Chapter 5: The Past That Haunts You
The sun was shining brightly over the North Pole by the time the Guardians made it back, the light bouncing brilliantly off the surrounding white snow. Gathering in the chamber at the heart of the North Pole, the Guardians mulled about on the balcony looking out over the rest of the room. Jack in particular was taking advantage of the vantage point, looking around with wide eye sockets.
"Enjoying the view?" Frost questioned with a smirk as he walked up next to Jack, prompting the skeleton to look down at him.
"Yes, it is quite a wonderous thing to see," Jack confirmed before he went back to looking around the room, watching as the yetis continued their duties of assembling toys while the elves scampered about.
"I thought that you had been here before?" Frost inquired as he arched an eyebrow at Jack.
"I have, true," Jack confirmed with a nod as he continued looking around, "But it has been awhile, and you'd be surprised how you can forget the majesty of a place if you don't get to see it often enough."
"Same thing happens if you see it a bit too much, I guess," Frost commented as he looked around as well, a smile creeping across his face, "Alright, I've got to ask. How did you do it?"
"Do what?" Jack inquired as he looked at Frost in confusion.
"You know what," Frost replied with a laugh as he looked back at Jack, "The whole hijack Christmas thing."
"Oh that," Jack said with a laugh, "Well, it wasn't all that difficult to tell you the truth. All we had to do was kidnap Sandy Claws and this whole operation ground to a halt, which let us step in and take over the whole thing."
"You know, I never thought of it like that," Frost chuckled as he rubbed his chin and looked around the room, "But yeah, I could see that working."
As he glanced about, a thought seemed to come to Frost.
"Why'd you do it though?" Frost asked as he looked back at Jack, "I mean, you don't seem like the type of guy to just mess with people for the sake of messing with them. Especially someone like North."
"I will admit, it was because I had grown bored with Halloween," Jack explained, "I desired something new. And stumbling upon this place was exactly what I was looking for."
"Stumbled upon?" Frost questioned with a look of confusion, "What, you got bored and just wandered into the frozen wastes of the Arctic?"
"What?" Jack replied, a look of equal bafflement on her face, "Why would you think I did that?"
"Well, how else would you get here?" Frost asked as he tilted his head to the side.
"Well, I ended up walking into the woods outside of Halloweentown the night after Halloween one year," Jack explained, "While I did so, I wandered into a ring of strange trees."
"What made the trees strange?" Frost inquired.
"Each of the trees had doors carved in them," Jack explained, "Doors designed to look like various symbols. I opened one that looked like a Christmas tree, I fell through and I ended up here."
"That's….pretty weird," Frost observed as his brow furrowed, "I don't think I've ever heard about anything like that before."
"Curious," Jack said as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.
"Guys," Tooth called out to them, catching both Jack and Frost's attentions, "Come here."
Turning away from the view they had both been admiring, Jack and Frost made their way over to where Tooth, Bunny, and Sandy were standing.
"What's up?" Frost questioned once he and Jack joined the others.
"Well, we were over here trying to figure out the Guardians of the Sabbat's next move," Bunny explained with an annoyed tone, "We thought maybe you would want to join us."
"Someone's a bit touchy," Frost observed with a smirk, "Those dogs got your hackles up, Bun?"
"This is serious, Jack," Tooth admonished as she looked at Frost, "You saw how dangerous just Samhain and Krampus were by themselves. If they manage to release the rest of their group…."
"It'd be bad, yeah, I get it," Frost relented, his expression turning grim, "Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood a little."
There was a quiet moment as guilty looks spread across Tooth and Bunny's faces.
"I'm sorry, Jack," Tooth apologized, "We're all a little on edge, but you're right, that doesn't mean we have to be absolutely joyless.
"I suppose that's why we keep you around, mate," Bunny replied with a chuckle as he playfully punched Frost on the arm.
"It is quite exhilarating to laugh in the face of danger!" Jack added before planting his hands on and letting out a boisterous laugh, an action that earned chuckles from the other Guardians.
"Vhat ees all zees laughing?" North's voice came from a nearby hall, "Ees zere not eemportant vork to be done?"
Turning towards the voice, the Guardians found North hobbling towards them with the aid of wooden cane and one of his yetis, his red coat draped around his shoulders, covering his otherwise bare torso.
"North!" Tooth exclaimed as she zipped over to the man's side, prompting the other Guardians to join her, "What are you doing out of bed!?"
"I can't be laying around een bed," North answered with a dismissive wave of his hand, "Zere ees too much vork to do. Too much at stake."
"Take it easy, my friend," Jack spoke up as he flashed a smile at North, "You don't want to strain yourself."
As Jack spoke, North seemed to take notice of him for the first time. Everything went silent as North glared coldly at Jack, who continued to smile obliviously back at him.
"You," North all but spat as he pointed an accusatory finger at Jack, "You are not my friend."
"I'm sorry?" Jack replied as he looked at North in confusion.
"You should be," North snarled as he jabbed his finger at Jack's face, "After everyzing you have done, you should be sorry!"
