War of the Seasons

A/N – G'Day everyone :)

So, welcome to my new story! Just a very important note before we start.

This is a sequel to an amazing story written by Magiccatprincess. The story is called Little Prince and this is set one year after the events of that story and Rise of the Guardians. They very generously gave me permission to write this story and I want to say a big thank you to them :) If you haven't read Little Prince, some of the event of this story may be confusing to you so I strongly recommend you go read it then come back here when you are done. Side note: They have a sequel series called Tales of the Royal Family. I also recommend you read that although most of the stories in the series are not canon to War of the Seasons.

The title is a work in progress and may be changed at some point. If so, you will be notified one chapter in advance to the name change for the story :)

This story has the following main pairings: North/Tooth and Jack/OMC. There are also going to be a few OCs later on but that won't be for a while. If you don't like this, I'd suggest you turn back now. If not, I hope you enjoy :)

Prologue

"…..And so the Guardians beat the Nightmare King once more. The belief restored, the children saved and a family, separated for centuries, reunited again." Katherine read, a smile on her face as she looked over the last few pages of the book. She was so happy for her friends. The years since Jack had been lost to them had been hard for everyone, but especially Toothiana and North.

It had taken its toll on her too, knowing the truth about Jack and not being able to tell the grieving parents. To have to sit back and watch as her old friends drifted further and further apart. Sometimes the gift to see what others couldn't was a blessing. Other times, seeing the bigger picture was a curse. No doubt if Tooth and North figured out she had known Jack's fate all these years and said nothing, they would have never forgiven her. However, she couldn't let them interfere. Jack had a destiny that was too important for her to set off course. As hard as it was, she had to let the young man walk that path alone.

Writing Jack's story, there were plenty of times she had been tempted to speck up though. Oh so many times. The pain, the loneliness, the heartache and grief. All the time's when he could have really used the comfort and kindness of his mother or the wisdom and protection of his father. However, Katherine knew everything happens for a reason and for all the bad times, there were good times too she could never have stolen from Jack.

"It all worked out in the end." She whispered, eyes shining as she pulled out a new, blank book. She smiled fondly as Kailash poked her head in through the open window. Gently stroking the great goose's feathers, she hummed dreamily as she took her quill and began to write on the fresh parchment.

"A new story has begun Kailash. I only hope Jack is ready for what's to come…"

…..WofS….

North's POV

It had been nearly a year since the fight with Pitch and in that short amount of time so much had changed. North had been so absorbed in his grief the last 300 years that he never noticed just how quiet the Pole had become. Well, as quiet as the North Pole could ever be anyway. Now, his home was just as lively as it had always been before that fateful day in Burgess.

To start, Tooth had moved back in. How he had been apart from her for so long, he didn't know. It was perhaps even more amazing just how quickly they seemed to slip back into their old routine. In many ways, it was like they were never apart. Watching now as she gave instructions to her fairies while effortlessly dodging the flying toys in the workshop made his heart ache for all the missed time but he swore he'd do whatever it took to make it up to her.

The monthly guardian meetings were also back on. While they rarely had any significant news to share, it was still nice to catch up and hang out like old times. Things usually got a bit chaotic when they were all in the same room but they wouldn't have it any other way.

Christmas that year had been nothing like the holidays of recent past. The toys had been better than ever and the for the first time in centuries, Christmas had felt like more than just a job to Nick. The party the Guardians had thrown upon his return had lasted well into the night. It had been the first big celebration they'd had as a family again. The first, he hoped, of many.

Yes, things were great. It was like the last 300 years of grief and heartache had never happened.

Except for one thing.

Jack.

Jack had struggled the hardest over the last year to find his place in the family again. The boy was trying but 300 years away from them, 300 years without his memories, left its mark. Some days, it was like nothing had changed. Jack could be found pulling pranks on the yeti, Bunny, the elves, Bunny, Sandy, Bunny, North and Tooth and of course, Bunny. He'd join Tooth in collecting the baby teeth, help North design new toys, join Sandy on his nightly rounds to deliver dreams to the kids. He'd even hang out at the Warren from time to time, watching Bunny paint the eggs or tend to the massive garden. They'd even seen Jack visit Katherine now and again, borrowing some of her books in an attempt to catch up on what he missed.

