Chapter 2 - Games In The Dark
(A/N) *Nervously waves* Hi everyone! Sorry for how long it took to update the story, I've had a bad case of writers block, plus lifes been a bit hectic. Thank you so much though for all your wonderful reviews, favs and alerts :) I'm glad you liked the first chapter. Fingers crossed the second chapters to your liking. xx
Spells used: Alohomora: unlocking spell. Lumos: creates a light.
Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of The Guardians, Frozen or Harry Potter.
Hushed whispers, quiet murmurs, quick glances and all together avoidance followed Elsa wherever she went. It had been three days since the mysterious ice incident and still no one was quite sure what had happened in Divination that day. If the anyone did know - and Elsa highly suspected that the professors did know, as in every class since then, they would spare her a curious, almost pitying, worried glance- then they were keeping it quiet.
"Look on the bright side, Elsa. At least we finally don't need tae fight for a table anymore," Merdia tried to reassure her friend, taking a bite out of her apple.
Elsa let out a groan, allowing her head to lightly drop down onto the open book in front of her. The poor attempt at encouragment didn't help.
The two girls were currently sitting at an empty table at the back of The Hogwarts library, with a spare four tables separating them and the rest of the students. News about the strange occurrence had traveled fast - as gossip always did at Hogwarts - and everyone was now far more wary of Elsa's presence, hence the trouble they were going to in order to avoid her, fearful that they may invoke her wrath.
Elsa didn't like the new attitude people had taken of her. Everyone avoiding her, staring then hurriedly glancing away in case she saw. Everyone constantly acting as though they were treading on thin ice when they were near her or had to interact with her.
"That doesn't make me feel any better, Merida," Elsa mumbled. "You know why they're doing this. It's because they all think it was me who caused the ice, and practically turned Kuzco into an ice popsicle!"
Merida flipped the page of her book, not really paying attention to the words but trying to create the facade that she was indeed studying. She wasn't fooling anyone.
Taking another bite out of her fruit she said, "Take it as a compliment then. Jist think, how many witches or wizards dae ye know that could pull off wandless magic, eh? Not many. And think, yer only a student. At least they hold ye in high regards.
"Funnily enough," Elsa began dryly, straightening up and running a hand down the length of her braid. "Being treated like a monster doesn't make me feel very complemented."
It upset her being treated as such. She had done nothing to deserve their evasion or the spotlight in their vicious gossip. No one bar Merida had even asked her if she had done it! Everyone else had just assumed she had! Her being titled 'The Snow Queen of Hogwarts' apparently being an acceptable justification to assume she was responsible.
Elsa could level with them on that perhaps. Yes, she was good at ice magic, but what motive did she have for freezing over the divination class, or her fellow classmates? Even if some of them - no pointing fingers at Kuzco - practically begged to be introduced to a fist in the face at times.
"So without freezing me, Snow Queen," a cringingly familiar voice spoke.
Both girls heads whipped round to find Kuzco next to them, casually sitting in the spare seat at the end of the table. His chin rested lazily against the palm of his hand, his jet black hair falling to just below below his chin. His expression was bored as he idly examined the nails on his other hand.
Well, speak of the devil and he shall appear, Elsa thought bitterly, trying her hardest to bite back an irritable groan. She was hardly in the mood to deal with the Slytherin student.
"Sooooo," he drawled, still not looking at the girls. "Where's my apology?"
"Excuse me? Apology?" Elsa blinked, startled. "Apology for what exactly?"
Kuzcos's eye flickered over to the blonde. "Ah, so we're still playing the innocent game are we?"
Innocent game? No one had even given her the chance to claim innocence! They'd all played judge, jury and executioners, then branded her without a moments questioning.
"I didn't freeze you in class, if that's what you're referring to," Elsa spoke tersely, her eyes locking with his challengingly.
Kuzco sighed, blowing a strand of hair from his face. He moved so that his chin was now resting in both hands, his elbows leaning on the table. "If you didn't do it then who did?"
"I. Don't. Know!" Elsa hissed, stressing out each word.
"Because as far as I'm concerned-" Kuzco continued snidely. "You're the only one with enough knowledge in that creepy little ice voodoo to pull off a stunt like that. Now I don't know if you're craving attention after your parents death or-"
Kuzco let out a cry as someone grabbed him by the wrist and snapped his arm onto the table, the preceding bang causing a deafening moment of silence within the library. Curious, many of the other students looked over, then quickly returned to their studying, not wanting to get involved.
