"You think she is doing the right thing? In helping him I mean."

"He's a ruddy misfit if I e'er saw one. She should ignore 'im like the rest o' the world does, might teach the boy some proper manners."

"North what do you think?"

The large man rubbed his chin in thought; the back of his arm tattooed with names and symbols, the most prominent was the word Naughty. He smirked as he looked through the window of his workshop. Though the sun had set the lights around him made the snow glow in hues of green and blue and white. He saw them shift as a plum of white skyrocketed followed by the sounds of yelping and grumbles from his yetis.

"I was like him once, when I was little otrok, always causing mischief and whatnot in my village. I think he is no different." He leaned on one arm and his breath left fog on the cold panes. "This…Queen of Snow might actually help."

"Queen? Is that a self appointed title? She's n'older than Jack!"

"Knock it off! She actually is Queen Regent of Arendelle. If my fairies are right she ascended to the crown at 18." Both of them turned to look at the Keeper of Teeth, wide eyes soon drooped in pity and sorrow. "She is not the only one whose childhood has been stolen from them." Her wings flapped violently at the tall creature next to her.

"We were all older than he was when we were chosen. He's yet to learn one important thing besides responsibility," In the fog North drew a heart around the form of Jack, sailing away laughing as the snow fell off of him in chunks. "How to love someone other than himself."

"You've lost your marbles mate."

"Bunny, have some faith!"

"Tooth is right; she is the only one besides us who can see him." A rush of sand crept from the door and the Sandman rushed through in a whirl. "Sandy!" North exclaimed, as the sprite shuffled as his spinning slowed. He shook his head, as if to clear it. "How did it go?"

An image of Elsa's silhouette and Jack's cane flashed first, and then a flurry of images soon followed. A snowflake, a mountain, a cup, a castle, snowflake again until finally the image of a ship and Elsa's castle on the North Mountain, all the while the sandman gestured who's image belonged to who. When Elsa's dream image faded away it was North who erupted in boisterous laughter.

"I knew it; in my belly I knew it!" Bunny rolled his eyes, "She is good for him."

"I think it's the other way around," Tooth said, a knuckle to her chin.

"Why do you say that?" Bunny jested with a nudge to her shoulder.

"Just a woman's intuition."

The three looked at each other as Tooth stared at the fading form of Jack, a hope burning within her. The sound of tiny tooth fairies fluttering around her, the pounding of hammers against wood and the blizzard of Jack's defeat at the North Pole howling outside was all that was heard.


The queen awoke to the bright sunrise over the mountains. It was odd she thought, but then when she became fully awake she realized she'd fallen asleep in the library. To her left was a half empty mug of cold tea and in her lap was a book on war. It was no wonder she'd fallen asleep. She straightened and stretched, her muscles catching in odd ways from sleeping in the hard furniture. A high-backed chair, no matter how cushioned, was no place for sleep.

The clock struck seven and she brushed the wrinkles from her dress. She wandered the halls as people arose in dreary fashion. Of a similar mood, she fumbled with the knob of her door and fell into the room. She caught herself on the edge of the dresser and practically flung herself on top the covers. She was asleep before she had time to kick off her shoes.


"If this is becoming a habit for you I suggest rearranging your schedule." Anna scolded her around a plate of pancakes.

"Someone keeping you up late?" Kristoff mused, his mouth equally stuffed.

They'd taken breakfast in the Council Chambers, it was close enough to Anna's room they didn't have to meander far and there was to be a meeting within the hour. Elsa smirked around her mug of tea, "Yes, but not the one you're thinking." They both paused and Elsa's smile grew wider. "I'll not be changing the castle to fit my needs, there are far too many and far too cumbersome."

"I'd think it'd be easier." Kristoff said, turning his fork over on his empty plate. "You hold all this power, and yet you don't use it."

"Who says I'm not using it?" Elsa mused and Anna quietly laughed, the two exchanged a look before she continued. "I am exercising the right amount of power that both benefit my needs, your needs and the needs of the kingdom. That is the true balancing act of a queen."

"Mother said that once," Anna chimed cheerfully.

"She did," The queen said with a nod of her head. The doors opened and like a jailer greeting a prisoner, the Masters stood at the entrance. Elsa's smile faded to nothing, and the hard lines of a ruler took its place. "I'll catch up with you later, Anna, Kristoff." He belched loudly and Anna giggled, tugging him by the collar out the room and past the Masters.

Tallies of day to day activities were given; a drop in crime, a rise in visitors, a need for less and less ice as the winter approaches. The people growing ever restless waiting for the Hallows Eve Ball and an update on the guest list and expenses overall. All mentally taxing and yet necessary, she did however wait patiently for a bit of news that did not get shared.

"You've not said a word Tradesman," The queen noted; he sat draped in his chair, toying with a dagger.

"I have nothing of merit to report. Trade continues as usual, nothing out of the ordinary." He dismissed with a toss of the knife.

"Is that so?" She stood and circled around him, trailing her fingers across the table. "Ships sail at their master's command," She swiped her hand across the surface and in a splash of frost a sculpture of ships at sail on rough seas was presented before him in dazzling clear glass.

