So I moved on from the Walking Dead to True Blood. Oh my life is one TV series after another. But I managed to squeeze this chapter out between it all! But the more you review, the faster they come! Anyways, highly recommend you check out the song of the chapter. Florence + the Machine is my favourite band possibly ever. Her lyrics are really incredible. The songs about coming to truth with reality after being stuck in an illusion. Unfortunately Jack's confused about his true identity, and Pitch has something to say about it. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own anything but my own characters. Everything else belongs to DreamWorks

Song of the Chapter: Blinding – Florence + the Machine

Chapter Nine: The Darkest Truths

The globe room was quiet except for the soft jingle of bells. Elves swayed slowly back and forth, the bells on their hats giving a soothing chorus of chimes. Lit candles created a warm glow in the large room, the golden light a tribute to the brave man they had lost. For now was a time of mourning. Sandy had fought bravely in the face of death and his memory was to be honored. The three remaining Guardians, Jack and Ellie stood around a star on the floor, each giving parting words to their fallen friend and letting their tears release.

After the honoring ceremony, Jack had refused to call it a funeral, the company departed, each going their separate ways. Jack saw Ellie's arm reach out to him, her eyes watering in her grief, but he brushed her off, not needing her sympathy in a time like this. For Jack didn't deserve sympathy. It was his fault Sandy had fallen. He had been the closest to him. He should have done better to protect him, to fight for him. But Pitch had finished the job before he had a chance to reach him.

Without paying attention to where he was going, only knowing he needed to get away, Jack sulked out of the room, pulling his hood over his eyes. He ignored the look of hurt on Ellie's face as he brushed her off and began wandering through the halls. He didn't know how long he had been walking until he found himself in a place he had never been before. It was an old room, with furniture covered in dust, long ago forgotten, the floor half swept. He shut the door behind him and made his way for the French doors leading onto a balcony. Once outside, he welcomes the cool wind. The air was refreshing. He hadn't realized how stuffy the Workshop had become during the ceremony, only that things didn't feel right without Sandy.

Jack bunched his fists into tight balls on the balcony ledge before yelling out in frustration. A powerful wind blew past him, his emotions mixing with his control over the weather and creating a hefty draft. All the snow on the balcony blew off, swirling angrily in the wind.

"I've been meaning to clear that balcony," a quiet voice said from the doorway leading outside.

Jack turned his attention to the speaker; of course it was the one person he wanted to avoid. Ellie shouldn't see him so vulnerable. "What do you want?" Jack said more curtly than he meant to.

Ellie turned her attention to her shoes, avoiding his eye contact as she stood in the doorway. Apparently she heard his tone too. "I didn't know anyone was up here. I didn't mean to interrupt."

Jack shook his head, frustrated with being interrupted when all he wanted was solitude. How backwards his life had become. "Look Ellie, Now's just not a good time. Go interrupt somebody else," he snapped.

Ellie sucked in a quick breath at his words. "Fine then, don't worry about it. There's plenty of other people I can go bother."

"Try not to get yourself killed on the way while you're at it. We don't need any more casualties. And of everyone here, you're the most likely to hurt yourself. Just another burden for everyone else." His tone was cold, like the winter weather he was so accustom to.

Ellie, who had begun to turn around to leave, snapped back in his direction. "You know what Jack?" she said sharply. "This is your problem. You spend so much time alone and finally when someone offers to be your friend, to help you when times are tough, you push them away. So congratulations, once again, you are alone." Without another word, Ellie turned on her heels and made for the door. Jack watched her as she stormed away, feeling guiltier by the second.

"I'm sorry," he called out after her, feeling ashamed of himself and already deeply regretting his words. "I just don't know how to do this. I'm not good being with people. I've been alone for a long time."

Ellie stopped for a second, her hand on the brass door handle, already pulling it open. "Haven't we all?" she said quietly as she retreated out of the room, her words lost to the wind so Jack never caught them.

