Really appreciate all the good reviews so far. I'm glad you think the characters are accurate to how they are. That is how I hope I am writing them. Thank you all so much for reading. And now, onto round 3.

Disclaimer: All characters, scenes, and anything else referenced in this story is not owned by me at all.

Chapter 11

Ice Harvesting

Kristoff stood outside Jack's door, all dressed, and ready to go. Sven was hitched to the sleigh with the tools and the two cups of good trollish stew that Kristoff had brewed for the ride over. Now all that was needed was the ride-along.

When Kristoff had asked Jack about riding along to harvest some ice, Jack had readily agreed. He actually seemed kind-of excited about going out into the freezing cold to harvesting ice for most of the day. Mostly counterintuitive to everyone else, but to an individual whose job was to sell ice for a living, it showed the true dedication to the craft.

Now it was time to see if that attitude persisted into the morning. Kristoff knocked on the door, and heard some banging inside. "I'll be out in a minute," a voice said.

A few seconds later, the door opened. Kristoff was surprised to see Jack rested, ready, and alert. Jack was wearing his usual hoodie and pants. Over that was a thick winter coat. The fur was good, and the coat looked insulated. The problem was that the coat appeared to be a little too big, as Jack had rolled up the sleeves so that his hands could squeeze through.

Jack looked down at himself. "I think you might need to talk to your tailor. This coat is a little big."

Kristoff shrugged. "Soon, you might be grateful for the long sleeves. Alright, ready to go?"

Jack nodded. "Ready. Let's get this show on the road."

It wasn't long before they set out. Jack and Kristoff got on board the sleigh and rode out of the gates. They passed by the kingdom quickly, not leaving much time for Jack to see the sights. Well, he'd get more sightseeing in the mountains and on the return journey.

As they traveled through the mountains, Jack started to take a sip of the brew. His eyes lit up and he drank some more. "This is very good. What kind of drink is this?"

"Some hot mud-stew. Family recipe. Really warms you up on a cold morning."

Jack looked back at the brew. "Is the mud part of the name for the brownness?"

Kristoff hesitated. "No, it's because we use mud as spice for the other ingredients."

Jack looked over at him. "What ingredients would that be?"

Kristoff returned the look. "Do you really want to know?"

"Yes."

"Alright. We have fly wings, marshmallows, cricket legs, carrots, beetle hides, peas, bee stingers, and chocolate. I know it's a little counterintuititve, but it's actually a real delicacy for my folks."

Jack nodded, taking another sip of the cup. "Not bad, given the ingredients."

Kristoff had to hide the shocked look on his face. Almost nobody else liked his troll recipes. Olaf adored them, but Anna and Elsa didn't as much. They were always polite about it, but Kristoff knew it wasn't their favorite. It was kind of refreshing to see someone else enjoy it besides himself and Sven.

Jack put his cup on the cup holder. "So I have a quick question, Kristoff. Olaf told me last night when he heard about our little trip to not get confused by your name and the reindeer's name. Do your names sound similar or something?"

Kristoff chuckled a little. "No, no. The reindeer's name is Sven. There was a slight misunderstanding when we all met Olaf, and he thought I was named Sven as well. It's all corrected, but Olaf's never forgotten that."

Jack nodded. "Well, when you call someone a funky looking donkey, I can see how that would be confusing."

Kristoff looked over. "Is that what he called me?"

"He said that was his first impression. He knows better now what humans look like, but he told me that's what he thought you were."

Kristoff turned away. "Well, Olaf means well, but he can be innocently insensitive. Has a child's mind."

"That can be a good thing, though. If you lose your sense of childhood, how can you still have fun? I mean, would you want an Olaf that was super serious?"

"Good point." Kristoff hadn't really thought about it that way. The trolls were rather fun-loving individuals, but they could be a little annoying. Still, they always seemed to brighten Kristoff's day whenever he came by. Maybe there was something to what Jack was saying.

Well, time to try and start asking the serious questions. Keep calm, and have an open mind regarding the answers. "So, Jack. How long have you lived with your uncle?"

Jack pondered the question. "Over several months, I would say. I used to live with my folks, until an… accident with a frozen lake caused my folks to disappear. I've been on my own since then. That is, until my uncle took me in."

Kristoff looked over. The teen was an orphan as well? That could be a rather hard experience. Even Sven looked back, slowing down as he trotted through the snow. "You lost your folks?" Kristoff asked.

"Yes. It was a rather tought time."

Kristoff nodded. He definitely knew the feeling. He placed a hand on Jack's shoulder. "Really sorry for your loss."

"Thank you. I appreciate it."

A few seconds of silence passed. Finally, Kristoff, took a breath. "So, what's your uncle like?"

Jack's face brightened with a smile. "He's awesome. He's a great person to talk to. Very jolly and happy, but can become serious if the situation requires it. Definitely someone you can talk to about a wide variety of subjects.

"He's also great with kids. Making toys is a large part of his life. Aside from ice carving, he likes to make toys to pass out to the kids at the villages he visits. If you could see the twinkle in his eyes as he prepares new toys, you would know that he has a true heart of gold. All in all, a very nice guy."

Kristoff smiled a little. Jack's uncle did indeed sound like a very nice relative. Jack was an incredibly lucky fellow to have good family like that.

Jack turned to Kristoff. "So, what about you? Where are you from?"

Kristoff looked a little surprised. "Me? Well, I'm from Arendelle actually. When I was younger, it was just me and Sven. Then some very nice people in the woods took me in. I know that sounds super suspicious, but they're family to me. I grew up harvesting ice and living in the woods. Kinda like you, in a way."

"Huh. I guess we're not that different from each other."

Kristoff turned away. "No, I guess we're not."

