Jack brooded at the edge of a cliff as the icy winds of the South Pole tore around him like a mild breeze. He wanted to say he wasn't surprised that the other Guardians followed Bunnymund's lead, didn't even listen to his side of the story, but,it hurt. He thought that they were working well together, helping Tooth out and then playing with Sophie in making Easter eggs, the amount of love and care the pooka warrior poured into his creations. Jack had thought he'd finally found a place to belong, a family with the Guardians where he didn't have to be lonely anymore.
'But they don't trust me. They didn't give me a chance to explain; just followed that stupid kangaroo. I would never jeopardize the children, I've cared more about the children of the world than they have for centuries. If only I had my memories back, I'd know who I am. Why MiM would choose me.' He curled around his knees in misery as the tears he had been holding back trailed down his cheeks in frozen tracks.
"Achoo!"
Jack startled, looking down his jacket pocket to see Baby Tooth poke her head out.
"Baby Tooth, you stayed with me?" Jack asked in shock, as he cupped the tiny fairy in both hands.
She nodded her head furiously before letting out another almighty sneeze that shook her whole body.
"Shoot, it's too cold for you out here, I can't really warm you up, but it should be a little warmer in my jacket." He tucked her inside his jacket near his neck, hoping that the little body heat he emitted would be enough to warm her up a bit.
"How sweet, caring about creations of those who blindly abandoned and misunderstood you." Jack rose quickly in alarm as Pitch stepped out of the shadow of a nearby iceberg. "I was like you once Jack, it seems we have much in common. That same naivety that our fellow spirits, especially the vaunted Guardians, would open their hearts to those who are different like us and embrace us with open arms. But it's all a lie, isn't it Jack? They turned their backs on you after one mistake, didn't even let you explain; they used you to help themselves and then tossed you to the side once you served your purpose. Is that what you want Jack, to be treated like dirt, something foul and evil?"
"What do you know about the Guardians? You're the evil one, the spirit that hurts children!" yelled Jack as he aimed his staff at the approaching Boogeyman.
"Oh, is that what they told you Jack? I bet they didn't tell you everything about the 'scary Boogeyman', hmm? Did they tell you that my other, my soulmate, is a Guardian?"
"You have a mate?" Jack said in surprise, before he registered the rest of the question. "Wait, there's another-but where's the other Guardian, there's only been four…"
"Five before the other Guardians had their way. See, they don't tell you about the dark parts of their past, no they like tucking all their secrets on a dusty shelf so no one will talk about it. But that doesn't change the fact that they are killers and family wreckers; and that's why I will give you this final warning Jack Frost. Join me or stay out of this mess, my revenge is only intended for the Guardians, no one else need get hurt. If you don't believe me, have this as part of the deal, a gesture of goodwill." From within his robes, Pitch pulled out a golden canister of a child's teeth, the picture of a cheeky brunet with mischief written all over his face- of when he was human, Jack realized with a jolt.
Warily lowering his staff, Jack stared hard at the Boogeyman, who looked different than their previous brief encounters, more fatigued and lonely than the snarky villain he appeared to be.
"What's the catch?"
"For no more innocents to be dragged into this nonsense." Pitch said quietly.
Grasping the gold canister from the older spirit's hand, Jack fiddled with it for a bit before side-eyeing the other.
"If what you said is true, what did they do? To you, I mean?"
"They took away my everything. My daughter, my husband, my dignity. And then they threw me away in jail as if it had been my fault. But to them, my existence was a crime to humanity and spirit world alike. Anyway," Pitch coughed. "give that a tap on the top. I'm sure you'll know where to go if you want to find me or if you want to avoid the crossfire for a bit."
Watching the shadow of where Pitch had disappeared into long after the other spirit had left, Jack finally stroked the patterned top and fell into the bright light of his memories. He couldn't help but notice something interesting about one of them. While he had one memory of being in a dark warm place, listening to the soft, high tones of a female and the deeper sounds of a male- his mother and father he assumed- he also had another, older memory of a similar place, except the two voices heard were distinctly male.
Blinking out of his daze, Jack felt his restored memories firmly settle in his mind. He tucked the canister in his pocket before grasping his staff tightly and shooting up into the air.
By the clue Pitch had given him, Jack knew exactly where the standoff was going to be, and he still had questions to be answered by all the spirits involved.
"Wind, take me home."
~ODF~
(POV is ambiguous because I couldn't keep it with Jamie)
Jamie peered around the blue hoodie of Jack Frost. It still felt like a dream, finding out that all of the famous fairytale figures like Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy even existed, and now he found out that Jack Frost was real too. And that he's the coolest kid ever because he's Jack's first believer. Awesome.
