Jack took a deep breath, then let out a slow, contented sigh as he stirred from his slumber. He couldn't help but smile at the feel of Pitch nestled up against his back. It had been an amazing nap. He'd never slept (actually slept that is) with Pitch anywhere near as long in one stretch before. They had done all sorts of things. Pitch had even shown him another couple of his Christmas memories, and he'd gotten to see River. It was plain as day that the boy could see Pitch as well. He remembered the stunned look on his face as he stared straight at Pitch for a moment when he caught sight of him while Pitch was settling into his chair. He had looked like a deer in headlights. Then Rose noticed and reached over, turning his face towards her and giggling, giving him a tiny admonishing head shake before subtly glancing over to make sure Pitch hadn't noticed.

River was still obviously just a 'friend' at that point as he noticed the boy couldn't help but shoot a nervous glance over in their direction several times when Rose accidentally brushed against him, once while reaching for a present and later while passing him a cup of tea. But he also noticed the little glances he gave Rose when no one was looking, and Jack could tell that Azrael had been right. He was happy knowing they would wind up together, because River was obviously hopelessly smitten.

And of course there were the other things they had gotten up to. Jack felt his cheeks warm slightly as he remembered one particularly amazing 'dream'…

"Sure you couldn't use a bit more sleep?" Pitch asked temptingly, nuzzling the back of his neck.

Jack chuckled, then shuffled around to face him, slipping his arms around him and pulling him close. "I think I've had plenty of sleep… though with dreams like that I feel like I should be in a coma by now!"

Pitch just let out a little amused breath.

"Well, now thanks to you it's going to feel SUPER awkward next time I visit the North pole." Jack said ruefully.

"You're welcome."

"I mean I've never even seen most of those rooms. Do they really exist, or did you just make them up?"

"I would never use inauthentic sets for my dreams! What kind of an amateur do you take me for?" Pitch said, feigning offence. "With my memory all it takes is one walk through for me to get the floor plan down to the tiniest detail, and I've actually been to the pole quite a number of times over the years. Not that North knows that of course. He likes to use a lot of fire to light the rooms. It makes them seem more warm and cozy even when the architecture doesn't really lend itself to that kind of atmosphere. It suits me though. Firelight makes lots of shadows. I can visit there any time I like with no one being the wiser. You can thank his wife for the upgrade to the kitchen, by the way. It was a rather sad excuse for a kitchen before she got there, with very little counter space. She's actually done wonders for the décor overall, truth be told."

Jack snickered, wondering what North would think if he knew Pitch had free reign to poke around in his home… or what he'd done with the knowledge he'd gained by visiting it! "Any idea how long we've been asleep?"

"Eight days, three hours and forty seven minutes." Pitch replied evenly.

Jack's head popped up and he stared at Pitch incredulously, "Seriously?"

"Well, since I got here at least. I have no idea how long you were here before I returned. I can question my Nightmares if you need a more precise accounting of the duration of your visit." He said, a little smirk on his lips.

"How could you possibly know that? You have a clock around here or something?" Jack asked, glancing around.

"No. My realm leads to all time zones, so a clock would be useless. I am just irritatingly aware of the passage of time, even in the dream realm."

Jack narrowed his eyes a bit, "So when I was here for two weeks straight you didn't, at any point, think that maybe you should make me aware of how long I'd been here?"

Pitch let out a little amused breath, "If I had, you might have left."

"I think maybe we need to talk about some ground rules. Like setting up wake up calls so I'm not missing off the face of the earth for weeks at a time for starters! I know I don't exactly have a very active social life, but eventually someone's bound to notice." Jack said ruefully. He let go of Pitch, sitting up and scrubbing his fingers through his hair. "That will have to wait until I get back though. I should get going."

"Have an appointment to get to, do you?" Pitch asked in an amused tone.

"Kind of, actually. Especially if it's really been over a week… again!" He said, shooting Pitch a mocking stern glare, "Then I need to head out. Spring's getting along, and I wanted to go see Jamie one more time before the weather gets too warm. You know about what time it is in Burgess right now?"

"About a quarter til three in the afternoon."

"Perfect! Even if he had school today…"

"It's a weekday, so I'd say that's likely." Pitch offered.

"Right, so he should be heading home pretty soon." Jack said, skootching over towards the side of the bed.

Pitch looped his arm around Jack's waist and pulled him back, and Jack quickly ceased all struggling as Pitch's lips found his. After a long, wonderful kiss he let up slightly, pulling his head back just far enough to gaze down into his eyes. "Sure it wouldn't be better to wait until after dark? So many people around this time of day."

"Well… there is that…" Jack said a bit dazedly as he gazed up into those brightly burning eyes. Then he quickly closed his eyes and shook his head, snapping himself out of it. "Nope! No, none of that!" He said firmly, "You start that up again and I won't see him again until he's in high school!" Jack said mirthfully. He darted up, giving Pitch a quick peck on the lips, but then escaped his grasp, hopping up off the bed.

Pitch gave a little sigh, but conceded, "As you wish."

"Besides, there will be plenty of time for that later!" Jack added with an impish grin, "Summer is fast approaching, after all, and that's a pretty slow season for me… and I kinda doubt the people in the Artic would mind some milder weather this year."

"I'll hold you to that!" Pitch called after him.

Jack chuckled as he went through the door, and then his eyes went wide as he suddenly found himself on the front porch of the Burgess house! He let out a little amused breath, realizing he had walked through the door with the desire to visit Burgess, not to go home, so the door had apparently obliged. Well, it saved him time at least!

