A/N: Sorry about missing yesterday, but the computer that I write on doesn't have internet access. Pro: it is always open for me to use. Con: I have to transfer everything to a computer that does that internet. Its normally not a big deal, we have one at home that I can use, but the mouse on the no-internet computer broke, so I couldn't move the file. I found a mouse to replace it today, so there are no more problems now.
Jack looked around the kitchen, searching through several different shelves and drawers. While searching the back of one of the drawers, his hand brushed against a container holding several dried herbs, causing them to freeze instantly.
"Oops..." Jack mumbled as he brought them out. Looking at them, Jack hoped Phil wouldn't get too mad when he found them... He grimaced at the thought of the yeti's rage, and silently put them back, all the while whistling away any suspicion. He shut the drawer, and tried to ignore the quiet rings that came from the icy plants hitting each other or the walls of their container. Using a gentle wind, he flew up to a top shelf to begin his search again. He just needed this last ingredient...There!
A wide smirk found its way onto Jack's face as he held up the spice container. "Paprika. This should be good enough to top them off." He flew back down and stood in front of a counter. On it were several trays of pre-made cookie dough balls. All of them were just about ready to be put in the oven. Jack glanced around making sure he was alone, which was silly because he knew he was alone in here... and quickly shook a bit onto each of the balls, making sure to cover as much as he could. "Wonder how bad these will taste..." He mumbled as he unconsciously reached his hand in the batter to snitch some dough. Just as he was about to eat it, the door burst open. Jack jumped in surprise and quickly hid his hand behind his back.
An angry Phil stormed into the room, and walked straight up to Jack. "Oh, hey, there..." Jack paused for a minuet and looked at his dough covered fingers. "Oh man... Phil, you totally just saved me." He patted the yeti's furry arm. "Man that would have been really bad. Wonder if these cookies could kill an immortal..." Phil watched Jack ponder this question and was about to speak when the boy picked up a bit of cookie dough and offered it to him. "Doesn't it look good?" Forgetting his anger for the moment Phil took once sniff and immediately pulled back in disgust. That may have looked like cookie dough, but they were no where near the treats that the yeti enjoyed. Phil gave a questioning grunt as to what those things were.
"I made them." Jack happily replied. "I stole... uh, borrowed one of your cookie recipes, and I changed the ingredients so it held no sugar or sweet stuff. It now has stuff like vinegar, a bunch of salt, a bunch of other stuff that should never be combined and put into anything that is supposed to be even remotely edible. Oh, that stuff on top is paprika, and theres probably some random things thrown in there to help make it look similar." Jack looked at the dough with pride. "I'll tell you, that was the hardest part, making it look the same... ish. I didn't think cooking would be that difficult..." Phil could only look on in shock. What ever Jack has been doing in here, it wasn't cooking. Was this why Jack had recently asked for the use of one of their kitchens? Phil had been surprised at the request, but agreed to it, on certain conditions...
Phil had to always be near. Either in the kitchen, or a room next door.
Jack could not try to sneak out of said kitchen to get a look at the workshop.
He could not make a fuss when Phil said it would be time to leave, and would leave without causing any trouble for him or the others that worked there.
He could not pull any prank in the kitchen, or mess it up in any way. IE: Switching the locations of the ingredients or cooking utensils.
There were many others restrictions, but Jack was more then happy to follow them if it meant he gained access to the kitchen.
Most of the time, Phil got one of the kitchens to himself and Jack. It was down near the reindeer' stables and a bit out of the way for the workshop. It would help keep Jack from being tempted to sneak in there. It also was good because not many yeti's would come down here to cook. If the other kitchens were full, they would most likely wait, unless they were really desperate to start baking. Phil, when ever Jack would come over to use the kitchen, would stay and work on his own cooking projects, (not counting earlier because he had to go grab something and ran into elf trouble...) Because of this, though, he had no idea what Jack was working on. Now, as the yeti just stared at the cookie dough that sat in Jack's bowl... Phil couldn't even guess why Jack would want to make something like... uh... that.
Jack must have understood the unsaid question, because he just laughed. "They're for the elves. They will think the cookies are normal, but once they take a bite..." Jack made a face that Phil could only guess was his attempt at what the cookies might taste like. "If these don't stop them from trying to snitch the treats all together, they will at least stop them for a bit, and make them a bit more cautious in the future." Phil could tell that Jack has been planning this for awhile, but had only recently gotten the right look for his demon cookies.
