Chapter 14

Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen or Rise of the Guardians, or any of the other shows mentioned in this story. Disney and DreamWorks own it.

Flashback: 904 A.D.

"I'm tired of running," Jack announced. Pitch stopped sucking on the neck of a naked prostitute. Tooth crinkled the paper in her hands behind Jack, who stood in the doorway. After some quick gulps, he let the body fall to the floor.

"What?"

Jack didn't waste a second. "I'm finding Bunnymund, North, and Shira. We will take over the entire continent. I will lead us into victory again. Why should we fear when we cannot die?"

Tooth squeaked up from behind them. "Um, but we can be captured and torture. Don't make me recount my year spent apart from you."

Jack waved a hand and brushed past her. "We are already close to the western border of our previous land. Let's leave this place behind and start anew, boasting proudly of our gifts."

"Why would you lead us?" Pitch asked, walking out of the room into the kitchen. Jack turned slowly on his heel, staring questionably at his fellow friend. Never had he had a mate who questioned his actions so often. Sometimes he respected Pitch for it, other times he wanted to behead him for it.

"What?"

Pitch shrugged nonchalantly, as if they were arguing over which house to drain of blood rather than a fight for power. "It didn't work out so swell since six of us died last time. Maybe we're ready for a new lead-."

Pitch couldn't finished his sentence because Jack had driven a stake through his heart, so fast nobody even saw it in his hands. Tooth gulped and looked at her feet. Jack stood slowly, dusting off his hands. "Any objections, Toothania?"

"Of course not." She shook her head violently. "Shall I get the casket?" Jack found it easier to move a guilty, unconscious vampire in a wooden coffin. He just had to remember to kill him again when he woke so that by the next time he awoke, he'd have too little blood to have the energy to break out of the crate.

By the time they loaded the carriage, Jack had fed on two other people, successful in both. He felt accomplished when he didn't kill both victims. Sometimes he'd forget he was full on the second person because of the elation of not killing the first victim and fail to stop. Those were the most depressing ones. Normally, he ended up killing the first person, but sometimes he'd be lucky and have the willpower. It was hit or miss.

Jack had Tooth steer the horses so he could kill Pitch the moment he woke. His friend had an attitude. One of these days, Pitch would learn to control it. He had to. If not, Jack seriously needed to consider switching best mates. Bunnymund always cracked the jokes, but he and Jack argued too often to be good friends.

Jack's thoughts came to a sudden halt as the cart jerked to a crash. It wasn't just a crash. It was more like something grabbed hold of Jack and didn't allow him to pass some point. The invisible barrier squished him against the back of the carriage and then pushed him through the wood on the dirt ground. He noticed Pitch's coffin was shattered and in pieces with him lying unconscious on the ground. Tooth also was unaware, her neck in an uncomfortable position. Jack hefted himself up and removed the splinters of wood from his back. He looked in the distance as the horses slowly came to a cease, unsure where to go in the dark night with a wobbling carriage tied to their reigns.

Jack ran towards them but found that the invisible force knocked him down again. He got up and redid the process, but the same result occurred. Huffing, he walked forward until he was unable to move. Feeling along the barrier, it seemed to be solid rot iron, yet he saw nothing but air. Jack walked with his hands pressed against the barrier to the side. He surveyed it until he realized it was following a little bit in front of a huge river they previously cross. Jack stepped back, thinking quickly as he did. He ran back to the crash site and followed it in the other direction. After hours of running with his right hand against the invisible border, Jack came to the familiar wall. Now the invisible barrier was both visible and sturdy. Jack jumped onto the top of the wall, meeting his sworn enemy guards. The confused Frenchmen regarded Jack carefully.

"Jack the Ripper?" They asked in a heavy French accent. Jack grinned and nodded, trying to jump over the wall, but the force would let him over the edge. "Our king said to give you what you want. Don't harm our people, we help."

Jack growled in frustration. "I'll keep that in mind." He began to run around the entire perimeter of the familiar boundaries. Jack didn't make a full circle before the sun was up. It took him four nights to complete the circle, but he finally did it. The invisible force kept him, and most likely all vampires, trapped in the boundaries of his old kingdom, including the loathed Arendelle. Jack cursed under his breath. So much for starting anew.

. . .

"This is your room. We'll summon you when dinner is ready." Kristoff opened the door. Inside was a cramped space, but not because the room itself was small. The bed took up most of the left side even though it was so small he doubted he and Elsa would fit side by side comfortably. Jack wasn't cheery about that. He walked further inside and sat their chest in front of the bed. Drawers took up most of the space beside the bed. On the ride side of the room was what Jack assumed to be the guest bath. Immediately finding no privacy between the garderobe and bathing tub, Jack watched for Elsa's reaction. She didn't do more than set her lips into a firm line and gulped, looking to Kristoff for help. He scratched the back of his neck.

