A/N: Back again! :D Huge Thank You to all who have followed and favourited since the last chapter, I'm glad yous are enjoying the story and a special thank you goes out to Tala White 14, AlexatheNerd and MysteryGirl7Freak for reviewing! :D I literally run on feedback so thank you all! :D

This chapter is really long (I hope you's don't mind) but I am quite happy with the outcome. Jack gets a break in this one and the Sandman gets busy so dreams are in italics. Expect fluff people!

Disclaimer: Not mine, sadly not :( I'll just pretend for a while ;)

Enjoy!

Sam, Dean and Castiel all crept smoothly through the undergrowth of the forest outside of Burgess. The night had quickly approached after their dinner due to the short winter days and it was slightly difficult to see much in the wooded area so the two brothers had whipped out their flashlights.

They were headed in the general direction of Jack's lake. From Jamie's description, it was relatively well known to the area and therefore couldn't have been too deep into the woods or too hard to find from the main road where the Impala was parked. They had left pretty much immediately after Cas had worked his mojo on the two Winchesters, the only way to see if it had any effect being to test it.

The crew was silent during their journey, each Winchester brother slightly nervous about the meeting and currently unwilling to talk about anything as they mulled over what was going to happen and Cas, being the angel that he is, just didn't talk much in general.

It did not take long, however, for the group to spot a parting in the trees that led to a clearing. Once they got a proper view through the gaps in the branches, they saw it was indeed the lake of Jack Frost, which was frozen solid, unsurprising when one knew just who it was that called this place home.

One thing that was amiss was the absence of any Guardians, and for a moment Sam's heart jolted at the fear that they would still be unable to see the group.

"Is-? Are-?" He stammered, struggling to find the words to ask the angel if the Guardians were there.

"They're not here." Cas interrupted, knowing what Sam was about to ask. "Yet."

The trio made their way down to the shore of the lake, Cas keeping his expression blank while his two friends fidgeted beside him, glancing around them constantly as their eyes searched for any sign of movement in the darkened night. He allowed himself a small smile; he had gotten so used to seeing the Winchester's go up against many a horrific creature without batting an eyelid, he found it strange how they were so on edge going to meet Guardians of Childhood: a group that was in no way threatening. He supposed it was going to be difficult for them, they were both realists and now they were being asked to put that realism aside to deal with creatures they thought were fairytales.

Cas was brought from his silent musings by the feel of a tug on his awareness. A portal must be about to open somewhere close by. "They're coming." He announced, directing his gaze toward the night sky. Sam and Dean jumped slightly at his declaration, eyes following his upwards, neither brother entirely sure just what they were looking for.

With a burst, the portal opened and from it came a sleigh pulled by four reindeer. The sleigh turned to head down towards the lake as Cas watched the reactions of the brothers.

"Oh my God." Sam gasped, his eyes wide and mouth slightly agape as he watched the sleigh's descent towards the lake.

"What?!" Dean questioned angrily.

"You don't see?" Sam questioned, ripping his gaze from the glorious sight and turning towards his brother.

"See what? Sam! There's nothing there!" He cried out defensively.

"They're here Dean! Look!" Sam replied, pointing towards the sleigh eagerly, looking all too like a young child showing their mother something they found miraculous.

Although Dean's gaze followed to where his brother was pointing, he showed no signs of recognition, nor that he saw anything there at all.

"I can't see." He said, sounding oddly deflated as he was met with disappointment that he could not see who was approaching.

"Dean, try and focus, try and believe." Cas called just as the sleigh hit the hardened ice with a stop.

Sam's attention was completely overcome by the sight of the strange group of beings emerging from what had to be Santa Claus' sleigh. He was left speechless as a bunny, the height of himself with grey fur and boomerang's hopped down from the sleigh, looking a little shaken from the journey. The Easter Bunny.

Following him two creatures came into full view at the same time, and both were, if possible, even stranger. One resembled a woman, but at the same time, looked like an overgrown hummingbird. She had feather's covering her body and had wings which were beating rapidly as they lifted her from the sleigh, yet her facial features were that of a beautiful woman. The Tooth Fairy.

