After the encounter with Pitch, the other Guardians made a habit of visiting the North Pole whenever they had spare time on their hands; Bunny and Jack were the most frequent guests, trying to cheer up the Bennett children anyway they could. Sophie appeared to still be oblivious to what had happened, and had yet to ask about her mother and home. Jamie was beginning to return to his old self again, finally accepting what had happened and moving on. But he still had a way to go before he was fully recovered, and Jack wondered whether he'd ever be the same again.

One evening the Guardians were sat around the fireplace with the two children playing on the floor in their new pyjamas; they were testing out a new train set North had designed. The five of them just watched the children playing, not wanting to speak and disturb the happy atmosphere, and their silence continued until Sophie spotted Dingle the elf and took off after him. Jamie quickly followed to stop her.

"So far, so good," Bunny spoke up, once he was certain that the children were out of earshot. He sighed and rested his head against his paw. "For them, anyway; I've never been so tired in my life." He noticed that Sandy had dozed off, so didn't disturb him.

"Now I know how my parents felt," Jack agreed. "And Mary and I were a lot more active than most kids; I'm surprised we didn't kill them."

Tooth nodded in agreement. "I remember my parents never looking tired, but when I was older, I found out it was an act. They wanted to hide just how tired they were from me. I'm surprised they kept up the act for so long."

"Boje moi," North swore under his breath. He was slumped in his seat, hand to his head and eyes droopy. "Least you all do not live here. Little girl was up three times in night! First bathroom, then drink, then bathroom again!" The man threw up his hands in annoyance. "Where's instruction book when you need one?"

"I don't have an instruction book. May I interest you in some advice?"

Despite how tired they were, the Guardians leapt to their feet when they heard the familiar voice and turned to see Pitch standing in the shadows. Even Sandy was jolted from his sleep and looked ready to fight.

Pitch stepped out into the light. "I would say how satisfying it is to see you all like this, but that would make the situation a hostile one."

"Pitch..." North warned. His hands were on the hilts of his swords, ready to draw them. Jack had his staff pointed at the Boogeyman, Bunny had his boomerangs at the ready and Sandy was debating whether or not to bring out his sand-whips. Tooth just looked irritated.

The Nightmare King held up his hands in defence. "I'm not here to start a fight. I'm only here to talk."

"How can we know you're not lying?" asked Jack.

"Eartha sent me."

Each of the elder four Guardians exchanged glances; they knew that when it came to Mother Nature, Pitch never lied or messed around. They each backed down, and Jack trusted they knew what they were doing so followed their example.

"Why?" asked North.

Pitch looked slightly annoyed as he replied. "I didn't want to come here, either, so the feeling of un-want is very much mutual. But Eartha told me she favours those two children as much as you do, and wanted to make sure they were cared for properly."

"And she sent you because?" Jack raised an eyebrow.

"I'm sure your Guardians have informed you," replied Pitch. "I was a parent once, and she asked me to at least give you some advice on how to take care of children. And since I don't want to be here as much as you don't want me here, I'll make this quick. First, you need to make time for the children. I understand that you all have very busy lives – bringing your precious joy to the other children of the world – but children have needs and you need to be prepared to drop everything when they need you."

North blinked. "But what if we're in middle of-"

"Doesn't matter," Pitch interrupted. "This does not need to happen all the time, however, as children also need to learn about patience. If they become blinded by the illusion that they can get you to do whatever they want and when they want it, they'll become spoilt brats with no regard for you or other people. There must be a balance – apart from when they're ill. Then you really do need to drop everything."

"I don't think they'll become spoilt brats," said Jack. "Not those two."

Pitch rolled his eyes. "People never thought I would turn dark, but look what happened. Case and point, even the sweetest children have their moments when they misbehave, and these two are no exception. When this happens – and it will – they need to be disciplined. Discipline isn't cruel, and even though the children may start crying their eyes out, it's for their own good. You need to make them understand that rules are there for their own protection, and when you shout at them for misbehaving, it's not because you're being unkind, but because you don't want them to do that stupid thing they did again. The only good thing that will come out of it is that, if they break the rules, they'll hopefully learn from them. That's sometimes the only way they can learn. And when it comes to punishments, for god's sake, follow through with your threats if they get caught. If you don't, they'll think they can get away with it and they'll do it again."

