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Chapter Text

Prologue

In the dim reaches of his earliest memory, Jack Frost knew a life before Earth. It was misty and distant and in many ways felt like it had happened to someone else. Like most creatures, he could not remember his birth - his first moment of self awareness but he could remember - violently - an ending.

His first memories were of flying - a rush of cold winds and empty space. It was not the blue solitude of earthly skies, but something older, darker - colder. He remembered that freedom with longing - his fragile skin covered in layers ice as he drifted on the solar winds between the stars and planets. Life as a comet had been wild and reckless; while he couldn't remember its beginning, he also couldn't imagine its end.

All things end, such is the way of the universe.

One day, lazily drifting around an unremarkable star on the edge of the spiral galaxy, Jack found himself unexpectedly caught in a gravity well. The blue green planet loomed large in his vision and Jack knew a moment of panic as he realized it was too late to change course. He was moving too fast and the gravity was too strong.

He screamed as he hit the atmosphere. It was hot - burning, a sensation he had never felt before in the cold reaches of deep space. The layers of his ice were cruelly torn away as he fell in a sickening downward spiral, leaving a fiery streak across the sky.

Jack could only watch the ground approach - helplessly caught, his body in agony. In his last moments, he did not fear death so much as he feared the loss of his freedom if he were to survive. He didn't want to be earthbound. He was not meant to be stationary and flightless - moving only as one planet dictated.

He didn't remember the impact.

All he remembered was darkness for many ages after.

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Chapter One

What remained of Kozmotis Pitchiner, a creature known and feared as Pitch Black, felt a ripple of terror from the far reaches of the galaxy. Such delectable terror it was too; the most primal of fears - that of death - that of ending - radiated from countless undeveloped minds in a sea of genocidal panic. He could feel those emotions deep within the shattered remains of his mind - as sure and unstoppable as the tide, awakening in him hunger and the endless need to devour.

As much as he revelled in the agony and torment of the living - the closest to pleasure he was capable of feeling, he felt himself hesitate. This fear - so vital, so existential - was not of his making and he was powerful enough to extinguish the very stars and was credited with the fall of the Golden Age. A force capable of such thoughtless devastation - of extinction - merited careful investigation. It would ally with him willingly or he would consume it. Either outcome was pleasing.

Finding the very prospect delightful, Pitch set out immediately leaving a trail of ruin in his wake.

~*~

All Jack remembered of the accident was darkness.

After the crash, he slept for ages. As he slept, he dreamed.

His dreams were feverish, slipping away from his grasping mind as soon as he tried to focus on them. Mostly they were physical, tactile sensations rather than images or emotions.

He dreamed of the earth, solid and heavy, under and around him in a way that was both reassuring and claustrophobic in his confusion. There was the itchy feeling of hot and cold as the sun rose and fell in the sky, blurring into an endless stream of sensation as more time passed. He could feel the planet moving - somewhat nauseating, as it turned around its star in space, shifting its continents irregularly.

Most of all, Jack could feel the breath of wind on his skin, pale and exposed for the first time in living memory. It's cool familiarity soothed his pain and he found himself wondering as he lay there injured and comatose. When he woke up - if he ever woke up - would that wind carry him? Would he fly again through the air as he used to fly through space?

His dreams offered no answers, only more questions.

Chapter Text

The planet Pitch found was surprisingly insignificant. The ripples of fear he had detected were the result of a mass extinction - billions of life forms crying out against the inevitable. Such strange creatures too, large and reptilian - now lost to time. By the time Pitch had arrived, it was over, just an echo of pain across the stars. Nonetheless, that power still remained on earth, he could feel it driving change. Change was a force to be feared - such delicious uncertainty - Pitch relished it.

While it was clear that force was on Earth somewhere, it was not obvious where. Pitch would have to search. He wasn't too concerned. He was immortal; he had time. Whatever it was that had done this couldn't hide forever. As eager as he was to start looking, Pitch had to take a few things into consideration. Mainly he needed to find a food source.

This planet was astonishingly primitive unlike the complex civilizations found among the constellations. None of the life forms were even sentient. The basic fears that instincts gave - that of death, the unknown, pain - could sustain him but they weren't enjoyable- watery flavourless gruel when compared to the subtle nuances of fine wines or dark chocolate.

