica was where he went when he needed to be detached from the world. When humanity was loss to him and he had given up hope of ever being a part of it. But this forest…here was where he went when he was stuck somewhere in between. When it hurt too much to wander through the world that refused to acknowledge him, but when he couldn't bare to bring himself to leave it.

But for years he hadn't been here. Not since…

What had drawn Jack to return, he wasn't sure. He had left this place in the past, but the memories of these woods were always lingering in the back of his mind, along with several other mistakes of his past. They tortured him in tangent with those voices that worked to break him. Being here only brought those memories and voices to the fore-front of his thoughts.

"What am I doing here?" Jack asked himself aloud, shaking his head and leaning against one of the nearby trees. In the last few years, this place had rarely crossed his mind, and so he hadn't noticed when he had taken a flight path that passed directly over these woods. Something within him snapped at seeing them again. It was like the trees were calling out to him and he couldn't resist the urge within him, telling him to stop and wander the trees once more.

But now that he was here, he couldn't ignore his growing discomfort and the nagging feeling that maybe the urge to stop hadn't come from within himself.

Just as suddenly as Jack realized this, a sharp gust of wind knocked him off his feet. The shrill cry of the word "YOU!" followed him as he tumbled through the air, knocking him through branches and not stopping until he slammed into a tree.

Groaning and holding his head, Jack stumbled to his feet. Before he could question what or who had done that, the wind, one that was not his friend or under his control, picked up again. Jack dug his feet and staff into the ground and leaned forward, trying to counteract the strong turbulence.

"This is all your fault!" The shrill voice rang out again, echoing around the forest.

Jack picked his head up, and his heart shattered at what he saw.

It was a spirit. Not a spirit like he and the Guardians, who are spirits of the Moon, but a human spirit. The remains of a human soul left behind after they have died.

This one was young. A young girl. She was colorless and her hair and cloths whipped around her as if she was stuck in a storm that only affected her. A storm that she now controlled.

The wind escalated as the girl's face filled to the brim with rage. Before Jack lost his footing, the girl's hands shot out towards him, and the woods reacted with the movement. Vines from the trees wrapped around Jack's limbs, but he still managed to keep a hold on his staff.

This angry spirit moved closer, her eyes were glowing white sockets of built up energy and angry that's laid dormant for years. And even though she no longer had human eyes, Jack recognized this girl.

"You did this to me!" She screamed once again. At her angered filled cry, more vines wrapped themselves around Jack's body, sprouting thorns and piercing his skin. Jack cried out in pain and fear.

"You laughed!" The spirit shrieked, tossing Jack through the air. Wind was useless against the powerful storm the angry spirit made, and she could do nothing to keep her boy from falling. As Jack fell, vines formed a net below him, but they were not strong. He crashed through them, thorns and briars cutting his face and limbs. Before he could hit the ground, a branch from one of the trees shot out and wrapped around his waist, cutting off his decent, knocking the air out of his lungs and causing him to drop his staff. He watched in terror as the staff hit the dusty ground.

Then Jack was being lifted up, more vines growing and snaking up his chest to wrap around his neck. He gasped and pulled at the restraints, but they didn't budge.

"You were there and you only laughed." The young spirit said, coming into view. "Why didn't you help me?"

Jack choked, struggling to pull in air. "I'm…s-sor-ry"

Jack knew what could happen to human spirits when left to wander this world too long. They become angry and bitter, tied to the place where they died or latching onto a person. Some cling to a final memory or emotion and that's all they know. Human spirits, or ghosts, are not like immortals. Eternity will drive them mad. No matter how young, old, wise, innocent, caring or loving they were in life, eventually they will become hateful. As the years go by, they cannot move on because they are stuck in one time. In a single day, memory or emotion that will eventually threaten to consume them. And it always does in the end.

All this ran through Jack's mind as his world gradually became dark. He knew of only one thing that he could do that might could grab her attention.

Using what little oxygen remained in his lungs, Jack choked out. "Cl-a…ar-a"

The effect was immediate. The young girls face became confused at first, then shocked as she realized what Jack had said. The wind died down for just a brief moment before the calmness shattered. Clara's face morphed into snarl, a look that didn't belong on such a young face, and Jack was flying through the air once more. This time however, he flew much further.

