Mean Seasons 87 Keeping Promises 4

Carrie looks at Pitch. "How long until Jack heals?" She asks concered for her son.

"With damagers this extencsive, he may be in there for several weeks." The Boogeyman said hoarsely

Carrie cuddled Pippa close then blinks as a thought occurred to her. "So who's gonna tell the Guardians and Mother Nature?"

"Obviously Summer's presence here means Mother Nature already knows." Pitch said. "As for the Guardians, I am sure North will be informed by my daughter as well. Your concern is that coffin, wich by the way, has a trickle of haorfrost on it already."

Carrie looks at the coffin in worry. "Any way we could help the healing?" She asks.

"Cover the floor in snow." Pitch deadpanned.

Pippa sniffed as she gazed at her brother's still body.

"Jackie, you cheated. It was my turn to protect you. Carrie please...tell him he cheated, that he... he was never supposed to let that creep touch him! That he isn't supposed to be here, too still and dying, in a box!"

Carrie raises an eyebrow at Pitch. "And how will we do that." She pulls Pippa into a hug. "We'll tell him all about it when he gets better."

"Surely you cannot be that dense." Pitch growled "Get snow and put it on the floor! Especially under the coffin."

"Not that it will help you." A cruel voice said from the door. Burnt flesh smell invaded the room.

Carrie tensed grabbing her frying pan and looking over to the door.

"You have two choices. Give me the Overlands, or watch as Dragon Boy freezes to death in the snow!"

Carrie stares at the burnt man standing at the top of the stairs. He isn't even looking at her all his attention focused on Pitch. Carrie throws her frying pan at him hitting him in the head and knocking him down the stairs.

"Very well. I have infected his dragon with hunger. Even his rider looks apitizing! Give me Pippa, and I shall OW!"

Everyone present was suprized to see Famine get attacked from behind by two children, one whose eyes glowed blue with rage, his back glowing as well under his shirt.

"You will pay for what you've done to Jack!" Jamie roared in windspeak, summoning eight of Jack's familliars, led by Hooter

Carrie looks at Pitch. "So do we need him alive?" She asks.

"Need who alive? Famine? well yes unfortunately. I don't think your son is going to let him live though." He pointed to Jamie, whose eyes and brand glowed like Jack's staff did when he repaired it.

The boy was furious, and with the Wind by his side, he was downright deadly.

Carrie nods and looks over at her son. "Jamie! We need him alive!" She called putting Pippa behind Pitch and walking over to her son.

the Winter Prince growled and looked at her, but he held back the eight beasts of ice and snow.

"Alive?" he rasped. "Why Alive? He nearly KILLED us! We could still die because of him!"

Carrie raises an eyebrow at her son. "Be that as it may Pitch says we need him alive."

"Fine. I will let him live. But first, I will make sure he pays for our suffering."

The snow raven and owls fell on the scrawny man, pecking his eyes while he screamed.

Pitch snickered "Seems Jack left more than a brand on your boy. That was a punishment worthy of the Winter King."

Carrie nods. "Ok, now we need snow so that Jack can heal..." Her voice trails off as she thinks of something. "Doesn't Jack have a unicorn friend that can heal? Would he be of any help?"

"That creature doesn't just show up. Sometimes Jack leaves him somewhere, tells him to wait to be summoned. We best just get the snow. Too bad the boy lacks Frosts powers."

Sophie began to cry, Jamie having turned his glowing eyes on her.

Carrie picks up her daughter and looks worriedly at her son. "Jamie is something wrong?"

"I don't feel well." he said, still using windspeak. "I feel hot in my belly. Hot and angry. Mom...is this what rage feels like? What Jack's rage feels like?"

Carrie wraps an arm around her son's shoulder. "I don't know." She admitted. "So why do we need him alive Pitch?" She asks looking at the Nightmare King.

"Like Death, Famine is necessary." came the hiss "We can't kill it because there will always be famine, like there will always be death and fear. Although your son has just made sure that Famine won't ever target the two siblings again. It's hard to see your enemy when your eyes are gone."

Jamie had finally calmed down, and collapsed, sobbing.

"We're going to die."

Carrie hugs her son tightly to her. "No your not." She said firmly. She looks around to see that the familiars have begun filling the room with snow.

She also noticed the Frostmare lingering in the window, pawing the glass with a hoof.

"Pitch would that one help?" She asks nodding at the Frostmare.

The Nightmare king 's eyes went wide

"One survived? Interesting. Let it in, see what it does."

The ice/sand/shadow/snow creature galloped over to the coffin and stood, nickering softly, clearly concerned. Pitch smirked

"Well I'll be...he actually tamed one. This particular stallion is Sleet, his riding steed. He is still quite loyal to him, even though the others were destroyed the minute Frost stopped being the Nightmare Prince."

Hooter hooted, declaring he could not bring any more snow to the room.

Carrie looks at Pitch. "Explain the horse and is there anything else we can do for Jack?" She pauses as a thought occurs to her. "And where's Hiccup?"

"My Summer!" Mother Nature's wail pierced the silence.

Hiccup was the embodiment of Summer. He melted snow. However if he was exposed to it, like a hot coal, he would fizzle and grow cool. Such was his fate now. Famine had trapped him under a snowdrift and left him to die.

Mother Nature gathered her seasonal in her arms. He was cool to the touch, and not likely to get warm again any time soon, "Hiccup...open your eyes!"

Carrie looks out the window and winces. "Bring him inside!" She calls down to Mother Nature. "The living room has a fire place!"

"Thank you. I must ask that you literally set him on fire. It seems cruel but it's the only way!" Mother Nature said, placing the viking in the fireplace.

Jamie gulped "If Jack were awake, he would be devastated."

"Yup." Carrie says lighting the fireplace.

Flames licked at the viking, ignighting his flesh, but not burning d ever so slowly, his body began to settle comfortably. The blue hue disapeared, and he flipped over on his side, curling up with a contented sigh, the fire roaring, and he in the heat of the blaze.

Jamie shuddered

"That image frightens me."

Carrie gives her son a one armed hug. "It is kinda unsettling to see." She admits.

"Mom?" he asked, looking at her with frightened eyes "Am I...cruel?"

Carrie blinks in surprise. "Of course you not. Why do you ask?"

"I...I...I just commanded the familliars to eat that guy's eyes out!" he cried, regretting his choice immediately "Jack wouldn't have wanted that."

Carrie hugs her son to her. "Oh honey that doesn't make you cruel." She coos rubbing his back. "He is a bad guy and if you hadn't he would have kept trying to hurt or kill Jack and Pippa."

he clutched his mother, hiccuping he then went limp.

"Mom!" he panicked, clutching her "Mom!"

Pitch apeared

"We have a problem. Come upstairs."