Author's foreword: Four years and another failed short film since I made my debut here on FanFiction, and Snow & Frost is still my biggest publicized success. I owe it all to you, my readers.
And speaking of owing you things... you know that bit you see in anime all the time where a character gets on their hands and knees, and lowers their head to the floor as they apologize profusely? Well, picture me (however you imagine I look) doing that right now, because I am so sorry. You'll recall that, in Snow & Frost: Chronicles, I said that my plan was to release Snow & Frost 2 sometime in 2022. I think it's fair to assume that things did not go according to plan. While it wasn't a promise, it was an expectation, and I sure didn't meet it. This past few years, on top of trying so hard to get this story right, I've had a lot going on in the real world, in-person obligations to so many people... stuff I didn't have to worry about as much when I wrote the first Snow & Frost early in the COVID-19 pandemic (and now my work is officially dated – me and my big mouth).
All right, apologies are out of the way. Now, onto confessions.
For one, even before I finished writing Snow & Frost, I already knew what I wanted to do with its sequel. I already knew how I wanted the story to end. And bear in mind that I hadn't seen Frozen II yet by that point.
This leads into my second confession; while I did buy a copy of Frozen II after I released my first fanfiction, as I said I would, I still have yet to watch it. There are a few reasons why, but one of them is that I didn't want it to influence any part of the creation of Snow & Frost 2. I wanted to write something of my own, and not lean into anything that people might have liked about the Frozen sequel Disney did make. So while I have heard a few spoilers, if any part of my story seems like something from Frozen II, I promise, it's a coincidence, a case of debatably great minds thinking alike.
Really, all of this to lead into my ultimate confession; this isn't going to be just Frozen II guest starring Jack Frost. (Sorry, Crystal.)
But it's also not going to be just a Snow & Frost sequel. It wasn't until I was almost done writing this story that I realized that I mean for it to wrap up not only what I started in Snow & Frost, but a few things from its parent franchises – especially some of the characters. In my first outing, I sneakily wrote the other characters from Frozen and Rise of the Guardians to an acceptable minimum so I could focus on Elsa and Jack. This time around, I'm featuring more of them, even giving a few of them what I found to be fitting arcs. I don't want to sound full of myself but, as the summary implies, this is meant to be something of a culmination of all three stories.
So, one more time from the top, the only things canon to the story you're about to read are Rise of the Guardians (the 2012 movie, albeit taking place in 1839), Frozen (the 2013 movie), and everything on my FanFiction page with the label of Snow & Frost. (Oh, and also Tangled (the 2010 movie), I suppose. Rapunzel, her loved ones, and her kingdom did guest appear in Snow & Frost, remember?)
Maybe because of it's meant to be that sort of culmination, though, Snow & Frost 2 might be a bit more conventional and predictable than what I've written before. I guarantee a good amount of you will find this story too obvious, or too slow, or wrong in some other way. But it's the way I think it should go, and you can't blame me for staying the course. As for whether this is going to be my FanFiction magnum opus, or the failed followup to said magnum opus... see for yourself.
Mikaelus, Saturday, November 2nd, 2024
PS: Anyone noticed the date I'm publishing this? The month, the day of the month, and the weekday? Look familiar to any of you? If not, maybe take another look at my profile page.
PROLOGUE: TOGETHER
Her. It looked like she wasn't anywhere today.
Olaf was pretty sure it was safe to say that now, unlike when he'd said it this morning. His search had only been a few minutes in then, so Kai and Gerda had suggested that he just hadn't checked enough places (not that they had seen her, either, though). He didn't want to be called a quitter, so he'd promised himself to look a little longer before calling it.
After almost two hours, and dozens of places checked – both enough, hopefully – the living snowman still hadn't found any sign of her. And, oddly enough, none of the rest of the staff had, either.
This wasn't like her. She was the Queen. She was always somewhere, because that's where the people needed their Queen; where they could find her. And right now, he needed her. But he couldn't find her. His snowy brain stuck at that oxymoron, Olaf sat down where his fruitless search had ended – back in the castle courtyard – to ponder what he could only describe as a zen riddle, as well as wonder where else to look.
"Morning, Olaf!"
Snapped out of his musings, the snowman looked up at the greeting. To its credit, the voice that delivered it definitely came from a "her", but he knew before he looked that she wasn't the one he was looking for. Instead of sapphire-coloured eyes, platinum blonde hair, and an icy blue dress, the Princess skipping toward him sported teal-blue eyes, strawberry blonde hair, and a moss green dress.
"Hi, Anna!" Olaf responded cheerily, not getting up.
"Whatcha doing?"
"I'm looking for Elsa."
Anna came to a stop just a few feet from Olaf, the smile on her freckled face switching from bright to questioning in the blink of an eye. Giving her friend the benefit of the doubt, she took a subtle look around before establishing the obvious.
"Well, she's not in the courtyard, so you're not gonna find her by just sitting there."
"But I've already looked everywhere!" the snowman protested. "I looked in the castle, I looked around the castle, I looked on top, and underneath, inside again..."
"I dunno how that's 'everywhere', Olaf..." Anna pointed out, wondering just how "on top" the snowman had searched.
"I looked around town, too. She's not buying flowers, or clothes, or jewellery, or a sleigh, or lutefisk, mister Oaken says hi, by the way, or a crossbow-"
"Okay, I'm just gonna save you some time and say Jack took her on a day trip today."
"Oh, of course!" Olaf exclaimed, snapping his wooden fingers. He kept forgetting that with the Guardian of Fun in her life, the whole world was open to Elsa. "Any idea when she'll be back?"
"Since it's a day trip, probably not anytime soon. Why are you looking for Elsa, anyway? Anything I can help with?" Anna asked, trying not to sound too hopeful that she could be useful – anything but just "the spare" to Elsa's "heir".
Olaf put a finger to his chin, a mystified look invading his comical features.
"Umm..." he thought out loud. "... You know, I was looking for her for so long, I forgot why."
Anna chuckled fondly, unsurprised.
