Rise of the Guardians 1. Chapter 1

Zenith State

Awaking with nothing but a name was not something anyone in their right mind would take lightly. Waking and being invisible to the rest of the world and literally walked straight through like a ghost was utterly heart wrenching, terrifying and soul crushing. At least it was for Jack Frost. He wandered across the snow cover land searching for someone, anyone who could see him, who might know him and tell him just who he was. Maybe find the voice that had resounded from the moon and spoke his name that frightful day he awoke in the frigid water under thick ice and snow. He had tried many times to call out to the moon, hoping it would answer but it never did and soon he thought it a strange dream. Soon he forgot.

The first year was hard as anyone might guess. He wandered the land, lost and alone yet for whatever reason always returning to the place as his "birth" where he would sit on his pond, curled up and sorely in need of a friend. He began speaking to his staff after a while, seeing as it was his only companion and it was much more than a mere piece of twisted wood. He felt power in it and it seemed almost as if it was a part of him. It was the one constant in his life and he would curl around it when he slept – which wasn't something he needed as often as humans did.

Spring was a frightening time for the new winter sprite. He had ignored the sudden warmth at first, burying himself in a bank of snow and using his magic to keep the immediate area around him cold and ice solid but as the days passed and the temperate went up his power began to waver until one afternoon Jack awoke to the strangely familiar and terrifying sound of ice cracking. An unexplainable, chest crush fear hit Jack so hard he thought someone had punched him and while that thought was strange in itself – who would ever be able to punch him let alone thought him? – he was no less scared and for one horrifying moment he relived a memory of falling through the ice. Maybe it was instinct, maybe it was the moon finally speaking to him once more but he leapt for the shore, calling upon the wind to boost his speed and get him to safety. And the timing could have been better; where he had lied just moment ago now cracked and water began gushing up to cover the ice as it melted away to show a beautiful pond.

Jack didn't really take his time to appreciate it. His heart was racing as was his mind as he tried to make sense of what happened to his home and why he felt so warm and weak. It made no sense. When the weather continued to grow warmer and warmer and his precious snow and ice melted away Jack knew he needed to find some place cold but he didn't know where to go and was afraid to leave his pond in case it was no longer there when he returned…if he could find his way back. So he settle for a small cave not far from his pond where it was cool and entered a deep sleep during those warm and later hot months.

His second year was a little better when he awoke in the fall to discover it was cooling down. He also met his first spirit, an elegant woman of few words with the stature of royalty. She called herself Mother Nature and treated him almost as if he were her child…or maybe a servant of sorts depending on her mood. She had been painting leaves and asked – well told – Jack to do the same, handing him an orange container of magical paint that never ran out and sent him on his way. It was an assignment that lasted weeks and finally opened Jack to the rest of the Northern continent, something he thrilled in. Sadly, the other elementals weren't as thrilled at the sight of a new winter spirit and immediately shunned him. Apparently ushering winter and destroying the hard work of the summer elementals put you on "to destroy" list and sometimes had Jack running for his life. Making friends was not easy and Mother Nature was no help at all. She'd only pet his head when he issued a complaint and tell him he was meant for greater things. Of course what things she would never say and Jack would be left once more feeling lost and alone, maybe more so now than ever before but he continued his new duties if only to have fun pestering and challenging the other spirits. Pulling pranks became a bit of a hobby and while humans were unable to see him pranking them and making snow days for kids was fun as hell and made Mother Nature smile almost lovingly at him on those rare occasions they saw each other.

It was around this time Jack began hearing stories of the Guardians, some good and others a little scary. Mother Nature never spoke of them but when Jack would spy on the summer spirits that invaded his territory in early spring to melt his pond – the bastards tried drowning him every single year – he would hear them speak of a spring spirit who was likely to go after them if they mess up his holiday, a Guardian named Bunnymund. It made Jack curious. Surely someone that made these two jerks afraid was someone worth knowing…or fearing. Whatever the case it peaked his curiosity and once that was peaked there was no stopping the youthful spirit.

So he made it his purpose to find this Bunnymund and learn about this holiday. He went about it the wrong way.

It was abnormally warm that spring and normally Jack would be preparing to hibernate or moving on down south as Mother Nature advised him to do – there were other winter spirits there but it meant he didn't have to sleep half the year away if he didn't want to – but he wanted, no need, to know about this spirit that was so revered by others. Some said he was a fallen fertility god while others called him an alien that did not belong there. Whatever the case this creature might be able to help him learn who he was and what his purpose in life was. Perhaps he could make the moon talk to him.

He was knocked for a loop when he found an oversize rabbit-man with a large wicker basket leading a parade of brightly painted eggs with small stick like legs throughout his village and through the surrounding woods. The little eggs darted here and there, hiding in the bush and places not quite out of sight but where people would have to pay close attention to find them. Jack had followed at a safe distance, wanting desperately to speak with the strange rabbit-man but he kept getting distracted by the little eggs and he made the foolish mistake of picking one up.

"Whoa…" he breathed as he looked it over. He twisted it this way and that, admiring the wonderful paint job and poking at the tiny stick legs. The little egg was kicking furiously, trying to get down and away from Jack's icy fingers and even worse, the ice that was beginning to coat it with each exhale the boy made. Jack didn't mean to freeze the little egg, it was purely an accident but its little legs stopped kicking and it was frozen solid.

"What are you doing?" a husky voice in a strange accent demanded and for one frightful moment Jack was certain this Bunnymund was indeed an alien or ancient god there to strike him down. He held the little egg against his chest, inadvertently causing a layer of ice to form over it and his fingers as his fear got the best of him. His eyes widened as the rabbit-man stalked toward him, anger in his bright grass green eyes.

Jack stepped back, his hands protectively around the growing egg of ice. "I'm sorry…I'm sorry…I just…I…"

The rabbit-man's eyes narrowed and Jack cringed, fearful of being hit but this strange being didn't strike out as some of the other spirits had instead he reached out, his furry paws unusually warm – not hot but enough that they strung Jack's fingers a little – and thawed both Jack's fingers and the little egg. The egg began wiggling and with a strange gentleness the rabbit untangled Jack's fingers and retrieved his egg. Then, just as gently, he set the egg down and sent it off to find a hiding spot.

"I didn't mean it! I just wanted to see what it was and…" Jack said quickly, feeling to need to explain himself and babbling instead. Hugging his staff and began chewing his lower lip, certain he was in trouble.

Those grass green eyes looked off toward the horizon where the sky was beginning to lighten. "Damn…I behind schedule." He sighed. "Look, kid. This is my season, not yours. Either get your butt down south or go into hibernation," he advised as he straightened, towering over Jack. "And leave my oogies alone. They're for the younglings not you."

"Oh…wait, I need to talk to y…ou…" Jack gave a huff. The rabbit-man had tapped his foot on the ground where a hole opened and then jumped in without so much as a backward glance or good bye leaving only a flower in his wake. Jack jumped back as a circle of fresh green grass seemed to grow outward from the flower until the entire forest came to life as if this Bunnymund was magically telling Jack to leave or melt with the last of the frost. A small sob escaped the frost child. All he had wanted was a few minutes of the creature's time but like so many other spirits Bunnymund had shunned him and told him to get lost without so much as giving him a chance and it only deepened the depression Jack often felt and he hugged himself, deciding that maybe he would go into hibernation rather than traveling south as he had planned.

That was how he came to meet Pitch Black although meet is rather a strong word to describe their encounter. No one came into Jack's little cave, it was too tiny, so for him to awake to a strange dark figure hovering over him was rather a shock and disconcerting and more than a little frightening. Jack probably would have slept right through the experience if it weren't for that internal call saying it was time to paint the leaves for fall and prepare the land for winter.

The cave was always dark but it was as if this strange man emitted his own glow and amongst all the black Jack could see a narrow pale gray face and bright amber eyes staring down at him as long gray fingers twirled above Jack as if weaving what appeared to be grains of black sand. Fear turned to curiosity as Jack watched those fingers and how very similar it was to his beloved snow and how he twirled snowflakes through his fingers.

The man scowled and stopped what he was doing. He gave a long sigh of annoyance. "Of course," he grumbled. "The mind of a teenager."

"What?" Jack asked, leaning on his elbows but the man only shock his head and faded away with no explanation but it wasn't the last time he would see Pitch and his confusion over the dark being only grew each time.

Jack discovered an amazing thing. Whenever he had a relatively bad encounter with a spirit or felt lonely or upset Pitch usually visited him when he slept. It led to nightmares and him being grouchy when he awoke but it brought Pitch and even if it was for only a few minutes Jack had someone who actually talked to him, who seemed interested in him and that was a wonderful thing. They weren't friends but they weren't enemies either. And it brought another spirit who seemed just as curious as Jack as to why Pitch was haunting his nightmares.

Of course watching the two dream entities argue was rather amusing. It was pretty much a one sided argument as Pitch argued with the Sandman who simply floated before the tall thin man with his chubby little arms folded across his brilliant golden chest, a scowl on his face. Despite his size he had power and Jack could feel it from where he sat perched in a tree absently painting leaves as he watched them. Sandy never spoke but he tried to counter the nightmares Pitch bestowed upon Jack and always had a kind smile for him.

Bit by bit Jack met the rest of what Pitch called the "Guardians". The Sandman and Easter Bunny – that weird rabbit-man creature he had met in the spring – were two members of these Guardians who supposedly protected children. Jack was excited by the idea, after all that was what he tried to do as well as make sure they have fun. But of course Pitch only ever gave vague descriptions and Sandy would only pat him on the head with a smile as if telling him not to worry about such things so when a strange man with reindeer came to his village Jack's first thought was it was a thief trying to rob the villagers and he attacked. He almost lost his head.

The man was deceiving on first appearance. A large man with a thick Russian accent – Jack spent a lot of time in Russia now that he knew how to use the wind to fly there – had knocked Jack off of him when the boy tackled him as he went to climb down a chimney. The man had been so surprised by Jack's actions that he had not thought twice of throwing the boy off him until he saw just how small and young the spirit was but by then the damage was done and Jack thought he was an enemy. He pelted the man with his winter magic but to his astonishment the man had magic of his own and deflected the blow.

"Easy, boy," the man told him in that thick accent that Jack had to concentrate hard to make out his words – very few Russians spirits spoke to him and he had yet to pick up the language on his visits. The man raised a hand, showing he meant no harm. "Who are you, child?"

Jack hesitated. No one had asked him his name before, not even Mother Nature, she just knew as did Pitch and Sandy. A name was a powerful thing, Mother told him. It was why she never gave out hers. But what harm could it really do? "Jack," he finally said, feeling it was poor manner not to introduce himself. "Jack Frost."

"Jack Frost?" the man repeated with a small nod as it the name meant something. He smiled softly. "The Frost Child. Ah…yes, Sandy told me about you. My name is North."

"He never told me about you," Jack muttered, folding his arms across his narrow chest at the idea that Sandy had told this North about him but had not told him about North.

"No, I wouldn't think he would," North said with a chuckle. "Well, Jack, this is my holiday and I am delivering presents to good children."

Jack raised his brows in confusion. "Presents?" he asked, not really sure what they were. "Like on their birthday?" He had seen children receive presents for their birthday but why would this man be giving all the children presents on one day?"

"It's called Christmas," North explained. He looked about the village that would be waking soon. "I need to go, Jack but we'll speak again."

"Christmas?" he had heard of Christmas. The children always got excited about the holiday but he didn't know until now what it was all about. Good children? He was good. Maybe if he went home to his pond he would get something too.

He didn't. He never did no matter how good he tried to be and that despair and depression grew as his few encounters with the Guardians got worse and worse and Pitch whispered in his ear that they were not the defenders of children they claimed to be but used them to gain belief for belief was power and only the strong could survive.


	2. Chapter 2

Zenith State 2

_Note: Sorry to everyone who read this when it first came out and left reviews, seemed to have issues on the 20__th__, hopefully there will be no more._

Jack tried not to focus on his loneliness. He was intent not to wallow in self-pity. It wasn't in his nature but having fun was. While grownups complained about the snow and cold the children seemed to rival in it. The jumped around in it and threw snowballs at one another and laughed delightedly. It made Jack laugh and for the first time since becoming a spirit he felt nearly whole. So he made it his mission to make sure every child had fun during the winter even at the worst of times. Wars and battles came to the land and those times were hard for the children, although Pitch seemed to delight in it as he and his shadow beings moved about at night haunting their dreams. Jack was watch with a little frown, unable to stop the shade and silently waiting for Sandy to come about and heal the kids' dreams. He worked doubly hard to cheer the children up in the morning. A part of him did it in hopes that maybe the Guardians would notice his good deeds and maybe, just maybe, let him be part of Christmas or Easter, that maybe one day he would receive a gift or painted egg. It never happened but he held onto hope that maybe one day, one day they would notice him.

He was having a particular good day that winter. Well technically it was supposed to be spring but he had learned how to control his power and since Bunnymund was still being a prick he decided winter could last a few extra weeks. Besides, Mother Nature wasn't saying anything against it so why not? The kids didn't seem to mind, in fact they still went skating every day at his pond. Sometimes the older ones stayed until late at night. Jack skated around the boy with glee, reinforcing the ice as he always did. It was subconscious and automatic and he never gave it much thought as he twirled around with his staff.

"Hey, you're pretty good," he said conversationally to the boy. The kid couldn't have been more than twelve or thirteen. He was smaller than Jack with shaggy brown hair and bright green eyes and built like a twig but Jack liked him. He had been watching the boy pretty much from the time he was born and while the kid couldn't see or hear him Jack always had the feeling that this boy knew he was there. "Bet I'll beat you to the other side, Henry."

The boy glanced across the length of the pond, a determined look filling his youthful features. Henry didn't have many friends and was a bit of a lonely but he had a vivid imagination and could easily picture another boy with him. Getting low to the ice he dug the blade of his left skate in the ice, took a deep breath and then pushed off.

Jack gave a _whoop_ and followed suit, racing side by side with Henry until they reached the other side. Henry was winded but laughing. Jack laughed as well. "You're getting fast! Wow, kiddo, you're going to be as fast as me one day." He whirled around in glee.

"It's getting late," Henry mumbled, glancing up at the moon that was slowing moving west. In fact it was very late for Henry. Morning was only a few hours away and his father would be out searching for him soon.

Jack frowned as he looked toward the moon as well. "Ah come on, there's lots of time left. That old biddy of a bunny won't be here for a few more hours and…" He paused. There was a familiar warm breeze that made him look away from Henry and into the woods. At first he thought it _was_ Bunnymund delivering his eggs early but the rabbit-man was very particular and always came at a set time, never early, never late. Jack knew this for a fact because he went to great lengths to prank the creature. No, this was something else…something more…

Henry was skating back toward the other side of the pond, closest to the village went what sounded like a gun short filled the air. Both boys froze, one in fear and the other in shock. Jack's chest constricted and he was frozen to his spot, ice forming from his bare feet and hardening the ice beneath him. This felt all too familiar. He couldn't move. He couldn't do anything.

"Henry…" he breathed, his voice shaky. "Henry, look at me."

Surprisingly the other boy did. He pivoted his skate ever so slowly and turned back to Jack, his eyes wide with fear and only growing wider when he finally saw Jack. "Wha…"

Jack raised his hands. "It's okay…it's okay. I'm going to help you…just don't move." He glanced about frantically, noting the growing cracks in the ice. "Ah…maybe you should…"

"Lay down," Henry instructed as he began to kneel.

"What?" Jack asked, confused. "Here, grab my staff and…"

But it was too late. Before Henry's knee touched the ice and shot rang out and the ice shattered under him and before Jack's horrified eyes Henry fell into the frigid waters of his pond.

"HENRY!" Jack screamed, dropping his staff. He didn't think twice, he dove into the water, not feeling the cold. Despite that it was as if a force fought against him and tried to prevent him from saving Henry, as if death itself had come for the boy. Nonetheless Jack used all his strength and magic and grabbed Henry by the collar of his coat then kicked his way back to the surface where the ice was now melted at such a pace that Jack knew another elemental had done this. Most likely those asshole summer spirits. He recovered his staff and dragged Henry to shore. It was too late. Henry wasn't breathing. "Henry…Henry! Help! Someone help us!" he screamed, his voice cracking as he yelled toward the village. He held Henry's wet body to him and rocked on his heels, his head pressed to the smaller boy's narrow chest. "Please oh please oh please…" There was no heartbeat or breath. He got there too late! How could he have got there too late, it was only a split second!

"What have you done?" a familiar gruff voice demanded.

Jack looked up with teary eyes at the tall form before him. "Help him…" he begged as tears rolled down his cheeks, turning to little diamonds of ice before they reached his chin.

Bunnymund's hard forest green gaze soften slightly and he knelt on Henry's other side. He examined the small boy for a moment or two. "You need to call back the ice," he said in the gentlest voice Jack had ever heard.

"What?" Jack asked, too scared to let his friend – Henry was as close to a friend as Jack had – go.

The rabbit-man sighed. "Frost, you have to let him go."

But Jack couldn't, his hands were frozen to Henry's clothing.

Shaking his head and tut-tutting softly, Bunnymund placed his paws over Jack's hands as he had down years earlier with the egg and thawed Jack's hands from the fabric of the boy's heavy wool coat then took Henry in his arms and tried to warm his ice cold, half frozen body. Jack continued to rock on his heels as he watched, hoping with every ounce of his being that the rabbit man might be able to save Henry. And Bunnymund tried, it really seemed as if he tried. Magic filled the surrounding area and the land awoke to the spring magic and what would normally take weeks to accomplished happened in a matter of minutes as Bunny poured everything he had into Henry's limp form but soon he could do no more.

The rabbit-man looked up, his gaze meeting Jack's ice blue one. "I'm sorry…you froze his heart."

Jack blinked in confusion. "What…no! I didn't do this! I…I dove in and pulled him out. I didn't…I didn't…I couldn't."

