Chapter 1
The Painting
The smile on Jack Frost's face can't be wiped out especially when he's 'kidding around'. In an island in Germany, it was supposed to be Summer. He was going to Norway when he happens to cross paths with the Summer spirit; Merida Dunbroch. They didn't literally cross paths with each other. It so happens that Jack saw a glimpse of her wild massive curls at the corner of his eyes and the next thing he knows, he was following her.
She approached the heart of the forest, and Jack swiftly followed- each step making swirly patterns of thin frost.
Merida inhaled deeply, licking her lips before breathing out. To Jack's view, she reached down to her quiver of her 'special' arrows then looked up. As she notches an arrow, she aims it up high, and then releases it without hesitation.
Jack smirked deviously and Merida lowers her bow, walking towards the sound of rushing and gargling currents. Jack knew she was approaching the river.
But then, before he could even move from his spot on a branch of a tree, he, or both of the seasonal spirits, heard something.
"I'll see you soon my dear little flower!" Says a person nearby. Jack's eyebrows furrowed. The person sounds like a woman, judging by the feminine voice.
He starts to hop branch to branch, going to the source of sound. It should be nearby. He didn't know that Merida was slowly catching up, doing what he was doing too.
Jack was about to hop on another tree branch when something came to his view. A woman, wearing a cloak with a basket hanging on her elbow, popped out from... what looks like a curtain of leafy vines. She looks quite old, but young at the same time.
The old woman was about to take another step after fixing herself when something caught her attention.
"Is this...," she trailed off as she looks at the ground, looking at the object below. Her fingers brushed on the substance, and felt coldness. "It's supposed to be summer here... Must be a misunderstanding.
"The woman stood up, dusting her dress before walking away. Jack's eyebrows furrowed more. Her dress... they were obviously not the style anymore. That dress is surely a hundred of years ago.
As he looks to his left, about to look for a branch to go back to the Summer spirit, he only met the eyes of the Summer spirit before seeing the tip of her arrow.
He held in a yelp before looking back up at Merida. "Looks like you found me, princess."
"What are ye doin'?" She asked as she dares him to speak up immediately. Somehow, when she became her current state- a spirit-, she can lose her accent without an effort. "It's the start of summer he'e. Ye're supposed ta' be headin' ta' other places."
Jack casually shrugged before smiling at her. "I thought it would be fun to foil in your plans Miss frizzhead. But you found me."
"Seriously?" Merida asked as her aim lowers. The look of annoyance flashing on her face made Jack satisfied. "Ah got something ta' do so stop destroying meh plans."
"Now, now, wee lass," Jack says as he stands up on the branch. "I am the fun spirit here. Why don't we explore this forest since some woman just came by. This isn't a place to wander off alone. Sounds good?"
Merida looked around, starting to feel the warm air scatter around the area before nodding. "Fine. Bu' that's because Ah am suspicious."
Jack grinned mischieviously, which made Merida swallow. After her death, she became the Summer spirit for reasons. Her days of living since the Dark Ages is now just a memory thanks to Tooth. Centuries passed, she happens to cross many spirits, and Jack Frost is the naughtiest of all.
"I saw her come out of here," Jack says and points the crook of his staff on the still hanging curtains of leafy vines. "Do you think-"
"She's hiding something? Yeah. Every people here lives at th' village," Merida cuts his question as she follows Jack's footsteps, eventually melting the frost layers Jack had currently created."And who on 'arth cou'd she be talkin' to?"
"There are ways to find out," Jack says before moving the vines aside. Both of them entered a small cave, but they did not see the end of the light. At the otherside, both seasonal spirits could instantly see a building."A tower?" Jack started, "why would someone live in the middle of a forest?"
"Is this th' first time ye saw this tow'r?" Asked Merida.
Jack shook his head. "Nah. I'd fly up high with the wind and eventually see this tall thing. But I never focused on it until now."
Merida looks around, seeing that Mother Nature did a very good job at making nature bloom. "Sorry," she murmurs and notches an arrow instantly, then aiming it to the small source of water on the ground. Releasing, the arrow met its target and exploded brightly, making Summer happen in the area.
The temperature gets warmer, and Merida sighs. A cloud was blocking the sun. Jack immediately swallowed. He's not a big fan of warm air, but he can live through it.
"So, let's climb up," Merida says and approaches the tower. Putting both of her hands on the surface, she starts to climb up effortlessly.
Jack rolled his eyes and soars up high, trying to find an opening. He didn't know that Merida could not fly but he thinks she should just walk up quickly.
"I found a window," he says to her and enters without hesitation. Merida arrives a little later, then finds herself standing up on a wide window ledge. The place looks... comfy. Somebody is definitely in here.
"Nice walls," Jack comments and looks to his right... seeing a green moving thing. "There's a reptile in here."
"Ye know, Ah think Ah'm doubting tha' we'll see who th' woman was talkin' to," Merida says with her accent thick as her hair. "Look around. Everything's quiet-"
"Pascal!" A voice, which sounded a bit young and feminine, caught both of their attention. "Pascal, I need you to help me paint the candle pots again."
Descending down the stairs, is a girl who looked more of a teenager. The slender figure made way to Jack's right, and then the girl picked up the green reptile on the old-looking sewing machine.
"Mother is still out getting hazelnut soup so let's make ourselves comfortable," she piped. "This'll be a great day!"
Jack smirked as the girl smiles brightly, listening to what the chameleon was saying. Can she even understand that small animal?
"Oy Frosty," Merida called as she lands on the floor with a silent vibration that nobdoy could hear. Although the two inhabitants in the tower felt it, they just waved it away whether it was part of their daily basis or maybe something small just dropped. "Look et her hair."
Jack blinks and did what she says, only to see himself surprised and curious. "What's with everybody's hairdo's?"
Saying that made him receive a punch on the arm. "Whooh, Pascal. Summer's arriving."
"How old cou'd she be?" Merida asks. "She looks defini'ely young."
"I say seventeen or eighteen."
The girl stars to skip towards a covered canvas, before taking it off excitedly. Both pairs of eyes owned by the seasonal spirits widened. "I know Pascal. But I only saw him in a dream. I don't really know him at all."
"Is that...?" Merida trailed off as soon as Jack nods.
(-_-)
Hello readers. This is dedicated to the Nightfuryrider98. I thank that writer. Now, there will be logical explanations here of why this story goes like this and that. Please wait for updates.
-d00dlequeen15
