This is one of the longer oneshots, though it definitely isn't one of my favourites. It's... kind of blah, I guess. I wanted to try a different genre, so I thought, 'why not attempt to improve your angst writing skills?' So, that's what I did. I also decided to take the frozen tears thing literally rather than metaphorically so that I could play around with AU. It was fuuuun~

Day three, alternate prompt: Frozen (tears)

Kanda had never wanted to get married, much less to Lenalee Lee, Duchess-to-be of the Nacitav(1) province, sole daughter of Duke Komui. Then again, Kanda had never wanted to do many things, all of which he had been made to do nonetheless. It seemed that when it came to his family's wellbeing, Kanda wasn't given much of a choice.

Then again, when he considered that his entire family might face starvation if he didn't agree, then he thought that maybe, just this once, he would agree without complaint.

It made him feel better to learn that Lenalee Lee was just as reluctant to enter the engagement as he was. He rather suspected that a certain redheaded rabbit might have something to do with that, but he couldn't be certain without asking awkward questions; and quite frankly, he didn't care that much. However, neither of them had been given any say in the matter; their engagement was finalised, and all that remained the wedding itself– oh, how Kanda despised that thought.

It seemed that he was not the only one; Lenalee would cringe whenever the subject was mentioned, and Duke Komui would begin to chuckle in a manner that could only be described as evil.

Desperately, Lenalee thought of gifts that should have been impossible to find; anything she could think of that might delay the wedding by another week, another month. Gift after gift was imagined and then found or created, and as the day grew closer Lenalee grew more and more panicked, before finally deciding to ask for the one thing she knew Kanda could never give to her.

"You wish for me to bring you the crown of the Ice King?" Kanda asked with a frown. Surely she knew that that was just a legend; travellers returned from the Black Mountains(2) telling warped, garbled tales of a city made of ice ruled by a king who was as cold and frozen as the lands he governed. It was all pure nonsense, the crown especially – really, why would anyone want a crown made from ice and diamonds? Wouldn't it just melt away in the summer?

"Until the crown is mine, I will not marry you," Lenalee replied stubbornly, her gaze flicking ever so briefly towards Lavi who stood in the corner of the room with his hand politely folded, eye serious and intense. Kanda sighed but nodded, ignoring the horrified gasp of his adopted father and the gleeful grin of Duke Komui.

"Fine."

"Yuu-kun, you surely cannot be serious! Think about this! Those mountains are a death-trap, an accident waiting to happen! Please reconsider, Yuu-kun, you do not need to do this!" Tiedoll was pleading with him, his voice a never-ending whine that was just irritating Kanda more than he cared to admit.

"Che, and if I do not, then what will you do, huh? I cannot marry Lenalee unless I find this crown for her, and if I fail then we will all starve. At least this way I'm trying to do something." Kanda scowled as an all-too familiar arm was slung over his shoulder, and an excited voice filled his ears.

"Isn't this great, Yuu? Two friends, off on a fantastic adventure, worthy of the greatest ballads!"

"Idiot, let go of me! And do you even know what a ballad is, you fucking moron?" Kanda growled furiously, glaring at Lavi and shrugging him off as he stormed towards the door, the redhead bouncing along behind him. "Why are you even coming with me? Should you not be staying here to do, oh I don't know, your job?"

"Well, I have to make sure that you do not die on those mountains, Yuu! Someone has to take care of you, after all. You are not immortal, you know," Lavi reminded him, his tone uncharacteristically serious.

"I know."

It had always been something of a mystery as to how the Black Mountains had earned their name – they were covered so thickly in snow that it was impossible to be sure what colour they truly were. Sculpted by the icy wind and punishing snow, they rose almost vertically in places, whilst in others they leant at impossible angles.

"Yuu! We cannot keep going like this!" Lavi called over the howling wind. Kanda scowled but didn't slow his pace, carving a path through the waist-deep snow. "Do you even know where we are going? Yuu!"

Kanda didn't bother to even honour that with a reply – of course he didn't know where they were going. No one knew the location of the Ark (as the ice city was commonly referred to as) so he couldn't simply check the map. Apart from that, there were almost no landmarks visible in the thick blizzard, so how the usagi expected him to know where they were was beyond him.

Kanda tripped over something; unable to regain his balance fast enough in the thick snow and wind, he fell to his knees, his hand brushing against something hard. Grateful that he was wearing gloves, he brushed the snow away from the mound, freezing when he uncovered another hand – one that was already decomposing, despite the ice and snow that probably should have preserved it. He turned his face away when he saw the locket clenched tightly in the corpses fist; it must have been something very important to the dead person.

