"Jackie, Jackie."
A soft voice broke through the nightmares and I slowly blinked awake. In front of my face was the face of the shadow girl, her black hair being tossed around by the wind I could vaguely hear roaring in the background.
In response I groaned and rolled away from her.
"Go away."
"And leave you here? Not happening."
"Who are you anyway, why have you been following me?"
"I recognised a kindred spirit. You're scared of your powers, I used to be as well, I can help you." I heard a soft crunch of snow as she crouched down.
"I have blood on my hands, I don't deserve that. And you still haven't answered the first question."
"Oh just listen to you! Have you completely given up? I'll tell my name if you stop wallowing in misery and get up."
I lay there for a few seconds, not really wanting to, but my mind drifted to the look of wonder that Jamie had when he first saw my powers properly. That image alone made me feel a lot better.
With that image firmly fixed in my mind I got to my feet, feeling an ice shell around me shatter. My legs felt a little wobbly and for a moment I had put my hand on the shadow girl's shoulder to steady myself as I turned around.
"That's better." Said the shadow girl as I recovered and stood properly in front of her, the snow storm dying down as I calmed down.
"My name is Penelope."
"Hello Penelope." I replied and Penelope smiled at me, her whole face lighting up.
"So, what do you say, shall we go, together?"
"I don't know..."
"Oh come on, you've already run away, might as well go the whole hog."
"Hmmm." I shoved my hands into my pockets, still undecided about the whole thing. Whilst
I had done the unforgivable in my mind, the last time something like this happened my parents didn't give up on me. I wasn't sure if I could just leave them without a word.
Penelope stepped towards me and wrapped her arm around my shoulder.
"Think about it, you and me, no rules, no responsibilities, no one holding us back. Go
wherever we want, do whatever we want. It's as good as it sounds."
I didn't reply as I tried to ignore her too warm arm, still not really wanting to go through with it.
As I thought my eyes flicked around at my surroundings, and something caught my eye just behind her, something that stood out from the white snow.
Looking over her shoulder I saw a pile of black sand, and looking out her hand on my shoulder, I saw familiar twitches that told me that she was controlling it. But what was the point of it?
The sand bugged me and my mind drifted back to the lake. Thinking about it, there was something about that, something was off. Jamie had been warm.
Jamie had been warm.
If he had been hit by my ice then his hands at least would have been freezing cold to a normal person's hands, which would have been neutral to me. The addition of the black specks, which thinking about it, looked like grains of sand on his hands added up to a very different truth.
"It was you." I said slowly, not really wanting to believe it, but not able to come to any other explanation.
"What? What was me?"
"Jamie, he was warm, and there was sand on his hands, and you're controlling the sand behind you. You hit him, not me." I said, pulling myself from Penelope's grip and facing her.
Penelope's face went white, then seeming unable to come up with an excuse, it twisted into a scowl.
"Fine, I hit him, but I was desperate, I just wanted some company who understood, you had
just been found by HOG, so there was still time to get you."
Her admission sent a cold stabbing sensation in my gut, she had gone that far to get me away from anyone. Trying to remain calm I answered with.
"There were other ways to go about it."
"Too bad, but please, I'm sorry. I just wanted someone who understood, and HOG wouldn't do. Not that I didn't try, as soon as they saw my powers they tossed me out!"
Her face twisted into a bitter sneer as she spoke of HOG.
"Well, that's your problem. In any other situation I'd go with you, but you tried to hurt the only friend I've had I've years and allowed me to believe that I caused it! You wanted me to be your friend, but that's not what friends do."
"Yeah, and you're the expert."
"More of an expert than you apparently."
I began to walk away, back through the trees and towards the lake.
"After all of this you're walking away? After all of that effort? I even tried to turn HOG against you by reporting you."
My fist clenched in anger, ice building on it, but I kept walking.
"They'll still suspect you; you were the only other person there in their eyes."
"I don't care, I can handle it."
"Can you, without revealing what you can do."
"You know what?!" I cried while spinning to face her, "I've stopped caring, my friend could be dying, I have to make sure he's alright at least."
Penelope's face turned into a scowl.
"Yes, let a little boy who couldn't possibly understand be your friend, rather than someone who understands your fears."
She raised her hands, her face still in a scowl, but tears beginning to show in her eyes.
"WELL STUFF YOU!"
She pulled some of the black sand from the patch on the ground with a sweep of her arms and sent it flying towards me, which I blocked by stamping my foot and drawing up my arms, pulling up a barrier of ice. She responded by sending daggers or sand at my barrier, shattering it.
