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“Something doesn’t feel right,” Pitch muttered to himself. He felt Rin twitching at his back. Fortunately, Rin was in the sort of mood where Pitch didn’t have to worry about turning his back on him. He had no choice but to keep his back to Rin. Rin was literally clinging to his back. But something was bothering Pitch. He sensed something was amiss, almost the same way he’d sensed that Jack had been hurt before finding him in the North Pole. This sensation felt much stronger, however. Much, much stronger. It penetrated his bones in a way that made him restless. He paced nervously, dragging the dependent Rin with him. “Something feels . . . I’m not sure.” He spoke aloud, not caring whether Rin was listening or not. “It feels like something is awake. Or has awakened.”
“Can I kill it?” Rin muttered against Pitch’s back.
The Boogeyman’s brow furrowed. “In this state? You’d have to work a lot harder to impress an opponent. You’re hardly intimidating me.” Pitch and Jack had grown more comfortable with Rin’s appearances, especially once Rin learned that they knew how to keep him under control. His self-destruction had come to a head and he rarely challenged Pitch anymore. The one incident of being locked in a cage had been enough to make Rin realize just how little tolerance Pitch had for those sorts of thing. And Pitch tolerated Rin about as much as he tolerated the Guardians. He did it out of necessity, but he did not enjoy it nor did he ever look forward to it. He did these things for Jack and Jack alone.
“I just like how warm you are,” Rin uttered honestly. Pitch’s lips twitched as he resisted the urge to smile. Sometimes Rin sounded so much like Jack it was easy to forget which one he was dealing with. “And I’m bored. Can’t I freeze a town or something?”
“It’s broad daylight and it’s August. I doubt you’ll enjoy the heat and sun, just as I doubt you’ll find a town worthy of freezing.” And that was the extent of most of their conversations. Pitch almost felt nervous about the days in which those excuses would not be good enough. Still, the overwhelming feeling of unrest kept him moving.
“You will rue the day I find friends other than you.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“I’m a lot more charming than you, Nightmare Man!” Again, the defensive tone almost reminded Pitch of Jack. But Jack never called him Nightmare Man. That was purely Rin. “Not like you like having me around anyway.”
“I liked you a lot more when you didn’t have a personality. Once you developed one, whether using part of Jack’s or coming up with your own entirely, you became a problem child.”
“Well, boohoo. I’m so sorry I corrupted your little ray of sunshine, you miserable old fool.”
Funny. He didn’t sound the least bit sorry. “Hush now. I’m thinking.”
“That’s all you ever do. Think. Can’t waste a minute of your time on your precious toy’s shadow,” Rin grumbled, his bitterness showing.
Still, Pitch couldn’t take him seriously. It was hard to do when the boy was hanging off of him. “Jack is not a toy, and you are not his shadow.”
“And I’m not yours either. Yeah, I got it. Just wait till you go to sleep, Nightmare Man.”
Pitch ignored the threat, knowing full well it was idle. The two were quiet after that. Pitch continued to pace, wondering what had awakened that could cause such a disruption within him.
“Pitch, are you sure I can leave you like this?” Jack asked, kneeling beside the bed. Pitch was resting in the darkness beneath their bed. He’d grown so unnaturally exhausted pondering the origin of the odd sensation that had been troubling him. Jack wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to go to the meeting the Guardians had called without Pitch. He couldn’t not go to the meeting, but he didn’t like how weak Pitch was and didn’t want to leave him. And Pitch flat-out refused to attend with him.
“I have experienced worse, Jack. Just be quick about your business. Get back here safely.” At least he was being his usual possessive self, no matter how tired he sounded.
“If you’re sure.” He probably shouldn’t be agreeing with Pitch on this one. He should probably fight for Pitch to come with him instead of hiding under their bed.
“Get moving before I decide to send half my Nightmares with you, you accident-prone boy.” Jack smiled. Comments like that almost made him want to tell Pitch that he loved him. He withheld the statement though, chuckling as he flew from the lair on an icy wind.
This was the first contact he’d made with the full throng of Guardians since he’d left North’s Workshop. He hadn’t wanted to see them until he was sure he had Rin under control. When he arrived, he encountered Tooth first. It figured. He still felt incredibly guilty for Rin having made a pass at her and scaring her half to death.
