"Wow! Bunnymund! Check this out! It looks like there is an entire cave system behind here!" It was the voice of Tall William and it sounded so very close, just around the bend. Light was pouring in from the place, a lot more than before. She could actually see the boy's shadow on the ground. Another one with prominent long ears came hopping up from behind him.
"Nice work, Will! This might actually come in handy" said the Pooka and Melissa's teeth began to clatter. She was not really afraid of him, he was her friend after all or at least he used to be. But she did not want to imagine what would happen if he found them here.
She had no time to dwell on this disturbing idea and she nearly let out another low scream when a hand grabbed her arm. But it was only Pitch pulling her away. He had their luggage in the other hand was was dragging her and the bag deeper into the darkness.
"Did you hear something?" they heard the giant bunny mutter and Pitch instantly stopped moving. And as soon as he did, the girl clung to him tightly without him having to say a word and then she felt the now familiar sensation of weightlessness and disorientation.
A moment later she found herself in a yet another cavern but it was nowhere as dark as the places she had last seen. Veins of quartz or other slightly translucent minerals ran through the ceiling and gave the whole place a slight glow.
"Wo-how" she breathed in total awe, her fear forgotten. "Where are we?"
"Japan" Pitch said flatly but then heaved a deep sigh. "That was close... way too close. This one here is not really my first choice to take you but it was the closest one I could think of just now."
Melissa nodded. Perhaps it was a bit too bright for him and it was pretty small and a bit damp too. Just around the next bend she could see the glimmer of daylight. They were very close to the world outside. The air was much fresher though and it was also...
"Brrr.. it's freezing here."
The Nightmare King nodded. She was right. It was cold, specially compared to the hot climate they had just fled from.
"Do you think it is safe to build a fire?" she asked timidly, not quite sure if he would be able to bear the light of normal flames.
"That would be a good idea actually" he admitted with a smile. The girl was a bit surprised but he explained quickly. "This is one of the few caves I know, that has something like a natural ventilation system. The smoke can get out through tiny pores and fissures in the rock, that however also makes it a not so convenient place when it is raining."
He pointed up and then to a spot not far away on the ground. There too was a rather large pile of furs and even a few more dark rags that looked very much like the material their beds were made off. And right next to it were the cold remains of what had once been a small campfire. Melissa understood now what he meant. This way they would not expose themselves to any poisonous gases or fumes and since he said nothing about it, he obviously didn't mind the firelight.
"We will need wood" the girl realized.
"Yes, and that's where you come in. It's day out there... but you will find enough dead wood lying around and it is quite safe too. Humans can't get up here unless they have learned how to fly."
"You want me to go outside and collect it" the girl gasped. She could hardly believe her good fortune. She so wanted to see what it looked like out there.
"Just don't get to close to the edge. If you slip there and fall, I won't be able to come and help you."
"I'm on it" she beamed and dashed off without giving him an opportunity to change his mind. She was around the bend in an instant but then noticed that she would have to do a bit of good old climbing to get out into the sunlight. It looked so bright and got even brighter the closer she got until is was almost blinding. And then when she finally emerged from the cave she gasped in wonder and delight at the snow covered landscape before her eyes.
She was high up on a mountain and could see other, even higher snowy peaks not far away. The area around her was not bare though. There were low, tangled trees and bushes. Some of them were in bloom in spite of the snow. A large raven-like bird cawed down at her before he pushed himself off the rocky cliffs above the cave's maw and took to the air. This place was beautiful and wild and like nothing she had ever seen.
She couldn't have imagined it in her wildest dreams. It was nothing like the garden of Mother Nature, it was much smaller and more humble but lovely in it's own way.
Melissa would have stood there in the small clearing for hours just looking if it hadn't been so cold. And then there was the task Pitch had given her. Firewood, she had too search for pieces of dead wood, but with the snow reaching up above her ankles, it was not as easy as she had thought. She started walking and looking and soon found a few old branches sticking out from the icy whiteness. Most of them were easy to pull out and carry but some were too big and heavy and she left them alone.
Then she noticed the edge Pitch had mentioned and she realized that they were not actually on top, but on the side of the mountain. This place was carved right out of the giant rock's shoulder and right there, a few steps away was a deep chasm. It did look steep and remembering the warning, she did not step any closer but concentrated on her task.
Soon she ran back to the cave with her first load and dumped it there before she followed her own footsteps back and continued exploring. She had been so sleepy before but now, in this place and with the fresh, crisp air and the sun shining on the sparkling snow, she was wide awake with awe and excitement.
There was more wood. Melissa trudged from spot to spot, picking up the dark pieces and then she noticed the tracks in the snow. There were animals up here but she was not quite sure what kind.
Pitch wouldn't have let me out here alone if there were predators about... would he?
