There were two days more to Christmas. Jamie was feeling really bored. He wasn't allow to go out in the snow to play, and anyway, there wasn't anyone to play with. Sophie had gotten absorbed in playing with some of Estella's fine toys and Jamie thought it was rather creepy, playing near the dark, menacing woods. How could anyone live in such a place anyway? He wasn't afraid of Pitch Black but the darkness was terrifying and there were wolves in there.
The manor had a library, but the books were all classical ones with big words and complicated language. Jamie didn't really enjoy such books. The previous day, however, he had discovered a set of books in the library which caught his eye. It was a series called Guardians of Childhood and were stories of some of the Guardians, like Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy or Toothiana, the Sandman, the Easter Bunny or E. Aster Bunnymund and the Man in the Moon. Jamie thought it was the only set of books which was interesting in the library. He had spent the whole of the previous day reading the series, and had even begged his aunt to let him have them.
There was still no sign of Jack. Jamie was growing impatient. It was like waiting for a bomb to go off as he had something he had to ask the Guardian. That evening, Jamie returned to his bedroom and curled up on the window seat again, and flipped through one of the books from the series, the one about Toothiana.
As Jamie was reading, he heard a weird crackling sound and looked up. That was when he noticed frost swirling on the window. Jack! Jamie hurriedly threw open the window, instantly inviting in a gust of cold wind. He hurriedly shut the window again and pressed his nose against it, trying to see if Jack was outside. He had to be.
Jamie grabbed his jacket and reopened the window, putting his head out of it and calling for Jack. The wind whipped at his hair and face, stinging him and he wondered how it would feel like if he wasn't wearing a coat, or if he was dressed for summer.
"Jack!" Jamie called. "I know you're there!"
Only the whistling winter wind answered him. Darkness was descending upon the area. Jamie frowned slightly.
"Jack! Where are you? There's something I have to tell you! Something... important!" Jamie yelled. "I guess," he added to himself.
The next thing he knew the Guardian of Fun was in his face, startling him. "Jack!" Jamie exclaimed. "You came!"
"Nice place your aunt's got here," Jack said, stepping through the window into the room. "And very snowy, isn't it? So, what is it you wanted to tell me?" Jack settled himself on the window seat. Jamie hurriedly shut the window.
"First of all, is there plague?" Jamie asked.
Jack cocked his head. "Plague?" he asked.
"My cousin is ill and my aunt says she probably won't last till Christmas," Jamie replied, sitting on the window seat as well. "She's only twelve."
Jack's eyes widened. "Whoa. Seriously? That's bad."
"My aunt claims this winter has brought plague with it," Jamie said. "She likes playing in the snow, this cousin of mine. My aunt thinks it's because of that."
Jack scowled. "I don't do plague, Jamie. I think it's Pitch. I'll go see the other Guardians about this." He prepared to leave, but Jamie stopped him.
"Wait, Jack. There's something else. You have to come and see this," Jamie said, pleading Jack to come with him. The Guardian of Fun followed the boy out into the dark corridor and to the too of the stairs. They went down a few steps and stopped before the same portrait Jamie had been gazing two nights before.
"Look at this."
Jack looked, and his eyes widened in surprise. He looked as though he had stopped breathing upon seeing the name and the date at the bottom of the portrait. "But this is me!" he exclaimed. Jamie nodded. Without a word, he gestured at the next portrait.
"Is that your sister?"
Jack gaped at the painting, disbelievingly. "You've got to be kidding me,' he breathed. "Yes, it's her, but older."
Jamie turned to the Guardian of Fun. "How did you get these, Jamie? How did your aunt get these paintings?" Jack asked, looking stunned.
Jamie shrugged. "Jack, you died, didn't you? You fell into a pond. You saved your sister. Her." The 14- year old gestured at the painting of Jackson Overland's sister. Jack's eyes darted between the portrait and Jamie.
"How did you know?"
"My cousin told me," Jamie replied. "She remembers everyone's history. Everyone here, at least. Including you. She said you were born during very early colonial times in Burgess. She told me how you died."
Jack reached up and was about to touch the painting of him, before remembering that it would probably frost over. "How does your cousin know?"
"Because... these are all our ancestors," Jamie said.
Jack turned sharply to look at Jamie. The Guardian of Fun wore a confused look on his face. "I'm descended from your sister, Jack," Jamie explained. "She's like my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great grandmother or something. Crazy, isn't it?"
