This wasn't working. This was a stupid idea in hindsight. Pitch realized he was only just patronizing the boy into believing his own stupid theories about him. He hoped that maybe the joke would actually work in a twisted kind of way: make the children believe he was good for them and open themselves willingly to the fear. But, after a week of observation, he realized that wasn't going to work.

Pure fear couldn't be pulled instantly out of a person. You had to work up to it through smaller fears, then amplify it until they're overwhelmed with it. The children were indeed scared, he could sense it. With each retelling of their first encounter that Jack told a child, they would get even more frightened and paranoid of the "boogeyman" getting them in the darkness.

Then, at night, Pitch would go and pour fear magic into their little minds just when they're about to enter a deep sleep; the perfect time to implant the perfect suggestion of a nightmare…

However, he soon noticed something was wrong. This village was...different. Not just because the children were happy due to Jack's smiles and jokes or the guardians giving them hope and wonder. All of them, young or old, felt so...unnaturally joyous. As if someone had cast a spell on the whole village.

The more the Nightmare King thought about it...the more it began to make sense. How else could he explain it? This village was no different than any other village he's visited in this country. Yes, the guardians and their work prevent him from gathering as much fear as he'd like to...but it was like something was literally blocking him from causing fear and terror in these people! Very peculiar...

He decided to leave the town for a little while to gather fear else where, just to see if his suspicions were true. Pitch travelled north to a coastal village near New York and got right to work.

He was right. While in this coastal town, he managed to gather so much fear that it would be able to sustain him for months!

Then, nine days into gathering fear from the town, he overheard a child saying that he and his father were about to make a journey to Bergessön to visit his cousins. 'Time to do another experiment', he thought. In the days before they left for the village, Pitch gave the child the most terrifying dreams he could think of. Every night, before they left, Pitch focused his whispers into this boy and this boy only. During the nights, he'd whisper about monster and demons coming to get him. During the day, he'd whisper all sorts of horrible things that could happen to his family while traveling the dangerous plains and roads.

By the time they started their journey, the boy was afraid of the littlest things, even his own shadow. It was so amusing! Pitch even travelled back to the town with them, continuing to fill the boy with terror and anxiety.

Then, just like that, the very second they stepped foot into Bergessön, the boy's spirits began to lift. He settled in quickly with his relatives and was at play in a matter of hours.

That same night, he took this opportunity to see if he could still gather fear from the travelling boy; whispering nightmares into his ear before Sanderson's dreamsand came to do it's work.

But he couldn't. In fact, he only managed to gather just a sliver of fear from him before being blocked completely! That proved it. Someone or...something had cast a spell on this town to prevent his fear from spreading. Was it a guardian? No, couldn't be. If they had the power to do this, they would've done it a long time ago already. His next suspicion was the Man in the Moon...but Pitch was always able to sense his magic whether he liked it or not. The moon's been silent this whole time...as usual...

So the next logical conclusion had to be someone with enough magical knowledge and power to cast such a spell...someone not from the spiritual plane like he and the Guardians were...a human witch or wizard was blocking his fear...

"Hey! You're back!"

Pitch, distracted from his thoughts, turned to see Jack Overland running up to him, a smile on his face as usual. Whilst thinking, Pitch was walking around the outskirts of the village near the farmlands. He didn't expect to see many children out here, let alone Jack.

Smiling, Jack ran up next to Pitch, dressed in his usual clothes and his shepherd's crook in his hand. "Welcome back!"

Pitch frowned at this boy. Why was he always so annoyingly chipper all the time? Pitch continued to walk down the dirt road, his eyes staying ahead. Unsurprisingly, Jack followed suite, walking next to him.

"Hello, Overland...you were aware I had left?"

"Yeah, I saw you leave two weeks ago. I was starting to think you weren't coming back. Still got some bad kids to scare? Heh heh…"

Pitch gave Jack a condescending smirk as he continued to walk down the path. He really didn't feel like talking, he was too wrapped up in his current problem...as if he didn't have enough already. But this one was rather serious. Had he grown so weak that even human magic can effectively block him? If so, how many people knew how to do this? Were there other villages with witches and warlocks blocking his fear? Did the guardians did indeed have a hand in this?