I swept my arms in an arced horizontal fashion, taking control of the shattered ice and pushed my arms forward to send it flying at Penelope, who dived into the snow to avoid them.
She rolled up again and sent more daggers my way, which I ran to the side and behind a tree to dodge, the daggers thudding into the wood. I stepped out from behind the tree, swept my arm forward and sent a blast of ice her way, only to be blocked by a wall of black sand.
I rolled my hands over each other to forge a shaft of ice, then flung my arms to the right and pulled them left sweeping the shaft horizontally through her wall and knocking her into the snow.
I walked forward and began to mould the snow in such a way to prevent her from following me. My hands moved without really thinking, my mind on the shapes in the snow than the ones my hands were forming.
Before I could finish she sent a blast of sand directly at my face, causing me to spin away as the sand seemed to get around my glasses and begin to burn my eyes.
"Arrgh!" I cried as I tried to blink the sand away, staggered slightly. There was a sudden pain in my back and I was flung forward, landing face first in the snow.
I rolled over on my back as the sand began to clear from my eyes to see Penelope standing above me, with a spear made of black sand hanging over my head. Her face was still twisted in anger, but I could see that tears had fallen and were still falling.
"Penelope, don't do this."
She didn't seem to register my words as the spear went higher in preparation. I blinked like an owl, trying to clear my vision properly.
"Penelope!"
Still nothing from her.
"I'm sorry."
My vision now clear I thrust my hands upwards and an ice blast struck her in the stomach, sending her flying backwards, off her feet and into the snow.
I scrambled to my feet and took off running, trying to not listen to her yelling after me. Looking over my shoulder I saw her form a shape out of the remaining black sand and some more that she seemed to form herself, which turned into a horse. Penelope mounted it and it charged after me with a cry.
I jumped into the air, simultaneously forming ice skates and an ice bridge with an upward thrust of my hands.
I landed and began skating, swinging my arms to help build my momentum. I made the bridge rise up and just below the canopy.
I had to focus very carefully to make sure that I didn't crash into a tree, tilting my leading hand to change the ice bridge's path. Behind me I could hear Penelope catching up, the sandy hoof beats getting louder and louder. Four legs are always faster than two.
I saw something black out of the corner of my eye and ducked under a blast of sand, continuing to skate. I couldn't allow my concentration to falter, so I couldn't send any counter attacks.
I ducked and weaved between trees and sand attacks, still focused on trying to get to the lake, although I wasn't sure whether I was going the right way anymore.
Night had fully fallen and it was only by the light of the moon that I was still able to see the trees and my ice. Penelope had faded into blackness, only the blasts of sand gave away her position.
I heard shouts in the distance and I changed my path towards them, shouts meant people, and people meant help. Flashes of light from torches broke through the darkness and I angled the ice downward.
It hit the ground and the blades melted away, allowing me to run towards them after a little stumble from landing. Behind me I could still hear the sand horse snorting from its creator's frustration, but before she could attack again I burst through a set of trees and straight into someone.
We both fell back with an "oof" and I almost fell over, tired from running, fighting and skating. Others pointed their torches at us and began asking me questions.
"Are you alright?" "What are you doing out here?" "What's your name?"
Blinking in the sudden bright light I could see that these people were wearing police uniforms, I opened my mouth to answer when Penelope burst through the bushes, having abandoned her horse, and glared at me.
"Penelope, stop!"
She stood there panting, and finally seemed to register what was around me. Her face paled and she turned to run, but an officer wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back towards the group.
"Take it easy, it's alright."
After putting up with Penelope trying to get away and talking down her protests we got wrapped in insulating foil and we walked back to the town with them. They asked our names and such, they weren't all that surprised to hear that I was Jackie as they'd been called to the lake once it was found that I wasn't there with Jamie.
They took us to the station and started a careful questioning over hot chocolate, which I didn't dare touch. I could feel the unbearable heat from it inches from my fingers. The station itself was also too warm, compared to the temperature outside.
Since Jamie hadn't been questioned yet I told them that I hadn't actually been there when it happened, I was on my way to meet him when I found him on the ground. I told them that
I ran because I panicked and thought that because I was the only one there that I'd be blamed for it, but came back when I realised the people would be worried about me.
They believed my story and handed me over to my parents, who were crying and had been terrified that I wouldn't come back.
I allowed them to hug me and tried not to cry myself. It was great to see that they were so concerned, but in their relief they didn't let me leave their sight all night, so I couldn't go and check on Jamie.
Before anybody asks, that horse was not a Nightmare. It's like when Sandman makes an animal out of his sand. It was just formed to chase Jackie.