Frozen Heart

Chapter 1: Original

Zackory was not a fighter. He didn't know how to be one, and he didn't want to be one. He'd seen enough violence in his long, long life — he refused to create more.

Stopping others from fighting? Yeah, that was something he could do. He balanced on the edge of a skyscraper, unafraid of the fall in a way only those used to flying could be, breathing deeply. He closed his eyes, picturing what he wanted to do, feeling his magic flicker with each breath.

His human costume fell in pieces, not quite revealing his true self. His skin became an icy white-blue, his teeth sharpened, every puff of air came out a frozen cloud. His blue hair, previously looking pale and dyed, glowed healthily as energy left him to cover the city.

This army, these soldiers, their gear was made for desert fighting. They weren't prepared for his Snow Day. They weren't prepared for the frozen ground, the skies filled with clouds, the plants that twisted until they were the sorts that thrived in his domain.

He would do no dishonor to his Brother's Kingdom, the realm of Life. Beasts, birds, fish, and even insects changed themselves under his power, taking the cold within and making it their own. The people he wouldn't change, for Brother said such things were wrong, but their previously thin clothes still fell under his power.

His eyes snapped open, dark pits lit up by glowing blue orbs, and he surveyed his work. The city, this jungle of dark grey and steel, had become a wonderland of shining white and ice. It was beautiful, as far as he was concerned, but he could already hear the panicked screams. He sighed and hung his head, accepting that his good intentions had still caused such distress. As long as the people were safe, a little fear hardly mattered.

(He ignored the part of him that thought that reasoning sounded much too much like his Brother's own past, his mistakes. That part sounded too much like Brother anyways).

Zackory hadn't expected the laughter. He looked up, spreading his Sight to cover that area of the city. What he saw was a streak of pink, spreading a dust cloud in its wake, each person the cloud touched going from panicking to... Well, not panicking.

Snowball fights were breaking out, carols filled the air, and a handful of resourceful people had managed to start baking within the first twenty minutes. She hadn't managed to do something like this before, but he knew it had to be her doing.

Zackory sat on the building, kicking his legs and humming as he waited for the dust to settle. It was spread almost as far as his snow by then, and even the soldiers had stopped trying to continue fighting, instead joining in on the fun.

Zackory wasn't very sure how to feel about this. On one hand, the Realm of Mind was one he and Brother tried to avoid, free will being too important to mess with. On the other claw, this wasn't his fault and he had no way to stop it, so couldn't he enjoy the results without worrying about the ethics?

He still hadn't made up his mind by the time the pink streak, a little bat, flew into sight. With a twist in the air, her pale human form landed next to him, pink hair blown about as her wings collapsed back into her.

Instinctively, his magic reached out to change her thin dress into something more weather appropriate. The fuzzy pink coat and ushanka suited her well, but that wasn't a surprise — his magic always made things that suited people, and she always suited whatever she wore.

"We've talked about gloves, Zacky." She held up a mittened hand, but he'd already changed it to a fingerless design, freeing her claws. She blinked, then smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem, Tuffi." He hummed as she sat next to him, leaning his head against her shoulder, her arm moving to hold him. He once again considered the people playing below. "Your powers are getting stronger."

"Not nearly where I want them to be; it was exhausting." She frowned for a second, but soon went back to a confident smirk. "I'll get there, though. Oh, don't look at me like that."

"Like what?" Zackory asked innocently, pretending he didn't know.

"Like I did something wrong." She scowled. "Emotions are my thing, I can't stop it anymore than you can avoid the cold. I turned a frightening situation into something positive. Besides, all the snowballs flying around will be a great distraction when we get out of here."

"It as well makes the people easier to shoot." Zackory realized suddenly. It didn't mattered that the desert soldiers were at a disadvantage if the people weren't even trying to get away.

"Not if all the guns are frozen over."

"Guns can freeze over?" He asked. That was a thing?

"What exactly was your plan, Frost?" Tuffi chuckled, squeezing her arm around him in a hug.

"Make it harder for them to move?" He said, hesitantly. Technically, he as well thought suddenly being in a completely different environment would be disorienting and uncomfortable, and would be harder to see in. But the moving thing had been his main goal. He hadn't even thought about the guns, really... "Stars, I didn't think this through, did I?"

"That's what you've got me for, now and always." Tuffi promised, resting her head on his. He briefly considered making himself suddenly taller as a prank, but decided it would be a shame to interrupt such a nice moment.

They looked out at the city, peaceful despite the chaos of play in the way only snow can achieve. Soon, Tuffi began singing under her breath, some Christmas song he only recognized because his magic decided it was on theme. He hummed the chorus, still watching the humans in contented amusement.

He was a child, yet he was older than any of them. There was a good chance he was older than all of them put together, but he'd lost count a while ago so couldn't say for sure. Brother always said mortals were like children — they were young, inexperienced, and almost powerless. They needed protection and guidance, but their incredible potential could only bloom if you avoided controlling them. Zackory hoped he hadn't hurt that potential with this, hoped it would be remembered as a bizarre blip of unexplained fun, rather than the start of disaster.

"They're making snowmen, aren't they?" He asked after another quiet lull. It was a redundant question, as he could feel it happening, could feel the new life being brought forward by his magic and the people's minds.

"Yep." Tuffi replied cheerfully, popping the P sound at the end. He glanced up in time to catch her wide grin.

"There goes my hope of Brother not finding out about this." He groaned, leaning further into her. Despite how much work the cleanup was going to be, despite how he was definitely going to be in trouble for interfering this much in the mortal realm, he couldn't help smiling back at her.

He remembered asking how fire felt, once, unable to feel anything like 'warmth' no matter how close he got. "It feels like light, but more." Tuffi had told him, back then. Now, it gave him an idea; he was already going to have to move hundreds of new snow creatures to colder realms before they melted, would it really hurt if he added just a few more?

"Watch this." He whispered, breathing out until dozens of ice crystals floated around them. With jerks of his hands and a little concentration, the gem-like shapes began to take new form. One last snap of his fingers, and the frozen songbirds flew around them, a million colors shining where weak sunlight hit them.

"Beautiful." Tuffi sighed, eyes wide at the spectacle. It was a simple trick, but she always loved his simple tricks.

And that was how the two Spirits spent the rest of their day. They still had much to do, still had to clean up, leave the city, gain help to deal with the soldiers in a more long-term way. But that could be for later. Right now, they would just enjoy the snow.