"C'mon." she offered her friend a hand up. "Maybe you'll remember after some fun. Wanna help me look at centrepieces for the wedding?"
For what was probably the millionth time since Kristoff had proposed to her, a chill of excitement rushed throughout Anna's entire body at the big W word, very nearly making her giggle with pleasure. One would think she would get used to it the longer the engagement lasted – and, thanks in no small part to Elsa, it had already been drawn out months – but she did quite the opposite; her anticipation climbed higher and higher the closer the wedding came.
The wedding. Dear God, the wedding, their wedding. She and Kristoff were having a wedding. They were getting married! They were-
"Sure!" Olaf interrupted her speeding train of thought. "You wanna look first and have fun after, or fun first?"
Anna couldn't help but laugh heartily. From the quizzical look Olaf gave her, though, he didn't get what was so funny.
"I'll buy you a toy on the way back, how about that?" the Princess promised, pulling him to his snowy feet.
"It's a deal! Let's go look at some... 'middle parts', or whatever you just said."
Agreed on a course of action, Princess and snowman began the trek across the bridge and into town. Between these two notorious chatterboxes, the contented silence didn't last even ten seconds.
"So, where did Jack take Elsa today?" Olaf asked.
"I dunno. With Jack's powers, probably the tropics. Somewhere with white sands and palm trees and turquoise waters... Ugh, the lucky dog!" Though Anna rolled her eyes as she grumbled, she grinned nonetheless.
"Lucky?"
"The tropics, Olaf. It's like summer, but even better."
"Whoa, really?" the snowman was mesmerized by the mere idea. Heaven knew summer here in Arendelle was already one of his favourite things in the world.
"Well, that's what they say. Haven't seen it for myself, of course. But it's on my bucket list!" Anna affirmed, abruptly determined. "I'll get there one day!"
Instead of offering a word of support, Olaf just looked confused again.
"What's a bucket list?" he queried.
"You don't know?"
"Unless it's a list of buckets... no."
"Well..." Anna took a moment to pick her words carefully, not wanting to mentally scar her innocent friend. "It's all the important things for you to do... someday."
"What day?"
"Oh, you know. Any day. Any day of your life. So, some day... before you..."
Anna trailed off, having talked herself into a corner once again. Looking helplessly at her snowman companion, sure enough, she found him waiting for her to finish – which she was unsure how to do. Between Olaf's childlike naïveté and his wise observations, she was never sure just how much he knew and didn't know. As it turned out...
"Before you die?" he offered, surprising her once again.
"Oh, good, you know!" Anna returned immediately, relieved. "Yeah, that. It's the to do list of your life."
"And going to the tropics is on your to do list?"
"You know it!"
"Oh..." Olaf nodded to himself understandingly. Then he looked up, something visibly striking him. "Hey! I wonder if I should make a list!"
"A bucket list? You?"
"Yeah! You think I should have one like you?"
"I dunno." Anna replied thoughtfully. "Never really thought snowmen lived long enough to need one."
"How long do snowmen live?" Amazingly, there wasn't even a trace of anxiety in Olaf's voice as he asked this, just more curiosity.
Anna didn't respond with words, only a knowing smile.
"Oh, right!" one of the only snowmen alive recalled. "Guess I should ask Elsa, huh?"
"Maybe that's what you wanted her for in the first place." Anna joked.
The two laughed as they continued their walk.
Within a few hours, though Anna was glad to have any company at all, she ultimately had to admit that Olaf didn't have much of an eye for style, so he was of little help in choosing centrepieces appropriate for the upcoming wedding. Before long, both wound up eagerly awaiting Elsa's return – though they also hoped she was having a good time.
Him. He was nowhere to be found today.
And that was quite an accomplishment, considering that Toothiana's little helpers effectively gave her eyes all over the world. There should have been nowhere to hide. But nevertheless, none of her "eyes" had sighted a magical young man with silver hair on his head, a deep blue sweater on his back, and a wooden staff in his hand.
That was part of the reason Tooth now found herself flying through the blistering cold at speeds that would boggle the human mind, but were frankly the norm for her and her little ones. If anyone knew where he was, it was one of this place's inhabitants – the de facto leader of the Guardians.
Clearing another iceberg, Toothiana discovered her destination exactly where she'd known it would be. It was a large group of buildings that all formed a single structure, all of it built right into a massive, icy cliff. Most of the roofs were onion-shaped, and paths and bridges brought all the various buildings together as one. Lanterns twinkled along these paths, while bigger lights danced warmly in almost every window. Towers almost rivalled the main complex in terms of height, and far below, a large ramp for a sleigh to launch off of protruded from deep within the cliff. Between its size, location, and visible fortitude, the place was almost as intimidating as a battle fortress. Yet for all that, its architecture, colour scheme, and trimmings made it nearly as welcoming as her own Palace.
The Pole's inviting atmosphere was only added to with every second she remained out here, in subzero temperatures that stung unpleasantly at every part of her anatomy. Heeding that invitation, the Tooth Fairy made her way to the main complex's dome roof, and a window to enter it through.
Inside was the usual bustle of activity for the time of year. Though yetis and elves alike milled around on toy-making business, the atmosphere was rather relaxed. She made no comment, but Toothiana had no idea how any of them could have the leisure of taking it easy. Didn't any of them realize that Christmas was just months away, and how many kids there were in the world? If they didn't pick up the pace, they might never make it in time, and then where would the world be?
"Ah, there you are, Tooth!" a familiar voice boomed before she'd even had a chance to find a fireplace to warm her wings with.
Cursing this slight misfortune, the Tooth Fairy turned at the sound of her nickname. Sure enough, North strode into the atrium from one of its adjacent rooms, elves scurrying out of the way of his boots and a confident smile lighting up his features. He didn't head toward her, though, instead making his way to his home-made lift, knowing the reason she was here – at least, knowing one of the reasons.
