Rise Of The Guardians - The Life Of A Spirit

Confrontation: Part 1

Jack knew it was dangerous to leave the Pole with Jokul somewhere out there, waiting to strike, but he couldn't stand to be around the other Guardians. They had no idea what it was like to have the joint responsibilities of being a seasonal spirit and a Guardian. To constantly have to choose between unleashing the full power of his season, or restraining his power to protect the humans and allow the children to enjoy the weather. It was often that he even found himself diverting oncoming storms to ensure that the kids remained safe. It was wrong to manipulate nature like that, but it was right to protect the children... so what could he do?

"Damn it..." he muttered, "Why can't I just be normal?"

The dense forests of Canada gave way to cities that grew more frequent as he crossed over Lake Erie and finally reached the familiar sight of Burgess. Despite the turmoil in his head, he felt a sense of calm descend. He was home. He was safe.

He spiralled down to the lake, landing silently on its shore, watching the group of kids ice skating along its surface, their parents watching from the other side. Without thinking, he crouched at the lake shore and gingerly lay his hand on the ice, casting his powers down to thicken it. Just in case.

Satisfied that the kids were safe, he turned away, slowly making his way through the town, trying to think of the solution to his problem. Of course he was going to go after Jokul. He wasn't crazy enough to let him become a danger to the world. But he doubted that, now that he knew Jokul's name, he would be able to retain the darker side of his powers. Most likely, Jokul would simply rise back up as he pushed aside that part of himself as he had in the past.

He stopped walking and looked up. He was standing at the front lawn of the Bennett house. He floated up to Jamie's window and peered in. Empty. No doubt he was at school.

With a sigh, he hooked his staff onto the gutter above him and flipped onto the roof, settling down on the shingles. Overhead, the clear, blue sky began to be blocked out by rapidly forming storm clouds in response to his emotions. He considered banishing them, but once again found himself questioning his actions. A seasonal spirit would let them be.

He lay back with a groan of frustration, staring up at the heavy grey clouds as snow began to fall.

The chattering of voices that floated up to him drew his attention out of the tempest of his thoughts.

"...haven't seen him in a while, so I don't know."

He sat up straight, a slight smile spreading across his face as he recognised the speaker. He crawled to the edge of the roof and peered down at the sidewalk below. Making their way towards the house were Jamie and his friends, glancing up at the sky and catching the snow that fell.

His smile grew wider as Jamie looked up and noticed the figure lounging on the shingles of his house.

"Jack!" he exclaimed excitedly, waving and running forward, the rest of his friends in tow.

Warmth blossomed in his chest at their approach and suddenly his problems didn't seem so severe.

"Hey, guys," he called, leaping down to the snowy ground in time for Jamie to barrel straight into him with enough force to stagger him backwards for a moment, his arms wrapping around him.

"Woah, what's up with you?" he asked, crouching down to return the hug.

"Nothing," Jamie replied, stepping back, "It's just been a while."

"I was here two weeks ago," he reminded him, "If I remember right, we had the most intense snowball fight in the history of anything. And I should know. I've been around for a while."