The Guardians only stared. "That was...long winded," said Tooth.

"I'm not even finished." Pitch took a few moments to catch his breath before he began again. "The size of the leash you place upon the children must be reasonable; you can't let them run wild and do whatever they like," He glared at Jack as he said this, "otherwise it may result in them hurting themselves or others, and having no control over your children is never a good thing. On the other hand, you can't rein them in too close, otherwise they'll be all the more desperate to break free – and it may result in them hurting themselves or others, again. There must be a decent balance between the two. I suppose balance is the key when it comes to parenting; not too much but not too little."

"Sounds like a lot of work," Jack admitted.

"Parenting is work, work, work; it's a job which lasts for twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week with no breaks," said Pitch. "Yes, you'll be tired; yes, you'll be stressed and frustrated; you just have to suck it up and get on with it. And no matter what you do, you will make a mistake at least once or twice, and when you do, it's not an excuse to give up and walk out or never let the children do anything again. Children are not the only ones who learn things throughout the experience; parents do, too. You will have those days where you wish they would just grow up already, but when they're grown up and gone, you'll wish they're children again because no matter how much stress it causes, these will soon be the most treasured years of your life."

Neither of the Guardians knew what to say. "Finished now?" Bunny asked curiously.

"Almost." Pitch let out another breath. "Speaking of growing up, a minor point applies to this special case; what's going to happen when they grow up and decide to leave? Sure, if they stay, there will be no problems. But if they leave, where will they go? You don't have their birth certificates, their social security numbers or any of their documents – and even if you retrieve them, right now these children have disappeared off the face of the Earth. If they reappear again from out of nowhere, people will start asking questions, and unless you come up with a very good lie, they'll be forced to tell the truth and end up in an asylum."

"We never thought about that," Tooth admitted.

"Well think about it," Pitch continued. "There's also the case of school and education, although with that huge library you keep at the Pole, this shouldn't be much of a problem."

"Correct." North nodded. "And before you ask, we have their medical care sorted out; one of my yetis who takes care of me is trained in human medicine, and while Tooth isn't a trained dentist, she knows enough to cover that area."

"Very well," said Pitch. "That should be all you need to know. Please don't ever call me unless things are very serious – especially during the teenage years. I may not have been around when Eartha was that age, but I've seen enough to know how bad it can get."

"Fine, we won't bother you," said Bunny. "But thanks for coming and telling us; we needed that."

"Don't thank me. Really, don't. I only came because Eartha asked me..." He trailed off, looking over to the side, and when the Guardians turned to look too they saw what he had spotted – or rather, who he had spotted.

Sophie entered the room, dragging Dingle by his hat behind her, but she froze at the sight of Pitch. It took a few seconds for her to register that this was the Boogeyman stood before her, and when it did, she gave a frightened squeak before letting go of the elf and darting behind Bunny. The elf picked himself up, and also noticing Pitch, he turned to run in fright.

"Sophie!" Jamie came running in a few seconds later, only to skid to a halt at the sight of Pitch. Unlike his sister, however, he seemed more uncertain than afraid. "Um..." He turned to the others for support.

"He was just leaving," said Jack, before turning to Pitch and giving him a 'you touch them and you're dead' look.

Pitch rolled his eyes before he turned to leave, but after having a second thought, turned back again. "And if you want to stop their Nightmares, here's a trick; hang dream-catchers in their rooms and have Sanderson sprinkle them with his sand." And then he was gone.

The Guardians and the Bennett children stared at the empty space where Pitch had been standing...before Jack suddenly began to smirk.

Bunny was immediately suspicious. "Jack...?"

"I just realized something," said the young Guardian, addressing the Pooka. "Pitch's daughter is Mother Nature, right? Meaning she's practically the mother of everyone on Earth – well, besides you and Sandy. But does this make Pitch everyone's grandfather?"

The Guardian of Hope realized Jack knowing this couldn't be good. His suspicions were confirmed later that night when Jack was tossed into his warren by a very angry Pitch, who simply told the boy, "Don't ever call me 'Gramps' again."