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chapter two – enamel
Summary: "Among other things, you'll find that you're not the first one who was ever confused and fright
ened and even sickened by human behavior." [Jack Frost and Elsa. Jelsa. AU.]
Prompt: The quote above, as in the one in the summary is from The Catcher in the Rye. The initial prompt is the fact that um, we live in a society that's clearly damaged but, I wanted something more. See, there's this manga based on the Pokemon games called Pokemon Special and/or Adventures. The arc for BW2 is really interesting and if you have any knowledge of it whatsoever, then you'll understand what I mean.
A/N: It's chapter two and here's hoping for a longer chapter :) As long as there are reviews, little or one, feedbacks through follows and favorites, I will continue to update. Please spread the word and increase motivation! :) I'll be numbering references across the fanfiction, and then I'll put the meaning behind them below on the a/n :)
Disclaimer: Don't own anything at all :)
The surface is the society above crime and corruption – the normal people, with normal lives, living amongst strangers who could potentially endanger the world they belonged to. It is something fragile, weak and vulnerable. This society of ordinary people needs to be protected by noble men who are willing to sacrifice their innocence to become the thin line that barred the surface from the underworld.
However, The Guardians is not an organization who strive for peace, or protection of other people. Rather, they are the government's pawns – the bodyguards of those with the power and money – with the job to ensure that crime is kept under control and no blood spilled below, ever taint those who live above. The Guardians are no more than a protective covering – the enamel(1) of the surface world.
Society must be seen as perfect and pure, and all the darkness has to be hidden away by chipped and colored paint. It is said that those who work for The Guardians are no less criminals than those they oppose. Except, the government has granted them access to information, and the right to commit murder.
"Why do you work for such horrid people?"
Jack remembers the day he asked Rapunzel out. Wasting no time in cliché confessions and long speeches, he tells her of his situation. About all the lives he's saved, and those he killed. The adventures to so many places, and the people he's met that he had to deceive. He even goes as far as admitting to his selfish and flawed emotions which glowed with lust rather than genuine affections for her.
She did not reject him, nor did she accept his feelings. But they somehow ended up walking to class together more often, holding hands and sharing quick kisses along the hallways. The only people that ever referred to them as boyfriend and girlfriend are those jealous whores that spread gossip for attention.
But it was no secret that Rapunzel and Jack shared something; a relationship that couldn't be defined by words, but by how he treated her, and in the way she looked at him.
Still, he left her questions about his other life unanswered. And she never once did force him to tell her anything she didn't need to know – because she respected him that way. When they finally admitted to themselves that they were a couple, his exact promise was—
"I will protect you, no matter what happens – you and this world you belong to. Not because I have to, but because I finally love you. But you're going to have to let me."
And she let him.
Although never spoken, the terms of their relationship was established the day he swore this oath to her. It was like a silent whisper, a subtle warning underneath the layers of his sweet, romantic words. He told her in the way he kissed her hand, and looked right through her green irises – that whatever he hid from her, all the secrets he's unwilling to share with her, is only for her protection.
Jack knew what being involved in the works of crime meant, and he did not want the innocence in Rapunzel's eyes, and her soft touches, to ever be tainted by the filth that ruled over the underworld.
"You know, you did the right thing by breaking up with her, right?"
"Really? Then why do I feel so shit right now?"
"Because you've got a broken heart."
Purple eyes stare at him sympathetically, and he dared not look into them. The dyed green strands of hair framed her face in a careless fashion, the rest a natural black that flowed over her shoulders. The girl had terrific looking teeth – something she prided herself with – and the nude shade that stained her lips brought something expressive and sad in the way she smiled at him.
"I broke up with her. She should be the one moping, not me."
"Oh Jack, it's like you haven't learned a thing at all these last three years." Her smile is replaced with a smirk, one that gained a harsh glare from the white haired boy. "I told you to cut all ties with her the minute you determined her innocence – it's foolish to continue a relationship that started with a mission."
