Fear Itself
Chapter 2
Notes: Wow, I wasn't expecting so many people! Glad that you all like the story so much!
000
Ashley came into her apartment and closed the door behind her. Then flopped back against it as she dropped her bags and flipped the lock behind her. Half pushing herself off she flopped back to put the sliding bolt into place and let herself sag comically to the floor. "A cat, that's what I need, someone to come sit on my head and tell me I should feed their highness when I come home." She said to herself and turned onto her back to stare at the ugly cottage cheese on the ceiling.
Getting home had been a bit fun. She just had gotten through her second early morning class when the announcement went around that the rest of the day was going to be canceled due to the storm blowing in.
So she managed to get to the little deli connivance store on her way home. Picked up some milk, eggs, page of corn dogs, Oreos and a butt load of chocolate before they closed up shop for the storm. Over the register she saw the TV with the weather channel on saying it was going to be nasty and all that fun stuff. Most the large places would likely stay open, this was after all the North, and unlike the state her parents currently lived in, were use to having snow and dealing with it. But a small place like her local deli would want to close up so they could go be with their families.
She sighed. At least she made it to her place before the first flakes started to fall. Dropping her keys in the bowl on the table next to the door she kicked off shoes and peeled off her coat and hat, hanging those over the back of the papasan. She put her groceries away and went to her room to get on some PJs. She figured she'd sit with a book and a lantern incase the power went out. An evening of reading (after homework) with corn dogs and hot chocolate sounded lovely.
She took off her shirt and tossed it into the laundry hamper when she stopped.
Something glittered on her bed.
Slowly she went over and picked it up. A silver bracelet. One she hadn't seen since the day she left home for college.
Something she thought she'd never see.
"I was so disappointed that you forgot my gift Ashley." The girl grabbed her pillow and holding it up against her chest she spun to see a figure lounged in the arm chair in the corner of the room that she used when putting on her tall boots, although most the time he was usually filled with clean but unput away clothing.
The clothing was all neatly put away. She had a feeling it would all be so carefully organized and sorted by even color.
Nothing secret. Nothing personal. Nothing HERS.
Not with him.
The master of fear. The King of Nightmare. The Boogeyman.
"P-pitch…." She said softly backing up as he stood. Fluid as a shadow he was. One moment she saw him on the other side of the room, the next he seemed to just step out of the closet next to her. Towering over her she spun and backed up, which made her trip back on her bed and she scooted fast to the other side. Keeping the pillow clutched like it was some sort of armor. A barrier between herself and her greatest fear.
Pitch Black.
"Now now, since when did you stutter my dear?" he said leaning forward, she could see it in his eyes. How much he enjoyed scaring her. How much he loved the power over her. As if her fear was a palatable thing to him. He could smell it, taste it, and he did. Sipping upon it like a fine wine that he was carefully aging.
"Why are you here? I… thought you just went after little kids."
"Oh no lovie, it's those who Believe. Children are just easiest, but you. You are special." He backed off at least. "I thought you remembered that lesson long ago." Turning his back to her, which gave her a moment to grab a shirt and make herself decent. Hand behind his back he looked about running a finger over the shelf screwed to the wall with her favorite books and a few mementos of her childhood sat. Rubbing his fingers together as if he was analyzing just how clean it all was.
The worst Mother-in-law joke given life that was the boogeyman.
Who would believe her when she said that he was a neat freak?
Everything in its place. Everything ordered. Even her.
She pushed herself up against the headboard of her bed. She would make a run for the door but he had made sure to put himself between her and any form of exit. The power flickered and she prayed hard that it would not go out.
Would not give him more shadows to play with.
"For awhile I wondered if perhaps I would not have needed you as much as I thought I did after all, but it seems a few plans had been, set back." He growled the last and for a moment it almost looked like his hand passed, through, her book shelf.
She felt her brows knot together, did he seem a little less, substantial than last she remembered?
If he was, it didn't show when he turned and picked up the bracelet from her bed and held out his other hand to her and snapped his fingers.
Her jaw moving, feeling like a small child again. She hated this, hated how he made her feel. Helpless and young. As if all these years on her own building a life meant nothing.
He was here and she was twelve again. Not able to fight against him and she best not.
If she got too plucky, he had ways of making sure she knew just how powerless against him she was.
She held out her hand and felt his long cold fingers close over her wrist. The other hand slipping the chain of silver around it then he closed the clasp. There was a couple small charms on it. One looked like a broken bed the other like a dead burned tree. But most horribly the clasp was shaped like a heart, with a keyhole in it.
