Author's note: Beware, this chapter may give you da feels!

IHaveNoName and IDC- I didn't take your message the wrong way and I really wish I could do a little in third person but I discovered that most stories I write, when I have been writing in one particular style for any period of time, it gets hard for me to switch and still make the story sound good.

Isella of the wolf tribe-Thanks! I'm glad I could make you laugh! XD

Tracy Hodgkin- You are most definitely right! It'll get serious at moments but it wouldn't be my story if it wasn't funny at some moments and I can say that there will be a really funny moment in a later chapter that I think you'll like! XD


Pitch's POV:

Okay, maybe finding Frost was a lot harder than I expected but I will not give up! He's the reason I fell in our last battle and, if he thought I would forget, he was wrong! I'll find him and make him pay for humiliating me if it's the last thing I do. The globe isn't showing any signs of him though; all spirits and believers appear on the globe at all times, meaning he should be on it but it's like there's some dark magic clouding his location. I've been pacing back and forth in irritation. Where is he?!


Jack's POV:

I watched the fire glow, warm and comforting, as I read The Night Before Christmas to my sister. She listened, wonder shining in her eyes, to each line I read. It was the perfect Christmas Eve. My mother sat in the background, smiling at us as she finished dinner for the family.

My sister looked at me with a curious look in her eyes. "Has anyone ever seen Santa?"

"Very few over the years." I answered.

"Have you ever seen him?"

"No."

She narrowed her eyes in confusion. "Then how do you know he's real?"

I looked at her with a playful gleam. "Do you stop believing in the moon when the sun comes up?"

She giggled. "No."

"If I left to visit another world, would you stop believing I was ever your brother?" I laughed.

She started laughing as well. "No. I'd always believe in you. You're my big brother."

I smiled. "Seeing isn't believing, kiddo."

She gave me a funny look before hugging me and smiling. "You're not gonna get a lump of coal again, are you?" She joked.

I laughed and placed a hand over my heart in mock sadness. "You wound me with your words."

We played and laughed together the rest of the evening. Just me and my sister.


Still Jack's POV:

The peaceful sound of winter birds upon the mountain echoed in my ears. I moved around, wishing for the distant feel of warmth to come back to me and for my sister to be there beside me when I opened my eyes, shouting at me to get up because Santa had come but as reality came back to me, I realized it was only a dream; a really wonderful dream. Wait, what?

I opened my eyes, coming back into familiarity with the ice cold palace surrounding me. I remembered the incident with Ella at about one o clock in the morning and was about to pass that off as a dream as well, until I realized I wasn't shackled to the floor anymore, proving that that had actually happened last night. What was even more puzzling though was the fact that I had a good dream. Did the Nightmare leave? Even if it did, it wouldn't explain why I wasn't just condemned to a dreamless sleep. Just as I remembered the Nightmare advancing on me last night I narrowed my eyes, going to search for it and give it another good punch in the snout. The nightmare I had before the dream was not pleasant!

I stood up, and that was when I noticed the new, strangely shaped block of ice in the middle of the room. Walking up to it, I saw ice spiking up out of the floor around it and I carefully avoided them. The block was covered with delicate frost patterns swirling all across it but behind it I could make out something small and golden poking out through it. I brushed away the frost, revealing the eye of the creature plaguing me last night, staring back at me, horrified and frozen to death.

I stumbled back a few steps at the truly horrific, definitely dead creature behind the inch of ice separating it from everything else. True, I kill them every day but I had never done something like that. I walked back, keeping my eye on the statue. Did I kill it in my sleep or something?! No, I can't do that much without my staff from that many feet away so the only explanation…Ella.

Why did she do that? Why did she help me and give me a good dream after almost trying to kill me? It just doesn't make any sense. I walked through the corridors, each one with morning light streaming through the walls, searching for her. It was time that I got some answers to some of these questions. I went down the third corridor to the right, remembering it as the one I walked down when I threw the snowball at her. She'd appeared out of nowhere so I'm assuming that she came from one of the doors close to it.

I looked down the hall, at a half open door and walked up to it, peering inside. The room was fairly simple, aside from the gigantic pile of snow in the middle of it. I stepped in quietly, looking around; there were beautiful designs carved into the wall signifying that this had to be a special room. They all looked like she'd tried to destroy or erase them so I could barely make out each one after a few moments of looking at them. I walked further into the room, finding something on the wall that I did not expect to find. Me.

