This isn't much, but it's more a little follow-up to the fact that Jack DID tear off the tattered remains of his Sandy Claws suit during the song "Poor Jack" in the graveyard out in the real world after he was shot down from the sky. Of course, he was wearing his regular suit underneath (xD Surprisingly!), and he also was shredding the image of something he was not, and fully embracing who he really was. :D

But don't you think that maybe, deep down at some point, he might kind of feel bad? Sally worked hard on that! :( And she made it out of love! I just want to do a little something where he realizes that and makes a sweet apology to her. :'3

So here it is! :D

Jack and Sally belong to Tim Burton

Jack felt despaired.

Completely, utterly despaired.

It wasn't just because he was packing away these wonderful, wonderful Christmas decorations. Yes, that in itself was not easy to do. Even right now, after all that had happened, Jack still loved Christmas...as he now could see a much truer meaning to it. He still found joy in the wondrous holiday. He wondered if anyone felt this way after Christmas was all over. So sad and blue.

But that wasn't all that was troubling the Pumpkin King at this moment.

Jack looked out the window of the tower, all the way toward Dr. Finkelstein's manor, the laboratory. If he had a heart, it would be clenching right now it utter sadness and guilt.

Sally.

No, it wasn't Sally herself. Not at all. If anything, Jack was nothing but goofy and joyous smiles whenever he thought of his beloved rag doll. The woman of his dreams. Sally. They had only been seeing each other for about two weeks now, ever since Christmas Eve when he lovingly admitted his feelings for her, and she felt the same. Even in this short amount of time, Jack could not deny that he was more than certain about her, and their future. He was skull-over-heels in love! Like he'd never felt in his afterlife! Being in love, and with her, was wonderful!

Despite the guilt, he smiled. He couldn't help it.

At the same time, as Jack's eyes fell upon a little Santa-shaped figurine, he sighed once more. His sadness stemmed from one other thing. The destroyed Sandy Claws suit that Sally had made. Yes, most of it was destroyed when he had been shot down from the sky, and then during the impassioned moment of his song, he had torn it off, and left the rags on the ground. While it was torn and tattered before he ripped it off, and rendered unable to ever wear again, it did still make him feel terrible.

Being shot down from the sky, and then tearing it off, it had all been his own doing. Thanks to it all, it was gone and destroyed forever. All of her hard work. The soft, wonderful, amazing suit made by her sweet, talented, loving little hands. Jack would never forget the moment she showed him the finished product. How soft it was, how well it fit, how amazing it looked. It had been exactly what he had wanted, it looked exactly the way he had drawn it out and envisioned it. Sally was not only an amazing seamstress, but she listened to him. She did exactly what he wanted, and he would never forget how grateful he had felt. He had been more than right to choose her to do this task.

And now it was gone. Her hard work, was gone. Something she should never have had to do in the first place. It was gone. Jack didn't even think to bring back the scraps as a memento...as a way to apologize.

Then a horrifying thought came to him.

What if he had lost her that night?

Jack cringed, and felt his heart drop. 'No, I can't think of it! No...I almost lost her that night...I can't think of it, it's too horrible. My poor...poor...Sally...'

There wasn't a day he regretted his stupidity. Because of it, he had inadvertently put her in danger. She was almost completely destroyed because of him. What if that had happened? What if he did show up a few minutes too late? Not only would his heart be broken at losing his dearest, most treasured friend (aside from Zero), and not only would he have been unable to find out her feelings, let alone express his own...but that suit would have been one of the only things he had to remind him of her. And he'd left it behind, unable to go back for it. If that were the case...

Jack shook his head again. He had to stop thinking of that. It didn't matter, anyway. Sally was perfectly safe, and they were together. He would spend forever making that up to her. That, as well as having been so oblivious and clueless to her sweet affections.

'How could I have ever made her think that I wouldn't welcome her with arms as my lover...just as I welcomed her as my friend right from the start?' Was what he often thought since then, and even now.

Then he thought, what if she was angry at him for this? She had worked hard on a suit, when he should have listened to her all along, and only for to be destroyed and never once apologized for it. That made him worry too. He never even apologized about it. Sure, she nor he ever brought it up, but it still didn't excuse the fact he should have apologized to her about it.

Realizing what he had to do, Jack decided to leave early. He promised Sally to take her out this evening, and doggone it, he was going to apologize to her about this mess! If for nothing else, to let her know he was sincerely sorry about ripping it away and leaving it behind.

"Zero," Jack called over to his ghost dog as he came down into the main house. He smiled. "Do you want to come with me to see Sally?"

At the mention of Sally's name, Zero abandoned his little toy and happily floated over to his master, wagging his sheet. "Arf! Arf!"

"I thought you would be." Jack chuckled, knowing how much the little dog adored Sally too. "Let's go then, Zero!"

The two departed, heading out of the house and outside to head off to Dr. Finkelstein's laboratory.