Liz decided to follow them and investigate. They looked fresh too. After a few more steps she became aware of an odd bubbling sound and than the still familiar chatter of monkeys. Images of the battle in Punjam Hy Loo flooded into her mind but she pushed them away with determination. Instead she pressed forward more stealthily.
After passing a few more shrubs and bushes she came upon a sight that made her yaw drop. She was facing a high wall of rock and just there at the bottom were pools of steaming water.
Steaming... that water is hot!
She had seen hot springs before in Siberia, but none that looked like this. And what startled her most was the fact that a band of five or six monkeys were enjoying a bath there. Some of them were even swimming and the way they were chattering to each other made her think that they were actually having fun. She grinned and dropped her guard. The girl stepped into their view but they merely looked at her curiously, cocking their heads as she approached. They showed no sign of fear.
But when Melissa came closer still, the monkeys skittered away. They did not run but kept their distance watching her with curious orange eyes. She noticed that they had very red faces and also very red butts. They looked pretty funny to her but not dangerous at all.
"Hello there" she said and carefully placed her load at her feet before reaching out to touch the water. It smelled a bit of sulfur. When she dipped her hand into it she nearly flinched but only for a moment. It was very warm and to her cold hands it felt almost scalding. She gazed at the water with longing.
But Pitch is waiting for me. We have to get that wood dry and start a fire somehow...
The Nightmare King had been tremendously busy already. Melissa didn't know it but he had a small pile of dry wood stored inside the cave. If they would stay here for a while they would need more however. He already knew what it looked like outside and he wanted her to explore it on her own, knowing that she would be thrilled. Pitch also knew about the hot springs and he didn't expect her back any time soon. The girl was quite the swimmer and from what he had seen so far she also seemed to like it a lot.
So when she came stumbling down into the cave with an arm full of wood and a glow on her face that he had not seen there before, he was actually quite surprised.
"Pitch!" she gasped and dropped the wood right at his feet. "This place is amazing! There's a hot spring! And there are monkeys... nice ones as far as I can tell and they are bathing in it!"
The words came bubbling out of her and her dark blue eyes were sparkling like the night sky just after sunset.
"I've never seen anything alike!" she gasped quite out of breath with excitement and joy but then she became aware of the small fire that was already burning and her face fell. "We already had wood? Why didn't you... why did you... "
He grinned down at her and then reached out to pat her shoulder. "Yes, I have kept a little stack of wood in here and I wanted to surprise you. To be honest, I thought you wouldn't be back so soon."
"But..." she didn't get him at all. "I could have helped you. What is that contraption there?"
Pitch had arranged a few rocks and heavy branches around the campfire and had indeed built something that she didn't quite understand.
"You did help, a lot. That's quite a load you brought. But the wood here is usually wet and needs to dry. I found that hanging it above a fire does that quite quickly. And if we want to stay here for a night or two we will need more than what I have available."
Now Melissa understood. What she had been gathering would be for later. They would dry it above the already burning fire, using what he had set up there and she nodded her agreement.
"You tired?" Pitch asked, already knowing that she was not.
"Not even a bit" she smiled.
"So... if you want to run along and explore a bit or take a bath with those macaques... "
"Macaques?" she frowned.
"The local primates. Don't worry about them, they won't harm you. They've never seen humans before and they are quite agreeable. Those hot springs out there can do quite a wonder when you are tense or weary. Why don't you go and take a bath?"
The girl frowned up at him. This was so unlike the Nightmare King. Something had to be up. Was he sick of her? Would he take to the shadows and leave her as soon as she was out of sight? Or was he up to something else that she was not supposed to know about? Did he have a new plan to conquer the Guardians and needed her out of the way to make preparations?
That's stupid! He wouldn't attack them again so soon! Not after what happened on the moon...
Pitch wondered about that suspicious look on her face and finally his shoulders slumped. "Alright, Liz. If you don't want to it's fine with me. I just thought you deserve a bit of fun and time to yourself. I know this place is save so I don't see why you shouldn't. Besides, you are human. You need the sunlight if you don't want to get sick. In fact I thought you would do so without me suggesting it. I was planning on having this place quite homey and warm by the time you came back..."
The girl stared, swallowed down the lump in her throat and stared some more. "You really mean that?"
He simply nodded.
"You are not going to leave without me?"
"What?" he gasped. "No! Of course not. We just got here. Liz, I really just wanted you have a good time for a change!"
Melissa relaxed a bit and finally found her smile again. "So, I can really go back outside and take a bath in that spring. And you'll still be here when I come back?"
Pitch smiled back at her and handed her one of those black canvas sheets. "I'll be waiting for you. And later, once the sun has set. I think I'll take a bath there myself. Those springs are the main reason I chose this place as a hideout after all."
"Alright then!" the girl grabbed the cloth he was handing her and was just about to run back outside when she thought better. She turned on her heel and flew right at the surprised King of Nightmares and gave him a nearly bone-crushing hug around the waist. "You are the best! Have I ever told you that?"