Those fears required a fully sentient and intelligent mind to produce - a mind that understood rationally that there was nothing in the darkness but feared it anyway. The minds needed to produce it didn't exist on this planet but perhaps they could be created with Pitch's innate ability to manipulate and influence emotions. It would take time, but Pitch had no need to hurry.

There was one group that Pitch found with enough potential to satisfy his needs. In the beginning they were little more than apes - animals, but Pitch found that they responded well to his influence. He used his fear to warn then - predators lurking, poisonous plants, dangerous weather. Those that ignored him perished but those that survived, passed his warnings one to others. It was a slow and painful process but eventually that had advanced to such a state where Pitch could fill their unconscious minds with irrational terrors. Finally, after uncountable years, they were sufficiently self aware to provide the sustenance he preferred.

Their rough society knew him. They could see him - in the glittering golden eyes of predators that lurked just beyond the edges of their fires. They had no name for him and they did not worship him as a god, but Pitch had no reason for them to do so. He was now so deeply entwined in the darkness of their collective unconscious minds, that even if his physical body were to be destroyed, he would still live. This would be an unexpected benefit should anyone from the constellations come hunting him. He could not die until every one of these humans had done so first.

His continued survival assured, Pitch began to search in earnest for that mysterious force of destruction.

~*~

After all that time, and all the distance, what Pitch found in the end surprised him.

Lying comatose on the bottom of a crater was an ice sprite.

Pitch had never had much use for ice sprites finding them frivolous and annoying, their only concern the freedom of flight. It was uncommon for them to be drawn down onto planets and even less common for them to survive.

For this one to survive, spoke of an unusual power. Pitch had noticed the planet's steady pattern of cooling since his arrival, ages ago and now he could see it was the result of this sprite; his icy power soaking into the earth around him, shifting the currents and the continents, cooling the breeze.

Pitch carefully approached the sprite on the ground of his earthly prison. He had never seen one before without their layers of icy armour. Naked and injured, the sprite appeared as a young man. He was small in stature, slender and his hair and skin as white as the snow.

In the light of the stars, Pitch found him to be beautiful - a reminder of life beyond this pitiful world. He carefully took the boy in him arms, mindful of his injuries. The boy's skin was cold but Pitch didn't mind. He was accustomed to the chill of space and he was too distracted by the contrast of the boy's pale white skin against his grey and the shadows of this clothes.

It would take time for the boy to recover from him shock, and Pitch found himself eager for the day. He would help tend the sprite's injuries and when he was well they could discuss a partnership of great potential.

Despite his cold ambitions and his focus on power, as Pitch lifted the boy's nearly weightless form and disappeared into the shadows he found himself wondering what colour his eyes were.

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Chapter Three

Many years later...

Of all the places he had to go looking, it had to be Antarctica. As he popped his head out of a tunnel, his ears wilting in the frigid wind, Bunny cursed the Russian blow hard that put him up this.

While he was exercising his colourful Australian vocabulary, he also cursed Pitch Black. After years of silence, they had almost forgotten him - and good riddance - when the bloody rat bag had the nerve to appear on North's globe, spreading fear and mysterious black sand everywhere. North had called a meeting and to make a long story short, Bunny was now here in the this icy hellish wasteland instead of his cozy warren painting eggs for Easter like he should be at this time of year.

As much as he groused, a threat from Pitch Black had to be taken seriously. Although modern humans had little fear of the dark, and their lack of belief cost Pitch to lose power, he never quite went away - a pity. Even as a shade of his former self, the Guardians were watchful. They couldn't afford his return to power as he had been known, in ages past, as a destroyer of worlds.

While Bunny felt there wasn't much to worry about - he felt Pitch's display was nothing more than an overdramatic attempt at attention, the others still took it seriously. North insisted on it and much to Bunny's surprise, MIM had intervened. The message they saw in the moon crystal was cryptic and unclear, showing an image of an unfamiliar young man surrounded by ice and snow, covered in frost and what appeared to be a long blue cloak.

Bunny wasn't familiar with spirit, but after some thought North declared him to be Jack Frost. Bunny grit his teeth at that. He had never met Jack Frost personally, but if he ever did, there would be a score to settle. Especially after the Easter of '68 when the bloody show pony had covered the east coast of North America with record snowfall causing his only holiday to be forgotten in the mayhem.

