Frosted tendrils snaked out from Jack's feet as he tread upon the frozen glass of the lake; that lake that both claimed his life and saw his rebirth. All was quiet now; the town asleep and enjoying Sandy's dreams. He liked this quiet, and this time to himself to simply think and reflect. Truth be told, although he had long longed to leave his solitary life, he realized that now he had, he sometimes missed those quiet times to himself.

Tonight was one of the few nights he would go off by himself to reminisce about his time before he became a guardian, and sometimes about his time before he even became Jack Frost. Tonight's excursion was special, however, for it was December 25th, 2013, and the anniversary of some of his favorite memories upon this lake.

Reaching the edge of the water, he hopped up onto the embankment and traversed the few steps it took to make it to the old oak tree. It was actually two oak trees, but they had fused into one quite a long time ago since they had grown up so close together. High above he could still see the faded notches he'd etched there so long ago, but had stopped when he could no longer keep count of the years. He knelt down and observed that the gap between the two at their bases was still there, but greatly reduced in size since she had, so long ago, nestled herself there in the crevice. He hadn't realized it then, but the reason he'd felt so drawn to her that night wasn't just because she was a kind and lonely soul, but because she was actually his sister, the one he had saved from drowning.

Hoisting himself up into the tree, into the very branch he'd observed her from that night about three hundred years ago, Jack recalled, with fresh perspective, the events of that December twenty-fifth, many years ago...

It was another cold night; dark, lonely, and unlovely. Jack etched off another piece of bark by freezing it and knocking it off the tree with his staff. There were now ten notches in the upper boughs of the twin oak tree that overshadowed the lake. Ten years now since the beginning of his existence, and still no word from The Man in the Moon, other than that first utterance of his name.

His self-pitying thoughts were disrupted when he heard the sound of footsteps approaching. Leaning down from his perch, he saw a girl trudging through the snow, bundled in a shawl and shivering with the cold. Instinctively, Jack alighted from the tree and approached her, even though she probably wouldn't be able to see him. She was plain in appearance, about the same age and stature as himself, with the same brown hair and brown eyes that most people in the village had. But upon closer inspection, he noticed a beauty mark on her cheek that gave her complexion character, and a certain air of endearing cuteness. He couldn't explain the feeling, but he was drawn to this girl, like she could somehow fill that desire he had for a home.

He followed her until she reached the edge of the lake, and he assumed she just was having a hard time getting to sleep and so decided to look upon the beauty of the frozen water to lull herself to sleep. However the reaction she gave was one completely unexpected. As soon as she beheld the lake, she stumbled, as though the weight of a sudden emotion was more than she could withstand.

Reaching out a hand to steady herself, her hand fell upon the twin oak Jack had just carved his tenth year mark into. Seeing that there was a cozy opening between the two trunks just large enough for her, she settled herself there until she could bear to stand again.

Growing worried that something might be wrong with this poor girl, Jack figured he should try everything he could - even though she couldn't see him - to cheer her up. What was better for that than a little fun? As the crevice in the oak put her at a great angle for a show on the lake, Jack rushed out onto the surface and used his staff to create crystallized patterns.

Laughing heartily as he got into it, he drew intricate pictures of ice horses and frozen roses for the lady, convinced that she would at least chuckle for his effort. When he turned back to confirm this, he did see her wide-eyed and smiling; but only for a moment. Though she was still smiling, her eyes were now watering and sobs beginning to form in her throat.

"Oh, no, I didn't mean to upset you!" Jack exclaimed as he rushed over to the tree, anxiously pleading with the girl to smile once more. After her first bout of sobs had subsided, Jack stooped down right in front of her as he tried to think of what else he might do to fix his blunder and bring joy and laughter to the poor girl.

She was gazing right through him, out intently upon the lake, so he turned his head to follow her gaze and realized that she was staring at the very spot he had been born from. He didn't realize it while he had been drawing everything on the lake moments before, but that spot had a picture of some ice skates. So the girl liked to skate, did she? Well, he could help her with that!

