Another little installment of fluff. I just like the idea of a very protective big brother Bunny and thought this would be sort of cute plus I needed to write another fic where Pitch wasn't a complete bastard.

Normally the Guardians didn't deal with fires, that was the fire department's job but the sound of a child's cry had Jack Frost jumping into the burning building before anyone could stop him. It was just sheer luck that Sandy was with him that night and he sent an explosion of dreamsand out in a call for help, knowing the tendrils would move through time and space and bring help in a matter of minutes. But minutes might be something they didn't have so he followed Jack into the inferno hoping the help the Winter Sprite save whomever was inside before the Frost child was harmed.

It was one of the few times Sandy really wish he had a voice. He sent out tendrils of sand, searching the burning building for Jack as he flew from room to room, quickly searching under beds and in closets and anywhere a small child might hide, but he found no one. The house was completely empty. And Sandy felt a wave of relief when he looked out the window to see the family had made it outside and firetrucks were already on the scene, spraying water into the blaze. The question now was where was young Jack. He sent out more tendrils, his fear increasing. He should have stopped the boy the moment he realized what the child had planned. He berated himself and began blaming himself for any possible injury the boy had received as he hear the creaking a burning timbers. The upper floor was about to collapse.

Praying the boy had been smart enough to leave, Sandy floated out the broken front door to find him. What he found was a concerned Bunnymund, staring up at the inferno with his ears pressed to his skull and sitting back on his hind legs. When he Sandy his eyes brightened.

"What happened, mate?" the Pooka asked, straightening. He looked around for their youngest member as North stepped out of a portal and Tooth swooped out of the air. "Where's Frostbite?"

Sandy looked panic. Jack wasn't with them? Could he have gone back to his pond? No, not without telling him. He looked back at the burning building in fear.

North cursed in Russian as he pushed past Bunny and Sandy, intent on charging the building and pulling the child out. He didn't get more than a few feet before the building groaned and roof collapsed. His eyes widened. "Jack...no..."

Sandy caught Tooth before she could attempt to dive into the building but no one could stop Bunny. He raced into the remains of the building, intent on finding the youngest member and just prayed he wasn't too late.

. . .

Fear...Oh sweet delicious fear. Pitch hummed in delight as it sang to him like a siren, calling him out of his lair. It was a special type of fear he get to enjoy often, a fear only the Guardians produced. Where it drew him was a great surprise. A blazing inferno engulfing someone's home. Why would the Guardians be here and why would they be so concerned? He let his senses wander through the rooms. There was no one left inside expect...Frost.

A sinister grin lit his face. The child was spilling out fear as he continued to search the burning house for any stragglers. He didn't know they were all safe. Pitch followed that fear until he found the boy in the remains of the kitchen that had been spared the collapse of the east end of the house.

"Is anyone here?" the boy called, his voice obviously dry as he searched a large walk end pantry. He was on his hands and knees, searching under the shelves, as if some small child might have squeezed underneath. He brushed back his soaking wet hair and panted. Soot covered his once snowy white hair turning it a greyish-black. It was far too hot for him. He was starting to feel faint.

"This isn't the place for a winter sprite, Frost," Pitch said from the doorway.

Jack spun, his staff in hand and nearly toppled over with a dizzy spell took him. Sweat poured into his eyes making everything blurry and Pitch took on the form of a demon with the inferno background. A trick of the eye for sure but enough for him to suck in a breath filled with fear. He pressed the butt of one hand against his eyes, trying to stop the stinging. His voice was hoarse when he spoke. "Pitch?"

"Who else, brat?" The Nightmare King sneered.

"You did this!" the boy accused, pushing himself to his feet. He tried to aim his staff again but the heat was getting to him. He was light headed and suddenly it looked as if there were three Pitches and he didn't know where to aim. His world swam and knees buckled.

Pitch saw it coming before it happened. The child's eyes were glassy and body shaking. When he finally collapsed Pitch caught him around the waist. He was tempted to leave the boy there to meet his demise, after all Frost was nothing but a brat. He had his chance to join Pitch, he had he chance to rule at his side. And even when Pitch had nothing to do with a tragic event the boy blamed him. If would serve him right to burn to death. But as he stared down at the child's angelic face he couldn't do it. Even unconscious the boy sent out waves of fear and mixed with what his fellow Guardians emitted it was almost intoxicating. If Jack died then that would be gone and something so deliciously sweet should be preserved.

He wiped the sweat soaked hair out of the child's face he took a moment to inspect him. He was far tinier than many boys his age, at least in this day and age. Far more fragile looking than he tried to appear. He was truly was an ice prince.

"Jack! Jackie!" a thick Australian voice called from somewhere in the smoke and flames. "Yell if you can hear me, kid!"

With a growl Pitch lifted the child into his arms bridal style. He could taste Bunnymund's fear and as delicious as it was a burning building was not the place for a fight. He allowed the swirling shadows to envelop him and his young charge and take them outside where the air was fresh and cool, the crisp winter air a soothing balm after the intense heat. A moment later a ball of slate grey fur burst through the nearest window and landed a few feet away.

Pitch laid Jack in the deep snow and respectfully stepped away before the Pooka could pounce on him then raised his hands as if to show he was unarmed and harmless. Bunnymund was far from convinced. He bounded to Jack's limp form, standing over him on all fours, fur raised and a deep growl rumbling through him. Pitch would have made a quirky remark on the animal like behaviour if the Pooka didn't look like a rapid dog about to tear him in half. Instead he kept his distance and his hands where Bunny could see them.

"What did you do?" Bunny snarled, his paws digging into the snow on either side of Jack's small body.