"You are early, but in luck! My one o' clock was just cancelled, something about some rag dolls having the right to wear trousers instead of skirts..." the Guardian of Wonder, staring into space with a look of mild distress for a moment, continued as Toothiana winged over. Then he brightened up, resting a hand on the sabres tucked into his belt. "So we have even more time today! Ready for a rematch?"
"Actually, I wanted to ask you something." Tooth piped up hopefully.
"Ask something away!"
"Do you know where Jack is?"
North paused in engaging the lift for a second to offer her a perplexed look.
"Jack?" he repeated, giving the lever a crank. "What do you want him for?"
"For him to do his job." the Guardian of Memories answered simply, hovering down in time with the lift. "I was just doing some pickups in the eastern hemisphere earlier. It didn't look like they'd had their winter weather in days. Is he slacking off?"
To her surprise, North chuckled to himself.
"Ah, young love. It makes everything else come in second place. You live in the moment, and forget about later. Heh heh..." he remarked nostalgically. "Anyway, our young friend is with Elsa today."
"But I had some of my little fairies check Arendelle." Tooth pointed out unsurely. "There was no sign of him."
"Was there no sign of her?"
Toothiana opened her mouth to answer, only to close it with a shrewd look as the truth dawned on her. How had she not realized it before?
"So they're out and about today. Anywhere in the world." she stated, trying to imagine what that kind of travelling power would be like for a human, especially one who'd been confined to a castle for most of her life. Awe-striking, she suspected.
"Yes, and you are here." North replied patiently. "So don't get any ideas."
"What are you talking about?"
"Not everyone works like you, Tooth. Some of us have slow seasons, or something on the side for between shifts. Even someone. Jack is taking weekend off, and he'll be back on duty tomorrow. You can count on that, so do not go barging into his date with a lecture on slacking off. Понял?"
Toothiana couldn't help but blink, taken aback. Though she hadn't really been set on getting Jack back to work, the rest of North's words corresponded with her uncertain thoughts on the work ethic here too perfectly. Had her musings been so clear as to be read on her face?
Whether that was the case or not, though, maybe North was right. As someone whose work was more frequent, maybe Tooth just didn't understand how everyone else worked. Besides, had the Pole been busier right now, her fellow Guardian might not have had time for her.
"Понял." Toothiana promised, choosing North's preferred dialect as a show of honesty.
"There we are, then." North responded, pleased. "And here we are!"
Following North's gaze, the Tooth Fairy saw that they had indeed arrived at the combat training room – a room she had become very familiar with in recent months. Though the architecture of the Guardian of Wonder's slavic roots and the trimmings of his trademark day still dominated the place like the rest of the Pole, many other cultures were also present in its furnishings. Weapons both real and false, punching bags, mats, dummies, and so much more from all over the world (either imported or replicated) were set up all over the room. It didn't matter what style of fighting one dedicated themselves to; anything they needed in order to train was here.
Having everything she herself needed, Toothiana whizzed out to the large, rectangular open space at the centre of the room, placed her feet firmly on the ground, and turned to her opponent. His grin becoming almost wolfish, North drew his twin blades.
"Now..." he growled challengingly. "Let us see if you've been slacking off."
"Think we've already established I don't work like everyone else, North." Tooth shot back.
North's response was to laugh as he took up a combat stance, spreading his feet apart and raising his blades. Toothiana followed suit, drawing her own weapons.
But as she prepared to charge blocking arm-first into battle, her thoughts drifted once more to Jack Frost, and the conversation about him she'd just been having. Though she had no doubt about his love for children or what his job meant to him, she still had mixed feelings about how much time he took away from them to spend with the Queen of Arendelle. It was in her nature, after all, to obsess over work – hers or the other Guardians'. But on the other hand, she also loved both bringers of winter dearly, and even encouraged them to be together.
Tooth dismissed these thoughts and focused on the battle before her. No matter how she felt, chances were, Jack would only devote even more time to Elsa in the coming years – especially once he realized how things were destined to turn out. She hoped that, both today and in the long run, he had a good time.
Them. They were... nowhere. The middle of it, in fact, on their way home to Arendelle.
They had begun bright and early. The first rays of sunlight had barely started to peek over the Norwegian horizon when he'd gently shaken her awake. This was early even by her standards, but she had nevertheless responded to him by clambering painfully out of bed, stumbling to her bathroom, making herself presentable, and returning to him looking significantly more awake. He, of course, had needed no such preparation, nor even a meal to start the day. This was a stark contrast to her; her stomach had growled for breakfast first and foremost. But in her usual discipline, she'd adhered to the day's plan. He'd taken her in his arms in a bridal hold, stepped onto the open window's sill, and launched into the morning sky. It was no morning meal, but if nothing else, a flight first thing in the morning had been a good way to clear out her sinuses.
Somewhere over the sea, she'd fallen back to sleep in his arms, looking so adorable doing it. Knowing she would need the rest for the day ahead, he'd done nothing but smile and kiss her brow. There would be time for fun flying later on.
He'd only woken her up upon spotting a small village somewhere in Spain. Landing there, they'd begun wandering around in search of a breakfast restaurant. She didn't speak Spanish, but he did. No one could hear him, but they could hear her. So she'd asked around the way he'd taught her, and he'd translated the responses the locals had given. With such teamwork, it had only been minutes before they'd found somewhere to feed themselves. The cuisine there had been so delicious, even he'd stolen a few bites.
Once breakfast was securely down in her belly (flying right after eating being ill-advised), they'd taken to the air once again. This time, she'd refused to fall asleep. With the sun now up and illuminating the land, she'd not wanted to miss a second of the beautiful landscape far below. They'd both watched people, animals, trees, buildings, and more pass on by – though, more than once, they'd snuck looks at each other, finding much more beauty there.