"Is there a problem here?" Kida asked, tilting her head and causing her long wave of white hair to tumble over her slender shoulders.
Kuzco was ready to retort, but the moment he saw the Gryffindor standing there like some fearsome warrior ready to strike vengeance in the name of her friends, he stopped himself and gulped.
"Nope. None whatsoever," he squeaked.
Elsa smiled thankfully at Kida's timely intervention. If Kuzco had finished that sentence he very well could have found himself turned into a living ice statue, and this time she would have gladly owned up to being the culprit.
"Good," Kida smiled, releasing his arm and placing her hand on her hip. "Now, would anyone like to explain to me why everyone seems to be avoiding the back row of the library like the plague?"
"It's not the back row they're avoiding," Kuzco muttered, looking to the side.
"Ye haven't heard the rumours?" Merida asked, rather surprised, considering it was the talk of the entire school.
"No, I was away from a few days to visit my father. His health has taken a turn for the worst over the last few weeks, I am afraid," Kida explained, sliding into the free seat next to Elsa. "So, what have I missed since my departure?"
"Oh, nothing much. Just The Snow Queen here freezing the entire divination classroom and attacking me," Kuzco said casually with a shrug.
Kida blinked, then looked to Elsa, an impressed smile on her face. "Really? Well its about time someone put this-" She indicated towards Kuzco with a jerk of her head. "-Egotistic swine in his place."
"Hey!" Kuzco snapped.
"Oh, for the love of winter!" Elsa snapped irritably, slamming shut her book. "I didn't do it!"
"Just admit it!" Kuzco hissed, leaning forward. "Admit it so that I can tell the professors, you can get into trouble, and lose your house points."
If there was one thing that could be said about Kuzco, he was always blunt, direct and open about his motives - whether they were good or bad.
"So that's why you want me to admit to it?" Elsa scoffed.
"Ah ha! So you did do it!" Kuzco cried triumphantly, jumping up from his chair and pointing a finger accusingly at the Ravenclaw.
"I am not going to admit to something I didn't do just so your house can get ahead of mine!" Elsa growled, raising her voice.
At the moment Ravenclaw was ahead of Slytherin by thirty points. If they could keep their lead they may be able to gain the extra points needed to overcome Gryffindor and actually win this year. Gryffindor had reigned supreme for far too long, and it was time that the Ravenclaws showed Hogwarts what they were made of. She was not going to ruin this for her house.
Kuzco scoffed, crossing his arms and leaning back in his chair. He kicked his legs up onto the table, muttering under his breath.
"Ye know, Elsa, I was thinkin," Merdia said casually, idly taking another bite out of her apple. "Maybe the whole ice incident has somethin tae dae way the vision in yer crystal? Miss Trelawney said it was Jack Frost, did she no?"
"Who?" Kuzco said, tilting his head.
"Jack Frost, he's the spirit of winter," Merida explained.
"And? What does he have to do with what happened in divination class?" Kida asked, crossing her arms.
"I… I saw him… in my crystal," Elsa said hesitantly, nervously fidgeting with her hands. "We were trying to look into the future to see if we could discover our future partners and in my crystal I saw… Jack Frost, though I don't understand why."
It was suppose to have been her true love that had appeared in the crystal, not some apparition of a ghost.
If it hadn't been for Merida's suggestion, then Elsa would have assumed the whole ice fiasco in divination had been some dangerously silly prank that one of her classmates had pulled to get her into bother. Who would have wanted to pull such a stunt against her she didn't know. Everyone got along reasonably well with her - well, those that did speak to her - and the only person she could fathom whom would wish to get her into trouble was Kuzco. The Slytherin student was forever trying to tease, irk and anger her, having taken a disliking to her since day one.
But it couldn't have been Kuzco as he had also been negatively affected by the ice incident, the ice having honed in on him specifically. Why would he attack himself? To throw off suspicious? But even then he still wasn't skilled enough in spells over ice and snow to pull off such a feat, especially not without his wand.
What if Merida's right? What if this really does have something to do with what I saw in my crystal?
