RISE OF THE GUARDIANS~ Can you see me?
(I do not own rise of the guardians or any of its characters. I was listening to multiple songs while writing this which affects my mood and the outcome. It may be a bit choppy. So let me know if I need to fix anything pleeeeease. I will take notes and fix things~. Thanks for reading ^.^ this takes place AFTER the movie. please excuse the set up. i had to copy-n-paste from Microsoft.)
Cold. The bitter chill of the winter winds nipped at her through the thin blanket on her bed, her indigo irises trained on the off-white ceiling intensely. She refused to sleep. Though her eyes wavered and her breathing slowed, her will kept her from nodding off completely. Nightmares came when she slept. Only nightmares. She was determined to beat it this time, though. Just this once she wanted a night with no blood. No dark creatures hiding in the shadows with bubbling saliva dripping over gnarled teeth. No luminescent honey flecked eyes that watched her every move and drank in her fear and pain as her own limbs were torn from her body in vivid dreams. No. Not dreams. Nightmares are what haunted her every night and followed her through the day. She sat up, the cool night air doing its part in keeping her awake as it sent her tanned flesh into goose bumps that rippled down her limbs. She looked around her modest room in an attempt to distract herself from her drowsy mind. It wasn't anything impressive. A dark cherry wood desk rested in the corner of the small room that resided in a small apartment, all she could afford while attending college at the local university. Beside the desk was an old lamp she'd found at a yard sale with a repulsive mold yellow shade on it. Other than that there was only a lumpy bed that did absolutely nothing to help her sleep disorder. In fact it had helped one nightmare along. One of being thrown upon a bed of nails while those she loved danced on her paralyzed form. She sure had TONS of fun at the family reunion the following morning. She sighed, running the tips of blunt nails along her scalp to move the thick ebony curls from her face. She slid from her bed, supple thighs covered by a large night shirt and a pair of briefs. She let her fingertips trace the edge of the quilt that lay on her bed as she approached the window seat she often occupied. She sat lightly, bringing her knees to her chest and resting her head on them while her dark eyes watched snow fall over the city. Flurries of delicate snowflakes wrapped the world in a pure blanket of white not yet touched or tainted by those who resided under it until the morning. It seemed like it was always snowing here. Not that she minded. Snow was wonderful. Just not ALL THE TIME. Unfortunately that's what you get in Colorado. She rested her forehead on the cool glass, her body heat slowly thawing the frost on the window. When was the last time she'd had any fun? Or a goodnights sleep? She yawned, her pastel lips forming a small 'o'. She sighed sadly, continuing to resist her urge to sleep. The subtle sound of flesh squeaking against smooth glass had her back ruler straight. "H-Hello?" She peered around in frantic search as the sound continued. The thick frost on her window was pierced by a translucent line and her eyes widened in wonder. "What in the world..?" Her soft voice left in a moist cloud of mist as the air around her became colder and the lines continued to appear in an odd order that made little sense. She tucked a stray, unruly curl behind her ear, violet flecked eyes following the invisible finger as it drew. Or wrote. Or whatever it was trying to do. Her brow creased in confusion, lips pursed in a slight pout as the lines continued to appear. "I…I don't understand…" The odd lines became a cube, a really disproportionate one, but a cube none the less. Was this supposed to be like charades? "Um… Ice cube?" An irritated tap on the glass told her that wasn't it. Snooty for an invisible… thing. She gestured for it to continue with a subtle hand movement. More shapes formed slowly, as if the artist was attempting to keep a steady hand. A circle within the cube. No, that wasn't it. ON the cube? There's now a star in the circle on the cube. Clever in what way? Who knew. She continued to watch, shifting to sit Indian style with her legs crossed comfortably. The top of the cube was hanging open to signify a box. A box with a circle and a star? Not weird at all… then again, what about this situation was? And why wasn't she freaking out? Was this a dream? Or was her lack of sleep causing hallucinations? Random squiggles came out from the box, shaping into a crinkled tube. A soft breath replenished the frost to fix an error she wasn't aware of and redrew the deformed lines. "Will this start making sen-" Another irritated tap silenced her and she sighed, resting her chin in her palm in a bored manner. Over the years she had found herself to have a very short attention span. Though she was curious about the in-visitor, she was growing tired once again. There was another circle drawn at the end of the distorted squiggles and a triangle on top of that. Wait… is that..? Her head rose, tilting to the side curiously as a simple smiley face was added. "A… Jack-in-the-box?" She giggled lightly as two little arms were added. There was a tiny check mark that was placed beneath the childish drawing and she smiled happily at the little frost drawn toy. "How cute. But… what does a Jack-in-the-box have to do with anything..?" She arched an ebony eyebrow. There was another tap on the glass panel beside the one with the amusing doodle. Just a small dash. She waited for more, but nothing happened. Just the dash remained. She bit her lip lightly in thought, beginning to shiver in the cold. She remained stubborn though, convinced the leaving the window would drive away the new friend. Okay, only friend, but that's beside the point. "Um… Dash?" *Tap* Nope, that wasn't it.
