Child's Play 6
Costumes - Pitch Black
The days dragged on for the Guardians searching for a way to change Jack back to his proper age but for North it seemed to fly by. Within three days he had made a whole chest full of costumes for Jack in his toddler size as well as some more appropriate clothing and pjs. The child simply adored each new outfit and paraded about acting as if he were one of his fellow Guardians. None of them noticed at first, everyone was so busy with either work or the endless search for a text that North was starting to doubt existed. After all if Jack had done this to himself wouldn't he have dropped the book when the change began or hidden it in his room? So far nothing had showed up and North had a sneaky feeling he knew who to blame, but he wasn't about to point fingers. He was enjoying himself and Jack was causing no harm in his tiny form now that Santoff Claussen was "Jack proof".
Jack was presently running around the entertainment rom flying a stuffy around and pretending it was a super hero while North sat back to read the latest report on toy production. The yetis were a little behind schedule due to retro fitting the workshop and making it child proof, but not so far behind to cause any real problems come Christmas. In a few days they would be all caught up again. North smiled fondly at the child as Jack yanked on his arm.
"Yes, little one?" he asked as Jack pointed toward the door.
"Grandpa's coming," Jack said very seriously but his blue eyes held a hint of mischief.
North cocked his head to the side, listening intently by heard nothing. Somehow Jack always knew when one of the others were approaching long before anyone else with the exception of Bunny. He wasn't sure if the child had a sixth sense about such things or exceptional hearing.
"Oh? Well then perhaps I should have some more treats brought up and you can show him your little surprise, dah?"
The boy grinned widely. "Dah!" he cheered before darting off to his toys and putting away his stuffy.
North returned the grin before instructing one of the elves to fetch more cookies and coffee. Knowing Pitch he would be tired of searching ancient texts and needing a break, whether or not he admitted to such things was another matter. Sure enough within a few seconds the shade materialized from the shadows and plopped down in a seat across from the table North was seated at.
"It's useless, Nicholas," he grumbled, using North's first name as he always did when finally fed up with something or extremely tired. "Whatever jack did with the book it's gone now."
"Perhaps he didn't cast the spell," North countered as he signed the bottom of the last document.
Pitch raised a sceptical brow. "Oh? And just who would do such a thing? The only ones with any magical knowledge of such things are all Guardians and would never change Jack like this. A few decades back I might have for the sheer amount of fear all this has caused everyone - name Aster - but that was a long time ago.
"Bunny still panicking over this?" North asked. Bunny had checked in with him to see how Jack was doing but had yet to visit the boy and Jack had all but forgotten about him. He asked for his Bunny every night before bed.
"He's spent every day in the archives, either here or at the Warren. This morning he raided my library and accused me of doing this do Jack, but like I said...decades ago maybe." He leaned an elbow on the table and cradled his cheek in one hand. He looked beat and ready for a long nap. "I'm starting to wonder if -"
"BOO!" Jack yelled, poking Pitch from behind.
Pitch jumped with a cry of fright. North burst into laughter as the mighty Nightmare King leapt from his chair and whirled on the tiny boy wearing an slightly oversized black robe. The boy giggled and made a monster face.
"RRAAHH! RRAAH! I'm boogeyman! Fear me!" Jack yelled amongst giggles as he made grabby hands at Pitch.
"I do not sound like that!" Pitch objected with a scowl but Jack just kept making grabby hands at him.
"I'm boogey-oggyman!"
Pitch glared at North. "You put him up to this," he accused, pointing a long finger at the larger man.
Jack's smile fell. "Grandpa mad?"
Pitch's head whipped back toward Jack and panic filled him when he saw tears brim the child's long lashes. "No! No, Jack, no. Of course not. Did your father put you up to this?"
North opened his mouth to object. He had just made the costumes for Jack to have fun with not to insult anyone but Jack was already shaking his little head.
"No," the child whispered. "I thought you like. Now I'm you. I was daddy now I'm you." He lowered his voice and gestured for Pitch to come down to his height so he could tell him a secret. "Then I'm going to be Uncle Sandy but don't tell...they're footy pajamas."
The shade's eyes widened and then a tiny smirk lifted his thin lips. "Sandy huh? Who else are you going to be?"