"Wow!" Pitch gasped but before he could really wrap his mind around it, Liz was already out of sight with her substitute towel. He could only hear the patter of her boots growing more distant.
For a few moments he stood frozen in place but then his face lit up into the widest smile he was capable of.
That went rather well...
Melissa was back at the hot spring where those monkeys, or macaques as Pitch called them, were still having a good time and she was more than ready to join them.
She took off her clothes in the freezing air and placed them on a dry rock nearby. Then she climbed naked over the warm boulders and lowered her feet into the water. The macaques were watching her but she only grinned at them.
"Mind if I join you?" she asked politely before she let herself slip into the steaming pool and heaved a deep sigh of pure contentment. The water wasn't deep and she could sit on the rocks and lean back against them without submerging. She could keep her head well above the surface while she made herself comfortable against the warm rocks at her back.
What a perfect spot. It's really relaxing... Pitch was right. This is wonderful! Better that the hot bath I had with Kat in Santoff Claussen...
The thought triggered the few more memories of the place and she thought about Katherine and Fog and Petter and Sascha... and then about Tall William who was now helping Bunnymund to build some kind of secret garden beneath Australia. They had almost been caught... almost.
Good thing Pitch can travel through that dark realm. If it hadn't been for that... I don't think Bunny would have attacked us but Pitch might have. He doesn't trust them, the Guardians but I can't blame him. Not after what happened on the moon.
"The Moon" she sighed and looked up at the sky. The sun was closing in on the western horizon and already the day was waning. The moon would be up in the sky soon.
The Man in the Moon believes that me staying with Pitch is the right thing. I am helping him, am I not? But what will he do now? Will he attack them again? Is he already hatching a new plan? No... I don't believe that. He doesn't even have those fearlings now... Even if he wants to, he can't. Not with his memories returning at the most inconvenient moments...
Hot water splashed into her face and she was ripped out of her thoughts. The monkeys were still there and since she had not moved, they had become bold and were playing... actually playing like children right before her. They were splashing around in the hot water, screeching and chattering in a manner that sounded almost gleeful.
Melissa let out a laugh and splashed some water back at them.
They stopped their game and gazed at her warily but when she gave them another splash of water the chattering was back on and Melissa was in on their game. She didn't know the rules, nor did she understand them in the slightest but she watched them clinging to one another, climbing on each others backs but never allowing the downed one to drown.
Then suddenly one of them was on her shoulder, pulling at her long, loose hair. It didn't really hurt but she let out a bit of a yelp. Then she laughed right out. Her hand was up and she was touching the creatures soft fur. She splashed more water at him, and herself in the turn. The macaque squealed and hopped back into the water and then, all of a sudden they all left.
Melissa realized that they were a family. Their leader, she did not know if it was the father or the mother or just the eldest one gave a sign and they all just dashed away. She watched them climb up the steep rocks and gave them a small wave.
Guess their bathing time is over for today... hope I'll see them again...
She leaned back and relaxed again. The sun was still shining but it was getting late and Pitch was waiting for her.
Just a few more minutes...
She drifted back into a daydream and a few minutes quickly turned into twenty and then thirty. Only when she noticed the first star peeking out did she realize just now long she had been out here. Had she actually fallen asleep?
"Have you fallen asleep in there?" the surprisingly good natured voice of the Nightmare King startled her out of her thoughts. There he was standing right beside her next to the spring.
"Oww... I'm not sure, Pitch. I might have. I'm sorry."
"It's alright, Liz" he told her quite soothingly. "But unless you want to see me undress and get in there with you, you might want to make a decision."
The girl's eyes grew wide and then she looked up at the sky. The stars were out... the sun was gone and she felt so drowsy and ready to fall asleep.
She clasped her hands and her skin was all wrinkly from the hot water. It really was time for her to get out of her and back into the caves.
"Okay, okay... I'm out of here. But you'll have to turn around and let me get dressed."
The Nightmare King chuckled gleefully but then did as she asked. He moved away and turned his back.
With some effort the girl crawled out of the water and instantly started to shiver in the freezing air. She quickly dried herself with the sheet of dark canvas and then put her clothes back on.
"Okay" she said finally. "Enjoy your bath. I'll see you back in the cave!"
Pitch only smiled and watched her run off. She would be in for a bit of a surprise. But just for now... it would be his turn to get into those hot springs and let those wonderful sweet waters wash away his worries.
When Melissa had slid down over all the rocks and boulders that led to the bottom of the cave she was more than ready for a good night's sleep. She wearily made it down and around the bend when she caught sight of the fire. It was bigger now and the place was actually warm... warm! And that was not all. There were two beds, one on each side of the fire all made of that black canvas.
"Just like home!" she thought with a start and then smiled sleepily. "How did he...?"
