Bunnymund pace the balcony, Sandy was shooting little gold fireworks at an elf, and North to the right of him, fidgeting with some pieces of metal and a couple of screws, making something before pulling it apart again and making it into something else. Jack was balancing along the railing of the balcony, not worrying about the snowy ground beneath him, but instead his mind was on his friend. Heart, being the spirit of comfort, knew the most about first aid and was in the other room, examining Tooth, trying to figure out a way to get rid of the Shadow inside of her.
Jack glanced at North as he toyed with his pieces nervously. Last time he had checked the large Russian, he had been assembling what looked like a toy robot. Now, he had dissembled it and was making something along the lines of a small train. Jack continued to pace the banister, his feet making webs of ice wherever he stepped. He didn't even bother to be scared of the white ground far beneath him; his mind was on his friend. Heart, being the spirit of comfort and knowing the most about first aid, was in the other room with Tooth. She was trying to get a grasp on what the Shadow inside of Tooth and how to get rid of it. He and the rest of the guys had been waiting outside on the balcony for a good half an hour.
There was a small click and Heart stepped out of the room, quietly shutting the door behind her. Everyone stopped what they were doing (the elf Sandy had been toying with was especially happy about this) and looked at her. She sighed. "Well, I have good news and I have bad news." she said, choosing her words carefully. "Which do you want to hear first?"
Jack was the first to suggest, "What's the bad news?" Heart sighed. "Um, the Shadow seems to be trying to take over her mind. If it does, it'll fry her brain." "Then what's the good news?" Bunnymund asked impatiently. "Uh, I think I might know a way to get rid of it." she said cautiously. "Well, that's great!" Jack said. "But it's going to take a couple of days." she finished. "And with Shade out there with all those new tricks up her sleeve, we need all the help we can get." "Oh." North said.
"Well, that's why we have you, right?" Jack asked Heart. "Or will you be preoccupied the next couple days too?" Heart shook her head. "No, I'll only need a hour or two with her, but the rest of the process will take four days to a week." "When do you want to start Project Anti-Shadow?" Jack asked. "I've put her through enough already." Heart answered. "I should let her rest a few hours, maximum. In the meantime, I suggest you all find something to do while we wait." They all nodded and went off to do their own thing. Jack lingered behind and watched Heart walk to the balcony and rest her elbows on the railing, putting her face in her hands.
Jack walked over to her, leaning his staff next to him as he put his arms on the banister by Heart. They stood there for a while before Jack broke the silence. "Its going to be alright." Heart took her head out of her hands and sighed, folding her arms. "I've never pulled something like this before. Shade has never pulled something like this before. I'm just nervous because nothing even close to this has happened to me." she said. Jack had never seen Heart in this much stress. "Lets take your mind off of this stuff. I'm still new to this whole thing, and somethings been bothering me. Maybe you can explain it." Heart looked at him skeptically before smiling and taking the bait. "Shoot." she said, adjusting her arms in a more comfortable position. "That tile mural in the Cloud Castle's floor. What is it?" he asked. Heart stared at him. "I forget your only 300 years old." she said before looking out at the snowy wasteland and starting the story.
"In the beginning, there was only darkness. Everything was always covered in black. There was no light. Then Caliph Lux, the overseer of this universe, created the... first guardians, or Curators. There were..." Heart began counting on her fingers here, "... 25 Curators, but I only know one. That's him." she said, pointing at the glaring sun in the blue sky. "Rector Sol. He was the Curator chosen to watch over our corner of the universe. But he had so many planets to watch over he needed help. So he created three minor guardians. The Fautoriams. Each was appointed three planets to watch over closely, while Rector Sol watched over our solar system in general. And our Fautoriam is him." she continued, moving her finger to the moon on the other side of Jack's vision, looking like a small cloud in the clear day sky.
"The Man in the Moon." Jack said, gazing at the full white circle. Heart looked at him. "Is that what you call him?" she asked, surprised "Um, yeah..." Jack said, confused. Heart gave a small smile and shook her head. "I had no idea you called him that." she said looking back at the moon. "Why, isn't that what you call him?" Jack asked. Heart looked at him again. "I call him by his real title, not some nickname a handful of humans came up with when they saw him once." "Well, if your that smart, what is his real name?" Jack accused. Heart stared at him for a while longer before turning back to the moon with a sigh. "His name's Tasar Luna. He's in charge of watching us, Venus, and Mercury. That's why he gets smaller and larger every time we see him; when he's checking on Venus and Mercury, he gets farther away. When that happens, we can only see parts of him. Sometimes he gets so far away, we can't even see him anymore. Then he grows bigger as he comes to check on us, which is about once a month."
"Um, okay, but what does this have to do with the mural at Sandy's place?" Jack inquired, sensing they were getting a little off topic. "Well, when this all first started way back when, things were going pretty well for a few eras. Until darkness, who's name was Tenebris, decided she didn't have enough free reign over the earth. So she made a demand to Rector Sol; give her more time for night to grab hold over the earth. Well, naturally Rector Sol refused; that would throw his entire solar system into chaos. But Tenebris was stubborn and refused to be put down so easily. She made demands. He refused to comply. Soon the argument grew so heated they attacked one another; Rector Sol, for the protection of his solar system, Tenebris for power. When their strikes met, they created Nightshade. The perfect mix of light and dark. She was the black created when light was blocked. But she was more of her mother than Rector Sol, so she sided with Tenebris. And she trained her well. Very well. Earth was exposed to, for the first time, a part of Tenebris that was only supposed to be seen and felt at night. Their protection gained from Rector Sol was contaminated with Tenebris. They could not escape her.
"Soon, Tenebris realized how well this was working for her. So, the thought crossed her mind, what if she had more than one? So, a few centuries later, Pitch was created. Only Pitch, having none of Rector Sol in him, unlike Shade, gave fear to the earth on all of his visits as well as darkness. Therefor, the first Nightmares were made in the process. And they have done their job very well ever sense." Heart stood, stretching her arms that had grown stiff over the talk before leaning on the banister with it against her back. "So there you have it. Sandy's mural is picturing the fight of Rector Sol and Tenebris and the creation of Nightshade." Jack nodded. "Funny, I had no idea that's what happened." Jack said. "Yep."Heart agreed. They stood there in silence for a while, lost in their own thoughts. Finally, Heart straightened again. "I better go. I'll need to be ready for Tooth when she wakes up." Jack nodded and watched her walk away into the building, wings in tow.