By the time they'd reached Madrid, it had been late in the morning, and the city's plans had also been well underway. A festival (or "fiesta") had been set up in the streets, and everyone had taken full advantage. Decorations had been set up, games had been played, treats had been consumed, souvenirs had been bought, costumes had been worn, and music had been played and danced to. In these crowded streets filled with both locals and visitors (most dressed in vibrant colours for the occasion), she had blended in rather well, never rousing suspicion that she was actually royalty. He, meanwhile, hadn't cared at all that he was invisible, silent, and ghostly to almost all of them; many were simply passing each other by without a look, on their way to the next attraction. By that measure, he had fit right in. So the two of them had taken part in the festivities, and enjoyed themselves immensely.
Eventually, they'd grown tired of all the colours and sounds, and so left as easily as they'd arrived. Such a big, crowded event had almost overwhelmed them; they'd needed a little peace after it all. With another short flight, they'd found a few small, quiet islands just south of France. On one of these they'd spent much of the afternoon exploring the lush forests and lovely beaches, resting in the shade, and strolling through a small town. It was a welcome recovery from the wild entertainment of Madrid.
When dinner had arrived, he'd flown them to Rome, a city just beginning to wind down after a long day, the sun already falling in the west. She'd bought a small pizza, and they'd sat down and enjoyed it at the Trevi Fountain. In a stroke of luck, during their post-dinner wanderings, they'd discovered a small band playing gentle music on the Spanish Steps. They'd sat there, listening to the cellos and violins, for over an hour before they'd decided it was finally time to wrap up the day.
It went without saying that no couple in the world had dates as amazing as Elsa, Queen of Arendelle, and Jack Frost, Guardian of Fun. But it was only fitting, given their relationship's unique nature – not to mention its beginnings.
1839 had been the year things became extraordinary for the two bringers of winter. In early April, the threat of an old, terrifying enemy had called for the Guardians to welcome a new member into their circle. This new member had been Jack Frost, but the welcome part had been questionable, to say the least. Some, including Jack himself, had doubted his qualifications for the role. This was a being who had spent some three centuries wandering the Earth in near-solitude, playing mischievous games with children and even the Guardians themselves for his own enjoyment on good days, and searching in vain for attention and answers to his eternal questions – who was he, why had he been created, what did he have to do to be seen – on bad ones. He was no selfless protector and nurturer of the world's future generations; he was a walking, talking, emotionally frayed accident waiting to happen. But just when Jack had been defeated and ready to give up, he'd stumbled upon the memories of his human life – who he had been, and still was, at heart. And in that, he'd found what really made him fit to be a Guardian. Not nearly as selfish as the mythical being had appeared to be, Jack had always loved children, and had sought to bring joy to their lives and protect them from harm even at the cost of his own life. The makings of a great Guardian had been there all along, he'd just needed to realize it for himself. With a renewed sense of belonging and purpose, Jack had lead another charge against the forces of darkness, earned the belief of several of the children of his hometown, triumphed in the final battle, and accepted his place in the Guardians' ranks. All the questions he'd been asking for three hundred years were finally answered, and his path, his place in the world, was finally made clear.
Meanwhile in Arendelle, Elsa had also been in line for a position of power and responsibility she'd doubted she should have. That July, the finally of age Princess had had no choice but to leave the relative comfort zone of her bedchamber and accept her role as her kingdom's Queen – this after thirteen years of struggling to control a power she was terrified of, and isolating herself from everyone she feared it would hurt, especially her beloved sister. Needless to say that her doubts had not been without foundation. Sure enough, she failed to keep this power concealed for the duration of the event, plunging Arendelle into an eternal winter and fleeing into the mountains. As if that had not been enough, supposed allies had taken advantage of the crisis to execute plots against her and Anna, from emotional manipulations to assassination attempts. Worst of all, Elsa was ultimately confronted with her worst fear, mortally wounding the little sister she loved so much. Only Anna's indomitable love for her sister, driving her through all of this to find and save her, had managed to avert the collective disaster in one heart-stopping moment of truth. It was in this that Elsa had discovered the true secret to controlling her magic; not shutting out her emotions and loved ones, but embracing them. With this new knowledge, she'd undone the last threat to her kingdom, restoring summer to its rightful place and order to the land. The royal family's enemies were exposed and banished for their crimes, but for the young Queen, the defeat of her personal archenemy – fear – felt like a much greater triumph. Because of it, she could let others in again – and she certainly did. She ruled her people in their company instead of from a distance, forged new friendships that would last a lifetime, and mended her relationship with her faithful sister. After thirteen years of fear and loneliness, Elsa began to live her life again.
With such fresh starts for both bringers of winter, the stories hadn't ended there. A few months later still, Jack's work as a Guardian had brought him to Arendelle. There, as if it were meant to be, he and Elsa's paths had finally crossed. Unlike other humans, the Queen could see the mythical being even though she hadn't believed in him at first. Though their uncanny similarities had rapidly built a strong bond, trouble had begun to brew almost as quickly. No one else in the kingdom seemed able to see the Guardian of Fun – causing Elsa to gradually wonder if she was hallucinating him – and worse, the bringers of winter had suddenly become unable to touch. In a bid to undo the latter, Queen and Guardian had embarked on a quest to fix the former; to earn Jack someone else's belief. This might have been the most punishing challenge either had faced yet, as not a single person across the next week and a half was convinced. Jack had become more discouraged than ever, while a horrified Elsa truly began to question what was real. But while the goal they'd been working toward had continued to elude them, the bringers of winter did find something even more rewarding. Through all the failed attempts to convince those around them and the talks they privately shared, Elsa and Jack had begun to fall in love. And though it had taken a heartbreaking separation and a couple of epiphanies, that love did finally blossom into a full romantic relationship. It had only been made even more perfect when Elsa's other loved ones had believed in Jack, restoring their ability to touch. At last, the two bringers of winter had ended their years of solitude in favour of a large circle of friends, family, and each other.
And somehow, even after all that, fate still hadn't been done with them. Every day since they'd become a couple had been some sort of adventure, whether it was a double date with Anna and Kristoff, organizing Arendelle's Winter Festival, or laying Jack's human past to rest. Today had just been the latest in a long line.
"Wuh-oh! Think I feel a big one coming!" Jack hinted playfully, referring to the wind he loved to ride on.