"I-I don't understand," Jack muttered as he flinched away from North's finger while the other Guardians watched with shocked expressions.
"Zen understand zees," North growled, "You are no good zief. A zief of joy of cheeldren! And eef I had zings my vay, you vould have not stepped one foot eento my home, to say nozing of being made a Guardian!"
Jack took a few more steps back, his eye holes wide as North glared at him.
"You are no Guardian, Jack Skellington," North announced angrily.
"Alright, North that's enough!" Tooth declared as she interposed herself between North and Jack, "Whatever grudge you may have with Jack, that doesn't give you the right to talk to him like that."
"Yeah, mate come on," Bunny added, "He just helped us take on Krampus and Pitch. He's a good bloke."
"I'm sorry," Jack spoke up as he began backing away from the others, "I….I didn't mean to cause you all so much trouble."
With that, Jack turned and hurried away, a stricken expression on his face.
"Jack, wait!" Tooth called after the skeleton, a sad look on her face as she watched him retreat.
"I'll go get him," Frost said as he took to the air and went after Jack.
As Frost left, Tooth, Bunny and Sandy all turned their gazes towards North, each of them wearing matching looks of anger and disappointment, prompting North to look down at the ground with an expression that was equal parts stubbornness and shame.
Frost caught up with Jack a few seconds later, finding the skeleton sitting on the floor in a nearby hallway with a despondent look on his face.
"Hey man," Frost said as he landed on the floor next to Jack, "We got worried when you ran off like that."
"My apologies," Jack replied as he looked up at Frost, "It just seemed as though I was causing too many problems by remaining."
"You're not causing any problems," Frost argued as he settled onto the ground next to Jack, "It's North who's wrong."
"He's not wrong though," Jack countered as he rested an elbow on one of his bony knees and propped his chin up with his hand, "I did attempt to hijack Christmas for my own amusement. It was an incredibly selfish thing to do."
"True, but you're clearly remorseful about it and are trying to make up for it," Frost observed with a shrug, "You wouldn't be here if you weren't."
"I suppose that's true," Jack relented with a nod of his skull.
"Look, I know that North was kind of a jerk to you right now, but you shouldn't take it to heart," Frost went on, "This whole Guardians of the Sabbat thing has been more rough on him than anyone else, so I think throwing whatever bad blood there is between the two of you on top of that caused him to boil over."
"It does seem as though it's been a stressful time for everyone lately," Jack observed.
"Don't I know it," Frost agreed with a snort, "And we both know that North's a good guy, and that once things calm down a little, I'm sure the two of you will be the best of friends. I had a similar thing with Bunny. When I first started here, Bunny couldn't stand me. Now? He can sort of, kind of, stand me."
"Why did Bunny dislike you?" Jack inquired, "He seems like a friendly chap to me."
"Yeah, well, I was the guy who dropped a blizzard on Easter day," Frost replied with a helpless shrug, "So, it's kind of understandable."
At this, Jack let out an amused laugh which Frost quickly joined in on.
"So, I've been meaning to ask," Frost spoke up once he and Jack had gotten their laughter under control, "What's it like being in charge of Halloween?"
"Oh, it is quite the exhilarating experience," Jack answered, "I will admit, it's had its down moments over the years, but in large part I can't get enough of bringing thrills and chills to people around the globe."
"How long have you been doing it for?" Frost inquired.
"Oh, I'm not really sure," Jack replied as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "It must have been at least a few centuries by now."
"What did you do before that?" Frost asked with a friendly smile.
The question seemed to catch Jack off guard and he blinked a few times before responding.
"...Before?" Jack repeated, a look of confusion on his face.
"Yeah, you know, before you ran Halloween?" Frost explained as his brow furrowed.
"I….I don't know," Jack admitted, his expression turning lost, "I can't seem to recall."
"What can you remember?" Frost inquired.
"I simply remember awakening one evening in a pumpkin patch, tied to a post like a scarecrow under the full moon," Jack answered as his expression became thoughtful, "I managed to get myself free and stumbled on the sport that would become Halloweentown."
"You're like me," Frost muttered as his eyes widened in shock.
"What do you mean by that?" Jack questioned in confusion.
"When I first became….me, I had no idea who I was before," Frost explained, gesturing at himself as he spoke, "I was pulled out of a frozen lake by the Man in the Moon."
"The Man in the Moon?" Jack repeated, "Who is that?"
"He's….well I don't really know," Frost tried to explain awkwardly, "He's either this powerful spirit who lives on the Moon, or maybe he is the Moon, something like that. All I know is he's the one who is ultimately in charge of the Guardians. He gives us our marching orders, and I think he created both you and I."
"Created us?" Jack parroted, "Why do you believe that?"
"I know that the Man in the Moon is the one who pulled me out of a frozen lake and turned me into what I am today," Frost explained, "I think he did the same thing to you in that pumpkin patch."
"Why would he do that?" Jack inquired.
"If I had to guess, it's so you could be here to help us," Frost answered with a shrug.