Bunnymund sighed, a rather annoying sound that made Jack cringe. "Do you have any control of your power?" He shook his head as if reprimanding himself. "I think you panicked when you tried to save him and your powers lashed out by accident."

"What?" Jack asked in confusion.

"Unfortunately it does happen," Bunnymund continued as he laid Henry back on the ground. He brushed back the boy's wet shaggy bangs then gave Jack a sideways glance. "You need to get control of you powers, kid. You've extinguished one light, don't take another. Learn to control your power before you hurt anyone else." He stood, looking sadly at the young body then to the distraught spirit. "We don't want any more accidents."

Jack hugged himself and stared at Henry's body. He didn't feel Bunny's furry fingers card through his hair or hear the strange being say he was sorry for his loss. He stayed with Henry's body until his father found him, stayed as the large man wept over the small body and walked next to him as Henry was carried back to the village. He said not a word, not when Pitch came to spread nightmares, not when Sandy came to chase the shade's nightmare creatures away.

The spring that had stopped his winter made quickly faded as Jack's despair grew. He stood at the grave site as Henry was lowered into the ground and that was when he finally broke down. Henry's family had friends to comfort them while they grieved but Jack had no one, no one to hug him and assure him it was an accident; that it wasn't his fault and that he would one day he would learn to completely control his magic. Hell, he didn't even have anyone to teach him.

He began to sob as soil was shoveled onto the wooden casket. Soon the sobs turned into gut wrenching cries and then full out wails and as he did so snow fell once more, first in gentle fluffy flakes and soon changing to a full out snow storm as he screamed and wailed at the heavens at the injustice of it all. He ran from the graveyard as fast as he bare feet would carry him. Once he was in the woods he kept going, forgetting his beloved pond and home in the cave and continuing far beyond. At one point he was certain he caught sight of a blue-gray blur and someone calling his name but he could care less. He screamed into the raging wind. All his anger and sorrow built into one command.

"Wind, take me to Antarctica!" he screamed and a moment later he was whipped up into the sky and speeding southward. Travelling by wind was one of the fastest methods for any spirit and in a relatively short time Jack found himself in the deserted tundra of the Antarctic. Once his feet touched the snowy ground he fell to his knees and unleashed the full extent of his powers. "It wasn't my fault! I tried to save him! I tried!" He looked toward the moon that was clear in the sky that dark night. "WHY DO YOU KEEP PUNISHING ME?!" he screamed at the orb but of course there was no answer. There never was and if Jack ever felt alone before it was nothing compared to now and for once he was happy.


	3. Chapter 3

Zenith State 3

Time heals all wounds or so the saying goes but the funny thing with that was that it only worked if there was someone there to comfort you, family or friends that were willing to help heal your wounds. Jack had nothing like that. He was alone in the world with nothing more than his staff and a broken heart. For the first few decades after Henry's death he stayed hidden in the endless winter tundra of the Antarctic, taking comfort in the playful penguins that seemed happy with his presence on their icy landscape and even played with him. Animals, it seemed, had no problem seeing or interacting with him and while it wasn't enough to heal his broken heart it did give him hope and a sense of wonder once more. He made his home there, using the cover of the endless wind to hide a vast structure, inspired by the great castles his had seen while bringing winter to the northern hemisphere. With his magic he created a beautiful ice castle complete with furniture and a bed and everything he could ever need.

But Jack was still lonely and eventually he began travelling again, not as much as before but still enough to see the children. He was more cautious now, almost terrified of kids being hurt because of him. He only stayed as long as winter was needed and took off without challenging any other spirits over the length of the season or pulling pranks of any sort. In fact he had given up all hope over ever making a friend in the spirit realm and as such began turning in on himself, curling into a little ball of misery that pretty much longer wanted to be part of an unjust world. He no longer cared about the Guardians or the Moon or the dark shades that roamed the night. Where were they when Henry needed them? Where were they when small children died due to the cold of starvation during the harsh winter months when they were too weak to care for themselves? Not one of them were there to guide them to the next life, but Jack was. Somehow, some part of him knew when one was about to pass and he always hurried to them even if it meant travelling half way across the world and just sitting with or holding them until their last breath. And they always saw him, even if only for a brief second or two but for those precious moments he was as real to them as they were to him. Jack never allowed himself to get attracted to them as he had Henry, never allowed his heart to bleed for the poor souls. He felt bad for them of course and he cried more times than he cared, his mind always going back to Henry as the life seeped away from whatever child he comforted, but he refused to feel the same pain. He built a wall of ice around his heart and that helped numb it.

He still tried to make winter fun…he really did but it wasn't the same anymore. All he saw was the downside of his powers and felt that he was more of a danger to people than anything else, after all why would all these children and elderly die during his season? And soon he could no longer take it and returned to his icy home intent on staying hidden there for all eternity. In his eyes he was no better than the Grim Reaper going about collecting souls. And that was when he gave up trying to have fun. That was when he went completely into hiding and blocked out the Antarctic in an endless winter storm that not even the light of the moon could penetrate.

. . .

The moon passed over the Antarctic on its usually yearly path. From the palace situated on the silvery orb stood a small pudgy man staring through a large long telescope watching as he always did over the blue and green planet below. His focus this night was not on the children of the world but one child in particular, one he had been searching for for quite some time now. The Frost child had gone missing a century or two earlier and it seemed no matter where he looked he could not find him. He had tried calling out but it was as it his words were stolen. When he spoke with Mother Nature he had been informed the boy had runaway to the South Pole but there was such a thick cloud of snow that it was impossible to penetrate even with his most powerful scope.

Lunar chewed his lower lip thoughtfully. Time meant very little here on the moon and until Jack went missing he gave it very little thought. Perhaps he had waited too long. Perhaps he should have brought the boy to the moon to be with him or sent him to one of the Guardians where he would have been properly trained and cared for. He never should have left his child alone.

His chest heaved and shoulders fell. Jack was meant for so much more. He was special, so very, very special. Mother Nature was refusing to get involved as usual which meant Lunar had no choice. He had to contact the Guardians. Someone had to get past that snow storm and find Jack before things got worse. Whether Jack realized it or not, his snow storm and frigid temperatures were spreading outward. The southern hemisphere was beginning to freeze over.

. . .

The dancing colors of the Northern Lights filled the night sky and travelled right across the planet, an ancient symbol calling out to the Earth based Guardians. Each dropped what they were doing to race to origin of the signal in the far north. It wasn't often they were summoned together anymore, not with the threat of Pitch Black all but put away. But Pitch rarely caused trouble these days, his interest being far away in the south.

Nicholas St. North studied the massive globe slowly turning in the central tower. He hummed softly to himself as he stared at the Antarctic. The mass of ice was always impressive, maybe more so than its northern counterpart but now it was nearly double its original size and closing in on Australia. No wonder Bunny was complaining about the cold of late. But it made no sense. No one but Mother Nature had such power and surely she would not be mad enough to do something like this, especially when it endangered no only humans but her favorite spring spirit, Bunny. Could the Man in the Moon be right? Could this all be due to the Frost Child? The boy was just a lowly elemental. His magic wasn't very impressive and nowhere near this scale.

He looked up as Toothiana zipped in, chattering as ever to a group of fluttery fairies and giving off instructions before swooping down to plant a kiss on North's cheek and giving him a quick greeting then returning to instruct her fairies more. He smiled softly at her. She was always a twitter about teeth and rarely took time to think about anything else. She never took any real down time and he both loved and hated her for it. Hopefully he could draw her attention away from teeth long enough to focus on the mission MiM had in store for them.

"Damn!" a husky voice grumbled as a gust of cold air filled the room. "Why do you have to live all the way in the freaking Artic, you lunatic!"

North chuckled. It was always the same question from the Pooka and without much thought North waved a hand at the nearest fireplace and lit the hearth. A roaring fire came to life and Bunnymund all but planted himself before it. "Ah…Bunny, I would think with the cold spell take Australia that you would be used to it by now."

"Oh ha ha, you're funny, Nick. Stupid, frigging cold. I'm going to have to start wearing a parka wherever I go," Bunny grumbled as he rubbed his frozen feet. He sent his old friend a glare. "What's all this about, North?"

The large Russian shook his head. "Not yet. We must wait for…"

A flash of gold alerted them to the last member of their team and North smiled brightly at the oldest member of their team. "Sandy!" he called up to the little golden dream weaver as he floated down from the dream plane that quickly reverted back into dream sand. "I'm happy you could come. MiM says you might be the best one for this situation."

Sandy nodded, having already spoken with MiM along the way. Of all the Guardians he was the closet to the Man in the Moon, having some sort of telepathic connection with him that was easily a hundred times more powerful than any other Guardian.

They gathered in the Great Hall to discuss the situation. There they could commune with MiM through a towering crystal and that was how they learned the story of the Frost Child.

_He was meant to be the first in a new breed of Guardians, one young enough to be in touch and understand children. He was a brave soul who gave his life for his sister and would gladly give it to protect any child. But he became isolated and had very little guidance and for this I am at fault. And when a tragedy occurred that isolation became all consuming._

Bunny stiffened as he looked up at the hologram of the Frost Child. It was as if he was suddenly punched in the gut. He remembered that face. It was hard to forget it because the last time he saw it there had been frozen tears hanging from his chin. But now, now it was hardened and full of anger and hate yet still, still there was that unbearable sadness that looked as if it would never go away.

"Frost?" he suddenly asked. "He disappeared after…"

The other Guardians looked at him in surprise and Bunny shifted where he stood uncomfortably. "There was a boy who fell through the ice after some summer sprites decided it would be funny to usher in spring while Frost was playing on the pond with the kid."

"The child saw Jack?" North asked in awe, his curiosity peaked at the idea of any child seeing an elemental like the Frost Child who shouldn't need Believers in order to exist.

Bunny shrugged. "I don't know. By the time I got there the boy was dead and Frost was clinging to body, sobbing uncontrollably. I thought maybe he had lost control of his powers and had played some stupid stunt that killed the boy but…I haven't seen the kid since then. I might have been a little hard on him." He gave another shrug, looking a little guilty. "You know how I can be."

Sandy's brows rose and he let out a puff of air before nodding in agreement.

North nodded as well but he didn't chuckle or tease his friend as he normally would. He was worried about that small winter spirit who had attacked him three centuries earlier in an attempt to protect his village from a burglar. Jack was so small yet so determined to keep the people of Burgess safe. "Manny, tell us, what can we do? How can we help this child?"

MiM hesitated before continuing. _Jack is a bright boy. He's heart has always been in the right place but he is scared and full of anger. He wants to be seen but not by those about to join the spirit world. He wants to be believed in and loved like any child. And like any child his anger can lash out and do incredible danger._

"What's happening in the Antarctic is because of Frost, isn't it?" Bunny asked, as if realization just struck him. "He's been hiding in the Antarctic all this time?"

Toothiana held a hand to her mouth and for once her chattering fairies fell silent. "The poor baby," she breathed. Out of all the Guardians she had never met Jack Frost but had heard stories of him of perfect teeth that were as white as snow but that meant nothing after learning this news.

_Yes_, MiM answered Bunny with a resigned sigh._ He is alone and very confused. His power has become unstable with his heart ache. That special part of him that called to me so long ago has nearly extinguished and is being over shadowed by something far darker. Find him. Save him, my Guardians. Bring my child home._

"We will," Tooth said immediately as she wiped away at her tears.

"And just how are we supposed to get past that snow storm the kid's created?" Bunny suddenly demanded. He shifted again when the others looked at him. "Hey, I got no problem saving the kid I'm just saying that blizzard makes this place look like bloody paradise. I mean serious that blanket of ice is right at my doorstep. Another few years and there won't be any Australia. I'm almost drained just trying to keep the vegetation from dying."

North nodded. "Bunny got point, the temperature at South Pole far colder than North Pole. We need to be transported directly to wherever Jack is."

"Oh no…" Bunny groaned, already knowing where the crazy Russian was going with this.

Tooth's wing's fluttered anxiously and Sandy clapped his hands in glee as North held up one of his small snow globes.

In the darkness a curious pair of amber eyes watched the proceedings in silence, his gaze studying the image of Jack Frost with interest. The image didn't do the child justice. He still haunting the boy's dreams, helped usher the fear he felt and made his power lash out the way it did. Oh the fear it brought with it. Jack was so scared of hurting people that he had sheltered himself in his little ice palace. Hell, he was scared of his own shadow now, fearing other spirits might punish him for the cold and those poor souls that died because of it. It wasn't the boy's fault, of course, the snow and cold existed log before Jack Frost and would continue long after but Jack didn't seemed to know or understand that so took the blame on his shoulders without a second thought.

This could prove interesting because of all the spirits Jack feared he feared the Guardians most of all and there was nothing more powerful than the fear of an immortal child.


	4. Chapter 4

Zenith State 4

The frigid southern wind whipped around the small ice palace, sounding as ever a siren along the tundra outside. Jack ignored it as he had learned to long ago and lounged on the settee he created out of ice after one of his last visits to the far north over a century ago. In his hands was a tattered old book of fairy tales that he had read over and over again yet still turned to on his bad days in hopes that the happy little tales would lift his mood. He had no idea where the book came from or how it had ended up in his home sometime after he secluded himself from the rest of the world. However it came to be Jack had come to adore the stories written by one Mother Goose and held them dear to his heart.

He was just curling up, ready to rest for the night when something on the edge of his senses alerted him to someone – or in this case someones – invading his territory. A first he was willing to dismiss it, after all human scientists came to the Antarctic all the time to research to mass of ice but none had been able to go more than a few hundred miles and not one had made it all the way to the South Pole so he was worried about anyone coming across his icy home – if they could even see it. So he lay back down for a moment more but just as his mind began to relax and storm outside eased just a little as it did whenever he slept that silent alarm in the back of his head went off again. Whoever was in his territory was not human. They were moving far too fast and directly toward the palace.

Standing, Jack looked around as his chest heaved as an unexplainable fear suddenly consumed him. No one had ever visited him before. No one even knew he was here let alone cared. Who would dare come here now after all these long years? His hands balled into fists and then unballed unsure what to do. He chewed his lower lip, debating his next move. His senses stretched out, trying to figure out who his visitors might be. He sensed one spring spirit and another from a hot country, an ancient human and one that while familiar seemed far too otherworldly to bother with him. Odd. But it was the spring spirit and the one from the hot lands that worried him most. It didn't feel like a summer spirit but he had been tricked before and he was not willing to be tricked again. He would not let them take anything from him again.

Grabbing his staff he twirled it in one hand before slamming the butt of the ancient wood onto the icy floor and sent a burst of winter magic through the palace, reinforcing the structure and locking it down before increasing the power of the storm outside until it was raging with such force anyone with half a brain would be running the other way for their lives.

But whoever these people were they weren't running as they should.

. . .

"Do you think he knows we're here?" asked Tooth as her wings fluttered anxiously. She hugged herself as the wind buffered against her but the cold never bothered her, her internal temperature always adjusted to keep her comfortable, a trick she had learned as a small girl from her mother.

North tilted his head to one side and tried reaching out to the small boy hidden somewhere near the center of the storm. "He knows someone is here. The storm only increased when we tried entering it." He raised a hand toward what appeared to be a wall of wind and snow so thick no one could see pass it and inside to where the Frost Child surely must be hidden. "It's a shield of sorts to deter anyone who might get close to him."

Bunny's brows narrowed and nose twitched. That wasn't at all like the boy he had met so long ago. Jack was always craving attention and to be recognized not hide himself from the world. This didn't seem right at all. This wasn't the same child who would dance on an icy pond or tried to steal his Easter eggs and figure how they walked. Jack liked to play pranks but Bunny could never picture that wide eyed boy creating anything like this unless he was in serious trouble or upset – elementals had a nasty habit of doing that without meaning to. But Bunny was far older than Jack, far older than any other Guardian on their team with the possible exception of Sandy, and his power over the elements would always over power any lowly sprite.

Raising a paw toward the blizzard he channeled his spring magic into bringing it down. Now Bunny was never one for the cold, he hated it really, but he ignored it as he focused his magic on the task at hand. He drew the heat from the Earth's core and poured it into counteracting the winter magic without – hopefully – harming Jack Frost. He could feel the boy fighting him on the other end and it became a battle of wills.

Sandy hovered nervously beside him, his ancient eyes looking beyond the wall of snow and ice and far inside the barrier to a very frightened young spirit. It was impossible to get inside the boy's mind but he could sense the fear wafting off the boy. It was enough fear to attract…oh, oh. He began waving his arms, trying to telling Bunny to stop and let the barrier be. There were other ways passed it but if the Pooka continued what he was doing all it would accomplish was to frighten the boy more. But Bunny was far too focused on the barrier to pay him any mind. Puffing out a stream of sand the little golden man flew to North and once more tried to explain the growing situation but by then it was too late.

"Aw shit!" grumbled Bunny. He had made a mistake. He had foolishly thought they were simply dealing with a frightened and bratty child. He never thought Jack would be this strong. "Get back!"

Everyone stepped back as ghostly white forms appeared within the blizzard. They lumbered out of the blowing snow and toward the four Guardians. Ice like claws adorned each fingertip and their beady little made them look like some deranged snowmen. They hissed and snarled at the Guardians looking ready to tear each one to shreds if they even attempted to get near the barrier again. And if that wasn't enough a group of snow wolves also moved out of the blizzard ready to attack. And these beasts looked hungry.

"Ah…any ideas? Bunny asked even as the yetis moved in to take on the snow creatures and protect them.

"Not at the moment," North answered as he drew his swords, ready to fight as well in order to get inside.

Sandy slapped his forehead in irritation then before North could jump into the fray he jammed a hand into North's pocket and grabbed one of the magical snow globes then presented it to him along with a series of images, a palace, a snow flake and a child.

