When I awoke, I found myself huddled in the shadow of my castle. Frank was beside me looking quite uneasy. I attempted to ask him what was the matter, but he simply waved my concern away with a shake of his head.

"She is here," he choked out, barely loud enough for my ears to detect.

"Who? Who is here?" I demanded.

My question was replied with the motion of Frank's finger directing my gaze straight ahead. It was then when I saw her. She was almost translucent and draped with icy pearls. Her complexion was snow-white. Not even her cheeks neared a shade of rose. The strands of hair that adorned her head grew white with stray pieces of blue that looked as though she had grown a bit cold. Diamond earrings hung from her lobes and a stone shaped as a snowflake rested on her chest.

The creature standing in the center of the ballroom was quite a sight. She was nothing less than beautiful. Her clothes spoke of regal approaches, flashing silver strands of thread into my eyes. Snowflakes were stitched onto her pure white dress and the ruffles at the bottom were given a slight hue of sky blue. Her arms were long, almost un-humanly long, but who was I to judge what was considered "human"? I did, however, pick out the peculiar quirk that identified her lack of legs and feet. She simply glided along instead of walking.

"Come out, come out!" she cooed. When I heard her voice, I was in a trance. It was a soothing sound, like honey falling from a fountain or rose petals gliding to the floor. Each syllable captivated me.

"You can't keep hiding, silly boy! You have to come out some time!" she called once more.

I watched as she blew onto a black rose that was intertwined in her nearly non-existent hands. The petals and thorns froze instantly from the soft, beautiful icy glaze that was escaping from her lips.

"She exhales vanilla lace," I whispered to myself.

"Gerard, no!" Frank called to me.

It was too late. I was already standing and walking towards her. I had never taken a fancy to women before, but this figure was peculiar. She seemed a bit manipulative, but my mind was not focusing properly. It was almost as if I were in a trance.

"I barley dreamt her yesterday!" Frank yelled to me once more.

It was then when everything clicked. This woman was not a good woman; if one at all. This was the being that made Frank so terrified in his dreams. However, no matter how hard I tried, my feet would not stop moving closer to her. She was beckoning me with a force beyond my control. Soon enough I had approached her and she whispered into my ear in a seductive and growling tone.

"Read the lines in the mirror, love."

I had heard her, but I couldn't think properly. She was messing with my head. I could feel her soul inside of my mind, calling my closer to her. She bit my neck and wrestled her hands through my hair. There was not a thing that I could do about it, however. I was stuck there, being used as a toy by this white demon. And a demon she precisely was.

For, this woman was none other than the Queen of Ice. She was feared, her name is not dare spoken of. In all my years of existence I had never once seen her and began to believe of her as a myth. Yet here she is kissing my face and pressing her hands to my chest. My body wants to escape her frozen grasp, but my mind will not allow it. It will only focus on the marks on my cheeks created through the lipstick trace.

I began to give up, to allow myself to her. But then I thought of a certain black-haired boy. Frank. My love. Soon the anger of the fire inside my restored soul caught fire. I was furious and could feel my skin begin to grow hot. I knew how to hold her off, no matter how heartbroken Frank would be, but this was for him. He needed to be safe and protected. The Queen could destroy his heart, as they are both of Ice.

Closing my eyes for the slightest hint of courage, I reached out and pulled her face closer to mine. Without hesitation my lips were crushed onto hers at speed much to rapid for pleasure. I kissed her and bit her lip until she granted me exactly what I wanted; entrance into her cold and bitter mouth. It was then when I connected our tongues and she flew backwards onto the ballroom flooring.

Being an immortal for a while, you come to learn quite a few survival tricks. At some point in my unpleasant and dreary existence I had come to learn that when one of our kind comes to have strong emotions, our bodies either heat up or freeze rapidly, depending on your kind. As the Queen of Ice, her evil self, her powers were used to manipulate my mind; she felt nothing. However, I felt strong hate towards her, and strong love for Frank. Immediately my body grew hotter and hotter by the second. Another tip for the immortal life of a Fire or an Ice is that the tongue is the first to heat or freeze. This, I believe, should help explain the complicated series of events that have taken place.

I gave a quick glance towards Frank, whom I discovered was crying in a far corner of the grounds I called home. I ran to him and took his hand. His glassy eyes peered up at me with confusion and dismay. Oh, how I wanted to kiss him right then and there, but this wasn't the time nor the place. We only had moments before she would recover and I planned to use that time to escape. So without speaking, I pulled Frank from the ground, kissed his hair, and took off running with him, leaving everything I once knew and the place that I had lived for so long behind me; never to return.

We had run quite far and the night had grown black. I could not be sure of our exact location, but I did know that it was far from home. I did not have any possessions anyways, except for my artwork. Unfortunately, I could not spare a second to retrieve it from its hiding place. Perhaps I would be able to reclaim it one day.

With every step I took I felt more and more distant. Frank seemed to be growing a bit drowsy, as well. We had followed a made-up pathway to what seemed like a forest. The trees were bare and frozen. The lake had been turned into ice and showed no sign of life around it except for a few snowy owls. Snowfall covered the ground and chilled my feet with every step. We would have to make home of this area for the night, for there was nowhere else to go.

My heart did pick up, however, smiling to itself that Frank would feel comfortable here. He was an Ice and grew particularly fond of the cold. If Frank was happy, then I was happy as well. After all, what was one night in the snow? I could manage and I would manage.

Once I shared the news that we would be camping in this forest of Ice for the night, Frank simply nodded and kept to himself. He had not spoken any words at all since the Queen of Ice and come to my home. In fact, he had seemed to be in his own world, hardly acknowledging what was happening above and around him. I grew to be extremely concerned about him.

I had made up beds out of branches and fallen leaves when I came across them. I used my Flame to bind them together, but laid Frank's out to chill so that it would be to his liking. It was late into the night; midnight, I assumed. However, I was still discouraged that Frank would not speak to me. I found myself unable to think properly, only focusing on the fact that I needed to find out what was wrong as soon as possible. So we curled up in our beds to rest, I allowed my thoughts to take a hold of me and lead my body towards Frank's makeshift sleeping area.

"Frankie," I breathed, hoping that he would respond to me. I crossed my fingers and bit my lip for good luck.

It was not a complete response that I received in return. Instead, Frank simply turned to look at me, his eyes glossy and disenchanted. I noticed with wet eyelashes gleaming off of the moonlight glow and the soft colours of the snow. I allowed my face to move closer to his, giving him comfort.

I said, "It seems you're somewhere far away," to his face.

"Gerard, I love you." He whispered.

"I love you with every Flame of my soul. I would ride to Hell and back and stretch the skies up to Heaven. I never want to be without you. I solemnly swear."

He allowed a tear to escape from his soft eyes and spoke, "Then why? Why her?"

I allowed a quiet laugh to escape from my lips and gazed into his hazels oceans of eyes, wrapping a ribbon of promise around my next words. "To protect you, my sweet. I stunned her, but not for long. By the dawning of tomorrow's morning, she will be after us again. I fear that you are in danger, precious. I need to get you out of here as soon as you are rested." With my final sentence, I kissed his hair.

"But afterwards? You cannot possibly protect me from this for-ever! She will kill you, Gerard! You will die! She lives for-ever, and will catch you sooner or later. We cannot keep running, we will loose! What will become of us?" he cried. I could feel the pain and concern in his voice, but only gave him a sad smile. I knew of this fate, of course I did. I had a plan, as well. But for now, I gave his a simple phrase to fall into sleep with.

"Stay sweetly numb, my love."