Now the child was excited. He grabbed his grandfather's hand and dragged him toward the chest and pushed open the lid to show a variety of costumes ranging in all fabrics and colors. There was a mini replica of North's fur coat, a pair of iridescent fairy wings and crown of feathers, a golden pair of pajamas with little feet and a blue and grey hoodie with a pair of bunny ears and tail sewn on. Pitch sent North a smirk.
"I see a very angry Bunny in your future, Cossack," he foretold before noticing a series of plastic weapons also in the mix; swords, a scythe - yeah that wasn't dangerous what-so-ever - boomerangs and a replica of Jack's staff. That was smart, no need for Jack to be playing with the real thing at the moment.
"See! I can be anyone I want, even an elf or yetis," Jack was telling him with pride and sure enough there was a little red elf costume and furry brown and grey fur jacket with hood.
Pitch gave a laugh. "Oh the things I can tease you about when you're back to normal," he muttered to himself as he smiled at the boy.
North grinned as he stood from the table and collected his paper work. "Pitch, would you be so kind as to watch Jack for a hour or so while I get thing organized with the yetis? I'm behind on my work."
Pitch turned to object but North was already out the door and waving good bye to Jack. For such a large man North sure could move. Pitch looked from the now closed door back to Jack. This was not what he was planning to do for his afternoon. Research, scare a few kids, rest and back to research, not babysit. With a sigh he looked about the room, trying to think of something to entertain the child that would not be straining or need to much thought. He really was rather tired. Funny how tiring trying to find a certain spell could be compared to so many other things he could have been doing with his time. Plus, this was a boy he was looking after, not his little girl. Boys were so much different and he had little experience playing with one.
"So..." he began when he could think of nothing remotely interesting to do. "What would you like to do?"
Jack sat on his little bum and chewed his lip. "Help me build a fort? Daddy wouldn't let me but you're here now."
"Why wouldn't daddy let you have a fort?"
The child shrugged. "Phil get angry. Too much clean up."
The shade snorted. "That's because they don't know how to build a proper fort. Alright my little Snowflake, grab those pillows while I grab the cushions."
Jack's whole face lit up as he scrabbled to grab every pillow in the room he could find and then took them to where Pitch indicated behind the sofa. Pitch grabbed the sofa cushions, the chest and two chairs and brought them as around as well. Next he rummaged through the storage case and pulled out several blankets. With Jack's help the set up the chair across from the back of the sofa and draped the largest blanket across them and the sofa. Then he formed a rode with his nightmare sand and placed it in the center so that the blanket tented upward. They used the heaviest of Jacket's toys as well as several heavy books to hold the edges of the blanket in place than put all the cushions, pillows and remaining blanket inside. It was not the best fort but it would do in a pinch and Pitch was rather proud of himself for remembering how to build a basic fort. He had done it often enough with Seraphina when she was a little girl.
Jack gave a whoop of glee before bounding inside and flopping on the makeshift bad. "Cool! Grandpa cool!"
Chuckling, Pitch followed the youth inside. "I suppose it is, isn't it. This is a great place for hiding or camping."
He paused as the door opened, fully expecting North to have returned and reprimand them for doing what Jack had been forbidden to, but it was only a few elves delivering snacks and drinks. Pitch took the tray and went to shoo them away when Jack invited them into his fort. Sighing, Pitch went to put the tray aside and find something else to entertain himself.
"Grandpa?" Jack asked after a moment.
"Yes, Jack?"
"Can you tell us a story?"
Hesitating, Pitch glanced at the child and his two playmates. "What type of story?"
"A spooky story?"
Pitch shook his head. "You're too young for such things."
"Please..."
Sighing, Pitch raked his brain for something that was both spooky and kid friendly. He didn't want Jack to have nightmares no matter how much it might boost his power level. Finally a story came to him and upon Jack's request, climbed into the fort with him. He laid on the mound of cushions and pillows and let the small child lay his little head on his chest. "Once upon a time there was this beautiful lady who was married to a soldier..."
. . .
