CHAPTER 19-Jackson Overland

With heavy hearts, Elsa and Anna watched as Pitch played a cynical trick on Jack, resulting in the loss of trust from his friends and the older Guardians. Ashamed and hurt, Jack flew away to the farthest, southern end of the Earth.

XxXxXx

Jack dives down into a land of barren snow and ice. There was little light from the sun; the air was howling cold, the sky frozen in grey—worsening Jack's mood, but he just couldn't think of a better way to torture himself farther. Reaching ground he breaks into a run. He ran as fast as he could, pounding hard with each steps. The sisters saw that Jack was heading straight to the ledge of the land they were on, but couldn't see what lies beyond it: there could water at the bottom, more hard grounds below, or sharp rocks, they just couldn't see. With the lack of vision of what lies ahead, they grew frighten for Jack, not sure what he will do.

Jack slows down as he reaches the end of the ledge, and was just about to throw away his teeth capsule, but stops. He grunts and tries again, but couldn't bring the strength to do it. Behind him, Pitch made his presence known. And using his skill, Pitch selectively chose the sweet bitter words to tempt Jack into joining his side. "I thought this might happen. They never really believed in you. I was just trying to show you that…But I understand."

Roughly, Jack swings his staff around, shooting a blast of frost towards Pitch, but the Being blocked it. "You don't understand anything!" Jack yells in anger. He jumps over to land a few feet behind Pitch, casting another bolt of frost towards the Nightmare King.

But Pitch blocked it again with his sand and cast his own attacks at Jack. "No?! I don't know what it's like to be cast out?!" Upon the third strike, Jack was forced to jump high into the air, where he swung his staff far over his head, and with a loud cry he released a powerful blast of ice and snow. Pitch quickly raised his black sands into a wall in response, blocking the attack.

When their magic collided, it blackened out all sights for a moment. The sound of thousands crackling ice was sharp to the sisters' ears. They soon saw Jack running through the misty collision in search of Pitch. Only his voice could be heard.

"To not be believed in…?" Pitch appears behind Jack five yards away. "To long for—a family…" Jack pointed his staff at Pitch but did not attack this time. His guard was weakening. There was a changed in Jack as Pitch's words started sinking in. The more Pitch spoke, the more Jack lowered his weapon.

And the worst of it all, Elsa and Anna could feel themselves being drawn in despite it being just a memory. They were feeling sympathetic towards the Being. Pitch spoke with sincerity and with such a hurtful expression, they couldn't help but feel there was some truth to what he's saying. Being hated and feared by, with no one—nowhere to turn to, must be very lonely indeed. "All those years in the shadows—I thought, no one else knows what this feels like…" He looks with hope towards Jack. "But now I see that I was wrong."

Jack completely lowered his staff. His eyes were wide with surprise, mixed with a slight touch of fear, and hesitation to accept Pitch's words. "We don't have to be alone Jack. I believe in you—and I know children will believe in you too."

Jack looks at Pitch in content, before turning his gaze away. "…Me?" he asked weakly.

Pitch chuckled in excitement. "Yes!" He placed a hand on Jack's shoulder and raised the other to divert his gaze towards a creation. "Look, at what we can do together!" In placed of where Pitch had been standing while fending off Jack's attacks, was a wicked creation, born of ice and blackness.

Disfigured it was, threatening and dangerous, yet there was a dark majesty to it, reaching into the sky with long prickly, frozen shadowy thorns.

Jack looked intensely at the creation, his expression giving nothing away to relieve the growing concern of the sisters' for the Winter Spirit.

In the background, Pitch was getting caught-up in his own excitement, so much so that his smile stretch to the very corners of his cheeks, his eyes were wide and wild, visualizing what the world could be like. "What goes together better then cold, and dark?—we can make them believe—we'll give them a world where everything, everything is—"

"-Pitch black?" Jack finished, in placed of Pitch.

Pitch looks at him with eyebrows raised. Stumbled by the question on rather Jack had meant a world of darkness, or a world where Pitch exist. "…And Jack Frost, too," he answered carefully. "They'll believe in the both of us."

"No, they'll fear the both of us," Jack stated firmly with his eyes narrowed, "and that's not what I want…Now for the last time, leave me alone."

…His wish was granted.

From the beginning, Pitch had had one of the Tooth Fairies—Baby Tooth, as hostage, and threatened to squeeze the life out of her if Jack didn't surrender his staff to him. Jack had no choice but to comply. But Pitch broke the exchanged and tossed Baby Tooth down into a crevasse, followed by Jack, after breaking his precious staff right in front of him. This had caused a great agony in Jack's emotion, shown as though he was punched in the pit of his stomach.

Before leaving the two, Pitch chuckled with wicked delight, seeing how pitiful the spirit looks below. His voice was faintly echoing in mockery. And when he was done, he finally tossed the broken staff down, so then it may join its broken master.

At the bottom of the crevasse, Elsa knew she couldn't have a sold touch on the memories, but still. She reached out a hand to try and comfort Jack, but it only passed right through him.

Cup in Jack's hands, Baby Tooth sneezed due to the coldness of it. He sighs deeply, "Sorry. All I can do is keep you cold…Pitch was right…I make a mess of everything…"

What Jack said struck too close to home for Elsa. You and I are a lot alike, she thought to herself. After all that she has seen of his memories, Elsa wondered as to how Jack ever brought himself out of his trials, and became the Guardian he is now.

