Just a short where Morra is confronted by her father again.
Morra was sleeping soundly when the darkness took a form and stood over the sleeping girl. It was Pitch Black. Morra's eyes shot open, her animal senses taking over. She spun in the sheets of her elaborately carved bed and jumped back her hands reaching for the carved headboard at the head of her bed ready to become a part of the wood.
Pitch stepped back as if she were a fearful animal and he was trying to get calm and to trust him. It worked to some extent and she pulled her arm back out from the wood.
"What do you want?" she asked still skittish.
"A father can't visit his daughter?" the Nightmare King asked smoothly.
"Not when said father is looking to turn his daughter to the darkness when she is perfectly happy in the light," she said.
"That's the Moonbeam talking, Seraphina, you and I both know it," he said.
"The name's Morra," she growled reaching for her katana at the bedside.
"I mean you no harm this night, daughter," Pitch said raising his hand in a signal of peace.
"Then I ask again. What is it you want?" Morra asked her hand lighting on the hilt of the sword.
"I just wished to visit you, Seraphina."
"I told you, my name is Morra."
"Very well, Morra," Pitch muttered, "Why do you like such a heathenish name?"
"Because it's mine."
"Fair enough I suppose. Though I feel you are more Seraphina than Morra," he said taking a seat on a nearby chair.
"Only because you know me as Seraphina long before you knew me as Morra," she said moving her hand from the hilt of the katana.
Morra sat back on her bed wrapping her knees into a lotus position and ready to grab her weapon should the need arise
"Okay I am all ears. Talk."
"I… Why it seems I don't recall why I wished to speak with you," he said with a chuckle.
"Then I suggest you leave," Morra said.
"Come now, do you really despise your own father so much?" he asked.
"I have a tendency to dislike monsters who try to destroy all I am and all I believe," Morra said.
"I love you, dearest. I am no monster," Pitch argued.
"Yeah… sure and I am an alicorn," Morra grumbled.
"I am so sorry you dislike me, my daughter," he said with true sadness in his eyes. Morra suddenly felt ashamed of herself.
"I'm sorry," she said unsure of exactly what she was apologizing for.
"It is all right, Morra. I understand. I haven't exactly proven to be the best father figure I suppose but I assure you that I only have your best interests at heart."
"Oh?" she asked lifting her eyes to him.
"Do you remember when I first turned you to Seraphina? When you returned to Morra and sacrificed yourself for Frost?"
"Bits and pieces," she replied pulling her knees up to her chest at the painful memory.
"Do you recall me holding you in my arms, even though you were overtaken by the Moonbeam?" he asked.
"No," she said looking up at him, "You did that?"
"I did. When I discovered you were my long lost Seraphina I felt my empty dark heart soar with absolute joy and when I saw you sacrifice yourself for your friends… the thought that I may lose my daughter again before I had even truly gotten her back. It nearly killed me in itself," he said. Tears filled the Nightmare King's eyes just thinking about it.
"I am sorry," she said, "I didn't think you would take it so hard."
"You are my daughter, I love you. Why wouldn't I take it hard?" he asked reaching to push a stray lock behind her ear. Morra flinched involuntarily.
"Because you are darkness and fear itself," she replied flatly.
"I am but I was a father long before that," he said almost hurt.
"Maybe but you have been King of Nightmares for much longer than you have acted as my father," she said.
"But I never once forgot you or that I was a father."
"You know I remember everything since being Seraphina. Nightlight told me that the Moonbeam only suppressed my memories of you and hid me from you. Everything else wasn't touched. I still would have been all about helping kids because I am that person."
"And I am proud," he said softly touching her hand cautious so as not to startle her.
"Really?" she asked glancing up into Pitch's face.
"Yes. I want to be a better father," he replied.
"I want to show you something," Morra said lifting her hand. A dark swirl of sand formed in her hand. Pitch looked surprised at the growing orb of nightmare sand.
"Is that…"
"Yeah. I discovered I could make it when Sandy first showed me his dream sand. I tried to make it myself and instead made Nightmare sand. I can convert it to dream sand but it always starts out as nightmare sand first," Morra explained, "I guess that should've been my hint huh? All those years ago?"
Pitch's cold grey hand lighted on her wrist. She looked up into his amber eyes with her cold blue ones.
"It is all right, my dearest," he smiled softly. "I understand."
"But I don't get why it took me so long to figure out. I usually catch these things quicker," Morra replied, sending the sand away with a clench of her fist.
"Denial perhaps?"
"Or moronic oversight," she grumbled.
"I somehow doubt that," he said.
"Oh yeah?" she snorted. "What makes you such an expert on me?"
"I am your father. I have known you forever Seraphina… Morra," he corrected himself. She glanced up at him a small smile on her face.
"I guess so…" she said, leaning back against the pillow cushioned headboard. Morra crossed her arms behind her head and the stars danced over the ceiling making patterns for her and moving to the constellation of her adopted parents.
"Why did you kill the Tsar and Tsarina?" Morra asked thinking her adopted parents would disapprove of her fraternizing with the enemy like this… but he was her actual father.
"I did not intend to destroy them. I wanted to turn them into fearlings to serve me but…"
"… Their lights were too pure to take the darkness... not like me." Morra dropped her head sadly. Pitch saw how much this disturbed her and lowered his eyes.
"How about I tell you one last tale before I leave you for the night?" he asked. Morra glanced up at him.
"About what?" Morra asked wiping away a tear.
"About how I was turned from Kozmotis to Pitch," he said getting a far-away look in his eye. Morra sat up closer. "I was stationed as a guard as you know, and for the longest time I was a dutiful guard. Nothing they said or did got to me for the first few months. But after a while even the darkest of demons sounds pitiful and you start wishing you could give them a bit of a freedom. But I stayed strong every time I looked at the locket you gave me whilest you were still my little Seraphina. Then one day… one day they exploited my weakness."
"What's your weakness?"
"You are, my daughter," he said softly. Morra glanced at him her eyes searching for any sign he was lying to her. Trying to trick her. But all she saw was the truth and his love for her. Morra turned away.
"I'm sorry," she muttered.
"For what?"
"For being your weakness. It seems that list continues to grow," she chuckled. "First it was just my brothers, then Jack… now you."
"But they aren't really your brothers are they?" he asked.
"Not by birth no… but they have been my only family for several thousand years now."
"I suppose I should thank them for taking such good care of you."
"Maybe you could leave the House of Lunanoff alone instead," Morra said softly.
"Do you not consider yourself a member of the House of Lunanoff?"
"Yeah but… maybe I could be the exception," she said glancing up at him almost innocently.
"We will see. The sun is rising I must be off." Morra glanced outside and turned back to him.
"Be careful, father," she said closing her eyes. "Please be careful."
Well there is the first of a series of stories about Morra/Seraphina and her father. Enjoy and send lovely words of encouragement.