The Daydreamer

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Every day was a new challenge for Naomi, but not in a good way. Every day it was like a piece of her slipped away. She wasn't always like this. Wasn't always so sad and so lacking in happiness. When she was a little girl she had been so full of joy. So full of wonder, hopes,and dreams. She could fin the fun in anything back then and could really make other people around her happy as well. Yet, after spending so much time in foster care, she had found those feelings she had once felt, slowly faded. As she grew older, she realized the world was filled with horrible people. People who didn't care about others and would stomp out any good feelings one might ever hold.

She remembered it starting when she lost a tooth. She had been so excited. After all, all the other children in her foster home had gotten visits from the tooth fairy, so why wouldn't she? And, she had been so sure she had seen and had been friends with the Toothfairy so that made her all the more sure the Toothfairy would come and exchange her tooth for a coin. The other children just laughed at her, telling her she was stupid for believing in the Toothfairy. They tried to tell her that it was the adults that left the coins under pillows, and yet she had still not believed they were telling the truth. Until the next morning, when she woke up and found her tooth still under the pillow.

She had been so heartbroken. She had been so sure. So sure that the Toothfairy was real and had been her friend. She had played with her and flew with her, hadn't she? Yet, as she tried again and again the next few nights, it became clear that the Toothfairy wasn't coming, and so, wasn't real. It was the same story when Easter came, and then Christmas. Nothing. While all the other children got easter baskets and presents, Naomi was left out of the fun and joy. She was made fun of, ridiculed by the other children. They used to tell her it was because she had 'been bad' or was 'on the naughty list', and even worse of all was when they would tell her it was because no body loved or wanted her. And over time, Naomi came to believe just that.

Naomi close her eyes tightly at the memories of it, as if doing so would make her stop thinking about it, and as she opened her eyes again, she reached toward her bad and reaching into the pockets of it, she pulled out the razor she had been using before. Using a rag from her bag she cleaned off the razor first, then began cleaning her wrists as well so that the blood was gone the many fresh cuts on her arms were visible. Once she had both cleaned, she pressed the blade to her skin, getting ready to make cuts on it once more.
 
At first Jack had watched her actions with curiosity, even scooting closer around the fire to see what she was working on- carefully cleaning the razor and the cuts on her skin but when he saw what it was she intended to do with that blade he surged to his feet. "Oh no you don't." With that he swatted it from her grasp. His hand may have slid through hers but he still hit the blade with the back of it, sending the offending item to one side of the barn out of her reach. "I don't know what this is about but you can't do that." Not in front of him, he wouldn't stand for it.

He stalked away from her pacing the floor a distance from the fire where his frost nipped at the dirt underfoot. Okay. It was starting to fell like maybe she had no where to go and maybe she was all alone. The thought made him uneasy. Memories of having nothing but thoughts to fill his time- questions about his own self worth... He wondered if that's what this girl was going through. He wanted so badly to cheer her up but somehow this didn't feel like the time for a snowball.

Even so he came back to her side then, looking down at her bag. He wondered if this was all she had.

Maybe there was something he could do. Maybe he could distract her from her thoughts somehow but everything he could give would only bring cold. The likes of which the fire would smoother or would bother her due to a lack of a coat. "Tell me what I can do for you?" He requested but expected no response.
 
Naomi was more than a bit freaked out when, as she went to cut herself, the razor was suddenly smacked out of her hand so that it clattered to the opposite end of the barn. No one was there in the barn with her, so how had that happened. She stared at the razor sitting on the ground across the barn in disbelief for a long moment, looking back and forth from it to her hand as if trying to think of a logically way that could have happened, yet couldn't think of a single way something such as that could have been knocked away from her in that manner. She rubbed her arms a little bit in order to attempt and comfort and calm herself.

Could she possibly be hallucinating? Perhaps she had gotten too cold? Or maybe she was getting sick and that's why she was seeing these things, such as with the icy fairies and the razor being knocked from her. People though they went through weird things like that when they were tired or sick, right? Yeah, that had to be it. Once she was all better, things would go back to normal. She would go out, steal some more supplies, and maybe do some work to this old barn. After she got some rest that is.

