**Repost, I have no idea why it came out as pure code the first time :\ Anyway, hope y'all enjoy! It's the return of Pitch! Ya- I mean, no, what a shame.

I do not own Rise of The Guardians nor Frozen**

DAY 3

'So what is your job anyway? Since I'm pretty sure I took you away from it yesterday.' Jack asked Elsa the next morning as she fed the baby bird bits of corn.

'Well, to be honest, I find… Lost things.' She said.

'Like what?' Jack asked.

'Well, like this little guy,' She patted the bird's head, 'I just like protecting people who don't think they can protect themselves.' She said, trying to hide her pride.

'I sometimes find kids, and they'll be half frozen to death, the poor things. But, I take them back here, and once they're fixed up, I help them find their way back.' She turned to Jack with a smile.

Jack returned it weakly. Please, please Manny, don't tell me this girl's going to become a Guardian. He prayed. If she does she'll find out I lied to her, please…

'Jack?' Elsa's voice snapped him out of his plea, 'The bird's done.' She said. Jack frowned.

'Like, done? Ready to go?' He asked. Elsa laughed, and it was so beautiful Jack didn't mind it being directed at him. She selected a cupboard on the far side of the kitchen, and placed the bird in there, tucking it into its little canvas bed.

'No, it'll be a few more days before that.' She said, gazing at the bird with utmost love. Jack marvelled at that- how she could take care of something that couldn't even say thank you back.

'Well, you see the gratitude in different ways.' Elsa said, turning to Jack with a small smile. Jack realised he'd spoken aloud. He was about to laugh to hide his embarrassment, but it was cut short as Jack clutched his side in pain.

'Jack?' Elsa asked, 'What's wrong?' Jack was obviously in some kind of discomfort.

'Nothing, it's… I'm fine.' He growled through clenched teeth. Elsa would've believed him if he wasn't doubled over in pain.

'Jack, let me help.' She insisted, but Jack stayed quiet. Elsa took that as a yes. Her cool hands snaked up inside Jack's worn hoodie to where his hands were on the outside. She gasped when she felt how much Jack's bones protruded, and her breath caught again as she felt a bump in his side that definitely wasn't meant to be there.

'Jack?' Elsa said seriously. Jack looked at her.

'Yeah, Snow Queen?' He mumbled. He looked so pathetic, leaning on Elsa's kitchen bench out of pain, so Elsa felt especially bad for this next bit.

'Sorry.' She said quickly, and shoved the butt of her hand into Jack's ribs. Jack head a sickening pop and then only felt searing pain as he fell to the floor. Jack blinked in and out of consciousness as he saw Elsa disappear and reappear before him. Just as he thought he was handling the searing, Elsa leaned over him and suddenly there was a piercing cold into his side. That put Jack out properly.

Jack was back in Pitch's lair. The second he opened his eyes into the soul-crushing darkness, he was once again reduced to the chained-up child he was when Pitch had him. Jack fumbled with the chain at his leg, trying to convince himself it was just a dream. Pitch's laughter resounded all around him.

'Oh Jack,' Pitch purred slowly, 'your fear is one of the sweetest things I've ever tasted.'

Jack looked on in horror as Pitch Black the Nightmare King materialised in front of him. Jack stood up, determined he could stand his ground, even if it was just a dream of a memory.

'I'd hoped you would've realised by now, Jack, the darkness is my realm, and if it's dark in your dream, well…' He laughed- a terrifying sound. Jack's fear set in stone as he realised this wasn't just a dream of a memory, it was the actual Pitch. The Nightmare King chuckled at Jack's understanding. Pitch rematerialised right in front of Jack's face- he was cornered.

'See at first, Jack, I was sad that you were gone,' Jack heard real emotion in Pitch's voice for a second, 'but now, just like you, I'm only angry.' Jack was paralysed as Pitch wrapped a dark hand around Jack's throat.

'I said I'd see you winter spirits again soon, Jack, and I have to thank you for leading me right to her.'

