Author's Note: Hello everyone and welcome back to "The Winter Child!" =D This is kind of the last part of the little "Guardians-Show-Jack-What-They-Do-For-A-Living" arc. =) In the next chapter, Jack will reveal what he wants to do for a career, but I shall not spoil, for I enjoy keeping you all in suspense, hehe. X)
With that, I hope you guys enjoy this chapter! =D
~ XXXI ~
A Day in the Workshop
He was an inventor
He constructed items
Items that one may not imagine
He shared them with everyone
Blessing them with wonder
And Jack greatly admired him so
...
Jack yawned, and he slowly opened his eyes. Sunlight spilled from the small sliver in his bedroom curtains. The winter child rubbed his eyes, sitting up slowly, feeling awake the instant he slipped out of bed. Jack hugged Wawa close as he walked to North's bedroom. He took a quick glimpse at the clock that stood in the hall; it was seven-thirty.
Now, that is quite late for our winter child, isn't it? But Jack's excitement had caused him to wake up earlier than usual. Last but certainly not least, it was North's turn to show Jack through his work, and the young snow sprite couldn't contain his ecstasy.
Out of all the Guardians, Jack had been particularly looking forward to North's job for a while. He was aware that he was an inventor, and he made children's toys in his spare time. The majority of the toys Jack owned were made by North himself.
Today, North would be giving Jack a tour of the Workshop and showing him how he made his toys. Jack would also accompany him on some of the deliveries he'd be making out of town, and Jack was always excited for a ride on the sleigh.
The winter child had been ridden with excitement the previous day, and it took him a while to fall asleep. He actually felt quite surprised to find that he had managed to fall asleep, but now here he was, awake at seven-thirty in the morning, on his way to North's room to pull him out of bed.
North promised that the moment he woke up, they would start. As you perhaps are aware already, Jack wasn't the type of person to wait. Jack didn't know when North would wake up, whether it was soon or later. He wanted to get started, and he wanted to get started right then and there. So, he tiptoed into North's room, finding him fast asleep.
From his position, North looked like he would sleep at least another hour or so before waking up. Jack walked inside, stood in front of his sleeping adoptive father, and poked his side.
"North," he whispered. The ex-Cossack didn't stir. Jack poked him again. "North!"
North groaned, and he opened his sleepy blue eyes. "Jack? What are you doing up this early?" he asked groggily.
Jack rocked on his heels. "You promised you'd show me around the Workshop today."
"I know," said North, stifling a yawn. "But it is too early right now. Why don't we wait a little while, da?"
Jack frowned. "Nooooooorth, I've been waiting since yesterday! Besides, the early bird gets the worm. If we start early, we'll get a lot more stuff done!"
North smirked. Ombric had recently been teaching the children philosophical sayings and proverbs in class. Jack had made it his personal mission to implement as many as he could in daily conversations. And so far, he had been doing quite a good job at that.
North yawned and he sat up. "Alright, I'm coming," he said. Jack grinned and the two's day began. After bathing and getting their clothes on, North made two plates of scrambled eggs and toast for breakfast, which Jack wolfed down rather quickly. North chuckled and told him to slow down. North knew Jack was excited, and he was too. He'd be showing the boy what he did for a living and why he loved doing it. North hoped Jack found what he taught him interesting.
He didn't want to bore the winter child.
But Jack seemed thoroughly excited. Once they finished breakfast, North led Jack to the study, which he was quite familiar with already. But this was where all of North's planning and inventing took place, so the ex-Cossack decided to start there.
"As you know already, moy mal'chik, I am an inventor," North began. Jack listened with utmost focus. "I receive orders through letters or an in-person request, and I build whatever is asked of me in a certain period of time."
"Sounds like what Bunny does with his paintings," remarked Jack.
"They are similar," agreed North. "But I also build things on my own and sell them. I also fix things that are broken, which I also get paid for."
Jack nodded, and he continued to listen.
"Once I finished whatever it is that I am building, the person who placed the order will come and pick it up at Workshop," explained North. "Or, if the invention was ordered outside of Santoff Claussen, I go and deliver it."
"Are you working on anything now?" asked Jack.
North smiled, and he led Jack to his desk, where a watch was sitting. There were magnifying glasses placed over it so North could better look at the gears. "I have been working on fixing this watch for Old William. Some of the gears were rusted and needed to be replaced."
Jack peered at the small, golden gears that lined North's desk. "Are there that many gears in a watch?" he asked.
North shook his head. "No, moy mal'chik. But you have to be very specific about which gear you choose to fix it. Not all of them fit together, so you have to pick the right one that will allow the others to move properly."
North picked up two gears and held them in front of Jack. "The bumps at the side fit with another gear with similar ones." The ex-Cossack placed the two together, and they fit perfectly. "When they start rotating, they will both rotate together."
"Huh," said Jack. He looked back at the watch. "So you just have to find the right gears that go together to fix Old William's watch?"
North nodded. "Would you like to help me?"
Jack smiled enthusiastically. "Okay!"
North worked with the actual watch and Jack helpfully located the correct gears needed to fix it. It didn't take too long, since North was already almost done repairing the watch, but he appreciated Jack's help. The winter child found the correct gears at a remarkable speed. He set aside the ones that weren't needed and watched as North put the last gear in place.
Jack looked over his shoulder. "Is it fixed?"
