Crystal Springs

by SafyreSky

It's been nearly a year since the Thaw and things are looking...not so great. Jack's powers are seemingly gone and the Dome covering the North Pole is melting. The solution? Enacting the Legate Law, bringing Jack and the sister he hurt so many years ago together again. With his powers gone and his sister on the fritz, saving everyone just got a little more complicated. [Rewritten!]

29. Chapter 28: Not My Style

Chapter 28: Not My Style

Something sizzled.

It was Blaise.

His eyes welled with tears, but his face was so warm that the tears were evaporating, boiling away before they could even touch his cheeks.

Jack's shoulders fell. He jogged over to Blaise, plopping down in the snow beside him. He placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm…I'm so sorry, Dad."

"I am, too." A warm arm wrapped around Jack as Blaise pulled him into a very tight side hug. "It shouldn't have been like this."

Jack hugged him back, trying to squeeze just as tight. "You didn't deserve any of this."

"None of us did. Not you, not me, not your sister…not even him." Over Jack's shoulder, Blaise glanced at the Pyros statue. He sighed. "I'm getting too old for this." He sounded gruff; more gravelly than usual. Tired.

Jack could hardly blame him. Summoning a giant flow of lava from the depths of the Earth in the North Pole of all places took a tole, he imagined. Especially when the person you were summoning it for was your brother. Twin, even. Jack closed his eyes, tightening his hold on Blaise.

"It's sad. It's really, really sad, isn't it?"

Jack felt Blaise nod in his shoulder. "It is. But it's also…relieving. It's over. It's finally, finally over." He pulled out of the embrace, holding Jack's shoulders. "You're safe. You and your siblings. He can't hurt you anymore. He can't hurt you sister anymore. And he won't hurt your youngest siblings, ever, at all. I'm sorry this happened, Jack. I'm sorry I couldn't stop him from hurting you."

"It's okay Dad. It's really, honestly, not your fault. I mean, I knew us Frosts were crazy, but Uncle P? He's on a whole new level of his own."

In spite of it all, Blaise laughed. "Thanks, kiddo."

Jack smiled. "Yeah. Don't mention it, Dad."

Blaise took a deep, steadying breath. "I should've listened to your mother all those centuries ago. She's gonna freak when she sees this. When she sees us."

Below them, the ground began to glow white. Snow curled to life, floating in the air.

"I think maybe she already has."

The courtyard rang with magic, the air in front of them rippling. Snowdrifts righted themselves; snowbanks pushed away from the windows and doors, stacking themselves neatly off to the side. The ice rink glistened; it refroze, looking just as perky as the day Jacqueline had thrown it together. With a thunk, a blanket of snow fell down, covering the ground and extinguishing the magical residue.

Across the square, the lower doors to the workshop burst open. They smacked against the walls, revealing Winter ever so slightly bent in the doorway. Her hands were out in front of her, glowing as white as the snow. She straightened up, holding herself high and watching as the snow did as she bid. Her gaze swept the field, pupils widening when she settled on the lumpy rock in front of Elfsburg's Town Hall. She took a few steps forward (elves trickling out behind her), the glow in her hands subsiding as anger clouded her features.

"Is that fucking Pyros?!"

The elves behind her gasped; one even fainted. Hands covered ears as a low oooo rang out.

"Elves, take it easy," Bernard said, walking through the crowd. "She's a Season. She does and says what she wants."

The elves calmed down as Winter rushed forward, searching the field.

"Blaise?! Jack?!"

"Hi sweetheart," Blaise said weakly, straightening up.

Winter gasped. Picking up her skirt she rushed over, falling in front of them in a graceful, princessy heap. She looked between them, aghast, eyeing them both up and down.

"It's not as bad as it looks," Blaise assured, bringing her hands down from her face very gently.

"Well it doesn't look great from here, that's certain. Oh dear, what did he do to you? Did he hurt you?"

"I'll be fine."

Unconvinced, Winter's gaze settled on Jack. Cool hands wrapped around his face, squishing his cheeks. "Oh, my poor baby boy, look at these little scratches," she tutted, gently rubbing off flakes of ice and a bit of soot. "He's lucky the two of you got to him first, let me tell you, he's lucky I wasn't out here, I would've struck him right down—"

"Mom, it's fine. I'm fine." With a reassuring smile, Jack pushed her hands off his face. "I think Dad got it a little worse."

Releasing Jack's face, she turned back to Blaise, gently caressing his head in both hands. "Oh, Blaise dear. You look terrible." She rubbed some soot off his face with her thumb, looking a bit teary eyed.

"You always know just what to say," he lay his hand on hers, gently shifting her palm forward enough to give it a kiss.

Her hands dropped to his shoulders. She pulled him in close, hugging him tightly. She sniffed. "And you smell."

"It ah, comes with the territory." Reluctantly, Blaise wiggled out of her embrace, pointing with his thumb at the giant pit behind him. He cleared his throat. "Lava."

Winter peered over his shoulder, blinking in surprise as steam wafted out of the giant, stinky hole. "Oh dear. I'll get Mother on that ASAP."

Dropping her arms, she slid back, looking between the two of them. Concern lined her features. "I'm so relieved that you're both okay," she threw her arms around Jack again, squishing him tightly.

"Ah! Mother! Please! I am battered and bruised here!" He hugged her back regardless, making sure to squish her back just as tight. But I'm okay, he thought her way.

Pulling away, she pat Jack's face with a soft smile. Good. Turning back to Blaise, she grabbed his lapels tightly and pulled him forward, searching his face carefully.

"Ou, Winter. I am definitely okay enough for that," he teased.

Winter snorted. "Don't be gross, you big old rotten egg." Pulling him towards her, Winter's lips found his, kissing him as though their lives depended on it. Blaise wrapped his arms around her, holding her oh so close and tight and kissing her back with just as much ferocity.

Jack smiled fondly, dutifully averting his eyes and letting them have their moment.

Over by the Workshop, elves had made their way out, Santa pressing through the crowd and stopping at Bernard's side. He looked around, jaw dropping.

Bricks crumbled. Dust fell from impact zones, little piles of colourful powder littering the ground. The steps to town hall were cracked, the ground still slightly uneven in some places.

"Silver bells! What happened out here?!"

"This is fine," Bernard's voice cracked. He cleared his throat. "It's totally fine, Santa. We have very skilled trades elves who can help us fix this mess. Not to mention, a couple of very powerful sprites at our disposal!"

A brick fell off of one of the cracked facades, landing on the floor with a muffled thunk.

"Bernard. There's a giant hole in the middle of town square! Not to mention a new stone statue that I don't remember ordering! Hey, who's shoving back there?!"

"FIRST AID SPRITES COMING THROUGH!"

"MOVE IT OR LOSE IT PEOPLE!"

"Pardon us, Santa. Bernard."

With two pops, Fino and Fiera burst through the crowd, appearing on either side of Santa with first aid kids held up high above their fiery heads. Santa jumped, his hands flying high in the air to avoid the little flames.

"Alright Fi, remember our training!"

"Asses the scene! Any casualties?"

"Frost Pile at 11 o'clock!"

"LET'S MOVE OUT! GO GO GO!"

The twins rushed towards their parents, fiery heads flickering behind them. "Watch those flames!" Santa found himself saying as they rushed off. "And DON'T FALL DOWN THE HOLE!"

"WE WON'T!" Fiera shouted over her shoulder.

"Uh—" Santa looked at Bernard a bit helplessly, hands still in the air. "Why are there flaming children running around the North Pole?!"

"The youngest of the Frosts," Bernard supplied. "Their hair is harmless. In small doses, of course."

"In small—" Santa looked quickly between Bernard and the Twins, sparks trailing in their wake. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that, for the moment, we're safe from any potential disastrous fires." Turning away, Bernard addressed the mingling elves. "Alright everyone, fan out! Be mindful, the ground is a bit uneven. Keep your eyes peeled for any stragglers and bring them in, right to Laura! Remember, frostbite victims on the left side of the ward, burn victims on the right! Scrapes and bruises to the waiting room or the nearest medic!"

Small groups of elves pressed forward carefully, scouting for anyone who was left outside. A group of elves in coveralls sprinted for the hole, carrying wooden barricades to block it off.

"Incoming. You may want to ah, finish up there," Jack said, waving down his siblings.

Winter let go of her husband, gently nudging him. Reluctantly, Blaise let go as well, smiling as the twins plopped down in front of them.

"Don't worry! The professionals are here," Fiera said, opening her first aid kit as Fino scrutinized Jack.

"We're gonna need antiseptic wipes. And a whole lotta bandages," he said, glancing over at Blaise.

"Got it," Fiera said, stepping up and unwinding a roll of dressing between her hands. "Dad. Dad. Do you and Jack want me to wrap one of these around your heads? Like in movies?"

"It'd do absolutely nothing because your heads look a-okay, but it'd be fun," Fino added.

Blaise stared at the twins, looking absolutely feral in their first aid duties. Fiera gave the dressing a little pull, waggling her eyebrows as Fino rummaged through his kit for antiseptic wipes.

He burst into laughter.

Jack pushed himself up, his small smile dropping very fast as he surveyed the damage. Though Winter had righted the snowy grounds and the temperature was fast returning to seasonal, the square in front of the Workshop still looked pretty battered. His eyes settled with relief on his icy barricade, still upright despite Winter's intervening.

Straightening his jacket, he headed towards it. With a snap, it fell into the ground, revealing the very last Frost still on the floor. Her brown hair was a mess, spiralling out above her head. She was motionless. Beside her, Lucy sat tight, eyes anxiously sweeping her up and down. Behind her, Elle and Bernard had reunited, the pair locked in an embrace.

"I'm okay, B! Really," Jack heard Elle say as he approached.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes! Positive. Jack took care of us," Elle said, gesturing over at him as he neared them.

"Jack!" Lucy shot up, relieved. "We kept her safe. Just like you asked. She looks…something seems off."

"Thanks, Lucy." Bending over, Jack brushed the hair off of her face. She looked pale, her pallor a sort of grey-ish colour. His hand hovered near her nose; he didn't move it. Not until he felt the heat from her breath.