As he'd suspected, there was no snow or frost to be found. It was still a little bit chilly by human standards, many of the people still wearing light jackets, but it was well above freezing. He was fine with that, but decided it meant he should probably walk. When he flew close to the ground he brought cold gusts of air and often at least light flurries of snow along with him. The grass was already approaching the height at which it would start to require mowing, and he could even see some of the early varieties of flowers blooming. The leaves on all of the trees were even starting to fill in by now. It had been so long since he'd stayed around long enough to see so much new life emerging, and he definitely didn't want to risk damaging any of it. He lightly hopped the fence and hurried off.

He'd seen Jamie walking home from school often enough, so he knew the route he took. Of course since he'd been able to skip the flight there, his school probably hadn't quite let out yet, so he headed there. It was kind of nice just strolling through town like a normal person. He even found himself nodding cordially to someone as he passed them, though they of course couldn't see him. He couldn't seem to keep the smile off his face. He hadn't felt this alive since… well since he'd been alive!

He was kind of surprised when he made it all the way to the school without seeing Jamie. He'd passed a lot of kids around Jamie's age in the last few blocks, in fact he'd walked on top of the vehicles that lined the side of the road to avoid them all, so he knew school had been out for a bit. Jamie wasn't usually the type to linger around the school once classes had let out for the day. He looked over as he crossed the street to the school grounds and saw a group of kids gathered in a circle at the edge of the playground. They were all laughing in the way you could tell was at someone else's expense… and since Jamie wasn't the type to be laughing at someone else like that, chances were if that's where he was, he was the one they were laughing at.

Jack went over to the group, summoning his staff and springing up to perch on top of it so he had a clear view over the crowd. Sure enough, Jamie was in the middle, a large boy who was a full head taller was holding up a couple of stapled together pages of notebook paper. Jamie was jumping up, trying to retrieve the pages, but the boy was keeping them just out of his reach, reading aloud from them.

"And then the easter bunny turned really big again and he got out his boomerangs and started taking out nightmares with them…" The boy read with malicious mirth as the other kids all laughed.

"Give it back!" Jamie yelled, trying once more in vain to retrieve his papers.

"Or what? You gonna get the easter bunny to come kick my butt?" The boy asked sarcastically.

Jack flitted over the crowd, into the opening in the center, landing lightly beside Jamie. Jamie looked up at him in surprise, then grinned widely. "No, but Jack Frost might!"

"Oh ya?" The boy snorted, "What's he gonna do? Throw a snowball at me?

Jack just grinned and him, rapping his staff against the ground and sending a sheet of black ice under the boy's feet.

The boy suddenly started flailing wildly as his feet started sliding around, then they shot right out from under him, dropping him hard on his butt with a distinct ripping sound. The boy flailed around for purchase as the other kids quickly backed up, startled by the sudden fall. He managed to scramble up onto his hands and knees and suddenly the kids behind him burst out into wild laughter as they saw his pants had split wide open in back.

The bully let out a distressed cry, flopping around a bit in his attempt to hide his underwear, but all he accomplished was showing it to the rest of the kids before he managed to scrabble his way off the ice and get up. He looked back at the group of hysterically laughing children with a horrified expression before turning and racing off, clutching the back of his ruined pants.

Just then a teacher leaned out the school door, "What you kids up to?" He called.

The kids all immediately scattered.

Jamie picked up his crumpled papers from where they had fallen, laughing so hard his eyes were tearing up a bit.

Jack was laughing merrily as well. "Now that was fun!" Jack said happily, giving Jamie a little pat on the shoulder as they started off towards the street.

"Are you kidding? That was amazing!" Jamie crowed, "That guy has been pushing me around all year!"

"Bet he won't do that again!" Jack said with another little snicker. "Tell me, are Care Bears considered cool again?"

"No!" Jamie laughed, "Well, maybe if you're like four! And a girl!"

"Oh yeah," Jack sighed happily, "He's never living that down! I doubt he'll be bullying anyone again any time soon."

Jamie just kept grinning happily, little snickers escaping him as they crossed the road.

Ya, ok, maybe that wasn't the nicest thing to do to someone, but Jack had never been able to abide a bully. Kids like that don't stop until someone puts them in their place. Hopefully he'd learn something from experiencing what it was like to be the one being laughed at for a change.

Luckily, that group of kids looked to be the last of the other students, and he couldn't see any other kids headed the way they were. Still, Jamie steered them towards the alley route he sometimes took when the other kids were giving him a hard time and he wanted to avoid them. Probably a wise move when holding a conversation with someone that pretty much no one else could see.

Jamie sobered a bit as he zipped up his backpack, then looked up at Jack curiously, "Um… Care Bears…"

"They don't really exist." Jack assured him. Then he gave it a moment of thought. "At least not that I know of, anyway."

Jamie seemed to contemplate that a bit.

"So… you're writing about Bunny?" Jack asked, glancing down at him.

"I wrote about all of you, actually. English class assignment. The teacher wanted us to write a paper about something exciting that happened to us. I mean what else was I supposed to write about?" Jamie asked with a little shrug. "Of course the teacher had to go on and on about what a vivid imagination I had when she was handing back our papers. She was acting like I made everything up! It kinda felt like she was saying I was lying."