"Okay...just....get some rest....get warm...and everything will be back to normal. Or well, as normal as it can be while out here." Letting out a soft sigh, she moved to lay on the ground, using her book bag as a pillow and staying close to the fire for warmth. Yet, she found herself instead of sleeping letting her eyes wander about the barn, searching. She didn't know what she was searching for. Maybe a small part of her hoped to see something. Anything. Where as the bigger part of her told her to stop being silly and go to sleep. So, after a few moments of her eyes searching, they closed and the young woman lay there quietly, trying to hopefully draw herself to sleep shouldn't nothing disturb her.
 
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Jack let her sleep since the interior of the barn had really warmed up since that fire was started. Sure it was still a little drafty at the edges- the structure was old and there was a few faults in the weathered wood that let in the wind but she was at no risk of freezing to death. So he sat back on his heels and waited. "Hey," about an hour in his attention was drawn to the withering flames. "You need to..." He leaned over the girl but she was deep in slumber and he could only huff, kicking some of the dry hay into the fire and staggering back a step in surprise when it surged hungrily at the kindling. Fire was a beast.

He sat again and tended it for awhile until streaks of sunlight began slipping through the eaves. With that he alighted up on one of the overhead beams and peered out the loft window where day was visible crawling across the winter landscape. The snow had stopped and he was tempted to start it anew. Just a light flurry... His gaze traveled back to the girl sleeping below and he dropped down. "Well..." He pondered the predicament. "You responded well to the fairies, let's see what else I can scrounge up."

He eased one of the front doors open on their rusted frames though the creak of those hinges made him cringe. A little chill was sure to wake her up and well... he needed it to begin drawing frosty patterns on the ground. Maybe a dog. Something friendly like a Labrador retriever. Yes. That was perfect. He breathed life into his magic drawing the animal from the ice. Immediately it started prancing about the barn, mindful of the fire. Eager to greet the human with a fast pace tail wag.
 
Naomi's sleep wasn't so much a great one. It was just enough to give her energy for the coming day, but not enough to be a truly comfortable sleep. It was a light sort of sleep that should something happen she could wake up and start moving easily. And so, when the next morning came and the loud sound of the creaking barn door came to her ears, she was awake, slowly blinking her eyes open in confusion. Perhaps the wind had just pushed the door open. It was possible after all. And so, she rolled over slightly where she lay to look over toward the door, when she spotted movement. At the movement, she was sitting up quickly, eyes wide in a momentary panic as to what might have gotten into the barn. Yet, what she was faced with was not what she was expecting at all.

Prancing about the barn, but not close to her at the moment, was a dog. Well, not really a dog, but it was in the shape of a dog. The bluish color and crystal like texture of the animal was a dead giveaway thought that this dog was not real. In fact, she noticed that this dog was made much like the fairy like creatures that had lead her here to the barn in the first place. But, if that was so, then how was this happening? How were these things being created and why were they so focused on her?

Was she going crazy? There was no way that a living animal could be made of something like frost and ice, right? And yet, here was such an animal. It was even smart enough to stay away from the fire that might melt it. If her mind was imaginative enough to come up with all of this, then maybe she was just meant to go crazy in the first place. Maybe it would be better to just embrace this all, rather than fight it. After all, wasn't it better to admit your faults and lean to live with them, rather than to deny them and live in denial? If she was going crazy, then she would just learn to live with it. What else could she do anyway?

Crawling away from the fire, she knelt there as the strange dog quickly went over to her, tail wagging with joy as it approached her. Reaching a hand out, she let her hand run over the dog's back, and it was indeed made of ice and frost as she thought, feeling the cold and little ice particles on her skin as she took her hand away again. The dog ran around her happily, and, embracing this strange and crazy experience, she smiled (even if it was just a very small one), her first smile in a long time, "Well, I suppose you'll be keeping me entertained today for a little while then?" She asked, looking to the frost dog as she ran a hand over his frosty back, doing her best to embrace this whole thing, even if it was just for a little bit.
 
A dog lover then? The sight of the frosty canine didn't spook her which he in part had expected to happen- after all she was at an age where children became practical thinkers. Not quite an adult but too old to take everything simply for what it was. He expected her to question it and maybe come to the conclusion (now that she was no longer in a state of shock from the cold) that this was too freaky for her. Needless to say this went MUCH better than he thought it would. He bounced a bit on his feet as the dog frolicked and when she touched his creation it didn't break apart. Yeah... He could take credit. He was constantly improving on the consistency of his creation.