"But why?" Jack questioned, "Who was I before?"
"I don't know," Frost admitted with an apologetic expression, before he flashed a hopeful smile, "But Tooth might!"
"Why is that?" Jack questioned as his brow furrowed.
"When she's not beating up bad guys, Tooth's job is to collect baby teeth," Frost explained, "And baby teeth contain memories."
"And you think she might have my baby teeth?" Jack asked in surprise.
"There's only one way to find out," Frost answered as he rose to his feet.
"So, what do you say?" Frost asked as he looked down at Jack, "What to come back, beat up some jerks and maybe find out a little about yourself along the way?"
"I believe you're right," Jack agreed as he stood up as well, "The most important thing to do is put a stop to these Guardians of the Sabbat."
"Right and hopefully the others have figured out where to go next," Frost said as they began making their way back the way they had come, "Because unless they find out where those two are going, were in for a load of trouble."
Heading back over to where the other Guardians were, Jack and Frost found Bunny, Tooth and Sandy all circled around North, giving him pointed looks as he stood with his head bowed. As they approached, North raised his head and focused his gaze on Jack.
"I er, I believe zat I owe you apology," North said awkwardly as he stepped towards Jack.
"No, my friend," Jack replied as he stopped in front of North and brushed the apology away with one of his bony hands, "It is I who owes you the apology."
"You do?" North questioned, caught off guard by this turn.
"Indeed," Jack confirmed with a solemn nod, "It's come to my attention that I never formally apologized to you for hijacking Christmas all those years ago. I am sorry for that. It was selfish of me."
North blinked owlishly at this for a moment before he looked over his shoulder at Sandy, Bunny, and Tooth, who gestured for him to go on.
"Yes, vell, eet ees good to hear you say zat," North replied as he looked back at Jack, "But zere ees more at stake here zan one Christmas, and I should not have let past grievances get een vay of helping cheeldren."
With that, North extended a hand towards Jack.
"Let us let bygones be bygones," North said as he gave Jack a small smile.
"Agreed," Jack replied as he took North's hand and shook it while grinning toothily.
"Good, now that that's all settled, we can actually get down to business," Bunny said with a solemn tone.
"Bunny's right," Tooth agreed with a nod, "We need to figure out what the Guardians of the Sabbat's next move is."
"Well, I'm guessing they're going to want to spring their buddies, aren't they?" Frost guessed with a shrug, "How many more are left?"
Sandy answered by forming a number two over his head.
"Who are they?" Jack inquired.
"Eostre and Kronos," Tooth answered, "The May Queen and the Wicker Man. Mother Nature and Father Time."
"They sound like a pair," Frost observed.
"Eendeed zey are a couple," North confirmed, "Zough zey are plenty dangerous on zeir own as well."
"So, I imagine you kept them separated," Jack guessed.
"That we did," Bunny confirmed with a nod, "Though that means we don't know if Samhain and Krampus are going after one or the other."
"Well, flip a coin and let's get going," Frost suggested.
"It's not that simple," Tooth countered gently.
"Isn't it?" Frost argued, "The Bad Guardians are going to either one place or the other. We've been on the backfoot so far, but if we can guess right, we might be able to put an end to this before more of these jerks can join the fight."
"He ees not wrong," North concurred with a shrug, "Eef ve are fortunate, ve could gain upper hand."
"I suppose you're right," Tooth admitted with a nod.
"So, the question then becomes, where do we guess they're going?" Jack inquired as he thoughtfully rubbed his chin.
Meanwhile,
Somewhere beneath the earth there was a large cave system, the roof of which arched high above, lost in shadow. The ground however, was unlike most caves, covered in a vibrant layer of green grass, illuminated by shafts of sunlight that filtered in from somewhere above. Various plants grew all across the cave system, including pink and purple flowers, and willows whose leaves were magenta in color. Scattered across the cave were simple stone statues carved to resemble rabbits and eggs with snarling faces on them, all of them largely overgrown with moss. Simple dirt paths crisscrossed the cavern before leading to a single path that led to one end of the cave, where dozens upon dozens of tunnels led out of the cavern.
Suddenly, the stillness of the cavern was distrubed by a swirling black cloud that formed near the spot where the paths converged. A moment later, the cloud dissipated, revealing Samhain, Krampus, Lock, Shock, and Barrel standing there.
"Ugh, I hate that," Krampus grumbled.
"It's the best way for us to travel, brother," Samhain replied as he looked around the area.
"Wait, I know this place," Lock spoke up as he looked around.
"Yeah, this is that weird cave where we found that big rabbit," Shock agreed.
"Indeed," Samhain confirmed with a nod, "But now we're here looking for someone else."
"Who?" Barrel questioned as he looked up at Samhain.
"Have you ever wondered where the word Easter comes from?" Samhain asked in returned as he began leading the group deeper into the cavern.
A/N: Short chapter, but wanted to see some ideas while linking to the next part of the story. Hope you all enjoyed it! As always, feedback and critique is always welcome, so please review! Later!