Tooth paced in the meeting room waiting for North to return. She'd finished what she'd been doing in Jack's room some time ago and was trying to pick through her recently reacquired memories. It stung for sure, but she could handle it for now. Knowing it wasn't really Jack behind it all helped….a bit.

He'd gone off a few times on a tangent, only two of which she'd really been present for. Something in them seemed… well, 'wrong' wasn't the most helpful term anymore. However, there was a certain stronger nip of something…more to it all. An emphasis here, or a wording there. She just couldn't put it all together on her own. It was like…she was still missing too many pieces to do anything with the ones she had.

Pausing in her walking Tooth looked down at the map on the table. The Yeti had been keeping themselves busy it seemed. With North having pulled them all off factory work it wasn't too surprising though. She'd learned well how determined and hard working a single Yeti could be, let alone an army of them.

She traced a hand over one of the points marked for being 'clear' of sightings. Much like her own search they were using a grid sort of formation to cover as much area as they could at a time. They only knew of two, perhaps three places Jack was partial too specifically, and those areas were under a constant watch for if he returned to them. With how little they'd been able to find after so long it was obvious he had a few other spots to hold up in.

Unless he'd gone to Pitch after he-

Tooth shook her head quickly. At first she tried scolding herself, denying the possibility was there. She had to stop herself before those stubborn words took hold. It was…it was far too dangerous to push something so serious to the side just because of the dread it caused. Because, as much as she wished for it to never be true, the truth was the possibility was there.

Before her thoughts could spiral any further the door to the study opened. North stepped inside with only a minor pause. The smile the man pulled onto his face as he tried to offer a greeting was dimmer than usual. Even from the the doorway Tooth could see the exhaustion that seemed to be weighing him down.

"Tooth. Is good to see you again." He offered with an attempt at his usual jolly tone, though it fell easily flat of it.

"North…are you-?" Tooth asked softly though stopping short, concern writing itself openly on her face as she approached.

He tried to wave her off, but his brow furrowed at her words. In fact, his expression as a whole seemed to grow more weary, his shoulders sagging just a bit more than they had been a moment ago.

"I am fine Tooth." He tried to assure her, "Is nothing to worry about."

He seemed ready to just leave it at that, walking closer and forcing his eyes onto the map on the table. Tooth wanted to press him further, knowing well enough he was lying. However, as worried as she was she could see he was trying to push himself forwards. To keep going. For now, she would let him. Give him a chance to settle on telling her himself before she tugged the truth free herself.

V*V*V*V*V

North's gaze landed on the map as he strode towards Tooth. He was aware enough to know he wouldn't be able to fool her into thinking was, indeed, 'fine'. But, he had at least hoped it wouldn't have been that obvious. Regardless, it was not something she need to worry about right now. Either of them. Now that she was here they could both start joining their efforts together, spread out and double their effectiveness.

That was the plan anyway.

As he looked down at the map that Phil had brought him…at some point earlier in the day, his heart dropped. While it was true that there was still plenty of the world left to look into there were…there were so many places already that were marked off. It wasn't just a check of them having been there, but that there had been no sign of Jack.

Burgess was one of them.

It was a small comfort that in this twisted state the kids wouldn't be in danger. But it was Jack's home. He'd called it such. It had been one of their strongest hopes. Even if he'd only drop in briefly they'd be able to track him from there, if they were careful. The bright red crossed out circle showed it was not a tactic they'd be able to make use of any time soon.

"North?" Tooth asked, a gently laid hand coming to rest on his arm a moment.

North shook his head again, his expression even weaker then before as only a barely formed half smile briefly passed over his face.

"Is okay. Only a thought." He replied as he tried once more to look at the map, "The Yeti have been busy in the last few months. Mostly in northern continents and-"

He paused a second as his brow furrowed before carrying on.
"Antarctica."

"I know. Phil already said as much when I arrived." Tooth informed him with more concern now, "My fairies covered as much as they could of the southern countries so far as well."