Next to her and also floating was a small man. Not very strange, true, except this man was golden. He looked to be made from sand, except it was the brightest, most intricate sand Sam had ever seen, the man looked at him with kind eyes and gave him a small nod and a smile. The Sandman.

Last to leave the sleigh was a very large man, who, once he had reached his full height he towered over them all. He wore a black Russian cap, a long red coat with black fur and two tattoos on each arm; one 'naughty,' the other 'nice.' He had a long white beard that went right down to his waist and had kind, startlingly blue eyes. Santa Clause.

Sam sucked in a deep breath, half wondering just how he was still standing and conscious at this stage, his brain being temporarily frozen in shock.

"'E can see us?" The big bearded man questioned once he had read Sam's expression. The others just watched and waited to see what was going to happen. They had only expected Castiel to be here, the two human adults on either side were both somewhat a surprise.

"Yes, these are the Winchester's; Sa-"

"Ah yes!" North boomed, "Sam and Dean, no?" Noticing Dean's blank expression as he gazed at the three, he continued, "'E does not believe?"

"No." Cas replied simply. Turning to the still starstruck younger Winchester brother, he continued, "Sam, this is North, Bunny, Tooth and Sandy." He informed, trying to get some sort of response out of his friend.

"Hi." He replied, eyes still wide in shock.

"Apologies, we were unsure whether either of them were going to believe." Cas explained.

"Ooh," Tooth began in a motherly voice in response to Sam's surprise, "It's ok!" She continued, shooting over to Sam's side, causing the Winchester to jump back, "We're not that different from anyone else." She said in a kind voice.

"Can someone please tell me what's going on here?!" Dean called out angrily, disturbed at seeing his brother jump in fright from something that was not there.

"Cool it mate." Bunny said in response, but of course, it fell on deaf ears.

"Dean and Sam are the hunter's I had mentioned before. I opened their minds as best I could but they had to make the final leap of faith themselves. Sam was able to, Dean seems to have had some trouble." Cas explained to the Guardians.

Sandy raised his hand eagerly, bouncing slightly in the air with a wide smile on his face.

"Sandy! What is it?" North questioned, prompting the Guardian of Dreams to continue with whatever he wanted to say. The little golden man signed a string of pictures above his head, too quickly to allow anyone to keep up.

"Hold up little guy," Bunny began, "say it again, slower this time though."

He signed an adult sleeping and above their head appeared mini-sand figures of the Guardians.

"Give him dreams of us?" North asked to make sure that was what the little golden man had meant to say. Sandy nodded eagerly in agreement.

"That's a wonderful idea Sandy!" Tooth praised, shooting back over to stand beside the small man.

"Will it work? He is an adult after all?" Bunny questioned dubiously.

"If his mind is more accepting it should work, yes?" North replied, turning towards Cas for confirmation.

"It is worth a try." Cas replied.

Without further ado, Sandy sent a stream of golden sand towards Dean, it danced around his eyes as the elder Winchester began to get extremely tired.

"Sam!" He called out tiredly, his body was rapidly becoming lethargic. He began to panic, not knowing what was happening him as his energy slipped away from him. "Sam, what-?"

"Dean it's ok, you're just going to sleep." Sam said in a soothing voice.

"Sleep? What?!" He replied, his voice rising in panic.

"Dean, don't fight it." Cas instructed, "It's just the Sandman."

"How? Why?" He replied, his voice becoming weaker as he began to succumb to unconsciousness.

"Hit him with a bit more mate." Bunny advised, Sandy looked towards the oversized Bunny, nodding in agreement before sending another wave of golden sand towards Dean who, once hit with the sandman's magic, promptly fell to the forest floor, fast asleep.

The strange group stared silently at the Winchester brother as dreams began to form.

"Er guys?" Sam began, "This might not be the best place to let him sleep." He pointed out slightly timidly, still finding his voice after the introductions.

