A/N : And here is the chapter you've all been waiting for since day one. :)

Chapter 28

I stand in front of him unable to move, holding his stare. His words sink in, and I realize how true they are. This new Jack, he really is the thing I fear the most. Someone close to me, someone I trust and love, turned evil. He is against me, and I am alone.

"_?"

My eyes widen, and dark Jack's eyes narrow in annoyance. I feel a hand on my shoulder, but keep my eyes ahead on dark Jack. I recognize the cold touch, and know who's come to help me. Dark Jack seems to know also. He speaks out across the small distance between us.

"Guess I'll be seeing you, _."

His smirk fades away as I feel myself being tugged backwards, away from the nightmare.

Light pierces my eyelids and I snap them open, hoping that I'm actually awake. Jack's eyes welcome me back to reality. His cold hand is on my shoulder. He must have been trying to wake me up.

"Hey, how do you feel?"

Stinging starts up in my right wing under the white bandages.

"My wing is on fire..."

I wince and pull it in close to my body. Jack reaches over and gently frosts it, not bothering to remove the bandage.

"Thank you."

He smiles back, but I catch the hint of worry present in his eyes.

"Were you dreaming?"

I clear my throat. It's still a little dry from the nightmare. How'd he know, anyway?

"Yes. Well, kinda."

"Oh. You just seemed... pretty upset."

My curiosity takes over, and so does my worry that I'll be embarrassed.

"What do you mean?"

"I heard you talking- yelling really, while you were sleeping, so I came to wake you up. Took awhile though."

His smile fades as I wring my hands. Might as well tell the truth.

"I was actually looking for you in my dream, and I thought something was wrong. And you actually turned out to be uh, you know."

"The dark one?"

"Mhmm."

"Oh. So it was a nightmare, then?"

I nod. That's not a good sign.

"Pitch could be here, Jack. Come on-"

I swing my legs over the edge of the bed, feeling much better, and test my balance. I sway, but wave Jack away when he tries to help.

"Hold up, I got this."

I stretch out my wings, especially my right one, and notice that I've somehow have been wearing a white gown, much like the ones sick people wear in hospitals, the entire time.

"What the...? How long have I been wearing this?"

"Um, not sure. I thought you had on a jacket and jeans when you fell asleep."

I hold out the white, soft fabric in my hand.

"Weird. I guess I changed while I was dreaming somehow."

Then, I drop the fabric from my hand and change into the jeans and jacket again. I choose to leave my feet bare, though. The file feels cool under my feet, and I secretly love it. I silently pad away with Jack running to catch up.

"You sure you're ok?"

I keep my eyes ahead and nod.

"Ya, I'm fine. Wing still smarts, but it feels a lot better than what it did."

The workshop seems to be darker, and I catch a glimpse of the enormous clock perched high up on a wall. It's nearly 11 PM. But doesn't the sun... Oh. That's right, it's starting to shift to the period of darkness at the Pole. If Pitch plans on being here, his timing is great. A quick glance at Jack tells me he's thinking the same thing. I decide to implement some sort of plan to keep watch over the entire workshop.

"Hey, we should split up. Maybe watch different parts of the workshop, and alternate or something. He could be here already."

"I know. Which is why we should stay together. Your wing-"

"My wing is fine, Jack. We need to cover more ground. He could already be here, and we wouldn't even know it."

It falls silent between us, and the faint sounds of elves and yetis working below float up through the air. Jack seems to reach a decision.

"Fine. Just... If one of us sees him, we fly back to the Globe and get the other. Activate the Northern Lights, and try to not get killed. Ok?"

"Sounds good."

I smile and jump over the railing, laughing a bit when Jack rushes over to see if I'm plummeting to the Globe below. I snap my wings out and glide back up before dashing away.

"I'm going downstairs, Jack! You take up! Then we'll switch!"