"Its a weird coincidence that a spirit way winter powers appears in yer crystal, and at the same time the divination classroom freezes over," Merdia pointed out, her words sending a shiver down Elsa's spine as she pondered the possible connections the spirit may have with the incident.
"Are you suggesting there's a connection?" Elsa mouth went dry as she dared to speak the words aloud. "That this… Jack Frost might actually be responsible?"
"Ah dinnea kin fer sure, but its possible," Merdia shrugged, toying with her quill.
Kuzco snorted. "Right, so now you're going to blame some imaginary spirit? Why don't you just stop attention seeking and own up?"
Kida crossed her arms, looking at Kuzco in disbelief. "You go to a school for wizards and witches. A school that has; ghosts wandering around the halls, paintings with living people in them, teachers who can transform into cats, and whose headmaster has a phoenix for a familiar. Yet you question whether or not this this Jack Frost being could be real?"
Kuzco looked like he was ready to retort, but thought better of it. "Touche."
"Lets just say - for arguments sake - that this Jack Frost is real," Elsa said, taking in a deep breath. "Why would he freeze over the classroom?"
"Yeah, and why would he attack me?" Kuzco demanded to know.
"Ye really canny kin why someone would attack you?" Merida snorted.
Kuzco may have been one of the most popular boys at Hogwarts, but it was for all the wrong reasons. There was only two reasons anyone wanted to get close to him; one was for fear of getting on the wrong side of him - as he was quite the formidable wizard, as he had proved during a duel in Defence against the Dark Art - and for the status. He came from a wealthy pure blood family, one that held quite a lot of influence in the wizarding world. Many of the students were quite eager to befriend him for this reason, even if they had to endure his... flamboyant personality.
"I'm surprised someone hasn't went for you sooner," Kida smirked teasingly, joining Merida in a fit of laughter.
Kuzco gave the two Gryffindor students a heated glare.
"Can we please keep on topic," Elsa muttered. "Merida, what else do you know about this… being?"
"I donnea really know anything else about him, Elsa," Merida shrugged. "Perhaps there'll be mare information in one of the libraries?"
"I suppose it couldn't hurt to do a little research into this." Elsa began packing away her belongings. "Seeing as its the only lead I have."
"What, right now? Dae ya really want tae waste yer time chasing ghosts when we have a transfiguration essay due next week?" Merida asked, watching as her fellow student rose to he feet, getting ready to leave.
Elsa gave Merida an unimpressed look. "You mean the essay that's due in... tomorrow."
The colour in Merida's face drained, a look of dawning horror appearing as the realization sunk in. "Wait... its due this Tuesday? But ah thought-"
"Merida if you lose us anymore points for forgetting to have your essays done when they are due, I swear-" Kida began, fixing the startled red-head with an aggravated scowl. This wouldn't be the first occasion the young Scottish lass had forgotten to hand in her homework, in fact, it was almost tradition that she didn't hand it in.
Merida let out a nervous laugh, waving dismissively with her hand. "Ack, donnea worry, I'll have it done."
Biting her lip, she turned to the clock hanging on the wall - it was already half past five. She gulped, a small bead of sweat trickling down her forehead.
"Tick tock, Merida," Elsa teased, flinging her satchel over her shoulder.
"Just grand." Merdia muttered, her head flopping down onto the desk in despair.
"Hold up, Snowy!" Kuzco called out, catching the blondes attention as she walked away.
Elsa turned to face him, growling exasperatedly. "Do not call me-"
"Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever," Kuzco gestured dismissively, leaving his seat and walking towards her. "I'll come with you."
Elsa blinked, taken aback. "You'll what?"
"I'll come with you and help you look for more information on this... Jack Frost," Kuzco said the name with a sneer. "If you really weren't the one that iced me in divination, then that means someone else did, and I want to know who. As if I'm letting anyone get away with doing that to me!"
It was nothing more than revenge for Kuzco. Someone - whether it be human or otherwise - had made him look like a fool, and now he wanted pay back. Elsa didn't really know what he planned to do if - knock wood - it really did turn out to be some sort of spirit that had caused all the chaos in class that day. But at least with him here - even if he was the last person on Earth she wished to spend time with - then they could look for the information twice as fast.
Merida couldn't help her as she had to finish off her essay, and by the scolding Kida was currently giving the red-head, it was clear she would be staying there to make sure the essay was finished on time.
