When I woke up this morning, my room was so bright that it hurt my eyes. It was weird, because my room was usually the second darkest room in the Pole, second to Kathryn.
And there she was again.
I don't think I've gone five minutes without thinking about her again and again. I missed her, I guess. I missed the beautiful, scary girl with the hot temper and the reckless grin. I missed the way her fangs would poke out if she smiled enough. I missed Zero.
The poor dog had been in Kathryn's room the whole time she's been gone, since he cannot leave unless she summons him. It's been four days since she had left him. I would go up and feed him occasionally, but Zero was getting more and more docile, and less active. Most likely because being away from Kathryn for so long, he was losing the energy she gave him.
Before I could get up to wonder why the room was so bright, the answer appeared before me. The Man in the Moon appeared. Instead of being grateful to see him again, I turned, swearing to myself.
"What do you want?" I asked bitterly.
He held out his hands, as if he were taming a wild animal. "Jack, you have to listen to me." he said.
"Why?" I snapped. "Why the hell should I?"
"Just, listen. I know you're mad at me for what you thought I said to Kathryn," he said. "I know you're mad that she's gone, but you have to listen to me! It wasn't me! It was Pitch! He knew of the bond that was forming between the six of you, and he knew that it was only getting stronger as each day passed. He needed to break you guys apart. He knew that Kathryn's powers are tied to her emotions, so she is weak now. She is vulnerable enough that it is easier to persuade her."
I paused, and tuned my head slowly. I sighed. "Let's go get the others." I said.
. . .
"It's a convincing story, and we believe you, but we've already looked for Kathryn. We've even checked the tunnels under the Palais. So unless she's turned into Rodney Skinner, she's gone and disappeared." Bunnymund said.
The Man in the Moon nodded. "I know, and I'm working on tracking her down." he said. "It's going to take a bit longer than I thought, but I'm worried that Pitch will get to her first."
"Wait, if we can't find Kathryn, then how is Pitch going to find her first?" Tooth asked.
The Man in the Moon sighed, and leaned up against the table. He held his head in his hand for a minute, and then looked up.
"There - There is a tie between Kathryn and Pitch, much stronger than the one I share with her. It has caused their paths to cross time and time again. They have a special connection that is nearly unbreakable. Pitch knows every time that Kathryn uses her powers, and Kathryn can track Pitch whenever he uses his powers, albeit she has never tried." he explained.
"How?" I asked, stepping forward.
He sighed again. "There is something... I was hoping none of you would never have to know. I was hoping to keep it a secret from all of you, especially her, for as long as I could. But I am afraid that she may already know." he said. "Pitch is my... brother. Kathryn's father."
. . .
I silently moved over to the three pumpkins on my shelf, curious of what I saw. Two of their flames had gone out, but that wasn't what I was curious about. I had charmed the pumpkins to be alarms. The pumpkin without eyes was glowing bright and furiously, but I didn't know what this could mean.
"So this is how you ended up, hey?"
I growled, suddenly understanding why it was glowing. A threat I couldn't see... "What do you want?" I asked.