"Ah, you are right." North admitted, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"We could get him a blanket?" Tooth suggested.

"Not to worry. I'll get him." Cas replied, moving closer to Dean and crouching down beside him. "Sam, meet us at the motel with the car. We are staying at the Golden Arrow motel in town, room 7. I'll see you all there." He instructed as he placed two fingers on the forehead of the older Winchester brother before the two disappeared.

~FF~

It did not take Sam overly long to arrive at the motel room with the car, it had been more than a little awkward after the angel had left with his brother in tow; Sam had no clue as to what you say to a group of legends. Aside from that, he was still coming to grasp with the fact that, not only were they real, Santa's Russian, the Easter Bunny's Australian, the Tooth Fairy is a cross between human and hummingbird and the Sandman was just that; a man literally made of sand. They had simply awkwardly agreed to split ways; the Guardians conducting a search for Jack, and Sam returning to the motel to keep watch on his brother.

He sighed, shaking his head as he still worked on coming to terms with how strange everything had gotten in the space of a day. He entered the motel room, and was greeted with the sight of his brother asleep on his bed and Cas sat at the table keeping a watchful eye on him. Once he entered the room, the angel gazed towards him, giving him a small nod of welcome, which Sam then returned before joining Cas at the table.

"Where are the others?" Cas questioned.

"They're doing an initial search of the area around the lake. If they find anything, they'll send word." He replied. "I wonder what he's dreaming." Sam mused aloud, gazing at his sleeping brother.

~FF~

Dean felt himself falling into a deep, peaceful sleep, his mind eagerly racing towards the oblivion that awaited. He rarely got any deep sleep, his senses always being too strung up, too sharp even at night to allow him such a reprieve. All too easy, he found himself falling into a dream.

Dean looked around, gathering information about his surroundings. It was a familiar place, one he recognised as Bobby Singer's home, but it was much less cluttered than he remembered it at the minute. He heard a young child crying and instinctively followed the sound as it led him upstairs. The crying was coming from the main guest room, the one him and Sam used to share when they were younger. He rounded the corner to the room and was met with the sight of a younger version of himself and Sam. He looked to be around ten and Sam about six. The crying was coming mainly from Sam but heartbreak was evident in the face of his younger self too as he tried to remain strong for his little brother.

Dean remembered this. Sam had started asking questions about their father, why they were always moving around, why he wasn't with them, where he went; questions Dean had no answers for. Today, if Dean remembered correctly, was actually Sam's sixth birthday, and John had once again broken his promise that he would be there, and Sam had convinced himself he was unloved and unwanted. He watched, waiting. He knew how this played out, he had cheered Sam up and they had even managed to make it down to the kitchen to have some cake with Bobby.

As he watched, he noticed images appearing in the mirror. He could see a golden room, with rows of little small golden boxes which complimented the decor of their surroundings. He saw a little hummingbird-thing fly towards one box; one that had his childhood face pictured on the end of it.

"What?!" He questioned himself in confusion. His younger self showed no sign of seeing what was being shown in the mirror, and he had no memory of such a room or such delicate little boxes so he had to assume this sight was for his benefit only. The little bird pressed what looked like a hand onto the top of the box, causing it to emit a glowing light.

"Hey Sam, d'you remember that time, about two years ago, that Dad came home early and played catch with us?" His younger self started just as the light was emitted from the box. "And then he took us to that awesome pizza place and we sat and played the whole day?" He looked down at his brother snugged up in his arms, and was met with only sniffles, the tears seemed to be slowing to a stop though.

"And do you remember when he taught us how to climb that big old tree outside, and your clumsy ass nearly fell of the thing, Dad nearly had a fit!" He continued with a smile.

"Dean!" Sam whined, a watery smile starting to appear on his face in spite of himself, "You nearly fell of it too! I was only copying you!" He continued with a small laugh as he defended his climbing skills.

"Ok, ok, fair enough." Dean laughed in response. Sam giggled softly as his brother reminded him of more stories.