Any help is better than no help.
"Alright, fine. The best place to look would probably be the mystical creatures section, upstairs."
Book, after book, after book, the pair ploughed through, looking for even the smallest reference to the winter spirit, but finding none. They had both been rifling through the stacks of books for well over two hours, having opted on missing dinner. Truthful, Elsa was surprised Kuzco had missed dinner. She had tried to encourage him to go, but he had nonchalantly insisted on staying, saying he wasn't hungry.
Elsa appreciated his dedication in helping her - even if it was for his own selfish reasons - however, she really wished he had left her alone for a while, seeing as it would have mercifully spared her from his atrocious singing.
"He was born and raised to rule, no has ever been as cool-" Kuzco sung away to himself as flipped through an old, weathered book.
"Kuzco."
"In a thousand years of aristocracy-"
"Kuzco!"
"-An enigma and a mystery-"
"Kuzco! Will you stop singing and listen to me?" Elsa snapped, crossing her arms to glare at her fellow student. "I can't find anything useful. Have you had any luck?"
Kuzco gave her a scowl, rolling his eyes as he returned the book he had been reading to the wrong self. "Geese, you didn't need to throw off my groove! No, I haven't found anything. If I did I would have told you. You really think I want to be stay here stuck with you any longer than I needed to be?"
Elsa rolled her eyes. "I didn't ask you to come in the first place!"
Kuzco muttered something under his breath, turning away from the Ravenclaw student. His eyes landed on something, and an idea formed. "Hmm... how about we try over there?"
Elsa turned around to see where Kuzco was pointing. Her eyes widened. He was pointing to an ancient door, heavy brass metal adoring it in intricate patterns.
"The restricted section?" Elsa whispered. "Kuzco, we can't go in there without permission!"
"Oh, please," The slytherin student snorted. "Don't be such a chicken."
Kuzco whipped out his wand from his robe, pointing it at the lock on the door. "Alohomora!"
There was a loud click, then the door swung open. Both students slowly timidly approached it, peering into the darkness. Elsa snuck her hand into her robe, retrieving her own wand. "Lumos."
Her wand flared blue, unveiling a small amount of the darkness cloaking the room. Now they could see the rows and rows of shadowy bookcases filling the room, all carrying ancient tombs, filled with some of the darkest of arts known to the wizarding world. Elsa shivered, picking up on the dark vibe lingering in the room - she really didn't want to go in three.
"There wont be anything on him in here!" Elsa hissed, glancing over her shoulder to make sure no teachers were coming there way. "This section is dedicated to the dark arts. Only Defence Against The Dark Arts students come here."
"But what if what we're looking for isn't good? What if its evil," Kuzco suggested, not bothering to lower his voice. "Whatever was in that classroom attacked me! It tried to ice me over! I could have died!"
"Aren't you being a tad over dramatic?" Elsa sighed.
"Look, whatever it was, it wasn't afraid to hurt us, that's what I'm trying to say. If it is evil then there's a chance there will be information on it in here. Its worth a quick check."
"Not if we get caught it isn't!" Elsa growled, cursing under her breath as Kuzco lit up his wand and entered the forbidden room.
Kuzco did have a point though. If this spirit was evil then there was the possibility that any information on it would be hidden away in the restricted section. Elsa hoped that they wouldn't find anything on the winter spirit here, because if they did, then that meant they were dealing with something from the dark arts. Something evil.
All the professors pitying looks flashed in her mind. Her heart ached, a shiver running down her spine. She couldn't stop that nagging feeling that they did no more than they were letting on. Why else would they give her such sorrowful looks?
What do they know that I don't?
Elsa clutched her wand tightly, the need to know driving her forward and into the room after Kuzco. As they wondered down the isles, Elsa glanced over the titles of the books as her light shone over them; Magick Moste Evile, Famous Fire-Eaters, Shrieking Book...
"We really shouldn't be in here," Elsa mumbled, taking in some of the more darker book titles.
Kuzco laughed, twirling around, he began to walk backwards, facing Elsa. "Whats the matter Snow Queen? Scared?"
"No," Elsa bit out, glaring at the Slytherin student.