Summoning the wind to his aid, he held her hand and hoisted her up to her feet and out onto the water. At first the girl was too shocked to notice where it was she was standing, but when she gathered her senses about her, she looked down and saw the picture of the ice skates at her feet and her resolve crumbled.

Jack was just as startled when the girl started trembling uncontrollably with fear, and even more when she subconsciously muttered a single word: "Jack!"

Leaning in close with eyes wide searching hers, he asked, "Did you just... say my name?" She didn't respond, but he continued to search her eyes desperately for any hint of acknowledgment. He hadn't paid attention to how close he'd gotten until the girl flinched when their noses touched. "You can feel me!?" he exclaimed, suddenly rather jubilant, though the girl didn't seem to hear. She only rubbed her nose as it started to turn pink with the cold from Jack's, and continued to tremble, unable to move.

"You sure know how to spoil my fun." Jack declared, no longer able to be happy while she shivered so, her eyes still wrought with fear. He wasn't sure why, but he felt he must protect her, so he resolved to get her back to her little nook in the tree.

Before he could move on that, however, he heard a voice call out, "Hello there! Are you alright, miss?" The girl's head whipped around to acknowledge the voice that called out to her. There stood a young man, probably about the same age as the girl, donned in traveler's apparel and munching on some roasted chestnuts.

"I... I... I'm s-stuck" The girl stammered, still scared stiff.

"You aren't stuck!" Jack argued, then turned to address the stranger, "I was gonna take her back myself!" He wasn't sure why he was getting all defensive, he barely knew this girl! However there was an instinct deep inside him telling him to ward strangers - especially male strangers - off from her.

Ignoring him, as the people Jack spoke to always did, the stranger nimbly maneuvered to where she was, took both her hands in his, and said, "Do not worry, fair maiden. I know you are scared, but if you just keep looking into my eyes, I'll have you to safety before you know it."

Nodding her agreement, the girl allowed herself to be led off the ice by this stranger that held all her attention, leaving Jack feeling quite jealous.

Once the stranger had her settled in front of the twin oak, he sat down beside her and said, "We'll rest here awhile while you calm down, then I'll see you off safely to your home."

Jack begrudgingly took a seat on the other side of the girl, narrowing his eyes at the stranger and watching him VERY closely for any false moves. His guard didn't abate even after the stranger began to talk with the girl to calm her down, though the things they talked of quickly caught and held his attention.

"Miss, forgive me for asking, but why were you out on the frozen lake so late on such a cold night?" the stranger started after they had been resting awhile.

"I'm actually not sure how I managed to get onto the lake; it must have been my subconscious. I was only come to look upon the lake." she replied.

"Surely it is a strong desire that could drive your subconscious to such lengths. Pray tell, if I may be so bold as to ask your motivation for so late a stroll?"

"I..." she began, but choked up as her eyes threatened tears once more.

"I am so very sorry!" The stranger exclaimed when he saw them - Jack only glared at him for making the girl cry once more - "Forgive me, I did not mean to vex you."

"No, you are not at fault. I only pray you will be patient with me, if you are indeed inclined to listen. Mother says it would be good to talk of it, as she also said it would be good to come here today. I only just got the courage after so many hours of struggle to come here before the night was over."

"I would be glad to lend my ear to an honest lass like yourself, if you would but deem me worthy." he encouraged.

Jack thought for a moment that since he wasn't invited, it might be rude to listen in on what the girl had to say, but he reasoned with himself that if he didn't keep a close eye on this stranger, no one would, and there would be no one to help the girl should the stranger try anything shady. So he remained planted to the ground beside her, leaning in to hear her account for the night's excursions.

"I haven't come to this lake for a good many years, even though it is but a quarter mile's distance and a trek over the knoll from my village. I have been much afraid to ever since - " the girl began, but stopped suddenly when sobs threatened again. The stranger put a comforting hand upon her shoulder and waited for her to compose herself, resulting in Jack's fury.