"Does that make me your great-great-great-well, it goes on, grand uncle or something?" Jack asked. Jamie looked at the portrait for a moment, eyes wide with delight as he realised it. How had he not seen it before?
"Yes!" Jamie exclaimed. "Jack! I don't believe it!"
The Guardian of Fun looked equally startled by this revelation. He was about to say something when Mrs. Bennett shouted up the stairs.
"Jamie Bennett! Who are you talking to? Not Jack Frost again, I hope!"
Jack and Jamie exchanged mischievous grins before Jamie called back, "As a matter of fact, mom, yes! He's right here!"
Mrs. Bennett came thundering up the stairs, much to Jamie and Jack's surprise. She passed through Jack as she grabbed hold of Jamie by his shoulder and placed her hand against his forehead.
"Mom, what are you doing?" Jamie said, trying to free himself from his mother's grip.
"Where's Jack Frost, Jamie?" she asked. The boy looked surprised. He looked up at the Guardian to see that the latter was astonished as well.
"Over there!" he said, pointing at where Jack was standing. The two of them exchanged another smile. Mrs. Bennett probably couldn't see Jack, unless she had rekindled her belief all of a sudden, though it seemed pretty impossible. She had never believed in Jack Frost anyway. Mrs. Bennett turned and stared at the spot where Jamie was pointing to. In fact, she stared right into Jack Frost's eyes, but couldn't see him. Jack realised with a jolt that he was looking right into his sister's eyes. There was no mistaking it.
Mrs. Bennett turned back to her son. "Jamie, have you been seeing things?" she asked, her voice thick with concerned. "You know, we can get you a psychiatrist..."
Jamie frowned. He shook his head. "No, mom!" he protested. "I don't need a psychiatrist! I am not seeing things! Jack Frost is real! The others, the Tooth Fairy, the Sandman... all of them! They're all real! If you don't believe me, try asking Sophie. Ask her if she believes in the Easter Bunny!"
Jack chuckled. "Bunny still thinks of her. He calls her 'ankle-biter'."
"He calls her 'ankle-biter'!" Jamie told his mother. There was a hint of desperation. He didn't want his mother thinking he was mad. He didn't need a psychiatrist. He wasn't seeing things.
Mrs. Bennett looked confused. "Ankle-what? Seriously, Jamie..."
"I can tell you how Jack Frost looks like," Jamie said, all of a sudden. Jack raised an eyebrow. "In fact, I can show you how Jack Frost looks like. Actually, I can show you who Jack Frost is. Or... was."
Jack looked up at the portrait of himself and smiled. Attaboy Jamie. But as he turned back to the two Bennetts, a thought crossed his mind. His smile faded.
Mrs. Bennett looked at her son disbelievingly. "Where, dear?"
Jamie turned and gestured at the portrait of Jackson Overland. "That's Jack Frost," he said, oblivious to the fact that Jack was trying to stop him from saying it. If Jamie told his mother the story of Jackson Overland dying and being resurrected as Jack Frost, Mrs. Bennett would think him mad for sure.
Mrs. Bennett looked up at the portrait. "What a handsome boy," she commented.
"Thank you," Jack said, smiling and bowing like a gentleman before turning back to Jamie. "Do you think your mother would believe my tale?" he asked the boy.
"Are you saying Jack Frost looks a little like this boy?" Mrs. Bennett asked, looking down at the name and date. "Poor boy, he died young."
"No, mom, that's..." Jamie trailed off as Jack advised him not to relate the whole tale. "Erm... yeah, he looks something like that boy. Jackson Overland. Namesakes, huh?" Jamie smiled.
Mrs. Bennett shook her head. "Seriously, Jamie..." she trailed off as Sophie came running up the stairs. She saw Jack, who smiled at her. Mrs. Bennett noticed Sophie staring at nothing and gave her a look.
"Why are you here, Sophie?" Mrs. Bennett asked.
Sophie looked at Jack once more and smiled before turning back to her mother. "It's Estella. The doctor came and said she won't last the night."
That's it for this chapter! So Jack and Jamie are blood-related... (It's semi-canon, it's on the Wikia). Thanks for reading and reviewing, and favouriting and alerting! :-D It means a lot!
North will probably be in the next one. Please review.