The age laden skin held no truth as to his interior. From first glance, one would see a withered and frail man nearing the hundreds mark in age, but a further look would reveal a bright and lively heart. Inside, his veins pulsed youth and beauty – everything childhood stood for.

At ninety-eight years of age, Jamie Bennett radiated youth.

Despite the effervescence that encompassed him, his physical state proved hindrance.

He lay weak and limp in the warmth of his own bed. He knew the fate he was resigned to and insisted his family keep him out of the hospital. If he were to leave this world, he wanted to be in the security of his own home.

He sighed contently with shaky breath and glanced at the frost-bitten window.

Nearly nine decades had passed since he last saw the alabaster winter spirit, but that was merely in person. Jamie knew very well that even though Jack wasn't physically in front of him, he was there. He lay there in the first snowfall of the year; his breath was the icy winter wind; Jack Frost lived and breathed through every winter season, and that was enough for Jamie, no matter how much he yearned to be visited by him one last time.

Footsteps outside the door perturbed the silence and Jamie welcomed it with grace. A flaxen haired girl and a mahogany haired boy bound in the room with delight. Forgetful of their Grandfather's current state, they bounced onto the bed and nuzzled against him. To them, Jamie was still the man who would tell them tales of whimsical beings – ones who guarded their dreams and memories; the ones who would protect them.

He gave an airy laugh, much different from the hearty one he used to bellow. Despite the frail state he was in, his grandchildren were always welcome by his side.

"Emma Lee and Devon, off your grandfather now!" Scolded Jamie's daughter firmly.

"Let them stay," Jamie said barely above a whisper. "You know how I love them." This caused the two to nuzzle deeper into his side.

His daughter, Jacquelyn, merely sighed. "I suppose so, but you don't need to be exerting yourself so much."

"I'm fine," he assured lightly. He would rather be tired than lose one of the last opportunities to be with his grandchildren. Noticing an absence, he asked, "Where is Katrina?"

Jacquelyn glanced around the room, noticing the absence of her eldest. She excused herself to find the teenager while Jamie mused on his daughter's icy hair. She lived up to her namesake.

"How cold is it outside?" Jamie asked Emma Lee and Devon.

"Freezing!" Exclaimed Emma Lee.

"Momma won't let us leave without at least two coats," said Devon. "She says she doesn't want Jack Frost to nip at our nose."

Jamie smiled wryly at this. "Oh, but you do want Jack Frost to nip at your nose! Who do you think it is delivering you all those extra snow days! When I was your age, we all loved Jack Frost for getting us out of school!"

Jacquelyn re-entered the room, Katrina trailing behind. "Not filling their heads with fairytales again, are you Dad?" She asked warily. Where Jacquelyn had developed her black and white antics from, Jamie would never know. He raised her on the legends of Santa Clause and the Easter Bunny, but she shunned it all, claiming it was useless and a waste of time to indulge in such fantasy. She tried to convince her twins, both nearing the age of nine, that it was tactless to continue believing such things. They, of course, ignored her and continued to be swept away in the world of magic. The same could not be said for Katrina.

Standing slightly shorter than her Mother, she bore the same alabaster hair; however, a round belly protruded from her thin hips. At only fifteen years of age, Katrina stood six months pregnant.

Jamie was heartbroken when he discovered the news. When had his little Katrina, his first grandchild, lost the innocence of youth?

"Hey Granddad," she said shyly.

"Katrina," he greeted with a smile.

Jacquelyn could feel the tension in the air and decided to cut the meeting short. "We were on our way to the store and thought we'd stop by. Your nurse should be here in twenty minutes to give you your medications."

"Thanks for stopping by," Jamie said gratefully. "You're welcome by any time. I suppose you're going to be on your way now." Jacquelyn nodded once. "Well then get over here and say goodbye properly," he insisted.

Jacquelyn and Katrina walked over to lightly kiss him on the forehead. Katrina backed away immediately, but Jacquelyn lingered a bit longer. "I love you dad," she whispered. Emma Lee and Devon had taken to latching onto Jamie's body; he smiled amusedly, but Jacquelyn looked more annoyed than anything. She was running on a schedule after all.