"Is she gonna be okay?"

Relieved, he dropped his hand, sitting down beside his sister. "She'll be fine, I'm sure. She's come back from worse." Jack chuckled at his own little joke, his smile fading when Jacqueline didn't snort or snark back or make a too soon comment.

"What was all that?" Lucy asked.

"I don't even know how to unpack all that, let alone explain it all to you."

"Oh, we get the evil uncle thing," Elle said, plopping down beside Jack, Bernard close behind.

"You do?"

"Yeah, it's a classic trope," Lucy agreed, the pair of them nodding solemnly to one another.

"Totally understandable."

"Happens to the best of us."

"It does?" Bernard sounded doubtful.

"Totally," Elle assured.

"What we're curious about is the magic!" Lucy sounded excited. "You have two!"

"Right. That I do." Jack pulled up his hands. They glowed, two different shades of blue. "Jacqueline gave me her essence. And then I found mine."

"So you've got the power of like, TWO whole Jack Frosts?"

"Yep," Jack said, popping the P. "As powerful as Winter herself; maybe even more. But don't tell her I said that! I think she can still ground me." He stage whispered the last bit with a cheeky little wink, pointing towards his mother with his thumb.

Lucy glanced over, eyes growing wide. She watched as Winter slid under Blaise's arm, supporting him as he lifted himself up. Fino and Fiera hopped up, first aid kits back above their heads.

"That's your FAMILY!"

"Sure is."

The four of them began to make their way over, Fino and Fiera beelining towards their fallen sibling.

"Looks like they're coming this way," Bernard shifted his weight, clearing the way for them. "Look alive, Jack."

Fino and Fiera slid to a stop, first aid kits landing in the snow with a thunk as they both assessed Jacqueline. Behind them, Winter and Blaise walked slowly, the former supporting the latter carefully as they made their way over.

"JACQUELINE'S DOWN," Fiera shouted their way, taking a knee as she tried to figure out the best way to slip her into recovery mode.

Winter's eyes widened when she saw Jacqueline lain out in the snow. "Oh, my other baby!" she clamoured, her hand fluttering to her chest. "Blaise, I—"

"I know." He lifted his arm off her gently, nudging her forward. "I'll be there in a sec."

The season rushed forward immediately, dropping in the snow. One hand resting on her collarbone, she gently touched her daughter's cheek.

"She looks so…grey."

"Do we have anything for grey-ness in these?" Fino gave his bag a little shake.

"I don't think we covered grey," Fiera said. "Help me put her in recovery position, Fins."

"No need," Jack said, holding up a hand. Fiera stopped, withdrawing hers. "She's okay. She just needs rest. And something of hers that I happen to have on hand."

Jack flicked his sleeve back, his palm glowing. Focusing, he pulled apart the essences. Slowly the blues untangled, dark blue subsiding until the light blue sat hovering in his palm, a bright, glowing, magical ball. He gazed at it, face softening as he glanced back down at her hand. Her palm was still upturned, fingers still slightly curled.

Placing his hand back in hers, he gave it a gentle squeeze.

There was a brilliantly bright glow. Jack felt his hand stick; he couldn't move it. Light blue magic curled between their palms, latching onto hers and travelling down her forearm and up her elbow, disappearing into her sleeve. The magic swirled up her arms, her neck, even the bits of shin that weren't covered by her skirt or her boots had little swirls of light blue dancing on it, the tips of the swirls looking a touch ferny.

Colour rushed into her cheeks. She perked up, back arching slightly. She gasped briefly, exhaling through her mouth and dropping back down slowly. Dry ice floated out of her mouth, bleeding down the corners of her lips as she settled back on the ground, looking properly saturated now.

The glow subsided. Jack could move his hand again. A few stray tendrils of magic danced along her fingertips as he placed her hand down carefully, letting go reluctantly.

The rest of the Frosts sagged in relief. Elle glanced up at Bernard, both looking a lot more relaxed now that their friend had her colour back.

"She'll be okay," Lucy said, and somehow, deep down, all five Frosts, Bernard, and Elle knew that Lucy was right.

She would be okay.

Blaise stood up, making his way around Jack. "We need to take Jacqueline to the Elf Infirmary."

"Elfirmary," the head elves corrected.

"Right. That."

"We helped clean it up as best as we could!" Fiera said, Fino nodding in agreement.

"Excellent." Bending down gently, Blaise tapped Jack's shoulder. "Son. I need to get to your sister. Mind scooting over a bit?"

"Oh. Right, of course." Jack shifted over, watching as Blaise gently slid an arm underneath Jacqueline's back. He held her carefully, making sure to cradle her head against his shoulder as he slid his other arm beneath her knees, lifting her up. He pulled her in close, holding her against his chest.

Jacqueline's lips shifted, the edges tilting up as she felt the familiar warmth of her Dad.

Blaise softened, kissing the top of her head. "You're safe now," he murmured near her ear, readjusting her carefully.

Winter shot up, fussing over Jacqueline for a moment before she let Blaise head towards the Workshop, turning to gather the other three.

"Come on, up we go. Don't forget your kits, kids. Jack?"

He looked up at his Mom, blinking himself back to the present moment. She held out a hand expectantly.

Jack grabbed it, hoisting himself up with her help. He caught up to Blaise in a few quick strides, Winter close behind him with the Twins.

Blaise stopped beside Santa, gently adjusting Jacqueline. "Sorry about the uh, giant hole in your courtyard." He glanced over his shoulder, looking at it sheepishly. "Winter darling, do you mind giving your mother a call?"

"Not at all, Blaise dear." Fashioning a snowball out of thin air, Winter stepped back. "Mother Nature, if you please."

Santa watched, bewildered, as the snowball began to glow a familiar warm gold. "What?"

"Don't worry, Santa. Tara will get this squared up for you right away."

"Tara?"

"Mother Nature," Bernard supplied, having made his way back to Santa's side.

"Right."

"Quite right." Throwing the snowball offside (her aim flawless as the snowball hit an unsuspecting elf, the poor thing toppling forward), Winter appeared right beside Blaise, giving Santa her most polite smile, hands folded in front of her skirts. "She'll be by post haste, Mr. Claus, not to worry. I may call in a few favours, too. We'll get this sorted for you as fast as we can." She glanced up, tapping her chin, frowning at the Dome.

"Bernard," Blaise said before Santa could so much as form a coherent thought.

"Yes sir."

"I need a large, empty room. We have a couple of magibeans we'll need to confer with as fast as possible to discuss next steps for Pyros."

"The Council?" Elle asked, appearing beside Bernard with Lucy close at hand.

"Not quite," Blaise replied, the twins rushing by him and disappearing into the shop.

"The Council didn't exist back in the day," Bernard began. "Council Members existed, but things were a lot different before the monarchy was abolished. A few high ranking magibeans—"

"Powerful magibeans in the literal, magical sense," Blaise clarified. "Not by class."

"They were called in to figure out what to do about him," Bernard said, pointing with his head towards the Pyros statue. A few elves stood around it now, carefully sliding a dolly underneath it as two of them chiseled him off the floor. "I imagine that those same magibeans will be called in now."

Blaise nodded. "Bring him there too. And tell your elves to be careful. He broke out of it last time. It took time, but he managed. We don't want to hasten the process, not before some of those magibeans get here."

"I'll go help with that," Santa said, rushing off.

"Okay, enough with the history lessons and the dilly dallying! Jacqueline? Elfirmary? Come on Dad, keep it moving," Jack gave him a gentle little nudge towards the Workshop doors.

"Did you want to carry her?"

"I don't think I can. Same size? Hello?"

"Then cool your jets, Jack. We both want to see her back on her feet, and only one of us can carry her. Unfortunately he, too, is all battered and bruised."

"I mean. If you want, I can grab her legs and you can grab her arms?"

Blaise snorted.

"Best the both of you head up," Winter interrupted, shooing them forward. "I'll make sure everyone gets to where they need to be, Blaise darling. You take care of the snowy kids. I'll handle the fiery ones and the ones you work with."

"You're a peach," Blaise said, smooching her head.

"I know," Winter replied, chipper as Blaise and Jack headed towards the Elfirmary.

---

The inside of the Workshop was bustling.

Elves ran every which way, ferrying their friends over towards the Elfirmary. The moment the Twins crossed the threshold, Curtis waved them down, sending them right upstairs. Clean up crews worked around the chaos, the clattering and zapping of tools and things ringing out amongst the shouts and general Workshop noises. One of the doctors waved Winter down, pulling the season to the side to confer.

Blaise headed right up the stairs, Jack hot on his heels. They dodged elves running down the stairs as best as they could, Jack taking the steps two at a time until they made it into the Elfirmary.

The moment Blaise placed Jacqueline on a bed, medical staff swarmed her. Vitals were checked as she was settled in, plans made to get whatever equipment would be needed to monitor her systems as they worked overtime to purge the substances out of her and balance out her magic levels.

Jack watched them work from the bed next to hers. He moved when they told him, the cuts on his face cleaned and scrapes on his arms properly seen to. They asked where Blaise had gone. Jack hadn't even noticed the man step back out.

The staff buzzed as magibeans arrived. Mother Nature had come fairly fast; then the Grand Witches, or so the rumours claimed. The names of other magibeans were thrown around as elves speculated who would appear for this impromptu meeting. The subject of said meeting was ancient; who was even around anymore?

Jack found himself wondering the same thing.

The moment nursing staff stopped actively working on him, Jack hopped down from his bed and made his way over to Jacqueline's. He frowned in thought, weighing his options as elves buzzed around him.

His other two siblings rushed by, hopping over to the burn ward. He watched them do their thing for a moment. Fiera distracted a younger elf while Fino gently examined a burn, hand hovering over it as he pulled the heat out. The elf giggled as Fiera recounted something that involved a lot of flailing limbs to the kid. The pair of them had impeccable bedside manner.

The temperature in the room dropped. A chill fell on his back.

Jack glanced up, suspicions confirmed as Winter walked briskly towards him, hands clasped in front of her. She went right up to his side and stopped beside him, shoulder to shoulder.