Seeking a suitable punishment for the stranger's actions, Jack reached his staff up and knocked on one of the branches over the man's head, which caused a small pile of snow to fall atop him. The man jumped when the cold wet snow landed on his head, and the girl giggled at the sight, overcoming her previous grief much sooner.

"Hah! Knew I could make you laugh!" Jack roared in triumph, unheard by the couple under the tree who still thought themselves very much alone.

Clearing her throat to stop her laughs, the girl continued her story, "It was also on a December the twenty-fifth when it happened... I had begged and begged to go ice skating before Christmas dinner, but my mother wouldn't let me. Only when my older brother said he'd go with me did she agree to let us go, under the strict promise that we'd be careful and be back by dinnertime..."

"And you weren't back by dinnertime so your mother never let you come here again?" The stranger asked with a slight smile, a joker at heart seeking to further alleviate her sadness by laughter, as the snow falling had done.

"Copycat." Jack muttered in annoyance as he observed a smile come over the girl's face.

"No... there was a patch of thin ice..." she narrated, recalling the events as though they just happened, her brow creasing with emotion. "He told me to stay close to him, but I didn't listen... I suddenly felt the surface begin to give way underneath my feet..." She shivered at the memory, and Jack put his hand over hers as an apology for taking her out onto the ice just awhile ago. He hadn't known that she'd had such a traumatizing experience, and was now extremely sorry to have brought up such scary memories by his actions. When he noticed that the stranger had done as he had done and had put his hand over her other, Jack whacked it with his staff, angry that the stranger was taking advantage of her traumatized state. The whack had the desired effect and made the stranger remove it with a flinch, stammering about how cold he felt suddenly.

"Here, have a chestnut." he offered, producing the bag he'd been munching out of when he first happened upon the girl. "They were freshly roasted in town, and still warm." Happily accepting a few, the girl continued, "He saved me... from the thin ice. But sacrificed himself in the process." Eyes watering and threatening to spill once more, the girl buried her head in her knees for a few moments until she could compose herself.

"I think I can empathize a little with you, fair maiden... You are feeling guilty. Guilty for wanting to go skating, guilty for not listening when your brother told you to stay close, and guilty that you lived while your brother died."

Raising her head with eyes wide in amazement, the girl asked, "How.. how did you know?"

"When I was but four years old, I was playing on the farm my father owned when I saw a gorgeous butterfly fluttering around. Enamored by its beauty, I followed it until it came to the edge of the forest. I had been told many a time not to venture into the woods alone, but I just so wanted to catch that butterfly, that I went in after it anyway. Luckily my brother had seen me go and and ran off at once to fetch my father. I'm not sure how much time passed, for children have little sense of time, but I found myself alone in the woods, and it was very dark. Shortly after I began to hear the howling of wild dogs, which frightened me so much, I screamed. I do not know if it was for bad or for good I cried, because they summoned both the wolves and my father and brother. My memories are fuzzy because I was so young, but I remember my father yelling at my brother to take me and run. That was the last time either of us saw our father."

"I'm so sorry to hear that." The girl whispered, and even Jack was so mesmerized by the stranger's tale, he didn't notice that the girl had shyly taken the stranger's hand in hers.

"It is alright; I have come to have a peace about it, as I know you will have too." he said with a smile.

"How?" She asked, curious and hopeful.

"When you realize that he would have wanted you to live on happily; so that his sacrifice will not go in vain... and also when you can sing about it."

"Sing about it?"

"Of course. Every good bit of history is passed down by riddle and song, and so I've taken to preserving the memories I treasure most to lyric."

"So you're a minstrel?"

Laughing, the stranger responded, "Not exactly; and I do hope I'll be able to be a soldier rather than a minstrel in the coming months."

"Soldier? What for?" the girl asked, worry filling her eyes.

"A war has started in New England, where my brother is, and I am on my way to lend him and their cause my aid."

"But New England is so far from here!"

