entranceway | [audio] cold metal

_{[He'd introduce himself, but she wouldn't remember his face. Or more to the point, the armor this world's so graciously hidden him behind is concealing his identity for the moment.

Peter doesn't move, giving no hint of misgiving. She seems powerful, but so is he.]}

Invade what? The room you borrowed from your captors? _{[The retort isn't without its sass. Trying to assign ownership to this domain is a bit misleading.]} That aside, I came to check on you. Someone must. I'd be more concerned about the rest of us--it's cold enough outside without bringing the winter indoors. If this magic gets away from you, we'll have a bigger problem on our hands besides just this... change. This is you, is it not?

_{[What he says is a mixture of observation, intuition, and guesswork. Elsa will likely fill in the blanks for him.]}

It--It's still my room, and you're...

[She trails off as she realizes what else he's saying. She takes an instinctive step backward, but she's already against a wall. How does he know? How did he guess? Oh God, and he's right, what if her power gets away from her here, she didn't even think of that. The people in this mansion have no idea...they wouldn't even remotely be equipped to deal with a sudden indoor winter.]

[She starts to tremble, the scale mail clattering as she shakes.]

I'm...I'm s-sure I have no idea what you're talking about. Now please, leave. You have no right to be here.

I'm? _{[He's quick to playfully retort, seemingly oblivious to the anxiety his mention of magic causes. What, he's trespassing? Such a boring crime. Surely she can do better. He's peeping, or he's up to no good, or he's dangerous.]} Taking to time to check on someone who's leaking magic power like blood from a wound? I am.

_{[He cocks his head.]}

Do you think you're the only one with magic?

I'm not, I, I don't know what you're talking about! [Keep it in, keep it in.]

[But it's true, how did he manage to guess so easily? She's heard of other people with magic, but she's never met anyone; and in fact most of the people she's heard of only existed in legends and stories.]

[Somehow he knows, and that means he's going to tell everyone. All the people in the mansion who have been so nice to her will turn on her when the truth comes out.]

Get out. Get out of my room.

_{[Luckily, he is a legend and a story so he meets all of the requirements.]}

Magic.

_{[That's what he's talking about, Elsa. The emphasized word acts like a trigger, and where there was no candle light before suddenly one of her candles in the chilliest part of her room flickers to life with a hiss of flame, fighting cold with warmth.

Like the flame, he sets himself up as the calm to her panic. His tone is concerned and soothing, a father to a child.]}

You don't have to fret. What if I said there was a way to end this pain you're in? Help you.

_{[A so-called queen doesn't want to be a danger to her people, does she? Or a sister to her sibling?]}

[She flinches in fright at the sudden flame. How did... She looks quickly between the candle and him, or at least seems to. It's hard to tell with the empty eyeholes.]

[Magic. So he can use it too, but his is...fire? No, this is wrong. This is all wrong. He barges into her room, uncovers her most tightly-guarded secret, and then casts magic as well? Elsa waited for years for some kind of sign, a fairy godmother or something, to appear and tell her that it wasn't her fault, that she could be forgiven and maybe even do amazing things. But it never happened, and it's not going to happen now.]

What could you possibly know about it?

[Her tone gets sharper, and the ice beneath her feet goes from hoarfrost to thick, black ice.]

_{[Pfft, fairy godmothers and forgiveness are overrated. He has something so much better than those things: freedom. And he's willing to share.]}

I know about control. That's what you want, isn't it? That's why you locked yourself away? You're afraid you're going to hurt someone?

_{[The figure in green doesn't flinch at the display, unfazed, like he's seen it a million times before, even though in truth he hasn't. He's a tad curious, despite himself. How far will she go? Will she kill a stranger in her room, or will her wild magic take the initiative for her?

Can she?]}

I heard something in your voice when you were speaking over the devices, something I recognized a little in myself. Fear. _{[His voice goes very low.]} Maybe even a touch of despair. You want something so badly and you're afraid you'll never get it because it seems impossible... that feeling can be hard to bear.