Pitch went over a variety of scenarios in his mind, all of which plausible and troubling. The only thing good about this situation was that, until he found the source of this magic, he could always leave the town to gather the amount of fear he wanted. He'd just have to hope he didn't run into anymore problems like spells, the guardians or too many unbelieving children…

Speaking of children, in the back of Pitch's mind, he noticed that he was actually thinking without any distraction. Jack had been quiet this entire time. Usually, whenever the boy saw him, he began talking his ear off about how interesting it was that he didn't look like a monster or telling him which child had been good, hoping that Pitch wouldn't scare them. Of course, he tried anyway but, like he realized earlier, something had been blocking him.

But back to the present point, he looked down at Jack and noticed that his smile was strangely absent. His eyes were cast down to the dirt road, swinging his crook around absentmindedly. There was something on his mind. Something that was deeply troubling him; Pitch could feel his anxiety. He was glad for the momentary silence but now he was interested about what could cause such a down mood in Jack who was always unbearably happy.

"Something on your mind, Overland?"

Jack shrugged his shoulder. He stopped swinging the staff around and was now twisting it in his hands.

"I'm nervous…"

One of Pitch's brows lifted. The boy was nervous? Of him? No, that was illogical, he wouldn't be standing this close to him if he was. Pitch grew curious again…

"...nervous about what, Jack?"

He didn't answer right away, his head turning away from Pitch a bit more. What could make him so nervous as to take away that constant state of fearlessness and smiles he always had? Now Pitch really wanted to know! Maybe it was something that Jack feared? Oh this would be so fortuitus. He oh so wanted to give Jack a "proper nightmare".

He didn't know why but he just did. Maybe he was just being vindictive about Jack not fearing him. He wanted to prove no one was truly fearless. Pitch wanted to scare this boy witless, really terrify him, turn him into a nervous wreck! He wanted his fear!

The cruel and manic thoughts continued to fill Pitch's head. A devious smile appeared on his face as he reached out, putting an arm around Jack's shoulders. This action surprised the boy a bit as he finally looked up at Pitch with wide, curious eyes.

"It's alright, Jack, you can tell me...say what's on your mind, boy..." Pitch continued to smile down at him. He didn't get to do it often anymore but he knew how to manipulate a persons emotions quite well. Pitch had done it many, many times in the past when a lot more people used to be able to see him.

And Jack didn't seem to mind the touch. In fact, he walked a bit closer to Pitch, as if comforted by his presence. Pitch went a little tense; he wasn't used to his personal space being invaded but he'd tolerate it for now...just to get a chance at finding out this boys fears. It would all be worth it in the end.

"...well...I turned 13 a few months ago. I started my apprenticeship as a sheep herder right after my birthday...so far, I've just been helping to feed and shear them during the day…but..."

Jack paused for a while to fiddle with his staff again but he didn't have to speak any further. Pitch instantly realized why Jack was nervous.

"It's going to be your first time watching over the heard at night, isn't it?"

Jack's anxiety levels flared up. Hit the nail on the head. Pitch's grin grew wider. So he was nervous about the night? Or rather, he was worried about what could be lurking in the night. He remembered the look in Jack's eyes the first time he met him. When he warned him about walking around so late at night. The boy's eye continuously shifted and darted around, as if looking for something. Oh...could it be then?

"...you're afraid of wolves, aren't you?"

That anxiety was now evolving into fear. Jack gasped as he looked up to Pitch, surprise filling his eyes. "H-How'd you know?"

Pitch's insidious chuckles rang through Jack's ears as they continued down the dirt path. "I'm the Boogeyman, Jack...it's my job to know what you're afraid of...and you have every reason to be scared of wolves…"

Jack looked down at his feet again, his grip on his staff growing tighter. "W-Well...maybe if I don't bother them th-they won't bother me-"

His thought was interrupted by Pitch's deep laughter. "Hahahahaha! You think wolves are simply going to ignore you if you ignore them? Hahahah, oh no, my boy...see, there's something me and wolves have in common,"

Pitch stopped walking and stood in front of Jack, his long grey fingers wrapping around his chin, forcing the child to look into his cold yellow eyes.