Aaahwww... never mind... I can ask him later.
She crawled up onto one of them and covered herself with more of the silky black stuff. Melissa had never felt so sleepy and comfortable at the same time.
"He's spoiling me" she thought for a second but then sleep overwhelmed her and she knew nothing more for a long time.
When Pitch returned to the cave about an hour later he felt just as smooth and relaxed and ready for a few hours of shut eye. But the sight of the girl sleeping soundly on her bed made him smile and feel even better. He didn't even know why.
Maybe it was due to the fact that she had gone through all those troubles for his sake but he had felt that he owed her a treat. Now he was just too drowsy to think that much about it. He put a few more logs on their fire and then slipped under his blankets as well.
Both of them slept blissfully with not a single nightmare in sight late into the next day.
When the sun had just crossed that mellow point and it's glow was most golden Melissa awoke. She felt rested and peaceful. She had dreamed sweetly but she could not remember clearly what it had been about, so the strangely disturbing noises that had awoken her caused her to sit up on her bed with little alarm and more curiosity.
She could see Pitch quite clearly just a few steps away behind the now cold fireplace. He was moving too but was still asleep.
"He's dreaming" she thought with a smile but then older memories burst into her thoughts. Images of swarming shadows and terror.
He's not having a nightmare again, is he?
She slipped out of bed and crept up to him to investigate. Pitch was asleep, there was no doubt about it, but he had a strange look on his face, a bit strained perhaps and his brow was furrowed – not with fear but something close to determination. His shoulders twitched a bit and then his face relaxed again, his features actually spread into a smile, a rather proud one.
What the heck is he dreaming about?
Whatever it was, Melissa saw no reason to wake him. It seemed to be quite an adventure and she decided to just take a quick look outside to see what time it was.
She was accomplished enough to read the stars but when she reached the surface, she found bright daylight again. For a moment she was confused. Had she really slept so long and deeply? Apparently so and Pitch too. And then she thought about the fireplace. It had been cold. The fire had died while they had been sleeping. It it stayed that way, the small cave would soon be freezing cold again.
No matter how beautiful it was outside, she climbed back down into the cave where her strange friend was now sleeping soundly again. She found a few small shreds of dry wood and got to work, rubbing them into each other until the friction caused enough heat to produce a spark. She threw some dry shavings into the heat and soon had started the fire anew.
She knelt there feeding it with small bits of dry wood which the flames eagerly consumed before she added larger pieces that Pitch had cut from the wood she had brought in the day before. And when the fire was burning without her help she wished she had something to fry. A few strips of caribou bacon perhaps and some eggs. That would make a wonderful breakfast.
Melissa really was quite hungry but also a bit embarrassed about it. She had however noticed that her dress, the one North had given her was getting bigger around her. Or much rather, she was getting thinner and she could not let this happen. She was skinny enough as it was. She wished she had put up some traps out there...maybe there were rabbits... she wanted to go hunting but had neither a bow nor arrows. And there were certainly no fish inside those hot springs. The only one who could provide her with some breakfast was still snoozing away on that pile of black canvas.
She watched him impatiently for another twenty-something minutes before she made up her mind to wake him if she could.
Liz walked over to his bed with a purpose and shook him. "Hey Pitch! Time to wake up. Come on!"
He stirred and then gave her hand a rather gentle shove. But he only muttered something unintelligible and didn't wake.
Melissa grinned down at him as he snuggled back into his pile of black canvas looking so content and calm.
Maybe he's remembering something nice about his past...
She suddenly felt really bad for even trying. He might be remembering Emily Jane right now and the last thing she wanted was to ruin that for him. She could not possibly get in the way now.
"Alright" she mumbled and slumped back down on her own bed. All she could do was wait and endure and perhaps distract herself with something. That reminded her that they had brought the sewing tools.
This cave was bright enough to work on her new project and since she had no idea how long they would stay here, she thought it was probably a good idea to get started.
A minute later she had a sheet of black canvas spread out before her and was cutting out a few simple shapes. She had no measuring tape or anything here besides the needle and yarn, so she had to improvise a bit. It was nothing difficult though and soon she was crudely stitching the corners together to keep them in place before she started with the real work.
By the time the Nightmare King finally stirred, she was already half done. He pushed himself up on his elbows and blinked a few times as if he was not really sure where he was. Then he noticed the girl and sighed silently.
The girl's smile faded a bit. Is he … disappointed to see me? But then... he's probably still half asleep.
"Morning Liz" he said finally and sat up straight, stretching and flexing his shoulders.
"Good morning, sleepyhead" she smirked back at him.
Pitch frowned slightly but then noticed that she was working on something. Also the fire looked as if it had been tended to. "How long have you been up?"
"Not sure" she muttered evasively. "A few hours?"
"Hours?" he gasped. "Is it even morning yet?"