"Want to start cooking them?" Jack asked, his eyes filled with his mischievous glint.
Phil could only give a sigh in agreement. The winter spirit would have a hard time getting each tray into the hot ovens, so the yeti supposed he could help him out... He would also like to get revenge on the elves for just recently destroying a prototype toys that North now had to rebuild... Phil smiled at Jack, thankful that he had come today. This was just the thing that would help the furry creature feel better.
As Phil opened the ovens, he had to remind himself not to breathe in the smell of the cookies he was now taking out. It was only a natural reaction to, since he and the other yeti's were expert cooks, and they all enjoyed it. Phil especially loved his cookies the minuet they came out. They were still steaming, and the chocolate would just melt in your mouth. Looking at the ones he was bringing out now, he gave a sigh, and was now wishing he had made a batch of his cookies... The ones in his paw... they were the spawn of demons. Their gooey insides were nothing but bitter and sour. They top coating with brown sprinkled on top looked invitingly at any passerby, but Phil would never eat one of theses... lets hope the only ones who get a taste of theses cookies are the elves. The only thing that was off about them was the smell. Anyone would be able to tell how bad these cookies were before they ever had to taste the. The yeti could feel the winter spirit behind him, trying to get a good look at his creations. "Hmmm... If the elves smell them, it might give it away... Do you have any... like..." He thought of the right words for a moment... "I don't know... chocolate perfume or something?"
Phil gave a chuckle at his odd request. "Hey, don't laugh! I'm trying to make this prank perfect, okay?" Jack defended. "What else makes things smell good?"
Phil came up with a different approach. He placed the newly baked cookies right next to some melted peppermint. The sweet aroma blocked out the other one, and the yeti hoped it would linger for awhile, after they had cooled.
"What will that do? Will my cookies, like, suck up the smell of the peppermint? If it does, that is so cool!" Jack sounded excited, and why shouldn't he be? He hadn't had much experience in a kitchen. Phil decided right then and there that he would make a special treat for Jack. He quickly got to work, grabbing all the required bowls and pans first. Next he selected his measuring tools. After setting them up just the way he liked them, Phil turned to start gathering ingredients.
Jack watched with interest as the yeti moved around the kitchen. He looked back at the timer for the rest of his cookies, and sighed when they still needed 8 minuets. Bored, Jack played around with the different things Phil had put on the table, creating some sort of pyramid out of the bowls and cups.
When Phil saw Jack playing with his working equipment, he slapped Jack's hand, and put his tools in their proper place. Jack had snatched back his hand and rubbed it. "Sorry..." he mumbled. Phil continued to work as Jack walked around the large kitchen.
"What are you making?"
Both the question, and the proximity of the one who asked it caught Phil off guard and caused him to spill some milk on the counter. He growled at Jack, who had quickly moved his hands away, and made a shushing motion with his paw.
A few minuets later, Phil was stirring his mixture in a peaceful quiet. Jack had been an annoyance for the past few minuets, starting out with constant questions about the different tools Phil had used, then, once Jack got that he wouldn't get any answers, the winter spirit started whistling. That had soon stopped as well, right after a quick look from Phil. Now, though, the yeti felt that Jack would keep quite for just a little while. He didn't understand why Jack's curiousness and never-ending questions have bothered him so much, but as Phil thought about it, the other yeti's knew that when someone was cooking, they like to be in their own little world, and knew not to interrupt them. Phil had also had to deal with the elves earlier, so that had added to his sour mood that day. At a sudden tap on his shoulder, he gave a little jump, almost causing his mixture to spill. Phil turned and glared at Jack who was about to speak.
Jack, at seeing Phil's impatience, decided to just keep quiet about it. He gave a sheepish grin to his friend and backed away a few steps, raising his hands in an 'I surrender' position. Jack decided to just wait for the yeti to figure it out for himself, after all, it would happen in about 7 seconds...
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DING!
The timer on the oven rang, and it's volume (which Jack had played with, not knowing what the heck it was) pierced both of their ears as it sounded loudly through the kitchen.
Phil quickly raced over to turn in off before it sounded again.
"That wasn't me." Jack said quickly.
