Anna

I shivered and held my cloak against me. My breath came as a swirl of mist that twirled through the air.

I saw what looked like a few specks of dust spinning in the air out of the corner of my eye. I froze, knowing what that meant. No. Not again! I thought that I got rid of him!

A chilling laugh sent shivers down my spine. A tall man appeared in front of me, his ghostly white skin standing out against spiky black hair and dark clothing. "Well, then, you thought wrong."

"How did you-"

"It's obvious that you began to believe that you had gotten rid of me. You started to act a little more brave by going out at night, tiptoeing past your sister's room. You started to gain a little more - what's the word? - confidence." Most of the man's words came out as a dull purr, but the last word came out as a taunting hiss.

I took a deep, shivery breath as she tried to search for the confidence deep inside me. "You're- you're not welcome here, Pitch."

Another deep chuckle came from Pitch as he glided towards me. Then why did you invite me here?"

"What- I- I didn't…"

Pitch moved in front of me and crouched down to peer into my eyes. "That's what I thought," he said as he stood back up.

"What are you talking about?!"

Pitch began to pace, our gazes locked on to each other's the whole time. "You have heard the saying that you should always follow your heart, haven't you?"

"Y- yes. I- I have."

"Good. Then you should understand the reason why I brought you here. You see, Anna, your heart has been frozen over with fear for many years. And the more you give in to your fear, the more your heart is frozen. The fear has changed your heart, molding it into something new." Pitch chuckled. "Something… wonderful."

Judging by the way that he said 'wonderful', I guessed that it really wasn't that wonderful after all. But if saying that word brought Pitch enjoyment, then it must have been an advantage to him.

"The heart's desire to protect has been twisted to become the desire to only care about yourself. After all, why should everyone else have the enjoyment of leisure when you have been suffering all along?"

No, I told myself. Don't give in to what he's saying. He's lying. People are allowed to be happy. After all, it is my own self who has kept me from happiness. But I felt a tugging inside of me that told me to believe in what Pitch was saying. I knew that it was a lie and tried not to give in to it, but the tugging at my heart was strong and hard to resist. I didn't know how much longer I could go without being manipulated into believing Pitch.

"The heart is very powerful. You may not have called me here, but your heart sure did. And the heart wants what the heart wants. It won't back down very easily."

"Stop."

"What did you say?" Pitch turned sharply towards me and raised an eyebrow.

"You heard me. Stop it."

"Stop what?"

"Stop talking."

"And why is that? Are you too weak to handle the truth?"

"No, I am not. I just don't want to hear your lies anymore. So. Just. go. Away!"

My thoughts were conflicted and I couldn't stand to think at the moment. I felt like I was at the verge of becoming mad.

"Alright then. But consider my offer. We could make a great team, you know. Join me, and you will survive. If you do not… Well, let's just say that that won't end well." Pitch laughed. "Goodbye, Anna. I hope that you will make the right decision by joining me. See you later." And with that, Pitch disappeared into a cloud of black sand.

"I'll never join you," I mumbled. But some part of me said otherwise.