The dog gave an eager nod in response to her question and then did something Jack wasn't expecting as he leaned there against his crook. It opened its mouth to lick her. Suddenly he wasn't so much at ease, springing to attention. "No, wait! Don't-" It was too late as soon as the animal's icy tongue connected with her warm cheek it got stuck. Or maybe more to the effect- she got stuck to it. Jack pressed a hand to his mouth and then realized it wasn't really that bad, no, it was actually pretty funny. He tried not to laugh. "Not the best first impressions. Let me just..." He dropped the creation into white powder before building it up again.

In a few seconds time the dog was sitting before her once more, no longer stuck.

Jack chuckled. "Okay Frosty let's take our new friend out for a walk, shall we?" He suggested and the dog began jumping about and rolling in the hay before racing to the doors and back again, racing to the doors and back again- just kept doing it waiting for her to follow. "We should try and see if we can find her parents or some hint of where she came from last night. I bet someone's real worried about her by now."
 
This frosty dog acted just like a real dog. It was strange, yet...in a way it was sort of comforting. To have something like this near her. She didn't get much social interaction. Or well, any social interaction at all really. To have something, even if it was just an imaginary dog made of ice, to talk to and interact with was kind of nice. She watched it with interest as it continued to let her pet it. And then it licked her cheek. She gasped at the cold feeling, and it was stuck to her skin. It didn't really hurt, but obviously she couldn't move away from the dog either at the moment with her being stuck. Then, within a few moments, the dog was a pile of snow and ice. She looked at the pile in confusion, rubbing her cold cheek.

Then the dog was once again there, building up from the pile and running around her once more. It was jumping happily and rolling in the hay around them, much like a normal dog would. She smiled slightly once again at the sight, and then, soon the dog was running back and forth from her to the door of the barn, as if wanting her to follow it out. She had to think about that one though. She looked to where her bag was and where the fire was burning. Well, she could always come back to it she supposed. But she should bring her bag with her, just in case. And so, she spoke to the dog as she got up, grabbing her bag, "Alright, alright. Just let me make sure this fire it put out so I don't burn the place down or something."

After a few moments she had stopped the fire and was walking across the barn to the door, pausing when she saw, laying in the hay, the razor that had been knocked away from her the night before. She paused for a moment, in thought, before she bent down and picked it up, slipping it into her bag. She could use it later. For now she would follow this dog though. Walking outside into the chilly winter air, she huffed, rubbing her arms, "Alright, snow dog. You got me outside. Now what?"
 
Good question. He better lead her towards town- now where could someone get a nice warm jacket without too much fuss? Fortunately he noticed there was a salvation army truck parked outside an old woman's house and she was making a generous donation of clothes and... well, an old couch by the looks of it. Just their luck really that the volunteers were trying to wedge it out the front door at the moment they came by. "Alright, easy as can be." He leaned sideways after watching the adults for a moment, the truck's back hatch was wide open and sitting inside was a box of clothes- namely thick winter coats.

"They're donations anyhow, for people that need them." His ice dog jumped into the back of the truck and shoved the box out onto the street, though it spilled they still had a green light on this. That couch was putting up a very big fight. "And you could really use some warmer attire right now." The canine looked between the clothes and the girl expectantly before hopping down and nosing into the pile. "Well go on, take a look. No one's watching. Well... except for me and maybe North." She was still young enough for Santa right? She didn't look much older than he had been when he fell under the ice and North knew enough of his behavior at that point to put him one the 'naughty list' but then... she really wasn't much of a child.
 
Naomi wasn't quite sure what was going on. She was honestly just going along to where ever this dog might be taking her. It was like a small game of following the leader, chasing after the dog as it ran through the woods. Though, she seemed to get a little less willing to follow the dog when it got to town. After what had happened yesterday with her failed attempt to steal a blanket and her being chased by that man and having a chunk of ice thrown at her, she wasn't too excited to be going back into town. She moved a little slower, eyes watching carefully, though no one seemed to see her. That was good. A little bit from the edge of the woods she spotted some men getting donations from a lady and were currently pre-occupied and not watching their truck.