"Saving his life," Pitch said, calmly fixing a sleeve and keeping an eye the Guardian. "You should be thanking me. Snowflakes melt in fire."

Bunnymund snarled but didn't attack, just stood protectively over the child.

"Bunny!" Tooth yelled, swooping down to the Pooka. Bunnymund growled a warning and rather than attending to Jack she just floated at his side. Sandy appeared at his other side, dream whips forming.

North arrived last, looking almost heart broken until he saw Jack's limp form then relief and fear warred with one another on his face. It was a delicious sight, something Pitch had not seen in a long time. "Bunny, move," he instructed only to have the Guardian of Hope growl at him as well. The Guardian of Wonder blinked in surprise. No one was getting near Jack until Bunny said it was safe. North looked past the two to Pitch but there was no anger just an exhausted sort of relief. "Pitch, what are you doing here?" he asked. He glanced back at the now contained blaze. "You did not cause this, did you?"

"The gratitude I get for risking my neck for your precious ice prince," Pitch snorted, glaring at the Guardians' supposed leader. "You have no idea how delicious your fear is, North. The five of you, all in a panic. It's a beautiful sight. I kind of like seeing you all like this." He gave a toothy smile as he stepped back into the shadows. "You might want to keep the boy away from fire. I might not be around to save him next time." Then he was gone.

Bunny's whole body tensed, ready to go after Pitch but a soft moan distracted him and he glanced down at the child he had sworn to protect. Jack rolled onto his side and started coughing, throwing up phelm and soot. Allowing himself to relax a little Bunny moved to sit at Jack's side, rubbing his back as he coughed it all up until Jack was a panting, shivering mess, clinging to his staff as if it were a life line.

"Jack..." Bunny whispered, rubbing his wet nose against the child's temple. The smell of soot made his whiskers twitch but he didn't stop. He rubbed his furry face against Jack's, licking soot and sweat off his face and trying to wake the boy up.

North shoveled snow onto the child's burnt feet and hands by hand, trying to help ease his pain. Tooth fluttered about, cooing to Jack, pleading for him to open his eyes. Sandy felt lost. This wasn't the first time one of them had been hurt, it sometimes came with the territory, but Jack was their youngest. It shouldn't happen to him. His hands rung together and he wasn't sure if he should be trying to help wake the boy or send him pleasant dreams to help him heal. In the end he just stayed out of the way.

Jack coughed some more before slumping in the snow. His grip on his staff relaxed and for one moment Bunny panicked. "No...come on, Snowflake. Open your eyes. Look at him." The fear was unimaginable. It was as if his heart was being ripped out. He couldn't lose Jack. He was just a kid, his little brother. It was Bunny's job to protect him. This wasn't supposed to happen.

Small arms wrapped around his neck and a cool cheek pressed against his. Bunny nearly jerked out of the embrace but caught himself as he gazed down at the small frost child. "Bunny?" the boy asked softly, glassy blue eyes gazing up at him curiously. "Hi."

Bunny nearly laughed, pulling him into a gentle but firm hug. "Hi, yourself, Snowflake."

"I don't feel so good...hot," Jack murmured before closing his eyes and falling into a deep sleep. He breathed deep steady breaths and Bunny sighed in relief. Jack wasn't hurt nearly as bad as he had feared.

He wrapped his arms around Jack's back and gently, carefully lifted him out of the snow. The boy murmured, still unconscious, but now clinging to Bunny, his staff forgotten. Wrapping an arm under Jack's knees, he held him close, refusing to allow North to take him. North could be fatherly and pampering to Jack all he wanted once they got him to the Pole but until then the child was under Bunny's protection and he wasn't letting the boy go until he was looked after, bathed, wounds dressed and safely tucked into his bed.

"Let's take him home," he told North as Tooth scooped up Jack's staff.

. . .

The first thing Jack saw when he awoke was grey fur with darker grey markings. He felt too weak to do more than roll on his side and run a hand through the soft fur. Bunny was sitting in a large old wing back chair next to his bed his front half laying on the bed next to Jack. He looked totally uncomfortable and if Jack felt a little stronger he might have just dragged his friend on to the bed with him but for now he'd contend himself with petting him as he curled his sore body around Bunny's. He would have fallen back to sleep if it weren't for the darker than usual shadows.

"Pitch?" he whispered, pushing himself to one elbow. Fear ate at him as the Nightmare King stepped out of the shadows. Jack fought the urge to shy back as his fingers stilled in Bunny's fur. He debated whether or not to wake up the Guardian of Hope but again stopped himself when Pitch raised a finger to his lips.

"The poor thing's exhausted. Spent that last three days worrying over you. Guarding you from me no doubt. Afraid I might swoop in and take you away. Such paranoia. It's been quite fun feeding off him," Pitch explained, standing at the foot of Jack's bed. He glanced at the painted walls before looking back at the youth. "I like what you've done to the place. A little to bright for my tastes but perfectly you."

"What do you want?" Jack demanded but his voice had no strength, hoarse from days of no use.

Pitch grinned, his head tilting to one side. "Just relaying some friendly advice. There's a reason fear is a powerful tool. It protects. It stops little boys from playing with matches and causing fires and it keeps foolish winter sprites from running into burning buildings without a set plan."

Jack was taken back. This was a lecture he expected from North or Bunny, not Pitch. "I was just trying to help."

"Next time look before you leap," Pitch said sternly, his amber eyes glowing dangerously. "Unless you want me to feed on the nightmares your death would cost your friends. As much fun as that would be it will not last forever and I prefer a constant food source."

Not understanding, Jack just stared up at the Nightmare King. "Sweet dreams, Jack." And as quickly as he came Pitch was gone and Jack was left pondering his words as he curled a little more around Bunny.