This story, along with Ostara, will from now on be toned down to T for 's standards. If you wanna go for the mature version, please look for me on AO3. It might be a slow process, due to school, real life, and other stories to work on, but it's still a process. And also, to Sun's Eye, I have read Darkness of Spring, and it's actually one of the inspirations besides Caught that got me into writing up dark deity!Bunny.

With that said, please enjoy.

Chapter 3: Adolescence of Jamie Bennet

As soon as Jack landed upon the black pavement, he looked around frantically, trying to find any sign of fire. He had flown as quickly as he could to his hometown; his movements were now slow and cautious as he pattered carefully up the driveway off Jamie's house with staff at ready.

Upon reaching the corner, he took a deep breath then poked his head around; his heart was beating rapidly against his chest. He tightened his grip on his staff and stepped out…only to find the yard empty.

He frowned as Jack walked onto the grass just under Jamie's bedroom window, while looking around of the backyard; so far he only found a stray baseball and also the tree swing. Nothing out of the ordinary so far…

Then a slight hooting sound brought him out of focus and he looked up to see a frozen owl perched upon the branch of the backyard tree, staring at him with clear eyes. The way the sun shone upon it is almost like crystal. Jack gave the creature a stern glare as he stared up at it.

"You sent me an image of Flicker standing right here." He stated, pointing at the ground underneath his feet. The way he was talking up at the owl like it was a toddler.

The owl just spun its head around in all direction then hooted again as if saying "not my fault."

Jack let out a sigh as he tried to calm his rapidly beating heart. He didn't know why he had gotten so worked up…maybe it was the fact that he just found out that this Flicker guy was actually willing to hurt people, then had to see an image of him right outside of Jamie's widow.

That was a scary sight…

Would he really hurt a child? Jack thought. Then he shook his head a bit. Wait…Jamie is technically a teenager now.

He smiled faintly as he gazed up at Jamie's window.

"Maybe it was just a coincidence that he was here…" he reassured himself out loud. "Maybe he was just wandering by…taking a shortcut."

The more he wanted to believe it, the more unlikely it sounded even when spoken out loud. Was it really a coincidence that one of his icelings spotted Flicker outside of a child's window that happened to be the one child that Jack was closest to in the entire world? The one he visited most often AND his first believer?

Biting his bottom lip, Jack decided that he should set his paranoia to rest and leapt off of the ground. He peered into Jamie's bedroom window but found it empty. He was confused at first until he remembered something.

"Oh, right, he has school today…" Jack looked around before kicking off the side of the house and flew into the woods. He combed the entire forest, not leaving one stone unturned before flying by each and every house to see if Flicker was nearby. So far, he found nothing. All he found was just a few kids playing hooky from school and a homeless old man sleeping by a dumpster.

Jack returned to Jamie's house and perched on top of the chimney as he rested his chin upon his fist in thought. From what he noticed, Flicker had never shown any interest in children when he had first appeared. He was invisible to them but it didn't look like he even cared whenever a child walks through him. He hadn't acknowledged their presence either.

But Flicker attached Tooth's palace because of him. And he wanted to steal his memories for who knows what reason.

If that hothead ended up hurting a child just to get a reaction of him, Jack would be devastated.

Or if he did something to Jamie…then Jack shook his head, not wanting to get more paranoid. Then he jumped when he heard something down below, instantly went on the defensive as he peered down the ground. A large hole opened up in the ground of Jamie's yard and two familiar long grey ears popped out. Jack released a breath that he never knew that he was holding when Bunny hopped out and surveyed the area.

Why am I so jumpy lately? He thought to himself as he floated down from the roof.

As soon as he opened up an entrance, he poked his ears up just to hear if there are any hostiles about. When the coast was clear, he hopped out of the hole and immediately closed it as he took a good look around of his current location. It was the backyard of Jamie's house, even more understandable since he's Jack's first believer. When he felt the familiar brisk breeze against his fur, Bunny looked up and sighed with relief at the sight of Jack floating down from the roof and landed in front of him.

"There you are!" he spoke, sounding relieved that the youth was safe. He placed a firm hand upon his shoulder and examined his face warily. "Everything alright, mate? Did something happen?" he sounded a bit frantic at each question. "We made us all worried when you just disappeared all of a sudden."

Jack looked down in guilt, his shoulders crestfallen a bit as he sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, I-I think I overreacted over nothing…"

Bunny stared at him, taking note that the latter's body was stiff as a board and there was something off about his expression. Something had definitely spooked him, and somehow the Pooka didn't like the fact that they were at Jamie's house. The look on Jack's face was enough to make Bunny to pull the boy close and squeeze tight, but he could not. Instead, he could only use the only method he knows.

"What happened?" he asked gently.

Talking to him and lending in a sympathetic ear.

Jack scratched the back of his head awkwardly but the look of concern still held true in all of his features.

