SPECIAL THANKS: to my French-speaking friends Flowergirl Cosplay and Winged Heart's husband, for checking my translation accuracy, because
DISCLAIMER: I do not speak French... even though Jack gets a few short lines. Like Doctor Strange, I am "fluent in Google Translate," but please, my dear native French speakers, feel free to correct me! PM's are always welcome! ;)
CONTENT WARNING: References to sex within marriage, mostly to just generally acknowledge its existence as a concept.
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66: WINTER'S QUALIFICATIONS
Jack Frost was waiting for her in the library.
After giving the guard strict instructions to not let anyone else in (well, except for Queen Anna, of course), Elsa had tucked the key into its bag, walking into the restricted Royal Records Collection from the public segment of the library below. She had a few small books in her arms, some things she'd picked up from downstairs, and—after cleaning up her makeup from the embarrassing little breakdown she'd had earlier—she was ready to hold her head high, suck it up, and get back to being the confounded QUEEN.
Whisking her long, sparkling capelet through the door before the guard pulled it shut behind her, Elsa confidently strode into the library, ready for a good few hours of research before supper. As for Jack, he hadn't told her where he was going, and if he was gone for good—well, it would break her heart, but it didn't mean that she was going to let Arendelle suffer for it. Nor her sister. She was still trying to get as much done as possible before the baby arrived, sort of as an extra present for Queen Anna, and she couldn't allow her heart to get in the way.
A few moments later, she was just putting the finishing touches on her soundproofing snow-layer for the door, when—
"Hi."
"EEP!"
"Oh—sorry," Jack said quickly, suddenly standing right next to her as Elsa sprang backwards in shock, clutching the pile of books to her chest. "You okay?"
"When you just APPEAR like that—"
"—Can I take those for you?"
Before Elsa could respond, Jack suddenly put down whatever he was holding, leaping forward and yanking the pile of books out of her grip. An instant later, he carefully set the books onto the floor, then grabbing the first item and springing back up to face her.
"Here," he blurted.
Elsa's breath caught as he shoved the large, sparkling something into her arms. Stumbling back a step, she suddenly realized that she was holding a massive bouquet of ice flowers, each one as perfect and beautiful as the next, made with the most stunning detail and realism she had ever seen.
Her mouth falling open in shock, Elsa pulled one of her arms off of the mass of ice-stems, hesitantly reaching up to touch the edge of a crystalline lily next to her chest.
"You—um," Jack choked, his face pale as Elsa jumped, her eyes darting back up to him, "You—still like flowers—"
"—Oh! Yes! Thank you! I—!"
Looking back down to the flowers, Elsa gave her head a quick shake. She let out a nervous laugh of disbelief.
"Jack—these are beautiful," Elsa stammered breathlessly, her cheeks flushing. "Did you make them?"
Wince.
No. He just FOUND them somewhere, she thought miserably. A couple dozen perfect, gorgeous ice flowers, sticking out of a cabinet. STUPID girl…
But Jack didn't seem to notice. His shoulders relaxing a bit, he reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, giving her a sheepish smile.
"Yeah," he said softly.
Seeing Jack's expression, Elsa's heart melted. The embarrassment subsiding, she could feel herself relax as well, a tiny smile of her own spreading over her features.
Picking up her books from the ground again with his right hand, Jack tossed his staff to himself with his left, then letting it fall back onto his shoulder. Side by side, they started to walk towards the research table.
"You're really good with ice," the Snow Queen said, looking back down to the bouquet and tracing the petal of a crystalline rose. "These are incredible."
His eyebrows lifted. "You like them?"
"I love them."
Jack's sheepish smile turned into a full-on grin.
"Good. I mean, I'm glad," he corrected quickly. "You seemed to like the last ones, so…"
His voice trailed off, and he shrugged again, setting her little pile of books on the table. Looking back to her hopefully, he then hopped up onto the tabletop, walking across it and dropping down effortlessly onto the other side.
"I love them," Elsa repeated, her heart swelling as Jack's face flushed with joy. "You're amazing with ice. I'll just quickly make something to put them in, and—"
Thunk.
Elsa stopped talking, glancing upwards to the table. From where it had apparently been sitting on his chair, Jack had slammed a tall, cylindrical something made of ice onto the wood.
He took a step back with another self-conscious shrug, shoving his hands into his front pocket.
"Vase," Jack said simply.
The Spirit of Winter reached up and rubbed the back of his neck again, shifting on his feet and staring at the ground for a few moments. Deciding to reach for his chair, he then pulled it out and sat down.