That grudge and his bragging to North that he was quicker than any sleigh is what brought him to the current unfortunate situation. Shivering with exposure, Bunny inwardly cursed his big mouth - not that he'd ever admit it to North.

He couldn't back down now not when North had sent some of his yetis to help him search. Antarctica was endless and Jack Frost was illusive. He wasn't well known to humans outside a few obscure references and even spirits rarely saw him. All that was known of him was the artful curling frost flowers he left in his wake. That and the ridiculous blizzards, Bunny grumbled.

Phil, North's head of security, had accompanied him as well as Phil second in command, a capable yeti by the name of Steve. They had slowed Bunny's progress somewhat but it would be worth having their help in this frigid hell.

Much to Bunny's disgust, the weather didn't seem to bother his two companions, blessed as they were with thicker pelts and accustomed the equally inhospitable climates of the Himalayas.

"Alright, fellas. You know the plan." At least Bunny hoped so. It was autumn in the southern hemisphere. The Antarctic days were short and Bunny sure as hell didn't want to be stuck here after dark.

As it was, the plan was simple. When they finally found the little brat, Bunny would distract him with talking. Phil and Steve would sneak up behind him and bag him with one of North's sacks and shove him through a snow globe portal before he could even blink.

It was a bit harsh perhaps, but Bunny had no regrets. They were in a hurry and as soon as they had the little drongo sorted out the better. North was sure that Manny's message meant that Jack was meant to be a Guardian and help them defeat Pitch Black but Bunny wasn't so sure.

Guardianship was a sacred duty to protect the innocence of the world's children - not something MIM would take lightly. Personally Bunny hadn't heard of anything that Jack Frost had ever done except freeze water pipes and ruin his egg hunts. Hardly Guardian material, but there was no arguing with North when he thought he was right. All that could be done was to bring the little troublemaker to the pole, show everyone how ill suited he was to helping and go back to handling the matter at hand - mainly Pitch and painting the last of the eggs for Easter.

It was slow going, but Bunny and the yetis finally approached the entrance to a vast glacial cavern. It was rumoured that Jack Frost lived here and it seemed appropriate enough for a spirit of wind and snow. As they entered the air seemed to grow colder even in the absence of the wind and Bunny was surprised to see the two yetis stop completely, just inside the entrance of the cavern, as if frozen in shock.

"Well, what is it fellas? I ain't got all day." He complained.

If he didn't know better, Bunny would say that Phil looked afraid. The two of them appeared uncomfortable and apprehensive which wasn't doing anything to help him feel better in this forbidding alien place. They were both looking from side to side as if they could see or hear something that Bunny couldn't.

Phil began grumbling in Yetish and gesturing wildly with his large hairy arms, clearly indicating that he and Steve weren't going any further and that Bunny shouldn't either. If he knew what was good for him, he would leave now and forget he was ever here.

Bunny would have been glad to forget he was ever here, but he couldn't back down now, especially knowing what North would say. The reputation of Easter, and its superiority to Christmas, depended on it.

"Fine! You bunch of cowards. If you're not coming, I'll do it myself." His anger and irritation evident. "I don't need you. I'll just distract the brat and dose him with Sandy's dream sand if you're going to be that way!"

Phil grumbled again as if begging Bunny to see reason.

"What do you mean not to talk about him that way? It's not like he's going to hear me. Jack Frost is nothing more than a selfish little trouble maker and he's lucky I'm here to get him. If you're not going to help, go back to the pole and I'll have a word with North about the type of security he employs!"

Phil uttered a long suffering sigh, throwing his hands in the air as if giving up on Bunny and his attitude. Bunny watched in disgust as the two yetis activated a snow globe and heard the sucking sound as they both disappeared.

"Good riddance, you lazy bunch of bludgers." Bunny muttered under his breath watching them go. Time to get this over with.

Chapter Text

Chapter Four

After losing the yetis Bunny was even more determined to get the job done and get the hell out of here. He carefully picked way among the icy outcroppings that lined the tunnel that led inward. While it wasn't dangerous per se, the cutting wind that whistled eerily around corners and the shards for ice that cut into the paws of his feet were distinctly inhospitable. Bunny knew he was unwelcome here, not that the sentiment bothered him- he didn't want to be here either. It was little wonder that Jack Frost was an unknown and held no belief if this was his welcome, never mind that Bunny was hardly an invited guest.