Images of Elsa's castle flickered through Jack's mind as Pitch extracted the information out of him. The pain of resisting Pitch's power was like experiencing all of his tortures all over again. Jack tried to shove Pitch away from him just as Pitch released his hold on the nightmare, and Jack came back to consciousness to see himself standing over Elsa who was on the ground. He was holding his staff like he was about to strike her. The stress of the dream and the pain of his side forced Jack to tumble to the ground again, and even though Jack was pretty sure he was about to hurt Elsa, she still rushed over to him and tried to make him as comfortable as possible, using her powers again to curb the swelling in his ribs.

'Are you okay?' He croaked.

'I'm fine, it's just…' Jack felt Elsa's tears hit his sleeve.

'Did I hurt you?' He asked. Elsa sniffed, withdrawing her powers.

'Just rest, Jack.' She said, and everything faded to black.

Jack Frost woke again when it was just turning dark. Elsa had used her powers to make the walls become luminescent, so while it was still dim, Jack wasn't so much reminded of Pitch's lair.

Pitch! Jack scolded himself. How could he give away the position of Elsa's castle like that? And in his state he was in no condition to defend Elsa.

"I'm not defenceless,"

One of her earliest statements made Jack smile, but then again she'd never met Pitch Black. Jack hoisted himself upright on his new bed, and though the pain in his chest was horrible, he could feel his ribs were at least in the right places. He swiped his staff from where Elsa had propped it up, and leaned on it as he made his way into the kitchen.

Elsa stood at the counter, holding a spoon in her left hand and half a dozen icicles suspended in the air from her right hand. She brought the spoon to her lips, thought for a moment, then nodded. The grabbed a carrot, set it on the bench, and flicked the shards of ice through it- it was diced in under a second and she added it to a huge pot over the fire pit in the back of the room. When she walked back from the pot to the bench she noticed Jack.

'Oh! Here, sit down!' She gently pulled him over to a chair and gave him an apologetic look.

'Sorry- about that before…' Jack waved his hand to say he was fine.

'Are you okay?' He asked her. Elsa turned away, like she was embarrassed.

'Yes Jack, I'm fine- I was just a little freaked out, is all.' Elsa saved Jack having to speak again.

'When you collapsed, that's pretty much what I thought would happen, but as soon as I got you on the bed, it was like you were having a nightmare. You kept saying: "Pitch!" and I didn't know what to do.' Jack felt pretty bad that he had scared her.

'But, that wasn't all, Jack. After a bit of that, your eyes snapped open and you grabbed you staff.' Jack saw her shudder, 'Jack, your eyes weren't right- they were amber yellow, and I knew something was wrong. Then you said: "I'll see you Winter spirits soon" in a voice most certainly not yours, and when you pushed me I thought I was going to have to use my powers, but you woke up in time.' She said, looking at her hands. Jack would've comforted her, but his ribs hurt too much.

'I'm sorry,' He said quietly, and Elsa turned to face him.

'I don't want sorry, I want an explanation! It's obvious he meant you and me as Winter Spirits, but who is he, Jack? Who is Pitch?' Elsa said, pulling a chair up to Jack so she could sit with him. When Jack didn't answer, she did something unexpected. Elsa leaned in close to Jack, close enough so that their lips could touch easily. Jack was incredibly tempted, but after a few seconds he pulled away. He most definitely could not get involved with Snow Queen, not when he'd put her in this much danger. Elsa sighed inwardly.

'Jack, you said something about Pitch torturing you and killing your friends.' She said squarely.

Jack's attention snapped back to her, understanding what she was trying to say.

'Jack please, I have a right to know. Who is Pitch?' She asked, her voice cracking out of pity for him. After a moment, he nodded in defeat. He painfully cleared his throat.

'Elsa, there are certain figures of this world who represent everything that goes on around us. These are called Guardians, and consist of the Easter Bunny; the Tooth Fairy; North, though you probably know him as Santa Claus; and myself.' He finished. Jack saw Elsa slightly frown, but could tell she was trying to keep an open mind.

'And they… represent what?' She asked.

'Consecutively; hope, memories, wonder, and fun. We all protect traits in children, and help them flourish against the forces of darkness, fear and despair that Pitch controls.'

