A/N :

Q-A the Authoress : A mace? Okaaaaay. *lol* Haha, yeah, I'm honestly sick of Jack being shipped with everyone, he only needs the guardians, believers and FOOD! ;D

Natalie : Have you even watched "The Bachelor"? If not, that might explain why you had trouble understanding the chapter.

Firenze Fox : Glad to hear that!

I believe in myths : That's a very good pairing as well. ;)

Hamato Miwa : *gives you a tissue* XD

Shamangirl1 : Yay, another supporter!

Breyannia : Everyone loves muffins! :3

Xion5 : Awww, hehe, I just couldn't resist. Some ides are too crazy to not be written down. *g*

Cat Girl 1995 : A playboy Jack would be so out of character, I hope it'll never happen. Omg, hhhhm, spiders at the Warren would make more sense than at the North Pole. *shudders at the thought* Creepy little bastards...

Stygian Sparrow : I'm happy you liked it so much! It was definitely hilarious to write!

Guest : Haha, same here. No spider which dares to intrude my appartment will come out alive. I have to kill it right after seeing it when the adrenaline is still high because the longer I look at it the more scared I'll become.

shadowleaf : Sounds familiar. I'm also one of those people who just swallow it all and silently sit there and have the thoughts in my mind running wild ( or rant online ), but I rarely explode in front of other people. Although I've been told that I have a glare that can really scare people off, but I have to be REALLY pissed off for that. ^^"

Also thanks to Doublesims, sauara and guest for their comments!

Several of you have been requesting me to write about the guardians finding out about Jack's past / death, his fear of water and wanted more fatherly and brotherly stuff. Soooo, I combined it all in one story. This will be divided into three parts, next one is already written and will be uploaded in a few days.


„That's so typical. Murphy's law, I tell ya." Bunnymund grumbled to the other guardians as he clung to the interior of the sleigh on the way back to the North Pole.

Indeed everything went wrong that day. First he was called away from his work in the middle of the Easter preparations. When he arrived at Santoff Clausen he was told that one of Tooth's fairies had seen a nightmare in a house in Canada while she was collecting teeth. Shortly after the sleigh, or the flying deathtrap like he prefered to call it, launched, North realized that the magical snowglobe was missing. He insisted he always had it in the pocket of his coat but most likely the elves had removed it during one of their mischievous moments. Because Canada wasn't that far away the Russian decided to fly there without the portal, much to Bunny's discomfort. Jack's snarky comments about his fear of heights didn't contribute to his general lack of good mood just like the occasional clear-air turbulences. Shortly after they reached their destination and ransacked the house for the nightmare they soon discovered it. Only that it wasn't one of Pitch's black sand horses but a huge black mastiff, which immediately lunged at the Australian rabbit as soon as it sensed him. Fortunately this time Sandy had been more successful at knocking it out with his dreamsand than he had been in Jamie's bedroom years ago. And yet, the pooka had enough of the never-ending fail and didn't falter to express it.

"Seriously, Tooth, ya should give yer fairies some glasses, that dog looked nothin' like a nightmare!"

"My fairies can see just fine!" the hummingbird-hybrid protested slightly offended.

"It was at night, it's dark in the house and the dog was big and black. She saw a menacing shadow on four legs running towards her, you can't blame her for thinking it was one of Pitch's nightmares!"

"Still, comin' here was a waste of time. I got work ta do, ya know?" Bunny continued to nag.

"We all have." North stated matter-of-factly, only turning his head shortly to glance at his comrade since he had to focus on directing the reindeer.

"Yeah, right, but my point stands, this whole hullaballoo was completely unnecessary."

"We got it, kangaroo. Don't be so grumpy, your fur is turning grey already."

Bunnymund shot a glare at the frost teen who was lounging on the far end of the sleigh as if he was lying on a bed. His staff was loosely resting in his right arm while his left hand lay on his belly and his left leg dangled down the wooden vehicle. The sight alone made the Easter spirit feel dizzy, they were hundreds of feet above the ground after all. Or to be more precise, above the Arctic ocean.

"Very funny Frostbite, be sure ya won't hit yer hollow head when ya fall down."

"I won't, don't worry. Too bad you're partially chicken or you could enjoy the awesome view from up here."