"And I think I feel my dinner, still capable of making a second appearance!" Elsa warned in response, a knowing smirk on her lips.
"Ugh, you're worse than Bunny." the accusation came with a grin.
"Then I hope you like carrots."
The two chuckled at the reference, but Jack complied nonetheless, keeping his flight steady and avoiding the gust he'd detected.
"You shouldn't make Bunny your first example for everything you don't like all the time." the Queen pointed out. "Not if you're still hoping to get along one day."
"Aww, but he makes it too easy for me!" the Guardian jokingly whined in reply. "He might as well be wearing a shirt saying 'poke fun at me'!"
"If you're going to poke fun at him for not being able to fly, you might as well do it to everyone else you know. Some of us are made for solid ground."
"I don't have a problem with being on the ground. It's the 'under' part that I don't get."
Though Elsa continued to beam, her eyebrow quirked upward as she recalled a certain underground experience Jack had endured just last year. From his story, it had sounded anything but pleasant.
"Was the lair really that bad?"
"Well, it didn't have much of a view."
"As opposed to this?" Elsa countered teasingly, gesturing around. She wasn't wrong; so late in this moonless night, with only faraway stars for light, even Jack's magical eyes could only make out enough to see where he was and any obstacles to avoid (not that there were many at this altitude). Looking down herself, Elsa could only deduce that they'd left the sea behind and were now over land. Whether the dark shapes that dotted it were trees, buildings, or otherwise, she couldn't tell.
But then, that all changed. Light suddenly illuminated the entire Norwegian countryside, turning the simple land into prairies, forests, and fields, and those featureless black clumps into boulders, trees, houses, barns, and even animals. Turning her gaze upward, Elsa discovered what she knew had to be there; what looked to be a set of cracks had spread silently across the night sky, and through them, the light of a multicoloured midday peered through. The ribbons of energy were ever-shifting shades of green, pink, teal, magenta, and gold as they swayed gently back and forth, like seaweed in the current of a nonexistent ocean.
"Yeah, this beats underground any day." Jack answered, his trademark smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth.
Though the Guardian of Fun would claim it was just a coincidence, the timing of the aurora that proved the point he'd been making was nothing short of perfect. Not taking his bait, Elsa instead kept her gaze on the spectacle the sky was putting on. Something occurred to her.
"Is this for you?" she asked, suddenly concerned. "Do you have to go to work?"
"Nah, this is all natural." Jack replied breezily.
Practically feeling his girlfriend relax in his arms, the Guardian looked at her again. Her eyes were still fixed on the phenomenon, like it was something she hadn't seen dozens of times in her life already. When he thought about it, it made sense; she'd certainly never seen it from this close.
"It's something, huh?" he commented into her ear.
"Just amazing..." she murmured back.
"Want a closer look?"
Immediately, Elsa turned back to Jack, surprised at the suggestion.
"Sure, we can." came the answer before she could even ask.
Elsa beamed.
"Let's go!" she said in barely more than a whisper.
Her wish his command, Jack altered course and began to ascend. Unable to help in any way, Elsa could only watch as the aurora did what she had never seen it do in all her years; it approached. It was such a simple thing, but it was everything to someone who had spent her life confined to the ground. (She quietly began to understand Jack's earlier viewpoint on being high up.) As with most other things, the closer the bands of power grew, the more details they yielded. More and more, she began to see each individual bar of light that made them up, and almost felt like she could reach out and grab one out of the sky like a book off a shelf. Surely no other human had ever enjoyed this privilege, she thought, and she was immensely thankful for it and for the young man who had made it possible.
Having been this close to auroras before, Jack was more grateful to have someone to share it with. At the highest he'd ever flown, the cold was so great that it could kill a mortal in a matter of minutes. But with her powers so similar to his own, Elsa never even noticed the plummeting of the temperature as they rose. In Jack's eyes, that made her so much more beautiful than the northern lights.
That wasn't to say there was no danger for her up here, though.
At first, Elsa thought her breath was actually being taken away by the beauty before her. But even when she lowered her gaze and focused on getting a full gulp of air into her lungs, she barely got a sip. Worse, the following sips got progressively smaller. Her windpipe felt like it was slowly shrinking, and would surely be closed soon. Something was very wrong.
"Ja..." she tried, but barely made a sound. Her vision began to grow hazy and bright at the edges, and it had nothing to do with the aurora.
Grabbing a fistful of Jack's sweater, Elsa sucked in a breath with all her might. Her young man noticed this, and looked at her, mildly perturbed.
"Jack...?" she rasped, her hand going to her throat.
Instantly, everything inside the Guardian of Fun turned to loud, blazing alarm. Squashing all opposition without mercy, one thought immediately dominated his mind; Elsa couldn't breathe! Elsa was suffocating! ELSA WAS D-
Not even letting himself finish thinking it, Jack moved into action! There was nothing graceful or fun about his rescue. He just turned over in the air, angled himself downward, and shot into a power dive! The fact that he was flying near supersonic speeds and the air was racing by too fast to inhale it didn't even cross his mind; all he could focus on was getting back to a breathable height! It only took seconds, but in his panic-stricken mind and Elsa's oxygen-deprived one, it felt like it took minutes! It took too long!
Suddenly, Elsa gasped in a loud breath. Jack nearly jumped out his skin, but while he slowed down, he didn't stop his descent until his feet touched a grassy hilltop. He sat Elsa on the ground – but from there, he had no idea what to do. Elsa was still gasping deeply and occasionally coughing, but he didn't know if that was good or bad. He prayed to the Moon that she didn't need mouth to mouth resuscitation (a technique that few humans were even aware of yet).
"Elsa?" he asked, his voice low but frantic. "Breathe! Okay? Just breathe! Breathe, come on!"
"I'm..." Elsa managed between breaths. "... all right," gasp, "Jack..."
"Don't talk, just breathe. Okay? Breathe."