"Yes... My mother died giving me birth, so after our father died, my brother and I were given into the care of two other families. My elder brother was taken in by father Rale's family, and I was given to the care of a family who headed south shortly after when a bad frost destroyed their land and all their crops, hoping to find a new beginning. My brother and I have kept in contact via post, but it will be a great joy to be reunited in the flesh, even though it is in battle."

"But you may die!" The girl exclaimed, showing genuine concern, which touched the heart of the stranger, and wrenched that of Jack Frost.

"Come on! You JUST met him!" Jack cried with jealousy, worrying that the girl's heart was being too easily won over. "For all you know, he could be making it up!" He protested, though the story did seem to align with his traveler's apparel.

"Well if I do, will you promise to sing about me so everyone remembers?" he asked with a boyish grin, tilting his head towards hers to make his plea more effective.

"I... I don't know how to write songs." She admitted, hanging her head.

"Well then! I'll just have to teach you! We'll write a song to remember your brother!" He declared, resulting in the girl's face lighting up with delight.

"Oh, yes, please!" She begged.

"So what is your name?" he asked.

"Don't tell him!" Jack pleaded, thinking the stranger very sly to get personal information from her by the trick of promising a song about her brother out of it. If the song would be about her brother, why was -her- name needed, eh? More upset than ever that people couldn't hear him, the girl paid no attention to his unheard pleas and responded "It's Jill." with a smile.

"And that of your brother?"

"Jack."

Jack froze when she said this - never mind that he was already technically frozen anyway, being 'Jack Frost' and all. So she had never momentarily felt his presence while they were on the lake earlier, she was just muttering the name of her brother. Cursed common name of 'Jack', getting his hopes up like that! Yet... it remained that she seemed to have felt him when their noses touched... but perhaps that was just a coincidence too, as the name had been.

Jack stood by watching the couple whisper, hum, and laugh together, feeling a twinge of jealousy that he wasn't able to do for the girl what the stranger was now doing - making her laugh. Before long, the two had a finished song about the death of the girl's brother, and they sang it together as follows...

Jack and Jill
Went o'er the hill
To etch upon the water
Jack fell through
For Jill's rescue
And she'll remember hereafter

It was a catchy tune, Jack admitted, though maybe slightly upbeat for so sad a story. It was kind of fitting, however; he thought that if he were Jill's brother Jack, he'd want her to be able to laugh as she remembered him. Thinking that perhaps this stranger wasn't such a creep after all, Jack began to let down his guard a bit and joined in their fun, singing along to the song they'd just made.

At the last phrase, however, the stranger slowed down his singing and inched his face closer to Jill's - dangerously close - and she did the same! For a moment it looked like they might kiss, but Jill suddenly withdrew when she felt a cold nip on the tip of her nose.

"Are you alright?" The stranger asked in regards to her sudden flinch.

"Yes, fine, sorry. I just got a sudden nip of chill upon my nose."

So she COULD feel him! The stranger hadn't felt a thing when Jack instinctively karate chopped his hand between their too-close faces to prevent a kiss, but Jill had! That was quite interesting indeed; he'd have to keep an eye on her.

"Well that's odd." The stranger commented.

"When Jack was still alive, he'd pelt snowballs at me all the time, making my nose cold... " Jill said with a giggle. "So it's probably happening tonight because I keep thinking about him." she reasoned.

"What's it feel like?" the stranger inquired.

"Like the frost of Jack's snowballs nipping at my nose."

"I can make a song for that too." He said with a smile.

"Oh please..." Jack scoffed, unable to bear the blatant flirting any longer. He thought he'd made it past the worst of it, but he was proven wrong when the stranger started singing:

On a cold night sipping at the frigid air
Jack's frost nipping at my nose
Who do I see, but a maiden so fair
Wish I could give but just a rose

Jill giggled at the lyric and accepted the chestnuts he offered in place of a rose. Jack just rolled his eyes.

"Well, my dear maiden, the hour is late and I can not tarry any longer. Allow me to see you accompanied back to the village safely, then I shall be on my way."

