This takes place after Jack Frost Says Hi.
"... and so peace returned to the ice kingdom," Jamie read, closing the story book. "And now, sleep."
"Can't you tell me one more story?" Jade asked.
"Tomorrow. It's late, now."
"All right. Tomorrow."
"Good night, Jade"
"Night, daddy."
Jamie smiled at his daughter and replaced the book on her small bookshelf. He took a moment to look at the cover. It was one of the many children's books about the Guardians. In this case, Jack Frost. Jamie wondered what Jack would think of it. He ruled a kingdom in some frozen land in this one. The cover depicted him as a majestic-looking blue elf with an ice crown. It looked very little like Jack. Jade knew that, but she didn't really care. She was sure the story was still true.
Jamie turned off the light and sighed as he left Jade's room. It was a few days after Christmas and he hadn't seen the Guardian since. He should visit. He missed the time when things were not yet awkward between them. He missed being able to just talk to Jack. They needed some time to readjusted, he supposed. He was a little jealous of how easy it had been for Sophie to renew her friendship with Jack. Like she never forgot.
"Ash? I'll be going for a walk."
"Are you all right? You're not looking so well. Is something bothering you?"
"It's nothing. I just need some fresh air. I'll be back later."
Jamie knew that Ashley was starting to think he was hiding something and he felt awful about it, but he could hardly just tell her he was going to see Jack Frost. At least so far she looked more concerned than angry. He remembered that his mother used to think that the reason he was always going out late at night was that he was seeing a girl. The last thing he wanted was for Ashley to start thinking the same. He still hadn't figured out what to do about that. He didn't want to ask Jack for advice, either. The Guardian already thought that Jamie would be better off not believing.
"Jamie, you've been acting weird since November. Or even before that. You were all upset when you came back on Halloween. Do you... do you need help? Maybe you should see a professional."
"I'm not crazy," he said, maybe a bit too defensively.
"I didn't say you were crazy, I said you were upset."
"I'm fine. I'll just go take a walk."
Ashley sighed in discouragement and retreated to their bedroom. Jaime bit his lip, shook his head and grabbed his coat. He would figure this out. Just not right now. He went out in the cold December night, breathing in deeply and letting the fond memories of previous winters come back to him. These had been some of the happiest days of his life. Things hadn't always been easy, but just setting a foot outside in freshly fallen snow or breathing the crisp winter air would always put him in a good mood. Before he stopped believing, that is. After that, he always felt a sense of loss in winter. It had been too much to just forget.
In the sky, the moon was so big and bright, like he remembered it from his childhood. That wasn't something he had expected to change, but the moon did look different during his years of not believing. Just a small, pale disk in the sky. But this moon looked like it belonged in a fairy tale. It was the one the Guardian looked up to. The one a white haired child was staring up at while balancing on the crook of his staff when he reached the lake. Jamie walked to stand with him, quietly observing the sky.
"It's so beautiful," Jamie mused out loud. "It's a shame most people can't see it like this."
"It's a comforting sight."
Jamie felt there was a story there, but he didn't want to pry. Or rather he wanted to, but he didn't think he should. He wouldn't have hesitated when he was a kid. Instead he changed the subject.
"You know, I think Jade is becoming a fan of yours."
"Is she, now?" Jack asked, chuckling.
"She think you're a prince ruling over a kingdom of ice."
"Well, that's a bit exaggerated. Unless you call a couple of buildings and a handful of sprites a kingdom. I guess you have to start somewhere."
"What?"
Jamie had no idea what he was talking about. He certainly saw no buildings around the lake and not a sprite in sight. He felt like he was missing something. Something he would know if not for the years they had spent apart.
"Oh, I didn't tell you about my new headquarters in Antarctica yet?"
"In Antarctica? I... I thought you lived here." The idea that Jack had decided to move somewhere else was incredibly upsetting.
"Of course I live here. But I can't stay in summer and I needed somewhere to prepare all those candies for Halloween, you know? I can't just keep using the Warrens or North's workshop. I needed a place of my own. So I made a few buildings from ice in Antarctica and hired a bunch of sprites to help me. You should come visit. It's summer there, right now."
"I'd love to, but how am I supposed to do that?"
"I'll borrow a snow globe. It'll be great!"
Jamie laughed, genuinely looking forward to a trip to the South Pole. He had always dreamed of visiting one of the Guardian's home. Sophie had told him of her vague memories of the Warrens, of walking eggs and rivers of dyes, grassy fields and flowers. Jack told him of the Tooth Fairy's floating palace, North's hectic workshop full of wonders and the Sandman's sand castle. He wanted to see something like that. Jack lake had it's own magical charm, especially at night under the moonlight, but he had lived nearby his whole life and it was certainly not as grandiose as the other Guardian's homes. But then he wondered what he was supposed to tell his family. That he was going skiing? He hated lying. To them, most of all.
"Are you all right?"
"I'm fine. It's nothing." He felt like he was saying that a lot, lately.
There was an awkward silence and Jamie looked up at the moon. Jack had told him before that the Man in the Moon watched out for them. Jamie begged him for help, to disentangle the mess his life had become lately.
"Hey, how about you come skating tomorrow with your family? Jade loves it and I haven't seen Ashley pull on skates since she was ten. I'll make sure she has fun."
"You... you knew Ashley when she was a kid?"
"Of course I did. I knew all of the kids from Burgess, even if they didn't know me. Your mom, too. And your boss. He's not as mean as he look."
Jamie laughed, but he was a little sad at the same time. Somehow, while he had known that Jack was very old, he had never realized what it meant. That he had seen so many kids grow up to become responsible adults with no time for games and fairy tales. That he must have seen so many of them die. Jack was closer to the kids than any of the other Guardians and that meant that he actually saw what they became once they were no longer children. They did not just stop existing to him. And maybe, when some serious adult suddenly decided to get out and build a snowman, it might be Jack Frost reminding them that they were children once.
"All right. We'll come skate tomorrow."
So, I'm almost not sick anymore and I finally have running water again, so I'm happy. I'll get to work on this a bit more seriously, now that I don't have plumbers flirting with me everyday. Or I would, if not for my very short attention span. But I'll try.
I should consider changing the second main character for this story from Bunny to Jamie, I think he's actually appearing more often (and I have more future stories planned with Jamie than Bunny). I'll have to look at past chapters. I really need to re-read this whole thing. But, again, my short attention span.