"Jack..." To the Guardian's surprise, Elsa almost seemed herself again – enough to give him a small, patronizing grin and a lecturing tone, at least. "I'm okay... I promise... I wasn't... not breathing for... that long."
Jack scrutinized Elsa tensely, but all she did was maintain her condescending smile, waiting for him to take her word. The only sign that she was anything but okay was her breath still catching up, and even that was almost back to normal. Finally, he sighed for probably the first time since this incident had begun, hanging his head.
"I'm sorry..." he mumbled.
"It's okay." Elsa whispered back, raising a hand to caress his cheek. "You didn't know."
"You nearly... I nearly..."
"Shhhh, it's all right. I'm still here. I'm still with you."
Silence fell over the couple for a few seconds as they both recovered from the ordeal. Elsa smirked.
"What a way to end a date, hm?" she joked.
"Definitely the most exciting part of my day." Jack agreed with an uneasy chuckle. "Not exactly for the right reasons. Are you sure you're...?"
"I'm sure. I promise."
Again, Jack sighed, and sat down. A curious look came upon Elsa's face as something dawned on her.
"How come you were okay back there?" she queried, tugging on Jack's arm to coax him into sit closer.
It took a moment for the recovering Guardian to realize what she meant.
"I don't breathe air, I breathe magic." he responded, scooting close enough to drape his arm across her shoulders. "I... guess there's still plenty of that up there."
"Clearly, yes." Elsa said warmly, motioning to the light show in the sky.
"So much for a closer look."
"Oh, we can still enjoy them from down here. You know, like people who can't fly. Like Bunny."
Both sniggered at that comment, then settled into silence and gazed up at the aurora far above. Calm gradually began to settle back on them. The gentle dance of the strings of power was an enchanting, soothing sight, and a much-needed one after the crisis that had just been averted. With the two bringers of winter losing themselves in that performance and their own closeness, instinct found its way to the foreground, and their bodies went to work on their own to cement the moment. Her head leaned until it rested against his. His hand stroked her shoulder back and forth slowly. Both drew even closer, snuggling into each other's embrace as much as they could. Smiles found their ways to their faces.
The moment of panic was over. This moment belonged to true love. Both felt it practically bursting from the other, and offered it back in kind – all without a single word for the longest time.
"... can't go back..."
Elsa was so tranquil and happy that, were it not for the gentle hum of Jack's chest, she might not have realized he had even made a sound, much less muttered.
"Hm?" she grunted, too relaxed to do anything more.
"I can't go back..."
Sensing that Jack wasn't going to elaborate without knowing he had her full attention, the Queen battled her sluggishness to sit up a little straighter and look him in the face.
"What do you mean?" she prompted, hoping the ripple of concern she suddenly felt for him went unnoticed.
Perhaps it was just because it was nighttime, but the whole world seemed to go still in the space between her question and Jack's answer. Whether it was good or bad, something big was about to happen.
"I... can't go back to the way things were before I met you." Jack said in a low – yet unusually emotional – voice. "I won't. Before you, my life was so... empty. I mean, yeah, I... I had the kids to look after. I always have, I still do, and I love that, but... you showed up and took a place I didn't even know was there. That place... makes me feel... like you're the reason I exist. I was born to the world... to find you, and be with you. You... are the reason for me."
So the something big that happened was good after all. But Elsa felt no relief at it – not when she was struck this monumentally senseless. She was completely unaware that her lips were parted, that her eyes were wide and moistening, or that her heart was beating faster than Tooth's wings could. All she could make out was the person before her. There had been no fear on his face as he'd said those words, and there still wasn't; only the most adoring look Elsa had ever received, and it alone very nearly took her breath away again – to say nothing of his words. She'd thought Jack had already told her many times just how much she meant to him. But none of those other instances had been as meaningful as this. She now knew that he loved and needed her to a point she couldn't even imagine.
And it only made her love him all the more.
Before she could find her voice, though, Jack's attention was drawn skyward once more. His eyebrows rose, and he gasped soundlessly.
"Look!" he hissed. Whatever distracted him now seemed to have made him practically forget the powerful moment he'd initiated.
Still recovering from it herself, the Queen half-consciously followed her boyfriend's gaze. At first, she didn't see what he was looking at besides the beautiful hues of the aurora. But amidst that slowly-shifting, collective glow, she sighted one more light that hadn't been there before. This one was tiny, colourless, and clearly not part of the northern lights. It quickly pierced across its fellow celestial phenomenon, just passing through on its way from one end of the sky to the other. She realized what she was looking at just instants before it disappeared beyond the horizon.
"Make a wish..." she heard Jack quip.
As soon as the shooting star vanished forever, Elsa's senses seemed to come back to her. Everything that had happened, both heard and seen, finally sank in, and she looked at Jack again. This young man, this Guardian, this angel wanted and needed her – imperfect and flawed as she was – always. And from the warmth that spread through her at that thought alone, she unquestionably returned these feelings.
There was only one wish to make.
As if expecting more stellar objects to whiz by, Jack was still grinning contentedly up at the sky. Elsa used this opportunity to lay a hand over his heart, lean in, and whisper into his ear without a second thought.
"... I wish to be with you forever."
That was more than enough to recapture the Guardian of Fun's attention, and he spun back to her with surprise in his eyes. Evidently, if he'd expected his love to reciprocate the feelings he'd just confessed, he hadn't expected it to be like this. This was infinitely better than anything he could've dreamt, and it visibly moved him. Before Elsa's eyes, pure tenderness superseded shock, lips stretched into a wobbly smile and, if she hadn't known any better, she could have sworn Jack was on the verge of tears. Heaven knew she was.
"I love you." her Guardian Angel breathed, leaning closer.
"I love you, too." his Snow Angel returned, moving in to meet him.
Bathed in the light of the aurora, they capped off their date with an adoring kiss. Today, they'd had a very, very good time.
Not so many miles away, the aurora also cast its multicoloured rays down on some mountains. Atop one of them, a majestic palace of ice stood in utter silence and stillness. With the exception of the light refracting off its crystalline surface, there was no movement anywhere around the structure's exterior.