And then I'm gone and rushing down the hallway to the big elevator. I push the red button and wait as the yellow light above tells me which floor the elevator is currently on. Finally, it reaches me, and I step into the warm interior. Once the lowest floor is selected and glowing red, I step back and think. Working my way up is my plan. Guess the stables are the first stop. I feel my stomach drop as the elevator falls, and hear a faint whirring like last time. Everything halts with a small jolt, and the doors pull themselves back. A white sword forms into my warm hands, as I step out and into the musty air. The lights here are dimmed because no one is down here at the moment, except me. Hopefully.

My breathe comes out in small clouds and I'm glad that I have a jacket on. When I see the hay ahead, I form boots over my bare feet, accidentally leaving out the socks. I stop, try again, and feel cotton against my toes. Perfect. The hay gives under my weight, also making me quieter as I make my way past each empty stable. There are plenty of shadows cast inside, shaded the from the dim light of the lanterns hung in the air by chains. The ice formations in the high ceiling are beautiful here. I see the large blue tunnel that North left through, and the giant doors that the reindeer came out of with the yetis. Nothing suspicious here. I back away, sword ready, and then swing around back to the elevator. The doors are closed, so I wait a moment before they open again. I back into it, my eyes watchful for anything moving. Everything remains still. The doors start to close on the peaceful cavern, and I relax once they thud shut. I feel the elevator rise up to the next floor I push. I haven't seen this one before. The doors open wide, and darkness gapes back at me. The room could be endless for all I know, or a drop off of some sort. The elevator offers comfort and light. I am reluctant to step out of it, and brandish my sword. I whirl around as the doors close automatically, shrouding me in darkness. Great.

I unhappily give up my sword for a flashlight, and quickly search for some sort of light switch on the wall. I feel vulnerable without a weapon in my hands. I shine my flashlight over the wooden panels until I see a switch, old fashioned in design. I hurry over and pull it down, listening. There is a faint humming in the wall, and I switch back to my white sword immediately, waiting in the dark for something to happen. In the distance near the ceiling, a spark goes off, and a flame burns in a lantern. Several more follow suit, and gradually each section fills with light. The walls are lined with shelves crowded with books, and the center has many desks and books as well. I walk further into the room, heading for the center. There are two enormous books sitting on ornate, carved wooden stands. I already assume what they may be, and when I read the leather covers, I see in Russian gold letters:

"Непослушный"

"Ницца"

Probably "Naughty" and "Nice". I open the book with the longer name and my eyes widen at the first person listed.

"Jackson Overland Frost"

My eyebrows raise as I mutter to myself.

"True."

This whole room must be for storing the naughty and nice lists from the past. I walk along the shelves, and notice that each leather book has the year on the spine in gold letters. One side houses the "Naughty", the other side "Nice". The books on the stands are probably from this year. I make my way back to them, and find nothing suggesting that Pitch was ever here. I turn, open the elevator, shut down the lights, and go to the next floor.

The doors slide open, and I ready myself, sword held out defensively. I still haven't found any signs of Pitch, and it's making me edgy.

Yetis fill my vision as the floor is revealed to me. This must be where they live. They look puzzled at first, but wave and speak gibberish to me. I salute them with my sword in response, and notice that Phil is walking up to me out of the mass of fur. I rest it at my side and keep the elevator door open.

"Hey, Phil."

He speaks some sort of yeti greeting and I smile back.

"Ya I'm just keeping an eye out for Pitch. So is Jack. And don't worry, he's too busy to freeze any elves... Probably. See ya around. I have to keep looking, just in case."

I let the doors close after Phil waves and walks back to whatever he was doing.

I go up another floor, and find myself on the ground level of the workshop. Elves scurry around, "building" toys. The yetis are concentrated, and occasionally look up to see me walk by. I look around for awhile, and decide that pitch would never show up here. Too much light, too many yetis. So I fly up to the top of the Globe and stand there. The vantage point is great, I can see everything with a quick 360. Now, where's Jack? He should be done.

I take off, minding my sore wing, and shoot upwards to the floor where Jack and I last talked. I land standing on the railing and step down. I trade my sword for my staff. I hear jingling approaching fast, and turn around in time for an elf to hit me in the shins.

"OW! Watch it!"

He looks up apologetically, then jumps up and down urgently.

"Uh? What's up?"