Much to her surprise, the dog hopped right onto the truck and had nosed a box off of it so that the contents spilled out. She, being very careful, snuck her way over to where the box was and once there, the dog looked at her expectantly, as if telling her to take what she needed. And so, she quickly began to go through the clothes in the box, pulling out a warmer jacket and even a blanket. Yes, these would do. After she had gathered what she needed, she was quick to move away from the fallen box and back into the tree line before she could get caught, taking a breath of relief once she was hiding behind a tree and out of view.

Now that she was sure she was safe, she pulled the jacket on. It would definitely be a lot better being outside now. She rubbed her now covered arms, grateful to finally be at least somewhat warm, looking to the dog once again, letting out a slight sigh as she smiled slightly at it once again, "You're something else, aren't you? You seem to be helping me a lot better than I've been able to help myself lately. Where did you even come from anyway? Or are you really just my imagination?"
 
"That's me the ever so helpful Jack Frost." He joked as he swung himself over the top of his Shepard's crook and landed upon the low branch of a tree. "People like Bunny, they just don't appreciate my kind of help. Honestly- I try to help hide his eggs under a good layer of snow and he gets offended." His babbling was pointless he realized but being invisible... sometimes he found himself just holding a one conversation in spite of it.

The dog tipped its head in question at her before looking at Jack who had by then taken a seat in the tree. He leaned his staff across his knees and looked down at the scene in good humor. "She can't see me." He said simply, "she can't hear me." He added for good measure with an easy enough smile. "We need to figure out what to do with her."

For a moment longer his frozen creation continued to stare at him before turning around and facing town again. "That's what I keep thinking but it doesn't seem like she wants to go. Think we can find her something to eat though if we give it one more go?" He hopped down and walked around the girl. "It doesn't seem like she has any money but maybe we can have a little fun and make some fellow drop his leftovers. I bet something warm would do her some good."

The dog nodded and started trotting towards town again. Jack had somewhere in mind. There was a restaurant near the outskirts that was usually pretty busy around breakfast time. Someone was bound to leave with something that he could convince them to drop.
 
After she asked her question, the dog looked into the trees and she looked up at the trees as well in curiosity, though didn't see anything, "What? You came from the sky? The trees?" She asked, looking to it, though of course it didn't answer. Just kept looking up into the trees. And when it finally stopped looking up there, it was suddenly heading back into the town and she grew nervous again, "Hey, I don't think it's a good idea for me to..." She had started to say but the frost animal wasn't listening and just kept going. She sighed before quickly making her way after it, being careful to look around and stay out of sight of others for the most part.

Perhaps she was being a little over cautious. After all, the only person in this town that had actually caught her stealing was that man. But for all she knew she could run into him and get pelted with ice again. Or even worse, get caught and sent back to foster care. She didn't want that. Not at all. She wouldn't be able to live like that again. Sure, being homeless and living in some old barn was pretty bad, but not nearly as worse as all she been through in the foster care system. She would rather die in the cold then go back there again.

She slowly followed the dog, staying out of site and watching it as it went, until they were finally at a restaurant. She frowned as she hid in one of the nearby alleyways. Just what was it doing here? It didn't have any money to buy any food, and she sure didn't either. And stealing from a restaurant would be near impossible. There was no way she could sneak in and steal something without being caught. She wasn't about to risk that. So, what was this pup doing? Did it honestly think it could get food somehow from this place? And if it did, then just what was its plan to do so? She stayed hidden, watching in curiosity to see just what this dog was up to.
 
At least she followed.
Jack hung out near the front of the restaurant while the ice dog stayed with the girl in the alley. He licked his lips, impatiently waiting for someone to step out. The first set that appeared was a family and he didn't feel good about slipping up the kids so he let them past. The next was an older woman and then finally a young man came out. He looked pretty well fed with that double chin- it was a little surprising he even had leftovers. Jack would never kick a gift horse in the mouth though.