The images on the mirror changed before his eyes, and a larger version of the small bird he had saw earlier appeared, only this one looked to be more half-human, half-hummingbird. She gave him a warm smile as Dean stared at the odd sight, "for when we have to be reminded of happier times."

Before he could fully appreciate that a feathered lady with wings was talking to him through a mirror, the scene shifted and reformed into a memory taking place a few years later. This time, Dean saw his younger version sat at the table of some motel room somewhere in America. Sam was watching TV while Dean stared frustratingly down at the page in front of him. Dean came closer to the younger version of himself, peering over his shoulder to see what he was looking at. "My Mother" was written in big, colourful letters at the top of the page. Dean remembered this, it was soon Mother's Day and he had been given a homework in which he had to proudly say how great his mother was. His father would usually have him off school around this dreaded day but he had had a rough hunt the previous week, something had happened the Harvelle man that was his Dad's friend and the man had been unable to leave the bottle ever since he had returned. In his stupor, he had forgot the time of year and had angrily sent his son off to school, and now, Dean had this stupid homework to put up with over the weekend.

Dean watched as his younger self called Sam to get ready for bed and go to sleep, and after giving the innocent looking sheet of paper on the table one last glare, the young Dean left for bed himself. Time moved swiftly in his dream until Dean could see his younger self drop into a deep sleep. This time, however, he watched as streams of golden sand filtered in through the closed window.

"What the?" He questioned in bewilderment, striding over to get a closer look at the sand. The streams crept up to him and his brother as they slept and started forming pictures above their heads. Dean watched as forms of two boys, looking a lot like him and his brother when they were young, playing games outside appeared above Sam's head. A smile came to his face at the sight as he watched his little brother happily sleep. He looked back over at his own sleeping form and watched as different images began to form above his younger head. The first was of a woman, the silhouette of the little golden figure reminding him of his Mom, giving a little boy a kiss on the cheek and a hug after a fall. The characters then changed slightly and the same woman seemed to be handing the little boy a pie, to which the smaller figure jumped and danced around the room. A scene of the young boy, the woman, who now held another, smaller form in her arms, which she bounced gently as if she was soothing him appeared. Music notes along with the words "Hey Jude" written in cursive appeared from both the woman and the small boy as they sang to the baby.

Dean felt his eyes tear up a little as the scene quickened again, and he was shown himself at breakfast eagerly finishing his homework, describing all the wonderful things his mother had done for him to show him he was loved.

The TV set in the room buzzed to life, and when it cleared, there was an image of a short man made of golden sand which looked incredibly alike the substance which made up the golden figures Dean had seen above him and his brother's heads the previous night. The little man smiled and waved, the words "sweet dreams" appearing in the same sandy substance he was made of above his head.

The scene changed once again and was this time shown to a cosy sitting room which he couldn't remember having been in before. There was a large, perfectly decorated Christmas tree in the corner of the room and beside said Christmas tree was-

"Oh you gotta be kidding me!" Dean muttered to himself. Putting presents into the stockings by the tree was none other than Santa Claus himself. "This is some sort of joke." The big man finished filling the stockings and placed two underneath the tree. He then went to open the window slightly, despite the cold air outside and went to hide behind the big Christmas tree.

Within a few minutes, Dean watched as a teenaged version of himself snuck in through the slightly open window. The current memory hit him like a brick wall; this was the Christmas Sam had found out about hunting and he had wanted to make the boy feel better about everything by giving him a good Christmas. Except they had only had enough money for food and their Dad was late coming back from his hunt.

Dean stood out of the teenagers way as he stealthily crossed the room, spotting the bulging stockings and grabbing two random presents from the piles. Dean got distracted from the sight of his younger self as he left by the sound of a quiet Russian curse coming from behind the tree. The bearded man had hit his forehead with his palm in exasperation at the actions of the teenaged Dean. Dean furrowed his eyebrows, looking again around the room. Now he was closer, he spotted the names on the only two presents old Saint Nick had left under the tree; 'Sam' and 'Dean.'

