Well, I think I've made you all wait long enough for the second, and last, chapter of this story, and I hope it doesn't disappoint. Now that I've said that, go! Yell at me for taking so long to write this because it's been a whole YEAR!

I'm about to go into a whole bunch of thank you stuff, so if you want to read the story, skip down to the unbolded part!


Thank you:

Haruki Uzumaki-chan 2-7-15

Alicanteblood 1-12-15

kidamerica123 10-6-14

TheUltimateAngela 9-24-14

DaisyRuthBlack 8-18-14

A winter storm 7-8-14

yurithefurry 7-8-14

skylaeatpie 4-24-14

Sky Art 4-20-14

No longer exsists 4-15-14

Higuchimon 4-12-14

thatcrazyjellyfish 4-9-14

changeofheart505 4-7-14

WildFireBurnsTheForest 4-2-14

Cat Girl 1995 4-1-14

wouldbewriter23 4-1-14

Soluna Skystar 3-20-14

Water623 3-18-14

Safaia Bara 3-16-14

Readerfever 3-10-14

JustARunaway-3-9-14

Caithlinn13 3-8-14

Darkraiprincess 3-8-14

Destialrox 3-8-14

Fireena 3-8-14

mintythefox 3-8-14

Arristo 3-7-14

EmotionalDreamer101 3-7-14

Maximus Potter 3-7-14

The Kid Zoom 3-7-14

Jack09 3-7-14

For all favoriting this story


Thank you:

TheGhostSeeker 03-20-2015

Dragonfire81 02-12-2015

Haruki Uzumaki-chan 02-07-2015

Alicanteblood 01-12-2015

Crystalstorm 12-21-2014

PeachtreeAmuto 10-16-2014

kidamerica123 10-06-2014

TheUltimateAngela 09-24-2014

Alikay3196 07-31-2014

Peaceful Dragon Rose 07-26-2014

BooksAreMyLife14 07-11-2014

A winter storm 07-08-2014

Toshiro29 07-01-2014

skylaeatpie 04-24-2014

No longer exsists 04-15-2014

Higuchimon 04-12-2014

thatcrazyjellyfish 04-09-2014

AzazelLuciferDeathCrowley 04-07-2014

changeofheart505 04-07-2014

Aiedrail 04-03-2014

TheBustyBarmaid 04-03-2014

tsalyah 04-03-2014

WildFireBurnsTheForest 04-02-2014

toothlessisepic 03-21-2014

Soluna Skystar 03-20-2014

Water623 03-18-2014

Safaia Bara 03-16-2014

Doublesims 03-14-2014

Readerfever 03-10-2014

Caithlinn13 03-08-2014

Cat Girl 1995 03-08-2014

Destialrox 03-08-2014

mintythefox 03-08-2014

werekit 03-08-2014

EmotionalDreamer101 03-07-2014

Maximus Potter 03-07-2014

OrangeChima 03-07-2014

The Kid-Zoom 03-07-2014

jack09 03-07-2014

For all following this story.


Finally, thank you:

Guest chapter 1 . Jan 19

please update soon


kidamerica123 chapter 1 . Oct 6, 2014

great start. Please update


Rebel Glow chapter 1 . Sep 25, 2014

Squee! I want more!


Peaceful Dragon Rose chapter 1 . Jul 26, 2014

good chapter


A winter storm chapter 1 . Jul 8, 2014

Update please!


skylaeatpie chapter 1 . Apr 24, 2014

Oh my glob... this was amazing. I absolutely loved this. Pretty pretty please keep going with this story! Its beautiful!


No longer exsists chapter 1 . Apr 15, 2014

Cool! Write more, I BEG YOU!


thatcrazyjellyfish chapter 1 . Apr 10, 2014

This story is amazing like just wow so good can not wait for the next chapter


TheStarsInTheSkyShineSoBright chapter 1 . Mar 8, 2014

Epic! Hope you update soon!


Treehugeer chapter 1 . Mar 8, 2014

Iove this story! You are a really good writer!


Brenne chapter 1 . Mar 8, 2014

This looks really interesting. I would love to see more please!


Cat Girl 1995 chapter 1 . Mar 8, 2014

this is great! just as good as what you told me!


Shamira The Guardian chapter 1 . Mar 8, 2014

It's a good story, but you need to space it out so it's easier to read.


OrangeChima chapter 1 . Mar 7, 2014

I am really interested in this story, but I like your other fics so that does not surprise me. This was a bit hard to read however, because it reads as one large paragraph that keeps making you lose your place.


EmotionalDreamer101 chapter 1 . Mar 7, 2014

This is really interesting, I love this.


Well, no, this is my final thank you, actually. Thank you to all who have read this, no matter how may months, *cough* one year *cough* it has been since I first posted it.


