Perfect World
There was a peculiar quietness around him, not even really unpleasant. A white layer was covering everything in his surroundings, as far as the eye could see, the last light of the setting sun reflecting in the snow, giving it a glittering appearance. Trees, with every single branch covered in powdery white, looking as if they were made out of glass.
It was an idyll; completely undisturbed.
No footprints in the snow marring the glittering beauty. No dirtied, slushy heaps pushed to the sides of roads and sidewalks to clear the way for better passing.
A perfect winter wonderland – just that it wasn't exactly your common kind of wonder.
Jack dangled his bare feet over the edge of the high apartment building he was sitting on. The view was fantastic from there, the horizon seemed to melt into the colorful sky. The silence felt almost natural, as if it belonged, as weird as that seemed.
He felt at peace here.
It was easy to simply sit there and enjoy the view, his mind falling silent as if not wishing to disturb the moment. (Not to mention the fact that no one ever thought to look for him here, of all places, so he felt like he could retreat here and be by himself for a little while.)
The winter spirit tried not to think too hard about the fact that it was often the uninhabited places that made his snow look the most perfect – when there were no people to disturb the pure layers of white.
Jack imprinted the view to his memory before the sun set completely. It really was one of the most perfect displays of his snow. A soft smile was tugging at his lips at the thought, the artistic side of him feeling a little proud.
There was just one thing marring the beauty of the place, though, shattering the illusion of his perfect little winter world; whenever he'd turn his head a little too much to his right, he'd catch sight of the wrecked reactor in the distance, the sarcophagus around it slowly giving in to corrosion. In those moments the wonder would be replaced by shivers running down his spine.
It was one thing to ignore the decayed state of the buildings around him, to overlook the deserted vehicles rusting away in the streets. He'd seen several of what people liked to call ghost towns, so it wasn't really that unusual to him. But the sight of that grey monstrosity looming ominously in the distance just made him feel a little uneasy.
Why people were so keen on destroying themselves, he would never understand. You'd think they'd learn after the first few accidents and catastrophes, but no. Seemed like in some aspects, humans were simply incorrigible.
The white-haired youth shook his head, turning his eyes away from the offending sight marring his beautiful wonderland. No, he wanted to only memorize the beauty he saw in front of him. That was what he was here for, after all, to enjoy the peace.
When the sun had disappeared behind the horizon and twilight took over, Jack finally stood up, stepping over the edge of the building. The wind caught him as soon as his feet left the concrete roof and raised him up into the air. He cast one final glance at his perfect little winter world, before taking off and heading back to the North Pole, feeling a lot more at ease.
A/N: So... I guess this fill might be a little unusual. I'm not really sure how to feel about it myself, haha..
I was browsing through the gallery of a photographer who went on a tour to Pripyat/Chernobyl last winter, and there was this one photo of a decaying apartment building, partly covered by snow-covered trees, where he commented how "the snow made everything look so pretty", despite the place's history - and BAM, this fill happened.
To the guest reviewer (Radar1388): Thank you for the kind review! :) I'm really glad you liked it and that you thought Jack was still in-character, despite all the sadness. (I made myself sad writing it, too, if that's any consolation, haha~)