The Russian stared at him in confusion for a moment or two, unsure what his friend was trying to tell him at first then an image of Pitch appeared. "Pitch Black? What would Pitch want with the child?"

Sandy threw out his small arms as if to encompass all that was happening.

"The kid's scared and that'll attract Pitch's Nightmares," Bunny said, putting together what Sandy was trying to tell them. His hands fisted and he kicked the snow. "Damn it! This is my fault." He grabbed the snow globe from Sandy, gave him a pointed look and then with a sigh whispered, "Frost Palace." In his mind he kept an image of how Jack looked the last time he saw him, the small frightened boy with icicles for tears before jumping into one of North's horrid portals that opened when he threw the snow globe.

. . .

Jack was trembling as he fought to keep his magic under control but he had not used this magic before, even when he built his palace and locked himself away from the rest of the world. He held his staff with both hands and pushed out would as he would if he were defending himself physically from another spirit as he had many years ago when he was young and new to his power. He focused on the shield and his snow creatures and keeping everything and everyone else out. His fear only grew when he felt the warmth of the spring spirit buffer his magic and try to melt his snow. It made his knees weak and he stumbled as he fought to keep control. He couldn't let them in. He had to keep them out. He was safe then and so were they regardless if they understood or not.

_Keep them away,_ a voice whispered to him. _They'll only hurt you. They'll blame you for the snow and the children dying. It's all your fault, Jack. It wouldn't be so cold if it weren't for you._

Jack inhaled sharply and for a moment his focus faltered and there was a break in his magic. He began trembling more as those dark thoughts he had fought so hard against came crashing down on him again. "Stop it," he told himself, fighting to shut out the voice.

_They're going to punish you,_ the voice cackled, making matters worse. He pressed his hands over his ears but the voice wouldn't stop it just continued telling him over and over again that he was naughty and nothing but trouble and that the world would be better without him until he was sobbing uncontrollably.

"Frost!" a familiar husky voice yelled out.

Jack stumbled in surprise and his looked up to see a spirit he had not seen in centuries. "Bunnymund?" he whispered, blinking back tears. Sure enough it was the strange rabbit-man and he didn't look happy at all. He looked mad just as he did the day Henry died and blamed him for the boy's death. Jack was in trouble and he knew it for certain now, especially considering the other three Guardians were with Bunny. He stumbled back, his staff protectively in front of him. His gaze shifted between them, confused, scared and a little hurt that they would invade his territory after shunning him for so long. "Get out!" he ordered, trying to sound strong and tougher than he felt and he was never so thankful to have the hood of his cloak over his head and obscuring his face in shadow. Ice spread from his fingers along the length of his staff making it an extension of his body. "Get out of here! I don't mess with you season don't mess with mine!"

The tall rabbit-man only blinked, seemingly confused. "Frost…Jack, we're not here about that. There something more important…we need to talk." He held up his paws as if to show he was unarmed but Jack had seen other spirits do the same and then trick him.

Jack bit his bottom lip and glanced past Bunny to the Russian…North if he remembered correctly. The man had a pair of swords. Oh yes, that spelled out talking right there. The fairy also had swords and the only one unarmed was the one who didn't need a weapon to take down an opponent because he was a weapon unto himself.

Sandy gave a tiny wave and tried to look as friendly as possible which wasn't hard at all for the little man, he always had a pleasant demeanor. Still Jack kept his distance.

"Leave now," he ordered, aiming the crook of his staff toward them, the ice connecting it to his fingers growing with his fear. "I won't say it again."

"Jack," North tried soothingly but he made the foolish mistake of raising his swords instead of sheathing them when he went to speak to Jack.

Jack didn't think twice, he unleashed his power, blasting the swords out of the old man's hands then raining an ice storm upon them. The floor came to life as the Guardians scattered, each trying to get around the ice and reach him but Jack had fought other spirits before and knew how to watch his back. He wrapped himself in a swirling vortex of wind that kept Sandy from using his dreamsand to put him to sleep and threw the Sandman and Tooth Fairy far away from him. The floor became slick to the point no one could walk on it and when North slipped and feel to his knees it grasped his arms and legs and then slowly grew around him until it was too thick to break even with his immense strength.

Having the ability to bounce from surface to surface and use his claws to keep him from slipping Bunny was able to get the closest to Jack. His claws dug into the thick ice once he was close enough to Jack and he got low to the floor to keep from being thrown back by the wind. Once he was close enough he used his spring magic again but this time he channeled more precisely and had it form around Jack and his vortex or wind like another shield to counter what Jack had created. He cringed as the boy jerked as if in pain but he didn't let up, not until the wind stopped and the ice slowly began to melt enough for North to break free of his icy prison. "Sandy!" he called as he watched Jack struggle against his magic. "Easy, Jack, easy. No one's here to hurt you, kid."

But the child continued to struggle and try to reform his magic and left them no choice. Sandy wrapped the boy in layers of dreamsand until Jack finally stopped struggling and passed out. Bunny caught him as his small form collapsed to the floor. He had never noticed just how small the boy was in all their previous encounters. He barely weighed a thing.

"Is he alright?" Tooth asked in a cry as she knelt next to Bunny and looked at the boy in his arms.

Something wasn't right. Something seemed off. Going by instinct Bunny pushed back the hood obscuring the boy's features and stared in wide eyed shock and what was curled up in his arms. It was Jack Frost alright, there was no mistaking that face but this wasn't the Jack Frost who had openly sobbed as he held a dead child in his arms. No, that face had been one of a child, pale as death but still full of life and joys only the young could discover without effort. This…this was the essence of living ice. Jack's face was no longer pale and soft but blue and hard, almost as clear as ice. His hair was spiked and the same shade of clear blue. In fact ice clung to every inch of his clothing. Even his small hands were frozen to his staff.

"Ah kid, what happened to you?" Bunny whispered as he held the boy close. Like so long ago he melted the ice from Jack's fingers until they returned to a more healthy color and he was able to remove the staff from his grip then handed it to North. They froze again almost immediately and Bunny wondered if there was any way to find that curious boy he had met centuries earlier or if Jack was doomed to this frozen state for the rest of his immortal life.

No one noticed the way the shadows played directly under Jack and inside his cloak, their attention too focused on the child himself but within those shadows Pitch grinned as he felt the fear radiating off the Frost Child. Things couldn't be more perfect.


	5. Chapter 5

Zenith State 5

_Note: I'm having Jack as fourteen in this fic as William Joyce originally wrote him and has him planned for the book series. Some of my other fics have him eighteen following the film so please don't get upset over the age issue, thanks._

North had taken it upon himself to collect what little belonging the Frost Child seemed to have in hopes that they would comfort Jack after they shifted him to Santoff Clausen. He had his misgivings about taking the boy away from his home but something about the ice palace made even him shiver and he was used to the cold and even revealed in it. No, this…this lacked any sense of warmth and was even dark in some areas as if Jack's ice magic had mixed with something far darker. North pressed his fingers against the throne and peered into the ice. The structure itself was quite impressive but it looked as if pieces of black sand were trapped inside.

"Sandy?" he asked when his friend came to check on him. "Have you ever seen anything like this?"

The golden Dreamweaver shook his head but he waved his hand indicating he wanted North to follow him. All throughout the palace there was splashes of black sand frozen into the structure. Some appeared to be sudden additions as if the boy had been battling someone or something or perhaps been frightened. North's brows furrowed as he tried to make sense of it. They entered what appeared to be a large bedroom and here the darkness was more apparent, from the ice bed to the walls and floor black sand was embedded everywhere.

"What is this?" North whispered, tempted to call Bunny and Tooth for their opinions but the two were caring for Jack and trying to melt away the ice that seemed to coat him. While Bunny was usually pretty stoic about things he seemed to be incredibly worried about the Frost Child. Seeing this would only make matters worse.

Sandy tapped his chin thoughtfully as he studied the bed were the black sand seemed the thickest. It was obvious that the ice was in layers here and the strange sand trapped at different times. The concentration was heaviest near the where Jack would rest his head. It the sand wasn't frozen then he could study it better and maybe figure out what it was. He bounced up in sudden thought and flew to North, signally for North to break the bed and get him a chunk of the frozen sand to study.

"You want me to destroy a child's bed?" North asked, astounded by the request. He placed his weight on one hip and folded his large arms over his thick chest. "You do realize that he may want to return here after Manny speaks with him. I don't think the boy would appreciate having what little he owns destroyed."

The little golden man frowned and gave him a pointed look. He could be a very stubborn man when the time called for it and North sighed in resignation. "Alright, alright…but I don't like it." He unsheathe one sword and used it's sharp blade mixed with his magic to slash off the top on the far too small bed – for such a large palace the boy slept like a peasant and really had very little – into a nice block of ice easy to carry. He scooped it up in one arm and headed back toward the Great Hall where the others were waiting.

Phil and the yetis had finally joined them. The head of North's security stood behind Tooth, his eyes bright with surprise as he wobbled a question to North as he and Sandy neared them.

North nodded. "He is much smaller than we thought."

Bunny barely spared them a glance as he continued to pour his warmth into Jack, hoping to push back the ice and reveal the child hidden beneath but every time he caught even a glimpse of the real Jack the ice came rushing back twice as hard as if to protect him from the outside world. The Pooka gave a sigh and sat back with the boy in his arms. "I don't know what to do. He's surprisingly strong for someone so young."

"Aye," North agreed, seeing as there really wasn't any difference in Jack's condition. "Let's take him home. Manny may be able to help him. A few hours under the light of the moon should heal him."

Bunny wasn't so sure but he hefted the unconscious youth higher in his arms and against his chest. "Alright, better than leaving him here in this barren wasteland." Still, he was worried. It wasn't natural for a spirit to become this consumed by their element. Not even the pixie elementals, unless created that way, allowed their element to take control of them. He only hoped that MiM could help Jack because if something wasn't done soon there would be nothing left to save.

When the Guardians returned to Santoff Clausen they took Jack to the infirmary and moved his bed directly under the skylight where he could get the full effect of the moon's silvery light. North and Bunny took turns watching over him as Tooth returned to her duties and Sandy moved between his duties and investigated the strange black sand as the ice encasing it slowly melted. It didn't seem like anything unusual and lay in a large bowl under protective glass. Still the sand seemed oddly familiar as if it was a part of him which only brought back the question; what was this and how did come to be in the boy's home? But for now he turned his focus on the boy and tried to help heal his mind. He kept the child asleep, feeling Jack needed some proper rest and fearful of the effects the black sand might have had on him considering it was frozen in his bed. Sandy wasn't sure why but he had a bad feeling about the sand and that Pitch was somehow involved, after all he had sensed the shade in the Antarctic. Pitch may have been attracted by Jack's fear or it may be something far darker.

Usually Bunny wouldn't be sticking around Santoff Clausen. Even in the cozy fort it was still a little too cold for his tastes but his usually toasty warm Australia was now no better and even if it was its usual temperature guilt and fear for Jack made him stay. He paced back and forth in the infirmary, glancing at Jack's prone and ice covered body wishing for the moon to rise and heal the child.

"Bunny, sit," North said soothingly as he lounged back in a large Queen Anne chair and thumbed through a familiar looking old book.

Bunny blinked in surprise. "Is that…?"

North nodded. "It's one of Katherine's books. Not the original but a copy published a long time ago."

"Yeah, well how'd he get it?"

North shrugged, just as curious as Bunny on how Jack managed to get a copy. "Perhaps he found it on his travels."

"Or stole it," Bunny grumbled, remembering how the boy would nick items that caught his interest from time to time before stopping himself with a ping of guilt. He shook his head and turned away. "Maybe Kat gave it to him."

North looked at the back of the front cover. "No, she always signs them. It's very worn. He must read it quite often."

The Pooka only shrugged and looked out the window. His ears twitched when he heard a soft moan from Jack's sleeping form then there was nothing for a few moments. "How do you think he got this way?" he asked softly. "I mean I know witnessing a kid die and being unable to do anything about it is traumatizing but we've all had it happen, especially in warring countries but Frost is a spirit, we're meant to heal from it and let it go not have this happen."

The Russian put aside the book and stood as Jack twisted and whimpered in his sleep. He placed a large hand on the boy's icy forehead, the cold not bothering him, and hummed softly. "I wish I knew, my friend, but there are few children spirits like Jack. He's more…human than the others, I suppose. We will have to consult Manny more but there is much pain in him, much more heart ache than I've ever seen before."

To both their surprise Jack didn't pull away from North's warmth as he had Bunny's, Tooth's or even Sandy's. He pressed his cheek into North's hand as a child would a parent when not feeling well and it made the large man smile ever so gently. He had never had a child of his own, not that he hadn't tried but some things just weren't meant to be. Regardless the outcome he truly hoped they could help the youth.

North would have been content to stand there admiring the young spirit as they waited for the moon to rise. He had only met Jack a handful of times, usually not under the best of circumstances but he never noticed just how young the boy was. He couldn't be more than thirteen or fourteen were he human, although he may be younger. The boy looked half starved, as if he rarely ate. Of course most spirits didn't have to eat but there were those like North himself, who had to eat or at least felt the need. Being immortal didn't mean giving up simple necessities like food, rest, and relaxation.

Something in North's touch made Jack relax and slowly the layer of ice covering him drew back within him, not melting but not quite as hard as before. Bunny smirked as he watched his friend sit on the edge of the cot, one hand still on the boy's cheek as the other began rubbing Jack's arm.

"There we go," North hummed gently as the ice pulled away further and Jack's face turned peaceful. "That's a boy. Let the dreamsand help you."

"You've always been good with kids," Bunny chuckled, marveling over how North's calming influence affected the child. Bunny had tried everything to get Jack to relax enough to draw back his ice power. He was a little jealous of the ease North seemed to have but then again Jack wasn't awake. That would be another story all together.

"He's a lot like the youngest William. Remember how hard it was to get him to relax at night during the war with Pitch and his Nightmare Men?" North responded. He paused what he was doing to look at Bunny. "Pitch… You don't think he is behind this?" He gestured to the child before him. Now that the ice was gone it was plain to see that the boy didn't sleep well if he slept at all.

Pushing off the wall he had been leaning against Bunny crossed the room to look at the boy. Jack had always been pale but now he had a blue tinge and it had little to do with his side. Dark blue bags hung under his eyes and tinged his lips as if he had recently drowned in icy water…much like that Henry boy so long ago. Bunny gave a shaky breath. This wasn't right. It was as if they were staring at a dead body.

"I've never seen him like this," he said gently, guilt once more hitting him for not paying more attention to the boy. "He's always been pale but…" He shook his head. "I don't know…why would Pitch be interested in harming him? He's just one kid."

North shrugged and would have answered it the huge double doors didn't suddenly burst open and Phil came rushing in, babbling away about something weird happening in the Globe Room. "What?" he asked in surprise and confusion. He stood, sparing Jack a worried glance before hurrying after his chief of security.

Bunny hesitated, not wanting to leave Jack all alone in a strange room but he knew Phil and he wouldn't barge into a room without reason. Maybe it was Pitch causing trouble, and Bunny rather hoped it was because if the shade had anything to do with Jack's condition then he would suffer big time.


	6. Chapter 6

Zenith State 6

It was weird. Never before had Jack felt such warmth. It wasn't that scolding heat that stung his fingers or blistered his skin when it wasn't protected by ice. It was different, soft almost as if it was beyond physical and more spiritual and cooling to a long forgotten memory of once being loved. It more no sense to Jack, after all he had been alone ever since he awoke in the ice with only the moon to greet him but it was the same feeling all the same and for the first time in recent history he allowed not only his mind but also his body to relax. And he dreamed! Oh did he dream. He dreamt of flurries and snowballs and kids playing in the snow as they did when he would try to bring them winter fun. He never realized just how much he needed a good dream.

How long slept he didn't know, it could have been hours or days or even years. He honestly didn't know or care – he often went into deep sleeps when his depression got the best of him and would not awake for years, once even a decade – but it felt relatively short. It started with a slight change, that wonderful warmth going away and the cold returning. Then those wonderful dreams fading into darkness and fear until the nightmares he was all too familiar with returned and he whimpered ever so softly. _Please, not again,_ he thought as his loneliness consumed him.

. . .

Pitch hummed softly as he stepped out of the shadows. He strolled at a leisurely pace toward the lone figure on the cot beneath the open skylight. The room was unusually cold compared to how North normally kept the infirmary but seeing as the only patient was the Frost Child it made sense. The silly Pooka must have been cursing at spending so much time in the frigid room but Bunny was a stubborn one and once his heart was set on a lost cause it never left, much like North. This boy may just be what Pitch needed to break the two of them.

"It would appear you're far more useful to me than I originally planned," he purred almost seductively as he touched the boy's peaceful face. He hadn't seen Jack sleep this soundly in almost two centuries. The child flinched as Pitch altered his pleasant dreams into horrid nightmares that was sure to unleash his power. Sure enough Jack's brows bunched and he whimpered, ice quickly coating his face once more as tears welled in his eyes. "There we go, come on, come on…yes, there…what a beautiful nightmare." He smiled softly as he watched the nightmare sand swirl around his fingers. His eyes flicked from it to the child he had been watching over since that first night they met centuries ago. The nightmares of children were potent but nothing compared to that of an immortal child. Jack had been keeping him sustained for a long time and he was now more powerful than ever. It won't be long now until he was powerful enough to finally destroy the Guardians. All he needed was a little help.

. . .

Phil was gesturing wildly at the huge Globe pointing toward the Antarctic. North and Bunny glanced at one another in confusion. The globe looked the same as it had the last time they saw it. But the yeti was going nuts, pointing and gesturing wildly at the large orb until North shook his head went to the consol. He took the controls and rotated the globe until he could clearly see the South Pole.

"Phil, nothing has changed, my friend. Why are you so antsy?" he asked, confused by the yeti's anxiety.