"Well, we might be real, but you know what? I think it does take someone with a real good imagination to KNOW that we're real." Jack said encouragingly, "I mean those poor kids with no imagination are probably never going to see anything like the things you've seen. They can't understand believing in something even if you can't see it or hold it in your hand. You're one of the lucky ones. That strong belief that you have inside…" He said, reaching over and lightly tapping Jamie's chest, "You have no idea what a rare gift that is nowadays."

"Never really thought about it that way." Jamie said contemplatively, "I feel kinda bad for them now."

"Well, if you find other kids with imaginations and open minds, maybe you can help them discover the magic around them. The rest are probably better off not knowing what they're missing out on."

Jamie nodded thoughtfully, then sighed.

No longer needing his staff, Jack let it vanish.

"How'd you do that?" Jamie asked, amazed.

"Oh, that's something that Azrael showed me. Cool, right?" He said, pushing up his sleeve and showing him the shimmering image on his forearm. "I can take it out or put it back away any time I want. It's a part of me now, so I can never lose it."

"Awesome!" Jamie said in wonder, "So wait, who's Azrael?"

"Oh… actually… she's kinda the angel of Death. But!" he quickly added as he shoved his sleeve back down, "She's actually a really awesome person. She's not mean or scary at all!"

"You know Death? And she's a girl?" Jamie asked, his eyes round.

"I know, right? It was a big surprise to me too. And she's super nice. In fact, I just started working with her."

"Doing what…?" Jamie asked a bit apprehensively.

"Protecting kids, actually. Ones that are in danger. Her job isn't to just go around killing people or anything like most people think, her job is actually to maintain the natural balance. Mostly she has to make sure people don't die before their time. I guess there's a lot of rules though, because sometimes she's not allowed to save people on her own… but there's no rules against her friends helping those people, so if she thinks I can help them, she takes me to kids who are in dangerous situations and would die if no one helped them."

"Kids that might die?" Jamie asked softly.

"Ya. I helped get some kids get out of an orphanage that was burning down, and then I helped keep some sick kids with fevers cool until help could get to them. That's all I've really done so far, but it was amazing!" Jack said, smiling broadly.

Jamie just nodded.

They walked for a time in silence. He got the feeling Jamie was a little spooked by the idea of kids dying. Sometimes he forgot how differently kids grew up nowadays. In his time, death was just a sad fact you had to learn to deal with, usually starting at a rather young age. Most kids nowadays seem to have this idea like they are immortal, and the realization that kids their age could die was probably far more upsetting for them than it would have been for him. The dawning sense of their own mortality could be very disturbing to some.

"So…" Jack said as the silence started drawing out, sensing the need for a change of conversation, "How'd you do on the paper?"

Jamie flashed him a little smile. "B plus. English class is usually ok, and there's a couple of other classes that aren't too bad, but gym is just the worst! No one ever picks me for their team and you have to wear these dorky clothes, and sometimes they even make us run around in circles for absolutely no reason! You should be glad you never had to deal with school!" He said, shaking his head.

"Actually," Jack said musingly, "I think I would have liked going to school. I was home schooled. There just weren't enough kids living nearby yet when I was a kid to justify building a school house, even a one room one." He looked back, realizing Jamie had stopped walking. The boy was just standing there, staring at him, his mouth slightly open in surprise.

"You… you were a kid once?" Jamie asked in shock, "Like a real live kid? Like me?"

Jack winced, realizing getting so used to talking so freely with Pitch had led him to saying more than he should. "Uh… I probably shouldn't have told you that." He eyed him appraisingly for a moment before tentatively asking, "Do you believe in me less now?"

Jamie let out a little laugh, "Are you kidding? If anything I believe in you more now! I've just always thought of you guys as always being… well what you are. Like you just… POOF! There you are just like that, you know?"

Jack let out an amused breath. "Well, we all came from somewhere. We all had a life before we were chosen to be what we became. At least that's what they tell me. It was a really long time ago for me, a whole lot longer for some of the others, but we all used to be mortal, just like you."

"How old are you?" Jamie asked with obvious fascination.

"Um… three hundred and eighteen. Well, I was eighteen when I became Jack Frost, so… I actually just passed my three hundredth anniversary of… well my current existence." Jack paused, "I actually hadn't even thought about that." He mused.

"Three hundred years seems like a pretty big deal! So you didn't have a birthday party? Or a… um… 'magical origin anniversary' party or something?"

Jack laughed. "No. I didn't even think about it, and besides, I didn't have any friends at the time to celebrate with. I mean I've known Bunny for a while now, but we weren't really friends. Actually, I think he… well, he kinda hated me to be honest. One little Easter blizzard and man can that guy hold a grudge! Sandy… well we've always been friendly, but more in that 'smile and wave when I see him passing by' kinda way. I mean you can't help but like him, but I mostly just saw him in passing. He's just always pretty busy and… well, just not really the hang out and chat type. Tooth and North… um, Santa that is… Well, I knew they existed, but I only just actually met them for the first time shortly before I met you. A couple of days before Easter. I mean obviously I've been trying to break into the North Pole for ages, ever since I first found it really. I mean who wouldn't be trying if they had the opportunity, right? But I could never get past the Yetis." He said with a sigh of remembered frustration. "But obviously they let me in when they recruited me to be a Guardian. Well 'let me in' isn't really… I mean it was more like shoved me in a bag and dragged me in, but the point is that I finally got in, so that's all that really matters." He said with a smile.

