* Requested by: IWasBornaRainicorn and j99450
Snowmen
"No fair, Jack," Jamie said with a scowl.
The snowman met Jack's height ideally and its overall appearance bordered on cartoonish. Three perfect spheres of snow made its body while two limestones for eyes and a carrot nose – from Bunny's Warren, of course – made its face.
Jamie glared at his own 'masterpiece'. His snowman stood a bit taller than he did, which held his downfall. The two spheres for the base of the snowman were decent. However, its head proved harder for him to reach, making it look extremely disfigured. To top it off, he hadn't had time to get any material for the face, its scarf had been blown away by the wind, and its stick-arms had fallen off and disappeared into the snow as more fell from the clouded sky.
Jack merely laughed, a breeze responding to him by picking up speed. The January wind wove through the clearing, gently stroking the boys' faces, and Jamie could hear Jack's pond lapping at the shore a couple feet around the hill.
"Three-hundred years of practice, kid," Jack grinned, looking between him and the snowmen, twirling his staff as he did so.
Jamie was about to grumble irately before something snaked into his peripheral vision. The child's gaze flickered to watch as strands of fern-like frost curled around Jack's snowman, even going so far as to crystallize over the carrot.
Jamie produced a crooked grin, too similar to Jack's. "Don't you mean 'three-hundred years of using your powers'?"
Jack scoffed, swinging his staff to rest it on his shoulders. "What's the difference?"
Jamie's impish smile widened as he crossed his arms. "I bet you couldn't make a snowman without using your powers."
The winter spirit chuckled; Jamie could hear the underlying nervousness. "'Course I could!"
Jamie dropped to his knees and started bundling fresh snow together. "Prove it, then."
"Whatever you say, kiddo," Jack rolled his eyes. He propped his staff against a barren tree – bark more than likely bitten off by passing deer – before sprinting next to Jamie and crouching down to collect some snow.
By the time the kid got two large snowballs finished, Jack's grumbling halted the making of his third one. His chocolate eyes fell upon the disgruntled Guardian who sat back on his heels and still trying to make the first snowball. Jamie stifled a sympathetic chuckle, afraid that Jack might misread his humor. Although, even if they weren't bonded, he imagined that Jack could probably read him like an open book by now.
"Here," Jamie said, throwing his current snowball to the side to make a new one. The child shoved his fingerless-gloved hands under the snow, cupping them until he gathered enough in his palms before bringing it to the surface. The kid made an almost perfect snowball before placing it in front of Jack's face.
Jack shook his head and took it. "I can make small-scale stuff without my powers," he clarified as he gathered a handful of snow to combine it with the snowball, only to have it crumble and break like a geode. He scratched the back of his neck, grinning with sheepish embarrassment. "But larger-scale…"
Jamie nodded and brushed his hands against the front of his leather cloak. For the remainder of the afternoon, Jamie explained how to make a decent setup for a snowman, using techniques his father once taught him. As the kid enlightened Jack, the spirit's smile grew along with Jamie's. He could see how elated the kid was, being able to teach Jack Frost, creator of snow, blizzards, and ice, how to make a snowman. Jamie was finally able to teach Jack something related to the spirit's own craft.
Diving into the early evening, Jack brushed freezing sweat from his forehead, relieved that he was going to be able to bring Jamie home on time. After Jamie had cut his feet on glass several weeks ago, his mother not only kept a steadier eye on him, but was also growing more and more suspicious, especially after seeing the bandages on Jamie's feet. Other spirits wouldn't have interfered, as most liked to be left alone. However, Jack didn't mind. So long as the mother didn't crack – as one would say – then he would continue his meddling and keeping an eye on Jamie.
Who knows? Someday his interference might add another believer to his list.
Jack took a step back to admire his handiwork. "Hey, Jamie," he called out of the corner of his mouth. "Did I win," he asked, looking back at his friend. Jack had to admit that Jamie's current snowman was almost perfect, if not slightly disproportional.
Jamie peeked out from behind his snowman and, for a moment, didn't say anything as he stared at the spot next to Jack. He chewed his lower lip to suppress a laugh, his sock-covered feet shuffling in the snow. Though he broke his promise to his mother about wearing boots rather than going barefoot, he slightly humored her by just wearing socks.
"Um," Jamie said, tilting his head to scrutinize. "If you were going for a 'Leaning Tower of Pisa' look, then you certainly nailed it."
Jack blinked and looked at his lopsided snowman. "What?"
"Also," Jamie added. "It looks like it kind of has whiplash." Jamie grinned as Jack finally saw that its head was leaning back a bit too far. The child let out a chuckle. "You may want to stick to making snowballs, Frosty."
Jack glanced sideways at him before a grin split over his features. "Think your funny, do yah," he asked as he retrieved his staff and formed a snowball in his free hand. He blew icy frost on it and tossed it up once before catching it.
Jamie's jaw dropped a little. "We made a deal. You can't-"
"That was for making snowmen. You said nothing about using my powers in a snowball fight."
With hardly any warning, Jack chucked the snowball. Laughing exuberantly, Jamie spun to jump out of the way. The snow smashed against a tree, narrowly missing the kid. Jack barked a laugh as Jamie blew a childish raspberry before taking off passed his lake and down the hill.
