Chapter Twenty
Hello beautiful people! Happy holidays, and Happy New Year to everyone, even if it is a little late hehe. I know you all want to kill me, and with reason. I am really sorry and upset about taking so long to update, but at the same time I'm proud of this chapter. I feel like you deserve an explanation, and not an excuse, but I'll explain everything below on the author note at the end. I didn't invest too much time in editing this chapter, and I apologize for every mistake you find in the text. Feel free to point them out to me and I'll correct them eventually. I hope you enjoy this chapter, for I have a few surprises for you in there. As another surprise, I changed the cover, made by noneother that my talented friend: Cailidevel. And so, without further ado, here I present to you chapter twenty at last.
The prince of the Winter Court had suffered from many sleepless nights, but none like this one. Since the moment he fled the hallway, where he left quite the obvious clue that he had been there, a part of him knew that he simply wasn't going to sleep. How could he? His mind refused to acknowledge that what he heard was true, not because he didn't want to, but precisely because he needed to believe it. He might have heard wrong, he might have understood wrong, or maybe they were wrong. However, his heart didn't waste a minute before jumping and leaping with joy, making the big wings of hope open and fly him away. He didn't want that, he needed to stay focus and grounded. After all, they did say that the highest one flew, the hardest was the fall. He didn't know if he could handle his hopes shattered once more, he wasn't sure what he'd do or if he'd control himself.
Jack arrived to his assigned chambers after flying all the length of three to four halls as if Winter himself was behind him and slammed the door shut with a loud noise. He stayed there, panting, heart racing, listening intently to check if anyone had been in pursuit. After he heard nothing for a good ten minutes, he allowed himself to let go of the door knob, but he didn't relax. On the contrary, his whole body tensed up as if he was going to have a fight, and he started pacing the floor. It wasn't that much of a lie to say that a fight was going to take place, but it was far from being a physical one. His thoughts and emotions were creating havoc inside of him and he needed to calm down.
But how could he? How could he calm down when it was possible that his feelings were reciprocated? How could he calm down when it was possible that he was going to finally have something he wanted? How could he stay calm when everyone he ever loved was dead? How could he calm down when he didn't know if the same would happen again? How could he stay calm when it was also possible that he was wrong? How could he stay calm knowing that his heart, his life, depended on the veracity of what he heard?
He paced the floor until he practically memorized the entire pattern. What the princess implied meant everything to Jack, in a literal sense. It meant that perhaps all his struggles would be worth it in the end, it meant that maybe he could find happiness, it meant that not everything was lost and that he hadn't screwed up that bad. He could still fix it. And that what terrified him; he wasn't aware that his affection had become so deep, he hadn't realized that he allowed himself to foolishly hope for something that had always been out of reach for him. He realized, in that moment, that he wouldn't hesitate to lay down his life for the queen's, and in turn that made him realize that he couldn't do that. He had approached the queen with a mission, with a bigger plan in mind, never even considering the possibility of his feelings changing, but now that they had, he realized he couldn't afford to lose her. Before she had been expandable and he could've cared less if anything happened to her after they defeated Winter, but now if something happened to her, he would never forgive himself.
Many hours later, and when he finally cared enough to look out the window, he noticed that the sky was already clearing. Dawn was approaching, and he didn't even notice that the night had gone away with him fumbling with his thoughts. He went to the window and opened it, relishing the feeling of the air on his skin and he took a deep, deep breath, the kind he hadn't taken all night. Perhaps an early stroll through the gardens would help him think, but just in case there was someone else who he didn't want to see right now had the same idea, he chose to go to a secluded part that wasn't easy to find or visible to everyone. He grabbed his staff from where it leaned on the wall and left to find the place he hoped was quiet enough to order his thoughts.
Needless to say, he didn't find the peace of mind he wanted. Regardless of the fresh air and how better it might have made him feel, his emotions and thoughts were still creating a horrifying blizzard that threatened to tear him apart. He started pacing again, this time in the gardens, where he was sure no one would be looking for him. He had so many things to think about, so many thoughts fighting for attention, that after a while he had had enough. Besides, the lack of sleep wasn't helping his patience in the least. When a headache appeared and it finally seemed that Jack's head was going to split open, he couldn't help the yell that escaped his mouth directed towards himself. "Shut up!"
Much to his surprise, and astonishment, there was a reply; so much for being secluded, right? So much for a place no one would be able to find…"But I didn't say anything," a voice said next to him and he jumped out of his skin and landed a good two meters away. Of course, if asked by anyone on a later date, he would completely deny it. He was Jack Frost, after all, he just didn't do such things. With his heart still beating wildly on his chest, he turned to the voice, only to find the most bizarre thing he'd seen in his life, and for his word, he had seen some pretty weird stuff.
"Who…" he started, then he corrected himself, "What are you?"
"Me?" replied a tiny, small, made of snow, white thingy, looking at the prince as if he had grown a second head, which was pretty ironic considering the situation as a whole. "I'm a snowman, can't you see?" He then put a goofy smile in place, which displayed his two perfectly white front teeth to Jack.
The prince, on his part, aside from his already swirling thoughts, couldn't seem to wrap his mind around what was in front of him. Eyes wide, heart still hammering, Frost thought he was going insane. Literally. Perhaps he was having a hallucination caused by a severe case of sleep deprivation and extreme stress. Yes, that was probably it, and yet he found himself replying to the talking snowman with the only thought that seemed to make sense at the moment. "You're not melting."
"You're not very smart, are you?" the snowman replied, in a tone that the prince wasn't sure if it was being sarcastic or sincere. Either way, it was simply ridiculous that he was playing along with a mirage, which prompted him to snort audibly. "What?" Olaf asked, feeling slightly confused, if not offended, by the sound the prince made.
"You're not melting," the prince answered, as if it was the most obvious answer in the whole world, taking a hand to his temples and feeling for a fever; because if he was interacting with a talking snowman, he had to be sick, right? He felt no fever whatsoever, but he did feel the starts of a hysterical laughter bubbling up on his throat. That was never a good sign.
"Why, of course not, I've got my own flurry!" the snowman pointed a thin wooden arm towards his head where, as he said, his own personal cloud was keeping the appropriate climate for him not to melt down. That only managed to increase the ridiculousness of the situation, causing the hysterical laughter of the prince to come out more ragged and desperate. Suddenly, the snowman looked past Jack and waved happily at someone behind the prince's back; again, so much for not wanted to be found.
Needless to say that with no sleep and his nerves fried, coming from behind Jack Frost in that moment wasn't the wisest idea. His hand tightened painfully around the staff, which started glowing a dangerous blue, and turned around pointing in a defensive position ready to deflect or attack at the subtlest movement, all signs of laughter gone. What he found, though, was a wide eyed Kristoff with his hands raised in a submissive gesture, showing that he had no weapons or intention to harm, sweating nervously while eyeing apprehensively at the glowing staff.
Jack lowered the staff, but the frown he had etched onto his features remained in a very unfriendly manner. "What do you want?" he practically spat, giving away that he was not in the mood to deal with stupidities.
"Nothing," Kristoff replied nervously, still eyeing the staff untrustingly, "I… was about to go to work," he continued, seeing as the prince didn't interrupt him, "And then I heard voices. I thought I'd check it out, that's all."
Not liking the feeling of being ignored, the little white snowman rounded the prince's legs and smiled goofily at the blonde man, who took a second too long to register his presence. "Hello Kristoff," the snowman greeted casually, as if it was the most normal thing that happened. Jack used every bit of willpower not to gape, for that wasn't his character.
"Olaf! You're back!" the man replied, his face breaking into a grin.
"Olaf…?" the prince asked, taken aback, "Wait, you can see it…?" At the use of that pronoun, Jack earned quite the nasty glare from both parties, forcing him to rephrase his statement; "Him?"
"Of course," the glares softened as Kristoff replied, "Why wouldn't we?" When the prince failed to reply coherently and stayed silent, the ice seller turned once more to the talking snowman who apparently was called Olaf. "How were your vacations?"
"They were awesome!" Olaf replied dreamily as he recounted his adventures, "I went to the beach." The prince just stared with wide, panicky eyes, not understanding the situation in the least. "I met this men like me, only made of sand. I think we might be related."
