Disclaimer: I don't own any of the characters from the ROTG movie or GOC books
Back in her room Natalie sat down on the bed, the room was still warm as the fire was still going strong. The Nightmare that had taken her back to her room was now standing outside the door protectively, almost like her guard and she wasn't quite sure why that thought relaxed her. She was sitting in the Boogyman's lair, she'd grown up hearing stories from her cousins and other rich people's children that her parents had invited over. The boys had mostly tried to scare the girls with the Boogyman stories but she was sure that she was the only one who believed said stories.
She looked around the room and mentally noted how everything looked like it was made out of stone or the side of a mountain, it looked quite beautiful now that she didn't think of it as a jail cell. Her fear made her think strange things. She got up and walked over to the fire and added a few more small logs before going back, sitting back down to undo her shoes and putting her hairclip on the side table before getting back into bed.
The Boogyman had been right to send her back to rest, she got tired the moment she laid her head down and she finally noticed the hunger pains in her stomach. She hoped he got something that was nice, she didn't care what it was. She hadn't been eating, hadn't felt like eating since she slept all day. A small amount at dinner was enough for the night then she slept and did it all over again.
It wasn't healthy but she didn't know how to fix it, it was why she'd ran away in the first place. She let out a sigh before closing her eyes pushing away those thoughts and relaxing, she kept her thoughts quiet and managed to fall asleep
She stretched and let out a slight shiver, hiding under the blankets. The fire had gone out hours ago by the feel of the room and she didn't want to get out of the warmth of the bed. She'd slept fairly well which wasn't much of a surprise, she swore she could sleep anywhere if she was tired enough and her parents had made her stay up all day so she'd been very tired.
There was a soft 'neigh' from the foot of the bed and she looked over at the Nightmare standing there and she gave it a sleepy smile.
"Hello there" She said shifting so she was curled up on her side facing it and she held out her hand, it came closer and she giggled as it nuzzled her hand. She gently patted his head and yawned softly "Has your Master come home yet?"
The Nightmare neighed again in response but she wasn't sure if that was a 'yes' neigh or a 'no' neigh so she got up and shivered before grabbing a blanket off the bed and wrapping it around herself, she put her shoes back on and wandered out of the room. The Nightmare following before it went ahead of her slightly and she just followed it, humming when the smell of food hit her nose. Well that answered her earlier question.
She followed the smell and walked inside what seemed to be the kitchen where Pitch was unpacking boxes and she bit the inside of her cheek to ask where he got the food from, it was probably best she didn't know.
"Good morning Miss Paige" He greeted and she gave him a small smile
"Good Morning Mr Boogyman" She said and he glanced at her slightly
"Pitch Black, Boogyman is my title" He said and she nodded
"Mr Black then" she corrected and she started looking over the food "Chinese or Thai?"
"Thai, It was the first place I saw that was doing delivers" He answered and she nodded, that made sense and answered where he got it. "Have a set and serve yourself"
She grabbed the first box she saw and started eating, it was some kind of chicken dish. She wasn't sure. Pitch took a seat at the table and she bought the dish over and took a seat and continued eating, Pitch just sat there looking through the book that had been resting there.
Once she'd eaten all she could-which hadn't been much- he looked up and frowned, he hadn't been human for a very long time but he knew eating that little wasn't healthy.
"Is that all you are going to have?" he asked and she nodded standing up and spying the lidded containers, she emptied the Thai food into the various containers. Each dish in a different container and put it into the fridge that she was surprised Pitch had. "Is there something wrong?"
"Oh no, nothing is wrong. You have done more than enough for me" she said and he frowned more
"I don't normally care much for humans but I do know that they don't eat that little, what are your parents doing to you?" he asked and he watched her freeze "Ah I thought so"
"They aren't doing anything i. . .i just have depression which causes me to sleep all day and because of that I'm not hungry often" She admitted turning to face him
"Would you like to live here instead? I know nothing of families but even I know that parents who do nothing for their child do not deserve to have said child and if yours were doing something you would have said something like 'but my pills make it easier' or something along those lines" He said and she looked down at her hands for a moment and he made his voice softer, he felt a strange urge to protect this girl but wasn't quite sure where it came from. Maybe his fight with the Guardians changed him more than he thought.
