Author's Note:

I guess I lied when I said it was going to be a few days before I updated again; my bad, I'm just super addicted to Jelsa, ahhh...!

If Elsa or Jack seem ooc, I'm super sorry to whoever might be reading this. Feel free to give me advice if you think I'm not giving them justice.

Or should I say... Jelstice?

SO MANY PUNS.

The vast kingdom of Arendelle was desolate that evening. A canopy of bright stars lit up over the black sky while a surprisingly warm wind drifted over the primarily empty streets, with the exception of a few personages working late or headed in the direction of home. But the street lights lit the village up in a way that Elsa had never been able to admire before, as she had spent the majority of her life living in isolation. It truly was something else - seeing Arendelle alive, but still and agile, as if the entire city was sleeping itself and not just its personages. Yet, even as Jack began dragging her down the streets on the designated path for walkers, Elsa felt concerned. She looked over her shoulder, prepared for any moment that someone might recognize her. The thought caused a shiver to tear down the back of her spine, one that Jack had noticed since he was strolling so close beside her.

"Are you cold?" He asked, giving her a glance. It surprised Elsa when he sounded more concerned than he did teasing or mocking, for once.

"No. Not at all." She answered earnestly, careful to pick up the hems of her dress as they moved over a slightly muddy embankment. Jack was taking her somewhere, but she didn't know where yet. The younger boy had claimed that it was "a surprise", but Elsa didn't know how much patience she could continue to have. Especially since her dress had not been made for the outdoors whatsoever, and that factor was becoming more apparent the longer that she stayed with Jack. Finally, after a deep huff of frustration, she looked up at him again. "Where are we going, Jack? You're not taking us some place unsafe - are you?"

Jack looked appalled at the prospect of her suggestion, bronze eyes widening.

"What?! No!" He reached up to ruffle his hair yet again, chuckling lightly under his breath. "Why would you even think that?"

Elsa did her best not to give him her sassiest expression, but it slipped before she could control it.

"Well, first off, you might have noticed maybe that it's the middle of the night, correct? Lest mention that no one knows where I am currently - "

"What, you think I'm some sort of pervert?" Jack interjected, offering her a frown. "Is that it?"

The princess attempted to keep a neutral expession when he jumped in front of her, placing his hands on his waist as their eyes met and they indulged in what felt like a staring contest. Finally, a few seconds passed where Elsa shook her head and moved around him to continue on the path that Jack had directed them on in the first place.

"No, I don't think so." Elsa admitted softly. From the corner of her eye, she watched Jack come to her side again, placing his hands in the pockets of his brown trousers. For the first time since they had left the bakery together, Elsa noticed that he wore a dark satchel across his torso; something that had been amiss before due to the fact that he had nearly given her a heart attack upon greeting her. And of course, as her eyes sought him out, she again acknowledged that he was without designated footwear. The sight of his barefeet caused the royal girl to roll her eyes again, but she decided to keep those inquiries for a later time. Instead, Elsa straightened out her shoulders confidently and caught his gaze. "What I really want to know is how you knew who I was."

Jack looked entertained at the question (and albeit relieved that Elsa didn't think he was making sexual advances on her), glancing up as his mischievous, crooked grin curled at the corners of his lips.

"You ask a lot of questions, princess. Too many for me to answer in one evening, surely - hey!"

Elsa surprised herself when she elbowed him, eyes narrowing. It almost felt as if she had known him for much longer than she had, when in reality, it hadn't been more than a few days. His charisma was undoubtedly catching, but not enough for Elsa to relax. Especially not until she knew that she was going to stay safe - or him, for that matter. If Jack did anything out of hand, her powers were sure to backfire. And frankly, there was nothing more important to Elsa than keeping them a secret. Especially from a boy like Jack.

"Don't hit me! I was just kidding...! I thought you were a princess, aren't you all supposed to be just and fair? Not... Trying to deck me at every chance you get?!" Jack pretended to rub the spot on his forearm where Elsa had elbowed him. She pursed her lips, nearly scoffing.

"Oh, please." She sighed, rearranging the alabaster necklace lying against her collarbones until it was underneath the fabric of her dress again. It sure was a bulgy little thing... "Just tell me, how did you find out? How did you know who I was?"

