Thank you to Guest and Demi Clayton, I had a great day thank you! And I hope everyone is staying safe.

Chapter 21: Mistakes

"More to the point Jack, what did you do?"

The words echoed in his ears, the realisation of their meaning not hitting him until it was too late. Shadows swarmed over him like a tsunami, crashing down on him with ferocious might. The ancient walls around him crumbled lifelessly to the ground, leaving only piles of splintering ash and dust.

Above him, Pitch cackled. The boy's fear was growing by the second as helplessly watched his world fade around him. This was unlike any fear the Boogeyman had ever consumed before - he felt more powerful now, with this little inkling, than he had felt for the whole of the dark ages. Oh, this would sure come in useful in the future. He smirked wickedly as he thought of all the possibilities.

Below him, falling further and further into the abyss, Jack's breath hitched in his throat. The world around him began to spin - faster and faster, until he could only make out a blur of entangled colours, mixing together to form a dull, unearthly brown. Wind whipped harshly past his face as the ground beneath his feat disappeared completely. He fell down, gaining speed with every passing second. Twisting and twirling in the infinite chasm of shadows, his stomach did the same, threatening to make him say hello to his breakfast.

In that moment, he could practically feel the darkness around him; pulsing with vengeance, ready to devour him in its deadly grasp. The shadows swirled around him, the ever-growing darkness paralysing his limbs. As he descended into the emptiness, two brilliant gold eyes shone down, looking at him almost in pity. Poor, helpless, little Jack Frost. A chuckle escaped the Nightmare King's lips as he watched the boy's eyes slowly dull as his eyelids slid shut, succumbing to the oblivion.

When Jack awoke, he could see nothing: the world around him was engulfed in a pure, incandescent light. His eyes stung from the brightness as the powerful sun beat down on him, temporary rendering him blind. The ground below him felt hard and... crunchy? His cool hands traced the shapes littering the ground as his sight partly returned and he realised.

Oh no.

No, no, no, no, no. Hundreds of broken eggs lay on the floor in front of him, their once beautiful shells now completely devoured: smashed to bits, their remains too damaged to even attempt to fix. The vibrant, colourful chocolate casings were utterly ruined, covering the dry brown earth - their lifeless tones now not much different.

Hard earth and fractured shells met his porcelain skin as Jack slammed his hand down in anger, a small trickle of blood escaping his knuckle like water out of a cracked vase. So this was what Pitch had meant - it was worse than what he'd expected.

He never should have strayed. Hanging his head in defeat, he pushed against the floor and used the carved walls to help steady himself as he stood up (his head was still spinning from the fall). Quickly dusting himself off, he began towards the tunnel exit, dreading his upcoming affair with the Guardians.

What he saw upon leaving the tunnel was even worse than the previous sight - not only were the eggs obliterated, the park looked like it had just been caught in a bombing. Torn signs once reading 'Happy Easter!' and 'Annual Egg Hunt!' hung in pieces, some parts so far as the opposite end of the clearing.

All the flowers were withered and decayed, the grass looked burnt and even the trees had an air of misery about them. Children were walking away with empty baskets and tear-tracked cheeks, their parents looking similarly frustrated, thinking they'd let their kids down. The whole place just looked absolutely solemn. Then came the worst part.

"I can't believe it," a girl whispered, almost afraid to speak the words. Her chin trembled and her large brown eyes watered as she ushered the dreaded words. "There's no such thing as the Easter Bunny."

Then, as if he wasn't there at all (though, to her, he wasn't) she proceeded to walk straight through him. Bunny instantly doubled over in shock, all the air knocked out of his lungs. Pain like nothing he'd ever felt before flared up in his chest, and his heart stung with the ache of rejected. No one had ever walked through him before. Rhythmic throbbing echoed in his head, the world before him beginning to drown out as the constant pulsing became too loud.

That was, until he heard North mention Jack. At that, all of his pain seemed to diminish, replaced by a deep rage. How dare he step foot in this place, after what he'd done. How dare he show his face! His next motions were fuelled with hate as he laid his eyes on the boy, who was acting oblivious, like it wasn't his fault.

Of course it was his fault, nothing good ever came from having Jack Frost around. He was a living, breathing omen. And not the good kind.

The words escaped his mouth without a second thought, and he didn't regret any of them. Decades and centuries of loathing and anger come out all at once, directed at the Winter Spirit, his emotions taking the better of him as he yelled and screamed, speaking of such things the other Guardian's didn't think he was capable of.

"We NEVER should have trusted you!" Beneath him, Jack was taking the brunt of the emotional beating. What was the point in trying to argue anyway. Years of being feared, hated and ignored, and this was how he was repaid? His first proper interaction, probably in his whole life, and this was what he got. He'd take being alone to this any day. Though he wasn't going to argue or talk back - he knew what it was like to have so much pent up anger. It was better the Kangaroo got it out now rather than do something he regretted later.

He was willing to let it slide - the circumstances weren't the best and, though he didn't like being unrightfully blamed, the outburst was understandable. That was, until Bunny threateningly raised his fist to hit him.

Now that was just out of line.

Without a blink of an eye, Jack grabbed Bunny's furry fist with his right hand, twisting it and forcefully pulling the large anthropomorphic animal towards him. Jerking his hand back, he pushed the rabbit down, his left arm sliding ruthlessly around his throat. The rabbit's legs gave out under him as Jack supplied a swift kick to the back of his leg, shortly paralysing him and forcing him to his knees on the floor. Feebly attempting to overpower the winter spirit, the rabbit only served to tighten the arm around his neck, slightly cutting off his oxygen supply. Jack hissed in a dark tone, his voice practically daring the kangaroo to try to move again.

"This is not my fault."

He originally didn't mind the telling off, but the Guardian stepped out of line as soon as he struck to hit him. There were certain things he would tolerate, and other things he certainly would not.

With a strong kick (stronger than it looked possible for the dainty youth), Jack shoved him fully to the ground, releasing the death grip from his throat. With a face full of dirt, Bunny looked up at him. No longer was there a fun, joyful spirit stood in front of him. No, now there was no light in his eyes, and they looked worn and wiser than beyond his years. His stance portrayed one of power, and his face held an incredible hardness. The younger spirit looked at Bunny one last time, appearing pitiful on the ground.

"Try that again and I'll break your arm."

Jack didn't even look back before he took off, flying into the distance, hood threat hanging in the air. An icy cold wind swept harshly past the Guardians who were gawking at the scene that had just played out in front of them. North looked ashamed, Tooth looked frightened and Bunny just felt numb. It all came back to bite him at once, full force.

What had he done?