Omg sorry about my grammar/spelling mistakes last chapter *hides face* I'm embarrassed but haha I've fixed them for poor future souls. Love you always...Now get ready.
"Sole and born creation. The lion's in the house. Flowers are up in the air. Crashing against the dark."
"Fire in the water...is the body of our love."
"Quick, get 'im onto the table!"
"Jack!"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
He started to cough up blood.
"JACK!"
"Put it in his mouth to soak up some of blood!"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"I doubt he's got a disability since he walked the entire way there. So that's good, no spine or neck damage...
"W-Wait! Wha d'you need that knife f–"
"I need to cut open his shirt!"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"O-Oh my god!"
"Go! In the shelf!"
Boots shuffled away quickly.
"I'll hold him down but you gotta inject North's anesthesia!"
"But I'm not–"
Piiiiii-ciss!
"Bugger that, princess! He's losing–"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"Argh! Get...Get 'im off m–"
"Jack, let go! Let...H-He can't hear us!"
"I-It's alright, sheila. I've got it."
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"Princess!"
"I...I-I'm sorry!"
"Just listen to my voice and I'll guide you through it."
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"I ain't gonna bail and neither are you, got it?"
"O-Okay..."
Lub-dub.
"Okay, I'm ready!"
"Pass me the forceps!"
Lub-dub.
"'Please Jack...Please!"
"Whoa!"
Something loud clattered against the steel table.
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"What is...Oy! The room's gettin' cold! What's he doing with his fi–"
"I-It's his center gene!"
"What?!"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"Jack? Jack, can you hear me!?"
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
Lub-dub. Lub-dub.
"JACK!"
Lub-dub...Lub-dub.
...Lub-dub.
Silence.
"Crikey..."
...
Aster pulled away with his medical needle. He wiped a light layer of sweat from his head and leaned back against a counter. He removed his gloves, tossing them into a medical waste bin nearby, along with his mask.
Jack didn't have any internal damage. The bullet only ripped through his muscle tissue, avoiding his arteries so Aster managed to pull it out and sew him up. But still, even as he stared at the sleeping brunette with the bandages wrapped gently around his chest, he had to give the man kudos.
Normal gunshot victims went into trauma immediately after penetration, or straight after cavitations when the shockwave of the bullet ripped through. This guy however held on even after Pitch's laced bullet lodged itself into him.
He rubbed his stubble grimly and looked at Princess Thia.
"He's fine...He's gonna be alright."
She bit her lower lip again and blinked up at him with pink eyes.
"So he's...You mean he's not–"
"Naw, the mate's out, but you can hear the heartbeat."
"No, I ca–...I-I mean...I..."
Tooth stopped immediately.
She didn't want Aster to think the worst of her but his green eyes were understanding and sharp. He lifted a gloved finger to his large, almost-pointed ear. Tooth also quickly noticed the tattoos that inked his forearms before they disappeared into his sleeve.
"S'all right, sheila," he comforted gruffly. "These things can hear better than most. He's alive. Pulse is weak, but yeah, the bloke's still there."
And that was enough for Tooth.
Chucking her own gloves and mask, the princess exhaled a shaky breath. The moist air in the room started to cool down for a moment and she let it wash over her. Tooth then covered her eyes painfully, feeling the blood on her cheek dry over.
She was proud of what she'd done, but still distraught over everything that just happened.
Aster moved back to the sink and washed his hands. He'd gotten blood all over him in the sew-up and the cleanup and he grimaced.
"He's..." he mumbled to himself. "He really is a lost one..."
When Aster finished washing his hands, he turned around and caught Toothiana under his acid-green gaze.
"But the important thing is that he didn't do any harm to you, princess. So I'll give 'im credit for doin' right by you."
"He wouldn't do anything to me," she mumbled but the Aussie didn't hear it.
He'd paused for a moment before he shot Jack one more.
"Wait, hang on..."
Aster quickly moved around her to the shelf. As he rummaged through it, Toothiana moved the sink to wash her hands too. He heard him mumbled as she tried to ignore whose blood she was washing away.
"The bloke can't sleep well with those buggers in."
"What buggers?"
When Tooth finished and fully turned, her eyes widened.
Aster was holding a small weird plastic tool and was moving towards Jack's face with it.
"Wait!" she cried and rushed forward. "Stop! Wh-What is that–"
Tooth practically dove in between him and Jack to stop...whatever he was planning on doing!
Aster stopped and snapped his head up at her. They were almost a metre from each other until he frowned slightly.
He then pulled away to point at Jack's face.
"But, princess. Look," he gestured at the restlessness underneath Jack's pale eyelids. His dark lashes kept fluttering too and the Aussie moved in again.
"They're makin' 'im uncomfortable. So I gotta take them out."
"Take what out? What are you–"
But Aster didn't wait and immediately leaned in closer to Jack's face. Carefully, he brought his set of 'plungers' close and after lifting one of Jack's eyelids, he set the apparatus over the eye.
Tooth didn't understand.
She didn't like it.
She wanted him to leave Jack alone.
"Stop it!"
But when she moved in to smack Aster away, she looked down briefly.
Her heart stopped.
She watched Jack's warm, maple brown iris she'd grown to love, suddenly lift away into the plunger.
She covered her mouth.
"His eye...H-His eye..."
Jack had been wearing colored contacts, the whole time, and hiding underneath it was his real eye color.
A startling but powerful shade of arctic blue.
"It's blue..."
Jack's iris moved around subconsciously as he slept like a sapphire trapped in ice.
Tooth licked her dry lips and backed away slightly.
"I-It's...They're blue..."
Tooth couldn't believe it. But as Jack's pupil squinted slightly in the light and the greyish blue around it seemed to stretch and change color slightly, she had to...and she did.
Aster then pulled the plunger away and Jack's eye shut closed. He sighed slightly under his breath feeling the moisture return and Aster moved to pull out the other one.
When he was done, Aster moved away and set Jack's contacts in a safe case – it was identical to the one he'd carried in his police belt, the one Tooth thought had been a retainer. She almost couldn't swallow any of it, and it also didn't help that Jack's hair dye was starting to wear out the more he sweat through his fever. She bit her lower lip as more of his whites were starting to pepper through his hair.
When Aster snapped the case shut, Tooth looked back up at him with a large lump in her throat.