Other times, Jack was quiet and distant. He often sat away from everyone at meetings, lounging in the rafters near the window rather than join them on the couches. At times, he'd disappear and not show up again for days or even weeks at a time. Now and again, when they placed a hand on his shoulder or went in for a hug, he'd flinch before mumbling an apology.

Jack had also 'officially' moved back in at the Pole. His old room had never been touched after his death and everything was just as the boy had left it. North had asked if he wanted to change it up at all, telling him they could easily redesign the whole room if he wanted, but so far Jack had declined the offers. North wasn't sure if Jack felt uncomfortable asking for new things or was genuinely happy with the way things were but had decided to leave it for now. It didn't seem to matter much in the end anyway. Jack rarely spent any time there.

Tooth was worried and North couldn't deny that it concerned him too. He tried to keep in mind that this had to be very hard for their son, trying to figure out how to be Jackson St North and Jack Frost at the same time. He wished that Jack could see that they were one in the same and that they'd accept him, no matter what. It wasn't that simple though and he knew that as much as Tooth wanted to puh the issue at times, all they could really do was allow Jack to work it out for himself. In the meantime, they'd do their best to show him that he could always come to them for anything.

It was nearing Easter again though, one year since Jack returned to them. Tooth wanted to throw a big party to celebrate, and North couldn't have agreed more. Their little boy had always loved parties and North hoped it would make Jack feel more at home again. Perhaps this would be just the thing to show their son how loved he really was.

…

Bunny's POV

E. Aster Bunnymund was in a good mood when he arrived at the North Pole that afternoon. Months of extensive planning had paid off and the preparations for the biggest Easter anyone had ever seen were well underway. There would be no holding back this year. After Pitch ruined the holiday last year, he'd have to work twice as hard to make sure all the kids of the world would have an Easter they'd never forget.

However, Easter wasn't the only thing they were going to be celebrating this year and this afternoon was dedicated to just that.

As he leapt up out of the tunnel and made a mad dash through the freezing snow to the wonderous workshop, he could already hear the hustling and bustling of the people inside as they planned for the upcoming party. It was still a week out from the event but North didn't do things half way and Tooth would spare no expense in making this the biggest party they'd ever had.

Sure enough, stepping into the workshop would make you think it was Christmas Eve. Yetis were rushing about, making decorations and drawing up floor plans while still working on the necessary toys to keep up with this years Christmas list. Tooth was fluttering about above the chaos, jumping from giving orders to the mini fairies to shouting commands to the Yetis. Sandy was keeping the elves entertained with little tasks so they wouldn't get under foot and North was nowhere to be seen. Bunny guessed the inventor was busy working on a present for Jack in his workshop, as he had been the last few times Bunny had visited.

Sandy spotted him first, waving before making a clock symbol followed by a question mark out of his dreamsand. Bunny nodded, knowing trying to be heard over the clamour was a pointless endeavour. Sandy gave him a thumbs up before flying up to Tooth to get her attention. Bunny left him to it and went to fetch North.

Sure enough, the Cossack was busy in his office, crafting a prototype of….something out of ice.

"Oy, North!" Bunny called, only just managing to dodge the sword that swung in his direction. "Crikey, its me ya bloody galah!"

North's eyes widened in surprise before he quickly resheathed the sword and tugged Bunny into a bone-crushing hug. "Bunny! Why didn't you say so? Ack, never mind. Good to see you! How've you been?" he bellowed cheerfully, turning back to his sculpture while the Pooka caught his breath.

Choosing to ignore his friend's first comments, Bunny grinned smugly. "Good mate. Easter plans are running ahead of schedule. This year should be the biggest Easter the ankle biters have ever seen!"

"Da, should be good year no? Easter is going to be very important this year. Its no Christmas of course…" North began, grinning mischievously at the rabbit.

Bunny's whiskers twitched at the remark but he chose for once to not acknowledge the man. He wanted to get through today's meeting as quick as possible. Besides, Jack should be here any minute now and they needed to be ready.

"C'mon mate. Toothie and Sandy are already waiting for us in the loungeroom. We should get going before Jackie arrives."

North nodded, quickly pulling Bunny with him as he took off for the loungeroom. "Hah, of course! Let's go!"

…

The monthly meeting went about as normal as ever. Tooth gave them a very quick-paced and detailed update on all the teeth she and her fairies had collected for the month. Sandy explained that dreams were going as usual and that more and more kids were dreaming of the upcoming Easter holiday. Bunny felt his heart warm with hope. The number of believers in the world was well and truly recovering from Pitch's attack but there was still work to be done. Bunny hoped Easter would help bring the numbers up even higher.

