Ashes.

It was a normal day for the Guardians of Childhood. Stories like this always start out casual and quiet. Everyone was doing their jobs, keeping wonder, hope, fun, memories, and dreams in children's lives while anticipating the Guardian Meeting that would occur later that day. When it was time for everyone to venture to the north pole, they were all excited to see each other again. Even Bunny, but he would never actually admit it.

Jack, Tooth, and Sandy were flying and Bunny was navigating his tunnels as North sat on an armchair next to the fireplace close to the globe room. While he was waiting he was going over the naughty and nice list, making sure to check it twice. Just as he finished and closed the lists and put them away, Bunny hopped out of his tunnels next to him.

“Hey mate, how have ya been?”

“Bunny! How nice to see you! I have been good.”

Just then a smiling face entered through a window as golden sand particles fell behind him. The Sandman waved a friendly wave at North and Bunny as the jolly red man’s booming voice conquered all other sounds in the room.

“Sandy! Glad you could make it, with your busy schedule and all.”

Soon after, Jack and Tooth were making their way inside the huge workshop the same way Sandy did, talking to each other and sharing stories seemingly because they had met up on the way there.

“Yes! Jack and Tooth are here! Our meeting shall commence! Follow me and we shall sit on sofas!” North announced.

Everyone took a seat where they felt comfortable. North sat on an armchair to the left of the fireplace, and across from him, Bunny took the armchair to the right of the fireplace. Next to each armchair there was a sofa and right next to North was Tooth sitting on a sofa. On the other side of the room on the other sofa, Sandy was right next to Bunny and Jack was beside Sandy.

“Alright, everyone comfy? Who would like to start on their reports so we can get into the good stuff later?” North asked.

“I will!” Tooth volunteered, “Everything has been going well. My little fairies have been motivated to keep memories in the life of children across the world. Morale couldn’t be higher!”

“Dat is great, Tooth! The children are grateful for you! Who’s next?”

Sandy raised his hand and North nodded at him to share. He made a sign made of dream sand over his head of the peace symbol and a picture of smiling children.

“I see your dreams are still making the children around the world happy.” North added, smiling, “Who’s next?”

“Alrigh’ I’ll go,” Bunny said, “Easter is in a week and preparations are in place. Everything is organized in my Warren so I can find supplies to paint ma googies easier. All of the eggs are almost ready.”

“Das great Bunny! Easter is going to be awesome!” North said but there was a hint of sarcasm in his voice. “But Christmas is going to be better…” he muttered when he thought no one could hear.

“Oi—”

“Anyways, how have you been Jack? Hopefully not too much trouble?”

“Well not too much but yeah, it’s all been good for me. Making all these different snowflakes is so fun! It’s like- I barely even do it! Like how I don’t do breathing, like– breathing just happens, you know? Winter is going to be at its best this year.”

“Ooh, very exciting! Can’t wait for winter…and Christmas time!”

Everyone else rolled their eyes at North’s antics but grinned, showing their admiration for the holly jolly soul.

“For me, Yeti’s are getting all kinds of unique ideas for special presents this upcoming Christmas. The children will be delighted, I think they’ll love it!”

“Of course they will, North. Christmas is always an awaited day. As is Easter.” Tooth reassured.

Suddenly there was a siren blaring from the globe room that made the Guardians jump in surprise and rush over. The lights on the globe were all blinking. It only took a small amount of time to realize that a lot of the lights were going out. The Guardians looked at North in confusion.

“North, what's going on right now?! What does all of this mean?” Jack yelled over the sirens.

“They’re for when children are in danger and when too many lights are going out!” North yelled back.

“Is it Pitch?!” Bunny questioned.

“If it was Pitch, we would have found out because he’d probably come to gloat about his plan!” Jack answered.

“Or cover the globe with his nightmare sand!” Tooth agreed.

Soon, the sirens stopped banging on their eardrums and it seemed so silent that you would hear a pin drop.

“I disabled the alarm but look what I found.” North said, pulling up a video on a screen in front of them.

The sight was horrifying. Someone was filming playing with her daughter outside when suddenly the little girl in front of her started to turn to dust and ash. The Guardians watched as the mother panicked, not knowing what to do and she got up and looked around to see cars crashing and other people turning to dust just like her young daughter. Soon, even the mother who was filming was being reduced to ash. She panicked, and soon the phone fell to the ground and the video ended, indicating that she was gone.

No one spoke for a while after seeing the video because of the absolute shock they were in.