"Is summer everything you dreamed it would be?" Kristoff then asked, earning another big, big grin from the happy snowman.
"Even more!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. Summer…? Beach…? Talking snowman interacting with Kristoff…? What on Earth is going on? Then the focus of the conversation turned suddenly to him. "How is Anna? And Queen Elsa? Oh, and who's this not so smart guy who's gaping at us like a fish?"
At the mention of him, Jack closed his mouth, which turned down in a very unhappy grimace. "That's Jack Frost," Kristoff introduced, causing the prince to eye him wearily. Just what would he say about him? "He's a prince of sorts," he hesitated, mainly because he didn't know half the story, but Olaf didn't notice or didn't care, "And he's Queen Elsa's fiancé."
"Elsa is getting married!?" the snowman asked, confused and slightly hurt that he didn't find out sooner, or that they didn't tell him sooner, but just for a second because as soon as his snowy head processed that he turned towards the prince with narrowed eyes. "What makes you think you're worthy of her?" he asked, seriously, looking at the prince with an expectant look in his eyes, "Because, you should know, that she is a wonderful and sensible person loved by many." He pointed a wooden, accusatory finger at Jack, who wasn't exactly as intimidated as Olaf expected him to be, and he narrowed his tiny little black eyes at him as he took a couple of steps in his direction. "You have no idea what you'll have to deal with if you hurt her."
For some reason, the prince felt strangely touched by the loyalty of a being whose existence was logically impossible. And at the same time, his comment brought back everything he'd been worrying over for the past eight hours. The reminder showed on his face and Kristoff noticed it. "Olaf, maybe we should," he started, about to suggest another activity that didn't cause the prince to go berserk again, but he was caught off by none other than Jack himself.
"Nothing," he answered, not looking to either of them in the eye, not feeling strong enough to do so. "I am not worthy of her." There was a tense, extended moment of silence that anyone would've been able to cut with a knife. Jack feeling the harsh truth of his words, Kristoff torn in between bewilderment and pity for the poor guy, and Olaf downright confused. Then the prince spoke again. "That's why it will be my honor to marry her," then he looked up and smiled ruefully at the stunned pair, "I know she's…" marvelous, beautiful, caring, "A wonderful person, and I would willingly lay down my own life if it meant saving hers." Immediately, he turned on his heels and flew back towards his chambers to continue brooding a little more.
"I like him," Olaf then declared, "Where'd you find him?" He turned to Kristoff an inquisitive brow and an intriguing question. In truth, the blonde man had not the slightest idea.
"I'd say he found us," he replied instead, turning an equally inquisitive look at the snowman, who was frowning deep in thought. "What are you thinking about?"
Olaf made a humming noise, "What's wrong with him?" he continued with his thoughtful noises. "He seems kind of… sad," he then stated, savoring the word on his mouth as if it was foreign, distant and unpleasant.
"I have no clue," Kristoff said, "But I know what it is like to feel unworthy of the one you love."
"Then we have to help him," Olaf said, the dopey smile returning to his face, prompting Kristoff to raise a skeptical eyebrow.
"And how do you suggest we do that?" he asked, the skepticism filling his tone in quite the obvious way.
"Well," the talking snowman started, "The problem is that he doesn't know how to express his feelings, right?" Kristoff opened his mouth to tell Olaf that he really wasn't sure what the problem was, seeing as the prince refused any kind of exterior help from him, but the snowman continued oblivious to the man's discomfort and kept rambling on, "… So we just have to get Elsa and him together so that they can talk it out."
"I'm not sure that's such a good idea Olaf," he interrupted then, "We don't know if he's ready to do it or not. It's not right to put pressure on him, on them, like that."
The snowman turned a determined glace towards the ice seller, without losing the goofy smile for a second. "Just leave it to me."
As much as Jack suffered all night long, he wasn't the only one with trouble falling asleep. In fact, if anyone was more restless than he was, it was Queen Elsa herself. She was pacing all night, freezing her chambers in a moment of emotional unbalance, pacing again, lying down on the bed, moving around on it only to wound up on her feet again. She couldn't fall asleep, and she didn't dare go outside because in moments like this she was more prone to hurt somebody unintentionally with her powers.
Her mind was reeling, and that was an incredible understatement. Anna's words had had a greater impact than the unspoken revelation she'd had with Frost, and with reason. Elsa, falling in love with him? Really? No, it couldn't be possible, it was not conceivable for her to love that… jerk. She merely felt curiosity and a strong desire to help him because she felt they had gone through similar situations, that's all. Even if he had changed a little winy tiny bit, that wasn't enough to repay her for the damage done… or so she thought.
However, the more she thought about it, the worse she felt trying to deny it. It was as if seeing the sun in the sky she was trying to convince herself that it was night just because a couple of clouds were blocking it. It was ridiculously obvious, now even to her, and that was the thought the frightened her to no end. She had never dreamed that much about finding love, especially because she believed she'd forever be imprisoned in herself because of the powers she couldn't control, but the times she had allowed herself to daydream about it she had never imagined… this.
She never imagined that her parents had made a deal, she had never known that the prince of the Winter Court would come for her, then that he'd kidnapped her, trying to force her to marry him. It also would've never crossed her mind that he would end up falling in love with her in the process and that, inexplicably; the same would happen to her too. She didn't want to believe it was true, so she did a mental exercise that would hopefully help her deny with solid arguments her sister's statement.
And so, she laid in her bed, trying to calm her breathing and imagined a high risk situation in her mind. She played with many ideas and finally settled for the one that would bring tears to her eyes at the end of the exercise. She tried to imagine herself in mortal danger, how she'd deal with that. She tried to imagine Anna in mortal danger, and the mere thought of it brought the most fierce, protective side of her into play as well as painful pangs of acute pain that pierced her chest. But she'd already felt that once, she already knew what it was like to lose her sister. With that particular feeling of loss, she was already familiar, thanks to a certain prince of the Southern Isles. And all of that, so that finally she could imagine the same situation on Jack Frost, the man she could've swore a couple of hours before she did not love. Now she was not so sure of that fact.
Elsa imagined him in a barren plain, fighting against the shadows. Shadows that suddenly turned into the nightmarish shape of Pitch Black, the man who wanted her dead and that she'd had the misfortune of meeting before. The boogeyman was weak; no match for the prince, and Jack was winning. She felt suddenly relieved by that idea, but something was off. She was trying to prove… something, and this wasn't it, but still it made her feel… better. However, as she was watching all from afar, she realized that something darker and colder than she'd ever felt before was creeping out on his back. She tried to yell at him, to warn him, but she couldn't find her voice. She opened her mouth and closed it in a futile attempt of screaming at him, trying to get him to notice the danger. But he never did. Faster than she'd expected, the cold creeping up on him took up a tall, humanoid form that she couldn't recognize and it raised his hands above his head with a gleaming, dark sword that glistened dangerously against the contrast of the white plain. The strike was fast. She didn't even see it coming, much less Jack. With one swift, impossibly fast movement, the prince had been impaled, the expression of utter terror, distraught and shock very clear on his face as he looked down on the glistening point coming out of his chest. Pitch had a macabre smile. The queen's eyes filled with tears, and she heard very loud sobbing very close by before realizing she was the sobbing person. The icy figure with the sword then took it out from the prince's body, and he collapsed onto the white floor, staining the pure snow with the vicious red of blood tinted a little bluer because of his mixed parents. Then he stopped moving, and she felt her heart breaking. She didn't only feel it, she heard it, she saw it; in one instant, everything crumbled and her knees grew weak. Tears pooled at her eyes, just to flow out of them like rivers, and she heard strong sobbing only to realize that she was the sobbing person.
And then she heard her name.
"Elsa."
Being called by the one person she had just seen dead.
Her eyes snapped open.
Sometime during her experiment, that mental exercise she's obviously failed at, she had fallen asleep, and what at the beginning had been a very controlled imaginative illusion to gauge her reaction to such a tragedy turned into the most vivid nightmare she'd had in her life. The queen was panting, covered in cold sweat; she could feel the cold trail of her tears now frozen on her face as well as the mask of horror she was wearing. She felt anguished, and wanted to find the face which had the voice.
Her eyes found Jack's.