He points excitedly behind him, jumping continuously. The jingling starts to get on my nerves.

"What? Something wrong that way?"

He nods fervently, and reaches up to take my hand before tugging me in the direction he pointed.

This little guy was really starting to worry me. My voice drops to a quiet volume.

"Did you see Pitch?"

He shakes his head no, and continues to pull me along. I pick up to a run and end up carrying him in my arms.

"This way, right? What did you see, then?"

He remains silent. Guess he can't really talk or something. I quicken my pace and finally glide several inches above the ground, the fastest I can go down the hallway. We pass several doors until he snaps his head around, pointing at one in particular.

I turn and approach the door. The staff transforms into my bow, and I feel a new weight on my back. The sheath's white, cool leather feels comforting. I reach up, snag an arrow, string the bow, and motion for the elf to open the door. He steps forward nervously, then reaches up and pulls on the iron ring handle. I nod at him, and with all of his strength he tugs the door open quickly. It creaks, and a straight, dark stairway waits in front of me. At the top, faint light drifts down the steps until it becomes nothing. I take a step forward, and the elf closes the door behind me. I pull the bow tighter and walk silently up the steps, staying close to the wall to avoid creaking. I peek my head into the light, and do a quick sweep of the space. It looks like an attic. There are wooden, not cardboard, boxes up here, and one window letting in darkness from outside. It's chilly up here, away from the trapped heat of the fireplaces and lanterns of the rest of the workshop. I nearly see puffs of breath from myself, but not quite.

There's definitely something up here, though. That elf sure thought so. I recall that the door will open out for me, just in case. Maybe he saw Jack up here? I should've asked while I had the chance.

It seems ok to stand up and enter the attic fully, so I do. The light is comforting, and I stand directly under the glowing lantern that gives it off. I suddenly wish that it was electric so that it couldn't go out from a draft. Oh well. I'll just do a quick search, then find Jack once I'm done here.

Because of the single light source, there are plenty of dark spots and shadows. Thankfully, the shadows are stone still. I stay inside the circle of light surrounding me, scanning for anything that might have scared the elf. And then I get the feeling that something about this attic isn't correct. I can't put my finger on it, but as I turn in circles, something is definitely not normal. I keep looking at everything until I rest my gaze on a shadow, completely confused and frustrated. What's wrong with this attic? The shadow stays still, and I stare it down, my mind racing.

Nothing's really wrong with the floor.

Nothing's wrong with the walls.

The windows are normal, too.

The lantern is a normal lantern.

So is the candle.

And the flame.

The flame. Not bulb, flame.

My eyes widen in realization.

The flame is dancing, but the shadows aren't.

My breathing become shallow and I feel my heart flutter with adrenaline.

Shadows don't do that.

I react instantly to the thought and propel myself forward for the stairway leading downwards. I'll be safe in just a min-

SMACK!

My head jerks painfully to the right, and my neck twists with it. I can feel the muscles strain and my mouth opens in pain. The attic swings in my vision as a dark blur. My cheek, right under my left eye stings and burns. Somehow, I'm holding a sword again, and I turn angrily to face whoever threw the punch. My vision is blurred on the left, but my right eye shows me a clear view of the idiot standing before me, cracking his gray knuckles, and chuckling to himself.

"Told you I'd see you again."

His golden eyes look at me with contempt, but switch to something similar to the look a snake gives its prey. He wants to hurt me. Badly. And something about his posture tells me he can't wait any longer.

And he doesn't.

Lightning quick, he reaches out his arm and lashes out at my face. I try to duck, but he still manages to clip my temple.

"ARGH!"

I slash my sword at his torso and feel it cut through the dense sand. His black hoodie shows a long tear across the middle. He glances down as sand spills out onto the wood floor. His shining eyes narrow.

"You're going to die for that."

I step back and relax my posture, resting the heavy sword on my shoulder and admiring the shine of the metal, a risk I'm willing to take.

"Really? So you weren't trying to kill me before?"