"So… but you said I was the first person who ever saw you?" Jamie said, his brow furrowed.

"The first mortal, yes. You're the first one who ever believed in me." Jack said, smiling over at him warmly.

"So who did you hang out with all this time?"

"Um… well, I've kinda just been on my own." He admitted. "I mean obviously there have always been plenty of people around, and I could watch them all I liked, but I was never more than at most like a chill or a cold breeze to them."

"So… you were pretty much all alone for like three hundred years?" Jamie asked softly, an ache of sympathetic sadness in his voice.

Jack looked away, shoving his hands into the pocket of his hoodie a bit self-consciously, giving his shoulders a little noncommittal shrug. They walked a bit in silence, then he noticed Jamie was steered them to the right at the intersection, obviously taking the scenic route that passed by Jack's pond. He didn't object, but he also still had no idea how to answer that question.

"Did you at least have a family?" Jamie asked softly after a few more minutes.

Jack took a little breath, though his chest felt tight as he gave his head a little shake. "Well," He quickly amended, "They WERE still there… I just didn't remember them anymore. When I became Jack Frost, my mind was a blank slate. My first memories were of that pond down there." He said, nodding at the pond that was just coming into view. "That's where I was reborn as Jack Frost. That's one of the reasons I visit here so often. That pond, this place… they were my first memories. But I'd always thought just like you did, that I had just come into existence exactly as I am right now. I had no idea I'd had a mortal life, a mortal family that lived less than a mile away, up in those hills." He said, pointing up at the distant hills that were only half covered in houses this close to the edge of town. "I didn't get my memories back until right before you first saw me. I was given the teeth I lost when I was a child. They unlocked all of my memories."

"You actually lived here? In Burgess?" Jamie asked excitedly.

"Well, technically no. Burgess didn't exist yet." A smile suddenly sprang to his lips, "In fact, I recently found out that Thaddeus Burgess, the man who founded the town, was actually my nephew!"

"What? Seriously?" Jamie asked, astonished.

"Yep. My little sister Pippa married Benjamin Burgess, and their youngest son was Thaddeus!"

"What? Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!" Jamie practically squealed, hopping up and down, "You mean we're related?"

"What?" Jack asked, stunned.

"My gran has this old quilt with the family tree on it and she showed me Thaddeus, and his daughter, can't remember her name, but she married Thomas Bennet and they were my great, great, like a thousand greats grandparents!"

"That's amazing!" Jack crowed excitedly. He actually snatched him up, hugging the boy to him. "You're my first relative! The first one I've ever met that is. Well, since I… Oh!" He said, quickly remembering himself and setting the boy down and backing off several paces. "Sorry! Hope that didn't make you too cold." He said contritely.

"I'm fine!" Jamie said, though his shivering was undoubtedly more than just excitement. "So you came from that pond?" He asked, starting towards it once more, his pace faster.

"Ya." Jack said, forcing himself to keep to the ground, though he so wanted to flit down there on the wind. Still, he didn't want to give the poor kid pneumonia! "Right over there." He said, pointing at the spot as they reached the edge of the pond. "I came right up through the ice."

"But… why would you come out of a pond?" Jamie asked, staring at it with a puzzled expression.

"Um…" Jack dropped his eyes, knowing there was no getting around it, "Because that's where I died. My sister and I were ice skating and the ice cracked. I was able to save her, but I fell in. I drowned."

"Oh." Jamie said softly, taking a seat on the ground.

"Ya…" Jack sighed.

"Did all of the others die before they got their magic too?"

"Um… I actually don't know…" Jack replied, taking a seat beside him, but far enough away that he shouldn't be chilling him. "I never really asked them. Well, I do know that Pitch died. He was a soldier who died in a big battle a long, long time ago."

"Ah…" Jamie said, mulling that a moment. "So…" he said, looking over at him, "Did you hafta like swim down to the bottom of the pond to get your teeth?"

Jack let out a little laugh. "No. I'm still using my body. It wasn't down there for long. My memories were in my baby teeth. That's why the Tooth Fairy collects children's teeth. To safeguard the most important memories of childhood in case we ever need to be reminded of what's important. Once I saw those older memories that they held, all of the other memories just flooded back."

"So she gave you the teeth?"

"Um… no…" Jack said a bit uneasily, "She would have if she'd known I'd lost my memory, but she had no idea. Apparently losing your memory doesn't usually happen. I have no idea why I was different. But anyway, it was actually Pitch that gave them to me."

"Pitch? Why would he help you?" Jamie asked, obviously baffled.

"Well… he had taken the teeth, all the teeth that is, so we couldn't use them to combat his nightmares and he actually kind of lured me away using mine, and stalled me while his nightmares destroyed all of the Easter eggs. That's why there was no Easter this year." He said, his cheeks tinging slightly with shame. "Sorry about that…" He added softly.

"Oh. I was wondering about that. Well I guess it figures he had to be doing something bad, but at least you got your memories back."

Jack sighed. He knew he should leave it, but he couldn't seem to stop himself. "He's not all bad, you know. No one is."

"But… he was trying to destroy the Guardians!" Jamie said, his brow furrowed with confusion.

"Yes, what he did was wrong, and he shouldn't have done it… but he was hurt and angry. I know that might not seem like much of an excuse… but he's been looking after children for… I don't even know how long really, but I think it has to have been at least a thousand years or more… and since the Guardians came along he'd been pushed aside and forgotten. He's been all alone for even longer than I have. I don't agree with what he did, but I can't really blame him for lashing out. He wasn't trying to hurt the kids. He was trying to hurt the people who took his power away and made it so no one even saw him anymore. I mean I wouldn't have done anything like that… but after being alone for three hundred years I can at least kind of understand why he did it."