Phil groaned. He had just wanted to make a little treat for Jack, yet it obviously wasn't going to happen right now. Jack, himself, was making it difficult enough, not to mention the fact that now that the other demon cookies were done, he would want to give them to the elves. At a quick look at the clock, Phil realized he was down here for longer then he thought. He'd have to let Jack prank the elves next time he came. He turned towards Jack and pointed to the door, signaling that it was time for him to go.
"What?!" Jack exclaimed. "They just finished though, I wanted to try them out on the elves!" Phil just gave a shake of his head, and again pointed to the door. "I'm the one who made them... it was my idea." Jack complained. "What's the fun in doing a prank if I don't get to see their reactions?" At another negative response, Jack rooted himself firmly on the ground, ready to stay there till Phil agreed to get the elves to taste his cookies.
Phil tapped his foot impatiently. Although Jack a 250-ish year old spirit, the yeti felt like he was dealing with a child...
"Come on, Phil." He whined. "Can't we just do it really quickly?"
Phil rolled his eyes at that. It would take more time then Jack thought, mainly because he'd want to see how long their reactions lasted, and how many elves he would get with his cookies.
"How about you hide them away till next time I come?" Jack decided to settle for that. Although he would have to wait a bit, it was better then nothing.
Phil let out some yetish at Jack's request. It was almost impossible to keep treats hidden for any amount of time in the north pole. There were always treats being made and sent out through the whole workshop, to get a nice snack to the working yetis. There were also the elves themselves, who would sneak in when ever they could, trying to get a bite of anything left out. Phil wouldn't leave the cookies out, of course, but still... He'd have to keep it away from other yetis who would be in the kitchens. It would be horrible if one of the yetis, or even worse... What if North got a hold of Jack's cookies. Even just thinking about it got Phil worried. He must have unconsciously shook his head, because Jack let out another round of complaints.
"What was the point of cooking them right now if you weren't going to let me try them out?!" Jack demanded. As his anger rose, a chill started to settle in the room.
Phil decided he would rather try to hide the treats for awhile, then to try and handle calming Jack down. When the two of them finally came to an understanding, Jack calmly let Phil lead him out of the North Pole. Phil could only hope he could keep up his end of the deal, and hide the cookies for three days. Since Jack had been here for most of today, and hadn't really done his job two days ago, he needed to travel through the world, bringing his snow to the places he had missed, and to those that were now expecting it. After that, he would probably need to rest a bit, but Jack would be ready to return to the pole shortly after.
Right when they reached the exit, Jack let the winds pick him up. He was about to shoot off with his usual 'you'll see me soon' smirk, when Phil grabbed his hand. Jack looked down, surprised as to why, after the huge deal Phil made to get him to leave, why the yeti would stop Jack from flying away. When he felt a soft small bag get placed in his hands, he looked up at Phil, and gave a confused smile.
"Uh... thanks?" He asked, examining the bag.
Phil just chuckled, ruffled his hair, and then returned back inside before giving any clues as to what the heck was in the bag. Jack shrugged and was about to open it right then and there, but when he looked down into his hands, he found an elf really close to him, reaching for the bag that he held. Jack jumped out of the way, surprised at the sudden appearance of the little guy. The wind had picked him up and brought him out of range of the elf. He looked at his new friend, then back to the bag, then at the elf, and back at the bag again. A grin formed on his face. Jack flew low enough for the elf to almost reach the bag. When he jumped for it, Jack pulled away, and watched as the elf fell into the cold snow. It didn't seem to discourage him, because the elf kept trying again and again. Eventually the elf, figuring out that it obviously wasn't going to get the bag, got tired of this and headed back inside. Jack just laughed as it admitted defeat. After claiming victory, he started heading home. At least Jack knew what sort of gift it was now. If the elf wanted it so badly, it could only be holiday goodies, handmade by Phil, himself. Jack was actually quite excited to try it out now. He had tasted some of the yeti's cooking, mostly just snitching when Phil wasn't watching him, and MAN, those guys knew how to cook. It may be that, seeing as Jack hasn't tasted real food since... uh... a long time, any food that Jack tried would taste good to him, but Jack didn't think so. The yeti's were the original creators of the holiday candies after all. If the humans had only copied their recipes, then of course the originals would be the best. With thoughts on eating his gift, he sped home to his lake.