Jack was thrilled; Jill was not. Nonetheless she accepted the invite to be escorted back, and Jack, uninvited, went with them to make sure the stranger didn't try anything funny.

When they'd reached the edge of the village, the stranger bid her farewell and released the hand he'd been holding so she could return home. "Good boy." Jack commended.

After a few moments watching her go, however, he called out, "Jill, wait!"

"No! BAD BOY!" Jack chastised.

"Yes?" she turned and acknowledged.

Rushing up to her side once more, the stranger asked, "I know we've only just met, but if you would do me the honor, I would love the chance to see you again - to see you often - once my duty in the war is done. Will you wait for me at the lake on a later December the twenty-fifth when the war is over?"

Jack made a mental note to always be at the lake every December the twenty-fifth. To his chagrin, Jill nodded her head and promised to do so, resulting in the stranger running off at a joyful gallop.

Happy to finally see him gone, Jack cried out with the deepest annoyance when Jill called out after him, "Wait! I do not even know your name!"

"James!" He called back once more before disappearing down a trail that would lead him to a town nearby with an inn.

"Goooood riddance." Jack commented, before he too, and the girl named Jill, went back to their residences.

Another year passed, and Jack was making his customary notch in the twin oak to mark his eleventh year of existence when he observed the same girl from last year - the girl named Jill - crest the top of the hill and make her way towards the lake. Night was falling and the air steadily chilling as the sun withdrew its warmth. She was alone, wearing the same shawl as before, but luckily that man named 'James' was nowhere to be seen.

She nestled herself in the opening between the bases of the twin oak and eagerly looked around, no doubt hoping that mysterious traveler would fulfill his half of the promise.

Hours passed, the girl grew cold and sleepy, and soon she was drifting to sleep as she waited. Jack had been keeping watch from his branch above, but he sat up alert and concerned when he observed that behavior. He may not have been in existence all that long, but his experience in that time had taught him that when living people fell asleep in the cold, they rarely wake up. Ever.

Scrambling down from his perch, Jack sought to grab her attention by doodling on the ice again, summoning the wind to ruffle her air, touching her nose again to make it chill, but all to no avail.

Clearly there was nothing he could do to keep her awake himself, he had to resort to trying to get the aid of others. Rushing down the to the town where she lived, he recalled which house was hers and entered it, finding her parents sleeping soundly in their beds.

"Wake up!" he cried desperately in vain, "Your daughter needs you!" When they of course didn't respond, Jack frantically looked about for something that could help him wake them up and get the message to them. When he observed that their daughter's room was adjacent to theirs, he opened the window of her room and the door that connected their two bedrooms. He directed the wind to blow through her window and over the parent's bed, blowing the blankets off and chilling them so suddenly they instantly awoke.

Though dazed at first, Jill's mother made no delay in noticing that Jill's room was empty and her window was open. This effectively motivated both into action and before long, her father had sounded the village alert; soon all the inhabitants were out looking for Jill.

Seeking to lead them to Jill, Jack tried calling in vain, as always. "Aw, come on, guys! Her tracks are right HERE!" He indicated, but when he looked down at them, he saw that the wind he had summoned was beginning to whisk the snow away - soon her tracks would be gone. "No, no, no!" he cried, then hurriedly set about freezing the path she took so that each foot print was preserved.

"Look! Over here! Footprints!" Some villager finally noticed, and soon they were all bounding up the trail over the hill.

When they had reached the other side, Jack made a frozen chute with his staff so they would all reach her faster and at her precise location, partially hidden in the shadow of the oak.

"Jill! Wake up!" her parents cried. "She's chilled to the bone!"

Slightly stirred from sleep, but still non-cognizant, Jill mumbled a line of song, "Jack's frost nipping at my nose..."

"She's delirious!" Her mother cried, "How will I ever bear losing TWO children! Lord have mercy!"

Once the villagers had gotten her home, Jack watched over her from her window until she was recovered, which took a couple days. Before he left, and in spite of the fact she couldn't hear him, Jack bade her goodbye with the words, "I'm glad you're okay now, but I want you to promise me that you won't let your promise to that guy compromise your own health and safety, alright?"