Jack looked warily around the brightly lit and loudly colored spring wonderland he had landed in, because with all of that light, there seemed to be even more shadows. So, so, so many shadows. He flinched back as Bunny roughly grabbed his shoulder, hauling him back away from the little spotlight of sun… or whatever lit the Warren, amongst the shadows, into the dark.

"Hey! No, I don't want to be in the dark!" he cried out, struggling against the giant pooka.

"Whoa, kid, calm down. Pitch can't get ya in here," Bunny soothed, stopping in the dark and loosening his hold on the younger, much, much younger, spirit.

"But… but the shadows… He said that he could go ANYWHERE where there were shadows," Jack protested, looking wide eyed at the other.

"Not here. Pitch would have ta take ovah a whole galaxy ta have enough powah ta get through the wards on this place. Do ya think there would be any shadows or darkness in here if I thought that that bloody dingo could get his slimey arse in here?"

"I don't know… I don't know you very well," Jack replied, "and your tunnels remind me of when Pitch uses the shadows to travel."

Bunny sighed and nodded, taking a step back, despite wanting to just wrap the poor kid in a hug and keep him safe in his home. "I'll give ya that. Yer just gonna have ta trust me, Frostbite."

Jack perked up at the nickname, half scowling and half smiling at the same time. "Don't call me that," he chuckled.

"I'll call ya whatevah I like, Frostbite," Bunny retorted with a snort, guiding the Spirit of Winter though his spring and to his Burrow. The spirit zipped around on the wind, a little shakily from the over powered connection, but he managed as he examined the humble abode made of dirt and grass and ancient, polished wood.

"What's with the hobbit hole?" he asked.

"Oi! That's my Burrow! Ain't a hobbit hole! What… what's a hobbit hole in the first place?" Bunny scoffed in annoyance.

"It's a place where a hobbit lives… um, never mind… You wouldn't understand," Jack replied, landing next to the elder male once more. "So… you live here?"

"Yup. C'mon inside, let's get ya patched up proper and then, if ya want, I'll give ya a grand tour of the place," Bunny answered enthusiastically.

"Maybe," Jack said noncommittally.

Bunny's ears lowered slightly when Jack walked past him into the Burrow, realizing that if Manny wasn't pranking them or something, Jack was to become a Guardian, and he would have to go against Pitch. If his reaction to the dark was anything to go by, then the Guardian of Hope wasn't sure the kid was up to the challenge.

Jack had his mouth open in awe as he took in the home, his fingers itching to just touch everything and examine it. He started to reach out to run his hand over a chair, but pulled back, fearful that ice would ruin the wood.

"It ain't gonna break if ya touch it, ya know," Bunny assured as he closed the door.

Jack reached back out and touched the chair, beautiful frost patterns spiraling from his hand. He snapped his hand back to his chest, an apology on his lips, but Bunny cut him off to it.

"Wow, mate, that's beautiful," the Pooka breathed, having never taken the time to look at the things that the lonely troublemaker created. He had always focussed more on the fact that he was causing trouble.

"R-Really?" Jack managed, looking up in surprise.

"Yeah, mate, I nevah notice 'em before."

"Sorry about your chair…" Jack said, still fearful that Bunny would blow up at him for what he had done.

"Nah, mate, don't worry about it. Ya said that without ya stick, ya can't really control ya powers, right?"

"It's a staff," Jack corrected stiffly.

"What's the difference?" Bunny asked obliviously.

"What if I called your boomerangs sticks?" Jack challenged.

Bunny glared at him in clear offense before sighing and drawing in his temper. He had to remember that this kid had gone through hell and blowing up at him was not going to help.

"C'mon, Frostbite, let's get ya patched up. Don't worry about the chairs."

Jack nervously followed the rabbit to a different room that had a comfortable couch taking precedence, as well as a burning fireplace and a coffee table made of the same wood that everything else in the Burrow seemed to be made of.

"Wow."

"Sit down. If ya would be kind enough to not freeze my fireplace, that would be much appreciated," Bunny called as he bounded out, retrieving his first aid kit and setting to work on cleaning and bandaging Jack's wounds, putting a salve over the multitude of bruises that littered the eldest child's skin.

"Why are you helping me in the first place?" Jack asked.

"Because we need you, Jack," Bunny replied slowly, not wanting to set off the untrusting spirit.

"Why?"

"Because four years ago, Manny gave a message ta us Guardians… That message said that you were supposed ta become a Guardian and help us protect the children o' the world from Pitch…" he answered.

"Manny?" Jack asked, steel edging its way into his voice, "As in, Man in Moon? The spirit that did nothing for THREE HUNDRED YEARS while I BEGGED and PLEADED for answers? The one that did NOTHING when I asked him to help the children that were being taken? That spirit is worse than PITCH!"