Phil gave a low angry growl and pointed once more but this time it wasn't so much the ice land but rather a strange dark smudge that should not be there. Then it moved making everyone jump back in surprise. It was the same black sand as they found in Jack ice palace. North automatically drew his sword with one hand as he held out his other arm silently ordering everyone to stay back despite Bunny pulling out his boomerang.

What started as a little bit of sand quickly grew until it blacked out the entire globe. Then a familiar cackle filled the entire workshop causing every yeti and elf to stop what they were doing and stare up in fear. And as fast as it happened it suddenly burst like a black firework and disappeared.

"What in bloody hell is going on, Nick?" Bunny demanded as he looked about for a target. His paws clenched and unclenched around his weapons as his keen eyes scanned the entire level they were on. Suddenly his breath caught in his throat and he whipped around to look at North. "Frost!" he gasped as if just realizing the boy was all alone and whatever this sand was was most likely after him. Not waiting for North he stowed away the boomerangs, got on all fours and began running toward the infirmary at full speed.

His gut feeling came to full realization as the already cool building dropped drastically in temperature. Bunny shivered as he neared the infirmary. The doors were frozen but that didn't stop him. He used his magic to open a tunnel and dropped into the ground for a split second only to pop up on the other side of the door. He almost wished he didn't. If it wasn't cold in there before it sure was now. The room was covered in ice and snow and in the center of the chaos still asleep was the Frost Child. The whole room was turning into an echo of the ice palace as the room quickly froze over.

"Frost!" he yelled, rushing to the bed and grabbing the kid's arms. He poured his magic into the boy, hoping to break whatever spell this was. "Come on, kid. Calm down."

A low chuckle made Bunny look up. Bright quicksilver-amber eyes looked out at him from the shadows and it didn't take a genius to figure out who was hidden in the darkness.

"Pitch!" he snarled, his claws extracting and ready for to take on the dark spirit and keep him from Jack but a soft whimper drew his attention away from the shade. He inhaled sharply when he realized his claws had accidentally broken through the ice coating the boy's arms and cut into flesh, his angry and worry causing his body temperature to heat up and melt some of the ice. Now bright glowing blue eyes stared up at him in fear. "Jack," he said, trying to keep his voice gentle but it was too late, the damage was done.

In the darkness Pitch only chuckled as he faded away. "Good luck controlling him, Aster."

A burst of winter magic threw Bunny away from the Frost Child. Jack scrambled off the cot, his chest heaving and eyes wide as he looked about the strange room. He didn't recognize this place. It was strange and full of wood and strange smells that didn't belong in the Antarctic. It was too warm even though there was snow just feet away but kept away by large glass windows that Jack had only seen on large expensive homes. His hands bunched in the long sleeves of his cloak as he turned around on the spot, trying to make sense of where he was. The wind called to him, practically throwing his staff in his hands as he looked up to see a skylight but even as he noticed it the protective glass was closing over the opening. Nonetheless he launched himself toward it, hoping to squeeze through the opening but he wasn't fast enough. The skylight was closed. Now Jack was panicking and as he did ice raced throughout the large room. He whipped back and forth, racing to one large window after another in hopes of escaping but his ice was a blessing and a curse and in this case it sealed the windows shut and effectively trapped him inside.

"Jack!" a deep voice rumbled.

Jack froze, feeling like a small child caught doing something bad. That voice sounded familiar, like something from his dream and ever so slowly he turned to look at the large man. His brows knitted as he tried to place the man. He inhaled sharply as it hit him. This was North. He and the Guardians had raided his home for now reason whatsoever. His gaze flickered toward Bunnymund who was righting himself at the other side of the room. Jack chewed his lip. There was only one way out but he wasn't sure if he could make it past North. The man was so big but he had no other choice. He wrapped the wind around him and raced across the room toward the door as quickly as he could.

It wasn't North that caught him, it was a wall of grey fur that he hadn't seen until he was past the door. He was going so fast and was so unprepared that he was thrown back while the creature stumbled back in surprise. Jack landed on the floor with a cry, his staff skidding across the floor and away from him creating ice in its wake. Nonetheless the warmth here was far more than the previous room and it took his breath away after being secluded in the Antarctic for so long. In his distress the hall instantly began filling with ice.

"No," North said gently, catching him from behind and pulling the boy onto his lap as he knelt on the floor. His grip was firm and yet gentle as he held the boy and rocked slowly as he did long ago when he would help put the children of the original Santoff Clausen to sleep after a particularly hard battle again Pitch and his Nightmare Men and Dream Pirates, back when Pitch was a real threat. He hummed softly when Jack began struggling and even tried freezing his hands but North was used to the cold and had dealt with frostbite. He whispered softly to the boy, his cheek against Jack's covered head. "Sh… It's alright, Jack. It's alright. No one's going to hurt, son. You're alright…you're alright."

Jack whimpered. He didn't feel alright, especially with someone touching him…actually touching him. It felt weird and scary and warm. But it was that comforting warmth he thought he had dreamed. He couldn't exactly relax, not with a great big hairy yeti and the rabbit-man being right there or being in a strange place not of his creation. His body trembled uncontrollably and he made sure to keep hands tucked in his long sleeves and hood over his head, the only protection he now had left since neither struggling or his power had any effect on the large man. He cringed slightly as Bunny knelt before him and immediately looked away. He always seemed to be in trouble whenever the rabbit-man was around.

Bunny studied Jack for a moment before meeting North's gaze. "Pitch was here," he told the other Guardian, his voice serious. He nodded toward Jack. "I think he was here for him."

North's wraps wrapped a little more securely around Jack as the child looked up, as if hearing a name that had been lost to him for quite some time. For the first time in many centuries Jack met Bunny's gaze and there was complete and utter confusion in his eyes. It was obvious right then and there that the boy had been in exile far too long and that it may have affected his mind as well as his spirit. And a broken spirit could be a very dangerous spirit.


	7. Chapter 7

Zenith State 7

North watched his new charge with wonder. Jack was perhaps the most skittish child he had ever seen in his long, long life. Once he had calmed the boy down enough that he wouldn't run off or freeze the entire building he had taken the boy to his study and sat him on his desk while he and Bunny discussed what to do about Pitch while they waited for MiM. At first Jack sat on the desk like a little statue, not looking at anything but his clasped hands. He looked awfully small and frightened, so unlike the boy he met centuries ago. They may have met only briefly but he remembered how vibrant and bright that boy had been. He was so different now. North tilted his head to one side as he regarded Jack. Maybe…

Waving his fingers toward a shelf of prototype toys all made of ice. A part of him worried they might get broken but they were old prototypes and there were a few real toy versions about the warehouse that could be used if anything happened. Besides, Jack was a child of ice he might prefer something of his element…at least for now.

Toy planes and spaceships flew off the shelves while toy soldiers and ballerinas danced in the air around Jack. It took a moment before Jack noticed them but when he did the look of surprise and wonder on his icy face was undeniable and North grinned as he gestured with his head to the boy.

Bunny raised a brow and glanced at Jack then rolled his eyes with a sigh. "Seriously? We need to focus on Pitch not entertain the kid."

"Ah but if Pitch is intent on the boy then removing Jack's fear should be our first move, no?" North countered with a grin.

The Pooka gave a huff but he glanced at Jack once more, noting the first hint of a smile as he raised one sleeve covered hand up to touch a hot air balloon. "Yeah, maybe," he conceded. But he couldn't help but grin when Jack gave a small giggle. North might have the right idea. "But he might like something with a little more color."

North's head bobbed up and down in thought and then he called out for Dingle, accidentally making Jack jump and freeze the desk. "It's alright," he assured with a fatherly smile as he knelt next to one of his elves. "Dingle, gather the others and fetch some brightly colored toys for young Jack."

The tiny elf gave a salute then dashed off, calling out to the others. North stood and stretched. It had been a long day and his back was getting a little stiff. Nonetheless he went to Jack who was still looking at the toys in wonder but he seemed to have gone back into his shell just a little after North had called out to his elf. He looked up at the large Russian with wide bright blue eyes.

"How are you feeling, Jack?" North asked, keeping his voice soft as he stood before the youth.

Just like before Jack said nothing. Ever since he awoke in the infirmary he had refused to speak. There was no doubt he was afraid, it was obvious in his every move, the way he kept his hands tucked in his sleeves and hood over his head. And the ice that had reformed on his face was a dead giveaway. North hummed softly to himself and left Jack for a moment to fetch a platter of cookies from a table near the door and some hot cocoa. He returned to Jack a few moments later with his new arsenal and smiled brightly at the boy.

"Cookie?"

Jack's eyes darted from North to the cookies and back in confusion.

North's eyes crinkled in surprise. "Surely you know what a cookie is?"

The boy just stared at him and said nothing.

Sighing, North took a moment to think. "Jack, I can't help you if you don't speak to me."

Jack's lips pressed together as he looked back down at his hands. Then he looked up and there was an angry scowl on his face. "What do you want?" he demanded.

"What do you mean?"

The scowl only deepened and the ice that had formed on the desk thickened. "You ignore me for centuries and then you and your Guardians raid my home and kidnap me? Why?"

"Jack…"

"No! I want to know! I deserve to know why not one of you gave a damn about me and now…now I'm taken clear across the planet against my will! I thought only the summer spirits were pricks like that." His voice quickly became hoarse due to lack of use and he whimper at the sudden strain put on it. He hadn't talked to anyone but himself in such a long time that he was a little surprised he had said so much.

A small frown adorned North's face and he gave a deep heavy sigh as he sat down in his chair. He felt suddenly old and selfish and like a failure for failing this one small boy for so long even if Jack was a spirit. "You're right, Jack, you have every right to know why we did not give you the attention you so rightly deserved. To put it simply you're not a human child, at least not anymore, and we only protect the human children. I'm sorry, Jack, we simply didn't think you needed us. No other spirit ever has."

That may have not been the best way to explain it because Jack looked even more upset and if it wasn't for the ice covering his face he might have shed tears. "Then who am I? Why was I left with nothing but a name?"

"I don't know, Jack," North answered gently. "But I do know Manny feels bad for everything that has happened to you. As do I. Can we start over?"

Jack said nothing at first. His gaze flickered from North to the flying toys back to North and then to Bunny. He bit his lip nervously and then he hung his head sadly. "I don't know…"

"Let me make it up to you. Do you like toys?"

He shook his head. A blatant lie but he wasn't going to be bought by toys and food no matter how neat or good.

North stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Alright…that's fair enough. How about we take baby steps, no? Perhaps a little something to eat and then if you see anything you like you can have it, okay?"

Jack gave North a suspicious look, not trusting the large man in the least but he was so starved for affection, any type of affection that he gave a curt nod.

"Wonderful!" North chirped, clapping his hands and causing the boy to pull back a little, especially when he stood. He patted Jack's knee. "Now how about we take off this hood and get a good look at you?"

Jack's hands immediately shot up to his hood to keep it in place and North didn't force him to pull it down. His large hands held either side of the hood, his hands just below Jack's and waited until the youth calmed once more. It took several long minutes but finally Jack took a trembling breath and lowered his hands. North smiled softly at him and then ever so gently pushed the hood off the boy's head so that it rested on his shoulders. His smile grew at the sight of the youth no longer hidden in the cloak.

"There…now that's better. I knew there was a little boy hidden under all these robs," he cooed.

Jack gave a shy up turn of his lips, not quite a smile but it held promise.

"You're a very handsome young man, Jack," North said soothingly. This time he offered Jack some cocoa but Jack turned his nose up to it but it wasn't the drink itself but the steam and heat emitting from it. "Oh!" North said in realization then blew on it.

Jack's brows wrinkled in confusion but only grew as the man explained what he was doing. A little unsure but wanting to help, Jack leaned forward and blew softly over the liquid. At once the steam was gone and the cocoa was cool. He glanced up at North who only chuckled.

"Thank you," the Guardian said proudly before holding it out to the youth again.

The boy worried his lip for a moment our two then took the cup from North and drank the contents since it seemed so important to the man that he at least try it. He almost choked on the drink. It was rich and very, very sweet. It was definitely something that fit North's character and in some distant memory Jack could remember having something similar long, long ago…before waking in the ice.

"Whoa…slow down, Jack," North advised with a little laugh.

Bunny watched with awe as Jack drank the cocoa and interacted with North, seemingly far younger than his three hundred years or even the teenage body his spirit inhabited. Jack was like a small boy, very confused, very upset, and in desperate need of attention. He was unlike many of the other spirits who were used to being alone or amongst their own kind. But Jack really didn't have his own kind, did he? Most of the winter sprites Bunny knew were nothing like Jack. They were never human and certainly not children which proved Jack was created by MiM. He had a life before this, just as the Guardians which brought into question why MiM would create a spirit like Jack then leave him as he did. The poor kid didn't even know who he was. Perhaps Tooth could help with that. The real question however who what the hell did Pitch want with him? And why did Jack go into exile as he did, causing a storm so strong that it was affecting Australia and every other nearby country in ways unnatural for that region. But before Bunny could question Jack about that they needed the kid to be calm because it seemed whenever he was upset that was when his powers were at their most volatile.

Not surprisingly once Jack began drinking he soon began eating and it was as if the kid never ate before but then again spirits really had no need for food and in the Antarctic there is very little if any. So it seemed natural that the boy would be hungry and North being the person he was, was more than happy to feed him while he rambled away about nothing. And everything would have been fine but a nagging feeling just wouldn't leave Bunny. It made his ears twitch and sent his foot a-thumping and fur standing on end as if they were being watched.

"Isn't this sweet?" Pitch purred, stepping out of the shadows.

Bunny whirled around, his boomerangs in hand in a split second. "Pitch," he snarled, baring his two front teeth. "What do you want?"

The shade looked almost bored by Bunny and he chose to ignore the irritation the Pooka had become and looked to Jack instead. Jack looked back but not in fear as he had the Guardians but open interest and that made Pitch smile. They may not have spoken in many years but the boy remembered him. The child was always very intuitive. He was bright and a little naïve but truly one with his element.

"I just thought you fools might be interested in knowing your precious Lunaroff – the Man in the Moon, Jack, incase these imbeciles haven't told you – won't be making an appearance tonight or healing young Jack," Pitch said off handedly as he studied his finger nails.

"Heal me?" Jack asked, strangely not afraid to talk with Pitch as he had been with the Guardians. North placed a protective arm between him and the shade but it didn't deter either of them.

"Pitch, state your business. What do you mean Manny will not be showing? He is Moon and Moon appears every night."

Pitch gave a hollow laugh. "So naïve even after all these years? Take a look at the sky, North, even all the power at Lunaroff's disposal cannot cut through a storm like that. Not even your little fairy friend." He gave North a disdainful look before turning his attention back to Jack. "How did the old man put it? Oh yes, Lunaroff, the big guy on the moon, thinks you're unstable. Mentally and physically I gather."

"Pitch…" Bunny growled warningly. He didn't want to battle Pitch in front of Jack if he could help it. There was no telling how the kid might react to such violence.

The boy looked even more confused. "I'm unstable?" he asked, looking up at North, his eyes begging for an answer that no one seemed to be able to give him.

"No," North said hurriedly, his hands going to the boy's shoulders. "Manny is just concerned about you. He hasn't seen you in a very long time."

This only served to confuse Jack more. "If he's so concerned about me then why didn't he talk to me when he had the chance? I've been in exile nearly two hundred years and now he wants to see me? Now I'm important enough to have the 'Big Four' kidnap me?"

"Jack, please calm down," North said soothingly, He placed his large hands on Jack's upper arms and tried rubbing them but the boy was upset now and the wind outside began to howl the angrier he got. "It's alright, little one, no one will harm you, I promise. I will not allow anyone to hurt you, never again. You have my word."

Pitch gave a bark of anger. "The word of a thief and bandit? How reassuring. Did he ever tell you what he did for a living in his previous life, Jack?"

"That's enough," Bunny snapped. He didn't want to traumatize Jack any more than he already was but he sure as hell wasn't going to late Pitch manipulate the kid either so he let out a high pitch whistle and yelled out for Sandy who should still be in the lab if he hadn't left to do his.

The whistle was mimicked by Phil and a moment later a small army of yetis burst into the room. Jack jumped in surprise and instinctively reached for his staff but it was leaning against the wall out of reach. He grabbed North's big hand instead and the Russian wrapped his arms protectively around the youth as the yetis brushed against the boy to get at Pitch. The child began trembling again, not used to so many beings in one space let along any of them being able to touch him or wanting to. His small hands bunched in North's shirt as the man whispered soothingly to him.

"It's alright, Jack. They're just here to send Pitch away," he promised, rubbing his hand up and down Jack's back. He could feel the boy's powers whirling around him, chilling the air in his fright. "Shh…it's alright, Jack, it's alright." The air seemed to warm a bit and North relaxed. "That's my boy."

"North, get him out of here!" Bunny yelled as he pivoted around, searching for Pitch who had, as usual, dashed into the shadows the moment the yetis attacked. His keen eyes searched every the entire room but even with all the lights on there was still a thousand different places the shade could hide. "Get lights in the corners! I don't want him jumping out at us," the Pooka ordered the yetis. "Nick…Nick, do you a safe place for the kid?"

North thought quickly as carded his fingers through Jack's icy hair. "Maybe, but it we would to brighten the lights in the passage ways and…"

The shadows under the desk began to move. Phil saw it first and gave a wobbled warning but by the time North looked up to see what was wrong the light above his desk burst and as soon as it did black sand poured out from the opening, forming long tentacles that rushed up his legs and around his arms before he couldn't think of shoving Jack to safety. They snaked around man and boy and all North could do was hold Jack to him and try his best to protect the child from whatever harm Pitch might wish upon him. To his utter astonishment the black sand began to freeze wherever it touched Jack and for a moment it looked as if the strange sand would pull away. Instead it piled up on him encasing both Jack and North in blackness and all they could hear was Bunny's enraged voice then nothing but vertigo as they were swept away with the sand.