"H..." her voice was caught like sandpaper. "How did he wear them...f-for so long?"
Aster looked at her with a blank look.
It was obvious to him now that she hadn't known about it – but how would she? They were supposed to look and act real. And since her little confession about his gene, he knew exactly where'd this guy had gotten them and further confirmed his suspicions.
Aster put the case on the counter and turned to her. He crossed his arms and glared down at Jack.
"They were designed for the agents," he explained, and hoped he didn't have to explain what 'agents' he was referring to. But Tooth didn't look confused or react to it so he continued on. "They were custom made to last months on end, to conceal their real identities."
When he didn't say who, Tooth wrung her wrists.
"So do you wear them? O-Or does North?"
Aster shook his head.
"Don't know about the Santa," he answered. "But I stopped wearin' mine long after we went down under."
Aster shot a quick look as if daring her to joke about that but he stopped. She wasn't even looking at him. Tooth was still wringing her thin wrists together and looking all around the room for answers to more questions she suddenly had.
'So that's why he keeps rubbing his eyes,' she thought to herself. 'All this time, I thought he was just tired!'
He bit the inside of his cheek, feeling suddenly terrible for watching her go through this all alone.
Aster instead went to look down at his shirt. He grimaced at the sight.
"Bloody hell," he muttered as he stared down at his top all covered in blood. He looked up at Toothiana briefly before he moved to grab his coat.
"I'm gonna change," Aster asked in his usual gruff, yet soft, tone. "I'll just be in the back room then I'll come back alright?"
Tooth looked at him and nodded.
"U-Uh sure."
"You want anything, or d'you need to change?"
But even when he scrunched his eyebrows worriedly, Tooth shook her head and pushed her hair behind her ears.
"N-No, A..." she stopped and took a shaky breath, "I-I'll be here when you get back."
Her soft and almost scared mumble made him paused at the door, but Aster nodded and exited the room. The second he did, he heard the sink go off.
...
Tooth washed her face so hard her cheeks turned red, and every time she flushed her eyes with water, she saw a flash of arctic blue and it made her fingers shake.
"Come on, Tooth...Come on!" She pulled out Bao's hair band stressfully and let her hair around her face.
Tooth moved on autopilot afterwards, moving around like a ghost in a daze and rubbing her eyes in stress. Without even realizing, she even moved back to Jack and started to wipe his neck with a wet cloth. Aster had cleaned all the blood off Jack's skin before he left, but on some unconscious level. Bright red and black where the bullet's poison had spread but it wasn't there anymore.
Tooth however seemed to think it was.
And while he stayed in complete slumber, it was so horrific to her.
Since she'd first met Jack, since the day he saved her, Tooth never once saw Jack passed out or asleep! Sure, he shut his eyes a couple times just to control his emotions (or test his patience with her), but he was always still awake when she fell asleep and already up when she awoke.
So seeing him like this for the first time, eyes shut, features relaxed, and unmoving...It was like Tooth didn't know him. And how could she, she never even knew he wore freaking contacts the whole time!
Toothiana dropped the cloth into the bucket and leaned over it. She looked down at her hands.
They were covered in his blood.
Tooth choked and dunked them in the bucket to wash it away.
She felt suddenly sick. Not because of the blood or the smell, no. She felt sick because she never hoped to see Jack like this. He was always so strong, dodging every hit, landing every first move, and so sure of his actions that she–
'Stop it, Tooth!' she berated herself. 'He's human, just like the rest of us. This was bound to happen eventually!'
She pulled away and pressed the back of her wet hand to her eyes.
"But I really wish it didn't," she whispered and squeezed her eyes shut.
Tooth then tried to busy herself by cleaning the rest of Aster's materials and dried the stations. But after a while she ended up back at Jack's unconscious form, leaning forward and putting her head in both arms on the table.
She stared at him tirelessly.
"Can you hear me?" she whispered but Jack didn't answer.
"I'm right here...I'm...Jack, I'm right here."
He didn't move, didn't breathe, didn't do anything.
"Please, Jack...You helped me get back up so many times...Now I need to help you too."
"..."
"Please."
"...H–H..."
Jack's lips parted and he took a shuttering breath. He gasped for air for a couple seconds and it was all Tooth could do not to jump up and scream.
"Jack? Jack, what's wrong!?"
Tooth looked all around him. Maybe he was uncomfortable, maybe a side effect from Pitch's bullet was–
She stopped.
The metal table directly under his palms started to chill over. Tooth watched his fingers flex gently and the moisture in the room dropped. As she watched, every time his fingertips hit the steel, the metal would fog over with a slight brush of frost.
Her eyes widened.
'H-He can do that?'
But suddenly Jack's breath started to settle down. He exhaled gently but didn't open his eyes. He was still in his comatose state but Tooth didn't care.
"W-Wait, what're you...WAIT!"
The wind went away and with it, so did his magic trick and all signs that he'd even moved.
She sighed angrily.
"You...Argh, dammit Jack, s-stop doing this to me!" she nearly cried and slapped him across the chest without thinking it.
When he jolted in pain slightly, she nearly leapt in the air.
"Oh sorry! Sorry!" she whispered. "I-I didn't..." And Tooth sighed, letting out a miserable chuckle.
When a shudder passed through her heart, she reached over and grasped his limp, warm hand.
Tooth sat like that for a while, holding onto him like her life depended on it. And call it awkward fascination or genuine concern, but Toothiana didn't blink.
She watched him breathe in and out slowly, staring at the way his chest rose and fell. Tooth couldn't even blush at the moment, didn't want to – she wasn't nervous when he was asleep and that helped her appreciate him more.
This was the only chance she'd get since he'd never let her get this close and that made her ache.
Jack's skin was smooth and his lips were thin. She liked his nose without really needing to explain why and found it neat that his eyebrows were darker than his hair. They were like black or dark brown but had white creeping through them like frost. And when she went really close, she noticed that he had the tiniest dot or beauty mark sitting right up to the edge of his left eye. He also had a faint scar near his temple and there was one permanent frown line on his forehead that would probably never go away.
All these things were so insignificant, so pointless...yet now she knew them and couldn't help but be happy that she did. Even memorising the swirl and striking pattern of his brown hair was interesting to her as she traced it tiredly.
But how awkward would this be, if he woke up, and saw her basically probing him?
He'd probably call her a creep and tell her to take ten thousand steps back.
