WARNING: This chapter has a slightly sexual moment near the end, although there is no actual sex.

Elsa felt abnormal. Her memories as a human and her memories as a spirit clashed and it was hard to settle in an identity. The only thing that kept her sane and focused was the thought of saving Jack Frost.

With the destruction of her castle, she and the Guardians regrouped at North's workshop. North was the only Guardian who spoke with her. The others avoided it and evaded having to go near her. Elsa understood and tried to stay out of the Guardians' way as they planned a form of attack. However, she listened in with rapt attention.

"Pitch has to have taken Jack to the same place he took my tooth fairies," Toothiana said and Sandy nodded in agreement.

"But he knows we know about it," Bunnymund objected. "He could be anywhere, hiding in any shadow."

"Pitch will go to where he feels most comfortable," Elsa interjected, somewhat shyly. She had been married to the man for centuries, she was loathe to admit it, but she knew him fairly well. She continued, "Pitch has a stronghold, buried deep underground...the entrance is a massive, undiscovered plague pit in the middle of a forest somewhere in the northern region... The United Kingdom I believe it's called now..."

"A plague pit?" Toothiana questioned in confusion.

"They are products of the Dark Ages," North murmured darkly. "Two-Thirds of Europe's population died during this era and the people had to forgo their usual burial methods and had to put their death in mass graves...in 'plague pits.' This era was when Pitch was strongest; I can't say I'm not surprised that he would use such a thing as the doorway to one of his stronghold."

"He will be stronger there," Bunnymund murmured darkly. "Despite the centuries, the residual emotions and fears from the deceased human remain...It will make Pitch stronger and weaken us."

"We have to risk it," North hissed. "Or else Jack might be lost to us forever."

Within the hour, Elsa was directing the Guardians to the plague pit. They took North's sleigh, despite Bunnymund's protest. Elsa could tell the Guardians were nervous by their hardened expressions and their white-knuckle grips on their various weapons. Though none of them mentioned it, Elsa knew they still must have been weak from their previous encounter with Pitch. He had managed to make all but one child believe in them. The children were starting to believe in them again but it was not to the same extent prior Pitch's attack. Every day they became stronger but it would be a long time until they were back to full strength.

The pit was located in one of the few surviving forests in the UK since the Industrial Revolution. It was overgrown and sat in an area that was usually densely foggy. It always shadowy and thus had always been the subject of many horror stories and malevolent myths. During the Dark Ages, it had been surrounded by over a dozen logging towns and by the end of the era all but one had been totally decimated. The modern day locals thought they found the only plague pit located in the remains of one of the destroyed towns. They did not know that, at the beginning of the plague, the locals had put the first pit deep within the forest to try and keep the infected bodies away from the villages. The second pit was placed closer to the towns when the people became too weak and the bodies became too numerous.

Elsa directed them the entire way. She had never been there personally, having never left the south, but Pitch told her where it was located. He was proud of his pit, it was where he had been born.

They never landed the sleigh but came to a hovering stop right above the pit.

"From this point on we are in Pitch's territory," North informed them. "Everyone be on guard."

Sandy nodded, Bunnymund grunted in agreement, and Toothiana replied with a light, "Yes." North looked to her and Elsa wordlessly lifted Jack's staff at the ready.

North withdrew his sabers then said, "Let's go!"

One by one the Guardians leapt from the sleigh until only Elsa was left. She peered over the edge of the sleigh and into the dark forest below her.

"Please be there," Elsa whispered then jumped from the sleigh. She broke through innumerable branches then landed heavily onto the uneven ground. Tree roots had broken through the soft dirt and had knotted and turned in on themselves above ground. Thanks to the density of the overhead branches, it was near dark on the forest floor. The skulls and bones of plague victims stuck out between the dirt and the roots, glowing in the near dark. The air was heavy with rot and despair.

Elsa looked around then saw the marker for the entrance to Pitch's lair. It was a medieval bed, the framing was old and rotted and made from the same wood as the surrounding forest. The straw mattress was gone and had rotted away centuries past. Beneath it was a shadowed hole in the ground, lined with more bones.

She pointed to it and said, "There."

The Guardians followed her point and saw the entrance.

"Always with the beds," Bunnymund grumbled in annoyance. He was the first to jump in the hole. He was quickly followed by Sandy and Toothiana. Elsa looked to North and saw he was waiting for her.

"Go on," he said, nodding her forward. Elsa jumped in and was immediately immersed in darkness.

She could hear the other Guardians ahead of her, whispering to one another. Bunnymund's massive paws crunched the unseen bones as he walked and Elsa found herself stepping on them as well.

Remembering her power, Elsa created a single snowflake and infused it with winter magic. From her hand, it cast its blue light all around them, hitting all the Guardians and a few feet of the space in front of them.

Everyone but Bunnymund smiled in appreciation. The rabbit's mouth quirked to the side and Elsa assumed that was the closest thing to gratification she was going to get from him.

