Chapter 1

It was the day after the defeat of Pitch Black and the Nightmares.

After the fairy's, elves, and yeti's took all the children home and returned to their masters, there was a party at the Pole to celebrate the defeat, and Jack Frost becoming a Guardian.

"I still don't know why we really need to do all this mate," Bunnymund said grumpily but helped to put up the banners anyway.

"Is to welcome Jack into the Guardians Bunny," North's deep Russian accent replied from the other side of the room, most likely where the party table was.

"You guys don't have to do this, you know." a teenaged boy sitting in his brown pants, blue hoodie, and staff in hand said on top of the Globe of Belief, to slight protests of the Yetis.

Jack Frost had always been alone since he woke up from that pond 300 years ago. Staying to himself, well when he wasn't bugging Bunny or trying to get into the Pole, so he was going through phases on how he should feel from all this.

"Of course we do Jack," Tooth said flying up to him with some of her Baby Teeth in tow one of which flew right up to him and hugged him the best she could. "If it weren't for you, shoving away the fear with your fun. Then the kids wouldn't of started believing again and we wouldn't of been able to defeat Pitch."

"I know," Jack said smiling a bit, then looked up. "But don't you think this is a bit... Much?"

They had decorated the main room of the Pole in blue and white banners showing Jack's colors, there was a three layer cake surrounded by cookies, eggnog, sweets, and ice-cream over on the table, there were balloons all with the letter 'G' on them all over the place, and Sandy was making snowflakes and dolphins to float around in the air with his dream sand.

"Well, we're not taking all of it down until it's been used mate," Bunny said getting down from the ladder he was on, pulling out a sketch book and started thinking of idea's for next years Easter eggs.

"I thought you were just saying you didn't want this Kangaroo," Jack said towards Bunny having to duck as soon as he said it to avoid the boomerang coming for him.

"No," the Pooka said sighing a little that even after all what just happened Jack was still the kid he had been before hand. "I said 'I don't know why we really need to do all this'."

"Come now Bunny," North said coming over. "You liked your party when you became Guardian. We all did."

"Bet Nightlight didn't." Bunny said by instiant, before clapping a paw over his mouth.

"Who... Who's Nightlight?" Jack said looking around at the others all of whom were avoiding his eyes and answering the question.

"Who's Nightlight?" he tried again standing up now to show he wanted an answer.

"Nightlight was an... Old friend, Jack," North said sighing in defeat. "He used to be Man in Moon's bodyguard. He had just been named Guardian and was having party... When Pitch... 'Crashed?' it and since he was after Manny, but Nightlight was sworn to protect him, he sacrificed himself to save Manny to defeat Pitch and hasn't been seen, or heard of since." North finished slight tears in his eyes mixing in with his beard.

Jack was only speechless, which didn't happen often.

"But... But couldn't Manny of stopped Pitch by himself?" Jack asked after five minutes, after getting the story into his head.

"Jack, Manny, wasn't always the 'Man' in the Moon, you know," Tooth said her fairy's on her shoulders all with small handkerchiefs blowing their noses.

"Huh?"

"She's saying Manny was a baby when this happened," Bunny said turning around to face the confused Winter Spirit. "And his parents couldn't do anything, because they were taking care of the Nightmare's and Fearlings outside."

"And not to say I don't believe you guys..." Jack started looking to the others. "But how do you know all this if it happened when he was a baby?"

North, Tooth, and Bunny all just silently turned to Sandy, who was pretending to be asleep, not wanting any part in this.

Just then the light's on the globe started flickering making Jack and Tooth jump off, to see what was going on.

After a few minutes a shadow went around the room disappearing as quickly as it came and all the light's returned to normal.

"Er... What was that?" Jack asked holding his staff in his fighting position.

"I do not know," North said looking all around. "But something very bad is about to happen. I feel it... In my belly."

Suddenly there was a ringing of a bell and everyone turned to Sandy who dropped the elf, and pointed to the window where the moon was shining through.

"Ah Man in Moon," North said smiling. "Sandy. Why didn't you say something?"

Sandy just rolled his eyes and returned to his eggnog having a good idea what this was about.

"What is news old friend?" North said moving over to the Guardian's crest on the floor where Manny was shining his moonlight.

On the crest words appeared, almost as if someone was writing it down. Once it was finished it shone brightly and the moonlight left.

"What was that about?" Bunny asked moving forward first to get his sight back.

"Guys you might want to see the message," Tooth said looking at it and backing away a bit.

All the men moved forward and looked down to see what got into her and had the same reaction.

Jack Frost. Your life is in danger.

The true enemy you, my children, have been fighting all these years, is not Pitch Black, but the Darkness itself.

In defeating Pitch, unfortunately you have released someone much worse.

Someone, who is only after one person, one Guardian, one beloved friend. Nightlight.

But I do not think the Darkness knows of Nightlight being missing for centuries. But he remembers what he looked liked, and how he behaved.

My children you must do all you can to protect Jack Frost from the Darkness, for - apart from some minor things, he is the splitting image of Nightlight. The Guardian that destroyed him to protect me.

MiM

After everyone was done reading, no one had anything to say and just looked between Jack, shock written on his face, and Sandy, who was still over at the table with the elves and yetis.

"Hey Sandy!" Bunny called over to the small golden man, who looked up. "What's it mean Jack's the 'splitting image of Nightlight'?"

Sighing, putting down his cup, and telling the others to calm down, Sandy got up and shuffled through his golden robes until he found an old picture, and floated over and handed it to Jack.

It was a family picture of a man and woman, both in long white robes and smiles holding a baby in their arms. But they weren't who Sandy was pointing at.

On the far left stood a boy, about the size and look of a late teenager. A boy in black armor holding a staff with a diamond dagger on the end, white hair and green eyes.

And on the far right stood Sandy smiling at the camera.

"This is Nightlight?" Jack asked passing the picture on for the others to see going back and forth to spot the similarities. Sandy just nodded a small sad smile on his round face.

"So..." Jack said tighening his grip on his staff knowing he was going where he shouldn't. "So what happened to him?" But all Sandy did was shake his head as if saying, it wasn't his story to tell.

"Wow," Bunny said making Jack jump a bit "You really do look like him mate. Well 'cept for the staff, and the outfit, and the eyes. But wow."

Tooth was floating over the crest to read the message again.

"And what does it mean 'True enemy?" she asked turning to Sandy who was tucking the picture away.

Tapping his chin, Sandy was thinking of a way to tell Pitch's story to the others, for it was too long, and to ... exciting ... for him to say it with dream sand alone. Then it hit him.

Turning to North, Sandy created the letter 'G' and then a book and a '?' asking if he could look at the book of Guardians.

North went off to his office to receive it, leaving behind a bouncy Sandy happy with his idea, and Tooth, Bunny and Jack all confused re-rereading the message until North came back and gave the book to Sandy, who flipped through it only to stop suddenly shock on his face.

"What's wrong Sandy?" Tooth said seeing him first.

Sandy just handed the book over to her and pointed at the spine where paper was sticking out all jagged and rough.

"Someone's ripped out the pages Sandy wanted to show us." Tooth said for him.

"We do not need to worry about that," North said coming over taking the book back. "What we do need to worry about is this Darkness. So," he said turning around with the others all facing Jack, who was playing with his staff - freezing an elf in the process, "Until we have better idea on what we're up against... You are grounded Jack Frost."

"What?" Jack asked now paying attention.

"You are to not leave the Pole." North said in a fatherly voice and manner, "No excuses. Conversation over." he said going back to his office completely forgetting, along with the others about Jack's party.