Authosr's Note: As promised, here it is, next chapter.
She was staring out the window, leaning over the wall to have a better view of the full moon shinning down on her. She couldn't sleep, she was just thinking everything over. At dinner she hadn't been much fun either, she was pondering as what to do, everything was so confusing and so wrong. She needed to find a way back home, she didn't belonged here and never would, her time and place were others.
Just before she disappeared, Kristoff had approached her, asking that if he ever asked for her blessing for marriage to take her sister's hand, if she would give it to him. Her answer had been yes. She trusted him and hoped dearly that he was taking good care of her sister in her absence. He never actually got to pop the question, at least not that she knew of, but again, she might had missed that and so much more, she really didn't knew how long it had been, it felt like ages, but magic could do bizarre things.
Resting her forehead against the cool glass she saw the woods, they weren't too far away and they seemed so tempting, she just needed to get away from everything, from everyone around her. Deciding to do it, she grabbed a piece of paper from Regina's office and wrote with the fountain pen a small message saying "I went for a walk", she didn't wanted to be followed or stopped, so she placed the black rectangle above the paper as a clear signal that she didn't wanted to be found, if she was coming back it was going to be by her own will.
Tiptoeing out the house she walked in the desert streets getting to the side of the road where forest started and civilization ended, that was her scenery. Taking confident steps into the forest, she removed the gloves and shoved them in her pocket. She allowed the magic to flow from her fingerprints, the ticklish feeling was still there it felt alright, it soothed her. She allowed the snowflakes to sprint out of her palms.
She finally got to the top of the hill, the image all too familiar, getting rid of the gloves, going to a high peak, it was all in her memories.
Once there she looked down to the lights in the town, luckily the moon shinned brightly making it easy for her to watch her step. After a moment, she caught herself breathing unevenly, maybe it had been the hike or maybe she felt upset, either one, she just ignored it.
Resting her weight against the firm tree she looked up seeing a star "As childish as this might sound, I need a favor" she told the sparkling light "I have a wish, same as always, actually. You know it all to well for me to keep repeating after all this time, but please, take good care of Anna" she looked down pressing her fist "And pappa… I…I miss you very much" she mocked at herself " Is hard to believe I'm still talking to you this way, but if Anna could talk to the pictures in the wall, I only had the stars in the sky to do so and…" sighted "I just want to know why. Why me? Why did all this magic was given to me? It would had been easier if I weren't the first born, because that way Anna could had taken the throne and the people wouldn't had to be ruled by…the Snow Queen" she said bitterly "She must be ruling right now, anyways, now that I'm not there…and I bet she is doing a wonderful job…" she looked up "Do they need me? Would they really miss me? For all I know Anna is a grown up, a very immature one, but she is a natural leader, she could handle…maybe is best now that I am out of the picture. She will marry Kristoff and surely have wonderful kids and…she will finally be happy" she smiled sadly "Is for the best" she exhaled pushing herself away from the tree turning around just to be faced by two big yellow eyes.
Startled she retrieved stumbling with a root falling backwards hitting herself rather hard falling into the muddy snow with a thud sound.
The wolf came closer inspecting her as Elsa tried to stand backing away "Stay back" she raised her hand defensibly as the beast took a step closer frightening the pale girl making her freeze everything around her growing ice spikes surrounding her to protect herself, hurting the wolf out of fear.
The animal backed away with low howling licking at one of its paws. Elsa's heart was thumping in her ears, but the fear was being washed away as the wolf now looked her directly in the eye tilting its head to a side with a welcoming face, one she could only recognize in another person.
"Ruby?" she asked confused as the wolf lowered its head like nodding.
Elsa was in awe as the ice around her thawed "Sorry, my sister had a bad experience with wolves, you frightened me" she moved closed to her reaching her arm towards uneasy until the wolf came closer allowing her to be pet.
Elsa smiled exhaling relieved as the wolf came close standing next to her. The young queen had no idea to what to do next, so she just sat there in the company of the lycanthropy looking at the valley and all those lights and the big bright moon, somehow it brought ease for both of them.
It was a comfortable silence as Ruby posed as a sphinx gazing at the responsible of her transformation with the crickets singing in the background.
Elsa exhaled and without realizing started petting the creature, they lasted this way for long until, Elsa's thoughts break thru "At times I wonder how life could had been if things were different" she said absently "If you could change a single little event then how would the rest be?" she exhaled "But there is not such a thing, even with all the magic in the world, you can't start everything over, can you?"
