Should of done this before. None of the places or characters of this story are mine except for the character Mary. This is just meant for fun yady yada. Sorry it took me so long to update but school man just school. This story takes place a year or so after the movie. And so enjoy…

Ch 2

Pitch's silhouette stretched tall above him twisting with shadows. Jack tried to run away or fly away, anything, and yet he couldn't move. He watched in horror, helpless as Pitch's claw like hands collapsed around him, snuffing the light out of the world and plunging Jack into a darkness that tore at his eyes. He was falling, Pitch's maniacal laughter following after him, echoing of unseen walls until the shrill laughter was all around Jack in a thousand voices drilling into his head. He wanted to scream, anything to make the laughter stop. The darkness was like a living thing and pressed in on him, trailing icy cold fingers up his neck, filling his mouth and nose. He struggled desperately, twisting to get out of the shadow's grip but the inky blackness only response was to curl around him tighter. The stuff seamed to sink into his bones filling him with a stinging coldness. Water was all around him. He needed air. If he didn't get air, he would die. What would his sister think? Oh Emma, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. The guardians? They had abandoned him, left him to die. Everyone ignored him. Why should he think the guardians would have been different? He should have known this would happen. He never should have trusted anyone! He reached up desperate to grab hold of something that wasn't there and watched in alarm as flames ignited from his hand, twisting up his arm like a snake. The air was filled with the smell of burnt flesh. A searing pain, his body was engulfed in flams. He screamed until his throat felt raw…help me!

Jack gasped into wakefulness, shaking violently. The cocoon of covers on the bed he had woken into where twisted around him uncomfortably. His hands were clutching at the blankets with such force that his nails had left impressions in the palm of his hands. His white hair was plastered to his head with sweat. Jack's eyes darted around the room. Silver moonlight streamed through a window on the opposite wall, the rest of the objects in the room were hidden in shadow.

He slipped down to the floor, ending in a crouch, still breathless from the nightmare. Was this a trap set up by Pitch? An elaborate plot to reassure Jack that he had escaped from Pitch only to ripe away the bed and the room like a seen in a play to be replaced by a cage and the dark caves Pitch dwelled in? It seemed the type of cruel joke Pitch would do. Scratch that. It would be better to try to get out now and think about where he would end up later. He leapt into the air in the direction of the window only to fall down with a crash, knocking over a small set of shelves in the process.

A moan escaped him as his head hit the floor, intensifying what had been a small ach at the back of his head, into a throbbing pain that seemed to pulse like a living thing. White lights danced in front of his eyes as books, boxes, and other small object fell around him. He lay there stunned. What happened? Why hadn't the wind listened to him? It always did. His powers…He stared at his outstretched hand, his brow furrowing trying to stem the flow of panic that was mounting in him. He sat up, ignoring the pain that shot through his body, and pressed his hand down on the cover of a book, willing frost to expand around the books cover. But nothing happened. He should have been able to do something as small as this without his staff. He put all his energy into finding that magic in him that was usually so easy to bring into the world, but it was like he was trying to grasp at something he couldn't touch. NO! He clutched at his hair wishing the throbbing beat in he head would stop. If he could just clear his mind, then maybe then it would all be better. Try harder! You're just tired is all. Pitch was coming. He had to hide! His powers were gone. What was he going to do? I'm helpless. What was he without his powers? I'm Nothing. Where was he? "It hearts." He sobbed. His thoughts were spinning around in a whirl wind.

Then the dark room was thrown into a sharp bright light. Startled, and blinking furiously he jumped to he's feet only to feel the world tilt sickening around him. He fell against a wall dimly hearing an annoyed voice stating, "you're supposed to be asleep!" He turned and saw a girl standing in a doorway that he hadn't noticed before. Jack squinted at the new comer suspiciously. He wished the light would go away. It was creating the annoying sensation of white hot daggers tearing through his scull, making the throbbing headache he had earlier seem like a pleasant walk in the park.

He didn't realize he had fallen to the floor until he felt a hand on his shoulder and looked up to see the girl bending over him with a look of worry on her face. No… the girl's face was twisting into shadows. Pitch's luminous gold eyes emerging from the darkness seemed to stare into Jack's soul. Fear shot through him and he jumped up shouting, "Don't touch me!" only to fall against the wall. He scrambled to support himself wanting nothing more then to run as fast and as far away as he could get, but his body was not responding. He managed to get away from Pitch by clinging to the wall like a lifeline. "Jack, it's me." The girl's voice echoed in his head. The girls face reemerged from the darkness. Was it the girl? Or was it Pitch? Why was he so weak? Where was he? He realized the girl was walking toward him, and holding out a hand. "You can't trick me. I know it's you Pitch so if you know what's good for you back off. Or Ill freeze you into an iceberg!" He snarled knowing it was a lame threat the instant he said it, but it was the best he could come up with at the moment. If Pitch realized he couldn't use his powers he was in for a world of hurt. He felt like he was about to break down and have a full on panic attack. Not the best way to be intimidating.

"Jack, don't you remember me?" the girl's voice seemed to shatter the haze in his mind, and suddenly he could see everything in sharp clarity. The world stilled for a moment, and the pain in his head receded. It was the girl from Jamie's house. Mary, that was her name. She was smiling warmly and holding out a hand. "Its okay, I'm not going to hurt you." Jack scoffed. She was talking to him like he was some sort of lune. Running over what he had just said to her in his mind, it wouldn't take long to convince himself he was crazy. "I…" he stuttered. What should he say? Sorry todays a bad day. I'm not usually like this. Come back another time?