Upon arrival, Jack knocked on the door and rang the doorbell, waiting patiently to be allowed entry. It wasn't long before he heard the usual "The door is open!" from the other side. Only the Doctor didn't sound angered or annoyed, but more out of suggestion that they open the door instead of waiting for him to wheel down to do so. Smiling, he opened the door and came inside with Zero in tow.

"Hello!" He called in.

"Oh, Jack my boy!" Dr. Finkelstein called from further up the ramp, peering down at him. "Come up then!"

Jack did, ascending the spiral ramp, and smiling brightly. "Hello, Doctor! How are you this dreaded evening?"

"Just as well, my boy!" The old scientist's face twisted lightly but kept neutral. "I take it you're here to see Sally?"

"Oh, yes." Jack smiled more. "I invited her out for a walk this evening, and perhaps we'll go back to my house for a little bit of tea. Rest assured, I will have her home by midnight, just as you prefer."

"Mm-hmm...all right then, I suppose it's all right. She has finished her chores to day." Dr. Finkelstein turned to his latest creation. "My precious Jewel, will you go and fetch Sally?"

"Absolutely, my dear." Jewel nodded, and smiled toward Jack. "Hello Jack dear, I take it you're doing well this evening?"

"Yes, thank you!" Jack smiled and bowed to her politely. "I hope you're doing fine as well, Miss Jewel."

"Why of course! Why wouldn't I be?" Jewel patted Dr. Finkelstein's cranium, and then headed toward Sally's room to let her know her date had arrived.

Dr. Finkelstein cleared his throat loudly to ward off the awkwardness. "Yes, well... See that you do bring Sally back by midnight... Though I suppose I couldn't expect any less from you, my boy."

"It's all right, Doctor, I can see you just want to make sure that she's safe and taken care of." Jack assured. "And I therefore will assure you as much as you need me to, that I will take care of her."

This made Dr. Finkelstein nod and clear his throat yet again. Oh yes, he knew far too well that Sally could not have picked a better man to fall in love with, and love her in return. He trusted Jack completely, and knew he would only treat Sally like a Princess. It was no wonder Sally always looked so happy, as if she were lost in a sweet dream, whenever she came home from a little date with Jack. He made her happy, plain and simple. And on top of that, he couldn't exactly deny the Pumpkin King himself when he wanted to see her.

"Good to hear, my boy."

"Here she is!" Jewel announced then, bringing Sally into view.

The shy, smiling rag doll looked to Jack with a demure, but still sweet smile. "H-Hello, Jack..."

"Arf!" Zero gave a happy bark at seeing her.

Jack immediately lit up the moment he saw her, his skeleton grin growing! It took all of his strength not to rush over to her, take her in his arms, twirl her, and bestow sweet kisses on her lovely face! Oh, she knew how to bring out the romantic charmer in him! He went over to her, took her hand, and kissed the back of it gently. "Good evening, Sally. Are you ready?"

"Yes..." Sally shyly brought her free arm behind her back.

Grinning more, Jack squeezed her hand. "Splendid! Well then, Doctor, Miss Jewel, have a good evening! I'll bring Sally back on time."

"Have a good time, dear!" Jewel called after them.

"Don't you run off, Sally!" Dr. Finkelstein warned.

"Oh, don't be a buzzkill, dear." Jewel chuckled.

Grumbling, Dr. Finkelstein wheeled back to his lab, with an amused and giggling Jewel following after him.

The minute that the couple were outside, this was when Jack took a moment to...properly greet her. After all, they were together now, weren't they? But he hadn't wanted to do that in front of her...well, guardians for lack of a better term, since he didn't want to embarrass her, nor did he want to appear as any less than a gentleman in front of them. Not to mention, it was getting harder to control himself whenever he shared a kiss with her, and knew if he prolonged it with others watching, it would be embarrassing.

"Sally...before we go, and...well, since I didn't want you to feel embarrassed..." Jack rubbed the back of his neck as he looked down a bit. "May I kiss you?"

Sally blinked, and blushed a bit. He just about always insisted on asking her permission to give her a kiss. At least, some of the time. She didn't mind, it was cute, and showed how much of a caring gentleman he was, but she hoped one day he would know that he never needed to ask. She loved him so much, and had longed to kiss him for as long as she could remember. She always wanted to kiss him. "Jack...of course. You don't need to ask."

"I know that, but I suppose I can't help it, Sally." Jack admitted sheepishly. "Does it bother you?"

"No! No, of course not. I don't mean it the way it may sound." Sally assured softly. "I just...hope you'll know that you don't need to ask me. ...I...I love it when we kiss." She blushed and looked down shyly.

Unable to help it, Jack grinned widely, and then gently cupped her face in his hands. The moment he saw her surprised face, especially in how her eyes widened and her lips parted slightly, he just melted. Sally was so adorable. "Aww, Sally... I love to kiss you, too." With that, he leaned in and kissed her. Gently, but with sweetness, and prolonging.

A soft sigh escaped Sally as she leaned closer against him, something she always came to do whenever they kissed, and brought her arms around his neck. Immediately of course, she kissed him back. Burying his fingers in her hair with one hand, Jack gently snaked one arm around her and pulled her closer.