"Now, see here, Frostbite, Manny ain't as bad as ya think, he's a busy spirit, and he can't just be making time for troublemakahs!" Bunny protested, wincing at his own words. Defiance that had not been in the boy's eyes before now shown like cold iron in his icy blue eyes as the wind seemed to converge on him, encasing him in a snowstorm in the heart of spring.

"If he couldn't make time to answer one thing in all this time, then he can find himself a new guardian to use. I'm leaving."

"Where are ya gonna go, Jack? What about Pitch?" Bunny protested, expecting the other to back down at his words.

"Pitch? I'm not afraid of Pitch. I'm afraid of the dark," Jack sneered, hurt lacing his words. "And your precious Warren is not the only warded realm that exists. You forget that I also have a realm. And darkness doesn't dare touch it."

Bunny backed up at the ancient undertone that accompanied Jack's words. "Jokul," he breathed.

"That's right. Jokul Frosti and Jack Frost. Hear the similarities? That's because we are the same. I will do what you SCARED Guardians have neglected to do and I'm going to put Pitch on ice!"

"Jack, no! He's too powerful-"

"I do not rely on the belief of children to give me power, and the shadows are nothing. You must have forgotten what the darker side of winter holds. Death. Destruction. Despair. Most of all, FEAR. Pitch may think he is the master of it, but he knows nothing of its true power."

"But I do!" Bunny snarled. Jack paused at this, though the frightening monster of ice didn't really look like it was the friendly if skittish Jack Frost. "My entire race was wiped out by fearlin's, Jack. I know how terrifyin'ly powerful fear can be. There is a reason why we didn't go aftah Pitch. I refuse ta allow that ta happen ta anothah race, especially humans."

"Then what do you propose I should do, because I am not becoming a Guardian," Jack spat.

"Just… Let us have a meetin' and discuss what we should do. But don't be goin' off on yer own. Pitch ain't the only one that'll be lookin' for ya," Bunny persuaded.

"Not at the Pole," Jack said after a few minutes of silent contemplation.

"Why? I mean, I ain't arguin', but don't ya prefer the cold?" Bunny asked.

"No… I hate the cold… Weird, huh? But that compound… it was always cold. And dark. And Pitch always said that cold and dark go perfectly with each other… Oh, and I don't want to go to the Pole because Pitch can get in there. He was always bragging about it, saying how if he wanted you, he could capture you all at one of your precious meetings and then no one in the world could stop him."

"Then we'll have it here," Bunny concluded.

"Best call them," Jack suggested, so that was exactly what Bunny did, summoning the other Guardians to his home.

"Bunny! Is Jack alright?" Tooth demanded urgently as she flew through the Warren to the Burrow. Upon seeing the icy Jack glaring around him distrustfully, she tackled Bunny, rapidly demanding what he had done to poor Jack.

"Oi, sheila, get offa me!" Bunny ordered, gently shoving her away. "Wait until North an' Sandy get here."

"Fine."

Once the others were indeed there, Bunny explained why they were having a meeting.

"Jack! You can't go after Pitch by yourself! He's way too powerful!" Tooth immediately protested, getting right up into the skittish spirit's personal bubble. Jack glared at her balefully, the fairy backing up in fear.

"No. He is not. You are just too scared of him. Don't you see? That's how he works. He paralyzes you with fear so you can't fight against him."

"Then how come it doesn't work on you?"

"Because my fear is being alone and in the dark. Pitch needs light to cast shadows, and if he is there, I'm not alone. Little difficult to be scared when facing him negates my fears."

No one was quite sure how to respond to that. "Let uz help you, Jack, no?" North asked.

"What, so I can sit and wait and do nothing for another four years?" Jack spat.

"No! Newz in de street iz dat Pitch vill be at Burgezz tonight to be looking for you!" North boomed.

Jack blinked at the large, jolly man, and then grinned. "I have an idea. You aren't gonna like it, but I think it should work."

"What is it?" Bunny asked, translating for Sandy.

Jack touched down on the cool water, thick ice spreading from his bare toes to the edges of the pond, freezing it solid and causing light to reflect from the full moon, casting away the dark and shadows that swamped the entrance to the Winter Realm, one that should always be frozen. You couldn't get into it if it wasn't.

Jack glared at the moon, silently calling him a coward. He was. The Man in the Moon was too much of a coward to admit that he had screwed up, and now he was going to pay the price for it.

"There you are, Frost," a voice purred from the shadows of the trees. Jack didn't turn, didn't flinch, didn't make any move that he had heard.

Black sand reached for the white haired boy, but it was blasted back by Jack, a cold chuckle, more spine chilling than Pitch's worst, echoed around the pond, bouncing off trees and rocks, making it sound like it was coming from everywhere.

