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prologue
Summary: "Among other things, you'll find that you're not the first one who was ever confused and frightened and even sickened by human behavior." [Jack Frost and Elsa. Jelsa. AU.]
Prompt: The quote above, as in the one in the summary is from The Catcher in the Rye. The initial prompt is the fact that we live in a society that's clearly damaged but, I wanted something more. See, there's this manga based on the Pokemon games called Pokemon Special/Adventures. The arc for BW2 is really interesting and if you have any knowledge of it whatsoever, then you'll understand what I mean.
A/N: I have to read The Catcher in the Rye over the summer to prepare me for my English Lit class next year. I thought the quote would become very fitting for the circumstances of what would be Elsa and Jack's situations on the later chapters. As for the BW2 arc, unless you know it, you probably won't get a lot of some of the themes but you might. And it's good that maybe you don't know the arc because it won't spoil you but, there some details you need to know. Scroll to the A/N below for them :) I hope you give this fanfiction a chance, despite the fact that it may be a little bit based on Pokemon – which many would assume is just for kids but if you've ever read the manga, you would be gobsmacked at how not suitable for children it is.
Disclaimer: Don't own anything at all :)
It was never about the color of her hair, and how it's always been blonde – the advantage to this is, it can be dipped and shampooed over with numerous different unorthodox colors of hair dye, and it would still look good on her – or it's length. She learned as a child never to wash away the temporary façade of hair coloring. It is essential, after all, for people living this lifestyle.
She's been hiding under pretense for so long, she forgot who she was—what did she really like – her favorite color, her favorite season, or what kind of ice cream tastes nice. And she's worn too many different colored contacts that blue doesn't seem so natural anymore. She even forgets her real name is Elsa, once in awhile – because she's been Kate, and Allyson, and Catherine for such a long, time the names have blurred and merged into something like numbers.
But here she stands, with the freedom she's long dreamed of there at the palm her hand, and suddenly, it doesn't seem so nice anymore. Maybe it's because change is a big thing and she's not just quite used to it yet. Or maybe, she's grown so accustomed to the life of masks and fake smiles and false identities that suddenly, being stripped of all this crime felt like she was once again stripped of herself. She feels the daunting emotions that has long been suppressed after all this time, and she realizes – maybe there's still a bit of humanity left in her, after all.
"Elsa, are you ready?"
A gentle call echoes through the room and sends tinkling shivers that crawl up her skin. A woman, early forties with a sweet smile and bun-tied brown hair stands at her door. She shuffles in with soft slippers and a nervous croak of her throat, before standing beside the blonde teenager who continued to busy herself with scrutinizing every inch of her new uniform.
"You look so beautiful." The older woman whispers hoarsely. "I never knew you could grow up to be such a beautiful young woman. And I'm proud."
"Even with all the lives that's been lost by this very hand?"
The bite in Elsa's words catches the woman off-guard and she feels air choking her lungs.
"It is not your place to comment on what I am now – be it my looks, my intelligence, or on the things that I've done. You've lost that right the day you gave me up, mother."
"I never wanted to give you up and you know that. It was needed."
Elsa doesn't bother to listen. Instead, she picks up her bag, and calmly leaves her room. The creak her steps make on the wooden floor resonate against the older woman's ears, as if penetrating her heart with seventeen years of guilt that she's never experienced before.
When the musty air gusts over Elsa's cheeks the minute she's out the front door, everything suddenly felt magical. As if reality had melted and those late nights of wondering what freedom tasted like, all came rushing back to her. And she feels it. In her bones, through the blood in her veins – it courses through and through her and she feels like she belongs. The cliché of a puzzle piece fitting perfectly right there in the very center of the image dawns on her, and she thinks, maybe it's not so bad.
And it isn't. Because screw pretending, and screw everything else that long ago has forced her freedom into exile. Now she's here and it's the wind, and the sun, and the dews on the grass that has made seventeen years of isolation and confinement so totally worth it.
