Chapter 5

The Hunt For Easter Eggs

Since Jack returned back to home he hasn't left the dark palace. It was a pity because he didn't use the last days of cold weather but he knew that Guardians could kidnap him again. He wasn't afraid of them as much as he used to; he was afraid that Pitch would find out why they wanted him. Pangs of conscience were killing him from inside. First, he was lying to Pitch. He has never lied to Pitch. Second, he disappointed Jamie, he wouldn't be able to say goodbye to his best friend before the warm climate comes. Third, after getting to know the Guardians better he wasn't sure if he wanted to destroy them. Of course he wanted to help his adoptive father so they would finally be believed in, but he didn't know if the Guardians deserved the fate Pitch wanted for them. Fourth, he so regretted asking Pitch about the past, he felt as if the Nightmare King was avoiding him. Everything in his world was falling apart, he felt sick.

The boogeyman hasn't been in his best mood for the past few days. He was furious when he found out that the Guardians had been collecting the teeth to thwart his plans. The poor Nightmare that brought the information was so scared that it turned into black sand. That night was thrilling for the Guardians. Pitch set a trap for them and while the Nightmares distracted three of the Guardians, he himself got rid of the Sandman. Jack was terrified when he found out but eventually Pitch explained him that Sandy wasn't killed but temporary trapped within the nightmare sand.

The only thought that was lighting the darkness in Jack's mind was Easter. After all those years of hating the holiday he finally was going to enjoy it. The plan was simple, while Pitch would distract the Guardians, Jack and the nightmares would smash the Easter eggs. Not all of them since Pitch promised Jack to keep some, the boy had never celebrated Easter before, and it was supposed to be his first time. However for an unknown reason he was hesitating. He felt that he shouldn't do that but he didn't owe Bunny anything. It was his revenge. Then, why did he feel that way?

One day spent with the Guardians would not change anything, he told himself as he slammed his fist against the wall of his room, fighting with his emotions. Than he sat on a large bed and leaned against the stone wall, bringing his knees up to his chest and laying his cheek on them. He rarely had situations like that, fighting with all those emotions, he normally just acted and didn't think about what he did. He felt so alone. He couldn't handle that himself, he wasn't used to that. He was learnt to keep his emotions locked, like Pitch.

When he found out about him being chosen as new Guardians, something just.. broke in him. He needed someone to talk to him so much. But who could that be? He knew that Pitch was always there to comfort him but not in this case. He comforted Jack when the boy had a nightmare or was scared, sad. But they've never talked about emotions and this stuff. The frost sprite knew that the Nightmare King wanted him to be strong. Letting emotions take over was a weakness and as much as the boy didn't want to allow them, the feelings were storming inside him. Jack had no idea how to feel about it all and with that he was left alone. Tears dropped down his cheeks and when he heard the knock he quickly pulled up the blue hood to hide his face.

"Jack?" Pitch spoke as he walked into the room. It was the brightest place in his palace and there were several torches. The boy, unlike him, preferred light. "What's bothering you?"

Jack quickly swept his tears away and looked up, his look questioning. He didn't remember ever being asked this question. Pitch knew when the boy was sad or scared, but this situation was new. Jack hasn't been as cheerful as he had always used to be, during past few days.

"Everything's fine" Jack lied, what else he was supposed to say. He only received a sigh from his adoptive father who sat next to him and also leaned against the wall.

"Jack, don't lie to me. You've been acting weird for some time. You don't even use the last cold days before it gets warm for the next few months. If there's something I should know just tell me" he said, his voice soft. Jack rested his head on Pitch's chest and listened to his heartbeat which somehow calmed him down. The Nightmare King put an arm around his adoptive son and rested his chin on the boy's ruffled white hair. That was something he enjoyed even more than spreading his nightmares.

"Tell me, Jack, what's wrong? Did you quarrel with Jamie? Or is that because I haven't had much time for you recently?"

"It's just… I don't want to meet the Guardians" Jack replied. It was actually true, he did not want to meet them.

"You don't need to be afraid of them. As long as you follow the rules you are safe" Pitch said.

"I know, I'm sorry I broke the rule. If I had listened I wouldn't have gotten caught by the stupid rabbit" Jack said feeling bad that he failed Pitch.

"Is there anything else that bothers you, Jack?"

"..No. I don't think so…" Jack said fighting with his thoughts. On the one side he wanted to hide his problem, on the other one there was nothing he wanted more than to tell Pitch about that.

"Jack, you won't hide anything from me" Pitch sighed and started stroking Jack's hair so as to comfort the boy.