When she noticed his presence, she flew to him immediately. “Jack, I’m sorry—.”
“It’s okay.” He knew what she was apologizing for, just as he’d known why she’d said the things she’d said. He just didn’t want to be reminded of those things. Hopefully if he accepted the apology, they could just forget about the incident and move on. With that in mind, he whispered, “I’m sorry, too.”
She looked uneasy at first, but the tension seemed to have lifted when she smiled. They grasped hands in mutual acceptance, then made their way to the others. As long as Jack could keep things under wraps with Rin, this meeting should go smoothly. He really hoped it wouldn’t be a long meeting. Pitch’s condition worried him.
The others seemed normal enough. Bunny had brought along a basket of eggs and was painting while North gathered everyone together. Yetis and elves were wondering about their business. Tooth had her group of fairies at her side and resumed giving them orders after the chat with Jack. Sandy . . . was floating just off the ground taking a nap. Yep! Everything seemed normal, thought Jack.
That is, until North started to address the group. “Something very strange is happening across world,” North started with.
Jack squinted, the topic sounding all too familiar already. “Let me guess: odd sensation in the belly that something ancient has awoken?” he asked.
North looked at him like the youngest Guardian had read his mind. Then Bunny interjected, “Once again, our productions are being halted because of gut feelings.”
“It’s not just North who feels it, though,” Jack grumbled. Bunny actually stopped painting and his head swiveled on his shoulders like Jack had muttered some obscenity. Jack wanted to make a remark, but couldn’t come up with one before North started talking again.
“There are storms popping up in odd locations on planet. Storms that aren’t due for another season at least. And they are growing in size and number. Very disturbing.”
“Storms? Like, hurricanes?” Tooth asked.
“Not just hurricanes. And not just weather phenomena either. An epidemic has appeared on North American continent and is spreading fast.”
“Not to be the idiotic newbie, here, but how does this concern us?” Jack asked. “Where are these things coming from that warrant us fretting over it?”
“That is problem. We do not know the source. All we know is that these events, while natural disasters, are coming together in rather unnatural patterns. They are getting progressively bigger, and I wonder if they will continue to do so,” North explained. “While our duties are geared towards protecting children, something is happening. Something very strange is happening, and it is giving me concerns.”
“And belly aches,” Bunny uttered, picking up a new egg.
“So what do we do about this?” Jack asked.
“One of us could go see—.”
“That’s not an invitation for you to volunteer,” Bunny directed at Jack. “Wouldn’t want to worry your boyfriend, now.” Jack glared at the overgrown rabbit, again wanting to comment.
“Bunny!” Tooth hissed. Jack turned to her, nodding a ‘thank you.’
“As I was saying,” North said loudly, a hint of agitation in his voice, “we could do that or we could all take a little time to investigate.”
Sandy waved his hands at that last bit, so the group determined what his vote was. Jack chuckled. He hadn’t even realized the little guy had woken up.
“Traveling as a group does sound safer given how the last expedition went,” Tooth agreed quietly. Jack nodded, wincing and blocking out the memories that had given him so many nightmares.
“Then what are we waiting for? Into sleigh!”
Jack wanted to laugh. No matter how dire the situation, he was fairly sure North would always be excited to drive his sleigh. Jack honestly couldn’t blame him; it was an awesome ride. But something was nagging at him, keeping him from feeling even the least bit excited about spending some time with his friends. He really just wanted to get back to—.
A burning sensation tore across his arm. He let out an involuntary scream, clutching at the region where his skin had turned gray. It felt like his forearm was on fire, and a loud humming started in his head. At first he panicked, thinking that Rin was trying to overpower him. But there was no heat in his eyes. Usually, when Rin took over, his eyes would grow so hot Jack thought they would melt out of his skull. No, there was just the burning and the abnormal humming in the back of his head.
He hadn’t even realized his knees had hit the ground, or that the Guardians and a pair of yetis were surrounding him now. He’d squeezed his eyes shut against the pain, digging his fingernails into his arm and hoping that his own frost could cool the sensation. It didn’t. Then a voice, as clear and loud as if one of the people surrounding him had spoken, shouted, “Pitch!” He knew that voice. It was a mirror to his own. Rin. Rin was speaking to him.
