Fist of all, I would just like to say that I've already published the first chapter (Prologue) in my other account (FrostcupFanfictionForever), so please don't comment "Hey, I think you're being Copywrited", and I'll be all like, "Woah, yikes, whoever you are, that's just my other account!" That would be so humiliating for both of us. So, this is the prologue, and I love the story behind this, but I think I could have worded some parts better.

Shoutout to Sandman, who inspired this whole thing with a few hundred dreams. Yes, I believe in Sandman, don't hurt me! (Hides behind Jack) So, let's begin... (Oh, and also, this is in Jack's point of view for the whole time, so don't be confused by the different perspectives, they are meant to represent flashbacks, not people's different views.)

"JACK!" Little did I know that would be the last I heard of the Guardians for a thousand years. By the time they had found me, they were long forgotten. Lost in all the terrible memories of the thousand years I had spent with Pitch. When he first captured me, I had struggled against my bonds. Now, I knew there was no point. At first, I had endured it for the Guardians. When I forgot about them, I did it for the Man in the Moon. He wouldn't want me to give up this easily. Never. He was the one Guardian I did remember. And I didn't want to fail him too.

I never wanted to go out this easily. For 40 years, I fought Pitch, trying with all my might to escape, or fight back. But after that, I knew there was nothing for me, even if I managed to escape. Pitch's nightmare would track me down and most likely kill me, if not worse. If you asked me a thousand years ago what I thought of the phrase "A fate worse than death", I would have laughed it off, saying, "There's no such thing!" But now I know I was wrong.

As I hung loosely from the chains, I took another ragged breath, then another. It hurt to breathe this deeply, but I had to, to make sure I was alive. Groaning, I held my head low as Pitch entered the dark, cavernous room. I took my hits, no longer waiting for the pain to end, now thinking about how much I deserved it. I made myself stop for a second, and Father Time himself seemed to go to sleep. Pitch was just standing there, looking at me in anger. I braced myself for the hits that would come of this. They rained down on me in a storm of pain. I screamed sadly, no longer willing to hold the pain inside me. That was one of the only times I used my voice. Now, it was only used for screaming in pain or crying in anguish. I didn't talk. It was useless, and Pitch would beat me even more if I did. This was my life, for a thousand years before help came. Even then, I still didn't think I wanted it. Oh, how wrong I was.

The rescue came on a day better than normal. Pitch had decided to give the children of the world nightmares, so I was alone. Voices crept into the room before the people themselves did.
"Bunny! You've gotta be quieter!" Bunny? Who was Bunny? And why did they sound familiar?
"You try having a million eggs swarming you every day of the week! You get used to taking heavy steps! Have some tolerance, mate!"
"Tooth is right. Quiet is good." There was a soft ziiing! sound after that, then the sound of everyone agreeing.

A rabbit's face appeared in front of mine, and I pressed myself against the wall, trying with all my might not to hyperventilate in panic. My eyes widened in fear, and I shrank back. The rabbit looked at me in sorrow.
"Crikey. What has he done to you?" I cocked my head curiously, then scolded myself for it. What if he saw my curiosity as a weakness? He could kill me! I looked him up and down, levelling out my breath. "Hey, Jack." I was stunned, for lack of a better word. How did this bunny know my name? He must have seen my confusion because he tried to explain himself. "Hey, mate! You remember me, don't you?" He was familiar, but I couldn't quite put my finger on where I had seen him before. I shook my head. "I-I'm Bunny! Y-you used to call me Kangaroo to tick me off, but I knew you were just playing around!" He was close to tears now. I gave him another shake of my head, then a reassuring look.

A hummingbird-lady appeared from behind him, and I'm sure I jumped a foot in the air. She looked worriedly at me - why did all these strangers care so much? - and tried speaking to me. Her voice was soft and soothing, but I knew better.
"Hey, Jack! Hey! Don't be scared! W-we're here to help you!" She moved to put her hand on my shoulder, and I flinched, terrified of this woman. The fear within my features was more than obvious, and I was wary of that. The fairy-woman turned to the six-foot bunny. "He's so small... so thin! How did he make it?" A huge, immediately intimidating man walked in.
"Jack! So good to see you!" His voice was thickly Russian, but I didn't know why I remembered that. I turned and ran, before tripping over a random chunk of wood and falling heavily to the ground. Blood poured out of my nose and mouth, along with my arms and back, from the previous beating. I heard muffled gasps behind me, and I yelped in pain when I realised my leg was broken. The bone was sticking out of the skin, and I sucked in a breath through gritted teeth. That was going to be hard to walk on. But I could manage.

