End of chapter 12:
The Man in the Moon took a step back and smiled. What he'd said to the pebble was simple, an order that would outlive every human and every beast. An order to save every human and beast.
"Save Jackson Overland Frost no matter what."
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In little over a month, Jack Frost had fallen and sunken and overheated, he'd been trapped and scared and interrogated, he'd been banished and hated and hunted, ignored and invisible, alone and unwanted, desperate.
The electric blue eyes were stiff in death. When the eyelids fluttered open, when the heart began to beat, when the breath filled the lungs, the Moon dust hid away in the staff Jack was bound to. It fused in with the wood and was determined to keep this mission for its whole life, an immortal life. This boy was important, and the only one who knew why was Tsar Lunar. But the crushed rock was ready to wait around and find out. Even if it took a thousand years.
Jack sat up and felt his vest crack under the slightest pressure. It fell in little frozen pieces into the ice. He sneezed. He'd never sneezed before. If not comfortable, he could say it felt relieving. Jack dug himself out of the snow and sat atop the hard layer of ice, supporting his weight but creaking under it.
Jack sneezed again. The layer he was sitting on broke and he fell into the snow underneath. He giggled- it's been fun, and fun was what he lived for. He raised his hand and grabbed onto the staff. Then, without warning, he was swooped into the sky like a molecule of air and he let out a loud, loud laugh of joy.
"Yes!" Jack shouted. The use of his vocal chords ached a little, but he soon got over it. "This is what I've been waiting for!"
He didn't know he'd died. He hardly even remembered chasing the Moon. But now Jack felt more alive than ever and a series of laughter erupted from his mouth, laughter that would keep him going for a long time to come. He laughed and laughed, like a baby hyena, and when he thought of Bunnymund he laughed more at the thought of a giant speaking rabbit. Just remembering the fluffy face and long whiskers was enough to get him to laugh some more, and before he knew it, he was soaring through the sky faster than ever.
"Yes!" he yelled again. "That's what I'm talkin' about! You know what, Moon? I don't even care! So just ignore me, I don't care. I. Don't. Care!"
Ohio turned into Indiana, and with the change of a degree it became Kentucky, more hours till Virginia- what would become West Virginia in years to come. Jack felt like he'd travelled the world, but would be surprised to find out what a small distance it'd actually been. He laughed some more as he fell, fell, down to a forest full of snow.
Jack groaned at the contact with the hard ground. It'd been sudden and painful, but he breathed out a great big breath and let the pain dissolve in his laughter. And, still chuckling slightly, Jack closed his eyes. He smiled and fell asleep wondering what would come of tomorrow.
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Jack awoke in a daze. He blinked away the sleep from his eyes and sat up. The thinning shirt clung to his back. If couldn't last much longer in such harsh winter conditions. The cotton was slowly dissolving and it was bound to rip soon. Jack yawned and glanced at his surroundings, then froze- there was a deer, two, three- no. Seven deer, grazing lazily on the greens that sprung underneath the snow.
Jack jumped to his feet with a loud sound, which in turn caused the deer to freeze. He stayed very still, but they seemed to sense some sort of presence. Or maybe... could they see him? Was that it? Could they see him? Just not speak. The deer scattered. Jack needed to find the Easter Bunny again. He needed to ask.
Bunnymund had said something about a thing called Easter. Jack didn't know what it was, so he decided to find humans and discover for himself. They couldn't hear or see him, but maybe they'd mention it. Maybe he could learn. He could learn a million things- how did growing up work? Were people not always just... there? Did children become adults? Did thirty-two-day-old babies become old men in thirty-two years? What was a year? Jack had so many questions. He rolled up his sleeves and took his staff in hand, flying high to find civilization.
A few miles southeast of the forest, Jack found a village. It was snowing lightly, covering the roofs with a beautiful fresh blanket. Jack didn't like the peaceful setting. It wasn't fun or exciting, it was just... pretty. He landed in a strong gust of wind that pushed away snowflakes. A small flurry shook and people stared from all angles. Jack liked being the center of attention; he raised his hands and the snow glittered more brightly than was natural. Children's eyes widened in amazement and they shouted something along the lines of "Christmas miracle!"
