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He felt as though he were battling the Nightmares again. The force with which those darkened dream horses had rammed into his mid section was completely comparable in Bunnymund's mind to the pain coursing through his entire body. He did not even realize that tears were soaking into his fur until Toothiana's nimble fingers began brushing them away. Staring into her violet eyes, the rabbit recognized she shared his pain. He turned to face the other two guardians, finding North and Sandy both watching him quietly.

"Right."

Giving Tooth a firm nod, he hopped over to the others. She fluttered behind him, hovering in the air as he stood to his full height.

"Where do we start? The children need us."

North exchanged a brief glance with Sandy before letting the determination for their purpose permeate him fully. "Da. We start with the closest village." He produced one of his magical orbs, his special brand of enchantment allowing the exceptional crystal to seek out the nearest child. The magic quickly found its target, the orb showing a small town within five miles of the moorland on which they stood. Bunny nodded, thumping his foot on the nearly frozen grass. He did not wait for the objection he expected from the guardian of wonder, launching himself into one of the tunnels he so loved.

The familiar comfort of his preferred mode of transport only lasted a mere moment. Exiting the underground, he found himself standing in the middle of a bustling avenue. Adults went about their business, walking through him. He had long become accustomed to the sensation though it never failed to send shivers through him when a child came to the age of no longer believing. When they were staring in his direction, coming seemingly towards him, only to pass through his large frame – those were the moments that nearly broke his heart.

He recognized the immutable fact, though, that for every child who aged, another child would be born. When one child stopped believing, another would start. In most towns, for each adolescent that walked through him, or stared past him without acknowledgment, there was another who could still see him, a younger child who would stop short to keep from bumping into his legs. They would giggle when he produced eggs for them, smile at the feel of his soft fur against their palms when he would shake their hands.

This town, though, was completely without those comforts. None of the children here seemed to be able to see him. None of them hesitated when walking towards him. No single child stumbled over their feet to keep from running into his legs. He simply stood there, taking in the complete lack of belief among the citizens. A hand clamped down on his shoulder. The instinct to draw his boomerang was tempered only by the knowledge that there was very little chance their enemy had found him so quickly.

"It is frightening, da?" North's deep timbre sounded softly next to his ear. The lagomorph simply nodded. Tooth was hovering, spinning about in quick circles.

"They're all … They can't … see us?" Her speech seemed to be halted while her movements were nearly a blur.

A chill wind blew down the thoroughfare, ruffling the fur on Bunnymund's back. Sandy's dust also seemed unsettled. Toothiana slowed her spinning, making a soft landing as her large wings settled against her back.

"What could have happened to cause this?"

The slight breeze became more forceful, causing the guardian of memory to pull her arms about her firmly in an attempt to ward off the icy chill.

"That is what we must find out." Sandy gave a firm nod at Bunny's declaration, the group standing in the street with nary a clue as to how to proceed.

He had let the wind carry him until he had stopped feeling quite so broken. Sorrow still filled his core, and he had no idea whether he would be able to ever feel whole again. There was little chance of it, he was certain. He had come to that conclusion when he realized that Jamie could no longer see him. It had been a hard thing to accept, a very strong blow to his fun-loving nature. He had tried to move past it, tried to move on, to find joy in the other children. It was simply different. When he had been invisible, none of them had seen him. It had been simple to flit between them, to cause mischief and show them a good time, moving on when it was over. He had never had a problem with it before.

Once they could see him, everything changed.

The wind settled its fragile cargo on a rooftop. Jack lay still for several moments, listening to the sounds in the street below him. He stood suddenly. Stepping to the edge of the rooftop, he gazed down into the bustling lane. Not many children were about, and he could not help but note the sun setting far before its normal time. He narrowed his eyes at the horizon, certain that something was very much wrong with this place.

Forming one of his customary ice bridges, he gripped his staff and lowered himself to the street. The spot where he had landed was colder – regardless of the ice wielder's invisibility, people had always been able to feel his presence. The adults going about their business certainly noticed the change in the air temperature. They began avoiding the patch of walkway on which he stood. Observing this, Jack decided to test his hypothesis.

A string of ice wove itself directly in one woman's path. She seemed to have been looking at her feet, but changed course immediately when the temperature in front of her dropped. Tilting his head to one side, he considered briefly before forming a sheet of ice in front of a young man. Stopping, the man blinked, looking about in confusion before simply altering his path. Several more small changes to the atmosphere forced others walking about to step around certain sections of sidewalk.

He began moving among them, watching as they shivered and tried to avoid him.

"Curious." His voice sounded too loud to his own ears in the relative quiet of the street. Continuing to walk along with a woman bundled up in a very large coat, he did not realize his path was taking him into her home until he was already under her roof and smelling the meal that had already been started for the evening.

"Blimey! Did you 'ave to bring the cold in with you?" The voice floated in from the kitchen, and the woman unwrapping her scarf from her face and throat scowled at the sound of it.

"'S not like we're any more immune to it than anyone else," she muttered, hanging her coat.

"Wha's tha'?"

"Nothing!" Footsteps sounded loudly from the back of the house, announcing the entrance of two small children. The older of the two approached the woman, wrapping his arms about her firmly. The younger stood back, shaking slightly.

"Hey there, Conall. Come give your mum a squinch?" The boy shook his head emphatically. "Are you too hungry to?"

"N-no. It's just you brought in –"

"The cold? So your gramma tells me." Conall shook his head. "Not the cold. What then?"

The boy shook slightly as he stared into Jack's eyes. His voice was no more than a whisper, his breath visible as he spoke. "The Ice King."

