A certain fairy hovered above a large dirt circle in the middle of a clearing. It was just on the cusp of summer and the grass was fully grown. But for reasons that only existed in the dark, nothing grew on this patch of earth.

'Why did I even come here….This was a stupid idea...' Tooth sighed irritably before she touched down gently next to the closed portal and remembered the events of the past month.
-~-~-~-~-~-~

It had only been a day. A day full of celebration in the company of her friends after a hard won battle. Everyone was all smiles and laughter, as if everything in the past couple days had been forgotten. But this was not true.

Tooth smiled and laughed with the rest of them, rejoicing of course that the war was over and everything was back to normal. But she couldn't forgot the look on the Nightmare Kings face when he was pulled into the earth by his own black horses….The pure horror and terror in his eyes. The image was ingrained in her head.

She remembered glancing over to her companions, trying to keep the horror off her face. North and Bunnymunnd watched intently with a small smirk while Sandy uncharacteristically watched with a blank expression. The only one that seemed to share her feeling was Jack. It was hard to tell while he was watching the seen in awe. But at every scream Pitch let out as he was being dragged away the frost spirit seemed to cringe.

She told herself that he deserved it. After all he had done? Almost killing Sandy! Kidnapping her fairies! But still...she couldn't help the tiny feelings of remorse at how things turned out drifting through her head. Maybe this was just her compassion showing through. Even for the enemy...

"Are you ok?"

Jacks voice pulled her from her thoughts. "Ah- Yes! Of course!" Her voice was cheery as she gave him a bright smile.

The party continued around her. North and Bunny bantering as the yeti's gabbered around the workshop. Sandy was well into the eggnog and elves skittered around their feet, dancing foolishly to the Christmas carols playing. The music choice was of course North's, his house his rules, after all.

The frost spirit smiled back at her unsurely and narrowed his eyes. "You sure? Looks like you were in your own little world."

"I'm fine Jack. Just worrying about how my fairies are getting along without me...it's been a long day after all!" She spoke quickly and cheerfully. Perhaps it was time to get back to work. Maybe the steady normality of daily life would help her forget...

"Whatever you say..." Jack didn't seem satisfied with her answer but changed the topic anyway. The conversation was pleasant the rest of the night and with only minimal interruptions from the Nightmare King in her head.

As the days passed and things calmed down life went completely back to normal. Things were quiet. No black sand...only the normal everyday nightmare that was quickly quelled by Sandy. The Guardians continued on without a thought spared for the Lord of fear...all except Tooth. She had hoped that the drone of reality would banish her thoughts of him. But as the days passed she couldn't help but worry more often. Where WAS Pitch? Even before his little takeover scheme there were always sightings of NightMares; creatures skittering through the dark...of something in the shadows...but not now. Had something really terrible happened to him? Was it their fault?

Tooth's mind raced even as she watched over her legion of fairies hard at work. Her tail flicked as she finally touched down with a sigh and perched on the side of the tower, head in her hands. She yawned; maybe she was working a little TOO hard to try and distract herself.

Before her eyes were able to slip closed for a nap, a tap on her shoulder startled her into a hover. She turned quickly in the air hands at the ready to defend herself when she realized it was just Sandy.

"You startled me! I was...just going to take a little nap..." She smoothed the feathers on the back of her head, speaking sheepishly as the golden man just raised an eyebrow. "But of course you knew that..." She smiled and giggled a little before speaking again. "Sorry...go on."

The Sandman then launched into a series of barely understandable pictures and gestures about current events that caused the fairy to frown. His final image was that of a NightMare. They were starting to be spotted again….

This news made Tooth's blood boil as she thanked Sandy nicely for the update and saw him off. How DARE that shadowy bastard make her feel concern about him when he was just right back to his old tricks. All of the hours she spent worrying that he was maybe dead. URG! It just made her so mad!

Without thinking she took off. There was nothing more that she wanted to do at that moment than give the Nightmare King a piece of her mind.

