Warnings: Slash, mentions of suicide.

Bunny was only just beginning to realise how young Jack, that he was just a child and as such they should have been there to protect him, instead of ignoring him and brushing him aside. He showed his youth by how he fought against going to sleep like many younger children would. His fear truly showed him how alone and isolated he must have been so that he was too scared to even go to sleep, what had happened when he had slept for him to feel like this. Even as he finally fell asleep his last conscious thought he still managed to show just how innocent he truly was.

"Please don't leave me…"

To anyone else, the plea may have sounded pitiful at best, but Pooka's had the best hearing of all recorded species and because of that he was effortlessly able to detect the bone-deep insecurity and the overwhelming need in his voice. It hit him them that those notes had always been in his voice, but he had hidden it beneath layers of snowballs and fun times like an expert. And they had all fallen for it. That had been the most devastating fact of everything they had gone through the last few days. They had never realised that this innocent child whole-heatedly believed that there was never a point to showing his true fear, or how he was actually feeling. Apparently in his eyes he saw that nobody would even stop for a pleasant hello, never mind a gentle chat that was taken for granted by many. Not that they hadn't added to that expectation by always ignoring him and brushing him off.

Thinking about it clearly now with foresight, the blizzard of '68 could have easily been the adolescent's suffocating need for attention bursting forth. Although considering the pain which must have been flush in his veins over the centuries of neglect, it could have been an attempt to end it. That's what some people tended to do when they had nothing to live for, right? He knew he was tempted after losing his family, so maybe that was just him.

It was with regret that he hopped out of the room once he was sure the boy had actually fallen asleep.

Thoughts and theories were hopping laps around his brain, distracting him from where his overly large paws were leading him as he crossed the varnished wood which decked the corridors. Regardless of how long he'd been a Guardian, he would never get use to the difference of manmade flooring compared to the feeling of soft dirt and ticklish grass that was so familiar to his feet.

Without fully understanding where he was heading as he just trusted his intuition, as his mind took him to the one place that needed to be before he did anything else: North's office.

For a moment he pondered if he should knock or not, because it was the polite thing to do, but after considering it for just a second, he decided that he wouldn't break a habit that had only grown as years went on. Before he knew what he was doing once more, he had barged his way into the carved workplace, sending a miniscule elf flying upon entry, but he was still far too out of it to notice the action, trapped as he was in his endless labyrinth of conflicting thoughts.

"Bunny!"

Finally, his attention snapped back at the cry. Bunnymund looked with confused eyes up at his friend; finally returning to the reality that he knew so well.

"Sorry… What did you say?"

"I ask," North responded, talking slowly so that his fellow Guardian could easily follow alone, while masking his concern so not to wound the warrior's pride as he had many time before through his worry. "What brought you here?"

"It's Jack." He paused for a moment, unsure of how to express how worried he was about the young spirit, without causing excess worry for the Cossack. Neither of them had been overly excited about meeting their new companion, though the jolly fat man had a higher expectation of the boy and what he could be to the children. It was only when an overly large hand waved in front of his face that he decided that it would be best to keep things blunt. "He doesn't trust us, North."

"What do you mean? Boy trusts us! We showed we believe and need him; he knows we regret what happened."

Bunny scoffed and he hopped over to where North was sitting at his desk, so he could sit across from him. "That's just the thing though. He is just a kid: a kid who had had no positive contact with anyone for at least 300 years! Don't tell me that that doesn't remind you of anybody." He snaps, anger rising in his tone.

"Pitch," North mumbles in a subdued voice as he thought about their isolated enemy, but he was still confused by both his friend's words and unusual behaviour.

"Exactly! That's my he wants him here, because he's probably the only one that understands him. Jack probably would have sided with him in the fight if not for that fact he was so scared of having people fear him even more than they already do. He just wanted to be believed in and not feared, and if not for that fact, Pitch probably could have given him what he needed."

As North listened, he could see the guilt that settled within the deep green eyes and took the chance to ask what was puzzling him the most, "What changed your mind about the boy?"

Initially, the kangaroo didn't know how to answer him as his overbearing emotions were too much for him to even understand at that point. After a moment of contemplation, he finally had his answer. "I told him that I knew what he felt, and that I understood his pain."

"Ja, you do!"

Floppy ears flapped against his head as he shook his head, "No, my friend, I don't and that's what I didn't realise. I still had you, Tooth and Sandy by my side throughout that time, however short it may have been. He has never had anyone and now he's suddenly been thrust into the limelight. That's sure to mess with somebody's head."

Silence took that as it's time to descend, fighting North as he tried to deny the idea; to stop what was sure to happen, but they were all rebuked in stillness' special little way. Finally, he submitted under its obvious superiority.

"What need be done?"

~Line Break~

Morning rays shone brightly through the ice blue curtains, dancing across the pale face of the boy who slept peacefully below them. That day, it decided in its usual optimistic fashion, would be a good day for nobody to be left alone in the dark.