"I. . .I don't know if I should" Natalie said softly and he stood and walked over to her
"Natalie I do not offer my help often but please, let me help you. If you stay with your parents nothing will change" He said and she looked up at him, he knew she knew he was right. Could see it on her face clear as day
"I, I would have to go back to get clothes. Possessions." She said and he nodded
"It is still early here, 5 in the morning I believe. Would now suit you?" he asked and she nodded
"My parents would still be asleep and the staff don't arrive until 7" She answered and he gestured for her to follow before he walked out of the room, she hurried along after him and saw him get onto a Nightmare. A different Nightmare walked over to her and sat down so she could get on and after a moment's hesitance she climbed onto it's back and held on tightly as it stood up. The two horses raced into the darkness and Natalie squeezed her eyes shut and clung to her horse until she smelt a familiar vanilla and strawberry smell and when she opened her eyes, they were standing in the middle of her bedroom.
"I'll be quick" she promised, glancing at Pitch who nodded and dismounted and she herself dismounted before darting around the room. Pitch left her to her own devices and slipped out of the room. He found her parents room easily and frowned at the peaceful expressions he found on their faces, no matter what he said before. He thought they would at least be worried about their daughter.
He looked around the room and paused only when he heard a soft whisper, turning back to the bed he saw the father's face was no longer peaceful. He looked worried.
"Natalie sweetheart, come home" he whispered, Pitch could tell he was still sleeping. He drew the man's dream up to watch it much like Sandy did. The father was standing on a hill, the house was behind him and he was looking down the hill. The young girl there was clearly Natalie and she was running away from him, the father took off after her but no matter how far down the hill he got. Natalie was always faster.
Pitch dismissed the dream and walked over to the mother's side of the bed, he'd been wrong. The Father clearly cared but he wasn't sure about the mother. He drew up her dream and sneered at the dream he saw. The mother was walking around a party, laughing and talking. Not a care in the world. He was sure it was the same party Natalie had been attending when she ran away.
He turned and walked out of the room, the mother wasn't going to be a problem. The father however, maybe he could ask her to write letters so the father didn't worry about her or at the very least didn't send out a search party.
When he returned to her room he found her filling a suitcase with books, there were three bags on the bed. One was a backpack while the other two looked to be full of clothes. Although he was sure he could see some kind of clothes washing soap in there but it was in a very large bottle. He summoned another Nightmare and he tied the bags to its back in a way that the weight was distributed fairly evenly.
He watched her pack the books and amazingly all the books she had on her bookshelves fit when she was closing it and she slipped it on like a backpack, he hadn't noticed the straps before but saw how it could be useful.
"Ready?" he asked mounting up and she nodded before doing the same, using her bed to get up onto the horse. She squeezed her eyes shut as they rushed into the darkness and only opened them again when she felt the nightmare sit down so she could get off.
Pitch had already grabbed two of the bags so she grabbed the last one and followed him back to her bedroom and with a flick of his wrist there were bookshelves. She blinked in amazement and he raised an eyebrow at her
"Shadows are easy to control once you get the hang of things, I trust I can leave you to your unpacking?" he asked placing the bags on the bed and she nodded "oh did you leave your note?"
"I did, I wrote two. One for Papa and one for my mother" she answered and he nodded before walking out of the room. He walked the halls until he got to his bedroom and he shut the door before going and laying down on his bed. While he didn't need to sleep, he did find it enjoyable. It was easy to recover his strength this way. He heard two Nightmares take up guard out in front of the door and closed his eyes before drifting off to sleep.