"Minus?" *Tap, tap, tap, tap.* was that yes or no, no, no, no? She sighed, "Okay, whatever you are… two taps for 'yes'. One for 'no'. Got it?" *Tap tap* Now we're getting somewhere. "Alrighty then… so Jack-in-the-box. Minus..?" This was beginning to feel like blue's clues. All she needed was a handy dandy notebook. The minus was erased by a soft breath on the window and a new layer of frost. Where was that coming from anyway? Before she could contemplate too much, the lines began to appear again in a familiar pattern. The cube was back with its circle and star. "Jack-in-the-box minus… cube?" *TAP* Nopers. Not it. She twisted her lips, letting out an aggravated 'huff'. Again, her breath passed over her lips as a thin cloud. Well… what's not a cube…
"Minus… box?" *Tap, tap* She smiled in victory, "So… Jack-in-the… what?" There was a dull 'thud' as something hit the glass. Looks like someone didn't plan this far ahead. She thought for a moment, placing her left hand on her cheek.
"Jack-in-the… snow, the air, the sky, the house? I got nothing. "Another irritated tap. She blew the hair from her face, crossing her arms, "I'm the one talking to an invisible… thing-a-majig. You should NOT be the irritated one. My medication has obviously stopped working." She ran her tanned fingers through her hair, tousling it lightly to get them through all the curls. She had been on many things as a child that followed her through to college. Medication for being 'special'. For seeing things like the boogeyman and the Easter bunny, though the invisible thing was new. Things her parents and the doctors said she was too old to be seeing at the age of thirteen. The Easter bunny she'd only seen twice thanks to her Rottweiler, Sasha, and the Boogeyman visited her quite often, even now when she was eighteen. In her nightmares… cooing threats and promises of torment for as long as she lived. The doctors diagnosed her with schizophrenia and insomnia. She took the meds, but nothing changed. He was still in every shadow and every nightmare, taking delight in her fright and relishing in the fact that she saw his ashen form unwillingly. She never told her parents that things never changed. They thought she was crazy as it was. They had her fully convinced this might be the case. She sighed tiredly, looking at the window through half-lidded eyes as a question mark was drawn creatively with a swirl for a dot and a curved top. "I am not about to give you my entire life story invisible jack-in-the-blank thing. That I'm even talking to you proves I've gone off the deep end and hit the bottom." She let her chin fall into her palm again. The irritated tapping returned in an attempt to show the things displeasure in her words. "Yeah, yeah. You are very scary." She rolled her eyes, letting out a short breathy laugh. The statement was followed by a slightly harder 'thump' as if a fist had hit the window lightly instead of a finger. This made her think of a pouting child. She laughed softly, shaking her head.
"Temper, temper." She waved her finger at the window comically. How old was this thing anyway? Fingerprints appeared around the jack-in-the-box, pulling her back to the game at hand. "Oh! Right. Um… Jack-" There was loud frantic tapping and she fell back in surprise, only one leg hanging onto the window seat. She 'huffed', pouting with stray curls falling across her forehead and curling into the line of her cheeks. She pushed herself into a sitting position, hands on the floor. "What gives?" She asked, moving the hair from her face in aggravation," All I said was Jack-" *Taptaptaptaptaptaptap* She held her hands up in surrender, eyes widening a bit. "Okay! Okay! Geeze. So… Jack? Is that what we're focusing on here?" *Tap, tap* She nodded, standing and sitting back in the window seat. She let her forehead rest against the glass, shivering at the cold but keeping to her Invisible… thing. This delusion was better than going to bed.
"So… Are you trying to say YOU'RE Jack? " *Tap. Tap.* the light tapping was right where her forehead met the glass. She gave a soft nod with a sad sigh as her eyelids began to flutter again. There was a loud 'thump' against her head from the other side of the glass and she sat up straight. "Whoa! Hey!" She glared at the window and found a large 'U?'
"You… as in me?" *Tap. Tap* "As in, my name?" *Tap. Tap* She shook her head slowly with a small laugh. "Isn't it odd that something from my own mind doesn't know my name?" *Tap*
"No? Well then…Jack. I'm Krysta." She yawned lightly with a light-hearted laugh. She really was going insane. First the boogeyman giving her special attention and now invisi-Jack person was talking to her. Great. She smiled drowsily at the window, unsure of what she was looking at exactly.
"Well, Jack… I'm going to go to bed since the sun is coming up over there." She pointed out the window beyond her imaginary person where the sun had just started to peek above the horizon and flood the sky with a plethora of stunning colors blended into a smooth sherbet pallet. *tap.* She arched an eyebrow.
"No? No, what?" A small bed was drawn, the sound of flesh dragging across glass interrupting the silence that had settled over the room. Krysta watched curiously, brows raised as a rectangle turned into a bed. She looked to her bed, then back to the window.
"Is there something wrong with my bed?" *Tap. Tap.* Krysta arched an ebony eyebrow at the window, "What would that be?" A circle was drawn around the space under the doodled bed multiple times. The boogeyman. Right.