Elsa set the bouquet down onto the table, reaching forward and picking up the piece. It was a thick-walled, solid cylinder of ice, the sunlight catching its gleaming surface and sparkling with a natural brilliance as she turned it over in her hands. Jack's design was a streamlined, modern-looking take on a vase, without a single flaw or flourish. No fuss; just a shockingly simple solution to a problem that needed nothing more. It was beautiful—an elegant, perfectly constructed, and overwhelmingly functional piece of ice.
Jack Frost as usual, essentially.
Holding the vase to her chest, the Fifth Spirit looked back to the ice flowers laying on the tabletop. Running her fingers over the ice, she nodded.
"Thank you," she whispered.
Setting the vase down, Elsa carefully began to gather the bouquet of ice flowers into her arms. Jack Frost cleared his throat.
"I just—um."
Elsa paused, looking up to him. He pulled in his breath.
"I'm sorry," Jack blurted. "About earlier."
Still holding the ice flowers in her hands, Elsa's heart leapt into her throat.
"Sorry for what?" she asked. "You haven't—"
"—No, I was a jerk, and I—need to respect you," he insisted, "I need to respect you as a person, and—"
He squeezed his eyes shut, pressing his lips together. Pulling in his breath again, he swallowed hard, forcing the rest of the statement to come out of his mouth.
"And—and respect—" Jack gritted, "Your—decisions."
He exhaled, miserably staring down at the table as the statement hung on the air. Elsa bit her lip.
"Thank you," she said again.
Jack's shoulders relaxed slightly.
"Oh—and," Elsa added, feeling like she was tripping over her words, "I'm—I'm sorry, too."
To this, Jack's eyes widened slightly. He looked up. "You are?"
"Yes. I'm sorry I overreacted," Elsa nodded. "You're about the greatest friend in the world, and I know that you want me to be happy. I don't really understand why you're so worried about Prince Frederik, but—"
"—It's okay."
Elsa bit her lip, clutching the gorgeous ice flowers to her chest. "I—"
"—Let's not talk about him."
She gave him a puzzled look. "Then, what are we talking about?"
Jack squirmed in his chair, reaching up and running his fingers through his hair.
"It just—I really do respect you, Elsa," he laughed nervously, "I mean, I really respect you. I swear I'm not normally this creepy."
"Creepy?" Elsa retorted, "You haven't been creepy at all."
His hand on his neck, Jack Frost opened his mouth to protest, but then abruptly snapped it shut. Deciding against whatever he was going to say, he then cleared his throat.
"Uh—right."
Having already gotten out two volumes of court records, Jack pulled his hand down from his neck, grasping the book beside him and pulling it towards himself. Shifting the flowers in her arms, Elsa gathered them into a bundle, then placing them in their matching vase.
Pausing for a moment before sitting down, the Snow Queen looked back up across the table. Jack, clearly trying to make himself read, was leaning into his hand, with his fingers twisted through his thick, white hair once again and his piercing eyes focused onto the page before him. From above them, the last of the day's precious December sunlight was pouring into the library from the windows, catching the carelessly graceful fractals of ice splintered across the Fifth Guardian's shirt and setting them agleam.
Elsa felt her heart skip a beat.
"I've missed you," she admitted.
Jolting a bit, Jack Frost looked up. As Elsa took her seat, a hint of a smile began to cross his face once again.
"I've missed you, too," Jack said softly.
Elsa looked down into her lap. Staring at her hands, she started to nervously fidget with her fingers, snowflakes swirling out of her skin to land on the icy fabric of her skirt.
"I know that it probably sounds a little silly," she continued, mostly to herself, "But I—it's different. Not having you with me. I mean, I need to have some time with Anna, and to be the acting queen and everything, but I also know that it's only been about three hours since—"
"—Three and a half."
Queen Elsa paused, glancing upwards. From across the table, Jack pressed his lips together, swallowing hard. He looked back down to his volume of records, nodding to himself like he was going to continue to pretend he was reading.
Falling quiet herself, Elsa followed suit, looking to her little pile of books. Taking the first one off the top of the pile, she pulled in in front of herself, reaching to open the cover. She could get to the court records again in a few minutes—and, she wanted to do this side-project first.
It would be alright to take a few minutes to do something that she simply wanted to do for fun. Right?
"So," Jack started again. "Um…"
Elsa stopped, looking up from the book. Clearing his throat, Jack tried again.
"Do you—uh, do you want to kiss again?" he asked hopefully.
Elsa's eyes widened. "What?"
"Do you—um," Jack gave her an awkward shrug, then hesitantly starting to smile. "Do you want to kiss again?"
Wait...
WHAT?
"I mean, we're not breaking any rules, here," Jack started again, laughing nervously and making her jolt, "It's—fun—and, we both like it. And we're good now. Right?"
His hopeful smile had waned a bit, his cheeks flushing as he waited for her to respond. Her mind racing, the Fifth Spirit looked down to the book in front of her, not seeing any of the words on the page.
