The wind playfully bounces me awake. A groan fills my throat as I try to mend a splitting headache. Thankfully the wind brought me somewhere even colder than before, it's somewhere covered in snow. Wait, snow. The wind's trying to bring me to the pole.
"No," I say in a raspy voice trying to fight the force. To keep my dignity intact, I tell myself that I'm just weak but in reality; it's impossible to win against the wind.
I lay back trying to enjoy the ride while it lasts. I close my eyes but the second I see dark a distant memory comes to mind. I'm sitting in my tree, the branch I'm on is breaking. If I move it'll snap. Then I rush to the ground.
My eyes snap open, is that why I'm afraid of thin branches? I fell out once? I don't remember it happening. Maybe it effected my memory somehow. Maybe I hit my head.
Before I can think any further we reach our destination. What am I going to say to them? I'll have to figure it out soon. The wind sets me on the ledge and I climb through the window. Everyone looks up at me thankful that I'm back.
"Where's your friend, mate?" Bunny asks in an Australian accent. I don't know how to break it so I just look down. The rabbit's ears flatten and Tooth gasps.
"I'm the last seasonal spirit, he's going to come after me," I say with a hint of fear in my voice. I can't do that anymore, it just feeds Pitch.
"We have to stop Pitch, no?" North asks. The others nod in agreement.
"Autumn, you have to stay here; if Pitch gets you, it's over," Tooth says.
"What if he comes here?"
"Yetis will stop him," North adds. "We must go, to the sleigh!"
"Wait! Sandy should stay back, he can't go near Pitch either," Bunny says.
"Why?" I ask, that explains why he wouldn't fight when he was here.
"Dreams," North points to Sandy. "Nightmares," points outside. "Poyekhali!" North yells, clapping his hands and goes out of the room.
Tooth and Bunny look confused for a minute but then follow North. I rise my eyebrow at Sandy, but he just replies with a shrug. We both sit down on the couch. I can hold it in any longer, I have to ask.
"Sandy? What's a dream?" I feel stupid asking because it's something that everyone just talks naturally about. Sandy has his jaw wide open and looks more shocked than anticipated. I throw my hands up in defense.
"I'm sorry, I didn't even know we could sleep until yesterday." Sandy looks at me like I'm from mars, maybe I shouldn't have asked.
"Jack was going to show me but I just got, I guess, a nightmare and when I woke up Jack was gone." I say, why does he always have to leave. Sandy looks sad but then forms two things over his head. A pair of hands together and a thumb's up.
"Were Jack and I good friends?" I ask with a smile. He nods. "Ya, I've known him ever since I woke up."
Sandy forms a question mark over his head. "What?" I ask. Sandy puts his hand on his arms with his eyes closed, then jerks his head up. "Woke up?" Geez, it's hard to understand him. He nods with his eyebrows furrowed.
"You know, when you wake up; it's hard to explain" I sigh. "It's the first thing I remember." Sandy makes two figures, one goes through the other. "Ya, I know! I'm still invisible," I say throwing my hands up in the air.
Sandy shakes his hand, points to me then to the figure still intact. "Me a human?" Sandy nods intrigued. "No, I was never one." Sandy shakes his head sadly, points to me and to the figure. "What are you saying? Wait! Are you saying I had a life before this!" I ask, I need answers; I've been waiting 300 years for them.
"Everyone has one," a deep voice comes from the shadows, Pitch. I get an arrow ready and spring from the couch. A shadow creeps out of nowhere and chases Sandy. He runs until it traps him in the corner. I'll help him later, right now I have to deal with Pitch.
"How do you keep finding me?" I ask through clenched teeth.
"Easy, Onyx helped me put a tracker in you," Pitch says pointing to my arm. Cautiously I lift my sleeve up to find a souvenir from Onyx's and I's first meeting. The cut still has black spiraling out, how could I forget? I could I be such an idiot?
When I look up, Pitch is only a couple of feet away. I suddenly get a boost of confidence when I remember a tiny detail.
"If you wanted to kill me, you've had plenty of chances; you would've done it by now" I say narrowing my eyes at him.
"No, I don't want to kill you… yet." Pitch laughs. "No, our fun is just beginning; it's you and me against the world. We can be unstoppable, the magic of a seasonal and fear; you can control the weather and I can control people's emotions. Everyone will believe."
"People, believe? In me?" I ask, it seems too good to be true.
"Yes! You don't have to be invisible anymore! You just have to join me," It scares me how convincing he can be. "I can help you with your past. Haven't you wondered what those visions of yours mean?"
"How did you-?" I ask shocked, he can't know about them; unless. Pitch is in my head.
"Autumn, I'm the spirit of fear! Those little memories give me more power than imaginable, they feed your biggest fear," Pitch smiles.
"And what would that be?" he can't know my fear if I don't even know, right?
"Yourself!" Pitch yells making it echo through the workshop. "You are afraid of messing up, being yourself because you don't want people to leave. I can assure you that once you know about your human life, that fear will dull."
"And what do you know about me past?"
"I just know about your nightmares, that's all the information I need," Pitch starts walking towards me, as I reflex I back away.
"I've only had one."
"No! Not as a spirit in your human life." Does he really remember all of them? "If you join me, you will be in control, you will have purpose; you will know all about Autumn Everard." Pitch takes a handful of black sand which begins to form a rectangle. The sand sharpens and I realize it's a picture.
Pitch hands me the old paper. The photo is in black and white but also faded as if it was from 300 years ago. A girl in a plain dark dress walks through the street. She has long curly hair in a braid to the side. In her hand is an old wooden bow. She is oddly dressed for the time period. Then I realize, this is me as a human.
"So, what do you say," Pitch outstretches his hand. Cautiously I walk towards him, I shouldn't be doing this. But what choice do I have? I've been waiting centuries for these answers and he's the only on willing to say them.
I shake his hand sealing the deal. A shadow sets over my hand and moves up my arm, I quickly back away in fear trying to get the darkness off me. My skin turns a dull grey and my hair jet black. A cold shiver runs up my spine as my body changes. Pitch walks over to the shadows.
"Let's go visit your friends, shall we?"
I walk slowly to the darkness and put my hand in it. It goes way farther than it should. Pitch walks through. It's just like a portal I tell myself. Then I walk through the shadow, the cold darkness engulfing.