Chapter 8

Time marched on, and Jack Frost came back to visit several more times in various areas of Wonderland (most commonly coming out at the Skool, much to the Insane Children's delight). And while he still remained friendly in his actions, and Alice began to grow used to his visits, she still could not come to a conclusion as to his declaration of friendship, or her response to it.

Still, she found herself looking forward to Frost's visits. He would always bring with him a new story, or game for the Insane Children to play. On Easter he came bringing a large basket filled with the best chocolate eggs she had ever tasted. "Bunny's secret recipe," he explained when asked.

However, one thing that Alice was starting to wonder about was the distinct lack of Cheshire Cat when ever Frost showed up. When she asked the feline about it, the Cat gave her his usual grin and said, "It's not such a mystery. I simply did not want to interfere."

"Interfere with what?" Alice had demanded.

The Cat simply rolled his eyes and vanished, leaving her question unanswered.

In the meantime, Alice went on to read the books Frost had brought her in her quiet time (which was few and far between, as there were few quiet places in Wonderland). The stories Dodgeson had written were fanciful, childish, and oh so like the Wonderland of her childhood.

Alice's faded memories of her youth became vibrant again as she read an outsider's telling of it. She remembered more of how Wonderland used to be, before the fire and her madness had turned it harsh and bloody. Those childhood memories were bittersweet, but Alice was glad to have them back all the same. Still, she didn't think much of the portrayal of herself, but then nothing was ever perfect.

It wasn't until later that Alice noticed something odd about the publishing date of the books.

"It says these books were published in the nineteen-nineties," she pointed out to Frost during his next visit, once again at the Skool. She had waited till the Insane Children had had their fun in the Theater and run off, before showing him the two dates question.

Frost looked at the publishing dates in the books and nodded. "Yeah, I know. Sorry for getting you twenty-year-old books, but they were being sold for cheap at a used bookstore when my friend Jamie found them. Jamie and his friends say 'Hi', by the way."

"Tw-twenty?" Alice said in shock.

"Yeah," said Frost, then he paused and studied her face. "Wait, how long did you think it had been since you came here?" he asked in concern.

"I-I assumed…" she stammered, still shocked at the revelation. "I didn't think it had been that long. Time very is finical here in Wonderland. He does not like to match up to real time."

"He?" asked Frost, before getting back on topic. "Alice, I don't know how long you've really been here, but the Victorian era ended a century and a half ago. It's the twenty-first century now."

Alice sat down hard on a seat in one of the theater chairs, shocked and devastated at this revelation.

"Then that means… Everything, everyone I know…" she couldn't get the words out.

Frost kept silent, and sat with her while she worked though her inner turmoil. Alice couldn't help but feel grateful for it, as it brought her some comfort.

It wasn't until later that she realized that Frost most likely had his own experience with the loss of time in his three centuries of life. She couldn't help but hope he'd had someone to help him though it like he did her.

*A*A*A*

Jack, meanwhile, had had his own problems.

"You want me to bring Alice to your Summer Solstice party?" he asked North incredulously. Jack had gotten word from Sandy that North had wanted to talk to him, but this was not what he had been expecting when he reached the North Pole.

North was very fond of hosting get-togethers for team bonding, and the Summer Solstice was at a time of year when he and Bunny were not crunched for time, and (if planned ahead) Tooth and Sandy could take a night off to have some fun. It also fit well with Jack's schedule as summer in the Northern hemisphere was his off season, and only a few places in the south and far north needed snowfall.

"Da, of course I do!" exclaimed North jovially. "Ve all vant to meet thees girl vho has so caught your interest."

Jack missed the mischievous twinkle in North's eyes at that statement, and didn't realize the implications.

"I don't know, North," said Jack, examining the invitation the Cossack had given him to pass on. "Alice doesn't like of the idea of leaving Wonderland, especially after the bombshell that it's been almost a hundred and forty years since she went there. I haven't been able to talk her into coming to visit Cupcake and the kids yet, and they really want to meet her too."

"Then they can come to party too," said North cheerfully. "Ve all get to meet her, and the more the merrier."

Jack shook his head, at the Cossack for missing the point. "I'll give her an invitation, North, but don't hold your breath."

And thus, Jack found himself flying through the Warren's tunnels to give Alice the brightly decorated card.

When he came upon the opening he went up it without a second thought. While Wonderland had proven to be more dangerous than expected, the hole had yet to let him out into immediate danger.

Until now!

Jack froze in horror as he realized where he had come out. He was at the bottom of the ocean. All around him were walls of fish bones, and in looking down he saw the ocean floor was littered with them too. The giant empty skulls of carnivores fish glared down at him from their mounts upon the walls.

The horrible sight was something out of Jack's nightmares. All rational thought flew from his mind.

Jack panicked.

*A*A*A*

When Carpenter had extended an invitation to Alice to see his latest on stage production, she should have known it would lead her to doing all the last minute errands before the show could start.