Did we kiss? Yes. Was it amazing? Absolutely! And so—so PASSIONATE, that he cut it off.
She'd gotten too into it, which was embarrassing, but the way he'd kissed her, like he was desperate, like she was the only person in the world that mattered in his eyes—that had meant everything to her.
And nothing to him.
Swallowing hard, Elsa pulled in her breath.
"I don't know if that's such a good idea," she whispered.
Unable to look at him, the Fifth Spirit bit her lip, staring down at her book.
"Oh," he said.
They both fell quiet. In the silence, Jack reached up and pushed his fingers through his hair, then rubbing the back of his neck.
"But we're still friends," Elsa added quickly, looking back up to him. "Our Ice Alliance is—still a thing. Right?"
"Oh! Uh, right. Of course."
He looked down to the table, contemplating his next move. Distractedly fiddling with the edge of his shirt pocket—
"What are you reading?" Jack blurted, snapping his head up.
"Oh. I just remembered seeing this old book on display when I was young," Elsa explained, "And I thought Prince Frederik might like it."
Jack stiffened. "What? Why?"
"Well—you were there during his audience. When he said he was interested in ornithology," she admitted. "The study of birds? Well, this looks like something he'd enjoy. But I can't read it. If I could just figure out what language this text is written in, then I—"
"—It's Croatian."
Elsa stopped, looking up to him in shock. Jack Frost leaned forward in his chair, studying the text on the cover a bit harder.
"Yeah," he confirmed. "Definitely Croatian. How'd it end up here?"
"It was a gift to my father, or—or something—I think. I was really young."
Jack shrugged, sitting back down. "Fair enough."
A wave of confusion sweeping over her face, Elsa dropped her head forward to look at the text again. "But," she stammered, "But how did—"
His eyebrows lifted slightly.
"How did I know it's Croatian?" he asked.
"Well… you haven't…"
Her voice trailed off, and she blushed.
The Guardian of Fun stared at her blankly, trying to decipher what she was inferring. After another few moments—suddenly sensing her meaning—Jack set his jaw with a glare.
"I might not have had a bunch of fancy, expensive tutors to educate me," he snapped, a threatening flash behind his eyes, "But I think I've still done pretty well for myself. You know—after traveling the world, for three hundred years?"
Elsa's breath caught as the Spirit of Winter suddenly shoved back his chair, reaching across the table and slapping his hand down onto the book. Yanking it towards himself, he then snatched it up, flipping it open and starting to thumb through its pages.
"Mr. Fros—um, Jack?" Elsa asked hesitantly, her cheeks flushing pink at the almost-slip. "How—um, how many languages do you speak?"
Not looking up from the book, Jack paused.
"Never counted," he answered dryly.
Elsa's eyes widened.
Whoa.
Jack Frost didn't respond, looking coldly bored with the conversation as he resumed flipping through the old book, skimming its pages.
"You've never—counted?" Elsa squeaked, her heart pounding, "That—okay, well, maybe could you name a few? Just—I mean, if you—!"
Raising his eyebrows skeptically, the Fifth Guardian paused and glanced upwards. His piercing blue eyes flashed with indignation once again, and Elsa sharply drew in her breath.
"I mean, I already told you that I can speak seven languages," she stammered, "Which is actually sort of normal, for royalty and such, but—well, I know Norwegian, Swedish, English, Danish, Dutch, German, and Latin. Plus a little Greek, actually."
He glanced to the side. His eyes cold and unsmiling, Jack then looked back into her gaze.
"Are you wanting me to list them?" he asked.
"Well, if—I mean, you don't have to, but—"
Her voice trailed off, and Elsa looked down to her lap, nervously fidgeting with her fingers. After a few moments—
"Fine," Jack sighed, clearly restraining from a groan as he squeezed his eyes shut, kneading his forehead with the hand that wasn't holding the book. "Let's see… all the ones you just said… Croatian, obviously… and, uh, for Europe, Polish, Ukrainian, Czech, Bulgarian, Slovak, Italian, Romanian, Spanish, French—"
"—You can speak French?" Elsa blurted.
Jack paused.
Pulling his hand away from his face, the Spirit of Winter then slowly looked up into Elsa's eyes.
"Tu veux que je parle français?" he asked softly.
Elsa stiffened.
Seeing her expression, Jack Frost's eyebrows lifted.
"Le beau flocon de neige aime le français?" he breathed, a little grin tugging at the edge of his mouth as he closed the book. "Bon à savoir."
"Stop it," Elsa shook, feeling strangely warm as he started walking towards her, "I—I don't know what you're saying!"
Rounding the end of the table, Jack paused.
"You want me to stop?" he asked.
"I—!"