She didn't even register that Anna, Kristoff and some of the staff were with them in the room. She didn't even care. At that moment she just noticed the worried, wide, blue orbs staring back at her, the way his hands, bigger than hers, were gripping tightly her shoulders as they softly shook her. And then, much to everyone's surprise, Elsa lunged forward.
In a split second, her arms had snaked around the prince's neck and brought him down in a very tight, fierce, bone-crushing hug, as she openly sobbed on his shoulders. It took him a little while, but soon Jack had his arms also wrapped up tightly around the queen's torso, relishing in the feeling of her in his arms. She fitted so perfectly, her frame adjusting like a glove to his, and his embrace just tightened. However, she was still frightened, and haunted, and sobbing, and Jack couldn't afford to be selfish in that moment.
"Hush," he told her, in no more than a whisper, "It's all right now, you're safe."
Elsa kept sobbing, caring less about the audience by the minute, and finally Kristoff ushered everyone, including a very distraught, mortified, infuriated and a little jealous Anna, out of the room. As if she heard them leave, the queen then started speaking. "It was awful," she cried, clinging tighter to the tunic of the prince, before saying the two words that would freeze in an almost literal sense the blood in Jack's veins, "You died."
He tensed for a moment before starting to move his arm up and down the back of the queen, attempting to comfort her, and tightening his grip on her. "I'm not going anywhere," he declared then, "As long as you don't want me to."
And despite the whirlwind of emotion and confusion that had kept Elsa awake all night, his words actually comforted her. And she found herself believing him, trusting him. She found the answer she was looking for, she found the one feeling that could, and would, keep her rooted, mostly sane, and calm. She heard her sister's words and now they didn't seem so ridiculous or outrageous anymore. She let out a laugh of disbelief and relief, feeling the steady beating of the prince's heart near her ear, prompting him to break apart and look at her inquisitively with a raised eyebrow. Elsa just brushed it off with a shake of her head and reassured him with a small smile. She also did something she would've never dreamed of doing before: she placed a comforting, warm hand on Frost's cheek. His eyes almost bogged out of its sockets from the impression, and a comical bluish blush painted his face.
Perhaps Anna is mistaken after all, Elsa thought, perhaps I already fell.
To say Anna was furious was an understatement. She was fuming, throwing flames through her mouth and walking around with an ugly frown etched onto her beautiful features. In reality, she was just hurt, but it was way easier to be angry at the world, especially at Jack Frost, than to deal with her own feelings of rejection. She even refused to speak with Kirstoff after he was the one to drag her away from the scene in Elsa's room. The princess, in short, refused to speak with anyone. She was busy brooding in a small studio she used for paperwork when a knock on the door interrupted her musings. Hopefully, thinking it may be her sister, she asked, "Who is it?"
Instead of a reply, the door opened. Anna's eyes widened in surprise and on her face the frown was replaced with a big smile. "Hello Anna," a tiny snowman with a personal flurry said with a goofy smile as he entered the room.
"Olaf!" she exclaimed and ran to meet him, "You're back. When did you return?" the princess asked, lowering herself to the snowman's height so that she could look at him in the eye.
"Earlier," he answered nonchalantly before putting on his 'serious face,' which made him look as serious as a baby frowning, but Anna chose not to comment on that. "But now I need your help."
Thinking it might be another one of Olaf's silly adventures, she rolled her eyes slightly but answered nonetheless, "What is it this time?"
The snowman shrugged. "I'm just organizing a surprise," he replied, "For the engaged couple."
That was enough to erase the smile on Anna's face and to turn her mood sour once more. She stiffly stood up. "No one is organizing a party here," she declared stubbornly, letting her temper get the better of her, "Especially an engagement one. No one is going to marry here if I can help it."
That prompted Olaf to frown inquisitively at Anna. "Why not?" he asked, innocent as ever, "I think that a wedding is a really happy occasion and that Elsa deserves to be real happy."
Anna sighed deeply. "I know," she answered, "But I don't approve of her marriage with Frost, I don't think he will make her happy."
"Why not?" the snowman asked once more, prompting Anna to groan in annoyance, "I've seen him, and I think he just might be what Elsa needs."
"Yeah, right," the princess commented, and then she sighed, "I don't trust him. He came here out of nowhere with intentions of doing I-don't-know-what and when things started getting rough for him, his solution was to kidnap my sister." She looked away and stared intently at the carpet, which had suddenly turned very interesting, "I don't want him in our lives."
The snowman scratched his chin thoughtfully, making soft humming noises. "There's something else, isn't there?" he chipped in, surprising Anna out of her skulking, "I don't know how they met, but I can tell that he loves your sister very much. And maybe, Elsa loves him too. Isn't that what's really bothering you? That she might leave and you'll never see her again?" The princess didn't reply, didn't even look at him. It might be some part of that true; it just might be that in everything that had been happening lately, Anna felt casted out and excluded from everything. Much like she had been before, when she was a child. And the princess thought that was highly unfair. "Hey," Olaf called her, and she reluctantly turned to look at him. The snowman was staring at her with big, warm eyes, and Anna decided to listen. "It's okay, Elsa loves you," he told her, "She won't forget you just because she'll be married. Love can only multiply. Tell me, do you love your sister any less now that you have Kristoff?" Anna shook her head softly. "The same happens with her. Regardless of everything, you are still her sister."
The princess couldn't help a rueful smile. "Are you suggesting that I give him a chance?" she asked, looking away once more.
"Yes," the Olaf replied, his goofy smile once more in place, "Everyone deserves a chance."
Anna chuckled softly. "Just because you asked me, and you asked me nicely, I'll… try not to get in the way too much."
"That's something," he commented with a smile, "Now, would you help me?"
"I will," the princess declared, "Because you've helped me."
Jack was stunned. Not in the bad way, but instead in a sense that made him feel good. His ever swirling thoughts that had stolen his sleep away were finally quiet, and the resulting sensation of emptiness was mind-numbing. He had almost kissed the queen! After she finally calmed down, he brought his face down towards her in a stupidly childish and rash movement on his part, but he stopped when she put a soft, yet firm, hand on his chest to stop him. He pulled away and found it hard to keep the sting at bay, but when she smiled at him reassuringly, it vanished. He smiled back and stood up, making a big show of a very, very deep bow, before leaving the queen's chambers, as it was really improper for him to be there now… or at all, for that matter.
When found that he was alone, quite far from the opening to the queen's chambers which now had no door for obvious reasons, in the hallway, the prince whooped, jumped, bounced and the ceiling and walls. The prince's head flew all the way up to the clouds, and it still hadn't come back. Oh, was he numb! But numb in a pleasant way, like when someone cease to listen to a very loud noise for a very long time. He felt relaxed, lighter than ever, hopeful… something he believed he'd never feel again.
And thus, there he was, lying on his bed and remembering what happened with extraordinary clarity. He remembered her scent, the feel of her hair, her figure against his, where she seemed to fit perfectly, as if made just for him. Technically, and in a very ironic sense, she had been made for him, but it was in a totally different sense that he made the comparison. It was as if she was meant to be there, like, he could've not done anything and she would've still found her way to him, into his arms. Like fate. He replayed her words, her actions, and he couldn't seem to recover from the shock.
It had been a very long time since anyone had shown so much concern, so much worry and so much… emotion for his wellbeing. He believed that if he died, if anything happened to him, that she'd be relieved or that, in the very least, she'd feel free. Apparently, he had been wrong. It surprised him in a deep emotional level to see her so affected… she was that distraught because whatever she'd seen, resulted on his death. And it was wrong of him to feel… good about it, but a very deep, selfish part of him felt like that. Maybe his feelings weren't as unrequited as he thought; maybe he was needed after all.
Then a more unpleasant thought crossed his mind, and he remembered his own nightmare; of her dying, because of him. He remembered the frightful emotions at the mere thought of her hurting; he remembered how his blood ran stale at the sound of such a shrill scream.