And Tooth surprisingly laughed to herself because she knew he would.
Her heart hurt more with each heart beat she felt, and every rise of his chest she could see. She then looked at him as she whispered with a smirk.
"God, Jack. You carry me thirty thousand miles across the world with you, get shot, and undergo military surgery by an Australian who makes holes in the ground with his fingers. I really do put you through shit."
She chuckled sadly before the sting in her eyes came back and she shut them tightly.
"I'm so sorry..."
Without even thinking, without even needing to, Tooth leaned up.
And for the first time, she pressed her lips to his cheek.
It sparked electricity in her skin and she lingered for a while, just enjoying how cool his skin was under her touch.
When she pulled away slightly, she grinned sadly despite her aching heart.
Tooth shook her head slowly, letting some of her hair fall down to tickle Jack's face. But he didn't react and for that, she was grateful.
A part of her even wanted to lean down and do it again...
But...
"I-I wa...but...but I know I shouldn't," Tooth whispered.
Instead, she lifted her head slightly and pressed it against his forehead, staring at his face as she did.
"You deserve better than a geek, than a princess freak like me. You deserve better than all of this."
And she really meant it. After this was all over, she didn't care what it took. If Jack wanted to settle down and start a new life, she'd offer him money, a clear on his name, a search for his family, anything to give him back the life he was taken from.
And Tooth closed her eyes completely and sighed a peppermint breath onto his face.
When she finally pulled away, her entire body felt like it would collapse.
She didn't notice Jack's fingers twitch.
...
Tooth looked out nervously but Aster was nowhere in sight.
Silently, she shut the door behind her and sneak-walked into the main room. Jack needed rest and she was thankful that so far, he was okay. But while she wanted to stay with him more than anything, they needed answers. So with a steady breath and tight fists, Toothiana slinked around the large circular room and its low ceiling.
She stepped on her heel gently to stop her boot from clunking on the concrete floor. She then rolled gently on her toes the way Jack did – so far it seemed to work.
The Warren was unlike anything she'd ever seen... It reminded her of a circular, underground greenhouse! She smelt (apart from Jack's blood) this very earthy aroma that floated around the place. It was weird though for such a thing in the middle of Buffalo during winter to smell so fresh and open. It was also very warm inside, too warm, and she bit her lip – it was probably always like this thanks to the potted plants everywhere. So all-in-all, it was like a man-made forest.
Still, it reminded her of the rainforests back on Punjam, so it was almost calming.
Almost.
Tooth felt sweat drip down her temple anxiously.
She decided to walk to the only door open. A light poured onto the concrete floor from inside and when she was close, she pressed herself to the wall beside it. She slipped out her gun from its holster.
'Okay Tooth. Just peek in, you need to...He would do it for you.'
After taking a shaky glance around the main room for Aster, she craned her neck around the door.
What she saw made her mouth fall open and her pink eyes wide.
Nobody was in the room. It was empty and small but to her, it was incredible.
It was a legit master computer room!
Compared to the rest of the old, simplistic style of the Warren, this room had a lot of love put into it. The computer setup was highly advanced and organized.
Tooth moved in slowly and while she tightened her grip on her Taurus rifle, her mind was wrapped around all the neat gadgets and screens.
There were three keyboards and at least ten monitors of different sizes surrounding the semi-circle of the room. His chair gave him easy access to all and while the wires weaved themselves in and around each other and under her feet, Tooth knew this room probably had the potential to hack three countries' governments at once! She didn't know how, but she just had a feeling.
Maybe it was also because of the massive supercomputers sitting like giant bodyguards against the back walls.
As she moved closer, she squinted at the screens. Several of them were on standby and the initials EA floated across the screen. She frowned.
What did that stand for?
"Princess?"
Tooth sprung away faster than she'd ever moved. She literally pressed up against the wall, trying to look innocent, but Aster raised an eyebrow,
"You okay?" he asked and she peeled herself off the wall.
"Uh, y-yeah?"
Tooth fought hard to bring down the blush climbing on her cheeks and up her neck. She sent the room a dubious stare pretending like it was its fault that she ended up there. But Aster caught it and jerked a thumb out back into the main room of the Warren.
"There's more space out here to breathe. Plus, I think we should let the bloke sleep."
He didn't immediately expect her to agree so quickly but by the time he turned, she was already behind him.
"Sorry," she mumbled loudly and quickly re-holstered her gun before he could see it. But he already had and suddenly felt awkward with her walking behind him.
As they walked, Toothiana watched the way Aster carried himself. His tall, confident posture was more rigid than Jack's 'I-don't-give-a-shit' one. Aster's was more of an 'I'm-always-on-duty' sort of saunter with the way his shoulder rolled with his careful footing. It reminded her of the guards back at the palace.
Instantly, Tooth frowned and felt her heart patter in her chest again.
'What I wouldn't give to see even them again!'
Sometimes the palace guards were funny and cheeky just like her sisters, but always ready to protect and look out for everyone. Tooth shook her head nervously.
Aster's tall form moved guided her to the small eating area where the low ceilings continued to deceive her. The bunker was made to look tiny, yet its eye tricks were able to fit the six-foot Australian no problem.
She was honestly confused but didn't comment as Aster sat on a bar stool adjacent to her. For a moment, neither said anything, awkward and unsure of what to talk about.
Tooth played with her skirt and tried to look around the room while Aster sighed under his nose and glared at a rusty bolt he was rolling on the table with his finger. They both looked at each other at the same time and Tooth flicked her gaze away while the Aussie did the same.
"How long would that wound usually take to heal?" Tooth mumbled and Aster finally looked back at her. He wore an apologetic look on his face.
"For normal people, anywhere from 12-18 hours. But for a GUARDIAN agent, he'll be up in 7-9."
Tooth's voice caught in her throat. She blinked hopefully.
"S-So you believe he's a–"
"Only cuz you say so, sheila," he pointed out and she nodded.
"Right," she mumbled. "A-And I'm sorry about pulling my gun on you earlier. I didn't mean to be so...so brash. But...well, I've been on the run for days and everyone is starting to look like...different."
When she looked down at the table in shame, Aster frowned.
"He taught you that?"
Tooth shrugged and pushed her hair behind her ear. When he saw her feathered earring, the six-foot ebony-haired man and sighed.
"Well, I don't like it. But just...just be careful," he muttered softly. Tooth blinked and looked up at him.
