Jack hesitated at the door. Now he knew what everyone was looking at him like he was a stranger. He kind of was… right?
Jack tightened his grip on the door handle. Dammit! Why did this have to happen? He clenched his teeth. Why did this have to happen to me?!
Jack let go of the handle and backed away from the door. He shouldn't go out there. He'd only freak everyone out. He walked back to the window and opened it.
Baby Tooth flitted around his head a few times before zooming into his pocket. Jack blinked. At least it's warm in there now.
He jumped out of the window and landed on the snow. But what used to be a soft cushion for his falls had turned into a stinging pain. Like when your toes are so cold that they feel like they're burning or the feeling of getting snow stuck between a glove and your warm hand. That was the jolt of cold that shot through his legs.
Jack yelped in surprise. The snow began to sizzle under his bare feet causing him to sink further into the bank as it melted around him.
What the hell?! Jack yelled, frustrated. Wasn't he the one who was supposed to nip other people's noses?
He waded through the snow, away from his room in the workshop. This used to be a lot easier.
"Jack?" Lily had heard a yell coming from Jack's room. She felt bad for running away, but what was she supposed to do? But hearing his familiar voice snapped her out of her shock.
She walked toward his door and cracked it cautiously. A gust of cold air brushed against her face. Was Jack back to normal?!
"Jack!" As she opened the door all the way, her smile faded. Oh. It's just the window. But where was Jack? Lily walked to the window – he must've left through it.
A two foot deep indent trailed through the snow toward the woods.
She sighed. He's still going off to leave on his own. Lily looked down guiltily. Well, I guess I didn't make it seem like he was welcome…
She looked back up and began to climb through the window. I should go apologize.
She landed beside the hole in the snow. It looked like it had been melted. He couldn't walk over the snow anymore? Is that why he had to trudge through it?
Lily followed the trail with her eyes and started to walk.
Jack had made it about halfway to the woods before he had to stop. Breathing heavily, he bent over, exhausted.
He used to be able to walk effortlessly over the snow – no matter how deep it was.
So this is how the humans feel when I dump blizzards on them… He frowned. Well… when I used to, anyway.
He straightened back up and looked at his staff. He wasn't oblivious to the fact that his powers had changed. No, he was just ignoring it.
In his dream, he had been engulfed in flames and his staff looked like it had begun to burn.
Jack knelt down on the snow, causing it to steam around him. He packed some snow into his hands, cringing as they began to sting from the cold.
He closed his eyes and tried desperately to turn it into one of his special snowballs. But when he opened his eyes, instead of glowing blue the snow had begun to melt, dripping between his fingers.
He let the slush fall from his hands in defeat. Yep. I definitely lost my powers.
Then, his eyes widened – something had just occurred to him. When he had been fighting Pitch, his staff had done something strange.
Instead of a blast of ice, it had shot out sparks. Was that a fluke or… Jack stood up and grabbed his staff with both hands.
He pointed it at the snow in front of him and narrowed his eyes. Here goes nothin'.
He imagined that Pitch was standing in front of him, taunting him. "You stupid little bitch. You can't get through me." Jack smirked. His imaginary Pitch couldn't be more accurate.
"Watch me, Pitch bitch."
His staff felt as if it had come alive in his hands, pulsing with heat. He yelled in determination and stabbed it into the snow.
There was a loud whoosh and steam erupted in front of him as orange light seeped through the surface. Jack stumbled back in surprise.
As the steam cleared, a path about thirty feet long had appear in front of him.
It was deeper than the one he'd made by shoving through it – it went all the way to the frozen ground.
Jack looked at his staff in shock. Did I really just do that?
He should've felt thrilled, but for some reason, he felt sad. The magnitude of this change hit him like a bus.
He really wasn't a winter sprite anymore.
A/N: Well, guys... I can honestly say that I am riding the nostalgia train right now. I'm having so much fun writing this - it feels like I'm back in middle school! I want to thank anyone who is continuing to follow this story and/or has come back to relive it with me. Please leave reviews letting me know how you feel about it and about ideas you have! Last but not least, I hope you are all staying healthy during this troublesome time. It is an honor for me to be able to ease your quarantine boredom with my writing. Stay safe and make sure not to put yourself or your loved ones in harm's way - no matter what form that harm may come in. I love you all 3