Jack was laughin' and hollerin' as the end of the tunnel into North's opened up, and he jumped out. "Ah! Now that was fun!" He told me as I followed him out.

"I'm glad ya think so, mate." I told him with a slight shove. "Now, where is..."

"Bunny! Jack! Is good to see you!"

"I think we just found him." Jack joked at me with a slight laugh as North quickly made his way towards us, while tryin' to not step on the elves under his boots. "Hey there, North."

"I take it everything went well."

"Well...about that, mate..."

"Jack...why do you still have two different eye colors?"

Jack clutched his staff nervously as he looked at me. I placed a paw on his shoulder and gave him a reassuring nod. As small as the action was, it only further reminded me of Mother Nature's words to me about being like a brother to Jack. Now that I admitted she was right, I couldn't see how I didn't notice it earlier. Decades earlier. Jack gave me a small smile and looked back at North with a sigh. "We know what...or rather who is to blame for me being like this..."

"Was it Pitch!?"

"N-No..."

"Well then...who could it be?"

"It was me..." I started to admit and was about to say it was them as well, but before I could even say another word I was met with the end of North's sword.

"Explain yourself, Bunny! How badly could you have hurt Jack to turn him into a half spirit?" The anger in his eyes was pure, but there was also something further back. It looked like patience mixed with pain.

"North..." Jack started. When North didn't turn to face him, Jack placed his hand on North's hand that held the sword. "It was Bunny...but it was also you and Tooth."

"W-What?" The anger in his eyes vanished, and pain as well as confusion came forward almost instantly as he turned away from me with a breath of disbelief, looking to Jack for further explanation.

"Well...you see North...Um..."

"North..." I started, and he thankfully lowered his sword, but still remained in his vice grippin' hand. "We've done wrong by Jack. At Easter...we pushed him away. We didn't give him a chance to explain...I almost hit him and said we shouldn't have trusted him, and when he turned to you and Tooth...the two of you looked away...I saw it when I turned around. We were supposed to be guidin' him and bein' patient with him...instead...we hurt him...but it doesn't end there...If it wasn't for Mother Nature...Jack would've been completely on his own for three hundred years...we call ourselves guardians...those who protect the hopes, dreams, wonder, and memories in children...yet we ignored an immortal child who often times felt he had no hope, we don't know his dreams, we don't know what he sees wonder in, and he's not only an immortal child...but at the time, he was an immortal child with amnesia. He had to make his own memories, and since he's three hundred years old...a lot of them might not be that great."

North staggered back against the railing, and once his back hit it, he turned around to look at the globe with all its brilliant lights that signified children who believed. He looked at it in silence for some time before his hands just dropped at his sides and he lowered his head. "I...I..." He seemed to have trouble findin' the words to say what he wanted to, so we just stood there patiently as he continued to looked down to the ground. "Jack, what happened...how did you become more...you? How did you fix?"

"Well...it wasn't easy..." Jack told him lettin' out a breath I'm pretty sure he hadn't realized he was holdin'.

"He's right. Once he realized that I figured out I was mostly to blame...he ran away. I had to go and look for him, but his voice was comin' from everywhere and nowhere. It was unbelievable. Anyway, I admitted I was in the wrong, and I genuinely meant it. I apologized and he forgave me. Then...he had a heart attack." If North's eyes could grow any wider it was at my words. His usually rosy cheeks that were depicted as such in so many books...had turned as pale as Jack's skin. "Don't worry though...he didn't die...we got him to Mother Nature's in time, and he now officially has a heart beat. However..."

"However..." North started with a shaky sigh. "...Jack, I am so sorry I hurt you. I can't say it wasn't my intention as it wouldn't matter if it was or not, but I am sorry Jack. I should've listened to explanation. I should've...well...there's a lot of should've done that I can list...but it doesn't change the hurt Tooth and I caused. I am deeply sorry Jack." He sheathed his blade and walked towards us, and placed his hands on Jack's shoulders. "You won't feel like that again, I promise...well, I can promise Bunny and I won't be cause of it. Can you...can you forgive me, Jack?"

"Thank you, North." Jack beamed up at him. "I forgive you, and I'm sure Tooth is busy, but I forgive her too. I feel like she would give the same apology you just did."

"That's good to hear, Jack." North gave Jack a tight hug, but it quickly ended as Jack cried out in pain again. However, it wasn't merely a heart attack this time. Hearin' his screams North quickly let go and stepped back. I did as well as we both watched Jack curl in on himself on the floor as he continued to scream in agony. Then, he started to glow brightly, almost blindingly so. The light flared in and out a few times, then, the light retreated back into his body, only to be let out again with not just light alone. Large ice spires, similar to the one that was in my shoulder. "Bunny, what is happening!?"

"I-I dunno, mate. It wasn't this bad before." I told him honestly with a panicked expression. Suddenly, as the spires continued to grow, there was a strange blackness to them. "I-Is that...black sand within the ice?"

