Author's Note:
A million thanks to the follows, reviews, and favorites, like always. And to Hybrid301, yes, I will be covering a bit of Jack when he becomes Jack Frost. My friend gave me an idea for that, but it'll probably be the last chapter that I write for this fic. Weeee. (And yeah, Jack will die the same way that he died in Rise of the Guardians. Although with a few twists, I guess. I'll just keep those secret for now.)
In other news, has it really been ten chapters already? Sheesh, I have not been into a pairing for so long...
Oh, and if anyone has any Jelsa fanfictions that they are currently writing, I would love to read them. Send me a link or whatever, I will totally eat them up.
To Jack's delight, Pippa had managed to have the time of her life after the coronation ceremony. She spoke fervently about Princess Anna after the strawberry-blonde haired young woman had bade them farewell before moving onto others around the courtyard. Ergo, Jack had watched the princess disappear attempting to meet everyone all at once, so it seemed. It was a strange thought to Jack that someone who had fought so hard to keep her identity from being exposed like Queen Elsa could be sisters with a friendly, smiling girl like Princess Anna. They seemed so different that Jack didn't have to wonder why they were emotionally detached from one another, at least from what Elsa had told him during their encounters. But in that aspect, he wished that he could help them rekindle the loss of their sisterhood - especially since the queen had appeared so somber about their familial loss. But for now, Jack had a goal in mind, and that was to somehow find a way into the castle during the ball. And for an ambitious, rascal of a young man such as Jack Overland, it was not something that he intended to fail.
So when he and Pippa came back from the castle and sauntered into the town square, there was a great part of Jack who felt pleased when Pippa's friends approached them and asked her to play for the rest of the evening. Central Arendelle was just a vivacious as ever, with the vast majority of its occupants glowing with the day of the coronation. There was so much celebration going on that Jack found himself yearning to join the festivities all around, but he had one focus currently, and that was getting himself into that castle no matter what the cost was. Yet Pippa was as considerate as ever, looking up at him when her small group of friends ushered at her to join them. It never ceased to surprise him how very empathetic she could be, as if running off to play with her friends instead of spending time with him might have hurt his feelings somehow.
"Would it be okay if I went and played, Jack?" Pippa asked, sounding tentative as her eyes wandered over to the lot playing a game of rolling hoop. Jack silently pondered what their parents would say, if they knew that their children were partaking in a game while wearing some of their best gowns and suits. But it amused him all the same, and he chuckled humorously at the question presented to him.
"Of course it would be okay. You don't have to hang out here with your boring older brother all day, you know." Jack reminded her jovially, flattening out her hair with the palm of his hand. "I brought you here to have fun, remember? So go hang out with your friends, I'll find something else to do; promise." Little did she know that he had other schemes in mind... Not that she needed to know, anyway.
"You're not boring!" Pippa insisted, eyes lighting up, as if she could hardly believe that he was insinuating as much.
"You're right, who am I kidding? There's no one in Arendelle more fun than I am." Jack responded, joggling his eyebrows up and down. "Just meet up with me later, right before nine... We'll meet in front of the bakery, alright?"
Another flash of surprise rushed through him when Pippa suddenly grasped him around the middle, resting her cheek on his torso and gave him a little squeeze. An embrace that wasn't too uncommon to Jack when it came to his little sister, but as it had come out of nowhere, he therefore took a few seconds to adjust and return the unexpected gesture of devotion. There was certainly no one in the world as close to him as Pippa was.
"Thanks for taking me, Jack. You're the best."
It wouldn't be the first time that Pippa had said something that made Jack feel like he was on top of the world. Her gratitude was never hard to come by, but he felt significantly touched regardless, knowing that he had done something right that day. Even if she had to put up with his prankster behavior and his adept nature to pulling tricks, she still looked up to him in every way, shape, and form. And Jack knew that he would do anything for her, even sit through a hundred more boring coronation ceremonies if it meant seeing Pippa happy. It was without a doubt the best joy of being her older brother, especially since he rarely had to do much to make her smile.
"Hey, no need to thank me until I've saved your life from the trolls in the Valley of the Living Rock...!" Jack countered, laughing when Pippa shrugged away to elbow him from the comment. Chuckling under his breath, he winked as he watched her stroll over to her friends and waved. "Just remember, don't talk to strangers, unless they have puppies... That is the only exception."