Truthfully, she was scared. Not just about being caught by one of the teachers without having first obtained permission to be in here, but because of whatever had happened in class that day. She wanted to know why she saw what she saw in that crystal - why a spirit had appeared when she had called upon the fates to show her her future partner. She wanted to know what had caused the ice; was it a prank by a fellow classmate, was it this mysterious Jack Frost, or was it something else entirely? The more questions that arose, the more anxious for answers she became.
"You... you are scared," Kuzco stopped walking, the mocking grin on his face fading. "Aren't you? Look if you really don't want to be here you can wait outside. Don't need to get all teary eyed on me."
Teary eyed? Elsa winced, realizing tears had formed in her eyes. She whipped them away with her sleeve. "Some dust got into my eyes, that's all."
Kuzco sighed, rubbing the back of his head. He looked slightly out of his element, a tad nervous. He wasn't use to seeing Elsa - calm, collected, regal Elsa, who always seemed so flawless and perfect - being upset. He had seen her angry - more times than not it was him that had provoked her - but upset and scared? No. He didn't feel like making fun of her now, not when she was genuinely fearful. That would be low, even for him.
"Seriously, I can check this out on my own, You can wait out-"
"I am not afraid of in here, Kuzco!"
"Then what's with the tears and that look of utter horror you had when I mentioned coming in here?"
To say she was surprised was an understatement. Kuzco was hardly one to ever care about anyone other than himself. He was selfish, mean and acted like he owned the place. Why did he care if she was scared or not? All he cared about was getting payback on whatever it was that had made him look like a fool in divination.
"Don't be ridiculous, I'm not afraid." Elsa rolled her eyes, trying to push past him.
Truth be told, seeing the powerful witch so on edge made Kuzco more than little nervous. She was far better at magic than him - even though he would never admit that to her face. If she was afraid, then it was for good reason. He was starting to regret coming in here. The darkness surrounding them suddenly seemed more menacing and more threatening, as though anything could be lurking within it - and anything very well could be. Kuzco gulped.
Just as Elsa was about to walk past him, he caught her arm, quirking an eyebrow sceptically.
Elsa sighed, wrapping her arms around herself protectively. She really didn't feel like pouring her heart out to Kuzco of all people. He would probably just laugh at her, then tease her about it relentlessly. But the stubborn look in his eyes told her he was not backing down without a fight, a fight that she really couldn't be bothered with. It would lead to shouting and in a worse case scenario magic being used, which would surely attract attention and both of them would be in trouble.
"I saw him in my crystal, Kuzco. This Jack Frost," She spoke softly, her eyes glossing over as she recalled the strange being in her orb. "I was looking for my future partner and this spirit appears. What does that mean? And now here we are looking into the possibility of him being something of the dark arts? If.. If we find something on him in here, then... I... I don't know what that means... for me."
She didn't like the thought that the person at the end of her red string was some evil spirit.
"H-Hey," Kuzco said softly, trying to sound as reassuring as he could. Unsure of what to do, he hesitantly reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, whatever this creepy thing is, I -"
Both students froze as they noticed Kuzco's breath leave him in a cold puff of condensation. The temperature had dropped drastically, Kuzco and Elsa found themselves shivering slightly.
"He's here," Elsa whispered, stepping closer to Kuzco.
"Its not him," Kuzco rolled his eyes, trying to sound like he wasn't the least bit afraid, but his shaking voice betrayed him. "The heating's probably just brok-"
A blast of ice smashed into the Slytherin student, sending him hurtling backwards into an open closet. Kuzco cried out in pain as he slammed against the closet wall with a mighty bang, books crashing down on top of him. He looked up through the darkness, seeing Elsa illuminated by the light from her wand, and his which had cluttered to the floor. A second later his wands light went out.
"Elsa!" He shouted, rushing to his feet.
Just as he was about to exit the closet, the door whooshed shut and whacked into his face, knocking him backwards. There was a sharp click as the door locked.
"KUZCO!"
Elsa ran over to the closet, skidding on the floor. She slammed against the door, rattling the handle as she tried to open it. Blue, icy tendrils crept out from within the key lock, slowly encrusting the entire handle and causing Elsa to let go, a startled cry choking free from her.
Whatever was causing this didn't want the Slytherin student to get out of that closet.