Jamie kept looking behind him knowing surely that his Guardian was close behind, but sneakily out of sight. The child ran through the woods in a sloppy serpentine formation, ducking and weaving around logs, boulders, and trees. If patches of ice ever crossed his path he would expertly jump or slide over them. However, this practice was short-lived when he landed wrong, causing his left foot to slide over the ice and trip over his right one. His small body pitched as he was launched sideways, snow splaying in short waves as he tumbled down a steep hill.
"Got'cha," a familiar voice rang before something hooked around his middle, bringing him to a halt. Jamie exhaled as he looked down to see to the hook of Jack's staff wrapped around his lanky waist.
"You okay," Jack asked with a wide, but sincere smile as Jamie jumped down from the hook. The kid nodded, his messy hair falling in front of his eyes as he brushed himself off. "Great," Jack said, Jamie now noticing that he kept one hand behind his back. "Now, where were we?"
Jack whipped his hand and the snowball hurled through the air until colliding with Jamie's face. The kid laughed, batting the snow off his face while taking a few steps back. Jack didn't have time to catch him as Jamie stumbled over a snow-covered boulder.
"Okay," Jack chuckled lightly, floating forward to lean over Jamie. He held out his hand for the kid. "Your clumsiness was cute at first, but now I'm seriously worried that you're going to break an ankle."
Jamie grinned and rolled his eyes once he was standing. "Not my fault I'm bonded with the overprotective one. Let's see," Jamie tapped his chin. "Jack Frost: Guardian of Fun and keeper of blizzards." He paused for added effect. "And is a nanny on his down time." His only response was another snowball to the face.
"It's almost scary how more like me you're becoming." Jack muttered as Jamie fixed the knot of his cloak. "What did you trip over, anyway," he mused as he crouched next to the boulder. He hummed at how thin the rock was and started running his hand over it to swipe away the snow.
Jamie rocked back on his heels as the sun began its slow sinking behind the grey clouds. His mother wouldn't be happy about him staying out too late. Jamie pursed his lips. Just like Jack, he wanted to go outside and have fun, all the time. His grades were perfect right now and he didn't consider himself a bad kid. Why did his mother have to worry so much? Jamie turned to his friend to ask for a ride home, but his words faded before he could even get them out.
Jack's cerulean gaze was locked hypnotically onto the boulder. However, he had brushed the snow off all the way down to its base to reveal not a boulder, but a thin slab of fieldstone. A grave marker.
Jamie looked from the headstone to Jack, trying to gauge the situation. The kid inhaled, clamping his eyes shut as his thoughts prodded Jack's mind. He couldn't detect any coherent sentences, but he felt his emotions. Like his thoughts, Jack's emotions were always energized, but had a certain lightness, a calm that even the Guardians wouldn't consider him possessing.
However, even given the awkwardness of the silence, Jack's emotions were very peaceful and still as his eyes travelled over the gravestone. Jamie slowly strode until he was a couple inches behind him. The wind returned to brush only at Jack's hair, not Jamie's, in a comforting matter. Jamie cocked his head as if able to hear the breeze whispering into the winter spirit's ears.
Gradually breaking out of his stupor, Jack sunk backward onto his rear and curled his crossed legs to his chest. His light, Jack-like chuckle broke the evening.
Jack traced a finger over the faded and crumbling name on the headstone. "It's funny," Jack grinned a little as he ran his pinky against the dates. A light trail of frost respectfully sprouted wherever he touched. Jack craned his head to look back at Jamie. "You look just like her, you know?"
The little boy sat down next to the Guardian. "Your sister?"
"Yeah," Jack confirmed, pointing to the name on the headstone before running a tender hand through the kid's hair. "Sometimes I think you two could be related."
A wide grin spread over Jamie's lips as he bounced excitedly in his snowy seat. "That means we could be related!" Jamie pointed between him and Jack.
"Really," he said sarcastically, hugging Jamie's shoulders to bring him closer. "Could've fooled me." Jamie rolled his eyes and playfully pushed the spirit's ribs. "Who knows," Jack sighed. "That would explain why we bonded so quickly."
"And why you've been looking after me even before I knew you."
Jack nodded. "You act like her, too, I think," he added, his pale hand scratching his white hair as he sifted through the hazy memories. "Come to think of it," he laughed. "She used to make better snowmen than me."
Jamie's lips parted in an open smile, knowing surely that touching his sister's gravestone may have triggered that memory back to life.
"Hey, while we're on the whole 'learning' subject," Jack asked semi-awkwardly. "Do you want to go see North tomorrow? I want to look through his library again." Jack looked down at Jamie, discreetly hugging him a bit closer. "Think you have time to teach me how to read the next book in the series?"
Jamie nodded. Jack was getting better at reading. However, he was intent on speeding forward in order to read an adventure series he found in the fantasy section of North's library.
"Thanks, kid," Jack said, conviction mixing into his playful smile.
For the next twenty mintues, the pair stared at his sister's grave. The light frost that coated the face of the headstone eventually stopped growing, forming a delicate, but large, silhouette of a rose.