Chapter Twenty-four- Memories

'My son, you've done well.' A familiar voice floated through the dreamscape and filled him with warmth.

'I try.' James grinned cheekily. 'And what was that about not letting them kill me? I thought you'd agreed to step in.' He pointed out. There was a chuckle from all around him which would have been odd if it were any other voice. Mani had his ways after all.

'Jackson beat me to it.' He offered, his voice full of nostalgia and amusement. He could imagine the face to go with it.

'What's happened to me?' He asked, 'clearly this is a special dream if you're in it.'

'Boogey's essence died within you, leaving darkness behind. You were exhausted and the leftover essence combined with your own magical push knocked you out. My son you must wake up.' He offered, his tone soft and sounding very much like an upset Tooth Fary. Was he…fretting over him? No, that was Tooth leaking into the dream, he was sure.

'Forget it.' A familiar voice spat viciously at a victim nowhere to be seen. Why his mind conjured the word victim was easy enough to figure once he realized who that voice belonged to.

'Is that…?" he turned to see the warren, and his old self, Pitch Black. He was confronting Jack in a showdown that, to his knowledge, had never happened.

'Shut up, Pitch. I already told you I'm never gonna work with you. I don't want to be feared.' Dream Jack drawled, tone softening to boredom after the initial command. It was as if he didn't care what Pitch did. Under the cockiness Jack saw the fear, festering. He was the guardian of courage, after all. He knew the boy was scared.

The difference was that this version of himself wanted nothing more than to ease that fear, show him he didn't need to be afraid. He walked around them as they talked. He watched himself gloat, goad him until he was trembling in anger.

'Was I really that annoying?' He asked, only half-kidding.

''Fraid so.' The moon chuckled.

'Why are you showing me this?' He asked absently.

'I'm not. I snuck in when you passed out, before the proverbial door slammed.' He informed the increasingly nervous man.

'Oh…so…you're here to…to help?' He asked, stumbling all over himself as he walked, trying to keep Jack's eye line.

'If I can.' He could hear Mani nodding, if it made any sense.

The colors swirled and he was watching Jack and Pitch on the cliff in Antarctica with a horrible nauseous feeling in his gut. He couldn't fathom the things he had been prepared to do…

He shut his eyes and spun, putting his hands to his ears. He wouldn't watch this, he couldn't! He was not Pitch anymore! He wouldn't let Boogey's magic do this to him, never again. He swore up and down he wouldn't let the foul magic corrupt him.

'MONSTER!' A voice screamed loudly enough that he couldn't block it out. A constantly changing image of several thousands of people through his life as Pitch swirled around him. He screamed to the point that his throat was starting to hurt. These people didn't understand and it was all his fault, it didn't matter that he hadn't done any of it. He could have prevented it, he had been weak. He had made the worst mistake anyone had ever made, at least in his mind.

He ran, ran as fast as he could, ran until he was sure he had run in circles, ran until he collapsed.

Then there was nothing.

Darkness.

"Come on, come on, wake up…" Tooth fluttered around the room nervously, in the back along the wall of course. She didn't want to be in the way. He had seemed so peaceful at first, but when Sandy hadn't been able to do anything they had brought him to the medical wing of the Pole where Sandy sat once again trying to bring about any kind of change.

The moon hadn't said a word and they all had their own speculations as to what had happened. Sandy figured his attention was where it was needed most, and he was right. Mani couldn't have helped the four if he had tried at the moment, his oldest son needing him had completely taken his focus.

Sandy had to stop for the second time when a small sound pierced the worried semi-silence. Bunny actually caught it first, a small whimper.

It grew until all five waking guardians were watching the bed with wide eyes and clenched fists. Jack's chest tightened uncomfortably when he started to yell. He knew that sound all too well. Something about it held fear and pain, but also regret and desperation.

It's what he knew he had felt like whenever another spirit confronted him about winter.

Soon James was thrashing violently, his throat taking obvious damage.

Then Sandy tried something else. Obviously he was dreaming, so he figured paying a little visit wouldn't be difficult.

He landed hard, falling from a surface that had thrown him like he was nothing. The silence set in and there was a single wall of light, showing him his life. Scenes played out from every era in quick succession, scenes he didn't remember. He sat horrified and numb, barely containing the disgust on his face at some of them.

Then a small hand found his shoulder and a warm golden glow lit up the space around him in his peripherals.

'This was not you, this was Pitch.' A sympathetic, gentle voice cut through the silence he hadn't even realized was there. It rang out as a neutral voice that could only have been from his own mind, not the mute dream-maker's.

'But it was.' He protested half-heartedly, a choked sound issuing through the darkness. Sandy floated around and lightly sat in front of him, blocking his view.

'No. You would never do these things. That was Boogey.' He insisted calmly again, reassuring smile causing the man to relax a little.

'I could have-'

'No.' He cut him off. 'Listen to me. You did everything you could. You thought you could help the children if you made a choice. You happened to be wrong and you happened to get stuck. It happens. If you had someone to help you then you could have fixed it sooner.' Sandy insisted soothingly.

'I know…but it…' He shook his head.

'I know.' He sat beside him. 'You know if you wake up, we'll help you move on. You're courage, like you were before. You aren't alone anymore.' He offered and the exhausted, half-hopeful half-broken look James gave him made him want to cry. In fact he almost did. Instead he smiled at him, standing a motioning to himself. 'You need to wake up.'

'How?' He asked pitifully.

'I admit, that's not my forte.' Sandy chuckled. The levity earned him a smile.

'Maybe…' He scootched around until he was sitting in a meditative stance with his eyes closed. Peeking an eye open he grinned at Sandy. 'Think this'll do it?' He asked.

'Maybe, worth a shot.' He nodded, sitting beside him and doing the same.

Sandy jerked back out to the world and, rather uncharacteristically, lost balance and fell backward. Bunny leaped up and snatched him out of his free-fall easily. Sandy chuckled, righting himself and grinning appreciatively at the Pooka before turning his attention back to James.

North had broken down and joined Tooth in her pacing, when Sandy fell over they both rushed to the bed. Jack had curled up on one of the armchairs and when North ran, he woke up fast. There was absolutely no way he could sleep through North's noises, he was many things but a ninja wasn't one of them.

James, on the other hand, barely registered anything but the searing muscle pain shooting through his entire body. He felt the warmth the blankets had held in from his own body heat, the softness of the pillows, the breeze because Wind was swirling about nervously. Something smelled like peppermint. Someone was about to hyperventilate. (Tooth was a really loud breather when she was nervous.)

Soon enough his eyes managed to pry themselves open and the room let out a collective breath of relief.

There y'all are, happy hump day! Let me know whatcha think. ^.^ Also thank you thank you thank you for reviewing! I can't believe it I have 13 reviews! Also, abzrocks1234, thanks! I imagine them as silly siblings when I write them.