After a small eternity, Bunny was relieved to see the narrowing tunnel widen into a vast glacial cavern. Despite himself, Bunny found himself staring in awe. While he despised ice and snow, he still felt a deep reverence for the power of nature and that power was obvious here. This place was ancient; Bunny could feel it in his bones - predating even his time on earth. Ice Crystals shaped like stalactites covered the vaulted ceiling, and matching crystals grew sporadically from the ground giving the impression of a giant geode that had been cut in half. Much to Bunny's relief, it was bright enough to see. A soft diffuse light glowed from deep within the ice with no discernable source lighting the room. Bunny might have even found it beautiful if it wasn't so eerie with the cold wind whispering in the corners.

A quick survey of the room drew his attention to its only occupant. A large crystal formation on the far side of the cavern had grown or been shaped into the form of a chair, and sitting there was a young man.

Bunny's first impression of Jack Frost was that "Old Man Winter" wasn't very old at all. He appeared to be a fresh faced youth, caught forever between childhood and adulthood. He sat there straight backed with his eyes closed, as still and frozen as the ice around him. He was wrapped in a long blue cloak but as Bunny came closer, he saw that the garment wasn't made of cloth as he had first thought but of a fine lace of frost that covered the boy protectively. Not that he needed it, with his ice white hair, blue lips and bare feet, Jack wasn't bothered by the elements at all. Bunny wished he could say the same. The closer he got the more it became obvious that Jack was the source of the unspeakable chill in the air.

As Bunny came within a few feet of Jack's still and silent form, his paw shifted on a loose piece of ice on the ground. The resulting clatter rang out like a gunshot, startling in the still air - breaking the hushed and almost holy silence.

The illusion of youth that Jack Frost held shattered the moment he opened his eyes. They were blue, Bunny couldn't help but see, bright with an alien glow. Looking at them now, it was obvious that Jack Frost wasn't a young and untrained elemental like Bunny had assumed, he wasn't even of this earth.

His true age showed in his eyes. In them Bunny could see the slow grind of glaciers, the endless shift of the continents, the revolution of the planet and the motion of the stars. This spirit - if that's what he was, was older than Bunny thought possible - possibly older than the planet itself.

North's sack and Sandy's dream sand were forgotten in that timeless gaze, and Aster had the sudden realization that his simple plot to kidnap Jack had been terribly naive. Feeling the icy power emanate from the slender figure before him, Bunny was left with the uncomfortable realization that he might owe Phil and Steve an apology.

"Well if it isn't E. Aster Bunnymund." Bunny cringed when Jack spoke to him. His voice cut like knives, holding not just the cold of the winter wind but the cold oblivion between the stars.

"Awfully nice of you to come all this way, since you had to take so much time out of your busy schedule." Jack relaxed in his chair, adopting a casual sprawling pose, his face twisted with a cocky smile. "Especially to come all this way for a selfish useless little trouble maker like me."

"But how did you-" Bunny protested, not expecting to have his own words thrown back in his face.

"You don't know where you are do you?" Jack snorted, he make a dismissive gesture with his hand and the frigid air shifted uncomfortably around Bunnymund. Much to his surprise in the wind's moaning voice he could here echoes of the conversation he had with Phil and Steve just outside.

"Sorry to say, seeing as how you've come all this way, but you've wasted your time. I already know what you're going to say." The wind shifted again, relaying the words of the Guardians meeting where it had been discussed and agreed upon (grudgingly on Bunny's part) that Jack be offered Guardianship. Bunny was surprised. He had thought that meeting has been held in the strictest secrecy but now it appeared that the rattling wind against the window pane had been more than just coincidence.

"I'm not interested." Seeing the knowing smirk on Jack's young and ancient face and listening to him be so casually dismissive of a position that Bunny himself held and worked to uphold, Bunny felt his apprehension of this strange and alien place and its even stranger master melt into rage. Guardianship was never offered lightly and considered a most sacred trust. Most spirits were envious of such a position and rightly so considering the benefits that belief bestowed on the them.