"Yes, well our finished guest room is currently being turned into a nursery. It's a little cramped…" Kristoff could see Elsa's disgusted expression wasn't changing. "You're free to use our garderobe." Jack couldn't fight off the smirk growing on his face. "I would offer our tub, but that, too, is in our room."

"And they aren't moveable?" Elsa hissed between her teeth.

"Don't be so posh," Jack scolded, placing his hands on her shoulders, to which she turned and about whipped him with her hair. "Thank you, Kristoff."

"We just figured…since you mentioned you're engaged…" Kristoff saw Elsa giving him the evil eye and said his goodbye, nearly running down the hall. Jack howled with delight as he jumped on the bed.

"This is repulsive!" Elsa paced in front of the bed. Jack watched her calmly. "I will not – cannot do my duty in front of anyone, let alone you!"

Jack sat up, smiling cheekily. "I think that could be a fair punishment for insulting my best friend." She opened her mouth to retaliate. Jack held up a hand. "Elsa, will you and Anna get past this?"

Elsa's mouth dropped close. She kept her pacing up and shrugged. "She acts like she is not insulted by my decision, but she is. However, Anna is very strong. She bounces back like elastic." She bit her lip and turned to stare at Jack, who was again stretched out.

He eyed her, trying to solve the mystery that occurred. Only when he found that damn book did he start to worry if he made too quick of a decision. In her defense, she didn't get to explain herself with a calm head, but it was her fault for getting so heated she looked mad. Jack honestly believed she was ill that morning. She was crying, she was hysterical, she was jumping and accusing everyone, not just Pitch. Bunnymund and Shira both agreed with Pitch, but he heard them talking to Elsa before he entered her room. It sounded like they switched sides. Then she went and blamed Tooth. Jack tilted his head as if to get a better view inside Elsa's mind.

Couldn't I have gotten mind reading like the knock off guy did? We have similar hairstyles…

He silently hoped Elsa wasn't lying, that she hadn't gone off flirting to a group of guys. Jack would admit; it hurt. It tugged at his heart. He was under the impression that Elsa finally saw a slight glimmer of feelings for him. Now it was all screwed up. Jack didn't know if he could feel affection toward her again. She lied to him. Even if she was somehow correct about Pitch attacking her with a clear mind – which Jack doubted since Pitch had no motive there – Elsa still hid something from him. He needed to fish that information out of her. Jack still saw her body sexy as hell. He could learn to grow past the small lie that could or could not be caused by a head injury. All he needed from her was the truth.

"Thank you, Jack Frost." Elsa spoke up. Jack frowned in confusion. He hadn't heard a nice word from her since they argued. "For speaking up to Anna. I was – never mind."

"What?" Jack hauled himself off the bed, walking towards her. She stared at him boldly while he caressed her hair, which was falling straight down – a look he'd only seen twice. Years ago when he spied on Elsa coming out of the bath, she was brushing her hair. He remembered seeing her beautiful body, a body like no other. There was no flaw in her pristine alabaster skin, delicate grace, and three features that came together to create the ultimate beauty. Aside from that, he remembered how innocent and naive Elsa looked with her anxious doe eyes and long, innocent locks. Now he gazed at her while she did the same with a look of superiority and sureness. She was so different. He found himself going back on the crushing blow he delivered shortly ago.

Elsa seemed hesitant to admit to a weakness when she had so many human ones built in. Jack knew she thought herself to be weak and had used it against her. Yet he saw all her weaknesses as human characteristics – cute, adorable ones. "I was starting to believe her for a second."

Jack speculated her expression. His heart held nearly false hope. "For you to believe her, that would imply you have feelings for me, Elsa. Is that what you're admitting to?"

Elsa finally turned her head away, looking out the window above the dresser. "At one time, yes."

Jack felt the crushing weight settle on his heart. He shouldn't even try to forgive her, yet he did. He'd always try to figure this mystery out. If he did, he was one step closer to being with Elsa, and that consideration pushed him forward. "What are you hiding from me?" Jack whispered, leaning forward. Elsa squared her shoulders and looked at him again.

"Nothing you can handle, my king," she sneered. Jack's lips rose in challenge. Two could play at this game.

"We'll see how long you'll last without a bath in this hot, muggy air. Unless you are feeling especially bold." Jack offered, extending a hand toward the tub. Elsa's eyes narrowed, testing his resilience. They both studied one another, breaths mixing. Jack wasn't sure she'd let him kiss her and he wasn't sure he felt inclined to, aside from his raging male instincts. Maybe they would have faced off until Elsa dropped dead and Jack turned to dust.