Inside, there was even less of it, but what it lacked in motion it more than made up for in wonder. The place was a masterpiece of architectural design, artistic genius, and ice sculpting all at once. The foyer alone was a marvel to behold, with every detail placed to result in perfection. The floor and ceiling were overall hexagonal, reflecting the snowflake-shaped foundation the palace was built upon. Sparkling pillars occupied each corner, their translucence and lighter hue making them vaguely resemble waterfalls. Twin staircases accented by intricate railings curved up the back walls, meeting at a central balcony overlooking the room. Below that stood a snowflake-like fountain, hundreds of shards of ice suspended forever in mid jet and cascade.
The only thing that, to a first time visitor, might have seemed out of place was the big lump of snow that lay to the left of the fountain. Returning visitors, on the other hand, would not have been surprised to see it there or anywhere on the property. But they might have grown uneasy at the sight of it, not fooled by its docile appearance. It had a history of roaring, throwing people out, and throwing things at people, usually in that order.
That lump was actually a gigantic, living snowman – commonly referred to as Marshmallow – with a solemn duty and a short temper. His duty was to keep everyone away from the palace, if not the entire mountain, at all cost. His temper was set off by anyone who made this duty difficult.
It had not been difficult in almost a year. No one, even a passing bird, had set foot anywhere within a mile of the palace since he'd dragged himself out of the crevasse the last people had tricked him into – so, in Marshmallow's bestial mind, everything was the way it should be. No trespassers was the goal he'd been tasked with reaching, after all, and so far, that goal had been met. That could only mean he was doing a good job, so he earned himself a pat on the back – not that there was anyone around to offer him that. That was the only thing that seemed a little weird to him; once in a while, he did kinda wonder what happened to Queen. He couldn't explain it, he just had a feeling that he was supposed to keep others away from both the palace and her. But he never dwelled on it. She had built him to guard this place, not question her. If she wanted to be somewhere else, then that was it. He wasn't going to desert his post just because that brain-thing of his was having a hard time.
So life at the palace went on the only way it could; quiet, thanks to Marshmallow. His sense of duty drove him to patrol the premises, though these days, that was only every so often. Queen (wherever she was) knew how many days had passed without incident, so the snow giant had grown comfortable enough to relax his guard a little – enough to take naps wherever he wanted. He was a light sleeper. If anyone dared to approach the palace, he was sure that he would wake up in time to intercept them.
And so in random spots Marshmallow slumbered, waiting for the day someone incurred his wrath, and dreaming of the only thing he cared about; an ice palace safe from trespass.
Tonight, like so many other nights, the foyer was silent. Everything was still, down to the tiniest particle of ice. No one who shouldn't have been there was there to be seen. All was as it ought to be – and Marshmallow remained a lump curled up by the fountain, fast asleep.
One of his empty eyes opened.
For a minute, he thought nothing of it. All his eye took in was pretty much the same thing his imagination had been showing him. It was a sight that brought him peace.
But if he was so at peace, why wasn't he still asleep? Why had he woken up?
Something amiss, Marshmallow suspected mechanically, his mind responsibly clicking into full wakefulness.
Not wanting to alert any trespassers to his being awake, the giant snowman remained still. If anyone was going to spring an ambush, it was going to be him, he swore. The first step was to locate the enemy. Slowly, gingerly, Marshmallow opened his other eye, allowing him to see a little more of the room. But he saw nothing out of the ordinary.
Giving up on sight, he instead focused on sound. He forced himself to stay still as could be as he listened carefully. If the palace settled even a little, or there was another blizzard out there, there was no way he would miss it. But there was nothing to miss. No sound reached his ears.
Down to his last sense, Marshmallow turned his attention to the floor beneath him. Surprising as it might have been for a giant like him, he was bizarrely sensitive. If someone so much as breathed on him, he would feel it (and probably take offence). Right now, he channeled that sensitivity into the crystalline build of the palace, searching for vibrations. One footstep would be more than enough for him to pinpoint any uninvited guest. But to his confusion, he felt nothing.
This rationally should have put the snowman's mind at ease, but instead, it just agitated him. At this point, any chances of getting rest were gone, much as he could try. Forsaking catching anyone by surprise, Marshmallow rolled partway up in one lightning-quick movement, hands at the ready. His gaze swept the room back and forth, and on the second pass, it did catch something out of place. If only a little, one of the front doors was open.
Adjusting the gold and sapphire diadem resting on his head, he clambered to his feet and headed to the doors, eyes narrowed in suspicion. The entrance looked just wide enough for someone to slip through, but he still detected no sign anyone was here. Had the wind blown it open again? Peering outside, he saw the snow still looked mostly undisturbed. There was no sign of a breeze or footprints. No reason for the door to be ajar.
That was why closing it brought Marshmallow no comfort. Turning, he looked at the entire foyer. He didn't see anything unusual – but he was sure that he almost saw something. There was just something about the room now that felt innately wrong, and it made the giant snowman's suspicion and agitation start to grow into something else, something that, as a guard, he was never supposed to feel; fear.
Unwilling to let it override his sense of duty, though, Marshmallow stood up as straight as his hunched form could and grit his nonexistent teeth. A more diligent patrol was what Queen would wish from him tonight, and he lived to carry out that wish. That would make him feel better. His sights set, the protector of the ice palace began to make his rounds.
It was his last mistake.
Marshmallow was right to suspect, to fear. Something had indeed infiltrated the palace tonight – something old, powerful, and at least a little mad. And standing right there in the foyer, making no effort to go unseen yet completely invisible, it – he – eyed him with growing interest.
The intruder gave a smile of false sympathy as he watched the primitive investigation. It was pointless, of course. If this brute had had the capability of seeing or hearing him, he would have spotted him by now, and acted on it. Despite this futility, though, the intruder did nothing to stop him. He was enjoying this too much. He savoured the moment, the paranoia in Marshmallow's actions... all because of him. Truly, there was a certain twisted pleasure in going so undetected, yet being very much felt. He had to admit, much as he wanted to be seen, not having that did have its minor perks.
