Author's Note: Hello everyone and welcome back to another chapter of "The Winter Child!" It's been a while since I've done shoutouts, so I'll just go ahead and do 'em. XD
May (Guest): Wahhhh, thank you! Honestly, I was really surprised that my mom still fit in those heels, haha. XD But she has really small feet, and she's long past the age when you stop growing, so it makes sense that they'd still fit hehe. As for our Jack...yeah, he's in quite the situation from now. Not to be pessimistic, but things are about to get worse from there. ='D But hang tight! The situation will look up eventually. ^u^
Quentin (Guest): Yup. North's belly is never wrong, and should always be taken seriously. But to be frank, I did burst out laughing the first time I watched ROTG when he said he had a feeling in his belly. But now that I'm a hardcore fan, I take North's belly very seriously (that sounds so weird, but I'm not kidding XD). At the moment, Jack isn't doing to well, and things won't get better too quickly, but I promise things will get better...eventually, hehe.
Megha (Guest): Don't worry! I won't torment-whoa, uh, I mean allow-Jack to suffer for too long! Things will get better eventually. =3And oof, poor Jamie...I agree he shouldn't have had to witness his big brother fall into a lake. QwQ
Billy (Guest): Wow, this chapter really hit a lot of of you guys...XDDD But I reassure you that Jack is going to be okay. HE'S GOING TO BE OKAY! Just not right now for the sake of the plot, HAHA- XD
Guest (May 27, 2023. 43 minutes ago as of right now): Ahh, sorry! I think I saw this same question in an earlier review, but I forgot to respond. ='D I'm not really into FNAF (I'm not a fan of horror ='D), but I did hear about the movie, and I got to say that it does look pretty interesting! I'm surprised that it took this long for them to get a film though...the game's been popular for a long time, but it's nice to see that they're goin' on the big screen now. =D I bet the fandom is super hyped right now. XDD
And that's all the shout-outs for today! =D And remember, just because one of you guys doesn't get a shout-out, doesn't mean I didn't notice you! I read every single one of the reviews I get on my stories, and I'd love to acknowledge you all, but as you can see, I get a ton of reviews, and it's pretty hard to get through them all, haha...
I'm hoping to turn on my PM feature sometime this summer since I'll have more time then to respond to messages then (and I'll have to convince my parents to let me enable it *sighhhhh* wish me luck ='D). If that happens, I'll be able to get to more of you guys' questions. ^u^
Anyway, down below is the next part to "Drowning in Darkness!" It's really short, but I still like it, so I hope you guys do too! =D Enjoy!
~ LXII ~
Drowning in Darkness, Part Three
He was white as winter
Cheeks flushed like roses
His skin burned like fire
...
Jack's breaths were barely audible as he lay unmoving on his bed. The snow sprite's face was contorted with pain, his cheeks flushed and sweat beading his brow. Jack's chest rattled with every breath he took. They were so hollow and weak that only Aster could hear them properly.
When Jack had collapsed, North sped forward and caught him. Tooth and Sandy were amongst the crowd, so they were immediately at his side at the sight of Jack passing out. Everyone wondered what was going on, but the Guardians were focused only on getting Jack home to be treated. Also, they didn't know quite what happened themselves, and Jack wouldn't have to tell them when he awoke.
Tooth had left to take Jamie home leaving North, Sandy, and Aster had gotten Jack into bed and began tending to him. The winter lad was burning with a fever, and his clothes and skin were still damp. North changed his clothes while Aster and Sandy retrieved water and medicines from downstairs.
North was upset that Jack had left without telling him. And as he pulled the covers back over the boy, he knew they were going to have a long talk once he regained consciousness. But right now, North's fear for Jack was far greater than the anger he felt. Jack was as still as death. He hardly shifted or moved. The only sound he gave that told North he was alive was the occasional groan or sigh.
North brushed Jack's wet bangs out of his eyes and sighed. "What am I going to do with you, moy mal'chik?" he whispered. Jack only breathed out in response.
"He'll be fine, but he definitely won't be gettin' up for a while," said Aster, walking inside with Sandy. Tooth fluttered in behind them, her amethyst eyes dimming at the sight of Jack in bed.
"Jamie's home safe. His mother isn't too happy about what happened either," Tooth said. She wrapped her arms around herself. "Jamie also told me what happened. It was supposed to be a quick trip, and you weren't supposed to know that they had gone." Toothiana smiled wryly. "Sounds a lot like Jack, huh?"
"He should've told me he was leaving," said North, frowning.
"But ya wouldn't have let 'im go even if he asked," said Aster.
"Who said I wouldn't let him go?" North demanded.
Aster, Sandy, and Tooth looked at each other. North sighed.
"Look, I know I may seem a little overprotective sometimes, but I just want to keep Jack safe," said North.
"We know," said Tooth gently. She rubbed her arm. "But…you won't always be there to protect him. Jack has to stretch his wings a little."
"Did Jamie say why they left?" inquired North.
Tooth chewed her lip and shook her head. "He said that Jack wanted to keep it a secret."
"Then I'll ask him when he wakes up," North said, turning back to Jack.
If he wakes up, a small part of North's mind thought. The ex-Cossack shook his head, forcing the negative thoughts out of his mind.
The other Guardians each sat down, watching as Jack continued to breathe. They had done everything they could. All they could do now was hope and pray that Jack would wake up soon.
…
In the shadows, an unwanted being watched the solemn moment unfold. His amber eyes narrowed, flashing with hunger as the fear emitting from the Guardians swirled around the room. They couldn't sense his presence, for they were too distracted to notice anything at the moment.
The boy was almost in his hands now. But he needed to be patient.
This boy was going to become his Darkling Prince. All Pitch had to do was wait.
Author's Note: Ya'll probably saw this coming, but...PITCH?! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!
Aw, poor Jack. Why do these things always have to happen to him? Why!?
Oh, wait, that's right, I'm the author. I allow these things to happen. And frankly...*Anya heh face* I don't regret a thing.
Okay, okay, fine, I'm not one of those heartless authors who take pleasure out of torturing their characters (okay, that's a lie...BUT DON'T TAKE THAT THE WRONG WAY!), so I do feel pretty bad for Jack right now, and knowing that things are just going to get worse from here makes me feel a little guilty (*I say with a smile crawling onto my face*).
Ugh, why is the life of a writer so conflicting?! Someone, please help me! QwQ
Anyway, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and I hope you all join me in the next one. =D
Until the next chapter!
~BeyondTheMoon1203
