Chapter 5: A Second Chance
The tink tink tink of the few remaining floating ice pellets hitting solid surfaces was all Jack could hear. He sighed, staring at the spot where his angry little sister had collapsed and then disappeared from moments before.
Slowly, elves peered out from the sides of the buildings. Several elves all opened the doors of the shops in the square together, pushing against the small drifts of snow and ice that had built up and prevented the doors from being opened with ease.
"Well that could have gone better," Jack mussed.
"I'll say," Bernard said, stepping up behind Jack and offering a hand.
"You saw the whole thing, didn't you?" Jack asked, taking the hand.
"Yup," Bernard said, with a slight smirk. He helped the sprite up, Jack dusting snow off of his pants. He didn't even remember kneeling on the ground. "I knew she was angry, but wow, that was angry. What did you do to start that?"
Jack served Bernard with an unamused look. "I tried to make small talk."
Bernard snorted, fast disguising it with a cough. "I could've told you that was a bad idea," he said.
"Of course you could've," Jack said, frowning now. "And I knew it was a bad idea but I uh, I did it anyway."
"It sounds like a metaphor for your life."
"Hi Elle, nice to see you too, thank you for that astute observation," Jack replied.
"Any time," Elle replied, brushing the comment off and glancing around the square, deep in thought.
Bernard cupped his hands around his mouth. "Everyone out here okay?" He shouted.
"I think I see feet over there," Elle said, rushing over to a pile of snow and ice and helping up a fellow elf.
He spat some snow out of his mouth and hoisted himself up, wringing out his hat before sticking it back on his head. "Most everyone made it in somewhere safe," he said. "Only a few of us were out here by the time the snow froze."
"Thanks Mason," Bernard said. "Where are the others?"
"Mostly inside buildings. There's a couple of elves in the same spot as Mason...and no sign of Jacqueline." Elle frowned. "That was weird."
"What was weird? You okay, Elle?"
"I'm fine, B. I've just about got the hang of this old thing," she said, tapping her head. "Well, mostly. I thought I sensed another elf by the café, but that consciousness just...disappeared. It was weird."
"That's concerning," Jack said.
"No kidding," Bernard said. "It's not the only concerning thing, either. No sign of Jacqueline at all?"
Elle shook her head. "I didn't even have a chance to say hi," she said.
"You weren't missing much," Jack replied. "She's very angry."
"Well, of course," Bernard said. "She has every right to be."
"I know, trust me. I know full well. It's just..." Jack rubbed the back of his neck. "I didn't expect her to be that angry."
"Are you serious right now?" Bernard said.
"B—"
"I'm just saying, he kind of had it coming."
"Thank you, Bernard, I am well aware that it was a very long time coming. I've heard it from Santa and his Missus, and the entire Council, and basically everyone I've talked to this year. I don't need another pleasant reminder. I think the one I just got from Jacqueline herself was more than enough."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa! What happened out here?"
Jack sighed. "Great," he mumbled under his breath, before turning towards the fast approaching Santa. "I tried to make small talk," Jack explained. "It didn't go well."
"Wow, that's a nice chill out here!" Santa said, rubbing his arms. "Okay, we'll all need to get some proper winter clothes on, and some ice scrapers over there...and there...and over here..."
"We're on it, Santa!" Mason said, rushing towards the half open doors with his friends, ice scrapers and shovels in hand.
"Small talk did this?" Santa clarified.
"Fourteen hundred years of pent up angst."
"Thank you Bernard, we get it," Jack snapped.
"Okay, sounds like things are getting a bit tense out here. C'mon Jack, I think it's time we had our own small talk," he said, grabbing Jack's shoulders and guiding him forward. "Don't look so upset! I know for a fact I won't fly off the handle and pelt you with magical snowballs," Santa said, with a snicker.
"I think I prefer the snowballs," Jack replied, as they headed towards the Workshop.
Elle hadn't been wrong.