Anytime they kissed, she never wanted it to end! But alas, there did come a time they had to end it, in order to resume what they would originally be doing. When she felt him pull back, she loosened her hold and brought her hands to his shoulders, though he didn't let her go just yet.

"Oh, Jack..." She mumbled dreamily, nearly falling up against him.

Jack chuckled and held her tighter. "Are you all right, Sally?"

"Y-Yes..." Sally responded, looking up at him, her cheeks pinkening. "I'm fine, Jack..."

Smiling more, Jack kissed her on the forehead, and felt himself grin wider the moment he heard the dreamy sigh escape the sweet rag doll. "That's good. Since you can still walk, I hope, do you want to get going?"

Sally nodded, and they released each other. She couldn't help but feel a pang of disappointment from the loss of their close contact, which even now she craved for. But to remedy the situation, she came close to him and held his hand, which he happily held right back. Hand in hand, keeping close to each other, the two descended down the stairwell, with Jack helping Sally along the way so that she wouldn't lose her balance or fall, with Zero leading the way down.

The three of them made it to the Graveyard, and were now on Spiral Hill. Zero nuzzled with them awhile, before he went off to play with the ghosts and give his master and his (hopeful) mistress some time alone together.

'What could be better than this?' Jack thought as he and Sally stood on Spiral Hill, embracing each other. He just felt so happy, so warm, so complete with Sally here with him. Her arms around his torso, her head laying against his ribs, her eyes closed. She was quite cuddly! For someone so shy and modest, she really was quite a joy to hug and snuggle. He held her warmly, but firmly, gently stroking her impossibly soft hair with one hand, and just looking out to the landscape of the graveyard...thinking of it all. Just about two weeks ago, they stood on this hill, coming together in love within their cute little song.

Then came that they were moving closer to each other. Neither of them spoke, their eyes never leaving each other. Strange, neither knew what was happening or what they were doing, but it felt so right, so natural, and wonderful. How could they not follow the feeling? Their first kiss. Jack knew he'd never forget it. The feeling of her sweet, soft, scarlet lips were unlike anything he'd ever felt in his entire afterlife! Better than flying through the sky in a sleigh! If anything, anytime they kissed, he felt he could fly if he wanted to! No sleigh, no wings, nothing! He could just fly!

But then, as he reminisced the lovely memories of his beloved, there came the very thing he'd been despairing over since earlier.

Jack sighed softly. He had to get it over with now, before he completely lost his nerve.

"Sally, there's something I need to talk to you about." He said softly.

Sally stiffened as she looked up at Jack with worry. A part of her feared that maybe he wanted to...no longer court her, and that scared her to death. But, she knew better than to jump to conclusions and put him on the spot like that. She took a breath, and decided to take the better road and wait and see what he had to say. After all, it could even have been a problem he had and needed her help. "What is it, Jack?"

"To begin with, Sally, I hope you'll know how sincerely sorry I am." Jack said, his countenance taking a sad and a guilty persona. "The Sandy Claws suit you made for me, I...it was destroyed. When I was shot down from the sky, it was ruined. But not just that, as I realized things and knew that I was indeed the Pumpkin King, I had been all along, I did something terrible."

While Sally felt relieved that it wasn't the case, she couldn't help but still look at him with worry. "I don't understand..."

Jack exhaled, and spilled it out to her. "I ripped the remains off me. And then I just let them sit there on the ground. I didn't even retrieve them. Oh, Sally, I'm so very sorry! You worked so hard on that suit, you made it with your sweet, wonderful, loving hands. And I just ruined it. I didn't even bring the remains back with me. I should have, but no, I was foolish to leave them. I did love that suit, and I still do. I would wear it again, even for just for knowing you made it. I'm so, so sorry your hard work was destroyed, Sally. I hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, though that's far more than I deserve. I destroyed your hard work for something I should never have asked you to do, but you did anyway, because of how kind and selfless you are." He looked down sadly, making a move to let her go from the embrace.

But imagine his surprise when she held him tighter.

"Jack..." Sally said softly, and grazed his cheek with her lips. "Please don't be upset. Of course I forgive you. It was just a suit. ...The fact you came back undead and well, that...is what mattered to me the most. A suit is a suit. I can always make another one. But you...you're irreplaceable, Jack." She felt tears course down her face. "You really don't have to be sorry for it, not at all. Forget about it. There's nothing to be sorry for, nothing to forgive."

Jack felt his bones tremble, and his smile grow, and just, he felt so much better! "Oh, Sally. What have I done to deserve the sweetest woman in the world?"

Blushing, Sally embraced him more and leaned up toward him. "By being you. But...for what it's worth, Jack, I accept your apology, and I forgive you."

Smiling all the more, Jack pulled her in for a tighter embrace, and it wasn't long before he proceeded to shower her with kisses. She was right. It was just a suit. While he couldn't help but feel bad in seeing her hard work destroyed, what really mattered was that they were here, together, and the danger had passed. She clearly was much happier that he came back safe and sound, and was more concerned about him than the suit.

And that...just made him feel so much happier.