Ice Cubes

Summary: The guardians had never been more scared in their immortal lives than when they found Jack sleeping in the last place they'd ever think of.

Sleeping Beneath Ice

Set before 'Weird Habits'

The four weeks before their next meeting was too long in North's opinion. The days couldn't come fast enough for the old Santa, as he breezed past the weeks creating more of his famous ice sculptures to show a certain winter spirit. His old fingers were as nimble as ever but this time they were accompanied by a certain anxiousness as he looked at the clock again and again.

Something wasn't right. And he could feel it deep in his belly.

It has been three weeks since he last saw the teen of Winter. A week after the meeting, the young sprite had shown up to mess with the yetis and to have a small chat with the jolly old man before leaving to spread some winter cheer. And a week after that, he came to help Santa prepare for his holiday, and the old man was barely able to express his gratitude via gift before Jack was off again.

And then the last time he saw Jack was a week ago.

True, if Santa recently saw the winter sprite then why was he so anxious?

The old man himself didn't know. It's just that he felt something worrying deep in his psyche, in his core, in his tummy… He knew something wasn't right and the fact that he couldn't act on his instinct made him more anxious for the monthly meetings so that he had a reason to go search for Jack if the other would be late.

He knew that the youngest guardian was a free spirit, and he didn't like being smothered by worry and affection too much, having gone three hundred years without any, and it was this reason itself that was stopping Santa from jumping into the sleigh to pursue him all over the globe.

Oh how he wish he could grab Jack by the scruff of his neck and drag him home, to Santoff Claussen and tell him to say in his room like a kid on the nice list.

But Jack wasn't his son. And he wasn't Jack's father.

No matter how much he wanted to be.

"Well someone seems to be in a gloomy mood after Christmas. Did I come at a wrong time, mate?" A voice suddenly alerted the guardian of Wonder to another presence. Putting on a happy face, North turned to give the guardian of Hope (and impatience) a wide smile. "Bunny! It is nice seeing you, da?" North said as he walked towards Bunny to give him a big hug.

"Oh hell no." Bunny said as he hopped away from North's enthusiastic greeting. The Russian laughed loudly at Bunny's refusal of a hug. However he was cut off in the middle of his laugh when a very busy tooth fairy came in through the window, talking to one of her fairies.

"Oh, Julienne from Connecticut lost her first tooth! How adorable! I like her, she flosses regularly! Was it her incisors? Front teeth?" Tooth asked but then she caught sight of her two fellow guardians and blinked before smiling. "Bunnymund! North! It's been too long!" She greeted.

"Oh Tooth! Still as busy as ever I see!" North stated but then suddenly he was alerted by a trail of golden sand and he turned and caught sight of Sandy napping by the corner. "Sandy! Sandy? Sandy? Wake up Sandy!"

An elf nudged the sleeping sandman on the ribs. The little golden man blinked as he looked at his companions before smiling and giving them a wave.

"Hey Sandy!" Tooth said as she waved as well.

"G'day mate." Bunny nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Yes, yes nice to see you Sandy." North nodded distractedly and he looked at the window, where the moon shone brightly in Santoff Claussen. "And now that leaves Jack." He murmured quietly.

"Bloody show pony is as late as always I see." The Easter Bunny stated as he crossed his arms. He hopped towards the chair near the fire place. "We better get ourselves comfortable mates, ain't expectin' him to show up for at least another few hours, tha' gumby." He huffed.

"Oh I wonder how Jack is? I bet his teeth are even whiter than before! I wonder what he does to keep them so perfect." Tooth sighed with her fairies.

Sandy made several sand figures of Jack eating snow with a question mark and Tooth giggled at that.

North, meanwhile, did not say anything. He had been waiting for Jack to show up for a week… What was a few more hours right? He looked at a certain object in the corner of his eyes. The thank you gift he never got to give Jack after Christmas.

"Oi, North, go and sit down ya' drongo." Bunny said as he leaned back in relaxation. "If Frostbite's gonna keep us waitin' might as well be comfortable."

