Jack's P.o.V

I dragged my mother behind me, my bare feet slapping against the ground. When I looked at her I could see the wonder in her eyes. She looked so happy, I wasn't sure if I'd ever seen her like that.

Soon we arrived in the Globe room. Elves and yetis looked suspicious at my mother, obviously because of what had happened not long ago.

The other Guardians were not far behind us.

"So", said North as he let himself fall into his big, red, christmassy chair by the fire place,"Now I need information... What the hell is going on here?!"

I yelped at his outburst. My mother noticed that and pulled me a bit closer, to calm me down. It worked.

"W-what information do you mean?", I asked carefully. The others didn't seemed too pleased about my fast reunion with my mother.

Bunny was the first to speak up:"Oh, you know, the usual. Why you exactly wanted to get your mother back? What for starters her name is? Why she was so desperate at first, made you cry, and then ran after you? Like I said, Ice cube, the usual."

Just when I was about to answer that my mother laid her hand on my shoulder to silence me.

"I guess you're right. I really should introduce myself", she took a deep breath, then continued," For starters my name is Elizabeth, Elizabeth Overland. And I reacted the way I did, well... It was because... Ever since I had lost my husband and my son, and my daughter had killed herself I've gotten these daydreams and nightmares of them. And every time it was like they hated me, a-and I didn't know what to do anymore, a-and I-"

That was the final straw for her. She hid her eyes behind her hands and started to shake. I wrapped my arms around her small waist and squeezed.

"I think it's enough. We've all had a really rough day and should get some rest", I suggested. "North, do you have a guest room she could use for tonight?"

He nodded:"Ya, it's the one next to yours."

"Alright, come on Mom."

I grabbed my sobbing and shaking mother by the arm and dragged her behind me to the other end of the workshop, where my room laid.

"We're almost there", I promised her quietly.

After a few more minutes, I paused before a door. The wood was painted in different shades of brown and red; The doorknob in pure golden color.

I turned the handle and slowly pushed the door open.

The room was small, but comfy. On the right side was a small fire place; across from it stood a bed and a wooden wardrobe next to it.

"So... Here we are", I said and let go of her hand.

She slowly stepped into the room and admired the perfection of the small place.

"I guess this is where you will be staying for the time-being. Make yourself comfortable, and if you need me, I'll be in the room next door."

As I turned around to leave, her arms wrapped around my chest from behind.

"Don't leave... Please...", she sobbed into my hoodie.

I sighed. It pained me to leave her here, as much as it pained her, but I knew it had to be done.

"It will be fine. I promise. You'll be fine... I will be fine", I reassured her.

She took a deep breath, then nodded. I gave her a small smile, kissed her quickly on the cheek, then took my leave.

As soon as I was in my room, I changed into more comfortable clothes and climbed into bed. I pulled the covers up to my nose. I felt a smile spread across my face, as I thought about what had happened that day. Alright, the whole incident with my leg and all the crying weren't so great. But after all I got my mother back and that was what was most important.

With these thoughts swirling through my head, I fell asleep.

Jack's Dream P.o.V

I was in some kind of black space. I couldn't hear, see nor feel anything.

"Would you look at that. Jack Frost, the great new guardian, in my home", a voice suddenly spoke. A voice I only knew all too well.

"Pitch", I growled, "Come out you coward! And show your ugly face!"

"Oh.. Still feisty I see."

"What do you want?"

"Me? I just wanted to talk. You know... The weather. The guardians. Your lovely mother."

I could practically feel my blood boiling inside me now, and yelled: "Don't you dare touch her!"

"Don't worry. I'm not planning to. After all she's just a useless mortal, and so no use for me."

"Then why are you here?" He was beginning to freak me out.

"I was just surprised that a beautiful lady like her, who could have every guy she wants and have precious children with him, would want someone like you to call her son."

My eyes went wide at the thought. I knew he just wanted to make me frightened, but somehow it still got through to me.

"After all", he started again, "you're just a troublemaking spirit who makes a mess wherever he goes. And you know it. Or do I first have to remind you about all the lives your blizzards took, the easter incident or the 'unsinkable' ship."

"Well... yeah... But-"

"But what, Jack? Do you think your mother would be proud if she knew that her son was murderer. I don't think so. Even all the other spirits said your an ice cold killer. "

I clamped my hands over my ears, trying to block out his voice. But somehow I could still hear it, if not even better. Tears slipped from my tightly shut eyes, although I did my hardest to stop them.

"Oh, look at you. The big, bad guardian is a cry baby. You're so pathetic."

"Stop it! STOP IT!", I yelled but the words still pierced themselves like daggers into my heart. Finally I couldn't take it anymore:"I said STOP IT!"

Jack's Normal P.o.V

"I said STOP IT!"

I shot up in bed, sweat dripping down my forehead. My breath was shaky; my heartbeat unsteady but at the same time too fast to be healthy. I felt cold tears staining my cheeks, but I didn't bothered to wipe them away.

I turned my wide eyes in the direction of my door and eyed it warily. I knew it would make me seem like a baby to run to my mother. I bit my lip. But I really needed to know if what Pitch had said was really the truth. Squeezing my eyes shut, I made a decision.

Elizabeth's P.o.V

After Jack closed the door, I sighed. I knew it was the right thing to do, after all I was a grown woman. But something just made me uneasy. I didn't know why but I had had a feeling that that night would be unpleasant.

After I had changed into a dark blue nightgown, which had laid ready for me under the blankets of my bed, and had tied my long hair together, I'd snuggled into the fluffy covers and fell asleep almost immediately. But when the clock struck one in the morning something made me wake up.