At this Melissa burst out laughing but somehow she didn't seem too happy. "It's almost evening again! Or maybe it is already... I think it was afternoon when I woke up."
The Nightmare King rubbed his forehead thoughtfully with his pale right hand, not even noticing it. At some point, he had dropped the habit of hiding it.
How could I have slept so long... that's not normal... not natural. Maybe it was the hot springs... or maybe those dreams... those memories...
It had to be memories! At least the first one and he remembered it clearly. He had been back amongst the stars, raiding every constellation, turning every good dream he could find into a horrible nightmare as he commanded his black galleon across the skies with his crew of loyal fearlings.
Loyal? I have to stop kidding myself...
But this was when he had been at his best. He had been truly unstoppable – the most powerful and feared being in the universe! This was how things should be! Now however those times were only a distant memory. Now whatever he tried seemed doomed to fail. But of course, back then there had been no Guardians, not even one.
How odd... if that little prince up there on the moon is able to elect Guardians to defend this world from me, his father should have been able to do just the same...
Somehow this thought unsettled him slightly. But then he found his old evil grin. Maybe the man had realized that there simply was no one powerful enough to oppose him.
Then however that other strange dream came back to his mind and it too was still completely clear and vivid to him. And even more intense and unsettling.
He had seen the world through the eyes of a boy, a teenager of perhaps fifteen years. And that boy – Pitch could not possibly think of him as himself – had a serious crush on a girl. The Nightmare King had felt every emotion from deepest adoration to perfect embarrassment, and worst of all, he felt it still whenever her beautiful face popped up in his thoughts. This lovely face, those sparkling green eyes, her blushing rosy cheeks when he - no that boy had finally found the courage to ask her out.
Pitch had never felt anything more confusing. There had to be some sort of mistake. This could not possibly be one of his memories. It had to be someone else's. The Elephant had messed up somehow. He tried to distance himself from that strange dream but the pictures kept haunting him.
He – no, that boy and the girl had walked hand in hand across a sunny meadow. The place had had a familiar feeling about it. Pitch was almost sure that he had been there before - in yet another memory. The grass beneath their bare feet had been so soft and the air had been filled with scents that he could still smell even now. She had smiled that lovely, entrancing smile at him and then had pulled him down into the grass.
This wasn't me! It can't be! I refuse to believe it! I'm the Nightmare King! I don't do such things... I don't go nuts over a pretty face like that... I never did! It can't be...
He tried to shake off the tumult inside him when Melissa's voice interrupted him.
"Are you alright?"
He looked up and saw that worried sparkle in her dark eyes. She had dropped her sewing onto her knees and was studying his face attentively.
"It's nothing" he lied. "I just had a weird dream."
"A memory?" she asked more curiously and he shrugged, shook his head but how could he be sure?
"Maybe."
"So..." Liz hesitated for a moment until she decided that it was safe to ask. "Do you remember her?"
A smile crossed his features but only for a second and he had to stop himself from saying "Oh yes I did..." He realized just in time that Liz was not asking about the girl he had seen, but about his daughter.
Right... I had a little girl once... but where had she come from? Children don't just grow on trees. She must have had a mother!
And only now, when he became aware of this did he realize how much like Mother Nature that young girl had looked. The same silky black hair, the green eyes... just the shape of his daughter's face was more like his own.
Suddenly he was not so sure anymore if that dream really had not been one of his memories.
"Pitch?"
"No, Liz. Sorry... but the memory was not about her."
Melissa was still watching him. She could tell that whatever he had experienced was not easy to process.
"You... want talk about it?" she asked carefully in a very low voice.
The Nightmare King shook his head briskly. "Not really, not now... maybe later" No! No way!... No chance in hell!... Not ever in a million years would I talk to anyone about this!
Pitch really had to distract himself, and quickly, before he could do or say anything stupid.
"So... what are you making?"
Melissa looked down at her work and held it up carefully. She would have liked to tell him that it would be a surprise but after all of this she had a feeling that he needed some plain and simple clarity.
"I'm trying to sew a rucksack. That bundle there seems a bit bulky and if we ever need to get away quickly again it might be good to have our hands free." She forced a lopsided smile and held it up. It was not quite done yet and the straps were still missing but once again Pitch admired her practical mindset.
"What do you think? Will it be big enough for all that stuff?" the girl wondered and saw him grin for the first time since he woke up.
"We'll see once it's ready" he suggested and then got up from his bed and stretched himself to his full extend taking several deep breaths to brace himself for anything that might come up.
"Are you hungry?" he finally asked and saw the girl sigh just as deeply.
"Starving actually. And since your brought the topic up, can I ask you a favor?"
"Anything, Liz. But let me find you some food first, alright?"
She graced him with a hopeful smile and nodded eagerly. Everything else could wait as long as she had something to put into that empty hole in her stomach.