"I know but that's something I need to deal with on my own… I mean, I've been thinking… I just.." Jack started hesitating. He couldn't really find the right words "I just wanted to think through some things. Don't worry I'm fine" he finished and sighed with relief to be over with it.

Pitch couldn't believe it at first. Jack wanted to think about something? He wasn't like that, he liked to play and have fun… not think about stuffs and lying bored in his bed all days long. He just shook his head in resignation. But if Jack was thinking about something, did that mean he was.. kind of.. growing up? Starting to act more mature? Pitch didn't even want to think about that. He liked Jack the way he was, a young cheerful sprite who would always turn to him for comfort… if Jack was becoming mature then how long would he stay with Pitch? The boogeyman had never thought about that before. Having a teenager at home was quite a hard task but now if Jack was growing up? Would he rebel? Pitch thought that when MiM changed the boy into a spirit then he would stay the way he was forever. Or maybe he just misunderstood Jack and the boy simply wanted to avoid the Guardians and there was nothing to worry about.

"So, tomorrow we're going to Warren?" Jack asked excited, trying to change the topic.

"Yes we are. And I'll make sure it's your best Easter, my boy" Pitch chuckled at the excitement in the frost child's eyes. Then he got up and headed towards the door "I have to get some things finished before tomorrow. And I think it will be good for you if you go out, Jack" he said and with that he left the room. The Nightmare King walked through the corridor towards the globe room in order to make the final plans for the destruction of the Guardians. The thoughts haven't left him though.

"I hope you're not growing up, Jack" He said as he walked into the silent room. Was that possible that after 300 years or so Jack would get more mature? Probably not but, oh well, there are many things he hadn't expected and that actually happened. Jack being a teenager… "Oh my, I just hope I would not have to have a 'talk' with him…" he thought.

…

Jack's smile fell just after Pitch had closed the door. All alone again. He was so close to tell how he felt but he just couldn't. Pitch was right, he shouldn't sit in his room wallowing in self-pity, and it would probably be good for him if he visited Jamie. He slowly raised himself from the bed and walked out of the room. He literally flew out of the lair and flew high above the town laughing in delight, as wind brushed through his snowy hair. Suddenly he felt that he wasted so much time hiding in the dark realm for the past days, now he knew that he really was safe.

He caught the sight of Jamie's house and wind obediently carried him to his destination. Jack landed nearby the house and saw Jamie with his friends walking on the pavement. Surprisingly, Jamie didn't seem to notice Jack's presence, he probably hasn't seen the sprite landing. Jack got a little closer and listened to their conversation.

"Do you still believe in Easter?" Monty spoke.

"What do you mean?" Jamie asked surprised "How can you guys say such things?"

"Jamie, don't you remember that last year we barely found those very few eggs? If Easter Bunny was real it wouldn't be like that. Maybe it's time to grow up" Pippa said. Jack remembered last year's Easter, because of his 'antics' the eggs were smashed and he had to run as fast as he could to get away from the angry Bunnymund. He giggled at the memory. "You should be happy that at least you still dream and don't have…"

"Nightmares" Cupcake finished for Pippa.

"Why do you care, anyway, J?" Caleb asked "It's not like you believe"

"I didn't say that, I said that maybe… maybe some of the things are not real…" Jamie said and looked down. Jack froze. Did that mean that Jamie no longer believed? Couldn't be true.

"Like Jack Frost you've always talked about?" Claude said and Jamie nodded.

"You were right guys, it was probably my imagination.." the boy said and followed his pack.

Jack stood there, frozen in shock and then shook his head. No, there was no way that Jamie stopped believing, he was his best friend. Jamie just couldn't push him away, turn into an imaginary-creation. Jack run up to the gang and stood in front of Jamie.

"Jamie, please, hear me, I know I promised to visit you and I didn't but.. but I had some problems. Please don't forget about me!" Jack spoke quickly, looking directly at Jamie who didn't seem to hear his words. He just waked through the winter sprite who gasped.

Jack grabbed his chest and stood there, frozen. Jamie didn't believe in him any longer, and it all was his fault. It took some time until the words finally hit him. He couldn't believe that Jamie has lost the belief. He has just lost his only believer. Jack took few steps back and then called the wind to carry his as far away as possible. Bunnymund was right, it was not like he even existed. He was so weak.

Jack landed near the pond that now had a tiny ice cover over it. As he took a step it got harder so the ice wouldn't break under him. The boy dropped to his knees and slammed his fist against the frozen surface. Tears dropped down his cheeks and his staff was lying next to him. He just cried and the time was passing. Minutes or hours it didn't matter, nothing mattered.