For a few moments, Jack flew above the trees, the leaves grazing against his body. But it wasn't long until he started to fall back into the woods, hitting branch after branch, cracking sounds filling his ears and he was unsure if it were only the branches making those noises. Eventually, he hit the ground, skipping like a stone tossed expertly onto still water. He skid to a stop, digging a gouge several meters long during his rough landing.

Dazed and groaning, Jack simply laid there, unable to bring himself to move. He felt like one of his lungs must have collapsed and his eyes burned. He realized, it was because blood was dripping into them from a gash on his head somewhere.

Jack was not even allowed the smallest moment of reprieve because the roots in the ground began to come alive and wrap around his body. Then the wind came back and Clara was standing above him.

"How do you know my name?" She demanded. Jack could see she wasn't just angry anymore, but apprehensive.

"Please, Clara-"

"TELL ME!" She shrieked, cutting Jack off and tightening the bonds around his body, digging them into his flesh.

Jack whimpered, grinding his teeth together, and before he could let Clara interrupt again, he dove into the story.

Jack was alone. He couldn't get that thought out of his head. He was alone and there were others out there who were like him. Who couldn't be seen by human's and who had powers and amazing abilities, just as he had. He had found this out only days ago, coming across a summer spirit and finally thinking that he wouldn't be alone any more. It had been almost four decades of bitterness and silence. The only thing accompanying him was the wind and moon, and the moon ignored him. He knew the moon had placed him here, but it refused to tell him why. It never spoke to him, no matter how much Jack begged and pleaded.

When he had bumped into the summer spirit, he had thought to have found a companion, but he was wrong. The spirit hated him. Jack didn't understand why, he had never done anything to him, but still, the spirit laughed at him when Jack reached out in friendliness. He had called Jack worthless and told him to get lost in a tundra, where he belonged.

Jack didn't understand why he would be rejected. Sure, their natures were opposite, but they were alike in the fact that they were outside of mortal life. Existed and lived beyond their world and understanding. But the summer spirit didn't see it like that. He saw Jack and he saw winter. He saw cold and death, and he spat anger fueled, bitter memories at him. Tales of winter spirits that were wiped out, and for good reason. Jack had asked for an explanation, but the spirit only attacked him, effectively chasing him away.

So, Jack flew away. The wind swept him up into the air and didn't let him down until he came to his forest. Not the Burgess forest, but the forest where he went when he needed to be alone. When he needed to scream or cry but couldn't stand the utter isolation of Antarctica.

Here, he broke down. Jack screamed into the wind, letting out all his frustrations. Why was hated for something he did not do? Hated for events of a past he was not a part of. He cried for himself and the way the children, who he loved dearly, walked through him. For how, even though there were others out there like him, he was alone still. Jack created a blizzard. It only covered a few miles in diameters, far from towns or other civilizations, so he made it cold. Oh so bitterly cold that the ground became slick, solid ice underneath the growing piles of snow. The wind howled and screamed along with him, cutting sharply thought the air with needle like chills, and tossing Jack's brown cloak in all different directions. Jack lashed out with is staff, freezing tree after tree, exhausting his energy and his emotions.

Eventually, he couldn't scream anymore. His tantrum died down and the storm calmed down a degree as he did.

Then, Jack was laughing. Hysterical, painful laughs that sounded like a madman and nothing like the usually joyful winter child. Jack didn't know why he laughed. Perhaps it was due to the irony that surrounded his entire existence. Easy it was for him to find beauty in the world, but also so easy it was for the world to break him down. How much he wished to be a part of a world that took no notice of him. And so, he laughed. He laughed at the irony. He laughed, as he always has, when he did not want to be sad anymore. Hysterical giggles raced through his body, even though Jack found none of this to be truly funny. He hunched in on himself, holding his belly as his shoulders shook uncontrollably. Perhaps he was finally going mad.

As he began to straighten from his fit, his eyes fixed on a sight he never wanted to see.

There, half buried and hunched in a small ball beneath his snow, was a little girl. Surely she couldn't be older than ten. Her eyes were open, bright green staring in Jack's direction, but she wasn't moving.

The second Jack saw her, the storm died down to nothing.

