When my conscious mind began to flit back to the surface the first thing I noticed was the warmth and a blanket that was tucked around me. The second thing I noticed was that despite the warmth everywhere there was a familiar chill next to me. A smile tugged at my lips and I turned over, my eyes sliding open to meet the icy blue ones I knew so well. He smiled back, lightly brushing a strand of hair from my face, his cool touch so familiar.

"Hey Snowflake." He murmured, I couldn't help but beam up at him at the nickname. Without hesitation he leaned in to brush his lips along mine and my eyes closed again as I sank into the kiss. I could spend eternity like this, feeding off the tender kisses along my lips and skin. He seemed perfectly content to feather the kisses across my face before returning to my lips again. The gesture was so achingly tender that I couldn't help but love him more.

"I love you." I murmured softly when he broke the kiss again.

"I love you too." His cool embrace encircled me and I was content to just snuggle close, the door opened, but Jack didn't let go.

"Eh... ain't interrupting nothin' am I?"

"No Bunny, you weren't." I replied.

"Good to see ya awake again mate. Others want a word with ya both." I nodded and he hopped out of the room, closing the door behind him again. Jack didn't budge. I didn't want to but I slowly shifted to move from the embrace only to have him chuckle and tighten his hold.

"Where are you going?" The mocking tone in his voice made me smile.

"You heard Bunny." I said, trying to squirm away.

"Oh no you don't." I began laughing as it soon became a game of him holding me in place while I tried to squirm away. After a while I managed to pry myself from him and he gave a fake pout, which I turned around and kissed away.

"Come on now. We shouldn't keep them waiting." He sighed and got up, retrieving his staff from where it was leaning nearby against the wall. The other Guardians were in the globe room, Tooth was giving orders to her fairies who were flitting about her, Sandy was floating nearby on a cloud that was shaped like a beanbag chair that was just his size while Bunny and North were arguing, again, whose holiday was more important. Jack grinned at the scene and Sandy waved at me before trying to get their attention. When that didn't work I grinned at Jack and loudly cleared my throat before the golden Guardian could get mad at his fellow Guardians who didn't seem to be paying attention to him. I felt a little bad for Sandy really, the little Guardian seemed grateful as the others stopped talking all at once and turned to me and Jack.

"I assume an explanation is in order." The four nodded. After accepting the offer of iced chocolate, which Jack had also requested, I began to talk.

"I'm not sure how to explain entirely what happened in Pitch's lair. I just knew that I couldn't let Jack do what I knew he would be about to do. Even with all that Pitch raved about my power, I knew that Jack was more important. I can only explain it in saying that hearing Pitch try and get Jack to surrender to him made something inside me snap. I don't know if it was pure anger or what, I didn't have a name for it at the time and I still don't. I just knew I couldn't let Jack do it. I felt something rise up in me, like it had always been there, sort of a soft whispering I had ignored inside myself... I donno, maybe Sandy can relate." I glanced towards the silent Guardian who just shrugged a little. Okay, maybe he couldn't, but Jack nodded; he knew what I meant.

"I remember that I was desperate to keep Pitch from getting his hands on Jack and I knew what I had to do. So I did. I promised him I would stop fighting the darkness he'd been trying to shove down my throat for days." Jack winced.

"That had to be unpleasant." He said, I gently took his hand and squeezed it reassuringly.

"It was. I was rather surprised though when it actually happened. I assumed that once I surrendered to it, that I would change completely or something. That I would become like Pitch, but that wasn't the case. You see, I think the reason behind this was because of my family. They've always taken care of me, sure, but only on the terms of physical needs like food and stuff. They never really cared much except maybe one of my cousins. I was always isolated, having no friends to rely on and I was so alone... probably what attracted Pitch to me in the first place. I was someone that almost no one would miss, that nearly no one would know I was gone." The Guardians looked uneasy at that, Tooth especially. I sent her a small, reassuring smile.

"I was the perfect target for him, but at the same time I had been so used to it, so used to not being cared for that I was able to keep a part of myself away from the Fearlings. I essentially was split into two inside, one half that the Fearlings could devour but the other that was kept from them behind the barrier of my power. When I realized this, I knew I had to play along with Pitch until I could come up with a plan. It took me a few days to come up with something and I knew it was a long shot, but I also knew that if it worked that things would fall into place. I took a risk when I visited Jack here in the workshop. Had I been caught by any of you, or Pitch, it would have ruined everything." The others seemed surprised I had managed that.