He wasn't going to judge her?
Tooth opened her mouth to ask but she stopped halfway. Looking at his expression and the way this conversation was going, she realised while Aster was a man of few words like Jack (like most spies actually, now that she'd met enough of them), she didn't need to pry him like she needed to with Jack.
Aster told her enough and by his expressions she could sorta tell what he was thinking. She figured her silence while he spoke and her actions were better communicated.
Aster sighed and she began to bounce her knee nervously under the table.
"H-How did you know we were there?" Tooth asked and Aster immediately got up and walked back into the room he'd changed in. He came back out with his fur-lined coat and pulled out a disc from one of the large pockets.
"Got an 'easter egg' in this dvd from an ELF I correspond with in Manhattan," he explained and Tooth nodded. She knew what an 'easter egg' was. It was a quick or coded message at the end of the disc that you had to watch or listen for, sometimes long after the movie ended.
Aster continued.
"It told me another GUARDIAN was coming with the tooth. But I haven't seen another one since North."
He sighed and chucked the disc on the counter.
"It's been a while," he grunted and sat back down. "So I was suspicious of the mate when I saw 'im with you."
"That's okay I understand," Tooth replied and she watched him pull the rusty bolt to him again and twist it in his fingers. He glared at it as he spoke.
"How did the kid remember?"
But Tooth frowned and stared at the bolt.
"He...He hasn't," she felt guilty about telling Jack's secret to a still-complete stranger but her mind was tired, her heart was hurting, and her coat was still in the other room so she had nothing to chew again after she swallowed her gum.
But Aster noticed her tense posture and got up. When he came back, he filled a glass of water, letting her watch him do it from the sink so she wouldn't get suspicious. She thanked him mutely and took a grateful sip while he leaned against the counter.
"I used to be like him," he finally admitted and crossed his toned arms. "I woke up alone and confused with my memories mashed up."
Tooth almost spit her water out.
"Y-Y...You did? Wait, do all GUARDIANS wake up like you g..." she coughed slightly and he looked at her worriedly. Aster tightened his fist in his crossed arms.
"Yeah. That's what the company did to GUARDIAN agents...But I'm okay now."
"How?" she asked hopefully and Aster looked at her.
"North. After I woke up, I was confused but unlike the others who wandered off, I knew where to go. North and I were buddies before the place shutdown. But one of the few things I remembered was him telling me that if I ever lost my way, I should find him."
Toothiana said nothing and rolled her lips inwards to squeeze them gently. Although Aster's face was taut and serious, she noticed how alight his green eyes were as he spoke.
"I had a lot of hope in the guy," he continued and his sharp edges began to lessen. "So I searched. Every city, every database, every man I could track with the skills I still had."
He shrugged.
"Then I found 'im, under the same name too...SANTACLAUS, that bloody show pony. And he helped me remember who I was."
"Wow..."
Tooth's eyes were wide and her tight grip around the glass slowly relaxed.
"He helped you."
Aster nodded. "And now I help him. I use my computer skills as a hacker to infiltrate sites and databases for his ELFs."
"You do?"
"Yeah, I...well, here follow me," Aster pushed himself off the counter and beckoned her to follow him back into the other room. As they re-entered the room, Aster tapped another door inside it with his boot and it opened on command. Inside a light turned on automatically and Tooth's eyes drank in the sights of different gadgets he was still calibrating and more monitors listing out data from various ELFs he was corresponding with around the world. They were sending him updates and information about things his computer would automatically store into their respective files.
It blew her mind away and she did a complete 360 and took in the room.
"So this...being able to do all of this...Is this what the gene also gave you? Like, high-intelligence?"
Aster smirked and shook his head.
"No, sheila. I've always been naturally gifted with computer skills but the agent training did enhance it. I was a tech analyst for the company. Thanks to them, I'm able to hack into any computer device."
But he appreciated someone (especially a woman) complimenting him on his skill since he hadn't been reminded of his potential in so long – people in the spy occupation never had time to appreciate others, let alone themselves.
He then walked back into the computer room.
Tooth followed and watched as he moved over to the computers. When he touched a mouse, all the screensavers disappeared and went back to his homepage with a fluorescent kangaroo as his background.
"Most of the algorithms and programs I developed haven't even been properly created by few people. Like check out these beauties."
And Tooth watched him pull out the same ring and complink that North had given Jack. Aster smiled down at them like two little treasures.
"Created these all myself and so far, North's buddies have been able to slip in and out of some of the best headquarters undetected."
Tooth leaned down and cooed slightly.
She'd already seen them but to see this guy – tall, gruff, and so serious minutes ago – get all soft about his inventions, made her a little mushy.
When he put them back in his pocket, Aster sat in his computer chair and put on his sleek frames. He began to start up some programs again as Tooth peeked in from behind.
"So...you're basically a hacker?" she asked, just wanting to hear him say it. And Aster nodded quickly, fingers flying across two keyboards simultaneously to get some information back out to some ELFs.
"Pretty much," he muttered softly.
Suddenly it clicked in her brain.
"EA..." she mumbled and grabbed the top of his computer chair, jumping on her boots. "EA! Oh my god!"
"Crikey!" Aster jumped slightly and spun in his chair. "Oy, what happ–"
"ELECTRONICALPHA! That was you! You gave Hue Dunbroch that ElectronicAlpha Status-Type Existence Rewriter Egg!"
Aster gawked at her and craned his neck up.
"Y-You remembered the acry–"
"And Jack's password for his bank account! It was you too. Wasn't it?" she gasped nearly out of breath when she stopped. The green-eyed hacker flit his eyes up at her one more time before he blinked down at his screens behind his sliver glasses.
"Uh, wh...well, yeah," he finally answered. "Mind you, that Irish bloke was a one-time thing! I don't wanna sell off to black market nuts anymore and I'm mostly involved in North's operations now. His agents need me and the information I can get them."
Tooth blew out a breath and it caused Aster turned up in his seat again and looked at her.
"What's wrong?"
She peeked down at him and moved around the chair. She leaned more towards the screen to stare at all the algorithms and messages he was sending between government databases and ELF codes.
And when she looked back down at him, she shot him a small smile for the first time.
"It's just...Wow," she teased lightly and Aster blinked. "You're like a mole or rabbit, just snooping and digging into other people's gardens and leaving tunnels for others to use."