The prince had been about to enter his chambers, really, he had one foot over the threshold, all the way on the other side of the palace, and yet he felt her scream as if it was his own, he felt the shift in her magic, and somehow, he wasn't sure how, or why, he heard all the pain and despair behind it. He panicked. He thought that maybe Pitch had found a way into the castle, into her room, and that he was harming her. An even more dreadful thought appeared when the Boogeyman's face changed for that of Winter in his mind. He didn't need to think twice; in fact, he stopped thinking at all. His feet moved on his own accord, his body reacted without his mind, he flew with almost supersonic speed and arrived at the door just as another anxious person also arrived.
"You're here?!" the redheaded princess asked in a high-pitched voice, powered by her disbelief. Had Jack hadn't been so worried he might have rolled his eyes.
"Apparently," he replied, exasperated at the princess. He didn't have time for this, not when Elsa was possibly in danger.
"Then who's inside?!" Anna asked then, for a moment forgetting it was Jack Frost she was speaking to and letting some of her own concern leak in her expression and in her voice, making the prince more nervous than he already was. And then Kristoff arrived, surprisingly (or not?) not followed by the tiny snowman that shouldn't even exist.
"What's happened?" he asked, and this time the prince did roll his eyes.
Jack made a beeline for the door, muttering under his breath, "I don't have time for this." He grabbed the knob and tried to turn it, but much to his surprise, outrage and worry, it was stuck and wouldn't bulge. It was cold, frozen most likely, which made his heart beat faster inside his ribcage. He tried again, and then he pushed with his shoulder. The door didn't bulge. He could hear a great storm raging inside that room, he could feel the temperature dropping and the wind shifting; he wasn't called the Prince of the Winter Court for nothing. Jack forced down his anxiousness and his own thought, which at the time were conspiring to betray him. He couldn't afford to lose his head; he needed to keep his cool (pun intended). Something really bad was happening behind that door, and he was the only one remotely prepared to fight that kind of foe. His urgency increased by the second, especially after he saw ice crawling from under the door. The door was freezing over.
The Elsa screamed again, stronger, an octave higher, and even more desperate than before, and Jack became frantic. It didn't help that he hadn't sleep and that his nerves were fried. "Step back," he said to the princess and her boyfriend as he took a couple of steps back himself. He pointed his staff, which at this point was glowing a very dangerous blue from his emotions, and with incredibly accurate precision he pointed to the doorknob and shot, blasting it and effectively forcing the lock open. And still the door remained closed. He eyed Kristoff from his rearview mirror and with a silent agreement both charged forward at the same time.
Working in synch, like a well-oiled machine, they gave a couple of strong thrusts against the door which finally broke inwards. The momentum dragged them inside the room through the broken door, which had ripped from its hinges, and Jack realized that a thick layer of transparent bluish ice had broken with it. Mainly, the wall keeping it shut. Much to their astonishment, the door wasn't the only thing frozen. The entire room was covered in ice, some parts thicker than others, and a blizzard kept freezing stuff. And in the center of it all, the queen laid on her bed, trashing around, sobbing and crying, the blizzard concentrating there. A quick look around the room made it clear that no one had attacked the queen, which only managed to slow Jack's heart rate a little bit; there was still danger, and it was that the queen might hurt herself or someone else. Her powers seemed to have gone berserk in a moment of emotional instability, and she needed to wake up to stop it.
Jack started to walk towards her. The wind kept pulling and pushing him, as if they sensed someone coming near the slumbering queen and wanted to protect her, because her powers on their own couldn't distinguish between friend or foe. However, the prince had endured much worse; he had learned the bad way not to force his power into a snow storm, because that usually enhanced it. Instead he had to move with it, behave like it, offering the least resistance and keeping his powers at bay until he could reach the nucleus of the blizzard and stop it there. Kristoff stayed behind, he couldn't see anything, let alone walk.
After what seemed to be eternal, the prince arrived next to her bed. She was trashing wildly, her face contorted in an expression of pure horror as she sobbed loudly, thick tears rolling down her cheeks and freezing there and on the pillow. Jack pursed his lips. Perhaps there wasn't anyone attacking the queen physically, but that didn't mean someone wasn't messing with her dreams.
She whimpered then, and Jack's heart stopped. Her horrified look intensified and his heart ached. Before she could keep suffering, the prince leaned down and grabbed her by the shoulders. She tried to move away, unconsciously, and his grip only got tighter. He propped her up a little bit and shook her, trying to wake her up, in spite of the tremors going all the way to his hands for an entirely different reason than the cold. "Elsa," he called, softly at first, trying to wake her up. She let out a small whimper, but otherwise didn't respond. "Elsa!" he repeated, more anxiously than before, his worry seeping into his tone, and the queen's eyes snapped open.
The blizzard froze and everything seemed to stop. For a few unending moments, the queen's eyes were unfocused and wide, her mouth opened in an interrupted sob. Her breathing was ragged, and even when awake, she still wasn't calming down. That worried the prince greatly. Then she focused on him and his eyes met hers. In a split second, he could see everything she was feeling; fear, horror, grief, disbelief, recognition, concern, relief. And then, to everyone's surprise and before anyone could react, Elsa lunged forward and locked Jack in an excruciatingly tight hug. There she sobbed, and he felt her clinging for dear life to him.
For a second he was too shocked to react, but after a couple of breaths he finally did what he longed to do for a very long time. He returned the hug, giving her a tight embrace, all the while whispering in her ear comforting things in an attempt to calm her down. Whatever she saw must have been awful, and he would do everything in his power to discover if Pitch had been behind it. You see, not every nightmare is a work of the boogeyman, and many times they are a fabrication of the mind caused by one's own fears. Determining which is which, that's the tricky part.
And then his thoughts stopped, frozen by her words, her voice thick with tears and emotion. "You died," she'd say, her tears increasing as they soaked his tunic. But he didn't mind. His mind was reeling, his system still heavy with adrenaline. It was in that moment that he realized that she'd hugged him not just because he was the first person she saw, but because she had been looking for him, concerned about him, crying for him.
That thought made him feel strangely giddy. He even ignored willingly the dead glares that Princess Anna was throwing his way as Kristoff practically dragged her out of the room to give them some privacy. He had held Elsa in his arms, and he was still in disbelief. He hoped it wouldn't be the last time he got to do it.
He was brought out from his reverie by a loud knock on his door, feeling as though he had been splashed with hot water as the illusion broke along with his concentration. Being snapped of the memory so suddenly, Jack got pissed a little. He looked out the window and he was surprised to find that the sun was already setting and that he had spent the entire afternoon in his head. The person on the other side of the door got impatient and, without waiting a reply, crashed into the room.
"Jack, my boy, what are you doing?" the boisterous voice of Nicholas St. North called and the prince sat up like that puppet which sprang the minute one opened the lid of the box. In front of him stood tall as a tower that very same man, his arms crossed across his chest, looking at him with a certain twinkle in his eyes that Jack didn't trust.
"You are still here?" he asked, clearly surprise that the large man hadn't left already. If not that, clearly surprise that he hadn't heard of him in days. A man that big, and with that head of his, wasn't sure to stay quiet for very long or sitting still at all.
"Of course!" Father Christmas answered, omitting the fact that he had been gone the past day and a half to supervise things in the workshop only to return only to find a very funny talking snowman who requested his help in organizing a surprise. Of course, being North, he couldn't refuse. He even dragged Toothiana too, who was also absent as she checked on her mini-selves back in the Tooth palace. "Seeing as you really aren't doing anything, Now I need your help. But first I need you to put on this protective suit, you know, as a precaution," he signaled to the neatly folded clothes on his hands that he ever so slightly pushed forward for emphasis.
The prince groaned and rolled his eyes. "Seriously?" he asked, raising an eyebrow, still in that strange good mood Elsa put him in, "You're experimenting? Here, of all places?"
The big man just shrugged; the smear of his beard and eyebrows so dissimulated that the inexperienced eye wouldn't even notice them. "You never know when it will come in handy, don't you think?"
"No," the prince retorted, only mildly annoyed and sending a mock glare the way of the man, "I think you should just focus on the present instead of crazy scenarios that might happen in the future."
"But you'll help anyway, won't you?" North asked him again with a grin that could've rivalled that of a mischievous child. Jack rolled his eyes again but stood up from the bed.
"I will," he said and took the clothes from North. They felt strangely soft for a protection suit, but he didn't comment on it. Instead, he went behind the screen to change into them. The first thing he noticed was that they were, indeed, way too soft to offer any protection.