Edited 2014-01-22 06:51 (UTC)

That's--

[She huddles in on herself, and ice starts to spread further.]

That--that's irrelevant. It can't be controlled. Now...now I asked you to leave. Please, just go. Before I hurt you. I won't ask again.

_{[She's worried about his safety! How positively adorable. If he felt there were any real danger to himself, he wouldn't be here making such a blatant show of empathy for the poor creature whose power has slipped its leash.]}

Why, I wouldn't be able to forgive myself if I did. You'll just have to hurt me, then.

_{[Heartfelt determination and a playful challenge amount to the same thing, so if she hears a kind of genuine determination but he means something else entirely, it's all the same in the end.

He pauses, letting his words sink in for a second, before continuing on.]}

Or you could consider this: with no explanation, you've come to a place you don't recognize with people who come from as many worlds as there are stars. Worlds where the rules are different. In one, you could be a misfit with powers no one understands. In another, someone with a knack for wielding an element could be practically run-of-the-mill. You tell me, what's harder to imagine? That you're really so unique, or that I could be telling the truth?

[She huddles further and further in on herself as he talks until something snaps within her.]

I'm not unique, I don't want to be unique, and it doesn't matter what other worlds would think, because that's not where I am! You can't help me--you're only making it worse! Now, please--leave me alone!

[She punctuates the final word with a stomp of one foot, and in an instant, the entire room crystallizes. Thick ice spreads over every surface that hasn't frozen yet, snuffing out Peter's candle. The ice spreads up the walls, over the ceiling and meets in the center with a puff of snow that falls gently through the air.]

[No. No no no, this isn't what she intended. She just wanted him to leave, but she's so scared and angry. Elsa shrinks back against the wall again, pressing her gauntlets to the sides of her helm. The whole room is frozen, and she has no idea how to thaw it. If anyone else sees this place, they'll know. They'll know instantly.]

_{[And this is why Peter had never let girls play with the nice toys in Neverland. They could be so dramatic.

In the wake of her outburst, silence reigns for a few long moments until Peter eventually speaks up from his new position a couple of feet over from where he'd started. He's staring at her bedroom door, which is now encased in a sheet of ice.]}

Now look what you've done. You've gone and frozen the door shut.

_{[The tidal wave of ice doesn't hurt him--you don't bait a bear with a thorn in its side without being prepared to escape from its jaws--but really, it's a bit unnecessary. He'd given her a perfectly easy question, and offered a perfectly easy solution, at that. Let it be said that denial is a powerful force.

He sighs, a rueful sound.]}

I might have misjudged you a bit. I thought this was about helping your sister.

[Sexist jerk >:c]

[She'd be crying if she had her own body right now. But she does somehow notice that...despite what she just did, he's not afraid. He's not afraid of her. It's too confusing and too scary to process.]

My sister...? [She casts a terrified glance at the television.] But...everyone says it's not real. It's just a picture...it's not real.

_{[Peter's response is very simple, spoken with the gravity of one who doesn't underestimate what's at stake.]}

And how do they know for sure? Some of these "pictures" are of people we've never told a soul about. People are just as uncertain as you.

_{[There's no proof one way or the other unless you care to make an informed wager, which she's clearly not in the position to do. Doesn't that just fill your heart with so much relief, Elsa?]}

I...Wonderland...i-it just...

[No. Nope, that doesn't make her relieved, that just makes her more scared.]

A-Anna isn't even here...how could Wonderland be...? No, it, it must be fake, it must...Anna isn't here.

You'll never find out this way. Take it from someone who knows: if you can't help yourself, you won't be able to help her.

_{[He doesn't budge from where he is. He's a risk-taker, not suicidal.]}

Won't you try and take a deep breath? It'll calm your nerves.

[She's panicking and closing in on herself and he just still won't leave. It's hard to think. Everyone said the pictures must be fake, that it was just Wonderland trying to hurt them. Everyone said time isn't even moving back home; that Anna would still be at the coronation, frozen in that moment until Elsa returned. What if they were wrong? What if Anna is here in Wonderland somewhere; or what if Wonderland can reach all the way to Arendelle and send Anna off to freeze to death in the mountains?]