Blushing furiously, Elsa bit down hard on her lip, looking to the table in embarrassment. Giving her head a tiny shake, she then buried her face in her hands.
She couldn't hear Jack finish silently walking up to her, but she could feel the temperature drop as he approached.
"Honnêtement," he admitted, "C'est plus facile de vous parler, de cette façon."
"It's just—it's a lovely language," the young queen stammered, "And—well, it sounds really romantic, and—well, not romantic, but—oh, I didn't—!"
She could feel the heat in her cheeks intensify, cringing even further into her chair and peering out through her fingers. Jack turned around, leaning back against the edge of the table next to her.
He let out his breath.
"Pourquoi pas romantique?" Jack asked softly. "Je veux être romantique avec toi."
It took literally every ounce of willpower that Elsa possessed to not actually whimper.
Biting the edge of her lip, she pulled her hands away from her face, looking back to her book. Jack smiled to himself, dropping his head forward and standing up straight.
"Je ne parlerai que le français pour le reste de ma vie," he mumbled, sticking his hands into his front pocket as he turned and started to walk away, "Si elle vous sépare de ce stupide PRINCE—"
"—JACK."
He stopped, turning back and looking to her innocently. Struggling not to smile, Elsa clenched her hands into fists.
"I caught the end of THAT one," she breathed.
Jack shrugged, clearly struggling not to smile himself. Elsa relaxed her hands, stretching out her fingers under the table as he walked away.
"How did you learn that?" she breathed, "Just—did you really pick up all of that by just traveling?"
Jack came around to his own side of the table again, picking up the book on birds. "Partially," he said. "Ever hung out with kids?"
She nodded. "A little. Why?"
"They talk. A lot."
Seeing his sly little grin, Elsa laughed into her hand. Jack shrugged, his expression brightening.
"I've picked up a few things over the years," the Guardian chuckled, smiling at the thought, "Kids are great. And I can remember their voices."
"In their native languages?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Actually, I just was able to brush up on a little bit of Russian yesterday. While I was doing my rounds, I—"
"—Rounds?"
He stopped talking. Taking a moment to decide how to define it, Jack then looked back up to her.
"I had to see—one of my colleagues," he started, "About some—stuff. No big deal, or anything. And then I did a quick sweep of northern Eurasia on the way back. Whipping up some snow days. Fun. Making sure some undesirables were kept at bay…"
He drummed his fingers on the cover of the book in his hands, half-smiling as he talked about his work. Then, looking down to the book—suddenly remembering who it was for—Jack's gaze hardened.
Queen Elsa watched in confusion as the Spirit of Winter shrugged, his stance suddenly going rigidly casual, like he was forcing it. Glancing up to her, his eyes flashed threateningly once again.
"You know," Jack enunciated. "For my job. As a Guardian."
He drew himself up, clenching the book.
"For all. The children. Of the WORLD," he added determinately.
Elsa stared at him in befuddlement, confused at the sudden tension in his voice. "Jack—I think what you do is incredible," she said, "It's—I mean, it's really impressive. You're—really impressive."
He froze, his eyes wide. After a few moments, struggling to temper his expression, Jack pressed his lips together, staring down at his feet.
"Is everything okay?" Elsa asked softly.
He opened his mouth to speak, then abruptly closing it. His cheeks flushing pink, he then pulled in his breath, still not looking at her.
"I—well, I'm just saying," Jack muttered. "Just because I'm not a prince, it doesn't mean that my life is empty."
Before Elsa could respond, Jack suddenly snapped the book shut. Flipping it over and looking to the front cover, he scoffed.
"Oh—and, uh, I don't think this book is what you're looking for," he added.
Elsa's eyebrows lifted. "What? Why not?"
"Because all of the birds in here are extinct."
He strode up to the table, tossing it onto the surface and letting the book slide across the wood to her. Elsa reached out to pick it up, then placing it on top of her pile.
So that was why so many of the diagrams were of skeleton structures.
"Oh—and, uh, by the way," Jack started again, making her look up, "I was able to do some—research on Prince-Boy. And, I have some stuff on him. If you're interested."
He shrugged, sticking his hands into his front pocket and clearly trying to look casual once again. Elsa's eyes widened.
"Already?" she asked. "Goodness! What, was that the first place you went after we got back?"
Jack opened his mouth to say something, but then quickly closed it. Giving his head a quick shake, he shrugged.
"Well—I said I would, so—I did," he blurted. "But—okay. Here's a fun little fact: you know how he said he wasn't scared by your ice powers?"
Elsa nodded. "Yes?"
"Yeah. Totally lying."
Jack pulled his hands out of his pockets, grabbing the back of his chair. Pulling it out, he then sat down, triumphantly collapsing into it.
Meanwhile, Elsa's heart had dropped.
…What?