And that caused him to chuckle and go back to his screen.
"I've been called that before."
As he continued to finish working on his programs, Tooth pulled back slightly. She visibly started to relax as it finally settled like warm oatmeal in her stomach – Aster was a friend of North's. He really was a member in the Russian's fight against anti-terrorism, and if the computers and the data on them weren't enough, then the old stuffed rabbits hiding amongst the shelves and some photographs he had with North and Phil did the trick.
Her smile stayed on her face until he was finished his work.
...
10 minutes later
"So, why were you suspicious of Jack even though you'd been told he was a GUARDIAN?" Tooth asked once they were back in the eating area. Aster was rubbing his eyes and went to get an energy drink from the fridge.
When he grabbed one and closed it, Tooth had to avert her eyes.
There were at least a hundred egg cartons inside! She didn't want to comment.
When he came back, the Aussie sat across from her and took a swig before he spoke.
"Like I said, princess. It's been a while since I heard another GUARDIAN showing up...Up until me, honestly."
Tooth gawked.
"S-Seriously?!" she stammered. That threw her completely off guard and tightened a fist in her skirt. Even Aster looked upset himself and stared down at a pot of flowers he'd recently set on the floor.
"I didn't know any other agents who had survived the defrag too, but now seeing Jack here, I'm certain there are other agents still out there wandering around without purpose like he was...like I was."
Aster paused to take another drink and Tooth frowned openly. That word 'defrag' came back it sent cold dripping into her stomach again.
"Defragmented..."
"De-what?"
"Memory wiped."
"How many of there are you?" Tooth finally asked. Her breath was laced with anxiety.
"At one time...hundreds," Aster sighed, "But they all vanished once the company decommissioned us. I hoped they wouldn't have done something but I fear they might have...if the other agencies hadn't."
Tooth said nothing and let it sink as Aster got up to pace. He didn't like to sit when he was nervous and the old spy in him, the one that used to go out on reconnaissance missions, made him want to get up and do something with his legs.
Tooth watched his rigid posture continued to move back and forward.
His jaw was tightly clenched and his eyes were unwavering but she felt it. Underneath his entire headstrong attitude (which she was sure would butt heads with Jack once he got up), Aster was nervous.
He didn't hide it very well like Jack or maybe, Toothiana figured, she was just getting better at reading people. She always was good at looking out for other people's needs and right now, the Australian hacker with the blue-frosted tips and the shock of silver running down his hair was easier to read than even her handmaiden Tia.
Tooth whistled and Aster stopped pacing. When his tight face looked back at her, she smacked her lips and tapped the counter. He understood instantly and sighed.
Aster ran a hand through his short hair and walked back over. When he was sitting down, Tooth pushed his bottle to him. He took it gratefully and shot her a small smile.
"Thanks, sheila. I'm buggered." When he took a nervous swig, Tooth smiled – she liked being called a sheila.
"So," she tried again. "So is Aster your...your code name? Is that who you remembered yourself as when you woke up?" He shook his head. She caught on pretty fast.
"No, when I left the company, I remembered who I was. It was one of the memories I managed to hold onto."
After he put the bottle back down on the table, he lifted his gaze firmly to her cerise one.
"Real name's Edmund. Edmund Aster. And my codename was EASTERBUNNY. For erm, my hacking skills."
Tooth let out a tiny, breathy laugh. She tried to shut up instantly when she saw his face scowl at his drink but it finally made more sense – ElectronicAlpha was a pseudonym for his name.
"You can imagine why I don't go by either," he muttered but Tooth surprised him. She shrugged and when he looked up she smiled.
"I like Edmund," she offered warmly and Aster smiled back.
"Well then, you'd be the first," he chuckled and he wiped his forehead tiredly. When he did, Toothiana looked at his tattooed arms and the dark arm hair that crossed over it.
Very manly.
But then something nudged Tooth's curiosity and looked up at his face.
"Wait, if you knew who you were..." she almost afraid to continue when she watched his smile fall. But she did anyway. "...then why didn't you go home?"
"..."
Aster turned and chucked his empty bottle after he guzzled the last of the energy drink inside.
When he turned back, he folded both his arms on the table and glared down at it.
"I was a geeky ankle biter back in the bush. I loved takin' things apart and putting them back together. Tiny things, you know?" Aster then moved his hands around like he was holding something round and tiny. "They always fascinated me. But I came from a tough family...the rest of 'em were cops workin' the underground. Next thing I knew, they shipped me off to some computer camp for the summer and...
Tooth watched his eyes grow wide as he looked over her head.
"...they were gone. All of 'em. Even the little ones and I never knew why."
She felt a dry lump develop in her throat. So that explained it.
He was the last of his family. They ditched him and he had no one.
"Were you mad?" she softly muttered.
"What're you...Wh-No!"
Bunny took a double look at her, bridging on shocked and a little mad. But when he saw the sympathetic look on her face, his scrunched eyebrows instantly relaxed and he looked back down at the table.
"I-I mean, I was...any kid woulda been. I was mad for months, searchin' everywhere and everything I could on the web, and I got into lot of fights. It's why I'm built so..." and Tooth understood when he gestured to his muscled biceps. "I got into fitness real hard, to try to block it out...But I was never mad. Deep down...I knew. They did what they did because they were looking out for me, so I can't be mad."
Tooth said nothing and reached over and gently grasped his large hand in hers.
Images of Prime Minister Bangkot, Mr. Sandy, and the dreams of the tunnels behind the Hypunjam palace danced through her mind and she understood him completely.
'They were looking for him...It was for his protection...Just like the scatter was for mine, and my sisters.'
When she squeezed his hand, Aster looked up at her and gave a tender smile. He squeezed her tiny one back in his warm grip.
"Thanks, princess."
"Good thing you didn't lose your amazing teeth," she tried to joke and Aster actually chuckled.
"Ah yeah, I'm pretty proud of my choppers," he said and he got up to head over to a nearby cupboard. "But I've got a bit of an unhealthy obsession that might not go well with that one day."
And when he opened the cupboard to grab something, Tooth's mouth fell open.
The shelves was piled with chocolate!
"Are you crazy?!" she screeched and he jumped for the second time. The secret dental hygienist in her sprung up instantly.
"Oy! Keep it down," he cried for Jack's sake but she already moved around the table to point at the horrendous shelf.
