Jack flew faster than he ever had before, racing time as he made his way to Arendelle. But just as he reached the city's outer borders, a terrifying blizzard wind caught him and threw him back. Gritting his teeth, he tried to control it, but it was too powerful for him. Forced to land, he made his way on foot, squinting hard in the biting snow.
"Elsa?" He screamed. "Elsa, it's me! It's Jack! Elsa?"
Stumbling like a blind man as the wind pushed him to and fro, he kept screaming Elsa's name in a desperate attempt to find her. For the first time since he'd fallen through the ice at the pond, the cold seeped into his skin and gnawed at his bones. He tripped, falling hard on the ice. His staff clattered out of his hands and across the ice, and the wind whisked it away before he even knew it was gone. Panting hard, he forced himself up into a crouching position, staying there for a moment until he was stable enough to stand.
His entire body was numb, but he still pressed onward, determined to find her. He raised his arm to shield his eyes and frowned when he thought he saw a figure ahead.
"Elsa!" He yelled. "Elsa, is that you? Elsa!"
Stumbling forward, he forced his exposed feet to take one step, then another, until he saw two figures ahead. He heard voices, but they were whipped and jumbled by the wind so that the words were unrecognizable amongst the howling and screeching of the blizzard.
Suddenly, one of the figures collapsed, and the entire blizzard whispered to an immediate halt. His eyes widening, he saw Elsa on the ground, sobbing. The man behind her drew his sword, and Jack cried out, "No!" as he raced towards her. Just as the man brought his sword down, Jack reached Elsa, throwing his arms around her as he shielded her with his body.
His eyes squeezed shut in anticipation of the blow of the man's sword, Jack wrapped his arms tightly around Elsa. But instead of a square attack to his back, he heard a clang resound through the empty air and felt a powerful wind sweep through him. He heard metal clanging to the ground, and he opened his eyes a crack to see the other girl from the coronation—the one Elsa had called Anna—frozen before them, her arm raised to defend them.
"Anna!" Elsa cried out, pushing Jack away as she ran to her sister. Her voice breaking, she whimpered, "Oh, Anna, no, no…please, no…"
Reaching out to touch her sister's frozen face, she began to cry, tears rolling down her cheeks as her shoulder shook with sobs. She wrapped her arms around Anna's frozen form, but it was too late.
Standing, Jack reached out to comfort Elsa, but his fingers paused a hair's breadth away from her, and he pulled them back, his heart aching with hers as she cried over her sister's lifeless body. He bowed his head as one of Elsa's snowmen waddled up and asked grievously, "Anna?"
A blond man with a reindeer stood watching, his eyes filled with sorrow and his mouth pulled into a painful frown. The world was silent except for Elsa's sobs when suddenly Jack saw color returning to Anna, beginning from her heart and emanating outwards.
"Elsa…" he breathed as Anna unfroze, taking a deep breath and dropping her arm.
"Anna?" Elsa asked hopefully, looking up at her sister. With a gasp, she embraced her sister. Returning her hug, Anna said happily, "Oh, Elsa."
"You sacrificed yourself for me?" Elsa asked, pulling away but keeping a firm hold on her sister's hands.
"I love you," Anna said with a sincere smile, and the snowman gasped and exclaimed, "An act of true love will thaw a frozen heart."
"Love will thaw…" Elsa said slowly, smiling and turning to her sister and saying, "Love…of course."
"Elsa?" Anna asked confusedly, and Elsa looked around her before exclaiming again, "Love."
Anna gasped as the snow peeled away from the ice, rising up into the sky. The ice melted away, and the ship below them rose up to hold them. The ice and snow from across the kingdom rose up into the sky, returning color and vitality to the land as the flakes and crystals clustered together in the sky, forming an enormous snowflake. Spreading her arms, Elsa dispersed it, allowing it to fade in summer's heat.
"I knew you could do it," Anna said with a smile, resting a mittened hand on her sister's shoulder.
"Hands down, this is the best day of my life," the snowman said with a wide smile as his features began to sink and his arm fell off. As he sunk further down and a puddled formed from his body, he continued, "And quite possibly the last."
"Olaf," Elsa said with a laugh, "Hang on there, little guy."
With a wave of her hand, she rebuilt him; she even created a small miniature snow cloud above his head.
"My own personal flurry!" Olaf exclaimed happily as the man from before grunted. Jack started towards him angrily, but Elsa held him back as Anna made her way over to him, stopping the blonde man from interfering. Straightening up, she gave a dignified glare as the man asked, "Anna? But…she froze your heart."
"The only frozen heart around here is yours." She said, turning her back as the man glared at her angrily. Suddenly, she turned around, grabbing his shirtfront as she punched him squarely in the face, knocking him overboard. The townspeople cheered, and Anna and Elsa embraced again. Jack noticed the blonde man smiling shyly at Anna and Anna noticing his smile. Anna and Elsa pulled away from each other, and Anna went to embrace the blonde man as Elsa turned to Jack with a smile.
"You did it, too. You were willing to sacrifice yourself for me." She said, and he blushed slightly as he fumbled for words.
"Yes, well, I mean, anyone would've—" He didn't get finish because Elsa pulled him into a tight embrace, and he sighed happily as he wrapped his arms around her.
"Thank you," She whispered in his ear. Pulling away slightly, she smiled at him and said, "It's love, isn't it? That's the key to freedom—love. You were trying to show me this whole time, and I finally understand."
"Yeah," He said, feeling as though he'd never stop smiling. But one question was enough to wipe the smile off his face.
"Elsa, who are you talking to?" Anna asked, and Elsa frowned, looking back and forth between Anna and Jack. The smile slid off her face, replaced first by confusion and then by despair as she realized that her sister couldn't see him.
"I…you can't see anyone?" Elsa asked in a pained whisper as Jack backed away. "No, Jack—"
"It's O.K. Go and talk to your sister. I'll see you later." He said, smiling at her despite the aching in his chest.
"Just don't go jumping off any balconies this time," She teased half heartedly, and he blushed as he summoned his staff to him and took off.