Note: Hey everyone! I'm sorry for taking such a long hiatus. I hope you're all doing okay! Thank you so much for the very sweet reviews... I hope you like this chapter (even if it's short), and the next one will be along soon! Love you guys, truly
Chapter 20: Stepping on Ice
The following day, Elsa was gone before Jack got out of bed. He learned from his mother that she'd gone out with Emma after his sister had begged her to help her build a snowman.
Jack hid a smile as he sat down to eat his breakfast, his father still finishing his and his mother reading a book by the fire.
He began to serve himself food, ignoring the pointed looks his parents were exchanging.
Finally, he sat back.
"What?," he asked resignedly. He crossed his arms, waiting, knowing what was to come.
"Nothing," said his mother, pretending to go back to her book. "You've just never brought a girl home before."
"That's not true. Rapunzel and Merida-"
"We mean real girls," said his dad. Jack rolled his eyes.
"Merida and Rapunzel will be so flattered, Dad," he muttered.
"I mean, a girl you like."
"I like Merida and Rapunzel just fine."
His dad rolled his eyes, sitting back and crossing his arms, a perfect imitation of Jack's posture. There was a silence as they stared each other down.
"She's very pretty," said his mum, breaking the silence.
"Yes, she is," Jack agreed, trying very hard to ignore the heat that was flooding his cheeks.
"She's smart too. Doesn't shy away from helping with the farm," added his dad.
"Now you're making me think you want her as your assistant or something."
Jack's dad chuckled, uncrossing his arms and resting his hands on the table.
"I didn't imagine her like that in your letters."
"What did you imagine her as?"
"I don't know," his dad admitted. "Louder."
Jack scoffed. If his dad had been witness to Elsa's yelling at him yesterday, he would have been convinced of how loud she could be.
"Trust me, she can be very loud."
"Well, with a boy like you, I suppose she would have to."
Jack restrained from giving his father a vulgar gesture, but something told him his dad knew exactly what was crossing his mind, from the amused gleam in his own eyes.
"I like her," said her mother firmly, approaching them and taking a few empty plates in her arms.
"Thank you Mum," said Jack, relieved. His dad got on his feet, helping his wife to clean away the table. He winked at his son before entering the kitchen.
"I like her too," he added, and Jack couldn't help the grin that bloomed on his face.
…
It had been so long since Elsa had gone ice-skating.
She skidded on the hard ice with Emma, who had led her to this remote spot in the woods. Emma clapped as Elsa flawlessly executed a pirouette, raising her leg as she landed on the ice. She'd checked beforehand, of course, that the ice would be solid enough to hold their weight.
"Could you teach me?," Emma asked eagerly as Elsa skated effortlessly to her side. She smiled down at the brown-haired girl, taking her hand.
"Before I teach you how to pirouette, you should probably learn how to skate properly."
Indeed, Emma was a clumsy skater: she didn't quite dare to execute the broad motions required to skate gracefully and struggled to keep her balance at the worst of times. Elsa took Emma's hand, pulling her to a spot where the ice was particularly thick and Emma had no chance of falling through. She let go of Emma's hand, ignoring her small protest, and turned to face her.
"Stand straight," Elsa said, mimicking what her trainer had said to her countless times. "Or you'll lose your balance."
Emma nodded, pulling herself to her full height.
"Now one of the most important things about skating," Elsa started, "Is what you do with your arms. They can be the key to keeping your balance."
Emma looked down at her arms, spread along her sides for now. Elsa demonstrated, skating smoothly around her.
"Don't be scared to do wider gestures with your feet," Elsa continued, skating backwards, facing Emma who was trying to move forwards. "You'll have more chance of falling by suffering little by little on your skates. This way, you don't have time to slip, see?"
Emma seemed to gain confidence as time wore on: when they'd been skating for an hour, she could smoothly glide across the ice with limited arm-waving and struggle to keep her balance.
"That's really good," said Elsa, and Emma beamed with pride.
"What are you doing?"
Elsa turned and saw Jack at the edge of the lake. His mouth was pressed into a thin line, and he was frowning angrily as he looked at them.
"Skating," she said, but she noticed Emma had gone very tense.
"Emma," Jack said, "You're not allowed to be here. Go home."
"But-"
"Now, Emma."
His little sister sighed resignedly and skated to the edge of the lake, where she and Elsa had left her shoes. In silence, she untied the knots of the pink skates at her feet and put her shoes on. With a last dirty look in Jack's direction, she stood up and turned around towards the farm.
