I'm so sorry for all my typos and general lack of editing about characters' descriptions and ages. I'm in the process of revising this entire fic, but just clear up any confusion about characters' ages, here is the official list for this specific story:

Jack is (eternally) 17

Jamie is 13

Sophie is 7

Hell is (eternally) 17

Dark is (eternally) 15

Chapter 22: Jamie Believes (Diane's POV)

When Jack, Hell and Dark had disappeared, taking Pandora's Box with them, I broke out of Tooth's hold and ran to Jamie, drawing him into my arms. The rest of the world faded away, all I could see was my son's face, and I began to sob as brought my trembling hand to his neck to feel for a pulse. I gasped, almost laughing in relief when I felt the steady beating of his heart, though the faintness of it, and the fact that it was and slightly off-rhythm, worried me. He had a shallow gash on his left arm, and a dark bruises on his temple. The bruising was very telling about how Jamie had been knocked out. And I'd seen enough, being a nurse in the ER to know that whatever had caused those bruises could very well have caused internal damage as well. I could only pray it looked worse than it actually was.

It was dusk when North took us to the Workshop to get Sophie, and then back to Burgess. We landed in the back alley behind our house. I was in a state of shock, and had begun to seriously questioning my decision to let my children be involved in a magical war. At the very least, I knew I could not let Sophie become involved in this for a moment longer. Jamie would most likely fight that decision. But I needed to keep my children safe.

I called my sister and had her take Sophie over to her house across town for a sleepover with her two daughters that were barely a year older than Sophie. When asked why I seemed so desperate to get Jamie out of the house, I told her that Jamie fell down the attic ladder and I was worried I might have to take him to the hospital. I think she knew I was hiding something, but she left with Sophie, giving me a suspicious look as she got into her car and drove away.

Once she was out of sight, I let out a weary sigh and shut the front door of my house. Pressing my forehead against the door's cool wood, I debated whether or not I should take Jamie to the hospital. I had been working at St. Brigid's for five years, as an nurse in the emergency room. I knew there would be an inquiry into how Jamie had gotten hurt, and I would sound insane if I told the ER docs that my child had gotten knocked out fighting in a battle between Santa Clause and the spirit of Hell.

Just thinking that sounds crazy, let alone saying that out loud! But he could also have internal damage that wouldn't be so easy to find without various types of medical scans.

By now Jamie was conscious and called for me from his bed, where I'd carried him the minute we got home.

I ran upstairs to his bedroom and found him struggling to sit up. I grab a small flashlight to check his pupils and eye movements from my first aid kit in the bathroom and went back to his room a quickly as I could. The horrible feelings of fear and dread I'd gotten upon seeing him unconscious in the hands of the enemy only started to dissipate when I'd checked his reflexes and he recounted the events that led up to him getting knocked out with enough accuracy that I didn't think he had gotten serious brain damage along with his mild concussion. He was incredibly lucky…almost too lucky, in fact…

But I wasn't going to dwell on that thought now. My son was alive. That was enough. I sat on the edge of his bed, holding one of his hands in mine.

Jamie looked up at me with a determined expression on his face. "Mom, we have to go back." he said, voice still weak after the battle.

"No, we will not." I had to put an end to the argument knew was coming, before it got out of hand. "You got hurt today. Sophie could have gotten hurt. I can't risk that happening. I couldn't…I won't risk losing either of you. I love you too much to even think about that."

"But Mom—"

"No, Jamie!"

"You don't understand!" he shouted, ripping his hand out of mine and shocking me into silence. I couldn't remember him ever speaking to me that way before. "You don't get it," he said, softer this time.

"What don't I get?" I asked, still not quite believing that my 13 year-old son knew something more about fighting in wars (or magical wars) than I did.

"You need to believe in the Guardians to literally see them, right?" Jamie said, forcing himself up into a sitting position on the bed. "I think it's the same for all the other spirits, like the Boogeyman, or Hell and Dark. But even if you can't see them, their magic powers still affect the environment around us. Pitch Black tried to take over the world a few years ago, which is when I met Jack and the other Guardians…and I may or may not have snuck out of the house in the middle of the night to do that, but anyway…" he trailed off, a small smile appearing on his face.

I gave him a stern look. We'd talk about sneaking out of the house later.

"So," my son quickly continued, "Pitch could give people nightmares or manipulate their fears without any believers. Jack did magical wintery stuff long before I believed in him too. The same goes for Hell and Dark. I mean, if Hell can make it almost a hundred degrees here in February and set off volcanoes around the Pacific Ocean whenever he wants, do you think he will be satisfied with just defeating the Guardians and other spirits? His powers have caused so many bad things to happen already for millions of people who don't even know he exists. Mom, if he's not stopped, sooner or later everyone will suffer because of him."

"We don't have magical powers like the Guardians, and unlike them, we're not immortal." I said finally. When Jamie started to protest again, I put my hand up to stop him. I wasn't finished talking. "We're not as powerful as them, but you are right. Hell and Dark need to be stopped. If we go back to the Guardians, it'll be on the condition that we won't fight in any more battles, okay?"

Jamie didn't look very happy about that condition, but I wasn't in the mood for negotiation. He crossed his arms and looked out his bedroom window for a few moments in silence, but eventually muttered, "Fine. I just…I just really want Jack back. We have to help the Guardians rescue him from Hell and Dark. He's one of my best friends."

Sorry, just a short update today. Not sure how I feel about this chapter with Jamie's mom's POV. Hope you liked it. I just wanted to experiment a little bit with character voices, but I will probably switch back to the 3rd Person perspective for the following chapters.

Expect new chapters in the next couple weeks, and please review!