Hey guys!! This is a sequel to my story "The Pumpkin Princess". Also I crossed it over with Disney's Descendants because tbh The Nightmare Before Christmas is very underestimated... Anyways, hope you enjoy!
I don't own Nightmare Before Christmas, ju...
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"Dad?" Skelly asked.
"Yeah?" Jack asked.
"I haven't seen Lock," she murmured. "I mean, I know he's doing his best to avoid me but I'd have seen him by now. Have you seen him?"
"Not since I found out you guys were fighting," Jack sighed.
"Do...do you think he ran away?" Skelly whimpered, starting to cry.
Jack was surprised she was this worried about Lock, especially after how badly he had hurt her.
"I don't know, honey," he said.
"I still love him," Skelly replied. "I don't know what to do. I wish Mom was here."
"Me, too," Jack sighed.
Skelly held Jack's hand tighter.
"Skelly, you're going to break my hand of you hold it any tighter," Jack chuckled, trying to light up the mood.
Skelly merely shook her head, and Jack realized she was in no mood for even the tiniest bit of jokes. She was too upset. He hugged her.
"I'm sorry this happened to you," he said.
"It's not your fault," Skelly said.
"It doesn't matter if it's my fault or not," Jack said. "I--."
"Of course it is!" a voice exclaimed. "Everything's your fault!"
Skelly jumped and looked up at Jack, only to see that he was frozen in place. She could see and feel him shuddering.
The voice was a voice Jack hadn't heard since he was sixteen. It was a voice that he never thought he'd hear again. It was a voice that screamed and whispered words to him that would never leave him alone at night.
Jack didn't want Skelly to see the owner of the voice, but it was too late. She knew nothing about his past, besides the good parts that involved Kayla.
He turned around, and so did Skelly.
Skelly cocked her head, but then she felt herself shaking. This guy was a skeleton, and his face looked exactly like Jack's. He wore a pure black suit on his body and a black cape on his shoulders. Why was he so scary, and why did he look exactly like Jack?
"Father..." Jack whispered.
The skeleton laughed like he was some kind of psycho. Skelly gasped.
"This...how...but...y-you're dead," Jack stammered.
"That's where you're wrong," his dad said. "Again. I was brought back to life by Maleficent."
"Maleficent?" Skelly muttered under her breath.
Her mind was completely off Lock right now. She was focused on why Jack seemed so afraid. He was never one to be afraid. And this skeleton was scary, and Skelly knew she had every reason to be afraid, but her father was usually brave. Why was he stammering and shaking so badly?
"This must be your daughter," the skeleton said.
"Don't you dare lay a hand on her," Jack snapped, his voice cold and dark.
Skelly shuddered. She hated it when he talked like that.
"I wasn't planning on it," the skeleton said.
"Wait, who are you??" Skelly blurted.
"Did you not hear a word your dad said when he saw me?" the skeleton laughed. "I'm his father!"
"And I am not letting you hurt her," Jack said. At this point, he didn't care. It was high time Skelly knew the truth about his past, anyway. "You said you weren't planning on hurting me. And what did you do? You hurt me with your words and your stupid fists!"
Skelly felt sick. Her dad had been abused as a child?
"I'm not as stupid as you think I am, Father!" Jack said.
"Oh, yes you are," Jack's father chuckled.
"No, he's not!" The words spilled out of Skelly's mouth before she could stop them. "He's the best father anyone could ever ask for!"
"Is he now?" the skeleton said. "Tell me...Jazmine. Has Jack ever told you anything about his past?"
"Only things about my mom," Skelly said.
"Exactly," Jack's father said. "He's hiding secrets from you."
"No, I'm not, Father!" Jack yelled. "She just wasn't ready to know yet! That's all it is! Unlike you, I actually care about my kid and I don't want her fainting and hurting herself again! You, on the other hand, treated me like I was some piece of sh...!"
He stopped and clenched his free hand into a fist. He hated it when he got this angry. And now Skelly was witnessing his hidden anger that he had tried to keep inside him ever since Kayla died.
"You're so vulnerable," his dad seethed. "And you have no idea what we have planned, me and Maleficent and Oogie. And you won't be able to do anything about it."
With those words, Jack's father vanished.
"Dad?" Skelly whispered. She let go of his hand and looked at him. She reached up to his shoulder now, so she still had to look up at him. She shuddered when she saw the look on his face.
He looked angry, angrier than Skelly had ever seen. He was shaking like crazy, and his hands were clenched into fists.
"Is...is everything okay?" Skelly asked.
"No," Jack said. "No, it's not." His voice was still hard and hallow.
"I know," Jack replied. "I'm sorry if I scared you, too. It's just...I can't believe he was brought back to life. He died right in front of me."
"He...he beat you?" Skelly whispered.
"Not until I was fifteen, but yes," Jack said. "Before that he...he verbally abused me."
"Dad!" Skelly gasped. She hugged him.
"I'm sorry I didn't tell you before," Jack said, his voice now despondent. "Maybe I really am a bad father."
"Don't say that, Dad!" Skelly ordered, letting go of him and taking his hands. "You're an amazing father. Don't listen to your dad. Whatever he's said to you in the past is obviously a lie."
Jack shook his head and stared off into the distance.
"Are you okay?" Skelly asked.
"No," Jack admitted. "I'm still in denial about a lot of things. Like my mom."
"What about her?" Skelly asked.
"She passed away when I was ten," Jack said. "Life was okay until she passed and then it got horrible. She was the only reason I kept going until I met Kayla."
"What kept you going until then?" Skelly asked.
"I don't even know," Jack said. "Fate, I guess? I don't know."
"What kept you going when Mom died?" Skelly asked.
"It's more like who kept me going," Jack said. "And I'm talking to her."
"Me?" Skelly asked.
"Of course," Jack said, finally looking at her. "Who else? I wanted to raise you better than my father raised me."
"You have," Skelly said.
"Good," Jack muttered.
Skelly hugged Jack again, suddenly getting the feeling that he was about to cry.