The Nightmare King moved deeper into the cave until the darkness swallowed him and he was gone.
Left behind like this, Melissa started wondering just what he could have been dreaming about. She had watched his face carefully during the last few minutes and he had not looked very happy at all. She had seen the doubt, the confusion, the embarrassment, the objection. Only after she had asked him about Emily Jane had his expression become calmer, but had still been somewhat blank compared to all those contradicting emotions he had displayed before.
She was awfully curious about that memory but she would have to be patient. If he wanted to tell her about it he would do so when he was ready.
Liz had barely finished the thought when Pitch was back with not one but two steaming bowls.
She looked up at him in surprise. "Are you going to eat too?"
He shook his head and placed both of them before her. "Both yours. You said you are starving and I must admit that you look like it too. You have become way too thin. This is a second helping."
He noticed!
She was slightly startled but also a bit relieved but then she pushed all of those thoughts aside and dropped her work onto the sheets beside her. Then she picked up the first bowl and felt how hot it was. Whatever was inside smelled wonderful and a bit exotic. She took a closer look and her face crunched up in disgust at what she saw.
"What's wrong?" You don't like noodles?"
Melissa sat up straight and stared at him. "What are noodles?"
Her innocent question was tinted with a bit of discomfort and Pitch was once again reminded that that child was not the world-travelling kind. She had never seen those thin strings before.
"They are made of some kind of dough" he explained. "Flour, water... maybe eggs... I've not really paid that much attention. But the people in this country seem to like that stuff a lot."
"Oh" the girl sighed and found her smile again. It came around rather sheepishly. "I thought they were worms."
Pitch stared at her for a moment but then started chuckling in spite of himself while Melissa looked around for the fork or spoon that usually came with the food. But all she could find were two thin wooden sticks.
"Er... Pitch?" She interrupted his mirth and held them out to him with questioning frown.
He started to actually laugh at this display of confusion and helplessness before he calmed down and found it in his heart to instruct her in the art of eating with chopsticks. Not that he had any experience with it but he had at least seen how it was done.
At first Melissa was very clumsy and the noodles kept slipping away but she proved to be a fast learner and she was so incredibly hungry. Only a few minutes later Pitch sat beside her and enjoyed watching as she chopsticked away at her meal. She sucked the noodles and they left wet marks on her cheeks as she did.
"Do people in this country really eat like that?" she wondered between two mouths full.
"They do" he confirmed. "And I must say that I find it rather fascinating. You are doing well though. I'm actually a bit impressed you got the hang of it so quickly."
Liz looked up at him with a strange expression as if she was trying to scowl at him but couldn't because his compliment made her smile.
"Well" she said then. "It was a choice between starving or eating with my hands and that would have been bad manners." Pitch could hear just a hint of sarcasm in her voice and he knew she was holding back. He didn't like it. He wanted her to live up to her best, he wanted her to speak her mind. That after all was one of the things he liked about her.
"How do I get the soup out without a spoon?" she interrupted his thoughts. There was some liquid left inside the bowl.
"Make a guess" he prompted her and Melissa looked from the bowl to his face and back again a few times before she put the sticks aside and lifted the dish to her mouth. But then she hesitated.
"Go on" Pitch nodded with a smile.
"Now that is bad manners" she sighed but did it anyway. It tasted way too good to let even a drop go to waste.
"You are in a strange country here, Liz. I don't know much about it myself, but they seem to have quite an interesting culture, and very different manners when it comes to eating. From what I've heard, they consider eating with a fork disgusting. They believe it is bad taste to shovel food into your mouth with it. This however seems to be just fine."
At first, Melissa could only shake her head in disbelief, but after she had pondered about it for a bit, it began to make some sort of sense. There was no stuffing your face with those sticks for sure. It still seemed strange to the girl but by now anything alien attracted her. She was beginning to feel very curious about the land she was in and as she picked up the second bowl and ate more slowly, savoring the taste, she started to ask questions.
And Pitch was more than willing to tell her whatever he knew about the culture and these people's way of life. Melissa had been fascinated with Australia, specially the small continents fauna but this was even more exciting because it was about the people here and everything he told her was so strange and new.
They stayed in the cave for two more nights and during that time Pitch filled her mind with more information than she could process and her stomach with dishes that were just as strange to her but since her mind was wide open to all the possibilities she did no longer scowl at anything new. Instead she embraced the opportunity to experience new exciting tastes.
In the afternoon and evening they went back to the hot springs. Melissa went first , while the sun was still up and usually stayed there until Pitch came to take her place. The rest of the time was filled with more lessons on reading and writing, where Melissa was actually beginning to make progress. She also learned more about the Japanese culture and beliefs and when they went to bed late in the night, they both slept soundly and undisturbed. Not a single fearling showed up and Pitch had no more strange memories returning to him.