Nodding distractedly, North went and sat down on one of the armchairs in the room. His blue eyes turned to the clock, watching as it ticked slowly. In the background, he could hear Tooth in a one-sided conversation with Sandy and her fairies.

A few hours.

Just a few more hours before he could go and look for Jack.

Bunny would never admit it. Even if you held the Warren up for hostage or destroyed most of his precious googies, he would never admit it.

He would never admit the horrifying fact that even he, the brave Pooka warrior, was worried about Jack, their annoying little upstart.

Definitely would never admit it.

Just like how he'd never admit that he'd had a new found respect for the boy ever since he had defeated the nightmare king. Or that he'd been hopping around the Warren for two weeks, waiting for the little frost spirit to show up and cause him trouble like every other day.

Jack had promised him a good prank, and as much as Bunny was on edge about that declaration (telling the sentinels to tighten up security, warning his googies to stay hidden and well away), he had also been looking forward to thwarting one of the youngster's pranks. He had even left a small opening in the Warren, because what fun would it be if Jack never got in to exhibit said prank?

Not that he'd ever admit that.

But after a week of the declaration and Jack still hadn't shown up, the guardian of Hope began to worry. He told the sentinels to loosen up on their guarding (maybe the security was too tight for Jack to get in?) and he had coaxed his eggs out of hiding just to tempt the winter spirit.

But still nothing.

Nadda, zilch. Not a sign of winter or frost anywhere.

Nothing.

And if Bunny didn't know better, he'd think that making him worry was Jack's big prank. And if it was, then it was a tasteless prank in his opinion. It wasn't even working!

Because Bunny wasn't worried! Nope! Never worried! Not a tinge of worry!

Okay, maybe he was worried... But just a tiny bit!

Which was why he had arrived early for their monthly meeting. And if North had been in the right sense of mind, he'd have noticed this and asked teasingly why Bunny was so eager for them to start their meeting. But Bunny could see that even North wasn't in the mood for that. He saw the Cossack's worry a mile away and that just heightened his own sixth sense. The old man kept patting his belly unconsciously.

But the guardians didn't need two worrywarts. That's why the old Bunny was determined to be the levelheaded guardian in this matter.

They'd give Jack a few-say three to four- hours, to drag his sorry ass into the workshop before he was berated by North's relief, Tooth's fingers in his mouth, Sandy's enthusiastic greeting, and definitely not Bunny's worry.

Yeah, a few hours of relaxation before they go gallivanting around the globe for that ungrateful twerp. Bunny leaned back as he allowed the heat of the fire to warm his fur.

Half an hour into Bunny's plan, he found himself hopping up from his position and ordering North to bring out his damn sleigh.

Damn it! He wasn't worried! Not at all!

Tooth was a smart woman- er bird woman. And she could sense the tense atmosphere in the room the moment she had entered. Despite Bunny and North's valiant efforts to hide their synchronized feelings of worry, she could still feel it reverberating around the room like a bee no one wanted near them. It made her feathers ruffle in her own worry as well.

She hadn't noticed Jack's worrying absence like the others. After all, among the four of them, Jack visited her least since he knew that he'd be a distraction if he ever came to Tooth's palace. I mean, the fact that all the fairies swarmed at him within a fifty mile radius view was indication enough for him to avoid the palace if he wanted Tooth to go on undisturbed with her work. And as sweet as that was, Tooth couldn't help but feel a bit frustrated.

She didn't mind if half of her girls fainted at the sight of him or if her teams become unable to go through their jobs because they saw him smile! She wanted to spend time with Jack like the rest of her fellow guardians!

But sadly, she had only seen Jack once during those four weeks. And that was only to give Tooth a passing wave and to say hello to Baby Tooth. After that, she hadn't seen the winter spirit even once. And the worry Bunny and North were exhibiting getting to her so much that she had unconsciously began a very confusing conversation with her fairies and Sandy.

