If you had asked Jack, he never would have guessed that in the span of a few short days, his life would change completely. He was so used to the routine of being unseen, remaining in the background, ignored even by those who actually could see him, that the mere fact that he had friends now was equal parts baffling and terrifying. The fact that he had believers now was even more so. He still expected Jamie and all the other children to look right through him.

Taking the Guardians' oath was easy after fighting Pitch. He couldn't imagine saying no after all he and the others had been through together. It felt...right, for lack of another word. More right than being alone had ever felt.

Still, he couldn't help the grip of fear, the slight longing in him that realized his life was changing. He was on his lake, the one he had died in and the one he had lived near ever since his rebirth, and realizing for the first time he might not see it again for a long time.

So while the yetis and the fairies and the egg totems ushered the children back to their homes, Jack hesitated, looking around at the place he'd called home for over 300 years, trying to memorize every tree branch and cliff face and etch it into his memory.

"'Ey, you comin', Frosty?" Jack's lips quirked at the sound of the Easter Bunny's thick accent, leaning into his touch when he placed one warm, furry paw on his shoulder. Bunny was warm, but not uncomfortably so. He was just the right temperature to be comforting without make Jack feel like he was going to melt.

"Yeah, I'm...I'm coming." He didn't really want to leave, but... "Just having one last look before I go."

"Aw, come on, it ain't like yer gonna be gone foreva, mate." Bunny smiled down at him, squeezing his shoulder comfortingly. "Just a quick pop up to the pole, maybe a few years bouncin' 'round the globe doin' your thing...you'll be back here before ya know it."

"Yeah..." Jack had to drum up believers. Now that he was a guardian, he couldn't sit idly by anymore, satisfied with the people who walked through him like he didn't exist. The problem was, he didn't know where to start. He'd never had to worry about this kind of thing before, and now...his very existence depended on it. Jamie and his friends were great, and they'd keep him going for years, he was certain. But they wouldn't be around forever. He turned to Bunnymund and stared up, up into the tall rabbit's face. "Will you help me?"

Bunny looked a bit thrown by that. "Wha...'course I will, mate. I wasn't just gonna throw ya to the wolves and leave you for dead. What kinda friend would I be?" Jack gripped at his staff so tightly little ice crystals began to creep up toward the shepherd's hook end. He couldn't keep the smile off his face. He actually cared...Bunny actually cared about him, about helping him. About being his friend. He bit his lip and glanced up at the pooka, almost shy.

"Hey, I was thinking...now that this is over..."

"Jack, look out!"

The cry came from Toothiana, hovering several feet above his head. He frowned up at her questioningly. Before he could even get an answer he found himself bowled to the ground by a black shadowy mass. One of Pitch's nightmares. A straggler, maybe, that stayed behind to cause chaos. He snarled and tried to beat it with his staff, but the angle was awkward and it just snorted its hot, burning breath into his face.

Vaguely he heard yelling from the others, caught a glimpse of Bunny pulling his boomerangs from their sheaths on his back. Everything happened so fast, it was a blur, but at the same time it felt like it was all in slow motion. He saw the nightmare lean its head down and threw his arm up instinctively to shield his face.

A piercing scream escaped his lips when its sharp teeth dug into his soft flesh, shredding through the fabric of his hoodie like it was paper. A moment later, it disintegrated before his eyes, leaving only a terrified-looking Bunny standing over him with one boomerang in hand.

"I'm okay!" Jack insisted, scrambling to sit up as the others crowded around him. He flinched at the sight of the black, viscuous fluid dripping from his arm onto the clean white ice of the frozen lake. "It's just...just a scratch..."

Tooth snatched his arm and pushed the hoodie sleeve up to reveal the deep red toothmarks in his arm. It smelled of rotting and death, and she recoiled in horror even as he snatched it away.

"Jack, you need to let us have a look at that..."

"What for? I've had worse than this in sledding accidents!" He tried to laugh, but none of them were going for it. "Look, let's just...get back to North's, okay? I'll patch myself up there, just...please." He didn't want to admit how hot the bite was, how much it felt like it was searing into his bones. He pulled the hoodie sleeve back down and stood. Even while using his staff, he wobbled dangerously.

"Whoa there, Frostbite. Maybe you should si' down a little longer before we get out of here, eh?"

