Page 66 of Jack Frost
He takes a step forward, absently brushing crystallized snow from between his newly formed fingers. "You saved me."
"I asked the frost wraiths, and they gave themselves to me. They transformed me."
"Are you all right? The change—going through it alone—oh god, what about Auxesia? How long was I out? What has she done? It feels—" He hesitates, his eyes turning distant. He's tapping into the threads of consciousness that attune us to the world. "It feels quiet out there. Peaceful."
"I wouldn't say peaceful." I grimace. "The humans are perfectly capable of creating climate trouble without Auxesia."
"I mean, yes, but it's different. Wait, what do you mean, 'without Auxesia'?"
"I challenged her, right after I transformed. Fought her, and drained her. She's not dead, but it's going to take her a very long time to recover. And I don't think she'll be as powerful or as evil anymore. Even if she is, it'll be okay, because you have me now—we're in this together—"
Jack charges me, crashing onto the bed and clasping me in his arms. "Alive. You're alive. You actually survived that hellfire, you beautiful warrior goddess—lookat you!" He pushes me back to arm's length. "I can feel the power just rolling off you. How many wraiths merged with you?"
"I'm not sure," I murmur. "A lot more than twelve, I think."
"Nick's icy balls." He breathes the curse so fervently it sounds like a prayer. "Have you had any trouble with your powers?"
I wrinkle my nose at him. "I kind of set off a record-breaking wave of Arctic weather across the Midwest. Ice storms, power blackouts—yeah."
"Did anyone—" He hesitates.
"No one died as far as I know," I say quietly. "A lot of inconvenience and expense, though."
"That's all right. And even if you did harm someone by accident, well—Auxesia has been the cause of far more deaths. Defeating her was certainly the greater goal."
There's a shadow in his eyes, but I don't ask if he ever lost control of his powers, or what harm came of it—because every bit of that is in the past. The only thing we need to think about is the future. Our future, and the future of our precious Earth.
Jack's expression is still distant, haunted, so I rise and do a slow twirl in front of him. "What do you think of the new bod?"
He smirks. "Icy hot. But I liked your old one."
"I can't figure out how to switch back to human form," I admit. "I haven't been able to do more than email with Karyl. I called her once, but I forgot that in this form I'm inaudible to humans, too. I had to hang up and text her instead. She's starting to believe you kidnapped me or you're beating me, because I won't show her my face."
He draws back, scandalized. "We can't have her thinking that. I'll show you how to do it. It's like a switch in your mind, or the unlock pattern on your phone—but you have to set it first, for it to work. Usually the trigger is a particular memory from your human life—a moment when you felt especially grounded in yourself, secure in who you were."
"No wonder I couldn't switch," I mutter. "Not sure if I ever felt that way."
"You're kidding." Jack stands up, and I notice that although he's still taller than me, the difference in our heights isn't quite as dramatic now. "I've never met someone so sure of their goals and purpose."
"Sure of goals, maybe, but not necessarily confident within myself. I work hard, but I've always had to struggle along. Some people seem to have everything handed to them.Theyhave innate self-confidence, and it shows. The first moment I felt completely, solidly sure of myself was on Christmas Day, when I decided I wanted to transform and be your partner in this."
Jack's lips part as if he's about to reply, but then his eyes widen. "You did it. There you are."
"What?" I dart to the dressing table mirror. Sure enough, my reflection is the old Emery—or close enough. I still look like I've had a significant makeover, but I'm not quite as sharp-edged and sparkly, and my ears are rounded. "Oh my god. I did it."
Jack slips his arms around my waist from behind. He's in his human aspect now, too. "Now switch forms again, and I'll change with you. Think of the moment you first transformed. Ready?"
Closing my eyes, I concentrate on those first moments of terror and triumph, when I knew that my transformation was real, and I was alive. When I knew that I could save Jack.
"Good," he whispers in my ear. "Now again, to human aspect and then back, this time with your eyes open."
We switch to human form and then to our frosty godlike aspects.
"You'll have to be careful not to switch inadvertently," he says. "Or you'll disappear right in front of whoever you're talking to. It's happened to me before. We'll practice until you feel comfortable, so you can see Karyl face-to-face again."
"Speaking of practicing and feeling comfortable..." I watch my cheeks flush faintly in the mirror. "If you're feeling well enough, we could—test out this new body."
Jack meets my reflection's eyes, and his tongue glides over his lips. He was already growing hard against my back, and now his desire is stiffly unmistakable.