"You're the one that recommended me to take the job in the first place."
"Because I knew you would handle it professionally. Evidently, I was wrong."
"I don't think you should be talking to me like that, Tatiana Faye."
There's something bright burning within those blue eyes, a threat that causes the girl to swallow hard. She knew her position, so she never dared to push her luck. But years of friendship have made her realize that ranks and merits meant nothing when you knew Jackson Overland Frost as well as she does. Of course, she should've known better than to agitate the boy in the midst of his personal crisis.
"Whatever."
She hops off the chair she was sitting on, and throws a big book of records down on Jack's lap. Business was starting, she decided, so it was time to take on a more serious persona. Jack obediently takes hold of the records, and scans through them, eyes reading for important flawed information.
Tatiana Faye, better known as the Tooth Fairy, collects data and information – kind of like the deity name she lives up to. However, instead of simply collecting children's teeth and exchanging them for money, her skills range from sneaking into important offices in tall buildings, to cracking complicated codes and passwords. Her extensive knowledge within the ICT department, and years of yoga sessions has allowed her to become one of the top ranking data collector within The Guardians.
"I got in contact with North and Sandy, however, they'd prefer to meet with all of us involved in this case – including him."
"You mean the man himself?"
Jack doesn't bother to look up at Tatiana, eyes still focused on the records he's holding. His eyebrow, however, quirks up a little in a less favorable manner.
"It's been awhile since I've talked to him – the guy doesn't have the fucking guts to show his face to me."
"Now Jack—"
"But it's okay, who needs a bastard like him anyway, right? All he does is sit on that big fucking throne of his, acting as if he's some kind of God, and leaves all the dirty work to us. He's just as bad as the those who run this fucked up place we live in."
"Nice to hear you singing my praises again, Mr. Frost."
The voice sounded slightly amused, and both teens snapped their heads up to look behind them. There they saw the big screen suddenly blur to an image of a man, sitting in a dark office, his chair turned to face away from the camera.
"Man in Moon."
"It's been awhile."
The chair makes a small turn, and the man's face becomes slightly visible. Through the shadows he smirks, making Jack's blood boil.
"Jackson, Tatiana."
"Sir, we weren't expecting you to call just yet."
"I've already talked to Santa and Sandman, I have relieved them of their duties and narrowed the people working on this case. I'm leaving it to you two, the Dragon Tamer, our informant and just one more person."
"That's not really narrowing it down."
"Oh, but it is. Now we only have two assassins, two data collectors and one Scientist. I think that should suffice."
"Except, do you really think you can trust Flynn Rider—of all people?"
"Of course not."
"But—"
"He is, however, the only connection we have to the black market. I sell him the information he needs, and he'll tell us the valuable information he's gained. It's a fair trade and it's been the same way ever since then. I don't see how this time is any different."
"Except, sir—this is a really big case. To trust an outsider…I don't think it would be convenient. Besides, what information could you be giving to him that's big enough to get him to sell the underworld out, that would not potentially endanger our organization?"
"It is a gamble, but we need his assistance. There is nothing you, or even I, can do about it."
"Tsk. So he says."
"I don't care for your tone right now, Jackson."
"Good then."
"But it would do you well to respect your elders—no, your superiors."
"Please ignore him for now sir, he's just…not in the best of moods. He will be better later on."
"See to it that he is, Tooth Fairy. I do not want his petty problems to hinder us from completing this mission. This is the biggest catch we've gotten since two years ago when this case first came to be."
"If The Guardians were so brilliant, why couldn't they get rid of their enemy the first time around, is what people have said. And it's true—we're a bunch of weak pansies and cynics that are not skilled enough to go against something as big as them. I don't understand why you're getting yourself involved in this, Manny—and why are you using us rather than you facing the boss down yourself?"
"Jack, that's enough."