"PITCH! It must've happened when Jack forced his nightmares back while in the air. It must've gotten into him somehow." North explained with his own fear takin' over his eyes.

At the look of fear that crossed over North's eyes, my own started sinkin' in as I remembered what Pitch's powers could do to a person. "Wait...is he...is he gonna become a..."

"I'm not sure Bunny..."

"Well then be sure!" I interrupted with a shout. "We owe him that much! Hell...we owe him more than we can even say!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. 'More than I am allowed to say, thanks to the blood oath with Mother Nature.'

"We must get him somewhere he can be contained. The pole and your Warren are not appropriate places, and we have no way to get him to Mother Nature's because she only allows herself and her children in."

My eyes shot wide with a glimmer of hope when I remembered what Mother Nature had done with Jack's staff. "Actually, we do!" I crouched down to Jack who's voice was almost gone from screaming as he clutched tightly to himself. "Jack! If ya can understand me...we need to get you to Mother Nature's. I need you to take us!"

"Bunny...how would Jack be able to take..."

"My...staff...Aster...I...give...you...permission...to use...my...staff!"

"Jack..." I whispered out in shock. "How...how am I supposed to use your staff?"

"Give it...to...me..." I did as he asked and he gripped it tightly from my hands. Now, instead of just one area of the staff frosting, the whole damn thing was covered in it. "Aster...don't let...go...of...the staff..." I did as he asked and continued to hold onto it until he said otherwise. For a second I thought he was gonna say something but then my mind buzzed and my ears rang as his voice entered my mind. 'E. Aster Bunnymund I...give...you my...word that...I will never...use...your name to...utter...a single command or...threaten your...life. I don't...understand how I...know how...to...do this, but...For now...my staff is yours!' As soon as his thought was finished the frost disappeared in the blink of an eye, and was bein' replaced with beautiful emerald green moss, which grew rapidly up and down the staff. "You've been there...just...picture it...and tap the...staff...twice."

Without needin' to be told twice, I picked up Jack and gave him to North. Thankfully, he took him rather quickly and Jack fell unconscious. I did as Jack said, and suddenly we appeared in front of Mother Nature herself in her own domain. It was completely different from the snow globes as it just took us within practically the same breath. "Oh my...Aster...how is that you have Jack's staff...!? How is it you're here and Jack is unconscious? Why does he look...Is that...black sand coming out of the ice that's coming out of him?" She asked as she immediately clasped her hands to her mouth in worried shock.

"Long story...and yes...we believe so...we...don't know what may happen. This would be the safest place for him. Safer than the Warren or the pole at least."

"Right you are, my dear. Aster, take him to his room. I will get North's side of the story and then I will hear yours."

"Yes, ma'am." I took Jack from North, who now wore a confused glare at me, but I didn't really have time for that right now. I did as she asked and took him straight to his room, and set him down on the bed that had healed him from earlier. I sat in the chair next to his bed for about thirty minutes before I heard the door open. However, my eyes stayed on Jack, who was just barely breathing...again. "Aster...North told me that you and Jack both told him what was happening to him...he apologized and Jack forgave both him and Tooth at the same time...and then he collapsed in pain. He said that's when the ice spires started shooting out of him with black sand mixed in...is that correct?"

Her voice was dripping with so much concern and caution, I finally turned to face her with the defeated and confused expression on my face. "Yeah...that's the right of it. He...um...North didn't hear it, but I did..."

"Does this have to do with how Jack's staff was able to work in your hands?" I nodded my head, losin' my voice then and there. "I see. North is quite concerned about that. He is also a bit baffled because he's never heard of someone being able to transfer their magical item's power to another person before." I shrugged my shoulders and returned my gaze to Jack's motionless body. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"I..." My voice broke and I hated it, but this has been such a damn emotional roller coaster, and when Pooka feel emotion, we feel it with all we got. Just a few days ago I wanted nothin' to do with him and fought it the whole way. Then, it turns out he was actually a good bit of help...then I sent him away...then he comes back makin' Jamie believe in me...then he gets turned into a half spirit...then I find out it's because we all pushed him away...then I find out Jack is Nightlight...and even after all that...the strongest...most painful emotion I'm feeling right now isn't one of shock, confusion, or even anger at all of the revelations, and some of which I still think I should've known, but none of that compares to this. The most painful emotion I'm feelin' right now is heartbreak, because after all the years of knowing Jack, and especially recently...he really has become like an annoying mischievous little brother...and I feel like I'm watchin' him die. Especially with what I know Pitch's power is capable of doin'.

"Aster?" She asked me again with merely my name and all the strength I had in me left.

"I can't lose him, Mother Nature...He's like a brother to me...I..."

I heard her gracefully make her way towards me, and felt her gentle hand rest on my shoulder. "What happened with Jack's staff, sweetie?"

"It's...a bit complicated...He...somehow knew he was able to do it, but he didn't know HOW he was able to do it. He gave me his staff...by making both of us hold onto it...and he...he said my name. My full name and he swore that he would never use my name in a command or to threaten my life...and he told me that for now...his staff is mine."

