The Firebird

Chapter 13

Pairing: Elsa/OC

Rating: T for Language and Content

Jaymen groggily woke up and it took her a minute to inspect her surroundings. Looking around she saw that she was in the castle dungeons. She tried to stand, but she found that she was still too weak from everything that had happened. Blinking slowly, she looked down and saw that she was held by a pair of shackles that covered the entirety of her hands. She was confused. Elsa knew that she could burn through any metal, so why put her in chains? Jaymen tried to summon her fire but found that the shackles had an anti-magical property to them, so she couldn't burn her way out.

'Clever Elsa, I'll give you that.' Jaymen thought to herself. Jaymen thought about her lover. Elsa had a lot of faith in her, and Jaymen was determined not to let her down. Jaymen knew it was going to be hard, and things that Elsa were going to say would hurt. But she had to think about her Elsa. The one that loved her unconditionally, the one that put herself in this situation in the first place.

The thought of her blonde was almost enough to bring tears to Jaymen's eyes. She wished Elsa hadn't done this. She was eternally grateful to her for saving her life. But Jaymen wouldn't be able to live with herself if she was unable to bring Elsa out of it. Enough people had sacrificed themselves for her in the past, she'd be damned if the one she loved did too.

Elsa was sitting at her desk, planning her next move. When she had returned to the castle, her sister and brother in law were no where to be seen, which suited Elsa just fine. She knew that once Anna found out what happened, she'd try to save her. But Elsa didn't need saving. Love and happiness were just distracting emotions. Her ruthlessness would destroy Weselton and the Southern Isles.

She planned to have everything ready in about 2 months, and then they would sail for Weselton. The poor little nation didn't stand a chance against Arendelle, especially with Elsa taking the lead. Then it was on to the Southern Isles. Hans may have been banished, but in her mind, they were still responsible. Elsa had a suspicion that the king of the Southern Isles knew about what Hans was planning. And the boy was only banished because he got caught. Call her paranoid, but she was going to make sure that it could never happen again.

And she would also have Jaymen. The girl was going to be a powerful tool in the upcoming war. Their past meant nothing. Elsa may have at one point felt something for the girl, but now this is what she was, a ruthless Snow Queen. Elsa didn't harbor the same hope that she once did. She doubted that Jaymen would ever be able to thaw her heart. But as a precaution, the brunette was going to stay locked in the dungeons until the sixty days were up. Elsa wasn't going to let the Firebird mess up her plans.

A week later

Anna knocked on her sister's study door. "Go away Anna." Elsa's voice drifted out. "I'm busy."

"But Elsa, c'mon! You've been working non-stop, shut up in your study for a week! Ever since you came back from whatever you and Jaymen were doing, you haven't left your study. In fact, I haven't even seen Jaymen since then. Do you know where she is?" Anna said to her sister from outside the door.

The first day, Anna had made the mistake of just bursting in on her sister as she used to do. Elsa had immediately kicked her out, then locked the door behind her, without so much as a word. After that, Anna knocked on Elsa's door every day. She was never allowed to enter and this gave Anna a very big sense of deja vu. Back to their childhood when Elsa was shut in her room all the time. Anna had thought that point in her life was over, but apparently she was wrong.

On the other side of the door, Elsa was fuming. Her sister Anna would incessantly pester her every single day. No matter how many times she told her to go away, she was there the next day. She had to give Anna credit though, she was persistent. But this time, Anna couldn't break through the walls. Only Jaymen had that power and Elsa was going to make sure Jaymen never would.

One might think that Elsa would want to go back to normal. But they would be wrong. Elsa liked her new self. Sappy emotions like love and happiness were just distractions. She would expand Arendelle and she didn't care who she stepped on to get there. Jaymen would only prevent that because she'd go back to being that weak, helpless Queen she once was.

"Anna, I have no idea where Jaymen is. Perhaps she is taking some time away from the castle." Elsa lied smoothly. She knew exactly where the Firebird was. But if Anna found out, that would probably throw another wrench in her plans.

"Fine, but I'll be back again tomorrow Elsa." The Snow Queen groaned. She'd need to find some way of dealing with her sister. She only kept Anna and Kristoff around because they were a moral booster for the kingdom. Plus the obviously political issues if she just offed her sister and brother in law.