Pippa's response was a little giggle, but she waved in return. And inasmuch, Jack was free to do whatever he wanted for the rest of the day. He sighed a little, walking around the celebratory town square while finding himself discreetly unsure of where to begin in order to contemplate his plan to get into the castle for the ball, wondering how many people had been invited for the event. Taking a diagonal course across the street, he eventually found himself in front of the palace again to observe the phenomenal, open scenery. If it had been any other day out of the year, Jack probably could have sneaked in just fine without detection. But now that everyone flocked to the castle, around the bridge, and over the courtyard to stare in awe at the incredible fountains of water, Jack knew that he would be seen if he even tried dabbling closer to try and get a good look at where an open deserted door or window might be. He had always been good at climbing, but even if he tried with the upcoming night as his disguise, Jack knew that he would get caught should he try, which meant that his options were suddenly becoming scarcer. Lest mention the fact that there were guards at every entrance now. The last thing he wanted to do was spend the rest of his evening in the castle dungeon making his mother or Pippa worry about where he had gone...
Frowning, Jack walked around town a little longer. He was obstinate and haughty in his attempts, but he felt his chances were dwindling. Furthermore, he felt starved, and was grateful to accept all of the free food that was offered to him the longer that he spent in town. Most of the individuals he knew by name, but none of them had been invited to attend the ball when he asked, which made Jack feel somewhat sour when he began to realize that the chances of seeing Queen Elsa again that night weren't working out in his favor. Inasmuch, Jack climbed on top of the wall of the bridge again, staring out over the large body of water around the castle while looking searchingly for any opportunity that might arise where he could slink inside. Yet, no such opportunity arose, which meant that Jack - who glumly chewed at a new green apple that had been given to him, and finally had taken off his awful, leather shoes - began to succumb to the recognition that he might not see the queen again at all that evening.
It was only to Jack's great fortune that when the sun began to set, an overwhelming commotion occurred. The sound of yelling men and boisterous horse hooves captured Jack's attention immediately, causing the young man to adjust his feet on top of the wall again to get a look at what was going on. In his foresight was the vision of three men chasing down a magnificent white horse, sprinting up from the docks and into the middle of town. For the first few seconds, Jack had to catch his breath from how truly ridiculous the image was, as hearty laughter roared through him. The stallion shot straight forward as the men dressed in expensive suits attempted to catch him in the town square, which began to cultivate a mass of people staring just to get a laugh. The horse was like a giant dog, sniffing around as if engaging in the greatest chase of his life. It was without a doubt the sort of thing that Pippa would have liked to see, if she had been there with him. But since she wasn't, Jack decided to get a better look, as he forced his shoes back onto his feet and strutted over to where the scene was continuing as vivaciously as ever.
However, when Jack wandered closer towards the town square, he could see that the men attempting to grasp the horse were thoroughly embarrassed. None of them were very old, Jack deduced as he approached, leaning up again the siding of a street lantern. Two of the men wore golden frock coats embroidered with strange sun symbols, and the last of them was a tall, lean man with auburn hair and sideburns that Jack thought belonged to someone who thought they were much more important than they actually were. But he resided his judgment, continuing to observe while the men all formulated a plan by taking the horse by surprise. It was growing in quite the crowd, and Jack was pleased to find that he wasn't the only one laughing.
"Come on, Maximus; we have to get you back to the stalls before the ball starts. Don't make us get the princess; she would be very displeased to know that you've misbehaved ..."
"That's right, she's on her honeymoon and there is no need for you to ruin it for her!"
The two men in golden appeared to be from the same country, but Jack didn't care enough to find out where. He was more concerned about the fact that he was nearly doubling over in laughter when Maximus the horse darted forward, successfully dodging the two men, and scampering off further down the the square towards where Jack was standing. For the first few seconds, Jack felt the need to brace himself when the horse propelled himself at him at such an alarming speed.
"Woah, easy now, boy. Easy!" Jack attempted to calm the horse down, raising up both of his arms to steady the gigantic steed. Without a doubt, Maximus must have been a castle horse judging from his silver saddle and medallion. Ergo, the horse calmed itself at once, taking one chomp to devour the rest of the apple in Jack's hand. In which case, Jack took advantage by grabbing his reins. Maximus instantly looked a little deflated by the capture, but made no further inclination to run away as he neighed sadly and plopped down in front of Jack.
"All that commotion just because you were hungry?" Jack laughed, reaching up to scratch Maximus behind the ears. The horse made a little gruff noise as he did so. "Well hey, it was worth it, right? Wow, you're a good looking guy; I'll bet you're the best looking horse in all of Arendelle."
Maximus seemed to have an innate capability to understand humans, but Jack didn't have much time to continue indulging him in compliments. The three young men from before came up behind the steed, looking relieved yet irritated as they approached.
"Hello boys, is he yours?" Jack shot them a cocky grin.
"Not ours, he belongs to the princess of Corona and her husband." One of the men in gold responded, gritting his teeth as he looked over at his companion. "After reassuring us that he would be here only 'in case of an emergency'..."
"Well, apples are an emergency in my book. Isn't that right, Maximus?" Jack glanced at the horse again, rubbing his neck, which was replied to by an ecstatic neigh.