He cringed as the door slammed behind her. Once again he was isolated, left alone in the freezing cold to which he was so accustom to. But this time he had done it to himself. He was the one who had pushed her away, the only person who had paid him any attention. Jack turned back to the balcony ledge, his sight over the white horizon, his face void of any emotion except a tear that had escaped his eye. Before it had even reached his nose, it was frozen. A tiny, crystalline tear. Apparently he was meant to be by himself. Whether by his choices or not, he would always end up alone.

After sulking in self pity or a while, Jack pulled himself together. He was no more confident in himself than he had been before his and Ellie's fight. If anything he despised himself more. But sulking would only get a person so far. So instead, Jack removed himself from the cold, wintery, bubble he had isolated himself in, and returned to the globe room.

It took a while for the entire group to congregate back to the globe room, but apparently everybody was feeling anxious to fight back. Being idle would do nothing, and it would mean Sandy's death was in vain. So one by one, after everyone had had their private time to mourn, they reassembled and ideas began to fly. Soon however, frustration began to settle in. No one could agree on a plan. Jack and Bunnymund wanted to confront Pitch immediately; use pure force to get him to surrender and pay for his actions. It was an odd moment when the two agreed with one another but their anger spurred them closer. The rest wanted a more subtle attack; a way to deal with Pitch and restore faith in the children of the world at the same time.

This argument went on for quite a while, Jack and Bunnymund arguing their point full heartedly against three who refused to do something so rash. "Wait a minute!" Santa bellowed aloud, his voice booming over the other four. "Hold phone, hold phone! I have idea!" The arguments stopped, everyone gave their attention to the big man in red. "It is Easter soon, no?"

Bunnymund crossed his paws, none too pleased at being interrupted for someone to point out the obvious. "Yeah, and I've been a little preoccupied lately. Can't even guarantee Easter will be a success."

Booth Jack and Ellie - who had only further damaged their relationship by yelling at each other for the past hour on what to do- furrowed their eye brows, neither catching on to Santa's plan. But Tooth was beginning to buzz faster, following the Santa's train of thoughts.

"The eggs Bunnymund!" she yelled out, not able to contain herself. "We'll help you with the eggs! Give the children something to believe in! With all our help, we can protect the eggs against Pitch!" The fairy clapped her arms together, giving them a toothy smile, the first since Sandy's fall.

Bunnymund tapped his foot on the ground, deep in thought. Everyone around him seemed to be holding their breath waiting for his answer. This could very well be the answer to saving the day. "Alright," he muttered. "Yeah, alright. Let Easter save the day? Sounds good to me."

Tooth clapped her hands together once more before zipping over to Bunnymund and giving him a hug. Bunnymund looked as if he could have done without it. "Oh this is fantastic! This is exactly what Sandy would have wanted; for us to get back on our feet and fight back!"

"Then let's get to the warren!" Bunnymund said pushing her away gently. He was finally getting the appreciation Easter deserved. Everyone held equal looks of relief, finally having a plan of action.

Suiting up, weapons ready in case of emergency, Santa bellowed, "To the sleigh then!"

"Oh no mate. My place, my way of travel," Bunnymund said, thumping his foot heavily on the ground. Before anyone could protest, a large hole opened up beneath their feet, swallowing them into the ground below. Jack was completely caught off guard, letting out an unintelligent sound as he fell down a grassy tunnel. Once recovered from the shock, the trip became fun, an obstacle course of sorts. He was soon laughing and whooping along with the cries coming from everyone else. As quickly as the tunnel opened up, it ended, shooting everyone out into a grassy meadow. Ellie who had been in front of Jack landed flat on her back, Jack shooting out behind and landing on top of her.

"Oufff," she gasped as his weight fell on her chest, making it hard to breathe. "Geroff," she mumbled incomprehensively beneath him.

Jack pushed himself up quickly, holding out a hand for her to use as leverage. A gentle man's action. He could tell by her face though that she was not impressed, still holding a grudge against him. "Sorry," he said quietly, but Ellie brushed off his hand and pulled herself up, refusing to make eye contact. Jack knew he deserved this, but it still felt like a sharp blow to his inners. He would be his own undoing.