Alongside the café after Jacqueline had disappeared was, in fact, another elf. He was smaller than norm, and the others hadn't noticed him watching the fight as they ran away from it. She had been very angry, which is why he had stayed to watch. And really powerful, too, he noted, as winds had picked up and frozen snow had pelted everyone. This could be exactly what The Man was looking for.
Rushing away the moment he noticed Elle scanning the scene, he ran behind the café and closed his eyes and thought really hard about The Man's...lair (he couldn't think of any other word to describe it). The elf felt himself disappear. It was a very high level magical technique, and only some of the elves could do it. Maybe like, two or three. Curtis couldn't even do it and he was one of the really higher up elves. Well, compared to Kasper, at least. But special circumstances had occurred lately, and this is what allowed him to teleport.
Special circumstances being The Man.
Kasper didn't really know what else to call him. He hadn't given the elf a name. He was just...a man. The Man.
He reappeared in the courtyard of what was once a decent sized castle, in the middle of a dense forest of evergreen trees. The area around the castle smelt like rotten eggs and ash. It was so dense and overgrown above them that the ruinous structure in front of him was perpetually in the dark, despite it being early afternoon, locally.
Kasper stared at the dirty stones of the castle. He had meant to be inside the building! He was still trying to get the hang of this teleporting thing.
He ran to the front doors, which swung open for him magically. He walked down the deserted hallways, the doors slamming shut behind him. A cold breeze burst through the hall, stirring the cobwebs and kicking up dust. Kasper coughed as he moved forwards, torches in their scones lighting up as he advanced. He finally made it to the large red doors, and slammed down the brass knockers.
"Enter," a deep voice rang out. The doors swung open for him.
Inside, the windows were covered with thick, red velvet curtains, the bottoms scorched and burnt, much like the rest of the room in some places. Shelves went from wall to wall, covered in glowing vials and potions, filled with trinkets and weird bottled ingredients. Directly in the centre of the room was a giant boiling vat of what looked like lava—and stunk like it, too. A large armchair stood in front of the fireplace, the back towards Kasper. It was here that The Man sat. A book was open on his lap, but he watched the flames instead of the book, head in his hands. Kasper could just make out The Man's face in the low firelight.
"Well? Are you just going to stand there? Or is there a reason you've come by?"
"Right. S-sir. I, um, I think I found what you're looking for."
The Man sat up in his chair, the book landing on the ground with a dull thunk. There was a rattle of nonexistent chains as he turned. "Did you now?"
"Uh. Yes. I uh, I think so."
"Well?"
"Oh! Right. It's, uh, it's his sister, sir. Jack Frost is having a power shortage, and so the uh, the Council, they called in his Legate-his sister-and they uh, they enacted the Legate Law in the hopes that it would uh. It would help him get his powers back."
"Well this just gets better and better!" the man said, getting up. He walked towards his vat of lava. "And have the two met yet?"
"Uh, yes! Yes sir, they uh, they absolutely have. And they fought."
"Was it a great display of power? And anger?"
"Uh, well, considering the fact that she was just uh, yelling, and then ice was everywhere, and it was really windy and there was just. Ice and snow everywhere and she wasn't, uh, she wasn't like, doing it on purpose? I'd say uh, yes, sir."
He chuckled. "And you saw it all?"
"Yes!" The elf squeaked.
"Hmm." The Man was beside the elf now, looking at his head. "Which one...ah yes! This will do." He plucked a hair right out of Kasper's head. The elf yelped, rubbing the spot on his head.
The Man tossed the hair into the vat. It bubbled and glowed. He waved his hand over the vat, and the lava rippled. An image appeared, and Kasper crept forward to try and look, only to be hit with a blast of hot air from the vat.
"Back away you fool! This stuff is hot and not to be trifled with." Kasper fearfully obliged, stepping back. The man turned his attention back towards the vat. Inside, the image of Kasper's view of the fight replayed. It stopped. The Man waved his hand again. It started up again.
"Ou, look at that," The Man said, rewinding again. "Such anger! Such resentment! That loss of control...yes, I think she will do very nicely," The Man said, grinning. It was not a nice grin, Kasper noted. Nope, not at all. "Let me see if I can...Ah! Excellent!"