And on the other end of fate's kaleidoscope is a boy – white haired with mischief in his eyes – skate boarding out of his house and stopping before a turn on the street where he could hear a loud and fast call of his name.
"Jackson Overland Frost!"
He grins back at the seventeen year old girl, his pearly whites shining, and her purple eyes stare at them admirably. She chuckles shyly, with three fingers over her lips, and the green dye on her fringe highlighted by the blazing sunlight.
"You forgot something."
She hands him an envelope, manila and tied with a red ribbon, and stamped graciously with a seal. He carefully takes it, his hand graceful in untying the knot and opening up the contents of the paper. His eyes scan each word, every letter that's printed on that cold white sheet of paper. And he gets it.
"I hope you have fun."
"I will."
He folds the paper up and once again hides it in the envelope. Handing the item back to the girl, he grins – it was the kind of grin that hid something of a mystery within him that not even his eyes can portray.
"And good luck breaking up with her."
Ready for take off, he turns to look at the girl, that upcurve of his lips fading into a frown as a soft sigh escapes his lips.
"Tooth, it's for the best and you know it—heck, even she knows it!"
"I know it."
"I'll be careful in case she tries to kick my ass."
There's that summertime grin of his, back plastered on his face, and he bolts before she could make another comment, his laugh dancing with the wind. His skateboard leads him up the ramp of their small neighborhood. And then he speeds ahead, using one leg off the board to accelerate, blades of grass being cut by the wheels beneath him. But he couldn't care less. Because today starts another mission—another adventure. And boy, did he live for those.
54321
Elsa arrives into a tall Victorian styled building, with towers like Hogwarts and finely carved arches decorating the front gates. This was it, Corona Sin Clair's School of the Gifted; a special institution for those who presented an extraordinary talent.
"I'm here."
She whispers to no one in particular, eyes wide in awe at the beautiful building that stood before her. Students passed by with their different colored hair and accents so thick she wonders if they were really conversing in English. The smell that surrounded her is that of fresh pine cones and roses, and a vanilla waft that lingers in every breath she takes in. And just when she feels herself melting into the environment around her...
"LOOK OUT!"
It only took three steps towards the reception before a reckless student manages to stumble to her with his stupid skateboard, causing both of them to trip to the ground with loud grumbles and incoherent phrases.
"What the—"
"Miss, are you okay?"
She was about to speak, let out a loud bark of complaint about how one shouldn't be coming into the halls with such a deathtrap, until she locked eyes with him. Those light blue that held so much sincerity, and a charm that caught her, left her a stuttering mess before the very handsome young man.
"I…um…you…okay…I—"
"Oh…kay."
He laughs breathlessly, a sheepish tug at his lips as he scratches the back of his neck. He stands with books in one hand, and the other picking up his skateboard.
"I'm so sorry about that."
"O-okay—it's."
Elsa inwardly curses herself for fumbling so much with her words. She's never been so tongue-tied and nervous before – and that's saying a lot because she lived a life of an actress, pretending to be someone she's not, reciting memorized lines, on a daily basis. And it makes her wonder—is this what it's like to be real?
"You're cute." He laughs again, a whimsical tune that smoothly escapes from the back of his throat and sends Elsa blushing furiously. "I'd like to stay and chat, but I have an important issue to attend."
"That's—"
"However, Miss Stumble on her Words, I'd like to make it up to you."
He speaks with his eyes – the way they look at her, and the mischief that hides within them. And she's hypnotized and so mesmerized, she doesn't realize he's slowly taking her hand up to his lips. Only then did she react with a gasp when she felt the soft brush against her knuckles.
"I'll see you soon."
And just as quick as he came, he's gone. And Elsa is left to stare after him, dumbfounded, and slightly fluttering in the heart. And she thinks to herself, has she always been this shy?
What about all those nights chatting up strangers at bars to gain information, or talking insults directly to a guy whose held a gun to her head? Where have all those years of being a fearless robot gone? Is this who she really is? Has Elsa Arendelle been so vulnerable all this time?