Jack scowled at the way Bunny's arms stretched toward him, like he was so fragile he needed help just to walk. "I said I'm fine, okay?" He yanked his hood up, stalking toward the sled and ignoring the unsteadiness of his legs. "Let's just go." He hauled himself up into the sleigh and sat, climbing right up to the top. He wasn't scared of the sleigh like some guardians he could mention. Anyway, the wind might do him some good. He was starting to feel a little woozy, his vision blurring at the edges. He blinked rapidly, trying to clear it as the others hesitantly joined him. He ignored their concerned looks. He didn't need their pity before, he certainly didn't need it now.

When they finally took off, he shifted to the edge so he could stare down at the world rushing by below. He'd never been scared of heights; being able to fly kind of kicked that fear right out of him. So he could enjoy the sight for the beauty that it is. Bunny, however, was still the same gibbering mess he was the first time, only this time with maybe a little less gibbering and more wide-eyed panic. He smirked, remembering how he'd tricked the other into thinking he had fallen off. How Bunny had been so worried, he'd braved his fear to check on him, even with full knowledge that he could fly. How he'd yelled at Jack afterward, but the relief on his face at finding him okay...

Jack felt his chest ache just at the thought and forced himself to look back out at the world, at the fluffy clouds just above them, close enough that he could touch if he reached out his arm, and cause a snowstorm in whatever unfortunate town happened to be below them. He smirked and reached out to do just that, when suddenly, a hot, sickening pulse shot through him, unlike anything he'd ever felt before.

He clutched his arm to him, doubled over his staff as he washed over him again, waves of nausea turning his vision red. He was hot. So, so hot. Burning, even, like liquid fire was coursing through him, searing him from the inside out. He could just barely hear himself make a small noise, too quiet for the others to hear. He didn't want them to hear. Didn't want them to see his weakness.

His vision blurred, leaving it dark for no more than a few seconds. When it cleared, he found himself free-falling, plummeting toward the Earth, wind whipping past him so hard it brought tears to his eyes. He held out his staff, which he amazingly still had a grip on, and tried to fly back up to the sleigh.

It took him four tries to realize it wasn't going to work.

Jack didn't even have time to scream before Tooth's slim arms wrapped around his waist, jerking him to a sickening halt mid-drop. White knuckles gripped his now-useless staff as she hauled him back up to the sleigh with visible strain.

"Jack...come on, fly..."

"I...I can't..." Jack didn't even know if he could die twice, but suddenly the ground seemed way too far away for his comfort. He grasped the sleigh desperately when it came into reach, hauling himself back into it with a panicked whimper. He clutched at the first thing he could grab a hold of, which ended up being Bunny's proffered arm.

"Yer all right, mate...yer safe." It was then that he realized he was crying. He curled up around himself, the panic weighing in his stomach like an iron ball, but he didn't let go of Bunny's arm.

Why had he suddenly lost his ability to fly? That had been the first thing he learned when he was born as Jack Frost. Sure, he hadn't been very good at it at first, but he could still do it. It was as natural as breathing. Now suddenly it was gone. No warning, no reason. Just...gone. He didn't like the feeling of vulnerability that washed over him. It reminded him of...when Pitch had broken his staff. For that brief time he'd thought himself completely powerless. At least then he could just fix staff. Now he didn't even have the slightest idea how to fix it.

Bunny's paw was warm as he clutched it close. Nothing like the hard heat coiled in his stomach, burning through his very being. Rather, it was comforting. So soft. It made him feel safe. Like, for the first time in a long time, he was home.

He let out a soft noise as he nuzzled the pads of Bunnymund's paw, sighing contentedly as the fur of one silky digit rubbed against his skin. His eyes fluttered as unconsciousness pushed at the edge of his brain. He could feel it coming and gripped the other guardian tighter. He didn't want to fall out again.

The next thing he knew, he was tucked against a furry chest, a pair of strong arms holding him up. They were walking. Bunnymund was carrying him. He should have been horrified, but he only gripped at the pooka's soft fur with weak, shaking hands.

"Ya awake, Frostbite?" Bunny's voice rumbled through him, making him shiver. With his eyes closed, it felt much like he was inside of Bunny, utterly encompassed by the larger guardian. He didn't answer the other with words, instead burrowing closer into the downy fur of his chest.

"He's warm, North. Real warm..."