North nodded slowly, his frown peeking out more and more on his face.
"Of course." He replied before clearing his throat, "We should try to maintain better communication with the searches. Perhaps a few of your fairies? They travel faster than Yeti-"

"Yes, I know. I've already informed Phil of this." Tooth huffed as she tried to move to get a better look at North's face.

He paused again, turning to the side as he stroked his beard. It was mostly for show as he tried to force his mind out of the slump it was in and back into the issue at hand. However, every time he'd spoken so far Tooth had one step ahead. Tooth and Phil both. While he appreciated their skill and ability on the matter it left him feeling all at once every bit of useless that he seemed to be.

Was he even fit to-

"North." Tooth's voice broke in through his thoughts and back into the moment.

He'd drifted out for a moment there and hadn't realized Tooth had come around to stand before him. Her expression was far more worried than it had been a moment ago, but also softened by a sorrowful understanding. She had lifted herself into the air on her wings so that she was able to reach to his face, which she held gently with her hands on his cheeks. It kept him from turning his head, which was most likely her intent.

He could see her wincing a bit as she hovered, her wings hiccuping from their usual pattern as she fought to keep aloft. A fresh guilt welled up in him as he realize she wasn't as healed as he'd first assumed. More so that she was in pain from trying to get his attention.

It wouldn't be the first person who had been hurt trying to do so.

Seeing she had his attention Tooth settled back down on the floor, hands now moving to rest on his arms. For a moment he was tempted to try to placate her again, make some excuse for his faltering attention. However, even if he managed to get the words out he knew she wouldn't believe him. She already didn't. He could see it in her face easily. Even with good intentions he couldn't bring himself to lie to her again.

"You should sit down." She suggested gently, already trying to move him towards the nearest chair.

Letting out a hefty sigh North nodded slowly, allowing her to lead him without a fuss. The moment he was seated he could feel the weight of energy wasted on cleaning himself up just earlier. He hadn't even done all that much. Put on some clothes and brushed the growing snarls from his beard. It felt so taxing now.

"You look exhausted." Tooth stated trying to keep her voice soft.

North nodded in agreement. What was the point in denying it now? With each passing day he was feeling more and more the burden of time as it passed. It was as if age was creeping into his very bones and robbing him of any energy he seemed to gain.

"Have you been sleeping lately?" Tooth tried again, head tilted and eyes searching for…something.

With a barely notable nod North sighed once more.

"Sleeping, yes. Resting?…I do not think so." He answered truthfully.

Even with the worrying reply Tooth at least seemed to take the answer for what is was and leaned back out of his space.

"That isn't good. We're going to need you back on your feet if we're to find Jack." Tooth was saying with a small frown.

She took on a thinking expression and North could only stare at her in the meantime. He didn't know what else to do himself. It wasn't like he hadn't tried things himself to deal with it. Or rather, that his Yeti had tried to give him to cope. But, what could really be done?

He was just a washed out old warrior.

V*V*V*V*V*V*V

Tooth watched North for a long moment waiting for him to say something, anything. Even if it were another false 'I'm fine' at least he would be engaging. Instead he just sat before her utterly crestfallen and unfocused like she'd never seen.

Even from where she stood she could see his eyes, once a bright blue that glistened with a joyful mirth and excitement were now dull and misted over. His gaze had fallen and now rested on his hands and Tooth could almost feel his distraction. Or, perhaps she was just recalling her own. After all, it had only been hours ago that she had still been lost in her own head. Her grief.

With a sigh Tooth rested a hand on North's back and tried to give him a reassuring look. It took him a moment or so to come back into focus, eyes on her with both that same tiredness that seemed to emanate from his being as well as a mild questioning air.

"I think, it might be time for a bit of help." She stated as soothingly as she could with a pat on his arm.

"Help?" North questioned, seemingly at an actual loss, "From who?"

Tooth tried to keep the look of hurt off her face as she tugged at his arms for him to stand up. Normally he'd have stood at the unspoken request, but at the moment he just remained still and staring at her, waiting for an answer.