“That’s not real…” Tooth denied, “It can’t be!”

Before anyone could answer her, she felt a tingling spread across her body mixed with a sharp pain that felt like someone was trying to rip her atoms apart. She looked down to her hand to see that it was slowly disintegrating.

“Maybe it is.” She said, and barely a second later everyone looked at her and noticed as she slowly ceased to be.

“No…Tooth no please! Not you!” Jack protested as tears started to prick at everyone’s eyes in panic. This couldn't possibly be real…could it?

Tooth didn’t know what to say to ease Jack’s mind so she just put a hand on his cheek and gave him a teary smile. Jack closed his eyes for a second and once he opened them, she wasn’t there. Jack looked around to see Sandy suffering the same fate as Tooth just did.

“Sandy please not you too…not again…” North pleaded and tried to reach out to him as Jack’s tears froze and fell and as Bunny stood in shock and grief.

No…

There was nothing they could do though. Because now, Sandy is gone yet again.

“I can’t believe this is happening!” North said. “How many more of us?!” North shouted to the sky as if the one responsible could hear him. Like how Jack would yell at the moon. It was as if they did because seconds later North noticed himself disappearing into dust.

“Aw…come on…” Santa Claus said and made eye contact with his friends’ wide eyes.

“Steady North, please.” Bunny said in a surprisingly calm tone but also with a plea.

North’s eyes twinkled as he grabbed the hands of his two friends, “This is crazy and very unexpected but there is a bright side though right?”

“How could there be?” Jack sniffled, his eyes teary. He didn’t want to be alone again.

“There’s always a bright side. In this case, at least we were all together and didn’t have to do this alone. And I know you can find a way out,” he smiled.

Then the pressure of North holding onto them disappeared into the air.

Jack glared at the ground. “How can- how can they all be so okay with this? They’re gone! Who knows what even happened, and yet they have the power to say it’s okay and that there is a bright side…how?”

The Winter Spirit then gained enough courage to look up at the Guardian of Hope just to see him slowly disappearing. As if Jack wasn’t heartbroken enough, this was the last straw. He really didn’t want to be alone again.

“No. No no nonono Bunny please! I don’t want you to go!” Jack stumbled and latched his arms around the pooka. “Please don’t leave me! I-I don’t wanna be alone again.” His voice broke, “I promise I won’t call you kangaroo anymore, I won’t freeze any of your stuff or break anything or play any pranks or get on your nerves anymore! Just please don’t leave me Bunny!”

Bunny hadn’t noticed all the tears that leaked out of his own eyes as this little brother of his held onto him like a lifeline, pleading for him to stay even though Bunny didn’t have any clue on what was going on in the first place. Knowing that his little winter spirit was going to be alone again broke his heart and just made him hold on tighter to Jack. He felt helpless.

“Listen Jackie, It’s scary and complicated, I know. But you are smart and you are brave. If there’s anyone who can figure this out and fix it, it’s you, mate. You got this. It’s all going to be alright, you are going to be alright. I believe in you, Jack…”

Just like that his family was gone. Right after he finally realized that they truly were his family. Now all he was hugging was air and ashes.

Ashes.

Ashes were all that was left of his family. What made everything worse was the fact that they had no idea how this happened in the first place. Their only suspect couldn’t even be responsible for this and probably wouldn’t even attempt something to this extent. So how was it even possible? It was also happening to billions of other people. Jack had a feeling that this was the start of a falling out and people giving up.

But not him.

Bunny had believed in him. Bunny had trusted him with his life just now before he disappeared. Bunny thought things about Jack that he didn’t even think about himself. All of the Guardians trusted him even though he doesn’t even trust himself. Jack would try his best to save his friends and if he couldn’t he’d find out how and why they aren’t with him right now.

Because if he can’t save the Guardians you can be damn sure he’ll avenge them.

But for now Jack was hugging the ashy remains of someone he internally called his brother to his chest as he took deep, shaky breaths to calm down. Jack fell to his knees and sobbed whispering ‘why’ to himself over and over.

All because he keeps on having to go through this pain of losing his family for the second time. All because something or someone did something so supernatural and drastic that had affected the whole world and according to rumors, the whole universe. All because someone hadn’t been brave enough somewhere. Yes, Jack was making assumptions and accusing people he doesn’t even know but his family had just been taken from him in under five minutes.

His family turned to ash.

Just like that.

And until something was to change it, Jack was alone.

Again.