With a tap of his staff he laid out a thin layer of ice and immediately the man slipped on his next step. The Styrofoam box flew from his hands as he crashed to the sidewalk. He was alright though. He was young. The frost canine caught the container before it could smash open against the ground, running back into the alley way before anyone caught more than the shortest glimpse of it. As the man picked himself up Jack swung around the corner to see his dog trot up to the girl with the box of leftovers secure between its teeth. "Hope you like... whatever that is. Smells like pancakes and sausage?" He stepped closer. "You should eat while it's still warm."
 
Naomi wasn't quite sure what she had just seen. She was looking at the dog for a moment as it seemed to be getting ready for something, and then, suddenly, ice began to spread. She watched this happen with wide eyes, the ice slipping up a young man so that he fell, causing the styrofoam box to go up into the air. How did that happen?! Ice didn't just come from no where! Right? It was possible, should the weather to be cold enough, that water spilt onto the road or sidewalk could instantly freeze, but she didn't see anywhere water could have come from to freeze and slip up the man. And, even with how quick it all happened, the dog lept into action, snatching the box from the air before it hit the ground and running back to her with it.

She watched the young man get up, look around confused, before walking off, seeming to quickly forget his left overs that had gone missing. She waited until the man was out of sight and then gingerly took the food from the dog, petting its head, "Good boy. I might just end up keeping you around. You're a lot better at getting food than I am. Every time I try I usually end up getting pelted with ice or something like that." She shrugged to herself, as if such a horrible thing was normal. Which to her, it was. No one cared about a girl like her. Most people saw a young homeless girl and automatically thought she was just a rebellious brat. That she was some teen running the streets stealing for fun. Never did anyone stop to think that she was just a girl simply trying to stay alive. Never did anyone try to help. Ever.

She opened up the stryofoam box to find pancakes and sausage that were untouched. Likely a meal bought to bring home to friend or parent that couldn't make it to the restaurant to join the young man in eating. Well, whatever the reason, she was going to take it as a gift and get out of here before anyone spotted her and tried running her off. She closed the box again for now and looked to the dog, "Alright boy. Let's get back to the barn so I can eat."

With that, she made her way back through the town and into the woods. It wasn't hard to find the barn again and it was in such a sort time that thankfully the food was still warm when they got there. Once inside she leaned against the wall there as she began to eat. It was nice to have an actual meal. She couldn't remember the last time she had actually been full, but she was now and even still had some left over to probably feed her later as well. Setting what was left to the side, she moved to pet the dog once more, "Well boy, what do we do now? I have a jacket, I've eaten. So we have a little time to kill." After having so long of no one to talk to or interact with, this dog was a saving grace from boredom, and a momentary distraction to her horrible predicament.
 
Jack just about dropped his staff- all this while she seemed so serious and driven but now that all her physical needs were met... He bounced to his feet. "Great. We can do something fun!" He left the barn and poked around the back for something suitable. Something that could function as a sleigh. "A little help wind?" A strong gust shifted the rubble, unearthing just what he needed. "This just keeps getting better!" It was pretty old and the legs were sort of rusty but it should still fit its purpose.

He looked over as he saw his dog trot out of the barn and gestured it towards the sled. It obediently approached, grabbing the hefty object with its mouth and pulling it the rest of the way free before returning to the girl. Then it played the usual game- looking between her and the sled and walking back and forth before finally sitting on top it.

"Come on." Jack didn't like this part of the game, he wanted to get to the actual fun. "The winter's a wasting." She seemed willing to trust the judgement of his snow creature so far- even if he was the one controlling it -so he figured it was only a matter of time before she agreed to this too.
 
The dog seemed pretty excited when she mentioned doing something. She followed the frost animal outside and walked around the other side of the barn just in time to see it pulling something out free from the pile of junk that was back there. It looked to be an old sled. And apparently it wanted to use it. Or rather, wanted her to use it. She rubbed her arms a little, looking to the sled as she walked over, seeming a bit unsure, "Hmmm...I don't know. It looks pretty old. For all I know the thing could fall apart in the middle of me riding it or something." Yet, the dog continued to look at her with such a sure gaze that after a long moment of thinking, she sighed and moved to pull the sled, "Alright, alright. Let's find a hill or something."