They had both adjusted their sleeping pattern a little. They went to bed later and got up around midday. Thhis way the girl could still enjoy a bit of sunlight every day but it made it impossible for Pitch to go and find her breakfast, unless he would travel half way around the world to wherever it was still dark. So instead he brought extra rations for her. Things that she could either eat cold or heat up over their campfire. He visited several houses every time, so the inhabitants would not notice that food was being nicked from their stores, which of course took him longer. The upside was, that he had more stories to tell his young ward on his return, to which she eagerly listened while she ate.
On the third day Melissa awoke to the odd feeling of icy wetness on her face. The air smelled different and she could hear strange sounds. She sat up and wiped a few drops of water from her face.
And then she realized what was goin on. She had noticed the day before that the snow outside was beginning to melt and now it was raining – no – it was pouring down in torrents. And everywhere heavy drops of water were falling from the ceiling of their cave.
She hurried over to her friend and shook him awake. It didn't take much effort this time.
He almost instantly jumped to life and sat up straight with wide eyes. "What … what is it?" he gasped and the girl was stunned at the tremble in his voice. "Are we under attack?"
Melissa started to chuckle. Pitch must have had a very vivid and weird dream and was not quite awake yet.
"No Pitch" she said trying hard to stop giggling. "It's nothing like that ... but it's raining and you know what you told me about this cave. The water is coming in everywhere!"
That brought him back to the real world quickly enough and he looked around, frowning and wiping moisture off his face and out of his hair. Then he sighed. "Looks like we'll have to move again."
Melissa nodded but then sighed deeply. "Too bad. I liked it here."
She started packing whatever was still lying around into her now finished backpack. The moment she was finished, Pitch took it from her and weighed it ins his hands.
"Awesome job, Liz. Everything fits and it's a lot easier to carry around."
The girl ignored the praise. She was quite excited by now and could hardly wait to leave.
"So, where are we going?"
"Some place warmer" he promised and stepped into the darkest spot inside the caves. He held out a hand and Liz was by his side in an instant, looking forward to learn about a new place.
This new place turned out to be a group of islands scattered close to each other in the middle of the Pacific ocean. Pitch called the one they had made their home for the night Hawaii.
The Nightmare King knew little of this land and could not teach her much, but the food he stole for her here was quite amazing. It was mostly fish and other seafood along with an incredible variety of fruits – some of which she could actually pick herself just outside the tiny cave he had brought her too.
The people that lived here were all natives. They had never seen strangers and Pitch was not quite sure how they had first gotten here at all and when or where they had come from. But as he had promised, it was warm here, almost too warm. Even the rock beneath their feet were hot.
"When I first found this cave it was quite cool" Pitch wondered but didn't worry too much about it.
They stayed there for another two days, but could barely get any sleep. It was just too hot. And then on their second night, just when they were trying to get some rest, the ground began to shake and the earth itself seemed to be moaning. Melissa had never heard anything like it. It was a terrifying sound and she noticed that it was getting hotter very quickly.
"Pitch?"
The Nightmare King had a pretty good idea what was going on. He had found out a few things about this odd mountain earlier that day. He had seen the humans in the valley make preparations but had not believed that they were in immediate danger. Now he knew better.
"We have to go" he decided. "This instant!"
Melissa didn't question him but grabbed their possessions and flew into his arms, ready to flee from whatever was about to happen.
When she felt save again a moment later, she was once again surrounded by darkness and the air was cool. Not chilly but comfortably breathable.
"What was that?" she gasped. "An earthquake?"
"Volcano about to blow" was Pitch's short explanation. He was already distracted by something else.
He had taken her to yet another cave this time on the American continent. He knew the natives thought this place sacred and haunted and never entered it but now he could see dim lights far ahead. He heard voices too.
He pulled Melissa deeper into the shadows.
The girl had not noticed the lights since the Nightmare King's body was blocking them from view but she clearly heard the voices in the dark.
"Not safe" she whispered fearfully. "There are people here!"
"I can see that!" Pitch growled angrily in the back of his throat. This place was sacred to the humans here. Who would dare to invade it like that?
"Liz" he whispered and placed both hands on her shoulders. He bent down to her and looked straight into her face with a very serious expression. "Stay right here. Don't move. I promise I will be back here in a minute, but I have to find out who these people are."
Pitch had his reasons for being upset. He had come in contact with the natives when he had first insprected this cave. It had been the strangest encounter ever for him. They feared him but not in the usual way. It was not terror they had shown but some deep sort of respect for his power. They called him a Manitou, had bowed to him and had named this cave sacred ground, since he had obviously claimed it. No mortals were allowed to trespass here. They actually worshiped him in some weird way and he could not deny that he liked it.
The Nightmare King had to find out who had dared to desecrate the place. He could not deny that this cave was quite special to him.