The Man stuck a finger into the vat; Kasper covered his mouth before he could yelp out loud. He pulled his finger back out of the vat, a light blue string trailing behind him. He pinched it between his thumb and forefinger, wrapping it around his other digits. His fingers glowed a dark red. He grinned. "Yes, this will do just nicely," The Man said, watching as the blue was slowly covered with the dark red. "Well done, elf."
"Uh...s-sir? It's uh, it's. Doing something," Kasper pointed weakly at the strand in The Man's hand. The red had stopped before fully covering the blue. The blue was slowly fighting the red back.
"What? What is this?" The Man held the string between both hands, bringing it up to his eyes. "Eugh, hope and love. Disgusting."
He tossed the string back into the vat, a large burst of flames shooting up and briefly illuminating the room. The scene vanished, as did the string. Kasper coughed. The smell was gross.
"It appears this will not be easy. A pity, really. Well!" He clapped, Kasper jumping at the sudden sound. "Best not waste any time, then!" He cackled, rushing to his shelves and pulling out various ingredients and liquidly vials, throwing them all into the pot.
Kasper watched, fearfully, backing further into the corner. The vat lit up, colourful smoke pooling up into the air with every new thing thrown in.
What on Earth had he helped The Man start?
Jack watched from the freshly chilled window as Elle and Bernard helped dig out the doorways, the sound of Santa returning and yet again getting tangled in the list interrupting the silence.
"We really ought a move away from scrolls," Santa mussed, turning himself around, balancing beverages and snacks in his hands. He only succeeded in getting himself more tangled in the list.
"Here, let me help you out of there, Santa. Where are the scissors?"
"Woah, we're not cutting the list!"
"Why not?!"
"Because—it's the official list! We can't just cut it!"
"Says the guy who just said that scrolls were outdated," Jack said, rolling his eyes. "Santa, twirl the other way—no, the other way! You're only making it worse."
Finally freeing himself from the list, Santa made space on the table for the cookies and cocoa and sat down, gesturing to the seat across from him.
"Thanks," Jack mumbled, grabbing one of the drinks and taking a seat. He crossed his legs and sipped his drink.
"Jack, what the heck, man? I thought you had this under control!"
"I have no idea what gave you that idea," Jack said. "Truly."
"The Dome was fixed, so I assumed. You know."
"That all was well?" Jack chugged the rest of his hot cocoa and placed the empty cup down. "After everything I did?"
"Yes? How did that happen?"
Jack sighed. "Well, it was tense walking up. Should've just teleported, really, I don't know what I was thinking. So I tried to make conversation, you know? Break the ice, that sort of thing, but she didn't really appreciate that."
"A sorry for leaving probably would have been a good place to start."
"You are enjoying this way too much, Bernie."
"You bet. And don't call me Bernie."
"Ah! Bernard! Elle! Status report?"
"Village Square is clear, Santa. Everything is operating normally."
"Excellent!"
"The snow is falling nicely now, and the Dome looks nice and solid," Elle added. "It's properly cold now, as well."
"Good to hear! Now we can focus on this issue," Santa said, gesturing to Jack.
"It's just like Beanie Baggie said. Fourteen hundred years of pent up angst. I mean, where do I even begin?"
"Well if sorry for leaving isn't the best starting point, you can always apologize for the stabbing bit."
"That's not any better, Bernard."
The Head Elf shrugged. "It was just a passing thought," he said. Jack was certain the elf was biting his cheek to keep from smirking.
"Well baby steps, right? She got that anger off her chest, so maybe now she'll be more chill, less..."
"Butt kicking?" Everyone turned to look at Bernard. "Sorry, it's just, I've been expecting Jacqueline to kick his butt since she was sixteen hundred and forty five."
"Now hold on a minute, she did not kick my butt!"
"It depends on your perspective," Elle said. "To us it totally looked like she kicked your butt."
