I uh... had way too much fun writing this today. I needed it after my awful weekend.

Beware the Frozen Heart
Chapter 9: Zara

"Oh! How about when you nearly fell off the sleigh right after getting on? Like the second after you got on it the first time? Or maybe when you were in my lap when we were on Blue? Or when I threw you on Charlie's back? Or when you were riding on Echo? Or probably when..."

"Enough!" Zach snapped loudly, throwing up his arms. "I get it!'

Owen let out another laugh as he fell in step with the young King. They were walking for a while, shaking the soreness from their muscles. The reindeers trailed behind them. "Seriously. Why did you bring it in the first place?" Owen asked. "You shoulda left it at home."

"I didn't think, alright?" Zach said defensively, crossing his arms and pouting slightly. "I didn't think about anything other than finding my aunt and fixing my family and my Kingdom."

Owen glanced over at him sideways. Then he smiled and nodded his head. It was a good answer. They continued up the mountain for a bit in silence. Owen figured he'd teased the King enough. And maybe the young man had enough to think about already. But it had been so easy and oddly fun to tease him. Owen was actually enjoying himself.

Echo broke from her sisters and darted around in front of them. She started practically bouncing along as the trees around them started to change. They weren't completely surrounded by the evergreens anymore. Willows with full branches, hanging to the ground. They were frozen, it looked like, in the middle of a storm. Water had frozen to the hanging boughs like sparkling stars. Echo started weaving through them, delighted in the soft noises her movements made. Charlie quickly joined her. Blue nudged Owen's shoulder and he smiled and nodded his head. Soon, all four of the sisters were prancing about under the hanging trees.

Zach slowed as he looked around at the trees. He reached out and ran his hand through them. He sucked in a breath and shook his head. It was breathtaking, the way the early morning sun was hitting everything and lighting it up.

"What?" Owen stopped beside him.

"I never knew winter could be..." Zach looked at Owen. "So beautiful."

Owen smiled and nodded his head. "Yeah, beautiful."

Zach felt his face redden again. He looked away quickly.

"It really is beautiful, isn't it?" Said a strange, soft voice. Owen and Zach both stopped. The voice was coming from ahead. "So white!" The voice continued. They stepped towards it slowly. But neither were really prepared for what they saw when they walked out of the grove of trees. It looked like a snowman. One very much like Zach and Claire used to make when he was younger.

"I do like white." The thing said. "Don't get me wrong. Lilies and lace and doves and pearls and... uh..." It paused and turned slightly. "Snow..." It let out a giggle and nodded it's head. "Snow is great. And ice!" It walked under the tree and touched a few of the hanging branches.

Before either of them could react, Delta shot forward. She lowered her head and rammed her horns right through the talking snow. The head was stuck on her antlers. Delta lifted her head and shook, trying to dislodge it.

"Hey!" The talking snowhead said. "Help!"

Owen shook his head. "Delta!" He snapped. "Hold still!" Delta stopped shaking her head and lowered her antlers. Owen grabbed the impaled head and pulled it off.

The head smiled at him. "Thanks!"

Owen dropped it. And Delta turned and tried to kick it. "Delta!" Owen snapped again and smacked the reindeer on the rump. "Stop it!" She let out a grunt and pranced back to her sisters. Echo tried to step forward and Blue stopped her.

Zach bent down, staring at it. Then he gently picked it up and stepped towards the collapsed body. He set the head down and quickly rolled the snow back together.

"Ah!" The thing said, once it was back together. "Thank you!"

Zach smiled. "You're welcome."

"Now I'm perfect!" It said.

Zach tilted his head. "Almost. Just missing something." He lifted his cape and rummaged around in his pocket. He pulled out a carrot. "Here."

The snowthing's eyes lit up and it grabbed the carrot. "A nose!" It put the carrot between it's eyes and laughed. "Now I have a nose! I've always wanted a nose!"

Zach smiled at the odd thing. Owen stepped closer and bent down. The reindeers followed and soon they were all crowded in close.

"Alright." The snow said. "Let's start this thing over." It lifted it's stick arm and waved. "Hi everyone. I'm Zara and I like warm hugs and paperwork!"

Zach's eyes slowly widened. "Zara?" He repeated the name. "Zara!"

Owen blinked and looked at Zach. "You know this thing?"

"She." Zach corrected.

"It's a girl?" Owen asked.

Zara nodded her head. "Yes, I'm a girl. What are you?"

"I... uh..." Owen tilted his head. "Wait a minute... this is weird. How are you alive?"

Zara shook her head. "I don't know."

"So..." Zach started and Zara turned towards him. "You're just... out here? Walking around?"

Zara nodded her head. "Yeah, why?"

Owen reached forward and grabbed one of Zara's stick arms. It popped right off in his hands. He held it up, looking at it. "How does this thing work?" He bent it in half and when he let it go, it sprang back up.