When all she did was yawn in reply, Jack chuckled and gave her a goodbye kiss on her nose, which she promptly twitched.

The year was now 1725, and it was also the second December the twenty-fifth since the encounter with the traveler named 'James'. Sure enough, as night fell, Jill once again approached the lake and sat down at the twin oak, but this time, she'd brought an extra blanket and set it down upon the ground before she sat. Jack sat down beside her and commented, "As much as I hate to say it... In light of last year's events, at least for your sake, I hope that bastard shows this time."

She surprised him by responding, "Jack..." but when he realized she was once again gazing at that spot on the ice, he knew she was addressing her deceased brother and not himself. "I wanted to say... that I'm sorry... I'm so... sorry!" by the end of this confession, she was in tears once more. Unsure what to do, for he desperately wanted to put an arm around her, but didn't want to make her cold, he just sat there and waited for her to continue.

"I wish I could somehow pay you back for the sacrifice you made for me. I... I know now that you'd just want me to live on happily, Jack... and I just wanted to tell you that I've met someone... He's a lot like you, Jack... caring and funny... I received notice by post that the war he was fighting in finally ended a few weeks ago. I can not tell you how anxious I am to find out if he made it through alright or not. I'm... I'm so.. scared, Jack..."

Suddenly he had a grand idea. He could play a game of charades with her! That would surely help her get over her fear! And this time, he'd make sure to draw the RIGHT pictures. "If you don't mind, Jack..." he asked permission from her late Jack to act in his place.

Descending upon the lake, he began drawing pictures of chestnuts over a fire, a soldier leaving the battleground, and a couple exchanging a rose. When he finished, he was quite happy to see that she was smiling at the pictures he'd drawn.

"Thank you, Jack..."

"You're welcome." Jack responded in lieu of her deceased brother. "I know he would have done the same."

At that moment, a voice singing broke through the dark with the familiar words:

On a cold night sipping at the frigid air
Jack's frost nipping at my nose
Who do I see, but a maiden so fair
Wish I could give but just a rose

"James!" Jill exclaimed, and it was indeed he that just came into view as he crested the hill on the last note. She began running towards him as he continued singing:

There are chestnuts roasting on an open fire
But my maiden's out in the cold
Staring out 'cross the frozen black mire
Dreaming of the sweet times of old

Pausing only to take Jill's hands in his and kneel down on one knee, James the returned soldier continued singing:

My Dear, my heart's bursting with your every praise
Won't you let me warm your soul
Although it's been said many times, many ways
Will you make the wedding bells toll

Jack watched with a smile on his face as Jill heartily agreed to James' proposal and accepted his embrace, and also some freshly roasted chestnuts.

A few month's later, he just as happily attended their wedding, and he may or may not have shed a few tears. When Jill emerged from the church as 'Mrs. James Bennett, Jr.", that's when Jack resolved to travel the world. If this girl who had grieved for the death of her brother and thought herself alone, and this man who had lost his father and grown up an orphan... if they had been able to find happiness and family, surely he could too.

"Alright, you!" Jack called to the Man in the Moon, "You put me here, alone, and without a family. So I'm counting on you to guide me here as I go in search of one, alright?" And with that, he left the village he had stayed in for twelve years and began his many adventures around the globe as the "Jack Frost who nips at your nose", which became a popular line in many a winter song back in that village.

The present Jack Frost chuckled as he finished recalling all this, still amazed that he had never connected the dots that he was actually Jill's Jack. Hence why it had been natural for him to be drawn to and overprotective of his sister. He was immensely glad that he had been able to see her fall in love and get married, and most of all to have been present when she spoke her final words to him. With a happy sigh, Jack flew up on the wings of the wind to other parts of the world, leaving his home for a time to attend to his duties as a guardian.

A few months passed before Jack was able to return home, and when he did, he noticed the sun was melting away the frost he'd laid since the last time he was here. "Well! Guess I better get on the job and start re-freezing things! Bunnymund will be furious!" He exclaimed with a chuckle to himself, for today was Easter Sunday.

