Jack's heart stuttered to a stop in his chest as crystal blue eyes stared into his. Could she see him? Hope rose in Jack's throat before he could stop it until the girl took a step forward and passed right through him. Anguish crashed down on him as he again whipped around to see the girl hesitate and glance over her shoulder before giving a slight shudder and walking on. That happened to people when they walked through the snow spirit. They could feel the cold emanating from him. It wasn't a pleasant feeling.
Almost against his will, Jack followed the girl as she tiptoed down the hall seemingly at war with herself. She stopped several more times, almost heading back to her room, but she pushed on, her hands clenched in tight fists at her side.
The young woman was absolutely stunning. Her snow white hair was twisted into a knot at the top of her head, accentuating the feminine curve of her jawline and neck. Large ice blue eyes peered out from underneath thick dark eyelashes that contrasted so smartly with her fair features. She couldn't have been much younger than him. His bodily age not his actual one, perhaps only a year or two younger. Jack simply could not look away. In all his years of existence he had never met a human being who captivated him so fully. He narrowly missed running into a table and falling down the stairs as they neared them.
And then she spoke, "Is she alright?" Her voice was clear and commanding even drenched in worry as it was at that moment.
Three startled faces turned up to the fair girl as she gripped tightly to the banister, but didn't descend the stairs.
The King's face especially looked up with just a touch of worry as he nodded, "She's alright, Elsa."
"Elsa," Jack tried the name out enjoying very much the taste of it in his mouth. It sent thrills through him as he watched the scene unfold, his heart beating much too fast in his chest.
Anna for her part looked as if she'd seen a ghost as she stared up at who Jack guessed was her sister. The resemblance was uncanny between the three royal women.
Elsa's arm moved subconsciously, reaching out for the sister she didn't know but so desperately loved, her face the picture of longing. After a few seconds, however, she came to herself and her arm curled itself around her waist as she gripped tighter to the banister.
"Good," Her voice was barely a murmur and yet it echoed down into the silent hall, "Excuse me." She turned away and released her grip on the banister.
Jack's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. He barely noticed as Anna stepped away from the arms of her parents and cried out for her sister to wait. The sounds of the struggle as the king and queen of Arendelle restrained their youngest daughter from running up the stairs were muffled in his ears.
The world drained away as Jack stared wide-eyed at the banister that Elsa had held moments ago. A handprint of ice was slowly melting before his eyes and he knew that had not been his doing.
Which meant…
Jack Frost sprinted down the hall after the enigma of a woman, her retreating form had just reached the door of her room. If he didn't act quickly she would be shut inside. He sent a gust of wind ahead of him, hoping to distract her long enough for him to slip into the room in front of her.
It worked.
With tear filled eyes, Elsa turned her head to stare down the hall toward him, trying to locate the cause of the sudden disturbance, giving Jack just enough time to slip himself in between the woman and the door. A shiver shot down his spine at their briefly close proximity. And then they were both in the room with the door shut behind them and Elsa couldn't hold it in anymore.
Her sobs cut Jack straight to the core as he knew there was nothing he could do to comfort her. If she didn't believe in him she couldn't even see him, let alone feel him. So Jack kept his distance and studied the broken girl from afar, yearning to reach out and hold her and mentally chastising himself for caring in the first place.
Even the gloves on Elsa's hands couldn't hold back the avalanche building inside her and as she leaned against her door and allowed her hands to drop to her side, frost crept out from her fingertips, covering her entire room in a thin layer as snowflakes began to fall from her ceiling.
Jack's heart began to race again as he couldn't keep himself from whispering, "You do have magic." Who was this girl? What sort of power did she possess? Where did she come from? The list unanswered questions went on and on in Jack's mind as he stared with wonder at the crying woman in front of him.
Standing up, he began to step forward, wanting a closer look, but a knock sounded at the door and he froze.
The snow princess quickly wiped her eyes and stared helplessly at the frost that had accumulated around the room. Before he knew what he was doing, Jack pounded the floor with his staff and the frost dissipated along with the softly falling snow. A touch of panic and confusion entered Elsa's eyes as she stared at the now perfect room. Another knock sounded on the door, causing her to flinch, "Elsa? Are you alright?" It was the gentle voice of her father calling her from outside the door.
At this moment, though, she just wanted to be alone. Suddenly grateful for the mysterious force that had cleared her room of suspicion, she turned and opened the door.
"Elsa, are you alright?" Jack shifted position so he was standing directly behind the princess looking into the concerned face of the king.
"Yes, I'm fine." The puffy eyes and red face told a different tale but as the man looked over his daughter's head and saw a clear room his face relaxed a bit.
"I'm proud of you. I think you're really starting to get the hang of those powers." He smiled slightly at the thought.
Jack couldn't see the girl's face, but he heard her reply, "Conceal it. Don't feel it…" She started.
The man's smile grew as he pulled the girl into a tight hug, "Don't let it show," and after a moment, "I love you very much."
Elsa's voice was muffled in his chest, "I love you too." The embrace ended and Elsa was once again left in her (so she thought) empty bedroom. Confusion once again crumpled her beautiful face and Jack simply could not help himself. Pressing his hand to the window behind him he allowed frost to creep over the panes.
The girl's eyes widened and she turned so pale Jack was afraid she'd faint. He quickly jumped out of the way as Elsa ran to the window and touched the softly curling ice there.
Jack drew closer and closer to the girl until he could see the freckles that softly covered her nose. He felt drawn to her in a way he couldn't yet explain. There was a tug in his gut when he realized that he would soon have to leave her. Pain stabbed his heart at the fact that she couldn't see or hear him, that she didn't believe in him.
"Elsa." He breathed again, hoping to some eternal being, the Man In The Moon perhaps, that she would hear him.
He froze as her head turned toward him, their faces merely inches apart. Her eyes roamed his face as she searched for the cause of the cool breeze that sent a shiver through her. For a moment she thought she saw the face of a boy: a wonderful, beautiful, fantastic boy.
But then she blinked.
And he was gone.
Jack sucked in a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding as Elsa turned back to the window, taking one last look at the mysterious frost still located there and then turned and crawled into her bed.
As she slowly fell asleep, she didn't notice her window crack open, or the boy who stood perched on her window sill. She didn't see the way he looked at her, as if she was the most tragically beautiful book and he couldn't bring himself to read it. She never saw the way he shook his head angrily and silently berated himself for getting so close. She didn't understand that it would be years before she would see the boy and her world would be a completely different place then.
A/N -
So Elsa came in way sooner than I was planning... But hey! This story kind of writes itself... I'm just here to bring it into existence.
As always thanks for reading! :) Please review if you have any thoughts of things you want to see in this story, or things you don't want in this story, and of course if you liked the story. I always enjoy hearing from people :)
Thanks :)