Bunny raked his paws over his ears. He'd looked everywhere, read ever book he could find, even traveled into the past to see what Jack had done but he had found nothing, not a single clue as to how Jack got the way he presently was. He knew there were spells to turn back time and reverse the age but none of those existed in any of their domains. No one had the spell. Bunny didn't know what to do. He was sure if something wasn't done soon Jack might remain stuck like this. He was immortal which meant he would not age beyond that which he was now, a three year old toddler. A three year old winter sprite with complete command of his element. He shivered at the mere thought of what could happen if the boy took a tantrum while trapped in this form. But what could any of them do? How could they change him back without the proper spell?
This wasn't god, this wasn't good at all.
He sat in North's study unsure where to look next.
"Perhaps we should face facts, my friend," North said gently. "Perhaps our Jack is lost to us and we must embrace this new Jack."
The Pooka shook his head. "No, there has to be a way to return him to his true form. He's an infant!"
"A toddler," North corrected. "And very intelligent for one so young. You really should take some time to get to know him while he's little. If he does return to his normal self you may never get a second chance."
Again Bunny shook the thought away. "He's my mate, North. He should not be in this situation. It's my fault all this happened. I'm going to make it right. I'll find a way to change him back."
"Yes, that I am sure of, however in the mean time you are hurting the boy by ignoring him," North pointed out. "He is your mate, Aster. He needs you. More now than ever. Whatever caused the rift between you will have to wait to be mended properly. For now spend a little time with him and remind him that you still love him, no matter what form he is in."
The Pooka raised a brow. "That would be way too weird, mate."
The Russian waved his hand dismissively. "You know what I mean. He is not your lover right now but he is still part of family. He needs all of us including the one he once thought of as brother and not lover."
"I don't know, Nick. How do I even treat him?"
"Like one of your kits. Think of Eamon at his age and go from there."
Bunny snorted. "And a right handful, too. Oi, why do these things keep happening to Frostbite? He's a trouble magnet."
North gave a deep belly laugh. "Aye, that he is but he's worth it." He stood from behind his desk as he put the last of his paperwork aside. "Come, I'm sure Pitch is in need of a break and Jack will be happy to see you."
They walked toward the entertainment room, discussing the many changes that had to be made to the workshop should Jack be permanently suck as a small child, namely to his bedroom and the amount of clothing they would need to get. Unlike the teenage Jack who was particular about what he wore and the way his room was a three year Jack was too young to make such choices and North was excited about how he could fix things up and maybe get the boy under control - the teenage Jack was a good boy but he and North still butted heads when it came to clothing and music and things that only another teenager would understand.
He pushed open the entertainment room door and froze at the sight before him. The entire room was in disarray. The chairs were no longer at the table but up by the wet bar with a blanket tented between them and the sofa. All the pillows and cushions were missing, presumably inside said tent. And a number of large text were sitting on the chairs and cushionless sofa holding the whole thing together. North was speechless. He wasn't sure to yell or laugh or curse.
"What's going on? Is the kid okay?" Bunny asked, ducking under his friend's arm to get inside and see what had captivated his friend so much. He stopped once he got inside, surveying the room before noticing the tent and pair of black legs sticking out. Getting down on all fours he peered inside. There he found the cutest thing ever. "North, you still got that camera Tooth gave you?"
"Dah?"
"Where?"
"In study on shelf behind desk. Why?"
Bunny smirked and hurried out of the room. "Don't move or make a sound. I'll be right back."
Before North could even asked what Bunny saw the Pooka had already raced to the study and was back with the camera. Again he ducked under North and went to the tent, this time snapping as many pictures as he could of the occupants of the makeshift tent/fort. Inside Pitch was sound asleep with Jack and two elves curled up against him. His left arm held the boy to his chest as his pale fingers carded through snow white hair. Floating above them was the constellations Pitch had destroyed as the Nightmare King. It made Bunny pause as old memories of his life long ago resurfaced but he pushed them aside to get a few more pictures before stepping out of the tent and shooing North out of the room.
"They're find," he explained to his friend when North gave him a worried frown. "And this," He held up the camera and showed the Russian the images he had just taken. "Is enough bribe material to keep both of them from pulling pranks for a life time."
Lol, this section was inspired by a Jude Law film where he was a widower raising two little girls on his own and their bedroom fort/tent scene. So sweet XD