There was a pair of silk, dark grey pants that fitted him just right. With them came a light, thin white chemise to go under a thicker, more like a coat than a shirt, midnight blue button up blouse. The silver buttons aligned in the middle and in the shoulders were two heavy silver pads with patterns that imitated frost from which beautiful, silver thread hung loose. On the cuffs of the button up blouse there was included what the prince always compared to shackles; fortunately, those could be taken off and that's exactly what he did. The one thing he kept was the silver button to close the sleeve, which didn't look half bad. Included on the package was a light blue belt and sash that the prince knew how to wear but that he rarely used because he wasn't too fond of the things. The last thing in the pile of clothing was a cape very similar to the one he owned but that left behind in the winter court in a very dark blue, darker than the shirt, with the inside done in velvety silver fabric.
Another thing the big, bulky man had omitted was that he actually raided the Winter Palace to get those clothes. Jack was no fool, he recognized them immediately, for those were his gala clothing; that which he only used in extremely weird cases of formal events that he seldom had, perhaps one every twenty years or something. He could tell, though, that those clothes were recently renewed and updated to the latest fashion. He raised an eyebrow at the attire but dressed just to play along. When he was over, he stepped sideways from the screen to become visible to North, who was very busy investigation the ornaments on the wall… or so he seemed. The prince cleared his throat and threw a very unamused look at the large man. In response, North shot him the most innocent look he had. If Jack hadn't known him so well, he might have believed him.
"North," the prince called with a very cold, annoyed tone, "This is not a protection suit."
The man in question raised his eyebrows as if he just noticed. "I suppose it's not," he answered, and Jack noticed with increasing annoyance how the mirth grew in his eyes. The prince didn't even bother to answer anymore, he just shot him a very pointed look. "Okay, maybe I didn't tell you the whole truth;" when Jack's look turned into a glare, the man raised his hands in a defensive, pacific gesture. "In my defense, you assumed I was experimenting, and I just didn't bother to correct the statement. Now let me finish," North cleared his throat, "I didn't need your help experimenting, but I do need your help and you do need to be dressed like that."
This prompted Jack to raise an eyebrow. "What's it for, a custom party?" he asked, lightly jesting, but hoping that he was wrong. The few occasions in which he had to actually wear the suit on business it never turned out well.
"You'll see," North replied with that same twinkle in his eyes that never delivered good news to the prince, "It's a surprise."
Jack gulped loudly, paling visibly and losing all jesting manner, even if he did keep his back straight and his demeanor composed. "You know very well I don't like surprises."
"This one," North winked, "You'll love." Then, without waiting or asking for permission, the big man yanked the prince by the arm and dragged him out of his room. Jack had, to say the least, very little room to resist. North weighted at least three times what he did, so he let himself be dragged to wherever the big man wanted and hoping he'd survive to see another day.
Elsa was in the dark in both, the literal sense and the figurative sense. In the literal sense, she had been thrust into her best ball gown by Toothiana herself, who had disappeared for an entire day and suddenly believed herself in the right to boss her around. In the clouds as the queen was, she had complied reluctantly just because the Tooth Fairy had promised it was a nice surprise. Now she regretted it; the queen was nervously playing with her fingers as she stood in a very dark, small chamber adjunct to the biggest ballroom they had, peering through the thick curtain that let on only a thin strip of light. Through it she could see many, many people reunited in their best clothes, and she was surprised to see that while most of them were from the noblest families in the kingdom, there were others who clearly weren't nobility or royalty, looking quite uncomfortable. It was more than obvious that somehow, someone had planned a ball, and now she was supposed to just… enjoy? She scowled darkly at no one in particular, as she thought of the scolding she'd give the Tooth Fairy as soon as she found her.
On the other hand, she was also in the dark in the figuratively because she had no idea who, how or when this many people had arrived. When a ball was planned, it was usually with big uproar and the preparations usually had the entire staff of the castle running crazy. She didn't miss though that the traditional decorations that usually hanged from the ceiling and upper floors were missing, and there were just enough flowers to make the ballroom look decent. She looked at the food on the table and realized that, even when it was a huge banquet, it still missed a lot of dishes that, had this been planned with time, would be there for sure. That made her think that this ball was hastily planned, but she suspected her little sister had had an intervention. Another thing she was in the dark about was the why. She couldn't even phantom the motive or the reason anyone would do this, especially when things were looking a little tense with the whole Boogeyman, Mother Earth and the war going on.
She heard soft steps behind her and she turned sharply, with a little gasp. There, in front of her, was the princess Anna looking like a kicked puppy from under her thick eyelashes. The queen noticed that, even if begrudgingly, Anna was also wearing one of her prettiest gowns and she had combed her hair beautifully. She took another shy step towards her, and before Elsa could say anything, her sister beat her to it. "I didn't plan any of this," she said, jumping out to her own defense, "But Kristoff was quite insistent, if you ask me, about the whole deal."
"Kristoff?" Elsa asked, taken aback, "Why would he plan this? And why would you do it, if you clearly don't want to be here?" She didn't mean to be rude or to make it sound like an accusation, but her nerves made her seem edgy and she saw Anna's hurtful face as she misunderstood the queen's tone.
"He didn't plan it all by himself," Anna answered, "But he made me promise I would keep it as a surprise and so I can't tell you. And I listened because…" she sighed and looked away, making Elsa feel a little guilty for the way she'd been treating her sister since she'd come back.
"I'm sorry Anna," she said, and a wide eyed princess snapped her head back to stare in disbelief at the face of the queen. "Since I've come back… it's been kind of tense between us, and I'm sorry to be the cause of it," Elsa took a few steps towards her sister and smiled warmly at her, despite the nerves, and put a hand on Anna's cheek, "I just want you to know that everything I do, I do it to protect you."
"I don't need protection," Anna stubbornly replied, even if her eyes were watery as a consequence of the heartfelt apology her sister gave her, "I want you to be happy. Tell me Elsa, will you be happy if you marry the prince?"
Elsa's hand froze where it was stroking Anna's cheek with her thumb and she retracted it slowly, never losing the eye contact both shared. Then, after taking a deep breath, she answered in a voice loud and clear. "I will Anna," was the queen's answer, "Now I know I will, regardless of everything else." She didn't get into details as to what everything else meant, as it would've implied telling her everything about the conflict with Mother Earth and Old Man Winter, and how she and Jack played an incredibly important part in all of it. Even now, as sure as she was that she'd be happy with Jack, she feared that her nightmare might come true, and that at the end of everything she'd lose him too. Still, she managed to smile at her sister, and Anna returned her a small watery smile of her own.
"If that's the case," the princess started, and she looked away ever so slightly before continuing, hesitating in what she was about to say, "The Tooth Fairy did say something like that, and that's why I agreed to help her."
Elsa's warning bells started to ring in her head. "Help her with what, Anna?" she asked, her nerves returning to her tone and making her voice sharper once again, "What is this that you planned?"
"Don't tell her," a commanding feminine voice told them from the entry to the small, black chamber, "Not yet anyway."
"Tooth," Elsa breathed a sigh of… relief? Or maybe annoyance? "Why so secretive? Why are there so many people here? Why did you plan a ball and, most importantly, why am I here?" It was no secret to anybody living in the palace that only the hosts waited in these small, crowded chambers until the page of someone made the announcement and they were allowed to step in. It would be to say the obvious if she blurted out that she'd have to go out and face those hundreds of people for a purpose she did not understand.
"I won't tell you either," she replied before the queen could even ask. "You forgot the most important part of your attire," hastily, the fairy put a necklace on her neck, which felt cold to the touch of her warmth skin, and pinned earrings on her ears. She flew back a little and stare at her appreciatively, as if she had just finished a masterpiece. "There, perfect. Not like I'll have to anyway; look, here he comes." The Tooth Fairy pointed to something, someone, behind Elsa and the queen couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"He's wha-…?" Elsa turned, and her jaw went slack. Dragged by a very jolly-looking St. Nicholas North, came none other than a very flustered Jack Frost as he tried to free his arm from the tight grip the bigger man had on him. The prince still hadn't seen her. She didn't know if she felt disappointed or grateful. He would see her any minute now. She had no idea what she'd do, how she'd react, how she'd behave. Especially after her completely inappropriate show of affection that afternoon; which she didn't regret, not at all. She actually wished to be embraced again, to feel that warmth, to smell that scent, but it was completely improper and un-lady-like, even if they were to be married soon. He was saying something to North, but Elsa couldn't hear the words. She kept staring at him and how he looked. He would look any moment now, and yet she couldn't tear her eyes apart. He's looking now, starting right at her, and she can't still look away. Her heart is beating wildly, her face feels hot, his eyes are wide and his mouth is open.