Jack suddenly grinned bigger than ever, evening out his strides with his long, lanky legs.

"How didn't I, is what you should be asking, really." He explained, looking somehow more egotistical as he went on in the same drawl. Elsa's eyebrows lifted marginally, an expression that Jack was more than aware of. "Come on, Elsa. I've lived in Arendelle my whole life. I saw your face when I was a kid, I knew who your parents were, your sister... We all do. How could it have just been a coincidence that a complete 'stranger' wandered into the bakery one morning when no one else was out? Not to mention your fancy dress and that handbag..." A little smile rested on his lips as he stared ahead. "It wasn't that hard to figure out, especially after I talked to you. Sorry not sorry, you weren't that convincing.."

Elsa didn't know what to say as she felt her cheeks redden yet again. Had she truly been that obvious, on that morning only three days ago? The thought made her crestfallen with herself, hoping that no one other than Jack had ever recognized her leaving the castle in the past even if it had been on scarce occasions. Of course, she'd had few interactions - very, very few - in all of those instances, but the thought still plagued her with worry and made her stomach tie up in knots. This sort of thing was something that Anna would do, not her, and she felt deep shame for the actions that she had made periodically in secret over the years. At least her parents were no longer alive to possibly know that she was dishonoring their rules, but the thought wasn't at all comforting.

After all, what if she ended up hurting someone? What if Jack somehow managed to find out about her? Could she be so foolhardy to trust him, when she couldn't even confide in herself?

"What's wrong? You asked, I was telling you the truth..." Jack's words interrupted her train of thought, causing her azure eyes to look up at him again. She realized she had been walking much slower when the reflection had occurred, unanticipatedly feeling very nervous and worried about being around Jack. Who was he, anyway? And why was he so set on taking her around Arendelle, a place that she knew herself?

"I know..." Elsa murmured, keeping her gaze trained on her gloved hands for a moment. Jack looked worried, perhaps catching onto her expression better than she herself did and knowing something was up the longer that she marveled over her own thoughts. He opened his mouth to speak once, but Elsa quickly cut him off. "It's just that I think this is a bad idea. I'm far away from the castle, and I shouldn't be here."

She tried to turn around, hoping that he would somehow understand without knowing her. But Jack was rapidly at her heel and just as obstinate as she was.

"You are not. You're much closer to the castle than you think, I promise." Jack told her playfully. Slowly, Elsa inclined her head towards him, and Jack looked more enthusiastic than ever when she stopped pacing forward. "I'll show you, just follow me up this dirt road here... I'll take you back down as soon as you see it for yourself."

In the dim light of the street that Jack had taken them both, Elsa had to squint through the darkness to see what he was talking about. It was an awful slope of mostly rocks, leading up to a hill that seemed very high. Too high to be considered safe, Elsa thought, deciding at once that this was not something that she wanted to be a part of.

"Ridiculous. How will we see anything to get up there? What if we slip?" She asked pessimistically. Jack seemed to have an answer for everything, however; smiling widely yet again.

"Ah, your majesty, such little faith you have in me...! It's insulting, really; after all, a squire like myself, let you fall down a dirt road? My, I'd never! Not on my life!"

With much gusto, Jack reached for his satchel - unclasping its front pocket - to pull out a small set of matches along with a very small lantern. Staring curiously within the thin light, Elsa observed as his slender, deft hands carefully struck the match, using clever fingers to light the inside of the lantern. The bright glow made Elsa blink a little, needing a few seconds for her eyes to adjust before Jack's long frame came into focus. The lantern did make the rocky hill look a little less intimidating, but Elsa was still unsure of herself, grasping her hands together for safety as if she had forgotten that her gloves were still there.

"Jack..." Her voice came out in more of a plead as he began stepping up the rocky path on his own. She didn't know how his feet didn't hurt, from stepping on the stones without anything to cover his feet, but he didn't even wince once. "I've seen Arendelle, I know what it looks like..."

"Not like this, you haven't." Jack explained buoyantly, gesturing up the hill with the lantern. "You've been hiding in the castle for thirteen years. That's one hundred and fifty six months of a whole lot of nothing, isn't it?" His voice became quieter then, softer. "Isn't that why you've been leaving the castle?"