He launches his leg at me but I side step the kick, expecting his anger. I grab onto his ankle and yank him forward and into the hilt of my sword. I let go, watch him stumble a bit, and kick him back into a wall, one hand still holding my sword. His eyes squeeze shut in pain but instantly open again in rage. When he charges towards me, I panic a bit and use my wings to help me jump up over him. As I pass over his dark form, he reacts by reaching up and taking hold of some of the feathers on my left wing. I'm yanked back the way I came and down onto the hard wood floorboards. My back connects first and takes most of the impact. The sword clatters away to the side. Gasping for air, I find none and gape like a fish before catching a glimpse of him. I quickly get back on my feet, wince slightly, and rush him with a new sword held out horizontally. He slams into a wall, and I hold him there with the sword against his gray throat. I'm only inches away from his golden glare, and can feel the anger rising inside myself.

"Tell me where Pitch is! Now! Answer me!"

He doesn't grimace at my voice, but smiles.

"You've changed, _."

I put pressure on the sword, and narrow my eyes dangerously.

"What do you mean?"

His eyes light up even more. It makes me uneasy. He looks so much like Jack.

"This. Look at you. You're... like me."

I shove the sword up and under his chin, tilting his head back and making him grit his teeth.

"Guess that sucks for you, doesn't it?"

I can feel blood rushing through my head, and hear everything in the room.

Especially the distinct noise of a blade unsheathing.

It arcs upwards for my torso in seemingly slow motion. I bring one of my hands down towards his, grasp it, and twist. His wrist cracks and he gasps out in pain. Without really thinking it, I bring the knife up to his face, his hand controlled by mine, and I press it to his gray skin in addition to my sword.

"Tell you what. I'll let you in on a secret."

He squints at me through his messy black bangs. I ignore everything telling me to let him go because he's Jack. I assure myself that he isn't.

"You know how I died?"

I pause, look into his eyes again, then continue.

"Pitch. He stabbed me, right where you were going to. In the same way. With the same weapon."

Silence.

"The only difference between now and then, was that I didn't fight back."

His eyes hold mine as we stare at each other.

"I don't make the same mistake twice."

I press his knife closer to his skin, and see sand seep out. He maintains eye contact with me as be speaks.

"Then don't make the mistake of letting me live."

I'm considering killing him right there, because he has a point. I'm enraged and blinded by adrenaline when I hear the door burst open behind me. I refuse to take my eyes off of him though. Cold frost makes its way across the floor and climbs up my boot before stopping.

"_! Don't kill him!"

My eyebrows draw together in confusion and anger. Black sand continues to trickle down his gray skin. My eyes don't leave the gold staring back.

"Give me one good reason, Jack."

I hear his soft footsteps approach me, and feel the cold air that always surrounds him. And there is his heartbeat, wild and worried as ever.

He carefully reaches out and touches my shoulder, and I flinch away from his touch, drawing out more black sand as I move.

"_, if you kill him, Pitch wins."

I stare into the gold in front of my face, wanting to end him right here.

"He wants you to kill him, doesn't he?"

I don't respond, my mind is sifting through this new information. It makes sense now. Dark Jack waits expectantly, a smile glued on his face.

"You want me to kill you, so that I drop to your level. You want me to change."

I narrow my own eyes, and bore into his with realization. His smile disappears.

"You can't change me. Not with your mind tricks, not with your fear."

I bring him forward, and turn him quickly so that I have him in a headlock, which is hard to do since he's taller, Jack's height exactly. I keep the sword against his throat, and put the pointed end of the knife against his back, urging him forward to Jack. I hand him off to him, and he puts his powerful, glowing blue staff against dark Jack's head.

"Any sudden movements, you're an icicle."

Dark Jack remains expressionless and speechless as we lead him away from the dimly lit attic, and out into the hallway. He holds his stomach where sand seeps out of the tear that I cut into his hoodie, leaving a small trail of black sand as we walk. We reach the Globe without any problems from our prisoner, and make it down the steps to the area with the fireplace and semicircle of chairs. I hurry over to the control panel and turn the Northern Lights on. North will know what to do with dark Jack.

