Jack and I walked downstairs for breakfast. Eric and Autumn were taking, Autumn dancing around the kitchen making some kind of sugar based meal. Eric saw the two of us and smiled. I took a seat next to Eric, and Jack sat on the other side of me. "What on earth are you making?" I laughed as Autumn dumped a cup of sugar in the pan.

"Morning darlings," Autumn swiveled her head to glance back at us, "homemade recipe. Candied bat and scrambled sugar eggs. Delish!" I made a face and turned to Eric.

"How did you sleep?" he asked

"Amazing. I was so tired. How about you?" I decided not to tell Eric about waking up to Jack. I figured it was sort of a between us situation.

"Good, it's so weird being somewhere other than my room at your father's lair."

"I would say the same, but I've only been in reality for two days." I forced a laugh, but it wasn't real. I kept thinking about what my father had done. What he had said last night. It scared me. The man I had loved for so long, doing something like that...

"Ava...Avaaaaa" Jack was waving his hand in front of my face. I blinked, bringing my mind back to reality.

"Sorry...my mind's kinda all over. What did you say?"

"I asked how long you and Autumn have been friends." he laughed

"Oh, gosh, I don't even know...something like three hundred years or so. My dad used to come and see how she was doing every three days. We hung out and he watched us."

Autumn smiled and stopped running around the kitchen for a moment, "Your visits often saved me, darling. Many times I was in a low spot, and found you and your father on my doorstep right when I needed you." she smiled sentimentally, her eyes distant. I returned the smile, and after a few moments Autumn resumed twirling around.

"Breakfast is served darlings." Autumn shoveled bat meat on a large plate and then put the eggs on another dish. I took some of the nasty looking meat, which I knew to be better than it looked. Jack eyed the food and took a small plate of eggs. Eric took both eggs and meat, he wasn't a picky eater, mainly because he couldn't taste anything. We all ate in awkward silence until Autumn asked, "So what are your plans from here?"

I looked up from my food. "I hadn't even thought about that..." my mind wandered to when Jack had told me about his inexperience with other spirits. I thought of all the spirits I had met in my life. To many to count. What if... "How long do you want us here?" I asked Autumn

"Darling, you know I love you. Stay as long as you need to." I wasn't sure if I had imagined it, but I thought I saw Autumn and Eric glance at each other before Autumn smiled at me. I looked from Eric to Autumn and raised an eyebrow. Autumn turned a deep shade of pink and Eric sat a little deeper in his seat. Ok, I hadn't imagined it. I couldn't help but smile a bit. My smile quickly turned into laughter, which confused Jack and embarrassed my unlikely couple even further. I pointed to Eric and then to Autumn. "You two? Now this is surprising."

"Ummm..." Autumn looked down at her plate. "We weren't sure whether to tell you or not..."

"How long have you two been...?" I asked

"Together?" Eric smiled nervously, "Well, two years...give or take. I contacted her about two weeks after your father put you in that nightmare. So yeah, a year or two."

My eyes widened when Eric said two years. "I was in that nightmare for two years?Actually, never mind. This is about you two. We need a plan, and I am not separating you. So you two talk and then Jack and I can make some plans." I stood up and motioned for Jack to follow. He did and I walked upstairs and sat on the table. I moved the candy bowl out of the way and patted the table beside me for Jack to sit. He stood there for a moment before flying up on the table next to me.

"So...what do you want to talk about?" he asked

I smiled as my idea began to take shape. "So when Autumn mentioned making a plan, I thought about what you said earlier about not knowing any spirits."

Jack looked confused about where this was going. "So?" he asked.

"Well..I've met my fair share of spirits in my long life, to many to count, and that's not even all of them. For example, I've met the spirit of the ocean, Leah, but I've never met, say...the Tooth Fairy. What if you and I traveled around and met a whole bunch of spirits? We could go where you needed to go to bring snow, and then you and I could meet the spirits there. If you ever had free time from spreading snow, we could meet some others from places where it doesn't snow. Like this amazing spirit named Ashley! She lives in Hawaii, we met at a spirit gathering I went to by myself when I was six. It would be the coolest adventure." I smiled hopefully at Jack. I knew this was a far shot. He was a Guardian, and the spirit of fun and snow. But when I got an idea, it wouldn't stop until I acted.

"That sounds...amazing. I just...could this really happen?" Jack seemed almost as excited as I was.

"Yes! This is going to be amazing! I just...I don't even know who to start with." I racked my brain trying to think of a good spirit to introduce Jack to first.

"What if we met the Guardians? I mean, I already know them, but you said you've never met them, so...how about it?"

It seemed a good place to start, but I had never met the Big Four. Would they like me? Would they hate me because I was Pitch Black's daughter? "Do you think they'd like me? I mean...being Pitch's daughter and all..."

"I think they'll love you. Just because your Pitch's daughter doesn't mean that your bad. I've just started to see the real you, and you're a great person. I think this trip is going to be fantastic." Jack smiled at me and I returned the favor. He didn't realize what a huge thing he had just said. My father had been a good dad, but I had never heard someone who wasn't family say I was a great person. Come to think of it, my father hadn't even said that.

I smiled. "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For everything. I think this adventure will be good for both of us in different ways. I can get over my father, and you can expand your knowledge in the spirit world. The only question is: when do we leave?"

Jack looked at his staff and then back to me, "Tomorrow."

I smiled at him, "To new beginnings then." I raised my hand like I was holding a glass. Jack did the same, "To new beginnings."