"NOOO!" Bunny screamed as his best friend and the Frost Child vanished under the sand only to disappear completely into the shadows under the desk. He raced toward where North had stood, hoping to stop whatever dark magic Pitch was using but it was too late…they were gone and Jack's staff – that had been up against the wall – with them.


	8. Chapter 8

Zenith State 8

It was cool and dark when Jack awoke for the second time in a strange place but this time there were warm arms around him and he snuggled against a warm body, like a child waking next to their father. That warmth should have sent him into a panic and made him struggle to get free of it but that fatherly feel gave him pause. He never had a father before let alone anyone who remotely treated him like a son or friend. For a time he would have been happy to stay where he was but there was something darker than the cavern they seemed to be in. Reluctantly he crawled out from under the large arm that had been loosely draped overly him, blinking at the dimness of the room. It wasn't quite pitch black but it was far darker than even his ice palace in the heart of the dark season when no light from the sun touched the Antarctic when it seemed like an endless twilight. It took quite a bit of time for Jack's eyes to adjust and when they did he gazed down at the one who had been holding him, not overly surprised to see it was North. He couldn't quite understand why the man the man had been holding him, he barely remembered the large man grabbing him as yetis rushed by. Why would North protect him? Why would the man even care? He never did before. But North had changed since their first encounter. He wasn't as young as he used to be and was much larger…or maybe that was Jack's imagination, and his hair was white rather than brown with grey streaks.

Why was he unconscious?

The temptation to flee and leave North where he was filled Jack. He didn't know where he was or how he got there or if he was in enemy territory and there was no snow whatsoever and that scared him but at the same time North had been kind to him so rather than running he stayed crouched next to the Russian. Biting his lower lip he debated what to do and settled on trying to shake the man, which proved to be easier said than done. "North?" he called, softly in case there were any enemies nearby that might jump them. "North, please wake up…please…"

"He can't hear you, Frost," a dark silky voice said from the shadows.

Jack jumped to his feet, taking a defensive position, his hands instantly reaching for his staff only to discover he was missing his only constant companion and that sent a rush of fear through him. Nonetheless he refused to give up his position, something ancient inside him saying he needed to protect North as the man had tried protecting him.

"How touching," Pitch cooed as he moved from the shadows. "Although why you bother is beyond me. He was just going to use you and if not him than Lunaroff."

Jack kept his position. "Who's Lunaroff?" he demanded, his ice spreading across his body in his anxiety.

Pitch's brows rose in surprise. "I'm rather certain I explained that already. Very well. Lunaroff is who these fools call the Man in the Moon or Manny."

Jack shrugged as if the name had no meaning to him.

"The Moon, Jack, the voice you so long to hear again."

Again the boy looked at him blankly and Pitch had to wonder if perhaps the boy's mind had deteriorated during his exile, although back in North's study he seemed rather adamant about being ignored for so long. Pitch tiled his head to one side and studied the youth with mild amusement. Spirits were no more immune to emotional and psychological trauma than humans and it would seem that perhaps young Jack suffered from one if not both. So he kept his voice gentle as he spoke to the child and moved ever so slowly toward him.

"That horrid Moon has ignored you far too long, Jack. He left you and was never there to help you. It was as if you never existed. But I was there, wasn't I, Jack? I was always there, right from the moment you awoke in you pond and I will always be there," he assured as he reached the child. "Don't you remember, Jack?"

The boy shook his head but the fear he felt wasn't for himself or even of Pitch – there was more curiosity there than anything else – it was for North who had yet to stir. Pitch frowned slightly. He hadn't expected Jack to form a bond with the old Cusack so quickly.

"Come with me, Jack," he purred softly as he raised a hand to the boy. "Let me show you that you don't need the Moon or the Guardians. You're far more powerful than those fools will ever be."

Jack hesitated. He glanced down at North, afraid to leave him while he was unarmed and defenseless. There was no telling what Pitch's shadows might do to him if he wasn't there to watch over North.

"No harm will come to him," Pitch assured, sensing Jack's fear.

The boy's brows furrowed as he looked back at Pitch. "Swear it," he said sudden, his raspy unused voice cracking slightly.

A gentle smile creased Pitch's lips and he held out his hand once more. "You have my word. No harm will come to him. He will be as he is now when we return."

Jack gave North one more concerned look, silently hoping Pitch kept his word, then took Pitch's hand and let the shade whisk him away.

North groaned as he blinked his eyes open. His vision was blurred but he could clearly make out Jack's bare feet and the tatter ends of his pants. His fingers flexed and he tried sluggishly to reach for the boy but Jack stepped away from him and took Pitch's hand. The shade seemed pleased and smiled soft at the boy before grinning down at North and then all went black once more as the sand swarmed around North and pulled him back into the world of dreams and nightmares.

. . .

Bunny was beside himself as he paced the Globe Room. He and the yetis had searched the entire compound for North and Jack but there was no finding the two and even Sandy couldn't sense them. The storm outside had ended almost the moment Jack disappeared so the kid definitely was in the North Pole anymore but no other storms had popped up anywhere just yet. Anxious, Bunny's rear claws began clicking on the wooden floor in a steady tattoo. Tat, tat, tat. Tat, tat, tat. His paws moved over the controls, moving the globe ever so slowly in hopes finding any anomalies but the problem was with so much of the planet already experiencing winter that it would be next to impossible to find any if Pitch choose to hide anywhere in the Northern hemisphere right now.

Bunny hung his head, his shoulders slumping. How did this happen? What did Pitch want with the kid? He should have reached out to Jack long before this. When that boy died he should have comforted Jack more, maybe take him under his wing and teach him how to control his power better or…or…he didn't know but of all the Guardians he had spoken to Jack to most. He should have been the one to keep the boy from going into hiding and breaking as he did.

He barely looked up when Sandy flew in with a rather perplexed look. He held a small pouch and he once he had Bunny's attention he gestured for the Pooka to follow him to a nearby table. There he dumped out the context of the pouch – the black sand – and gestured toward it.

Frowning, Bunny just stared at it. "Yeah? And how is this supposed to help us find North and the kid?" he asked, already bored and anxious to find their missing friend.

Sandy glared at him and pointed at the sand. Then he raised his hand slowly and the sand rose with it as if following a silent command. It moved and acted just like dreamsand and Bunny's frown grew as he watched, a strange suspicion growing in his lower belly. His suspicions became true when Sandy touched the black sand and it turned gold.

"How in blimey hell did that happen?" he demanded.

The sand turned into an image of Pitch and Bunny shook his head. He should have known.

"And how exactly did he get his hands on your sand?" Bunny asked in growing horror. "And how did it become black in the first place?"

Sandy shrugged, just as perplexed as the Pooka.

"North said the kid's room was covered in this stuff, especially his bed. You don't think Pitch was giving Jacky nightmares and causing his powers to unleash, do you?"

The dreamweaver frowned in thought before shrugging again. None of them knew for certain what Pitch's motives were or what his interest in Jack was for sure. It would make sense that the shade might use Jack's fear to his advantage and that the boy's powers lashing out as they were could be a direct result which might lead to frightening humans who were not used to such cold weather suddenly descending on their country which would in turn increase Pitch's powers. It would make a vicious yet power cycle and the only one to benefit from it would be Pitch. If this was a calculated move on Pitch's part it was utterly brilliant and that made Sandy fear even more for the young Frost Child.

Bunny was thinking much the same thing and the clicking of his claws only increased. They had to find North and Jack immediately. It was small relief when Tooth finally returned. He quickly explained the situation her but she was just as stumped as they were. They would have to wait for MiM and hopefully he would know where to look. Bunny only hoped North and Jack were safe until they found them but knowing Pitch that was unlikely. Pitch had once turned North into a toy soldier and he wasn't above doing it again. What he might do to a child such as Jack was all the more frightening.

. . .

It had been centuries since he had been to his pond. Things had changed over the long years Jack had been away. The village that once existed was now a small city with towering buildings. It was so unlike anything he had ever seen before and he looked out over it all in wonder. There were children dressed in odd warm clothes playing in the snow and his breath hitched when a small group skated on his pond. He instantly reached out to stop them but Pitch placed a hand on his shoulder.

"They're safe," he assured, keeping his hand on the boy's shoulder, his long fingers kneading gently. "This is your element, Jack. See how the children love what you do? They don't know you or that this is your creation but they worship you, Jack. And you should be worshipped." He turned the boy around so they faced one another. "I worship you, Jack. I have for a very long time. You have so much fear and anxiety. It wafts off you like a delicate perfume."

The youth frowned at him. "I'm not afraid of you," he said, his voice firm.

Pitch only smiled at him. "No…but you fear many things and being alone for all of eternity is one of them." He rubbed a thumb across Jack's cheek, his smile growing at the way Jack's breathe shuddered. "You've gone so long without being touched that you don't even remember what it's like and here in the span of an hour or so you've been held and had your cheek stroked. It must be an awful blessing. Such warmth…"

Jack's eyes closed and he leaned into the touch much as he had North, not used to such warmth. It felt nice and didn't hurt, making it a welcome change to the constant cold.

"We can be a family, Jack," Pitch whispered as he watched the ice retreat from Jack's face to reveal the youth he had first encountered many years ago. "I'm the only one who has ever been there for you and I won't let the Guardians take you from me again."


	9. Chapter 9

Zenith State 9

There was nothing like having a freaked out, enraged, sword totting fairy buzzing around the room talking a thousand words a minute to the point that not even Sandy could make sense of her anymore. But Toothiana was a warrior first and foremost and she never afraid to go to battle especially for her loved ones and in this case that was North, but then their relationship was far more complicated than any of the other Guardians. She was outraged that Pitch would even think to attack one of them let alone kidnap them but to take a child as well, albeit an immortal child but still a child nonetheless. She held her sabers tightly in her hands as she zipped about cursing in her native tongue as she tried to figure out where Pitch would have taken the two.

"The Earth's Core?" she asked as she listed past hide outs that Pitch had used.

Bunny shook his head. "Doubtful. He seemed fond of Jack, I don't think he would take the boy anywhere hot."

She gave a curt nodded and went back to buzzing about, pausing now and then to observe the globe. Nothing had changed since she arrived but she still zipped back and forth with her mini-selves to the globe hoping to spot something they may have missed. "Okay…okay, then what about the boy? Maybe he and Pitch are working together and this was all some trick to get North."

Sighing, Bunny shook his head again. "No, Tooth. Jack's…Jack's unstable and I don't mean just his powers. He's not all there. I think all these years in hiding may have affected him more than any of us considered."

The woman seemed unconvinced. She'd dealt with the teeth of mentally ill children before and she was certain after many centuries as the Tooth Fairy and a Guardian that Manny would not choose a mentally unstable boy as a Guardian, especially someone like Jack Frost who could kill by simply getting upset. "If I find out he helped Pitch steal North I'll…"

"Tooth!" Bunny snapped, jarring her attention away from the unhelpful rant and back to the situation at hand. Her head snapped birdlike toward him with an angry scowl. "Look, the kid's not a part of this. And even if he is I doubt it was knowingly. You saw the sand all throughout the ice palace. Sandy and I think that Pitch may have been haunting Jack's dreams for a while now, maybe even from the time he went into exile."

She didn't look moved at all but she listened, her arm folded across her chest as her wings fluttered anxiously.

Leaning back against a pillar Bunny regarded his friend for a long moment before continuing. "Okay, we know something happened to push Jack to the point of wanting to hide in the Antarctic, most likely that boy's death and us not taking the time to help him cope…or anything else, really. Sandy says that Pitch had already had an interest in him and that he often visited when the boy slept. I'm guessing that didn't change when Jack went into hiding and that Pitch followed."

"So?" Tooth asked, not quite getting his point.

"The increased cold in the south? The added snow in Australia? I don't think Jack meant to do any of it. I don't think his power is that unstable. Yes, when he's scared it lashes out but why would he be scared in a place that should be his sanctuary? I think Pitch has been using his anguish and fear while he sleeps to unleash his power and that's why the Antarctic is growing and Jack is so skittish. The kid probably doesn't even know this is happening. I don't think Pitch was after North just Jack but Nick was protecting Jack, trying to keep him safe and got nabbed as well."

The Tooth Fairy considered his words for a moment, her features still hard and fingers flexing around the hilt of her twin sabers. Her chest heaved but her anger finally subsided. "Alright, let's say you're right now what? We still don't know where they are or what Pitch has planned. If he wanted to use Jack to freeze the world I would think he'd take him south and finish unleashing his magic."

That was a good question and world have made sense but this was Pitch and making sense didn't always go hand in hand with the shade. Besides, if Jack's powers were to blanket the entire planet in snow it would take the notice of one person Pitch preferred not to anger and who could put a stop to it faster than even MiM.

"I don't know," Bunny confessed, downhearted since he couldn't figure out what to do.

Sandy tapped his shoulder and once he had the two's attention began making a series of shapes in the air. A snowflake and a house.

Tooth shook her head. "I don't think Pitch would take them to the ice palace…although I guess it wouldn't hurt to look."

The little man shook his head and tried again.

"What other home would he have," Tooth asked, perplexed by the notion.

Bunny's brows furrowed for a moment as he watched the images Sandy was creating. "Home…Burgess. That's where Jack was created. He may not have been there in centuries but it would still be home to him."

Sandy nodded excitedly, giving Bunny a thumbs up.

Tooth nodded. "Alright. Let's go to Burgess."

. . .

Pitch watched Jack as he had since first sensing the child's fear and sorrow when he was but a new spirit. He always enjoyed watching Jack. He was a skittish little thing so unlike his early days when he helped Mother Nature paint leafs. Back then he was bold and full of wide eyed wonder. North would have liked the boy more then, they were filled with that similar wonder and joy even though Jack was so very confused about who and what he was. Back then Jack would be running around, throwing snowballs and causing mischief but now the boy sat on a high branch just watching the children with a longing smile, afraid if he joined in the fun he might hurt someone. He hugged his knees to his chest, his hood back over his head and hands hidden in his sleeves. He didn't speak at all, his focus solely on the children but that was alright, Pitch didn't speak often either, used to the dark and shadows. They sat in comfortable silence until the children began milling away and returning to their homes.

Jack moved to follow, having taking a liking to one boy in particular but Pitch placed a hand on his shoulder to stop him. "They're going home to eat and sleep. Many have something called school tomorrow."

"School?" Jack asked, seemingly unsure of what that was which would be a given considering the boy's state of mind.

"A place of learning," the shade explained patiently.

Jack's eyes brightened. "Can I go?"

"No, Jack, it's only for human children."

"Oh." The boy fell silent again and looked a little dejected as he placed his chin on his knees.

Pitch reached out and squeezed the boy's shoulder, noting that with Jack's temporary joy the ice clinging to his clothing had thawed and left him looking human once more. Pitch wasn't sure if that would suit his plans or not but decided to let it be for now as he shifted a little closer to the young spirit. "They'll be back tomorrow," he assured a little surprised by the child's sudden sadness and delicious fear. Jack was afraid of so many things but being forgotten seemed to be the greatest one even though the children didn't know him.

Jack only frowned at his knees before sighing. "I know," he whispered. He remembered when he used to usher in winter and played with the children that they always returned but it was so long ago that it now felt like a dream. This felt like a dream. He should be home in his ice palace where he could sleep and forget all this craziness, where he had peace. But there were no children. There was no laughter or fun and he sorely missed that he just never realized how much until now.

A shift in the air made Pitch stiffen. It was the familiar feel of Sandy's magic sifting through the region no doubt searching for them. Took the little man long enough to figure out where they were. Well it changed nothing. Pitch had what he wanted and in time he would take down the Guardians once and for all, after all he already had North and the Earth bond Guardians were nothing without their leader.

"Jack, it's time we go home," he said gently, lifting the boy's chin with one finger. "I have a vast kingdom for you to explore."

At first Jack was unsure but then he gave a small nod and before he could think better of it let Pitch whisk him away again. Pitch's realm was just as dark as before but this time Jack's eyes adjusted much easier. He ran his fingers through his bangs, surprised to actually feel strands of hair rather than frozen spikes. Odd. He couldn't remember the last time he felt actual hair instead of ice. It made him smile and push back his hood to touch more hair, feeling a tinge of unexplainable joy and a distant memory of flying through the sky and dancing with the wind as it blew through his hair. Without thinking he froze the nearest wall until it was as smooth and perfect as a mirror. He looked at his reflection, something he hadn't done in a long time and laughed in joy at the sight of a fair skin, white haired boy that looked back at him. It was an image he hadn't seen in a very, very long time. Pitch only patted his shoulder in amusement before walking off somewhere behind Jack. The youth watched him with a grin, feeling the need to thank the shade for making him see the joy of children again. He stopped though when he caught sight of a figure he had all but forgotten hanging from a wall.

"North!" he gasped, spinning around.

There pinned against the wall and covered in that black sand was North. The large man was unconscious and black sand seemed to move all over him, twining through his beard and hair, over his temples and down his neck in chest, constantly moving while holding him in place. Pitch stood before him, his fingers moving as he controlled the sand movements.

"No! You promised not to hurt him," Jack yelled, squeezing his way between Pitch and North and pushing the shade back as much as he could but after so long in exile be was not very strong and only managed a few inches because Pitch stumbled back in surprise. Jack threw out his arms as if his small form would be enough to protect the Guardian of Wonder.

"Jack, I'm not hurting him. I'm just keeping him asleep in order to keep us both safe. You have no idea what this man can do if given the chance. He's not the good person the Guardians would lead you to believe. He's a thief, a bandit and he has robed from countless realms and hurt many children simply for being naughty," Pitch tried to explain. "Think about it, Jack. Think about all those years you were good, doing everything in your power to protect your village and bring winter fun to the children. You did everything right yet he ignored you. He didn't give you one gift and paid you no attention until you became a threat. Tell me I'm not right."

