A/N

I have returned XD

Enjoy you guys, and thank you for all the love!

Pitch's Lair

"Jack!"

Tooth's terrified shriek caused Bunny to turn around so sharply that he nearly gave himself whiplash. The sight he was met with almost made him drop Sophie.

Jack was standing in a looming shadow that looked so dark and out of place. He wasn't moving; seeming to be frozen with his staff missing. As the boy shot his head up at Tooth's out cry, tendrils of shadows reached out and bound him from head to toe.

Bunny's instincts kicked in as he placed the half-sleeping child in the nearby soft undergrowth with gentle hast, and took off as quickly as pookan-ly possible towards Jack.

But, just as he was before, he wasn't quick enough…and Jack had known he wouldn't be. Bunny saw contentment shining in his eyes just as he had at the Tooth Palace. Jack didn't fight. He didn't hope. He simply accepted it.

As he disappeared into the darkness, Bunny kept running, vaguely aware that North and Tooth, and even the little mini fairy, had taken off along with him. When he reached a fair distance, he took one great leap and came slamming down onto the grassy underbrush, pounding his fist against the now harmless shadow.

"NO!" Bunny yelled in a fit of rage, punching at the shadowed, grassy ground as if he could, somehow, cause the shadow physical pain. He pounded and clawed at the grass until his paws hurt and he had torn up his precious green field. Eventually, he stopped. He just stopped and sat kneeling in the grass with his paws laying limply in the newly unearthed soil in front of him. He panted, feeling that familiar sense of failure wash over him as freshly as it had back in 68'. Again, Jack was gone, and again…it was because of him.

A small, gentle hand found his shoulder, but Bunny couldn't bring himself to meet, what he knew, were Tooth's violet, concerned eyes.

"We'll get him back." North said from just behind him and with so much tenderness and heart, Bunny couldn't help but to feel his center shift and expand at the hope coloring the Cossack's words.

"We'll do everything we can Bunny. Promise." Tooth said, tightening her grip on his shoulder and leaning against him in a small embrace. The mini fairy chirped quietly and snuggled into the fur on his other shoulder in her own attempt to comfort him.

Bunny took a deep breath, trying to calm his combating emotions. His thought's lingered on Jack, but he had to focus. Easter was hours away. They had to get moving. The children were expecting them. He may have failed one child, but he was going to do his damn hardest to not let down the faithful children eagerly awaiting his Easter hunts.

And they would get Jack back. And he would make it up to him.

"We gotta get Sophie home." Bunny said, his voice wavered, but his composure was coming back to him.

Tooth and North wisely decided to go along with his train of conversation.

"I'll take her." Tooth said, squeezing his shoulder one last time before flying over to the now sleeping child atop the hill. She scooped her up, and wordlessly flew off down a tunnel that would take her to Burgess; her mini following in her wake.

"Hurry back!" North yelled after her. He turned his attention back to Bunny, who had stood up, looking a bit more like himself, but North could see the slight slump to his shoulders and the tiny droop to his ears. "Come!" North said, loud and confident, wrapping his massive arm around his friend. "Let us prepare the eggs for the march."

Together, the two took off, preparing for the task ahead they had to complete with the weight of a guilty heart.

Jack closed his eyes, as he always did, as the shadow dragged him through the darkness and back to the realm of the Nightmare King. He closed his eyes because he could not bear to see the mocking shadows that were surely bragging about their victory.

All too soon, he awkwardly collided with one of the hard, angled stone pathways in Pitch's lair. The shadow still had him bound tightly, making the landing all the more painful as he could not maneuver to catch himself.

Then, before he could even lift his head to observe his surroundings, a strong kick sent him rolling and gasping.

"Make some new friends, Jack?"

At his master's words, the shadows binding him receded into the darkness. Pitch was here now. They knew Jack would not flee.

Lifting himself onto his hands and knees, Jack attempted to replenish the air stolen from his lungs, but Pitch was angry. Before he could so much as open his mouth, he was sent reeling as Pitch struck him sharply across his face.

"I asked you a question boy!" Pitch yelled, anger like Jack had never seen before, dripping from his every word.

"Yes master." Jack squeaked, terrified of the wrath consuming Pitch that, he knew…would soon be taken out on him…

Roughly, Jack was pulled by his hair to his unsteady feet by Pitch's strong grasp as he shoved him against the wall. The Nightmare King grabbed his face, forcing him to look into glowing golden eyes full of malicious intent.

"And why, pray tell, did the Guardian's seek to befriend you?"

Jack did not hesitate in his answer. He had not been conditioned to hesitate.

"Recruit, master." Jack said, wanting to shut his eyes to golden ones burning through him, but unwilling to. Any little thing would set Pitch off further, and now was not the time to test patience. "They were seeking to recruit me master. They claim that the Man in the Moon had chosen me to be a Guardian."