"Pitch doesn't look after kids, he gives us nightmares!" Jamie said, looking at him in confusion.

"Nobody likes nightmares…" Jack conceded, "But they do serve a purpose. Everyone needs to learn at least a little bit of fear. It keeps them from doing stupid, dangerous things. I mean what are the most common types of nightmares? Going into dark woods at night, wandering off and getting kidnapped, falling from somewhere high up, the house catching on fire and… I don't know… drowning? Or sometimes they're about dangerous things like scary animals, strange people, stuff you shouldn't be playing with and other dangerous situations. Those are things kids need to be afraid of to keep them safe."

Jamie looked at him skeptically, "What about clowns?"

Jack let out a snort of laughter, "Oh, clowns are just straight up creepy. You don't need a nightmare to tell you that!"

Jamie chuckled and nodded.

"Besides, he doesn't actually create every nightmare we have." Jack added, "Sometimes our brains just do that on their own. Nightmares existed before he did after all. It's just part of being human. The nightmares he creates usually have a purpose."

Jamie seemed to mull that over. After a minute he looked at him appraisingly, "So, what? You like him now or something?"

"I… I just… I mean there's just more to him than just the dark, evil guy you saw. That's all I'm saying. You shouldn't really judge someone before you even get to know them. You should find out why they do the things they do. It might help you understand them a little better. I mean most people get the initial impression that he's dark and evil because of his job and how he looks, and they've made up their minds and just dismiss him as the bad guy. You know, I admit I kinda felt the same at first. Well, I mean everyone told me he was evil and then all I saw of him was him lashing out, so I had no reason to doubt what they had told me. When he first approached me after that night, I didn't even want to talk to him at first… but I did. Admittedly it was mostly just to stall him so he wouldn't be off giving kids nightmares." He admitted with a grin, but then his expression sobered, "But when I let him explain himself… I mean I didn't really agree with all of his viewpoints obviously, but eventually I realized that he's actually not a bad person. I never expected it, but after a while I realized that in some ways we're not even all that different. Well, I mean we are obviously very different when it comes to our history and jobs and how we go about doing things… but I just mean as a person."

"Really?" Jamie asked softly.

Jack nodded, "In fact, he's actually the one who told me about my family. He told me where to find the old Burgess family home in town and when I went there he showed me old paintings of my sister and her family. He even showed me some of his own memories of them. He used to look in on them sometimes. It was pretty amazing. I got to see Pippa with her kids and grandkids. I mean when I first got my memories back and remembered my family I just felt this overwhelming guilt for having left them like that… but Pitch… he showed me that they were ok. They went on and had good lives. I mean I still miss them, of course… but it… it really helped me deal with it, knowing that they were alright."

"Um… ok," Jamie conceded. "But he's still creepy."

Jack chuckled softly. "Ya, he can be. I'm just saying he's not so bad once you get to know him. And he stops trying to kill you, of course." He added mirthfully.

Jamie snickered, then looked at his watch. "Man, I need to get home. We're supposed to go and get me some new shoes tonight." He said morosely. "Hey, will you be here tomorrow?" He asked hopefully.

"Actually, it's getting a bit warm for me, I'm afraid." Jack said regretfully, "Time for me to pack it in for the season. Usually I'm already well gone by now. Most often I leave shortly after Easter. It's been centuries since I've seen this much green around me! I just wanted to make sure I got to see you again before I head for colder climates."

"Aw! But I have so many questions!" Jamie whined sadly.

"I know, I know, I'm sorry. I wish temperature didn't matter, but it does for me. It's just part of the changing of seasons and who I am. If I stay too long crops might not grow and then people could go hungry. And who knows, maybe they would even cancel summer vacation!" Jack added teasingly.

Jamie's eyes went wide. "You should go then! But you'll be back, right?"

"When the cold returns, so do I. I'll see you next fall." Jack said reassuringly.

"Ok, but I'm making a list of questions!"

Jack chuckled. "You do that."

Jamie got up, then came over and gave him one last little hug before hurrying off, waving as he went.

Jack waved back, sighing happily. When the boy was gone from sight Jack settled down on his back and gazed up at the sky. It had always been his little tradition to watch the sun set from his pond before his annual migration. He had a couple of hours, but he didn't mind. He was well used to waiting, and at least this time he had a lot to think about.

So he lay there for a time, remembering his visits to the pond back when he was alive. He used to visit it all the time, no matter the season. He just lay there, enjoying the flood of fond memories the place brought up… memories he'd been denied for so long.

"There he is. Right where he said he'd be." Bunny's voice said some time later, sounding rather gruff.

Jack opened his eyes, sitting up and looking back in surprise, seeing North and Bunny approaching him. He quickly got to his feet. Bunny looked very agitated, but for him that wasn't that unusual. What worried him was the stern expression on North's face.

"What are you guys doing here?" Jack asked, his concern quickly growing.

"Where've you been?" Bunny snapped.

"I've been right here for the last…" Jack squinted up at the sky, "Three… three and a half hours maybe. Why?"

"Not just now, this whole week!" Bunny replied sternly.

