Dela (I Know Why the Dog Howls At the Moon)

One day I looked up and there you were
Like a simple question looking for an answer
Now I am a whale listening to some inner call
Swimming blindly to throw myself upon your shores
But what if I don't find you when I have landed
Would you leave me here to die on your shores stranded?
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon.
I think I know why the dog howls at the moon.

I say:
"Dela! Dela! Ngiyadela!
(Content, content I am content)
When I am with you!
Dela! Sondela Mama Sondela!
(Closer, closer, come closer mama)
I burn for you!

I've been waiting for you all my life - hoping for a miracle
I've been waiting day and night - day and night
I've been waiting for you all my life - waiting for redemption
I've been waiting day and night - I burn for you
- Dela (I Know Why the Dog Howls at the Moon), Johnny Clegg

watch?v=yAY3-Wf1i_Y

Jack waved as he left the temple, flying slowly and letting the wind do most of the work as he thought over what Terpsichore had told him. It was mostly rumor and conjecture, yeah, but it was still something to think over.

Behind him, he could faintly hear the satyresses complaining about not getting to 'play' with him, but he wasn't turning around. Not a chance. He didn't want to play their type of games.

He should probably tell the other Guardians about what he'd heard, he thought, and the idea brought a smile to his face. He had spirits telling him things that they thought were important and needed taking care of, and he had spirits to tell those same things to, to discuss them with and argue with, to take care of them if they needed to.

Snorting, he curled in the air, giggles escaping until he gave in and whooped with laughter, spinning and looping in freefall. He had a fan club, and not one made up of the Baby Teeth, who were more interested in his teeth then him!

Him, Jack Frost, the spirit no one ever saw, the one most spirits avoided, that no one wanted, had a Fan Club.

A little voice tried to ask why, if they were his fan club, they never tried to talk to him or be friends with him, and was reminded of all he'd flown away before they could, to afraid of rejection to stay. He'd have to stick around after the next dance and see.

Faintly he heard his name and he dropped a few feet as he tried to stop, hair flying as he looked about. He heard sleigh bells and looked up, jaw dropping.

Tooth was flying down to him, the sun behind her lighting up her wings like stained glass, glowing off her feathers as she rushed down to him. He had time for a quiet, hushed, "Wow..." before she caught up to him, catching him around the waist and sending them spinning.

As abruptly as she'd grabbed him Tooth was pulling back, holding him at arm's length and looking him up and down, poking at him frantically.

"Are you all right? She didn't hurt you, did she?" she demanded, firing off questions even as they floated upward, landing gently in the sleigh. Jack laughed as Tooth kept checking him over, her frantic hands tickling as she ran her hands over his hair and chest.

She pulled back with a little squeak as she realized just how handsy she'd gotten, settling on the sleigh next to Jack.

He grinned at her, touched that they were all apparently rushing to his rescue, and gave her a quick hug. He had to keep it quick, or he would have been tempted to keep hugging her, just to feel that slim body in his arms and to memorize the texture of those incredible feathers. "I'm fine, she just wanted to talk. And, well, a dance too, but mostly talking. Can we head back to the Pole? I think I should tell you what she told me."

North glanced back over his shoulder, giving a nod and ignoring Bunny's grumbling over getting in the sleigh and not needing it. Jack grinned and reached across Tooth to give Bunny's ear a flick.

"You do care," he teased, laughing as Bunny spluttered.

Between them, Tooth watched Jack as he teased Bunny. He was almost glowing, a little flushed and pinker than usual, and she wondered if it was from dancing. It was a good look for him.

And he had been dancing, she was sure. She kept watching as they bantered, wishing she could just keep watching for much longer. The hug...well, she didn't regret grabbing him out of the air like that, and the return hug had lit a little glow in her chest. The Pole was already coming up in the horizon, though, so she tore her eyes away regretfully. Time to focus on just what Terpsichore had, well, hijacked Jack for.

She'd have to get even with Terpsichore for that, she noted absently. Kidnapping Jack was not alright, even if it was benign. There would be consequences.

The rest she set aside until after they were back in the small room North had set aside for Guardian meetings, each in the special armchair North had made to suit each of them.

"So what did Terpsichore want?" Bunny demanded as soon as they were all seated, obviously still on edge from the other Muses insinuations even if he'd hidden it in the sleigh.

Jack settled in his chair, a large blue and white affair with deep cushions, as if North was trying to make up for years of having to perch on the staff or tree branches. He slung his legs over the arm, staff leaning up against the side.

"Okay, so first...did you know there's a club for stalking and dancing with me? And comparing who danced what? It's weird."

The other Guardians stared at him blankly, gaping, before Sandy began silently laughing.

"Dancing...? They were talking about dancing?" Bunny said incredulously as North started laughing.

"Did you know about the club?" Tooth asked, biting back her own mixed reactions of laughter and jealousy. She'd never heard about this club before, but really she could only blame herself for that she supposed when the jealousy died down. Four hundred forty years never leaving her palace was a good reason to not hear things...

Jack frosted over, his version of a blush, and shook his head, dipping it to hide under his bangs. "Not a word. She wouldn't tell me anything about it but that either. So not fair. She said she'd tell you about it, if you asked."

Tooth made a note of that, settling a bit into her chair. North had really outdone himself on it – it was the only armchair she'd ever been able to sit in comfortably.

Jack tried to ignore the play of firelight over her feathers so he could listen to her question, a difficult task at the moment. "And...all of this...was for a dance?"

"She was upset that I've apparently got a reputation as a dancer but I'd never danced with her. So she wanted to challenge me to a dance. And she wanted me to pass on some stuff to you guys if I passed her test."

"Well since yer here, I guess you passed," Bunny said dryly. "So what'd Terpsichore think we needed to know?"

"The dark spirits are getting restless," Jack started, holding up a hand for Bunny to wait before he could interrupt. "The unseelie court, in particular, not the other dark spirits. They aren't being controlled the way they usually are, as far as the club can tell. They really don't know more than that, but apparently they're scared, so they told Terpsichore to tell me to tell the four of you."

Bunny swore, quietly and creatively. "Let me take a look inta this, mates," he said when he finished, the others watching him with varying amounts of shock and admiration. "I've heard about them before, before most a your times. I got some ideas what to look into."

"Bad news?" Tooth asked quietly, general amusement dying as Bunny nodded.

"Very bad news, Toothie," he agreed. "Very, very bad news."

A/N: So – my buffer is 100% done. I tried to pad it out over the last week – hence the not updating – and then I got sick. Sick enough that I couldn't focus enough to write. So, sorry for the lack of update last week, I'm going to try and work on that buffer. As it is, the next chapter's not finished yet, so I'll see what I can do.

But hey, look – continuing plot!