"We're puppets, we get it. We're your paper dolls against the wind – we obey because we're immobile and helpless without you. We do your dirty shit because all you know is to sit and order us around. That's what our contracts entail, right? We all agreed to serve under you for life at the cost of—"
"If you understand your position then do not further question me, your master."
"You're full of shit."
"I know."
Jack doesn't even get a chance to retort back – the screen blacks out before he can utter another word. Frustrated, he throws his stick at the monitor and Tatiana simply stands and watches him lose control. He kicks tables and turns over the chairs, screaming and cursing. It is never unusual to see a conversation between the uncle and nephew end on such bad terms, after all. In fact, it would be stranger if it didn't.
Looking out the window to the crystal sky and it's golden moon, Tatiana sighs. Such a beautiful night and it's stars, wasted trapped in this cage of an aimless game.
54321
"Damn mornings."
A mid-thirties man growled, straightening the red tie that choked his neck. He walked through the school hallway, a somewhat bored expression plastered on his face, and a cigar clenched between his nicotine stained teeth. His hair was a blend of brown, ashy grey and dirty white – something rather unusual. But his physique was strong and sturdy with broad shoulders, and his head held high. That is why, he as the new teacher, managed to stir quite a reaction from the female students that passed him by.
"And teenagers are no better."
Upon reaching the end of the hallway, he completely breaks the cigar in half, leaving it to fall lolling on the floor. He stood in front of the headmistress's door, grunting before harshly knocking on the intimate carvings that decorated the mahogany.
He doesn't wait for an answer, simply entering without the permission. Inside he meets a black haired woman, with ghostly pale skin, and ebony hair tied into a neat top-knot. He could not clearly see, but from where he stood, behind those glasses she wore, were orbs of dandelion, and hints of whiskey and gold. She does not look up from her work, continually signing important papers with her red lips pursed.
"Mis—"
"Maleficent."
"Excuse me?"
"That's my name. Maleficent – it's my last name."
"Of course."
"What brings you here, teacher?"
"I'm the new recruit…uh, a temporary staff member of sorts. I'm the one from—"
"The Guardians?"
"Aye, that's it."
"Very well." She finally turns to look at him, a very subtle frown curved onto her stoic face. "I have received information from Tsar Lunar—"
"You're not supposed to use his full name."
"—and you have been assigned as the Biology teacher of your colleagues. I assume you are quite educated on that subject?"
"The very best."
"Brilliant."
"Anything else the boss sent for me?"
"You will be working with Hiccup Horrendous Haddock, also known by your cult—"
"It's not a cult."
"—as Dragon Tamer, and Jackson Overland, also known as—"
"Jack Frost."
He says the name through gritted teeth, and it causes a sly smile to be pulled by Maleficent's lips. She folds her arms and looks up to him with an amused gaze.
"It seems you already know all there is to know. Why bother disrupting me in the middle of such important work?"
"I'm sorry m'am, I did not know." He hisses before turning to take his leave. "If you'll excuse me, I'll be gone now."
He slams the door shut behind him, giving one last glare towards the black haired lady. When the bang of the door comes, he strolls away to where he supposes his class should be. And then he catches a glimpse of white down the hallway, and suddenly all he sees is red. He marches up to the boy, catching the last breath of the conversation.
"And I'll see you after school, Ariella."
"Of—"
"Ever the delinquent, aren't you—Frost?"
The call of his other name causes Jack to make an abrupt turn. And with instincts, he's suddenly pulling up the collar of his teacher, a hand ready to strike a punch. His breathing is heavy, and his eyebrows scrunch in a daring manner. When he locks with green familiar eyes, he immediately lets go.
"You."
"That's a nice way to treat your teacher, eh Frost?"
"Frost? Who's Frost?"
"Jackson, why is this man calling you Frost?"
"I—"
"Ain't it obvious? The guy's got a head of white hair."
The older man smirks, and relief washes over Jack's face. The tension in his muscles begins to disappear, and the many spectators that stayed to watch the commotion have slowly dispersed – including the girl Jack was chatting up.