Jack looked between them, wondering what was going on. The way North had folded his arms over his chest and remained silent was really starting to worry him. "Sleeping. I told you that's what I was going to do, and that's what I did."

"Oh really? You were sleeping a whole bloody week?" Bunny asked with a sarcastic edge.

"Yes." Jack said, starting to get irritated, "When spring rolls around I sometimes sleep up to three weeks or more."

"Oh ya? Well where were ya sleepin then?" Bunny asked, his eyes narrowing.

"Why does that even matter? What is this all about? Did I miss a rollcall or something?" Jack asked irritably, not liking the direction of this questioning.

"I've been lookin for ya all bloody week! I even went up to that little cabin of yours, so I know for a fact you weren't there!"

"You said you wouldn't go there again!" Jack said, feeling rather betrayed.

"I said I wouldn't unless it was an emergency." Bunny shot back.

"And what exactly was this big emergency?"

"The Man in the Moon told me to look in on you. I tried all bloody week, but my tunnels wouldn't take me to you. You certainly weren't flying this whole time, and if you're not in the air, there's only one place you could be that my tunnels wouldn't take me. And then I go up to your little cabin, and guess what I found under your bed?"

Jack's eyes just darted back and forth between them as he stood there silently, having no idea what he could possibly say. If Bunny had found the passage there was no playing that off.

"I can't believe yer shackin up with Pitch!" Bunny said scornfully.

Jack's eyed widened and dropped to the ground, his cheeks tinging slightly.

"See? See?" Bunny exclaimed, "I knew it! And you didn't believe me." He said to North.

Jack felt a horrible wrench in his stomach as he realized Bunny had just been fishing. He hadn't known anything for sure until he'd tricked Jack into giving him exactly the confirmation he'd been looking for.

"I was not wanting to believe this." North grumbled, his voice full of reproach. "I warned you! We all warned you, and still you go to him! Of all people, Jack, why are you doing this?"

"Why exactly is this any of your business in the first place?" Jack snapped, tired of being treated like an errant child. "None of you have any idea what it's been like. Three hundred years! Alone and unseen! You've always been believed in. You've had each other. You have no idea what it's been like for me! Pitch does. He knows because he's been there too!"

"Ya," Bunny growled, "Well you had us here now, and yet apparently that still wasn't enough for ya."

"Oh please! You barely tolerate me. The others barely know me. It's not like we hang out or anything. I mean how often do the Guardians even get together? Seriously, Phil probably knows more about me than any of you do, and he doesn't even like me! So I have some acquaintances now. Coworkers. Is that supposed to make three hundred years of isolation just disappear?"

"Coworkers? Is that all we are to you?" Bunny snapped.

Jack's expression darkened, "We may be on better terms now, but it wasn't too long ago that I made one mistake you literally turned your backs on me and cast me out! Forgive me if I don't feel real secure about our relationship. Relationships like that can't fill the void that this life has left inside me. Am I not allowed to feel the need to be close to someone? Or are you just saying that you get to dictate who that someone is? Am I required to put in a 'companionship request form' with HR? Do you guys all get to vote on who I am, and am not, allowed to associate with? Because that was definitely NOT a part of the oath I took!"

"He's just yanking your chain! Can't you see that? That's what Pitch does! He doesn't care about you! He's just working some angle or trying to manipulate you into doing something! Wake up!" Bunny spat.

"You know what? You're the ones who need to wake up!" Jack snapped back, "I don't think any of you have any idea what Pitch is really like."

"Ya? If he's not manipulating you, then why were you trying to talk Jamie, of all people, into believing in him?"

"What?" Jack said, stunned by the accusation.

"The man in the Moon told us how you were chatting him up, trying to convince him that Pitch was such a great guy." Bunny said, gesturing up.

Jack looked up, only just now realizing that the moon was in the sky, and probably had been all along, but he was only becoming clearly visible now that the sun was going down. He looked back at Bunny, "What I told Jamie is that he should get to know someone before making snap judgements about them. You know, don't judge a book by its cover? Of course that's all you ever do, so I don't expect you to understand that kind of advice!"

They all looked up as Sandman arrived in his little biplane, coming down for a landing between them. His plane vanished and he took off his goggles, then a question mark appeared above his head followed by an up arrow.

"I'll tell ya what's up," Bunny quickly chimed in. "Jack here's been getting cozy with Pitch!"

Sandman furrowed his brow. An & sign appeared over his head followed by a question mark as he gave his shoulders a little shrug.

"What ya mean 'and?'?" Bunny asked incredulously. "Hang on a tick, why don't you even look surprised? Did you know about this?"

Sandman just nodded, still looking completely unperturbed.

"Just how long have you known?" Bunny demanded.

Sandman flicked his hand and a tiny golden Jack appeared and fell to the ground, a little swirl of golden dust puffing up from the ground where he hit before settling. He then reached out and sprinkled golden sand on the tiny prone form.

"You could see in my dream after I crash landed? You… you saw Pitch?" Jack asked in shock and more than a little mortified considering what they had been doing in that dream. "I remember now… the gold dream sand came… but when it fell on him, he wasn't expelled from my dream. He said it was because I wanted him there…"

Sandman just nodded.

"And… you… you're ok with that?"

The sandman floated up so he could look him in the eye. A little silhouette of Pitch appeared above his head, followed by a smiley face, then a question mark.

"Ya…" Jack said, giving him a little smile, "As strange as it may seem… he does make me happy. Happier than I can ever remember being."