Walking a ways over the hill and down towards the village, he took a detour when he saw Jamie and his family walking towards the church. "It's a bit early for Easter service yet, kid." Jack chuckled to himself, and waited for a moment when he could talk with Jamie alone - for his mother would only buy the "Talking to Jack Frost" excuse so many times before she would consider putting her son in a psych ward.

He thus followed the Bennett family past the church and into the cemetery behind it. It was quite an old cemetery, with gravestones dating back to awhile before Jack even became Jack Frost. When Jamie stopped to tie his shoe, Jack saw his chance and approached, "Hey, Jamie! Whatcha guy's doin'?"

"Oh hey, Jack Frost! My family does this every year. Since Easter is a celebration of life after death, we always visit the family plot before Easter service."

"Is that so?" Jack asked rhetorically, just touched that some of the living took special time to honor the ones who had passed on.

"Yeah! Wanna come and see?"

"Ok, sure."

With that, Jack followed Jamie as he caught up with his family, but stopped short when they reached the 'family plot'. "Whoah... it's HUGE!" Jack exclaimed when he saw the fenced in area where rows after rows of tombstones bearing the "Bennett" name were lined.

"Our family has lived here for quite a long time, haven't they?" Jamie commented for Jack's benefit, while posing it as a question to his parents so they wouldn't get suspicious.

"Yes, Jamie, our family has lived here for several generations, for over three hundred years!"

"Wow... Hey, why don't you tell Sophie how I'm named after our ancestors?" he asked, again, for the benefit of Jack, just under the guise of being for the benefit of his little sister.

"It's been a longstanding tradition for a son in each generation of the family to carry the name 'James', to pass on the legacy of the first James Bennett that sacrificed himself to save the lives of his sons, the second of which was the first James Bennett to live in this town."

When the realization of the connection this could mean hit, Jack stood in shock, nearly instantaneously starting to scan the tombstones for one with the name "Jill Bennett" to confirm his suspicion. He barely even noticed when Jamie bade him goodbye in order to go to church with his family. When the realization that Jamie was now gone hit, however, Jack immediately took off running through the rows.

After he'd passed several rows, one of the tombstones caught his eye as he read the inscription:

James Bennett the Second
1703 - 1766
Beloved Father and Founder of Burgess Historical Society

And there next to that tombstone, he found it.

Jill Bennett
1706 - 1765
Beloved Wife and Mother

Jack and Jill
Went o'er the hill
To etch upon the water
Jack fell through
For Jill's rescue
And she'll remember hereafter

Tears welling up in his eyes, Jack ran a ringer over the inscription of the song she'd made to remember him by. "Jill... Thank you... Thank you for living on... And... just so you know, you paid me back... far more than you could ever know."

~ The End ~

Acknowledgements / Disclaimers:

I do not own Rise of the Guardians nor their characters of Jack, his sister, Jamie, and their families. This story was completely my speculation on their connections and interactions, and not the official cannon (though I fit it in where it made sense with the official cannon so as to be believable).

I was not the original creator of the Jack and Jill nursery rhyme, I only altered it to fit the story and present a little instance of "What if this nursery rhyme we all know and love went through a game of telephone before it was officially published in 1765?"

I did not write the Christmas Song, again, that was sort of an instance of "What if some of the modern day Christmas songs borrowed lyrics from older traditional songs of ages past?", with my fictional explanation of how that lyric came to be.

I also borrowed some historical context known as "Father Rale's War" (1722 - 1725), and set up James' Bennett's brother as being adopted by Father Rale, though that most assuredly did not actually happen.

Hope you enjoyed it!

Author's Note (4/29/13): I've noticed some grammatical errors and quite a few clunky-reading parts of this story. My apologies that you have had to read it this way. I will be editing it and updating with those changes as soon as I get some free time. So if you've spotted errors, please let me know and I'll include the changes in that update!

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