Chapter Text
It was a quiet night for Jack.
Lying up in a tree branch and gazing at the forest bathed in moonlight usually gave peace for the Guardian. Something he's been able to enjoy for the past year now.
Currently he was in a forest in Ireland, looking over a town and watching as the lights went out one by one, signaling the humans that were heading off to sleep. Jack was expecting Sandy to come around shortly. This town had a good population of nice children that could use a good night's sleep.
The Guardian just smiled and closed his eyes, taking in the noises of the night. He knew he should be going to the Southern Hemisphere and help start the colder months over there, but he wanted to enjoy a nice, cool Spring night before doing so.
It had been about a year since he had gained his Guardianship and defeated Pitch. Easter for this year had been a success, and there hadn't been a sign of Pitch since. During this time, he'd even gotten more acquainted with the others. For instance, he'd been spending time with the others, helping them out with their jobs from time to time. Jack painted eggs, collected teeth, and thought of ideas to give to North for toy designs. Sandy, he mostly just sat on his dream cloud with the star and chatted.
Yes, things had been going well and peaceful. And Jack wouldn't have it any other way.
Jack's eyes flew open when he heard a familiar whinny of a horse; one that he knew all too well. He sat up in the tree, jumping onto the balls of his feet and looking around. He saw Sandy's dream strands flying over the little town below, passing good dreams to all the children. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. But even after a year, Jack didn't trust what he saw. He leaped off of the tree branch and onto the wind. He sailed over and landed on one of the houses where dream sand was flying in. Looking around, everything seemed normal. But he knew what he heard. And looking around, Jack didn't see any nearby pastures or stables.
The frost spirit lifted his head when he heard it again, much closer this time, about three houses down. He wasted no time and rushed over. Sure enough, he spotted a Nightmare easing its way into a child's bedroom window. Jack gripped his staff tightly and flew towards it, firing a shot of frost at the creature. The Nightmare whinnied and reared back in surprise, not having any time to figure out what was going on before Jack barreled into its side with his feet and sending it toppling through the air. It quickly regained its balanced and looked up at its attacker. Realizing who it was, it let out a shriek and galloped away towards the forest.
"Oh no you don't..." Jack muttered. He gripped his staff closely and went after it.
The Nightmare ran as fast as it could, trying as hard as it could to evade its attacker. Fortunately it had the shadows of the flora around it to try and throw him off. Jack struggled a bit, but was able to dodge the trees enough to keep up with it.
"Hey-!" The Guardian's eyes widened as something else suddenly flew in front of him, making him stop in mid-air. He looked around frantically for what had cut him off, giving a little gasp when he saw a new Nightmare fly by him and catch up with the other. Jack grit his teeth and lurched after them once more.
The chase lasted for another minute when both Nightmares headed for a cave dug out in the side of a hill. Their cries echoed out as they flew in, blending into the darkness and disappearing.
Jack landed outside of the entrance, staff gripped tightly in hand and eyes narrowed. He questioned whether or not to go in. This is the first time he's seen Nightmares since Pitch was beaten. Could that mean the Boogeyman was back to power? That he had recovered from...whatever happened to him?
When Jack looked up into the cave, a chill ran up his spine. He knew that feeling, that kind that made the air stand still. The Nightmares didn't just jump down here for a quick getaway.
This was an entrance to Pitch's lair.
Jack debated whether or not to go in. He was much stronger ever since becoming a Guardian and gaining believers, that was true, but what about Pitch? Anything could've happened to him down there. What if he'd just been lying low, keeping his Nightmares at bay while gathering his strength back up? Jack didn't want to miss a chance of that possibly happening. If anything did happen to him down there, he could easily find the way back out again, he was sure.
Gripping his staff tightly, his body filled with a rush of determination, he stepped into the gaping mouth of the cave.
Jack could feel the hairs on his neck stand up as he walked away from the protection of the moonlight outside. The air inside felt musky and damp. But as Jack ventured further inside, he smelled...
Jack gasped and quickly held his nose as a wave of a rotting stench hit him. He gagged as the smell surrounded him. It smelled like rotting flesh and dead carcasses. Jack's concern grew. What, was Pitch killing others or something? Jack took a chance (while still holding his nose) and hopped up onto the wind. It carried him deeper, and so far he only saw darkness for several meters. His hopes grew as light shimmered up above, and he pushed forward until he landed on the edge of a broken, stone cliff. When he looked out he saw the main cavern. But it looked much different than what Jack saw last time.
Broken and dented up cages were sprawled out over the floor; some had shattered into pieces. The grand bridges that crisscrossed the place were dull and crumbling, only a couple that still held themselves up. The large globe that once held thousands of twinkling golden lights had fallen off of its stand with some of the continents broken and missing. Edges of cliffs and stairways had fallen off and down into the black abyss below, archways decomposing along with them. The rotting stench still hung heavy in the air.