-~-~-~-~-~-~-~
In a spurt of anger she stomped on the ground, huffing out a breath. But before she was even able to comprehend what was happening the ground beneath her feet no longer existed. In the blackness her wings caught the air and she hovered, waiting for her eyes to adjust.
It was a cavernous room, lit by shafts of light from unknown sources, bathing the walls in shadow. Every so often the shadows moved and the glowing eyes of a nightmare could be seen.
Suddenly nervous, Toothiana swallowed her fear and began her decent into the depths of the dark cavern. Cautiously the fairy flittered into the next room keeping constant guard in case one of the shadows attacked her.
Her eyes widened when they took in the sights. It was brighter in here… and from a dark unseen ceiling hung about a dozen gothic cages, an eerie fog swirling around and through them. This cavern was much larger than the last and broken up by many stone bridges crossing the great expanse leading to black gaping doors to shadow in the walls.
But what drew Tooth's attention more than anything was the globe; the globe that looked so similar but yet so different to the one at the North Pole. As she flew near it she tried to remember why she had come in the first place. To find Pitch…to….
The tooth fairy touched down on the ground in front of the globe and softly bit her lip. What WAS she planning on saying to Pitch? Now that she had arrived, all of her previous anger had deserted her, leaving only uncertainty and nervousness.

A whinny in the darkness quickly drew her from her thoughts. She had been so transfixed by the globe that she hadn't even noticed the growing amount of NightMares monitoring her progress from the shadows. They melded in and out of the dark and each other with sinister grunts and the clip clop of hooves on stone that set her on edge. A soft sound behind her caused her to jump into the air and spin around, wide eyed and ready for a fight.
Her breath hitched in her throat when she realized what she was seeing. Pitch.

The man seemed thinner than normal, his lanky, battered frame collapsed against a large stone. The dark robe he wore was in tatters and hung off one shoulder to showcase a pattern of ugly bruises across his gray skin. A blood so dark it looked black trickled from his mouth as his head lolled back, his sunken eyes closed.

Tooth covered her mouth with both hands as she approached the fallen being slowly. Her chest tightened when she was close enough to truly assess the damage. Never before had she seen him so vulnerable….Here she had come here thinking that he was commanding the NightMares when really it was what she had feared all along. How long had he been like this? Her brows drew together in worry as she knelt down beside him. Slowly and gently she reached out and took the fragile hand resting on the stone floor. Pitches suddenly eyes shot open and a yelp of terror escaped before he deftly rolled from the rock and melded into the shadows. The movement was so quick that it left Tooth staring at a barren stone with an outstretched hand.
Slowly she stood, eyes darting around the room. There were many sets of eyes watching her…but none of them belonged to who she was looking for. After a couple of patient yet nerve wracking minutes a quiet voice echoed though the cavern.

"Y-you…" The fairy felt another pang in her chest at the raspy, broken voice. Was this really the same man they had fought earlier that year? "Why have you come…to see for yourself how far I've fallen?….or to finish me off…"

Tooth frowned sadly, eyes finally distinguishing where the voice was coming from. Pitch was clinging to the side of the globe for support, trying to hide his lanky frame in the shadows. "No…I….I…" She took a small step towards him "I just want to help…" Really? Was she really going to help the guardian's worst enemy?

At her words Pitch laughed, the echoing sound holding only sorrow and sarcasm. "You!? Help me!?" He stopped to cough roughly before continuing. "Why would you care about me? Stop being ridiculous and tell me why you're-" His words cut off with a yelp and the fairy could just make out the weak frame collapse The blur of a NightMare dart back into the shadows.
Quickly and without thinking Tooth rushed to the Nightmare Kings side. He was now on his knees, doubled over, thin arms wrapped around his body.
Cautiously and gently she placed a hand on a thin, quivering shoulder but was shrugged off immediately.

"Either kill me or LEAVE." The word resonated though out the cave and was answered by multiple whinnies in the darkness that made Tooth shiver. She glanced around the room only to see the dark horses darting through the air, now disregarding the shadows entirely. Their burning eyes seemed to be focused on the pair crouched in the darkness.
At the hostile sounds around them the man looked up at her for the first time. The silvery golden eyes were dull and pained, holding nothing but sorrow and great fear. With her lips pressed into a straight line she hardened her resolve. No one deserved to be tossed to the nightmares….not even her enemy…even if the others would argue that he deserved it.

