It was during one of his summers flying above the northern sea of ice that the realization hit him. He always heard the children say, when Christmas came near, that Santa lived in his workshop at the North Pole. As far as he could tell, this was the North Pole, or close to it at least. This meant that Santa's workshop was somewhere around here.
Curious and maybe a little eager to potentially cause the big man in red some trouble, Jack started his long search for the place. He flew over the Arctic Sea and looked at every glacier, every piece of land, to find the place of magical wonder so many children dreamt of.
He did not really know where to look, so the search was long, but eventually, he found it. The fortress-like building blended in well with its icy surroundings. Most of it was covered in thick layers of ice and snow. But he was Jack Frost and if there was a thing he knew well, it was ice and snow. He could tell when something about it looked out of place. Like windows, for example.
Grinning widely, Jack flew over to one of the windows. He wiped the frost covering it and peered inside. The room on the other side was empty and dark, but a distant light visible through a partially open door caught his attention. This was perfect. He eased the window open and silently slid inside. It appeared to be some kind of storage area for the materials used to make toys.
He stopped for a moment to listen. Loud noises came from somewhere past the door. Jack smiled eagerly. He floated to the door and peeked outside, at a narrow, curving hallway leading deeper into the complex. He hurriedly ducked back inside, however, as he heard heavy footsteps coming nearer from somewhere past the curve.
Holding his breath, he watched as a large, hairy form walked in front of the room he was hiding in. He poked his head out after it passed him, staring with wide eyes at its receding back.
"Is that a yeti?" he whispered quietly in wonder.
Shaking himself, he left the relative safety of the deserted room to fly down the hallway in the direction the yeti had come from. He followed the noise, hoping to discover the area where the elves made Christmas toys for all the children who had been nice. Further down the hallway, past the curve that had blocked his sight, he spotted an open door leading to a brightly lit room. The chaotic noises of what he assumed was toymaking obviously came from there.
His smile returning, Jack flew faster. He could not see much from where he was but the occasional form darting back and forth across the room beyond. In his eagerness, he was not careful. Just as he had been about to reach the room, another yeti exited. Jack had to abruptly stop to avoid crashing into its hairy chest.
"Uh-oh..."
Jack gave the stunned yeti an apologetic smile before flying the other way as quickly as he could. He could hear it run after him, bellowing angrily. If only he could reach the room he had entered the complex from, he could make a quick exit.
Jack froze when he spotted the first yeti coming back in front of him. It blocked his way to the only way out that he knew of. And it looked angry. Panicked, Jack flew back the other way, momentarily forgetting the other yeti.
He could not stop quickly enough to avoid the crash this time. The air was knocked out of his lungs as he collided with the furry creature with enough force to stun him. He blinked owlishly from his new position on the ground, not sure how he had ended up there. The yeti loomed over him, frowning. Jack tried smiling innocently.
"Oh, hello there. I think I'm lost."
Jack did not know whether or not the yeti believed him, but the brute picked him off the ground and threw him on a large hairy shoulder like he weighted no more than a rag doll. Not that he was heavy, but it was still disconcerting. The yeti exchanged words with its companion in a language of grunts that Jack felt he could almost understand, as foreign as it was.
Jack wiggled in the furry giant's grip, trying to slip free and make a run for it. It was only when he gripped the thick fur with both hands that he realized he was missing something. His eyes widening, he spotted his staff lying on the ground as the yeti started to walk down the hallway, away from the bright, noisy room.
His wiggling turned to frantic struggles as panic seized him. He had never been separated from the staff before. In some strange way he did not quite understand, it was a part of him. He could not simply leave it behind. He kicked and screamed and tugged hard on the fur, freezing it as much as he could without the powerful conduit to his powers. He even tried biting the yeti.
"Wait. Wait! My staff! I need it. Wait, I say!"
The yetis actually stopped and looked at each other in puzzlement. They exchange a few grunts, before the one not holding Jack went back down the hallway to pick up the fallen staff. Jack grew very still in the yeti's arms. He could feel the strong grip on the flimsy piece of wood as if the large furry paw was clenching a part of his very soul. He did not know what would happen to him if the staff should get damaged.
He did not struggle again as he was carried down the hallway, his eyes remaining fixed on his most precious possession in apprehension, as if expecting it to snap like a twig any moment. He did not even notice they had brought him outside until he was unceremoniously dropped in the snow. The two yetis grunted angrily at him, but he was not listening. All that mattered was that the one holding his staff was handing it back to him.
He snatched the shepherd's crook out the giant's grip, hugging it to his chest. He sighed in relief as he watched frost cover it again. He gave the two yetis a happy little smile as they made shooing motions at him before slamming the door shut.
Realizing the danger had passed and he had not been harmed in any way, Jack started planning his next attempt to enter the workshop. He was not in a hurry; he had a lot of free time and what was starting to look like eternity ahead of him. Jack grinned.
"Better luck next time, I guess."