It felt as though he had been physically struck. The child could see him, just as the one on the hill could. The girl on the hill had not shown fear, and she had been able to see all of them. It was far more likely she saw them as friends – or potential ones. This boy, though … He was clearly afraid. His shaking gave voice to his terror where his lungs were silent. He saw Jack as a threat.

Confused, the ice wielder left the house without a backward glance.

Sandy relied on his dreamsand to speak for him. It had never failed him, and his imagination in wielding it was unlimited, fueled directly by the imaginations of the children to whom he granted dreams. His direct connection to the children allowed him greater insight. Unfortunately, he was limited by what they knew, and though they all realized something was wrong, it seemed that the problem centered around the dearth of hope. Getting Bunny's attention, he used his sand to form a scene of children hunting Easter eggs. The rabbit looked at him quizzically, showing clearly that he had not fully understood. He fashioned a sand model of the isles, then placed the hunt on top.

"Are you asking if everything went as normal this year?" Sandy nodded vigorously. "There was nothing unusual." His brow furrowed slightly as he stared at the dream weaver. "Come to think of it, it was warmer then than it is now. And that's very odd." The sandman's eyes lit up, a smile spreading over his face. "What?"

"Sandy?" North's voice seemed somewhat rougher than customary.

"I think he's on to something." The lagomorph placed a gentle hand on Tooth's shoulder, causing her to stir. Her startled shriek made him chuckle softly. "Fall asleep, did you?"

"Yes, I did. I'm afraid that my purview is memories. I don't think they'll do us much good in figuring this out."

Sandy wagged his finger at her, his sand forming an image of fairies picking up teeth. Her confusion was plain on her features, but Bunny's eyes widened as he grasped what the oldest among them might be about.

"They just might. Can your fairies tell which teeth they've collected in which countries from a certain time?"

"They can't, but I can. Why?"

"We need to find out what's happened here since Easter. Sandy reminded me – things were normal here this spring. These kids, they believed. They could see me – some of them even chased me about as I was hiding the eggs. Something has happened since then."

"Of course! We'll have to get to the tooth palace, and there might be a lot of teeth to go through..."

"I'd be more concerned if there were only a few."

Sandy was using his dreamsand to form an image of thousands of teeth, piling up higher and higher. A large question mark over the pile had North scratching his chin in thought.

"Yes, Sandy has a point. How will we see all of those memories? It will take Toothiana too long."

Hummingbird wings buzzing furiously, the fairy hovered for several minutes before beginning to flit about. "Oh! Oh! I've got it! I've absolutely got it!" Her words came out in a rush, creating nearly as much of a breeze as her wings.

"Slow down!" She halted suddenly, turning to face the large hare she had long called friend.

"Oh, I'm sorry. It's just I figured it out – how we can do it, and it's exciting!"

"Well, tell us then!"

She shook her head, reaching her hand out and grabbing him firmly about the wrist. "No, no. I'll show you!" Bunny's yells of protest echoed in the cold air as Tooth carried him away. Sandy covered his mouth as though stifling laughter.

"Da, he is fun to pester about travel." North tossed a magic orb to the ground, the ice palace immediately visible through the tunnel that formed. "Shall we, tovarisch?" Giving a half bow, the large man motioned for the dream weaver to proceed him. Sandy bowed back, causing his companion to laugh heartily as they entered the tunnel, leaving the English countryside behind them.

Dark had long since come over the house whose roof Jack was borrowing for the moment. Few people still milled about the streets, but the few who did found themselves subject to his whimsy. Periodically, he would form ice patches in the street or along the walkways. At times he would have them join together, making a black patch along the pavement. He had been sitting in that spot, manipulating the cold for quite a while before he realized he was being observed.

Descending from the housetop, he walked down the main avenue until he came to a rather large side alley. He ducked out of the way, quickly hiding in the shadow of a doorway. A cloaked figure passed by the end of the alley, and he dashed out to confront them. His presence loomed over the short figure, the shadow he cast scaring his quarry into running. The young boy whose silhouette the guardian could see once he had started running made his way through the main road at high speed, quickly forgetting the treacherous ice lying in the roadway. Seeing it in front of the child, he waved his hand to draw the cold back into him.

The boy's feet stumbled on the freshly revealed pavement, and he stopped, noting the lack of damp slush flooding into his shoes. Standing still, he stared down at his feet, blinking rapidly. He pinched his arm, hoping to wake himself from the slumber he assumed he had fallen into.

Taking advantage of his confusion, Jack moved around to the front of the young boy. He looked up at the guardian then, his hood falling back. The ice wielder found himself staring into sparkling sapphire eyes shining with both wonder and fear.

"Conall, isn't it?" He offered the boy his hand. "You're quite awake, I assure you." The child simply stared at him, glancing at his hand but refusing to take it. He lowered his arm after a time, the boy kneeling to feel the dry road. Looking up at him, the boy tilted his head to the side, brow furrowed in clear consideration. Coming to a decision, he nodded and stood.

"Yes."

Jack's face showed his confusion clearly. "Yes?"

"Yes, it's Conall."

Jack smiled broadly, offering his hand once more. Taking his hand, shivering slightly at the chill, the boy gave it a firm shake. "Jack."

Conall smiled at him, turning to walk back the way he had come. "I have to get home now, Jack, but I'll tell you something."

"What is that?" Their eyes met, and he seemed to have a perfectly clear understanding of everything, an innocent belief that the guardian found himself envying.

"I was wrong about you."