"Will you open the window before you go?" Jamie asked.

Jacquelyn gave him a wary look. "Dad, it's nearly a blizzard out there."

"Just open it," he insisted.

"Your nurse won't be happy about this, but alright," Jacquelyn hesitantly agreed. Jamie was expected to die at any second, and who was she to deny her father's potential last wish?

"Thank you," he said gratefully as crisp winter air flew into the room along with a multitude of snowflakes.

He was in solace only moments before the embodiment of winter himself sat at the foot of his bed. "Hello Jamie," Jack Frost greeted with a gentle smile. "It's been a long time."

"Jack," Jamie breathed. Though he remembered every detail of the winter spirit from when he was young, he wasn't prepared to be met with the ethereal being once more. He was the same simple, yet powerful being he met decades ago.

"Don't talk if it hurts you," Jack said, "I'm sorry for not visiting you throughout the years," he acquiesced, "but being a guardian took more of my time than I expected. I never intended for it to go on this long." Sorrow was visible in the cerulean eyes.

Jamie smiled at him in return. "I understand," he said.

Jack hesitated before speaking again. His mouth opened slightly as if preparing to speak, but he closed it once more to set his cane aside. Jack scanned over the withered man. Remnants of the bubbly child he once knew still resided in his features; how could Jack ever forget those chocolate eyes? They radiated the innocence of childhood even still. "The Man in the Moon told me about you. It was the first time he'd talked to me in almost four hundred years. The only time he'd bothered with me before was to tell me my name, but just now he said your name so clearly. I didn't believe it was him at first, but it was, and I knew I had to come to you. Now I see why."

"I'm not so young anymore," Jamie joked, his heart aching for youth. "I'm glad you came, Jack."

"Do you remember all those years ago when I had you ride through town on your sled? People talked about it for years afterwards," Jack said.

Jamie smiled in remembrance. It was one of his most vivid childhood memories. People talked about the incident for years afterwards. "How could I forget?"

A moment passed as the two drank in each other's presence, delighting in the other's company once more. "Jamie, you know, you never fell out of the protection of the Guardians." Jamie quirked a snowy eyebrow at this. "You never once stopped believing in us. We're made to protect children that believed in us, but apparently it extends long past childhood if someone believes. We always thought it was children because it's generally children that believe in us, but your light's never faded, Jamie."

"You've protected me all these years?" Jamie asked with a small smile.

"Always. And Jacquelyn, Katrina, Emma Lee and Devon, too," Jack said.

"I suppose Jacquelyn and Katrina's lights have long since faded, but knowing Emma Lee and Devon are still being watched over is comforting," Jamie said. Jack smiled a knowing smile, as if he was keeping a secret.

The moon hung high in the sky, bathing the snow laden ground with its light. Beams illuminated Jamie's room, turning his clean sheets pristine and pure.

"You've lived a good life, haven't you Jamie?" Jack asked, staring at the moon.

"I couldn't have asked for a better one," Jamie confirmed.

Jack sighed, tearing his gaze away from the moon to stare at the sheets below. "You were the first person to ever see me, Jamie; the first person to believe. You were my first friend. I can't ever thank you enough for that. You taught me more about life in the short time I knew you as a child then I did in the three hundred years before. The fact that you can still see me and talk to me means more than you know," he said, "the children that could see me have all gone, too. Not many believe in me, still, but you do; after all this time."

Jamie could have delved into how it wasn't a matter of fact or fiction as to the legend of Jack Frost and how he never stopped believing. He could have, and would have, but he was growing oh so tired; it was a struggle to keep his lids open. "Of course," he managed.

"Jamie, are you ready?" Jack asked hesitantly, afraid of the answer.

"Yes and no. But if I had to choose…yes," Jamie replied. Jack had to bite back the sting in his eyes. If only he could have spent years more with Jamie. There were so many possibilities for them, but now it couldn't happen.

"It's okay, just go to sleep now," Jack said lightly, sending a snowflake to tickle his nose as Jamie closed his eyes for the final time.

Jack allowed a few tears to fall in grievance before disappearing in the moonlit night.

Hope I didn't butcher their personalities too much. The next update should be in a few days to a week.

Reviews are lovely!