"Prince Frederik—is scared of my ice powers?" she squeaked.
Jack nodded, pulling his book of court records towards himself and pulling back its cover. He looked down to the page, like he was starting to read.
"But that," Elsa stammered, "He—!"
Jack looked up, raising his eyebrows.
"I know," he enunciated. "He's a jerk, right?"
Elsa's face flushed. Looking down to her hands in embarrassment, she gave him a tiny nod, saying nothing.
From across the table, Jack cleared his throat.
"You shouldn't take it personally that the guy is too gentlemanly to just say it like it is," he added. "It's not your fault that Prince-Boy's too 'polite' to tell you the truth."
Jack shrugged and pretended to resume his reading, fighting back a smirk like he was struggling very hard to not appear smug. Elsa's face fell.
Prince Frederik was scared of her ice powers.
The blow of the truth hit her slowly, rather than all at once. Looking down to her hands, the Fifth Spirit could feel her eyes start stinging, years of loneliness, of pain, of fear, seeping back through her like the very ice that caused it. At least, she was fairly sure that was what had caused it. The first truly reasonable, intelligent, and—and realistic suitor, the first one who had actually looked like a real prospect for Arendelle, the first political alliance that would actually make sense, AND: he was scared of ice powers.
It was all her fault.
Maybe the Council was right. Maybe she was a disgrace. Maybe she was avoiding her responsibilities, accepting the call to be the Fifth Spirit, instead of being a good girl and staying in the shadows at home. She couldn't even court a suitor, without messing up somehow. And now, all of Arendelle was going to suffer for it.
Maybe she should have tried harder to conceal. Maybe she should have just kept on the gloves, ignored the voices, and kept her mouth and her heart shut. Or, maybe THIS was why she needed to stick to the Spirits—and why she was meant to be in the Enchanted Forest at all, where she wouldn't be a bother to anyone. Because she simply wasn't good enough for Arendelle.
Because she deserved to be alone.
Queen Elsa closed her eyes, fighting the tears back and forcing the emotions down. Carefully pulling in her breath, she clenched her hands into fists in her lap, then stretching out her fingers across the icy fabric of her skirt.
Don't feel.
She opened her eyes.
"That's… unfortunate," Elsa said softly.
Swallowing, she turned to her pile of books. From across the table, she could feel that Jack's snowflake-marked eyes were strangely joyful, despite the rest of his controlled, almost sympathetic, expression.
"I'll bet this makes your decision a lot easier, though," he offered cheerily. "Right?"
"Easier?" Elsa retorted, scoffing as she pulled the next book off her pile, "What are you talking about? If anything, this is going to make everything harder for me. I mean, if my ice powers scare him, then I need to somehow figure out how to—be less scary."
"Be less sca—wait."
She looked up, her face drawn as the realization fell over the table.
Jack's mouth dropped open with shock.
"You're still CONSIDERING this guy!?" he sputtered.
"Well—I think it'd be selfish of me not to," Elsa sighed, "He's still an incredibly good prospect for Arendelle, and—"
"—B-b-but he doesn't like your POWERS!" Jack protested, "Are you SERIOUSLY CONSIDERING getting married to somebody who isn't into ice powers!? You're considering—getting with somebody like that!?"
"Jack, Prince Frederik has his own kingdom to run," she reasoned, perfectly royal control plastered across her features, "And it's not exactly local. The Nokk would never ride that far away from Ahtohallan. Not to mention, the fact that I'm going to be up in the Forest again anyway. Frederik and I probably wouldn't see each other in person all that often anyway."
The Spirit of Winter snapped his mouth shut, suddenly looking pained. Pulling in his breath, he leaned an inch towards her, his gaze pleading.
"No, I meant—like," Jack tried again, "Getting—with this guy."
He gestured again, as if hinting that she would mentally finish the statement. Elsa stared at him in confusion. Jack's expression was one of—well, anguish, almost. He was definitely trying to convey something that he hadn't said.
Elsa's brow furrowed in thought. She'd—
WHAM.
Jack slammed his fist onto the table.
"Having. SEX," he clarified loudly.
"JACK!" Elsa startled.
"WELL?"
Her mouth hanging open in horror, Elsa's face went pale.
A moment later, the Snow Queen gave her head a quick shake. Swallowing her embarrassment, she glared back at him.
"In case you've forgotten," she hissed, "Prince Frederik and I met this morning. So, as a matter of fact, I haven't thought it out that far in advance, yet!"
"Well, it's a pretty important part of marriage, wouldn't you say?"
Elsa bit her lip, falling quiet and looking down to her book. From across the table, she heard Jack shift in his seat.
"The fun part…" he mumbled under his breath.
She felt color rising to her face. Fighting it back, she drew herself up, ignoring the comment.
