After Jack left Bernard and North's workshop, he spent the next few days alone. As motivated as he felt when he crawled out of that window, he knew he needed to take some time and actually think through what he wanted to say. If he had sought her out then, it was highly likely that he'd bumble his words and say something stupid.

When he felt like he could talk to Esther without stepping on his tongue, Jack returned to the headquarters. If he had known he was about to go on a hunt for the guardian, he'd have stopped to get breakfast first.

Jack turned onto the corridor that Esther's office was located on and could see the sign from where he stood. He jogged the distance to her door, holding back a groan as he got close enough to read the sign. "Out of office today. All inquiries should be sent to voicemail for the time being." Jack frowned as he finished reading. "Yeah. Well I'm gonna pass. What I need to say can't be said on voicemail."

He crossed his arms and thought. Even when she wasn't in her office, she was still likely to be working. With the benefit of the Cherub bytes, being in the field to work wasn't as necessary as it had once been. The answer came on so suddenly that Jack felt stupid for not thinking of it sooner – the library!

The library within headquarters was ridiculously large, but Jack knew Esther well enough to know that she could be in one of three areas: references, history, or technology. He disregarded technology because any modifications she'd want to her equipment would be taken care of by Research and Development. He went to the extensive references section, thinking that maybe she was looking for supplemental sources for her portal work, only to come up empty-handed. Jack then moved into the history section, now thinking that maybe she had been looking for additional information on Fiona or something. He didn't find Esther, but he did find Gerard in the Renaissance section.

"Esther? Yes, she was in here earlier. I believe I saw her come from the metaphysical aisle with a few books, but I haven't seen her since. Perhaps she went and got something to eat in the cafeteria?"

Jack cursed inwardly as he looked around the cafeteria. 'She's not here either!'

That's not to say that he didn't find something in the room that drew his attention.

And ire.

From a table set off to the side, Mitch looked up from his plate of spaghetti and nearly choked. "B-Benny-!" He started to swat the others' arm. "Frost just saw us-!"

"So?" Benny didn't like to be interrupted during his lunch, so he was a little irritable.

"Dude – he's coming – right – for us! And he looks pissed!"

Benny set down his sandwich and looked across the room to see Jack Frost making a b-line for their table. Sure enough, the young guardian had a dark look in his eyes. 'Act cool,' he told himself. 'Jack wouldn't freeze us here- '

"What gives you the right to talk about Esther the way you did?" Jack's jaw was tense as he ground out the words he should have said days ago. If he hadn't seen them, it probably wouldn't have come to the front of his mind, but he had, and it did.

Boy did it ever. Now he wanted some answers.

Mitch looked ready to flee the room. "We were put up to it!" he blurted out. Benny looked at him in disbelief, but he wasn't paying attention. He was too busy watching Jack's expression and the staff in his hand.

"Explain."

"We were asked to…talk that way," Benny told him. "It was supposed to piss you off – and obviously it did. Normally we wouldn't talk about any girl like that."

"We were struggling to get it out, dude," Mitch added.

Jack stood there and thought about what they said. The one had spilled his guts too quickly to make it seem like a lie, but who had started this charade? Who thought it would be a grand idea to piss off Jack Frost? He let out a breath and asked, "Was it Pitch? Did he put you up to this?"

Benny shook his head. "It was Bunnymund. We don't know why. He just approached us after the last meeting and asked if we could do him a favor. Believe us, Jack. Esther doesn't deserve to be talked to -or about – like we did. She didn't…hear us, did she?" The last thing he needed, besides getting frozen, was to piss off the Guardian of Pure Love. He had heard that she could have a nasty temper herself when pushed too far.

Jack shrugged. "I wouldn't know. I'm trying to find her."

"I think she's teaching that class again today," Mitch offered. It wasn't until Jack nodded and left that he was able to breathe a sigh of relief. Bunnymund never said they couldn't tell Jack if he asked…and he really didn't want to experience frostbite.

'I should have known – argh dammit!'

The way Bunnymund acted after the last meeting should've been a clue. Jack knew he'd have to think of something to pay back the Pooka, after he found and talked to Esther.

Once he managed to find Esther.

He had walked across the expanse of headquarters to the training grounds, only to find that some of the students in Esther's class were exiting the stadium. Jack was able to stop one of them long enough to find out that class had wrapped up ten minutes ago. Those that were just now leaving had stayed behind to get in some extra practice. Esther had left at the end of the class, but no one knew where she was headed.

It was all Jack could do not to kick the double doors on the way back into headquarters.

"What's up, Jack?" Fiona asked, coming out onto the front porch.

Jack paused, looking at the front door with wide eyes. "Is someone being murdered in there?" The shouting and shrieking were alarming, but Fiona didn't look fazed.

