Remembering, the Snow Queen's step-mother's words, Gerda tried to focus on what was true and right and good. When she had finally mustered the courage, she started to walk, with her head held high, to the palace. It was a few minutes walk, but it felt like a few hours. When she got to the grand entrance, she timidly walked through. She went through a hall, and then there was a room. And in the room was Kay.
Gerda's breath caught in her throat. She could not get to him fast enough. She ran to him and wrapped her arms around.
"Oh, Kay, Kay!" But he was so cold, so far away.
He stared at her with cold, black eyes, almost as if he didn't see her.
"Kay, Kay, don't you remember me? I'm Gerda, I know I've grown up much, and so have you," she said glancing at him, realizing for the first time that he was not a boy anymore. He was taller than herself, a handsome man.
"Leave me," Kay finally said. "I am happy here," he said the words, almost as if rehearsed.
Gerda bit back her tears, but when he turned away from her, to the cold icy walls, she could not keep them in any longer. She cried hard and unashamedly. She could not take it anymore. She ran to him once again and hugged him once again.
It mattered not that they were older, and propriety was against it. She held him tightly and pressed her face into his chest, not caring that he did not return the embrace. Her hot tears melted the ice of the looking glass in his heart. He pushed her away. Gerda braced herself for him to be angry, but instead he looked as though for the first.
"Gerda?" he said. "How—how did you find me here? Well, it doesn't matter now, we can go home!" he cried slightly, and the looking glass in his eye came out, like it had never been there at all.
Gerda smiled, came up and kissed him. He turned rather red in the face, but smiled as well. Then he got a distressed look on his face.
"Gerda," he said, "I can't leave. The Snow Queen, she said that I can only leave when I draw her a picture of eternity. But eternity doesn't look like anything. She's not here right now, but I daresay we wouldn't get out without meeting her. She will return very soon. You must go without me."
"I won't leave you here Kay. You have no idea of the troubles I went through to find you and how far I traveled from home. We will draw a picture of eternity together, and then we will leave this place."
"But how?"
Gerda bent down on the ground and drew a long line, for the endlessness of eternity. But she could not make it go on forever, she had to stop. She bit her lip.
Kay came down next to her. He started at one end of her line and drew it up to the other end. "There," he said, "it is an endless circle of life."
Gerda smiled. They stood up and started to leave. But at the entrance, they met the Snow Queen, who was just coming in.
Gerda shivered just looking at her. She had a very striking appearance. She was tall and her black hair was in such contrast to her white skin, it had to catch one's attention.
The Snow Queen did not get angry or rage, she simply said, "Where are you going?"
Kay stepped up. "We've drawn you a picture, of eternity, so we are leaving now."
She raised a dark brow. "Show me."
They went back into the palace and showed her their circle.
The Snow Queen laughed slightly, upon seeing. "You think it's that simple, do you? A circle to represent eternity? Well, for one who is living it, that is certainly not what it looks like. You cannot leave," she said adamantly.
Gerda stood, not knowing what to do.
"We can and we will," she heard Kay say. He was standing up straight and he looked very brave.
The Snow Queen frowned. "No," she said icily. It was just one word, but it held such a threat as to make one very uneasy.
Kay grabbed Gerda's hand and started to march out the passageway.
A wall of ice fell down in front of it.
"I command the snow and the ice. Do not think you can escape me," said the Snow Queen.
Gerda still stood, just staring at the Snow Queen, trying to understand her. There was something in those sapphire eyes, something that seemed not so evil, as just plain sad.
"Come with us," Gerda said quietly.
The Snow Queen whirled. "What?"
"I said come with us," Gerda said in a louder voice.
The Snow Queen pursed her lips. "I cannot."
"Why? I met your step-mother on my way here. She said that you had reason to hate her, and she was sorry for what she had done to you. She said you did not deserve your fate. So what is it?"
"You want to hear my story?" the Snow Queen said slowly.
Gerda nodded.
The Snow Queen got a far away look in her eyes. She was remembering days long ago, times gone past. "I fell in love at a young age," she started. "He was perfect. Brave, handsome, noble, and he loved me. He said he'd do anything for me. We got married when I was sixteen. I was due to have a child when I was seventeen."