She was in the middle of trying to convince the Walrus to not eat the Oyster Starlets, or the audience members before, during, or after the performance, when a fish citizen of Barrel Bottom came running over to her in a panic.

"Save us Alice!" he said franticly, his top hat falling off his overlarge head. "The ocean is getting frozen up! Soon there'll be no water left! It's a new Ice Age!"

"Frozen?" Alice asked in surprise, and could only think of one person who could do something like that. "Frost?"

"Where is this happening?" she demanded, determined to get to the bottom of it.

"Just outside of town," said the fish fearfully. "At the bottom of the fishbone slide."

"Right then," said Alice, marching forward. "I'll go take care of it then." She glanced back at the two. "And Walrus, No snacking!"

The Walrus, who had just been about to take a bite out of the fish's head while his back was turned, slumped back on to the floor and moaned in disappointment. The fish let out a fearful squeak, and scurried away.

She then ran out of the Dreary Lane Theatre, ignoring the Carpenter's cries to come back, and made her way to where the fishhad said Frost was causing havoc.

As she reached the top of the fishbone slide, she could see what the fish had been talking about. In the distance where the slide ended she could see flashes of white light, and great chunks of ice floating up to the surface.

"What is that fool doing?" she asked aloud. Could he have finally betrayed her? Or was their more too it? Alice found herself expecting the former, but hoping for the latter.

"Once a fool, always a fool, unless remedied," said the Cheshire Cat as he appeared beside her. "And even those who aren't fools do foolish things when they are afraid."

"Afraid?" asked Alice. "Afraid of what?"

Frost had never shown fear in front of her before. Even when a Colossal Ruin interrupted one of their meetings, he had shown nothing but determination as he helped her destroy it.

"Everyone fears something, Alice. Even those immortal with no worry of death, still remember its embrace," said the Cat before fading away, and leaving her to her thoughts.

Seeing no point in pondering it now, Alice took a running jump, and slid down the fish scales that made up the slide through a giant ribcage. Upon reaching the bottom she saw Frost crouched in the middle of the clearing.

He was curled in on himself, shaking madly, and clutching his staff for dear life with one hand. His powers seemed to be out of control, constantly freezing the water around him and sending the ice floating to the surface.

"FROST!" she yelled in order to be heard over the cracking ice. "What Are You Doing?"

Frost slowly looked up at her. Alice could immediately see that the Cat had been right. Frost was utterly terrified, and in the tight grip of a panic attack. The sight of her seemed to be making him panic worse, because the water began freezing even faster around them. Though, as Alice notice, it didn't freeze within a decent radius of her, keeping her safe from being frozen along with it.

Alice looked around, but couldn't see what he could possibly be afraid of. There was nothing there to truly fear, and she doubted the fish bones had garnered this extreme of a reaction.

Looking more closely at Frost, she noticed he had his other hand clamped over his nose and mouth, and he didn't appear to be breathing.

Suddenly the reason for his hysteria became clear.

"Frost, Breathe!" she yelled as she quickly made her way through the ice towards him.

He stared up at her uncomprehending.

Alice reached him and clamped her hands onto his shoulders, forcing him to look at her in the eye. "BREATHE, JACK!"

Jack was so startled his hand flew off his mouth and he gasped in a large breath. Realizing he could breathe, the freezing of the water around them slowed dramatically, but Alice could see he was still very frightened.

Seeing this, Alice grabbed his hand and dragged him through the doorway that led back to Barrel Bottom. But instead of going towards town, she grabbed one of the ice chunks and let it float her and Jack up a ways, before letting go and drifting over to a giant snail shell that was behind a fishbone wall. She then pulled him into the shell and the world around them changed.

They found themselves upon a giant tea table in the middle of a swirling vortex, with clocks and various other things floating around them.

Alice braced herself for the usual battle that occurred in these places, but noticed the lack of giant versions of the Mad Hatter and White Rabbit looking down at them. When enemies failed to appear, she cautiously put her weapons away, and turned her attention to Jack.

While she had been dragging him he had put up no resistance. Now that they were out of the water he had collapsed onto the giant table and, gasped for breath as the last of his panic attack faded away.

She sat down next to him and waited until he slowly sat up.

"Jack, I take it that it was a fear of water that set you off," she stated rhetorically.

Jack gave a full body shudder, which was answer enough.

"May I ask why? As an immortal spirit who can't drown, I can't imagine what could cause such a fear. Especially when ice and snow are made of water, and therefore your element," she said bluntly. She wanted an explanation for Jack's actions and she would get one, whether Jack was comfortable with it or not.

"But I wasn't always," Jack said softly.

"I'm sorry?" she asked, not quite hearing him.

"I wasn't always a spirit," he confessed, a little louder this time, and making Alice stare at him in shock.

*A*A*A*

A/N There was more foreshadowing in this chapter, if anyone can see it. Making Jack afraid of water is a common theme in a lot of fics, I can see the Deluded Depths giving him a panic attack.

Disclaimer: I own nothing.