"Yes, I am sensing bite did more than meets the eye." Jack could hear North as if from far away, as if through the fog of a dream. He drifted somewhere between waking and sleep, wrapped up inside Bunnymund's warmth and heartbeat and breath, only jolting back awake when he felt the pooka's grip on him loosen.

"No!" Jack was in a bed now, staring into the surprised face of his fellow guardian. He gripped a fistful of fur tightly. "Don't go..."

"I'm not goin' anywhere, Jack. I'm right here." So were Sandy, and North, and Tooth, standing just behind the rabbit. He felt the shame creep over him and turned away from their stares, his grip never faltering despite his embarrassment.

A cool hand pressed against his forehead and he moaned, leaning into it. It was Tooth, a frown on her delicate pixie face. "Jack, your body temperature's off the charts. Even for a human, this would be cause for concern. For you..."

"Is most alarming," North chimed in. "We believe it to be side effect of nightmare's bite. Some kind of poison. But we do not know anything about them, so we cannot be making with the antidote."

With Tooth's hand on his cheek, Jack could feel the warmth of the fever more than ever, burning through him at an alarmingly high temperature. He'd never been so hot before. He was always cold. Now, he felt like he was melting.

"So hot," he groaned, feeling dizzy. The others crowding around him didn't help. He buried his face in his pillow, trying to gather some coolness from the fibers.

"Maybe we should let Frostbite get a little rest while we try and figure this mess out." Jack felt Bunny move away, the silky fur slipping between his fingers as he did.

"Jack? We're going to figure this out, okay?" Tooth's voice was high and soothing, her fingers carding through his hair gently, cooling his overheated skin. "Can you hear me?"

Jack made a small noise in his throat to show he was listening, but he could already feel himself slipping away again. He felt like he only had the most tenuous grasp on consciousness, though he unconsciously followed his fellow guardian's touch when she pulled away.

He could hear them talking still, but the words blurred together until he couldn't tell what they were saying, instead just a constant murmur of noise that he couldn't make heads or tails of. He floated on the barest thread of waking, suspended in the grey area of almost-sleep, until finally he made the sickening drop into darkness.

He's on the ice now. His lake, covered in a thick sheen of cold, wet frost. Cracks spiderweb across its shining surface, spreading from underneath his bare feet, curling around rocks and freshly fallen flakes of snow. The wind is biting cold, stinging his cheeks and eyes with its intensity. It's strange, because he's never really felt the cold before. Now he can feel it down to his very center, shaking him like a frozen leaf clinging to a branch.

"Jack!"

He knows that voice. His gaze is drawn upward, out to the center of the lake where the cracks are more abundant, the ice thinner and the flakes falling faster. A girl stands there, cold and scared and nine years old.

"Emma!" he cries, taking a step forward. The ice splinters under his feet, a deep rivet spreading to his sister's terrified form. She looks up at him with eyes so full of of terror, so pressed with emotion, before disappearing into the black waters below.

It wasn't supposed to end this way. Not this way! He saved her, Jack remembered saving her! He clawed his way to the hole his sister's body had fallen through and dove into the inky blackness. He'd save her again, no matter what.

The cold presses in against him, breath long shocked out by the freezing temperatures. It's cold and dark, and he's terrified, but he has to press on. He can't face the reality if he doesn't. If he lets her die...

A golden light engulfs him as he pushes his way through the water, and for a moment, he's suspended in a feeling of pure peace. Then...

Jack woke with a piercing scream, his body wracked with pain worse than he'd ever felt in his life. Hot hot hot, it was so hot, boiling him from the inside like fire in his veins. He arched off the bed, white hot bursts exploding behind his eyelids as he prayed for something, anything to make it stop.

Then, just as suddenly as it started, it did stop. Jack collapsed in a panting heap, shaking with fear or cold or heat or something he couldn't even identify. The memory of pain, maybe. The memory of so much pain.

He cracked his eyes open, unshed tears slipping out the corners as he peered around the room. Bunny was there, and Tooth, right beside him, clutching his hand in both of hers. He couldn't even feel it; he felt numb through and through. Sandman hovered nearby, looking shocked and concerned, and a little bit hurt. It took a few moments for Jack to realize. The golden light had been Sandy's dream sand.

The dream sand had hurt him.

"Ya alright, mate?" Bunny looked spooked, ears laying flat on his skull. Jack didn't imagine that screaming had been very good for his oversensitive sense of hearing. He tried to smile, but he winced at the crackle of his skin, like breaking the seal off a bad burn.