The sleigh ride was quiet as everyone got to thinking. The trees eventually thinned out as the sleigh approached a small frozen lake. Kristoff cleared his throat. "All right. We're here."

Once the sleigh stopped, Jack and Kristoff got out. Kristoff went to the back to get the supplies. A small harness for Sven to carve ice, an ice pick, a marker, a lantern, a thick pitchfork and a long saw. Everything needed to get started on ice harvesting.

Kristoff went over to Jack. "All right, Jack. How much experience do you have in ice harvesting?"

Jack looked over. "Not very much, really. I've tried my hand at ice sculpting, and have found that I can pick up any craft involving winter work."

Kristoff noded, marking several lines in the ice with the marker. "All right. So we need to carve out sections of ice. We basically carve out the ice, pull it up, slice it into large cubes, store it in the sleigh, and we're done. I've already marked several lines where we should start. I'll lead Sven down one line. Why don't you start sawing along the other line with the saw?"

Jack nodded. "You've got it."

With that, the work began. It started out slow, as Kristoff needed to point a few things out to Jack, but as they went along, the work progressed quickly. Jack was indeed a quick learner, moving faster once he learned the ropes. All the blocks carved by him seemed to be of good quality. No rough edges or sharp pieces. Kristoff was certain in his assessment. The kid had natural skills with ice, yet was not experienced enough to be a master. Fit perfectly well with what the letter said.

Eventually, the sun moved from using the mountain in the east as a shield to closing behind the western mountain like a door. Sven looked at the sky and looked back at Kristoff. "Time to go back to Arendelle," Sven said.

Jack looked over. "Did you just talk for the reindeer."

Kristoff turned nervously. He hadn't realized he had said Sven's words out loud. "Maybe…"

Jack gained a pondering look for a second, then smiled. "Oh, good. I thought that reindeer had some good smarts to him. Nice that you've given him a translation."

Kristoff looked over in surprise. "You don't find that weird?"

"I'll admit the accent is a little much, but the rest of it is kinda cool. The reindeer isn't objecting either, so you must have it right."

Kristoff nodded, a big smile on his face. Guess he didn't need to keep Sven's voice to himself anymore around Jack. "I'm glad you agree, Jack. Sven is a very smart reindeer. It's only right that he's given a voice."

Jack nodded. "Didn't he say it was time to head out?"

"Yes, he did. Let's load up this last piece of ice."

With that, Jack took one of the ice blocks he had just finished slicing and moved it to the sleigh. Kristoff took the other and tied down both blocks with rope. After loading up all the ice blocks in the same manner, they were off, back to Arendelle.

The ride back was delightful. Jack and Kristoff rode back, telling tales of their travels and singing songs. Apparently Jack knew some old familiar tunes, and had a voice that wasn't half bad. The trees were soon filled with songs of jingling bells and frozen hearts.

As they approached the palace after selling some of the ice to the citizens at a cheap price, Kristoff noticed the servants gathered around the courtyard. There were several ladders out, and the sounds of hammering were heard. What was going on?

Kristoff then noticed Elsa standing nearby. "Hey Elsa. What's happening here?"

Elsa turned to Kristoff. "Hello, Kristoff. The placeholder for the Yule Bell has been rotting a little. We're just replacing the old boards with some new, sturdy ones. I'm out here to help and Anna's up near the bell-holder, hammering away."

Kristoff looked surprised. "Anna's hammering? A little unusual for a princess."

"I tried to tell her she didn't have to. But you know Anna. A little more spirited than a traditional princess."

"True. That's what I like about her."

Elsa smiled. "I had a feeling you'd say that. So, how was the trip with Jack?"

Kristoff shrugged, looking cheerful. "It went great. Kid's a natural. He can carve ice well and is very careful with the tools. I think the letter's story was true about him."

"So, we have nothing to worry about?"

"Absolutely. There's no trouble with Jack."

Elsa nodded. "Excellent." But Kristoff noticed that she still had a rather uncertain look on her face. What would it take to convince her fully, Kristoff thought. But before his brain could give an answer, he heard a loud scream.

He turned back to the holder for the Bell. One of the ladders had fallen down, and Anna was hanging from the holder by her hand. Kristoff's blood ran cold. At that height, whoever fell would break an arm or leg, if not something worse.

Kristoff raced over as Anna's hand began to slip. He knew he wasn't going to make it in time, but he had to do something.

Anna's hand slipped and she started to fall. Time seemed to stand still for a few seconds, as Kristoff watched his girlfriend fall, his arms reached out to try and catch her. His mind went numb, preparing for the crash that would come.

But it didn't. Kristoff was surprised to see a small ice slide forming, catching Anna and sending her down to the ground safely. She stood up, completely unharmed.

Kristoff raced over. "Anna, are you ok?"

Anna shook a little and took a breath. "Yeah, I'm ok Kristoff. Whoo, that was a crazy heart-attack experience, wasn't it?"

Elsa came running over. "Are you alright, Anna?"

Anna looked over at Elsa. "I'm fine, thanks to you. Your ice slide saved me."

Elsa looked confused. "But that wasn't me. I was about to form a snowpile for you when that ice slide formed. "

Kristoff shared the confused look. "If it wasn't you, Elsa, then who was it?"

One of the servants pointed at someone. "It was him. His arm stretched out, and an ice beam flew out and saved our princess."

Kristoff turned around. Now all eyes were on the same individual. The teen still had his arm streched, stick in hand, a look of shock on his face. His brown hair now had a tinge of white to it. Still, there was no doubt about it. The one who had fired the beam was Jack.

Oh boy. Jack took one step forward, then two steps back. How are things going to go down? To find out, turn the online page to the next chapter… right now.