I woke up screaming, the momentum from the nightmare causing my back to arch and roll me off of the bed.

"Ah-wha-damn!" Banging a fist against the floor, I swept to my feet, hitting Pitch's unfortunate gift against the nearest surface. Which, sadly, was the bedpost. The two surfaces sparked and sent a wave of pain radiating up my arm.

"Damn!" Attempting to slow my still-pounding heart, I breathed in deeply, slowly turning and moving into the bathroom. I could feel how saturated in sweat I was, but a glance into the vanity mirror confirmed the droplets of sweat formed across my brow. It also confirmed the red tint to my eyes and slight puffiness underneath them, despite the fact that I was fairly sure that I had gotten at least seven hours of sleep.

"Quality over quantity, I guess. I've gotten through days with worse." As if to spite me, a kink in my neck that I hadn't been aware of made itself known, shooting sharp pangs of pain down my spine. Hissing, I grasped at the offensive muscle, eyeing the large tub thoughtfully as I opened the medicine cabinet right above the toilet. I had at least one thing going for me, fortunately, as a brand new bottle of anti-inflammatory medicine greeted me in cheerful blue packaging.

"What the hell, body? I thought you were on my side," I grumbled to myself, relenting and twisting the nozzle on the tub's hot water setting. I was still attempting to work out my bad mood caused by my even worse nightmare and figured a little relaxation would do me some good.

Can I even be mad that he threw me off a cliff? It wasn't a real cliff, I guess, but it's the principle of the matter. Can either of us live and let live? Ugh, I'll do this later.

A few minutes later, I was submerged up to my chin in hot water and suds, not feeling inclined to move even an inch as the heat seeped into my achy muscles. It was my first bath as opposed to a shower in several years and I was in no way in a hurry to end it. I was perfectly content to peer up at the ceiling in my still groggy state, but my mind was buzzing with what the day had in store for me. A blank scroll that appeared above me and, without any warning, dropped into the water. My head perked up as I stared at the writhing thing, dumbfounded, and sighed.

"Um, up. Please. You aren't laminated." When I got a splash in the face as my only response, I narrowed my eyes at the panicking scroll, not having the patience for being bullied by paper.

"Excuse me? Up!" With a jerk of motion, the scroll clambered its way over the side of the tub and plopped onto the floor, a few solid minutes passing by before it slowly fluttered its way back into the air.

"Thank you. First thing's first. Note: talk to Sandy about the possibility of a dream catcher. My priority is to figure out how to carry out all of the Bookkeeper's-er, my duties. I have a feeling that I'm already very behind and that's a little worrying. Next, I need to start working on possible compromises that both dream and nightmare representatives can agree on. They both seem to have been around the longest and I only turn twenty in October. Definitely have to start building up my credibility."

That was as good of a plan as I was going to make before my morning cup of coffee. I read over the now partially filled scroll before waving it away. It teetered on its side and partially disappeared, protesting my partial attention, before fully fading from the room as I willed it away a second time. This whole mastering millennia worth of strange magic was going to take some practice.

I finally decided that I didn't want to become a prune and took the stopper out of the tub's drain. I reluctantly climbed out and threw a towel around myself, double-checked the mirror for any sign of improvement to my pale face, then finally padded out into my bedroom.

I dressed in a similar outfit to the one I had worn the previous day, but stuck with a pair of brown slacks, which I tucked into my boots. Before I could take a brush to my hair, however, it had been braided to one side of my head and draped over my shoulder.

"I could get used to this," I mused, having little luck with styling my mane to begin with. My stomach decided that it was time for me to feed it, so I popped into the kitchen for a quick meal.

Then, as I was passing the threshold into my bedroom, a cold shiver passed down my spine before I saw it.

From its inky black hooves to the mane that rustled around its head without so much as a breeze, the very familiar Nightmare stood very out of place by my nightstand, golden orbs that served as its eyes flicking from every side of the room in a frenzy.

"What the heck?" I groaned, falling into a non-threatening stance as I took a cautious step forward. The creature immediately reared back, front legs in the air as it let out a whinny that sent ice needles into my skin. My mind was reeling. I had never seen a horse anywhere other than in movies, nor did I know any actual training maneuvers, but I figured that I could give it a shot. The discomfort that radiated throughout the room was putting a spike in my feelings of empathy.

"Whoa, girl, whoa! Shh, quiet, shh." Before I realized what I was doing, I was standing half a foot away from an understandably confused horse-like creature. She was on all four legs now, but was shying away from me as I reached my hand out carefully, obviously not used to being out of its element.