"The guy under the bed, right?" *Tap. Tap.* She sighed, rubbing her eyes tiredly,"Yeah, well I'm tired and I have classes this afternoon. Therefore I have to suck it up and do it anyway." There was a couple taps of disagreement but Krysta was too drowsy to keep her eyes open much longer.
"Yeah, yeah. Complaint noted. Goodnight, Jack... Thing." She slid back into her bed with a defeated sigh, curling up vulnerably beneath her grandmothers' quilt, taking note of the floral patterns as she drifted into a deep, exhausted sleep.
(Nightmare) Honey flecked pools of scotch are narrowed into feral slits, the ashen flesh around them shaping a narrow face. Krysta took a wary step back as the man's dark cloak writhed toward her in shadow-like tendrils. She took a shaky breath, continuing to back away with a quivering lip.
"N-no… Stay away!" The words left her lips in a helpless whimper. The man's thin lips pulled back over crisp teeth in a dark grin that sent a chill of terror up her spine and radiated through her quivering form. She's had dreams where the eyes watched from afar and lit up with glee as she screamed, but he'd never neared her. Only watched with mirth. That sick bastard. His teeth parted and his lips formed words that rang with a light British accent. The sound made the sweat running down her caramel skinned neck turn cold and her palms were now clammy.
"There's no point in trying to run, girl. I control your precious nightmares." Precious? In no way were any of these nerve shattering experiences were precious.
"Don't come any further…" Krysta choked out, tears leaking from her indigo eyes and sliding down her cheeks in translucent ribbons that fell from her chin in steady droplets. He held a hand to his angular chin, smiling wickedly as if a snake taunting its prey.
"Oh how frightening you are." He chuckled lowly, the sound coming from deep in his throat, "Though I regret to inform you that it won't help you…" A thick wall of darkness slid smoothly into being behind her, long arms of shadow quality restraining her limbs. Krysta cried out, struggling fruitlessly against the new binds with desperation that amused the dark figure. "… Not with me. I am the king of nightmares, girl." Krysta's fear bubbled and writhed in her stomach, frying her senses and over-riding her thoughts. She hadn't seen his full form since she was three years old.
"W-What do you want?" He approached her with slow, leisurely steps towards her as she continued to struggle against her writhing restraints. The man brought up an ashen hand, his calloused fingertips griping her tanned chin.
"To be believed in again .I've been helpless for too long." His dark voice was filled with malice and hidden pain. The soft breath against her face smelled strongly of the dust that often wafted from the yellowing pages of old library books. She cringed, attempting to pull her chin back from his grasp and in response his fingers tightened with another dark chuckle. Krysta shut her eyes tightly, biting her lower lip harshly. "Do you believe in the boogeyman?" He said lowly, eyes narrowing. She swallowed thickly, taking a shallow breath that shook with her nerves. "W-why are you here..? Why m-me...?" She whimpered softly, voice trembling. The man's eyes lit up with delight at her fear, the taste sickly sweet on his tongue. Krysta peeked through thick lashes slowly as silence overtook the air. Was he done? "Girl." His commanding voice demanded attention which she gave him out of terror, "What is your name, girl?" The king of nightmares glared into her eyes as if it would melt the indigo from her irises. She wished that it was possible to swallow her tongue to prevent the answer that was torn from quivering lips. "K-Krysta…" She breathed shakily, swallowing rather loudly. The man smiled wickedly, pressing her back into the shadow wall with a hand around her throat. She felt herself tense, unable to struggle due to the shadows containing her limbs. "Krysta…" She took a sharp breath as if she'd been struck, shutting her eyes tightly again. "…I am Pitch Black. King of nightmares. The boogeyman. Pick a title. You'll be seeing me quite often, Krysta." Krysta out a soft strangled sob, tears falling once again. Pitch inhaled deeply, closing his eyes for a moment as if appreciating the bouquet of a fine wine. The fear that radiated from the sniffling girl was absolutely divine. The taste of sweet ambrosia danced across his tongue and coated his senses with a thick layer of bitter sweet honey. Krysta pressed herself back against the wall, as far from Pitch as she could get with a soft whimper.
"Your terror is very lovely, Krysta. I enjoy the taste very much." The nightmare king purred, his voice resembling the presence of an iron nail pressed softly to flesh in a constant threat. Was he expecting her to be flattered? He would surely be disappointed. Krysta sniffled lightly, pressing her cheek to the wall of shadows behind her. Her dark curls fell over her shoulders, giving her small comfort by hiding her face from the object of her distress. Pitch chuckled darkly, stepping away from the girl who didn't move in fear of false hope. She swallowed loudly, shutting her eyes tightly. Krysta's face was red from her tears and her eyes were beginning to swell along with her lower lip which her teeth occupied. The nightmare king smiled with delight, his lips pulling up over a large grin that promised only pain. "It seems I've made a believer of you?" He seemed giddy at the thought, Scotch pools lighting up with evil intent as well as mirth. She gave one hesitant nod, breathing rapidly now and unable to keep her lips from pulling into a fearful grimace. "In that case…" There was a small gust of wind and a fluttering of a shadowed cape.