"Let's see," said North. He closed the watch face and twisted the nob at the side. He placed the watch back down, and from behind the face, Jack and North could see the slow movement of the gears from within. The watch made a reassuring tick, tick, tick-ing noise as they did so.
"It works!" exclaimed Jack.
"Yes it does," said North with a smile. "You are quite good with gears, moy mal'chik."
"An expert," said the winter child, a small smirk crawling onto his face. North laughed and ruffled his hair. "Now, let us head to Workshop. I have something to show you there too."
Jack took North's hand the ex-Cossack led him into the Workshop. North's house was connected by a door that led into the Workshop. Jack had been there several times before, but he felt as if he were stepping through a magic portal whenever he walked through the door to the Workshop. It was like a palace of wonder…there were toy airplanes that hung from the ceiling, and shelves filled with many different types of toys and inventions, all on display. The walls were painted bright blue, and the windows up front displayed some of North's latest works.
In the back was a miniature study, but it wasn't as big as the one in North's house. This was where North performed quick repairs or painted toys. There were a few toys waiting to be repainted back there, Jack wondered if this was what North wanted to show him.
There was a wooden duck, a toy train, and a tower of blocks sitting at the table. "These are toys that I just recently finished, but still need to paint," North explained. "I know you just received some painting tips from Bunny, so I thought we could work on these together."
Jack smiled, and North handed him a brush. The ex-Cossack worked on the train while Jack painted the duck. They both wore aprons to keep themselves from getting dirty, and the winter child asked more questions about North's job as they continued painting together.
"How did you start building things?" asked Jack.
"When I first discovered Santoff Claussen and decided to leave behind my thieving life, I found that I really enjoyed building things, especially for the children," said North. "Instead of taking from others, I'd share what I made with the people here. And they were very happy when I fixed things for them, and I was happy to help. I also discovered my center here too. Wonder."
Jack looked up. "Center? What's that?"
"Hm…" North looked around, and he spotted a matryoshka doll of himself that he had placed on a shelf. The ex-Cossack set aside the train he was painting and picked it up. He held it in front of Jack.
"This is how you first see me, no? Very big and intimidating," said North. He handed the doll to Jack, and the winter child took it. "But, if you get to know me a little…"
North gestured to the doll, signaling for Jack to open it. The boy did so, revealing a smiling version of the first doll.
"You're…jolly?" said Jack.
"Da! But not just jolly," said North. He motioned for Jack to open the doll again, revealing a mysterious-looking version of the jolly doll.
"I'm also mysterious," said North.
Jack opened that doll, revealing a brave-looking North holding his two sabers.
"And fearless," North said proudly.
Jack opened the dollar again, revealing a sentimental North holding a puppy.
"And caring," added North. "And at my center…"
North opened the last doll and dropped the last and final one in Jack's small palm. Jack stared at the big-eyed doll in his palm.
"A tiny wooden baby?"
North laughed. "Look a little closer, moy mal'chik."
Jack studied the doll. "Um…you have big eyes?"
"Yes!" exclaimed North, making Jack jump. "Big eyes—very big eyes!—because they are full of wonder."
North stood up and gestured to the many toys and decorations in his Workshop. "You see, that was what I was born with, eyes that see the wonder in everything. The lights in the tree, and the magic in the air! This wonder is what I put into the world! And what I protect in children as a Guardian. It is my center."
Jack was moved by North's speech. "Whoa," he said. He looked at the doll in his hand. "Do I have a center too?" he asked.
"Everyone has a center," replied North.
"But I don't know what mine is," said Jack with a small frown.
"A center is something you find," said North, patting Jack's head. "It may take a while, but you just have to be patient. It will come to you eventually."
Jack hummed thoughtfully, and North let him keep the little toy doll. They finished painting the three toys and opened the Workshop for those who had items to pick up. They gave out the completed inventions and toys to the people who stopped by. A few of Jack's friends came with their families; the winter child was happy to see them.
After all the items were given out, North and Jack hopped into the sleigh and did a few deliveries around Norsurberian. They didn't travel too far from Santoff Claussen, but Jack greatly enjoyed the sleigh ride and frequently asked North could go faster. He loved the feeling of the wind rushing by and the thrill he felt as they sped through the snow. But going too fast would be dangerous, and North didn't want Jack flying out of the sleigh if they went so fast (the winter child laughed at that statement).
By evening, the two had returned home, and North treated Jack and himself to cups of hot chocolate. Jack sipped his warm drink, a satisfied hum resounding in his mouth as the warm liquid warmed his insides.
"I really like your job, North," the boy said. "Actually, I like everyone's jobs. After watching what everyone does, I know what I wanna be now."
"That is great, moy mal'chik," said North with a grin. "What did you decide on?"
Jack lifted a finger to his lips. "I won't tell until tomorrow," he said mischievously. "I want Toothy, Bunny, and Sandy to be there when I announce it."
North nodded. "Very well then." And he took another sip of his drink. As he sipped, the ex-Cossack wondered what Jack had settled on for a future career, and he was looking forward to hearing it.
And he knew that whatever Jack chose, he would surely be great at it.
Author's Note: I wonder what little Jackie's gonna choose for a job~?
Well, I know, but you guys won't find out until tomorrow. XD
Anyway, thank you guys so much for reading, and I hope to see you in the next chap! =D
Until the next chapter!
~BeyondTheMoon1203
