For DragonWolf Guest/Sol and G'syr.
~RotG~
Pitch Black was the Nightmare King, the boogeyman and every child's worst enemy. He knew everyone's greatest fears. And fear came in many forms; monsters weren't the only things that were terrifying.
Insecurity was one of the forms fear presented itself in.
He never cared much about the people who harmed themselves for whatever reason they had. But he couldn't help spending time around them either.
There was something about them that caught his attention. Maybe it was because most of them were suffering, or because they had feared being caught by their family or friends. Their fear of being alone, scared about how their loved ones would see them if they knew.
Pitch knew everyone's greatest fears, and sometimes he let the nightmares get to those teens. But he learned quickly that their fear had a breaking point, and if used too much, could easily "trigger" them. It didn't matter to him, but then they weren't scared anymore. They were usually upset or even numb. Or angry at themselves for getting so worked up after a nightmare. So he would have to find someone else.
He was still gaining his powers back when he noticed that Jack's fears had changed.
That in itself wasn't too unusual. Many children's fears changed over time, and teens would get over what made them nervous or afraid. Adults were similar.
But when he realized what it was Jack was afraid of, he was a bit surprised.
The winter spirit cut himself? Hardly Guardian material, wasn't he? But who else knew children better than a childish, immature Guardian who had been at the lowest point in his life and still manage to somehow bounce back from it? Jack knew what it was like and tried to help others, even if they didn't know it.
Pitch had been at that low point many times, so he knew what it was like.
Who believed in the boogeyman anymore?
But who had ever heard of Jack Frost?
Was that what caused Jack Frost to cut himself?
He was the "Guardian of Fun"; if he had spent three hundred years fighting loneliness or even a depression, then he would need something to fight it with. So there was having fun to distract himself, but...if his "problems" became too much, he would need something to fall back on, something to ground him.
Pitch wasn't lying when he told Jack that he had longed for a family and to be believed in. But after trying to manipulate the teen, Jack had thought everything Pitch said had been lies and refused his...offer. So Pitch had gotten Jack out of the way.
If the teen was left alone to think about it, then maybe he would be more willing to join Pitch after everything was sorted out. But things didn't work out the way Pitch had planned because Jack had managed to pull himself together and overcome his insecurities in time to keep Jamie believing.
Looking back on that Easter, Pitch couldn't help feeling some resentment, but he should have excepted it.
But he couldn't help being curious about Jack's new fears. He had spent many years on his own and had never wanted to harm himself in any way. It was odd, seeing how different the two were. But Jack was a teen and would probably always be insecure about something.
Pitch decided to pay Jack a visit. But if there was a fight, Pitch wouldn't be able to stay for long. As much as he hated to admit it - even if it was only to himself - he wasn't that strong yet. He would need some more time.
Jack looked up at the moon, which was hidden behind clouds. That didn't seem right to the winter spirit, who had always looked up to the moon for reassurance.
"Frost?"
Jack spun around with his hands clenched around his staff, aiming the curved end directly at Pitch, who raised his hands in surrender.
The Guardian glared at the Nightmare King, who waited patiently. "What do you want?" Jack demanded coldly.
The area where Pitch's eyebrows were supposed to be raised slightly. "Is that anyway to treat your elders?" he asked, his tone almost amused.
Jack hesitated before lowering the staff. "What are you doing here?" His tone was as cold as before, but it was clear that the teen was still on edge.
Well, it was better than nothing. "I just came to talk to you," Pitch told him innocently. He clasped his hands behind his back and looked at the Guardian curiously. "That's all."
The winter spirit narrowed his eyes. "Why?"
Pitch started to move, but Jack tensed visibly. So he stopped. "I noticed your fears have changed," he said after a moment, looking around the lake calmly, feigning disinterest. But... "I was curious and wanted to know why."
Jack raised his staff threateningly. Like a cornered animal lashing out, Pitch thought smugly. "That's none of your business."
"Everyone's fears are my business." Pitch paused, realizing something. "The Guardians know?"
"Yeah," Jack said warily, watching him suspiciously.
When had that happened? But it had been a while since he had seen them.
He could imagine Bunny and Tooth's reactions. The Guardian of Hope would feel guilty - after all those years of depriving the teen of hope, why wouldn't he feel guilty? And the motherly Guardian of Memories would be horrified and would probably want to fix her baby.
North and Sandy's reactions were harder to guess at. North had taken the teen under his wing, but Sandy was the one who had always shooed Pitch out of many suffering teens' rooms.
Well. "Shooed" was putting it mildly.
Pitch looked at him for a long moment, contemplating whether or not to tell him about them. "You're afraid your friends will find out?"
Jack bit his lip and looked away. "No. They don't." I don't want them to.
Pitch decided not to flat out say it - it wouldn't be fun if he gave it away. But it wouldn't hurt to mess with Jack a little. After all, it was a small payback for stopping him before.
"If I were you," Pitch said casually, "I would keep an eye on your precious believers. A few of them are straying."
Jamie and Cupcake especially, he thought, smiling slightly.
"Straying...?" Jack echoed, uneasy. What's that supposed to mean? he wondered. His first thought flew to Jamie, but he knew Jamie was a strong kid. He'd be fine, and he hadn't mentioned anything.
"Not everyone can handle things as well as you did, Frost," Pitch told him sarcastically, but in some ways, it was true.
Jack hadn't tried anything...drastic. That wasn't the right word, but Pitch wasn't sure there was one. Although some would consider self harm as very drastic and a weakness, Pitch had spent enough time around the teens to know that it was mostly just a distraction. From what... That depended on the person.
"Oh, yeah?" Jack frowned, his staff still raised. "How would you know?"
"I've lived longer than you have," Pitch pointed out simply, "so of course I know more."
"Funny." Jack grinned. "So how come I still beat you?"
Pitch scowled, but then ducked a blast of ice. Time to go.
Jack looked around once Pitch was gone, but he thought over the boogeyman's warning. A few of them are straying.
But they're only in their early teens. Jack glanced at the moon and noticed it was finally starting to come out of hiding from behind the clouds. "You think he's right about them?"
The moon didn't answer.
Jack sighed. "I hope not." But he would keep an eye on them anyway. Just in case.
~RotG~
I haven't seen the movie in a while, so they're probably out of character... Sorry.
And sorry for the late update! Me and Jess are going back to school next week... :(
Thanks to everyone who's favorited/following this story! :)
To Guest - I'm glad you liked it. :)
To Guest - I'm like that too! :) I'm glad you love it.
To FrostFan - Sure! :) I already have half of it done, and I'll try to post it soon. :) Thanks!
To Caithlinn13 - Yeah, that's true. Thanks! :)
To vividRegulator - Yeah, there's probably one more. :) I keep saying that...
To Sol and G'sry - Thanks for the idea! :) Hope it's okay...