Jack dropped his beloved staff and ran over to her, his heart falling into the pit of his stomach. He dropped to his knees in front of her and for a moment he was surprised that his arms wrapped around her when he reached out. But then…he knew that it meant she was already lost. Lost forever. And it was his fault. Her skin was ice cold, pale and tinged blue on her lips, cheeks and hands. Her long lashes had frost stuck in them and her wind-tossed dark brown hair had ice frozen in it. She was stiff and lifeless in Jack's arms, and realization hit him. He knew the cold killed, but never had he seen it so up close. Never had he held one of the victims of his season in his arms. Never had he delivered a mortal, so young, so unintentionally and so out of season to afterlife. It was inevitable that the cold killed, he was just beginning to learn and understand that, but not like this. Never had it been so directly his fault.

"No…" Jack whimpered, the full weight of what he's done hitting him full force. He felt a sob surfacing in the back of his throat, threatening to choke him if he didn't let it out.

And he did.

Jack cried and screamed for a different reason, cursing the world and the moon for a different unfairness. He pulled the girl into himself and stroked her frozen face, looking into the green eyes that couldn't see anymore. His tears froze into beautiful, teardrop shaped ice, landing on the young girls face and falling to the ground all around them.

"I'm sorry." He sobbed, his voice broken and cracking. Over and over again he apologized, promising her he never meant for her to get hurt. Telling her that, if he could, he would take her place. Wishing he could take the day back.

But these things could not happen. That was the cruel fact of the world. For as much beauty and happiness there was, there was equal parts disaster and tragedy.

"Clara!"

Jack perked up at the call. It was a man, calling out a name.

"Clara!"

It was getting closer. It sounded so desperate.

"Clara!"

Jack laid the child down, knowing he wouldn't be able to bare the grief this man would have when finding her. With trembling lips, he kissed Clara's forehead.

"I'm sorry." He whispered one final time. Jack gently closed her eyes then rushed back to where he had abandoned his staff and hastily called upon the wind to carry him away.

Clara's spirit wouldn't not come into awareness until several days after her father found her body, lifeless and cold, dejectedly carrying it back to his wife and sons until they could bury her.

For years, all that Clara would have was the memory of a white haired boy laughing as the life was drained out of her.

Tears were streaming down Jack's face as he finished his retelling of that day. He hadn't thought about it for years, actively keeping his thoughts away from that memory.

But never had he forgotten Clara.

As he came to reality, Jack realized that the wind had died down and the roots holding him to the ground were not so tight. He looked into the young spirits eyes and saw that the harsh white glow was fading, revealing normal eyes. For several moment, the two stared into one another's eyes, Clara gradually regaining color. Her hair turning brown, her eyes becoming green, and her skin looking colored with the tan shade it once was in life.

The roots holding Jack in place let him go completely and the eternal storm that followed the spirit ceased as well. It really seemed as if Jack were just looking at a normal, alive young girl.

"You were…scared." Clara said, tears of her own coming into her eyes. "You didn't mean to."

Jack shook his head, painfully pushing himself into a sitting position. "I didn't know…" He croaked out. "I'm so sorry." His voice wavered and tears streamed down his face once more. He covered his eyes with his hands, feeling the dirt mingle with his blood and tears, but unable to bring himself to care.

Then, he felt a small hand on his shoulder and he looked up to see Clara, tears spilling down her own face.

"You stayed." She said, her voice trembling. "You stayed with me and…and grieved for so long."

"It was my fault." Jack said, eyes fixed to the ground and his voice barely a whisper.

"But you didn't know." Clara said, and Jack's eyes snapped to hers. For minutes possibly, the two frozen spirits stared into each other's eyes, and an understanding beyond words formed between them.

"I forgive you." Clara said, smiling and leaning forward, kissing Jack's forehead. Before the kiss could end, a breeze blew by softly and Clara was gone, dissipating into the wind.

Blearily, Jack blinked his eyes open, overwhelmed with the sense of peace that radiated through his body. Part of him still wanted to curl into a ball and hide away from the world for a while, but the other part, the bigger part of him, knew that this peace washing over him was a gift from Clara. This is what she wanted for him. She truly did not want him to feel grief or guilt over her death anymore. She forgave him. Truly forgave him and wanted him to be at peace as well.