I stood up, not wanting to show any more weakness. I froze the skin over my leg to hide the protruding bone. The people who had been with me a moment ago stood in front of me, and the tall Russian had his arms crossed. I smiled sheepishly. The bunny stepped forward.
"Mate, you're coming with us." I had no choice in the matter. They dragged me along with them, giving me worried looks whenever I made the slightest reaction to the excruciating pain in my leg. They walked over to a sleigh, and my jaw dropped. Six reindeer were harnessed to the huge red vehicle, and they did not look friendly to visitors.

I shook my head, pushing off my bad leg (whoops) to get up in the air.
"Yes, mate, we know you can fly," Bunny rolled his eyes at this, which stung me, "but you need to stay in the sleigh. You won't be able to keep up with us otherwise." I slumped, defeated, then hopped in. My bad foot landed on the floor first, and I screwed up my face in pain. The fairy touched my shoulder, and I jumped right out of the sleigh. My bad leg, wanting to punish me, gave out underneath me and I collapsed. My nosebleed was more steady now, and it was coming faster. Groaning, I silently begged Wind to take me anywhere, as long as it was away from these creeps. I moaned as he realised I would be going back to Antarctica. Where all this shit began. Great. Just perfect.

I landed in a pile of fresh snow, trying to bury myself in it. I was suddenly pulled up by Wind, and I screamed, confused. Near to where I had been lying, a huge ice sculpture towered over everything around it, including me. I held back a shiver. Black grains of something like sand were intertwined within its frozen blades. A younger version of myself was standing in front of Pitch. I held my breath, suddenly terrified. Suddenly, Pitch broke Past-Me's staff, and he cried out. Memories of that day, and everything else to do with the Guardians flooded into my head, and most of my teeth suddenly had an aching feeling in the background. What? What's going on? I pushed the thoughts out of my mind as I watched on. Pitch blasted a blast of nightmare sand into me, and I crashed into the nearby glacier. I remembered this. It was a memory. One of the kindest ones I had of Pitch these days.

I felt nauseous as I looked down on Pitch smirking at my fall into the trench. I set down next to the sculpture. When I saw Pitch walk toward me, I tensed, until he walked right through me. I never in thought I'd be relieved to feel, or rather not feel, that. I knelt next to my past self, tears streaming down my new face. I watched as a thousand years ago, I found a comfortable spot to lean, nearly in tears, against the glacier. I felt myself welling up, but I couldn't do anything. This was a memory, I was reminded of that the hard way.

I compared myself to me a thousand years ago. He looked way better, and by that I mean healthier, than me. His weight, for one thing, was stable, and you couldn't see the sharp definition of his ribs against his strained skin. His hip bones didn't stick out either, and his arms and legs had something other than skin and bone on them. His eyes weren't as sunken as mine, and his cheekbones weren't so unnaturally sharp. His jumper didn't hang on his shoulders like it was too baggy, or in my case, I was too skinny. He had more (not by much) colour in his cheeks and overall skin tone. I felt nauseous again as I compared his healthy body to my malnourished, half-dead one. What had Pitch done to me?

I went to touch myself from a Millenium ago, but my hand went right through him. I couldn't even imagine that this boy was me from my past. I gritted my teeth as the memories took their rightful places in my brain. The pain was intensifying. I felt tears freeze against my pale cheek. Sleighbells rand in the air above me, and I fled quickly. Bunny (I knew his name now) grabbed my wrist, and I held my breath as I was jerked back. He winced, apologising under his breath. I heard him. I touched his shoulder, giving him a reassuring look to tell him yet again, "Hey, it's okay, I'm okay. You don't need to worry." North got out of the sleigh, but I was no longer afraid of him. Instead, I smiled as the Guardians came to take me home. Home. I liked the sound of that.

But how long would it last?

So, I thought I'd be kind and leave you with one of my best friends, the Cliffhanger. Okay, okay, you hate me for it, but Chapter 1 is coming soon readers! If you've bothered to read this, I would just like to say I love you all! Anyone who's bothered to read my stories is a friend of mine, if you're not already. Okay, since this is (looks at calendar) Monday, April 27th, 2020, I'm going to release a new chapter every second Monday. I know you guys might be hanging out for it (maybe), but remember, I need time to come up with it, write it down, edit it and have the fucking patience to wait for my crap internet to let me publish it. I'll tell you if I plan on releasing it earlier or later, to the day, although I doubt I'll have any idea what time, so don't ask.