Disclaimer: Not mine

Chapter 3

North listened as Jack spoke, curled into the corner of the couch. It hurt, to have him so wary of them but wo could blame him? Even without memory of what the Guardians of his world had done to him, he had been told, and it would take time for him to get to know them, to see they were nothing like the others.

Jack had shared some stories after regaining his memories so listening to this new Jack was interesting. They had been born on the same day, to the same parents, but there were differences. His sisters name was Emma and not Mary and they'd had a younger brother too, Thomas, only three years old when Jack had died. It helped explain why Jack had died older, his Mother had been heavily pregnant at the time their Jack had died, so this Jack and Emma had remained home to help her rather than gone skating.

"I…I don't understand what happened that day," Jack admitted. "I'd been out the day before and it was thick, well frozen. I was there with friends and we skated for hours without any problem. The temperature was still cold so it should have taken days to melt far enough to crack under Emma when it took our weight."

That did sound very strange and concerning. Had someone purposely thinned the ice? If a group in their late teens had skated the day before without issue and it had not been hot, then the ice should have been safe. Had…the Man in the Moon done it to get Jack as a Spirit? Their Manny would never do such a thing but with so many differences, perhaps that one would. Though here it had been Jack's sacrifice that had gained Manny's attention perhaps something else had there? Or it could have been any Spirit or Sprite looking to 'play' with the mortals.

"The last thing I remember is Emma screaming….I couldn't breathe….it was so cold…" he shivered slightly, hugging his knees to his chest, blue eyes wide.

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Tooth listened to his story, interested in how his life had been different to their Jack's. When he reached his last memory, wide blue eyes staring into the distance, she couldn't help it, reaching out to him. He started, focusing on her, and she could see him fighting the instinct to jerk away from her touch. How could she blame him with what her counterpart had done to him? He might not consciously remember what that Tooth Fairy had done but some part of him did. She gently took his hands in hers, squeezing them. "It's alright Jack," she whispered to help him shake off the memory.

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He looked down at the hands holding his, he hated this, hated feeling afraid, but he couldn't help it. They were just enough like the other Guardians that he kept forgetting which was dumb since he didn't actually remember the others. She wasn't the one that had tortured him until he'd be obedient, and he shouldn't treat her like she was, but it was hard. He took a breath and squeezed her hands in return, getting a smile from her.

"You're safe here Jack," she promised softly. "We'll help you."

"Why? I'm not him." He couldn't be their Jack and if they wanted him to be it wouldn't work.

"You are your own person Jack and that is as it should be," North spoke up and Jack looked at him, seeing the tattoos on his arms for the first time, Naughty and Nice? "We failed him in many ways over the centuries. We will not make that mistake again by abandoning you to a world you do not know."

Jack looked between them all, blinking when Sandy flashed up a smiling face and thumbs up. "Can you teach me about your world?" he asked, and they all smiled at him.

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Jack looked around the room he'd been given, it was plain but nice and cool. North had said it was his forever and that he could decorate how he wanted. He'd even made sure to tell him that it was not the other Jack's old room, that was down the hall and had been turned back into a guestroom a few years ago.

The room was almost as big as his family home! He'd never seen a bed so big before either. He propped his staff in the corner to look around. There was a small table on either side of the bed and a big wardrobe, all empty. There was a massive bay window where he could sit and look outside, and the windows opened in sections so he could let the wind in. Would the Wind here even answer him? He had his own bathroom attached to the bedroom with a pond masquerading as a bathtub.

What was he meant to do with all that space? Did people really have such big rooms for one person now? His bag had already been put in the room and he dug into it, finding his tooth box on top, but he pulled out the sleep clothes, going to have a bath and then go to bed. The bed was even softer than it looked, like laying on a cloud and he was soon fast asleep.

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Sandy snuck a look into the room Jack had been given, seeing the small lump all but lost in the massive bed. He floated over to check on him, finding he was deeply asleep. They were all expecting him to have nightmares at some point considering everything he had gone through. Thankfully, his sand could be used every night without any issues. He sprinkled some over Jack, hearing the soft sigh and his body seemed to relax further, revealing his dreams hadn't been entirely happy despite him showing no real sign of them.

He hoped that Jack could come to see their world as home. Of the Guardians, he had been the closest to their Jack, had known him if not well for well over a century. He had run into him many times at night, the boy playing across roofs, spreading frost and snow while Sandy delivered dreams. Sometimes Jack would touch the sand, and the dreams that came from that always had a little more fun to them so he had encouraged his play as much as he could.

It was obvious this was a very different Jack; older in a way, scarred, even less trusting. hopefully with time they could prove trustworthy to him. The world had changed a lot since Jack had been alive, he had a lot to learn. He smiled when the dream sand formed images over Jack's head, images of children playing in the snow. He carefully pulled the blanket up higher and made sure he was tucked in but wouldn't get too hot.

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Something had changed, but what? He was unsure how much time had passed since his last battle, defeating the boy had taken too much out of him. He'd had to face him then though as his powers were growing. He could deal with the others easily enough. He was not strong enough to work around the protections at the Pole to snoop through the shadows and the Nightmares would be detected even quicker.

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Jack sat up in the rafters, watching the Yeti work with wide eyes. He'd started on the floor but had taken refuge above when it got too much for him to handle. it was all too noisy and chaotic for him to handle. Watching from above he could see there was a kind of order to the chaos, there had to be or else they'd never get everything done for Christmas every year. The elves were just…odd. The Yeti looked sad when they saw him but gave him space.

He'd seen the Guardian symbol in the floor and the fifth tile, it was stylised, but it seemed they'd dressed similarly in hooded jumpers though the tile was all in gold. He still didn't know what to think about the fact that their Jack had been a real Guardian. It kind of worried him, what would the Man in the Moon think of him? What if…he didn't want him here?