"I had to visit him... to tell him what I was planning because I knew it would be the hardest on him." He slipped his arm around my waist then, hugging me close. I returned the gesture, squeezing lightly, it didn't go unnoticed by the others who simply seemed to watch with something of amusement. Jack coughed in embarrassment at his own boldness.

"I didn't tell anyone else about this plan because I needed Pitch to not have any reason to doubt me. Jack is the only one of you who is the least open about anything, I knew I could trust him to not accidently slip up under pressure. I also needed you chasing me the way you did Pitch. The more you pursued me as you did him, the more I gained his trust. I will admit I did do plenty of things I'm not proud of... and I shudder at some of the things I had to force myself to do in order to keep up the charade. I needed Pitch to trust me absolutely. There was no other way I could have gotten as close to him as I did that last battle otherwise." I took a sip of my drink before going on.

"I don't think anyone but Pitch can understand now what I went through. How I was forced to feed the Fearlings inside of me to keep them from realizing that all wasn't as Pitch had planned. One small slip up and it would have blown the whole thing." Jack nodded in agreement.

"It was a dangerous game I played. I even said as much to Jack, which was the night I almost blew my cover when Tooth all but burst into the room." Tooth's eyes went wide.

"I was the one who told Jack that you needed to do your jobs in pairs when you went about collecting teeth, spreading dreams or snow. I knew that once I was unable to stall Pitch with the excuse that I wasn't yet fully recovered enough to be useful that he would want to strike back at you and would do so when you were on your own." No one interrupted my story and so after another sip of the wonderful iced chocolate drink, I continued.

"Tooth's interruption was probably the closest I came to blowing everything. I didn't visit Jack again after that, but I knew that the time was drawing near when I would need to spring the trap as much for my sake as everyone else's." I glanced at my drink. I couldn't look them in the eyes anymore and I felt a lump rise in my throat.

"What... what did he do to you?" Tooth asked quietly, concern etched into her features. My eyes widened a little at the implication and I shook my head furiously.

"Nothing much, honest, but ... I felt like I was betraying Jack... every time I had to stand spending personal time with Pitch... It was torture... listening to how he'd croon to me things I didn't want to hear from him, like I was a pet that needed soothing, loving words. I..." I stumbled and I felt Jack's reassuring squeeze, he knew this had to be hard and I felt myself relax just a little as his breath tickled along my skin as he murmured in my ear.

"It's okay Snowflake. I won't hold it against you." It was the reassurance I needed to go on.

"To make sure he didn't doubt me... I had to let him kiss me... it never went any further than that..." I hastily added. I heard a gasp from Tooth, but I plunged ahead.

"I didn't have much choice if I wanted to fool him completely. It makes me sick... thinking what I had to do... what I did..." Tears glistened in my eyes as I stared at my drink, swallowing past the lump I went on.

"I knew I would only get once chance at this, one chance to strike. My sanity and patience were beginning to crack underneath the pressure and I knew... a few nights ago.. if I didn't do it then that I would never be able to and I would truly be consumed. That it would be too much for me and Jack... Well, you know the rest." I wasn't sure what I felt more, surprised or relieved when the other Guardians crowded around the two of us and embraced the two of us in a hug. I had never experienced anything quite like it. When they'd released us, Jack was grinning sheepishly and I... well I just kind of gaped at the genuine feelings I could see in the eyes of the Guardians as they looked at the two of us. I felt my heart swell, this was what family was supposed to be like. This... I felt, was what it meant to be loved. I closed my eyes and a few tears fell, but I wasn't sad. I smiled, I was happier than I had ever been.

"Jus' don't make that sort of thing a habit mate." Bunny said with a smirk, but I could tell he cared.

"Believe me Bunny, I don't think my poor heart could stand it and I have no intention of putting Jack through that again." North chuckled as Jack flushed a little.

"So, um... I guess you know we've been together a while..." Jack said with a bit of a sheepish smile.

"How could we not? Jack, we're happy for you." Tooth said, and this time I could tell she meant it.

"Thanks Tooth."

"Jus' leave the lovey dovey stuff for yourselves. I don't wanna be interruptin' nothing when we gather, ya here?" I grinned up at Bunny then.

"Fair enough." I said.

"Speaking of that... what about your family? I mean I know that you said they didn't care much but..." Tooth trailed off and I shrugged.

"I'm not human anymore, even if they cared, you guys are my family now." Tooth seemed to beam with pleasure at this. For the first time in my life, I truly felt at home. I was as different from each of them as I could be, but the genuine love and care I saw in their eyes each time they looked at me or Jack was more than I could have ever hoped for. This was where I truly belonged.