"Do you know what all that'll do to your teeth?! You've got awesome teeth, Edmund, and you're risking cavities!"
Once he grabbed a small bar and shut it, he turned to face her and raised both hands.
"It's not my fault this job is stressful!"
"Then choose a healthier alternative! You're living a thirteen-year-old's dream and I don't want to see you paying for it later!"
"Pr–"
"Put it down."
"Princess!"
"Put it dow–"
Suddenly Tooth looked up at him worriedly. A second later, she pulled back.
Her concern was blinding and Aster lowered his hand with the snack. Realizing how shit-scared he suddenly was, she rubbed her arm shyly and looked away.
"Oh wow, uhm.." she mumbled. "I'm so sorry! I shouldn't have gotten in your face like that!"
'Especially when he's a trained operative just like Jack! Dammit Tooth, he could've gotten all ninja on your ass!'
Aster blinked and put the bar on the counter.
"Well...I could always try going back to carrot sticks," he offered gently.
Tooth looked up at him.
Did he just say carrots?
"And that's not because my codename's EASTERBUNNY," he warned but she was already laughing a little under her breath. "So don't get any ideas!"
"Too late!" Tooth chuckled softly and she smirked.
Aster looked at her for a second, wondering if this was the same girl who put a gun to his head about two hours ago. She clearly wasn't – this was the girl she really was, this was the princess.
Warm, cheeky, and smart as North had described. He smirked back.
"Besides," Tooth continued and wiped her nose as she walked back to the table to sit down again. "I don't even know why I'm judging you. I have an addiction to something too."
"Oh yeah?" Aster raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "What?"
Tooth paused for moment to rub her spy pants thoughtfully before she spared him a quick glance.
"Spearmint gum. I chew it more times a day than I can count."
"Oy, that has sugar in it too!" he pointed out but Tooth was quick like a whip.
"Yeah, but it's not dangerous. And it's good for your teeth."
"Yeah in moderation!"
"But so is chocolate!"
There was a pause.
Tooth and Aster both stared at each other for a moment before they laughed out aloud.
Aster shook his head and Tooth covered her eyes at her craziness. She really shouldn't be laughing when Jack was in the next room over still healing on his injuries. And while her heart twisted on itself, she felt good to laugh again.
It felt like centuries had passed since she had and she just really needed it. At least Aster was so comfortable to be around and she liked that she'd warmed up to him.
"Well, I guess we both have sweet tooths, huh?" he chuckled and she lifted her hands from her eyes. Tooth shrugged and looked at the counter to avoid his intense stare suddenly.
"Y-Yeah, I guess so," she mumbled loudly and pushed her hair behind her ear again. She felt his stare on her again and suddenly felt uncomfortable. But Tooth pushed the thought down and looked at his fridge.
Then something went off in her head again. She turned to Aster and pointed at the fridge.
"But, what about your other addiction?" she asked and Aster paused for a second.
He raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
"All those eggs in your fridge? Don't you think that's a bit much? Or are you on some 5000-calorie diet or something?"
"What are y–Oh! Oh," Aster stopped and chuckled. He shook his head and walked around the table to the fridge.
"No, I don't eat these eggs," he said and opened the fridge to pull out a carton. "I train with them."
Tooth blinked.
"Huh?"
When Aster came back to the table, he sat across from her again and opened the carton and put two on the table. As Tooth looked at them dubiously, he started to explain.
"You've seen my gene, sheila. It's messy, I have to wear gloves in public in case I touch anything by accident."
Tooth looked up at him.
"W-Why?"
Aster looked down at his fingertips.
"Because I create fissures if I'm not careful. It's why I can't really get close to...Well, watch."
And Tooth looked down again as Aster rolled one egg to a corner away from them. He then looked back at her.
"If I don't pay attention and let the gene takeover, I can crack any surface I want."
And when he touched the egg without a thought, it exploded under his hand. Tooth yelped as the egg shell pieces flew everywhere and the yolk splattered under his palm.
"That happens more time than I'd like," he grumbled and he glared darkly at the broken egg. "So even after all these years of having it, I still have to keep practising."
He then wiped his hand and went for a second egg. But when Tooth went to stop him, her voice caught in her throat and blinked. Aster picked up the second one with any explosion, without any problem whatsoever.
"H...How do you do it?" she asked in wonder.
"I look at the egg," Aster mumbled and he held the egg delicately like a child in his long, fingers. It was cold under his touch.
"Then, I breathe and I...let the gene go slowly."
Tooth's eyes widened and she watched slowly,
Under Aster's fingers, tiny cracks started to appear on the surface of the egg. They were light and trailed down like something was painting them on tensely and she was amazed that the cracks weren't so deep that they pierced through to the yolk.
"Holy crap..." she whispered. She leaned in closer to watch the egg crack. "Wow that is so cool!"
He looked at her with a brief smile before he squeezed it lightly. Then the cracks stopped and he handed it over to Tooth.
She cooed and stared down at the egg in her palm before she cupped it close to her chest. She mumbled and looked at the other eight still in the carton.
"Every day you have to practice?"
Aster nodded with a grim look.
"Won't believe how many keyboards I fry if I don't," he answered and got up to stretch.
"But the damage you caused back at the airport! You can make your gene do that? Y-You can make sinkholes with it?"
As she asked, she looked down at the egg and realised that it was starting to decompress from the inside and the top of it started to sink inwards. She frowned and looked back at him for an answer.
But Aster said nothing and rubbed his head. "Hey, I don't know all the reasons why either, sheila," he spoke in a low tone. "I just do what I do. At my strongest I make them, and it's how I got you and Jack outta there, remember?"
"Yeah," she mumbled. "I guess you're right."
Otherwise she and Jack would've been...
Tooth bit her lip and stared at the egg again. It reminded her of their lives – once perfect, but now paved over with zigzagging problems they couldn't fix, and it threatened to crush them from the inside-out.
And Tooth sighed.
She looked at the other eight eggs in the carton, still waiting to be practiced with by Aster.
Still waiting to be experimented on...like her eight sisters.
...
After that, Tooth talked about Pitch and her missing sisters. Aster revealed to her that he'd been entrusted with a tooth box by North. But while he was always up for a challenge when it came to puzzles, something about its contents disturbed him and he didn't bother to touch it again.
"At least I didn't..." he mumbled. "Until tonight."