"...we can smell fear. In fact, it's rolling off of you in waves, right now. The wolves won't simply bypass you because you cause them no threat…"

Pitch stood upright and began pacing around the nervous teenager. "No...they'll see you as prey! They'll smell your fear, they'll hear the sound of your heart as it beats faster and faster...they'll surround you on all sides, baring their sharp fangs at you...one by one, they'll pick off your little sheep, tearing into their flesh, ripping their throats out…"

Jack's hands were shaking. Pitch's words poured into his mind, the images flashing before his sight as if they were visions of things to come.

Finally...Pitch had gotten hold of what this boy fear most. But unlike the other children, there was something about Jack's fear that was most invigorating. There was something behind his fear...a memory, perhaps? A bad memory coupled with that fear. Fear and trauma: Ooh, it was such a potent mix! And he wanted it! He wanted to feel Jack's terror, he wanted his heart to break with horror, to hear him cry in the night and hide under his bed. He wanted to feed on this boy's mind like no other!

"..I...w-will they really do that?"

"Yes, Jack...they'll slaughter each and everyone of your herd…."

Pitch loomed over Jack's shoulder, his arms wrapping around the boy. Jack watched as Pitch's terrifying illusion took place.

"...and when they're done…"

Slowly, Pitch's black nails grew long and sharp like little knives, his fang grew long, like a vampires. And his voice; his smooth velvety voice became demonic and inhumanly deep. Jack began to shake as he watched the illusion with terror...Pitch's hand grew fur from the skin, it was dingy and grey...like a wolf's!

Jack gasped and launched himself away from Pitch's arm, turning to look at him and was met with a petrifying sight..

Pitch, no longer the tall man in black that he had previously known, now looked like a grotesquely deformed man-beast. He was 10 ft tall, his legs were bent back at the knees, his face had elongated like a dogs! He had glowing red eyes and fur all over his body...he looked just a gigantic werewolf!

"They'll come after you, tear you to shreds and EAT. YOU. ALIVE! All because they smell your FEAR!"

Jack's whole body was shaking, his eyes wide, filled with terror and tears, unblinking at the horrific sight before him. His heart rate had skyrocketed, his breathing becoming rapid. His flight or fight instinct kicked in. He quickly turned tail and sprinted as fast as he could toward the nearest farm.

Oh fear….such delicious fear. Pitch had done it. He found out what Jack Overland feared most. It was so...euphoric. He needed more...much more...


It was a pitch black night. The harsh sound of rustling leaves could be heard through the silence. The moon's rays barely broke through the thick of the woods, illuminating what little it could with patchy moonbeams. An owl cooed in the distance, breaking the silence just momentarily...which was followed by the sound of a howling wolf…

Jack gripped his staff so tightly, his knuckles were turning white as he sat one side of the fence. He gasped and jumped at the slightest of sounds. It was so dark...why hadn't he brought a torch or something to light the sheep pen? Beside him on the ground was a flask of black coffee. The farmer he studied under gave it to him to help him stay awake, but Jack wouldn't have any problems with drowsiness. He was much too paranoid to fall asleep now.

Jack's eyes darted from watching his sheep, to watching the darkness of the woods nearby.

Another howl echoed through the woods. Jack's body went tense...those howls were getting louder...which meant they were getting closer…

"It's okay, Jack...just stay calm...just calm down...don't get scared...remember what Pitch told you...they can smell fear. If you don't scared, they'll leave you alone…"

He hadn't seen the bogeyman since that conversation and the whole time, he had been fretting about his first night watching the sheep.

A menacing growl sounded from the feed shed. Jack gasped, jumping up from his spot on the fence, his staff up. Another growl, this from behind and from the woods. Jack prayed that it was just a dog or his imagination playing tricks on him.

No such luck. Out of dark came several pairs of glowing red eyes, white fangs dripping with foam, more and more growls echoed around him. Jack's sheep brayed in fear, running around the pen, looking for a way to escape. The wolves came so fast and out of no where! They completely surrounding the fenced in area!

A distressed cry rang through Jack's ears. One of his sheep were just grabbed by a wolf, then another, and another! And Jack just stood there, frozen, watching as the wolves tore into his little herd...

Soon, there was blood everywhere; staining the grass, the dirt, remaining tufts of wool soaked in it...and the bottoms of Jack's feet. He back away slowly as the pack of wolves closed in on him, their faces and teeth dripping with blood. He couldn't move, he felt like he couldn't breath. It was so dark, so cold, the wolves were getting closer! There was no one there to help him!