"It was not! It was just, you know, a lot of snowballs and…hard truths. Like how she thought it was her fault our parents were upset. My mother refroze her heart because of me. And the siblings we have that I had no idea about because I wasn't around. And Jacqueline thought she was to blame for…all of that."
Santa grimaced, looking into his cocoa. Elle sighed. Even Bernard was quiet now.
"How can I even begin to make up for that?"
"I'd start with finding her, myself," Santa said. "You have that whole connection thing, right? Can't you find her?"
"I mean, if she wanted to be found, yes. The thing about the Legend-Legate link is that you can easily block your Legate—or Legend, in her case—out of your mind."
"So she's blocking your connection with her?"
Jack fought the urge to be sarcastic. "Yes, that's what I said."
"No surprise there," Bernard said.
Jack made a low sound in his throat.
"You know what connection she isn't blocking out?" Elle said, with a tad bit of a smug smile.
"Yours?"
"Yes! If you want, I can try to find her for you," Elle replied, her smile less smug and more earnest, now.
"Really? You would do that for me?"
"More importantly, do you think you could find her?" Santa asked.
"That old popsicle? Of course! She's easy to find, most of the time. It's far more reliable than trying to call her, honestly, I don't even know why she has a phone. Anyway, once I find her, Jack, I'll talk to her. And then you can go and fix this. Like you've wanted to."
Jack nodded. If Elle found Jacqueline, then this time, he wouldn't mess it up.
Assuming Jacqueline would let him try again.
Jacqueline reappeared in the outskirts of Elfsburg, near the older ruins buried under the snow. Once the soaring city of the Kringle Elves, now it was foundation buried under large drifts and a decent layer of permafrost. She sniffed and wiped her eyes on her sleeves. She pushed herself off the ground and walked forward, tears clouding her vision once again.
Jack had found this particular place during his year up North. It was one of the snippets that had bleed through over the year, though Jacqueline had tried to ignore the little glimpses she had gotten. She was trying very hard to not think about why she had come here of all places. But it was hard to ignore.
Her stomping soon grew soft, and her anger dissipated. She was headed towards an outcropping of very odd evergreens. She found the snowy path Jack had taken (another little glimpse she had caught over the year) that led to what looked to be the biggest, thickest tree in the area.
Jacqueline jumped up, the wind boosting her into the tree. It had once been a very wide evergreen that had, at some point, fallen or been cut down. Several new trees had grown from the stump, eventually towering over it. Their branches intertwined with one another, forming a very thick canopy over the stump. All it needed was a proper set of walls, and it would make a decent sized treehouse, Jacqueline thought.
She could not believe how badly she had snapped at Jack. It had been fourteen hundred years, after all. She would've thought she'd be able to manage her temper better. But Frostmas—all twelve years of it—was still fresh in her mind, so of course she had been angrier than anticipated.
Above all of that though, what was really bugging her, was that she had missed him. Despite the centuries of silence, the shenanigans when he was Santa, and the Day of Darkness...she missed him. She missed her brother and now, she just wanted him back.
Jacqueline sighed (a hiccup interrupting it), leaning her head against the tree. She took deep breaths, trying to compose herself, watching the snow slow down and become more of a gentle flurry, instead of a really intense blizzard. They didn't get really intense blizzards in Elfsburg—oh no, Jacqueline thought. They weren't supposed to get nasty blizzards and Jacqueline had just caused one.
"That was so stupid of me!" She said out loud, facepalming.
What was stupid?
Jacqueline nearly fell out of the tree. Elle! You scared the snow out of me.
Sorry Jacquie. I think it's safe to say you did the same to us down here, Elle replied, mentally. Everything okay on your end?
Yes? No? She sighed. Elle I'm really sorry, you're not supposed to get snowstorms in Elfsburg and I like just caused one—
It's okay, Jacquie! It wasn't really a snowstorm. There's no damage, either. The wind made a few snowdrifts that blocked the doors, and the ice definitely didn't help. But nobody was hurt! Everyone has already cleared the snow and ice away from the area. It looks good as new!