And when she asked to see it, he gave it over willingly.
Remembering how Jack opened it, Tooth tried and got the case to open. When it did, she nearly cried when she saw more of her beloved photos being used as tiles again.
Tooth went through the photos, not even wanting to put it together until she found the one piece that mattered.
When she did, she found the title of the diagram.
BABY TOOTH 05
And after she pulled all the photos out and read the back, she knew.
01 – Tatiana, Siamese fireback (X)
02 – Tia, Redwing (X)
03 – Tiana, European robin (X)
04 – Tina, Motmot
05 – Tuhina, Barn swallow
06 – Tulia, Andean condor (X)
07 – Theena, Blue crane
08 – Tiati, Kiwi
"Tuhi..." Tooth mumbled and shut her eyes.
"I read the back once," Aster mumbled as he came up behind her. He pointed at the words beside each handmaiden's–clone's name.
"They're national birds. So wherever your sisters are hiding, they're probably in wherever each bird represents."
But Tooth wasn't really hearing. She nodded her head but her mind felt like it was leagues away.
"What does Pitch want with you?" she mumbled terrified.
North had different intentions of keeping the girls' information. Safety, keeping records of their clone growth...but why did Pitch want them? Why now, when he had all these years before to take them?
She gritted her teeth.
'No! Don't think like that!'
Instead, she gulped and looked back up at Aster forlornly. Maybe he'd have answers to the questions suddenly tugging at her heart, especially since he knew where and who he was, unlike Jack.
"E...Edmund?"
Aster looked down at her with wide eyes, but she didn't notice.
"D...Do you know why your company was cl...was cloning me?"
He paused but when she urged him, he frowned sadly. It did nothing to help her lonely, breaking heart – not one bit.
"I didn't, princess," he mumbled. "Not until what you'd just told me and what I finally understand from that gizzard."
"T-That's okay...but can I ask?" she spoke up again when it looked like he was ready to head back to his room. Aster turned to look at her. Toothiana had her body twisted in the chair and was staring at him with wide, pleading eyes. All the case's photos were strewn on the table.
"Wh...Who created the GUARDIAN program?"
And for once, Aster didn't have a clear cut answer. He looked around the room like it suddenly haunted him.
"All I knew, Thia, was his codename," he spoke in a gentle voice. "And that's what we all knew him by, nothin' else. And if Jack could, he'd tell you the same."
She frowned sadly as Aster looked at Jack's door before he looked at her.
"It was TSARLUNAR."
Tooth bit her lip.
The name was unfamiliar but the way he said it, revealed years of underlying hate, or a fear at ever mentioning it again.
Whoever the guy was, he clearly left a scar on Aster and Tooth realised, that maybe he'd left a scar on all the GUARDIAN agents too.
An unsteady silence followed afterwards.
Aster eventually put the egg carton away and led Tooth to a door beside Jack's room where she could rest. He wished he could stay and talk with her more since she was like a breath of fresh of air to his life – but the ELFs still needed him and he had more programs to run.
When he opened the door for her, there was a small bed and a standard PC (he saved for emergencies) ready. There was also an adjacent door inside that led back into the medical room.
"And don't worry, sheila, it's untraceable," he said as she stepped in. "I made sure any site it logs onto is ghost encrypted so Pitch, the governments, or zip, can't see you get in or out."
"For real?"
"Oy, I'm the best for a reason," he smirked and before he left, he bowed quickly. "I'll get your bags from the car, princess. And if you need me, I'll be in and around at my desk."
"O-Okay," Tooth assured him but before he shut the door, she looked back at him.
Aster paused and his eyebrows rose curiously.
"What?"
Tooth smiled warmly.
"Merry Christmas, Edmund." And when she curtsied shyly, it made his heart flutter.
He smiled back.
"You too, Thia."
And he shut the door.
...
Tooth was on her email accounts and her favourite sites in a flash.
She made sure she was up to date with everything, especially with Punjam's newspaper Hummingbird page, but she otherwise didn't leave any comments or any trace that she was there.
But after a few minutes, she grew bored and almost depressed. Here she was doing one of the things she used to do all the time and...she couldn't enjoy it anymore.
She didn't feel like herself.
Tooth felt like she was doing the actions of a girl who once lived before her and she couldn't stomach that. So she shut down the computer and plopped back down on the bed, inhaling the earthy, moist scent of the Warren around her.
Everything was different now. The people, her thoughts...hell, even her fingers twitched differently as she laid there. They were flexing while she thought deeply.
Just like Jack's.
Tooth sat up.
Rubbing an eye, she looked around the room and sighed. It was weird not being around him after being around him for so long. It almost felt empty.
With a glance at the door Aster closed, Tooth got up and went around the bed to the other door. She unlocked it and peeked into the medical room.
Jack was still there, lying unconscious on the table.
Tooth moved forward to him on shaky knees. Was he...were they...still okay?
And with a nervous breath, she leaned down over his heart to listen.
Lub-dub...Lub-dub... Lub-dub...Lub-dub.
She dropped her face onto his chest exhaustively. She blinked back the wetness in her eyes.
"I'm not leaving you behind, Jack," she mumbled and closed her eyes. "So don't you quit on me."
At least he was still there – annoying, a fighter, and strong.
And when she took in Jack's natural scent, crisp and light with something that was distinctly him, she couldn't be more thankful.
But then Tooth frowned as she thought about her earlier kiss.
She had wanted to do that for so long...but did it even matter?
Jack hadn't even moved! He hadn't even twitched! He wouldn't even remember what she'd just did!
Tooth pulled away and felt a little piece of herself shift inside. Her mouth became dry.
He wouldn't even remember what she could do.
Tooth turned her head sideways and stared silently at the door. Aster hadn't come back and it sounded like he wouldn't be for a while. She bit her lip and looked back at Jack.
Her eyes widened slightly, pupils dilating, and her hands grew sweaty.
'He would never remember,' she assured herself and Tooth threw and arm across his torso to steady herself on the table. She then moved her face in line with his. Jack's face remained asleep and stress free and it made her heart beat like a drum.
When would she ever see his face like this again? He'd made it clear several times that he wasn't interested.
'You don't even know if he's got someone!' she scolded herself and that made her heart crumple. 'So why wait for nothing? It's not like he's ever looked at you or...or wanted to kiss you all those times you flung yourself on him! Pathetic, Tooth...'
