End of chapter 15:
Time seemed to stop; Jack Frost had no dreams. He fell asleep and could feel the globe spinning, but didn't have any dreams. He never had. He didn't know such a thing could happen. Jack hadn't ever been touched by dream sand, which was why he could not imagine in his sleep. But he was calm, happy, touched by the village's holiday cheer. So the slumber was pleasant. He was smiling all night.
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"Coal..." Jack mumbled, eyes blinking rapidly. "Coal?"
He blinked again and sat up. The sun was low in the sky; it was only dawn. Blaring yellow and orange painted the snow like canvas. Clouds were still pink. Jack shifted his body to face west. The sunrise was pretty, but blinding.
"Coal," he repeated, yawning and sitting up. "What did they mean, coal? Why would Krissmiss mean coal? And come on... I need to know about that fairy thing. The... Tooth Fairy?"
These questions were daunting. He was still amazed that a child would want to lose teeth. It sounded painful, uncomfortable. He ran his tongue over his own teeth and was glad they were there.
"I'm ready," said Jack, just as the sun slipped fully into view. "Gotta learn everything."
He jumped up to begin the day, staff dutifully by his side. Before taking off, Jack had a bit of fun- he brewed up a small blizzard, just to see the snow fall. It went up in clumps and came down as perfect new flakes. Jack caught some on the palm of his hand and stared at the pattern. It was pretty, like a spiderweb. He let his hand drop and the snowflake fell to the ground. It hadn't melted on his hand because of his body temperature.
When Jack arrived in town he didn't expect to see so many people out and about. The sun was visible but Jack supposed it couldn't have been very early at all. He didn't know that winter daylight was seldom, and would eventually grow to only know winter daylight. Spring, summer, and autumn were by far out of his comfort zone.
"Hello," he said to someone, whose response was normal. Normal. The spirit laughed. Nothing. Jack frowned. He started to follow people around, copying their movements, their gestures, quirks. For nearly an hour Jack played this shadow game and eventually gave up due to lack of response. He vaguely wondered if people would ever see him. Were there people like him? Were there other people who walked around, wondering if they could be seen? Was there someone who wanted Jack to see them?
He smiled at the thought.
"Hello," he repeated. It was becoming routine. "My name is Jack, as you might know. I can't see you, but, y'know, I'm still gonna acknowledge your existence. It's more than anyone's done for me."
The wind did not blow and there was no indication that anyone had heard.
"You see, I was born a little while ago. I... I'm not really sure what's going on right now. But I'm gonna find out."
He looked from left to right, hoping to find any clue...
"I need to learn about Christmas and the Tooth Fairy. Right?"
No one answered.
Jack was silent for a few seconds, but then he laughed lightheartedly. "Sorry that I can't see or hear you," he told the silence. "I know the feeling."
Without thinking long or hard about it, Jack made a new friend. He called the essence Hush and treated it as he would another human. The being didn't make a sound, hadn't even proven itself to Jack, but he believed in it. He sat down and began to speak about all he remembered. The story wasn't long, but he put thought into it. He wanted to impress Hush.
"And I still didn't know my name!" he laughed.
By the time he'd finished talking about his first week of life, the sun was high in the sky, and the afternoon had jumped up.
"Oh, come on, Hush, now I've talked half the day away," he said. "Thanks a lot. Come on, let's find out about all those things. I wish you could talk. You probably have all the answers I need." He laughed again.
And so, for the rest of the day, Jack went on blabbing about this and that, but also looking for clues about Christmas, which was only in a few days. By nightfall he was exhausted.
"I'm sleepy," Jack mumbled, ambling down a path blanketed by snow. He lifted his arms to delight in more flakes, but very soon lost the energy to keep it up. "Winter will have to wait, won't it, Hush?" he yawned. He imagined Hush nodding in response. It was a genderless and beautiful picture.
"You go to sleep where you want. I'll leave some space for you, if you want, but I don't know if it will be big enough or comfortable. Good luck."
He closed his eyes.
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Oh, Jack. Jack Jack Jack Jack Jack.
"Thank you," whispered an old woman, hobbling alongside a very energetic boy. He kept claiming not to see or hear her, but that was okay. He believed. That was all that mattered. She had been a very sick woman when she died, and the graveness of the disease had followed her into death. It made her stubborn, and not want to die.
That was six days ago.
She'd been wandering around this little village, charmed in part by Christmas preparations but also bitter and angry that the medicine had not worked. By the third day after her death, she'd forgotten where she lived and who her family was. The sour feelings had consumed some memories.
"My name's not Hush," she finally recalled. "Why are you calling me that? Jack? Please tell me. Why are you calling me Hush?"
He only laughed; he hadn't heard her.
"You can't see me," said Hush sadly. "But yet... you still talk to me."
"I'm still gonna acknowledge your existence. It's more than anyone's done for me."
Hush smiled. She listened to Jack's lively tale and then watched him fall asleep. He was pretty as an angel, and she suddenly wondered if Jack was an angel. That was a pleasant thought. For the first time since she died, Hush lay down and let her breathing come to a stop. All it took was a little faith, and now the afterlife welcomed her.
Death had soft hands.