Author's Note: Mindf*ck ahead. Thanks for reviewing guys, it keeps me going :D Also sorry for short chapter, things will get longer in the future (that's what she said).

The mindset of an elf isn't as shallow as some might think.

True, they might not have known just what was going on with Jack and the other Guardians, or why they chased him through the Pole and circled around him like hunters and tackled him to the ground and... well, what happened after that... But they caught onto Jack's disposition before said insanity ensued. Long before that they noticed something wrong with the winter spirit, and they themselves determined when the appropriate time was to do the appropriate thing, and when it really didn't seem like a good idea.

Next to the Globe, a small handful of elves decided amongst themselves that now was the time to show their leader just how concerned they were for Jack. Taking action, they grabbed some supplies, not nearly enough vibrant wrapping paper, a bright red bow, and a little something they threw together for him out of the love of their hearts. Well, I suppose threw together could be considered an understatement; because although the doodad most certainly looked like it was literally thrown together, the elves spent a lot of time on it, and that's what counted in the end, right? The Guardians would take that into consideration before judging the elves' handiwork, no doubt.

And when Dingle hopped over to North as he entered the room and handed him their wrapped present, the Guardian of Wonder heartily laughed at the sight and saw right away that the elves did in fact put a lot of effort into their gift. This was because one could clearly see the edges protruding from the scarce amount of wrapping paper that North assumed was supposed to be the cheap imitation of a snowflake, consisting of a fork, a pencil, and a few other objects that North was a little scared to ask about.

Instead of questioning their gift, he smiled happily and swooped down to give the elves a much deserved hug, which the elves politely accepted.

"My little friends, I'm so thankful for your understanding and patience," North began to say to his elves, continuing with something in fluent Russian that his pointy-headed companions seemed to decipher effortlessly. It wasn't the case for Bunnymund and the others, though.

"Uh, North, I hate to interrupt, I really do," Bunny spoke softly as to not wake the slumbering spirit in his arms. "But we'd best get on with this, mate."

North stood up and nodded. "Bunny is right." He stated firmly. He calmly made his way closer to the globe, gesturing for the others to get in a circle.

"Tooth, you have the memories?"

The Tooth Fairy briskly nodded, gesturing to Baby Tooth as the determined little helper lugged the memory capsule and dropped it in one of North's patient hands.
"No everyone, listen closely. Upon placing our hands upon Jack's capsule, we will view his memories until either they come to a close or Manny thinks it best to withdraw. We will not be able to, in any way, interact with the past Jack. Understand?"

All of them nodded. North sighed.

"Put hands in,"

And with that, a furry paw, a bulky hand, a fair petite hand, and a hand made entirely of sand were placed upon the memory capsule…

Nothing happened.

"What?" North questioned in awe, puzzled at the fact that his extremely well-thought out plan (well, it was in his mind at least) didn't seem to be working. He shook the capsule and tapped its ornate frame before sighing and rubbing his temple.

"I… I don't understand… why isn't it working?" he looked to Tooth for some guidance. She was, after all, the one who created them and thus knew how to work them. The Tooth fairy opened her mouth as if to say something, but another voice cut her short, one that wasn't from any of the guardians.

"What a clueless bunch," the voice emitted from the shadows that slowly surrounded them. "What exactly are you trying to accomplish here? If your objective is to lollygag until the damage to your poor Jack is hopelessly irreversible, well then,"

A very smug-looking Pitch crept from the shadows, a sly smirk on his face. "You're doing a spot-on job, if I say so myself."

"Pitch!" Tooth exclaimed loudly. The slumbering Jack in Bunny's arms shifted slightly, and Sandy tossed a pinch of dreamsand on his face so that he would be less likely to awaken. Which was a helpful act on his part, because Tooth put no effort into lowering her voice.
"What are you doing here!?" she hollered, a small legion of her fearless mini fairies taking their defensive places beside her.

Pitch, however, merely laughed. He tossed his head back and, without a care in the world, laughed. As he calmly strolled around the globe in the center of the room, he explained himself nonchalantly. "What's with all this hostility? I merely wish to provide for you some valuable insight, from one spirit to another. It is my responsibility to monitor the states of my outlets, after all," he finished with a smooth, knowing chuckle, glancing towards Jack with a devilish grin.

Bunny growled angrily, holding Jack closer to him and crouching over him to better conceal his presence.