...But oh, if she only knew.
Lub-dub.
Tooth continued to stare him sadly as she hovered over him.
Lub-dub.
It wasn't fair, he always took her breath away. Even now in his vegetable state, Jack Frost was wrapping Princess Toothiana around his finger and he didn't even know it.
'He'd never know,' she thought to herself one last time.
Tooth leaned her head down, inching closer to his lips.
She prayed he wouldn't wake up and catch this...But another part of her, the other part that threatened to consume her each and every hour, wanted him to feel it.
Lub-dub...Lub-dub.
She wanted Jack to feel her deep in the cesspools of his slumber and wake up – wake up and push back, and rake his hands through her hair...but isn't that what all girls wanted?
But god, it was so hard! He was all she had left...He represented everything worth fighting for right now and she hated that for all he did for her – the work, the fights...his comfort – she couldn't give anything back in the same sentiment!
Tooth stopped just a centimeter of the way there and shut her eyes.
...Should she?
...What would it even feel like...?
Lub-dub.
It would just be a secret, thank you, Princess-Peach-sort-of kiss. N...Nothing more.
Lub-dub.
She held her breath leaning over his face.
Lub-dub.
It was now or never.
Lub-dub.
'And I choose now.'
...Lub-dub.
So Tooth lowered herself...and pressed her lips innocently to his.
She froze slightly.
Jack's lips were cool and soft and she almost pulled away in shock when that electrical current...no, that electrical wave passed through her again.
Tooth nearly fell over in the way the feeling washed over her. The feeling it was...it wasn't how a regular kiss should feel, especially with someone who was unconscious and yet...
Her heart was pounding, the tingling wouldn't stop, and she wanted more...until she started feeling incredibly awkward.
Tooth stopped pressing her kiss onto Jack. She felt as if she were committing necrophilia or something and she decided to pull away.
The plush of her mouth slowly lifted from his, and Tooth felt two parts of her heart ache dangerously – the part that would be forever upset knowing this was the only chance she'd ever get to touch him like this again...and the part that was breathless, just breathlessly happy.
Toothiana kept her eyes closed the higher she rose away from Jack.
"Thank you..." she breathed and a sad chuckle puffed onto his face.
She'd keep this memory, this feeling in her heart for as long as she lived. And maybe one day, the day when she could finally get over Jack, she'd have the chance to feel like this again with someone e–
Like a rush of fire, Jack pushed his lips up to catch hers.
She froze.
'W...What?'
Tooth opened her eyes slightly and found Jack's eyes, his blue orbs peeking out slowly from under his eyelids. There was something untidy and illustrious about his gaze.
'J...'
In the dimly lit room, they took her breath away, sent her over the edge.
'He...He...'
He didn't say anything but he continued to chase her. Her skin flushed spreading across her skin, her entire chest.
Her vision flickered.
Her lips quivered.
And...
No, Tooth couldn't take it.
Not anymore.
Nervously, she lifted her hands to place on his chest – and she closed her eyes again and leaned down more firmly into the kiss.
It sent chills, goosebumps, hot flashes all at once running through her and she moved her hand on his good shoulder to steady herself.
When she exhaled through her nose, Jack shut his eyes longingly. He leaned up without restriction to push more against her mouth. His chest burned with pain but her touch numbed his senses and he raised himself up on the table with controlled ease. Soon Jack was sitting up on the table and leaning down to follow her lips as Tooth moved her head.
Their hearts matched in beat and when a deep energy passed between them, it made everything harder to control. Tooth moved her hand timidly around to his neck and placed the other on his arm. Her mind was fogging over, she wasn't even sure it was real, but she trailed her fingers up his skin like lightning rods.
And when her fingers brushed against the nape of his neck, Jack didn't wait.
He couldn't.
Quickly, Jack lifted his hands. He wrapped one around her waist to bring her closer and pushed the other one up to her neck. When she angled more into him, he broke the kiss for a breath then leaned down again.
And Tooth shuddered under the weight of his hold.
For a moment, she thought he'd consume her and Tooth felt her heart explode in her chest. Jack's mouth moved over hers in a way that drowned her and set her on fire at the same time.
She wasn't prepared for it. She didn't see it coming. But god...
Tooth gasped out of the kiss when he suddenly bent her head back.
And she stood there, angled under him, frozen and stunned. Her lips were flushed and she could barely breathe.
But when Tooth finally opened her eyes and looked up at him...Jack was looking down in a daze.
His eyelids were floating halfway over his vision and his gaze was muddled, unseeing.
"T...Toothi..." he mumbled under his breath.
Jack's eyes then shut resignedly...
Lub-dub.
Tooth's eyes snapped open with a heavy blush.
Jack's face was still close to hers and his eyes were still shut.
Oh boy.
What a fantasy that would be...but it was just that, a fantasy.
And as much as she wanted it, wanted him, it would never be that way.
Tooth chuckled sadly.
She lowered her eyelids halfway and looked at his bandages. "No, I can't...I-I could never do that."
How much of a black widow would she be if she took advantage of him while he slept? He'd hate her forever and she'd hate herself.
That was unfair...and she couldn't believe she'd almost–
But then she saw Jack shift and when Tooth looked again...
...she watched as Jack fell away her...back down onto the table.
Her eyes widened. When did he move? She thought he was still lying down. She thought she was still leaning over him, preparing...wasn't she?
And something like a rip passed through her chest. It shook her to the core.
When he almost hit his head, Toothiana rushed forward and caught him gently. Then she eased him back into his rest and pulled away.
But her fingers were shaking and her heart became a jackhammer.
She hadn't been looking down at him still on the table...actually, HE had been looking down at her. Which meant he'd gotten up from the table and she was in too much of a daydreaming state to realize.
So did...Was that...
Tooth's face grew red hot and she swallowed a lump in her throat.
But when she did...she tasted him.
In the warmth that spread from the crown of her head to the tips of her toes, he was there on her lips.
He was there.
So there was no denying it.
It really happened.
"I...W-Wh..." Tooth stammered and moved her hands over her mouth.
"Did you...What did you..."
But for all his wispy hair, his light freckles, and his relaxed jaw line, Jack didn't move.
And Tooth didn't know what to do.
Chapter's soundtrack: "Fire in the Water" – Feist Here is some dark, sexy Canadian feels.