Okay, not just me, but there was a picture of me trying to get a bunch of kids' attention, the incident with Jamie and the sled, when I'd been pushed aside because his tooth popped out. It showed me getting upset and her frowning in the background. Did she feel…bad for me? It then showed her following me, watching me, smiling. I walked further to see a picture of me and her laughing and smiling, that is, until it came to a picture of me defeating Pitch, surrounded by kids and the Guardians, while she stayed on side lines, unnoticed, unhappy. I stared at them, wide-eyed. She practically had my entire battle with Pitch all mapped out in drawings and she was there the whole time, I just never saw her. All those times I went looking for her to apologize and she was probably right behind me!

She looked so depressed and unwanted…just like I used to be. I jumped slightly when I heard something move behind me and turned my head towards the sound. I looked around, eyes searching for something but all there was in the room was the odd pile of snow. I narrowed my eyes, looking closer and realized the snow was breathing. I silently stepped up to the pile and leaned down, examining it carefully and realized it wasn't just snow, it was a blanket. My eyes widened and I moved back: I was in her room. She hadn't exactly been hidden but because of how pale she was, and the fact that her hair was the same color as freshly fallen snow, she'd blended in perfectly.

For once, she didn't have her normal evil/mischievous smirk on or look like she was born from pure hatred itself, she looked…beautiful. I shook the thought from my head, feeling a little stupid that it was ever in there, but she really did look much more at peace and normal, aside from her sleeping in a pile of snow. I stood there, knowing that the best thing to do would be to leave before she woke up, not moving, and stared at her. The light pouring through the ice walls made her pure white hair glow like it was a part of the snow itself. I froze stiff, I felt like a creepy stalker at that moment and that's coming from the one who was kidnapped by her. Her breaths were soundless and calm, so much so that I wouldn't have ever even noticed them, had I not seen her first.

She turned over in her bed and my breath caught in my throat. Her crystal blue eyes were open and staring me straight in the face. That's it, I'm dead! She stared at me with a blank and unreadable expression on her face, while I, being the idiot that I am, stood in the same spot, and continued to stare back at her. Her eyes hadn't started turning blood red yet but she could still be debating whether she's going to be angry or sarcastic about it. She wasn't saying anything; was she still half asleep? Suddenly, she buried herself deeper into the snow, and halfheartedly threw a snowball at my chest.

I blinked a few times at her response, not really sure what to do. She sat up completely, snow falling off her and brushed her hair out of her face to see me clearly enough.

"That's really ironic." She said suddenly.

"Um…it's not what it looks like!" I said, feeling very awkward at that moment.

She raised an eyebrow in amusement and stood up in front of me. "Isn't it?"

I wasn't sure why she didn't seem to care that I was her 'domain' but, either way, I wasn't complaining. It could be much worse. I was thinking about asking her about the pictures on the wall but stopped myself; there was probably a reason she tried to scratch them out. It was probably kind of like her own pictographic diary that she didn't want to have to read anymore.

She walked around me and out into the hallway, heading back down to the throne room, and I followed, seeing it as the perfect moment to ask about her weird and unpredictable actions last night. She was sitting in her throne, staring at the statue standing near the back of her throne room like it was some sort of trophy she'd won for herself. It made more sense to me that the Nightmares were so obedient to her rather than Pitch. He treated his like a flawless army and she treats them like she's ready to strike down any disobedient creature that defies her, making her more feared by them than Pitch.

I lost myself in my thoughts when a very serious problem came to mind. Where were the Guardians? I know that I was asleep for three days when I first came here and it's been another two or three days since then. I have a feeling if I ask Ella if they were still looking for me, she'd probably lie, saying they weren't. I know that I can't exactly find it in me to forgive them for the three centuries of isolation yet but they've got to at least still be looking…right? I looked over at Ella.

"I want you to tell me the truth…are they actually still searching for me?" I asked and she lifted her head up at the sudden question.

I watched as she debated in her head how to answer that. She let out a sigh. "Yes."

I let out an unheard sigh of relief. I knew that it was unlikely they'd find me any time soon unless she brought the magic wall surrounding the place down but it was good to know that they were still looking for me.

"Don't get your hopes up cause they're not going to find you themselves." She assured.

"I know."

She looked up and blinked in surprise. "You know?"

"Yeah but the fact that they're still taking time out to try and find me, proves that they do care, even if only a little." I explained.

I leaned back against the wall, avoiding her stare. "Why did you do that?" I asked, pointing at the dark statue standing in the middle of the floor. She looked up at it dully.

"I decided that your constant whining in your sleep was starting to get really annoying and I thought the statue would provide some atmosphere." She lied to me.

"Then why was I given a good dream afterward?"

She froze stiff, realizing her mistake, and took a few more silent moments to try and come up with a believable answer, but I knew I'd already caught her red handed. She narrowed her eyes at me, starting to get really irritated.