"I'm...fine," he lied, laying back so he was staring up at the ceiling. His skin was crawling, hot like a furnace. The ice was gone from his jacket, melted right off his hoodie in a puddle beneath him. He squirmed uncomfortably, trying to get away from the warmth or the wetness, he couldn't decide which.

"Hey, I gotcha, Frostbite..." Bunny's paws were so gentle as they skimmed up the slim plane of his stomach, one on the small of his back as he helped him sit up to get the hoodie off. He felt a little better without it, but not much. He still felt like he'd been left out in the sun to dry too long.

Tooth brought him a glass of water and helped him drink, then they both helped him to his feet. He reached for his staff at the bedside table and gripped it hard in both hands, using it as a crutch while he practically hobbled down the hallway. Half-naked to boot. Sandman was nowhere to be found - he must have snuck off when Jack wasn't looking - and, he just realized, neither was North.

"Where's North?" he asked. It wasn't like the bigger guardian to just leave when there was a crisis. Even if there was Christmas to prepare for, he liked to believe North wouldn't have left his side while he was like this.

"Tryin' ta figure out what's wrong with ya." Bunny's hand went to his lower back when Jack stumbled, but he waved him off. He wasn't that fragile.

"I'll be fine before he even finds anything." Jack was completely determined to beat this, whatever it was, and he wasn't going to let anything stop him.

"Jack, this isn't some sickness that you can just get over, this is serious." Tooth fluttered in front of him, stopping him with a hand on his injured arm. For the first time, he noticed the white bandage over his wound, bleeding through with spots of black. "Whatever's happening, we can't be sure it'll just go away on its own.

Jack sighed. Tooth looked so concerned, he didn't have the heart to argue. "Yeah, okay. Just tell me if North finds anything." His lips quirked up in a small smile. "He could probably use some help, right? Don't worry, I think the kangaroo can handle getting me tucked into bed safely." Tooth laughed lightly and touched his face just once before flitting off, leaving him alone in the hall with Bunnymund.

"You talk a real tough crock, ya know that?"

"Don't know what you're talking about," Jack said as he continued walking, this time letting the staff hang loosely at his side instead of leaning on it. It was much slower going, but easier on his dignity.

"Yeah, uh huh. You put on a brave face when everyone's lookin' even when we're in the middle 'a takin' care'a ya." Bunny's paw was on his back again, steering him just so. "It's alright to rely on others every now and again."

Jack's fingers tightened on his staff, but he didn't pull away from the other guardian's touch. The soft fur felt good on his bare skin.

"I told you, I'm fine," he said. "Maybe I'm a little under the weather, fine, but you guys are making it out like I'm dying or something. Do I look like I'm about to kick the bucket to you?"

Bunnymund frowned deeply at that and Jack immediately regretted his words. "Sorry..." He leaned on his staff again, settling into an awkward silence as they finally reached one of the dozens of extra guest rooms in North's house.

The bed looked seriously inviting; even just walking from one room to the other had worn him out. He made for it happily, but Bunny's paw on his shoulder stopped him.

"What?" he said, a little annoyed. Bunny just crossed his furry arms.

"Yer pants're wet too," he said with a raised eyebrow. Jack blanched.

"You're not serious." No response. "Come on, Bunny, who cares if my pants are a little wet? I'll live, seriously, it's not a big deal." But apparently it was a big deal because the pooka wasn't backing down. Every time Jack tried to crawl into the bed, Bunny stopped him and it was getting a bit aggravating.

"Fine! You know what, you walk around naked all day, must be pretty damn easy!" He unbuttoned the simple brown pants, the same pair he'd worn for over 300 years, and slid out of them, avoiding the other guardian's eyes. He didn't even have underwear, since he'd never really gotten into the habit of wearing it. He was rethinking that life choice now, and practically dove into the bed, ignoring the hot, pulsing pain in his arm as he covered himself completely in blankets.

"Hey, Frostbite..." Jack felt the bed dip but didn't come out from under his cocoon. "Come on, I'm tryin' ta be serious here, come out from under there."

Jack grumbled and poked his head out from under the blankets. His already unruly hair was sticking up even more than usual. "What?"