"Get out of here before I rip your head off!" the Pooka hollered, causing Sandy to again apply a dash of dreamsand to Jack's stirring form.

Again, Pitch couldn't help but to giggle. This was all too amusing to him, after all. "Well someone's a bit, ah… riled, since Jack's little episode, eh?"

The Guardian of Wonder drew a sharp breath and shot a confused look towards the calmly composed dark spirit. "How do you know about-"

"Oh please." His foe replied with an unimpressed tone. "I'm the Nightmare King. I feed off of fear. Why else do you think I would be here? To admire the scenery? To check up on the toy production?" he spat, before letting a happy sigh escape his lips. "I'm here for the boy's fear. He was so scared when you were all upon him, wrestling him to the ground, putting him out against his will- oh, it was priceless. And to think," he brought his arms up and allowed them to drop to his sides lazily. "That all good things in this afterlife come to an end, except for Jack's delicious fear. There's nothing quite like his." He gestured to the young boy cradled in the Pookas arms. "I can still sense it from him as we speak. What did I tell you? It just never goes away."

"You better not be messin with his dreams, ya shadow-sneakin' rat bag," Bunny sneered between clenched teeth, possessively holding Jack even tighter. "Or I swear, I'll-"

"What?" Pitch Black snorted. "You'll throw your egg bombs at me? Heh, relax, Fuzzy Wuzzy. He turns his dreams into nightmares all by himself…" an uncomfortable silence worked its way between Pitch's words as he continued. "Anyway, back to my first question…"

Pitch dissolved into his nightmare sand and reappeared behind North, glancing at the memory capsule over his shoulder and earning a startled shout when he spoke up. "Oh, trying to view his memories, are we?" he shook his head in a veneer of sarcastic sadness. "And it's not working, is it? Oh no. No no, this isn't how it's done, my friends."

Bunny couldn't contain his snarl. "Call us friends one more time, I dare ya."

"Shouldn't you all know by now?" Pitch continued, disregarding Bunny's remark entirely and clasping his hands together, almost as if he were excited about what he was about to say. "To view a dark spirit's memories, they have to be conscious and able. He has to be up and at 'em, I'm afraid."

A sort of stunned silence overtook the globe room. The guardians looked at Jack, then at each other, all with the same confused expressions, before looking back up at Pitch, who was meticulously inspecting his fingernails out of pure boredom.

Tooth shook her head, glancing at her mini fairies for backup. "N-no, that's not right. J-Jack's not a-"

"Jack Frost?" Pitch shrugged. "Maybe not. But Jackson Overland? Heheheh…."

"But-" Tooth began, only to be cut off by a loud, mocking sort of announcement.

"It's perplexing, isn't it?" he teased while he strolled around the confused Guardians, successfully scaring off any of the lingering elves in the area. "How do two different beings coexist in the same embodiment as the same person? Well, they're both Jack, aren't they? And I'll give you three guesses as to which Jack is responsible for all of this Disconnection hullabaloo, and the first two don't count."

Pitch took a step closer to Bunny, glancing at the bundle of sleeping boy in his arms with an earnest, dampened look. "It seems that upon viewing Jackson's past life, Jack acquired a piece of him as well." He laughed. "And he's dying to cut loose from that meager, wretched cage formerly known as Frost."

"That doesn't make any sense!" Tooth yelled angrily, balling her hands into fists and glaring holes through the Nightmare King. She shook her head repetitively and flew closer to Pitch with a look of bewilderment on her face. "Jackson Overland is-is gone! Jack Frost is-"

"You forget that they're one and the same. Jack Frost is Jackson Overland. Jackson Overland is Jack Frost. One and the same, but now, two very different, separate entities. The only one that has yet to understand that is Jack himself."

Another moment of suffocating, startled silence overcame them, and Pitch took his leave. He turned around before exiting out of the open window and spoke.

"I do wish you the best of luck with the both of them. While Jack might be containable, I can't say the same for Jackson."

And with that, he flew away, leaving a very confused group of guardians and a winter spirit beginning to awaken from his involuntary slumber.

Author's Note: I'm already working on the next chapter, hopefully it'll be up faster than this one was. :\

A NOTE TO THOSE OF YOU WHO WANT THE COMIC: Guess who's birthday is comin' up in March? :D If all goes well, I might actually be able to afford drawing a digital comic woop woop :D.

Reviews make me feel warm inside : )

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