"Who commands Arendelle's fleet?"

"No one, there is no need for-"

She leaned down to his face and spoke in a low but firm voice. "Find me someone who can." She straightened and looked to her Coin Master "I want an exchange of twenty thousand set aside."

"F-for what shall the expense be written as?" His face had gone red at the absurd number.

"A Royal Grant," Their faces paled, "Send your smallest of ships to the Southern Isles. I need to know if they are a threat to us and I want this done quietly." The Trades Master opened his mouth to object and she wheeled on him. "I will not allow that man to sail into my harbor and burn it to the ground and I am not going to sit here and wait until it happens!"

In the ringing silence that follows she realized how brash she must have seemed, a child with a temper tantrum. She sighed and her shoulders slumped, she looked at her hands, tracing the lines there. "I will protect what is mine," She said, not looking at the Masters. In her palm the Castle of Arendelle formed "I have too little left to call my own."

There was a pause and it made Elsa on edge, then a shift of weight in a seat.

"I will need to make an urgent letter, but I believe I have a ship ready by week's end."

She smiled at the Master of Trade, "Thank you," She returned to her chair and leaned back with a quiet sigh, taking the mug once more as the Master of Coin opened his mouth to speak.

She sat in silence the rest of the meeting and only exchanged a few words before the meeting was adjourned and she crept along the hallway back to her room. The door opened easily beneath her hand and her eyes narrowed. She stepped in and saw a large cane, leaning against the window across the room. Her eyes glittered with mirth and quickly she stepped inside and locked the door.

At the sound of a click she was raised off the ground as Jack pushed her hard against the wall. His lips all but assaulting her skin and a low sound echoed from her. His lips trailed from the corner of her jaw to the crook of her shoulder, his hands sliding the thin fabric of the gown down her shoulders. Her nails dug into his back and she tugged the shirt up, tossing it lazily to the ground. The edges scored his chest and he groaned against her lips.

They broke away to catch their breath, gently Elsa felt her feet touch the ground once more. She felt almost disappointed. Jack's hands were at either side of her shoulders on the wall and his head was bowed with exhaustion. Her hands fell to the edge of his hips and she laughed, equally as out of breath as he.

"You know," She panted, leaning against his forehead "This is getting…a little….ridiculous…don't you think?" She said between pants and ending with a laugh. He nodded with a shaky laugh of his own, and a hand fell from the wall to grip her waist. "Oh, gods how I've missed you." Elsa growled out before kissing him hard. His other hand wrapped over her shoulders and they tumbled to the ground, but they didn't care.

She landed on top of him and marveled at his strength, for in the next instance they'd rolled over and her arms were pinned to her sides. She felt a twinge of fear and internally she warred with it. He gave her one last hard kiss before they broke apart again. He chuckled in his throat as she glared up at him.

"What?"

"That's not fair," She struggled against his strength.

"No this isn't," His powers held her arm at her side and he let go.

She turned on her side and tried to pry the ice off. Though their powers controlled the same element, they were limited in manipulating each other's own magic. She heard a laugh and sat up to glare at him with a huff. He bent and retrieved his shirt, but curiously enough he didn't put it back on, instead he tossed it so it hung on the crook of his staff and knelt before her.

"Let me go," Though her eyes glared daggers her voice shook with fear.

He turned to look at the door and with a wave of his hand ice coated the door and secured the lock in place. Elsa thought her heart would tear through her chest, she could hear little beyond its frantic tune. He gave her a sly, mischievous smile before his hand carefully reached out and cradled her head. The kiss began slowly and she found herself gently leaning back until her head found the floor again and her hand was tangled in Jack's own hair.

Her hand trailed from his hair down his jaw to grip his arm and she turned her head away from him. He nipped at her collar bone and his hand roughly pulled the edges of her dress down. Her head slammed against the hardwood and she gritted her teeth to keep quiet, and damn it was hard to. She squirmed beneath him, infuriated she was trapped so and yet perversely delighted by it.

She wished she could shove back at him and return the favor, but with one hand secured to the floor and the other laced within his own she was helpless against the bombarding sensations. His teeth followed soon and it was nearly her undoing. The high pitched sound sliding through teeth as nails bit into the hardwood. In a spark of might the shackle that held her down shattered beneath her strength and she got her wish.

Caught off guard he stumbled backwards as she pinned him down, her desire giving her strength. His shocked expression turned to lust at the heated look in her eye, and he submitted beneath her power. She reveled in this; here she was another creature, something dark, something forbidden, something more. She did not cower in the face of the unknown, instead she met it head on.

Her lips trailed down his jaw and over the smooth marble of his chest. He fought all the while against her strength, but he was losing the will to resist much faster than he anticipated. Internally he wondered if he enjoyed the loss of control. His mind snapped back to him as the bindings of his trousers became loose.

"Enough." He growled and shoved her off of him.

Shocked, hurt, and downright furiously frustrated she curled away from him. Ice sporadically shot about the room. Sounds of their frustrated breathing and the ice breaking in on itself. The pillar that blocked her view from him cracked and a large chunk of it fell to the side of her. She tugged her dress back up and stood, glowering at him.