In a quick movement she grabbed hold of the other, wrapping her arms around him and took off at full speed before he was even able to cry out in protest. He was much lighter than she imaged he would be, then again, all she could feel under the arms circling him was skin and bone. He had always been thin, but never like this….
Even as they flew she could feel Pitch struggling, gasping and grunting, all the while trying to wriggle out of her arms. "I'm saving you from them, stop struggling!" She let out a cry of exasperation and finally dropped him onto his feet when they reached the room she had first entered into.
Miraculously the Nightmare king kept his balance as he stumbled towards her, jabbing an accusing finger into her chest.

"I did not ask for your assistance. Can you not just leave me in peace?" He winced and grabbed his side where she had held him. A pang of regret ran through her. Maybe it hadn't been the best idea to grab him when he's so injured….

"Look at you, Pitch! You need help…" Her voice trailed off when she noticed the Nightmares rushing through the entrance they had come from into the shadows of this cave. A few darted close to them before back into the mass of moving black forms. Time to go…
At the sight of the swirling black mass the man seemed almost petrified with fear and it took the fairy tugging his hand to get him moving towards the shaft of light that was the exit.

"I can't…." He huffed in between words "Run….." It was true. With Pitches slow, injured gait, it didn't take long for the NightMares to catch up and dart into their path. Tooth stopped abruptly, turning towards her unwitting companion just in time for his momentum to carry him straight into her hovering form. Both of them stood their unmoving and shocked for a moment trying to comprehend that their lips were now pressed together.
Tooth darted backward, a mix of emotion, although mostly embarrassed and flustered. Any other time she would start babbling but there were more important matters to deal with then a little….accident like that.
Her eyes darted around the NightMares that were getting even more riled up before looking back to Nightmare King. Something was wrong. His eyes were wide and unseeing, almost glassy. His expression was a mix of a confusion, surprise and sorrow. His mouth hung slightly open, showing a row of jagged crooked teeth that made her cringe.

"….Pitch?"

-
The first emotion upon seeing the feathery guardian in his lair had not been anger but a mix of relief and confusion. To see another person…To know that he wasn't entirely forgotten by the world and just left to his fate.

After the NightMares had dragged him down and sealed the entranced there had been nowhere to hide. He was too weak to fight so the only thing he could do was succumb to their attacks. They smelt his fear, his weakness. They resented him for it; his powerlessness.
It seemed that only when he stopped moving and stayed completely silent did they leave him alone. The assaults became less frequent when they somehow managed to slip out of the underground and continue their job, working separately from him. But even then…sometimes they attacked anyway, leaving him broken and unconscious somewhere. It was from one of those beatings that the soft hand of Toothiana had woken him.

When he finally came to his senses and the initial relief of seeing her passed, he realized that there must be some reason she came. To taunt him perhaps? No….she wasn't the type. Gain knowledge? To see if he was controlling the NightMares work and stop him?

And then she dared to say she wanted to help him. LIES. No one wanted to help him. No one cared about him, the Nightmare King. If he disappeared no one would mourn…no one would even notice.

When she picked his battered and bruised body off the ground to safety, however, he start to doubt himself. And that just made him angry. He lashed out at her and STILL she persisted in trying to help. By then he didn't really care. His body was sore and tired, each breath coming out in a labored rasp, yet still he ran. The last thing he expected was for her to stop short and couldn't do anything to stop his collision with her. His last coherent thought was the realization that his dry, cracked and bloody lips were pressed to hers.

It was like a dam breaking; a wall crumbling. His previous life flooded back to him as images flashed before his eyes. Emotions, faces, voices…. "Daddy…"
Of a brave man; a general in fact, leading an army of light against the dark; fighting valiantly on the side of good to vanquish the fearlings.
Of a loving Father, making a promise to his beloved daughter that he would rid the world of the darkness to protect her….to return to her.
Of a weary man, guarding the gates of the captive fearlings day in and day out without fail, setting longing eyes upon the picture of a daughter he hadn't seen in ages and wanted to return to.
Of the crafty evil creatures using that love against him, tricking him to open their prison.
Of the fearlings that rushed into his body, twisting his mind and heart into darkness, bending him to their will. Of the man that he once was.
General Kozmotis Pitchiner.