"Your brother and sister and I will be here for a bit." She looked left, then right; she leaned in to Jack, popping up on tiptoe and whispering in his ear. "I know where they're meeting."

Jack perked up. "Oh?"

"Third floor and to the right. Apparently there's a conference room or two up there. Perhaps it rings a bell?"

"I think it does."

Winter smiled up at him. "Go on ahead. Someone needs to make sure your father doesn't do something stupid."

"You think he will?"

Winter hummed, looking down at Jacqueline. With a soft smile, she brushed a knuckle gently across her cheek, curling the sticky outies (as Jacqueline called them) back behind her ears. "We do stupid things for people we love. Partners. Friends. Siblings," she looked up at Jack then, her face soft but knowing.

"...I'll go keep an eye on him."

"Good."

Sparing his sister one last look, he sighed, giving her hand a gentle squeeze. "You're gonna be okay."

Jacqueline did not reply.

---

Though Jack's attendance record was about as pristine as a slice of Swiss cheese, he knew where the official council meeting rooms were in each of the Legendary figure's realms. Most, if not all of the Santas Jack had known much preferred to host in the warmer, cozier spaces. The office, the living quarters, the kitchen—anywhere with a hearth usually. Quite frankly, Jack agreed with them. As much as he had disliked Santa (and some of them actually warranted a great deal of dislike, you know, outside of Jack's own personal biases), he appreciated a cozy meeting spot. Whenever he himself had had the misfortune to host a Council Meeting, he always made sure the fireplace was roaring.

It was a winter thing. Coming in from the cold and the house is nice and warm and toasty and smells like firewood and a hot drink was waiting for you? Nothing beat that feeling after a crisp, cold winter's day. Or maybe it was the little bit of summer sprite in him, enjoying the warmth that curled out from the flames, finding comfort in their crackling and popping.

Call it what you will, cozy spaces were the preference. And the rarely used third floor of the Workshop, where Santa's official Council meeting room lay, was everything but cozy.

It was a quiet floor. The meeting rooms were used every so often by the elves, but not often enough to warrant any personal touches or hearths (the third floor was surprisingly hearth-less). Files were stored on this floor; archives and history and other records lived there as well.

Elves rushed by. Some had stacks of files as tall as themselves balanced in both arms; others had a warm travel mug in one, a stash of papers in the other. More still held neat stacks of labelled bins with old prototypes of toys and things sealed inside to be archived. They scuttled about, focusing on the tasks at hand. Jack made his way swiftly through the hall, stepping around the elves and dodging stacks of files taller than the elves carrying them.

A ding down the hall tickled his ears. Jack stopped, turning slightly as elevator doors slid open with a rickety clank.

"There we go boys, nice and easy. Watching the gap and—yep, we're clear! I'll take it from here. You guys head on down! They'll need the extra help over in construction."

Elevator doors slid shut with a ding. The pulleys whirred, the elevator heading back down. There was a screech, a squeaky dolly rolling its way down the hall.

"Haven't you ever heard of WD-40 up here, Santa?"

"Heh. Course we have! But nothing beats the good old squeak of a dolly. That's how you know good work is gettin' done, Jack!"

"There's no WD-40, is there."

"We are fresh out! But! We do have our own version that's being run up from the warehouse district. EWD-7. But I figured, you know, given the warning your Dad gave about this guy," Santa rapped his knuckles on the portion of the stone statue that was once Pyros's shoulder, "potentially popping out, time was of the essence."

"Keep saying things like that and you'll start sounding like old timey wimey himself."

Santa chuckled, falling in step alongside Jack. "Then I'd have to grow out the beard! Then it'd really confuse people."

Jack chuckled, tilting his head and picking up the familiar low, loud tone of his father. "This way, Santa."

Placing his hand on Santa's shoulder, Jack steered him towards the corridor, gesturing him forward with the free hand.

"Thanks, Jack, but I know my way around my own home." Catching Jack's dirty look in his peripherals, Santa chuckled. "So, heading to the meeting yourself?"

"Yep. The ah, general sentiment between us wintry beings is that Blaise may need some gentle persuasion with whatever he decides to do with his brother. Will you be sticking around?"

"You know, I asked Mother Nature before she headed up. She said I could but that, y'know, since this predates Santa I shouldn't feel obligated. And they could really use my help on the floor right now. You guys did a number! And all sorts of magical beings are showing up left right and centre—it's a lot. And that's saying something! Every other Christmas seems to be a lot 'round here!"

"Lucky for you Santa, you know sprites in high places," Jack said, pushing open the door and holding it for him. "It'll be taken care of in no time."

"Hello, Jack. And hello again, Santa. Will you be joining us tonight?"

"Uh, undecided as of yet! Just came to deliver this guy. Where do you want him?"

Mother Nature stood at the centre of a long crescent shaped table. Blaise stood on her right, eyeing the statue warily. On her left sat two women who looked every part the stereotypical witch, sans the green skin. Mother Nature gestured towards the empty space in front of the table. "Just inside these two circles, if you please."

Two circles glowed on the floor. Symbols were etched between them, within them, and all around them. Some glowed a deep violet; others glowed a warm yellow. A few orange symbols were sprinkled in for good measure. The entirety of the design was ringed in gold, the magic pulsating through the circles and symbols.

Nervously, Santa wheeled the dolly into the centre of them. He placed it down, carefully sliding the base out from under the feet of the statue. Once he was sure it was secure, Santa squeaked back, wheeling himself and the dolly away from the floor magic. The moment he did, there was a sharp ring and a snap. The colours in the circle shifted, shooting up and surrounding the statue, dancing the way the borealis normally did against the Dome.

"Thank you. Now then, on to business! Mr. Claus. On behalf of the governing body of Crystal Springs, I'd like to extend my most humblest of apologies for what my brother and I did to your home. Rest assured, Santa, it's being taken care of as we speak! Mother Nature has assured me that she has her best sprites on it."

"That explains all the uh, colourful magic people popping in, heh. Your uh, wife? The uh, snowy looking woman who came in with you?"

Blaise smiled. "That'd be her, yes. Winter."

Santa let out a low whistle. "The winter? Just the season? The actual season?

Blaise grinned. "Yep! That's my wife!"

"Wow."

"I know! She's amazing," Blaise couldn't help but boast.

"Seems like it! She'd already righted things last I checked, and Mother Nature, I believe you took care of the uh, giant hole in the yard?"

Mother Nature nodded. "There're a couple of odds and ends that need finishing up regarding the crater. They'll be done soon enough. Winter already had a plan for the rest of the work, and was more than happy to take over managing that particular situation so that I could step away and take care of…" she paused, eyes resting on the statue in front of them.

It was dark. Spots of frost spread over the odd bubbled surface, bits of red peaking out beneath the frost. Eyes roving away from it, her gaze fell on Blaise.

Tilting her head, she surveyed him. It took a moment to get through the layers of exhaustion before she was able to properly gauge his aura.

It was tumultuous.

Turmoil radiated from the man. Layers of it, all tied up in knots, messing with his balance. It was nearly enough to push Mother Nature back.

"…this one." She cleared her throat. "Will you be sticking around, Santa?"

Santa opened his mouth, his eyes flicking fast between the two witches in the room. "I think I'll sit this one out. I'm needed on the floor, anyway. Jack can catch me up later. Just uh, make sure that old stoney over here makes like a banana and uh, splits."

The magibeans assembled shared a few looks amongst each other. Santa chortled nervously.

"I'll, uh, see myself out."

And with that, Santa popped out of the room, closing the door behind him.

"Jack?"

"Hmm?"

"You're not going with him?"

"Oh! No, absolutely not! I'm staying put."

"You shouldn't be here. This situation is much older than you. Really, you should be resting!"

"That's very pot calling the kettle black of you."

Blaise frowned, his hair crackling.

"Blaise. Jack has every right to be here today. I think his involvement in what happened here is heavy enough to give him leave to have a say in tonight's proceedings," Mother Nature said. She clasped her hands together calmly, giving Blaise a soft but stern look.

"And we could use a fifth, given that we're literally all that's left."

Jack glanced down the table, hiding his startle well as he finally noticed the Grand Witches: Gwen and Cheri. He shifted, straightening up as he addressed the pair.

"Oh, Your Lightness! So sorry, didn't even see you there! And Your Darkness as well, of course. Apologies."

"Hey Jackie."

"Cheri! Leave the poor man alone, would you?"

"He's fine, he can take it! Trust me. I would know." She grinned in his direction, waggling her eyebrows.

Jack blinked, feeling his Dad's eyes boring into him. He glanced towards the man. Sure enough, Blaise was serving him with a very what did you do look, one eyebrow arched quizzically, head tilted. Jack cleared his throat and looked away very, very fast.

"Ladies. Let's focus, please." Mother Nature waited a moment, studying everyone in the room closely before continuing. "Thank you all for coming together so fast on such short notice. Seeing as how those of us who were responsible for the imprisonment of one Pyros Frost last time are all gathered, let's began, shall we?"

"Yes, let's," Gwen said, smoothing out her skirts and clasping her hands respectfully.

"PLEASE, I am DYING to know what the goddamn hell happened here! The suspense may actually kill me." Cheri gasped overdramatically, clutching at pearls that did not exist around her bare neck.

Gwen snorted. "Oh, please. Like something that simple would kill you—"

"Wait," Blaise interrupted, brow furrowed. "This is everyone?"

"I'm afraid so, dear," Mother Nature confirmed.

"We're all that's left?"

"Survival of the fittest, hot stuff."

"Godrick?"

"Rosehaven'd," Cheri said, admiring her nails.

"Novus?"

"Rosehaven'd."

"Indigo?!"

"Caught up in a tinker! Said they were in the middle of a breakthrough, it was crucial, and if you needed any chains like that again to just commission them," Gwen said, chipper.

"Bartholomule?"

"Shifted into mule form in 1783 and hasn't been seen since. Probably also Rosehaven'd."

"OR living a happy little life as a happy little mule."

"He's probably living a dead, dead life as a dead, dead mule."

"CHERI!"