He stood to walk away, but something drew his gaze back towards the body; grumbling under his breath about how the usagi must be starting to infect him with insanity, he bent down to pick it up, prying the thing open with numb fingers. Inside was a portrait of a man and a young child, both laughing, with an inscription on the inside of the lid.

For my dear son, Allen Walker, on his birthday.

"Yuu, I think we should take cover and wait until morning!" Lavi called, and Kanda hastily shoved the locket into the pocket of his overcoat. He was about to give a swift and biting reply when he realised that Lavi was probably right; he could barely see his hand in front of his face. There was no possibility of them finding the city in such conditions, so Kanda reluctantly shouted back his agreement.

The cave they found was almost as cold as the outside world, but it sheltered them from the wind and snow; the floor was mostly dry and Kanda threw down his bedroll, curling up and shutting his eyes immediately, though sleep had a habit of evading him.

"G'night Yuu," Lavi said, and Kanda grunted in response.

His last thought was that the temperature was not nearly as bad as he had previously believed.

When Kanda eventually woke up, he was wrapped beneath numerous thick furs in a large bed he did not recognise – the pale walls shone under strange blue lights that did not flicker like candles or lamps. Instead, they hovered steadily, casting an eerie glow about the room. Slowly, Kanda sat up, one hand held to his head as he tried to remember how he had come to be here. As he moved, however, he noticed a small piece of thick, off-white parchment resting on the furs; he picked it up curiously, unfolding it to reveal a letter written in hasty print.

When you awake, it would be in your best interest if you were to remain in your chambers until you are sent for; please feel free to call upon one of the servants should you require anything that has not already been provided for you.

Tyki Mikk.

Kanda snorted derisively – just who did this Tyki Mikk character think he was? He swung his legs over the side of the bed, standing still for a moment to make sure that his legs would still support his weight before he strode to the door and threw it open, stepping out into the corridor and staring around in thinly-veiled wonder. The walls, the doors – everything, it seemed, was made entirely of ice. Elaborately carved sculptures and archways decorated the corridor whilst similar floating lights provided sufficient illumination between the windows. Cautiously, Kanda stepped forward to peer out, his jaw falling slack at the sight of the city.

The Ark. It really existed.

A shrill scream interrupted his train of thought, and Kanda spun around sharply, his right hand automatically reaching for Mugen before he realised that it wasn't there – he cursed furiously, not pausing to glare at the young girl who was bouncing on the balls of her feet, a gleeful expression on her face. Mugen wasn't anywhere to be found in his chambers either, and he stormed out of the room, the anger rolling off of him so strong that it was a miracle the city was not melting.

"Tyki never told me there was a human here! That meanie, he always keeps secrets from me!" The girl squealed excitedly, skipping forward to pull Kanda into a swift and surprisingly strong embrace. "My name is Rhode Kamelot, but you can just call me Rhode, everyone does! Oh, you have to come with me and meet the rest of my family, it has been so long since we had a human guest – this way, this way," she said, dragging him forward by the hand, chattering excitedly all the while. "Have you seen the King yet? Wait, of course you haven't, he would have said something to us! This is so exciting, I haven't had a new doll in ages!"

"That's because you always break them, Rhode," drawled a voice, and a man with the same darkened skin as the girl stepped out from behind an arch, his clothing utterly impeccable. His voice was deep and rich, his tone amused. "And you. I believe I specifically instructed you to remain in your room?"

Kanda snorted. "Tch, as if I was going to pay attention to someone I had never met before, baka."

The man – Tyki, Kanda assumed – smirked. "No? Well you will soon come to wish that you had; come on, Rhode, we will go and find his companion, as he too has no doubt started to explore. We are taking them to see the King."

"My Lord, this morning, two humans were found near the fourteenth gate – shall we bring them before you?" Tyki asked, his accented voice carrying easily through the thick, ice door. The reply wasn't at all what Kanda had been expecting – he had thought that the voice of the Ice King would be as cruel and cold as the name suggested. Instead, it was soft and high, as well as curiously emotionless.

"Very well, Tyki. Bring them in."

Kanda and Lavi were shoved forward by their 'guards', a set of incompetent twins who liked to combine their names into one. Their grey skin seemed slightly darker than Tyki or Rhode's, and they spent the majority of their time fighting and bickering with one another.

"Here they are, hee!" The blond one giggled, shoving Lavi forward whilst the dark haired one pushed Kanda so hard that he stumbled, finding his footing at the last second. There was a slight pause before he lifted his head to glare at the person sitting in the carved throne. Dark blue eyes met empty silver, and Kanda's gaze almost faltered when he realised just how young the King was. In fact, he didn't look to be any older than perhaps fifteen. His hair was pure white as was his skin – in fact, the only colour was the presence of his deep blue clothing; a stark contrast to the pale surroundings.