Elsa felt exasperated, her explanations now seeming so much smaller than they ever had before. It was true partially, but he didn't know the entire story; he didn't know her, and yet he seemed so self-assured that he was right.

"It's a long story that isn't really any of your business." Elsa's response was cold, but that didn't deter Jack whatsoever as his eyes flickered more eagerly than ever.

"Well good, it's a big hill. Plenty of time for a long story..."

Elsa held her ground, completely rooted to her spot on the road as she looked up at him. For a moment, she stood silently, averting her eyes in favor of the ground below her. And Jack watched her, staying wordless in those seconds that passed before he wandered back down the path again. He stopped directly in front of her, keeping the lantern down to his side as if worried that he might blind her with the light.

"What are you so scared about? I made you a promise, didn't I? I told you that I would get you back to the castle safe and sound."

"But you cannot guarante that." Elsa replied shortly, afraid to look up at him again, wondering what he must have been thinking of her. This was far away from her comfort zone and she didn't know what to expect from him next. Finally, after attempting to control her nerves, she spoke again in a smaller voice than before. "You don't know me, Jack."

Silence ensued between the pair and Elsa felt her heart race against her chest, awaiting what might be said next, hoping that he would have something to say instead of her. But she kept her stare where it was while she waited. The skin underneath her gloves felt colder than ever, and her fingers curled into fists as she attempted to calm the feeling of being overwhelmed by what was going on. She had never known anyone outside of her family for the most part, and yet here this boy was, attempting to lure her out of the shell and protective nature that she had built over the last thirteen years. A very small, childish part of her wanted to trust him despite it all; but her stubborn essence trumped all of that down with the reminder that her powers and everything about her was dangerous.

All of those thoughts were cut short by Jack's clear, honest voice again. And Elsa had the hardest time keeping her eyes to the ground when he did speak, feeling touched by his choice of actions and abrupt diplomacy that she never would have thought he was capable of.

"And you don't know me either." Jack started easily, as if he might have been agreeing with her. Elsa heard him release a breathy exhale, swinging the lantern back and forth with his wrist. "But if you want to leave, I won't stop you. I don't want to seem like the type of idiot guy to force you into something you don't wanna do." Even with her head down, she could feel him smiling at her, listening as he moved aside down the path in front of her again.

"Besides, you're royalty, right? I guess I should treat you like the queen you're about to become. Feel free to go, princess."

Finally, Elsa looked up at him, finding his teasing yet honest smile before his eyes. It would have been so much easier for her if he hadn't known her identity all along, she decided. But the longer that she stared, she felt the ingenuity and honor of his words. And she found that - just for that moment, for the first time in forever - she didn't want to be Princess Elsa, the young woman who was held in the captivity of the castle living in fear of herself. So she sucked in a deep breath, holding her head a bit higher to look firmly at the young man called Jack.

"You can call me 'Elsa'." She told him informatively, releasing the exhale as she stepped closer to him; suddenly feeling braver than she had in her entire life. Her eyes met his again, pressing her lips together hard. "And I will go with you, so long as you stop pestering me about my title, about squires, and all of the other royalty nonsense that you think you know."

After all, with the coronation arriving in three days, being reminded that she was becoming a queen was just about the last sentiment she wanted to be reminded of. Jack simply stared back at her as she finished speaking, staring intentedly, before his face broke into a fond smile.

"'Just this once', right?" He asked her, tone as teasing as ever while impending his face an inch closer to hers. Elsa nodded, her fingers curling underneath her gloves again.

"Just this once."

Jack's teeth showed in his next slanted grin, leaning back with the lantern in hand. He brought it up overhead towards the destination of the hill. It was very rocky indeed, but nothing that seemed dangerous despite the large slope up ahead... Elsa analyzed what she could see from the lantern shine alone, but didn't have much time to do so. Because behind Jack's endearing grin, he encouraged her further. And the young woman was pleased to hear her name leave his mouth as he emphasized on each of the syllables he spoke.

"I'll lead the way, Elsa. Just don't punch me again."

Elsa turned to him promptly in order to deliver him a glare.

(This was short. Weeeee. Sorry if it's no bueno.)