"GLENDA!"

"What about Peggy? Pepper? Birch?"

"Rosehaven'd, stuck in the curse ward, enlightened." Gwen ticked each one off on her fingers, tilting her head in thought. "Birch really lives up to her name now! She hit omnipotent a couple of centuries back."

"The tree look really works for her."

"It does!"

"What about Kharl?"

Cheri cackled. "Got Toad'ed!"

"Cheri."

"Ah-ah-ah Tara! Don't Cheri me. T'was GLENDA who dunnit!"

"He KNOWS what he DID!" Gwen insisted.

Blaise's frown deepened, his hair dimming.

"Really feeling your age now I'll bet, eh, Dad?"

Blaise side eyed Jack, unamused.

"Sorry, sorry. I'm coping."

Blaise sighed. "At least one of us is."

"Right. I think it's about time we got this sorted, once and for all," Mother Nature shot a pointed look Blaise's way. He stiffened.

"I'll get right to it then," Cheri said, standing up. "We cannot trap him again. Not the way you did, Governor. The dark magic he was capable of behind castle walls? The biggest misuse of the dark arts I have seen in a while. Mageia anochio? That shit's so forbidden we straight up forced several of the ingredients extinct! He somehow managed to bring them back, making enough to perform REMOTE mind control at a TEN on the Hunter scale. A TEN! THE SCALE ONLY GOES UP TO SIX!"

Blaise glanced down, frowning so hard lines were appearing. "What then, Your Darkness, do you suggest?"

"You know damn well what I'm suggesting. He's well overdue to get Rosehaven'd, Governor."

"I'm not killing my brother."

"Then I'll do it for you!"

"No! We're not killing him."

"Dad. We can't just stick him in solitary confinement again."

"I agree," Gwen spoke up. "He is simply too powerful to be left to his own devices. We could, perhaps, imprison him differently this time, taking into account what he is capable of once we know more about what he did to get here today."

"Right, but if we do that, we'll have to take it to the Assembly. And does the Assembly have the resources to train a specialized team of magibeans and castors to guard him? Lady only knows what other kinds of magic he knew. The man had like, nearly five thousand years to perfect techniques! He may have created a whole new brand of magic we don't even know about! If we imprison him again, we'll have to take all of this into account. I'm telling you. One and done. Rosehaven him. Poof." Cheri snapped her fingers, a cloud of violet smoke curling upwards, looking vaguely skull like.

"Perhaps there's something a bit more…in between?" Mother Nature suggested.

"Like what, make him undead? Zombify him? Turn him? Free his ghost? Let his skeleton loose?" Cheri paused, thoughtful for a moment. "I could use some fresh bones. And princey bones are hard to come by these days."

Mother Nature frowned. "That's not what I meant."

"What if we could find a way to suspend his magic?"

"That's more along the lines of what I was thinking, thank you Gwen. But! I think, before we jump into picking a punishment, we should see to it that it fits the crime. A first-hand account of the events that have transpired here tonight are in order. Blaise? Jack?"

Both men blinked simultaneously, briefly dumbfounded. They immediately opened their mouths to speak at the same time, cutting each other off instantly. They stopped abruptly, looking at the other.

"Sorry, Dad. You first."

"No, I think you should go first. We already know what he's done in the past. It's best we recount what he's done in the present. You know, when your sister arrived and the blackouts started."

"The what?!"

"Oh this is gonna be good." Cackling, Cheri dropped herself into her chair. Her boots clinked together as she threw her feet up onto the table, landing with a heavy thud. The table briefly buckled, nearly folding in on itself.

"Cheri. Show some decorum."

"Why? You've got enough to cover the both of us, Glenda."

With a huff, Gwen pulled her wand out of her pointed lilac hat, tapping the tip on the table. In a swirl of warm yellow sparks, a pen twirled to life, bouncing out of the way as an old, leather-bound book appeared, hitting the table with a deep thunk. The pages flipped themselves, settling once they found a blank one. The pen hopped to the top, scribbling down the date and attendees as it began to record. Satisfied, Gwen nodded, sliding her wand up her sleeve before turning to the Frosts.

"Council Member Frost? If you please? Then Governor Frost. Let's hear your accounts of the events concerning one Pyros Frost."

Rounding the table to stand by his father's side, Jack took it from the top.

Skimming the details on their reunion and trying his best to reign in his retelling of the thaw, Jack recounted each of Jacqueline's blackouts, prior to them heading home. He explained every detail of each attack, recounting—to the best of his memory—every tiny thing Jacqueline did or said. He explained how their connection was cut off during those attacks, how her rage was foremost the entire time. How the target of her ire was mainly him, with the Workshop being a slight casualty in the crossfires. From there he jumped to their trip home, and how the attacks hadn't occurred there. And made sure to mention how soon the third one happened after they had returned to the Pole.

At this point, Blaise cut in, explaining how he received Jack's summons and how they began to put together what had happened with the potion.

"Mageia anochio! I can't believe it!" Gwen spluttered. "He is in direct violation of several potion making laws, warlock or not! Her Darkness could have his head for this!"

"I should have his head for this, thank you Gwen."

The blonde witch smiled, a fleeting glance almost missed by her magical counterpart. "Don't mention it, Cheri."

"You were saying, Blaise?"

Clearing his throat, Blaise continued his recounting, taking turns with Jack as they built to the grand reveal: Pyros had escaped and made his way right to Blaise to have it out again, once and for all. Blaise stopped for a moment, stiffening suddenly.

"The forcefield. He would've broken through it. The magical fallout…" he closed his eyes tightly, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I imagine, Mother Nature, that this caused one hell of a scene in the East."

"Don't get me started," she huffed, rolling her eyes. "It was a mess; I arrived seconds after the Eastern Reps did. Governor Iden was completely freaking out. Clove and Enid were there with him, and I went there directly when I saw the magical fallout. They managed to calm him down and clean up was well underway when Winter sent word of what had happened over here. Peacekeepers have been notified and the Enforcers are on standby, should the need arise. But, given what we're seeing here, I have a feeling we won't be needing them."

"Has the rest of the Assembly been notified?"

"They have been, yes. Governor Zeki was on his way over to help. Governor Arilla is on standby but expects that Zeki and Iden have it under control. And she's usually right about those sorts of things. Thank you for the concern, Gwen, but we have things…in motion."

"And Governor Lorel?"

"Was quite at ease the moment Arilla said things were under control. Are the Grand Witches satisfied?"

The pair shared a look.

"Of course, Mother Nature."

"Yeah, we're Gucci! Cash money. Go on, Governor Frost."

"Much obliged. Anyway, it was premediated; he was, of course, still salty about the War of Succession. He'd spent the last year planning his escape, and the moment he broke free he came right up here to make it literally everyone else's problem."

A few snorts were heard around the table; someone chuckled. Blaise took a moment before continuing, Jack intercutting more frequently. Together they explained what exactly had happened with Jacqueline and how she had snapped out of it and promptly snapped his staff. Blaise mentioned how Pyros couldn't summon it again; this seemed to pique the interest of both Grand Witches. It piqued Jack's interest, as well. Especially since Blaise hadn't sounded concerned or confused by this development at all. Jack figured he'd have to ask his dad about it later, if he remembered.

Finally, upon conclusion of the epic battle that had both Frost men completely winded, they tried their best to explain exactly how Pyros's plan had worked.

"Okay. Let me see if I got this straight," Cheri said, lip curled in confusion. "When his little revenge curse broke, he immediately made a backup plan that involved scrying until he found an elf he could easily manipulate into doing his business outside his prison for him, and did this by kidnapping a whole ass other actual elf."

"Yep."

"He then waited until he found a new mark, used the blackmailed elf to potion said mark to attack the Frosts and the Workshop, in the hopes that'd it what, break up your family? Give him the crown that hasn't existed for thousands of years?!"

"Something like that."

"Talk about jumping to conclusions, damn. Right, so, he keeps essentially mind controlling the Legate to mess shit up? While he breaks out of his prison and makes his way here to what, overthrow you? Wait, don't answer. Let me guess. Something like that?" Blaise nodded. "Right, cool, so I am following. And he did all of this because he not only blamed you for where his life went but also wanted revenge on Kris Kringle, who has been dead for THOUSANDS of years, because he managed to convince the other elves to join our efforts to put the world back to rights?"

"I couldn't have said it better myself, Your Darkness."

It was quiet. Everyone blinked, dumbfounded, digesting Cheri's succinct summary of Pyros's revenge plan.

It was a completely inane, absolutely hairbrained scheme. The craziest anyone at that table had heard recently. It was laughable; it was pathetic. It was tragic. It was sad. The magibeans assembled at that table sat shocked, taking it all in.

"Okay yeah, no. He's gotta go, Blaise," Cheri grimaced. "I mean. That's. Yikes. I'm speechless."

"He's made you speechless?" Gwen seemed shocked. "That almost never happens."

They stared at that statue in front of them, the colours of the magic spells dancing up and down, looping around one another and shining stronger on occasion. Blaise frowned, rubbing his chin. He stayed silent, for the most part.

It was easy for Jack to guess what his father was thinking.

Resting his elbow on the top of his chair, Jack frowned, crossing his ankles. With a hand on his hip he surveyed Blaise, faintly unamused. "You're still considering confinement over any other solution, aren't you."

"He totally is." Cheri straightened, serving the fiery man with a very stern look. "Blaise, we cannot imprison him again. We need to Rosehaven his ass! Like, yesterday! He's obviously too dangerous to be left to his own devices!"

"Of course. With a library such as the Queen had at his disposal, not to mention a damp basement with excellent growing conditions for a multitude of extinct ingredients, any good Warlock could work wonders! Him especially. I'm no stranger to his talents. He's a fine warlock. But if he was secluded properly without access to these resources, we could easily contain him with minimal impact to the magical community."

"A magical stasis, perhaps?" Gwen suggested.

"No, we need to Rosehaven him!"

"Cheri, If I hear you say Rosehaven one more time I swear to Hecate—"

"Honestly, your Lightness, her Darkness has a point."

"THANK you Jackie!"