Seconds after the Northern Lights are activated, the lights everywhere in the workshop flicker. I glance over to Jack who stands guard over his evil twin, and we share a look of concern. Then, as I begin to step over to him, everything goes dark as the lights blink out. The only light comes from the fireplace, burning across the room. Both Jacks are in front of it. Neither has the staff. I see the dark silhouettes of both boys fighting against each other, and can barely tell who is who. I run closer and bring my bow and arrow level with the darker one, but they move too quickly and I can't risk hitting Jack.

One seems to be getting the advantage. He uppercuts the other, and kicks him down to the floor with his foot.

I don't get the chance to see what happens next, though.

Pitch rises out of the darkness in front of me, blocking my view with a flourish of nightmare sand. I see his glinting eyes in the darkness, and his face made completely black by the fire's light behind his tall figure.

I aim my arrow at his heart, but hesitate. If he dodges, it will sail through and possibly hit Jack. I can hear him still fighting behind Pitch.

"Look at you. Brought back by the Man in the Moon. Made into an Angel. How fitting. You're set to be a Guardian. You even have Jack Frost wrapped around your finger."

He leans forward, unafraid of my arrow.

"Too bad, really. You have such a long life ahead of you, and I'm about to end it. Again."

I stand tall in front of him.

"Bet you never thought you'd have that opportunity again, did ya?"

"Stupid girl-"

He swings a black sand sword out from his side and towards me. I immediately switch to a sword of my own in time to block his hit. I shift his sword away, and rush up to him, slashing at his robe. I miss each time as he dissolves into the darkness. He reappears behind me, but I catch a quick glance at the Jacks by the fireplace. They're still fighting relentlessly. One holds his stomach. The other limps a bit. I turn to Pitch, and surprise him with a bow and arrow. He realizes his mistake too soon, though, and I let the arrow fly. It's too fast for him to dodge, and I watch as it digs into his robe, right where his heart should be. He gasps in surprise, and melts into the darkness after sand falls out and to the floor in a small pile. I step back and load another arrow, but he seems to have disappeared. For now.

My attention directs back to the fight by the fireplace. I run over, arrow still ready, and watch as one Jack is strangling the other on the floor. The real Jack's staff is lying on the ground several feet away. And then I'm close enough to see who's winning.

I rush forward and tackle dark Jack to the floor, rolling close to the fireplace. I feel his knife knick my arm, but continue struggling with him until we come to a stop. Despite my fighting, he rolls over me with the knife to my throat. He digs his knee into my injured wing, and twists it. I cry out in pain. My head twists sideways and I see Jack lying nearly unconscious, gasping and coughing for air.

We make eye contact briefly, but dark Jack turns my face back to himself.

"What'd you do to Pitch?! Where is he?!"

I grin despite my searing wing.

"I shot him in the heart. He's gone."

I feel the burning blade press down into my skin, and grit my teeth. My hands are gripping at his wrists, trying to push the blade away, but he's too strong.

"Then I guess I'll just have to kill you."

I try to kick him, but he pins my legs with his own.

I feel the blade actually cut into my skin, and the small stream of blood that trails down my neck onto the floor. His glare is matched with my own, staring back defiantly.

A loud shout roars though the air, startling both dark Jack and myself.

"GET OFF OF HER!"

I watch stunned as Jack, staff in hand, sails through the air and tackles dark Jack. They roll away, dark Jack kicking and punching, but Jack blocks every hit with his staff. He forces the knife away and I hear it clatter somewhere on the floor. I watch, entranced by the sight.

Jack sits atop his dark twin, his face twisted in rage. He lowers the crook of his staff to dark Jack's face. I watch as beautiful golden eyes widen in fear.

My voice is weak, but still audible.

"Jack... Wait..."

He glances at me, his eyes catching mine and taking in my battered face, my bruising neck, my struggling breaths, then slowly turns back to the dark version of himself.

His voice is hoarse as he addresses the black haired boy.

"You were going to cut her throat."

And then, Jack freezes him without hesitation.

I lay on the ground in shock as blue light erupts from his staff, rivaling the brilliance of the firelight.