Then he started coughing, it didn't really bothered him, it was normal. But his breathing became rapid and then the coughs didn't give him time for breaths and his lungs were begging for air. Jack grabbed his chest as he felt a sharp pain and he collapsed onto the ground rolling onto his back. The coughs slowly made him lose his consciousness, the sweat was all over his face. He didn't even know when he fell into the blackness full of agony.

…

When he woke up it was already late and dark. He was lying where he had fallen and his chest was hurting. He rubbed his eyes and raised himself on his elbows. With panic he reached out searching for his staff and found it lying nearby with relief. He managed to stand up, leaning on his staff and with his legs shaking he took a few steps forward. He felt like a wreck and had no idea what could have caused the coughing. Was it because of Jamie losing his belief? Probably not and that was something that worried him even more. As he recalled what had happened he felt tears forming in his eyes again. It all was the Guardians' fault, he promised Jamie to visit him and they kidnapped him making his best friend disappointed. There was nothing he could do about it now… only the revenge. The following day would be the last Easter, he would make sure of that.

He tried to call wind but nothing came. After he had tried again and had failed he panicked. He was probably too weak for that, then how would he come back home? He walked ahead using his staff for support, he was scared. His eyes lit up at the realization. He could use his fear to call Pitch. He looked around the dark forest and shivered. It was scary indeed.

"Pitch?" He called and was surprised to find his voice husky and instead of a yell it was a whisper. He was too weak, and that scared him even more. Panicking, he started shivering again and tried to make his way out of the dark place.

Jack felt dizzy and brought his hand to his forehead, the headache wasn't helping. Something was not right. Sure, he had been sick before, but that was always because of warm climate or this stuff. And it wasn't warm there, not too cold but still. Suddenly shadows formed in front of him and seconds later Pitch walked out of them. He froze as he caught the sight of Jack, looking like he was beaten up and was leaning against his staff. He quickly made his way to the boy and Jack fell into his arms.

"How did you found me?" Jack questioned.

"You called me and I sensed your fear" Pitch replied softly, his voice full of concern.

"B-but I was too weak and… how could you hear it?" Jack asked feeling his eyelids heavy, slowly drifting into sleep.

"Jack, I will always hear you" The boogeyman said and studied Jack. No physical signs. "What happened to you?"

"I-I don't know. I started coughing and I couldn't stop. I fainted and then I woke up. My chest hurts…" Jack said and shut his eyes at the pain.

"Shh, it will be alright, son" Pitch said hugging the boy. "Probably the climate is not cold enough for you. Don't worry, as soon as we are finished with the Guardians we will leave to somewhere colder"

"Pitch.." Jack whispered and look up at his care-taker "Jamie doesn't believe in me anymore" he said and then fell into deep sleep.

Pitch picked up the sleeping boy and cuddled him in his arms as Jack burrowed his face into the crook oh his neck. He knew how the boy felt right now. He felt like that when the Guardians put the end of the Dark Ages. The shadows wrapped around them and teleported back to the nightmare realm. The boogeyman carried Jack to his room, and gave him a little bit of the dream sand, so the boy would get good rest. He swore that the next day everything would change. Maybe Jack lost a believer but he would get many more.

…

The next day Jack was lively again and was so excited about their little visit in Warren. It almost made him forget about Jamie losing his belief. The winter sprite rode his favorite nightmare named Kerrin practicing his 'entrance'. As hard as he tried he couldn't make it as thrilling as Pitch. No matter what 'faces' he put he couldn't look as scary as the boogeyman. Pitch found it really amusing to watch the boy's antics.

"Let's go Jack, it's time to leave" Pitch said and gathered his shadows, it was a long way after all and the teleportation was weakening his powers. Jack got to Pitch by one high jump and twirled his staff.

"I'm ready!" Jack exclaimed with enthusiasm. Pitch chuckled and placed an arm around Jack's shoulders.

"Prepare yourself. It's a long way and you might feel sick" Pitch warned.

"What? You didn't tell me that-" Jack has never got to finish his sentence as shadows surrounded them and in the twinkling of an eye he saw the darkness around. He felt as if he was on a terrible roller coaster, turned upside down. He felt as if he was going to throw up and tightened the grip around his staff. Out of a blue his feet hit the ground and he couldn't stop himself from collapsing. He opened his eyes to face bright green grass beneath him. He was supporting himself on his hands and coughed. His vision was a little bit blurry and he felt dizzy. He panicked when he realized that he wasn't holding his staff and after he had gotten to his feet he looked in search of Pitch. He almost jumped when a hand was put on his shoulder.