-
Tooth flitted around her now almost frozen companion. He had been like this for a couple minutes now; minutes that dragged on and on when you have NightMares watching your every move. She whimpered, clutching her hands together nervously as the dark horses suddenly became more agitated.
She glanced quickly to Pitches face but was suddenly transfixed by what she saw. Tears ran down his gray skin and his previous expression had changed to one of horror, regret and lose. But perhaps the most shocking change was his eyes. No longer were they a dull silvery gold, but a striking bronze gold that shone brighter than Sandmans. In this case they shone with tears.

"…Pitch..?" She asked again quietly and was rewarded with those tear filled eyes darting to meet hers. He opened his mouth to speak but only a breathy sob escaped. He shook his head, eyes darting away and then back to search her face. His mouth was still open as if to speak when suddenly a scream escaped him.
The lanky man dropped to his knees and covered his head with both arms, doubling over as a darkness poured from his body. Black and twisting it slithered away from the body it had just exited to meld with the shadows. But still, Pitch screamed.
Now quite terrified Tooth began backing away, flying upwards slightly. What was going on…?
The NightMares took this opportunity to swarm him, giving Tooth just enough room to dart up and out of the way. She looked down at the roiling mass of black with a horrified expression when suddenly a voice boomed from within it.

"Listen to me now! You MADE ME and I shall COMMAND YOU." This was not the voice of the man she had been speaking with previously. It sounded like Pitch, yes, but…..different….

From the corner of her eye she caught the movement of an inky mass forming to her left and suddenly felt the crushing sensation of fear. As its body took shape it didn't take long to figure out that this was no NightMare. It was much bigger; it's eyes burning red as it stared at her. In some odd way it could be compared to a dog or perhaps a jungle cat.
Tooth quickly darted to the exit, wings beating faster than she thought possible. All previous thoughts were now only taken by the need to escape the creature; for self-preservation. But it was fast and on her tail in a matter of seconds.

With a squeak of terror she braced herself to be ripped to shreds. Unexpectedly a black scythe was brought down upon the creatures back causing it to liquefy into shadows again. The man who wielded it was jumped through the air towards her.
Tooth's wide, fear filled eyes followed the scythe as she then braced for impact but it did not come. Instead, it turned and cut down three NightMares that were rushing her from the left. She stared at his face, transfixed. He appeared to still be injured; his robe still in tattered, his body still bruised…yet his features held a look of pained determination and his eyes an heir of nobility and honor. The Nightmare King grit his crooked teeth as he swung his massive weapon to protect her yet again.

"Go!" The urgency in his voice brought her out of her daze. "FLY! LEAVE QUICKLY!" The roar of the shadows rising towards them almost drowned out the words.

"Not without you!" She yelled back. Was this man really Pitch Black?

In one swift movement he was right next to her, their eyes meeting for a minute before he used his upward momentum to throw her towards the exit. She watched helplessly as he then plummeted back down toward the moving shadows, weapon at the ready.
With a pained expression and no choice but to leave Tooth made it the last few feet through the cavern and out into the light. The Sun had set a while ago and she could feel the Man in the Moons gaze as she collapsed exhaustedly in the grass. Tiredly she crawled over to the hole to look down but a thick black smoke was oozing out; its wisps just reaching above ground before collapsing back into the dark.

Toothiana only stared into the dark, crestfallen and weary. She let her head hang as she tried to figure out how to feel. He had saved her….Pitch had SAVED her….Yet….she couldn't just forget everything he had done. Kidnapping her fairies. Taking over their powers….Trying to kill them….

After about an hour of conflicted thoughts and watching the smoky shadows dance around the entrance she picked herself up off the ground to make the flight home. He was probably gone…dead….no one man could fight off that many NighMares. Not to mention whatever that other creature was.

The fairy sighed sadly. She supposed she should tell the rest of the guardians what she had witnessed.

Author's note:

At this point some things are probably not making sense like Pitch regaining his memories, but fret not! All shall be explained in due time.
Also, I haven't been able to get my grubby little hands on the books yet so unfortunately all I know of Pitches backstory is that which I've read online and what people tell me. SO, there will probably be a LOT that isn't proper and cannon to the books storyline. Let's just say I'm doing my best I can.

Another note. This started as a drabble so that's probably why my writing isn't up to par. As well as the fact that my writing skills have for some reason mysteriously disappeared. It's probably safe to say that I will gain them back as I continue writing.

Not sure how many chapters there are going to be or where I'm even going with this. So I guess it'll be an adventure. ^^