"Jack Frost, I will have you know that I am in perfect control of my ice powers," she stated coldly, "And, they're hardly a secret anymore. I'll just try to not use them too much around him."
His eyes bulged. "WHAT?"
"I said—"
"—Elsa, are you even HEARING yourself right now?" Jack stammered, "You're the SNOW QUEEN! You can't conceal this!"
"What do you—"
"You—wear—ICE!" he protested helplessly. "And not, like, as a hat, or anything! IT'S LITERALLY ALL YOU'RE WEARING!"
Elsa's jaw dropped. "What is it with you, and my clothes?!"
"B-b-because you're talking about melting them off for a guy who doesn't even LIKE that!" Jack cried, his voice breaking, "Doesn't—doesn't appreciate—!"
His eyes blurry with frustration, Jack cut himself off, snapping his mouth shut. He looked down to his volume of court records, waving his hand in the air as if to dismiss the conversation.
"Forget I ever brought it up," he muttered. "Just—just forget it."
Her heart pounding, Elsa glared at him in confusion. What was wrong with him today? First, the defensiveness during Frederik's audience, and then the meltdown at the pond, and—!
Wait.
"Jack," Elsa enunciated, her voice dangerously soft, "Are you saying that I can't consider marrying Prince Frederik—because he isn't qualified?!"
Jack didn't respond, his cheeks flushing as he stared down at his book. After a few moments, he swallowed hard.
Elsa's blood boiled.
"Oh! I am so sorry!" she snapped, her eyes narrowed as she gripped the edge of the table, "I didn't realize that your Guardianship duties included writing the qualifying exam for who gets to court me! What, just a large box with the phrase, do you have ice powers; check yes or no!?"
Jack's breath caught. "I—"
Shoving her pile of books to the side, the Snow Queen leapt onto her feet, spinning away from the table. Her heart pounding, she swept past him, walking swiftly for the enormous bookcase. So, Jack didn't think that she could be with anyone. Only he was "qualified" enough to be okay with her ice powers, but he didn't want her or anything, so… great! What, did his idea of 'friendship' mean that she was just supposed to be his personal plaything, or something? Or that she would (at best) just live out the rest of her life as Jack Frost's charity case? Because she was actually somehow that worthless? Ugh!
MEN!
Her eyes blurring with frustration, Elsa kicked off her high heels, grabbing the wheeled ladder on the bookcase and yanking it to the side. Walking down the carpet barefoot as she tugged it after her, she ignored the gust of icy wind that suddenly swept past her, billowing her capelet back.
"I'm sorry," Jack blurted.
She didn't respond, her mind racing as she hitched up the front of her skirt. Grasping the side of the ladder, she started to climb.
"Elsa," Jack pleaded again, "If—if this is about the clothes thing—I'm sorry I brought it up again, if—"
"—It's not. But thank you."
She came to the top shelves, stopping just before the ladder ended. Jack, flying upwards into the air beside her, pulled in his breath.
"Then wha—"
"—I think that if I go ahead and get the rest of the books onto the table while I'm working, they should serve as a visual reminder of how much more work I have to do," Elsa said, blinking quickly to fight back the stinging in her eyes. "I got distracted with those books for Prince Frederik, and—and I can't get distracted. The Council is starting to notice how much time I've been spending in here. They'll be suspicious."
Jack's gaze hardened. Without looking at him, Elsa felt the air suddenly go a degree colder.
"I'm taking care of the Council, Snowflake," he stated icily. "You're allowed to take breaks."
"That would be true if I were working more effectively. And I'm not."
To this, the Spirit of Winter rolled his eyes, and Elsa set her jaw, pretending not to notice. Fumbling out one of the enormous volumes, she struggled to tuck it under her arm, the ladder creaking ominously as she fumbled with the book on its rungs.
Jack's body went tense.
"Uh," he muttered, moving a few inches closer to her in the air, "I—can I please take that for you—"
Creak. Crick. Creak.
"I'm sorry," Elsa stammered, not surrendering the enormous book as she continued shakily stomping down the ladder, barely hanging on as Jack tensed again, "I know—I know it's stupid, but your opinion means a lot to me. And I—I know you think I'm hopeless with this, but—"
"—What?"
"You don't have to flatter me," she gritted, nearly missing a rung as she fumbled shakily with the book, "I know my weaknesses—and my strengths. And right now, I need to get back to work, because the Council is going to notice that I've been spending too much time unaccounted for and my current biggest weakness is getting distracted with OH!"
Elsa gasped as she lost her footing, slipping off of the rung and falling backwards, the book dropping to the ladder and slamming into her calves. In an instant, something cold grabbed her from under her arms, catching her mid-fall.
And she was being pulled back up.