Finally, she can look away. The first thing she turns to look at is Tooth. Whatever she wanted to say, she forgot. And then, she blurted the first thing that came to mind. "This is a setup," she accused, frowning a little bit, trying really hard to avoid looking at the prince once more. "You planned this!"
Toothiana just smiled sheepishly while North laughed boisterously. "Not really child, but quite close," he then took two big strides and opened the curtain a tiny bit, pointing to something among the crows. "That little guy over there had the idea, and we just had to help him. You see, his intentions were very noble," the eyes of the big man were twinkling mischievously, as if he had just managed to make the greatest prank of all, which in a sense, he did. Elsa took a tiny step forward and narrowed her eyes as she looked for whatever it was that he was pointing towards, and then she saw it… him. The tiny snowman walking around the ballroom, looking at everything and everyone with awed appreciation; behind him was Kristoff, struggling to keep up the pace of the tiny snowman as he had to actually walk among the people, not under them, and it was funny to imagine that Anna's intended was acting as bodyguard.
"Olaf?" she asked, incredulous, "You mean to say that Olaf the tiny snowman managed to plan a ball under my nose and I didn't notice?"
"Don't worry, we made sure you wouldn't," Tooth chipped in, winking at her right afterwards.
"That's why you helped!" Elsa exclaimed, turning to Anna, as it dawned on her that the only one able to convince the princess to change her mind about anything would be the tiny snowman who loved warm hugs. The princess just looked away innocently as a small smile played on her lips, seemingly nonchalant. She turned then sharply to Frost. "Did you know anything about this?"
Of course he didn't, Elsa knew it. He was pale (well, paler) and his eyes were wide, but whether it was for her or for the situation, she wasn't sure. However, it was easier to ignore her fluttering stomach if she faked anger, and it had the desire effect of drawing the prince's attention towards her. He raised his hands in a defensive manner, seeing as North had finally let him go… well, not entirely. The big man was gripping the neck of the cape tightly in order to keep Jack in place. That was another funny scene to watch. "I'm as lost as you, I swear," he answered, and the big man released another laugh from the center of his belly.
"We'll leave you two lovebirds alone," he said and turned to leave. The minute he let go of the prince, Jack's eyes darted towards the exit of the tiny room, but North beat him to it. "Not that alone, we'll be outside guarding the door." He then put an enormous hand on the prince's thin shoulder. "It will be fine Jack, this a night for you to enjoy. It is your engagement party, after all!"
Toothiana and North were the first ones to leave, leaving Anna inside for another couple of seconds. She rushed to hug Elsa, who was still a little stiff and overwhelmed by the surprise they had organized. Engagement… party. That made it official. She was going to be married to Jack Frost… her stomach clenched with a weird new feeling that sent something warm all the way throughout her body.
"I really wish you all the happiness you deserve Elsa," Anna whispered in her ear, only loud enough for the both of them, making the moment private. "And I sure hope he knows how to deliver."
Before the queen could say anything else, Anna fled the room, leaving Jack and Elsa in a very awkward atmosphere inside the small room. She looked at him, and he looked at her. She felt herself flush under his gaze, but she couldn't look away. She took her time appreciating the prince's suit, which even in the dark, made him look incredibly formal and handsome. His hair was still sticking in odd angles, but Elsa found that strangely endearing. On his head things weren't much different. He stared at the queen as if he looked at her for the first time. She was wearing a beautiful gown, midnight blue all the way from her chest to her feet. She had thin sleeves, also midnight blue, but in a fabric that allowed skin to be seen. The whole dress shimmered as if it had diamonds incrusted in the design, and the combination made it look as if she was wearing the night sky on her. He felt in that moment extremely attracted to her, like a magnet, but he forced it all down. He had to behave like a gentleman.
Jack managed to tear his gaze from hers and he made a deep bow, smiling at her, forgetting that he was about to go on public in front of hundreds of strangers, for the only thing that mattered to him in that moment was her. "Milady," he said, his tone sultry and seductive, before rising up, "You look beautiful tonight."
Elsa blushed. She was as sure as her name that she was blushing madly, and she had to gulp from the sudden heat she felt. She made a small curtesy in his direction. "You look very handsome too," she complimented lamely, her brain being a pile of goo at that precise moment.
They didn't have time to say anything else, because the sound of trumpets coming from the ballroom interrupted them. They both went to the curtain to peer through it, their nerves returning tenfold. Elsa noticed the prince paling once more, and she put her shaky hand on top of his, trying to transmit some sort of reassurance she didn't feel. Jack smiled at her and turned his hand so he could hold hers. Her breath quickened and her heartbeat raced. She averted her gaze back towards the ballroom, deciding to ignore the butterflies that flew inside her stomach.
The page started speaking. "Her highness, Princess Elsa of Arendelle, and her intended, his highness, Prince Jack Frost of," the page paused, his eyes narrowed at the piece of parchment he held in his hands, as if wondering whether he had to say what was written there or not, "The Winter Court." The ballroom exploded in cheers and a loud applause. The pause had been so short, it had been almost imperceptible to those untrained, but for Jack it was painfully long. His body went stiff and rigid, and suddenly he wasn't prince and he wasn't in Arendelle, he was a kid and he was in the Winter Palace.
It was of those rare occasions in which Old Man Winter had organized some sort of party and invited more of his kind to the palace. By then, Jack had already been three years under the abusive care of his biological dad and he had no desire to attend the event, however, Winter had told him he needed to. The child, actually a teenager, of fourteen years old didn't dare to contradict his father. He dressed in his gala clothing, the one prepared especially for this occasion by Tooth, dreading and wishing the event would be over soon. The fact that the fairy had to leave didn't quench his nerves, as she was usually the reason Winter restrained himself even if slightly. He exited his room, silently going to the huge ballroom which was most of the time empty, and entered after taking a couple of deep breaths. Everyone turned to look at him, all the eyes turned as did all the heads and the prince felt suddenly too self-conscious. He knew his eyes were blue and brown, and his hair still had strakes of chocolate brown, a reminder that he was not like his father or anyone else in the room. He was a hybrid, expelled by those he considered family, mortals, as Winter called them, and rejected by those who couldn't die. He didn't fit anywhere; he was always the odd one out. He gulped and entered the room, aiming for a corner far from the main event where he could merge and disappear for as long as this event lasted.
Whispers erupted all around him, and he did his best to keep going with his head held high, ignoring them. He stopped in front of his father, the room seemed to hold its breath, and made a small bow of curtesy before resuming his way. The king of the Winter Court didn't even acknowledge him and Jack was on his way. Winter gave a loud clap and the soft music based on flutes and wind instruments resumed, as it had stopped when Jack entered, and idle conversations sprouted all around him. Those who had been dancing returned to it, and those who had been eating too. He never made it to the corner he wanted to though, but that didn't mean he wasn't cornered. The guests surrounded him like a wave, wanting to meet him, when in reality they just wanted to have a good time playing with him. They made him tons of senseless questions, and even more horrid comments, but there was one that struck a nerve and undid his controlled demeanor.
"He's a fine lad," someone male, because Jack couldn't say it was a man, who had the whole body covered in thick, brown fur and was the tallest of them all, was saying, "It's such a shame that his origins are as meek as those of a human. Filthy little things they are, completely unworthy of the world they've been given, believing they are the masters of everything they see."
Jack tensed. "What did you say?" he asked, throwing a cold glare at the being that had said such awful things about his family… no, about his mom.
The thing, whatever it was, smirked and showed very ugly, broken, yellow teeth in a cruel gesture. "Why, if it's nothing but the truth! Usually, it is us they step on and throw their dirt on us. If it weren't for that stupid law the council made, I would've made sure to eradicate every single one of them."