"Are you alright, Jack?" Pitch asked as he handed the boy his staff he had dropped when he hit the ground.

"Yeah, I think… just a little dizzy and I can't see clearly" Jack stated and rubbed his aching forehead. Pitch studied Jack concerned. The boy shouldn't have felt that sick. Long-distance teleportation causes dizziness, but Jack looked like he was about to throw up, and his sight should not have been blurry. Something was wrong but Pitch didn't want to worry him.

"Just side-effects" He told Jack and caught the boy as he staggered.

Jack's sight finally got back to normal and he felt the dizziness slowly leaving his body. He gasped at the view in front of him. It was so breathtaking, there were rivers in every color of a rainbow, sparkling in the sunlight, just like the eggs which were walking through the paths on the green grass, which was all over the Warren. The colorful flowers were coloring the walking eggs with its powder and the egg-golems were also putting a mysterious climate into the scenery. It was the most beautiful place Jack's ever seen. Not comparable to Tooth Palace and North's workshop.

"Too much color as for me" Pitch said with distaste "It has become even more rainbow-hued than it was when I last visited it"

"You've been here before?" Jack asked.

"Not once" Pitch simply replied and walked forward, gesturing for Jack to follow him. The older spirit has been to many places, yet he didn't want to tell Jack about it. Not a single word, it was kind of hurting Jack, but he knew that he shouldn't ask or say anything about that. He would have to find on his own.

"Now. You will sneak to those tunnels, where the eggs are being delivered to different places and smash with the Nightmares every egg while I'll distract the Guardians. You can take some eggs which you would like to keep"

"Aye, aye, captain!" Jack joked saluting and went to take his position. Pitch shook his head in amusement. However, it felt weird to be called like that again… he hasn't been called like that ever since the…

He pushed the memories aside and followed the voices that definitely belonged to the Guardians. He was going to be enjoying this. He wrapped the shadows around him and when he appeared right in front of the surprised Guardians he raised his hands to make the shadows grow behind him to make his 'entrance' spectacular.

"Look who we've got here"

Jack watched in awe as his adoptive father scared the hell out of the Guardians. It was really funny to see and at the same time thrilling. He would never be able to be as good as the Nightmare King. He then turned to the tunnels filled with colorful eggs and gave a mark to the Nightmares.

"Let's have a little egg-haunt" Jack grinned.

…

"Are you sure that none of the eggs made it through the tunnels?" Toothiana asked placing a hand on Bunnymund's shoulder as the rabbit nodded. "But why would Jack do that?" she asked looking at North.

"I don't think he's like that. Maybe Pitch forced him to?" North said frowning.

"He raised him, mate. After all those years the boy learnt how to be just like that bastard" Bunny said with anger.

"I talked to him, Bunny, he seemed to be nice, just.. lost. He needs to find his center" North said and rubbed his chin.

Jack listened to their conversation from the hideout. It took him a lot not to jump out and finish them off himself. How could they dare to say such things?

"Jack! We know you're here! Please, we just want to talk" Tooth said looking around.

Jack decided it was a good time for his entrance. He got onto his Nightmare, Kerrin, and rushed out of his hideout. He was accompanied with a wave of his frost and then he shot Guardians a cold glare followed by a grin which he had learned from Pitch.

"What would you like to talk about, you pathetic guardians?" He said trying to use a velvety tone. It took some time for the Guardians to shake from the shock and Bunnymund was the first one to speak.

"I knew we should never have trusted you, mate"

"Yes, you shouldn't have, I guess" Jack said, Guardians probably haven't expected that for him to say. They heard a laugh from behind them.

"Good job, Jack. You should've seen you faces" Pitch grinned at the Guardians and teleported himself again to appear next to Jack smiling at him proudly. "Now if you all don't mind, we will be leaving" he told and then had said to Jack over his shoulder before he left "But you can stay a little bit longer, if you want, Snowflake"

"Jack, tell us, why are you doing this?" Tooth asked "You know that if you need help we can…"

"Do you even hear yourself? Pitch's my father, he would never harm me!" Jack said with anger.

"He's not your real father, you know it" North spoke.

"Are you satisfied with what you've done? Is it really what you want or are you just blinded because of your 'father'?" Bunny said and narrowed his eyes. Jack didn't answer at first. He didn't know if it was what he wanted, to destroy them.

"It is none of your business. I trust Pitch" Jack said coldly.

"Really, Jack? And does Pitch trust you?" North asked. That caught Jack off his guard.

"W-what do you mean?"

