Chapter Thirteen- Old Jack

It was Old Jack's favorite kind of day. Mucking about, asking the wind to hide him from everybody else (which, by the way, the wind was not pleased about), taking part in epic snowball fights, with and without his powers (just to see if he could), kicking up snowdrifts and generally causing havoc whilst playing a huge game of cat and mouse with other spirits, who for some reason were all trying to round him up. To Old Jack, nothing was more fun than causing chaos.

New Jack was not the same as Old Jack.

Mucking about wasn't any fun anymore, now that he had no-one to keep him company, company he had grown used to over the past few months. The wind as mentioned before was too nervous and jittery to play with. Playing snowballs had lost its appeal without Jaime, and kicking up snowdrifts and generally causing havoc was no fun when it was accompanied by a pounding headache. The cat and mouse game he play wasn't really a game at all, as the spirits had been recruited by the guardians to bring him back to the pole.

Because Jack Frost had been shadowed.

It was Pitch who had done it (is it ever anyone else?). Jack hadn't meant for it to happen- no-one had, except for the dastardly villain mentioned above. Jaime had been captured, and during the rescue, Jack had been injured by a shadow weapon.

The thought of Jaime brought guilt to the front of Jack's mind. He hadn't been to see his best friend since he had been stabbed in the chest- which was understandable- but no one else had either, so Jaime didn't even know if he was still alive. But right now Jack couldn't visit Jaime, or his lake, as the guardians would undoubtedly be waiting there, for him.

"Hey wind?" The wind whistled in response, again voicing it's protests against Jack's plan of action.

"Take me to Antarctica." The wind huffed but lifted him anyway. Antarctica wasn't the best place to be, as it was a well known fact he liked hanging out there, but it was big, and cold, and Jack thought it was unlikely anyone would venture very far in, and if by some strike of fortune they did find him, it would be easy to evade them on his own terrain. Jack thought about how tired he was, and how all he really wanted to do was burrow into a snowy hole and sleep. Maybe he would. Nobody would find him there.

Antarctica was still and white and clear. Jack whisked up a quick snowstorm, then snuggled into the first snowdrift he found and drifted off on a raft of dreams. He dreamed of his old old life, the life even before waking up in the lake, the life with Pippa. He dreamed of skating on the lake and what could have happened had the ice not cracked. The human Jack whirled and leaped around, then taught Pippa her first shaky twirl. They slid around for hours under the snow until the sky grew dark. Then they went home and sung carols by the fire while eating their soup.

Too late to go back now.

He felt the darkness in his dreams, sending him into the torrent of nightmares. Each nightmare was more ghastly than the last, as he slowly watched every one he cared about being torn apart. But eventually it passed, and he was lulled back into dreams and almost forgot the previous nightmares. Almost.

While he was curled into a ball, sleeping, the wind decided to take action. He would take action by leading the guardians to him, helping him by helping them. The wind, being a very intelligent and powerful being, devised a plan. Slowly, as not to wake it's exhausted friend, it removed a scrap of fabric from Jack's hoodie. After painstakingly ripping it away, it flung the piece out in the general direction of the opposite pole and chased after it, propelling it forward.

...

Many a minutes later the very same piece of fabric was snatched out of the air by Bunny's furry paw.

"Everyone, look at this. It's a scrap from Frostbite's hoodie."

North lumbered over and peered closely at the scrap. Tooth and Adrianne rose and Sandy hovered in the doorway.

"You are right of course. But how did it get here?"

"Maybe the wind brought it here?" Tooth suggested, exhausted and having run out of leads hours ago.

"Yeah, but the wind is Frostbite's best pal. I don't think it would betray him." Bunny intoned.

"It would," the Russian began slowly, "If Jack really was in a bad way." Everyone glanced uneasily at each other.

Adrianne rose and spoke, her voice hoarse.

"Then we've got to find him. Well wind, can you show us where he's gone?" The wind ruffled the fur on Bunny's paw, wrenching the fabric out of his grip.

"Hey! Give that back!" He grabbed for it, but the cloth fluttered just out of his reach.

"Wait! We should follow it, I think the wind means to lead us to Jack." North looked at her, excitement dawning in his face.

"Yes! Quick, everyone on the sleigh!"

Re-energized, the guardians scrambled into the sleigh. Adrianna glided into the air, and made to get in the sleigh before North's huge hand blocked her way. irritated she looked up at him, fully prepared to make her own way. She felt wounded- had she not earned their respect?

"Adrianna-"

"Cut it. I'm going whether you like it or not" Adrianna snarled, raising her fist menacingly. North looked on bemused.

"I was going to ask you to scout ahead. That fabric is going a little too quickly for us." He said factually.

"Oh." She replied sheepishly. "I'll do that. And signal back to you." And with that she flew off.

"You make it sound like a battle plan." Tooth noted.

"It is."

...

But while Adrianna was the lightest and quickest, it was Bunnymund's sharp eyes which actually spotted Jack first as he emerged from a heap of snow, yawning and stretching as if he had just had the most restful sleep in the world, when in reality he was aching more than he was earlier, and there were dark shadows under his eyes. His sleep had been plagued with nightmares, and all he wanted to do was curl up in a ball.

It had been easy to refuse his friends earlier and fly off, but now... he was in pain, which was only sure to get worse, and he had no idea how long he had left, and how long he would be in pain, or even what happened if he reached the end- would he die? Or become a nightmare, or maybe just fade to a shadow?

He had no idea, and it made him scared.

He had to make a choice soon, because he could hear the sleigh bells ringing, and soon he would no longer be able to flee, even if he wanted to. It was unlikely they could catch him in the wind, not even Adrianna, because he was pretty sure he was stronger, and the sleigh was too clunky to follow him. But he could not fly forever, and he feared that were he to fall asleep, the wind would deliver him straight to the North pole.

He couldn't flee, but he couldn't stay. What was he to do? Jack raked his hands through his snowy hair, frustrated, and began to stalk to and fro. The sleigh bumped down behind him. He still had time. He watched the sleigh slide madly, fully prepared to throw up a snow barrier if necessary. But the sleigh finally skidded to a stop. His friends got out looking anxious. Jack stared back warily, fingering his knife in his free hand. Adrianna was not there.

"Jack! Let us help you!" Jack made no movement or sound, but merely continued to observe them.

"Jack! Come back, we can sort this out." Still nothing.

"Jack! Jack please!" Tooth sounded near hysterical. Jack inched backwards, speeding up all the while.

"Jack. We want to help." After the frost boy carried on moving backwards, North looked meaningfully at a point over Jack's left shoulder. Just as he was turning round to see what it was something hard collide with the side of his head and he sunk down dizzily, catching a glimpse of blue eyes as he fell.

Then nothing.