Anna didn't let either situation happen. She busted through the door, announcing, "Supper is served…am I, eh, interrupting something?" She coughed purposefully loud to make it clear she didn't approve of their close proximity. Elsa and Jack jumped apart. Elsa froze, looking between her sister and Jack, and then feebly smacked him so lightly he thought she was patting his cheek with affection for a moment.

"No," she pointed a finger, sounding very unsure of herself. She looked between Anna, who was beaming, to Jack, who was chuckling. Then she just took off down the hall. With Anna shooting Jack dirty looks, he followed behind the girls.

They got seated at the small round table, Anna forcing Jack to sit between her and Kristoff in a rather awkward position. Jack decided since this was Elsa's only family, he'd warm up with them. While Elsa questioned Anna about baby names, Jack turned to the lord of the house. "Ice is an interesting industry."

Kristoff took it all from there. "I grew up in the business. I could tell you which ice came from where by the taste of it." Jack's eyes widened.

"Is there much profit to it?" he continued, feigning to be utterly interested. In all actuality, he hadn't had a conversation lasting over a minute with a human – aside from work – in years. Oh, Elsa was of course an obvious exception. He wasn't entirely bored, but he was already tired. Jack just wanted sleep. He had been up for nearly two days.

"Totally! Nobody down south gets much ice compared to where you…"

It was a surprisingly nice dinner. Kristoff excused himself to go work on making a bassinet for the upcoming child. He offered for Jack to help, but he shook his head. By now, Jack was decently sure Elsa had blood dripping down her thighs. He had figured when he joined in on the massacre of Arendelle that he'd be full for a strong month. Now it was testing fate too much. The blood was too much. Jack stumbled onto the porch, shielding the bright setting sun from his gaze. Though he couldn't actually drink anyone's blood at the moment, the thirst wasn't quenched. It was made that much worse. "Is he okay?" Jack heard Anna whispering. His head snapped in her direction, already feeling like he was about to make a scene.

Elsa shot up, looking at him quizzically. He noticed how she paled when she stood. He knew the blood was soaking through. "He's had a long day…" Elsa turned to her sister. "Do you have any wine? Jack is an alcohol fanatic."

Anna scowled at the mention of that. "Yes…I'll be back." She disappeared down the hall. Immediately, Jack turned to Elsa, whining.

"You're acting weird." Elsa stated, eyes looking him up and down. She moved forward, but he stepped back. She was testing him so much. His nerves were jumpy and his head wouldn't clear. Jack shook his head, running his hands through his messy hair.

His hand flew to his throat, trying to ease the uncomfortable quench. "It will pass. I'll-," Jack paused when he heard Anna enter. She offered him the bottle and a glass, but he refused the glass, taking the full bottle with him. "I'm turning in early. I'm afraid I'm not feeling well. Anna, it was nice meeting you. Elsa."

Jack turned on his heel and followed the path back to the stairs. When he got safely inside their room, he flopped down on the bed and took a big swig of the alcohol, sighing in relief at the ease it brought to his throat. It numbed the pain, making it more tolerable. He could hold out for another night, if only because he was so exhausted, but he'd need to feed soon. Jack wasn't sure how long it took for him to get a buzz or for Elsa to come to the room, but all he knew was that he was out of the drink.

"Elsa…" Jack said into a pillow that his face was pressed into. Her footsteps froze. "Could you do me a favor and," he paused to hiccup, "change your fucking rags?" He heard her gulp from all the way across the room and knew it was late into the night.

He sat up and saw her cocking out her hip, gazing at him curiously. "How is it you are so calm with this monthly period?" Elsa murmured and began searching the chest for what she needed. She caught him eyeing her movement, so she hurried.

"When you help your – when you witness childbirth - suddenly a women's body isn't as foreign as you'd think," Jack grumbled. He was tempted to sneak a peak as she ruffled her skirts up, but he didn't trust himself. If only that blood wouldn't sit so precariously outside of her body, right below one of his favored spots on a woman, he could go through the night with ease. "If a full out baby could fit up there for nine months, couldn't your rags last a couple of hours?"

Elsa paused. "Are you suggesting I shove cotton up my body, in a place where we don't know if we could even retrieve it?" She sounded so shocked Jack almost laughed. He forgot how innocent she was sometimes. No, she was no longer innocent, merely naïve in one region. Elsa was one of the most mature ladies he'd met, especially at her age. A little schooling would serve her well, only taught by yours truly, of course.