“Oh no,” Jack gasped out. He didn’t take the time to ponder what that meant. The only thing that registered was that something was happening and Rin was warning him about it. He’d needed only to say the one word: Pitch. Pitch was in trouble.
The pain in his arm was suddenly irrelevant. The many reassuring hands on his shoulders suddenly felt smothering, the questions and statements of his friends suddenly running together in his head and becoming gibberish. He didn’t have time. He knew he didn’t have enough time, somehow. He simply got up and ran to the nearest window and jumped out onto the wind.
“Tooth, what just happened?” Bunny stared accusingly at her. Like she knew. Before she could answer, something dawned on Bunny. His mouth fell open and his eyes widened. “Tell me he’s not—.”
“Bunny—.”
“Toothiana, you tell me he’s not what I think he is right now!”
“Discussion can wait!” North interrupted, stepping between them. “To the sleigh! We follow Jack!”
“I’ll meet you there, mate.” Bunny tapped his foot twice. A tunnel opened up just as North nodded and stomped off. Sandy followed North. Tooth prepared to do the same when Bunny grabbed her wrist. “No, you’re explaining yourself along the way.” Then she was flying down the tunnel after him, fighting to keep up with his pace.
“I tried to tell you—!”
“I see now why you didn’t. Why would you hide this from the rest of us?” It was amazing how they could still talk while moving as fast as they were.
“I was trying to protect Jack—.”
“It’s not Jack I’m going to murder for this!”
“You think he’ll forgive you if you hurt Pitch?”
Bunny didn’t even slow down as he looked back at her while she struggled to keep up. “I don’t care if he forgives me or not.”
“Bunny—!”
“If Pitch has made Jack into a Fearling, I don’t care who I piss off! Have you forgotten the Great War?”
“Have you forgotten that Jack is our friend—?”
“He’s a bloody ignorant one, accepting the affection of someone who means him no good and ignoring everything we’ve done for him!”
Tooth quieted then, realizing why Bunny was really angry. He was jealous. He had unresolved feelings for Jack and he was jealous. There was no point trying to talk sense into him now.
She only hoped he didn’t act out of spite towards Jack if someone got to Pitch before he did.
Sandy and North arrived at the lair before Bunny and Tooth, but none of them arrived before Jack. Jack had flown faster than North could drive and Bunny could run.
When the four arrived at the lair, they were taken aback by its emptiness. Pitch’s presence had a looming quality. There was always that feeling of being watched and assessed when he was around. There was always that spinal reaction to someone or something brushing against one’s senses without even making a full-bodied appearance. There was always that fear, that barrage of shadows that clung to and billowed out from Pitch Black. When the Guardians arrived, those sensations were gone, gutted like someone had scooped out the innards of the place Jack had come to call home. So empty was the lair of the Nightmare King that they could hear each other breathing. Sandy thought that if he listened close enough, he could hear their hearts beating rapidly.
They found Jack in the bedroom. They’d almost gotten lost looking for the place, crossing bridges and jumping habitually at the slightest movement of their own shadows. Even though the lair was empty, they still remembered whose shadows these used to be.
Jack was kneeling where the bed once rested. The iron frame, mattress, and sheets lay scattered haphazardly across the room. It was as if something had simply picked the piece of furniture up and flung it out of its way. That was impressive in a horrifying way, especially given what Jack was staring at. Before the boy was a small pool of blood and a series of thin, red lines where someone had been dragged through it. The trail ended quite abruptly, not even making it to the room’s entrance. It was hardly noticeable. What really caught their attention was the claw marks, where the Guardians assumed Pitch had resisted. It reminded Sandy of how Pitch had been dragged away by the Nightmares.
Jack’s eyes were wide with fright, his chest heaving and his hands fisted against his scalp. He looked completely wild as he stared down at the blood and marks. Through the wildness, Sandy thought he caught a sense of brokenness within Jack. As they continued to hone in on Jack’s state, Sandy picked up on how much the youngest Guardian was shaking. Finally, he spoke, “I shouldn’t have left him.”
“Jack, don’t blame—,” North started.
“I shouldn’t have left him!” Jack shouted, his fists slamming against his thighs. He covered his face as tears frosted in his eyes. “He knew something was wrong. I should’ve been here.”
