[This chapter contains scenes from Episode 1: Becoming, Part 1 from Trollhunters]
Making his way through the school halls, Jim yawned. He hadn't slept very well at all. Part of it was due to planning and writing down his plans late into the night. Another part of it was due to his own fears and anxieties. He couldn't help but think that, if he closed his eyes and fell asleep, he would wake up and everything would be a dream. It was a constant worry in his mind until, once again, he woke up to his blaring electronic alarm while face down in his notebook.
It was finally setting in that he was once again reliving his past.
Pushing the door open in front of him, Jim peeked his head through. Looking around Strickler's office, Jim saw it was the same as he remembered. Neat and tidy, decorated with a myriad of books and other historical-looking objects such as strange masks or antiques. A chessboard sat beneath the window, looking out over the school fields, and the man himself sat behind his long, wooden desk, idly clicking his pen cap.
"Ah, hello Jim. What can I do for you?" Strickler noticed him immediately, ushering him in.
Jim nodded silently, walking in and taking a seat across from Strickler. He couldn't help but remember how he immediately rushed to the man's office the first time around, so frazzled and freaked out after meeting Blinky and AAARRRGGHH for the first time. Had he known Strickler was a Changeling back then, he probably would have died of a heart attack or, at the very least, passed out again.
"Are you alright? You look tired." Strickler brows turned up as he tilted his head and examined Jim closely.
"Yeah, I just couldn't get much sleep last night." Jim admitted.
"I know you're concerned about your mother, but you need to take care of yourself." Strickler toyed with his pen, listening intently. "I am glad you came to me though. Tell me, what's on your mind?"
Jim chuckled, mulling it over in his head. "I just… I have a big responsibility. People are counting on me. People I love and care about. We already lost so much… people important to us. Everyone made so many sacrifices. But I told everyone it'd be okay. That I'd fix it. And I was so happy at first. Happy that maybe I could fix it! Excited! Relieved. But… the more I thought about it, the longer I got the chance to calm down and think about everything I had to do… I dunno, it just felt harder and harder. Like there's just so much more than I even realized I needed to do. That I couldn't do it all. That I'd let everyone down if I messed up and it would all be for nothing."
He didn't intend to say quite so much, and he was being intentionally vague, but Jim was struggling. At the very least he wanted to get a little bit of it off his chest. Just a little bit. Standing up, he made his way over to the chessboard by the window, picking up the white knight as he turned it over in his hands, trying to focus on anything but how daunting the task ahead of him felt.
Strickler continued to sit there, pen in hand as he listened patiently before speaking. "I think I know what has you so distraught, Jim."
Jim turned, looking at the man as he stood up and walked over to him.
"It's like I told you yesterday. You have a lot on your shoulders. Too much, in my opinion, for someone your age." Strickler delicately took the knight from Jim's hands and put it back down on the board. "It can't be easy, being the man of the house. Feeling like you need to step up and shoulder everything or the entire world will end. I know you want to be there for your mother, but it's as a great poet once wrote: 'do what's good for you, or you're not good for anybody'."
A soft smile came to Jim's face as he remembered similar advice for an entirely different worry. "I know that. And I know that what I'm doing is what I want to do. But it's still hard."
"Jim, you're like a Young Atlas, carrying the weight of the world on your shoulders. You're a brilliant, caring young man. But you don't have to do it all alone." Strickler placed a reassuring hand on Jim's shoulder. "Asking for help does not make you weak. It does not make you any less capable. I'm glad you came to me."
Jim relaxed a little, smiling genuinely as he heard the first bell ring. "Thank you, Mr. Strickler. Is it alright if I come by after school again? I like talking to you, and there's something else I want to tell you."
"You're welcome anytime, Young Atlas." Strickler chuckled. "Though you'd better get to class first. Don't want to be late."
The rest of the school day passed by in a blur and, soon enough, Jim found himself standing outside of Strickler's office once more. His heart was racing and his mind was going a million miles an hour, but he'd spent all day thinking it over, and this was his best option.
Pushing the door open once more, Jim walked into the office and saw Strickler standing by the window, placing pieces down on his chessboard one by one. The sun was peering in and made his features look drastic, but his facade of Walter Strickler was nowhere near as drastic as his Changeling identity as Stricklander.
"Ah, Jim, there you are. I've been waiting." Strickler turned around, walking back to his desk and taking a seat. "I hope you managed to stay awake during the rest of your classes?"
"I did. Well, sort of. I did my best to at least." Jim nervously laughed before walking over and taking a seat once more.
"Well, I'm all ears. What is it you wanted to tell me?" Strickler picked up his iconic pen, clicking it as he leaned forward, waiting.
Taking a deep breath, Jim gathered his courage and resolve.
"You've always looked out for me. You've helped me in so many ways. I know it's a lot, but I need to ask for your help with something huge."
"I'm glad you think so highly of me." Strickler chuckled to himself, clicking his pen. "Alright, Jim. What is it you need? If I can do it, I will."
Standing up, Jim reached into his bag, pulling out Merlin's amulet as he held it in his hand. The recognition in Strickler's eyes was immediate, but it was mingled with disbelief as he looked up at Jim, wide-eyed.
"Where did you get that?"
"It chose me." Jim stated simply, tightening his grip on the amulet. "But I can't do this alone. I need you."
Leaning across the desk, Jim placed Merlin's amulet in Strickler's hand. As he did, the clockwork mechanisms of the magical amulet whirred, spinning faster and faster as the back opened up and the feebly glowing Time Stone emerged.
The room was silent and still, both of them unmoving as the viridian stone pulsed several times, small motes of light emerging from it and floating around Merlin's amulet. They hovered there for a moment, rotating in place before flying into Strickler's chest, disappearing inside him before the man's eyes went wide, suddenly filled with the same, viridian light as the Time Stone shattered with a thunderous clap.
Jim didn't move an inch. He didn't even take the amulet back. Instead, he stared at Strickler, whose eyes were still wide open, staring off into space.
He hoped and prayed it worked. He needed Strickler to remember. If Jim had to do everything alone, he wasn't sure he'd be able to convince the man to join him a second time. There were too many things that could go wrong. There were too many risks.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Strickler blinked, shaking a little as if sensation had only just returned to his body. He looked around slowly, taking in his surroundings bit by bit before looking down at the glowing amulet in his hand and up at Jim.
"My, Young Atlas, you've certainly shouldered the weight of the world now, haven't you." A knowing smile and familiar expression came across Strickler's face as he placed Merlin's amulet back in Jim's hand.
Jim couldn't contain his tears, crying as he leaned across the desk and hugged Strickler, relieved to see the countenance of the man who'd been like a father to him once more. Strickler immediately hugged him back, laughing, but squeezing him tightly, the two stuck in a hearty embrace as memories of the future raced through their minds.