"It's alright, pretty girl. Shh, shh, shh. Violet's here now." Still crooning to her, I felt another wave of worry hit me as I laid my hand on her snout. She remained stock still, but as I lightly patted her, she nuzzled my hand.

"There you are. Tnch tnch, let's get you somewhere less clustered, hm?" Keeping my eyes near but not directly on hers, I walked backwards to where I knew the mirror was, successfully moving through it before I risked taking my hand off of the smoky horse's snout. She huffed dismissively and seemed to take more of an interest in sniffing the floor. I tried not to take offense.

I would have turned around, but a creeping feeling had stricken me as I passed through the mirror. I was not ready for the sight of its source lounging on my futon.

"Another one of your 'house warming presents'? I do appreciate the thought, Pitch, but I just don't think I have the acreage for her." When no witty retort rebuffed mine, I glanced back at the empty futon, then returned my gaze to a very content horse having her ears rubbed.

"You know her gender; that's interesting." Trying not to be impressed at how attentive he was being to the mare, I rose a brow, a small smile appearing on my face anyway.

"Why's that?" I questioned, voice even for the first time that I'd spoken to the Nightmare King. I felt relatively comfortable, which I didn't anticipate to last very long, but I decided to be content for the time being. This seemed to catch his attention as he half-turned to study my confident posture disapprovingly.

"Most never consider the possibility that they may be something other than nameless creatures; that's all." I frowned but nodded, unsurprised, and managed to turn to examine a row of books as Pitch turned fully towards me. The melancholy was too much, even if I was cross with him.

A long silence hung over the room before I was able to turn myself around and approach the two dark beings.

"What's her name?" I averted my gaze to stroke the mare's neck softly, only to be thanked by having my braid chewed on. I made an equally distressed and grossed out noise while brushing black sand out of my hair, glaring over to Pitch as he chuckled.

"This spirited girl's name is Ebony. She seems to be keen on you." Ebony seemed rather intent on trying to eat my hair. I managed to pull away so that she became more interested in Pitch.

"You'll have to chalk it up to her strong judgment of character," I reasoned, tone coming out marginally more arrogant than I had planned. My houseguest cast me a look that confirmed how ridiculous I sounded, but I shrugged, not the least bit self-conscious about it.

"Not that it matters, seeing as you have every right to be, but what are you doing here? I can't imagine that you've run out of hearts to strike fear into." The wide-eyed expression he wore was worth all the thought I had put into my verbal jab. The mare suddenly seemed interested in the opposite side of the room.

"Ebony seems to not be the only spirited one here. Perhaps poor quality of sleep is throwing your mood off." My eyes widened before narrowing at his choice of words.

He seriously went there. I stood there, dumbstruck at the sheer audacity he had to make light of harassing me.

"Pitch Black, you are incredible." The self-confident grin he cast told me that he already knew.

"I'm not here to speak of the obvious, dear. I'm here with highly useful information that must have, well…slipped North's mind."

His pompous tone of voice wasn't helping me to distinguish any truth he might have been telling.

Fear is a natural result of doubt, after all.

"Does this information have a price?" I questioned, brow raised expectantly as I waited for a hidden catch to appear.

It seemed like I would have to wait, unfortunately, as a puzzled look came over the shadowed man's face.

"Only that you truly take into account what I have to say." My automatic reaction would have been to flat-out tell him no, but his words took me by surprise; there was nothing pushy about his request, which I wouldn't have ever expected of him. But there was one thing that bothered me.

I opened my mouth to speak, closed it to clear my throat, and grinned as the thought lingered.

"The way you took my words into account? I don't know that that would be very beneficial to anyone. There don't seem to be any cliffs around here to suspend you off of, either-" I gave a start which turned into a sprint towards Pitch as he knowingly moved to pluck a book off of the shelf lining the wall.

"Don't you dare!" I breathed, grasping at his sleeve, only for it to dissipate into a puff of shadow along with the rest of him. Ebony whinnied and I whipped my head around just in time to jump away from the spot he solidified in. A vastly increased case of the subtle burning sensation I had felt the day before had moved to my back as I stood with it pressed against the shelf. I leveled my gaze at Pitch, heart thumping in my throat as the entire perimeter of the room began to softly glow a golden hue.

"Those are not for you unless you can behave," I stated calmly. I was still out of breath from the upset but was perfectly capable of scoffing as he rolled his eyes in exasperation.

"Are you quite finished with your little," he made a fluttering gesture that was supposed to offend me, "ordeal, now? I do have other arrangements to see to, you know." It was my turn to roll my eyes.