Air so cold it bites at my warm skin pushes against me as ice trickles out wards, crawling away from both Jacks. Then, the air stops rushing fiercely, and calms. My hair lays down again, and my wings and fingertips feel numb. I feel my neck where the knife cut into my skin, and find the blood frozen, stuck as it was when it dripped out. My eyes sting, and my lips are ice cold to the touch. My breath comes out in clouds. I break the stem of red from my sore neck, and hold it in my hand. It starts to melt, and I put it down on the iced over floor beside me. My entire body shivers uncontrollably on the icy floor, even with my jacket and boots.

The fireplace is once again the only light source.

I see the dark silhouette of Jack standing up and making his way over to me. My elbows slip on the ice when I try to push myself up, though. He hurries over and kneels beside me.

"Did he cut you?"

My voice is torn and hoarse because of the cold radiating from Jack's body.

"Ya, but I'm fine."

He puts one hand on my shoulder and pushes my up so that I can stand on the slippery ground. At first, I gasp at his touch. It feels like someone dropped ice cubes down my back. I stare blankly at where dark Jack was moments ago.

There's nothing now.

"You... You actually killed him."

Jack looks down at the floor, blue eyes solemn.

"I'm sorry, I tried to control it. It was just that..."

He looks conflicted.

"...the knife, and your eyes..."

He hesitates but looks up at me, eyes sad, face strong.

"You mean too much to me."

My mouth opens slightly in surprise. For a moment, I just stare at him as he stands in front of the fire. Everything on me is numb and cold. He even gives off coldness from where he stands. Him killing his evil twin took a lot of power.

"I... I do?"

A small smile finds its way to my face. My lips pull, and it hurts from the cold, but I'm still happy despite my injuries.

Jack stands before me, rubbing his arm, nervously inspecting his staff. In one word: embarrassed. He keeps his eyes away from mine the entire time.

"Yes."

I take a step closer, my body protesting any movement, my ribs aching from the pain inside. I try my best to focus on Jack.

Some red catches my eye. It leaks out of his lip, and down his chin. He looks up, notices my concerned eyes, then wipes it away with his sleeve. Then he sees my face in the firelight. I must look terrible.

"_... You're bruising everywhere."

It's true. I can feel the soreness on my cheek where I was first punched. And just about everywhere else.

"Hold on."

He reaches his free hand out for my face, and lightly touches the bruise below my eye. The coldness relieves the soreness and makes it fade away to numbness. It feels so much better, and Jack touches each bruise forming on my face, making me shiver. His eyes look apologetic.

"Sorry, I can only keep you cold I guess."

I blurt out a sentence.

"I'm fine with that."

He smiles down at my battered, freezing face.

"You're the only person that's ever said that to me."

I give out a small laugh into the cold air, accidentally puffing warmth onto his face. My cheeks turn red.

"Well, I've never felt THIS cold because of another person."

"This cold, huh?"

Another laugh escapes me.

"It's probably a record or something."

He looks at me mischievously.

"Maybe I can break that record."

I can feel my eyebrows raise at his suggestion as he looks down at me. His blue eyes are gazing into mine, and my heart panics. He must hear it, and his mouth turns up into a crooked smirk. It only makes me more nervous about where this is going.

A voice at the back of my mind speaks up.

Quit doubting yourself.

I feel free in that moment, like nothing is holding me back. If someone loves you and you love them back, be together. That's about as simple as it gets. And that's exactly what's happening right now.

So I don't run away when Jack leans down to my face.

Why not let this happen?

He closes the space between us and I feel the cold burst onto my face, starting with my lips. And I thought mine were cold. But this isn't the bad sort of cold, the kind I'm so familiar with that stings and bites. This is better. It's completely numbing at first, like kissing a smooth river stone, but then I can feel something there. Jack is definitely cold, but this is easier to tolerate than I imagined. I was half expecting the experience to be like kissing an ice cube. I was completely wrong. After a couple of seconds, I put my hand on his hoodie, and can feel his heartbeat. It's comforting, and I feel one of his cool hands in my hair. He's finally starting to loose some of the cold energy from using his staff. He feels warmer almost. Or at least, less cold.