Jack was startled by the sight before him. His hand had unconsciously dropped from his face to his side, forgetting about the musky smell in the air. Maybe Pitch wasn't just regaining his power after all. Maybe it was something much worse...
Holding his staff close and at the ready, Jack leaped down and landed on one of the broken bridges. His breath was already beginning to speed up as the atmosphere of the place began to get to him. He remembered how confused and a bit frightened he was last time he was here, but he was resolute not to let it happen again. Jack was stronger now, he could take on Pitch easily now, if he ever came across him anyway.
"Where is he?" Jack muttered under his breath. Pitch had to be here somewhere. If he wasn't here, then where was he? For all Jack knew, those Nightmares could've consumed him or something rather.
The winter spirit walked along the safe part of the bridge, casting his eyes around in case of any signs. So far only broken stone and darkness. And that rotting stench. Jack ended up covering his nose again.
"What the hell is that...?" He asked himself. As he continued along the bridge, he turned to his right-
And found a large pile of rotting animal skins and flesh.
"Ugh!" Jack reared back from the sight. The mound was huge, with large piles of bones and fur scattered about. Jack wondered if maybe some animal took residence here or something. Though he sort of doubted it, as this place is protected like any other spirit's home. Jack slowly began to back away, about to continue his search when he heard a faint sound behind him. It sounded like...growling?
Jack whipped around only to be thrown off the bridge by something, sending him down onto the revolting mass of decay. Jack took a moment to recover from the blow to realize his staff was out of hand, just a few feet away. He was about to grab it when he heard a large roar from above, right before a large creature landed in front of him, snarling and growling in anger. Jack was frozen, staring up at the beast. It was nothing like he had ever seen before. It was hidden in shadows, but he could make out the figure still.
Realizing the situation Jack snapped back into reality and moved for his staff. He was cut off as the creature shrieked and smacked it away, raising its hand (?) to throw Jack against the wall. Jack hit it with a yelp, sliding down to the floor before looking up in terror. The thing snarled and advanced on him slowly, crawling over and rearing above him. Jack began to panic and backed up against the stone behind him as much as possible. The creature moved until it was a couple feet in front of him, its rancid breath hitting Jack's face as it growled more. Jack twisted his head to each side, trying to find a way out if at all possible, but the creature had long limbs and could easily snatch him before he tried to get away.
Fear quaked in Jack as he dared to look back up at the thing, watching as it raised its arm, about to strike. Jack raised his hands to brace the impact, unable to tear away from what was in front of him. A glint of the beast's eyes shone in a sliver of light, revealing a shimmer of gold. Jack paused, his eyes widening. They then squinted as he peered closer, not paying attention to the claws above him and about to strike.
"...Pitch?"
The creature froze. The constant stream of growls and snarls stopped. Time seemed to just stand in place.
Jack slowly lowered his arms. Was this thing Pitch? It was too dark to make out though. He could easily remedy that. Keeping his movements slow and sure, the Guardian raised his hands to his face, keeping his eyes on the shadowed figure in front of him, and lightly blew into his palms. A light blue shimmer formed a snowball in his hand. And that little blue light was able to show Jack exactly what was in front of him.
"Oh my God..."
The creature suddenly screamed, turning away and leaping off the mound and into the darkness.
Jack was left against the wall, processing what just happened. That thing was definitely Pitch alright. But...extremely different. Jack blinked and looked over to where he ran off to. Jack slowly stood up; grimacing at the pain he now had in his back. He felt a light sting on his face, reaching up to feel a cut on his cheek that was bleeding a bit, which he just wiped off with the edge of his sleeve. Glancing around, he saw his staff on the ground a ways away from him. He quickly flew over and retrieved it, brushing himself off before looking at where Pitch ran off to. Part of him told him to get out, that this was dangerous and he should tell the Guardians. Yet, his curiosity wanted him to follow. He had always wondered what exactly happened to Pitch, this was his chance to find out.
With a tight hold on his staff he cautiously walked off the mound, shaking a clump of fur off his foot, and walked in the direction to where Pitch had vanished.
Jack was under an archway that led to where the shattered globe lay. He eased his way around it, keeping his eye out when he heard a soft noise not far away. Past the pieces of the structure was a little stairway that led to a small round corner; one that Jack instantly recognized. He stood there a year ago as Pitch played with his mind, confusing him with the shadows along the wall. And now in that very corner, an outline of the creature showed in the dim light, hunched over and cowering.
Jack lowered his staff to his side, taking small and quiet steps towards the other. He could feel his nerves creeping up in his stomach, making his breathing come out rapid. Jack froze in place when the silhouette of Pitch's head perked up, letting out a low growl as those gold eyes peering at him. Jack just stared back, trying not to look as threatening as possible. He held his free hand up in a peaceful gesture.