Seconds hadn't even past since that verdict was given, and yet the dark was already clawing at a poor boy as their scream pierced the previously tranquil lull that had resided within the majestic palace. Rushed footsteps echoed through the now silent halls; weak moonbeams wavered at the threshold, trapped from truly entering into the room by sheets of glass. Bulky wooden doors exploded open, welcoming the invaders into the sparsely decorated room.

The ancient Pooka wasted no time in rushing over to the restless child to comfort him while trying to gently rouse him from his slumber. A slender figure lingered by the door, accompanied by a much larger on, who was fearlessly holding a sword at the throat of the slim visitor Bunny had somehow missed as he was storming in.

"Welcome back, Frostbite," Bunnymund greeted the child, echoing his previous words. Relief was more that obvious on his face as he stared down at the terrified teen.

"What you do?" North interdigitated the shade trapped in his grasp, danger dancing in his tone while his blade bit into the grey neck.

Velvet laughter filled the room, drowning out the near silent whimpers originating from the corner. "Do you honest think that much of me? I don't have the power to alarm an infant, never mind terrorizing one of the moon's all-powerful Guardians!" He finished with a bitter laugh which reminded the Guardians of their youngest member so much that their hearts almost ached for their enemy.

"Pitch?"

The soft whisper emanated from where the whimpers had originally laid, as bright blue eyes sparkled with recognition. Trust jumped and rolled around within him, begging to be seen and acknowledged.

"Well done," the shade commented, his manner dry.

Gangly limbs flew everywhere, Jack scrambled out of bed, fear far forgotten and Easter ignored as he rushed towards the lanky man, only stopping when he was directly before him. "I can remember you…" Slowly he raised a pale hand so that it hovered above the sharp cheekbones, but his courage was quickly gathered and as it was the palm was pressed against warm skin. "We're not the same temperature anymore…" A hint of sadness slithered into his words, until it was –as was quickly becoming expected- locked behind his happy façade.

Recognition and pain flickered across Pitch's face, though it was buried far beneath his fear that he could be wrong, and hope that he would be right. Though for those precious few moments of optimism he forgot that the one being who could sense his hope was stood just across the room from him.

"What you mean, Jack? North question, feeling lost.

"Three hundred years and you don't seem to have changed at all. Except from your eyes. They look so dark. What happened?" As he spoke, his second hand rose up to cup the shades other cheek like he was trapping him from running away, like he was fighting to keep him close.

If the other onlookers were not already perplexed at the beginning of their interactions, they certainly were at that point. However, they were ignored and the pair stared deep into each other's eyes, cataloguing the changers and memorising them once more.

"I lost somebody who I cared deeply for," Pitch told him with his face turned down; missing the jealousy and hurt that swam across the immortal teen's face.

Only at that point did the others realise that they were witnessing a private conversation. As such, North backed away so that he was stood next to Bunny, a position where he could watch the proceedings without manipulating them.

"Well I hope you find them again," Jack said, his hands dropping as he struggled to mask the grief he felt behind a layer of joy.

A soft smile –alien to the two intruders- spread across the grey skin as he lent down so he was eye level with the small teen, "I apparently have, but he had only just remembered who I was to him."

Confusion slowly slid aside to welcome realisation upon deducing that he must be the one that Pitch was talking about, that he was the one he cared deeply for. Pride blossomed within his chest as he slowly rose up onto his tiptoes, his lips hesitantly brushing against the elders as he fought to contain himself do he didn't come across as too eager. However, it seemed irrelevant whether he did or didn't, because after he had been granted the slightest taste after many centuries, Pitch was the one who couldn't hold himself back. After the small innocent kiss was coming to an end, and the teen was moving away, Pitch leaned in to capture those pale lips in a heated kiss, which he filled with his passion and heartache.

Time melted into insignificance as they stood within the embrace of each other's arms, forgetting the past in favour of creating new memories together. They carried on like that before Jack cautiously pulled away, examining his love.

"Why did you attack me –us- when you knew who I was?" Jack asked, hurt slipping into his voice.

Equal measures of displeasure and pain entered the nightmare king's voice as he gazed down at the younger individual. "I'm sorry," he muttered mournfully, "I believed that it was my imagination playing tricks on me. Never would I have thought it possible that Manny would return you to me; never did I dare to hope. Now I just fear I will lose you again."

"Never!" Jack assured with so much conviction that even North and Bunny found themselves agreeing alongside him.

Lips collided once more as they both briefly fought for dominance, until Jack surrender and submitted to the others powerful onslaught. If they had been given the choice, they would have continued in that fashion until the world died around them, turning to ashes at the feet. Unfortunately, an anxious Tooth choose that moment to burst through the aged doors with Sandy hot on her heals, thus forcing the couple apart.

A/N: There you have it, please leave a review of your thoughts? I hoped you liked it. The next chapter may be a day or two late as I return from my holiday the Monday before it's due to go up, but hopefully I should be able to have it edited in time. Hopefully. If I can, I'll see you in two weeks.