They made their way through a tunnel that was large enough for everyone to walk through without having to bend over. Tree roots hung overhead like chandeliers and more bones stuck out from the walls and ceilings.

With the light they all made sure to avoid breaking more bones as they went in deeper. The tunnel was in a consent downwards slope and when they could not longer see the entrance the amount of bones doubled. Their progression came to a crawl as the amount quickly tripled.

Bunnymund suddenly came to a stop and cursed loudly. Elsa lifted her light and up ahead all she could see was white bone. The entire tunnel was covered in a thick layer of human remains.

"They are gone," North reminded all of them. "Their suffering is long past but Jack's is not. We need to keep moving forward."

Bunnymund muttered darkly under his breath but took another step forward nonetheless. The bones cracked loudly and Bunnymund growled but kept moving.

Toothiana and Sandy continued to float but cast cheerless gazes down at the numerous dead. Sandy was quiet, as usual, but the space above his head was bare of his usual visual thoughts. They floated past a small skull of a young child and Tooth murmured under her breath, "Poor baby."

Elsa was the next to follow and she cringed as she felt the bones creak and move underneath her step. Behind her North followed closely and the bones crunched under his feet similarly to Bunnymund's.

Without sunlight or conversation, Elsa had no way on knowing how much time they spent climbing down into Pitch's pit. A human would have had to stop for a break or sustenance but since they were spirits they did not need to do either. Elsa guessed a few hours passed before they finally reached the end of the tunnel. The bones never thinned and Elsa knew the pit could not have contained so many. Pitch must have added more to the collection over the centuries.

Bunnymund, Toothiana, and Sandy crowded around the exit until Elsa could step forward with her light. Even with her light in front they could barely see a foot in front of them. She willed more magic into the snowflake and it grew larger to encompass it but, despite its brighter glow, the darkness would not abate.

"I can't make it any brighter," Elsa whispered to the Guardians.

"It will have to do," Toothiana whispered as she flew to Elsa's side. The fairy was layered in shadows and Elsa could not make out her expression. She turned and saw it was equally as hard to make out the other Guardians' features.

"Snow," Pitch's voice washed over her and she flinched back. The Guardians tensed and raised their weapons. A dark shadow rapidly circled them several times then came to a stop right in front of her. Pitch materialized from the shadow and grinned lazily at her. He whispered, "Oh Snow, you should have told me we would be having guests, I would have cleaned up." Pitch's eyes spanned over the Guardians and lips lifted into an evil grin as his eyes glinted with a feral gleam. He hissed, "Let me make your feel more comfortable!" His body expanded and split apart into five different shadowy pieces, each one hitting Elsa and an individual Guardian.

Elsa's light went out and for a few seconds she could hear the Guardians fighting back. Yet their voices were all cut out at once, like someone had snipped the wire to her hearing.

"Pitch?!" She gasped, to see if she could still hear and to try and locate the said spirit.

The shadows around her grew darker and denser and she knew he was trying to trap her. She fought their hold on her but her movements became sluggish in the thick sludge, and soon she could no longer move at all.

"Snow, this is a surprise," Pitch whispered and his cold breath hit the side of her face. Her entire body jerked as she tried to flinch back from his close proximity. His fingers caressed her arm and Elsa inwardly shuddered. She could only see darkness and no inkling of Pitch but he made sure she knew he was there. He kept his hand on her shoulder as he moved behind her then settled his hands on her hips and rested his chin in the crook of her neck. Such an intimate touch made her feel sick.

"Get off me," Elsa hissed.

"Oh, my dear wife," Pitch whispered against her flesh. "Don't you miss me?"

"Never!" She snapped. "Where are the Guardians?! Where's Jack?!"

Pitch chuckled and said, "The Guardians are busying themselves with my shadows and Frost? He's here, in the darkness." He playfully nipped at the large vein in her neck.

"Stop," she all but shrieked. "Stop, stop, stop!"

"But I don't want to," Pitch whispered darkly then dragged his tongue up the side of her neck. Elsa's entire being was instantly overpowered by fear as she imagined what he could do to her.

Pitch moaned in ecstasy when he felt her fear and he rubbed himself against her as he gasped, "Yes!"

Her fear only grew with his exclamation and she realized he was doing this to her on purpose. He wanted to scare her.

Elsa inhaled deeply, trying to calm her nerves. All the while, she could feel Pitch's lips on her flesh and his hands expertly mapping out her body. Such contact was like fuel that added to the flames of her fright.

Her terror was making him stronger and there was nothing she could do to smother it.

A/N: Guys, I am SO sorry. This update is unacceptably late! I completely forgot about the story. I've been so caught up with school and my extracurriculars, I forgot I even had a Wattpad. I will make up for this by posting 4 chapters today. 

Also, what do you guys think of a lemon near the end of the book? If enough people want me to write one, I will. Please leave your vote in the comments!