Dean's mouth opened slightly in confusion, before hearing a voice with a strong Russian accent speaking behind him.

"Because you needed to believe Christmas was yours to make special for your brother. The best present I could give you was seeing him smile, and knowing you made that smile happen."

Dean rose his gaze to meet that of the man of legend, who looked right at him as he spoke, kind eyes twinkling with happy emotions.

Yet again, the scene shifted. Dean was met with the sight of his old house. He was stood in the entrance hallway just behind his father, who was holding a baby Sam. A young boy of four that Dean recognised as himself was clutched to John's leg, hesitant to move too far away from his father.

"Ok boys, we're just going to see can we pick up a few things and then we'll go and get some ice-cream or something, ok?" John said, attempting to be strong for his children but Dean could detect the tremble in his voice and the tear in his eye. So, this was just after the fire.

The young family walked slowly up the stairs, taking their time as they braced themselves for the sight they were sure to be met with as they came to the first floor, and were greeted with the sight of what once was the nursery. Dean and John looked into the charred and blackened room with teary eyes, both completely frozen in terror at the sight of what had been the baby's room, while Sam merely gurgled and talked to himself in John's arms. Dean followed his younger self and his family up the stairs grudgingly. Tears sparked in his eyes as he saw the despair written across his father's and his younger self's face. He remembered this day. His mother was gone and she wasn't coming back, and with her went all the hope and happiness that was in his life. Initially, his father had just drawn into himself, not looking at either him or Sam. But, after seeing Missouri, he had been paying them some better attention, and had even picked up the courage to come back here so the family could see what remained of their possessions.

"Dean." John said around the lump in his throat. "Go to your room, fill your bag with some clothes and toys, ok?"

"Ok Daddy." The little boy replied in a small voice. John tore himself from the sight of the nursery, taking Sam with him to what used to be his and Mary's old bedroom.

Dean followed his younger self to his old bedroom, watching with a broken heart as the small boy before him stood awkwardly in the room, tears beginning to fall as he looked at all he once had. John had explained to him before coming that they could not stay here; this was to be the last time they were in the house and anything they wanted to keep was to be took with them. Dean remembered how traumatic this time was for him. It had seemed like his world was crumbling around him; he had lost his mother, and now he was losing the only home he had ever known.

As he looked, Dean spotted a colourfully wrapped little egg shaped sweet nestled just at the corner of the door. He bent down to pick it up, and as he did, another sweet caught his eye. It was hidden just outside the door to the nursery. Once again, Dean left his room to pick it up. Older Dean followed him out the door, watching with fondness as he knew what was about to happen.

Another sweet was placed in the room, the foil of the wrapper shining brightly against the blackened carpet. Dean once again picked it up, entering the room without hesitation as his mind was overtook with curiosity. There was a trail of sweets leading up to a small pile beside the wall of the room. Dean made his way over to the pile, convinced his Dad wanted to show him something but for whatever reason, wanted Dean to be the one to find it.

Dean picked up the first item on top of the charred and broken pile. It was the angel his Mom had placed on the shelf above the crib. Dean watched as his younger self made the discovery, remembering the thoughts and feelings that raced through him at the sight of the little ceramic figure. "Angels are watching over you," his mother had said. His young mind came to an innocent conclusion; angels were still watching over him, despite the fire, despite the challenges he was facing, there was hope, because now his mother was one of those angels. Wherever he went, she would be, and wherever she was, was home.

The little boy ran out of the room, bringing the little figurine with him. Dean watched as he left, knowing that what had just happened had been a huge step for the child. As he watched himself leave, Dean saw an oversized Bunny stood at the entrance to the room.

"So there will always be hope." The giant furry creature said with a smile in an accent that sounded strangely Australian. Dean could only stare at the sight, completely bewildered at the sight of a six foot, talking, Australian Rabbit.