"Now just wait one minute, you bloody show pony!" Aster stood to his full height and pointed a finger accusingly at the ice spirit who was still perched comfortably on his throne of ice crystals. "What about the children? Pitch Black is - "

"Oh, right. The children." Jack cut off his impending temper tantrum much to Bunny's displeasure. "Such deep wells of hope and wonder - of promise and belief. And," his voice went cold again, "none of my concern."

"How can you say that you heartless bastard!" Bunny was hopping mad. At least in this forbidding place his rage was keeping him warm. "At the very least you need them. Without the belief of children - of humans, we all fade away."

"Correction Cottontail - without humans to believe YOU fade away. You knew the rules when you accepted Guardianship from the Man in the Moon in an effort to extend your sad pathetic existence. Humans may whisper my name but I don't need them. Not the way you and the others do. I've been around long before the humans. Who do you think steals their last breathe in a winter storm?"

"I was right about you." Bunny spat, "We don't need you anyway. You can sit here and fade for all I care, and good riddance to ya!"

Bunny turned, determined to storm off and tell the others what a stupid mistake this had all been, when he found his way blocked.

As tall as he was, Bunny wasn't used to being stared down, but this slender slip of a boy was managing it. Jack Frost had left his chair and was now hovering in front of Bunny, his feet never touching the ground, blocking the way.

"That won't kill me Bunnymund." Bunny was uncomfortable with Jack's closeness, the full weight of his stare and his perpetual cold. "Children are mortal. They grow and forget particularly in this age of reason but time devours all things and one day human and their civilization and their beliefs will crumble to dust and ash and with them will go the Guardians. The planet itself that we stand on will burn and sun will fade from the sky. Whole galaxies will be extinguished and what will be left at the end Bunnymund? All that will be left at the end will be endless darkness and cold."

Bunny, to his horror, suddenly felt it hard to breath, the cold suddenly sharpening and crushing his lungs.

"Really Aster, I'm not going anywhere."

Bunny's vision darkened, and all he remembered after was waking up in a melting snow bank. Much to his relief he was under the open sky and his senses told him he was in the Northern Hemisphere close to the Pole, and as far from that frigid Antarctic hell as possible.

As he slowly and painfully got to his feet, he noticed with shock that the ends of his fingers, toes and ears were blistered with frostbite, no doubt Jack Frost's work. He created a direct tunnel to Santoff Clausen, determined not to waste anymore time. He had to get this cleaned up quickly, but later as a he warmed himself by North's generous fire and felt the chill in his body lessen, he couldn't quite dismiss the chill in his soul.

Chapter Text

Chapter Five

Pitch arrived in a swarm of shadows. It was a sight to behold; the tendrils often bore the form of nightmare horses that moaned eerily on the cold winds until they condensed in one place and allowed Pitch Black to materialize. Despite the beautiful contrast of the dark shadows playing over the bright ice crystals, Jack Frost took no notice. He once again had his eyes closed as his sat rigidly in his throne formed of ice and snow. He didn't do it to ignore Pitch, but ocean currents and weather patterns were notoriously tricky and needed his concentration, especially as the seasons shifted. Pitch, for his part, wasn't offended. He took he place beside Jack and wrapped his shadows around him in an embrace, stroking Jack's face with his long slender fingers.

His lips twisted in a rare smile when he saw that Jack could no longer ignore him and allowed his own frost the spread and cover Pitch's robes and shadows in intricate spiralling fractals. Finally Jack opened his eyes, heavy and sleepy now that his concentration was broken.

"I don't know why you bother picking fights with them." He yawned and shifted, wrapping his arms around Pitch and resting his head against his chest. "It's not like you need belief so why the faking?"

Pitch just laughed and tightened his hold on Jack, running his fingers through Jack's icy hair.

"Maybe it's because I've been with you so long, but would you believe that I'm beginning to find such things fun?"

He ignored Jack's incredulous and amused expression. "Besides, they really should be thanking me. I did them a favour."

Belief was rare and precious in this period of human history, usually it was only seen in children and even then, only for a few early years. The Guardians would never know how close they had come to fading entirely because of their complete lack of involvement with the world at large. While such a loss wouldn't have affected Pitch or his beloved Jack, he did have something of a soft spot for humanity. He had guided them for so many, many years, he felt an almost paternal regard for them and thought that they would benefit from the Guardians continued presence.