Pitch searched him. The same way Jack searched the Guardians. Looking for a lie. A hint of dishonesty. Anything, it seemed. He studied Jack with such intense desperation, that the winter spirit actually began to worry for his master…in a way. He had never seen Pitch like this; so unwilling to believe a simple truth. Jack had not believed it either, and he still wasn't sure if he did, but it was the truth. He had seen it in Bunny's eyes, and he knew Pitch had seen it in his.

Then, Pitch's faced morphed into that of animalistic rage. He lifted Jack up against the wall by his throat; his impressive size causing Jack's feet to dangle nearly a meter above the ground. Jack grabbed onto Pitch's arm, unable to bring himself to struggle. He could only find the energy in him to stare wide eyed with terror into his masters seething eyes. As Jack started seeing stars, and his grip on his master's arm began loosening, Pitch latched onto his hair, pulling his head forward and slamming it back hard against the wall. The combination of depleting oxygen and blinding pain caused more stars to dance in front of his eyes. Before he could blink them away, Pitch did it again.

As Jack's eyes fluttered and his grip failed, Pitch pulled Jack's head forward once more. This time though, Jack did not meet the stone wall. Instead, shadows swallowed him and he fell through darkness, meeting a stone floor. Being only half conscious, he wasn't awake enough to attempt to break his fall. As a consequence, he landed extremely heavily on his left shoulder and felt agony shoot through his body at a sickening crack. He had dislocated his shoulder before. This pain was not foreign.

Jack groaned and rolled on to his back, trying to force breath back into his deprived lungs. As the pain in his chest decreased with each breath, Pitch emerged from the shadows, feigning a collective composure with his hands resting behind his back. Even as he tried to appear calm, Jack could see the tight set to his jaw.

Then, without so much as blink for a warning, Pitch shoved the heel of his foot into Jack's dislocated shoulder, eliciting an agonized scream from the winter spirit. As Pitch twisted his foot, tears of pain sprung to Jack's eyes and the stars were back. It had been a while since Pitch had tortured him with so much aggression.

Eventually, Pitch removed his foot and Jack laid there gasping. But, of course, Pitch did not allow him much recovery time.

Two long shadow tendrils reached out and latched themselves around his wrist. They pulled in opposite directions, forcing Jack to his knees and yet again, arising a screech at the burning pain in his shoulder. The shadows pulled and pulled, cutting into his wrist and irritating his dislocation.

Jack wanted to plead and beg for Pitch to let up this torture, but he knew, from personal experience, that it would only bring him more suffering.

After several agonizing moments, the shadows released him, and he fell to the stone floor, wrist bleeding and shoulder burning. He landed on his injured side, but couldn't bring himself to care.

"Now Jack, do you believe in the Guardians?" Pitch asked, almost sweetly as he knelt down behind Jack and began to pet his hair with one hand and pull his hoodie jacket up to his chest with the other.

"I don't understand mast-" Jack began, but was cut off as Pitch located one of his ribs and began to press strongly enough to make the bone bow and nearly creak at the pressure.

"Do you believe in the Guardians?" Pitch asked again through gritted teeth. "Do you believe they want you? That they will save you?"

Jack answered with the first thing that came to mind.

"I don't know."

And he didn't.

But Pitch was not satisfied with his answer.

A quick snap, and Jack was screaming.

"That is not a satisfying answer, Jack." Pitch said, searching for another rib.

"But master, please. It's true. I-" Another sickening snap, and Jack screamed again. Pitch did not take well to begging. "I really don't know." He continued, gasping. "They are kind to me. They tell me I'm a Guardian and that I belong with them. But I don't know if they would come for me."

Pitch paused, considering Jack's words and actually interested in his what he had to say. He found and pressed against another rib. "And why is that Jack?"

"Because…this is the third time they could not save me."

Pitch paused, releasing the pressure on Jack's rib. The boy gasped, withering on the ground.

It seemed Jack's conditioning had remained firm throughout his day with the Guardians.

Pitch hummed, and pet the boy's hair. Jack shuddered at the gentle gesture.

"You still have a lot of punishments ahead of you for your rebellion." Pitch said, his tone resembling that of a scolding parent's. "But…I have a task for you first."

A/N

*evil cackle* Another cliff hanger! I'm evil...so sorry.

Guest Review Responses.

To the Guest who said: Whaaatttt? Wait! You CAN'T leave me like THiS: I need know what happend! Pleasw, please pleaaaseeee! For all you love update! I've updated :D Sorry to have left you hanging and sorry to do so again. But, thank you for such sweet enthusiasm!

sparklehannah: Your review was so amazingly kind! I'm so thrilled over how you feel about this story and how I've been able to keep up the suspense and surprise for you! Thank you so much for your incredible kindness!

To the Guest who said: This story is amazing. Please keep updating Thank you! And I will! Until the very end!

Forcinganuptade: It worked! XD

Thank you everyone! I hope your hearts are okay :) Feel free to leave comments and/or questions! See ya soon~