Frosted Memories

Cracked

Later that day, Jack was just about his normal self, but he didn't jump around or fly as much as he normally would. It was just passed lunch time and he and Jamie were playing with the elves.

Jack let the wind hold him and gently glide over the elves as Jamie chased an elf beside him as they laughed. Despite the hangover from the morning, he and his mortal friend were having great fun.

"Hey Jack!" Jamie caught the spirit's attention with a laugh, balancing an elf on his head and two on his outstretched arms. Jack laughed heartily at this, however, something in the back of his mind told him he'd seen something like it before.

Without realizing it, his brows furrowed as he tried to figure out where that mysterious feeling came from, and of course, Jamie noticed. "Uh- whoops!" Jamie shouted a bit louder than he needed to as he tipped his head, making the elf slide off, but catching it with his foot.

Jack snorted at that and picked up the confused fallen elf, setting it on the floor and watching as it scurried off in glee. Jamie released a silent sigh of relief. They weren't supposed to let Jack try and force memories out, if they could help it at least.

As Jamie thought he was in the clear, he pivoted on his heel and set the other to elves down. Once he'd turned back around, Jack was gone. Confused, Jamie called out for him. "Jack?" No response.

He called out again, thinking the spirit was playing with him. "Jack? If we're playing hide and seek, this isn't fair." He still got no response, but noticed a door down the hall was open when it hadn't been before.

Jamie approached the room finding it empty. There was no furniture in sight, but the entire wall adjacent to the door was made of large floor to ceiling windows, seperated by wood panneling and with window seats at the base.

At the base of one of these windows, was Jack. "Jack? Why didn't you answer me when I called?" Jamie asked, walking up to his friend. Upon standing beside him, he noticed the distant and upset features on the boy's face.

"What's wrong?" The teen asked nervously. Jack didn't reply for a moment as he stared seemingly out of the window, but was actually staring at the glass itself.

"Sandy died at one point.." Jack spoke just above a whisper, the statement itself taking Jamie aback. "What?" He asked, stunned. Jack pointed to a spot on the window seat.

"I came here after he died..." Jack trailed off for a moment, his eyes scanning the seat and window. Jamie wasn't sure what to say.

Jack reached out and touched the window pane, frost spreading out from his hand. The spirit blinked and took his hand away quickly. "He died- when?" His brows furrowed as he looked at Jamie desperately.

Jamie shook his head, he shouldn't have let Jack get this far, it was dangerous. "Jack-" he tried but Jack wanted answers. "Why?" It was one word, one question, but it held weight.

Jamie knew that weight. He knew Jack had blamed himself for what happened, for not reaching the man in time. "Jack that was years ago, he's okay now." Jamie's voice was calm and gentle as he tried to lead Jack out of the room.

"But- ngh!" Jack winced as a scene flashed in front of his eyes. It was of the Guardians, looking worn and nearly beaten. Then Jack was outside of a familiar house and a familiar second story window.

The spirit blinked frantically, stumbling backwards as Jamie tried to grip his shoulders, shouting something Jack couldn't quite hear. Then there was a bunny made from frost floating around a boy's room.

Jack couldn't tell if he was actually seeing it or if he was still seeing a memory. "J-Jamie!" Jack called out in fear. He couldn't decipher reality from memory anymore. He saw a younger Jamie but also a present Jamie.

Words began to melt together and he couldn't understand them anymore. "Jamie I'm scared! Make it stop!" He cried out, dropping to his knees and covering his ears while screwing his eyes shut as tight as possible.

He could hear muffled shouts but also heard other muffled voices that came across more clearly, but he still couldn't make them out. He shook his head frantically, repeatedly saying "Go away," over and over.

"JACK!"

Everything went quiet. It was completely silent. Jack's mind finally registered two hands gripping his shoulders. He opened his eyes, realizing his face was soaked in tears. He stared at the big blue eyes of North peering back at him. He felt a smaller pair of hands holding his arms down to his sides.

He realized his breathing was so ragged that he was trembling terribly. He stared at North's scared face, his concerned gaze bore into his soul. Jack blinked and took a deep breath.

The hands holding Jack still, slowly released their grip. North's voice was uneven as he spoke, he was quite shaken by what had happened. "Are you with us?" He asked cautiously. Jack looked around as if in a daze, seeing the rest of the Guardians in the background, when did they get there?

"Jack?" A smaller, just as uneven voice came from his side. Jack turned his head to look at Jamie. "I-I'm here.." he breathed out, looking back at North.

When Jack had began losing his grip on reality and shouted out for Jamie, the boy had begun yelling for North and for assistance. A nearby yeti came to their aid first and upon seeing the winter spirit on his knees, shaking and rocking back and forth while covering his ears and sobbing, he immediatly ran for North and called the Guardians to the Pole.

Once North had arrived on the scene, Jack was pale, his eyes shut so tightly, and his hands pressed so tightly to his ears, North thought he'd crush his own head. Jamie was in full panic by that point, also sobbing and clearly frightened.

Not long after that, the others arrived, but Jack had gottem worse. He'd begun rocking himself more, begging for something to 'go away', he sobbed more and his nose began to bleed.

They'd tried to grab Jack's attention and ended up holding his arms down and holding his shoulders to keep him still as he'd started to hit his head with his fists. Then, North shouted his name and he came to.

North was on the brink of tears as Jack gathered his surroundings. Tooth approached and handed him a handkerchief, to which Jack stared at in a daze after taking it from her.

She gently guided his hand to his nose and he wiped the blood away. Even though Jack had said he was there, he wasn't actually all there and it was quite clear.

Jamie had to exit the room at that point. He was deeply shaken by the whole thing. Jack had never verbally expressed fear, Jamie has never seen Jack with that level of terror. The way Jack screamed out for Jamie like that will forever haunt him.

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Hello Snowflakes,

I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I hope to see y'all soon.

*Jack Frost*