Wishing to take full advantage as long as he had them, the intruder raised his hands in front of his chest, palms facing one another. Keeping a sharp eye open for even the slightest reaction, he distanced his hands from each other, paused, then brought them together with a clap. In the near-total silence of the palace, that one sound seemed as loud as a crack of thunder.
Marshmallow didn't hear it.
The echo of the clap ricocheted around the foyer for several seconds before it faded away.
Marshmallow didn't hear it, either.
But something about the sound did eventually reach him, it seemed. After a few more seconds, he turned to the sound's source, his brow furrowed darkly.
The intruder almost held his breath in anticipation. Even after all these centuries, it was hard not to feel observed when someone looked right at him, just as Marshmallow was doing now. But he remained calm, reminding himself that he was invis-
With an uneasy grumble, the snowman began to lumber across the foyer – the whole room seeming to lightly shudder from the weight of his footfalls – directly toward him. But the intruder stood his ground. He didn't move aside or summon a weapon, but he also didn't go to the trouble of standing rigidly still or holding his breath. He remained casual, hands partway into his pockets, waiting for the behemoth's arrival as if he were a pet answering his call.
Marshmallow continued his trek a few disproportionate steps more... and stopped. The two beings in the room stood toe to toe, mere feet separating them. One easily towered over the other, but at the same time, that one seemed to be the only one unnerved. Barring a couple of glances either side, he stared down at the intruder almost as if he could see him, yet from his lack of doing his job, he clearly couldn't.
Marshmallow leaned down for a closer look, as if proximity would make the unseen visible. More than ever, the intruder felt like he was being looked right at, but he fought it off with the facts – and a touch of sadism. He in turn leaned forward to meet Marshmallow, bringing his pleasantly smiling face to within an inch of the snowman's frowning one. Two pairs of eyes bored into each other... and still, Marshmallow didn't see him.
In fact, the snow giant shook his head to himself with a grunt, evidently deciding he was just being paranoid. With a wide turn, he trudged away and started up the nearby stairs, off to search the rest of the palace.
Fascinating. the intruder thought as he watched the snowy being tramp off. Not alive like mortals, but not alive like us, either. Rather... somewhere in between.
Pondering that, he withdrew one of his hands from his pocket and looked down at his palm. On the surface, there didn't seem to be anything remarkable about the handful of sand that rested there, but for its colouring of black that glittered violet in the light. But after the decades of work that had gone into creating it, the intruder knew that it was far more than a little dirt. That was why he hesitated to use it now. This was some of the last of a massive arsenal he'd once commanded – an arsenal he'd largely expended last year, and had barely begun to replenish. He had to be careful how he used what he had left, the rational part of him cautioned.
But time and torment had taken much voice away from that part of him. The mania that remained whispered and purred for him to take his chances. To go on, give it a shot. How could he win anyone's faith if he didn't take a leap of it himself?
With an expression quivering somewhere between grin of excitement and grimace of pain, the intruder raised his prized possession over his head, then whipped it down onto the floor as hard as possible, his mind made up. The black sand erupted to life on impact. What was once a small pile turned into a miniature storm, swirling this way and that like a vortex gone insane. Somewhere in this frenzy, the intruder's will took control, forcing each grain to take its place, or suffer. One by one, then dozen by dozen, the grains of sand combined to form a skeleton, then muscles, and hide... until finally, there was a third being in the room. This one rather resembled a horse, if only in a loose sense. Where a real horse's skin was furry and soft, this creature's rather resembled armour akin to an insect's carapace. Wisps of darkness emanated from its hooves and back like smoke, looking pollutive in the cool clarity of the ice palace. Its entire body was jet black and purple from the sand it was made of, except for its eyes; they blazed yellow with hate, much like its maker's.
That maker eyed his creation for a moment, wondering if this one would be a good little soldier, or if it would turn on him. After a few seconds, he was satisfied. Though the creature panted with aggression and returned his stare with no love, it ultimately waited for him to give the order. When he looked up the stairs, it followed his gaze. Marshmallow stood on the balcony, paused in the act of moving on to the next floor. Slowly, the snowman turned back to look around the foyer again. Like with the clap from a minute earlier, he seemed aware that something had just happened here, but he was still unable to really detect it. Truly, he did seem to be the bridge between mortal and magical life.
And bridges are just made to be crossed. the intruder recalled smugly.
Beaming wickedly, he turned back to his steed-like servant. The new arrival all but snapped to attention in response, locking eyes with him. The intruder jutted his head at Marshmallow so quickly and slightly, it could have been missed with a blink. That was all his creation needed to rear up with an angry neigh, bolt through the air toward the snowman... and disappear right into his body.
The effect was immediate. An inhuman below of rage, pain, and horror tore from Marshmallow's maw, obliterating the relative peace of the ice palace. He began to flail and writhe, whirling every which way uncontrollably. His arms seemed to alternate between striking out at absent foes and clutching at his own body possessively. But all his immense strength was of no use against this enemy within. The snow giant was helpless!
In the midst of this blind battle with himself, Marshmallow didn't notice his foot step too far back, where no balcony was waiting to support his weight. He also didn't notice when he ended up tumbling backward off the edge, landing right on top of the icy fountain and smashing it into countless pieces. It was hard to notice anything when he was in so much anguish and terror.
If Marshmallow had hoped to be knocked unconscious by the fall, he would have been disappointed. He was forced to remain awake, to endure every agonizing second of the process that had just begun. He continued to thrash and howl like an animal caught in a trap. Somewhere in all this, his diadem went flying into space.
The intruder paid it no mind as he drew closer, vastly more fascinated with his new pet project. Marshmallow's attempts to resist this takeover were valiant, he mentally admitted, but they were for nothing. It was only a matter of time before he submitted, and their two powers became one.
After all... the intruder reasoned with a smile. What goes together better... than cold... and dark?