Jack's mouth opened to object but he quickly closed it. He couldn't deny it. North had ignored him all these years but there was something about him, something that called out to something deep inside Jack that he didn't understand. So he didn't budge. He kept his arms open and refused to let Pitch get near North again.

The shade sighed and raised one hand. "I'm sorry, Jack, but you've left me no choice." His fingers close and when it did some of the black sand covering North shot out and encompassed the back of Jack's head and some grains spilled into eyes. A moment later the boy toppled over. Pitch caught him before he hit the ground. He brushed the boy's bangs from his eyes and looked down at him. While he wasn't planning on knocking the child out right now it was going to come in handy, especially with the Guardians searching for them in Burgess. "Let's see what sort of storm your nightmares can produce today, shall we?"

The only response he got was a muffled moan as the sand tugged at his mind to awaken a series of nightmares that was sure to rock the world above and not only distract the remaining Guardians but also frighten the people of Burgess.

In Burgess the calm winter day quickly changed as the wind grew and began whipping through the forest and into the small city. It howled through chimneys and rattles windows. Soft snow began to fall then grew into larger flakes then hardened into hail and sleet as Burgess faced its worst winter storm in nearly two centuries. But something far more dangerous lurked into the woods around Jack's pond as snow took on the shapes of large timber wolves that howled with the wind. They were joined by Nightmare wolves, their black coat contrasting the Snow wolves white coat. Together they prowled the woods and waited for the Guardians to make their move.


	10. Chapter 10

Zenith State 10

This wasn't how he had planned things. He had planned to unleash Jack's full power while he was in his palace in the Antarctic. It was safe and the child would not have noticed while he slept – Jack rarely remembered his nightmares if ever. The resulting blizzard would have blanketed much of the southern hemisphere and bring great fear to the region. But of course Lunaroff had to choice that moment to finally intervene and send his beloved Guardians to fetch the boy and pretty much steal him away from Pitch. The shade had tried using that to his advantage. Jack was already frightened of the Guardians due to his past experiences with Bunnymund and North and Pitch had heightened that in his nightmares. He never meant to hurt the boy. He was actually quite fond of Jack. The boy was smart, intuitive, brave and very creative, all the things Pitch admired and prided in himself and he could almost see Jack as his child, one to replace the one he lost so long ago. But then North had to get in the way, North and his wonder and toys and affiliation with snow that nearly matched Jack perfectly.

Pitch sneered at the very thought of the Russian locked up in his dungeon. No, he wasn't going to let North take what was rightfully his. And Jack was his. He was the only one to give the boy and attention. He was the only one who cared enough to follow him to the Antarctic. He was the only one who held the child while he cried over the loss of life due to his element. And yes, he did cause the boy nightmares but not always. It was never every night but he did go and watch over the boy as he slept, afraid of the boy rejecting him. Funny that. He was a spirit composed of fear and yet he was afraid of this one special boy's rejection. Perhaps it was because they were both such lonely souls or perhaps because Pitch had been alone so long. Whatever the reason Pitch felt possessive of Jack. He felt the need to protect him and shelter him from MiM and his Guardians. After all Jack had survived this long without them, albeit not a happy life but Pitch would do his best to make up for that.

He took Jack to a dark room that he kept cool in hopes of one day gathering the courage to bring the boy to his dark castle yet never did. He lay Jack on the soft bed and covered him with a light sheet. The child looked so small and fragile in such a big bed. Reaching down he brushed several strands of hair from over Jack's eyes and admired him for a moment. He really was a handsome boy and far more powerful than anyone knew. And that power was just what Pitch needed to finally do away with the Guardians but Jack was too young and too soft to do anything to hurt anyone unless attacked which meant Pitch had to take control of that power and the best way was through his dreams. It was tricky controlling another's power this way but to finally put an end to the Guardians was well worth the risk.

"When this is over we'll both be better off and you will never be ignored again. The world will know both our names," he promised Jack as he adjusted the sheet over the boy. He left a single candle burning on a low shelf knowing Jack fear of total darkness – something that Pitch was all too used to – then materialized out of the sealed room that no one would noticed amongst the twisting maze and countless identical doors.

He could feel the magic of Sanderson's dreamsand up above, searching homes and apartments, streets and alleys and even the forest for Jack and North. No doubt the other Guardians were with him. Pitch's magic weaved around Jack's, guiding it to the world above and talking the shape of one of Jack's favorite predators, a timber wolf. A pack quickly formed, some white of freshly fallen snow while others were as black as the darkest shadow. They bayed at the moon, the only warning the Guardians were to get before they were hunted down.

Pitch smirked as he listened to them howl. "Take down the rabbit," he ordered as he strolled through the long corridors mentally setting traps for any Guardian who managed to slip into his realm. He wasn't going to take any chances with them. He wasn't going to let them stop him let alone take Jack. He had North and that was a beginning. Perhaps there was a way to turn the old man's powers against his friends as well.

He had never tried manipulating the Russian's power before but it should be no different than controlling Jack's, the only difference being willpower. It was worth a shot. He just needed a little more nightmare sand to keep the old man under control.

. . .

Burgess was buried by one of the worst blizzards Bunny had ever seen almost as cold as the North Pole or so it seemed. Either way he was sorely wishing for his coat when the portal opened near the little pond he had often seen Jack playing around centuries ago. Now it was next to impossible to see the pond, or the surrounding trees let alone the city built around it. It was a virtual white out and the Guardians had to stay close together in order to not loss one another.

"Alright," Tooth called above the howl of the wind. "Tell me the boy's not doing this."

Bunny gave a low growl, sounding more wild boar than rabbit. "Pitch is behind this. Jack as never made a storm like this behind."

"Hello, Antarctic?" Tooth countered, landing next to him with both swords drawn.

"That was different," Bunny assured. At least he was positive that this was unlike the Antarctic and because Jack was scared and Pitch was doing something frightening to him and North.

The fairy rolled her eyes in annoyance but gave a surprised gasp at the baying of wolves. They were uncommon so close to the city and had most had moved further north were there was still plenty of wilderness. She twirled her sabers to the front and took a defensive position as Bunny drew his boomerangs and did the same, although his movements were stiff and extremely tense. There's an age old fear embedded in every rabbit or large dogs and wolves and just the sound of a howl sent shivers down Bunny's spine and had his long ears standing straight up in search of the animals.

Sandy gathered a ball of dreamsand in his small hands as he hovered over his friends. His keen eyes observed the snowy area as his mind subconsciously reached out to monitor all the minds around him. He was used to every sort of mind imaginable, human and animal alike but there were no wolves as they were hearing. His brows furrowed as he listened both with his ears and his mind. This wasn't right. So instead he tried reaching out to Jack's mind and when he hit a black wall he tried North and again he came up against a wall. He could sense them but not where they were or what they were thinking. That wasn't possible. Pitch was somehow blocking him.

"Ah…guys, I think we have a bit of a problem," Bunny suddenly said as a good dozen wolves varying between white and black slowing appeared threw the blizzard. He took a step back and prepared to throw one of the boomerangs. He hesitated, hoping to see Jack materialize through the snow but he never did and all there was were the strange wolves made of snow and sand. "Jack! Jackie!"

No response and it made Bunny worry all the more but he didn't have a chance to think about it as the wolves charged around. He threw his boomerangs, slashing through two of the wolves and turning them back to snow while Tooth slashed at a particularly large black one, changing it back to sand but when one was cut down it reformed seconds later. It was Sandy who managed to put an end to the black sand wolves by converting them back into dreamsand as he had back at the workshop but while that helped it didn't solve the issue of the snow wolves and they seemed intent on reaching Bunny. The Pooka stepped back further, his heart pounding as they moved as one toward him, their teeth bared and a low rumbling growl vibrating so loudly that Bunny could feel it in his very being.

"Jack…if you can hear me, kiddo, please stop this," he whispered to the wolves as he stepped back again, afraid of attacking the snow wolves for fear of inadvertently hurting Jack. But he was running out of space and these wolves looked hungry for rabbit.

Somehow the three friends got separated in the blizzard and Bunny found himself alone in the woods with only the snow wolves to keep him company. It seemed that was exactly what the wolves were waiting for and they leapt as a pack at Bunny. Luckily Bunny had been keeping such a close eye on them that he was able to foresee the move and leapt out of the way. He began running, using his great speed and hearing to his advantage. He managed to outrun them, thankful that they were not real wolves. Hurrying up a tree he balanced on a high branch and watched as they ran past a few seconds later.

"_Sandy_," he called out mentally to the Dreamweaver. "_Where are you and tooth, mate?"_

An image of Jack's pond appeared in his mind.

"Okay, well I'm…not a clue. Can you track me?"

An affirmative came to him and Bunny nodded. "Okay, see you when you get here." He decided to stick to the trees for now. The wolves were still out there and as long as there was snow they could regenerate and as far as he knew they couldn't climb trees or fly…at least he hoped. A sudden ting of dark magic whiffed through the wind making Bunny jerk toward the left. His nose twitched as he scented the air. His teeth bared in instant recognition. "Pitch…"

Keeping to the trees he followed the scent stopping only when the wind changed direction to wait to catch the scent again. When he did he darted toward, forgetting about the wolves as the hope of finding North and Jack filled him. He moved faster, faster than when he rushed around the globe to deliver eggs until he came across the most peculiar thing he had ever seen; a rickety old bed in the middle of the woods over top of a rather large and most likely deep hole. One brow rose in surprise as he walked around the old bed.

"_Guys, I found something,"_ he called out mentally to the others. _"I think Pitch is taking the whole hiding under the bed thing to a new level."_

"_Wait for us,"_ Tooth advised through their link.

Bunny was going to and would have if he could but his ears twitched and rotated at the sound of pounding feet and growling dogs. Instinct said run but his need to find North and Jack that he kicked the broken bed aside and jumped down the hole instead. Tooth and Sandy would find him, of that he was sure but for now he had a mission, find Jack and North and avoid the wolves and maybe kick Pitch's skinny grey ass if he hurt either of them.


	11. Chapter 11

Zenith State 11

The Russian was just as stubborn unconscious as he was in his waking hours. No matter how much Pitch tried he could not break North's mental shields and reach his wondrous mind. If only he could gain access to North's thoughts and all their creativity then he could build an entire army of the Russian's marvelous creations.

Frustrated Pitch stepped. This wasn't working. He should have known as much. The wizard Ombric had taught North how to protect his mind and there was no way to destroy the magic North wrapped himself in. He would simply have to use the old man as bait for the others. Until then he'd keep North in a semi coma. He may not be able to access North's mind and bend him to his will but he could still give him nightmares and feed off his fear. The Russian would serve his purpose one way or another.

. . .

The dark palace was a maze with little to no light and it took several minutes for Bunny's eyes to adjust but luckily for him he was used to traversing dark tunnels all around the world. He moved stealthily through the winding halls, scenting the air from time to time. It was musty and dank in certain areas like many underground places were but otherwise appeared quite lived in for such a dark creepy place. But even this far underground Bunny could hear the howl of wind and wolf and feel the cold gust of wind that ripped through the opening to the dark palace and he could almost swear there were snow wolves directly behind him.

A shiver ran up his spine but he tried to keep his focus on his mission. There were many more scents lurking in the palace than he expected and Bunny wondered for a moment if Pitch had been kidnapping children or something. What was the shade up to?

The smell of candy cane and ginger bread mixed with a dash of aged rum met Bunny's senses and he knew he had finally come upon North's unique scent. He lifted his head high and sniffed the air searching for the direction the smell was coming from. His head swung to the right, then the left, his nose twitching as he searched. Left. He bounded in that direction and then turned sharply right as he came to another corridor. A dozen or meters down he came to a place with high ceilings and for a moment North's scent seemed to come from everywhere. He pivoted on the spot, trying to detect where it was coming from. Instinctively he got low to the ground and began scenting it, but it was fool hearty since it was unlikely North walked willingly anywhere in this dark realm. He would have fought, kicked and tore into Pitch's minions which would have left a much stronger and better scent for Bunny to track him with. North was a brilliant man and he would have done everything in his power to make sure his friends could find him. For there to be so little a trail meant he materialized where he was being held and the scent was due to the breeze constantly moving throughout the corridors.

"_North?"_ he called through their link hoping beyond hope that his friend would answer. All he got was some disoriented mumble but no sense of direction. _"Come on, mate, give some hint to where you are."_

More disjointed murmuring but one thing came in crystal clear. _Jack._ North was more concerned about Jack then himself. Bunny paws curled into tight fists. He was worried about the kid too but he had to get to North first. They could only defeat Pitch as a team. Then they could find Jack and get him to MiM and everything will be fine. He tried expressing this to North but his friend was insistent that the Frost Child be found first.

"Bunny?" Tooth called, zipping up to him like a crazed hummingbird on caffeine. "What are you? Where are we? Is this Pitch's lair? Where's Nicholas?" She gasped and whirled around at the sound on clicking nails on the stone floor. Obviously there was more of Pitch's creatures close by.

Bunny took a deep breath and closed his eyes. His ears twitched and rotated and he listened closely, trying to ignore the sound of the howling wolves and listen to where the wind was coming from and get a sense of where the cold originated. He almost laughed at the irony of it. Jack was in a southern corridor and North, now that the man was certain Bunny would go for Jack first, was in a northern corridor. Sadly, the snow wolves were coming toward them from the east. Lovely.

"Alright, you two head that way and find North. I'm going after the kid. I'll distract the wolves while I'm at it." At Tooth's fearful look he grinned and gave her and winked. "Hey, wolves love rabbits." He gave a shrug and then darted to the south, glancing back a hundred feet or so to make sure they were headed in the right direction. Once they were he poured on the speed, following his senses and praying he was right and that Jack was just a pond in some twisted game Pitch was playing. He only prayed that Pitch had not turned the boy into his Nightmare Prince as he had threatened so many children in the past. Jack was different from those other children. He was a spirit and a powerful one at that and maybe more so for being broken as he was and not exactly mentally stable. If Pitch turned him he would have the most powerful weapon on Earth, one that might even rival Mother Nature should Jack become one with the shadows. Bunny wasn't about to let that happen.

. . .

Sandy was able to find North far easier than anyone else. He was able to latch onto North's mind using their joined mental connection. He and Tooth raced down the dark corridor deeper into Pitch's domain until finally they came upon the dungeons. There were many cells some with what appeared to be rotten corpses of some poor sprite for even a spirit could die if forgotten too long. It wasn't like a mortal death but a living death until the body and mind eventually faded away to nothing. It was the fate awaiting North and them should Pitch succeed in defeating them.

They found North at the back of one of the deepest and darkest ones. He hung like an oversize rag doll the wall, his eyes closed and chin against his chest, deep in a coma and mind plagued by nightmares. The black sand moved around him like a living creature. Picking the lock was near child's play for Sandy and in moments they were inside the cell.

"Oh Nicholas," Tooth whispered, sheathing her swords in order to touch his face. Her small hands cupped his usually rosy cheeks and she peered up at him with tears in her eyes. "What has he done?"

Sandy touched her shoulder reassuringly before running his fingers through the black sand and converting it back to dream sand. The moment that happened North fell from the wall to the cold ground with a muffled grunt. Tooth tried her best to ease his landing, her arms wrapping under his so that his upper half landed on her. She sat on the ground, his head on her lap as she lovingly carded her fingers through his long white hair.

"Come on, Nicholas, wake up. Wake up, my love," she whispered soothingly, pressing her lips against his temples.

"Oh how sweet," Pitch cooed, materializing outside the cell. The iron doors slammed shut and reinforced with ice. Before any of the Guardians could react the entire cell froze over and ice incased all three Guardians right up to their shoulders. "I always knew he would be your downfall, Toothiana. I'm pretty sure that's why your relationship failed so miserably. Or maybe it's because you're always so busy with your little teeth to give him the attention he desires. Well I suppose you should feel a little gratitude that I will allow the two of you to die together. As for you, Sandy I have a little something special planned for you." He twirled black sand between his fingers. "You may be able to convert small amounts of my nightmare sand back to dreamsand but not all of it. No, no, old friend. _It_ will convert _you._"

Sandy only glared at him, defiant as always and willing to fight to the bitter end over what was right.

Pitch only chuckled as he looked over his prisoners. "Oh! What's this? Are we missing the rabbit? My wolves didn't get him." The ice rose next to him, almost playfully wrapping around his arm. "Perhaps Jack's has? I'm afraid I can't quite sense their movements like my own but I'm sure the child will find great pleasure in tearing his most avid tormentor to shreds."

"What are you talking about?" Tooth demanded although she wasn't the least bit surprised that Jack was helping Pitch. "Bunny would never harm a child."

The shade laughed again as he caressed the ice. "Never harmed a child? Oh, that's rich. Don't you know how your little bunny rabbit tears the hearts out of spirit children by simply not making time for them to even answer the simplest of questions or allow them one itsy bitsy hard-boiled egg for Easter or how North can't even be bothered to give him a gift to acknowledge the child is real? You I can't blame, spirit children don't lose teeth do they? But a happy memory might have gone a long way. In fact the only one of you supposed 'Guardians' who bothered given the boy even a moment of their time was Sandy over here." He waved a hand toward the Sandman almost dismissively. "No, my dear Toothiana. By ignoring this one small child you've created your greatest enemy and my most glorious new prince."

"You won't get away with this, Pitch. We'll stop you," the fairy cursed, her pearly white teeth bared in a snarl.

"How very unlady like," Pitch scolded as if speaking to a small child. His gaze shifted and he looked upward. "Can you feel it? All the glorious fear up above? And all it took was one distraught boy everyone treated as a nuisance. Everyone but me. You see, Tooth, Jack is such an amazing boy with pretty much all your precious gifts built inside him. He brought hope and joy to many children both alive and those ready to pass to the afterlife. He brought wonder in every unique snowflake and even helped older children remember the joy of a snow day. Dreams…well I suppose many of them happy dreams of those days regardless of dreamsand. You see he doesn't need you and the only reason Lunaroff is so interested in him is to replace the whole lot of you."