An ear splitting screech exploded into the room. The pain in his head came crashing down like a tidal wave. Worse that feeling that someone had thrown him in a fireplace and locked the door came flooding back to him from his nightmare. "Thanks Mired, REAL helpful!" snapped Mary. Jack pushed past her tilting and then fell to the ground again. He burst out into shrill, desperate laughter. Laugh until the pain went away. It had always helped to fill that empty space that nawed at his insides. Crying always just made it worse. So he rolled on the ground, his laughs turning into sobbing gasps of pain morphing into that odd shrill laughter again.

Slowly the pain died away. Jack laid on the ground trying to catch his breath, arms and legs outstretched in all directions. "Jack?" Mary said tentatively. The way she said it oddly reminded him of Jamie. Jamie! "Oh no!" He struggled to his feet trying to ignore the dizziness. He had forgotten all about Jamie. "I have to go." He straightened up supporting his weight on a table near the wall. "What!" Mary looked completely mystified, if not a little annoyed. "You can't be serious." Jack shook his head trying to clear his thoughts, white hair falling into his eyes. "Hes probably worried sick about me." He turned toward the door. "Bu-t-t Jack you can barley walk!" Mary stuttered following after him. "Not to mention, you're more then a little delirious." She added more quietly, as an after thought. "I'll be fine. I always figure something out." Although that probably wasn't the best argument as at that moment his body decided to lose all since of balance and he promptly fell on the floor, missing the doorframe by a couple inches. His body had gone oddly numb, but it was better then the pain he had been feeling. He pushed himself up with the help of the doorframe shakily. "Jack!" Mary screeched in frustration. Jack turned to look where the voice had come from only to see that no one was there. He looked back to the door way more concerned about leaving then wondering where Mary had disappeared to. Then came face to face with the girl herself, their nose's practically touching. "YOU! NEED! TO! SLEEP!" Marry punctuated each word by jabbing a pointed finger into Jack's chest. He disparately backed away from her glaring face. He hated close contact with people. That's what happens when you spend 300 years being walked throw when your not paying attention. No, it was not fun, at all. His legs hit the edge of the wooden bed frame and he feel backwards with a small yelp, arms flailing. He collapsed into the feather comforter and Mary wasted no time in grabbing his legs and pushing them under the blankets. Jack glared at her. "Stop it." He snapped pushing her away and throwing the covers off him. " I really need to go! Jamie needs to know I'm ok."

"Fine." Mary sighed. Jack stood up trying to come up with a way to convince Mary to let him go. "Anyway I need to find Pitch…" but his words trailed off as Mary's words finally sunk in. She agreed he thought in stunned disbelief. That had been way easier then he had expected it to be. "I didn't want to do this but it looks like I have no choice." Mary turned her back to him and stepped briskly up to a shelf near the window. He eyed her back all at once registering the messy long, hip length red hair and the matching flower patterned pajamas. "Didn't want to do what?" he said his eye narrowing. He did not think he had the strength to put up much of a fight, but she was slightly smaller then he was, giving him a minor advantage.

In a blur of movement Mary was inches away from him, her hand pressed up against his forehead so fast Jack barley had time to register it in his head much less move away from her. "Sleep!" she commanded, her emerald eyes stared into his blue ones with determined force. For a second they stood there, a warm wind curled around them tousling Jack's hair. Then Jack felt all the energy in his body zapped out of him like he'd just been punched in the gut. He crumpled into the bed barley able to keep his eyes open, but he struggled to just the same. "What did you do to me?" He glared at her indigently. Breathing heavily, he was complexly helpless and had no ability to move at all. Mary proceeded to again tuck Jack's slack form into bed. "Oh, don't give me that look." She said looking sheepish. "I just put some of Sandy's dream sand on you is all. You haven't healed yet and I need you to rest. I can't believe the dream sand came in handy after all. I almost refused to take it." No he didn't want to sleep. The nightmare would come back. He struggled to stay awake even as he felt his eye lids drooping. "I promise the instant you're all better we will got right to Jamie's house and say hi." "No, I don't want to dream, I don't want to drown again." Jack clenched his fists. "I'm scared." He couldn't believe he just let that slip out. Mary froze. A look of deep sadness flew over her features momentarily before she hid them behind a mask of a small warm smile. She pressed her hand into his, which he realized was shaking slightly. "It's ok Jack. I'm here. And if Sandy can't keep away one little bad dream, then after you wake up we will go chase him down together and tell him he doesn't deserve to be called the Sand Man anymore." Jack had to smile at that. The fear fell away into a calm slow tiredness. His eyes closed and as he drifted off into sleep, he realized someone was singing in a light lyrical voice, the lyrics following him into his dreams.

"Song's of the moon are old. The moon protects the young and old. The moon watches over you so sleep soundly my dear. Sleep soundly my sweet child." Mary's brows creased with a frown as she brushed the hair from Jack's eyes. The boy was finally breathing at a slow rhythm, his features were in a state of content relaxation. Mary wiped tears from her eyes. She was annoyed with herself for crying. She didn't know why she had sung that song. She knew it would make her upset, but she rarely felt so strongly that it was something that needed to be done. Had it been a prayer of protection, or a superstition, she couldn't remember. With a flick of her finger the light went out so that only the shifting silvery light of the moon descending through the window remained. She stared up at the glowing sphere. It seemed so distant, so cold. Jack would be okay. She felt certain of that now. "No thanks to you." She whispered to the moon as old feelings of hate and abandonment rose up in her. She closed the curtains with a whoosh and the light of the moon was gone. The room was plunged into darkness.