"Who else knows best how to handle sleeping issues?" She asked, trying to put at least a bit of smile on her face and in her voice, "Sandy."

V*V*V*V*V*V

If asked North would have had no idea how Tooth had gotten him up and in his sleigh. Though, some part of him recalled her making sense about one point or another. The Yeti were concerned to see him climbing aboard of course, but Phil was there and, unlike the others, seemed to be confident in this choice of action. He had promised North to look after the Pole and their plans while he and Toothiana were out.

A comforting thought really.

North held the reigns in hand, staring down at them as Phil and Tooth shared a few words. At the end of his Phil helped her up onto the sleigh itself and she settled in one of the seats. It took him a moment to shake his head, bringing himself back into focus. To Sandy's island. It had certainly been a long time.

With a flick of the reigns North called out to get the reindeer moving, steering them to the left for the straight away exit. The sooner they got to the Dreamsand Island the better. He hoped.

The sleigh pulled forward and the reindeer jostled against each other as they prepared to start running. However, just as they drew close to the entrance to the straight away North felt the reigns jerk in his hands. With a slight panic he tried to correct their course and lead them back to the left. However, it was too late and they were off, rapidly moving down the familiar winding tunnel on the right.

"Tooth, what are you doing?!" North scolded quickly as he tugged the reigns sharply to the right.

Tooth let go of them and quickly grabbed onto the back of North's seat instead. He could just about see her wings in his peripheral but was currently more concerned about the path ahead of them.

He'd only just managed to steer the sleigh past the first ice pillar with only a scuffing to the siding. However, the reindeer were not going fast enough at the moment for him to breath easy. Not only that, but the slight bump had also already made the sleigh itself veer too much to the right for them to clear the next pillar.

With a mildly distressed call North ushered the reindeer onward, a snap of the reigns to urge them even more so. As they slid to the left side of the tunnel the sleigh careened at an angle and, just as he'd predicted, they weren't going to clear the next pillar exactly.

They bumped it roughly with the right ski leg and across the wing as well. This jerked the sleigh roughly, sending North off his feet and full body into his seat. He even almost dropped the reigns entirely. However, this wasn't the first time he'd had a rough ride in the bulky contraption.

Another sharp call to the deer ahead North snapped the reigns and steered them roughly back to the left. It was a tight maneuver, especially as the sleigh itself was still fishtailing from the first two collisions. He wasn't able to avoid a third entirely, but with the fresh speed he managed to at least keep it to just the tail end of the left side ski leg.

They were sliding up high on the wall as a result, higher than they should be. The thinner tunnel pass was swiftly upon them, the tight walls grinding against them as the sleigh was forced to level out. North winced at the sound but tried to pay it no mind. There was still more to go and certainly everything so far should be easy enough to buff out.

Out of instinct North pulled right just before they fully left the exit to the smaller tunnel, over correcting for the smaller curb coming up ahead. It wasn't the wrong move either as they were still swiveling more than they should have been. Though, at this point North was certain he had fixed the worst of it. At least, for the immediate threat to their health.

At this point they just need more speed and the caves natural curves and divots should be enough for North to regain full control Another pillar was coming up and North heaved them strongly to the left, going as far up the wall as they were currently able. They cleared it without a problem and the natural downward slid served to boost their moment as he'd hoped.

They were back into another thinner crevice as North shouted ahead of them. There was one larger he was thinking of yet to come, but at this point he was no longer worried. Perhaps a bit concerned, but…mostly he was just…Exhilarated.

Would they be going fast enough in time to clear the whole thing? Or would they end up sliding down too early? Surely they'd be able to handle the damage if so. At least the reindeer would be clear of it, though they might get injured if the sleigh were to snag on the icy stalagmites at the end and stop them short by the harness.

They were entering the twisty 's' shaped track now and North had to steer them carefully as the speed they were at almost had the sleigh dip right up and over the side. He needed to use the walls for more momentum, but couldn't risk them going up too high for obvious reasons. This would be his last chance to adjust their velocity and trajectory before he would need to trigger the boosters. There was only a small bit of track left ahead now in the wide cavern before the loop.