"Bunny, don't ever scare me like that again."
"It serves you right, flirting away with a girl on the job. Why don't you take this thing seriously for once?"
"I am taking it seriously – I always am. You wouldn't know, we've only ever worked twice before, and that was a long time ago."
"What happened during the Easter Massacre is not a joke Frost. Don't go bringing that up again – specially since many of it was your fault. If you just hadn't gotten in the way—"
"You're such a petty little thing, Bunny. I was young, and knew no better. Yet I was still just as skilled, maybe even better, than you."
"You—"
"But we both know you're not here to argue about that."
"Right."
"What's the report so far?"
"I'm going to be under the alias of your biology teacher. Call me Professor Edmund Aster."
"Are you sure it's okay to use your real name?"
"You're one to talk."
"Well, I'm properly enrolled to this school anyway—I had to use my real name. Besides, the school knows exactly why I'm here."
"Then the very same goes for me."
"Okay. Is that all you have to say on the subject?"
"No. I checked with Tooth Fairy on all details regarding the new students. I've left your classmates and Hiccup's classmates off the list, assuming you'd be taking care of those yourselves. So right now I've narrowed my list down to twelve students. I've yet to comb through their information thoroughly but, it seems we have quite a few flawed alibis."
"I checked over my classmates as well. I've only done about five of them so far—I'll do the rest later tonight. Regarding the five, two records stood out – Elsa Arendelle's and Lisha Cromwell. But when I looked into again, I've cleared Elsa out as well. The only thing strange about her data is that she was separated from her sister Anna for seventeen years because of her parents' divorce. But Elsa is currently seventeen, and Anna is two years younger – it'd be impossible for them to be separated after Elsa's birth right away. But, I found two different last names – Summers and Arendelle. It's safe to assume that Anna's current dad is Elsa's step-father."
"You're clearing it just based on that? Have you even made contact with the girl yet?"
"Of course I have. And no, I did not just base it on that. I've done my research. I got information off Flynn Ryder that Elsa's dad died recently, which is why she's back in town. Apparently he was a businessman trader, and secured many of the goods he's been exporting from the black market. He based his business in Norway. With that, I searched their town and the school Elsa went to. It seems she was top grade in class. Her record is absolutely clean."
"Okay, what 'bout that Cromwell girl?"
"Her record, on the other hand, it's filled with filth. I think I'm going to forward her information to HQ so they can do a better background check on her. There are so many holes within the data that it simply cannot be innocent. It has to have been made up."
"Okay, sounds good so far."
"As long as we're thorough with our background checks, we'll find the girl in no time."
The bell rings, signaling for classes to begin. Students began to raid the hallways, all in a hurry to get to class in time. Upon seeing a group of girls heading towards homeroom, Jack smirks to himself before subtly fixing his hair. With it looking all messy and laid back, he eagerly makes his way towards them, only to be pulled back by the arm.
"What the bloody hell are you doing?"
"What'd ya mean? I'm heading to class."
"No, you're flirting."
"So?"
"What do you mean so? I thought you were being serious about this?!"
"I am."
"Then get your ass to class, right now!"
Jack smirks, that little bit of mischief once again dusting his eyes.
"Relax, Bunny. I'm doing a little bit of research on my own."
With that said, he leaves with a wink. Edmund stands there, quite frankly bewildered, and slightly scandalized by the boy's behavior. But he shakes it off with an angry grunt, and starts heading to find his own classroom.
"That boy will never learn."
54321
Before leaving the world she once belonged to, Elsa was told to read – so that she could understand the reality of being normal. She was given three books – The Perks of Being a Wallflower, The Catcher in the Rye and Mother Goose in Prose(2). She never really got the third one – why hegave it to her, and what's so special about a bunch of childish rhymes that don't mean a thing.