"Kuzco!" Elsa shouted, backing away as ice swirled over the door, covering it over and over again in frosty swirls until it was completely engulfed. "The door is frozen over! I'm going to melt it, so get as far away from the door as you can and shield yourself!"
In one fluid motion, Elsa whipped her wand outward, pointing it towards the cupboard. She wasn't fond of fire spells, but it was the only way to melt the ice.
"Icendendi-"
An icy blast of wind struck her, knocking her want from her hand. The Lumos spell on her wand went out, plunging the library into utter darkness. Elsa covered her face with her arms, trying to protect her face from the bitterly cold gales. Suddenly the winds stopped, and all Elsa could hear was her panted breaths.
Oh no, my wand! Where is it?
She didn't know where her wand had landed, and without it she was compleltely defenceless!
Panic burst to live within her, like a fire igniting.
Whatever had caused the ice incident in divination was here now. Although she could see nothing, everything now pitch black, she could feel the goose bumps forming on her arms as she got that feeling of being watched. It felt like there was a presence in the room, slowly encircling her from a distance.
"Kuzco!" Elsa called out, her voice pitching in fear. She just wanted to hear his voice, to have the comfort of knowing that she wasn't alone. "Kuzco!"
No response came. Her stomach churned, fear wrapping around her, coiling tightly, causing her breaths to come out harsh and desperate. Feeling utterly vulnerable, Elsa felt tears prickle at her eyes.
"Kuzco," She whispered, her breath leaving her in a puff of condensation.
Cold breath fell upon her neck, and Elsa screamed. Swirling around, she flung a punch towards whatever was behind her, but struck nothing.
"Who's there!" Elsa shrieked.
A gentle wind blew through the library, rustling her hair and cloak. She felt something touch her cheek, like the brush of fingers gently caressing her. She batted whatever it was away, but her hand went through thin air. With a fearful cry she bolted forward, her hands stretched outwards, looking for anything to bump into. She found the bookcase, and spun round, keeping her back up against it to offer her some inkling of protection.
"Go away and leave me be!" Elsa tried to shout, but her voice choked on a sob.
Elsa...
The Ravenclaw student slide down the bookcase at the sound of the voice, her eyes opened wide in pure terror.
"What do you want?" Elsa called out, her voice shaking.
A soft, white glow streamed in through one of the ceiling windows. Looking up, Elsa saw the pale moon emerging through cracks in the dark grey clouds looming over Hogwarts. Her eyes trailed back down to the path alighted by the moon, ice spots appeared there. They began to blossom, forming a trail of icy footprints, heading off further into the library.
Elsa gulped. "Do you... do you want me to follow you?"
The ground around her iced over in long, circling ribbons. Slowly, one crept up her leg, wrapping round it. She felt a tug, as though it were trying to pull her towards the footprints. Taking that as a yes to her question, Elsa rose to her feet, the ice on her leg spilling away into thousands of droplets of ice, that shattered once they hit the marble floor.
"Kuzco," Elsa called out. "I'll... I'll be back in a minute, alright?"
Well, its not like he's going anywhere, She thought grimly.
Still trembling, she walked alongside the foot prints, following them as they appeared and lead her deeper and deeper into the restricted section. Nervously, she cast a glance over her shoulder, noticing how like a curtain, darkness fell behind her, swallowing the moons path of light. She gulped, breathing more deeply.
Its... getting c-colder, Elsa thought, her teeth chattering lightly.
The footprints suddenly came to a stop before an ancient pillar style book stand. Cautiously, Elsa approached it. Sitting innocently upon it, was a single book. Curious, Elsa ran her hands down the cover, feeling the hard, leathery texture of it. It was still too dark too read the covers title, but it certainly felt like a very old book.
Take it...
Elsa heard the voice again, smoothly echoing off the walls. She looked around, searching for the source.
"Why?" She asked timidly, her hands peeling away from the book.
Take it...
"No." Elsa said quietly, glancing around. "Not until you tell me why."
No reply came, and Elsa felt a swell of irriation.
"I don't like playing games," she called out, trying to sound braver than she felt. "Why don't you show yourself?"
A breeze wafted through the room, bringing with it the faintest whiffs of pine and the smell of something sweet. Elsa sniffed, something pricking at the back of her mind. That scent was... familiar. It reminded of her something, something she couldn't quite remember. A wave of dizziness overcame her, and she had to steady herself on the book stand to keep herself from falling. She took in a deep breath, bringing one hand to her forehead to try and sooth the pain.