Bunny hesitated, looking unsure of himself for a moment, before reaching out to gently tousle his hair. "Just wanted to say I...hope we can find out what's wrong. So you can get better."

Jack blinked at him. That was the closest Bunny had ever gotten to admitting he actually cared about him. Granted, he'd proved it time and time again, but to hear it from the pooka's mouth was a whole new experience. When Bunnymund moved to stand, he reached out to grab his arm.

"Will you stay here...please?" Bunny's furry lips quirked into a smile and he nodded. He looked surprised when Jack scooted over and patted the bed next to him, but didn't comment as he lifted the blankets and crawled in next to him.

Jack curled around the pooka as he laid beside him, loving the feeling of all that soft fur against his skin. He tried not to think about his discomfort at the heat too much as he buried his face in the other's soft chest. He smelled of spring time, of fresh grass and flowers and sun-soaked afternoons. He breathed the other in as Bunny wrapped his arms around his back, encompassing him completely.

Tell me a story," Jack requested, his voice small inside Bunny's bulk of muscle.

"Er...you want a bedtime story? Not really my jurisdiction, pal. I'll go get Tooth..."

"No!" Jack clutched at the fur of his chest with both hands. "I don't care what it's about. I just wanna hear you talk..." He'd loved the feeling of that big chest rumbling around him, and wanted to know what it was like to fall asleep to that.

Bunny hesitantly began telling him about his tribe, the race of pookas that had always protected the children of the world even before the guardians had ever come to be. He told Jack about his friends and his family, his parents and lovers. He told him about the war that wiped out their entire race, and his rebirth as the last of his kind into a guardian. Jack fell asleep about halfway through, feeling safe and comfortably warm. His dreams were filled with the sweet smell of summer breeze.

Jack woke much like coming up from a warm spring, head just breaking the surface as he floated on a grey cloud of half sleep. He could hear Bunny's voice, low and deep, and moved unconsciously closer, his fingers clenching around a tuft of fur.

Bunny paused. "Jus' like a kid," he murmured with a chuckle. His whiskers tickled Jack's forehead.

"Bunny, please, I need you to be focusing on important details." That was North, of course. He sounded serious, which was odd...in all his time knowing the guardian of wonder, Jack had never heard him sound so concerned.

"I am, I am, just..." Bunny hesitated. "Yer sure? This ain't just some half-cocked theory ya three cooked up?"

"The symptoms match his exactly. All doubt is gone."

Tooth's well-manicured nails caressed his cheek gently, the wind from her rapidly beating wings ruffling his hair. "Isn't there anything we can do?" Her voice was high and soft, desperate in her plea.

"Jack is the only one who can fight this now."

Bunny's arms tightened around him suddenly and Jack let out a choked noise of surprise. He froze, thinking he'd finally given himself up, but either nobody had heard him or they didn't care that he was awake. They talked for a little while longer, but Jack didn't hear them, the sound of Bunnymund's rapidly beating heart drowning out all other noise. After a short time later, the others left, and they were alone.

Bunny loosened his grip just enough so that Jack could glance up at him. The other guardian's expression was unreadable. He had to have noticed Jack was awake, but he didn't acknowledge him. He was burning to know what was going on, but he kept his mouth shut. He didn't even know how to begin asking.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Bunny's eyes met his.

"Mornin', Frostbite," he said in a low, rough voice. "S'pose you heard that, eh?"

"A little bit." Jack's gaze dropped as he idly petted the fur on Bunny's chest. "I still don't really know what's...going on." He didn't want to ask. The answer was in Bunnymund's voice, his tense muscles, the way he held Jack tight like he was afraid to let him go. The fear crept up through him, up his throat, escaping his mouth in a short whimper.

"Am I going to die?"

Aster flinched at those words like he'd been struck.

"No," he growled, pulling him close again. "No, ya ain't gonna die, Jack." His breath shuddered as he began to speak, stopped, and continued again. "North found...a book. It was before yer time. We used ta fight these things called the Fearlings. Nasty little buggers, used ta infect people and drive 'em insane with fear. Thought we'd gotten rid of them for good, but..." He huffed out a deep sigh that ruffled the top of Jack's hair. "The thing that bit ya on the lake, that was one a' them."

Jack felt the wound under the bandage pulse, hot and painful. He glanced down to see that more black had bled out, leaving the white bandage dark and sticky. He shuddered and clutched at Bunny even tighter.

