Chapter 16 – The Ice Lands (pt 2)
It was with a gasp and a thud that Jack slid off of the stallion's back, stumbling to his knees in a field of snow and shaking a little. Behind him, Hallow laughed out loud at him,
"What's wrong Jack? You can ride the wind but not a horse?" with a little difficulty, Jack brought himself to his feet,
"Oh no, I can ride North's Sleigh, I can ride the winds, but THAT? THAT was not a ride! That was a fight for my life!" he exclaimed at her. Hallow giggled from on top of Morpheus' back. Even the damned HORSE looked to be laughing at him!
"I forget what it can be like the first time, I suppose having the solid object you're riding suddenly turning into an incorporeal rolling storm cloud can be a bit off-putting to some." She teased him. Gracefully, the girl swung her leg over one side of the great stallion. Sliding down off his back and dropping the good foot and a half to the floor. Straightening up, she turned and began unwinding the chain from Morpheus' nose while Jack worked on regaining the ability to stand.
"How do you manage that?! Aren't you ever scared you're gonna fall?" Hallow looped the chain back over her neck, the thin gold whistle slipping down the front of her shirt as she turned back towards the frost guardian, pulling her hair through the chain.
"Are you ever afraid the wind will drop you?" She asked. Her feet stepped lightly over the ground as she took a few steps towards him, "I've fallen before, of course, but I think what matters more is how quickly you get back up again" She said, turning back to the Stormbringer still standing to attention behind them, "thank you, Morpheus, will you wait here for us?"
Jack twisted and turned, looking around them. The ride here had been so fast and so turbulent he'd forgotten to look at the land as they flew over it. Now, he could see in the far distance the lights of the town, and the artificial moon shone its light down from the blanket of stars in the sky. The faint patches of snow around them showed how they were on the very edge of the ice lands Hallow had mentioned earlier. It glittered and shone under the cold moonlight, and for a moment, Jack had to remind himself that this world was fabricated.
Yes, he had almost forgotten. But as Hallow's footsteps carried her past him, Jack looked over and let himself marvel silently at how amazing she actually was. He couldn't help but wonder why North had thought her dangerous, or Tooth had been afraid of her. She…she had created a whole world, right from scratch, where all the people of her 'holiday' were safe.
"You coming, frostbite?" Hallow called back to him, heading for the snowy plains to their left. Jack gave a smile and began to follow.
It felt good to have the snow beneath his feet again, and Jack laughed in joy at the feel of it, kicking up a flurry with his feet and staff. A little way ahead of him, Hallow smiled to herself. He was certainly playful. Nothing like the strictness and sharp edges that the other guardians had. He was the first to listen to her, and still followed her despite everything she had told him to the contrary. Maybe…maybe he would be understanding. Maybe she could finally tell someone…no! No, it was too dangerous. 'I can't include anyone else in this. This is my responsibility, and mine alone.' She thought to herself.
"Oof!" something cold and wet hit Hallow in the back. Behind her, loud laughter rang through the air. Slowly, she turned around, narrowing her eyes at Jack, "did you just…?" with a smirk, Jack scooped up another handful of snow,
"You need to learn to lighten up, Hallow. Catch!" Hallow shrieked as the cold snow was thrown at her, ducking it only to have another one aimed at her face,
"Jack Frost, you stop that this instant!" Hallow yelled at him, taking cover behind one of the snow drifts.
"If you can hit me, I'll stop!"
"I'm supposed to be here on an important assignment, not playing around in-ah!" Hallow gave another shriek as Jack managed to hit her again, turning her head away from the cold water now dripping over her hair. "Oh that's it." She growled, scooping up the snow and throwing it as hard as she could.
"Not even close, pumpkin head!" Jack jeered at her, riling her up further. So the girl did know how to have fun after all! He ducked another snowball that came a little closer than he would have liked, but laughed and grinned as Hallow tried again and again to catch him. After a few minutes, Jack found himself out of breath from laughing. Hallow stuck her head out over the snow drift, eyes bright and curious and so very, very alive. For a moment, Jack remembered what the book had said about her, that Hallow was once someone so young and carefree. He could see it now.
Holding up his hands and staff in surrender, Jack grinned over at her, the grin only getting wider when she automatically ducked back down behind the snow bank, "Truce?" he called out. Hallow's eyes narrowed at him over the top of the snow mound, but she stood up, cheeks rosy red from exertion and laughter and eyes still so bright. She reached out, taking his hand.
There was a split second that Jack saw something shine in her eyes, before there was snow being shoved show the back of his hoodie. Despite how the cold didn't bother him, he couldn't help but yell out in shock, back tensing up and spine arching against the wet feeling. In front of him, Hallow smirked,
"Truce. Now if you're done, we have work to do."
Oh, Jack was definitely starting to see why she'd represent Halloween night.
Tooth flitted about North's workshop, searching for the specific shade of red that would signal she had found the man in question. Darting between the yetis, her head whipped from side to side, searching through the workshop until,
"North!" she called, beelining for the man. North turned away from his plans and blueprints at the noise,
"Tooth? What is the matter?" He asked. Tooth sounded…worried. He could only hope it wasn't anything too serious. There was a lot to be done before Christmas this year.
"Have you seen Jack recently? He hasn't come by in over two weeks and the fairies say they can't find him anywhere!" Tooth exclaimed. That caught North's attention. The last time he'd seen Jack must have been about three weeks too, and that had been when he was…
"Tooth, did Jack talk to you about…Her?" North asked. The flash of fear and extra worry that shone in Tooth's eyes was answer enough, "and what did you tell him?"
"I-I sent him to Bunny. I thought – I thought maybe Bunny could convince Jack to give up talking about her, especially after what she did to his Warren, oh but North you don't honestly think he's gone to HER world, do you? I mean, that place is scary and what if he's been injured or suched through the gateway or-"
"Tooth! Tooth, calm down. We will go and speak to Bunny. If Jack has indeed gone to Hallow, Bunny is the only one who can access that dark place. We will get him back, do not fear."
"I'm just scared, North. You know how scary Hallow is. And it's been so many years...I can't help but think about what all that death and horror has warped her into." The fairies around her shivered with their mistress, remembering the horrors they would see coming through the gate on Halloween night. If Jack was there, they all feared for him.