When we pull away from each other, I notice the tips of his ears are bright red, and so are his cheeks, despite the purple bruises. My face is newly flushed with warmth, and I can feel the bruises and their soreness come back to life. We look at each other for a moment, then smile. I shiver suddenly, and Jack laughs.

"Did I break the record?"

I stare up at him, a small grin showing fast.

"I dunno. Maybe."

I stand up on my tip toes and surprise him with a sweet kiss on the nose. His ears glow red once again, and I find myself enjoying my ability to embarrass him. He rubs the back of his neck with his hand sheepishly, then offers it out to me.

If I take it... What does that mean?

He sees my eyes and my expression, and can tell that I'm thinking it over. He's about to draw it back to his hoodie pocket, but I reach out and grasp it. I see his small smile, not a smirk this time, and he walks with me over to the fireplace. I stand in the burning light, watching a particular flame rise and fall and sway in time with its neighbors. My eyes start to dry out from the intense heat though, so I turn away from the flames and look at Jack.

He stares into the fire like I do, observing the flames.

I let myself smile. I've never been particularly good at showing affection, but it comes easily with Jack.

His hand still holds mine, and I decide that I like the feeling of the cold coming from him. It's calming.

After several minutes of warming by the fire, for my sake, not Jack's, we go over to the control panel to check on the Northern Lights. The Guardians still haven't shown up. As we near it, I see why, and hurry over to the activator.

"Jack, I swear I turned this thing on."

"I know, I saw you."

"How'd it get..."

We stare in realization into each other's wide eyes.

Right on cue, the fireplace is doused out in a swarm of sparkling sand, and the entire space becomes dark.

Pitch's laughter rings out through the workshop.

I back up to Jack and feel him grab my arm, tugging me away from the control panel. We stay silent as we move, not giving ourselves away. I feel his skin grow colder by the second as the time wears on. He needs to stay calm, though, so I place my warm hand on his shoulder to let him know I'm ok. In my other hand, I feel the cool metal of my sword. My heartbeat is picking up, and so is Jack's.

This is definitely not good. We have to find light to fight in. Then, I think of an idea. I get Jack's attention and point with my sword in the direction of the Globe. He nods once, and we give up on remaining quiet and sprint for the center of the workshop.

The light coming off of the Globe is faint, but much better than nothing. The glow from all of the lights pushes the darkness back a bit, providing a golden barrier between certain death. At least here we have a chance.

The sound of rushing sand echoes into my ears from somewhere distant in the dark workshop. I back closer to Jack, bump into him, and stare out into the blackness with wide eyes. Jack steps around me, turns to face me and speaks in a low voice.

"_, listen to me. You can't be afraid. Not now, ok? Especially not now."

I nod.

"Ok."

The sand rustles again, closer this time, but I keep my heartbeat normal.

It's only Pitch.

You shot him, he's injured.

You have the advantage.

Jack stands in front of me again, looking back over his shoulder at me, watching my reactions. My sword swings at my side nervously, and I form a white shield when the sand scratches even closer.

I exhale deeply, and hold my breath.

But without warning, the sand has gone quiet. Nothing moves. I hear my heartbeat and Jack's. Nothing else, though.

Jack glances over at me with confusion in his eyes after several moments of silence. Could Pitch have left? I did injure him, after all.

I lock my eyes back on the dark space before me, still trying to keep my heart beat under control. It's becoming increasingly difficult as the silence wears on without any movement.

Pitch doesn't give up that easily.

Jack has turned away from the darkness once again, and walks over In my direction. He should really concentrate on watching out for Pitch, though, not worrying over me. As he comes closer, something sparkles behind him.

I yell out a warning, but it isn't quick enough.

Tendrils of black swirling sand come out of the darkness and tangle around Jack in a flurry. I'm shocked by the sheer speed of the attack. As I leap forward to grab Jack's hand, he is yanked harshly back into the darkened workshop. He doesn't even make a sound. The sand must have covered his mouth.

His bright blue eyes disappear from sight, and Pitch's cruel laugh fills my ears as my heart drops.