"It's alright, it's okay. I'm not here to hurt you." He lowered his body and gently placed his staff on the ground, his hand lingering on it for a moment before finally letting go. Pitch just watched him with careful eyes. They finally closed after a moment, and he turned his head away. Jack let out a breath of relief, a surge of confidence running through him as he stood up. Jack kept his hands up as he began to advance towards the monster. He fought to swallow down a lump in his throat once he was right next to it.
"P-pitch?"
The creature just curled in on itself more, and Jack let out a quiet sigh. He already felt himself feeling sorry for him. Jack imagined his body in the state it was in now wasn't the least bit comfortable.
He reached a hand up and hesitated before gently placing it on his shoulder. Pitch flinched and hissed at the contact, but didn't retaliate on Jack. The winter spirit kept his guard up nonetheless.
"God, what happened to you Pitch...?" He asked under his breath. He only got a small growl in response. Moving his hand down the tattered sleeve of Pitch's robe, Jack settled himself on the ground, crossing his legs as he looked up at Pitch. He ran his hand slowly and soothingly up Pitch's arm, making sure Pitch knew that he meant no harm. As he did, he could feel holes within the material and tattered threads that stuck out. It was obvious that Pitch had been like this for quite a while. Perhaps shortly after he was defeated? Jack could only guess, as he was sure Pitch didn't exactly speak while like this.
"I wish there was something I could do to help..." Jack whispered. Right after saying that, Pitch sniffed the air, turning to look at Jack. Jack quickly lifted his hand and breathed a short intake of breath. Pitch twisted his body and faced Jack, reaching over and sniffing close to his face. Jack didn't move; whether out of fear or curiosity at what Pitch would do, he didn't know. Pitch closed in on the cut on his face that was still bleeding a bit. A serpentine tongue came out of his mouth and slowly licked at the cut, causing Jack to hiss at the slight sting.
"Oh, gross..." He began to back away, but was stopped abruptly as Pitch snarled and grabbed his shoulders to hold him in place. He began lapping at the blood hungrily, as if it was his first food in months. Jack tried to push him back but was unsuccessful. The cut was beginning to hurt now, and Jack was able to smell the horrid breath from Pitch once more.
It felt like ages had passed before Pitch finally stopped and pulled away, backing towards the corner. Jack reached up with his sleeve and hastily wiped the saliva that was spread all over his cheek off.
"Jeez..." He groaned. He gagged as he got a whiff of the sleeve, now smelling like the inside of Pitch's mouth. Jack dropped his arm and sighed, looking back over at Pitch. The beast just looked at him through the darkness, his eyes glowing yellow in the dim light. He contemplated on what to do next.
After a moment of debating, Jack flexed his fingers on one hand and began to reach forward. Pitch growled and moved back.
"It's okay, it's okay...I won't hurt you, Pitch." He said in a soft voice. Pitch kept a mean glare, but stayed still as Jack began to advance some more. Jack shifted closer until his hand was inches away from Pitch's scarred-up cheek. He hovered over it, keeping his eyes on Pitch.
The creature made a small noise before pushing into the offered hand, closing his eyes and leaning into it.
The gesture caught Jack off-guard, but he smiled at the result. "There, see? I'm not gonna hurt you. You're just fine, that's it..." Jack ran his thumb over the rough texture of the skin on Pitch's cheek, getting a soft purr in response. There was a slight dampness under his hand, and Jack then realized that there were tears running down Pitch's face.
Pitch shifted closer to Jack, getting more comfortable as he took in the sensation of Jack's caress. One hand gradually reached up and wrapped its fingers around Jack's arm.
Jack gasped at what had grabbed him. His fingers were much longer, and long claws accented the ends of his fingers. Using his free hand, Jack gently ran his fingertips over the knuckles and cuts along the skin. And as he got to the end of one finger, he found his nails still on there, normal as ever. So what were the claws...
Jack covered his mouth to hide a gasp when he realized the long claws that came out of the end of Pitch's fingers were in fact the very ends of the bone, poking out of the skin and making the torn flesh dark and bloody.
"What happened to you...?" Jack looked at Pitch, who was still enjoying the touch of Jack's hand on his cheek. Jack reached up and cupped the other side of his face, making Pitch startle before realizing what he was doing. Jack ran both thumbs over his cheeks, wiping the tear stains away as he gazed at Pitch with a look full of sorrow and pity. If he had known Pitch had become like this he would've somehow helped. It was obviously his and the Guardians' fault he was like this, being dragged by the Nightmares and all.
Pitch just stared back, golden eyes unwavering as he studied Jack's own. They looked at each other for a long while before Jack spoke up.
"I promise I'm going to make things right, Pitch. I promise."