Sandman turned to the others, waving his hand towards Jack with an expression on his face that clearly seemed to ask "What more do you want?"

"This is ridiculous! No wonder the Man in the Moon told us not to ask you to come along! You're obviously just as deluded as Jack is!" Bunny replied angrily, "Pitch doesn't do anything without some nefarious purpose. He's lower than a snake's belly! He's obviously messing with Jack's head. Corrupting him or brain washing him or something. Just you wait and see, he's gonna have Jack turn on us, and then… oh cut it out!" He snapped, noticing Sandman floating there snoring.

Sandman stopped feigning sleep and actually glared at Bunny. He flicked his hand, drawing a line of golden sand between Jack and the others, then very purposely hopped over it onto Jack's side before turning and giving them both very judging looks. Then he pointed at Jack significantly. A pacifier appeared over his head, then it was obliterated by a large X.

"Thank you." Jack said gratefully, looking down at the little man with watery eyes.

Sandman just gave his leg a little reassuring pat, then gave the other two one last disappointed glare, shaking his head at them before pulling his goggles back on. He hopped up, his plane reappearing beneath him, and he flew away.

Jack's expression clouded as he looked back over at North and Bunny, "At least one of you thinks I'm an adult with the right to make my own decisions."

"Jack," North said, looking a little exasperated, "You are not knowing Pitch like we are knowing him!"

"Oh please!" Jack shot back, "None of you know Pitch! Have any of you ever even had a single meaningful conversation with him?"

"Oh come off it!" Bunny spat, "You gonna try ta make out like he's a saint? He tortures kids for a living! That's literally his job description!"

"He doesn't torture them, he makes them know fear. We may not like nightmares, but you know what? We need them! As Azrael once told me, fear is first and foremost a survival instinct. A kid with no fear isn't going to survive long! When I was a kid I used to have nightmares about going out into the dark woods at night… and you know what? I didn't go out into the woods at night because of that, and I never got eaten by wolves like the kid down the road did. He was never afraid of anything. Look what that got him!"

Bunny looked up at the moon, his ears flicking, then looked back at Jack. "The Man in the Moon says this ends now. Pitch is corrupting you. You need to stay away from him."

Jack glared up at the moon, "Typical! You can't even tell me that yourself. And why should I accept commandments handed down from someone who won't even deign to talk to me? You know what, it doesn't even matter. The answer is NO! I have the right to make my own decisions! You can't control what I feel and dictate who I can and can't care about! You do not control my heart! You don't decide who I can love." Jack took a little breath as he realized what he said. "I love him…" He said with soft realization, then he looked back up at the moon, his voice rising, "I love him and there's nothing you can do to change that!"

"Come off it, mate!" Bunny grumbled irritably, "Nobody could love that…" He straightened and flicked his ears up, watching with growing concern as Jack staggered back a bit, clutching at his chest, "Jack?"

Jack started coughing and water spattered the ground. Jack fell to his knees, starting to cough harder, but the water just kept coming.

"Wait! Wait! What are you doing?" Bunny asked with alarm, looking up at the moon. "No! This is not what we discussed! This was supposed to be an intervention, not a bloody execution!"

North just watched in horror as Bunny scrambled over the crouch beside Jack, his ears pressed back as he tried to pat him on the back to help clear the water from his lungs. "I'm sorry! This is NOT how this was supposed to go!"

"Manny! You go too far!" North said, looking up at the moon angrily.

"What's happening here?" Pitch snapped in alarm as he stepped out of the shadow of a nearby tree. He hurried over to Jack, shoving Bunny out of the way. "Jack!" he said, crouching down and putting his arm around him. "What's happening? What are they doing to you?"

Jack couldn't speak, he just kept coughing up a seemingly endless amount of water. The water kept filling his lungs, but just slowly enough for him to catch a tiny gasp of air now and then between coughs. He was able to stay conscious, but only just barely.

The Moon grew brighter in the sky and Pitch looked up, then his expression hardened. "That's utter rubbish!" He growled angrily, "No one's corrupted him!" he paused, listening, then glared at the Moon. "So what if he chose me? Are having feelings for me now an offense punishable by death? What gives you the right…"

North and Bunny just stood there, horrified by the situation but clueless as to how they could possibly intervene.

"He has to what?!" Pitch drawled disbelievingly, letting go of Jack and rising. "Right… and if he does denounce me and someday happens to come back to me, you'll…?" He let out a little furious breath. "Ya, that's pretty much what I thought you'd say."

Pitch turned his head, glaring over at Bunny and North. "And you two prize idiots played right into his plan, didn't you? I bet you didn't even think twice when he told you to leave the fluttering voice of reason out of this, and when he wanted you to confront Jack here, at the place where he died. The only place on this entire planet where Jack is still vulnerable enough for the Man in the Moon to kill him! You have no earthly idea what this is even about, do you?"

They glanced at each other before looking back to him, but remained silent.

"Good ol' 'Manny' here wants his pound of flesh. Apparently he feels he has one too many immortals around, and he's chosen Jack to be his sacrificial lamb… unless someone offers him a better alternative." He looked down at Jack as he collapsed, lying there on his side struggling desperately for breath. His face hardened and he looked back up at the moon. "Very well." He hissed angrily, "I'll give you want you want."

With that, Pitch reached back, drawing out his pendulum and took a swing at Bunny. Bunny quickly dove away to avoid the blade, then looked in shock as a billowing mass of blackness surrounded North. Dozens of nightmares sprang forth from the ground, driving him away from the blackness as Pitch disappeared into it.