"Sweetheart, I could retrieve it," Jack snorted half-heartedly. Elsa exhaled and leaned her head out the door to fetch a maid.

"Could I get some water to wash?" Elsa asked. The maid, with a heavy accent, surveyed her.

"No. I clean for you. Bathe later when water hotter." Before either of them could respond, the maid snatched the bloody rag out of Elsa's hands, shoved a clean one toward her, and left.

Elsa walked back to the bed, looking mildly upset. "I still need water," she grumbled, scrubbing the life out of her thighs. Jack assumed it was to get the dried blood off.

"I wouldn't drink stale blood if my life depended on it," Jack scrunched his nose. Elsa rolled her eyes and sighed, sitting on the bed. She rummaged through the chest and got out her nightgown, frowning at Jack.

"Get out of those filthy clothes," she hissed. Jack shook his head and shoved his face back into the pillows. He heard her switching her own clothes, something he wished he would have watched. "You are not getting under the covers with visible dirt on your shirt." He pouted, shoving a pillow over his head. "Take them off."

"Do it yourself, bossy," he grumbled. Jack didn't realize he was flirting until he felt her warm, petite hands jerk his pants off him. He supposed it was flirting. Really, he was too tired to listen to her constant demands. He was tickled by her reaction, both physically and mentally. When her hands pulled at his shirt he was kind enough to lift each arm as directed. Elsa even giggled when Jack's arm fell like deadweight, hitting her legs.

"So silly," she mumbled, biting her lip and staring at him. Jack cocked his head to the side to look back at her, making a funny face. Jumping up, she fell back down on Jack, who grunted under her weight.

. . .

Thanatos held back a snarl, keeping his whereabouts as secretive as he could. There was no need to pull Jack away now. Pitch needed a thorough plan to separate the lovebirds. A little fight wouldn't do, especially if Elsa was going to take the side of somebody who didn't believe a word she spoke. Elsa was a kindhearted yet ignorant human, a human he wanted. He wanted her in every way. She needed him to save her from the manipulative monsters, after all. He didn't know if Jack and Elsa had forgiven each other just yet over Pitch's stunt, but they would soon.

Thanatos took one last gaze through the stone window into the room where Elsa jumped playfully – flirting – on Jack Frost. He dropped to the ground in his angry jealousy, forgetting to keep his powers flowing to keep him hovering in the air. He shrugged off the fall and pulled out his trusty black snow. Muttering a handful of complicated spells that took over five minutes and much of his energy, Thanatos escaped from the torture of spying on Elsa and Jack to their own castle.

He found himself already inside the kitchen. Grinning with evil intent, he purposefully walked up the stairs. Running into North, he used the last bit of his powerful energy to plaster him to the wall with a magical gag. Thanatos paused, a hand pressing into his temple while the other held him steady on the wall. He could hear North struggling and slowly pulled a small slip of musky paper out of his coat. He tucked it in North's pocket.

"Looking magical help, meet me here on a full moon. Free of charge, unless, of course, you make a huge deal after I release you." Thanatos studied North for a few minutes before dropping his hold. North stared him down, realizing he couldn't take Thanatos alone. Well, that gave him back a little bit of energy, enough to make a small spell and a quick escape. After all, it wasn't the smartest idea being drained of energy in the household of a vengeful client. Pitch probably was out feeding, like always.

Now he was pissed. He just needed to find one damn vampire chick and the castle was a mild wide. He passed an arguing Shira and Bunnymund, casting a little spell – introduced to him by the one and only Aphrodite, of course – on them so they wouldn't be the annoying tattle tales they normally were. Trust Thanatos when he said they were too busy focusing on their needs to notice him.

Finally, he found Tooth's damn room. He stormed through the room growling and ready to kill the leech. "We need to talk."

"Ugh," Tooth sent her hand to her face dramatically. "Another Elsa lover. No thanks." She walked past him, but he grabbed her arm, swinging her back around. Thanatos hadn't conversed with Tooth and was pleasantly surprised she was a bitch. She wasn't afraid to play dirty.

"You hate Jack and Elsa together as much as I do, possibly more." He held his arms out wide, invitingly. "Why not work together?"

Toothania took her time thinking on the proposition. Her lips twitched upward at the idea. "What did you have in mind?"

A/N: Thank you all so so much! I really hope to have this much feedback continue because I have a few chapter that could be ready to post quickly, with some inspiration please! (I know, I'm evil.) With the Dtockholm Syndrome I didn't figure it was named back then. It was one of those things where I was just like oh well. It wasn't a huge thing anyway. Now on the Kristoff thing, I figure he was just about twenty or so, maybe younger. Let me know if you are confused on anything else! Thank you!