"Who are ya callin' a chicken now!?" the anthropomorphic rabbit threatened and let go of his death grip on the railing, at least a tiny bit.

"You." Jack replied bluntly and pointed his staff at him to emphasize it.

Bunnymund had enough. This day had worn his nerves down and as usual the winter spirit managed to be the straw that broke the camel's back. With a swift move, faster than the white-haired boy could react, the pooka ripped the staff from his grasp and held it triumphantly in his furry paws. Jack's cerulean eyes widened in shock and his body jerked up, no sign left of the relaxed attitude from seconds ago.

"Hey, give it back!" he shouted.

"Not so cheeky anymore, are ya?" Bunny mocked.

Even though he rarely admitted it he liked Jack, but he needed to be taught a lesson about respecting his elders now and then. And judging from the teen's upset behaviour he was succeeding at it.

"Okay, you had your fun. Now give it back." the young guardian demanded, stood up and tried to reach the ancient staff but the large rabbit held it up and kept him away with his other paw.

"First ya have ta apologize."

"What? You gotta be kidding me."

"Not kiddin' at all, mate."

Normally Jack would have refused to say sorry for teasing his favourite kangaroo but even though he trusted the Spirit of Easter he seriously hated to see his conduit of power in someone else's hands. A deep frustrated sigh left his pale lips.

"Gheez, alright. I am-"

Suddenly a clear-air turbulence rocked the entire sleigh, throwing it's occupants around and causing the youngest of them to lose his balance. Bunnymund fell face first onto one of the wooden benches and groaned in annoyance until a yell of pure fear alarmed him. Panic rose in him when he realized Jack was gone. Not caring about the flight level anymore he leaned over the railing and green orbs stared in horror at the teen plummeting downwards.

"JACK!" he shouted, attracting the other three guardians' attention to what had happened.

"Oh no!" Tooth screamed out and darter after him, but it was too late.


He was falling. The wind desperately kept trying to lift him up but without his staff its attempts were in vain. At breakneck speed he dashed towards the ocean. In the distance he could see a small green shape approaching him but still not enough to catch him in time. A gasp was immediately drowned as soon as his lean body crashed into the water which, in that moment, felt as if it was made of concrete.

Righ then, right there, he recalled every single detail about the end of his human life so many hundred years ago. The darkness, the cold, the fear. Since he became the Spirit of Winter the cold was a part of him, but under these circumstances the fridig water was far from comforting. Back then this was what had made it impossible for him to swim back to the surface, it had literally frozen him and kept him from moving.

But now he had another problem. He couldn't remember how to swim. All he knew about his past had been unveiled through his toothbox and swimming hadn't been a part of it. During his immortal life he had never felt the need to learn it. Not that he was afraid of water, he just prefered to freeze lakes or fly over oceans and rivers, not dive into them. Even after seeing his own death it hadn't changed his attitude towards the wet element. Maybe because he had refused to dwell on it any further.

But right now he realized how much it scared him. Panic rose in him when he suddenly ran out of air, his limbs flailing around in despair and yet he kept sinking until even the moon's weak light, which had shone through the cloudy sky, was swallowed by the depths of the ocean. He kept trashing around even more after he had lost his bearings. Darkness surrounded him. Where was up, where was down? He couldn't tell.

Water started filling his lungs, no, this couldn't happen again! Why did he have to experience this way of dying twice? He didn't want to die, not now, not after he had finally found a family and children who believed in him. That was the last coherent thought in his mind before everything became black.


"Why ain't he comin' up?!" Bunny inquired nervously as he kept his gaze on the black waves below.

The sleigh couldn't hover in the air so North steered the reindeer in a small circle around the spot where the young guardian had dissappeared into the polar sea. Darkness surrounded them, clouds had blocked the moon's light and the ocean was nothing but a black moving mass, not allowing anyone to see through it.

Tooth suddenly remembered Jack telling her about his death when he had several questions about his toothbox some time ago. He had drowned in a lake, but if the icecold water wasn't affecting him now anymore then there could be only one reason for him still being underwater.

"Can he swim at all?" she asked in an unsure tone.

