Jack thought it would be a little awkward trying to bond with, what amounted to his parents from his former life, parents that he was apparently forcibly taken from before they could really know him.

He was wrong.

It was REALLY awkward.

In everyone's defense, the situation was a bit out of the norm, even for spirits like them. Between Jack's snarky attitude due to being isolated by most spirits for over 300 years, Merith's occasional lack of social awareness due to being imprisoned for the same amount of time, and a lingering wariness to be near Pitch despite him not being the actual bad guy, it made any attempts at getting along a bit difficult.

But considering he could have instead been around the Guardians, who actually started this whole situation by murdering a past version of himself and then tried to cover it up…Jack rather thought he was in better company.

And to be fair, the fact that Merith was trying to make time to be with Jack despite his duties made Jack feel a little happy inside, that someone was making an effort to see him. Apparently being imprisoned for 300 years meant that a lot of souls weren't making it to wherever they were supposed to go (it kind of went over Jack's head, though Merith did offer to take him when things calmed down) and the older spirit had to catch up in his protector duties.

So for now it was just him and Pitch, awkwardly staring into their respective drinks (hot cocoa for Jack and green tea for Pitch) as they people watched in Burgress, a few months after the almost battle over the "Last Light".

"So…um, is this what you would normally do?" Jack stumbled over his words as he tried to make small talk with the other spirit. At the side eye and slight smirk the other spirit gave him, Jack gave a scowl back at him. Sue him, he's never had to do this before!

"Apologies Jack, I did not mean to tease, it's merely refreshing to have someone talk to me without assuming that I am about to terrorize any living thing I encounter." Pitch replied with a bittersweet smile.

Oh. Well, alright then.

"This in fact, is something that I occasionally used to do, especially in regards to my Center as a Guardian." The older spirit continued talking as his golden eyes calmly surveyed the people walking about the town, all oblivious to the presence of the two spirits amongst them.

"How do you mean?" Jack asked with a tilt of his head towards…his father? Pitch? Kozmotis? This whole past life spirit thing was still confusing, but he couldn't deny the connection he felt deep in his soul to the two older spirits.

"You are aware of the Centers that Guardians have?" Pitch waited for Jack's answering nod before continuing. "It might surprise you to hear, but my Center is that of Courage."

Pitch smiled at Jack's wide-eyed stare. "Part of childhood, and indeed, part of growing up is dealing with your fears. Some fears are needed, an instinctive fear that keeps children from placing themselves in a dangerous situation, or something as simple as avoiding a snarling dog." Pausing to take a sip of his tea, a rather excellent blend in his opinion, Pitch continued, aware of the extra pair of ears listening in. "While some fears are important for children to conquer, such as one day making friends with that snarling dog to find a lifelong friend in its place. The balance of courage and fear is what I help maintain to both protect children and get them ready for life as an adult."

"That's, actually really cool. Why don't more spirits know this about you? Why don't the stories say this about you, instead of making you this, this monster Boogeyman?" Jack protested as he leapt up in frustration before he agitatedly crouched in his chair at Pitch's quirked eyebrow.

"Because people fear what they don't understand, and very few tried to understand us." A new voice joined their conversation, startling Jack into freezing his mug of hot chocolate and causing Pitch to smirk into his tea as he accepted a forehead kiss from his husband.

Merith chuckled softly as he looked at the winter spirit now trying to remove the frozen cup from the table before giving up with a disgruntled sigh and a pout at the newly arrived spirit.

"Apologies Jack, a bit of a bad habit I need to nip in the bud. Let me fix that for you." Merith said sheepishly as he waved his hand over the frozen mug, and before Jack's eyes, the mug was unfrozen and even refilled with fresh hot cocoa, marshmallows, and whipped cream.

"Whoa! How'd you do that? Is that part of your Guardian powers?" Jack asked incredulously. He took a sip of his new hot cocoa and gave a happy hum before focusing back on Merith, unaware of the blob of whipped cream at the tip of his nose.

Smiling fondly, Merith twirled his finger to make a napkin fold itself into a butterfly that fluttered onto Jack's nose and gently wiped it, to the bemusement of the winter spirit. Is it normal to be so soft for someone you've barely known? "Fortunately for me, this is a skill set I've had long before I became a spirit, much less a Guardian. I'm sure by now in your travels around the world, you've encountered little hidden pockets of society that can do incredible things, yes?"

"Yeah, I've always wondered about them, but no one ever tells me anything, so I just let it be. It's not like they could see me either." Jack replied.

Frowning slightly, Pitch glanced at his husband in askance before he leaned forward in his chair to rejoin the conversation. "What do you mean, no one tells you anything? The other spirits don't talk to you?"

"Um," Jack curled into his hoodie as he messed with his sleeves, eyes darting around as a pale flush crossed the younger spirit's face. "Other spirits don't really like me? They just see all the snow and cold that comes with me, and want me to go away, especially spirits like Bunnymund who prefer the warmer weather. Even the winter spirits don't like me because I'm 'too strong' of a spirit." Jack tried to shrug nonchalantly about it, but both the older spirits could see the barely hidden pain of being brushed off and isolated by others.

Merith felt a familiar pang of empathy as he shared a look with his husband. It looks like their little family was always cursed to be outsiders, no matter who or what world they lived in.

"May I hug you, little one?" Pitch suddenly said, breaking the slightly tense atmosphere that fell over the table and mentally bringing Jack back into the conversation.

"What- I'm not little- why would you say it like that? It sounds so weird!" Jack fumbled over his words as the flush on his face got brighter.

Merith cackled at the flustered looks on the other two, though Pitch was trying to hide his embarrassment. "Kozzie is just an old man who says old-fashioned things 'cause he can't keep up with the times." Ignoring the glare his love sent his way, Merith softened his tone as he looked at the flustered winter spirit who wasn't looking at either of them. "But he does give really good hugs, if that's what you're worried about."

"I don't need or want pity, if that's what this is about." Jack said firmly despite the slight flush still on his cheeks.

"Considering we both have been in your position, and still technically are, pity is the last thing on our minds," Pitch responded. "I merely believe that amongst family members, a hug is often provided to give comfort…but since we are very new to each other, I did not want to presume," Pitch trailed off into an unsure silence.

"…okay."

Pitch looked back at Jack who gave an awkward smile as he rubbed the back of his neck.

"When you say it like that, I guess that makes sense."

Pitch gave a small smile as he got out of his seat and -Merith would call it an affectionate back cuddle no matter what Kozzie or Jack said- embraced the younger spirit still in his seat. From where he was sitting, he could see Jack's eyes widen in surprise before he seemed to melt into the hug and nearly bury his face into black robes, causing Pitch to shift closer. If either elder spirit heard a slight sniffle from Pitch's arms, they pretended they heard nothing, especially since they didn't mention each other's shiny eyes as they relaxed in the pleasant atmosphere.

WC: 1475

So many people wanted a bonding scene between Jack, Pitch, and Merith, so this is for you! I've always imagined that Jack would be touch-starved due to the lack of human and spirit interaction he's had for 300 years, so that's why he might seem a little OOC. Also, there will probably be another bonding scene that focuses on Merith and Jack, Pitch just took control of this scene halfway through. Until then, thanks for reading!