"My goodness...well I suppose that would be an alternative for him."

"An alternative for what?" I sniffed out as I looked at her with a perplexed expression.

"Well...Aster...you know that it's possible for two spirits to know each other's real name as long as both give permission to use it, right? It's just never been done before."

"Yeah...what are ya gettin' at?"

"Well...seeing as Jack doesn't actually know his real name...and you said that he told you he didn't know how he knew what to do or say...but he did anyway...well...that's just like when someone is faced with the decision to accept or deny someone the ability to say their name. He must've felt it then somehow. Perhaps Manny is to blame, knowing who he was beforehand he more than likely set different rules for him. Not only that...but we have all determined that Jack's staff is as much a part of him as his own heart and soul...and he handed...no...he entrusted that to you."

"S-So...this is basically me knowing his true name?"

"You already know it regardless, but in Jack's case..." She made a calculative face as she looked at Jack. She went towards him and held a hand over his core and instead of the golden glow it usually held, it held a bright white light that surrounded her hand and Jack himself. Once she pulled her hand away, the light dimmed, and she gave me a reassuring smile. "...yes...it seems Manny really did set different rules for Jack, and that means you two now hold the equivalent of two spirits who know each other's true names. You are the first two to do it."

"So uh..." I started with my eyes wide and my mind goin' a mile a minute. "...what are the different rules for Jack, and how does it affect me?"

"Well...for starters, if he knew someone's real name and was entrusted with it, then it would be a bit different from the original rules."

"How so?"

"I'm sure you're well aware of how protective someone can be for the person that knows their name, yes?"

"Yeah, I've heard about it, but..."

"Well..." She interrupted, "...considering both Manny and I created him...that feeling would be placed tenfold. Everything would be, really. You may have been mistaken when you thought it was the same for all spirits who have their names entrusted to someone...you may have thought it would create a brotherly bond...but that is actually not the case. It would create a stronger bond, that's for certain, but really...all it would ever do under normal circumstance...all it would do is make your friendship stronger by you feeling like you need to make sure he's healthy, happy, doing well, keeping up with friends, hanging out, and making sure if he's hurt he's taken care of. You would do all that, before thinking of yourself. However, in Jack's case...he knew your real name...you entrusted it to him...and when he was being attacked, you did something you swore you would never do again, and you used your staff against another spirit. You were willing to do anything to make sure that he was not harmed or killed. You entrusted your name to him, and the brotherly bond that was already there before you gave him your name...was made even stronger. Once you gave him your name and openly trusted him with it, it went from friends who act like brothers to brothers who can be friends...and now that Jack has, in his own way, given you his name...or well...rather...everything who he is, by giving you the staff...the cycle then became, Friends who act like brothers, brothers who can be friends, and now it's just...brothers. You will treat him as if he were born your brother as a Pooka, and he will treat you as if you were born his brother as a human. Both of you will of course still know the obvious difference, but it won't change the feeling of it."

"I...so...is it...I've always wondered since..."

"Ah...yes, if I do remember correctly, you were one of the very few spirits who thought it would all be artificial because of someone knowing your name...no, this is all very real, and all it does is amplify what's already there. In Jack's case...it amplifies it tenfold. You will feel like you aren't yourself for quite some time, but that's because you're getting used to your new, much stronger, emotions."

"So...he...I'm not just overreactin'. I couldn't deny it when ya said it. He's been kind of like a brother to me, and I don't know how I didn't see it sooner, but somethin' changed when he gave me his staff...so..." I honestly don't know why I was havin' such a hard time grasping the concept but I was. I mean, this was Jack we were talkin' about, and he gave me his staff!

"You're basically brothers now, in the simplest sense."

"W-What do I do now?" I asked her as I looked helplessly at Jack's still form. There were new ice shards here and there, and it only served to further worry me.

"That is up to you." She sighed out with motherly concern.

"How long...how long will he be like this?"

"I'm not sure. I've never seen this happen before...Pitch has been able to turn people into fearlings with great ease...people even stronger than Jack...but this isn't like how he normally did it...because his and Jack's encounter as well as their battle wasn't normal either. I can feel the energy coming off of the ice more and more due to the fact that his bed is trying to heal him, but...it can't. Anyway, the energy he is giving off...it's four different energies."

"What do ya mean?" I asked as I narrowed my eyes at her.

"He is fighting...but it's not just a fight against the black sand or the possibility at becoming a fearling...which unfortunately...is a possibility. He is fighting Pitch's power and his three selves. Nightlight, Jackson Overland Frost, and Jack Frost."

"Wait...he's fighting for control or something? But...He is Nightlight and Jackson and Jack..."

"That he is...but he has to pick which one he wants to be forever after this...or become a fearling. He has to make a choice...what exactly that choice entails...I'm not sure...we should let him rest, Aster. The others have arrived, and it's time I told them everything. Manny had contacted me just before you arrived telling me it's time...so let's go."