Two tear-shaped crystals clung to his cheeks, and atop the mass of white hair rested the Godforsaken crown that Kanda had come all of this way to retrieve – it was truly a thing of beauty, each diamond carved in mimicry of the crystals on the King's face. His face was blank, emotionless, as was his voice when he spoke.

"What brings you here?" He asked, though he lacked all semblance of curiosity.

"I need that fucking crown of yours, so maybe you could hand it over and let us go, and we will never bother you again," Kanda growled. A soft whine drew his attention to the white wolf resting at the boy's feet, head resting against his knees. The boy murmured some soft assurance to the beast before returning his gaze to Kanda.

"I am afraid I cannot comply with your request. Only the Ice King may bear the crown. That is the way it has always been, and the way it must remain."

"Then maybe it is about time that changed. You know, rules are made to be broken, and all that," Lavi suggested helpfully, bravely holding his ground when the Ice King turned his strangely distant gaze upon him. The wolf growled low in its throat, and the King smoothed its head gently.

"Hush, Timcanpy. They are our guests, despite their intentions." He slowly turned his attention back to Kanda and Lavi. "You have travelled far, but I am afraid your journey was in vain. Now you have a choice; you may stay here in the Ark, or return to your home – I will leave the decision to you. It makes no difference to us."

With that, he stood and walked away; pausing only to pull a long, fur-lined white cloak on before he strode out of the room, the hem of the cloak dragging on the floor. Tyki turned to Lavi and Kanda with raised eyebrows as though silently repeating the King's final statement.

There was no doubt in Kanda's mind.

"We will stay."

The days and weeks that followed were perhaps the strangest of Kanda's life – the Ark was unlike any city he had ever seen before, and it wasn't just the fact that it was made from ice. With the exception of the grey-skinned family and the Ice King himself, everyone in the city seemed so lifeless – as though they were already dead and gone. Kanda found himself actively seeking Lavi for conversation; something he had been convinced he would never allow.

It wasn't all bad, he supposed. It was quiet and he was rarely disturbed by anyone except the usagi and occasionally, the 'Noah' family, as they liked to be known. The Ice King was often around, and he was easy enough to find; Kanda spent many hours in his presence, either trying to convince him to give up the crown or simply remaining silent – Kanda never spoke about himself, and the King never offered anything. In fact, Kanda was almost convinced that he couldn't speak until he was spoken to.

"Why?"

Kanda spun around, his eyes widening at the soft voice; there was no inflection that suggested the owner was truly curious, but even so, the fact that the King had spoken first was shocking. They had been sitting beside one another meditating with their eyes closed and their palms resting on their knees.

"Why what?" Kanda asked, frowning slightly, his confusion evident. There was a slight pause, and Kanda thought that he saw a brief flash of something on the King's face, before it was gone again.

"Why do you desire my crown so much? Why is it so important to you?" He asked finally, his brow creasing as he struggled to understand Kanda's motivations.

Kanda sighed, closing his eyes and resting his head in the palm of his hand.

"Lenalee, the next Duchess of Nacitav, will not consent to marry me unless I bring the crown back for her. She has been putting off the wedding for as long as she can, and I suppose that this was the best she could think of. A last resort, I guess."

"You must truly love her, for you to go to such lengths," the King mused slowly, and Kanda thought he heard... something in the King's voice. Nostalgia, maybe?

Kanda laughed, though there was no amusement in the sound. "Actually, I think of her as my sister. It is not me she loves; it is my companion, Lavi. Our marriage was arranged, and that is all there is to it."

The King took his time digesting this new information. Kanda remained silent, leaving him to his thoughts. "Then why is it so important that you collect my crown and thus gain her hand in marriage? Why do you not simply leave her to her lover and move on?"

"My family is poor – we need the money or we will all starve," Kanda explained. "By marrying into nobility, I could make sure that we all live comfortably for the rest of our lives. I do not want my family to die when there is something I can do to prevent it, no matter how much they irritate me." The King nodded slowly.

"Your family; what are they like?"

And so the conversation continued.

After that, the King would often listen to Kanda speak about his life, and eventually, he began to open up. Admittedly, he still spoke very little, but piece by piece, Kanda started to realise precisely why the Ark was so strange and silent. Kanda learned that the King was once human, though he remembered nothing about his life before; he had to rely on accounts from some of the older souls. And the residents of the Ark, apart from the King, Kanda, Lavi and the Noah were all lost souls. The crown that the King so closely guarded was made from ice and their tears; the King explained that that was what gave it such ethereal beauty.