She hated this thing. Hated it with a small passion. His 'gift' to her all those years ago. He made her wear it. Dropping it in the house when she left had been she hoped the final separation she needed between her and him.
But as she pulled back her wrist, staring at the bracelet she felt her eyes sting with restrained tears. It seemed, it was all for naught and here he was, again, in her life and she was once again marked.
Why he wanted her, what his purpose, she did not know. But she so badly wished he would go away. Would get bored. Would leave her be!
It seemed though, that while she thought she had escaped, she never really had. He was able to come to her no matter where she went or how far away she had gone.
She looked up at him and he gave her a gentle smirk. A mocking expression she knew. He leaned over and kissed her forehead, like some loving mocking of a parent. "Now, enjoy the evening." He said backing up and fading into the shadows of her closet. Hands closing before himself and slowly he was gone until all that remained was his smile and the glow of his eyes staring at her "We have much to get caught up on. And if the weather forecast is anything to go by, several days in which to do so." He chuckled.
And was gone.
But Ashley curled up on herself shaking hard and fighting the tears. They were useless and he would only laugh at her.
000
"Hey Ashley, you're looking pale. Get a cold over the break?" Ashley blinked realizing that the person who flopped into the bench next to her was her English teacher.
"Oh hey, no, just haven't gotten very good sleep the last few days. Storm knocked out the power to my apartment. Made it a bit cold." The truth, partly. The other half was that Pitch made good on his promise of getting caught up with her.
Which included of course scaring her into real tears. Until she was hiding herself in the corner of her room, with only a flashlight and her hedgehog as her only comforts.
"That sucks. Did you at least get time to finish your assignments? End of term coming up soon."
She nodded "Yeah, essay all written." She held up her cd to print out the paper at the computer lab before class.
The woman smiled at her and getting up left.
Ashley sank back in the bench and pulled up her knees. Holding out her wrist so she could stare at the chain on her wrist.
It was a chain. Like a mockery of a slave's cuff. It marked her as his. And he made sure she knew this.
Whatever he wanted. Mind, body and soul she belonged to him. And she could not ever escape him.
Because he should not exist. If she said she believed in him they would only drug her, treat her as if she was crazy or delusional. It was bad enough how she got treated at times if she was to admit she believed in even just the Toothfairy.
She was too old to still be believing.
But how could she not? The world was full of creatures unseen. She would hear Santa's sleigh as he flew over sometimes. Or see others, like little humming birds, darting by on business. Holding coins or teeth, so there seemed to be more than one tooth fairy as far as she could tell. Cupid she'd seen about on his business or even others.
The Sandman orchestrating dreams, though it seemed pleasant dreams were never her's to have anymore. When she remembered her dreams at all, they were always nightmares.
She sighed rubbing her face, feeling tired and drawn when something suddenly hit her from nowhere. Blinking she realizing it was, well, a snowball. Looking around she tried to spot who did that, then gave a startled yelp as the snow on the back of her head went down the back of her collar. "COLD COLD COLD!" she squeeled and someone nearby laughed.
"Oh.. I'm so going to get you!" she found herself grinning. For a moment, all the fear drained from her as she was looking for her target.
Another ball hit her square in the face.
She blinked stunned as snow dripped off her glasses. There was more than her assailant's giggles now, now there were a couple other students heading by for their own classes. The early morning was not overly popular for classes, but they happened. And turning she saw someone leaning against a tree.
A young man, a little younger in appearance than she, in a blue hoody and well, no shoes.
He had a staff.
And for a moment she heard her own voice in her head 'come back!'
The window, the blue boy, when she was sick.
She had hardly remembered him in the passing years, but suddenly it came back to her. The boy who'd played with her through the glass. Drawing pictures with her in the frost he created on her window.
She narrowed her eyes and her smile got very wide as she carefully picked up a glob of snow from the back of the bench she'd been seated on. His attention was upon the others who were near him, as if he thought that was where her attention was centered.
The snow hitting the back of HIS head gave him a shock and her grin was positively smug as he turned wide blue eyes on her. She tossing a snow ball in her hand "Oh yes. I see you." She mouthed and feeling downright chipper she hooked up her book bag and skipped off towards the building and class. Especially with the wide eyed shock she left him. As she turned a corning though she could hear his merry laughter behind her floating on the wind like so many happy snowflakes, even she felt more like giggling.
000
"Hey!" she blinked up from her book, rubbing her nose which was chilled. Outside the library the blue boy was frosting up the windows and waving at her. "hey!" he called his smile huge as he noticed he had her attention.