Their growls grew demonic; the biggest wolf, a black one, stood at the forefront of their attack, his teeth longer and sharper than the rest. Jack opened his mouth to scream for help but no sound ever came!

'Please...Please, someone help me!'

The wolves all lunged forward, their mouths open ready to tear into the boys flesh! The very last thing Jack heard for his own shrieks of pain and terror...


"AAAH!"

Jack screamed upon waking from the nightmare, sitting up straight up from his position. His heart felt like it was going to burst out of his chest, it was beating so fast! His hand went up to his forehead, which was covered in sweat, before hunching over to trying and catch his breath. The sun shined down on Jack's feet; the heat helping to calm him down.

That was terrifying. And the nightmare came so quickly! It was midday Monday. Only 8 hours until his first time sitting with the sheep at night. Jack had only laid down for a moment to take a quick nap; make sure he was wide awake for it. He was so exhausted. He's barely been able to get any sleep since talking with Pitch near the farm yesterday. He had this very nightmare that same night twice; waking up the first time and then falling asleep only to have the nightmare again for a second time.

Jack was so tired...and hurt. Yes he knew Pitch was the "boogieman", but he was starting to feel lied to. Pitch told him that Jack's guess was right; that he only scared kids that were bad! So why was he giving him these horrible dreams?! Sure he was a prankster but he never did one out of ill intent! And even if something bad happened, he did his best to make up for it. That meant he was a good kid, right? So why was he plagued with such night terrors so real and vivid that Jack was loosing sleep and sanity over it? He hated it! He hated the dreams! He hated what happens in them! And he hated Pitch for giving them to him!

At that last thought, Jack had to stop himself; calm himself down. He took a deep shaky breath, pulling his knees up to his chest, as he began to reflect on what was going on.

"...come on...don't think that. Remember what mom said: hating never solved anything. Understanding. Gotta understand...gotta think..."

Jack took another breath. But he was still angry at Pitch for giving him the dreams. He couldn't think straight he was so tired. He didn't understand. Jack tried to be a good kid so why-

Wait. Maybe...Pitch didn't give him the dream to be mean? Even though Jack didn't know that Pitch was indeed lying to him, in his mind, he twisted the situation into a truth. He DID tell Pitch was scared of wolves. He was going to spend a dark night watching over the sheep...where wolves COULD attack them. That dream was a warning!

Again, Pitch was lying to Jack but Jack didn't know that. He now believed that for whatever reason it was, Pitch was sending him a warning about his night shift. But why? Were there wolves coming close to the village? And then there was that other thing that Pitch said. The wolves could smell fear...Jack couldn't stop himself from being scared...everyone felt fear. But he sure as hell wouldn't let those wolves kill him, that's for sure!

Jack huffed, slamming his fists on the ground as he smiled. That settled it! That bad dream was sent to him for a reason so he was going to listen to it! Besides, what kind of guy would he be if he just wallowed in fear and anxiety about something he could have control over! A look of determination in his eyes, Jack stood up from the grass and made his way quickly back to town! He needed to do something about this and do it fast before his night shift came!


Unbeknownst to Jack, in the distance, hidden in the shadow of the trees, Pitch was watching him from afar. He was quite satisfied with the fear he syphoned from the boy. It sated his hunger and then some. Pitch watched as Jack pounded his fists on the ground then stood to run back toward the village. He chuckled. The boy must've finally realized his folly in confiding in Pitch. Now hurt and upset, he's probably looking for his mother or a friend to console his sadness. Ha! How humorous!

Even if some strange spell was blocking him from collecting fear in this village, at least he finally managed to put that boy in his place.

Speaking of which, now that Pitch has had his fun, he decided it was time to find the source of said spell. Be it mortal or otherwise, when he found it, he'd learn its secrets. Then snuff it out for good.

Being an immortal spirit who could not be seen or heard by anyone, there was only so much Pitch could do to find the culprit of this spell. And he'd have to do it carefully. Past experiences have taught him that almost all human witches and wizards, regardless of age or belief in him, can see him and will react to his presence. Pitch made his way back toward the town and began by looking for anything suspicious.