"Just because I was feeling charitable at that moment, doesn't mean that I care in any way if that's what you're suggesting." She stated harshly.

"Yeah, and I suppose you were just feeling charitable when you decided not to kill me last night." I persisted with a smirk.

I could see that her eyes were starting to change color and she kept them focused forward, noticeably trying to hold back her anger. I dialed it down a bit with a more grateful expression.

"Thank you."

Her eyes turned blue with a slightly surprised expression covering her features. She looked at me suspiciously, trying to spot any joking look or dishonesty in my eyes to see if I was just messing with her, before looking a bit confused when I showed no such thing. She looked forward again, breathing heavily.

"You're…welcome?"

I smiled inwardly.

"So…" I started awkwardly. "What's with the Nightmares anyway? I thought only Pitch could control them."

She looked at the statue, slightly smiling at the memory of how terrified it looked when she froze it to death. "Anyone can control them if they have authority but only the Nightmare King can make them. Pitch's fatal move was trusting them to do their job. That and he was arrogant and too ambitious for his own good." She explained.

It became painstakingly obvious at that moment that she did not approve of the Nightmare King's actions. Her actions would be exactly like his if it weren't for the fact that she wasn't threatening any kids…yet. The idea of her bringing the next Ice Age would be very bad. Luckily, for now, she appears to only want the other spirits' attention.

"Oh, he did seem a bit too ambitious, didn't he." I answered sarcastically.

She narrowed her eyes. "Why are you being so friendly?"

I stared her in the face. "One, because I'm bored and you seem a lot friendlier in the morning than I've seen you any other time; two, because I hate silence and awkwardness, and three, I feel bad for you and want to make sure that when you finally do decide to bring me with you to get the Guardians' attention, you aren't as hostile and we can help you and adopt you into our little friends circle."

She stared at me, dumbfounded for a second before gaining an angry look. "What did you say?" She asked threateningly.

Instead of backing down, I walked up to her. "It doesn't matter if you freeze me into an ice block or bury me in the snow for hours, I won't lie to appeal to you. I don't expect you to forgive me for the night I hurt you but as far as the kidnapping is concerned, I forgive you. Whether you believe it or not, I want to help."


Ella's POV:

I was about to snap in half at his words, partly because of how much I so desperately wanted them to be true and partly because I was boiling over with anger and emotions. He should be running for his life right now; yet, he stands firm, as serious as he could possibly be. No, he didn't care! No one does or ever will! I shook with rage and stared him in the face.

"You're not supposed to forgive me!" I breathed heavily. "You-You…"

For once, I was at a loss for words and I was furious. He wasn't really forgiving me for anything, he just knew it would send me off the edge.

"I don't need your forgiveness!" I spat through gritted teeth.

"No but I'm giving it." He answered.

I could hear my heart beat getting faster and faster in my chest as each second passed. This was not how things were supposed to go; I was not supposed to open up to that idiot for even a second and now it's taking its toll on me. He was trying to rile up my hope so he can tear it down, he's just waiting for me to let him in and take advantage of it. I actually thought he would have been a little different but it seems he's become just like every other ungrateful, arrogant, selfish fool that walks the planet!

"Save it, I'm not falling for it." I hissed.

He shook his head sadly, almost like he was disappointed. "You'd like to think I'm joking, wouldn't you?"

"I don't think, I know." I spat, venom sounding in my voice. "People like you couldn't care less. You're just waiting to build up my hope so you can tear it down again!"

"So this is about the day I hurt you." He clarified and I immediately realized my mistake.

Raw energy was pounding inside my head as each word he said echoed in my mind. I was done! I raced down the hall, into a room and magically sifted through the ice, pulling out a long wooden staff. This would prove that he didn't care cause, the moment I lift the wall, he'll be gone in a flash. I didn't even care about getting the other's attention as long as I could prove my point that no one, let alone him, cared.

I went back down the hall to where he was standing and chucked it at him. He barely caught it and stumbled back, looking at it and then at me with surprise. I flicked my wrist and the magic wall came falling down and a door that hadn't been visible appeared and opened.

"There! You happy! You won! GET OUT!" I screamed.

There was a long moment he was staring at the outside longingly. Why wouldn't he just leave already?! The door was open, he had his weapon, he had his freedom, and yet, he didn't budge from his spot. It didn't matter how long he looked at it, he would eventually abandon this place and escape as fast as he could. It was inevitable. He was cruel just like the rest of them.

He looked behind him at the door, then at the staff, and then stared me dead in the face. "No."