When Jack lightly touched down on the familiar ice of the Burgess Lake, he quickly set his staff down and sat down on the ice. He stuck his hand down in the bag and brought out three éclairs cream puffs things, each a perfect golden brown. Jack caught the scent of peppermint, and suddenly understood why there just happen to be that melted peppermint in the kitchen earlier. When he bit down into one, the cream gushed into his mouth. The taste lasted long after he had swallowed. The peppermint in the cream gave it an after-taste that didn't seem to want to go away. Not that Jack wanted it to. This was the best thing he had ever eaten. It was incredible how much flavor could go into that single cream puff. He popped the rest of his first éclair in his mouth, and looked down at the other two. "Ah, whatever..." He said just before popping the other two into his mouth. If he wanted to have more later, he could just bug Phil about it. As the taste finally left his mouth, he smiled. Next time he was in the kitchen, he'd have to try and make something that was actually edible, so he could give it to Phil as a thank you gift... and a way to suck up to the yeti to get the recipe for the éclair cream off of him...
When Jack finally returned to the North Pole, he couldn't contain his excitement. He preformed multiple tricks in the air, often letting himself fall several feet before having the winds catching him. When he reached the door Phil had told him to meet the yeti at, he found his friend already waiting for him. As his bare feet touched the ground, Jack looked up, smiling at his companion. Before Jack could say anything though, he saw the look on Phil's face. It made Jack's smile quickly vanish.
"What's wrong?" His asked, hoping it wasn't anything too serious.
When Phil brought out his paws from behind his back, they held the cookie trays that Jack had used earlier. Jack didn't understand, and looked at Phil with confusion. The yeti looked down at the trays and gestured to them again, trying to help Jack understand. The winter spirit's eyes grew wide as it finally dawned on him what Phil was trying to say. Jack turned away, and kicked a small piece of ice away in frustration.
"They got the cookies already..." He mumbled, looking down on the ground.
Phil only gave a grumble as confirmation. Jack had so wanted to see how the elves reacted, but Phil had let his eyes off of them one moment... They had been taken out with a bunch of other treats that the yetis would set out for a little reward for all the hard work. Normally the elves were able to be kept away from them, but one sneaky little guy had grabbed Jack's cookies and bolted out of there before any of the yetis could stop him. It had only been a short while ago, that very day even... Phil just wished he could have stalled it a bit longer, or that Jack had gotten here sooner. Phil placed his paw on Jack's shoulder and let out a yetish apology.
Jack just shrugged his shoulder in response. After a moment, he spoke again, his voice still mumbled. "I suppose this is why you write down the recipes... I can't remember what I put in them, so it might take awhile for me to get it the same..." He looked up and tried to laugh it off, but Phil could tell he was really disappointed. Even if he did replicate the recipe, it wouldn't be as good as seeing their reactions to the cookies the first time. "Well, I guess... I'm just going to head home for today- Argh! Uh... What are you doing?" Jack asked as Phil blindfolded him. "WHOA" He exclaimed as he was suddenly picked up and brought inside.
Jack could only try and guess where the yeti was taking him. Phil had skillfully trapped his arms so he couldn't get the blindfold off. The little amount of wind that could get inside wasn't being helpful either. They seemed to enjoy watching Jack struggle in the hands of his enemy. Jack asked them to help free him. They playfully refused to do so, deciding that the yeti was going to help cheer up Jack. The captive just sighed and resigned himself to be led away.
He hummed to himself as Phil kept on his course. He occasionally heard other yetis approach and say something to Phil, only for him to give a short reply and continue on. Although Jack didn't understand their exact words, he could probably guess that they were talking about him. After all, it wasn't everyday they got to see Jack Frost, blindfolded, getting carried inside the North Pole. If Jack was going to be carried with his eyes covered, it would probably happen as he was being thrown out. Jack let a small laugh escape him. This caused Phil to pause for a moment. He made a questioning growl. Jack could have sworn that some of the other yetis had said partially the same thing... What are you doing? What is he doing here? and just now, What are you laughing about? Maybe he was starting to tell the difference between some of the yetish. Would he soon be able to understand what Phil was saying? That'd be sweet! Jack let loose a big grin. "Oh, it's nothing, Phil."
