Defrosted
Summary
Queen Elsa constantly worries that she'll accidentally unleash her curse on everyone, just like how she almost murdered her younger sister, twelve years ago. When the inevitable happens during her coronation, she finds understanding and help in the most unlikely person she had ever met. Even more alarming is the new, intimate feeling she's experiencing for her new friend, a feeling she knows is forbidden.
Rapunzel is satisfied with her new life in the castle with her parents. Despite her status as a princess, she can't help but notice that she doesn't feel the same way about Eugene as she once did and feels worried at his growing distance towards her. She unexpectedly find the love she had been dreaming about with the Ice Queen herself, yet feels like starting a new, romantic relationship with the person she's attempting to help would be cheating on Eugene.
Both women learn, through bonding over their own forced isolating experiences, that they must make the changes they desire to have, through experiencing personal anguish, if they are to earn their happily ever after.
Queen Elsa fears the whole kingdom will discover her curse and blame her for accidentally murdering someone.
Princess Rapunzel worries Eugene doesn't love her, anymore.
Both women learn that they must experiencing personal anguish, if they are to earn their happily ever after.
Chapter One
Living Nightmare!
"I think he likes me," Rapunzel admitted, hoping Mother would for once understand her growing feelings for Eugene.
"Like you?" Mother repeated in a mocking tone, "please Rapunzel, that's demented. This is why you never should have left!"
Rapunzel sighed and gestured her hands in frustration, not believing that she had actually hoped her own mother would understand what it felt like to fall in love, instead of demeaning her, yet again. Just like she had with the lanterns. Why did she even hope things would suddenly be different between her and her mother?
"Dear, this whole romance that you've invented just proves you're too naïve to be here!"
Rapunzel turned her head away in disgust that after all this time she was out of her tower, her mother still thought she was naïve. Clearly, leaving the tower didn't prove to her that she, Rapunzel, could handle herself out in the world. All Mother could focus on was how Rapunzel had fallen for the most notorious thief in all of Corona. Well, why wouldn't she? He was smart and caring and kind and generous and funny and stuck by her throughout their adventures, together.
"Why would he like you? Come on now, really? Look at you, you think that he's impressed? Don't be a dummy, come with mummy…Mother…"
"No!" Rapunzel shouted, deciding to stand her ground, for once in her life.
"No?" Mother repeated, clearly shocked. Her face then twisted into a chilling smirk, that Rapunzel knew from previous experience meant she had just crossed a line. "Oh, I see how it is!"
Rapunzel startled, wondering what on earth Mother meant by that and what the punishment would be for disobeying her, now that they were both out of the tower. Rapunzel tried her best to school her features into a neutral expression, remembering how Mother seemed to relish in her daughter showing fear. This was easier said than done, as Rapunzel honestly didn't know what to expect from Mother at this moment.
"Rapunzel knows best, Rapunzel's so mature now, such a clever, grown-up miss! Rapunzel knows best, fine if you're so sure now, go ahead, then give him this!" Mother pulled out Eugene's satchel as she spoke, viciously shoving it into Rapunzel's face.
"How did you?" Rapunzel started, wondering how on earth Mother had found it in the first place, when Rapunzel had been so sure she had hidden it where no one would ever find it.
"This is why he's here! Don't let him deceive you, give it to him, watch, you'll see!"
"I will!" Rapunzel declared, knowing Eugene could have left her at any time, yet stayed with her, throughout their whole journey.
"Trust me, my dear. That's how fast he'll leave you, I won't say 'I told you so!' No, Rapunzel knows best! So, if he's such a dreamboat, go and put him to the test!"
"Mother, wait!" Rapunzel cried in shock that Mother was leaving, already.
"If he's lying, don't come crying! Mother knows best!" Mother raised her arms up for emphasis, then, with a swish of her black cloak, she was gone.
Rapunzel sat bolt right up in bed, panting, her heart racing so fast, she was positive the whole castle could hear it and briefly wondered if it was possible to leap right out of her chest, it beat so hard. Rapunzel shook that ridiculous thought away and turned to Eugene, only to find her right side empty, completely devoid of the warm, comforting body that was usually there, although his side of the bed still felt warm and both the mattress and the pillow were still dented. She was just about to roll over onto his side and go back to sleep, when sudden laughter startled her awake.
Lighting a candle and pulling a bathrobe on, Rapunzel let curiosity get the best of her, ignoring the small voice insisting she ignore the noise and get back to bed. Opening her bedroom door, Rapunzel stepped out into the hallway. Recognizing the laughter as a woman's and the insistent shushing as Eugene's, Rapunzel frowned and followed the noise, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.