"What's going to happen to me?"

Bunny didn't answer right away. Jack wondered for a moment if he'd even heard him. He almost asked again, but then his fellow guardian spoke, so quiet and mournful: "It'll devour your soul, and you'll lose all your memories. You'll become..."

"Like Pitch?" He could see the nightmare king's soulless yellow eyes, his lack of empathy or sympathy, his desire only to spread chaos and destruction in his wake. He didn't want that. He felt his chest seize as he gasped for air, as if it were suddenly drained from his lungs and he couldn't get enough.

Jack felt a hot, sick pulse spread from his arm, down through his torso and legs, creeping up his neck. He clutched at Bunny tighter with a high whimper. He didn't know what was happening. He didn't know, but he was so scared he could barely move.

"Jack?" A rushing sound in his ears drowned out all sound, but that one, deep syllable got through. He crushed himself to it, scared if he let go he'd be thrown into the abyss. Everything fell and crumbled away until darkness only remained. He clutched for something, anything, but it seemed to slip through his fingers as he fell through the deep dark nothingness.

He was surrounded, thousands of stamping, red-eyed Nightmares, throwing their heads in agitation. They could smell his fear. His terror seeped down through his bones and he couldn't stop them. He couldn't defend himself. Despair overwhelmed him as the dark steeds rushed forward, surrounding him and rending him apart as he screamed and screamed. But nobody would come, nobody would save him. He was completely and totally alone, here in the darkness, with only his terror and the Nightmares for company. Death would be a sweet release, but it remained outside his grasp.

"Jack!" A hand was there, at his hand and at his hip, guiding him, holding him up, elevating him through the darkness. He screamed again, but this time it was a scream of battle. He wanted to fight. He wanted to win.

A thick sheet of freezing water spread over him, showering the Nightmares in crystal ice, freezing them on contact. He bound away, freezing dozens of others, beacons of glowing light in this dark, dark world. They backed away, throwing their heads for an entirely different reason. He wasn't afraid anymore. The hand at his hip squeezed tighter, and he clenched his frozen fingers around the other. He couldn't see them, but they were there, guiding him, making him stronger.

"I'm not afraid of you!" The words were pulled from his mouth like a gust of freezing wind, freezing the remaining Nightmares. The rest had run, back to the darkness from which they'd come. He took one step forward, shaking hand seeking purchase on the thick nose of the nearest frozen Nightmare.

Its muzzle pressed against his hand and Jack flinched back, ready to fight, but then he noticed the horse's eyes had turned a bright, sparkling green, its coat white and transparent, mane wispy and flowing without wind.

His hand touched the cold muzzle, sliding down its silky neck to its powerful shoulders and strong back. He hesitated only a moment before climbing on. Despite its ghostly appearance, it was quite solid, powerful beneath him as it strode with utter confidence through the darkness.

No reigns to steer it with, and Jack wouldn't know where to go even if he had them. He gripped the silky soft mane in his fingers. It didn't even occur to him that this horse might be leading him only further into the darkness, deeper inside the pure fear this place exuded. It brought him peace, and he knew instinctively it was to be trusted, and would guide him out of here.

Breathe, Jack

Jack did, deep and calming breaths that spread throughout him, filling him with ice and cold. He looked down to find himself as transparent as the horse. When he held his hand up he could see straight through to the darkness beyond. And there, in the distance, a pinprick of light, growing steadily larger as the horse picked up speed. He flinched away from the harsh brightness, his eyes screwing shut in defense of the light that washed away all the darkness around him.

"Jack!"

Jack's eyes flew open with a short gasp. He was...alive? His hands were shaking as he stared down at them, pale and covered with frost. He was in a bed, but whose he didn't know. It was more extravagant than any in his own home.

He slowly tuned into his surroundings and realized he wasn't alone. There were others in the room, staring around at him with a mix of reactions. Relief, terror, sorrow, hope...suspicion - though for what, he couldn't say. A large, furred paw enveloped his hand and he found himself staring up into a pair of bright, achingly familiar green eyes.

"Jack, you're alright." A thick Australian accent threw him off for a moment, but he smiled at its owner, who made him feel so pleasantly warm and safe.

"Yeah, I guess I am." His smile faltered a bit as he stared around at the collection. "I just have one question."

"Anything, my friend. Sky is limit."

Jack took a deep breath. "Who are you guys?"