IM SO SORRY! I TOTALLY JUST LOST TRACK OF EVERYTHING AN I HOPE YOU ALL DON'T HATE ME! If it makes you feel any better i'm gunna try and write a RRRREEEEAAALLLYYYY long chapter this time *pouts* i hope this makes up for my long absence

Jack bit his lip, looking down at one of the two children in his arms. It had been a few weeks, and he had of course not told Pitch an answer, but felt more comfortable than he had in weeks. No sore ache in his chest from sleeping alone every night, and no waiting for days on end to see if his mate was alive. He started to laugh more often, and seem more like his old self. Granted he was more responsible, not quite as trusting to the King of Nightmares yet.

It was peaceful though, more peaceful than he thought, and it scared him a little. Bunny hadn't even left the pole from what he understood, and couldn't help but worry something had happened that Pitch hadn't told him about. Still there he stood, in Pitch's lair, holding his babies, and didn't have a single fear for any of their lives, only for the one he couldn't bring himself to go see.

"Jack, I can tell that you're brooding. Stop worrying about that blasted Rabbit." Pitch cooed, but kept his distance. He had found out very quick just how deadly the Prince of Winter can react to suddenly being taken into the gray skinned mans arms.

"Just because I'm here doesn't mean I don't worry about him Pitch." Jack sighed, and looked back at the dark spirit. "It also doesn't mean that I like you more than him."

"I know, you won't let me forget." Pitch rolled his amber eyes and walked away again, but kept those smoldering eyes on the Winter Prince.

"Which is something that won't change." Jack smirked at Pitch, and looked down at the two babies in his arms again, gentally setting them down in a crib together. "I'm hungry, what do you have to eat?"

"I can go look, I suppose you want to stay in here with them, as per usual?" Pitch sighed, and when he saw the boy's snow white hair bob up and down, he walked off to find him some food.

~~~~~~~~ROTG~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ROTG~~~~~~~

Aster could feel warmth replacing the cold in his body, and almost whimpered. He wanted that cold to stay, his Jackie was cold, and didn't want him to leave. He reached his paws out for the cold body he longed to feel again, and when the pads on his paws met nothing but air, emerald eyes snapped open to one of Norths infirmary rooms.

It was all quiet accept for the beeping of a heart monitor that slowly picked up as the last bit of memory came back to him. "Jack!" He quickly jumped out of the bed, ignoring the searing pain in his legs, and detached himself from the monitor, it flat lining.

Almost instantly, in came Cupid, North, and Tooth. They looked around before examining the Pooka, and then relaxed when they found no danger in the room currently.

"Aster you need to lay back down." Cupid ordered, pointing a delicate finger at the bed demandingly.

"No, I'm going ta look fer ma Jackie." Aster said matter-o-factly, and made no point of laying down like he was told.

For a moment the two simply glared at each other, locked in a heated mental battle neither North or Tooth felt inclined to interrupt.

Suddenly after a few more moments of staring at each other, Cupid grinned. "glad to see you finally have your tail in gear." He placed his hands on his hips, the angel more than smug. He looked better now, his hair framing the delicate face nicely, and color on the flawless skin. Cupids back had healed, but seemed empty with no wings to fill the space.

"Yeah, yer still an annoying little gumby, so nothing's changed." Aster said rather impatiently. "now get outta mah way, all'a ya."

"Bunny you're in no position to leave, and we don't want Jack coming back home to find you hurt. It wouldn't be good for him or the kits." Tooth tried to reason, setting a comforting hand on the Pooka's bicep.

"Tooth is right, Bunny must heal before we all go get dear Jack." North added, and motioned for the Pooka to sit. There seemed to be more swimming through the Guardian of Wonder's eyes, and Aster didn't have the time to feel frightened by that.

The Aussie stood and clenched his paws into fists at the thought of leaving Jack alone all that time with their kits. The one thing he never thought he would ever have again, and he was the one who mucked it all up. Why had he been so cold to his beaut of a mate? The poor doe probably felt so neglected and unloved, Aster was surprised a shred of their bond still existed.

"Don't be hard on yourself Aster." Cupid said quickly, but made sure to keep too much emotion from his voice. "It wasn't your fault. Pitch knew that when Cupid becomes weak so does the bond between any two lovers. Jack held on because he was pregnant, his hormones were so out of balance. You on the other hand, you got the full force of the affects."

The Aussie looked up "So you're sayin Pitch did all of this?" He asked, a growl gowing in the back of his throat.

"Yes Bunny." Tooth nodded sadly, "and I'm afraid Pitch has Jack believing you don't care about him anymore Bunny. Sandy saw Jacks dreams and how they turned to nightmares."

North simply nodded along with her, looking down at his boots. He didn't add anything, much to the Pooka's pleasure. Right at the moment daddy North wasn't wanted.

"I'm gunna kill'm. Nobody messes with ma Jack." Aster growled, and glared up at them. "Move aside, or I'm gunna make ya move." He ordered, body rigid.

"Aster please think this over." Cupid pleaded. "You aren't nearly ready to go fight Pitch."

"I'm ready to fight Pitch, I'm ready to see Jackie, and I'm ready to fight for mah kits." Aster said coldly, "now move outta my way so I can go talk to Sandy, and then rescue my mate."

And with that none of the other spirits put up a fight, stepping aside, and letting the Pooka hop through to talk to the second oldest Guardian to exist.

A week had passed, and Aster was in the fourth cave possible. Unfortunately, the area Sandy had sent him to was full of possibilities for the Nightmare King, which meant spending a lot of time looking for the correct one.

So he continued to run through the tunnels of the cave, listening for the slightest noise to tell him that his Jack was there.

Hours passed, and the Pooka was about to give up and move on to the next tunnel when he heard a cry. It wasn't loud, but it sounded faintly like the cry of a baby. Ears perked like satilites, the Aussie began to run faster, his heart pounding in his chest. Another cry, and his hopes were raised as high as they could possibly be.

It was when he reached a more home like tunnel that he almost cried out in joy, but also rage knowing Pitch had his Jackie brainwashed against him. Running further the Pooka felt like he was running through an old victorian house, until he saw them.

Jack was standing, holding the crying kit in his arms, softly singing to the child to try and calm it down. He was in a blue hoodie (as per usual), but was in a pair of comfy baggy pants, two grey ears protruding from over the frost sprites elbow.

Jack turned around, and ice met emerald.

