IT'S ALLLLLIIIIIIIIIVVVVVVEEEEEEE! Wow. I haven't updated for almost a year. But I'm back to bring you this chapter! I'm going to try to finish this story, but considering the time that it took for me to get myself to write another chapter, no promises. After a year of abandoning fanfiction, here is the eighth chapter of Gold and Black.

Anna

I huffed, attempting to let out all my anger and frustration in a single motion. It helped, but I was still tense. Seeing Pitch had triggered something inside of me that I forgot even existed, and I was ashamed of its reality. As much as I hated Pitch, he was one of my closest friends, especially after my parents' death. He was there to make me feel better, to tell me that I was right and others were wrong. Even though he cast fear on others, he was one of the few people I wasn't afraid to be with. His fear gave me a comfort, an excuse. Pitch favored me. Unlike others whom he taunted, I was lucky. I was the one whom he told was always right, that it was someone else's fault and not my own.

But fear still caught up to me. I was scared of my own sister, who remembered nothing of the incident that had happened years ago. It wasn't fair to leave her out of my life, but I was more afraid of her powers than I was of Pitch's dark manipulations. Perhaps I was a victim of one of them myself. Maybe that was why as much as I tried to dislike him, I kept on coming back. He could be very persuasive. And like he said, my frozen heart couldn't remember what the sun was like.

I winced, watching as the barn door creaked open and blinding rays of white light entered my field of vision. (Had the night really passed already?) Another thing that I remembered was that eyes who are adjusted to dark light can find bright light to be painful. I wondered if that applied to the metaphorical world as well.

Jack

We were down to one horse, and it was slightly my fault. But only slightly. I would admit to no more than that. Long story short, I may or may not have almost led my horse across an icy and cracking lake. The horse got away, taking some of my pride along with it. My excuse was that the lake was hidden underneath snow and there was no way that I could have known of its presence. But that didn't stop Elsa from glaring at me as I sat behind her on her horse. I wrapped my arms around her waist to make sure that I didn't fall off of the speeding steed. I found myself pressing my face into her shoulder. Her dress may have looked icy, but actually oh my goodness it was sooooooo soft. . . I don't think she like that.

Finally, once the orange sky melted into navy blue, Elsa slowed the horse down to a stop and tied it to a nearby tree. After she fed it with what came from a bag attached to the horse's saddle, she looked at me and announced that she was going to get firewood. By herself.

I protested. "But you can't go alone! You could get hurt!" I lowered my voice on instinct. "Do you even know what lives in these woods?"

Elsa blinked, displaying a look of consideration. "Ok, then maybe we shouldn't stop to rest at all."

My jaw dropped. "What?! You want us to continue on sleep-deprived?"

"If this forest is as dangerous as you think it is, then it wouldn't be good for us to be asleep and unaware of our surroundings."

I was about to suggest that we sleep in shifts, but then got distracted as flecks of gold danced across the skies. They shone brightly against the darkness and danced more joyfully than the stars. Breathlessly, I said, "Go ahead and sleep. I'll keep watch for a while." And watched I did. I stayed up and glanced up in awe at those little shining stars.

Hans

My knuckles paled as and hands gripped the railing on the balcony tighter, my scowl increasing in intensity as as I watched the golden stars dance by. I had underestimated the princess, and because of that she had gotten away. On the bright side, I hadn't seen her in Arendelle. But I had a feeling that she'd be back. Whether she came back with an army by her side or not didn't matter. She had strong powers that were a force not to be reckoned with. But in my case, I would have to fight against her and her powers in order to fulfill my destiny. I may have been the last in line to inherit the throne, but I would rule. I'd have to make sure of that.

A dark figure appeared by my side. Without turning towards me, he said, "Need some help?"