Bunnymund, who was increasingly excited at the fact that Easter would be their saving grace, had his arms stretched wide open. A giant grin crossed his face. "Welcome to the Warren," he said like a proud father.

For a momentary second, Jack left all bitter thoughts aside to enjoy the view. The meadow was large and lush, not an inch uncovered with grass. Warm sunlight kissed the hills with a healthy glow, filling every doubt Jack had every felt with hope. He knew it was a foolish and false hope, but for a second he couldn't resist. Apparently the meadow was having a similar effect on everyone else. Jack quickly stole a glance at Ellie, enjoying the smile that stretched across her face. Both Tooth and Santa had goofy smiles on their faces too. A rare occasion in a time so dark.

"It's beautiful," Ellie whispered, walking forward and running her hand across an extravagant flower on a large bush. The act was so tender Jack had to resist the urge to go over to her and grab her hand, feel the warmth transfer from her skin to his. But it was a fool's act. He had hurt her and now he was paying for it with the silent treatment.

"It truly is," Jack let slip. For a quick moment, Ellie's head snapped in his direction. Her eyes narrowed before she turned back away, ignoring him.

Bunnymund hopped forward snapping everyone out of their daze. "Alright, there's work to be done-" but he was caught off guard by a high pitch scream. "What the?

"Get back," Santa ordered, stepping in front of everyone. Without a thought, Jack grabbed Ellie by the wrist, yanking her behind him and using himself as a shield. He could tell she had drawn her bow by the sound of a twang coming from behind him. Everyone else had taken a battle stance, the horrors of what Pitch was capable of still fresh in their minds.

The screaming came nearer, coming from one of Bunnymund's many tunnels lying around the warren. Just as the sound reached its climax in loudness, nothing but a young girl, approximately the age of four, zoomed out of the tunnel. She had poorly cut blonde hair, and was brandishing a colourless Easter egg, giddy with being in the meadow. The five let out a collectively held sigh, each lowering their weapons and laughing awkwardly at the absurdity of it.

"It's just a girl," Bunnymund laughed before becoming more serious. "How on earth is there a girl in the Warren?"

"Oh, snow globe," Santa laughed uneasily.

"How on earth did a little girl get a hold of one of your snow globes?" Jack piped up, eyeing the girl with curiosity. Ellie for once was nodding her head in agreement, her interest taking over her anger at Jack.

"Well, when you two left, there was a bit of a fiasco with a dog and Bunnymund, which led to everyone being knocked out by sleep dust and then when we woke up, one of Santa's globes was missing. I guess we found out where it went!" Tooth rambled on nervously.

"Apparently," Ellie added.

"Well, we'll return her when we're done getting the eggs ready. Easter's our top priority right now," Bunnymund commanded, directing everyone's attention back to the pressing matter. The little girl didn't seem frightened at all, being in a strange meadow with strange people. Instead she was quickly occupied with a bush full of the same delicate, colourful flowers Ellie had found earlier. Bunnymund eyed the girl for a second suspiciously, as if she was about to wreak havoc on his precious meadow. "Right. Well... the plan's to help paint the eggs. It's your job to guide them, make sure they have the best paint jobs at top notch quality," he instructed.

"But where are the eggs-" Ellie began before being interrupted by a load whistle coming from Bunnymund. No sooner had he finished whistling when an endless stream of eggs came filtering out of the tunnels, all colourless and waiting to be painted.

The group worked hard and diligently, fulfilling the quota Bunnymund had given them. The hours passed quickly however, with Ellie doing a good job of ignoring Jack. Any attempt he had made at reconciliation was shot down. It seemed girls need a while to get over fights.