Elsa saw that Jack was shaking.
"Elsa, please, get off the ice."
Elsa stifled the flare of indignation that she'd felt at his words, but something in his eyes made her skate to the edge of the lake. She didn't step onto the snow.
"It's dangerous here," Jack said quietly.
"I know what I'm doing," Elsa answered, rather annoyed that he didn't think she'd be able to keep his sister safe. "It's not my first time on ice."
"Step off the ice."
This time, her eyebrows flicked up at his tone.
"Jack, the ice is thick enough-"
But he didn't let her finish. He grabbed her arm, pulling her in a sudden motion from the ice- she stumbled into him, tripped over the metal lame, and they both fell into the snow with a crash.
"What the hell-" she started, her teeth ringing from the fall. It hadn't hurt, the snow had broken her fall, but she'd still hit her head on Jack's shoulder. He was under her, had oriented himself to break her fall. She shoved him painfully as she stood up.
"Why did you take Emma here?," he asked. Elsa couldn't see what the big deal was about.
"Because she asked me, prick, and your mother said it was okay."
"It most definitely is not okay," he retorted, an angry blush spreading across his cheeks as he stood up to face her. "That was irresponsible of you, putting her in danger like that-"
She bristled.
"I didn't put her in danger," she snapped, "I made sure that we were on thick ice and I was right next to her the whole time-"
"And what would you have done if the ice had cracked? If she was in danger of falling through?"
"I know what to do in that situation, but the ice wouldn't have cracked because I made sure it was completely solid-"
"It COULD have-"
"Don't you trust me with your sister?," she whispered. She was already not judged trustworthy enough to be with Anna- and what Jack was implying was hurting her to the core. But Jack's anger didn't soften.
"Not if you're going to teach her dangerous activities, not sparing a single thought for the danger you and her are in-"
"We were SKATING," she snapped, "Not sword fighting."
"Same difference," he snarled. "You were just thinking about having fun without any regard to the consequences-"
"Bit rich, coming from you," she muttered.
"YOU COULD HAVE FALLEN THROUGH, SHE COULD HAVE FALLEN THROUGH, AND THEN WHAT WOULD YOU HAVE DONE-"
"I WOULD HAVE GONE IN AFTER HER, YOU STUPID, SELFISH, IDIOTIC, JERK!"
"AND YOU WOULD HAVE DIED- I'M THE SELFISH ONE?"
She kicked her skates off, angrily pulling on her boots before answering.
"You're the cruel one, at least."
And she stormed away, not checking to see if he was following her.
…
They didn't speak for the rest of the day. In fact, Elsa was doing her very best to stay out of his way, as though scared to meet his eyes. They didn't sit next to each other at lunch, Elsa sitting next to Emma. Jack had watched as they'd animatedly talked about how pretty a brown pony was, and making plans to go and see it later.
Elsa had spent the whole of the afternoon helping his mother clear snow out of their garden, and setting out nets to protect the different plants from animals or heavy snow. By dinner, Jack was pretty remorseful over what had happened at the lake. He kept playing the scene over and over in his head, the awful row, the words they'd said-
He knew he'd overreacted. But something about seeing Emma, and Elsa, skating on that lake had done something to him- his brain hadn't been aware of what he'd been saying. Furious worry and anxiety had overridden his common sense.
He'd spent the afternoon attending to the horses, trying very hard not to think about the way Elsa had avoided his gaze at lunch.
When Jack trudged back up to the main house, a delicious smell awaited him. His stomach gave a loud grumble as he entered the kitchen. He reached for one of the multiple delicious-looking cakes that looked fresh out of the ocean, laid out on a green tray. But before his fingers could touch them, a wooden spoon came flying across the room and smacked him square in the back of his palm.
"Ouch- what was that for?," he asked his mother indignantly. She had her wand drawn, standing on the other side of the kitchen, before the oven. He hadn't seen her as he'd come in.
"You are not touching that until dinner," she snapped. "Elsa and Emma have put a good deal of effort in those cakes."
Jack swallowed a smile as he thought of Elsa, arms covered in flour, spending a good deal of the afternoon preparing cakes. He'd forgotten, until this moment, that it was Christmas Eve.
"Where is Elsa?," he asked, trying to sound casual. But his mother shot him a knowing look, answering that she'd gone to take a shower.
Jack nodded briefly and left the room, ignoring his mother's curious glances. He mounted the stairs and, sure enough, he could hear the sound of rushing water coming from the bathroom. He entered the guest bedroom where Elsa was staying, and slumped down onto the impeccably made bed, crossing his hands behind his head and looking up at the ceiling, trying very hard to ignore the nervous lurches of his stomach as he waited for her.
