Chapter Five: To Get Rid of a Storm

Sandy had somewhat of a relationship with Emily Jane. They had known each other for years but never really interacted much ever since Sandy became a Guardian and had to focus on his role as the Guardian of Dreams. But occasionally, the two would meet up or cross paths and share a brief conversation.

Jack didn't exactly know if Sandy knew how to contact her, but if he did, maybe she would be able to clear out the dark clouds that were blocking out the moonlight. If the clouds were removed, maybe the Man in the Moon could reverse whatever happened and things could go back to normal. Jack guessed that Mother Nature probably would have cleared them out at this point, but something must have stopped her and Jack was wondering what that could be.

Is she under the spell too? thought Jack as he flew toward the golden dream cloud. Jack did not know. She was Mother Nature, she had control over the weather, and it was supposed to be spring and Emily usually spent the first few days melting the snow with warm weather but so far, the weather had been downright gloomy.

Jack arrived and tapped Sandy on the shoulder. The Sandman turned around and gave Jack a grin. Jack smiled. Things seemed more friendlier—with the exception of Bunny of course—between him and the other Guardians since the Anniversary. Jack guessed it was either out of pity or just the fact that they actually wanted to try to get to know him. Jack mentally sighed. He really wanted things to be back to normal to where he was a Guardian and not unseen or unheard by the children.

"Hey, Sandy," said Jack. "So, I saw your dreamsand and I thought I should stop by and say hello."

Jack knew that getting straight to the point would seem too demanding, so he decided to start with some small talk. Sandy nodded and waved and quickly sent out another stream of dreamsand out to the streets of Burgess.

"So...how have things been for you and the other Guardians? Was the party fun?" asked Jack. He felt a twinge of hurt that the party was ruined by whoever erased himself from his friends' memories. Jack made a mental note to freeze the culprit in a thick layer of permafrost once he caught him or her...or it.

Golden sand weaved over Sandy's head, the image of a party hat and confetti and then a thumbs up. "The party was great!"

Jack nodded. "That's nice," he said. He shifted from where he was floating next to Sandy's dreamcloud. Sandy seemed to be wrapping up, so Jack told Sandy why he was there.

"So, Sandy, I was wondering if I could ask you a favor," said Jack. Sandy turned around and looked attentively at the winter spirit. Jack let out a breath and said, "The weather has been pretty gloomy lately and I heard you and Mother Nature are somewhat friends. Could you maybe next time you meet up with her ask if she could clear up the weather and start...bringing in spring?"

Now, a winter sprite to say "bring in spring" was something that one would not expect to hear everyday. Every elemental spirit was highly attached to their season and would often get riled up when their season was made fun of or disrupted in any way. Jack knew this from personal experience. He wasn't exactly attached to winter, since he did enjoy other seasons like fall. He was the one who made the leaves change color after all. But Jack couldn't help but feel somewhat strange when he said something that a spring spirit like Bunny would say.

Sandy did look quite bemused to hear Jack ask for him to tell Mother Nature to bring in spring, especially considering the snow that was currently littering Burgess at the moment. But still, the Sandman nodded, meaning that he would let Mother Nature know to start clearing up the gloomy weather and Jack silently did a happy dance.

"Okay, thanks!" said Jack. Sandy smiled and waved again, and began to prepare to leave Burgess for the night. Jack flew back to his lake and into his tree, hoping that things would return back to normal the next day.

…

"You have got to be kidding me."

Jack looked out his window with both irritation and bemusement written across his face. The clouds were still up in the sky and, in fact, looked even darker than they were before. It was even raining and the raindrops pelted at Jack's tree. Jack frowned indignantly.

"My moon...this is going to be harder than I thought," said Jack to himself. Mother nature clearly didn't get the message in "bring in spring."

"I said bring it spring not let it rain," mumbled Jack. He sighed. Jack really didn't like flying through the rain. It wasn't that it bothered him, it was just that he didn't like the constant feeling of water running down his back.

"Okay, clearly, the clouds aren't going anywhere," said Jack. He didn't know if Mother Nature was doing this on purpose or not, but Jack did know that she liked to keep the weather as nice as possible and wouldn't often make it rain so hard unless she was in a bad mood or it was just time for a hard rainshower.

Jack frowned. Clearly, he would need to find another way to clear out the clouds. He didn't want to use his powers to cause a snowfall and move it away from Burgess because if he tried, the already precipitating clouds would produce hail, not snow. And that would just give Jack even more problems.

Jack decided that he would just have to talk to Mother Nature himself. He knew where she lived since he had passed by her kingdom several times before. It was in a hidden part of a forest on an island that was only known to few immortals that she trusted. While Jack and Mother Nature hadn't been on good terms in the past, things were better now that Jack was a Guardian and had to work with her. Jack groaned. He would have to fly through the rain.

Jack picked up his staff and stepped outside of his tree, immediately huffing as water hit him on the head and seeped through his clothes. Jack flipped on his hoodie and called on the winds to carry him toward Mother Nature's island. Jack was relieved to be out of Burgess' rain and in the clear daylight. He flew over the seas and toward the island where Mother nature resided and landed at the edge of her forest.

Emily Jane's home was one of the most interesting places Jack had ever been to. Elements never went with each other and always stayed separate. Jack walked into the forest and came across a large castle looking like cabin that he knew was Mother Nature's place. He knocked on the wooden door and waited patiently.

The door remained closed and Jack guessed that she was probably out dealing with weather in other places. He sighed. Well, now he had to find another way to bring back everyone's memories.

Jack's thoughts went back to the moment where Bunny seemed to remember him, but then quickly forgot again. Jack knew that whatever spell was on the Guardians was reversible, but he would need to find who or what did it to them and find out how to. And Jack wasn't an expert in memories like Tooth was

Tooth.

Jack mentally slapped himself. Why didn't he think of this before? He took to the air and flew toward Punjam Hy Loo. To solve this an expert in memories. He was going to need help. And even though the Guardians didn't remember him, he knew that they would be willing to help him. They welcomed him with open arms the first time, he knew it wouldn't be so hard the second. They were his friends, even if they didn't remember him at all.

Jack landed at the Tooth Palace entrance and took a deep breath. He was going to r bring everything back to normal and make sure whoever—or whatever—did this, was going to get what it deserved.

And, besides, bringing back memories and reversing this mess shouldn't be so hard…

Right?