"I…" he began. "I think Flicker was here."

Bunny's green eyes widened at this as he pointed a finger to the ground, referring to Jamie's house. "Ya mean…here?"

Jack nodded and looked up at the frozen owl, still perched upon the tree as it looked down at them. Bunny followed his gaze and immediately understood. He then started looking around them as he reached for his enchanted boomerangs out of habit.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! He's gone now!" Jack exclaimed, as he placed himself in front of his friend, holding his hands up as if it was a universal sign of peace. "He wasn't here when I arrived, and I searched the entire town for him…I don't know where he went but…"

Then he slowly trails off, not knowing what else to say but Bunny got the message as he placed his boomerangs back in their holsters.

"Alright, but it still bothers me that he was here." Then he faced Jack, looking concern. "Does he know that you're close to Jamie?"

"I…don't know," Jack admitted shrugging. "He never really paid any attention to the kids whenever I saw him…" then he trailed off again, trying to remember the past months with Flicker more accurately.

"But if this bloke has been stalking you, then it's a good chance that he has seen you and Jamie together at some point."

Jack wasn't going to deny or argue to that logic. He wasn't sure if Flicker had been stalking him, but after seeing the crazed flame spirit at Tooth's palace, he wasn't going to take any chances. As he thought about it, Jack was suddenly hit with guilt. Jamie was at risk now because of he hadn't handled this thing with Flicker at the beginning.

"Do you know if he has been seen around by any other children?" Bunny asked further. He needed to know if he needed to protect him. Jack took a moment to think back before shaking his head no.

"Then that just proves my point. Jack, this guy is using everything at his disposal to get close to you and I don't wanna know what he plans to do if he gets his hands on ya."

Jack let out a hum as he nodded in response, but he couldn't help but noticed that there was a slight change in tone within Bunny's voice on the last sentence. Like he was being protective…

But he mentally shook his head, passing it off as concern for a friend.

"We need to keep him away from you…" the Pooka went on. "We're gonna see if we could catch Manny, and afterwards, I think you should keep close to one of us until this whole Flicker thing is worked out."

The white-haired youth nodded again, knowing full well that Bunny wasn't trying to treat him like a child since he was capable of handling things on his own. After all, one cannot be too careful.

"Ok, that sounds good," Jack replied.

Bunny nodded back, satisfied that it came along easier than he thought. Knowing Jack, he would try to protest and say that he is capable of taking care of himself or some junk like that. But thankfully he hadn't done any of that kind, so he'd take it as a good sign. Though he did notice Jack biting his bottom lip as he shot continuous glances at Jamie's window…

He sighed heavily to himself. He is going to kick himself later for this…

"But…" he spoke up, regaining Jack's attention. "Since this just happened, maybe you should stay here to watch over the lil anklebiter while we have a chat with Manny ourselves."

This made Jack smile brightly, by the way his blue eyes shone made the Pooka's face heat up underneath his fur. After a moment, he shook his head a bit in order to clear up his thoughts. He had to focus, he can't think of those things right now.

"Just be sure to stay here and I'll come get you after we're done with Manny."

Jack chuckled lightly. "What? You don't want me just to fly back?"

"I don't want to take any chances." There was a serious tone in his voice that made Jack stop laughing. He ran his hand through his white hair as he looked up to Bunny.

"Thank you, Bunny, I mean it." He spoke in genuine gratitude, looking at him in the eye.

The Pooka smiled at him before placing both of his hands upon Jack's shoulders. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna let this fiery freak do anything to you…or Jamie." He added Jamie within the last second as he stole a glance at the window above them.

"Yeah, me neither." Jack only paid attention to the "protecting Jamie" part. Bunny sighed before pulling himself away to open up a tunnel.

"By the way," Jack spoke up, stopping Bunny in mid-step from leaping into the hole. "How'd you know where to find me so fast?"

The Pooka blinked before remembering something. "Oh right…" he looked down into the tunnel, and after a few moments, a familiar ice bird flew out and perched itself upon Bunny's shoulder.

"This thing seems to have a connection with you," Bunny stated. "Without 'im, I would have combed the entire world just to find ya."

Jack laughed mirthfully as he smiled. "I think you should keep him, Bunny, he seems to like you anyway."

Bunny looked over to the little bird's face, which stared back at him, before scratching his chin in thought. "Well, he might be of some use to me…" he spoke while thinking over the possibilities. "I suppose I can take 'im off your hands."

In actuality, Bunny was fond of the idea of Jack giving the bird as a gift to him. Having a way to keep track of Jack at all times pleased him greatly. Besides, the little bird reminded him of Jack in a few but subtle ways.

"Aright, so I'll see you guys after you talk to the Moon?" Jack confirmed.

"And to remember to stay right here," Bunny emphasized his point as he jabbed his thumb to Jamie's house. "And I'll be right back to you."