As soon as Elsa regained her footing, she heard Jack heave a sigh of frustration. Shakily holding onto the sides of the ladder, she started to reach down to retrieve the precariously-balanced volume of court records, to—
"—Lemme take that for you," Jack grumbled.
Before Elsa could respond, tiny flurries of snow falling through the air around them, he suddenly reached down, snatching up the book. Hauling it into his arms alongside the staff, Jack then spun around in the air, effortlessly gliding down onto the carpet below.
Swallowing her embarrassment, the Fifth Spirit bit her lip. Gripping the ladder's sides, she then sheepishly made her way back down to the floor.
"For the record," Jack scoffed as she stepped off of it, "I've never thought that you're hopeless. The guys on your Council are morons. And, I'M taking care of them, so you shouldn't be worrying about that."
"That wasn't—"
She abruptly stopped talking, heat rushing to her face. Giving her head a quick shake, Elsa then whisked her capelet back and started to cross the carpet to her icy shoes.
"Oh," Jack realized, his voice softening. "You're—you mean—dating."
She slipped her feet into the heels, letting out a sigh.
"Jack, I think we both know that I'm hopeless with this," she said simply. "You don't have to sugar-coat it."
Elsa turned around again, walking back to him and holding out her arms for the book. Jack reluctantly surrendered it.
"Snowflake, I don't think you're hopeless," he told her.
"That's a very sweet thing to say."
Elsa took the court records, curtly turning away and going to her side of the table. As she set them down, she looked up to realize that Jack's gaze had gone deadly serious.
"I don't think you're hopeless," he stated again, his voice colder in its tone. "I think—well—you're kind of amazing. Like, you don't believe in yourself, but you really, really should."
She didn't respond, looking down with embarrassment. He walked back towards the table as well.
"But—that being said," Jack sighed, "I don't think you should—look, I just don't want you to end up with somebody who doesn't appreciate ice. I mean, I think that would really hurt you."
"But this isn't about me," Elsa groaned, pulling out her chair and sitting down. "This is about Arendelle. I mean—I really want your approval with this, but I need to do what's best for the kingdom. Just because I'm needed in the Enchanted Forest, it doesn't mean that I've been released from all of my royal responsibilities."
"Yeah, but you should still be with someone who gets you."
Her finger on the page of her open book, Elsa glanced upwards in surprise.
"I mean—you know," Jack fumbled, reaching up and rubbing his neck. "Gets—ice powers."
Her gaze dropped back down to the book. "Lovely thought," Elsa sighed, turning a page. "But what are the chances of finding a prince or a king who understands ice powers? Not very high."
She shook her head, sadly biting the edge of her lip. Still standing next to his chair without sitting down, Jack let his staff fall back onto his shoulder, sticking his thumbs into the edge of his stomach pocket.
"Why—uh, why does it have to be a prince or a king?" he asked, rocking back on his heels.
"It doesn't."
His eyebrows lifted. "It doesn't?"
"Not at all," Elsa said. "Technically, I'm not even the queen anymore… usually. But as an heir, if I do end up getting married, I just need to make sure it's with someone who can form some sort of strong, politically savvy alliance for Arendelle."
His face fell again. After a few moments, watching him kicking softly at the carpet, Elsa pulled in her breath.
"Honestly, I've never really pictured myself getting married," she admitted, reaching up and pushing a stray hair back into her braid. "Especially since becoming a Nature Spirit. I mean—I never imagined that the opportunity would present itself. I'm just not that type."
Jack stopped kicking, looking up to her. "What do you mean?"
"I mean, I'm just not that type. I'm not romantic."
Elsa shrugged, fixing the stray hair and looking back to the volume of court records.
"But you are," Jack groaned.
She paused. "Wha—"
"—Okay, normally, if a lady says something like that you're not supposed to challenge it," he interrupted, slightly louder, "Because it's creepy, but—Elsa, come ON! You are insanely romantic!"
Elsa's cheeks flushed. "I—"
"—Last NIGHT? We had something!"
"I thought that was—"
"—Remember when we were making out, and I was the one pushing you off?" Jack laughed bitterly, "I mean, maybe this is disrespectful, but Snowflake, you were super into it—"
"I know, but—"
"—You like kissing me! You said so yourself!"
"This is NOT—ABOUT—ME!"
Jack abruptly stopped talking, his smile fading. Delicate flurries of snow materializing out of the air above and around her, Elsa shook her head.
"Don't you understand? Even if I DID like romantic—things," she stammered, gesturing as her voice went tight with emotion, "It doesn't matter! I KNOW that Prince Frederik doesn't love me, alright? You don't have to keep rubbing it in!"
"I'm not trying to rub it in!"
"Then what is this?"
"If he doesn't love you, then you shouldn't be getting with him!" Jack sputtered, "I mean, like—as a friend, I—look, I'm just trying to protect you!"