"Jack—"

"No, Dad! No. Do not Jack me! I mean come on. You've seen what he's done to us!"

"All us magibeans," Cheri agreed. Angrily she stood up, palms flat on the table. "Let me just remind you all, shall I? Started a hundred-year war that threw our home into chaos. He revealed us to the mortals, kidnapped not just magibeans but humans, too! He tried to destroy the balance of all nature by kidnapping the seasons, one of which is literally your wife, Blaise!"

"And, not to mention the cursing! Illegal potion making, blackmail—and I'm thinking that half of my rep sheet is actually his given the nature of said cursing."

"And there's the little elf boy to consider. Kasper."

"Exactly! Dad, look at everything he's done. Everything! I know you love your brother. I get it. I love my sister, and he's got her laid up in the Elfirmary, in a MAGICAL. COMA. We can't just imprison him again! What if he tries again? What if he goes for the Twins?!"

"I won't let that happen."

"Then prove it! Don't just toss him in a jail cell for another five thousand years! Her Darkness is right. A more permanent solution is what's best."

Blaise huffed, steam coming out of his nose. "If it was Jacqueline."

Jack paled. "What?"

Blaise whirled, nearly glaring at Jack. "IF IT WAS JACQUELINE," he said, a touch too loud, he realized, as Jack actually leaned back. Blaise took a moment, taking a deep breath. Steadying himself. "If the roles were switched and you stood here in my shoes, Jack, and that was Jacqueline there and not your Uncle. Could you do it? Would you?"

"You can't ask me—"

"I just did."

"We both know that it'd be me standing there—"

"Just answer the question, Jack," Blaise snapped, his hair briefly billowing a little higher. "If that was Jacqueline. Would you do it?"

Jack stuttered for a moment, speechless. "I-it's-I…" His shoulders slumped; he sighed. "No. No, I wouldn't. I would never. Of course not. She's my sister."

"Exactly." Blaise's hair slowed to a simmer. He closed his eyes, rubbing the corners of them with his thumb and forefinger. "He's my brother. I know…I'm not…" he huffed, at a loss for words. "I know he's done a lot of wrong. And I know he's the one to blame, not me. But I still feel like I failed him, and worse, in doing so, I failed my entire family!" his arms fell, defeat in his very core as he sunk into the chair behind him, resting his elbows on the table. "I know a more permanent solution is best, but I can't bring myself to do it. He's my brother. My twin."

Mother Nature looked heartbroken. Cheri glanced at Gwen; they frowned at one another, staying silent.

"Dad, I—"

"What, Jack? What would you like me to do?" The flames on his head flared, briefly growing brighter and stretching higher. "Trap him in the molten core of the Earth, doomed to endure the blistering heat for all eternity, and never die?!"

Jack blinked slowly, shocked. Gwen gasped; Mother Nature covered her mouth, eyes wide in shock.

"Damn hot stuff. Eternal torture? I never pegged you as the type!"

"You're not actually going to do that…are you?"

"No, Jack. I'm not. It's not my style." With a sigh, Blaise pat down the flames on top of his head until they were fire code approved. "That's something King Frost would've done. Not me. Not Governor Frost." He clenched a fist, staring down at the table in thought. "Something permanent that doesn't involve shipping him off to Rosehaven…and keeps his magic at bay…"

"We have a couple of techniques we use on those found abusing their magics," Gwen spoke up. "We could modify them."

Blaise hummed thoughtfully. "No. He's way too powerful for something like that to work on him. He's not a novice."

"It'd also take us a few seasons to set that up. UGH," Cheri threw back her head, annoyed. "Novus would've known what to do. And they'd have been speedy about it, too."

"Seasons…" Blaise mused, perking up.

"Maybe Birch could help?"

"We'd have to make the trip out to her, and that'd take some time too."

"Not seasons though. She's in the mountains, isn't she? Just south of the Springs, I thought—"

"SEASONS!" Blaise jumped up suddenly, hair once more flaring. "Sprite seal," he glanced over at Mother Nature.

Now it was her turn to perk up. "A sprite seal? Blaise, that's…"

"It's permanent in that only you or all four Seasons would be able to break it. It'd keep his magic at bay, and he won't be able to break out of that. Not when he lacks a form. And his staff, for that matter."

"Lacks a—wait. Hold on a second, Dad. Do you mean to tell me that there's a way to revert sprites to their natural state of being?"

Blaise nodded. "There is. Our numbers dwindled significantly after the Fae War, but! Old punishments like that were not forgotten. You can thank your Grandfather for that one," Blaise said disdainfully.

"Yikes. Glad I never got on his bad side."

"And you would've. Easily." Blaise cleared his throat. "If it's alright with you Mother Nature. Your Lightness. Your Darkness. Council Member Frost. I motion that we call in the seasons and enact a sprite seal."

Mother Nature nodded graciously. "Motion pushed. All in favour?"

The Grand Witches hands shot up fairly fast. So did Jack's. Blaise nodded, his own hand going up.

"None opposed, then?"

Everyone shook their heads.

"Then the vote is unanimous. Pyros Frost. On behalf of this gathering of magibeans, you are hereby sentenced to a sprite seal. Your form will be suspended; as will your magic." Mother Nature picked up the gavel, slamming it down. "Motion carried."

Blaise let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding, taking a moment to hang his head and collect himself. Jack shuffled closer to him, briefly patting his shoulder.

"Right on, let's get to it then! Who's calling up the seasons?"

"No need, Cheri dear," Mother Nature said, turning towards the door. "You can come in now, girls."

The door burst open, Winter leading the pack. "Hello Mother! Witches, Jack dear." She flounced right up to the front of the table, all smiles. "Blaise darling, I'm so sorry. I hope you don't mind but I had already made up my mind about what to do and took the liberty of calling my sisters in." She gestured to the door behind her as Summer, Autumn, and Spring rolled on in.

"Were you going to do the sprite seal no matter what decision we came to?" Blaise asked, eyebrow raised.

"Oh, yes dear! Most definitely," Winter sounded ever so chipper at the prospect as her sisters joined her around the stone statue.

Blaise chuckled. "You do know that broadly, that could count as treason, right?"

"That'd be quite all right by me. You see, we have a benevolent leader who I am more than willing to seduce should the need arise. And," with a sly grin, Winter used the table to push herself up, kissing Blaise's jawline very, very gently. "I've every confidence that I could do so quite easily." Breathy, she glanced up at Blaise through her eyelashes, satisfied when colour started to return to his cheeks.

"Mom? Dad? There's a TIME and a PLACE," Jack reminded them.

Blaise cleared his throat. "Right. Down girl." He lay a single finger on the tip of Winter's nose, pushing her away gently. Laughing quietly to herself, she plopped back onto her feet and let go of the table, joining her sisters around the Pyros statue.

"Mother? We're ready when you are," Spring said politely.

She nodded, turning to Blaise. "You're positive?"

The briefest of hesitations, then finally, a nod. "Are you?"

Mother Nature nodded. "Quite."

"Then let's get on with it."

Jack watched as Mother Nature moved around the table, positioning herself in front of the statue. Winter stood in front of her; her hand glowed a bright white as she placed her forefinger and thumb on what was Pyros's chest, right above his heart. She served his stone face with the most malicious look Jack had ever seen, as though he were the most wretched creature she had ever lain eyes on.

Which, given everything he had done to Winter's loved ones personally, Jack guessed was probably right on the money.

The other seasons mirrored her. Across from Winter, at Pyros's back, Summer stood tall, her finger and thumb placed on the back of his head, glowing a sunshiny yellow. Spring and Autumn stood at either shoulder, fingers splayed in much the same way, also glowing. Mother Nature lifted her hands; the Seasons bowed their heads, closed their eyes, and Mother Nature spoke up.

"Through the power granted to me through Mother Gaia, granted to her through the Goddess herself, I forfeit this sprite of his being." The statue began to glow, the magic of each season spreading, blending with one another until the statue was covered in a kaleidoscope of seasonal colours. "From whence you came, back you shall go. Your humanoid form will be no more. Your magic extinguished forevermore."

There was a hiss; the temperature in the room increased. The statue creaked and groaned, shifting as each Season lay her hand flat upon the surface. The stone seemed to harden; cracks healed themselves. The temperature began to drop, a layer of what looked to be decay blooming across the statue, fast obscured by frost. It hardened, snapping as it turned to ice, until with a thwip vines burst from the ground and wound themselves all around the statue.

All four seasons lifted their hands off the statue at the same time and stepped back, Mother Nature stepping forward. She placed the palm of her hand on the forehead, her fingers curling and laying delicately on the top of the head. "The Mark of the Seasons have been impressed upon you." Her hand glowed, a bright gold light shrouding the statue. "And with my blessing, this sprite is now sealed."

The magic swirled briefly before dropping completely.

Everything was still once more.

There was no big, all-encompassing glow, no hullabaloo; no earth shattering shaking or earthquakes or anything of the sort.

Just…silence.

Nobody spoke. Not even Cheri had jabs to throw.

Finally, Blaise stood up, summoning his staff. He tapped the ground, the orange seals and runes lighting up.

"Your Lightness. Your Darkness. If you'd be so kind."

The Grand Witches shared a look amongst one another before standing up. Clasping hands, they pulled out their wands in sync. Lifting them, their seals and runes on the floor lit up as well. With a wave, they flew off of the tiles and onto the statue, flora and fauna erupting beneath each mark, petals closing around them and swallowing them whole, disappearing into the stone.

Blaise straightened, dismissing his staff. The witches followed suit, putting away their wands. They looked at Blaise expectantly.

He cleared his throat. "I propose we inter him within Bianca's Range. The endless blizzard will make travel nearly impossible without the assistance of a winter sprite or Mother Nature herself."

Winter brightened. "Ou, I know just the place! It's a little cave about halfway up the middlemost mountain. It should suffice. Quite well, I'd say."

"Winter, you'll lead us there. We'll seal the entrance as well, just to be safe." Mother Nature turned back to the witches. "Grand Witches, thank you for attending on such short notice."