"I don't think he told you everything. Has he ever mentioned the Golden Age? There are so many things you have no idea about, Jack. If you knew about it then you would know what caused Pitch to be the way he is… And you would know that what you do is wrong. Come with us and you'll…"

"Never. I don't need to know the past. You will not change my mind. For the last time, leave me alone" Jack said and left with his Nightmare that teleported him back to Burgess. After all he had done they still wanted him to join them. What was so important about that? He couldn't understand and he knew that the key for all his answers was… past.

And the Golden Age? He has never heard about such thing. He really was desperate to know the truth but he was clueless right now. The Guardians and Pitch were the only ones who could tell him, yet he couldn't ask any of them. Without knowing what to do, he let Kerrin go back to the dark realm, as the light wasn't really pleasant for her. He sat in his favorite place, by his pond. He looked down at his reflection on the iced lake. It was Easter and the ice still hasn't melted, weird.

He jumped when he saw shadows forming behind him. Those weren't Pitch's ones, he would have recognized them. These slowly changed from black into purple, he's never seen shadows like these.. He gripped his staff and raised it, prepared to defend himself. A hooded creature came out of it and looked at Jack who couldn't see its face. It was a man, with a black shirt, covered with red vest with many pockets. He had black jeans and black cape. He was twirling a joker card between his fingers and leaned against a tree.

"You need a clue, boy" A male voice spoke.

"I… how did you know? Who are you?" Jack asked and stepped back.

"I could feel it. That's why I am here" the man said ignoring his second question. "I know that you have so many questions which need answers. I can't offer you those"

"Then why are you here?"

"I can show you something that might help you" the man said, a grin making its way to his face, although Jack couldn't see it.

"And why would you do that?" Jack asked hesitating. Pitch has always told him not to talk with strangers. To avoid other sprites who are dangerous. And the hooded man did look dangerous. Jack should have left the moment he saw the mysterious shadows.

"Let's just say, I think every sprite deserves to know the truth about the world we live in" He said friendly and let his hood fall. Only to reveal a black hat with purple belt which put a shade, so his face still couldn't be seen. Great.

"Okay, then what can you do to help me?" Jack said. The man didn't seem that dangerous once he got to know his purpose. But the Easter Bunny also seemed to be just a fluffy rabbit and wasn't one, right?.

"I will show you where you need to go to get your questions answered" The man said raising his hand for Jack to grab it. Jack hesitated and remained in the place where he stood, keeping the distance. "Don't you worry, child, I mean no harm. You have my word and this is a powerful thing for a spirit. And I know you desire the answers so much"

Jack eventually lowered his staff and walked to the man. If he gave his word that he would not harm him, then he wouldn't. As Jack grabbed the man's hand his eyes went wide and his vision was immediately transported to an unknown place, a little blurry, as if he was looking through the mist. He recognized the dark stone room of Pitch's lair. Why did he see that? Then he was showed a way through some corridors and stairs, he tried to remember them and make a mental map. It finally led him to a big room, quite dark since the torches weren't lit. The whole walls were covered with books, it must have been a library. Jack didn't know that Pitch had one. Then his vision turned to a corner, there was a statue, but as Jack came closer his saw it was a special sculpture for a big, old-looking book. Seemed it was very important book. Before he could take a better look he was back at his pond again. The man was gone.

Jack stood there, trying to think about what has just happened. This was all he needed, the answers lied in the old book he was shown a way to…

Suddenly he started coughing again, gasping for air he fell to the ground and couldn't control his coughs anymore. He felt as if he was choking, his chest hurt even more because of the earlier situation like that. He wrapped his hands around his throat as no air made it to his lungs. As his coughs were becoming rapid the wind wildly danced around him. He had no idea what was going on, he felt as if a tornado was twirling in his body, yet no air filled his lungs. He closed his eyes and strength left his muscles. He was lying helplessly and the coughs finally went silent with the breath leaving his body as well as the consciousness.

I'm sorry, took me some time to post it but my winter vacation is over and I have to learn a lot for the 's a poll on my profile, about my upcoming RotG stories, I hope you'll leave your vote :).

I hope you liked the chapter (the longest one I've ever written!), I already started developing my little twist. What is happening to Jack and who was the mysterious sprite? Also I put a scene where Pitch was worrying about Jack growing up.. I hope you found it funny XD. Do you like the cliff-hanger?

Anyway, I tried to write this chapter at school and my notes were in every notebook, took me some time to collect all of them together, it was like a puzzle. :D

Please review and I'll write a new chapter soon! Your lovely reviews motivate me sooo much!