She brings a hand to her forehead and feels herself burning up a little. She thinks that, maybe it's just the guy. And she chuckles with a little mirth, an explosion in her heart and butterflies that have camped in her stomach. Because, for the first time in forever, she's never felt so normal before.
However, the balance doesn't tip so easily for Jackson Overland as he finds himself quickly skating his way out to the school's back garden. The innocence in his grin is replaced with a knowing smirk as he taps on the screen of his wristwatch.
"Eight minutes and thirty-two seconds. So far I've encountered one new student, although she appears to be harmless."
Something clicks, and a barely audible typing sound begins.
"Tsk, I've got time."
Another click.
"Of course."
He stops, looking through the glass windows. Stepping off his board, he lets it roll towards the door, and it opens. Wind and all it's sweet smelling glory greets him, along with long blonde hair, and a set of beautiful green eyes. There's also that smile that he's more than just familiar with.
"Hey."
He hums out to the garden, and the girl nods back in response.
"What's got you calling me up so early in the morning? You don't even go to your first period classes, let alone before school even starts."
"Just, I've been thinking."
"About?"
"Rapunzel Corona."
He speaks as if he's got a whole speech prepared, but he doesn't. Truth be told, he could easily admit that this girl before him isn't just any other girl – she was his lifeline. But she of all people already knew that. Everything that needed to be said has been said, a million times over, even before this relationship started.
"I love you. But today, it's over."
The silence is still. And the butterflies and pretty flowers that euphemized the scene could not kill the tension that lingered through the air and suffocated him.
"Oh."
"Do I need to explain?"
"No."
"Then there you go."
"And that's why I'm making this as painless as possible for you. I'm not going to comment on it, and neither are you."
"So, that's just it?"
"That's just it."
And she walks away, just like that. The wind blows past him and her long hair brushes his face. He inhales the familiar vanilla that scented her. He feels the hurt but it's not the break-up that clenches his heart and chokes him. It's the simple way she just let him go. Evidently, she wanted this to end just as much as he did – for different reasons of course.
"Ah, looks like she really got dumped."
A whisper carries through the air, tangled in Rapunzel's long tresses of blonde. She takes a small glance to the side, seeing Jackson to have disappeared off somewhere, and three girls gossiping amongst the bushes.
"I'm sorry."
A/N:
First, you have to understand that this is a prologue and I will try to make the following chapters after this slightly longer – an aim of 4k per chapter. I'm not promising daily or weekly updates because I stink at them. I also have not reread or corrected this chapter properly yet and I will get into that. If there are any offers for beta-readers, p'm me :)
Now, information needed well, first of all, within the fanfiction itself, unless you got it and you don't need to know, Rapunzel's last name is Corona because she is the daughter of the dean. I don't know if I'll make it clear on the next few chapters but just in case I don't, she is the dean's daughter. Also, based on my old works, you may think I have a slight disregard for Rapunzel but I don't, I love her! She's a cupcake bursting with energy but, she's just characterized differently in the way I write her. So don't assume that I have this grudge against her character because I don't. Also, she's like this because Rakutsu's ex-girlfriend in PokeSpe is also characterized like this and I thought, hmmmmm, I'll make Punzie the ex because it was Jackunzel the then now it's Jelsa, ya know?
Okay, details you need to know. Long story short, the arc is about an ex-criminal starting her new life, going to school and this guy who's a detective of some sort, going to that same school looking for ex-criminals. And that's really the gist of it. There is a tumblr post that explains the title of this fanfiction, and you will find it when I find a way to link to it. Until then, toodles. Please drop a review if you have any suggestions, if you like the plot, if you know about PokeSpe, please review and we can talk about it over tea :D
UPDATE: I have revised this chapter, and added something extra, as well as changed most of how the events play out. The reason to this is because my reference has been translated and I finally understood what was going on in the manga, hahaha. I also thought this is better fitting to the characters.