He still hadn't figured out what he was going to say as she walked in, closing the door. She'd changed into black jeans and a sweater that Jack recognised as his own. He'd lent it to her yesterday. He ignored the satisfaction of seeing her wear his clothes as he sat up. She hadn't spotted him yet, drying her hair with a towel as she concentrated on her reflection in the mirror.
"Hey," he said. She jumped, whipping around. Her blond hair was still wet, strands of it sticking to her face, flushed from the hot water.
"Hi," she answered quietly, as though scared he was going to start yelling at her again. He felt a new wave of remorse wash over him.
"Listen-" he stopped, not knowing what he was going to say. Then:
"I'm sorry."
They'd said it at the same time, the words floating over them for a second. Jack grinned sheepishly, and she tentatively smiled back, sitting on the end of the bed. Still a considerable length away from him, but he'd take it. Progress.
"I shouldn't have reacted like that-"
She shook her head, her hair glistening in the light of the sunset coming in through the window.
"I shouldn't have taken her anywhere without you. I understand why you thought your sister wasn't safe with me-"
"You weren't the problem. The lake was."
She blinked at him, frowning, incomprehension plain on her face.
"That was the lake Emma and I were skating on when I…"
Understanding dawned on her face, and she clapped her hands to her mouth.
"Oh, Jack, I'm sorry- I should've known- I didn't even think-"
He waved vaguely, brushing her apologies aside.
"It's nothing. I shouldn't have shouted. I just want you to know that I do trust you with my sister."
She slowly let her hand drop from her face, and reached out, taking his. A memory floated behind his vision, of a night when she'd done the same thing, by the lake at Hogwarts. How far they'd come since then. He would have never thought, on Halloween, that Elsa would be in his parents' home this Christmas.
"Let's take a walk," she said simply, "We have time before dinner."
…
They'd walked in comfortable silence in fifteen minutes, hands tightly wrapped together, their feet taking them naturally towards the woods. Elsa still felt guilty- she should have known that skating on a lake with his sister would trigger some kind of reaction from Jack.
He'd admitted to her, on Halloween, that he still couldn't take baths, couldn't bear being immersed in water.
"I'm glad you're here," he said softly. She could see his breath come out as if it were a mist in the cold. It was the first words he'd said to her since she left the house. She didn't answer, squeezing his hand.
She'd ignored the feelings of sadness all day. She was happy to be here, with Jack. But the thought that she was spending Christmas away from her family, especially Anna… she'd briefly forgotten about it while she'd been skating with Emma. But missing her sister had plagued her all afternoon, and she'd spent every free moment to wonder what Anna was doing right now, what she was doing for Christmas, if she was thinking of her.
They finally stopped on the edge of the frozen lake they'd shouted at each other that morning. The scenery was beautiful: dusk had fallen, and the moon and stars were reflected on the water's icy surface. They sat down on a log of wood nearby after Jack cleared it of snow.
She thought back to the day before, and how they'd argued then too. It was the same argument they had every time- Jack telling her he was sick of not knowing anything about her. Not that she could blame him. She tried to imagine how she would feel if Jack hid everything about his life from her. She'd probably feel like he was ashamed of her.
"Anna would like you," she said suddenly. "My sister, I mean."
She felt- more than she saw- him tense beside her. He leant backwards, his spine resting on the tree trunk behind him. She dared a glance at him. He was looking at her intently, his blue eyes searching her face. His white hair was ruffled as if he'd just gotten down from his broomstick. The thought made the corners of her mouth tuck upwards.
"You must really miss her," he said carefully.
She nodded.
"Don't get me wrong," she said, looking back at him, mustering a weak smile. "I love being here with you. Your family has been so kind to me and you- you've been-"
He grabbed her hand, giving it a squeeze and her words trailed off into silence. 'You don't have to justify yourself.'
She smiled softly at him. His hair was precisely the same shade of white as the immaculate snow around them. She loved his hair. She loved everything about him, really.
She told him about Anna, in the quiet wintery wood, no sound around them but the occasional sound of an animal making its way through the snow. She told him everything about her beautiful red-haired sister. And when she started crying, Jack held her close to him and made her feel safe, and wanted, and loved.
…
The following morning, Christmas Eve, Elsa had been shaken awake in the early hours by Emma, who'd practically begged her to help with building a snowman. And a snowball fight.