The wolf cuddled next to her huffing "I just wish to go back. Back to when nothing was this complicated…" closed her eyes "I can't face my demons, they are too strong, they had been hunting me down for a long time now. Even when there were people willing to help me, I pushed them away, I shut them out… I think I finally touched bottom, which is fine, it wouldn't be the first time, however it feels like no matter what I do, I will always seem to lose the ones I love" she looked to her hands "I was trapped in solitude 13 years because of my powers, always tormented because I knew what I was" she exhaled" I wish I could get rid of this curse and be normal, be someone…"
The sun started rising thru the horizon washing over the valley with its first rays. The wolf sited next to her, swiftly transformed into the young woman she had met in the woods.
Elsa was impressed by the shift, but said nothing; it had been easier to speak to her while in her wolf form, now she felt self conscious about her confessions.
"I understand…" said Ruby looking forward "my curse is genetic; I was born with it, it was impossible for me not to be a werewolf. Unlike you, I lived 13 years without knowing who I was, that was keeping me in the dark and trapped in a sort of way. Well, until I finally… ate my boyfriend and figured that the beast that killed all those men at full moon nights was me… so knowing sometimes is a blessing, you know?"
Elsa breathed out thinking about what she just had said. After a few minutes of silence Elsa glared at her "So you knew I was the one creating this winter, why didn't you attacked me? Or…why don't you take me to justice now?"
"You have committed no crime" reassured Ruby "Its part of you, as the wolf is part of me. And if was your secret to keep" she cleared her throat "How did you knew I was the wolf?"
"Henry told me, he showed me a storybook"
"So he did" she said not amused
"How did you recognize me?" was Elsa's turn to interrogate.
"Your scent I guess" although she didn't understand, she made no further effort to ask. "Listen, Belle told me about your meeting…"Elsa exhaled not wanting to hear more about it. "Hey, Belle is my friend; at least hear her out, please. She is a good person…"
"I never doubted about her, is the Dark One the individual I don't trust"
"I'm not fond of him either, but Belle has been able to get the good part out of him, and even though I don't trust him entirely either, I trust her enough to know she is doing the right thing" she smiled at the other girl "So, just try, please? I am going to take my chances here and trust you"
Elsa smiled tenderly "Thank you"
"And about the part of you not being strong enough to face your demons…"
"I'm not"
"You are. If you are strong enough to be with a monster that turns at full moon nights and not be afraid…"
"You are not a monster, you are not a threat" said evenly Elsa
"Neither are you" corresponded lightly Red "We have faced enough" she looked at her eyes "Sometimes is not worth it. Sometimes what we go thru is not worth all the pain and suffer, but it's what defines us. Good times and laughs can bring happy thought, but it's the moments when we take tough decisions and make sacrifices for others, the ones that truly make us the persons we are. The way we react or choose how to confront those challenges is what defines us"
Elsa smiled genuinely nodding in agreement "That's the first thing that had made any sense since I arrived here, thank you"
"You are welcome" she held both hands together on her lap.
"Your wrist" said Elsa alarmed taking her right hand looking at a scar that had been bleeding because of her ice spikes.
"Don't worry, I'm a wolf, only thing that can really hurt me is silver, I will be heal by today's afternoon. Besides I'm left handed it won't bother me at all" She stood up "I have to go to the dinner and get started, you need to go home and prepared, Belle will be waiting for you at eight"
"You are probably right" she stood up dusting herself "I see you in a few hours, then" she grabbed the gloves from her back pocket sliding them on, luckily they hadn't got muddy.
"Hey" she grabbed her shoulders forcing her to face her now calm green eyes "walk tall, don't look down, you are in control of the curse, not the other way around, believe me, I know that much"
"Is…curious, you seem to be the only person I have met that understands how this feels"
"You wear the gloves to keep you in check; I wear the hood I was named after" she smiled "We are more alike than you think" she let go of her shoulders "If you ever need to talk again, I'll be happy to, I have a pretty good hearing"
"I appreciate it, but you don't have to do that"
"It's what friends do" she said looking at the somewhat sad eyes of the other girl "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, but…you would be the first friend I ever had that wasn't my sister…"
Red looked empathically to her and out of impulse she hugged her...