Nearing the completion of his quota, Bunnymund demanded everyone's attention. "We're nearly there guys. Easters less than an hour away and we have almost all the eggs finished. I wanted to thank you for all the help..." Bunnymund's words started to drift from Jack's ears, being replaced by something so familiar yet just out of reach in his memory. It was the sound of a laugh; a laugh he had heard before. Quickly his feet began moving towards the sound, leading him to a tunnel off to the right of the warren.

"Jack, where are you going?" Ellie called out to him, the first real words she had spoken to him since the fight. Everyone else's attention was on him too.

"I just thought I heard something. I'm going to check it out." He was already inside the tunnel when he heard Ellie call back.

"Don't be too long. We're almost ready to go."

The laugh echoed through the tunnel, pulling him deeper into it. It was a sound so familiar, it broke his heart trying to place it. Like liquid water he was trying to grasp in his hand, always slipping through the cracks. The deeper he went in though, the louder the sound became until the tunnel opened up to a grand room. The size was unbelievable. The ceiling so high it was lost in shadows. Long skinny pillars connected floor to roof, and everywhere he looked piles upon piles of golden cases filled the cave like room. "The missing teeth," Jack whispered to himself.

He was just about to turn around and call for the others when a raspy voice called out. "Quite right," the voice bounced off the walls. "And you're looking for this one, aren't you?" Pitch called out, stepping from behind a pile of tooth cases so high, it was triple his height. "I know why you want these memories so badly Jack. They hold the secret to your existence." In his long, skeleton like fingers, Pitch revealed the one case Jack so desperately wanted. Jack had to resist the urge to charge Pitch and pull the case from his hands. "Such as shame, isn't it, to walk the earth for three hundred years, and to not even know why? That must drive you crazy. A boy ripped from his life so suddenly, to be alone and isolated for not one or two, but three centuries! And nobody understands, do they? They tell you to get over yourself, to deal with it. Poor Jacky ends up all alone, even in the company of others."

"Don't talk about me like that," Jack spat, lowering himself into battle stance, his staff ready to fire. "You don't know me."

Pitch advanced towards Jack before slipping into the shadows, but his voice rang loud and clear. "You're a rebel without a cause. No one needs you or wants you, they don't even understand you. How can you love and protect those who care so little for you?" Pitch whispered the last sentence, now behind Jack. It was so eerie how the man could move from place to place at his speed. A chill ran up Jack's spine now. Whether it was because he was so close to Pitch or the horrendous truth in Pitch's words, Jack didn't know.

"They care about me," he gritted out, turning sharply on the spot to confront Pitch who had already vanished, Jack meeting empty air.

Pitch's voice now carried from a corner far off in the room. "Don't fool yourself Jack. They use you because they need to. But how quickly do think they'll drop you once they have no more need of you? You're an asset to them, nothing more."

Jack ran from his spot retracing his steps, trying to find the exist, but the layout of the room had changed. Where he had come from was now blocked by a wall. Jack pounded his fists against it uselessly. "Shut up! SHUT UP!"

"Am I hitting a nerve? Oh deary me, that wasn't my intention. I'm only trying to give you an objective perspective. But deep down Jack, you know it's true. You're meant to be alone. It's what you're good at. The others know it too. Even she does." Pitch stopped for a second to allow his words to hit home. "Why do you think she's been ignoring you?" His voice was eerily close, and as Jack turned to its direction, Pitch stepped out of the shadow with a sympathetic look on his long face. "You know why she ignores you, don't you? It's because she deserves better. Not a pale, cold, insolent, boy who will only bring her down. What can you offer her? The world doesn't know you exist, it doesn't need you. So how could you expect her to give up the world for you?"

Jack had begun breathing quickly, his breaths short and fast. "She... she..."

"She will never be yours. She will never want to be yours. You're better off alone Jack. She's better off without you. Don't bring her down to your level. You'll only hurt her." Pitch's voice rang in his ears, a sharp truth he knew he had been fighting within himself since he had first met Ellie. Jack could never give her or anyone what they needed. He was a frozen waste of space that caused chaos in a path of destruction.