"Hello, Pitch. So good of you to come visit," Jack sneered.

"My my, we're feeling brave, aren't we?" Pitch spat. "Did you really think I wouldn't sense the Guardians, lying in wait to ambush me?"

Jack chuckled again. "They didn't think you would. But I would. I want them to see what happens when people mess with winter. Starting with you," Jack corrected, waving his hand.

Pitch gasped as ice encased his body up to his chest and pulled him forward, into the very center of the pond, right at the center of light.

"You think you know fear, Pitch. You think you know how to control it. But you don't. You were right, though, when you say that cold and dark go hand and hand together. But cold and dark worked together long before you began your reign of terror, and in four years, the only thing you've accomplished was making me pissed and getting anyone I might be afraid to hurt out of the way. You think that I am a foolish, naive little sprite, don't you?"

"N-now, Frost, let's talk about this, in the shade, hmm?" Pitch tried to persuade, knowing full well that it was hopeless.

"Answer me, Pitch."

"Yes, I think you're a pathetic little sprite that doesn't know what he's getting into and you will be severely punished when I get out of here!" Pitch threatened.

Jack laughed at that, seeming to just appear right in front of the shade. "Then you are a fool, Nightmare King. I am the Spirit of Winter. All of winter. Do you know what happens to people who stay out in the cold too long?"

"They freeze," Pitch snarled, rolling his golden eyes.

"Yes. They freeze. Their fingers start to burn at the tips, then their hands and arms. It's painful. It's slow. Then they lose the ability to feel them. They become useless. Their body turns blue as their blood freezes within them and your mind and heart try to keep you alive by shutting down any non essential thing. You go to sleep, Pitch. Do you know what I can do when people go to sleep? I can either make their death peaceful… Happy, even. But if I want, I can make it into a nightmare," he purred, idly twirling a snowflake on his fingers. To Pitch, the snowflake was outright menacing. "I can do that when people are awake, too. As a warning. But you don't get a warning, not after what you've done to me."

Jack's voice seemed to be made of multiple, every aspect of the darker side of winter trying to speak through the spirit. "You have been trying to put me to sleep for years now. Let me return the favor."

With those words, he leaned forward and softly blew the snowflake at Pitch, the shade flinching and thrashing, trying to escape it. But it landed on target, sinking beneath the skin. In no time at all, gold sand began to fly up around his head, a happy looking dream, but a nightmare to Pitch.

Jack raised his hand and the ice encased Pitch, forever trapping him within his dream, the ice destined to never melt. He slammed his fist to the ground, and the frozen figure sank through the surface, into the prisons of the Winter Realm.

Like they had been summoned, the grim looking Guardians emerged. Everything had gone as planned. They wished they had been more involved, but their only job that Jack had allowed them to do was provide a slight distraction. Well, Sandy had helped with making sure Jack didn't go full dark, but that wasn't something Jack had actually planned. He was just very thankful for it.

Jack, now done with his task, dropped like a rock, fast asleep on the ice, restoring winter to the order it had lost upon his capture.

"Let him be, Tooth," Bunny ordered softly when she went to wake him up out of worry. "We still have work to do."

Parents everywhere were joyous to for the return of their beloved children, who would be the start of a new generation that actively knew that spirits existed and that there were good ones and bad ones. But there was one spirit that seemed to be stuck as just a legend. A legend that every man, woman, and child knew of, even after hundreds of years.

"It is said that long, long ago, when the evil Pitch Black tried to take over our world, he took a single spirit and imprisoned him. For years, the spirit helped his fellow prisoners and told them of the spirit world. He protected everyone, and he still does. Our Guardian."

"But then why isn't he one of the Guardians?"

"He's not one of the Guardians because he was once asked to be part of them, but he refused. He could protect us better if he wasn't with them," the man explained.

"Well, then, who is he?"

"His name is Jack Frost, and he is the Spirit of Winter. If you are lucky, and if you believe, you can hear him laughing as he rides the wind, watching over us. Some say that they have even seen him, with white hair, blue eyes, and a wooden staff. Do you believe in Jack Frost?"

The entire assembly nodded eagerly.

"Then make sure you listen for him and never, ever forget what he has done for you."

Jack smiled from the window, keeping himself hidden. But he couldn't help but point himself out to the classroom of children who were complaining about the end of the story.

"Believe," he breathed, making it start to snow inside and zipping out just slowly enough that a few lucky children saw him and pointed, excitement and joy filling the air. "I'll keep you safe from the shadows."

With another smile, he flew into the air, higher and higher, until he was in space and staring down at his planet, so peaceful and so happy. That was how it would stay. Forever.