"It's not true," Jack defended, "You don't know them." He raised his voice, and now he was attracting the gaze of the other guests. The music played but now it was ignored by many, who were intent on listening what the lad would say next. Even the king himself had turned towards the conversation and stared at him with unconcealed indifference and mild amusement. It appeared to be saying, 'Let's see how you deal with this one.' Something was clear, Jack was all alone and no one there was going to step up to defend him.
"I don't need to," the prince's attention returned to the hairy beast, who by now had taken a couple of steps and stood in the center of a small circle the people made for them, "They destroy entire forests, pollute the waters, kill my kind. Why, they even threw you away! You, one of their own!" That stung; Jack's nostrils flared, his mouth twisted downwards, but he said nothing. "They wanted to get rid of you, and what did they do? They threw you upon us because they didn't know how to deal with their filthy mistake. I am willing to bet that the woman who bore you seduced our king with her devilish intentions, and when our king refused to do her bidding, and she realized you were useless, she threw you away too."
The beast couldn't say anything else, as that was the moment Jack lost it. The temperature in the room dropped, and that's saying something considering they were in the South Pole, and the winds roared. The windows broke with the strength of Jack's anger as it manifested into a blizzard. The guests were rooted on the spot, part of them in awe, but another part of them which would allow them to leave was frozen; when the temperature dropped, ice started to form, all commanded by Jack's anger. He trapped the feet of every guest in ice, without meaning to of course, but none of them could leave. The wind started to swirl wildly, spinning around the prince, who was in the center of it all. His body was completely stiff, his aura reeked of danger, and everyone noticed… even the hairy beast who dared to make him that angry.
"You can insult me everything you want," the prince said in a low voice, a rumble that strangely resonated in the whole chamber, "You can punch me, hit me, throw me against a wall, and I won't fight back." He started walking slowly but deliberately towards the beast, who now regarded him with wide fearful eyes, as a caged animal, "But, if you dare to insult my mother, then I will fight back. I will use all my strength and all my will to make you regret you ever opened your mouth." Jack then grabbed a small dagger he carried on his belt and raised it above his head, as if ready to strike, which in a sense, he was. "And that goes to all of you."
"Enough!" a loud voice roared in the ballroom and the storm stopped, commanded by the only one more powerful than Jack at that moment, Old Man Winter himself. His face was contorted in a furious mask, and Jack in his delirious grandeur of madness, dared to stare him in the eye with an equally angry face. Winter walked towards him with a firm stride, arriving in less than two seconds to tower before his bastard son. "You have done enough."
"I haven't even started," the prince replied, and before he could even blink, a hand slapped him with such strength that his feet left the ground and he was thrown back a good couple of meters. After that, the prince didn't remember much, seeing as he passed out. He never forgot tough, the punishment his father gave him afterwards.
A gentle shake brought him out of his memory so abruptly, that Jack gave a loud gasp. Startled, and in a completely unconscious manner, he tried to flee the scene, paralyzed by the loud applause that was urging him to expose himself in public before people that would never accept him.
"Jack," a soft voice called out to him, and his eyes found hers. Two pools of clear blue liquid that made him relax immediately, reminding him of where he was standing and who he was with. "You look pale, are you all right?"
The prince gulped and looked away. "I am," he answered, and gripped her hand tighter, "Although I'd be much better if we could skip this whole charade."
"We will," she said, looking at him softly and placing a hand on his sweaty cheek, "Let's just go there and greet some people." The prince tensed and she felt it. "I'll be with you the whole time," she told him, and he found himself wanting to believe her words, yearning for them to be true, "You are not alone."
A sob nearly escaped his mouth, the feeling threatened to overwhelm him. That's all he ever wanted, needed, to hear from someone really. The reassurance that he wasn't alone, that he'd find someone, and now he had; in the least expected place, he had found someone to cherish and who cherished him, and that single thought gave him strength to end that night. "Okay," he said, his voice a little shaky, his eyes meeting hers, "But not too many, all right?"
Elsa nodded and wrapped her hand around his tightly. "On the count of three," she said, turning to face the curtain. If they didn't hurry, people might start to wonder what happened to them. Already the applause was starting to die down.
"One," Jack added, grabbing her hand and putting it on the joint of his elbow, preparing themselves for the 'grand entrance' every guest expected.
"Two," Elsa continued, looking at him with a gentle smile that had the prince feeling all fuzzy and warm inside.
"Three," both of them said at the same time and stepped into the light, out of the little chamber. Immediately, the crowd once more exploded in cheers and applauses, while Jack and Elsa were momentarily blind at the sudden brightness that assaulted their senses. They were at the top of a set of stairs, and for a moment both of them were clueless on what to do next.
"Now what?" the prince asked, feeling a little panicky as the traumas of his past refused to leave him alone for even one night.
"Now we walk," she replied, and placed her other hand on top of his to transmit some comfort, "Don't worry, we'll do it together." And together they did it. She took the first hesitant step, pulling the prince with her, and soon enough it was easy for him to follow without her having to guide him. He was still nervous and jittery, but her hand on his served as a firm reminder that he wasn't alone. A little overwhelmed, and foolishly, he allowed himself to hope she'd stay with him forever, that he wouldn't have to be alone never again.
As soon as they reached the floor, music started playing. A mindless, idle chatter erupted around them and the prince had to breathe deeply a couple of times to push the memories away. This isn't the same, he told himself, This is different. A swarm of people surrounded them, people who were complete strangers to Jack, but that the queen seemed to know well. He had experience enough to be able to keep his professional façade, to smile and make small talk, to greet people and be formal. He was not new at this, at all, but every time he had to be in such kinds of events, something had happened that ruined everything. Elsa didn't seem to be nervous in the least, also an expert in faking something she didn't feel. He noticed because her hand was trembling slightly on his arms. Perhaps he wasn't the only one who had a bad experience with balls. He couldn't help but smile softly at the thought.
Finally, they were alone, and Jack brought them something to drink. The queen took it gladly and drank from the glass. "What were you laughing about?" she asked him, eying him with mock suspicion in her eyes, after she drank half the drink, "Back there."
Again, Jack couldn't help a small smile, but this time it looked slightly forced. Should I tell her, or should I not? "It's just that… I noticed you were trembling slightly," he confessed, deciding on telling her, "You were nervous, despite your composed exterior."
Elsa frowned, slightly offended at his comment, not understanding why that would be funny. "You weren't that calm yourself," she shot back, "It doesn't explain why you'd laugh about such a thing."
The prince laughed heartily. "First, I didn't laugh back there, I smiled," he raised his index finger pointedly, and right after he raised his middle one, leaving two raised fingers from his closed fist, "Second; I have a completely inoffensive explanation that will save my neck as to why I laughed."
The queen raised her chin defiantly, challenging. "Oh, you do?" she asked, "Then tell me."
The prince eyed the people around them, all of them seemingly minding their own business, but Jack knew better. Everyone was always listening, despite them acting as if they didn't. She took the cup from the queen's hand, and wrapped his hands around hers, prompting her to blush prettily against her will; he could get use to this Elsa that was being introduced to him. He dragged her hand to his elbow and led her away towards an empty balcony, away from the noise, and the people. He stopped at the rail, but he didn't let go of her hand. The queen waited.
"I'm sorry I dragged you away," he started, "But I am not that comfortable with people." He gulped. "As you probably know, I'm much older than I look. But once, I was young. And once, I was forced to attend to these… events against my will, under orders of Winter."
"You could have refused," Elsa pipped in, remembering how even when her parents insistence was heavy on her to attend to some events, she refused so vehemently that sometimes they couldn't help but let her miss them. She didn't miss the way his eyes shadowed with some memory that was causing him pain, so she squeezed lightly the place where her hand connected with his arms, relying some comfort. It worked to bring him back to reality, and he smiled at her even when his eyes were pools of misery. She'd seen a lot of emotions in those blue orbs, but never with such intensity. Suddenly, she felt really hot rage coming in waves towards Old Man Winter; why did he think he had the right to ruin someone's life?