My world came crashing down at that moment. N-No?! He looked like he seriously wasn't going to leave. I shook my head in denial and slowly backed away. This wasn't happening, this wasn't real. He was just trying to toy with my emotions before leaving or even striking out to kill me. My fists clenched as I shot a burst of ice towards him, deliberately missing, so that I might scare him off. He jumped away slightly but didn't leave.

"It isn't funny! Leave before I change my mind!" I shouted but he shook his head.

"What if I don't want to?" He asked.

I narrowed my eyes which were turning red with hatred and anger. He walked forward towards me and I backed away from him. I won't lie by saying that I wasn't terrified; all my life, I was always the one who was feared by others and void of any contact…any emotion. I shot more ice but he ignored it until he was right up in front of me. He tried to take another step and I raised my hand above my head, ready to hit him but, as my hand came down, his hand snapped out, catching my wrist. I stared at him for the longest time, pure hatred and anger bleeding out. I couldn't do it, I just couldn't kill him. Not because I was incapable of killing him because, if I really wanted to, I could snap my fingers and he would be dead like the rest of the people I kill each year. No, I couldn't kill him because I liked him and it was burning me from the inside out.

"I…want…to…help." He stated defiantly and wrapped his arms around me, embracing me in a hug.

I couldn't handle it. It was too much. The desire to be cared about was pounding in my head and I broke. I broke out into sobs. I hadn't cried in thousands of years…and the worst part is…it felt good. Voices echoed in mind. Some saying to kill him now, some saying to believe him, and some screaming at me to stop crying. I clutched my head with one hand, trying to be rid of them all, and held onto his arm with a death grip with the other hand. Anger still pulsed through my veins but was also overshadowed with the desire of something I had cut myself away from for hundreds of years. I didn't care though; I just wanted it all to stop.


Jack's POV:

Her hand snapped out to strike me as I got closer but I quickly stopped it with my free hand. She stared at me, hate spilling out but, in her eyes, I could see tears. No one deserves to be alone as long as I had, let alone thousands of years longer. I saw her walls crashing down and her eyes were wide with both fury and fear. She was afraid to let anyone in.

"I…want…to…help." I stated in an 'end of discussion' tone.

Then, I did something she didn't expect. I dropped my staff to the floor and wrapped my arms around her. I felt her collapse in my arms and break out in to heart wrenching sobs. Though she still seemed to weakly try and push herself away from me, I held her firm in my embrace. Her tears were half way freezing as they slid down her cheek but there seemed to be so many of them that they couldn't freeze completely before getting pushed out of the way by another. Only a few days ago, I could've mistaken her for a she-demon but, as each choked sob shuddered through her body, she looked like nothing more than a neglected child who desperately wished for love and contact…like me.

After a few moments, I was beginning to feel like crying with her. It reminded me of how much pain I was in during the three centuries of isolation I went through, asking questions that I thought would never be answered. Her pain started echoing in my mind and I was certain that it if I could feel it like this, than it had to be ten times worse for her. Someone should never have to be alone that long. I wasn't sure exactly what I was going to do when she stopped crying but what I did know, was that I was never going to let her be alone again.

We sat like that on the floor for a half hour before she finally pushed herself away from me and I let go, not wanting to make her uncomfortable. She just sat there, wordless, her hair hanging in front to hide her face. I brushed away the strands of silvery white hair away. Her eyes were glowing bright blue and still had a few tears hidden in them. She breathed in heavily, refusing to meet my eyes.

I reached to the side, grasping my staff with one hand and her hand with the other. She looked at me, painfully confused. I placed my staff into her hand and stood up, offering a hand to help her up but she didn't take it. Instead, she continued to stare at the staff I just placed in her hands.

"Why?" She asked in a whisper, her voice still raw from crying.

I reached down, grabbing her hand and pulling her to her feet. "I'm going to prove that the world isn't as cruel and heartless as you think, starting with the Guardians. Do you still not believe me?"

She didn't answer.

"I'm going to stay here with you and were going to wait for them to come to us, then you can tell me what you think, sound good?" I watched as she paused in thought for a moment, and, to my surprise, shook her head in agreement.

Her eyes lifted to look at mine, spite hidden within them. "We'll see who's right in the end."


Author's note: This was the most feelz filled chapter I have ever written!

Ella: *Hugging Jack and crying* I'm sorry I was so mean to you!

Jack: *Hugging Ella and crying* I'm sorry I called you a demon!

Ella: *Abruptly stops and narrows her eyes at Jack* I never heard you say that.

Jack: *Eyes widen, and laughs nervously* No but I was thinking it.

*girlish screams echo through the halls*