Painfully, Jack rose to his feet. His body was littered in cuts and bruises and it was still hard to breath. He knew the feeling of cracked ribs and was positive he had a few.

Carefully, he trudged back into the woods, following Wind's breeze as she lead him back to the direction of his staff. Upon finding it, he snatched it up and immediately was in Wind's gentle embrace. She didn't need to be told where to go.

A couple hours later, Jack touched down at the North Pole. Wind entered though their window and Jack nearly fell to his knees in exhaustion. Moments later, Phil was at his side, helping him to his feet and voicing his concerns in Yetish. Another yeti had apparently gone off to fetch North, and it wasn't long before the Russian Guardian was bombarding Jack with questions. Jack, however, couldn't bring it himself to talk.

He was lead to his room, his silence speaking volumes to the older Guardian. While he got Jack settled, Phil sent word to the other Guardians. In no time, the others were at the Pole, all concerned and asking for an explanation. North had to explain that he hadn't been able to get Jack to talk, and despite all the efforts they would make, none of them would get a peep out of the boy.

Jack would heal with little to no treatment, refusing to let the other Guardians wrap his ribs or treat his wounds, beyond cleaning the gash on his head, in any way. He did agree to take a bath at least, and wore a long sleeved blue sweatshirt and a pair of grey sweatpants as the yetis repaired and cleaned his bloody, ripped cloths.

They could all sense that Jack needed his space. That whatever had happened had hurt him in more ways beyond the flesh. The Guardians reminded him that he could talk to anyone of them. It didn't have to be all of them if he didn't want it to be, each of them were there for him. Jack had nodded, a small smile on his face communicating that he knew that and just this knowledge alone was enough to make him feel better. The Guardians suspected that the only ones who would ever really know what happened was Howie and Wind, and neither of them would be able to let the Guardians know what had gone down with their youngest member. Jack was full of secrets and memories the Big Four were never sure they would be privy to. Pain and loneliness had left a gaping hole in the child that would never truly heal. They each knew he had seen and experienced things they may never fully understand. But that doesn't mean they wouldn't be there for him when he was ready to let them in. Only time would tell, and they had an eternity to wait.

A/N

The reason that Clara could see Jack there at the end when she was dying was because of my own little headcannon. I believe that the veil between what we believe, what we can't see, what is real, the living and the dead thins when you are so close to death. I believe that you see the truth of the world before you die. That you experience a clarity like never before, so Jack became visible because of this clarity.

Sorry if that makes little to no sense, but meh. Feel free to ask questions!

This was really important to me to write because Jack has seen some terrible thing. I've said that before in other chapters, but it's a different thing entirely to read about it.

And angst is always a plus in my books.

Guest Review Responses:

sparklehannah: I'm so glad that you like it! I know I say that like every time, but I really mean it this time, especially since it was something quite a bit unlike anything I've ever done. It's more turning Jack into more of my version of what I think him to be like and coming up with my own explanations of tidbits I questioned from the movie. I will likely have more in depth chapters about the Guardians and their abilities. I think that really helps to expand their character development, and that's something I really want to improve on! Thank you for your kind review! It's so flattering to read what you think of my writing :3

My Guest reviewer who likes "word vomit" I thank you so much! Yes, I do enjoy word vomit because that's when you write about the things that most stuck out to you, and I really appreciate that. I love each and every review, but ones that go into detail such as yours are a special treat. Jack is such an innocent and wonderfully childlike thing it makes me want to puke. The relationship Jack and Bunny have in my story, I feel, would help Bunny rekindle his passions. Jack is just really great at bringing out the best in people, even that grumpy old Pooka. And yes, Jack has to be artsy. There was no getting around that. And wow! Another review remarking my creativity! That is so great to hear, really, because it makes me feel that much more accomplished in this hobby. And yay, I didn't fail at humor, haha! And it's pretty much a guarantee that there's going to be more Jack/Bunny brotherly love and bonding. They are without a doubt my favorite relationship to expand upon within the Guardians. Thank you again for this great review! I really enjoyed it!

Iloveanimals: I will love to read more ideas! You never have to ask permission to leave those :) And yay! I did update rather soon!

Thank you to everyone else who is reading and to those reviewing! I so appreciate the continued support! You're all amazing and I'll see you soon!~