A/N: Hellooooo, everybody.

So...this is the start of a sequel...to "Just A Mistake" (which, sadly, you DO need to read first to understand this—don't worry, it's only a one-shot)...that I thought would never exist.

Turns out, people actually liked that piece of angsty garbage, and they asked me to continue it.

...Huh.

Anyway...

So, to be entirely honest, since I never expecting this thing to even exist, it will probably suck in places. At this moment, all my creativity and willpower is at this point being drained by a massive rewrite of "Will You, Won't You, Will You, Won't You, Won't You Join The Dance?" (a.k.a. Snow Angel) so I have neither the time nor the energy nor the drive to make this story perfect. As far as I am concerned, this story and its prequel were both accidents that were never really meant to happen. Sad, but it's the truth. You have been warned, this story will most likely suck.

Disclaimer: I do not own anything except Adriana, Blakemore, Cerin, and any other OCs that may appear in this fic.

"If you aren't going to cooperate, then I suppose we'll simply leave you here until you do."

"When yer ready ta talk, we'll come."

"Try not to take too long, though, da?"

A lock and a key in golden sand.

That had been half-an-hour ago. Half-an-hour since he had been consigned to solitude, doomed to remain alone for all eternity.

He leaned his back against the wall, hissing as his abused ribs shifted painfully. Once he was in a more or less comfortable position, the winter spirit sighed as he closed his eyes and resigned himself to endless pain…

...and darkness…

...and solitude…...

"If you aren't going to cooperate, then I suppose we'll simply leave you here until you do."

"When yer ready ta talk, we'll come."

"Try not to take too long, though, da?"

A lock and a key in golden sand.

Briskly, the Guardians marched out of the cell, their steps loud and heavy against the stone-tiled floor. Only when the last one stepped through did they slam the door behind themselves, the sound condemning and final like church bells at a funeral.

Groaning, the fairy stretched, rolling her slender shoulders in an effort to remove some of the cramps that had formed in her back. "Damn it, I hate these bloody wings. How that glittery bitch managed to stand them for so long is beyond me."

Soft amethyst turned to harsh and vivid green, as color faded from the fairy's skin, leaving it gray and rough. Feathers melted into skin, wings dissolving to nothing as the impostor shifted. When the shift was over, there was no fairy, but a gray-skinned young woman with raven hair. Huffing, the woman flicked her hair out of her emerald eyes as she turned to her companions, her jeans flapping around her ankles.

They, too, had shifted. Where North had been, there was now a burly young man in a crisp business suit. In Bunny's place there was another male, his skin a slightly lighter gray than the others, while Sandy was replaced by a maniacal-looking shifter with clouded green eyes. With a brisk movement, Sandy's replacement tossed aside a pair of glittering gold whips.

North's replacement raised an eyebrow at the woman's comment, giving her a disparaging glance. "We could have easily chosen another shifter if you did not want the job, Adriana."

Adriana scoffed, straightening her rumpled leather bomber jacket with a proud toss of the head. "And risk missing out on all the fun? Not a chance, Cerin."

The second eyebrow joined the first. "If you say so."

Rolling her eyes, Adriana rubbed her aching shoulders again before marching off down the narrow corridor, her companions following in a single file. Her boots made a harsh clack clack sound that echoed off the cold gray walls. "Any news from Blakemore Dearest?"

Somewhere down the line, Cerin's voice drifted to her ears. "He is still being interrogated by the Guardians. So far, their attempts to glean information from him have been amusingly unsuccessful."

"Good. The longer he manages to stall them, the longer we have to carry out our plan...How long do you think the piece of winter scum will last before he goes off the deep end?"

"My guess? Around two or three weeks, give or take. Any more and we may have to deal with a hysterical winter spirit."

"...That should be long enough. Any word from Aviur?"

"Merely that he is waiting for our signal."

"And the others? Sierra, Tynan, Sullivan..."

"All ready to begin on our command."

Adriana's lips twitched in a feral smile. "...Excellent."

"Tell us what you know."

A small, almost imperceptible smirk tugged at the corner of Blakemore's mouth, his borrowed blue eyes glittering with barely concealed triumph. "Fat chance, old man."

Four pairs of eyes glared at the shifter, who merely grinned from his seat in the wooden chair. With a faint growl to his words, the Pooka snapped at the teen. "Stop stallin' and answer the question, ya ratbag."

"Hmmm, lemmie thi—Nope."

The fairy gripped tightly onto the back of the shifter's chair, her next words coming in a vicious hiss. "Don't play cute with us, shifter. Where's Jack?"

"How in hell should I know?"

"Ya should know, because ya were the one who took him! Tell us where he is!"

"Zilch."

"Tell us."

"Nada."

"Tell. Us."

"Goose eggs."

Throwing his paws up to the ceiling in despair, the Pooka rose to his feet and began pacing around the room, much to the shifter's apprehension. As much as Blakemore was amused by the tough, "nerves of steel" Pooka showing worry for something as worthless as a winter spirit, the fact remained that the Pooka and his friends could potentially deal him quite a bit of damage, and the more Blakemore provoked him the better chance there was that he would loose a couple of teeth.

I hope you'll get back here soon, Adriana, because I swear to MiM, if I end up being turned into a kangaroo's punching bag because of you, I will tear out all of your hair and make you swallow it, engagement be damned.

She would come, though. She always did, and when she came, they could finally put their plan in motion.

A/N: ...I think I just successfully managed to troll almost everyone who read "Just A Mistake".

Like, seriously, guys, you spent all your time asking if it was the real Jack, when the question you should have asked was whether they were the real Guardians.

Haha. Tricked ya. I win.

...Review?