"You and I both. You have the useful information; spill it."

In another irritating whirl of air and shadow, I was nudged off my feet and set on the futon across the room, sourly eying Pitch while crossing my arms across my chest.

"I thought you'd never ask. Now, let's think back to yesterday when the welcoming committee came with their heartfelt reception. North was quick to jump on board for your proposal, correct?"

Still not sure what he was getting at, I nodded, keeping an eye on him as he paced in a half circle around where I sat.

"What would prompt him to so quickly go right along with you-a stranger who he has known personally for only a few moments? Surely he would want specifics of your plan to assure that he and his fellow Guardians would be secure. I wonder what would cause him to want to sit back and see what will happen. You are supposedly a true neutral; why would he pause in asking how you plan to lay out your goals?"

Now it was starting to come to me. I blinked up at him, confusion still evident on my face.

"MiM would know if I wasn't fit to be a neutral. He wouldn't be careless enough to choose someone who would abuse any power given to them. Wouldn't you know that? You two go way back, from what I've heard." A chill went through me as he rested a hand on my shoulder.

"Funny how you speak for someone who will never speak to you. But you're right; he did choose you. With such an extensive knowledge of the world at large-heh." I was suddenly reminded of my high school bullies as he smirked.

"Oh, my, I had almost forgotten. You've been trapped in suburbia your entire life, making up excuse after excuse as to why you simply couldn't go to any one other than your dream school." I could feel my heart beat slowly accelerate as I stared at him in stunned silence. I wasn't sure whether I was more horrified that he knew this about me, or that he was using it to hang over my head. It felt like I was in another nightmare; helpless to do anything other than soak in his cutting words.

"But I digress. You are here so that the Guardians can have a heightened sense of purpose when you slip up…and you will slip up." His grip on my shoulder tightened, and I winced, but gave no other indication of having heard his words.

But then another voice intervened to eradicate the self-loathing that had begun seeping out of my pores. The presence continuously made me nervous, but it had yet to steer me wrong, so I went with it.

I reminded myself that, despite Pitch's ominous notions, I ultimately held control over my fate. The compass around my neck was glowing faintly and I decide what to do next.

"Ah, now I see. Because I'm only human. The cards are completely stacked against me, so I should just give up and stay out of the way, right?" With a completely straight face, I took ahold of his wrist until his grip loosened, securing mine as the compass began to glare into both of our eyes.

"See, there's plenty you don't know about me, but what would benefit you greatly to learn is that I don't…react well to people doubting me. North's stance is up for discussion, but you? You've given me plenty to work with, Pitch.

Something that would benefit you very much to learn about me," I stood with renewed strength and grasped ahold of his sleeve, the glow of my compass intensifying at the contact.

"Is that I only take others doubting me as a challenge." Shadows blotted my vision, but I stood completely still, willing the glowing from the compass to spread down my arm and to my fingertips. I dug them into the strange fabric I held and watched carefully for any reaction, wondering if he understood my earnest feelings. Pitch did not at all seem to be enjoying himself. I even thought I saw him wince.

"So I'm going to help the children, I'm going to reassure MiM and his Guardians that I am meant to be the Bookkeeper and I am going to show you just how wrong about me you are." Suddenly, my hands were empty and my face met soft linen as I scrambled to regain my footing. Before I could fully stand to reorient myself, a powerful force knocked me back across the room and into the wall. The same force that caused the books to glow softened the blow but I still cried out in startled pain.

I wanted to scream at him to stop being stubborn-to stop causing me to doubt myself-to stop working on his own prerogative just long enough to understand mine.

I unfortunately couldn't, however, due to the wind having been knocked out of me just moments before. Instead, I gasped in labored breaths while glaring daggers at his leisurely approaching form.

"So stubborn and yet…ever so fragile. Don't want to believe me? That's just fine. When what I've warned you of happens, we will be able to have this conversation in a calmer, more mature manner. Until then?" I looked on in bewilderment as my bracelet dissolved into black sand, scattering to the ground at my feet.

"Enjoy your solitude." In the same fashion, he became shadow, blending into the corners of the room and out the window with a whinnying Ebony following in his wake.

With a shuddering breath, I turned to lean my head against the bookshelf, running my hand along the spines of the books closest to me.

I will enjoy it, I mused spitefully, I have a lot of catching up to do.


Sorry for the late update. I'm at the peak of the semester where every class assigns projects at the same time heh. But I finally had time to edit this, so yay? Thanks for the continuous reviews and follows. They mean a lot. 'Til next time.