What was that? Elsa wondered, her head still throbbing slightly.
Elsa... free me...
"Free you? Free you from what?" Elsa asked, wincing in pain.
Free.. me...
Elsa shook her head. She glanced at the book, squinting in the darkness as she tried to make out the words inscribed upon it. She lifted it up to her eyes, straining, she could just make out the first few words. Secrets of...
The little light that the moons rays offered began to vanish, the room seeping into shadows. Just as the moons light was about to dissolve completely, Elsa noticed something at the corner of her eye that sent a spike of fear coursing through her, causing her lip to tremble. There was something over to her right; a tall, lean figure, lurking behind the bookshelf, watching her with two frightful yellow eyes, that reminded her of an eclipse.
Whatever the thing was, it was different from the other presence in the room. Unlike the other spirit, where she could only judge it by its actions, Elsa instinctively knew that this creature would do her harm if it got the chance. It radiated evil and danger. Its eyes holding a twisted, malicious amusement in them.
Get out of here! Her instincts screamed.
That was when she saw it, like the crack of dawn in a morning sky, the faintest glow of lights. It was the same cyan glow from a wand using a Lumos spell! Maybe Kuzco has escaped! Without a seconds thought, Elsa bolted towards it, running away from the creature hidden in the shadows. Whatever it was, she wanted nothing to do with it, and simply wanted to get put as much distance between her and it as possible.
The light was her only hope, being the only thing she could see. It suddenly stopped, then started heading away from her!
No - come back!
"Kuzco!" Elsa shouted.
The light stopped, then grew larger as it headed towards her. Elsa grinned, a grin that was quickly smacked off her face when she bumped face first into one of the bookcases. Wincing, she rubbed her nose, but kept moving towards the glow.
"Kuzco! You got-"
"Well, well, well... what have we here," a throaty males voice spoke, the light illuminating the nasty smirk on his grim features.
Argus Filch. The caretaker of Hogwarts.
Elsa came to an abrupt halt, instinctively sliding the book into her satchel as inconspicuously as she could. Her mouth gaped open, words failing her. She was in so much trouble...
"Mr Filch... I can explain."
"Not need to explain. Breaking the rules is breaking the rules." Mr Filch said lowly. "Shame we don't suspend students from the rafters anymore. But, it looks like it'll be a nice little trip to the Forbidden Forest for you and your fellow rule breakers."
Fellow rule breakers? Who else has Mr Filch caught on his nighty witch hunt?
"Three... two..."
Mr Filch and Elsa both turned their heads at the sound of the familiar male voice coming from their left.
"ONE!"
The closet door swung open, and out tumbled Kuzco in all his glory, landing face first on the floor. The Slytherin student lay sprawled across the ground for a moment, cursing under his breath. He rolled over, puling himself up to his feet and dusting himself off.
"Finally! Now where is-" His eyes landed n Filch. "Opps."
"Shall be a very busy night in the Forbidden Forest," Mr Filch grinned. "Very busy indeed."
With an exhausted sigh, Elsa plopped down onto one couches in the Ravenclaw's common room. She was so tired, all she wanted to do was crawl upstairs, go to sleep and forget all about this wretched day. All sleep would do for her though was delay the inevitable, tomorrow was going to be far worst when Snape was through with her.
After having been discovered by Mr Filch, both Kuzco and herself had been taken to see Slytherins Head of House, Professor Snape - much to both students horror. Of all the teachers who could have been chosen to select their punishments, it had to be Snape, who was infamous for his punishments on students.
Of course Filch would have taken us to him, Elsa muttered to herself, staring angrily at the fire place. He seemed to have his heart set on sending us to the Forbidden Forest, and no doubt Snape will be only happy to oblige.
Elsa had only been in the Forbidden Forest once, an experience which she couldn't remember. All she did recall was being taken there by Hagrid under a twilight sky, along with several other troublesome students whom had been caught out by Mr Filch. The next thing she remembered was waking up in the infirmary, then being fed some of the most vile medicine concocted by man, that still left a sour taste on her tongue.