~~~~ROTG~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ROTG~

Jack nearly dropped his baby at the sight of Aster standing there, watching him. His icy eyes went wide, and he took in a sharp gasp of air. Bunny was standing there, and looking at him.

"Aster what are you doing here?" Jack asked, feeling stupid for asking. -of course you know why he's here!- he screamed at himself, but couldn't be sure. He had been rejected so many times already.

"Yes, what are you doing here Aster?" Suddenly Pitch's voice was in the doorway, and there was only a few seconds pause before, as if in slow motion, many things happened at once.

Bunny lunges for Pitch, and the nightmare king lifted shadow sand to protect himself. Jack covered his baby, and leaned himself over the crib to protect the other, eyes closing tightly as a loud CRASH! was heard echoing through the tunnels.

When Jack looked back over at the two Spirits, Bunny had Pitch underneath him, and was holding a sharpened boomerang to the dark spirits throat.

"Stop!" He shouted, and surprised himself. Everything went silent accept for the loud cry's of the two kits. He looked at the two of them, and shook with all the emotions he felt at once.

"Jack, you gotta listen to me! This bastard has you brainwashed. I love you! I love you more than anything and it's all his fault we had that rough patch. I can take you to Cupid and he'll explain everything!"

"Don't listen to him Jack! He doesn't give a damn about you!" Pitch shouted back, pushing against the Pooka on top of him.

Jack looked back and forth between them, and only heard muffled shouts that he barely paid any attention to. He looked down at his hands, and the small kit crying in his arms. It was the one that looked like a human version of Aster. Neither of them had names yet, the winter Prince not sure what exactly he had been waiting for this entire time. The small thing ceased its crying, and looked up at Jack with watery eyes and the largest pout he had ever seen.

He looked to his other child, and his heart swelled at the thought of telling them their father was some Pooka they would never see again. With teary eyes he looked at the two arguing males, and clutched his baby, knowing who he was going to defend no matter what happened.