The Nightmare Of My Dreams

Snow Day pt. 2

Jack   

"Yeah, Mr. Ice-Sand sculpture! Please enlighten us both as to why it is that we are called here today." 

I'm almost afraid to turn around, but the idea of seeing him turns into a need the longer I wait. Apparently, I wasn't the only one eager to see the other. I don't know why either of us would be eager to see the other, but I'm almost grateful when I hear Pitch approaching me. I hear a sigh behind me and then.

 " He never answers me, but I figured if we both had the same question then maybe he'd say something, but no dice."

He stops to my right about three feet away from me and I instinctively switch into a defensive stance. My heart jumps into my throat as I stand there, leaned slightly away from him with my staff aimed in his general direction. 

Pitch gives me an unimpressed look, but he doesn't make a move defend himself. It's then that I really look at him. He doesn't look like himself. His shoulders are hunched and his eyes are tired, they lack their natural shimmer. A shimmer that once scared me, but now it's absence scares me more. What has happened to the Nightmare King?

My questioning gaze gives me away, and he realizes I won't attack him. He steps a foot closer and I feel myself relax, I place my staff on the ground leaning against it slightly. 

He gives me a questioning look before asking," Aren't you scared, Jack?" There's an amused edge to his voice, as if the question is a part of a running joke between us. 

I shrug and answer him truthfully." Not really, I mean I'm more so on guard." 

Surprisingly, I'm actually a little worried for him. He always seemed to hover above the ground and float, but now when he moves he walks at a slow and unstable pace.  

He makes a clicking sound," Ah, yes I saw how on guard, you were just now." He smirks at me as I twirl my staff with one hand. 

I shrug at him again as I look at our sand-ice sculpture." Force of habit, not that you seemed to care." 

 He shrugs back," It's not like I could fight you off. No one is scared of the Boogey man any more. Just another bad dream."  I watch as he conjures a seat for himself with nightmare sand.

 It's simple, but it somehow looks comfortable with an arm rest on both sides. He leans on the right arm wrest with his hand under his chin. He looks me up and down twice, stopping to glance at the sand-ice sculpture, before speaking. "Sorry, did you want to sit as well?" 

I'm a little taken aback by the question, but I manage to balance myself on top of my staff. " I can manage. I haven't seen you around lately, just your mares." 

He seems surprised by my curiosity, but then a new emotion sets on his features. One I can't read. "Tch, even my nightmares no longer have the fearsome power they use to hold."

Oh, I guess he was hurt by that. " Well, when they aren't terrorizing children"-

Pitch interrupts me with a smug look. " You make it sound like such a bad thing."

I give him an unimpressed look, but ignore the statement. "They're quite beautiful creatures, really. I see them by the lake, just aimlessly walking. It's cool to see them, the way they sparkle in the moonlight. I tried to pet one once, it didn't like that."

" I remember that." I give him a confused look, I don't remember seeing him there. 

He gives me a crooked grin." Perhaps you haven't noticed, but I'm not as strong as I use to be. It takes a great deal of energy to be this far from the shadows. When I'm hiding away in my home, I use the Nightmares to see the outside world. I was surprised they let you near them."

I remember being surprised too, but when I stroked the mares mane it snorted at me and ran off. "I was surprised too, I guess they aren't the cuddly type."

" Yes, well they can only be as cuddly as their King. I would have reacted in the same manner if you were to touch my hair without my permission."

"I'll keep that in mind." He quirks his brow at me, but that is the only response. Well, not really his brow, he doesn't have eyebrows. Oh, whatever. 

Suddenly embarrassed by my own thoughts, I jump off my staff ready to leave. " Um, see you around?" 

Pitch nods with a smile on his face, not a smirk, a smile. " Eh, same time tomorrow would be my guess. It's been your routine for a few months now."  He walks away from me, his chair dissolving back into sand and then disappearing just like it's owner. I'm left alone to realize that Pitch and I have made a habit of coming to the sand-ice sculpture, unbeknownst to one of us. 

I decide to ignore that for now, besides Jamie will be getting out of school any minute now. I jump into the air and ride the wind home. Snowflakes immediately, form and fall to the ground all around me. I perch in a tree not far from Jamie's school, but closer to his home. I can hear Sophie excitedly babbling to her mother about the snow outside. 

" Mom, Mom! It's snowing. Jamie says snow means Jack Frost will play with us!" This is what I missed all those years alone in the dark. Creating blizzards that everyone loves, and now everyone can enjoy them with me.  

Of course her mom just laughs at Sophie, assuming she's being silly. That's the downside to adults, they have vast knowledge on all things fun, but they choose to ignore it. And when their kids bring it up they just shake their head and wave them off. 

I'm brought out of my thoughts by the sound of children cheering. "Yes! Snow day this is awesome!" A red haired girl named Pipa, is jumping up and down as she catches snowflakes on her tongue. The twins, Claud and Caleb, are busy building  a snow structure of some kind with CupCake and Monty is frantically searching for rocks. He's a bit of a perfectionist, so I assume he needs all of them to be similar in size and color for his collection. It's a new hobby of his. 

So long as he's having fun, I guess. Suddenly, a snowball whizzes past my nose hitting the tree trunk beside me. I laugh at myself, surprised that someone tried to throw a snowball at me. I hear a familiar laugh as the culprit yells for my attention. 

"Jack, down here!" I look down and see Jamie holding another snowball as he laughs at me. He winds up and throws the snowball and I jump down from the tree narrowly, dodging Jamie's throw. I use my staff to create a pile of snowballs then look back at him with a challenging smirk.  But he wipes that smirk off my face when he throws a snowball and hits me in the nose. 

" Nice aim kiddo, but now your going down!" Jamie smiles brightly as he runs to his friends where they have created a snow fortress. It's clear that they plan to ambush me when I chase after Jamie. 

These kids are clever, but they'll have to try harder against someone who can fly.