"Yeah, yeah," came a drawled out response as Jack pretended to shoo him away, causing the rabbit-like guardian to give him a mock look of hurt before breaking the moment with a slight chuckle. He then leaped into the hole of his tunnel but not before stuck the top of his head out to stare at Jack creepily, wiggling his fingers over the edge, making the boy laugh.

"Stay safe!" Bunny's voice echoed as he descended further through his path.

The hole eventually sealed itself shut and Jack took the opportunity to float up towards Jamie's window, ready to welcome the young teen home.

Jamie walked through the front door sluggishly, letting it slam closed behind him but not before remembering to lock it.

His parents were still at work and Sophie would be spending the night with a friend, so he allowed his mind to wander as he kicked his sneakers off and launched them at some random place on the floor. It was a scorcher today, even in an attire of a simple white t-shirt and blue jeans; it was still sweltering to him. The highlight of the day was when he found out that the air conditioner was broken in history class, and the entire class had to bake throughout the lecture even with the windows open.

That was rather fun…

A sigh escaped from his lips as Jamie tossed his bag lightly onto the kitchen tiles then stalked the kitchen cabinets for an afternoon snack.

What am I going to do tonight? He mentally mused himself. I've got the whole house to myself.

An image of him throwing a huge, over-the-top party with beer flowing and crazy music popped into his head and he smirked as he shook his head.

Yeah, as if…he wasn't that kind of teenager with a high popularity rank that rather party and spend their free time drinking until they get sick and have fun.

Jamie Bennett, on the other hand, was the boring kind, did all of his homework and spent his time either watching movies or browse the internet. He frowned as he went on his search for a suitable snack. There is no way he is going to deny it, he missed being a child.

When you were a child, everyone was your friend and all you did was play and not worry about the future. But when high school rolled in, his friends branched off into different cliques. But since Jamie wasn't as easy to categorize as that popular boy or that nerdy kid, he ended up a sort of neutral zone, a clique for people who didn't really fit in.

He was ok with that. He had a few friends that he hung out at school but he usually preferred spending his free time alone.

Though he had to admit, it can be lonely sometimes…

Jamie finally found a box of crackers to snack on before heading up to his room. He was feeling rather lazy today, figuring that he would probably spend all night surfing on the web…read a book…or maybe…

He paused when his hand clamped down around the doorknob to his room, narrowing his eyes at the temperature. The metal was actually freezing cold to his hand…which is impossible, because today's temperature was nearing 60 degrees outside!

"What the…?" Deciding to throw all caution to the wind, Jamie swung the door open. When he did, the first thing that he noticed was a blast of cold wind in his face. Jamie blinked before noticing that it was snowing in his room, thick white flakes were collecting on his carpet.

Just like that one night six years ago…

There upon the center of the bed sat Jack Frost, who spread his arms wide before Jamie.

"Merry Christmas!" he greeted, smiling widely.

Jamie's grip around the cracker box loosened as he smiled back.

"It's May," he pointed out.

"It doesn't snow in May…" Jack countered, gestured to the flakes swirling around in Jamie's room. Laughing at the guardian's ridiculous sense of logic, the brunet youth couldn't help but leaped onto Jack, squeezing him into a tight hug.

Jack held him back, and then flicked his staff backwards, manipulating the cold wind to shoot the snow out of the window to dissipate into the warm air so Jamie wouldn't freeze.

"I'm glad that you're here, Jack," Jamie spoke with gratitude as he released Jack before standing back up on his feet.

Jack managed to sit up properly before taking a good look at him, almost made his smile fall when he noticed one minor detail about him.

"You've gotten taller the last time I saw you…"

It was no lie, Jamie was sixteen now and he was almost as tall as Jack was, just by a couple of inches. As wonderful was it was to see Jamie, it always pained Jack to know that the boy was getting older every year. His previously round features were now sharper, more masculine even. He internally chuckled to himself as he thought of the possibility of him breaking hearts.

"That's right, I'm a growing man!" Jamie spoke out in pride, puffing his chest out with his hands upon his hips, posing like a comic book superhero. Jack smiled before moving over a bit so that the teen could sit on the bed with him as the room returned back to its warm temperature. Even with the window open, it was still kind of hot but Jack was willing to endure it for the time being.

As soon as Jamie gotten time to relax, he looked over to him curiously.

"So, how long are you staying?" he asked. It has been a long time since they last saw each other, considering Jack's rank as guardian.

"All night," Jack beamed at him. Then he frown a bit as he scratched the back of his head. "If…if that's ok with you, I mean."

Jack often forgets that Jamie was a teenager, not a child anymore; he had to learn the hard way that sometimes growing boys need their space. One time when he visited him, the boy was in an awful mood and wanted nothing to do with the winter spirit. Jack was heartbroken at first, but after the other guardians had explained to Jack that teenagers go through phases and puberty, he realized that he would have to conform to Jamie's growth.