There were specific signs you could look for when trying to locate humans of magical blood, some more obvious than others. Whilst poking his head through houses, Pitch, at first, looked for the obvious signs: hidden cauldrons and wands, a large collection of non-common herbs, spells books, arcane symbols on the doorways to ward off evil, etc. Other signs included homes that were often located away from the village; solitary and out of the way, usually places that people stayed away from. Though, thinking about it, only evil witches and wizards scared of being burned at the stake lived in such a way. He's never posed any threat to them. In fact, he often got nightmare ideas from witches and wizards who saw him and mistook him for the devil.

'Oh wait...' Pitch thought to himself with a sigh of irritation. He must've been getting weaker or too distracted. Of course Dark Witches wouldn't bother with him. A White Witch, on the other hand, would've been able to see him just as well and try to cast him out of the village! And they were much harder to spot! They didn't grow into grotesque monsters with warts, cracked skins or dark aura like the dark ones did. White Witches remained human in all things, including the way they lived. The way they prepare magic was much different.

Pitch walked through the town. His eyes narrow as he stared intently at each person that passed by. He hadn't seen a White Witch in many, many years so he was having a hard time trying to remember what their auras looked like. One by one, he looked at every man, woman and child, hoping to catch a glimpse of something-

"Hi, Pitch!"

A few moments passed by before it registered in Pitch mind that someone had said hello him. He did a double take then watched as Jack Overland ran down the dirt road he was standing on and right past him then around the corner, out of sight. That was strange. Last time he saw the boy, he was shocked with fear and probably running to his home. What was he doing running around the village...with bundles of chains over his shoulders-what?

Alright. That was very bizarre. What on earth was this boy up to now? A part of Pitch's mind told him to ignore the boy. He was probably doing some sort of farmers task or running an errand-and now Jack was running back in his direction...pulling a wheelbarrow. The wheelbarrow had a large green jug, a bushel of peppers, a knife box, the chains he had been previously carrying and a large piece of leather fabric.

Jack had yet another smile on his face as he walked past Pitch, lugging the heavy supplies behind him. "Hi again, Pitch!"

Okay, now Pitch was had to say something, if not to quell his growing curiosity.

"Overland!" He first got his attention; Jack stopped in his tracks and looked back at Pitch, his full attention on his ebony clad friend.

With a gesture toward all the things he was lugging, his brows creased. "...what are you doing?"

Jack looked back at the wheelbarrow and let out a short chuckle. "Oh yeah! I finally got what you were trying to tell me! But next time you wanna give me advice, just say it, okay? I mean, we are friends, right? Oh…" Jack gave the sky a quickly glance. The sun was starting to go down. He was running out of daylight.

"Uh-oh! Uh, sorry Pitch, I gotta get going but I'll talk to you tomorrow, okay? Bye!"

Pitch was utterly stunned. Why was he always so happy?! Didn't this boy realize he was trying to scare and terrify him!? As Jack ran down the dirt path toward the farms, Pitch scowled to himself. He tried to force himself to go back to his current task...but this boy...ooh...he was gonna make Jack get good and scared by the end of the night even if it kills the kid…


Right after the conversation, Pitch walked into the nearest shadow and transported to the next town over. Now that he was outside of Burgessön, gathering fear was much more simplier. Nothing to block or deny him a steady flow of the childrens terror, he consumed as much as he could before returning to Burgessön later that evening. The sun had set hours ago. Night was upon them and the stars were out. Jack would be starting his first night shift now. Excellent chance to poke and prod at his fears…

The nightmare king emerged from a shadow cast by the barns. He walked slowly around the sheep pen to survey the area...but was different from the last time he walked here with Jack.

The sheep were inside of their normal wooden fenced off pen as usual; some sleeping, others grazing a little bit. However, reaching about 30 feet away, Pitch noticed an extra enclosement of rope surrounding the pen on a whole. There were thick wooden stakes driven into the ground around the new perimeter. Connecting each of these stakes were ropes and chains. The rope was half-way down the stakes, twisted into and through the wood before going into the next stake. Hanging from the rope were shredded pieces of leather that had an awful smell coming from them! What was that? It smelled like a mixture of vinegar and burning wood! Most unpleasant! Travelling through the tops of the stakes, there were old cans and rusted pans and pots hanging from them. Not much but enough to have at least one on each side of the pen. And finally, at the very tops of these wooden stakes where wooden torches, all of them aflame and illuminating the area.