North enthusiastically showed off some new toys he'd made and finally Bunny filled everyone in on his plans for the upcoming holiday. All in all, it was a normal meeting. A gathering of friends sharing news and stories over drinks and snacks. All was well, except for one thing.

It would seem that today was one of what Bunny had begun referring to as Jack's 'off days'. The immortal teen had shown up ten minutes late to the meeting, remaining in the rafters and watching the discussion below. He'd barely said more than a few words the entire time and despite North's attempts to keep the mood light, Bunny could sense the worry creeping up on the adults in the room, himself included.

It was eventually Jack's turn to speak. On a good day, Jack would excitedly tell them of all the places he'd visited and all the fun and games he'd played with his new believers. Jack still didn't have many and most were in Burgess but word was slowly spreading amongst the children of the world of the fun-loving winter spirit, Jack Frost.

Today, Jack was quiet though. He told them that with winter over for now, he was mostly just topping up the snows in the coldest regions on Earth and that was it. Bunny sighed internally. He wanted to believe that this was just an angsty teen phase and that Jack would come around soon. However, he knew deep down that something wasn't right. Maybe North and Tooth's plan would help get Jack out of whatever funk he'd wound up in?

"Hey Jack?" Bunny called, watching as the winter spirit lazily swung his staff to and thro in the rafters, snowflakes gently drifting through the air in its wake.

"Yeah, what's up?" Jack asked, apparently trying to sound upbeat. The strained attempt at a smile didn't go unnoticed by the Pooka though.

"I was wondering if you wanted to help out with Easter this year? Gotta make up for the mess Pitch made of it last year." Bunny answered, tone dropping into a slight growl at the mention of the Nightmare King though he tried to bite back the resentment. He needed this to work. North and Tooth needed Jack away from the Pole as much as possible this week so they could set up the surprise party. What better way then to get Jack to help out in the Warren with Easter?

"Sorry Bunny but I can't." Jack mumbled, shifting slightly away from them as he looked out the window. A snowstorm had started in the last half hour and by the sounds of things, it wasn't going to let up anytime soon. Did Jack have something to do with it?

"What? Why not?" Bunny asked before he could think. He was confused. Jack had seemed to enjoy himself last year. Heck, he'd always been begging to help out as a kid. They'd thought Jack would be overjoyed at the idea of helping with the egg hunt. Looking to the other's, Bunny could see they were just as confused as he was.

"Jack? Is everything alright?" North spoke up, blue eyes fixed concernedly on his son.

"I'm fine." The teen replied, body tense and eyes not leaving the window.

Bunny could tell the kid was thinking of running. But why? He had a feeling pushing it wouldn't go well but he was worried. They'd all known how to handle Jackson St North. Had known what to do when he was scared or angry or sad. Jack Frost was a mystery though. They had no idea how to help the kid with whatever it was he was going through but it was clear this couldn't carry on. "Look mate, if something's wrong…."

"Just back off alright?! I said I was fine!" Jack shouted, a harsh gust of frigid wind bursting into the room, putting out the fire and casting the once-warmly lit space into shadows.

No one moved.

"Jack?" Tooth spoke up after a few seconds of stunned silence.

Bunny didn't turn to see what the others were doing. He kept his eyes fixed on the now trembling teen. The Pooka's eyesight was better than any other in the room and he could see the anger practically rolling off the teen when he snapped. He could also see the fight drain out of the boy at his mother's shocked voice.

"I-I just can't do this right now. Okay? I-I'm sorry." The winter spirit choked, shame and regret evident on his face. He swung around to leap out the window, done with the conversation. Before anyone could stop the eternal teen, he was gone. Tooth tried flying after him but the strong winds from the storm knocked her back.

Bunny remained rooted to the spot, ears twitching in thought, while the couple whispered frantically behind him. Jack was hiding something alright and whatever it was, it was bigger than they could have ever guessed.

The questions though, was what?

A/N – So, not gonna lie, this wasn't my best work. I felt a bit stuck trying to figure out how to word everything but this'll do. Now that the backstory and prologue is out of the way we can get into the main story. Things should be much smoother from here.

Oh, as a frame of reference, I decided Jack was 16 at the time of his death.

Anyway, I should have a new chapter out soon :)