Zara spun around. "Stop it!" She grabbed her arm back and smacked Owen with it. Then she stuck it in her side and waved both arms at him. "It's just rude to take someone's arm!"

Owen held up his hands and leaned back. "I'm sorry!"

She stared at him a moment, her eyes narrowed into a glare. Then she smiled. "You are forgiven!"

"Zara..." Zach said the name softly. He was with Owen on the weird thing. Because this was really weird. But it wasn't exactly the weirdest thing to happen in the last 24 hours.

She turned towards him, her eyes wide. "Yes, your majesty?"

"Uh... Zach please." He correct.

"No!" She shook her head. "I'm Zara."

Zach tilted his head. "No... I meant my name is Zach. Call me Zach. Just... Zach."

She nodded and dug her stick arm into her snow side. She pulled out a small notebook and pen. She flipped the book open and started scribbling.

Owen's mouth dropped open. "What is that?"

"My notebook." Zara said.

Owen still looked confused. "What?"

"I need to take notes." Zara said, still scribbling.

"Why?"

"I'm an assistant." She said. "It's my job."

Zach nodded. "Yeah, it's her job, O."

Zara nodded and jotted some more notes down.

Owen looked over at Zach. "This makes sense to you?"

Zach shrugged. "Not exactly."

"Quiet, O!" Zara snapped. "Just Zach was going to say something!"

Zach blinked. "I was?"

She nodded. "You said my name."

"Oh..." Zach nodded. "Uh... did Claire make you?"

Zara's eyes widened and she quickly shoved her pen and notebook back inside her hip area.

Owen's mouth dropped open again. "Where does it go? How does it not get wet? Does the ink on the paper run? Does the ink in the pen freeze?"

"O!" Zara snapped again, looking back at him. "No!" She turned to Zach. "I love Claire!" She said in a wistful voice.

Zach smiled.

"I really love her." Zara repeated, stressing the word really.

Zach's smile faltered. "You do?"

Zara nodded again.

"Love?" He repeated.

Zara smiled and nodded her head. "Yep."

Owen stood up, shaking his head. "I'm guessing you don't have much experience with love."

Zara shook her head. "Nope! But sometimes I like to close my eyes." She closed her eyes. "And imagine what it'd be like when she finally returns my love..."

Owen shook his head. "Zara, I don't think...

Zara ignored his words and threw up her arms. "Biiiiiirds will sing!" She sung out loudly. "Bells will twitter and ring! And I'll do whatever one does, when in looooove!" She spun around, smiling. "We'll dance and spin, she'll hold my snow against her burning skin..." She wrapped her stick arms around herself as she twirled. "And we'll make you so jealous of our love!"

Owen stepped closer to Zach. "This is creepy, right?" He whispered. Zach nodded.

Zara continued on singing. "I'll finally get to feel her lips, so soft and sweet on mine! And find out what happens when our bodies align!"

Zach's mouth dropped open.

"And I can't wait, to see..." Zara started skipping in a circle. "What she'll think of me, when we lay and she strips me bare, with loooooove!"

Zach wrinkled his nose. "Gross."

Echo started bouncing along behind Zara as the snowgirl continued singing. "We're hot and cold and both so intense! Being together just makes great sense! We'll finish under the blankets and cuddle... and she'll hold me so close and I'll be... a happy snowgirl!"

"That doesn't rhyme." Zach whispered.

Owen smiled and shook his head. "Yeah. That's the problem here."

Zara turned and waved at Echo. "When life's hard, I like to hold onto my dream, that one day I'll hold her and listen to her scream..."

"Zara!" Zach snapped. "This is based off a kid's movie!"

"Her lips will be so blue..." She turned and looked at Owen, Zach, and the reindeers. "And you guys will be there, too!"

The whole group shook their heads in unison.

Zara spun around, her arms up. "When I finally get to feel my wonderful Claire... loooooove meeeee!"

"We have to tell her." Owen said.

Zach shook his head. "Don't you dare!"

Owen threw up his hands. "She doesn't have parts for any of that!"

Zach grabbed Owen's arm and turned him away. "She knows where Claire is." Zach hissed. "Just... don't hurt her feelings or upset her until after we find my aunt."

Owen sighed and shook his head. "Fine. But she's riding on Echo. Far away. Her singing's liable to cause an avalanche."

Zach rolled his eyes. "She's not that bad..."

"She's singing about having sex with your aunt!"

Zach covered his ears quickly. "Don't say that!"

Owen pointed at Zara. "The snow thing said it!"

"Zara!" Zach turned away and stepped towards the still dancing pile of snow. "Do you know where Claire is?"

She stopped and nodded her head. "Yes! I was on my way there now."

"Good." Zach said with a smile. "Can you take us there?"

She nodded her head again. "Yes!" She jumped up and clapped her stick hands together. "Right now! Let's go!"

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Author's Notes: 8D FUN!