Within seconds, he realized what Jack had done. The smell of vinegar and burned wood, the pans and pots that would make loud noises when hit, the lighting of the torches. He was doing everything he could think of to keep the wolves at bay. In theory, he was doing everything correctly. Wolves were just wilder and larger versions of big dogs. These were all the things dogs didn't like: foul acidic smells, sudden loud noises. And for hunters, like wolves, who relied and was accustomed to darkness, the sudden light will be unfamiliar and startling to them.

Pitch had to admit it. Jack was smarter than he first gave him credit for. Though he had to imagine his overseer wasn't too happy with Jack messing up the land around the sheep. Still, in the long scheme of things, the boy might've done him a favor by thinking up of such measures.

A creak of wood brought Pitch's attention to the top of the storage shed next to the sheep pen. It was Jack. He was laying on his stomach with a crossbow in his hand. He didn't know the boy knew how to use one. Next to him was a flask of some sort of liquid, probably water or a mixture of water and herbs farmers used to keep themselves awake. Pitch studied Jack's face. There was still that hint of fear in his eyes, that much he was very sure of...but it was being clouded over by sheer determination and focus. In spite of the horrible dreams that Pitch had given him...the boy looked ready to battle his fears and the wolves that may or may not come.

Consciously, he hated the boy for not still being terrified. But something else in his mind, somewhere with in his subconscious...was actually very impressed with him. He was terrified of wolves but he was ready to meet them head on, like a tiny little soldier...it made Pitch smirk in amusement.

Pitch rose his hand. He could send Jack a wave of fear. Maybe push him off the shed. Send illusionary wolves to rip him to shreds in his mind!

'Would there be a point…? He's already shown he's not scared of you...you have more important things to worry about than one child...'

Pitch hated to admit it but...he was right. He had more important matters at hand, like finding the witch or wizard that was blocking his magic. He sighed. His arms folded within the sleeves of his robe as he turned back to the shadow that he came from to return to his underground lair. He'd rest up for the night and resume his task in the morning…


[The Next Day]

Boy was Jack tired. But at least it was a good kind of tired. The kind of exhaustion that you felt after doing a long job and being proud of the end results. Jack had survived the night. Not only survived, but thrived! With flying colors!

Jack stretched out his skinny arms as a big yawn left his lips. He slept in the shade of an apple tree near his farm. The spring breeze wafted through his hair, the smell of the leaves were so sweet and nice. It was so relaxing. So pleasant.

In his drowsiness, he let his mind wander. He hadn't seen Pitch all day today. He was starting to wonder where he had gone off to; he wanted to thank him for "scaring him straight".

"Hmm...probably see him later…" He mumbled. A twig snapped and Jack let one eye open to look for the source. No one was on the field, he was the only one there at the moment. He looked up at the trees and sure enough, Pitch was standing on a low branch, looking down at him.

"Oh, Pitch! I was hoping to see you today!"

Pitch sneered to himself slightly. Having a believer was getting a little annoying. He had to be a bit more stealthy around Jack since he can hear and see him. Jack walked toward him, a smile on his face, and touched the tree that Pitch was standing atop of.

"Hey! I wanted to say thank you for helping me…"

Oh god, this again. Pitch REALLY regretted encouraging Jack in believing in his stupid theory about him.

"Oh really...and how did I help you?"

"You helped me conquer my fear of wolves. If you hadn't forced me to face them down in that dream...I'd probably be dead right now…" Jack's voice grew a little quieter as he said that last line and Pitch grew a bit confused. Dead, what did he mean dead? Did wolves actually attack the farm last night while Jack was on watch?

"Wolves attacked you last night?"

"Yeah…"

Pitch's brows went up to his hairline. That was...unexpected. Wolves didn't usually venture so close to the farms, they knew by experience that the farms were adept at fighting them off. Probably why they didn't seem all that concerned about Jack watching them by himself, wolves were rare around these parts.

Pitch floated down from the tree and landed next to Jack. His face back to it's look of indifference while, at the same time, holding a bit of curiosity. "Wait...actual wolves? They were at your farm? Last night?"