Anna went back to wandering the halls with her sister's absence, much like her childhood. Sure, she had Kristoff now, but it was comforting to just sit in front of Joan and voice her concerns about Elsa to her only childhood friend.

"Oh Joan, what's wrong with my sister? Why is she shutting herself out like this again? I mean, Elsa was never a very social person, even after the incident, but she's even icing me out. That's different. Not to mention I haven't even seen Jaymen lately. It's been a week, what has she been getting up to? Elsa and Jaymen were inseparable, and now I don't see either of them, together or otherwise. What happened?"

She heard running footsteps coming towards her. She immediately looked in the direction of the footsteps to see Sir Eldridge, hurrying in her direction. He stopped in front of the princess, bowing, then resting his hands on his knees to catch his breath.

"Princess Anna… There's something I think you should see." Anna looked puzzled, what was so important that this guard had run however far he had just to tell her she should see something.

"What is it, Sir Eldridge?"

"I think it's something you need to see for yourself." Anna nodded and rose from her seat. She looked over to Joan,

"We'll talk later." Anna whispered. If Eldridge found anything odd about the princess talking to paintings, he wisely said nothing. He beckoned the redhead to follow him. As they walked across the castle grounds, Anna inquired to where they were going.

"The dungeons, there's someone you need to see."

Jaymen was getting frustrated, locked up in this cell. It was up to her to save Elsa from her frozen heart, but instead she was locked up, powerless in this cell. She had already wasted a week of the two months she was given. And at this rate, she'd never get out. Jaymen felt very depressed, she promised Elsa that she would free her. And right now, she didn't know if she would even get the chance to try.

Jaymen heard a commotion at front of the dungeons where the guards were stationed. She figured they had just gotten caught sleeping or something and didn't pay it any mind. But when she noticed a flash of red hair enter the dungeon, she stood from her seat on the floor and walked over to the bars of her cell.

"Jaymen!" Anna cried out. "What are you doing in here?!" Jaymen sighed. Elsa obviously hadn't told her sister. Anna turned to Eldridge. "Sir Eldridge, could you please fetch Kristoff, he needs to see this too." The young guard nodded and strode off to find the Ice Master.

"Jaymen, I've been worried sick about you! Elsa said she didn't know where you were, but how could she not? You two like each other, wait, Elsa has to know about you being in here!" Jaymen sighed. It was going to be interesting explaining this to Anna.

"Anna, there's an explanation for this I swear, but at least lets wait for Kristoff. I don't want to have to tell it more than once." Anna nodded and fell silent.

Shortly, Eldridge returned with Kristoff. The blonde was a little annoyed at being pulled from his time with Sven, but when he saw Jaymen behind bars, shackled with the anti-magic cuffs, that annoyance melted away.

"Jaymen, what are you doing in here?"

"Long story Kristoff. Been waiting for you so I could tell it." Eldridge awkwardly tried to take his leave.

"Eldridge, wait. You deserve to hear this. It was unfair of me to just abruptly send you away without an explanation." Jaymen didn't know why she was going to tell Eldridge about this, but she figured it would probably be a good thing that at least once guard knew the truth. Eldridge nodded and stood in place.

"Okay, you three, you have to promise me that you will not tell anyone else about this." They all nodded.

"Anna, I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner and I hadn't intended to tell you in this way. But you know of the Firebird correct?" Anna furiously nodded. She loved the myths and stories about it. "Well, it's me."

"What?"

"The Firebird is me. I know it's hard to believe, but just take my word for it. Or even Kristoff's word." She winced, she hadn't meant to say that.

Anna looked over at her husband who nodded. And she punched him in the arm.

"Ouch! What was that for?"

"How long have you kept this a secret from me?" Kristoff looked sheepishly at his wife.

"Anna, please, can this wait for another time?" Jaymen pleaded. Anna reluctantly nodded. Jaymen looked over at Eldridge, who looked like he was still processing.

"Well, long story short, that dagger Hans stabbed me with? It was poisoned, with a poison that is lethal to me. I'm technically immortal, but he managed to get a hold of something that would actually kill me." Anna gasped, and Eldridge and Kristoff both clenched their fists. Eldridge knew there was something about that guy he didn't like, besides the fact of stabbed a lady in the first place.

