When Fire And Ice Meet

Another Fateful Evening...

Previously...

Watching the couples dancing together made Elsa feel a little incomplete. It was a strange, hollow feeling that caused an uncomfortable warmth to flow through her veins and gnaw at her heart. She knew it was just the emotion of the moment, but she was surprised at how strong it was.

Suddenly, she felt a light hand on her shoulder and turned to see Alex standing there shyly. He was wearing a crimson formal shirt with golden embroidery along with nice quality blue pants. Where did he get those fine clothes? Elsa wondered, but that thought was quickly pushed to the back of her mind when Alex spoke.

"Would you care for a dance, Queen Elsa?" he asked quietly.

~*~*~

"Well...I..." Elsa was taken aback. Servants were not supposed to dance with the royals. It was just not the way things were done. "It's just...um..."

Alex looked hurt. "Sorry I asked. I should have known you wouldn't want to-"

"It's not you, specifically," Elsa interrupted hastily. "But servants usually don't mix with the nobles in dances."

"What?" For a moment, Alex looked genuinely confused. "Oh!" He flushed and adjusted his shirt nervously. "I forgot. Pardon me, my queen." He turned to go, and Elsa was startled to hear herself call after him.

"I think we can make an exception this once," she said. Alex turned back in surprise. "You look like a noble anyways, in those nice garments," Elsa added softly.

"Oh. Thanks," Alex said with bashful grin. "They're just some old clothes of mine that I thought would be appropriate for this occasion." His gaze traveled upwards to the glittering chandeliers and the sloped, elegant ceiling. "It's been a while since I've been to a gathering like this," he added softly.

The music took a sweeter turn and Alex closed his eyes to appreciate the haunting beauty of the violins. Then he opened them with a new resolution. He walked up to Elsa and offered her his hand.

"Just so you know, I'm not good at dancing," Elsa said, suddenly hesitant now that the moment had arrived. "I wasn't really planning on doing so tonight."

"I bet you are good, you just don't know it," Alex declared. Suddenly emboldened, he took Elsa's hand and led her onto the floor.

The two of them started out a little clumsily, but after a while they fell into a rhythm that matched the beating of their hearts. Elsa realized she knew the dances well enough to do them even though she'd never practiced herself. She spun and danced gracefully, all the time aware of Alex's burning hot hand gripping her own icy one.

Eventually, Elsa's breathing became more and more heavy, and the world started to blur, but somehow,
she didn't want to stop. There was something so free, so exhilarating about dancing across the floor, and sharing the moment with someone who she was sure felt the same. She looked into Alex's face and realized he was doing the same thing to her. Reflections of gold from the lights mixed with the gold flecks in his brown eyes and for a moment, Elsa was once again lost in Alex's eyes. Neither of them said anything. The connection between them was so strong, words hardly seemed necessary.

Then the music died down and the man calling the dances spoke out. "Everyone find a new partner, someone you haven't danced with yet, and enjoy this next dance."

Alex reluctantly let go of Elsa's hands, their fingers brushing against each other for a lingering second. Then, he took a step back and was instantly surrounded by interested girls. Apparently, they'd noticed Alex while he'd been dancing with Elsa, and become taken in with him.