"Oh I don't know Sandy I think-" Tooth said, her amethyst eyes distracted before she changed her sentence halfway. "Two incisors, one wisdom tooth, Cloie's definitely growing up! Such a good kid-!" Then her voice became sad and silent as she turned to her fairies in confusion to who she was talking to. "Sandy, can you feel that? Even Bunny's worried! I knew it! Something must've- Another one! Trisha's tooth fell from a skating accident-!"

Tooth's confusing statements made her fairies buzz around her in confusion while Sandy exchanged looks with Baby Tooth and the two of them shrugged.

"Tha's it!" Bunny suddenly said in a loud voice, causing everyone to jump. His green eyes were tinged with suppressed worry as he jumped towards the door. "North get your damn sleigh ready! I can't stand this anymore! Everyone to the sleigh!"

Tooth exchanged surprised looks with Sandy as North let out a booming laughter at the Pooka's declaration. Her feathers ruffling in worry, Tooth followed the two to the stables with Sandy right behind her. She saw North grab something on the way out.

Tooth shook her head as her amethyst eyes narrowed in concentration.

Something was definitely wrong with their Sweet Tooth if Bunny suggested the sleigh himself!

Sandman prided himself for being the oldest among the four legendary guardians. He was calm and mature, and sassy to boot. The perfect role model for their slowly forming family.

Like Tooth, he had also sensed the tension between Bunny and North. Not speaking had given him the unnatural talent of picking up someone's mood a mile away. He knew, that like him, the other two guardians hadn't seen Jack as often as they'd like for the past week.

It was more worrying in Sandy's case though.

Jack had always made time for him in his very busy day of spreading snow and cheer. At least once every three days, the youngest guardian would sit with Sandy on his cloud of sand and watch him spread dreams to children of the world. But a week ago, Jack had just stopped coming.

And Sandy couldn't even reach his dreams.

Of course, that itself could only mean two things: One, Jack hasn't been sleeping for a week- something Sandy was worried about because even immortals (especially immortal teens) needed sleep; Second, Jack was in a place where Sandy's sand couldn't reach him- and this was more worrying that the first, because, what if Jack had been kidnapped without their knowledge?

And this was why he found himself in the sleigh, heading towards Burgess' infamous frozen lake with his fellow and equally worried guardians.

It was known to them that Jack was particularly fond of this lake and it was only common sense to head there first when they were searching for the winter spirit. Beside him, Tooth was once again a babbling mess, trying her best to send out commands and not mix them with her worried rantings about Jack.

Bunny was no better. He was thumping his foot on North's sleigh out of habit and trying not to shiver at the fact that yes, he was three hundred feet from the ground, and that no the ground was not soft if you happen to fall out of the sleigh.

North, meanwhile, could cut a diamond with the concentration of his gaze as he looked ahead with one goal in mind. Sandy had noticed that the old Santa had grabbed a certain gift wrapped object when Bunny had told them to head to the sleigh.

Sandy was distracted from his thoughts when the sleigh suddenly touched down on the snow-filled ground. Bunny let out a scared yelp as Tooth jumped at the rough landing.

"We are here!" North said in a booming voice. He jumped out of the sleigh with his swords in hand as he walked down the forest path. "Let us go comrades! Our search for Jack is just beginning!"

Shaking his head at the earlier traumatic landing, Bunny began to dart across the snow. "I'll go search ahead of ya, mate!"

"I'll fly up and see if Sweet Tooth is in any of the trees." Tooth said as her wings fluttered nervously behind her. She shot up with her mini fairies behind her, as she called out to Jack. Sandy, meanwhile, satisfied himself by looking behind large snow covered boulders. His sand spread in three directions, one with North, one with Tooth, and one with Bunny, just in case they found the frost guardian.

It had only been ten minutes into their search when they heard a worrying call from the guardian of Hope.

"NORTH!" Sandy shot up and immediately headed towards the sound of Bunny's panicked voice. He made sure his sand alerted the two other guardians as he headed towards the distraught pooka.