As his surroundings faded into nothingness once again, he thought about the dream he was currently having. A fairy, a man made of sand, Santa Claus, a bunny that handed out sweets; it would seem the case he was working on was really taking a toll on his mind.

The scene formed into one of the lake he remembered visiting. It was brighter now, and it looked like there were more trees than he recalled surrounding the patch of frozen water. This couldn't be one of his memories, he had only been here once and it was at nighttime.

"Jack!" A girl called out behind him. She sounded scared, and Dean whipped round to see what was happening. Much like the ice under him, he froze upon the sight; the ice was cracking underneath the ice skates of the little girl. She was looking to who had to be her older brother with wide, terrified eyes as she waited for him to think of some sort of plan.

"I'm scared!" She continued, fear evident in the tremble of her voice.

"I know, I know. But you're gonna be alright. You're not gonna fall in." He reassured. "We're gonna have a little fun instead!"

Dean made his way over to the girl, realising with relief that he had no effect on the ice below. He grabbed for her, but his hand went right through.

"No!" He tried again, and again as the young girl accused her brother of playing tricks, to which he denied with a laugh.

"I promise, you're gonna be fine. You have to believe in me." Once his sister had nodded, eyes wide and trusting that her brother would get her safe, he continued. "You wanna play a game?" The boy, who Dean gathered was called Jack, called out. Dean began to step back, accepting he was not able to help but unable to take his eyes away from the scene. "We're gonna play hopscotch, like we play every day!" The boy announced. "It's as easy as one," the boy hesitated slightly in fear as the ice began to also crack under his placed foot. Before his younger sister could read his expression, he acted unbalanced and pretended to nearly fall, hearing her laugh in spite of herself in reward.

"Two, three!" He counted as he hopped lightly on his bare feet to thicker ice. "Alright, now it's your turn." He said as he bent down to pick a long piece of wood from the ground. "One." He encouraged, watching as his sister tried moving, her nerves along with the skates making her movements look slightly awkward. She gasped in fear as she saw more cracks appear in the ice.

"That's it, that's it!" Jack repeated to calm her a little.

"Oh my God." Dean mumbled as he watched the scene play out.

"Two," He reached the curved end of the staff towards her frightened form as the ice became weaker with every movement she made. "Three!" He hooked her around the waist and threw her towards the thicker ice, the momentum needed from the manoeuvre lurching him forwards toward the thin ice.

"Kid!" Dean called, seeing that the boy was completely unaware of the danger he was in as he looked to see his little sister. "Hey! Look out!" He called as he moved toward the boy. Jack smiled and let out a small laugh, pleased that he had got his sister to safety. As he began to move towards her, the ice underneath finally gave way, and he was plunged underneath.

"Jack!"

"No!"

Their cries were simultaneous as they watched the teenager fall below the ice.

Dean slid down beside the hole, eyes searching for some sight of the boy, even though he knew he could do nothing. The place began to darken, the girl faded away and a thin layer of ice was formed over the hole Jack had fallen through.

"No." He said in a smaller voice. He didn't know why he would dream up such a scene, but the boy was a hero. He had given his life for his little sister; Dean found it easy to relate, that protective, older brother mindset having been with Dean for as long as he could remember.

The newly formed ice began to crack. As it cracked further, it began to rise slightly. Dean stepped back in shock as the boy from earlier emerged from the ice. His hair was now white, his eyes blue and his skin pale as snow. He still wore the same strange clothes only now they were laced slightly with ice. He rose further into the air, gasping slightly as he became upright and lowered back onto the ice. He looked up to the moon, which sat proudly in the sky, watching down on the scene.

"You will be called Jack Frost." A disembodied voice spoke. It was silent, like a whisper on the wind. The teenager gave a small smile in response, his gaze never leaving the bright moon.

His surroundings once again faded away, only this time, nothing reappeared in its place as Dean felt himself being called back to consciousness.

A/N: If you made it this far, well done! Check back soon to see if the dreamsand has done it's trick and if you're feeling really generous, please pop me a wee review! Please, please, please! Thanks for reading!