Rapunzel recognized the room the laughter was coming from was the library, one of her favorite places in her parents castle. Entering the round room, Rapunzel ignored the millions of books silently begging to be read and followed the sound to a white bust and pushed down on it, remembering the secret passageway. The bookshelf ahead of Rapunzel slid open to reveal a dark brown headed woman laughing and kissing Eugene, who happily teased and kissed her back.
She noticed everything around her had grown very still and blurred, with the only thing she could focus on was the scene in front of her, while her insides were frozen. As the freezing sensation began to melt, it was quickly replaced with a painful heat, as if someone was burning her very heart. Rapunzel couldn't help but gasp aloud, as the pain grew stronger and dropped her candle to grasp her chest.
The candle's flame caught the edge of a book. In seconds, not only was the book on fire, so was the whole bookshelf. Stepping back, Rapunzel accidentally pressed the white bust up, startling the woman and Eugene, who repeatedly said no, fervently, which made the flaming bookshelf slide back into place, effectively. The pain in her heart increased, as well as the freezing sensation, so suddenly did both come on that Rapunzel was surprised she didn't explode with the two warring inside of her so intensely.
She rushed forward, intent on saving them but was kept back by the flame spitting fire that began to spread toward the other bookshelves in the library. Ignoring the woman's and Eugene's cries for help, coughing and crying out in pain, she took advantage of the cold adrenaline rushing through her legs and ran out of the library as fast as her legs could carry her. "Help, somebody help, the library's on fire!" Rapunzel screamed, as she reentered the hallway. Turning at the roaring sound, she screamed as the fire rushed at her, then devoured her in a wave of burning orange color and searing heat.
Rapunzel sat bold right up in bed, her heart racing so fast, she was positive the whole castle could hear it and briefly wondered if it was possible to leap right out of her chest, it beat so hard. Looking around, she noticed she was safely in her room, with Eugene beside her and glaring at her, his hazel eyes burning in suppressed anger. She whimpered and scooted away, until her back hit the headboard behind her.
"What was the dream about this time, your mother come to torment you again, the library catching fire, you somehow carelessly losing your parents or me?" Eugene's voice held a bitter edge to it as he mocked her.
The voice reminded Rapunzel too much of Mother's to allow her to tell him about the dream she just had. Besides, the whole thing was too real, too vivid to talk about, anyway. She wouldn't dare, after Eugene acting the way he was, for fear of making the situation worse on herself. No, it was best to keep her nightmare to herself and figure out what was bothering Eugene.
"Eugene, what's gotten into you? You're my husband, you're supposed to comfort me after nightmares."
"Oh, is that what husbands are supposed to do? I had no idea that husbands are supposed to willingly not get any sleep, while their wives constantly wake them up. Of course, you get all the sympathy, since you can't help the nightmares you suffer from every night," Eugene said all of this in the same, mocking, bitter voice he had used earlier.
Rapunzel's mouth dropped open and she couldn't suppress her own shiver of fear at her husband, who had been so supportive and encouraging up until this point, turning against her in showing this whole other dark side of himself. Rapunzel visibly winced from the freezing cold and burning heat sensations intensifying in her heart so suddenly as the words he said finally caught up with her. It was her fault, this whole situation was her fault, if she had just stayed asleep, instead of getting woken up by nightmares constantly, then Eugene wouldn't become so bitter towards her, tonight.
"I'm sorry, I'm so sorry, I'll sleep in another room, I'll ask an inventor to make me a sleeping potion, I didn't mean to make you so bitter! I just get these nightmares about Mother Gothel or worse case scenarios!" Rapunzel explained, hoping by talking with them, they could work towards a solution.
Eugene didn't answer, he just wordlessly got up from his spot at the end of the bed and walked out of the room. Rapunzel had previously thought the love of her life dying right in front of her eyes was the worst pain she had ever experienced. That was before the burning heat turned into a watery, drowning wave, as the freezing cold intensified. It took a second for Rapunzel to name these sensations as the feelings of anger, sadness and fear. Eugene still living and breathing, yet walking away from her was infidentally more worse than that, as a stabbing pain overtook her heart.
"No, Eugene, please don't leave me!" Rapunzel screamed, reaching out for her husband, who didn't look back, only wordlessly shut the bedroom door behind him.
The pain was too much for Rapunzel to handle and she threw herself onto her bed, pressing the pillowcase to her eyes as she burst into tears. Eugene didn't love her anymore, Rapunzel was sure of it, why else would he walk out on her during her greatest time of need? The acknowledgement of the reason for her crying only made Rapunzel sob. She would have preferred anyone coming into her room to comfort her that night, even her guards posted outside of her bedroom door. By this point of time, however, everyone was used to Rapunzel crying during the night and her parents could only get up so many times to reassure her or else they would get sleep deprived, too. So, no one came to comfort her, which turned Rapunzel's sobs to weeping at the sheer loneliness she felt, on top of the pain of Eugene's rejection.