"Of course," Gwen clasped her hands together, wand between them. The book and pen lifted up and swirled away in a poof of magic, Cheri waving away stray yellow sparks. "I'll have a copy of the transcript made for each of us, as well as the appropriate copies for outside parties and archival purposes."

"I'll hit up the magibeans that aren't Rosehaven'd, let them know what we decided on here. Anything else you need, Tara babe?"

Mother Nature smiled. "No, that'll be all, I believe. Jack?"

Jack swallowed, his throat dry as he stared at what was once his Uncle warily. "I'm good."

She nodded. "Blaise?"

He shook his head.

Winter dropped her shoulders, worry creeping onto her features. "I'm sorry darling." She rounded the table, carefully winding her hand in his. She gave it a squeeze. "Will you be okay?"

"I will." He squeezed back. Gave her a soft smile, then cleared his throat. "Mother Nature and I will accompany the Seasons and make sure this gets taken care of. Jack, you're in charge—"

"Ou!"

"Of your siblings. Not the Workshop; and especially not Crystal Springs."

"That's no fun."

Blaise chuckled. "We'll be back as soon as we can. Try not to start any fires."

"As tempting as it may be," Winter added.

"Of course. I'll uh, go make sure any that have started have been ah, put out. Lovely to see you all, but I best be off. Ciao," Jack waved, trying his best to walk calmly and carefully out of the room, when every fibre of his being was telling him to run.

---

The unsettling feeling that had crept over Jack only subsided when the elevator dinged, letting him off on the second floor. Still reeling from what he had just witnessed, exhaustion slowly creeping back into his bones, Jack made his way through the Workshop, looking for his younger siblings. Heading down the hall, he dodged a handful of freshly bandaged elves. Lifting his elbows above their heads, he watched them go, nearly crashing into someone at the top of the stairs.

"Oh, I'm so sor—Laura? What're you—" Jack took a step or two back, glancing around. "You haven't happened to see a uh, pair of children around, have you?"

"Well, that depends. Are they twins and are they on fire?"

"That'd be the ones."

"In that case, I have. You know, they run a really tight triage," Laura mused, gesturing an elf inside the Elfirmary doors.

Relieved that they hadn't caused any trouble for the woman, Jack chuckled. "I noticed. You know, I think that's the weirdest thing I've learnt about them since meeting them."

"Not the fire? Because it was the fire for me."

Jack laughed. "No, that's, uh, as natural to them as the frost is to me. Sorry about that, by the way."

Laura straightened up, confused. "About the frost?"

"You know, about uh. Freezing you and your hubby last year? That was…" Jack scratched the back of his head. "Yeah. Not great. Sorry about that. And about almost crashing into you just now."

Laura laughed. "Well, thank you for the apology. I appreciate it. Sorry I almost bonked you back down the stairs. It's a little crazy in here, isn't it? Everyone's a little on edge so, you know, I'm just trying to help out where I can." A sniffling elf came by and stopped in front of Laura, holding her arm the way a puppy holds up an injured paw. "Oh, Right this way, sweetheart," she bent down, gently manoeuvring the elf into the Elfirmary. "We'll get that frostbite taken care of right away, okay?"

The elf nodded, pausing when the doors to the Elfirmary burst open. Stepping aside to let the elf through, Fiera held the door, waiting for Fino to steer the elf in the right direction before the pair popped out of the room together.

"Dr. Miller!" The doors swung shut behind Fiera, Fino sticking out a leg to stop it from hitting his twin's back as she saluted Laura.

"It's Nurse, Fiera. I'm a nurse. Not a doctor."

"Right!" Feira re-saluted. "Nurse Miller! Here's your status report!"

"Just Laura is fine," she laughed, stepping aside as another elf bounced out of the Elfirmary.

"Sorry if they're uh, giving you trouble," Jack said quietly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Oh they've been absolute gems! You know, your mother is such a sweetheart. She felt terrible leaving them here with me but they've been so helpful it wasn't a problem. They have lovely bedside manner and they're great with the burn victims."

"And sometimes even the ones with minor frostbite! Though Mom's been taking care of them. Speaking of," Fino paused, stopping the swinging door once more. "Where is she? We have a couple of frostbite cases that are a little bit out of our area of expertise—"

"I can take care of them," Jack interrupted. "If that's alright with you, Dr. Miller."

Laura laughed. "Again, I'm a nurse, and just Laura is fine for you too, Jack. You're not on thin ice or anything."

"I'm never on thin ice! I walk that stuff easy," he assured. "Mom's out with Dad, right now. They're on their way to uh. Take care of things."

"UNCLE PYROS?!" Fiera's hair flared in her excitement, briefly burning farther down her back.

"What was that like?" Fino asked. "What was his whole deal?"

"Did you kill him dead?!"

"Fiera!"

"It's an honest question!"

"No we did not kill him dead. They floated the option around, but Dad nipped it in the bud."

"Ha. He loves his twi-in."

"So do you!"

"I know! Neither of us is crazy evil though, so, you know. It's different, Fins. It's—the context. You know?"

"I getchya," Fino nodded wisely. He turned back to Jack. "So what happened to him, then?"

"He got a little something that's ah, worse than death. It's called a sprite seal."

"A sprite seal? What is that?" Laura asked.

"He, uh. It's, ah." Jack frowned, grumbling thoughtfully. "Back in the day, us sprites weren't exactly like this," he explained, gesturing to his literal icy self and his literal fiery younger siblings. "We didn't have forms. We were just elements, you know? We just, we existed."

"Like Ariel in The Tempest?"

"Exactly like that! Gold star for you, Laura!" Jack paused, happy to have gotten a laugh out of her, continuing when it died down. "Most sprites back in the day started out like that. Over time, we evolved and gained form, but at our core, us sprites are just elements and in some cases, a whole lot of love. A sprite seal is what happens when the magic that makes a sprite—all the elements combined, that is—seal a sprite without form. So basically—"

"Uncle Pyros is trapped inside himself as like. A little ball of fire or like, steam, with no access to any of his magic," Fiera guessed.

Both adults blinked.

"Uh, yes. Exactly that," Jack said, perplexed.

Fino's hair flared, the sprite almost jumping in excitement. "Ah that's what I was gonna say! Nice job, Fi!"

"I'll share my good grade with you."

"Hey. No sharing grades! Not in my classroom."

"Hey! You can't tell me what to do!"

"Dad left me in charge so I think I can."

"Doesn't mean I have to listen," Fiera crossed her arms, squinting up at Jack.

"Uh-huh," Jack said, staring down at the sprite and mirroring her pose. They stayed like this for a moment, until Fiera cracked a smile and let out a little giggle. Jack smirked, uncrossing his arms. "Mom and Dad'll be back in a bit. They went with Gran and the Aunts to put Uncle P away somewhere. I was on my way down to keep an eye on you two and keep you out of trouble, but it looks like Laura's got things handled."

"Speaking of, let's get back to work, guys? These elves aren't going to heal themselves. Jack, you okay if they stick around?"

"Please?" they both said, eyes wide, matching pouts on their faces.

"You don't mind?"

"Of course not! They've been an absolute godsend. I'd be happy to have them continue helping me out here."

"Go crazy, you two," Jack said, shooing them back into the Elfirmary.

Grinning, they turned tail and ran in, pushing the doors open and extinguishing their hair. Jack grabbed one, holding it open and gesturing Laura through.

"Thanks Jack," she said, stepping through. "You know, they're really very sweet. And you are too, offering to help. May we take you up on that offer? If you were serious."

"Of course I was serious," Jack said, uncharacteristically earnest. "It's the least I can do after all this," he waved towards the outside, "and last year's stunt. I am really sorry about that."

"You know, I'm getting the sense that you were," Laura said with a wry smile.

Jack smiled. "Right!" He let the door swing shut behind him, his usual grandiose back. "If you'd be so kind as to lead the way, Laura?"

"Certainly," she said, starting towards the left side of the room.

"Just. Just one more thing, if you don't mind. A quick question."

She turned around, head tilted. "Sure. What's up?"

"A nurse? What's up with that?"

"Oh," Laura laughed, continuing forward and gesturing for Jack to follow. "That. Well, that's what I went to school for! I was and still am a registered nurse. Worked in the field for a few years. Then I stopped. The hours were long, and Charlie needed a parent."

"And when you met that psychiatrist of yours. You never went back?"

Laura chuckled. "No. Neil made more than enough to support the both of us, and the job was demanding, you know? Don't get me wrong, I loved it! But work conditions aren't great, and the pay could be better, and…it was tough, leaving the kids for sometimes two, three shifts stacked back-to-back."

"I hear ya."

Laura hummed. "So I stepped back, made sure to be there for Charlie and later Lucy. Never went back. But I didn't stop stop, you know? I volunteered. Pursued other interests. Journalism mostly, but nothing too grand. Mostly local. Helped out the community. But I never forgot my roots," she said, stopping beside the elf that she had just sent in. She looked over her arm with a soft smile. "Right, Jack. Let's get to work. Any longer and these poor elves may lose fingers and toes!"

"Not on my watch, Nurse Miller! Now, let's see that arm, shall we?"

---

It was a sliver of an opening. They'd have missed it, were it not for Winter.

Outside the pass in the valley, the wind howled. It moaned through cracks, sounding ghastly as it wailed its way through the nooks and crannies of the mountains. The wind whipped up the snow, the cold bitter, your face drying in the blink of an eye.

Inside the pass, on the narrowest path you could possibly imagine, stood Mother Nature, the Seasons, and the sprites formerly known as the Twin Princes—one of which was a giant stone blob, cast in an orange glow and hovering between them all. The other stood behind him, staff clutched tightly between his hands, tip aglow, his eyes not leaving the statue for a second.

Wordlessly, Mother Nature stepped in front of the group, sizing up the opening Winter pointed out. Shaking out her arms, she lifted her hands and began to spread them apart. The mountain rumbled; the opening glowed, getting brighter and larger as Mother Nature focused on it, concentrating until it was wide enough to allow the tallest of them through.