Pitch was now inches away from him, slipping the golden case he had so longed for into his hand. "See for yourself Jack. The past doesn't change anything at all. You are who you are now. And that's nothing."

Jack gripped the case in his hands, feeling the world being ripped apart beneath him. "I can redeem myself," Jack spoke quietly, trying to find anything to pull him out of the pain. "I... I can show them I'm worth something. There's still Easter, you haven't destroyed us yet."

Pitch raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? The one time everyone was depending on you to help save Easter and you weren't even there?"

Jack furrowed his eyes in confusion. "What are you talking about?"

Pitch began to retreat, walking backwards and disappearing into the shadows once more. "It seems you've disappointed them again Jack." Without another word, Pitch had vanished completely. Jack was left alone in the quiet to think upon his words. How terrible he felt, being confronted with the truth. But panic began to work its way through Jack's body, dominating his thoughts. Something had gone wrong with the Easter eggs. The sound of a wall moving behind Jack let him know the tunnel had reopened. He turned around and bolted out, not knowing what to expect.

Upon exiting the cave-like room, the opening to it closed off behind Jack. He was once again in the warren tunnels. Taking a step forward, Jack was met with the sound of a crunch coming from under his foot. He looked down at the ground and was met with the devastating sight of hundreds of broken eggs. He followed the trail back up to the meadow, the destroyed eggs littering the ground everywhere. His heart sank deep in his chest as he clutched the case holding his memories. He had no idea how long he had been in Pitch's cave like room, only that it had been long enough for Pitch to wreak his destruction.

Jack touched down on the grassy ground, having searched for the others only to find them at an Easter egg hunt in England. Bunnymund was hopping around frantically, trying to get the disappointed children to see him. "I'm here! Right here!" he said pulling out a poorly covered egg from a small bag on his hip. "Here, look. I know this egg isn't beautiful or anything, but it's yours. Take it!" he pleaded more desperately, but the child simply passed through him, a feeling Jack knew all too well. "They can't see me," Bunnymund panicked. "They can't see me anymore!"

Once Jack's feet were firmly on the ground, it didn't take long for the others to turn on him. "Jack, where were you?" Tooth cried out in anger. She zipped up to him, pain so clear in her eyes; it stung at Jack, a pang of guilt running through his body.

"I was just-" he began to defend himself.

"You abandoned us when we needed you! Pitch destroyed everything!" she cried out. All the others had gathered by her side, each wearing equally disappointed and angry looks.

"No, I didn't mean to. I just heard something in the tunnels and-"

"What's this?" Santa breathed infuriated, grabbing the golden case out from Jack's hand. Jack's heart beat revved up to twice its normal tempo, knowing how bad this looked. "You were with Pitch?" he spat, throwing the case back at him and Jack awkwardly catching it. Jack turned his attention to Ellie quickly, who's look nearly broke him in two.

Thinking as carefully as he could, given the circumstances and knowing that saying the wrong thing could cost him everything, Jack said, "No, that's not it! It was a trick. Pitch deceived me! I swear I didn't know he was behind the noise I heard." He was speaking frantically now, the words coming out so fast he hardly knew what he was saying.

"You shouldn't have gone Jack, we needed you and you left," Tooth argued back, her voice so strained she could barely get the words out.

"This is just so typical," Bunnymund spat out next. "I knew we couldn't trust you. You're just a selfish, brash, arrogant, git who cares for no one other than himself. It was a mistake to trust you." Bunnymund's words were cruel but they hit home. Turning around to face the others, seeing their disappointed looks, so full of anger and despondent, Jack didn't waste a moment longer being in their presence.

Without another word, Jack took off to the sky, separating himself from the ones he had come to care for, with no intention of coming back.

XXXXX

Happy New Years Everybody. I hoped you all had a good break, got some good Boxing day shopping! Looks like things are getting tense with everybody. Jack just doesn't know how to handle people very well I guess.

As always review! The more the better and the faster the chapters come out!

Here's to 2013! Later!