With that, she was walking through the woods with it, looking about, and finally she found a rather good sized hill, nodding to herself as she walked the sled up it. Once on top, she settled herself onto the sled in front of the frozen dog, holding onto the edges of it before looking back at the animal, "If this thing breaks under my weight, I'm blaming you." She said as a slight joke before facing forward once more, taking a few deep breaths. This was a pretty tall hill and she was hoping she wouldn't go tumbling off of the sled or anything. If she hurt herself out here then there would be no one to find her, so she had to be careful.

Taking a few deep breaths, she pushed off, having the sled start to slid down the hill.
 
It wasn't going to break, not on his watch.

He trailed her about the forest with growing amusement as she sought a hill. It wasn't really necessary when he was around but a little extra incline never hurt- they'd be able to build up some serious speed. "Oh good. You're holding on tight." A big smile spread Jack's face as he saw her scooting towards the slope. "Just a little more..." The legs of the sled went over and gravity did the rest. "Perfect!" Honestly he was just going to let her ride it- give her a chance to build up some confidence on a couple runs before the real fun but he saw that her trajectory was off and that a number of trees suddenly looked a wee bit scary. He knew as she did, that if she was to get hurt out here they were miles from help.

So jumping on the wind he sped after her, spreading smooth ice with a casual swing of his crook. Immediately the sled picked up speed, it also curved away from a painful crash with a few sturdy trunks. He had full control of this ride now. "I got you!" He assured over the rushing of air. In spite of all odds (or maybe just physics) his ice creation was still sitting on the back of the sled, tongue lolling out and glassy eyes shining. Jack snickered at the sight as he brought them around another bend.

He was enjoying himself and once the panic cleared from the girl's head she seemed to be too but now they were nearing the lake bed and the ice there was still thin. It was time to bring this journey to a conclusion. With a sweep off his staff he pushed all the soft snow ahead of them to one side and slowed the sled by letting it breeze through the white powder. Flakes of the stuff flying every which way in their wake. The sled came to a complete standstill just short of the outer edge of the lake.

"How was that?" He asked as he turned around to face the girl once more.
 
The ride down the hill was pretty fun she had to admit. How could she not smile at such a thrill as this. Yet, her smile faded when she saw they were about to go head first into a tree. She gasped, closing her eyes tightly and bracing herself for impact, when suddenly the sled's path curved. She opened her eyes again, blinking in surprise as she looked over her shoulder to see curved ice having saved them from a painful crash. Then, as she faced forward again, the sled was curved again, bringing them around bend. Despite her surprise at all of this and curiosity as to how all of this was happening, she found herself enjoying the ride. She was even laughing. Her, the girl who hadn't laughed in years, was actually smiling and laughing so freely. It felt nice. To laugh and have fun again. To feel, even if just for a moment, that everything was okay.

Soon they were coming up to a lake and once again things turned out alright as a pile of snow fell in front of them to slow their sled ride. Their sled went right through the pile and that slowed it enough to where they were able to come to an actually stop just in front of a lake. She was still laughing from the ride, getting up from the sled and looking to the dog as she shook the snow from her brown hair, "They was actually pretty fun. Maybe I should ask you for fun things to do more often."

Turning she looked to the lake in front of them, stepping up close to it, inspecting the ice from where she stood on the edge, "I didn't know there was a lake here." She looked to the dog, then back to the ice, "Looks thin though. Probably best to wait until it gets thicker. Then maybe we can play on the ice. I mean, I don't have any skates or anything like that, but I'm sure I can slide around on it without them." It would just be a little more difficult to do, but not impossible. She turned and walked over to sled, beginning to draw it back toward where they came, paying attention to their surroundings so that she could come back here to skate should she want to, "Let's head back to the barn and warm up." She looked to it with a small smile, "Well, not you of course. Me. Then once I'm warm maybe we can come back out and play some more later."

And so, the they made their way back to the barn, where once inside she made up a fire and started to warm herself up in front of it and once she was, she backed away a little to sit next to the dog, looking at it, "Today has been so weird. I have no idea where you came from, or even how your here. I mean, for all I know I'm just imagining things or going crazy. But, I guess if I am going crazy then its a good kind of crazy, right? It has to be. After all, I wouldn't be having fun like this if it wasn't." She grew quiet, a small frown on her face now as she started shedding off her jacket since she felt warm enough in the barn to do so, "You know....it's kind of strange. I've been on my own for a while now. Having to take care of myself. Never once in all this time have I had someone ever care to help me. Not even a little bit. I've had things thrown at me, harsh words said, but no one ever stopped to ask me if I was okay." She took a deep breath, rubbing her arms as if that would comfort her, and to give her hands something to do rather than grab for the razor in her bag like she so wanted to, "People are cruel. I don't think I even remember a time when someone actually cared about me."