She stepped in first, Summer and Autumn trailing alongside her. The statue floated in behind them, Blaise stepping in after it, staff glowing as he manoeuvred what was left of his brother into the small cave. Winter and Spring stepped in behind him, placing themselves by the entrance. Each season placed her hand on the rocky walls, seasonal magic glowing beneath them.

The statue landed, tottering briefly before stilling. The vines erupted once more, spreading out along the stony walls and rooting into them, keeping the statue steady. Flora and fauna bloomed once more, the seals taken from the floor latching onto the cave walls, briefly filling the space up with colourful light.

As fast as it lit up, it dimmed. Frost curled out from the center of the statue, creeping along and over it until it covered the thing once again. It hissed; there was a pop. Dry ice floated off of it briefly.

Mother Nature stood still, head tilted for a moment. Whatever she was looking for, she seemed to find, for a moment later she nodded and turned back to the group. "He won't be coming out of here any time soon. It'd be a miracle if he managed to escape this."

The Seasons stood quietly, looking over at Blaise, and then to Winter, worried. She nodded.

"Blaise darling?"

With a solemn nod, his staff disappeared. His shoulders fell.

Hand dropping from the cave wall, Winter stepped forward. Snaking her arm around his, she laced their fingers together, laying her head on his arm and squeezing his hand.

"Are you sure this is what you want to do?"

Blaise nodded, squeezing her back. "For now, at least."

"Okay." Winter glanced over at Mother Nature expectantly.

"Our work here is done," the matriarch said, folding her hands together. "We should get moving. The storm's only going to get worse."

"You got it, Mom!" Saluting, Summer gestured Autumn towards the gaping entrance. Nodding, she grabbed Spring's hand, gently pulling her out of the cave (the season briefly protesting until Summer shot her a strict look). "We'll wait outside for you three," Summer finished, covering Spring's back.

Mother Nature nodded, watching Blaise quietly as the seasons filed out. "All that's left to do now is seal the mountain shut."

Blaise didn't say anything. He nodded once more, holding Winter's hand as though his life depended on it.

Mother Nature stood in the opening, watching as Winter glanced up at Blaise, concerned. She squeezed his hand once more,murmuring a quick "I'll be right back" before letting him go and making her way to the Matriarch's side.

"Mother," she said quietly, waiting for the woman to lean down slightly. "You go on ahead, take the others back. I'll make sure Blaise leaves."

"You're sure?"

Winter glanced back at Blaise. He stood still as could be, his back tense. The firelight from his hair flickered against the walls, casting light on the statue in front of him. "I'm sure."

"Very well. I'll take your sisters through the storm, and we'll take care of the fallout back at home. Make sure you and your hubby focus on resting up and recovering. I'll be by the Pole in a few days to check in on you and the kids."

Winter nodded. "I'll let him know."

"I don't know if I'll be able to stop your sisters from tagging along. You know how they are."

"All too well," Winter said, the smallest of smiles gracing her face. "Will you return to seal the mountain?"

Mother Nature looked thoughtful, tapping her lips with a finger. "You know…legend has it that the Snow Queen could move mountains."

"Does it now?"

Mother Nature hummed.

Eyes downcast, Winter looked away. "…I can't say I recall that."

"It's true. Now, given your parentage, it may be something you can do, too."

The season pursed her lips, thoughtful for a moment. "I've never tried."

"Perhaps now is the time?"

Winter glanced back at her husband. His shoulders were slumped, his hair barely a smoulder. He was hunched, looking so very small; his aura of confidence gone, he felt so…despondent.

Her heart ached for him.

"I think perhaps now is not the time."

Mother Nature nodded. "Take all the time you need. Both of you."

"Thank you."

"But try not to dally."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Winter scoffed, her lips a line of distaste as she glanced back at the statue that had Blaise transfixed. "I'll make sure we get back to the Pole swiftly and safely."

"Send word when you do."

"Of course."

Mother Nature smiled. She bent slightly, her lips glowing gold as she lay a kiss on Winter's forehead.

Winter blinked rapidly, her eyes briefly glowing the same gold as Mother Nature's magic. Spots briefly clouded her vision; her ears rang. Her fingers were tingling. Rubbing her eyes, she drew back, shocked when she saw the golden sparkles speckled into her usual snowy magic.

"That should be enough to seal the mountain shut."

"Will I need to give it back?"

"Oh, no! Not at all. If I've done it right, it should clear out as soon as you've finished up here. You'll be okay?"

Winter nodded.

"Good. I'll see you soon. Stay safe."

And with that, Mother Nature left the cave.

Winter paused for a beat, watching the retreating back of her mother and sisters. She stood there well after they disappeared, waiting for the sounds of crunching footsteps and Spring's chitchat to die down before slipping back into the cave herself. Coming up alongside Blaise, she stood beside him quietly.

"Alright?"

"No. But I will be." Finally alone together, Blaise let himself crumple. His hand found hers and reclaimed it, giving it a comforting squeeze. "I know you don't necessarily agree with what I've done…but I appreciate you supporting it regardless."

"Of course, dear. Besides, a sprite seal is impossible to break if you aren't Mother Nature or one of us Seasons. I imagine it'd be hard to break out of something like this anyway when you've been reduced to nothing but hot air."

Blaise laughed through his nose. He squeezed her hand again, giving her a reassuring smile before looking back at the statue, frowning in thought.

"You think he can change."

"The curse broke. Curses don't just break. A lot of work goes into making any curse manageable, let alone breakable. A castor has to have their heart filled with an unimaginable amount of hate to even lay a curse. There can't be room for a single sliver of love in your heart if you curse someone. But the curse he laid on Jack…it broke."

"Curse breakers aren't unheard of. Perhaps Lucy is magical?"

"Oh, I don't doubt it for a second! But even then, the fact that whatever magic she did worked means that somewhere in there…"

"Pyros may still be your brother."

"Exactly." He chuckled, embarrassed. "I know. It's, it's silly. It's stupid, it's crazy—I know. I just…"

Winter's heart filled with so much love for him in that moment that it skipped a few beats, affection softening her features.

"Oh Blaise darling, you are so full of hope." Reaching up, she caressed his face, turning him towards her. Popping up on her tiptoes, she gave him a kiss. The shadows grew longer as his hair grew brighter. Pulling away from his lips, she gazed up at him, eyes soft. "I know. I understand. I may not agree," she reminded him, sternly. "But I understand."

"Thank you."

"It's my pleasure," she said, squishing his cheeks and stepping down. "I love you. That means that I'll support you, even if your decision isn't what I myself would have done. But if it's what you want, and you truly believe he can change one day…"

"I do."

"I trust you. I won't stand in your way."

"Thanks, love."

She smiled, her chipper demeanour returning. "Now then! I highly doubt he's going to suddenly turn good whilst we stand here dawdling. It's best we head out. I'll be right outside when you're ready."

"No need to wait, dear. I'm heading out, too."

The pair of them slid out of the cave, stopping just past the threshold. Winter looked at Blaise expectantly; he nodded.

The season lifted her hands. White magic flecked with gold bloomed to life, the rocky edges of the small opening taking on the same glow. The ground below them began to rumble. Lips pursed, her body taut, Winter slowly moved her arms up. Rocks jutted out from the doorway, gravel crunching as layers and layers of rocky shoal burst from the mountain. Stiff, the rocks shot up slowly, sweat beading on Winter's brow as the shoal finally linked up, creating one long, bumpy stone.

Blaise stood, the glow from his hair bathing the statue in light. It played on the muted features of the head, flickering on the blank stone eyes, a long, dark shadow cast on the cave wall behind it. A pang of loss hit Blaise. Hard.

The ground shot up, the light in the cave dwindling slowly. The statue was slowly plunged into darkness bottom-up, until a sliver was left, the eyes of the statue still bathed in light.

It snapped shut. The cave was sealed; the statue plunged into a lonely darkness, an equally lonely glow pooling around Blaise.

Beyond the mountains and over the horizon, dawn began to break.

---

The North Pole was silent as the night shifted into twilight.

Though the crew was still out in full force, the damage to the square had been completely repaired. The hole was no more; the repaired sections of stonework were cordoned off, flashing pylons warning the elves away from the drying masonry. The temperature had stabilized; the melting of the Dome had seemingly stopped.

The Workshop had all but returned to normal, cozy and warm once more, messes finally sorted. A few last-minute touches were being done by the night crew, alongside general maintenance. Gifts were being transferred as fast as possible to wrapping, what with Christmas Eve being four days off.

Upstairs, the Elfirmary doors had stilled. The last few elves treated for burns and frostbite were healed, bandaged up, and sent off with a lollipop by one of the newer doctors, Doc Marten. She had a knack for summoning the most delightful treats out of thin air. She did the rounds, checking in on the one or two elven patients staying the night.

With one last flourished lollipop, she made her way over to the Frosts.

The younger siblings had tried to make their sister's bed as cozy as possible. Pillows were thrown about, warm blankets covering the pair of them as they lay fast asleep, heads resting by Jacqueline's feet. Jack sat in a chair at the top of the bed, looking to be dozing off himself. Marten squinted—not quite asleep, it seemed. Just resting his eyes, she was sure he'd say. Adults did that a lot, after all, and magibean adults were no exception.

This was just fine with her. He was next on her list, after all.

Checking the equipment sent their way from General, Marten made a note of the Legate's vitals. Everything was low. Everything. She appeared to be functioning as little as possible, bodily speaking.

Except for her brain activity. According to the screens, that was off the charts.

Making some notes, Marten glanced up at Jack once more. He stretched his legs out, exhaustion hitting him hard.

"Despite the low readings, her vitals look okay. She's functioning at the bare minimum, which is to be expected given everything. Her brain activity is off the charts, though." Frowning, she pulled a small thermometer like device out of her pocket. She held it over Jacqueline; it beeped, glowing red as she ran it up and down the sprite.

She brought it back to her face, reading the small display. It pinged, the light going green. "No sign of Rosehaven magic."

"Oh, that's good."

"We're not totally out of the clear for it, according to CSGHA guidelines. But it's looking good. She's stable. Some kind of combination magical coma and sprite sleep."

Jack chuckled humourlessly. "That about checks out. Any idea when she'll wake up?"