But reading The Catcher in the Rye made her think things over. Maybe there's a secret, a message he was trying to tell her—through the books she read. So in her spare time, she reads over all of them – analyzing, trying to see the truth that lay beneath those blurry lines. She never did find what she was looking for.
"I never knew you were into classic literature." Jackson Overland comes gallanting over to her, with his pretty eyes and handsome smile, sitting down on a seat beside her. "We're not even learning about that just yet for English Literature. I reckon it's not 'til another year before we delve into Holden Caulfield's life."
"It's an amusing book."
"Really?"
"Yes." She gives it to him, paper backed and dog eared, as he gingerly took it. "And for someone so surprised to see me read it, you seem to know an awful lot about it."
"I read it—once. I never looked back."
"Why not?"
"It made me think things. And I hate thinking."
"Why?"
"Because life's more than just that, right."
He grins again, an expression that she's become so accustomed to that...it's not right to see Jackson Overland without it. And it's something she loves about him – because it made her feel normal. There was no reason to hide behind anything, because Jackson didn't look at her with suspicious eyes and prying smiles. He's just there with a summertime grin that melts the ice cold barrier she's put up that numbs her hands and pricks her skin.
"What kind of things did it make you think of?"
"Hm…" He pauses for a minute with a thoughtful frown. "Maybe for people like me, it's different."
"How so?"
"I think there's many different kinds of people in the world. Those who favor innocence, and the ones who crave maturity. I don't know who I am—I don't care about whether I fuck somebody, or stay a virgin forever—but it would be nice to know that there's still people out there whose lives don't revolve around that sort of thing, you know?"
"I really don't understand."
"I guess for someone who already knows where I'm going to end up, I don't really care about losing any kind of humanity in me anymore."
"I'm still not—"
"He's selfish, you know?"
"Who?"
"Holden."
"How?"
"But I guess it's okay to be selfish(3)."
If Elsa reflected on it the way Jackson saw it, she might've got it. But she didn't. All she knows is, he's something different. He's not cynical(4)—even though many would think he is. He's just a realist – and Elsa knows the thin line that bordered the two.
"Does Holden relate to you?"
"In a way—he does."
"Like, what way?"
"I want to protect everyone. I want to protect those who know nothing about the bad things in the world—I want their innocence to stay the way it is. Maybe I don't care if they want to quickly grow up or not, and maybe I don't want to be that person who catches them before they fly off to adulthood(5). But I want to be the one—the barrier—that keeps them from seeing red. I want to…I want to protect this world I live in—I want to be the enamel."
Something strikes Elsa. The way he spoke, how easily he trusted her with words so fragile. She doesn't understand. But he laughs and all the bad things she's thought of him vanish. His innocence is something to admire, and his honest eyes gave everything away. But it's dark, the feelings that creep up on her and pierce through her skin.
"Among other things, you'll find that you're not the first one who was ever confused and frightened and even sickened by human behavior."
He smiles at her quote, and it stays for a while—the silence. He knows what he wants – something different, someone he can protect. Because Rapunzel was stronger than he ever was, and she stood by him through it all—until now. But falling in love is out of the question.
And just like he swore on that day, eleven years ago – he would protect all innocence, and never let red taint the ordinary people. He can't have someone like Elsa, so pure and so oblivious, become the mess that he is. No, he can't be with someone like her, ever.
"Heh, sorry for that dump."
"No, it's okay. It's nice."
"You really think so?"
She laughs with one hand over her mouth, and he swears one more time that he will protect this woman's innocence. Because her laugh is the medicine the world needs to heal.
"Yeah."
"Don't fall for me though."
"As if."
"Just making sure."
Bells ring and the school day ends. Jackson stands and holds his hand out for Elsa, which she gladly accepts. Again he kisses her, the soft of her knuckles and the blush that spreads across her cheeks. And he loves it. He loves making her feel flustered. But he knows this kind of thing cannot last. If he were to stay true to his promise, he'd stay away from her. Because she's too good to ever be involved in the darkness he lived on.