But now things were getting kind of scary. Easter Bunny was a lot smaller than when Jamie first saw him, more like an actual bunny now. Santa Claus stumbled out of the sleigh that just crashed, using his two swords as canes (Santa Claus with swords, so unbelievably awesome!) and the Tooth Fairy was wobbling around on her legs as if she had never walked before. All three of them had looked surprised when they saw Jack standing protectively in front of Jamie, even more so when he revealed that Jamie could see all of them, including Jack.
"Jack, you helped us out? Even after what we said to ya?" A stunned Bunnymund asked, standing on his little hind legs as his ears twitched involuntarily in surprise.
A familiar voice interrupted before Jack could open his mouth.
"Yes Jack, even after all they've done to you? You disappoint me Jack, I had hoped you would have taken the opportunity our talk provided and not get involved."
The Guardians stood protectively in front of Jack and Jamie as Pitch leaned against a nearby lamppost, calmly surveying the group as his army of Nightmares prowled over rocks and snow covered cars until they were surrounded, cornered in front of an alleyway. But the biggest distractor to everyone was the sight of a giant black panther sitting beside Pitch. Its icy blue eyes belied its above animal intelligence as it stared down the Guardians, the only movement being its lightly flicking tail.
"Don't worry Jamie," Jack whispered. "Everything's going to be okay."
Jamie nodded slowly as Jack picked him up, easily carrying the child despite his seemingly slight build. Jack positioned him around until he was in piggyback position; allowing Jack to have his staff at the ready as he moved past the Guardians into the middle, with the Guardians on one side and Pitch Black on the other.
"Now, what I want is some answers. I'm worried about the children of the world and apparently none of you are, so I'm stopping this fight now. Why has everyone been fighting for so long? Why haven't you let it go?"
"Jack, it is a bit complicated to explain." began North hesitantly, glancing at the stony faced Nightmare King.
"Then uncomplicate it." responded Jack bluntly.
"We killed her!" shouted Tooth.
The words echoed through the silent night as all eyes landed on the distraught fairy on the verge of tears.
"A few centuries ago, when we were still new Guardians, we were high off the powers of being Guardians; of the belief of not only the children of the world but also the adults. We thought we ruled it all, the other spirits loved us, and we believed we could do whatever we wanted because the Man in the Moon chose us above all others. And then we realized that Pitch Black was one of us, him and his husband, Merith and we hated it."
"What?" gasped Jack in shock as he gawked at the Tooth Fairy and Pitch.
"Yes," drawled Pitch dryly. "As much as others may think I enjoy nothing more than terrifying children, I do have a purpose. My center is that of courage. I am the one to push children into facing their fears, to have the courage to not be afraid of the shadows under their bed as they grow older. But, I'm also the one to give them the caution needed when things become too dangerous, to keep them from tempting death unnecessarily; that's how I met my other half in Merith."
A quiet pop, off in the distance caught the panther's attention as it stared off into the distance before slinking off to investigate with none the wiser.
"Who is Merith? You've mentioned him several times now, but I've never seen nor heard of a spirit with that name." asked Jack as he locked eyes with, apparently, the Guardian of Courage.
"Merith is the Guardian of Death, charged with guiding children in their afterlife to safety and rebirth. He's the love of my life and bearer of my child."
"Your child?" whispered Jack.
"Yes, your precious Guardians,"sneered Pitch, "attacked us wihle Merith was heavily pregnant with our child. In the ensuing conflict...we, we lost her." The pain in Pitch's voice hit Jack deep, the same pull he felt during every encounter with Pitch seeming to intensify in his core the longer he stared at the other spirit; and by the burning gaze he felt, Pitch was probably experiencing something similar.
"We're sorry Pitch, truly." Bunnymund's voice jolted Jack out of his thoughts and he focused on the miniature bunny as he hopped forward, eyes and ears downcast.
"We were blinded by the power and control we gained being Guardians and we allowed our ignorance and human beliefs dictate our actions. We can never undo the fact that we stole your daughter from you, that we've killed one of the children we swore we'd always protect. But for the sake of the children of the world, please, don't take it out on them. Do whatever you want to us, but they don't deserve to suffer for our actions."
"Don't worry, I think it's about time everything gets resolved."
A voice echoed from the shadows behind Pitch.
Even as he raised his staff higher in defense, Jack saw the look of shock cross Pitch's face before the older spirit spun around toward the incoming stranger, his entire body tense with surprise.
"Merith?"