And 'something' was the squirming under the covers at the foot of the bed. Something, or better yet, someone was under it. I held up the blankets as I looked underneath. There lay, only a few feet away, the crumbled figure of my son.

"Jack...", I whispered a little star struck. First he didn't want to stay and now he comes in in the middle of the night. I didn't really get it.

"He... Hey, Mom."

"Jack, what are you doing here at one in the morning? What happened? Wait- Are those tear streaks on your cheeks?"

They were barely visible but still there.

"N-No", he lied.

"Jack", I warned, "you know I hate it when you lie to me." And I did.

"I know. It's j-just that-t..." His voice wavered as he begun to shake. Sobs wracked his tiny frame.

"Oh, Jack...", I whispered. Slowly I stretched my arms out, gripped his shoulders and pulled him towards my chest. I tucked his head under my chin, while rubbing circles on his back and talking to him in a soothing tone. It seemed to calm him down a bit, but not to stop the crying.

That's when I had an idea. It had always worked when he'd been little. Maybe it still did. Well, it was worth a try.

I slowly brought us into a sitting position, and brought one hand to base of my neck, where my hair was tied together. With a bit difficulty, I opened the knot. With my hair lose, I started to embrace Jack with it. After only a few short moments, he started to calm down. His breathing became normal again, and no fresh tears stained my nightgown an even darker shade of blue.

He pulled away from me, which made my hair fall down his back, and whispered a 'thank you'.

"Better?" He nodded "Good. Then can you please tell me what's going on ?"

His eyes grew wide while I was asking him.

"Please, Jack."

He sighed. I was obvious to him that there was no way around telling me.

"Well... I-I had a nightmare."

"What was it about?"

"It was... It was about you and me. I was wondering... You are a pretty woman. Why didn't you just marry another guy and gave birth to his kids. I mean, that would have been easier than always putting up with your troublemaking excuse of a son. Why would you even want to call me your son?" His voice broke at the end. He was close to tears. I thought I should tell him.

"Jack", he looked up as I begun to speak, "you don't even know the full story."

His eyes began to sparkle with excitement, confusion and curiosity.

"Well, before you were born, I was known as the girl in my home village who couldn't have kids because I was different or something like that. My parents had still believed that the doctors and everyone else was wrong. But as the years went by, they also grew annoyed. When I was fifteen their patience broke and they threw me out. Out on the street, wet, cold, hungry, I just sat there. I didn't know what to do. I was alone. All alone. That was when your father found me. He took me in, cared for me. And, well, we fell in love. Soon he proposed to me, and although I was insecure because of the whole 'children-thing', I said yes. And, well, a few months after our marriage, I started to feel nauseous in the morning and often threw up. In the fear of it being something serious, we went to a doctor. And, well... he-he said I was pregnant. With you. Although you weren't planned-"

"That's a really nice story, honestly. But that doesn't even explain anything. Great, they all told you you couldn't have kids. Then you got pregnant-"

"Jack, please let me tell the whole story. I-"

"No, I don't want to hear your excuses! I've had enough-"

"Jack, calm down! Just let me explain-"

"No! You just said yourself, I wasn't planned! I don't get-"

"Will you JUST LET ME TALK!", I yelled through the whole room. Jack's ranting stopped immediately. He looked really shaken up, but quickly turned around to hide it. Now that I realized what I had done, I regretted it.

"Jack, I'm sorry. I-"

"Just finish your story", he hissed trough his teeth. I sighed. Might as well get over with it.

"As I was saying... Although you weren't planned, we still loved you more than anything. And Jack, you have to understand, as long as I could think I'd always wanted a child on my own. And you made my dream come true. Which makes you even more special to me."

When I finished my story, I waited. I waited for him to break down crying, to start shaking, to do something. But it never came. Some time later I began to grow concerned. Why wasn't he saying anything? Slowly I grabbed his shoulder with my slender fingers and turned him around.

His bangs shadowed his face. I carefully grabbed his chin and made him look at me. His eyes were filled with tears, but he seemed to refuse to let them fall. I softly cooed at him and gave him a peck on the forehead.

"Mom?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm not ice cold, am I?"

I was surprised at his question, but answered anyway:"No, of course not, sweetie. Why would you even think that?"

"Well... All the other spirits always said that. And-"

"Pah! The other spirits don't matter. All that matters is that you accept yourself the way you are. And, well, do you?"

He thought for a moment:"Well, yeah."

"See? Then everything's alright."

He smiled."Thanks, Mom."

"You're welcome. Should I bring you back to bed now?"

"Actually I wanted to ask you if I could maybe sleep here?"

Now it was my turn to smile."Of course, honey."

We made ourselves comfortable on the bed again. With Jack's body pressed against mine, my arms wrapped securely around his frame. But before I could fall asleep, I needed to still tell him something first.

"Jack?"

"Yeah?", he asked tiredly, nearly asleep.

"I know another reason why you aren't ice cold. It's because your heart is way too big and warm, for you to be cold. Can you promise me to remember that?"

All I got in response was a soft snore. All the crying must have tired him out.

As I settled into my pillow again, and tiredness began to make itself known, I could have sworn I heard a faint 'I will'.

Oh my god! Finally done!

But there are bad news, too. I'll be gone for the next two weeks on summer vacation. But now that Summer break has started, I have a lot more time to write new chapters. Please don't be mad at me, that I won't upload for the next few weeks, but I have no wifi where I'm going. So again: Sorry!

See you in two weeks! Stay tuned!

Your RotGCAT ;)

P.S.: Please tell me in the reviews what you think of my writing and (if it's necessary) how I should change it.