"I'm not afraid!" she protested. "An isolated, loveless life is literally the life I've been preparing for my whole life!"
"And you see NOTHING wrong with that!"
Closing her eyes, the Snow Queen clenched her hands into fists. Feeling his demanding, challenging glare piercing through her, she then drew in her breath, slowly letting it go as she stretched out her fingers again.
She looked back into his eyes.
"Jack… I appreciate what you're trying to do. Really," Elsa choked. "But there are some things I just can't have."
"Why not?"
"I have to be realistic about the things that I CAN'T have—while being grateful for the things that I can," Elsa continued, ignoring the question. "Like—I have Anna. And she means everything to me. And I'm grateful for Anna, in part because there was a time not very long ago when I couldn't even have her."
"So, you've already given up on the idea of marrying someone who actually loves you?!"
"Oh my word, for the LAST TIME!" Elsa groaned, "NO ONE is ever going to see me that way! And now, a LEGITIMATE opportunity for a respectable marriage with a political partner who's willing to overlook my—ME—is suddenly in front of me, and Arendelle's future hangs in the balance, and—if I can't—I don't WANT to have to conceal again, but—!"
She gestured frantically with her hands, a few snowflakes bursting out of her skin as she did so. Looking down to them in anguish, Elsa bit her lip, giving her head a hard shake as her eyes stung.
"I'm the Snow Queen," she choked, clenching her hands into fists and setting them in her lap. "And a Nature Spirit. But whether I'm in the Forest or not, I'm still a member of the royal family. If I marry at all, it'll be for Arendelle, not for love. NO ONE is ever going to see me that way, alright?"
She determinately looked back to the court records, trying to make herself read. From across the table, she could hear Jack's sudden quiet.
A long, painful silence fell over the table.
"Elsa… what are you talking about?" Jack asked softly. "Lots of guys would see you like that."
Elsa squeezed her eyes shut.
I don't WANT lots of guys, she thought.
Pressing her lips together, Elsa shifted in her seat, saying nothing. She looked back to her book, the words swimming on the page before her.
"Is this about your powers?" Jack breathed.
She glanced upwards. Suddenly, Jack was leaping onto the table, running across its surface and falling down onto the carpet beside her.
Elsa's breath caught as Jack suddenly grabbed her hands, holding them fast in his own.
"Snowflake, your ice powers are amazing," he said, gazing intensely into her eyes. "And if that stupi—uh, if Prince-Boy can't see that, he's an idiot."
Leaned against the edge of the table, Jack leaned in close to her, and Elsa felt her heart stop. Unsure of how to respond, she broke eye contact, nervously staring back down at their hands and still feeling his piercing gaze on her face.
If he could stand to touch me.
"If he could stand to touch me," she thought out loud.
Suddenly realizing that she'd said it out loud, the Snow Queen blushed. Jack gave her hands a squeeze.
"If he doesn't like it, then he doesn't deserve it," he said sternly. "I like how cold you are."
"Yes, but you're not interested in me like that."
"Ma'am, I would take you right here on the floor."
"Oh, yes! Of course you would!" Elsa scoffed, rolling her eyes with a bitter laugh as he let her pull her hands out of his grip. "It's a good thing that I know you're not serious, because I believe a slap would be in order if—"
As she glanced upwards, their gazes locked. Her breath catching, Elsa's voice trailed off as she realized that Jack's bright blue, snowflake-marked eyes had gone even more piercing than usual, intensely staring at her like he was gazing directly into her soul.
He IS serious.
She gulped.
Unsure of how to respond, Elsa looked down to her lap, cringing slightly into her chair as heat rushed to her face. He had just—he was serious.
Jack was serious.
It was like he was saying he was interested, but—well, but if he WAS interested, then WHY WASN'T HE ASKING HER TO BE HIS GIRLFRIEND?!
Maybe he was just meaning physically. Maybe it was just a remark on their 'winter spirit' status. Maybe he was still just trying to build up her confidence, even though he had just said tha—
"Actually—you know," Jack started again, nervously drumming his fingers on the edge of the table and jolting Elsa out of her stupor, "As long as we're—uh, talking about it—?"
His voice trailed off, and he looked back to her. Elsa's breath caught.
"Talking about what?" she whispered.
"Well, I just—I think we'd be—"
Jack swallowed, pushing himself up away from the table and glancing warily to the bouquet of ice flowers. He took in a deep breath.
"Well, I think—"
He shifted uncomfortably on his feet.
"It's just—we—"
Jack Frost crossed his arms over his chest, forcing himself to look back into her eyes.
"I think we'd do really well together."
.
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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Yeah, terrible place to cut, but the chapter was getting way too long. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a fantabulous day!