When Sandy flew past the trees and into a clearing that showcased Jack's favorite frozen lake, the guardian of Dreams was confused for a few seconds.

Bunnymund was in the middle of the frozen lake, no unconscious or bleeding Jack Frost in sight and Sandy allowed himself to relax for a moment. His mind had thought up of horrible scenarios because of the sound of Bunny's voice. Maybe the Spring guardian had just seen a clue that would lead to their snowflake?

"NORTH! NORTH! COME 'ERE YA' GUMBY!" Bunny's loud voice shook in frustration and fear, and Sandy felt himself shake at the tone. He stared wide-eyed as Bunny began to hit the thick ice of the lake with his paws.

Worried and confused, Sandy rushed to the bunny's side and caught his fists with whips of dream sand. Bunny looked at Sandy in surprise before he tried to break free.

"Let go of me Sandy! Frostbite is-! He's-!" Bunny said in a panicked voice and Sandy shook his head, making hurried signs that the lake was at least two feet solid and that Bunny was hurting himself.

"Ya' don't understand, mate-!" Buuny began but then large footsteps and the humming of Tooth's wings distracted the two of them.

"Bunny! Sandy! What is it? Why you call us?" North said as he carefully slid through the frozen surface of the lake. Sandy let go of the pooka at their approach.

"Is it Jack? Have you found Jack?" Tooth asked worriedly. Sandy began to shake his head but then Bunny cut him off.

"North, call yer Yetis quick! We have ta-!" Bunny said hurriedly as he shivered at the cold and North placed a hand on the other's shoulder.

"Calm down my friend, tell us calmly why you need yetis here." North urged the Easter bunny. Bunnymund glared at the spirit of Wonder as he looked back at the spot of the ice that he tried to crack with his fists. "Look." He placed a paw on the surface and wiped away the frost that was blocking the view of the icy depths that lay beneath the ice.

Three pairs of eyes widened simultaneously. North let out an exclamation of Russian curses, Tooth let out a choked exclamation, and Bunny's paws clenched in frustration. Sandy felt his blood run cold at the sight.

There, beneath two feet of thick ice was a boy with a familiar pale face and snow white hair.

They had finally found Jack Frost.

And the guardians had never been more horribly ecstatic when they found him and scared when they found out where he was.

Sleeping beneath the ice.

JACK!

Notes: I told you, Weird Habits had more Arcs. I really enjoyed making this chapter! It was fun! I'm sorry it took awhile to update, had sleep overs with my cousin and then there's also the fact that my sister can't give up the laptop for my sake. But either way, I love her so I'll forgive her for that. Although in order to update, I had to get up at an unholy hour of the night. Thank goodness it was raining though, the sound of silence is freaky.

Well, so I hope everyone likes this and reviews their thoughts. I'm off to update my other fics and if I'm lucky I might update the next chapter od Ice Cubes soon! But will it be the arc? Who knows? I might update Eyeglasses or the next part off Rain, but I feel like updating a funny one-shot instead... But then again, it all depends on my mood.

Thank you for those who told me to get better soon :D I recovered eventually and I feel like giving you all virtual hugs! I'm happy that some of you liked 'Rain' and thought it was cool. Jack after all is pretty prideful and I doubt that he'd cry that easily.

Oh and just a thought, (I don't know if anyone reads this author's notes but I'll pray someone does) I read that Bunny hid hope on earth and guards it as the last pooka. So I was wondering why no one ever made a story where Bunny lost hope (a bright shiny thing that was meant to be buried deep in the earth to spread) and is trying desperately to find it, and the finds out that Jack is that hope he was looking for (Jack did make Jamie believe again and he made the guardian hope that it wasn't too late) and then blah, blah sacrifices have to be made because Jack or hope had to be buried beneath the earth to give the light back to our planet and etc.

So that's just me randomly thinking! It's been in my mind for awhile now.

So yes, once again thanks for all the support! Reviews are still appreciated!