"What?" Jack asked, and he was answered with another chorus of "Christmas miracle!"
"Christmas?" Jack said. "Bunnymund said something about that... Christmas... what's Christmas?"
Of course, there was no reply. His snow fell to the road and people turned away. Jack bit his lip and tried to stay calm. Getting angry wasn't going to solve anything; it would only make the villagers anxious. Like in Burgess. A repeat of that mess wouldn't be good.
"Christmas," said Jack. "Christmas. How is that spelled? I can read. Christmas... K... R... I... S... S... M... I... S... S..." He nodded. "That sounds right, I think."
He looked for something that started with a K around the place. All he saw was Kristine's Bakery. Maybe Krissmiss had nothing to do with shops. Maybe it was like Easter and had a giant animal accompanying it. The Krissmiss Deer? The Easter Bunny? It made sense to Jack. It was all he knew.
"Krissmiss," said Jack. "What..."
He looked at the glass window of the bakery. Inside, a child was breathing onto the glass and drawing pictures with a thin finger that resembled Jacks's. He bent down to eye level with the child and tapped the glass with his staff. Intricate patterns of ice crept around it. The child's eyes widened, and Jack grinned.
He took his own finger and attempted to write backwards: "WAT IZ KRISSMASS?"
Unfazed, the child inside giggled. "What is Christmas? This must be from God." She took a breath and closed her eyes. Her voice was a mere whisper; Jack could barely make it out. "Dear God, I do know what Christmas is. It is the celebration of our Lord Jesus. We love Him and we love You with all our hearts. Christmas is a time of joy for the family. Children receive gifts and we pay our deepest respects to the Lord Jesus, whom we love with all our hearts. It is a celebration of His birthday." She opened her eyes but shut them again quickly. "Amen." And she opened them again, a pleased smile on her face.
This only left Jack more confused. Who was Lord Jesus? Who was God? What was 'amen'? He recrystalized the glass, but she didn't see because she had gone away to collect breads with her mother.
Jack swore under his breath and stood up again. Annoyed, he walked down the street until he could find something useful. Would he ever find something useful? Would he ever know what Christmas was?
"Bunnymund," he begged. "Bunnymund, why didn't you tell me about Christmas or Amen? And I want to know about Easter. I want to know about family. What are all those things? Why do you think I'm so old? Did I appear because of magic?"
"Papa," Jack heard someone shout. "Papa!" He turned around to see a boy in a funny hat running down the side of the street, right towards Jack. But the ghost was run through. He quickly turned around to watch the scene unfold.
"Papa," gasped the panting child. The father chuckled and ruffled his son's hair.
"What is it, Johnny?" he said.
"Papa," the boy repeated. "George Pratt said that I- that I was to get coal for Christmas. He's lying, isn't he? Haven't I been good? Papa, I've been very good."
Jack couldn't tell what his own expression was. It must have been somewhere between bewildered, intrigued and slightly disgusted.
"That boy is lying to you, Johnny," the father reassured his son. "Coal is definitely going to him. By the time December 25th comes, you'll have a very nice display of goodies."
The boy called Johnny smiled proudly. Two teeth were missing from his mouth. The father took note and raised his eyebrows.
"What's in your mouth?" he asked.
The child's smile only widened. The gap was big enough to fit a finger through. "I lost two teeth," he announced with joy, patting his pocket.
Jack winced and his fingers immediately flew to his mouth. Lost teeth? Wouldn't that be painful? Why would a child want to lose teeth? He ran his tongue over them appreciatively. He wasn't exactly sure what they were for, but they comforted him nonetheless.
"That's a trip from the Tooth Fairy," the father said, winking. Jack groaned. More confusion. What was a fairy and what did it have to do with his mouth? And what about Christmas? What about Lord Jesus?
"Come on," Jack urged. "Talk more about Christmas and coal. What's December 25th?"
He ran up to the pair and gazed curiously at them both. It would take a long time to get answers out of these people. But he had to try.
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A/N: Apologies for inaccuracies. I felt rather silly writing this chapter.