North drew his swords, apprehension filling him as a thick black fog surrounded him. He shifted back in alarm as the blade of Pitch's pendulum darted through the air, very nearly grazing his chest. A moment later he had to duck as it came at him from the side.

"As much as I would love toying with you like this all day, I don't really have time to draw this out." Pitch's voice said from the darkness all around him when North just stood there, tensed and straining to see through the darkness, his swords at the ready. "So let's finish this, shall we?"

North ducked and dodged as Pitch's blade started darting at him from random directions. Pitch's weapon had a much longer reach, so he knew he didn't stand a very good chance, especially in this darkness, but he wasn't about to give up without a fight! He started swinging his blades around, hoping to block the fatal blow he knew was coming.

Suddenly he froze as he felt one of his blades cleave flesh. The darkness around him evaporated and he looked over, shocked to see a good several inches of his blade embedded in Pitch's chest, the blade having slid neatly into place between his ribs. He looked at him in confusion. Pitch wasn't even holding his weapon!

Pitch looked up at him and their eyes met. Pitch reached out, taking hold of North's hand as North tried to pull back, then pulled it towards him as he lunged forward a step, shoving the blade the rest of the way through him. North looked down in horror as blood coursed down his blade, then watched Pitch's features shifting, his skin darkening as he became human. The Nightmares all simply turned to sand as one and were carried away on the breeze. He looked up and their eyes met again.

"Thank you." Pitch gasped softly as the light faded from his eyes. Pitch's knees buckled and he fell back, the movement pulling him free of the blade, then he just lay there, looking up at the now brightly glowing moon. He coughed and blood spattered his lips. He took a ragged gasp of air, then said in a shaky voice, "You got… what you wanted… let him go."

Jack gasped as the water suddenly evaporated from his lungs. He struggled to sit up, looking around in confusion, then he spotted Pitch. "No…" He breathed in horror, "No!" He yelled, scrambling up and rushing over, falling to his knees and desperately pressing his hands over the wound.

Pitch reached up a shaky hand and took ahold of him, urging him closer. Jack relented, slipping his arms around the man and slumping down, holding him a bit desperately. "'s ok…" Pitch managed to gasp out weakly.

"No! No it's not ok!" Jack cried in anguish, pulling back a bit to look at him. "You can't leave me. I love you!"

A little trace of a smile flickered over Pitch's lips, but then his eyes slid shut, his head drifting to the side as his chest stilled.

North and Bunny could do nothing but stand there, tears streaming from their eyes as they watched Jack sobbing in agony, rocking back and forth as he clutched Pitch's body to him. North just looked down at his bloodied sword disbelievingly, then dropped it, taking a step back… but he couldn't deny the bloody that covered his hand.

After a few minutes Jack looked up, glaring furiously at the Moon. "No!" He sobbed angrily, "You can't take him from me! Not after everything you've put me through! I refuse to be alone again! No, where he goes, I go!"

"Very well." The Moon's voice said indifferently in his mind, "You've served your purpose."

Jack felt his lungs filling up with water once more, but he fought his instincts, holding it in. He shifted down, lying beside Pitch and draping himself across his chest, holding him as the lights began to fade.

"No! Jack!" North said in horror as Jack's hair turned brown.

Suddenly there was a clap as loud as thunder and Azrael appeared. She peered down at their bodies, then slowly looked back up at the Moon with obvious growing fury. "How dare you!" She said aloud, glaring up at the Moon, "They are not your little play things to dispose of as you wish! You planned this all along, didn't you? When you killed off all of those boys you were looking for the one that you knew Pitch would fall for, and then you torture this poor boy by completely alienating him from all of those around him until they were a perfect match. I thought you were just neglectful, but no… you're something far worse!"

"Wait, what ya mean he killed boys?" Bunny asked, stunned.

"When he was looking for a new immortal that could take down Pitch, he killed off twenty six innocent boys between the ages of seventeen and nineteen before he finally came across Jack. I never knew what it was he was looking for back then, but now I've figured it out. He wanted someone Pitch would fall in love with. See, he can't kill Pitch. Pitch is an ancient soul. He's too strong. The only way he could possibly get rid of him was to manipulate him into committing suicide." She turned her attention back to the Moon. "So your little plan succeeded… and yet you failed! You want to know why? Because you failed to take into account that they both belong to ME! They may have started out in your belief system, but they have both entered my service voluntarily, and no one has any right to take the lives I gave them but me!"

In one quick motion she flipped her cloak back and it transformed into a large pair of sleek black wings, and suddenly she looked very different. She wore a gleaming black and silver armored bodice and a kilt made of strips of black leather, form fitting silver and black boots that went up to her knees and a thick silver belt at her waist bearing a gleaming ankh, her whole bearing obviously that of a seasoned warrior. She held out her right hand and a large, curved black staff appeared in it. She gave it a little flick and a very long, wickedly sharp silver blade flipped out, locking into place perpendicular to the shaft.

"If I reap anyone tonight, I guarantee it will not be either of them!" She growled. "Care to rethink this?" she then added in a light tone, a very dangerous glint in her eyes as she gave him a little smile.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

A/N – before you ask, no, I'm not done with the story. This is just a transition point. By all means, please leave reviews. Lots of reviews. I'm going to need all of the help I can get to face the hurdles ahead.