Which was their current occupation.
Elsa fell face-first into the snow, the cold slicing her hands unforgivably. She laughed, rolling into the white powder, soaking her coat and trousers. Emma ran to her, offering her a hand to pull her up.
"Sorry," she said sweetly, "I wasn't trying to knock you over."
Elsa waved her apology away but checked if Emma still had a snowball in her hand. Mercifully, she seemed to have forgone them. The snowman they'd spent the morning building gleamed in the winter sun. They'd found sticks for its nose and arms, and bits of wood for its eyes and mouth. Emma had given it her red scarf and Elsa had donated her snowcap, relying on her blond loose hair to protect her ears from the cold.
Emma, as was Jack, was the spitting image of her father- the same chestnut eyes and long, straight, brown hair. She was a cutie, and would surely be radiant in a couple of years. Right now, she was quite a comical sight, ears sticking out from her snowcap, strands of wet brown hair sticking to red-tinged cheeks.
"I see you two have been busy."
They turned around, and Jack was there.
"I see you spent the morning in bed," said Elsa. Around his throat was a blue scarf that matched perfectly with his eyes.
"What can I say? All that fighting yesterday was exhausting."
His eyes flashed, and Elsa had to look away.
Actually, after coming back from the woods, and after eating with Jack's family, Jack and Elsa had stayed up until the early whispers of the morning, whispering by the fireplace, laughing quietly, her head on his lap as he'd caressed her hair lazily. They'd finally gone to bed in their separate rooms when the sun had gone up, exhausted, but content.
"So what have you two been doing?," he asked, quite unnecessarily as he spotted the snowman.
"His name's Olaf," explained Emma. Elsa winced. When Emma had asked how they should call the snowman, Elsa had blurted that name almost instinctively. It was strange hearing it here, so far from home and Anna nowhere in sight.
Missing her sister hit her like a blow, and she tore her eyes away from the snowman. Jack had come closer, and he took both of her hands in his pulling away at arm's length to take her in.
"Did you dive into a pond of some kind?," he asked, laughing.
"No, smartass," she said, dropping one of his hands and flicking his nose, "Your sister threw a snowball in my face, and I fell."
Jack gaped mockingly, turning to Emma.
"No she didn't," he said. Emma giggled, stumbling back a step. Jack shook his head. "Now Emma you know what I have to do to people who hurt Elsa, right?"
He launched into a run, and Emma squealed trying to get away from her brother- but too late. He'd reached her, and wrapping his arms around her waist he lifted her up into his arms before falling back onto the snow, tickling and holding her firmly against him as she struggled to get away, screaming and kicking, out of breath from laughing. Elsa burst out laughing as she watched the two of them roll in the snow, limbs flailing.
Finally, Jack let go of Emma, who scrambled away from him. Jack laid on his back in the snow, breathing heavily as he chuckled, looking up at the sky. His hair seemed to be at one with the snow. Elsa approached him and offered a hand, which he took, and she tried to pull him up-
But Jack yanked on her arm, pulling her down. A breathless scream escaped her as she fell on him. He laughed, letting her go. She hit him playfully in the chest, getting up again, him following suit.
"EMMA!," Martha called from far away. Emma at once ran towards the house.
Elsa watched as Jack rubbed his neck awkwardly. She knew him well enough by now that she asked:
"What is it?"
"My parents are leaving."
"What do you mean?"
"My grandmother's sick. She's been sick for a while."
Elsa said nothing, letting him continue. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. Her heart squeezed at the sadness in the gesture.
"It's getting worse so… my father and mother have decided that they're going to go see her. To take care of her and- make- arrangements-" his voice cracked on the last word and Elsa moved at the sound, walking to him and cupping his face. His eyes were filled with unshed tears as he met her gaze.
"Jack, say the word, and I'll write a letter to Rapunzel and ask if I can stay with her. It's no problem- you and your family should be together in this time-"
He shook his head before she could finish, and her hands dropped to his shoulders.
"Someone has to stay to take care of the animals," he said. "I'm staying. Emma will be going with Mum and Dad-"
Understanding dawned.
"Oh," she said simply. He blinked, visibly swallowing back his tears.
"You can go to Rapunzel's place if you want- I know I promised you a happy Christmas with my family-"
She shook her head, smiling gently.
"I'm not leaving you," she said and kissed his cheek softly. He took her hand and squeezed it in thanks.
"When are they leaving?"
"This afternoon," he said, turning his head to the house. "We should probably go and say goodbye."