She looked at Kay. "That was why I brought you here. You reminded me of my husband, of how I pictured out son would be." Then she turned back to the story. "I was beautiful. I did not dwell on the fact, but I was. My step-mother," her voice grew shaky, "she was jealous. She was obsessed with beauty and jealous. Jealous of me. So she plotted against my life. She murdered me."
She looked up at Gerda and Kay's confused faces. "I know, I am alive now, but I was considered dead, for a time. The fairies, they took pity on me. They hated to see my young life so destroyed. So they told me that I could live again, could see my husband again, if I would agree to be the Snow Queen. I agreed of course, eager to be with my husband. But more time had passed in faeryland than I realized. My husband had long since died, my son, of course could not still be alive when I was "dead" for so long. But I could not take back my promise. I had to be the Snow Queen. And with that came an eternity of this," she waved her hand at the snow and ice. "An eternity of ice, an eternity of cold, an eternity of being alone! And I hate it," she finished quietly.
Gerda cried, not for her own sake, but for the Snow Queen's. "So you have to stay here?" she asked, looking around at the cold palace.
The Snow Queen nodded.
"I'm sorry," Gerda said quietly. "I suppose—I suppose we could both stay here. And keep you company."
The Snow Queen looked up, surprised. "You would do that, for me? Sacrifice your lives, like that, for me?"
Gerda nodded and looked at Kay. He took the hint and nodded as well.
The Snow Queen smiled slightly and Gerda thought that she looked far less cold than before.
"I—I thank you," the Snow Queen finally said. "But I cannot accept. However, your willingness to make that sort of a sacrifice for me has shown me how good both of you truly are. You both may go. Leave me, and get on with your own lives. I alone made the promise, and alone will stay here."
Kay nodded and started to walk through the door.
"Alright," Gerda said quietly. "But try to take join in what you do. You bring happiness to thousands of children with your sparkling snows. Smile when they smile, be joyful when they're joyful."
The Snow Queen gave a sad looking smile. "I will—try," she said, looking rather unsure.
Gerda ran to her and gave her a hug.
The Snow Queen was surprised, but awkwardly patted Gerda's back.
"You will do it," Gerda whispered.
When they broke the embrace, the Snow Queen looked much nicer and happier than before, than Kay had ever seen her, in all the years he lived there.
Kay and Gerda walked in silence for a long while, each consumed in their own thoughts of the Snow Queen. When they were out of range of her palace, a boy, who looked to be about ten or so, ran up to them.
"Gerda, Gerda, you did it!"
Gerda looked at him in surprise. She was quite sure she had never seen the boy before. But when she looked in his eyes, he had the eyes of the reindeer who had carried her there.
He laughed. "Yes, I'm the reindeer. I had a spell on me; I could only return to a human whenever I had helped another human who was pure of heart. That was you. You broke the spell."
"Oh! Well, I'm quite happy for you."
They walked with the boy for a while, but then had to leave him, for they were going to warmer lands. When they were walking along the beach, they saw a boy and girl walking there also. Upon getting closer, Gerda realized that it was Pedro, and the girl was undoubtedly the mermaid girl he fell in love with, only now she was a human.
"Pedro!"
"Gerda! So you found your friend, then. I am happy for you. And you ought to be happy for me as well. This is my wife, Oceanna. Yes, she was the mermaid. We had a hard time of getting together, but now here we are, happy as can be."
Oceanna gave Gerda a shy smile.
"I am most happy for you, Pedro!" Gerda said. "But now we must continue on our way."
Kay and Gerda sailed over the sea, and crossed many lands, but at last they came to their home. The roses were blooming, pretty as they ever had been. And Kay's grandmother was there. She'd grown very old while they were away.
"Kay? Gerda? Is that you?"
"Yes, Grandmother, it is," Kay said. "Both of us. We're back now."
"Ah, I suppose you're wedding day will be soon now."
Kay and Gerda both turned bright red.
The old lady laughed. "You mean you haven't even proposed to her yet?" she sighed and shook her head. "Well, Gerda, when he does, will you accept him?"
Gerda blushed a deep red and said nothing, keeping her eyes on her shoes.
Kay brought his hand to her face and lifted up her chin.
"Well, Gerda, will you? Marry me?"
Gerda smiled. "Yes, Kay, I will."
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Disclaimer: I don't own Snow White, or Beauty and the Beast.
Well, there tis. It's finished now. It's not really my best work, but hopefully everyone who read it enjoyed. Leave me a review!