At least Sandy understood and, in this instance at least, agreed with Pitch's methods and reasoning. The fallen star was just as ancient as they were and had seen the world move on. He knew the necessity and thus, allowed himself the be "killed" and then resurrected just in time to help Pitch throw the fight. In truth, Pitch had enjoyed their duel. It was rare that his powers were ever tested by anyone except in playful games with Jack. Pitch also suspected that Sandy secretly enjoyed all the drama. The other Guardians tended to overlook his mute and quiet presence in their frantic rushing. The fact that Sandy might be keeping things from them likely never occurred to them.

"You should have been there Jack. Your Jamie Bennet was there - humanity's Last Light against the Darkness. I think you would have been proud."

Jack smiled at the thought. He didn't often concern himself with humans. He was a creature of air and water, cold and darkness. He had no ties to them, but once in a rare while, he'd stop and take notice of one and that one would be blessed - destined for something special. Jack had happened across Jamie Bennet one year while he had been spreading late spring frost, much to Bunnymund's disgust. The boy had potential - he was a born believer. Jack was even sure that for a brief instance, Jamie had glimpsed him out of the corner of his eye. That, and the boy was just so much fun and together they had gone on a wild and reckless sleigh ride through town - the closest the boy would ever come to knowing the true feeling of flight. Jack laughed at the memory, sure that he would have been proud of Jamie's bravery.

"I'm sure I would've but if I'd gone, who would have been here to greet the kangaroo? You should have seen his entrance - as if I'd be kissing his ass at the chance to be a Guardian like some sort of naive fledgling. Can you believe he fainted?"

Pitch joined Jack in his laughter.

"So that's why he was marked with frostbite the second time I saw him. Serves him right for bothering you. I'll have to mention it the next time I see him, just to rub it in. I'll probably wait a hundred years or so to lure them into a false sense of security. It wouldn't do to show up too soon."

Given what a condescending loud mouth the rabbit was, it would be an opportunity too good to pass up. Especially since, as a creature attuned to fear, he had felt the rabbit's horror all the way on the other side of the planet. He didn't know what it was that Jack had said or done but he's sure he would have loved to be there.

"A hundred years, huh?" Jack said, still sleepy from his work. "So what are you going to do in the mean time?"

Pitch smiled and gently drew Jack into a kiss. "I'm sure I'll think of something."

As their laughter subsided and Jack returned his kiss with equal passion, Pitch remembered the day he had first found Jack on the bottom of that crater so many millennia ago. When he had followed Jack to this insignificant little world, he never would have realized how important Jack would one day become to him.

He still remembered, vividly, carrying Jack away from that place - how light and fragile his body felt in this arms. Pitch had taken him to a safe place, a realm of shadow deep in the earth to heal. It seemed hardly an appropriate place for an ice sprite but it allowed Pitch to attend to his wounds and his needs. The injuries had been severe and he had waited for ages before Jack could even crack his eyes open. They were blue, Pitch finally saw.

Jack wasn't well when he first awakened. The collision and the alien sensations of the planet had addled his mind. His power was uncontrolled and elemental, released through his confused emotional outbursts. It devastated the planet a second time casting it into an Ice Age. Pitch saw its effects on the planet's life forms - mass extinctions and migrations. He was even smugly pleased that his humans had once again heeded his warning and had adapted for survival.

So much raw power was contained in such a tiny creature. This was the power he had followed across the galaxy, that he had waited many ages for; but now that he had found it, it didn't feel like the victory it should have been. Instead he found himself concerned about Jack's mental state and sought to soothe him. It was then that he realized that he cared less about power and more about the sprite in his care. It was a confusing sensation for a creature known as the Nightmare King, who had devastated worlds, especially when he discovered the best way to soothe Jack's terrified outbursts was to hold him gently and kiss him. Pitch realized that in that endless stretch of time how lonely he had been.

Darkness stood at the beginning and end of all things, who else could he have as a companion? The humans he was responsible for creating would one day fade, and he would free himself by cutting ties with their psyche, leaving them far behind. He would at last be able to return to the stars, but now he would take Jack Frost with him and together they would await the end in a perfect fusion of cold and dark.

Pitch Black ... and Jack Frost too.