"Not enough of an emergency to run around Arendelle unsupervised it isn't! The princess will not be very happy to hear about this one, Maximus!" The other gold-attired man cut the distance between them, attempting to take hold of the reins. But as soon as he did so, the horse snapped much like a dog would. Jack had to hold one of his hands over his mouth to keep from guffawing.
"Don't be too hard on him, I'm sure he didn't mean to hurt your feelings." Jack reflected, eyeing the men with a raised eyebrow. Each expression they wore made them look more butthurt than ever. "I can help you take him back to his stall, if you want. It's not too out of my way... And besides, I'd hate for you to lose him again."
For the first few seconds, both men looked back and forth at each other as if contemplating whether they wanted Jack to tag along with them, especially at the expense of his caustic remarks. Until finally, the older of the two looked back at him, making an effort to nod.
"Fine, but don't think that the princess won't hear about this, Maximus. And no more apples, either!"
Consequently - as Jack followed behind the two men in gold, and the auburn-haired man who had yet to say anything to him yet - he slipped Maximus another apple as they passed through the town square and towards the docks, shooting the slender horse a wink.
The air between the Corona attendants, Jack, Maximus, and Elder Muttons - a nickname that Jack had mentally fashioned for the silent man with horrid sideburns - was stiff and hefty as they guided Maximus back to the docks. But the stallion didn't make any more efforts to run away, surprisingly. Jack only looked up from leading the horse down the street when Elder Muttons slowed his pace to stop beside him, looking quite potent in his white suit and... Was he wearing pink? Jack cleared his throat loudly as another bellow of chuckles nearly escaped him. Nearly.
"I guess I should firmly thank you for catching the horse." Elder Muttons started, straightening out his posture. Jack didn't know why it mattered - he didn't look any less like he was trying to reach for his ego. "Somehow I ended up tangled up in this mess after he escaped... I thought I was doing them a favor, but it looks like they needed your help all along rather than mine."
"Well, you did a great job taking control of the situation, boyo." Jack responded teasingly. He didn't know what Elder Muttons looked more offended about - being outright useless to catch a loose horse on the run, or being called "boyo" when Jack was visibly much younger than himself. Regardless, he attempted to look more friendly as he peered at fancy gentleman... Wearing pink. "Who're you, anyway? These guys are obviously from Corona, but I didn't catch your name."
"Ah, my apologies, I'm Prince Hans, from the Southern Isles."
Jack had to turn his snort of cackles into a coughing fit, unable to believe what he was hearing. Sure, the guy looked like he belonged in royalty judging from his wardrobe, but a prince?! More importantly, why hadn't anyone told him that his facial hair was awful yet? It took him a moment to realize that Hans held a hand out for him in formal greeting, which he took a second later despite that it was awkward to do so while clasping onto Maximus' reins, but he still couldn't believe what he was hearing.
"R-really?" Jack started at first, releasing Hans' hand. "From the Southern Isles? You came all the way here to meet the princess and the queen?"
"I came here as representation, yes. I'm thirteenth in line to the throne, so I volunteered to come here for the queen's coronation." Hans answered civilly. "And you are?"
"Oh. Jack Overland, of... The Arendelle." His remark was comical complimented by another waggle of his eyebrows, but Elder Muttons didn't even twitch a smile, which Jack nearly rolled his eyes at. Regardless, he attempted to make conversation as they neared the docks and towards Corona's ship, wondering how long he was going to have to deal with Prince Hans of the Southern Isles... "Thirteenth in line, you said? Heavens, you must be excited to become king some day."
The joke did not sit will with Prince Hans, who looked like he had swallowed a lemon whole.
"Perhaps some day, Mister Overland." He responded curtly, but no other response was offered. Jack could already tell that the conversation had turned Elder Muttons quite sour, even if Jack seriously wanted to ask him how he could rule a country if he couldn't even take a joke.
"Just call me 'Jack', make it easier on yourself."
Hans made a little gruff noise in his throat followed by a mumble that Jack couldn't decipher, but whatever he said didn't matter when they reached the pier. Maximus was begrudgingly led towards the ship, giving Jack sad eyes as he went. And once the deed was finished, the two Corona men reluctantly said a word of thanks before Jack was on his merry way back up into the square, down the bridge, and towards the line of people waiting for acceptance into the ball.
In a clever frenzy, Jack attempted to fix his hair, smoothing it over his forehead. And finally, when he was met at the front of the line by the guards, they asked for his name. Shooting them his best polite smile, he batted his eyelashes and smoothed out his suit. And with every tone of pride that he could muster, he opened his mouth and claimed brightly:
"Ah, Prince Hans of the Southern Isles."
I think that I enjoy writing Jack much more than I should. There's a Maximus!cameo for you. ;) I promise I will have Jelsa interaction in the next chapter. Cheers!