Everyone's worry increased to a higher level as the question sank it. As soon as he realized what was going on Bunnymund wasted no second to jump after the teen but his attempt was ruined by Tooth and Sandy who held him back.

"Whatcha doin', Jack is drowin', he needs our help!" he yelled furiously.

"I know, but the water is freezing cold, there's no way any of us can handle it! And it's pitch black down there, you won't be able to find him!" the hummingbird-hybrid explained rationally, but her desperate voice clearly indicated how upset she was about the situation.

Thankfully they Guardian of Dreams was among them and knew exactly what he was supposed to do. About a dozen swirls of glowing dreamsand shot into the dark sea below, their magical light illuminating it but even this wasn't enough to reveal Jack's whereabouts. Their light faded into the depths of the ocean but it wasn't needed anyway. As if it was a fishing rod one of the swirls suddenly alerted its master by tensing and swiftly it was changed into a rope which wrapped itself around what it had found and pulled it back to the surface. Only a few seconds later Jack's limp body, with the golden dreamsand around his waist, emerged from the icy water and was gently lowered back into the sleigh.

"Is he alright?" North shouted over his shoulder as he guided the sleigh straight to the North Pole as fast as the reindeer could fly.

"He's not breathing!" Tooth replied in panic but the furry guardian by her side assumed control over the situation.

Two paws were placed on the teen's chest and began cardiac massage with skilled yet desperate movements.

"Come on, mate, breathe!"

Just when he pondered if he had to use mouth-to-mouth-insufflation Jack's body spasmed and rolled on his side, coughing and throwing up a decent amount of seawater. Deep down he was relieved that the boy had spared him the awkwardness of a kiss of life. And above all he was glad that he was still alive.

"Ghee, never do that again, Frostbite, ya hear me?" Bunnymund spoke in a light-hearted tone to ease the tension and waited patiently for a snarky reply.

His brow furrowed when the winter spirit did nothing but resting there and staring at the wooden floor of the sleigh with an occasional cough. The remnants of the salty water burned in his throat and in his lungs and the shock about what had just happened still filled every fiber of his being. Until now he could have never imagined how scared of water he was. Only when he felt a warm furry hand on his shoulder did he snap out of it to gaze at the large rabbit and then at the shepherd's crook which was lying under the bench behind him. The Guardian of Hope followed his line of vision and landed on the piece of wood before looking squarely into his eyes again.

"I'll give yer staff ta ya, but ya gotta promise me ta stay here, alright? No hasty flyin' off, 'cause I know ya too well." he demanded and to his surprise Jack merely nodded weakly after turning his face away from him.

As soon as Bunny picked up the conduit of the frost teen's power and held it out to him he grabbed it and hugged it against his chest, clinging to it as if it was a teddy bear. It brought some comfort but he was visibly shaking, not from the cold, of course, but that didn't do much to ease the guardians' concern. Tooth scooted closer to him and put her delicate hand on his head. He flinched away from her for a second but then relaxed a tiny bit and leaned into the touch.

"It's all fine, Jack, you're save now." she soothed him while stroking his hair gently.

North kept glimpsing at the scene to make sure their youngest comrade was alright but had to focus on steering the sleigh in the first place. The fact that the frost teen hadn't said anything since he came back to his senses and merely sat there staring into the void concerned him, to say the least.

Bunny felt horrible. This was all his fault. If he hadn't taken Jack's staff away from him he wouldn't have fallen down and almost drowned. The thought that he might have been responsible for the boy's death was barely endurable.

Sandy shared the worry of his fellow teammembers. Everyone had kind of expected Jack to let out a sarcastic comment or ease the mood himself like he usually did. But as much as the Guardian of Dreams wanted to know what exactly was the cause for his paralyzed state he was also aware of him needing to calm down first. This wasn't the right moment for asking questions, there would be enough time once they arrived at the workshop.

Unlike the rest of them Tooth was the only one who was aware of the trauma their youngest one had just gone through. He had drowned once and now had to go through it all again, more intensely since seeing his memories through the toothbox wasn't nearly the same as experiencing it first-hand.

They remained in silence, with Jack leaning his head against the fairy's small shoulder, until the familiar lights of Santoff Clausen finally appeared in the distance.


A/N : Prepare for a huge bunch of feels in the next chapter!