Jacqueline hiccupped again. She took another deep breath, and held it, trying very hard to get the hiccups to stop before she replied. I'm sorry, Elle. I didn't mean to do all of that. It's just…
It's alright, Jacquie. I know all about all that.
Relieved she didn't have to finish the thought, Jacqueline stayed silent, deep in thought.
I know it's hard for you right now, Jacqueline, but he really does just want to make up. And I get that all of that bad history makes this even more conflicting, but—
Elle. I know, Jacqueline thought back at her, cutting her off. I know. I just…I just want my brother back, she admitted, rubbing her temples, her eyes tightly shut. Goddess, she had been so angry, and had lashed out in front of all of those elves and this is so embarrassing, she thought, with a small laugh.
Embarrassing? How is it embarrassing?
I got so angry and just. Snapped on him, in front of all those people! That's so embarrassing, Elle!
Jacqueline sensed laughter from her friend's end. That's embarrassing to you? Please, Jacqueline, everyone understands why you did it and nobody is making fun of you or pitying you. You have nothing to worry about.
I embarrassed myself in front of Jack, too, Jacqueline thought. She could feel herself turning really red and tried very hard to hide her face in her knees, as if that would somehow help (it didn't).
I think he of all people knows why you did that, Jacquie.
She groaned out loud, trying to make herself even smaller.
So are you just gonna hide and be embarrassed forever? Elle asked. Or do you want your brother back?
Jacqueline looked up, biting her lip. You know my answer to that.
Then why don't you tell me where you are, and if you're up to it, talk with Jack?
"I'm overthinking this," Jacqueline spoke out loud. "Oh my goddess, I'm pulling an Elle," she realized.
"Rude," Elle said out loud, back in Santa's office.
"What? What did she say? Was it about me?" Jack asked.
"She said she was overthinking it and then said she was pulling an Elle."
Bernard looked away. Santa drank his cocoa.
"You're all very funny," Elle said.
"What else did she say? Did she tell you where she is? Can I go see her?"
"One moment, please. Your call is very important to us," Elle said, putting up a finger.
Jack tapped his foot. Patience was not his strong suit.
"She says you'll know where she is," Elle finally said.
"That's it?"
Elle nodded. "She's quiet now. Said she'd take it from here. I'm not going to keep bothering her, I trust that she knows what she's doing."
Jack frowned, when suddenly the image of the big tree he liked to chill in popped into his head.
"Oh, really? That's where she is? Why didn't I think of that?"
"Well, what are you waiting for?" Santa asked.
"Yeah, don't just stand around here waiting. Get moving!" Elle added.
"Yeah, Frost. If she showed you where she is, then you may very well be getting that second chance," Bernard said.
Everyone stared at him.
"What? Just because I've been finding this whole situation fairly amusing, doesn't mean I don't want them to make up."
"Well, thanks Bernard. I really-that really means a lot to me, coming from you—"
"Don't ruin the moment, Jack," Bernard interrupted. "Go get your sister back."
With a nod, Jack disappeared from Santa's office. He had gotten his second chance, and he wasn't going to blow it.
A/N-Edited as of January 27th, 2017. Brief note: "Pulling an Elle" (Phrase)-In which one overthinks and may make rash decisions, as a result. Anywho, this was a bit of a filler! The Plot Thickened, though, which is exciting. Next up: the last of the sibling angst, fast becoming fluff after.
I did make note of the Legate connection, and though I think it's been well explained, here it is in one place: As Legates, Jack and Jacqueline have a telepathic connection. Linked by a "thread", they can hear each other's thoughts, talk to each other in the mind, directly send thoughts to one another and feel the other's feelings to varying degrees, depending on what they want to share. There's like a shallow version, where if they focus on the other they can get a sense of the aura, and then there's (in the case of The Thaw) an overwhelming feeling that is so big both feel it no matter what, if the connection is not blocked. Which, as a last note, is something they can do: they can block one end of the connection, or the other, or both if they want to for whatever reason.
Do leave reviews and love and shout into the void that is the review box! I really love feedback, honestly I go back and read my reviews over and over to feel great and write an extra mile!