The Guardians had been great, they were all so patient with him. He was trying to stop the instinctive flinches when around them, but it was a work in progress. They all kept telling him it would take time, but how much time? He was trying hard to learn Sandy's signs, but it was a work in progress. Aster was the easiest to be around, his bluntness ensured Jack always knew where he stood with him. They'd all shared their names with him and given him permission to use them when in private, to help him further distance them from the other so-called 'Guardians'.

They weren't all around all the time, they all had work to do, but they all came as much as possible. Aster had it easiest since Easter had just passed. Tooth was the next able to visit because of her fairies and she would be arriving soon with someone who wanted to meet him.

He'd asked Aster for more detail on what had happened that Easter and honestly? He was glad that those first believers were all grown up now. It would be way to confusing and likely painful for them to be told that yes, the Jack they'd known and believed in was dead but now there was a new, different, Jack Frost. Would it even work, would the belief in the now dead Jack Frost translate to him? Or would the stories need to change? Last time he'd seen Sandy, he'd seemed to have a plan so Jack assumed some kids would be getting some interesting dreams.

He hadn't tried to call the Wind yet, he'd gotten into the rafters under his own power, and he hadn't really done much except create some frost patterns on the windows of his bedroom. He knew he needed to, needed to continue to work out just what he could do, but he didn't feel ready yet. He'd only been there a month and the one time he'd said anything North had assured him that he could take all the time he needed or wanted, that there was no pressure.

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Baby Tooth followed her Mother to the Pole, not sure how she felt. Jack was dead, they'd never gotten to say goodbye or anything. Now there was a new Jack who didn't know them, who came from a world where the Guardians were evil. When asked if she wanted to meet him, she'd been unsure but in the end she had decided to do it. He wasn't her Jack, but he didn't know anyone, didn't have any friends, and they had been the same person once so maybe he would like her.

She flew in the window and glanced around, immediately looking up, catching a glimpse of movement in the rafters, flying up. She stopped, meeting wide blue eyes, as the Spirit sitting there saw her. He looked like Jack but older, his hair longer, dressed differently, but it was recognisably Jack still.

"Hello?" his voice was a little deeper, more adult, but also hesitant.

She smiled at him and flew closer, saying hello in return, wondering if he'd understand her.

He blinked but then smiled slightly. "You're one of Tooth's Fairies, right? Are you who she brought for me to meet?"

She nodded, moving close enough to reach out and pat his cheek with a hand. His skin was cold but not too cold and she pressed closer, giving him a hug as best she could. She felt a hesitant finger run over her feathers.

"You knew him, didn't you?" he asked softly, and she nodded sadly. "I'm not him."

She nodded; she knew that. She patted his cheek again and then settled on his shoulder since he didn't have a hood. She felt him tense slightly before slowly relaxing, leaning back against the wall.

"Is it always this crazy here?" he asked quietly after a while and she told him that it definitely was.

Eventually, she tugged at him and he slowly got up, following her. They got down to the ground and she led him to the library and a corner tucked away out of sight, nice and quiet. Jack blinked at the nest of cushions and then smiled, curling up in them and she curled up on a cushion next to him. He wasn't the Jack she'd known, who had named her, but she could see they were similar. She would get to know this new Jack; she would help him and be his friend.

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Jack gasped, sitting up in bed, breathing heavily. He ran a shaking hand through his hair, looking around. He was at the Pole, he was safe. Pitch had erased his memories so that couldn't be real, just his mind trying to make sense of everything, right? He nearly jumped as someone knocked on the door.

"Jack? Are you alright?" North called softly, obviously not sure if he was awake.

"I…I'm okay," he called back and the door opened, North looking him over.

"Dream?" he asked, and Jack nodded.

"Did I shout?" he asked and North nodded. "Oh, sorry."

North walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. "Do not worry, it is no trouble."

"It's silly, the memories were erased."

"Even without them, the trauma remains. It will take time, perhaps many years, for you to finish healing. This is nothing to be ashamed of." He pulled out a bag and held it out in offering.

Jack hesitated; he didn't want to be dependent on anything to get a good night's sleep, but they all promised it wasn't dangerous to use the sand every night. Finally he nodded and lay down, getting comfortable. "Night," he whispered.

"Sweet dreams Jack," North replied, and Jack felt the sand sprinkle over his face, sleep pulling him under immediately.

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North put the bag away and gently smoothed the blankets over the sleeping teen. He hadn't just shouted, he'd been screaming, had woken him and even been heard by those out in the main areas. Sandy had warned them all that Jack's sleep was not as peaceful as it had seemed, and he had been right. Hearing him scream like that… no one should ever sound so afraid.

That had him going to check the protections on the entire building but especially Jack's room. Just because they hadn't seen any sign of Pitch did not mean he was gone for good and he would not allow him to harm Jack. That much fear could easily draw his attention, but he would make sure he could not find out who the cause was or get inside.

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Jack sat against the window, looking up at the full moon nervously. The light fell around him and he wondered what the Man in the Moon thought of him. He blinked as the light brightened around him and then moved across the floor to the Guardian symbol, eyes widening as it pulled back and a crystal rose from the floor. He heard a Yeti call out and then North and Aster were there, watching with wide eyes as well. The light moved upwards, forming an image in blue crystalline light of….him?

North laughed and then walked over to him, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. "Manny approves Jack," he explained. "If and when you are ready, the position of Guardian will be yours. But this I think may be many years from now. There is no rush."

Him? A Guardian? He looked back up at the moon in shock. He'd been hoping for some basic acceptance of his presence, this was a lot more than that. Maybe…maybe it was time he stopped sitting around and actually got to work mastering his powers and doing more to learn about the world than just listening to their stories.

TBC…