"That's very up in the air. With the low activity, and the mindscape appearing to be working overtime, it's…hard to say. Reassimilating her essence while trying to purge herself of the mageia would do quite the number; she could be out for a few days. It's…I don't want to say a new situation; I'm sure it's been seen well before my time. I'd say it's more…rare if anything."

Jack grumbled noncommittally.

"But don't worry, Council Member Frost! We'll make sure she's back on her feet in no time at all," and, with a flourish, Dr. Marten pulled a huge, colourful lollipop out of thin air. "Here you go!"

Jack raised an eyebrow, reaching out (painfully, he thought to himself, as every single muscle seemed to protest at the movement) and grabbing it. "Thanks."

"Now, prior to the shift changed I was advised by Dr. Hismus that both you and Governor Frost were to stay overnight for observation. You can take the bed behind you, next to your sister. Any idea where the Governor is?"

"Right now? Not a clue! But! I do know that he left for a bit of an…outing earlier this evening. Given the nature of it and the time, I expect he'll be back soon enough. I wouldn't worry. He'll come right back here, after all."

"You're certain?"

"See for yourself."

Marten turned around as the Elfirmary doors slammed open. A very dishevelled, exhausted looking Blaise held the tops of the doors, waiting for Winter to slide in before he dropped his arms.

"Oh, Governor Frost! There you are! We'll need to keep you in overnight for observational purposes—"

Blaise did not reply. He didn't even acknowledge the doctor. He simply made his way to the empty bed to the left of Jacqueline's and fell down in it, fully clothed, face pressed into the pillow. He was snoring in seconds.

"Ah. Okay. Great!" Nodding as though she had done a very good job with a very arduous task, Doc Marten flipped through the pages on her clipboard, scribbling some notes down ferociously. Nose in the papers, she made her way over to the observation desk, leaving the Frosts alone with one another.

"I see they tuckered themselves out?" Winter said quietly. She smiled down at the twins fondly, pushing back their bright orange hair. She rubbed some soot off of Fiera's cheek. Hand moving over to Fino, she ran her fingers gently through his hair, a pile of ash sprinkling down onto the floor.

"Hmm? Oh, yes. They played hospital today with a real live nurse. Not that these guys aren't RN's," Jack clarified, catching the glares the on-duty Elf Nurses shot his way. "Or I suppose, REN's."

The nurse closest to him nodded approvingly, moving right along. He sighed, turning his attention back to his sister's prone form. Her chest rose and fell. Stopped for a bit too long. Then rose and fell once more.

Making her way up the bedside Winter joined Jack, gazing down at Jacqueline. Delicately, she moved a few stray hairs off of her face, smoothing back the little flyaway strands from her brow.

"How is she?"

"She's holding on."

Winter nodded. Lightly rubbing Jacqueline's cheek, she sighed. "She'll make it through. She's a fighter. Just like her Dad."

Jack didn't reply.

"Um, Your...Snowiness?"

Winter looked up, immediately adopting her regal stance. "Yes dear?"

"Hi. Dr. Marten. Overnight supervisor. I just wanted to let you know that we are technically closed to visitors right now."

"Ah, yes! Good point, thank you kindly." She stepped towards Jack, a gentle hand on his shoulder. "I'll be right back, darling."

Jack nodded, watching as Winter moved noiselessly towards the Twins, poking them both very gently. They began to stir, rousing themselves groggily.

Fiera sat up, swaying briefly. She blinked out of sync, half of her hair completely up in the air. "Hi mommy."

"Hello Fiera darling. Come along now, let's get proper ready for bed, shall we?"

Fino sat up, confused. He rubbed his eyes, smacking his lips and immediately sitting up straight with a grimace. "Jack! I didn't brush my teeth! You can't keep letting me get away with stuff like this," he said, sliding off the bed.

Jack chuckled. "Of course. How could I. You're shaping up to be such a little criminal, Fino."

"He wishes," Fiera said weakly, sliding off the bed and gently swaying into him.

"Stop that," Fino replied, a tiny, tired smile on his face as he swayed back into Fiera.

"Save it for tomorrow, you two." Gently laying a hand on their backs, Winter steered them out of the Elfirmary and down the hall, the pair of them gently pushing each other the entire time.

Jack chuckled. He got up, a careless wave of his hand magically moving the chair to the other side of his bed. He threw off his jacket and his suspenders, kicked off his shoes and plonked onto the bed. He could feel the tired creeping into the corners of his eyes. He rolled over, shifting so that he was facing Jacqueline.

Still, she did not move.

Jack sighed, making himself comfortable. The doors to the Elfirmiry opened up again. Jack yawned, unfazed when Dr. Marten called out in surprise, "Your Snowiness?!"

"Oh, I'll be staying with my husband tonight," Winter said. Jack could hear the material of her nightgown swish by as she sat on Blaise's bed, gently lifting one of his arms and snuggling up under it.

"Okie dokie then," Doc Marten said, burying her head back into her desktop. Best not to argue with a season, she expected.

Propping himself up on his elbow with a whole lot of effort, Jack smiled to himself when Blaise, still deep asleep, scooted over, immediately grabbed Winter and pulled her right up against his side, his arm locking her in place. His head flipped; he was smiling, even in his sleep.

Jack was about to let his elbow drop and pull up one of his own blankets when the doors fwipped open once more. He rolled over, biting back a laugh as Fino and Fiera wandered back into the Elfirmary.

"I'm sorry, little Frosts. You can't be in here right now."

The Twins shared a look and, perfectly in sync, punched each other right in the gut.

Jack sprang up, shocked as the pair of them doubled over with much oofing and owwing.

"Sweet Christmas! What'd you go and do that for?!" Doc Marten exclaimed, a bunch of mints suddenly appearing in midair and flying out behind her.

"To show you we're injured," Fiera spluttered, holding her gut.

"Oof ow ouch. SO injured," Fino said, gagging briefly. "I think I'm gonna be sick!"

"There's so much pain, I think my organs are switching places!"

"We should stay the night for observation, just in case organ switching is contagious."

"We are going to show ourselves to a bed, so don't even worry about us! C'mon, Fins."

Grabbing her twin's wrist, the pair of them raced over to the rest of the Frosts. They rushed around to Winter and Blaise's bed, placed both hands on the frame and shoved, the bed slowly creaking forward until it gently bonked Jacqueline's.

Satisfied, the pair raced over to Jack's bed, getting into the exact same position.

"What do the two of you think you're doing?!"

"Going to bed! Duh," Fiera said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"We've been on our feet all day, Jack. Mind giving us a hand here?"

"The longer Fino stays awake for the crankier he gets!"

"Well we can't be having that now, can we?" sighing, Jack waved his hand. Both Twins found themselves floating briefly before being deposited on the bottom of Jack's bed. With another wave of his hand, their bed went rolling, gently colliding into Jacqueline's.

"Happy now?"

"It's PERFECT!" Grinning, Fiera stood up, carefully stepping over Jacqueline and making herself comfortable between Jacqueline and Winter.

Bouncing, Fino made himself comfortable opposite her, between Jack and Jacqueline.

"Are those footie pajamas?" Jack asked.

"At least I've got my jammies and am not sleeping in my clothes," Fino pointed out.

"I will push you off this bed."

"Don't worry Fins! If he does, I'll catch you and we can dogpile Jacqueline!"

"Don't," Blaise said gruffly, still fully asleep.

All three kids turned to look at him, perplexed. The Twins blinked, sharing a look. They glanced back at Jack.

Jack blinked. "I can't believe he still does that."

"Still?!"

"And I'll do it again if you don't all get to sleep."

Winter rolled her eyes. "Goodnight Blaise darling." Giving the kids the warning eyes, she shoo'd them to sleep, wriggling closer to Blaise and closing her own eyes.

Giggling, the Twins tossed blankets and pillows over to one another, Jack sinking back down in his own bed. Catching a throw that one of the twins tossed his way, he unfurled it, flipping onto the side facing all three siblings now.

"Night Jack."

"Goodnight, Fino."

"Night Jack!"

Jack smiled. "Goodnight Fiera."

"Night Mom!"

"Goodnight Fiera."

"Night Mom!"

"Yes, goodnight to you too Fino. Now hush up, the lot of you. It's been a long day and we don't want to disturb your dad again. Or your sister, for that matter."

Snuggling up one last time, their backs pressed against either side of Jacqueline, the twins drifted off, closing their eyes once more as they finally fell back asleep. Behind them, Blaise snored every so often, Winter tight in his grasp. She held onto his arm, fast asleep herself.

Jack's blinking slowed, eyelids growing heavier and heavier with each passing blink. Exhaustion crept through him, bone deep. He took in his snoozing parents one last time, his siblings fast asleep between them, curled up alongside Jacqueline's legs.

He smiled, eyes fluttering shut as sleep finally overtook him.

---

A/N: Hello! So sorry for the delay! I've fallen behind and Chapter 29 isn't quite finished as of yet, so I pushed this back a week! I wanted to give myself some extra time.

Also, the hubbers got hit by Miss Rona, so I was pretty preoccupied taking care of him! He doesn't like to not do things and feels bad when he gets sick bc he can't go to work, etc. etc. It's very Blaise on main of him. Anyway, we're both right as rain this week (she somehow DIDN'T get me, get yo boosters if you can, would recommend) and Chapter 29 is just about finished so we are back in shape, I think! Fingers crossed!

I made a lore guide for this chapter what with all the new characters introduced. You can find it on mine tumblr, I tagged it as cs28 lore guide (so safyresky dot tumblr dot com backslash tagged backslash cs28 lore guide)! I'd add a link but I've heard that ff dot net isn't a fan of that.

Also, I did indeed give CS the one fuck treatment, and HERE IT IS! IN THIS CHAPTER! Winter won it. Jacqueline gets to swear lots next chapter in her mindscape-whoop! Spoilers! ;)

Anyway, enjoy! Thank you for the love and the reviews-they mean a lot to me. I had a lot of favourite parts here! Maybe some of our fave parts are the same? ;) Shoot me a line! See you next week! :)