There were times when Kanda would fall asleep beside the King, still sitting up – he found that he couldn't sleep in the cavernous chambers he had been assigned. Often, he would wake to find his head in the King's lap, whilst the boy in question stared off into the distance with a pensive expression. It was a far cry from the apathetic ruler that Kanda had first met, and he thought that he could see a change in the city as well – the lights seemed to glow a little brighter, whilst the occupants moved with more purpose, more vitality.

One night, when Kanda awoke in a cold sweat from a nightmare he could not remember, it was to the feeling of cold, soothing fingers running through his hair. He turned his face slightly to meet the King's pale eyes. He thought that he saw something in them, for a moment, before it was gone, leaving him feeling empty and even colder than before.

"It is late," the King murmured, the gentle hands never faltering. "Go back to sleep." He smiled, for the first time that Kanda could remember, fragile and strained. It looked to be painful, almost a grimace, but it was there.

And in that moment, the frosty mask the King constructed for himself began to crack and flake.

It was two weeks later that something finally gave. It couldn't continue, of course it couldn't, and Kanda thought that he had always known that, even as he lost himself in endless nights of cold skin and blindingly silver eyes. It couldn't last, because all of the stories were true. The Ice King was as cold as the lands he governed, his heart as frozen as the city he had created.

Yet that didn't stop the panic that flooded through him at the sight of his King – his friend, his confidant, his lover – slumped in the throne, his breathing laboured. Yet as he glanced up, his eyes met Kanda's and he smiled – one of his rare, true smiles that could blind a person just as easily as the sun, and oh how ironic it was, Kanda would later reflect, that a King of ice could so successfully melt his own frozen heart.

"Kanda..." he murmured, stretching out to brush his cheek with a cold hand – only it wasn't cold, not anymore, and suddenly the beautiful King looked so frail and so, so human.

"What is happening?" Kanda asked, his voice thick with tears whose existence he would never acknowledge. "What is wrong with you, how can I help?" The King just stared at him for a moment with eyes that shone, grey and not silver, and so full of love that it made Kanda's heart break all over again just to look at them.

"Take it," he rasped, trying to tug the crown from his head and push it into Kanda's unresisting hands. "Take it and save your family, Kanda. I do not need it... Not anymore, not where I am going."

"Just what is that supposed to mean?" Kanda asked. "Of course you need it, you are the Ice King." The smile he received was so beautifully, horrifically broken that it made Kanda want to scream and to kiss his lover all at once. Tears fell from grey, fading eyes, melting the ones that already resided on his cheeks – they fell onto the crown, freezing once again into the clearest diamonds Kanda had ever seen; yet, they didn't matter. All that mattered was his King.

"No..." he began, coughing harshly; blood flecked his white lips, staining them a deep red. Kanda cradled his face gently as the Noah looked on with mournful expressions, as though they had already given up all hope. "An Ice King can reign only for as long as he remains frozen. That is the way it must be."

"Then this is my fault," Kanda whispered, the truth finally beginning to sink in. "This is all my fucking fault!"

"No! Do not think that, never think that. I love you, Kanda, and I could never blame you for this. No matter what happens, this is not your fault," the King whispered, his voice fading at times. Kanda shook his head, his vision clouded no matter how many times he blinked, the tears now falling over his cheeks. "Go home, and make sure that all of this," he gestured weakly between them. "Was not for nothing."

Kanda nodded once, unable to speak as he watched the life – so new, so fresh – drain slowly from his lover's eyes. The tears didn't stop their relentless flowing, and Kanda gripped the crown so hard that he feared it might break.

I never even knew his fucking name.

When Kanda's body was finally found, it was by the search party led by Lavi – he had returned home only a day before the King's death, and had immediately called for all of the available men to be sent out to find Lenalee's fiancé. The expression on his face was oddly peaceful, unlike the scowl he had worn in life, and in his hands he clutched a worn and rusted metal circlet; Lavi frowned, recognising it as the crown of the Ice King, yet uncertain as to what exactly had happened in such a short time.

Later, when they searched the body, they would find many things. White feathers from an unknown bird sewn into his hood, an elegant silver mask of unfamiliar design, crystalline flowers, a small blue orb that would hover and glow when night fell, and a locket that was frozen shut.

All that Lavi noticed were the two tears frozen to Kanda's cheeks like perfect, twin diamonds.

(1) - yeah, it's Vatican spelled backwards. I was feeling lazy.
(2) - creative, huh? XD

See you guys tomorrow!