“Why, so you could get dragged off too?” Bunny spoke so snidely that Sandy was irritated for Jack.
But Jack didn’t respond to Bunny. “I have to find him.”
Tooth moved forward. “Jack, how do you know—?”
“He’s not dead,” Jack muttered through his fingers.
“How do you—?”
“I just know! He’s not dead!” Jack screamed, his fists meeting his thighs again. He kept his eyes closed as he fought to control his breathing. It was a losing battle as far as Sandy could tell. Sandy wanted to approach him, but thought better of it. Jack was just wild enough that he might lash out.
“I’ll help you—,” Tooth started to say, but as she came forward, Bunny stepped in her path of travel.
“No, you’ve helped enough,” he growled. Then he turned his attention back to Jack. “You’d have to be a fool to challenge anyone strong enough to drag the Boogeyman away, and you’d have to be an even bigger fool to want to do anything about it. I’d say good riddance.”
“Well no one asked you.” Jack’s voice was low, even, but above all emotionless. Sandy examined the boy’s face. Tears fought for their freedom from the boy’s pale lids, but he didn’t so much as blink. He showed no feeling. It was as if he were . . . fighting. Fighting some imaginary force that only he could sense. The look disturbed Sandy in ways he hadn’t thought possible. He went to express his thoughts using his sand, but hardly anyone was looking his way. He was being ignored, yet again.
Sandy didn’t have time to try to get the other Guardians’ attention as Bunny fired back, “Well it looks like we’ve found the fool in the group!”
Sandy was so shocked by Bunny’s cruelty that he almost didn’t hear Jack say, “I don’t need your help.”
“Well that’s bloody good, mate, because no one here is gonna lift a finger to save Pitch Black!”
“Bunny!” Tooth and North cried simultaneously.
Sandy simply watched Jack. He did a double take when he thought he saw the boy’s skin turn ashen. He blinked twice when the area surrounding his eyes darkened to a menacing black. When Jack Frost opened his eyes, Sandy went completely still. “Well, I will.”
The boy that gripped the crook and stood slowly before turning to face them had black-rimmed eyes, black scleras, and golden irises. A collective gasp escaped the Guardians as they realized what this meant: Jack was part Fearling. Not wholly Fearling. If that were the case, then he would have this appearance permanently. The shock that emanated from North and Sandy was almost overwhelmed by the fear in Tooth and the rage in Bunny. Though Sandy wanted to really look at the others and make sure he had sensed correctly, he couldn’t tear his eyes away from the Fearling before them.
“Jack . . .,” North’s voice trailed off as he tried to speak to the boy.
“I. Am not. JACK!” the boy shouted, making everyone jump as he swung the staff and blasted the wall with ice. The frost even seemed tainted by the Fearling, faint lines of black easily traced throughout the pattern he’d created. Aggression bled from the boy’s stance and facial expression. He looked completely insane. “The gray bastard makes that clear every time I see him! I don’t need you to remind me! My name is Rin. Rin! Not your precious, annoying, perfect in every way Jack Frost!”
“Then why are you so eager to help him?” Bunny asked. He tried to maintain the anger he’d born before this Fearling’s emergence, but Sandy sensed something else in his tone. Was that sadness?
“Because he’s all I’ve got,” Rin answered. Now that definitely was a sad, truthful answer. Sandy could tell from the boy’s expression. “And Jack and I will find him. With or without you.”
And Jack was gone again. Or rather, Rin was gone. He flew past them on the wind, leaving the four alone with their thoughts. Sandy waited for the others to speak, but they all stood in a state of utter astonishment and despondency. Even Bunny’s anger began to ebb as reality set it: Jack had been tainted by Pitch’s shadows, and he was off to do battle with something that could potentially destroy both him and Pitch.
“What to do . . .,” North pondered. It wasn’t a question. Not really. It was more of an empty response to a thought no one had yet formulated.
“We do nothing,” Bunny muttered, almost inaudibly. No one responded. “He’s chosen his side.”
Even in this state of shock, Sandy knew there was no way his sarcastic yet well-meaning friend could possibly mean such a cold statement. And yet no one recanted the comment. Suddenly, Sandy’s chest felt heavy as he wondered if they were really going to stand aside as Jack possibly flew to his doom.