As he approached the lights and the noises he could hear picks connecting with rock. But he moved forward anyway. And then he saw them. A group of men with pale skin and beards. They seemed quite gleeful. Pitch stood there in plain sight of them and just listened. He learned a lot during those few minutes.
Those men where mining silver and had killed a lot of the Natives in order to get here.
The Nightmare King's silent outrage at this gave him a new kind of determination that he had not known before. It was not vengeance – that he knew plenty. But something deeper. It came right from the deepest part of his soul and it swelled with it.
He had to admit that he was nowhere as powerful now as he had been when the fearlings had been around but Pitch still had a few tricks up his inky sleeve.
He reached deep inside himself, tensing with concentration and somehow he brought the shadows in the cave to life. They were nothing more than just that – shadows. They had no life of their own.
The miners were laughing and talking until one of them looked up and saw the darkness approaching with what looked like clawed fingers on long, skinny arms. He let out a yelp and pointed. The others turned and stared.
The shadows closed in on them slowly and with them came a low, eery laugh... right out of the darkness.
Their heads flew around and they saw the King of Nightmares and to their adrenaline infused minds he seemed more that ten feet tall. A mass of blackness in human shape wielding the largest scythe any of them had ever seen. To them it was Death himself who had descended upon them.
"It's the Manitou!" one of them wailed. "That spirit they warned us about!"
"It's come to to take our souls!" another one of them cried in sheer panic. The man dropped his too, turned on his heel and ran for the exit of the cave as quickly as his legs would carry him. His friends didn't care to stick around any longer and followed suit, screaming in perfect terror.
The success of his performance came as quite a surprise to Pitch. He never thought he would make such an impression but he was very pleased with himself and just as amused. He let out another low evil lough that echoed through the cave pursuing the miners and would surely send that murdering filth running.
When he could no longer hear them, he allowed his shoulders to slump and he actually yawned. All that running from place to place was starting to get to him. He really needed some rest and the girl too.
Liz had crouched down against the rocky wall where Pitch had left her and only listened intently but what she heard made little sense to her. Everything came back blurred with echoes and all she knew that she heard screaming and that horrible laughter. She knew that it was Pitch... but it still unsettled her.
When she saw him approaching only a minute later he wore a rather odd expression. She could tell he was exhausted but there was a smug grin on his face and a glint in his eyes that she had not seen there before. But she knew it well. She had seen it often in the eyes of her friends back in Santoff Claussen.
It made her smile.
"So... you had yourself some fun, didn't you?" she asked quite pertly as the Nightmare King raised a thin eyebrow her way but then his grin became a bit broader still.
"Ooooh yes" he admitted without hesitation. "I had a real blast!" Pitch added with a chuckle and Melissa tried hard to perceive some kind of sarcasm in his voice, yet there was none. He meant it plain and simple.
They actually managed to get some sorely needed rest, but not nearly enough to make up for their lack thereof. Only perhaps two or three hours later they were both startled awake by a sound the girl had never heard in her life but the Nightmare King identified it instantly as a clarion call.
"What... what... was..." the child stuttered bleary-eyed. She was not quite sure whether there was reason to be afraid. Pitch however seemed almost beside himself with anger and frustration.
"Those filthy, stinking, murdering, goat-shagging..." he only just stopped himself and cast the girl apologetic glance. She simply stared up at him in confusion and had clearly not understood a word of what he had just said. What she understood however was that he was angry and that someone was probably on to them again.
"Those miners have called the cavalry on us" he explained flatly and pulled his young friend to her feet.
"The what?" Melissa dared to ask but was already pulled back into the darkness along with the backpack. She heard loud voices of many men and she could see the flicker of torches somewhere ahead.
But before she even had time to feel afraid she was pulled close and knowing what was coming, held on tight.
"Is this some kind of a curse?" the Nightmare King sighed the moment they both stumbled out of the shadows of a half flooded cave. Water was running down the walls around them and from the looks of if there was not one dry spot in sight.
Melissa knew what he meant. No matter where they went to hide, there always seemed to be something that drove them off. She felt exhausted and the lack of sleep was beginning to make her cranky.
"Can't we just go home?" she dared to ask. "I'm sure the fearlings are..."
"Not yet!" Pitch cut her short and there was still anger in his voice. He had however been thinking the same thing, but the mere mention of those demons instantly caused his chest to feel tight. He hated to admit it but he was afraid. He could not take his chances with those monsters, not with Melissa around and even less so without her.
But they could not possibly stay in this dripping place either. Already humidity was seeping in and their feet were getting wet.
"I don't know about you..." he muttered with some more composure but his voice was low and he sounded as tired as Melissa felt. "But I'm pretty fed up with caves for now. Let's try something different."
Liz was all for it but was really not sure what he had in mind. She simply shrugged and was back in the darkest spot even before he was. "Let's go."