"Only in Mario Kart," she grinned.

"Oh." As if that settled everything, Jack continued. "You haven't seen Esther, have you?"

Fiona shook her head. "Not since the party. Something wrong?"

Jack shrugged. "I haven't talked to her in a couple of days, and I was hoping I could catch her today, but I seem to be missing her." He then went into his journey so far that morning, choosing to omit the conversation with the catcallers in the cafeteria. Fiona listened intently, not saying anything until she was certain Jack had caught her up to speed.

"What about Toothiana?" she suggested. "It's just a guess, but if Es' avoiding working in the office, she might be at Tooth's glade as a change of pace."

"I didn't think about that, thanks Fiona."

"Sure thing, Jack. Hope you find her!" Fiona started to head back into the house, and Jack could hear her shouting mix with the rest. "The blue shell doesn't lie! Do I need to bring out the handbook?!"

He wasn't sure what that meant, but maybe it was something he could ask Jamie about one day.

Toothiana's glad felt oddly humid today. It is July and you're wearing a hoodie, you moron.' He quickly wiped his forehead and pushed his sleeves back. Idly he considered expanding his wardrobe to include cotton shirts, if he intended on visiting his friends in tropical climates more often.

"I hate to be the bringer of bad news," Toothiana frowned, "but Esther only came by for a few minutes."

"Did she say where she was going?"

Toothiana began to inspect her fingers, not once looking Jack in the eye as she spoke. "She…asked me for the directions to…Halloweentown."

"Halloweentown?"

"Esther said she needed to talk with Pitch, but she didn't know where else she could find him. So, she came here and asked me if I knew."

Jack couldn't imagine why Esther would seek out Pitch. "Did you tell her?"

"I did," Toothiana nodded. "I think she wanted to ask him about nightmares."

'That would make sense. I can only imagine what kind,' Jack thought bitterly, remembering what she had told him. "So, Pitch is in Halloweentown, then?"

The fairy guardian shrugged. "I'm not one hundred percent sure. That's where Esther was headed. If you can't find her…or Pitch…there, see if you can find Skellington. He'd know better than anyone else about where to find Pitch, except maybe Sandman."

Jack had never been to Halloweentown before, so he was surprised by the landscape before him as he crossed the barrier. The sky was painted like a permanent sunset, even when technically it was early afternoon. Most trees were shades of reds, golds, and oranges, with an occasional few looking bare and gnarled. It was those that Jack could swear were looking at him. The path that he walked was built with cobblestones, and he could see smaller paths in the distance that were worn dirt trails. An iron arched gate was just ahead of Jack, its sign read "Welcome to Halloweentown" in an elegant gothic typeface.

On the other side of the gate lay, of all things, a gravestone field. Jack stopped at the closest one to inspect it. There was no name or date carved into the stone, there wasn't anything to imply it being more than decoration. And there were hundreds of them. Jack wondered if these somehow ended up in mortal shop displays each year. 'A lending library of gravestones?'

Jack soon realized that he wouldn't have to seek out Skellington after all. He could see Pitch just ahead on the path.

With Esther.

A lump formed in Jack's throat and he froze in place. Up until now, he had been ready to talk to her, to speak his piece and just be done with it. Now that he saw her…he wasn't sure.

Pitch could feel the change in the air, how it went from the crisp, fall atmosphere the area was known for to the feeling of the first frost in the morning. He spared a glance at the cupid walking next to him. 'She hasn't noticed.'

It was a sight to behold when Esther arrived in Halloweentown. With her light-colored hair and white tunic, she practically glowed as she walked through the town. Pitch had hung in the shadows and watched her, curious for her reason being here. He watched her attempt to make small talk with some of the people who lived here, only to be met with looks of suspicion. When he had heard his name, that she was looking for him, he decided to take pity on her. No one was willing to be helpful to the cupid, whether they knew he was there or not.

Pitch had escorted her out of the town after that. Whatever she had sought him out for didn't need to be overheard by nosy people. Turns out he was righter than he realized. Esther was having nightmares about her life before she died, and she wanted help getting rid of them.

It was the first time that Pitch had heard the story, and for the Nightmare King, her night terrors were startling. She had been in a living nightmare with Samuel, and to this day she was still dealing with the aftermath. Esther had just finished explaining her latest nightmare when he felt Jack cross the barrier. It wouldn't be long before the boy stormed in, demanding why he was hanging around Esther. Maybe minutes, he figured.

"Have you spoken to anyone else about this?" he asked, cutting her off.

Esther stopped walking and looked up at him. "You don't want to help me," she said with resignation in her voice.