Images began flying above Sandy's head moving so rapidly that most people would never be able to catch up but Pitch had known the little golden man for a very long time and tut-tutted at him for using such foul language.

"You three just chill while I go check on my prodigy," he chuckled as he clasped his hands behind his back regally, his back straight and head held high. And as he left what little light there was went out, all except Sandy's but even that began to slowly diminish as black sand wound around the ice surrounding him.

. . .

The wolves were gaining ground, surprising Bunny to no end. They seemed to move like the wind and almost over took him on more than one occasion, their powerful jaws snapping at Bunny's tail and just missing as he zigzagged out of their path. The Pooka was fast but he was growing tired and he wasn't sure just how much longer he could keep this up. All it would take was him faltering just once and they would be upon him. He was almost willing to give up his search for Jack when a brisk, minty smell caught his attention and lured him down yet another corridor and over a vast bridge to what appeared to be living corridors for they appeared bettered adorned and far less dank and dusty as if someone took particular care of this area.

"Jacky…give me some sort of sign, kiddo," he whispered under his breath as he raced down the corridor. He could feel winter magic all throughout the area. It was pulsing and bleeding through the walls, not controlled or channeled as it normally would be but literally bleeding through Jack's psyche and into the world above and it was forming the very creatures he had an affinity with. "Why wolves? Why not jackrabbits?" Bunny grumbled as he continued his search.

And then it happened, as if he hit a wall of ice and in many ways that's exactly what happened. He went from what was absurdly cold to absolutely frigid. Bunny faltered, feeling as if he was back in the Antarctic trying to reach Jack. He nearly double over with such cold. Oddly enough the wolves did not pass through the wall. They backed away with a whine, pawing at the ground like wounded animals.

Bunny got shakily to his feet and stared at them for a moment. "Too cold for you? Geez, and I thought my paws might freeze."

They growled in response but made no move to try and enter the strange cold spot. Shaking his head Bunny tried focusing on finding Jack.

It was harder now. It was so cold it was hard to walk let alone run and on more than one occasion he fell to his knees unable to handle the horrid weather. He tried channeling his warmth, placing everything he could to keep from freezing. He lumbered onward, following the trail of winter magic and scent of mint that was growing with every step. A part of him began doubting what he was doing. Maybe Tooth was right and Jack was working with Pitch. Maybe the kid did hate them enough to want them dead.

Then when all hope was nearly lost he stumbled onto a door completely covered in ice which seemed to be pulsing with magic. Trembling with cold Bunny reached out and grabbed the handle knowing he didn't have enough strength left to open one of his tunnels. He poured as much heat as he could in his paw, thawing the door enough to shove it open. He ended up having to throw all his weight into it because there was a pile of snow on the other side. Once it was open enough to squeeze through he did so.

The room was nearly as cold as the corridor, maybe more so, and it was covered in a heavy blanket of snow. A single candle lit the room and while it wasn't much light it was enough to highlight a bed draped with a single sheet and moving black sand that moved around a small still form that moan so softly that if it wasn't for Bunny's keen hearing he would never have heard.

Slowly, almost woodenly, Bunny made his way to the bed. He used the sheet to wipe the sand off of the boy not wanting to get it on him if possible. "Jack, wake up kid. Wake up." He shivered uncontrollably, his strength waning. His knees finally gave out but he grabbed Jack's hand as he knelt next to the bed and with the last of his strength he poured his magic into the child and prayed to MiM it was at least enough to save the others and those in the world above.


	12. Chapter 12

Zenith State 12

The magic within the dark palace shifted ever so slightly but it was enough to draw Pitch's attention. He paused in his stride, his keen senses sending a prickling sensation down his back. His eyes shifted as he contemplated what the problem was. The wind blew around him but there was something odd about it. It felt just the slightest bit warmer like when spring was ever so slowly pushing in on winter. Spring…

Pitch cursed. He had under estimated the rabbit yet again and Jack at the same time. He should have known that conscious or not the boy could not willingly kill someone or thing and changing that nature was near impossible. Sighing, he shook his head and merged with the shadows. He would have to deal with the rabbit personally.

. . .

The crushing pain of drowning filled Jack and he jerked in his sleep. But just as it became all-consuming there was light and it was as if he was coming out of a deep tunnel covered in ice, as if rising out of his pond once more. He awoke with a gasp, sucking in deep lungful after lungful of air. His chest heaved and body shook as a distant memory of falling and drowning came to him along with the face of a little girl with brown hair and eyes. He automatically went to raise his right hand to his chest only to find it weighed down by a furry paw. Panic instantly hit him and he tried to yank his hand free but the owner's grip momentarily tightened, frightening the child further and a whiplash of magic shocked the duo away from each other.

Jack landed on the floor on the opposite side of the bed and he scrambled backward on his rear until he was against the wall and as far from the creature as he could get. There he waited for the demon to come after him. And waited. And waited. His chest heaved, his hands instinctively curled around his staff that was not there and he continued to wait as he slowly counted in his head. Thirty-nine…forty…forty-one… He heard a monstrous groan and saw movement at the other side of the bed. Standing, he pressed himself against the wall. Eighty-seven…eighty-eight…eighty-nine…ninety… He steeled himself, his lips pursing. Once he hit one hundred he moved slowly around the edge of the bed, keeping to the wall, his hands out as if he held his staff. He almost stumbled when he realized he didn't have his beloved weapon. His fingers flexed, unused to being empty then balled into fists. Whoever stole his staff was in for a beating. He might be small but he held his own against more than one summer spirit and that magic that had been coursing through him was definitely not winter based.

Inching his way around the bed he held his breath, prepared for the worse. What he found nearly took his breath away. A pile of grey fur was crouched down and leaning against the bed, one hand to his chest and bright emerald eyes blinking rapidly and breathing rapid. Jack's hands fell to his sides in surprise. "Bunnymund?" he asked, completely confused but an instant later his hands were fisted once more, ready for a fight. "What did you do with my staff? Why did you attack me?" His body still hummed with the unusual spring magic surging through him. He was warm and dripping wet and had he not known better he would have sworn he did indeed just wake up in an pond and fought his way to the shore rather than be lifted fully dry by the moon.

Bunny blinked owlishly at the boy. "Uh…what?" He shook his head, his ears flopping about comically and it almost made Jack grin. "Jackie…Jack! Thank MiM! You alright?"

Now Jack wasn't even more confused and he shifted toward the door. "What are you talking about? Where's my staff? Why…"

"I didn't attack you, mate," Bunny coughed, shakily getting to his feet. "I woke you up the only way I could. Pitch had you in some sort of coma and your powers went wild. You were destroying Burgess."

Jack shook his head. "You're lying!" He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He would never willingly lash out at humans or put any child at risk. That was why he went into hiding. He didn't want to harm anyone. Yet deep down he could feel something wasn't right with his magic, as if he wasn't fully in control of it. He inhaled sharply and tried calling it back to him yet for some strange reason he felt somehow cut off from his power as if a wall now separated him from the only that truly made him feel alive. Now…now all he felt was that weird magic that had shocked him awake…spring magic and it made his heart race in a frightening way. "You're lying…" he whispered in denial, the beginning of warm tears stinging the corners of his eyes.

"Jack…" Bunny started but his knees buckled and he went down on one as he tried to warm himself with his magic and failed. He let out a shuddered breath before shakily trying to stand again.

The Frost Child didn't understand why but he suddenly darted under one of the Pooka's arms and helped steady him. Maybe Bunnymund did attack him or maybe he was telling the truth and woke him from some spell Pitch cast on him – after all he really didn't remember much after putting himself between the shade and North – but the rabbit man was injured and needed help. "Okay…okay, let's just lay you down and I…I don't know…find your friends or something."

Bunny shook his head. "N…no. Just give me a moment, I'll be fine." He sat on the edge of the bed careful of the remaining black sand did not get on his fur. Pulling Jack around so that he stood between his legs he looked the boy over, getting the first good look at the boy since they first met centuries ago. He gave a small laugh. "You look just as you did when he first met and you played with one of my googies." He smiled slightly at the small dusting of frost raced across the boy's cheeks as he looked away. Bunny sighed. "I'm so sorry I couldn't have given you the attention you so rightly deserved. I'm an old fool."

"It's alright," Jack murmured, shifting uncomfortably.

"No, it's not," Bunny insisted. He took Jack's chin between his paws. "I promise I will somehow make this up to you. I don't know how but I will."

Jack bit his lower lip. He wanted to believe Bunny just as he did North but he just couldn't. He had been alone since the beginning with only his staff, and from time to time Mother Nature, Pitch and the odd time Sandy. It had been such a long time since anyone showed any true interest in him without trying to kill him or what he cherished so much…like Henry. He couldn't let himself trust anyone but himself. So rather than agree to anything Bunny said he stepped back. "Can you walk?"

"Yeah," Bunny assured but it took too tries before he was able to get to his feet.

Again Jack went under his arm as a support and helped the Guardian hobble to the door. To Jack's surprise there was snow all throughout the corridor. His brows narrowed as he tried again to call it to him but it was as if Mother Nature had taken charge as she did from time to time when the weather got out of his control. But the woman wasn't there otherwise he would sense her. He tried calling to it and it did move and swirl at his command but he still felt oddly detached from it. How was this possible?

"Jack…" a velvety voice whispered from the shadows.

Jack gasped but not at the voice but rather Bunny's grip on his shoulder tightening before the older spirit pulled him back and behind him with an angry growl. Bunny bared his teeth but there was no denying he was in no shape to battle Pitch or his minions.

"Stay behind me," Bunny warned the youth, his paw tight around the boy's wrist.

Pitch materialized out of the shadows and shook his head as if in disappointment. "Aster," he sighed. "What have you done? Stealing my child? You Guardians have gone too far. First my daughter and now my son? Your great leader abandoned the child and now when I try to give him a home you'll take that from him and I as well?"

Bunny gave a snort. "Your child? You think you can kidnap Jack and make him yours like you tried with Katherine? You claim I steal children yet you use your power to convert children in to dark princes and princesses and good men and women into Nightmares."

Jack was taken aback by the new knowledge and peaked around Bunny to see Pitch's face, to see if it was true and he wasn't expecting what he saw…hesitation and doubt.

"That was a long time ago, rabbit," Pitch sneered in sudden anger. "You Guardians stripped me of that gift."

"Gift?" mocked Bunny. "What about when your darkness nearly crushed Nightlight?"

"The boy was the cause of my exile on this wretched planet." The shade looked outraged for a moment but Jack caught a telltale flicker in his eyes of sorrow. "It's only right he serve the sentence at my side."

Bunny opened his mouth to argue the point but Jack stepped out from behind him. "You're lonely," he said, his voice small but full of curiosity. Could this being be as lonely as he was?

Pitch made as if he were to scoff at the mere suggestion but instead he frowned. "You and I are meant to be."

"To be what?" Jack countered.

"To be believed in. To have people worship us as they do the Guardians. To make them forget the Guardians even exist," Pitch said in his most charming voice.

Jack's brows furrowed in confusion. "Why? Why make people forget the Guardians? Can't we all be believed in without the fighting?"

Pitch and Bunny gaped at him in shock.

"Jack, fear is not a good thing…" Bunny began, reaching for the youth as he stepped away from him.

"The Guardians try to destroy fear…all fear," Pitch cooed.

Jack stepped away from both of them and stared down at the snow around his bare feet thoughtfully. "Why destroy all fear? I mean fear protects. It keeps some people from doing stupid things."

"That's instinct," Bunny argued.

The boy shook his head. "That panicky feeling you get in your chest, when you know something is wrong but you fight through it because you know you have to to protect someone else? That fear you get when you're out later than you should be and know the wolves out prowling not far away? That time of fear makes you move faster to get home safe. Not all fear is bad. It can be protective."

Bunny rubbed the bridge of his nose in frustration. "Jack, this is not the place to debate this. We'll return to the North Pole with the others and…"

"This is a perfect place to discuss this," Jack said defiantly.

Bunny sighed at his stubbornness but Pitch beamed happily.

"Go on, my boy," Pitch encouraged.

Jack looked at him. "And what's wrong with the Guardians? Okay, they're a little stuck up. I mean I seriously thought each of them had something huge shoved up each their asses but I never wished them ill. Even when they ignored me and couldn't bothered to so much as say hi, with the exception of Sandy, I was upset but I always thought they were just too busy for me. Yes, you paid attention to me when you showed up but…you never really gave me much attention either."

Flabbergasted, Pitch stepped toward him. "Jack, I've always been with you."

Jack shook his head. "Altering my dreams…causing nightmares don't count." He stepped further back. "You may have been there but it wasn't for me it was for this." He threw open his arms and gestured to the snow and ice barely under his command any more. There were tears in his eyes as he stared up at Pitch. "You never cared about me."

"Jack."

Shaking his head the youth stepped further back. "I don't know what any of you want from me but I want nothing to do with it." With that he turned on his heel and ran down the dark tunnels to where he did not know but he followed the call of winter and hoped it would lead him to his staff and a way out of the underground palace and as far away from Pitch and the Guardians as he could possibly get.


	13. Chapter 13

Zenith State 13

After so long being alone with no one seeming to see him let alone want to be anywhere near him the sudden attention was overwhelming and a little all-consuming. Jack stumbled as he ran, warm tears streaking down his cheeks and making him feel too hot, a sensation he was not accustomed to and only served to frighten him more as he tried to make sense of it.

His mind was a jumble as he ran. In less than one day – at least he was sure it was only one day – he had his home raided, kidnapped and woke up across the planet in the North Pole to be told that the Man in the Moon wanted to talk to him only to be kidnapped again and returned to his first home then knocked out and staff stolen. What else could go wrong?

Strangely enough he wasn't mad. Not really anyway. He was disappointed. He had begun to like North and look up to him as a father figure of sorts or maybe a grandfather. And while it scared him at first he had enjoyed the feeling of being held in someone's arms. It was warm but not hot like when Bunny touched him. His steps slowed as he came to a bridge. North touch felt like that of a parent trying to protect their child even though he had only met the man once before. But Pitch had a similar touch. When the shade cupped his cheek or touched his shoulder it was as if he was touching someone else, a lost child he longed for.

But Jack wasn't his child, he wasn't North's either. He didn't know who he was or where he belonged but a part of him wanted to be able to help them both without being manipulated or forced or his powers taken from him. All he wanted was to be a normal child with a family who loved him. All he wanted was to know who he truly was but the only one who could answer that question was the Man in the Moon and he wasn't talking to him.

A streak of light caught Jack's attention as it danced through the dark palace, flicking this way and that as it flew around the bridge then zipped around him a few times before coming to a halt directly in front of his bewildered face. It flickered a few times as if speaking in some strange light language.

Jack shook his head. "I don't understand," he whispered. "I don't speak light."

The little light creature seemed to giggle and ruffle Jack's hair before giving it a tug as if to say "follow me" and darted away. Jack hesitated, unsure what to do. A distant memory of awaking in his pond showed similar light beings dancing around the moon as he came out of the ice and gazed up at the bright orb. He had seen them many times after before going into exile and they had often played with him although he couldn't exactly remember when and where, his memory was now that fuzzy. But he knew one thing for certain that little light was somehow important to him and he needed to follow it…hopefully to his staff.

. . .

Bunny and Pitch had stood in shock as Jack ran away from them, both willing to point fingers at the other. But Bunny had kept silent when he saw the strange look on Pitch's face, one he was not used to, not since Mother Nature tore into him about the last child he tried turning him into a Dark Prince. But this seemed different somehow. Now Bunny was torn. He knew he should be going after Jack and talking sense into him but he also had to find the other Guardians while the magic was in flux. At least then he'd have help finding Jack and escaping with him somewhere safe. He only hoped Jack could watch his back for a time by himself. Not wasting any time he left the deflated shade and retraced his steps to where he last smelt North's scent. Without the winter storm it was much easier to track his friends and he ran at full speed until he reached the dark dungeons encased in snow and ice.

He kept his laughter to himself at the three who normally enjoyed snow was covered in it head to toe and not at all looking happy with the situation. "So are we done with our winter vacation?" he asked, grinning at the way Toothiana's lips twisted in a snarl at the question. "I get to pick the next vacation spot." Chuckling, he let the warm of his spring magic seep into his friends' cell and melt the snow as it would in the early spring. The ice and snow covering his friends quickly melted and one by one they were free.

Sandy instantly flew to North who was lay unconscious, his head on Tooth's lap. Bunny picked the lock and hopped in, surprised by the Russian's condition. "What happened?" he demanded on for Sandy to hush him as he changed the black sand hovering around his head and in his hair.

"Pitch put him in some sort of coma or something with his…Nightmare sand," Tooth explained, stroking the large man's hair as Sandy worked. She murmured gently to North, her long fingers moving along his left cheek. "It's alright, baby, it's alright. Sandy's working as fast as he can." She gave a squeak of surprise when he suddenly gasped and sat bolt upright.

"Jack!" North gasped. He sat between his friends, his eyes wild as he looked frantically for the Frost Child. "Jack?"

Tooth sighed and touched his shoulder, using her own calming presence to sooth him. "He…"

"Gone," Bunny said quickly, drawing all their attention to him. "Pitch tried to control his magic but the kid escaped. He's running wild right now and doesn't have his staff to channel his power."

"Wait, why would the staff matter?" Tooth asked surprised that such a thing would be of importance.

