Summary:

Something is up with Jack, and North notices.

Enjoy ;)

Jack had a morning routine in the pole.

After freezing some unfortunate elves that wandered into his room, he would ice the first floor of the workshop and perch as the yeti tried to get over to their workstations. Despite the yeti making ice shoes specifically for this obstacle, the spirit would entertain himself further by throwing elves into the fray; North could hear him cackling from two floors below.

In a way that somewhat resembled a whirlwind, Jack would then run down the stairs, jumping a few feet down at a time. Though North warned him about rough landings, each day he decided to stay at the Pole he would do the same – and as a result there were enough rough landings to fill his naughty list. What was better or worse (depending on how you saw it) was the fact that the spirit would often throw snowballs down the staircases, mercilessly raining snow on the yeti's heads.

After a quick "morning", as sure as he was Santa, Jack would literally launch himself out of the window for a new day. To North, Jack was as flighty and fast as one of the baby tooth on coffee – though North knew without a doubt that he wouldn't have it in any other way.

So when there was no sign of yeti slipping, no sounds of clumsy falls and no laughter, North felt a little uneasy.

He knew that there was a very large possibility that Jack wasn't in the pole at all – he was a winter spirit, so only the moon knows what else he did out of North's watchful eye. But the problem was that he knew Jack was most definitely indoors. A yeti had alerted him of the spirit's presence the night before. Looking back, it was slightly odd that Jack hadn't even talked to him that night.

The unease only grew and so North decided to investigate. Rising from the dining table, he began to ascend up the stairs. No ice was on the walls.

Jack's bedroom door was open slightly when he reached it, letting in a small amount of light. Deciding that this was an invitation, North stepped inside, gently closing the door to announce his presence.

At first he didn't spot Jack; he was looking on the ground or on the bed with panic, expecting to find him injured or sick and unable to move. His stomach flipped when the spirit was nowhere to be seen, however a quiet creek from above made him look up.

Jack was sitting on the rafters on the ceiling of his room, and it seemed like North had come in a little too quietly as the spirit had not seen him, and instead was frosting the wall he was leaning against. Little details caught North's attention that stopped him from calling out – such as his hood was up, his staff abandoned on the floor; never a good sign. So instead of calling out to him merrily like he planned to, he spoke more softly.

"Jack?" He said. Despite his low voice the spirit jumped, almost toppling over. The unusual clumsiness took North by surprise.

"Oh, hi North." Jack plastered on a smile that made the older guardian flinch. "I didn't hear you come in…I better go –"

"No, stay." North gave a small smile as Jack slowly nodded, coming down from his perch. He landed with a small thump onto the frosted bed sheets, where the Cossack sat next to him. When the spirit didn't speak for a while, North sighed and moved closer to him.

"What iz wrong, hmm?" He asked. He could tell the question caught Jack off guard; for a moment his mask flickered, revealing a wounded face that North hoped he never had to see again. A second later, it was gone and replaced with a small, uneasy smile.

"Was it that obvious?" The spirit asked, sighing. North nodded.

"You are usually making ice rink of my floor right now." He replied, chuckling lightly. Jack smiled weakly, then bit his lip.

"I just didn't really feel like it today." The spirit shifted uncomfortably, looking up at his staff, which was still hanging from the rafters.

North had seen many children in his lifetime – he was the Santa, after all – and he had seen his fair share of upset children, hiding their problems. He could cheer them up with a present, or just a warm hug, but his gut told him that this was different. For once Santa was not sure how to comfort a child. An older child, granted, but a child all the same. The demons that were plaguing Jack couldn't be solved by a quick "Merry Christmas" or a nice little toy, but North wanted to try.

"Do you want to tell me why?" The older asked kindly, giving a small reassuring smile. He saw Jack's eyes darken and he looked away, apparently deep in thought.

"I…" Jack tugged on his hoodie sleeve, twisting in in his fingers. North was patient. "It's just…"the spirit shook his head sighing. He gazed down at the floor. "I'm sorry. Not yet."

North nodded, smiling as Jack looked at him in surprise. After all, Santa had met all the children of the world – and not everyone could tell him what was wrong as fast as others could.

"That is fine." North replied, placing a hand on his shoulder. For the first time that day, Jack gave him a genuine smile, and despite it being small it was there, and North wanted too keep it there. Not every problem could be solved by a "Merry Christmas" or a nice toy, but they could certainly be helped with things like those. The best situation would be where North would hug Jack, and Jack would hug back – on the other hand, however…

"You know, Bunny iz collecting dyes today, out of his little Warren." North glanced at Jack slyly, smiling. Jack turned to him, eyes lightening up.

"And why would you tell me that?" He teased, staff falling in his hands. He grinned. "I won't have enough time to freeze it all before he catches me in the act."

"Well, if you had some help…" North grinned, pulling out a snow globe from his pockets. Jack gave a short laugh, springing up. He gasped.

"You are influencing a poor, innocent child's thoughts…" the spirit snatched the snow globe from North's hands, smashing it onto the ground. As always, a swirl of bright colours was emitted, dancing in front of their eyes.

"I am Santa. I am allowed." North gestured to the portal. "After you."

Jack leapt forward, but paused in mid step.

"North?" He turned, pulling down his hood.

"Yes?"

"Thanks…" the spirit quickly jumped into the portal, leaving North smiling behind him.

The older guardian was slightly disappointed that Jack couldn't talk freely yet, but he could wait.

North was patient, and time wasn't a problem.

Sorry this is short but I kinda have hit a block. Oops.

Hope you enjoyed anyway