"I'll see you tomorrow, my queen."
"Third day of school, and I already have a steed. How noble of you Jackson."
"Are you seriously comparing me to a horse?"
"Yes."
"Oh dear, my lady, I am not so noble that I should deserve such a title."
His eyes mist and with how quickly Elsa could judge things, she knew there was something different about this smile of his. There's something peculiar about the way he held her hand, and the husk in his voice. And for some reason, the malice that she sees pulls her closer to him.
"I'll be going now."
And he leaves, just like that. Gone to God knows where, once again. But she can't say she's not used to it—it's one of the many things that intrigued her about him.
"I guess I'll go home then."
Sighing to herself, she fixes up her bag, all books piled inside it. She slings the leather-made shoulder bag comfortably across her arm, and walks out the classroom door with a small hum. It's a tune she's familiar with, something he played for her when she was still so young. It may be one of many reasons she was given a book from Mother Goose.
"Excuse me."
A throaty whisper calls, and she doesn't even notice herself sitting on the ground with all her books spilled across the floor. Only when she looks up from her daze does she see a big man with a long white beard crawling all over the floor to pick up her fallen belongings.
"Oh my."
"Oh, hello little lady."
The big man grins cheerfully at her.
"Hello…sir?"
He laughs, a jolly echo that fills the halls and somehow lightens her heart.
"I see you read old Mother Goose." He holds up the book, his eyes clearly expressing fascination. "I love her stories too."
"Oh, that's—"
"Have you read about the Man in the Moon(6) yet?"
"No, I suppose I haven't."
"It's a good old rhyme—you should get reading to it soon."
"I'll keep that in mind."
"You might like it."
"How are you so sure…er, Sir?"
"Everything is topsy-turvy to the Man in the Moon. Hot is cold, and cold is hot—he burnt his tongue on a very cold pease porridge!—and I suppose to him, reality is also illusion, and illusion is reality."
"That sounds nice."
"You'll probably relate to it more than anyone I know."
He smiled, that big old jolly smile of his, and gently pats her head. Elsa blushed, finding the gesture somewhat comforting. His eyes are so big, she notices – so blue with wonder and curiosity.
"I'll give it a go."
He nods, and they both stand up with all her things gathered together. After dumping it all in her bag, he bids her a small farewell, off to where he plans to go, and she's gearing up to head home. The wind carries through the night, making scratching sounds against brick walls and lone branches. The moon shines in delight through the clouded and starless sky, as if not even the thick coat of condensation can prevent him from shining above all.
A/N:
A few things to note, I have a lot of references, like images of what some of the characters would look like, their uniforms and such. I will be posting links to all these in my Tumblr, so please visit handsmouth on Tumblr, tagged with coins :) Bunny is representing the Looker in Pokespe, hehehe.
One of the many things you need to know about this chapter is that I did heavy research on it, to complete this piece. So, bear with me and please read the references below so as not to confuse yourselves. I am being serious about this fanfiction, and where it is headed. I hope you all continue to support me through and through. As long as someone is favoriting or alerting or reviewing, I will continue for your sake.
(1) – Enamel is, because I'm so addicted to Black Butler right now, it is the opening song for the third season and well, I was like one day "I wonder what the word enamel means" so I searched it up and I was like "oh that's what it means, why is the opening song about a really dark anime with many murders called a protective covering" and it got me think, maybe there's more to the song than that? So I (pathetically) searched in yahoo!answers if I could use enamel metaphorically and nothing came up. I guess I really should've waited until the English translation of the song was released, right? But I couldn't wait any longer and I'm like, "YOLO I'm doing this, I'll make my own metaphor, that's what good writers do, right?" so, there ya go. Idk whether I failed or not, please tell me, I'll gladly change it (for the better, I suppose).