Nowadays he made sure that he wouldn't talk to Jamie like he was a little kid or offend him in some way, which was tough in his opinion. Speaking to children was all he knew, besides talking with the guardians that is.

He would always remember these wise words that Bunny had suggested when he went to him for advice:

"Just talk to Jamie like you would talk to me."

It was easier said than done, which lead to another problem. Jamie was acting different as well. He often randomly looked uncomfortable talking about certain things and then his face would go beet red for no reason at all. And Jack couldn't understand why.

Dealing with teenagers was hard…perhaps harder than dealing with children. He would rather face Flicker than go anywhere near Jamie during one of his puberty phases.

"Awesome! I didn't have any plans tonight anyway." Jamie spoke up, snapping the spirit out of his thoughts. Jack smiled as he placed an arm around Jamie's shoulder and pulled the teen to snug against him, causing Jamie to blush.

"So…how have you been these days?" the spirit asked.

Jamie shrugged in response as he leaned against him. "Fine, really. Nothing new, just getting through school and stuff…"

"I see." Jack wasn't very good at small talk but as the old saying goes, practice makes perfect. Hopefully. "What do want to do tonight?"

"Um…let's watch a movie." Jamie suggested before crawling off the front of his bed and propped himself in front of his television. Jack used the time to take a good look around of the boy's room. The drawings that used to adorn the walls are now replaced by posters of strange people that Jack had never seen before, such as Linking Park…Dead Mou 5…oh and someone named…Deadpool?

His toys were replaced by various electronics that amazed the spirit every time Jamie turned one on. The television is a good example. Jack had caught glimpses of bright, moving screens in people's houses from time to time but he had never actually seen a full film until he sat and watched one with Jamie.

"Which movie haven't we watched yet?" Jamie asked from the front of the bed.

Jack set his staff parallel with Jamie's bed then leaned forward to watch the boy shuffle through his DVD stash.

"Whatever you want to watch is fine with me." He spoke up, as he watched.

A moment later, a hand popped up holding a silver disk.

"Romantic Comedy?" he asked.

"Sounds good to me." Although to be fair, Jack wasn't sure what "Romantic Comedy" meant, but having the privilege of watching any kind of movie was always in interesting experience. He still has a fondness for the film that had a personification of Halloween kidnap Santa Claus. Besides, he often spent less time focused on the plot and more time marveling at the special effects and the strange angles at which the scenes appeared in.

"Ok, cool," Jamie pressed a few buttons on his DVD remote and started the movie. Jack leaned back against the headboard of the bed and watched as Jamie hurried to shut off the lights before joining him on the bed with a smile.

"I don't know if you'll like this movie though…it's kind of cheesy…"

Jamie didn't know why he was concerned with what the winter spirit thought of him all the time. Jack had never once judged him in the past, not even when he came out to him about being gay. It had been a hard time for him around puberty, and he decided to tell Jack first before anyone else…

Mainly because Jack was the sole reason that Jamie started becoming attracted to men.

He remembered how scared he felt about how the spirit would judge him, but what Jack did surprised him instead.

"I don't know why it's such a big deal. Love is love, right?"

Of course, Jack hadn't known that he was the sole reason for Jamie's realization. Nonetheless, it was incredibly helpful, and it gave him enough push that he needed to come out to his friends and parents. And like Jack, they don't find it as a big deal either, giving him the full support of his sexuality.

It was all thanks to him…

Jack stretched out his arms before making himself comfy on the bed as he peered curiously at the screen in front of him.

"I like all of your movies, to be honest." He commented, as the two main characters meet in an over-the-top manner. The acting and characters is yet to be desired but still…

Meanwhile, Jamie took this opportunity to stare at Jack, as he so often did whenever they watched a film. It was the only chance he got to really admire the latter's face without the spirit giving him an odd look. He remembered when he was a little kid ripe of 10, he saw Jack Frost as some sort of god-like figure, a magical, ethereal being that is perfect beyond words.

But he knew better now. Jack may have the powers over the ice and wind but he had the mind of any normal person. He could make mistakes just as easily as anyone, human or otherwise, and it took Jamie a few years to realize that. However the winter spirit's beauty was something that never changed.

When he was a child, he was awed by it.

But as he grew older, Jack's attractiveness brought out different emotions within him.

Some that he wasn't so proud of…

Jamie let his eyes wander over Jack's face in the darkness. Admiring the way his crystal blue eyes seemed to have a natural glow of their own, and the light from the television reflected off of the spirit's icy pale skin with each scene. He found himself wondering why Jack's eyes were such a beautiful shade of blue before sighing deeply and looked away, trying to focus on the movie that they were watching.

I'm glad that you came over, Jack…

Perhaps tonight would be the night he would test out some of his hidden feelings.