Her question was soon to be answered.

What was thought that Jack had lost his teeth capsule, Baby Tooth magically summons it back, containing all his baby teeth, as well as the memories they hold. The memories he so longed for in order to know who he really is.

XxXxXx

The surrounding changed breaking off into small diamond shaped reflection; as if this whole time they have been in an optical illusion. Elsa and Anna were now standing in a lushes green forest, with the sun shining through the breaks in the treetops. However Jack and Baby Tooth was nowhere to be seen.

They couldn't locate where, but there was a child's voice, laughing along with an older woman. "Jack, you can't have fun all the time," called the older women.

Jack! Elsa and Anna turned around after realizing where the laughing was coming from. When they did, a young teenage male ran right through them, followed by a little girl chasing after him, the source of the laughing. The sisters soon realized that the teenager was Jack, and this was his memory as to when he was alive and human.

Other memories were showed to them in short clips. In each one Jack was making some, if not all of the children in his village laugh. He even made some of the sternest looking adults laughed. He was the trickster, the joker, the spark of laughter for his entire village, especially the children, especially a little girl. She was there in every human memories of Jack's. She was his little sister. The resemblance was remarkable between them. She had straight chestnut brown hair; her eyes were also of the same color, just like Jack

The sisters could tell when it finally came to his last human memory, for they saw Jack was older-looking, in his current physical form as a young man. "Be careful," was the last thing the sisters have ever heard from Jack's mother, as the women watch her two children go off to skate on the ice.

Jack chucked lightly. "We will," he promised his mother, with his little sister tugging at his arm, pulling him along to move faster.

XxXxXx

It all started out with such fun, his sister's laughter filling the air. But once the two skated onto thin ice, all laughter ceased.

Jack was down on one knee managing to remove his skates. Across from him his sister was standing as still as possible, but her legs were still shaking. She looks straight into her brother's eyes; her reflection was so clear in them, along with her fear.

She looks back down and her lips began to tremble. "It's ok—it's ok," Jack assured her calmly. "Don't look down, just look at me."

"Jack," she called in a shaky voice, "I'm scared." Her skates twitched in her effort to remain still, and the ice beneath her cracked with several lines. And as if that wasn't enough, it felt as though the ice was mocking Jack, for the cracks are forming a nice sizeable circle for her to fall swiftly through.

"I-I-I know—I know," he respond almost in a whisper. He managed to stand again and takes a step forward, but stopped when the ice also creaked under his feet. He looks up and smiles at his sister. "But you're gonna be alright, you're not gonna fall in—uhhhh—" as an idea popped into his head, Jack's smile widen. He opened his arms as though he had just had a big breakthrough. "We're gonna have a little fun instead!"

"No we're not!" she cried in disbelief. But Jack was persistent.

"Would I trick you?—"

"Yes! You always play tricks!"

"N-No-No," he laughs lightly, "Well not-not-not this time. I promise—I promise you're gonna be, you're gonna be fine." She looks at her brother, his guarantee slowly sinking in. "You have to believe in me." Jack's eyebrows rose in question, encouraging her to place her faith in him. She didn't turn her gaze away, but released the breath of air she was holding in all this time. That was all Jack needed.

"You wanna play a game? We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play every day." The fear on his sister's face was slowly fading away, a gleam of hope growing as Jack was keeping his word. Now, it was Elsa and Anna's turn to hold their breath. "I-It's as easy as—uh, one," Jack takes a step to the side and the ice cracked. The sisters flinch. But Jack took a risk and placed his whole weight on that one foot, pretending to be in trouble, as he tries to regain balance so as to not lose the game. The action resulted in his sister laughing, her eyes never leaving him, and for a moment her fear was gone. "Two…three!" Jack made it to thick ice. Elsa and Anna can finally breathe a bit, but they were still concern for Jack's sister.

Jack noticed there was a large stick with a hook like shape nearby. So he stepped over towards it, and held the hooked end towards her. "Alright, now it's your turn." Jack started to count. "One," she took a step and the ice cracked. She gasped. "That's it—that's it," Jack encouraged in a hush voice. "Two," she took another step and grasped louder as the ice cracks again. "Three!" Jack snatched his sister off as planned, and tossed her far away to safety. She landed a bit hard on her back but rolled to a gentle stop on her stomach.

Jack and his sister both snapped their heads at each other; they had the biggest smiles on their faces, mixed with a tremendous amount of relief and joy.

On the side both Elsa and Anna released their held in breath. Jack… Elsa sank to her knees, happy that Jack's sister was safe—that the both of them were safe. Meanwhile, Anna, she busted out in cheer while jumping up and down. "Way-da go Jack! Big brother of the year!" She hops over to Jack as he stood up, wanting to congratulate him even though he couldn't hear her.

Elsa made to stand herself but froze. There was the sound of ice cracking again. She looks over to Jack and realized the danger he was in, and didn't take another second to think about it. "No—Jack!" she cried, sending a blast of ice under his feet, but the blast only seems to have vanished as it hits its mark.

Before Anna could react, Jack fell. The two were also pulled down with him, but not without seeing from his point of view, his sister crying his name, reaching out to him but it was all too late.