"Yeah, it was so scary! At first I thought I was dreaming again but when I realized I wasn't, I got my crossbow ready! First I tried scaring them away, you know, aiming at the pots and pans I hung up to make the loud noises! I figured that wolves were just basically big wild dogs! I also hung up some leather straps that I soaked in vinegar, peppers and lemon juice for a couple of hours! It was super smelly but it did scare away some of the smaller one. But the ones I had trouble with were three big grey ones...they wouldn't give up! They ignored the pans and pots, they ignored the leather straps! I had to shoot one in the leg but even then it still kept coming! And they were foaming at the mouth; they were rabid wolves!"

"Rabid wolves? In these parts...quite odd …"

"I know right? That's what Aaron said-Oh, he's the head sheep herder. Anyway, so when they started climbing through the fence, I had to jump down with the crossbow. I swear it was like their eyes were glowing red a-and I froze! Pitch it was so scary, WAY scarier than your nightmare…"

Pitch didn't know whether to resent that comment or be disappointed he wasn't there to syphon off the fear he was feeling.

"But then something-something kicked in and I just started shooting and-and swinging and kicking at them! I even threw one them away and over the fence again! I almost got bitten by one of them but I shot him right between the eyes! It was kinda gross but it scared off the other two! Even after all that, my heart was still racing like a stampeding horse! It was like...like, uh…!"

"You had an adrenaline rush, Jack…" Pitch thought out loud. Then when he saw the confused look on Jack's face, he rolled his eyes. "It's something that happens when you get scared or when your life in danger. Your 'Fight or Flight' reflex kicks in...you chose to fight instead of running away…"

Jack understood the explanation, smiling and nodding. "Yeah, Aaron's real happy with me because of it! He even gave me some extra money for the work I did! I'm gonna use the money to repair the roof of our house!"

Jack's cheeks were starting to get a tad bit sore now because of how big he was smiling. Then, without complete warning, a actually startling Pitch a little...Jack wrapped his arms around Pitch's waist in an affectionate hug. Pitch's arms went right up, not touching the boy back at all, just staring down at him in disbelief.

"Thanks for helping me conquer my fear...you're a good friend…"

This was so...extremely awkward. What was he supposed to say right now? He expected the usual smiles and rambling ons about theories about the supernatural...but he never expected him to just...lunged out and hug him!

This felt so strange. Having someone hug him like this. There was this dull clenching in his heart; it felt so heavy, it pounded and burned inside. He...he didn't like this feeling. It was too...familiar and strange at the same time. Pitch had to get this boy off of him.

"Um...ah…" His hands hesitated as he continuously changed his mind between prying his arms off, touching the boys shoulders or back or just letting his arms fall free and wait for Jack to stop. Finally, he settled on just giving the boy a simple pat on the head. "You're...ah...you're welcome…"

The boy still would not get off of him. Pitch scowled. He SO wished he could turn this boy into a Fearling. He was so irritating. "AHEM."

With that loud sound he finally got Jack's attention who released him soon afterwards. Pitch took a small step away from Jack while he instinctively readjusted his shadowy robes, even though they had already reacted to his thoughts and began fixing itself.

Jack touched his hand again. As he looked over, the young boy had wrapped his smaller fingers around his, that same smile as always on his face. "Hey...you want back to town with me? I can tell you all about the day I had today…"

Pitch took his hand away, placing them behind his back as he began to walk away. "No...I'm busy…" Jack's smile faltered slightly...but as Pitch walked toward the shadows, Jack pouted and ran right in front of the nightmare king, blocking him from getting to a shadow.

"Come on, please? I barely get to see you!"

Pitch sighed again, his fingers going up to pinch the bridge of his nose. Here comes that headache again. "You know, most normal children generally try to AVOID the boogieman, not be friends with him! Why do you insist on being so...irritable?!"

Pitch's calm calm became a menacing glare as Jack began to giggle and laugh. "Cause I like you! My mom says that when someone likes you, that when they bother you the most! So I'm gonna keep bothering you and bothering you cause I like you so much! Hahahaha!"

"Oh for heavens sake…" Pitch grumbled under his breath.

'...just give into him...the faster you do...the sooner he'll leave you be...'

That voice in the back of Pitch's mind spoke up again. That did sound like a logical path. Jack was just a boy after all. Even if they were extremely childish, giving into his wishes would be the fastest way to be rid of him by the end of the day instead of trying to, in vain, scare him away or get angry. Jack apparently did not know how to take a hint! Probably that mother of his filling his head with stupidity; he's always saying "my mom says this; my mom says that".