Phil could almost hear the gears turning in the boy's head as he planned... something. He just sighed and continued on, deciding to wait and find out later what Jack had going through his head.
He finally let Jack down, and disappeared for a moment. Jack, while Phil was gone, tried to take off the blindfold. It was tied really tight. By the time Phil got back, Jack had gotten it off his head and was looking around the room. It had two seats, and a projector was set up. On the wall opposite of the projector was a blank space, waiting to be filled with images. Phil gestured to the seats, and waited for Jack to sit down. When he was in the chair, the yeti brought out two popcorn bags. Jack raised his eyebrows at this and looked at Phil. Where was this going? Obviously they were going to watch a movie of some sorts, but why have this all set up right now? Was it an apology for the cookies? Jack almost rolled his eyes at himself, of course it was an apology thing. Jack was just wondering why this? and why he had to be blindfolded... ah, never mind. Jack would just wait and see what Phil had planned.
After grabbing the popcorn, Jack waited for Phil to join him in the seats. Phil was right by the projector, and Jack saw him put some photos near the screen. Jack tried to look over the yeti's shoulder, but Phil brushed he off and pointed to the wall where there was now an image showing. It was of two elves. They held in their hands some cookies, and each elf looked like they were about to faint. Behind them were two yetis, looking at them in amused confusion.
Jack's eyes grew wide. "No way..." He whispered, scooting to the edge of his seat. Phil gave a small chuckle and went to the next picture. This one had an elf dragging his tongue across the floor, trying to rid himself of the taste, there were others in the background acting in a similar fashion. Jack noticed that more yetis were watching. One had even picked up a cookie and seemed about to try it himself.
Jack tried to contain his laughter. He didn't know why, maybe he thought this was too good to be true. As the picture changed again, Jack could almost see the exact sequence that led up to it. Phil was a good photographer, and his skills displayed a story with in in picture.
An elf seemed to have notice the cookie in the yeti's hand, and had snatched it away. Said cookie was now being ripped apart, and thrown onto the floor. The yeti, whose treat had just been stolen, had the best expression on his face. Jack couldn't even describe it. It looked like a weird mix of confusion, amusement, thankfulness, horror, bewilderment, uh... and a bunch of other things that Jack couldn't seem to place. There was another yeti standing next to him that held a duplicate expression. Jack floated closer to the images, and let out the laughs that he had tried to contain. It was no use anymore. The sheer funniness of the pictures and the fact that Phil had taken them for him, Jack just... He just couldn't seem to express his happiness any other way. A fit of giggles, uh... manly chuckles, escaped Jack as he noticed one of the elves off to the side. He was guzzling down a big pitcher of water. The winter spirit was actually surprised the elf had found water, all that Jack seemed to find was milk. He loved milk, and all, but sometimes it was good to just have old fashioned water that didn't turn into weird slush when it got too cold, or it wasn't weird to see ice cubes floating around in the drink. Milk ice cubes... they weren't the best things to have. Jack chuckled to himself as he thought back to the first time it happened to him.
Phil came up beside Jack and placed his paw on the boy's shoulder. Jack was shone many other photos, each skillfully taken, and each were almost perfect moments. Jack would often provide funny comments or tell something to Phil with each picture that was shone. He enjoyed talking with his friend, and was glad that Phil had taken the time to do this with him. When they reached the last one, Jack looked up at Phil with a big smile on his face. "You know, I'd almost say that was better then seeing it happen for real. Doing it this way, I could look at their faces for as long as I wanted to." Phil pulled Jack into an awkward sideways hug. "Ugh! Lemme' go" He struggled to get free. When Phil suddenly let him go, he was sent tumbling to the floor. He glared at the yeti. "Nice..."
Phil just smiled and gave an answer in yetish, but Jack heard the familiar word. 'What?
"Hey, Phil..." Jack started, it was now the perfect opportune moment to ask... but he was a bit hesitant in asking it.
When the winter spirit didn't continue, Phil gave an encouraging growl, signaling him to go on.
"What would you say to teaching me yetish?"
A/N: For next week, I might not update this story, because I have almost finished up Pitch's 'First Introductions' story. You might get just that one, or maybe I'll sneak in a chapter for this story. Thanks for all past reviews and follows and etc... It makes me feel happy ^-^