Well, now that she thought about it, maybe she did. Just barely. Her parents had cared about her. So much. But, that was years ago. As strange as it was, she still remembered most of it. A large shadow, swallowing them up. Of course, she knew that's probably not how it really happened and she had probably just been having a dream. Just like her other dreams of the weird creatures like fairies and giant bunnies she used to have back then. Back then though, her parents had encouraged such imagination. Had loved her dreams. Had loved her. After they disappeared, there was no one that did. Not one person.

She looked to the dog, "But, strangely, you seem to. All those humans that ignored and hated me, and now a dog made of ice seems to be more caring than any of them. This really is such a strange world."
 
Jack Frost looked at the lake as she mentioned it, glad that she determined that the ice was too thin but it sounded like she did want to go skating. He could always... thicken it up for her, but not now because at that moment she was headed back to the barn. He trailed her with an easy smile because he was glad she had so much fun. He felt accomplished.

Once more his ice creation stayed away from the fire she had made but it watched her intentionally all the while she spoke. Jack was listening closely. "That's awful." He noted and the dog scooted cautiously closer wanting to give her some comfort in his stead. "No one should be treated that way." She was still a kid- not yet an adult in the human world. She should be treated better. If not with love at least with friendship. He leaned against his staff. "I really wish I wasn't invisible to you..."

Now he knew she had no where to go and why she was so reluctant to head into the city. But what could he do for her?
 
Naomi noticed the dog looking as though it wanted to get closer to her and so she moved back a bit more from the fire so that she was next to it and run a hand over its head again, "Well, even if I don't have other people, at least I have you. Even if just for a little while." After all, she couldn't expect to have this last forever. Everyone always left, or died. She could never really keep anyone. But at least, for now, she could enjoy the company of the dog until it did go away. For at least a little while, she could remain happy.

"You know, I used to have dreams about creatures like you. When I was a child." She smiled slightly and shrugged, reaching over to her bag, "I was a silly kid. Had a lot of imagination back then.If I am going crazy and that's why I can see you, I bet part of me going crazy is because of that imagination." Shuffling through her bag, she finally found and pulled out a book. It was a lot like a picture book, but it was clearly hand made. She had made it as a child, along with her father and mother, and she help it very dear to her.

Opening it up, she began turning through the pages. The pages were many different things. Pictures both she and her parents had drawn of funny characters such as Santa, a giant bunny, and even a boy who could create ice. Written above each picture was a name. North, Bunnymun, Jack frost, and all the other little characters like Sandy the Sandman, and Tooth the Toothfairy. There were even pictures of different places, like the Northpole and a colorful place called the Warren. She looked at the pitcures with a smile, "You're a lot like these creatures." She sad, pointing to the page that had the drawing of the boy who could create ice, him being surrounded by strange ice animals like bunnies and fairies, "I bet that's why I'm seeing you. You came from my imagination. From these pictures."
 
"Heh, your imagination?" Jack swung closer to where she was sitting now with a book and leaned over her shoulder to look. "Frosty here is courtesy of-" His words trailed off when his eyes fell across the illustrations. His mind reeled. That- that was North, Bunnymund, Tooth! He dropped down into a crouch. "That's me..." Surprise swelled in him. Why would she have this?

He sprung back on the balls of his feet. "That's me!" No it wasn't just him it was all of them. He press his hand to his mouth in breathed in a tense breath. It was so perfectly accurate, that could only be someone that had known them first hand. So who... "Naomi." He whispered the name as the shock threatened to overtake him. He thought again how he found her freezing in the snow, about the razor blade... He felt sick. Again he went down in a crouch as he watched her.

The other Guardians had said this would be best for her. That she'd be safe but then this happened. How was this okay?! He wanted to storm to North's place right now and demand something be done! But he didn't want to leave her alone... when she went to sleep he decided. That's when he'd go.
 
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