Pitch let out a sigh of defeat before looking down at the boy. "If I walk with you back to town, will you leave me be, child?"

Jack's smile grew wider as he vigorously nodded his head while responding with a perky,"Yep!" then went to grab at Pitch hand. Before he could, however, Pitch pulled his hand back and out of reach.

He raised an eyebrow at him, his frown growing a bit more pronounced. He knew better to take that at face value; when a child said "yes" it usually meant "no".

"Are you being honest with me?"

Jack nodded again then stood before Pitch, one hand over his heart and the other raised:

"Cross my heart and hope to die, stick a cupcake in my eye!" *

He didn't mean. He honestly didn't but when Jack recited that silly vow, Pitch let out a small chuckle. This boy may have been annoying but at least he was somewhat amusing. He quickly tried to conceal it, clearing his throat before frowning again and holding out his hand for Jack to take. The brown haired child gladly took it and began to walk back toward his village with Pitch next to him.

The whole walk to the village, Jack rambled on and on about what he did that day and what he planned on doing the next day. The entire walk, Pitch just listened, giving an occasional one word answer if Jack asked him a question.

However, during the walk, Pitch started to feel...wrong. That feeling in the pit of his chest had come back twice as bad now. It felt heavy and warm and clenched at his heart.

What was it? And why did it always show up whenever Jack touched him? He wanted to pull his hand away from the child and run to the nearest shadow but he couldn't...his mind was telling him to leave but it was like his body refused to move! It was like he was in a state of sleep paralysis only his body was moving on its own. He scowled inwardly. He would just have to endure it until they arrived at the boys home.

Once Jack's little cottage home by the lake came into view, Pitch made an inward sigh of relief upon being released by Jack's grip. His mother was there waiting for him, a basket of vegetables in her arm. Jack gave Pitch one more friendly wave before retreating back into his home, proceeding to tell her about his day like he had for Pitch.

He really didn't like that boy. Even if he should be glad to have at least one believer, he didn't expect his first believer in centuries to be so...warm toward him. And then there were these strange feelings in his chest he felt whenever Jack touched him or got too close. Pitch rose a hand to clutch at the fabric of his robe where his heart was located, a snarl appearing on his face. He was Pitch Black, the nightmare king. He shouldn't be feeling this way, feeling strange and weak! He should be all powerful, feared by all, ruling this planet while sitting atop an iron throne!

'...when I become powerful enough...when I finally rid this world of the guardians and the man in the moon...I'll turn that boy, his sister, his little friends and every single child in this world into a fearling...I'll burn this world...burn it to ash!'

With a menacing growl, he turned sharply on his heels and made his way back toward the forest. He was half-way down the path when he heard…

"Bye, Pitch! I'll see you tomorrow!" There was Jack, leaning out of his window, a smile on his face and waving his hand at the specter he thought of as a friend.

Pitch paused for a moment to look back at the boy. He watched him as he waved at Pitch then went back into his home when his mother called him. He scowled before once again storming toward the forest.

While his mind was racing with ideas and thoughts of all the terrible things he would do to the Guardians, the Man in the Moon and the children of the world...his body, once again acted on it's own...his face growing a bit softer...and a fond smile spread across his lips…


AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Whoo! This chapter was a bit more difficult to write than it should've been! Namely because Real life things kept getting in the way plus the time I take afterwards to read it over twice to catch any mistakes or grammar errors I might've made. I assume that's what Beta readers are for but I don't know any personally so I gotta do this by myself.

To answer the question of the Guest Reviewer: If you're referring to whom will be the main focus of this FanFiction, Yes it will be Jack Frost and Pitch Black. However, this "BlackIce" FanFiction is STRICTLY PLATONIC. For those of you who were looking for romance, I'm sorry but it's not gonna happen between these two. I have nothing against people who like the pair but I personally just don't see it ever happening.

Also, whenever I put a [*] next to something, it usually means I made a reference! I'm not gonna explain them, however, where would the fun be in that?

One last thing, in some later chapters of the story, you might see either Pitch and/or Jack using a strange language that I made up. It's basically just a cypher of the english language that I made up. So, starting with this chapter, at the end of each chapter in the Author's Note, I'll be putting down either 1 or 2 solutions of the alphabet cypher I've made.

Today's letters are:

A = Y

B = Q

Happy Reading! :)