Chapter 4
Evening came and the sun was starting to set. Grace and her parents sat out on the stoop, enjoying some vanilla ice cream and listening to the crocking frogs and toads.
Pitch walked along the roof of the house, looking down at them. Erebos snickered and Pitch scratched behind the Pegasus' ear, "Not yet," he reminded Erebos.
"Mummy, do I have to go to that school?" he heard Grace asked her mother.
"You don't have to, but your daddy and I thought that maybe it will be good for you," Grace's mother said.
"The Blackpool Secondary School of Art* is one of the top art schools in Lancashire. After you finish there, you could be eligible for an art scholarship to a college in London. You'll be the next Leonardo da Vinci," Grace's father explained to his daughter.
Pitch was stunned when he heard this; this girl was an art genius or will be when she enters this school.
"Give it a try and if things don't go so well in the first year, we can talk about sending you back to your other school," Grace's mother replied and the family went inside.
A while later, Grace went to bed with Canaletto and Pitch entered in. He stared down at the sleeping girl and cat and he spotted the sketchbook. Out of curiosity, Pitch lifted the cover and looked at a charcoal drawing of a woman, Grace's mother doing dishes in the sink.
'MEOW!' the cat said when he saw the boogeyman.
"Easy boy, I'm not going to hurt you," Pitch replied, but Canaletto growled and hissed at him.
"Canny, what are you…?" Grace stopped talking when she looked at Pitch and gasped and lifted the blanket up to her chin. The cat's claws reached out to Pitch, but the nightmare king leapt back and hit his head on the wall shelf. He reacted in pain and rubbed his head.
"You're the boogeyman, aren't you?" Grace asked.
Pitch gave a bow and answers, "I am, but you can call me Pitch, short for Pitch Black."
Canaletto still hissed at the shadowy man, but Grace rubbed the cat's back and it seemed to calm him.
"You have to forgive Canaletto, he hates strangers," the girl said and asks, "Why are you here? Did I do something wrong and I deserve to be plagued by nightmares?"
Pitch gave a chuckle, "No, no, no, I'm here to tell you that I am your guardian and I will be watching you and protect you from bad dreams," he said.
"And will you punish those who deserve nightmares?" the girl asked and he nods.
"I have to say, from what I saw in your workshop, you are quite the artist," Pitch said and Grace's face lit up.
"Oh, wait a minute, I drew you earlier today," she replied and showed him the sketch of him and Erebos.
Pitch looked it over and he was stunned of how detailed she drew him from the hair, the eyes, and even his pose. When he examined the Erebos in the sketch, Pitch was literally surprised of how Grace drew the Pegasus' wings, muscles, and hooves.
"How did you do this? I ran away from you, which I should apologize," Pitch said.
"I have a photographic memory. It was something I was born with and whenever I see something, it stays inside my head until I draw it and then it goes away. That's how I became an artist and I guess you can say all of the art schools in England want me, but I picked the Blackpool Secondary School of Art because it is closer," Grace explained, while Pitch looked at the other sketches.
There were sketches of Grace's parents doing various things, such as her father reading the newspaper at a comfy chair and her mother tending to her garden. There were also some charcoal pictures of Canaletto and landscapes.
"Grace, this is extraordinary," he said, "You do have a gift."
"Wait, how do you know my name?" she asked.
"I did say I have been watching you and my master told me your name," Pitch answered.
"Who is your master?" she asked, again.
He led her to the window and pointed at the moon. "Everyone calls him the Man in the Moon, but he is the master of me and the other Guardians," he explained.
"The other Guardians? You mean, like Santa Clause?" Grace asked and he nods.
"I knew it! He is real!" she exclaimed and Pitch shushed her.
"And the Tooth Fairy?" she asked in a whisper.
"And the Sand Man, the Easter Bunny, Cupid, the Leprechaun, and Jack Frost," Pitch replied.
"Will I get to meet them?" she asked with excitement in her voice.
"Maybe someday," Pitch replied and looks out the window to see Erebos and an idea pops into his head.
"Do you want to go for a ride? On Erebos?" he asked.
"Who is Erebos?" Grace replied and he points to the Black Pegasus and she gasps.
"Oh yes, yes I would love to!" she exclaimed, but she catches herself and shuts her mouth.
"You have to be very quiet when we leave this room," Pitch said and she nodded.
The two quietly crept out of the house and outside where Erebos was waiting, rather impatiently. Grace patted the Pegasus' soft black coat and he nudged his head at her.
Pitch hoisted Grace up onto the saddle and then he got on. "You're not afraid of heights are you?" he asked.
"No," the girl replied, taking a handful of Erebos' mane.
"Hold on to him," Pitch warned and he gave a little kick. Erebos went into a gallop, his wings flapped out and then, he flew upward.
Erebos went high up in the sky, passing through some clouds and was above them.
Then, the clouds disappeared and Grace spotted the illuminating lights of a town below them. Erebos went down and he circled around the buildings of the town and then, he flew down to the streets.
"Can they see us?!" Grace called out to Pitch, pointing to the people.
"No, I don't think so," he replied as the Pegasus jumped over a few cars, but no one seemed to notice.
Erebos flew upward, again, but he went higher than before, almost touching the moon.
"Erebos, I think that's enough!" Pitch called to the Pegasus and he gave a neigh.
They went back to Grace's house, but along the way, the black Pegasus flew a little lower, giving Grace and Pitch a good view of the countryside.
Erebos landed on the lawn and trotted up to the house. He stopped and Pitch got off to help Grace get down. The girl's hair had been tangled by the wind, making it look like a bird's nest.
"That was amazing!" Grace exclaimed, but she caught herself, again and covered her mouth.
"Now Grace," Pitch said, coming down to her level, "There are some children in this world who believe I am evil."
"But you're not," Grace replied.
"That's what I want to hear. If you tell some of your classmates that I am good, maybe they will believe I am. However, if they don't and tease you, I'll punish them with bad dreams," Pitch explained. "Now, I believe it is passed your bedtime."
Grace gave a groan, "But I had so much fun," she said, "I am wide awake."
"You won't be for long, now be a good girl and go to sleep," Pitch ordered her.
Grace was about to open the front door, but she turns to face the boogeyman. "Will I ever see you and Erebos, again?" she asked.
"As I said, I will be watching over you," he reminded her and bid her goodnight and she went on inside.
Pitch looked at the black Pegasus, "I never thought I would be this soft," he said and Erebos shook his head and snickered.
"Alright, alright, maybe I did thought of it, but I hope I don't take this friendship with her a little too far," Pitch added and they went away from the house and into the darkness.
()()()()()()()
*This school is actually fictitious.