Bunny, who once held a staff of power sighed softly. "Jack is still a young spirit. He wasn't born with these powers they became a part of him when he became a spirit. MiM gave him the staff to help him channel his magic safely. Without it his magic's going to react one of two ways, unleash completely which means that storm up above is nothing compared to wait is coming, or…whatever Pitch is doing to the staff is going to cause Jack to heat up from the inside and kill him. And…I may have made matters worse."

"How?" demanded North, fearful for the youth.

"I used my spring magic to counteract his winter and I may have…blacked out for a few minutes. He broke contact before I could call it back so…it may accelerate the warm building inside him."

North held his head for a moment. "We've got to get to him."

Tooth was shaking her head in disbelief. "If that were the case then why hasn't all the snow melted away? Bunny, I know you and North might like the boy but what if he is working with Pitch? What if this is some trap?"

"I don't think Pitch was planning for Jack to be has…difficult as he is," Bunny said with a grin, remembering the boy's lecture to Pitch fondly. "He's more of a spitfire than I imagined."

"That he is," North chuckled as he got to his feet. "Any idea where he went?"

The Pooka shook his head. "He caught us both off guard. Most likely he's searching for his staff."

"And where might that be?" Tooth grumbled.

Sandy glanced from Tooth to North to Bunny then blew a little sand. He wasn't sure where to look but he knew one thing for certain, wherever the staff was Pitch was sure to be close by.

. . .

"Hey, wait up!" Jack called as he chased after the ball of light. He wiped the water off his brow and tried to keep up but without his staff he couldn't call the wind to him. That didn't stop him from climbing up the narrow tunnel, hoping the little light was taking him to his staff and stumbling out into the grey of early morning and the familiar sight of his pond. Jack swallowed thickly. "No…no, this isn't where I need to be. I need my staff!" He gave a tiny sob, exhaustion weighing down on him the warmer he got.

Okay, he had to think. Here there was snow which was nice and cold…usually, right now it felt oddly warm and not at all as comforting as usual. He brushed his fingers through his hair and pulled his fingers back in surprise. His hair was wet, soaking wet in fact and matted firmly against his head. His hair was never like that.

"What's wrong with me?" he whispered. He momentarily debated whether or not to go back down the tunnel and search for his staff some more but the decision was taken from him as his usually strong yet knobby knees gave out from under him and he collapsed. The cold snow didn't help his fever but it did cushion his fall and he lay there staring up at the dancing light as they clouds above slowly parted to reveal the bright silvery moon. Jack raised a hand to shield his eyes from the brilliance. It had been so long since he last gazed upon it. Tears slowly made a path down his cheeks. "Please…for once…talk to me," he begged as the last of his strength seeped away. The last thing he remembered before conscious faded away for the third time in under twenty-four hours being somehow drawn to the moon.

. . .

Pitch had felt the change in the boy's magic first and he wanted to attribute the child's rejection to it but the words had been so precise, so accurate and direct that he knew it was Jack's true feelings and when he thought about it he couldn't help but accept the truth they held. He had approached Jack in the wrong manner. He was no better than the Guardians in that aspect. But unlike the Guardians he knew what it was like to be a parent and how to make up for his sins even if he didn't want to. Jack was tied to his staff and that was the way to calm him and make him feel at ease. Then perhaps he could convince the child that they belonged together. After all if Jack belonged with anyone should it not be family? And if his parents were too naïve to care for their child properly then why not his grandfather? It was better than a bunch little goody-goody Guardians who could never be bothered with Jack until now. Sure he had gone about his affections for the youth the wrong way but at least he was there for Jack.

He ran his long fingers over the ancient wood. It was rare for an elemental to have such a staff. There were few that needed such things to channel their gifts. Usually it was only humans but then Jack had once been human so maybe Lunaroff thought it a necessary learning tool. Foolish of course but then Jack did seem very attached to the stick and it held a great deal of the boy's magic.

His thoughts faltered when he finally located Jack at his pond – no surprise there really. What was surprising was the number of Moonbeams circling the unconscious child and lifting him in the air under the full light of the moon.

"No!" Pitch cursed dashing out to reclaim his boy but he was forced back, the light too powerful for him to stand under. He clenched the staff tightly, afraid to let it go should it be stolen as well. "No! He's mine!" he snarled at the moon in rage. "You had your chance to be a family! You abandoned him and refused to even let the Guardians know of his existence until now! I've been there for him! I've been there when the little ones died in his arms. I've been there when he felt he had nothing left to give. He belongs with me not these cretins!"

_And what can you offer the child other than darkness and nightmares?_ The whispery voice of the moon asked in return. _You proclaim to have the boy's best interest at heart yet what have you truly done for him? Can you really given him the love he needs? Can you give yourself over to the needs of an immortal child completely and selflessly?_

And Pitch could not answer. A part of him said he could, that he had done it before for his own child so long ago yet another, a much darker side, said why should he? Everything had been going well so far but simply invading the boy's dreams and keeping him afraid. Such raw power was meant to be control and wielded as a weapon not for some boy's idea of fun. Yet that fear was what drove the boy away from him and Pitch did not want Jack to be afraid of him. He was of two minds on what to do. All he knew for certain was that Jack was his and he willing to fight to keep the child.

_Kozmostis,_ Lunaroff continued in a whisper. _You are a fool. Can you not see the damage your nightmares have caused? Can you not see you're killing him? Are you willing allow this child to die do to your shortsightedness? Was losing one family not enough?_

It was a slap to the face and Pitch took a step back in shock. "How dare you!" he snarled, not wanting to think of his late wife or estranged daughter he had thought dead for so very long. "He is all the family I have left thanks to your father! Are you going to follow in his footsteps by denying me what's mine?"

There was silence for several long minutes and Pitch feared that he lost but even with all Lunaroff's great powers he could not transport someone through the vastness between the Earth and the Moon without some form of space craft. The light around Jack grew more intense, almost blinding white and Jack began murmuring softly. His words were far too soft to make out, as if he and Lunaroff were communing privately and then the light slowly faded as the youth was laid back on the soft snow. The soggy wet look of the boy returned to a slightly frosted one and the pink of his cheeks paled once more. He wasn't the icicle being of before but the Frost Child he was meant to be.

_The choice will be his and his alone,_ Lunaroff said softly before the clouds obstructed the moon once more. _There will be no trickery from either party._

Pitch frowned where the moon once shone brightly. That was not something he could promise. But he knelt next to the sleeping child, his mind wandering to the one he lost so long ago. This was his second chance and he wasn't about to give it up no matter what Lunaroff said.


	14. Chapter 14

Zenith State 14

**Note: 28 of my M rated stories have been removed by due to explicit content. I have moved them to AO3 and will be moving all my other stories as well in the next few weeks and closing this account. Sorry for any inconveniences. **

Tracking Jack was much easier once the wind and snow vanished. It was like someone had turned off a light switch. One moment it was frigid and ice everywhere the next it was gone and the dark palace was simply stone and shadow. Bunny led his fellow Guardians through the twisting corridors, following Jack's scent until they reached fresh air and the forest above. There there was snow but the storm had ended. They arrived at the mouth of a cave rather than the broken old bed covering the hole to Pitch's realm and came upon a sight that nearly sent all their heart racing.

Jack was floating in the air in a pool of moonlight, his usually troubled face at peace as Moonbeam warriors danced about him. But that wasn't what frightened them it was Pitch standing nearby clenching the boy's crooked staff. It looked as if the shade might break it, the anger on his face like a physical force. But it crumbled to sorrow as the Frost Child was lowered to the snow where he slept peacefully.

Bunny raised his arm to stop North when the Russian tried to get past him to reached Jack. "Wait," he whispered, curious as to what Pitch planned to do after Jack's rejection earlier. Pitch hadn't been enraged then only heartbroken, as if he really did care for Jack. The funny thing was both Bunny and North had developed feelings for the boy as well and Sandy had always cared for Jack in his way. Tooth had never dealt with the child so had no real opinion of him yet other than to mistake him for Pitch's allay because of the storm.

North's brows rose in surprise but he did as requested if only out of curiosity.

. . .

Pitch knelt next to Jack's slumbering form and placed the crook staff next to him as he studied the boy's alabaster face. It would be so easy to mistake him for a statue if it wasn't for the softness of his flesh when he was relaxed and at peace. He looked much as if did when they first met centuries ago. His long fingers raked through the boy's hair then down his cheek as he had so many times before. He didn't try creating nightmares this time and kept the black sand to himself. He could do it, he could still turn Jack into his Fearling Prince. He could keep the boy and make him his and they could spread fear worldwide and rule the entire planet. They could make it an endless winter. But that wasn't who Jack was. That wasn't his fate.

He started when a small hand touched his cheek. "Why are you so sad?" a small, hoarse voice asked.

Pitch's gaze met bright blue eyes and any wrath or anger he felt when he saw those mischievous orbs so full of life and curiosity melted away. "I'm not. I'm happy you're alright."

The youth looked confused but he didn't pull away and tell him to get lost and leave him alone he just lay there and stared up at him, his head slightly tilted. "He said we were lonely, that The Lady couldn't stay with you as she once did before your family was ripped apart by the shadows. It broke you both."

"Lady? Seraphina…Mother Nature?"

Jack nodded, looking very young and childlike in his movements. "You miss her."

It had been a long time since Pitch felt the onset of tears but somehow this boy knew how to trigger them. "Yes," he admitted, blinking the tears away before they could consume him.

Again Jack nodded almost thoughtfully this time. "And I remind you of her because of her gifts?"

Pitch chuckled, he hadn't thought of it that way. "A little perhaps. You have her wiry sense of humor and daring. You have your father's defiance and pale complexion. You are the best of both worlds and a person would be a fool to ignore you. I was a fool for not giving you the attention you deserve. For not giving it to you the way I should have."

For a moment he thought Jack would reject him again but this time Jack only smiled softly, as if he were dreaming. "Yeah, everyone screws up. You should apologize to the Guardians."

That made the shade laugh. "Now that's a little much, Jack. You I'm fond of, them…they're nuisances."

But the boy only closed his eyes, looking for all the world like he was about to pass out. Then he gasped and sat up, his eyes wide as he looked about. His chest heaved but he didn't frost up or create any ice he just looked shocked. "He spoke to me! I really spoke to me! You heard him, right? He spoke to me!"

Pitch didn't understand the boy's excitement and was even more surprised when the child jumped to his feet and began bouncing around, laughing and pumping his fist.

"I knew it. I knew he couldn't have forgotten all about me. But why? What happened? Will he talk to me again?" Jack asked, his face broken in a wide smile. "Maybe…maybe he can tell me why I'm the way I am…and maybe who I am."

"Jack…" Pitch tried, not wanting to spoil the child's fun but not wanting to break the boy's heart by telling him the truth. He may have to wait centuries to hear from Lunaroff again.

"Jack," North called, crossing the clearing to the youth and shade.

Jack stopped twirling around with his staff to beam at the Guardian of Wonder, as if they had always been friends. There was no fear of the Guardians anymore, although he was weary of them, all except North whose arms he bounded into as if a child greeting his father. North held him tightly, his chin resting on the boy's head as he rubbed his back.

"There you are, my boy," the Russian whispered against his hair. "There's my little warrior."

Tooth watched them with uncertainty, unsure if the boy could be trusted yet or not but seeing the way North had become attached to him in a relatively short time she decided to go with North's instinct. She ran her fingers over the back of his head, surprised to see the change in texture and how much like a normal child he now appeared to be. She met North's gaze and smiled softly. Okay, maybe the boy wasn't so bad.

The two dreamweavers faced off not far away. Sandy floated in front and above Sandy, a series of images popping up so quickly over his head that only Pitch could possibly understand him. But Pitch only gave him a bored roll of the eyes and focused his attention on Jack, a longing look on his ashen face.

"Hurts, doesn't?" Bunny asked, watching Jack interact with North and how North smiled brightly at the boy. "After everything you did he runs into the arms of the one person you've tried countless times to destroy."

The shade grumbled under his breath but said nothing, his face becoming a mask to hide his emotions.

Folding his arms across his chest Bunny leaned on one foot and sighed. "You're right you know. We really should have paid better attention to him…and maybe the other spirits out there. He deserved much better than what he got. From all of us."

Surprise lit Pitch's face as he looked at Bunny and even Sandy fell silent. "Beg pardon?" Pitch asked in confusion."

Bunny sighed. "The kid's smarter than we all gave him credit for. He's right, as much as I hate to admit it. The world does need a little fear. It needs all of us…working together. It's not too late to become a Guardian."

Sandy looked horrified at the suggestion and he waved his arms wildly as sand images appeared above his head. This wasn't the first time Pitch had been approached about becoming a Guardian and each time Sandy was opposed by the idea. After all how many battles had they fought against the man? How many friends had been kidnapped or stolen? How many children did he and his Nightmares frighten every night?

The Sandman wasn't the only one appalled by such a concept. Pitch sneered at the very idea and stepped back. "Don't think I'm showing weakness by allowing Jack his freedom." He gave a laugh. "You don't the boy as I do. He'll never conform to your rules and deadlines. He's an elemental, a free spirit not one of you. And he never will be after being exiled so long. He'll seek me out and when he does we will be a force to be reasoned with." With one last longing look toward Jack he vanished into the shadows.

"Maybe," Bunny muttered to himself but he smiled as he watched Jack step back from North and chattered away about everything MiM had told him while he was in the light. He wasn't worried about Pitch, not for now. "But we'll be waiting and we'll protect Jack anyway we must."

Having your whole life toppled over and pretty much rearranged in one day would be incredible and frightening for anyone but to be alone for three hundred years and suddenly be given everything he ever wanted. To say it took a bit of adjusting was an understatement and a little overwhelming. At first Jack would take off back to his home in the Antarctic and the Guardians would give him a few days before North would use one of his portals to go to him. They would sit together, sometimes in silence as Jack adjusted to having company and someone to talk to, often hugging his staff close but he never told North to leave. They became very close, almost like father and son in some ways. Usually after a few hours Jack would agree to return to the North Pole. He had a room there, one North had converted especially for Jack and bit but bit Jack made it his own. There were toys there and things Jack had never seen before. Soon not only did the Guardians accept him but also the yetis and elves.

Bunny always visited him at Santoff Claussen usually with a basket of his best eggs or with some sort chocolate for him to try. The Pooka made it a point to try and make up for all his past harsh words and acted much as Jack would imagine a big brother would be. Their friendship was touch and go and full of arguments but also full of fun. Jack laughed more than he could recall every laughing before and his dreams were sweet for the first time in a long time thanks Sandy who became like an uncle.

Tooth was a little suspicious of Jack at first but that quickly changed when one of her fairies noticed his pearly white teeth and then…well he couldn't go anywhere without her trying to peer into his mouth. She began doting on him after that, kissing his forehead and cooing over him like a mother would her child. Pretty much she became his mother just as North became his father. That tended to overwhelm Jack and he would run off to his icy home or focus on his winter duties as he had before.

That was strangely relaxing. He took his time painting leaves and reacquainting himself to the wonderful colors he had forgotten over his years of exile. His brush moved over the leaves slowly, up and down, up and down.

A familiar presence joined him some time later and Jack smiled when he saw Mother Nature painting the leaves on another tree. They didn't speak, they rarely did but there was a gentle smile from The Lady and he nodded to him regally before moving off to the next tree.

Of course having a pseudo family, good dreams and fun was nice but it was all a little much and there were a few things, strange things that Jack missed and needed. One night while everyone was sound asleep he crept out of bed and padded across the room to the closet. He bit his lower lip, remembering a story he overhead children tell each other one night of the Boogeyman. "Pitch?" he called into the closet. "Pitch Black?"

There was no answer and for a few minutes he thought perhaps the shade could not hear him so with a sigh he went back to bed and lied down. He wasn't sure how much time went by but he was nearly asleep when he felt the familiar touch brush through his hair. Rolling onto his back he looked up at the quick-silver gaze of the Nightmare King.

"Hey…" he said by way of greeting.

Pitch chuckled warmly. "Hello, Jack. Are you ready to come home?"

The boy smiled. "No. Are you?"

The shade's eyes hardened and he sat back. "Jack…"

"I'm kidding."

"Then why did you call me?"

Jack was silent for a minute as he studied the shade. "I haven't had any nightmares in a long time. I thought maybe you forgot about me."

Surprised Pitch just stared at him. "Excuse me?"

"You said you were always there for me, that you always cared. Did that change when North gave me a new home?"

Pitch's mouth opened in surprise then closed and he shook his head. "Of course not, Jack. I was just preoccupied and I didn't think you wanted nightmares anymore."

The boy shrugged. "At least I knew you were there."

A rare smile creased Pitch's lips and he carded his fingers through Jack's hair. "Alright," he agreed. "Now close your eyes and relax." He let a little bit of his nightmare sand seeped into his hair, just a little, and conjured a nightmare, a memory locked away in Jack's subconscious to help explain who Jack truly was and where he belonged. Settling next to the child on the large bed he monitored the nightmare as he had so many times over the centuries. He would not allow the boy to be broken again and if Jack did wake up scared he would be there for him. "Once a week," he promised. "Only once a week."

His head shot up when he heard the door crack open, his gaze meeting that of North's. The Russian said nothing, seemingly not surprised by the shade's presence, no doubt overhearing their conversation. He watched Pitch for a moment then checked on Jack. There was a silent understanding between the two. Normally North would put an immediate stop to Pitch causing a nightmare in anyone but Jack had literally asked Pitch for one, odd as it seemed so North only adjusted the boy's blanket. He then pulled up an arm chair and spent the rest of the night watching the two. It became a bit of a tradition between the three for that one night a week when Jack willingly accepted a nightmare just to be close to Pitch and in time North gave them their space.

Jack gained perhaps the weirdest family anyone could wish for but after being alone so long he cherished each and everyone one of them.

Fin

**Note: Sorry if this seemed rushed I just wanted to get it finished and posted so I can focus on moving everything to AO3 this week.**


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Rise of the Guardians, Angst, Hurt-Comfort