He counted it down in his head, feeling the movement of the sleigh beneath him, the wind in his hair. He noted the large carved pillars around them. This time was all about feeling it out, he needed to be certain. There would be no second chances.

Another small tunnel just barely able to fit the sleigh through it. Ticking off the seconds in his head North braced himself, took in a breath and-

And laughed.

He was laughing.

When did that happen?

A press of a button, a tug on the reigns and they were sideways on the wall. A bubbling cackle of victory left him as he steered them further up, and up and over. The curve of the ceiling smooth and glossy as ever, guiding them back down from the left side. They didn't even come close to the stalagmites at the end.

Before long they were swiftly passing through the final tunneled hall, the carved arch leading them out onto a short wooden ramp as they burst up and into the sky.

North was breathing hard, though that didn't stop him from letting out a whoop as they climbed upwards. The chilled wind whipped over his face and rustled his hair as the adrenaline colored his face red with the thrill of the moment.

The sleigh steadied out, catching the wind as the reindeer fell into a stable flying pace. North sank into his seat to catch his breath. Now that they were out of the tunnel and out of danger seemed to be resettling as well. He look ahead of him at his sleigh team, dipping and bobbing in air, at the sunlit plains of white below. For a moment, that moment it…it was so bright to him. Vivid and alive…before the edges began mist over again with a familiar gray.

A hand on his shoulder got his attention and he looked to the side. Toothiana stood, a bit ruffled, but with a soft smile and a worried gaze.

"I wouldn't have thought you one for hijacking." North commented, the barest of smiles touching his face.

This seemed to bring some calm to Tooth as she offered a shrug and an embarrassed look.

"I consider it more of a 'mild course correction'." She replied before trying pat down some of her feathers.

Keeping his eyes on her North felt a swell of appreciation, even as the weight seemed to return to his shoulders. She was trying her best to help him regain himself, he knew. Just as Phil and the other Yeti had, and, of course, the elves. It had been a bit dangerous for her usual methods of care but…but she'd trusted him to manage it. Believed him capable of bringing them through it, even at his worst…

"Tooth-" He started, tilting his head towards her with a raised brow, "A bit of warning next time, no?"

His smile this time was ever so much bigger than the last, though not nearly as fake as the ones in the Pole had been. Tooth let out a nervous sort of chuckle before she nodded her head sheepishly.

"Next time." She agreed.

V*V*V*V*V*V

Tooth knew this wouldn't 'fix' him of course. She knew that, and he knew that too. But that didn't mean it wasn't helpful in the moment. Even if just for the moment. He could be himself again. Remember what it was like to be himself.

For now, it would be enough.

V*V*V*V*V

Baby Tooth looked out over the gathering of her sisters currently perched around the central hub. They were the fairies that had been sent out to scour the section of the southern hemisphere that Tooth herself had shone great interest when she'd still been able to go out.

They were doing a safety check after a small storm had kicked up during their last pass over of their sector. The reports they had given were already concerning. Shadows growing bolder, sprites inching ever closer to the human cities and towns, whispers of a returning threat under the absence of attention from the Guardians.

But worse, and the reason they were now perched instead of fluttering was due to what they'd hoped was a miscount. But…that didn't seem to be the case. It would seem that they were, in fact, missing two of their sisters.

Perhaps with the storm they had taken refuge in a house and were hiding away until they had a moment to safely return? Or maybe…maybe they had been caught too deeply in the cold, or-

Baby Tooth shook her head sharply.

She couldn't think like that. She had to keep positive. She had a job to do. Toothiana was counting on her.

First they needed to trace their last known location-

*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*V*

Thank you for you patience. I'm trying my best to keep these coming between work and health issues. I'm fine, just…a bit distracted. I hope I can keep delivering quality writing for you despite that.

And for you eager readers out there with questions. I hope you are good at picking up bread crumbs.

May you all be well or get well soon as is needed. Stay safe out there.