No one knew exactly what had happened to her that night. Hagrid had found her lying by a lake, unconscious, soaken wet and shivering - the nurse had told her she very well could have died of hypothermia if Hagrid hasn't found her when he did. It was assumed she had fallen into the water and bumped her head, but who - or what - had saved her remained a mystery.
The clock chimed eleven, startling Elsa from her musings. By now most of the students were sound asleep. Elsa quickly scanned the room, making sure she was well and truly alone before pulling out the book hidden away in her satchel.
Lets see what this is.
Elsa turned the book over and read the title. She dropped the book, jumping up to her feet as she starred at it in disbelief.
Secrets of the Dark Arts by Owle Bullock.
(A/N) Jack seems to have it in for poor Kuzco XD I don't know if anyone picked up on it, but I've lightly hinted that Kuzco has a bit of a crush on Elsa - completely one-sided, so don't panic. But that's one of the reasons he volunteered to help, and was quite fine with missing out dinner. See how Jack feels about that lol. By the way, how do you all feel about me using Kuzco in this? To be honest I was really nervous as he isn't really used much in fanfics. Hmm what do yous think? xx
With Merida's dialogue and for her accent, I've just wrote the words how I normally would say them when around friends - I'm Scottish by the way :) xx
So why did Elsa get lead to the Secrets of the Dark Arts book? Who was the other spirit in the room and what does he want? And what happened to Elsa in the Forbidden Forrest? And what does all this have to do with Jack Frost appearing in Elsa's crystal? I would love to hear your theories, thoughts and opinions. :) xx And any die hard Harry Potter fans out there, I'm sorry if I got any trivia wrong. Feel free to point out any mistakes and I'll fix them when I get a chance :) xx
Now onto the reviews :D xx
TheWildeFiles: Thank you *cuddles!*
Lizzy19090: Teehee, thank you :D Sorry it took so long to update. xx
ArtemisBlossom: Thank you xx
Tanoshii Shurui: Hey :D Yipe, Jack and Elsa will meet, hopefully in the next chapter if all goes as planned. I don't know if I'll change the point of view, though it might happen. Just depends on the flow of the story. As for the ice you'll have to wait to see :) xx
Guest: Thank you :D I'll try my best to. xx
Chantress of the Sea: Thank you, I'm glad you like it. Oh thanks for pointing that out :O I didn't know that! Shall need to brush up on my Harry Potter knowledge lol xx
Guest: Oh.. Well then if I do get any harry potter trivia in this story wrong - I've changed my mind - don't use Konfringo on me XD xx
Guest: Aww thank you :D xx
Yoohoo: Thank you for your review :D If you ever get the chance you should definitely check out Forbidden Game - brilliant book! Jack and Elsa should be meeting in the next chapter if all goes to plan xx
Otakugirl 13: Thank you for your review! Oh good, my spellings usually pretty bad XD I'll double check the first chapter and try think the 'an' you pointed out. xx
YouNameIt: Thank you :D Sorry it took so long to update. xx
Please: Here's your update :D xx
Angelica Frolk: Thank you for your review and here you go, an update! Hope you enjoyed :D
Lone wolf aka Black Hawk Omega: Thank you :D xx
Awesome: You're awesome by name, and awesome by nature :D Thank you for your lovely review xx
AstridStarryNight: Thank you xx
bananaface527: Thank you :D I'll try and keep continuing this story :) xx Sorry for how long it took to update. xx
SailingWonder: Thank you so much for your lovely review. You had me grinning like a Cheshire cat :D xx Sorry it took so long to update, but writers block has been haunting me for a while now. I just got a sudden spark of inspiration last night and started working on this fic again. xx
HopelessRomantic183: He might do *winks* Shall have to wait and see xx I'm glad you're enjoying the story as well as my other ones :D Thank you for your review. Sorry for the long wait on the update. Writer block got me. xx
Eeveexme: Thank you :D
Guest: Thank you :D And here's your update. xx
Harhar21: Saw your comment, so here's your update :D Hopefully you enjoyed it. Sorry for long wait on the update, but unfortunately I've been stuck with writers block for a while. xx
Celeste White: Teehee, I shall try my best to keep going with the story :) xx
Guest: I'll try my best xx
Thank you for taking the time to read the story. Hope you all enjoyed. xx
Next Chapter: At Last We Meet *Title name may change* xx