"It's more that I can't help." He started to rest a hand on her shoulder, only to think better of it. "When you asked me if I was the one plaguing you with these dreams months ago, and I told you I was not capable of interfering with your dreams…I can't interfere with the dreams of other guardians in any shape or form. What you're experiencing based on your past is only something that you can get past." Pitch paused for a beat, then added, "Of course, if you happened to grow up with someone who knew you as well as you knew yourself, they might be more help than I ever could."

Esther looked confused. What was he talking about? She followed his gaze, turning to see Jack walking up the cobblestone path. "Jack?"

"You're hard to find today," he said, coming to a stop before them.

"You were looking for me?" She swore to herself that she did not sound as hopeful hearing that as she thought she did.

Jack looked between Esther and Pitch. "So…were you able to get the answer you were looking for? Tooth said that you needed some help." He wasn't about to blurt out that he knew the reason she came all the way down to Halloweentown, but a glance her way told him that she knew that he knew.

"It was not the answer Esther hoped for," Pitch spoke, drawing their attention, "but I believe that she is now able to get the answer she seeks." He nodded briefly before turning and walking back into town. There was no reason for him to hang around now.

Esther frowned as Pitch walked away. She had made a point of avoiding paperwork for the sole purpose of talking with Pitch. Even though he had told her he couldn't help, she had hoped he could have given her a suggestion to try. The books from the library weren't helpful, and she didn't want to make a habit out of taking sleeping medicine.

"You okay, Es?" Jack didn't like the expression on her face.

She shook her head. "Tooth told you that I was having nightmares, didn't she?"

"Only that you had questions about nightmares."

"Well, more or less the same thing. It's the past," she added, "nothing new…I just wish I could move past…my past."

"When did the nightmares start?"

Esther shrugged. "When I get stressed, they're more likely to happen. But then…when we had that fight…they got more frequent." She winced when she saw Jack's face fall. "I thought Pitch could help me work past my nightmares, but he said that he can't manipulate the dreams of other guardians."

Jack tapped his staff against his shoulder. Pitch said that he couldn't help her, but that she could still get the answer she wanted… The idea was a long shot, but he had to try. "Is there any way I could help?"

"Jack…"

"Hear me out, Es," the idea was starting to take root. "Anytime that you're feeling stressed, or if you've had one of those nightmares…you could talk to me? Maybe talking it out can help you figure out why it's those memories that are coming back. I know I can't offer much, but I can listen."

Esther was touched. "I don't know, Jack. That's really sweet of you to offer…t-those are some dark memories, Jack. If we hadn't- I mean- "

"Look at it as finding closure, then." Truthfully, Jack could go the rest of his immortal life without knowing all the horrid details about Esther's life after his death, but if it meant that she could get some peace of mind, he'd do whatever it took. "Maybe you've been holding these memories in too long. I know it's hard to talk about, and I know you'll never be able to forget…but…look at the good that came from it."

"What good?"

"You're standing right here in front of me." For a brief second, Jack felt his face get warm, and he hoped that she didn't see it. "If you'll let me, Esther, we can get past the bad memories…and make some new ones."

This time, it was Esther who felt flushed. "Are you suggesting…" She felt slightly better when he blushed.

"Whatever you want to do," he said. "It can be anything, all you have to do is tell me. I don't…want you to have to deal with this on your own. Not anymore."

Jack wasn't expecting Esther to throw her arms around his shoulders, and he felt the staff in his hands hit the ground as he caught her. He awkwardly returned the hug, trying not to think about how her forehead nestled perfectly in the crook of his neck. 'Okay, this isn't how I imagined this going- '

"Thank you, Jack," Esther mumbled into his shoulder. "You have no idea what this means to me."

"Anything to keep you from being sad. You know, if you want to keep avoiding the office today – or any day for that matter – we could always go out and get something to eat?"

'Is he-?' "Jack, are you asking me out on a date?"

Jack swallowed as Esther leaned back enough to study him. This was it, now or never. It took him three days to pluck up the courage. "Y-yes." 'Way to go, moron. That sounded confident!'

Esther smiled, a genuine smile, and Jack felt like he could take on the world when she smiled at him like that. "I would love that, Jack."

A/N: And with that, Jack and Esther's side story is finished! I wanted to finish the entire story before it went live, because I drew the outline up in December, and let's just say by chapter 4 the actual story started to deviate from what I planned. I wanted to keep this mostly between Jack and Esther, so it has a conclusion even if you don't want to read Call Me Again. Their story continues on there – oh there's loads more to it – but when we get past chapter 55, that'll be when this story falls into place.

Kayla, I hope you enjoyed this. It was a hoot to plan, and just as much fun to write! I can't wait to get back into the main story so we can see where these two dorks go with the rest of 'em!