'Pitch being?' Elsa pushed. Jack took a deep breath.

'Pitch Black the Nightmare King.' Jack huffed. For a moment, everything was silent. Jack saw Elsa was scared, but she nodded for him to go on.

'Pitch had killed a former Guardian, the Sandman, when I though he killed Tooth- the Tooth Fairy as well. I tried to save her but Pitch got me, which was his plan all along.' Jack's voice broke as he said he didn't need to explain how Pitch treated him, but nonetheless he was saved. Elsa's face paled as he explained the timeline.

'You mean to say that less than ten days ago, you were being… Tortured by the King Of Fear?'

Jack nodded, and Elsa's heart broke.

'Well, if you think that's hard to swallow, prepare yourself for the next part,' Jack said with a small chuckle. Elsa didn't think it could be that bad if Jack was laughing about it.

'Yes?' She implored.

'Well…' Jack began, picking his words, but decided on a straightforward approach.

'I… Drowned over 100 years ago, and was brought back as a Guardian. I don't age and these powers were given to me by the very first Guardian- the Man in the Moon. He kind of runs the Guardians.'

Jack gave Elsa a moment to let that sink in.

Elsa finally admitted it to herself: she'd been hoping Jack would stay forever, but now it seemed like "forever"might be more than she could promise.

'I… I- umm,' She began, looking at her hands, 'I actually was Queen of Arendelle.' Jack's expression made her admission worthwhile.

Of course- the crown! Jack scolded himself for joking so much.

'I was born with my powers, but I could never control them. There was this huge incident with my sister…' Elsa paused to catch her breath, 'Even though we figured it out, they still kicked me out after my powers were still acting up.'

Jack was speechless- he may not know who he was in his former life, but at least his powers worked with him in his new one.

'For every different body part my powers can hit, there's a reaction- Frozen heart, frozen head, hands, eyes…'

Jack didn't know what to say- he'd been a fool for joking so much about Elsa's former life.

'It's burning,' He said. Elsa's eyes widened and she moved around to check Jack's wound.

'Really? Is it bad? Did I do too much?' She asked, but Jack was laughing too much.

'No, the soup!' He cried, and in a chorus of laughter, Elsa saved their dinner. After they'd eaten, Jack confessed he'd thought about the possibility of Manny leading him to Elsa because he thought she was to become a Guardian. Elsa scoffed.

'Really!' Jack implored, 'You'd be the Guardian of confidence, helping people, and co-Winter Spirit!' They laughed.

Elsa said Jack should rest, but he wouldn't stop asking her questions about her sister. Elsa explained how their parents died on the way to Elsa and Anna's cousin's wedding. She lost control of her powers soon after.

Jack suggested, on the topic of powers, that maybe she should try using a staff.

'Really? I suppose it makes sense if your staff is just a conduit.'

'How did you know that?' Jack asked. Elsa told Jack to stay where he was as she raced out of the kitchen into her own room.

It's not like I'll be going anywhere, Jack thought to himself. But Jack was still in a talkative mood, and hoisted himself into standing and hobbled over to the doorway of Elsa's room. She was bent over, sorting through her bookcase. She pulled out a dark blue book, and skipped over to where Jack was standing.

'I've had this since I was little- it was one of the first books I read about how to control the powers of Winter. In fact, there's quite a few chapters on you…' Elsa's excited voice droned out as Jack stared at her beautiful face.

'So you were right- I have actually read about you. Actually, after reading this, I think in my head a developed a bit of a cr-'

Jack leaned in and kissed her powerfully, trying to get as close as possible. Elsa's body responded back, but she prodded him in the chest with the book. Jack gently took the offending tome out of her hands and pushed her up against the wall, kissing her more hungrily now. They undressed each other and landed on Elsa's bed, Jack planting kisses up and down Elsa's neck.

'Jack,' she gasped, 'that better be your staff, and where'd you put the book?'

'I left it at the door,' Jack mumbled.

'The book?' Elsa frowned.

'My staff.'

**Hope you liked the few little lemony bits, ya pervs. Next chapter coming up soon!**