"Usually, the punishment was worse than the event, so it wasn't that much of a choice," he commented, "Anyway, I'm… I'm not used to being around people, so I was really nervous about the outcome of this night. So far it's being endurable," he gave her a pointed look, "Mostly because I'm not alone, in more than one sense."
The intensity of his gaze made a tight knot in Elsa's stomach, and suddenly her palms felt sweaty. "What do you mean?" she asked, looking away. He had other ideas though, and he grabbed her chin softly, turning her head so that she could look at him straight in the eye. Precisely the kind of contact she'd been avoiding.
"You haven't had nice experiences around people, have you?" It wasn't a question, and Elsa knew that she wouldn't be able to lie and get away with it. He knew. And for some reason, that terrified her. She wasn't supposed to be vulnerable, she wasn't supposed to reveal her feelings, she was supposed to be strong and endure everything. And yet, under his gaze, she found her will crumbling, especially when he was looking at her so sweetly. "That's why you were nervous too," he continued, seeing as she stayed silent, "And that's why I smiled."
Elsa frowned, still unable to look away. "I don't understand," she said breathlessly, in no more than a whisper.
The prince smiled at her, with such kindness, that Elsa had a hard time believing he was the same guy who had burst into her palace that first night of Anna's birthday ball. "You and I aren't that different after all," he explained, "We have something in common, besides the time we've been together, we have a similar past. We are not alone, for we have each other now."
Elsa's eyes pooled slightly, and she looked away, trying to guard whatever was left of her dignity. She couldn't refuse what he said, because she knew it was true, and what was even worse, he told her the worse she'd been longing to hear for most of her life. Ever since that incident in which she hurt her little sister by playing silly games in the same ballroom where now a party was being hosted, and later by freezing her heart, even when she'd had been surrounded by people, even when her parents supported her as much as they could and even when Anna forgave her, the fact was that she was still different. People still talked, and there were still wolves lurking in the dark, and Elsa had always feared being the only one. Being completely isolated by the differences that made her special, trapped in a bubble no one could penetrate even if they tried, but even when they wanted to understand her, there was a part of them that never could. And it never could because no one was like her. No one had ever been like her. No one but Jack Frost, and he understood her loneliness in a way no one had because he'd been on the same place as her.
For a moment, they didn't say a word. The feelings pooling in the throat of Elsa and which threatened to break her voice stopped her from replying to him, but even if she wanted to, she couldn't express in words how she felt right then and there. It was just too overwhelming. The prince noticed, and he also saw the glistening in the queen's eyes, and he felt immediately guilty. So he decided to try and do something he hadn't done in a long, long, long time: have fun.
They were standing very close to each other, in a certain type of embrace very intimate that only shared those who cared very much about one another. Jack took the queen's hand from the crook of his elbow, as well as the other hand which was resting on the railing, and took two steps back. Elsa looked up at him with a startled look on her face. The confusion in her eyes prompted the prince to laugh merrily as he took one step forward, and the queen now raised an eyebrow and looked at him as if he had gone mad. Perhaps he had. Jack placed her left hand on his shoulder blade and changed the position of his left hand so that he had his fingers wrapped around her hand. Then, he grabbed her by the waist firmly and pulled her towards him. She blushed the minute she understood what was happening, and with her eyes wide, she tried to step back but the prince didn't let her. Jack's grin only widened.
"I don't dance," she told him, her voice a pitch higher from her anxiousness, a sudden rush of old memories and fears coming to the surface of her mind, the ball of feeling in her throat constricting just a little tighter. Outside, her panic was reflected as the floor covered with frost and tiny snowflakes started swirling around her, around them. Jack laughed again, this time with pure joy.
The prince took a step forward, this time taking the queen with her, starting a dance that wasn't exactly following the music that came from inside the palace. Stiffly, the Elsa had no choice but to take a step back. "Aren't you forgetting something, milady?" Jack asked, a mischievous smile playing on the corners of his lips.
"Oh, and what would that be?" The queen asked with a pout, considering that even when she did know the theory of dancing, she didn't dance. She didn't like it and never had… perhaps before she had wanted to try it, but that was a very long time ago. However, his next words were enough to freeze every thought that crossed her mind, and that proved she wasn't as unreadable as she thought.
He laughed again, "You can't freeze me."
Jack made another couple of steps and proceeded to twirl her. She was still meditating over his words, following without really thinking, when finally she understood. It became clear as water. She'd been afraid, a lot, about freezing her partner in a dance, so she never danced. But his answer was so simple, and so obvious, and yet so incredibly wonderful, that before she knew it her laugh resonated in the small terrace. The prince smiled at her, clearly relieved, as they kept on dancing oblivious to the world. A step forward, sidestep, a step backwards, another sidestep, a twirl… And suddenly, the couple matched the pace of the music coming from inside the ballroom, but they could have cared less. Jack was looking at her as he guided the dance, and she stared at him back as she followed his lead. Her face was lit in a beautiful way, unseen to everyone before that very moment, and the love in his eyes could have never be put into words. Then he added some steps, more twirls, the dance becoming more complex as the music progressed.
Surprisingly, Elsa was enjoying herself, more than ever before. It was the kind of selfish joy that came when she did something she loved, not the kind of joy that came of watching others being happy. She decided she liked, she decided she wanted more of it. Suddenly, the prince twirled her away from him, holding her hand with the tips of his fingers, before rolling her back into his arms. With the momentum she had, he lifted her off the ground and spin her. The queen, although surprised, let out a delighted laugh.
The music stopped and so did they. Jack lowered Elsa softly back to the ground, and they just stood there, chest to chest, face to face, nose to nose. Panting slightly, cheeks flushed, sudden desire erupted inside of them. The queen smiled. "Who knew the Prince of the Winter Court could dance, eh?" she asked, a little disbelief seeping into her tone.
The prince snorted, mockingly offended, "Please, I'm a prince after all. I did have to learn about the pastimes of the court, thank you very much." Elsa replied with a laugh, prompting the smile on Jack's face to widen. "And just so you know, I have many other skills you know nothing about."
Elsa laughed harder and raised an eyebrow. "Really?" she asked, mocking him playfully, "And which would they be?" Jack's eyes turned dark with something Elsa had never seen before, and her stomach contracted as a sudden heat overcame her. The prince didn't bother with a reply. In one swift movement, he dipped his head and touched his lips softly to hers, muffling the surprised exclamation that came from them. Taking advantage of the opening caused by the exclamation, the prince deepened the kiss. Elsa didn't know what hit her, and she melted into the new sensations invading her body from head to toe. Her eyes closed, and she tried to accommodate her lips to his and hope she wasn't doing too poorly. It was, after all, her first kiss.
Jack Frost had just stolen her first kiss.
How was it? Did you love it, did you hate it? I must say, I'm really surprised that even after two and half months after my last updates, you kept finding it and adding it to your favorites, to your list of follows, and even leaving reviews. I thought I was all but forgotten to you, and I realized that as long as you waited for me, that I just couldn't stop writing. So thank you very much for all the support you've given me throughout all this time, and I'm really sorry about my timing.
To those who don't want to read the explanation, you can skip from this place on.
I'll try to make it as short as possible though. As you might, or might not, know, I moved to Israel this year. At this point in my life, I'd like to stay, but I'm not sure what I'll do tomorrow or what will be my final choice. Anyway, I came here five months ago, leaving my parents at home, practically alone. I've had to face many changes that on the moment they occurred they took their toll on me and I couldn't focus on my writing. I've just reached some sort of stability, and I resumed my writing, but I'm studying and working and sometimes my schedules just don't give me enough time to sit down and write because I want to rest (which means pretty much do nothing for a little while.) Today I decided to practically force myself to sit and finish this chapter, because I felt I kept you waiting long enough. And I'll have to keep on doing that. Don't worry, I won't give up on this story, but I can't promise I'll upload every week or such because I don't know. This journey is also a life changing experience, in which I keep discovering myself, doing, undoing, learning, unlearning, stuff about my life that take most of my free time and thoughts. Emotionally, it's hard; also psychologically, but I am trying my hardest and doing my best. I can just ask of you to be patient with me, because this is not something I want to rush. I'll keep trying my best, and I hope you keep on supporting me and the story.
We'll reach the end together, and that's a promise I intend to keep.
Thank you very much,
Sincerely,
ClearEyes