(2) – This one is really lucky. The reason I used Mother Goose in Prose as the third choice is, well, I have this thing for nursery rhymes. I don't know why but I base a lot of my writing on nursery rhymes (okay maybe not a lot, I've only done it once but still) and I think nursery rhymes interest me. I want to write about the meanings of these rhymes and how we can apply them to people's feelings and our society. I know they're for the enjoyment of children, but that doesn't mean they can't mean something, right? Anyway, Mother Goose is chosen because she was one of the Guardians in the actual picture books (heh, I did my research) and because there are so many volumes of her books, I chose this one because...Black Butler. Okay, I was like searching for the book Tom the Piper's Son was on and this came up and I was like, interested in it. I looked up the table of contents and I saw Man in the Moon as one of the nursery rhymes and I was like, "this is interesting, I could incorporate this to my fanfiction" so, tadaaaaaa.
(3) – Fruits Basket reference. I will dwell on this more in later chapters.
(4) – Don't ask me why but I was searching whether being cynical was bad or not and this person made a valid point about cynics not seeing reality enough and just being pessimist and I considered myself a cynic but when I saw that I was like, "man, this is so true though". I thought I'd share this with y'all.
(5) – Just to be clear, I have not read The Catcher in the Rye yet. I'm supposed to be reading it over the summer to prepare for our lesson this coming September but I've been too busy doing...nothing...to read it so yeah, I only know about the gist of it. The internet is surprisingly helpful for these kinds of stuff. Anyway, I referred to Holden as Peter Pan because he wants to save the children's innocence, basically he doesn't want them to take part in mature activities like grown ups and well, Peter Pan doesn't want to grow up. I have no idea whether how I explained that situation with Jack's words and I don't even understand it myself but I know what I was trying to get across. Whether you guys get it or not is obviously my fault as a writer for not being competent enough to know and write about the subject, and explain it to my readers. So, please forgive me for that. But I will say, one of the things that I see in Jack is, he and Peter Pan are a lot alike (never aging, mischievous and fun) and I feel like if I can make that comparison, maybe Jack can relate to Holden as well. Anyway, when I actually read the book, I'll change this. Until then, please bear with me.
(6) – I think I sort of explained this one already but just a little more insight, Man in the Moon is an actual nursery rhyme and the moral of the story is that this man goes to Earth thinking it's great but because everything is all topsy-turvy to him he ends up not liking it and finds that he prefers the moon. Whatever hint you get from this, and from what I wrote above, take it. You never know if it could be useful, or not.
As you can see, this fanfiction is a mishmash of so many things. It's mostly anime related but you have no idea how many good stories animes actually tell. They give so much depth and meaning to something so simple. I have never seen symbolism done so well in my life as I have in anime and I'm an English Lit student aspiring to be a writer. I think ROTG is one of the few animations that depict symbolism really well, and not a lot saw it. It's saddening. I think Frozen did a few good ones too (that falling white queen chess thing when Olaf opened the window still leaves me in awe). I'd love to read the Guardians picture books because they're interesting and would offer a wide range of ideas for me, I think that's mostly what I'm all about right now.
Anyway, enough about me. This chapter took quite a while to pull through. I really thought I'd get more screen time for North and Sandy but the cameo for North (unless you guys didn't get it then this is extremely awkward) is fair enough for now. Sandy will come soon, I guess, but I'm not making anymore promises. The Jelsa moment was...I needed to have at least one Jelsa moment and I felt like I neglected Elsa for the majority of the chapter so I wrote her in with Jack. This scene and everything they said was meant to go differently but the idea somehow slipped my mind and I had to improvise and now I can't remember it. If it comes back to me, I'll incorporate it in the following chapters. Also, that meeting with North and Elsa...something else was supposed to happen but ugh, and I was supposed to add in more to Jack's identity but I just couldn't put it to words. Please bear with this for a while. I'll work harder on the next chapter! I haven't reread this yet so any grammatical errors made will be corrected soon enough. I feel like this a/n has gone on long enough, I'm sorry! Please read and review! Thank you :)