"Elsa was devastated. I'm sorry we didn't tell you right away, but Elsa was dead set on seeing the trolls before hand. She thought they could cure me and if that was the case, we wouldn't have to tell you and no one besides us would know." Anna nodded in understanding. But that didn't mean she was happy about it.

"And that's what we were doing, we went to the trolls. Eldridge came with us, until we asked that he keep watch." Eldridge slightly nodded to validate the story. "The trolls told us that it was curable, but at a heavy price." Jaymen cast her eyes downward. She wouldn't actively admit it, but she was afraid that Anna would blame her for Elsa's frozen heart.

"And what was the price?" Anna asked hesitantly.

"Elsa's emotions. She could pull the poison out of my body, but if it couldn't kill me, it would freeze her heart. I begged her not to do it, but she pleaded with me." Anna blinked. What did this mean, that her sister was going to live with a frozen heart for the rest of her days?

"Is there no way to fix it?" Jaymen let a tear trickle down her cheek.

"There is. Me. I have to unfreeze her heart, an act of true love will thaw a frozen heart, the trolls said. But I'm useless locked up in here. Elsa put me here a week ago. And these stupid cuffs prevent me from leaving this cell with my magic. Anna you have to believe me, I never wanted this. Elsa begged me to let her do this, she trusted that I would save her. I would have happily died if it meant that she would be okay. But you know your sister, she's stubborn." Anna laughed weakly.

"She is indeed." Anna turned to Kristoff and buried her face in his chest as he wrapped his arms around his wife. Eldridge just stood there, taking in everything that was just said. He was honored that Jaymen would share this information with him.

"Eldridge, that's why I sent you away. We didn't know what Elsa would be like after she did it. I didn't want you being caught up in our problem." Eldridge nodded.

"I understand why you did it. Although, I'd like to think I could have handled it." Jaymen laughed a little.

"I'm sure you could have, I just wanted to make your life a little easier." Eldridge looked thoughtful.

He had went to get Anna when he realized Jaymen was in here. This was his first dungeon duty since she had been put here and he knew that the Firebird didn't belong in cage. He looked down at the keys on his belt.

He unclipped them and walked closer to Jaymen's cell. He unlocked the cell door and unshackled the brunette. "And here's me returning the favor Jaymen." Jaymen looked a little shocked, but grateful as well.

"Thank you Eldridge, you truly are good man." Eldridge beamed at the praise and bowed. Jaymen turned to Anna and Kristoff. "I promise you I will thaw your sister's heart. I'll get her back."

Anna nodded. "I'll help you were I can as well, we both will." As Kristoff nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, you three. I don't know what would have happened if you hadn't found me."

"Well, we don't need to think about that now do we? Now go get your girl." Kristoff winked. Jaymen just laughed. She quickly ran off in search of the Queen.

Eldridge was a little surprised to think of Jaymen and the Queen as lovers, but he wasn't questioning. The Queen and the Firebird deserved to be happy, and if this was how they were happy, who was he to judge?

Anna worried for the brunette. Elsa could be difficult at the best of time, and under a curse? She'd probably be even worse. But Anna held faith that Jaymen would free her sister.

Kristoff was proud of Jaymen. As he was the first one to know her secret, he knew how hard it was to tell the rest of the royal family, and now one of the youngest guard members. It seemed as though Elsa was changing the Firebird.

A/N: I know, a little shorter than normal. But it's been a few days and I really needed to update this. So beginning of Book II begins with Jaymen in the dungeon and Elsa planning war.

Funny story, I had actually originally planned for Anna to break Jaymen out instead of Eldridge. In fact, the young guard was never really even a character before he kind of just wrote himself. I really like this OC to be honest. He's definitely a product of my on the spot imagination.

Anyways, yes, Jaymen now has got to find Elsa and thaw her heart. That'll prove interesting. Just a heads up, I've been going through some stressful times in my personal home life, so if updates take slightly longer than usual, I apologize. I'm just really stressed right now and when I'm stressed, my writing is crap. I try to make is less crap when I update, but yeah. Anyways, I'll try to get the next chapter up ASAP, but I won't promise when it'll be.

Anyways, thanks for reading lovely audience. As usual, grammar, spelling and whatever mistakes are my own. Oh, and song inspiration for this chapter, Numb - Linkin Park.

A Charmed Vampire