"What. The. Fuck?" She whispered harshly, she felt a small twinge in her at the word but it was quickly dismissed and overshadowed by her rage and annoyance; he stood with an equally apologetic and annoyed expression.

"Elsa-"

"No." She snapped, "What's the deal?"

He reached forward with open arms and opened his mouth to say something. She silenced him. The crack of skin against skin was louder than the ice, and his head whipped to the side violently. She stared at him, with equal shock and satisfaction warring within her. She hit him, actually hit him. She knew that temper of his began boiling at that second and though she feared it an even stronger part of her dared it to appear.

He slowly straightened, his face carved in fury. He reached for her arms with a growl and she resisted. The scuffle continued until he got hold of her wrists and he gained some ground. Even this angry at him and with her powers backing her she could not fight his strength. She ignored his mutterings, trying to get her to listen to him, she didn't want to hear a haphazard excuse, she wanted the truth.

"Stop it!" He pulled her arms above her head.

"Then tell me!" She shouted at him, making him pause. He was silent as they glared at each other. "I'll not be reduced to ashes, so tell me." He huffed a breath and frost sprayed in her face, in the same instance he let go of her. She stumbled a bit as he took a few steps away, trying to reign in his anger, while hers boiled over. "Tell me!"

"I don't know!" He rounded on her and took a breath, "Okay, I don't know why! Maybe it's because I'm the one who's scared, did you ever think of that?"

She looked away, in truth she hadn't. She remembered how Kristoff and Anna were making fun of her for instances like these. "He's just holding out for the right moment, I know I did." The Ice Master had told her, even Anna admitted that they didn't go anywhere until they were both sure of it. She'd never even talked to Jack about it, about any of it. She heard a sigh and Jack fell into a nearby chair. He leaned back and closed his eyes, utterly defeated and exhausted.

She felt terrible, but even then she could tell his anger was not initially directed at her, but at himself. She sighed and tugged again on the shoulder of her dress, pulling it back in place. Meek and guilt ridden she slowly walked to where he was and sat at his knees. He peaked open one eye to look at her. Her head fell back hard against the arm of the chair, and a sense of relief washed over her face. She brought her knees up to her chest and curled her arms around them.

His curiosity as to why she did this clicked into place, this anger was a disguise for her. In truth, she was just as terrified as he was, but it did little to soften the stinging sensation that had numbed his cheek. Remind me to stay on her good side, he thought with a smirk. He brought a hand and rubbed the sore spot, before shifting his head to rest in it, his elbow balanced on the armrest.

Elsa looked up and saw how he'd hidden his face, and she could see a touch of pink at the corner of his chin. She bit her lip and looked away, a mistake if she ever did one. Her eyes wandered down his sleek form, over his chest and arms and down his torso. He didn't even bother to re-lace his trousers. She took a steeling breath and reached.

His eyes shot open and he stiffened, feeling the whisk of nail at the edge of his groin. His head whipped down at her, a flash of fear and curiosity in him. He saw her take up the laces, and begin to work.

"Y'know if we're going to stop having arguments like this, we need to talk." She said, tying the final not and pulling it tight "This is what, the third?"

"Fourth actually," She smiled sheepishly and looked away. She turned and rested her head between his legs, curled up at his feet while he remained seated. She watched as the sun dipped ever lower, giving the sky a wash of pinks and purples. He reached down and stroked her hair; she tensed at first, but easily relaxed. I feel like a cat, she mused, oddly liking the touch.

He tilted her head back and kissed her forehead "You're right, we should talk."

"But not tonight," She said sadly.

He laughed once "No, not tonight."

"Our egos would get in the way."

"Our egos?" He scoffed, and she looked up at him.

"Yes, our egos. We'd be back at another argument in no time if we tried to now."

"I hate your logic sometimes." He grumbled, leaning back again.

She rubbed his calf and smiled, "See what I mean." She stood and leaned over towards him, her hands resting on the armrests "We'd be at this all night and nothing would get accomplished."

He matched her smile, "Well," He trailed is finger down her collar bone. "I wouldn't say nothing."

She snatched his hand away, her scolding gaze made him look at her with a toothy grin.

"Brat." She said, before releasing him and standing away, he leapt from the chair to his cane.

"I'll see you tomorrow," She said as he threw his shirt back on. "We can talk then."

"As my queen commands."

She laughed and watched him sail out the window and back towards her Palace of Ice. As soon as he left she felt that frustrating anger rise within her again. She manifested it in a flurry of ice and snow and it swirled in her hands. The small blizzard clouded her vision briefly as she commanded it to collide into itself. As it condensed and broke apart she held a hard lump of ice the size of a coin. She rolled it in her hand before she threw it out the window with a grunt. She heard nothing, and expected to hear it land on the stone below. Instead she heard the sound of glass shatter and a dog began to bark.

She winced and quickly pulled the window shut. Oddly satisfied at the chaotic sounds. She took a deep breath and ran her hands through her hair. She would not sleep anytime soon. She turned towards the door and was slightly surprised to see the frost Jack had left had disappeared and she was free to leave her room.

Looks like I'll be spending the night in the library again, she thought dryly.