"I'm studying!" she held up her book and then firmly put her nose in it. Geeze, she was use to startlement from such spirits when she spotted them, but they didn't usually start following her around like this.
"There's lots of time! Come out! I want to talk with you!" he tapped the glass making several people look up but they didn't see him.
She narrowed her eyes and held up the book more firmly. He couldn't wait a bloody hour? If he had things he had to do, then he should go about them then! They could always talk later, or better yet, not at all.
It was likely best if not at all. She had a feeling that her little stunt with the snowball was a bad idea, but at the time it had just seemed like a fun idea to see his stunned face when she nailed him with the snowball.
Perfect revenge for getting snow down her collar!
Now though, after having time to think about it.
Oh no, she really should not have done that. Should not have gotten his attention.
She had a feeling Pitch would not approve.
And while she didn't go seeking that one's approval, she also tried not to earn his disapproval.
That was by far the worst thing she could do.
There was silence for a bit, Ashley figured maybe the boy had gotten tired of trying to get her attention and had moved on. To… well do whatever it was he usually did. He kind of reminded her of snow, so maybe he was a winter spirit of some sort? Shrugging it off the raven haired girl went back to her studied. Ashley had another class in about an hour and then little more excuse to stay away from her apartment and Pitch.
She heard the sound of fingers rubbing against the glass and didn't look up. She was not going to give him the satisfaction!
"Hey.. Are you Ashley?" a voice said by her and she blinked looking up at one of the clerks working at the library.
"Um, yeah.." she said hesitantly.
The young woman pointed towards the library window. It was covered in frost and had a message scrawled upon it.
Catch ya in the parking lot Ashley
And all stuffed within a frilled out heart like it was some note from a goofy boyfriend.
She growled as a couple people nearby noticing her reaction and the message giggled. The clerk gave her a sympathetic look. "I'll go wipe it off." she said to Ashley who sighed and closed her books. She was not going to be getting any study done now it seemed.
"Thanks, sorry he's a bit of a pain."
"At least he cares."
Ashley snorted and packing up her messenger bag she headed outside.
There was a tunnel beneath the road that led to the campus parking lot and that was where she found the blue boy leaning against the wall and playing with snowflakes.
"Right, so since you feel the need to ruin my study time with pseudo love notes written on the library windows. What do you want?"
"You can actually see me?" he said and practically flitted light as a bird until he was close enough to near be nose to nose with the girl. It irritated her that for all he appeared younger than her he was still taller. OK she was a shorty, but seriously! It was like the world wanted to rub her five foot nothing frame in her face.
"Yeah." She said slowly, wondering if she screwed up and he was just some random weird ghost instead of a winter spirit. She didn't normally see ghosts.
"Do you know who I am?" he asked growing more excited.
"Er.. the personification of some aspect of winter?" she said hesitantly.
"What?" he blinked at her.
"Well, I mean it's what you look like, admittedly you aren't as easy to place as like, a toothfairy or like the Easterbunny." He seemed to find this comparison hugely amusing by his chuckle. "But I mean, you play with frost and …" she stopped, oh! "Jack frost?" she asked, like the song! 'Jack Frost nipping at your nose…" though he looked nothing like the old stop motion animation.
He did a flip and bounced about like an ADHD kitten on speed. Laughing so that he drew a few giggles out of her even as she felt uneasy in the pit of her belly.
"Oh wow! I mean, the kids starting to see me that is cool, but.. you! You're not a kid! Yet, here you are!" he grabbed her shoulders and she managed to step back lifting her hand to ward him off. His hands were so cold, and it suddenly put her of mind and she found herself eyeing the shadows. What if Pitch showed up?
Oh gods, she would be in trouble. So much trouble.
He didn't seem to notice her unease at first, then the winter sprite looked at her with confusion then he saw the bracelet on her wrist. "Where did you get that?" he asked her and she saw what he was looking at, saw him start to reach for her wrist.
Covering it and the bracelet she backed up a couple steps. "Look, please… just pretend you didn't see me! Please!" and as he looked at her in shock she managed to dash past him and kept running until she reached her car.
Then she was in it and getting herself away as fast as she could manage. At the moment, she wasn't interested in her last class. She could skip one class.
Because she needed to get away. To hide.
Fear gripped her to her core. Squeezing her insides like a vice. Making her heart race and her vision blur. And she could not make herself calm down until she was seated in the darkest corner of a coffee shop she could find. A warm mug of cocoa in her palms, warding off the frozen fear in her core.
She bit her lip and fought off the tears that threatened to surface.
Why, why must she be so afraid?