[She doesn't want to believe it, but then again, she already did believe it before all the people here reassured her. It's so easy to slip back into worst case scenario mentality.]

[She says the first thing that comes to mind:] I can't even breathe right now, you fool.

That's a bit unnecessary. You've had a fright, but there's no need to resort to name-calling when loved ones and the people in this building are at stake.

_{[How rude. And untrue. But that's royalty for you...]}

Pretend. Mind over matter, which is magic at its core. Pretend you're somewhere else. Pretend you're in your proper form. Feel your lungs expanding...

_{[Well, she should know the rest. Basic anatomy, that.]}

[Pretend...she hasn't pretended anything in years, but...maybe she can remember how.]

[Breathe. In and out. Even though she can't actual feel it, she can sort of...sense it in her mind. She goes quiet, but less terrified this time. She's still huddled in the corner, surrounded by ice, but she's barely, just barely starting to calm down.]

_{[Peter is an excellent liar and is willing to do so on just about any subject, but in claiming he knows a bit about about magic... well, that hadn't been a lie. Magic in every realm he's ever come across has been about will. Direct your will and you can direct your magic, it's as simple as that.

If he can show her that little fact, maybe she'll have a bit more faith.

He falls to silence while she tries to concentrate.]}

[After awhile, she makes a sound like someone taking a breath.] I'm alright.

...You're not going to leave me alone, are you.

You're welcome for trying to help you with my expertise.

_{[He's ready and waiting when she's done. See how nice he is? He gave you your time and space and everything. A little thank you for his generosity would be nice.]}

There is the matter of the door. _{[It's almost as if she expects him to be able to appear and disappear on a whim!]} I would leave if I thought I could.

[She turns toward the door. Completely locked in ice.]

I...I don't know how to unfreeze it. How did you get in in the first place? I'm certain my door was locked.

[She crosses to the door all the same to check for weak points in the ice. Once she's calmed down things sometimes melt on their own, but they might also be able to chisel their way out.]

_{[Understandable that her thoughts might be a bit muddled, but now they're just going in circles. He turns as he moves, following her with his gaze.]}

I could guess. You seem scared to admit you have magic--you must come from a world where it's not always celebrated and nurtured like it is in mine. That's a shame, look how easy it comes to you. I don't know about your door, it wasn't locked for me.

_{[True enough, just not the whole truth, maybe.]}

Feel a bit better now that you're up and moving?

No. It is not celebrated. Nor is it something I am...happy to have. And I must ask you...please don't tell anyone else.

[At least she's admitting it. Partially because she isn't looking at him anymore and has put some distance between them. She stops before the door, looking up at it. She's never frozen anything this badly before. It scares her; her power is getting stronger and harder to control. It's strange, though--somehow being unable to actually breathe or hear her racing heart is a bit...calming. That and her terror has worn her out. She's exhausted, emotionally and mentally.]

[She doesn't answer his question, instead laying a gauntlet on the iced-over door. She has no idea how to unfreeze it. She's never been able to unfreeze anything...but maybe she can break it? Breaking ice has never been a problem, true.]

[She takes another mental breath to try and keep herself calm and manages, just barely. Then she taps a finger against the ice. There's a grinding sound, then all of the ice surrounding the door shatters. At first it falls in massive chunks, but then it all turns into snow with a harmless puff.]

[Elsa stands back and presses her hand to the forehead of her helm.]

There. You can leave now.

_{[Difficult to walk into this situation with eyes wide open and fail to notice her shame. Of course she's been hiding her "condition" from the public--that's no surprise. Hence the barricaded room and the chip on her shoulder. No queen would ever make such a request of a lowly commoner without feeling the ghost of a noose tightening around her neck.

He doesn't answer her immediately, either, instead eyes her in silence while she frets over her creation until the ice disintegrates under her touch. Only then does he takes a step from where he's been standing.]}

And your secret?

_{[Every deal comes with terms.]}

[audio] cold metal

YOU'RE WELCOME, ELSA.

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