Page 47 of Gifted to the Frost King

Once I am standing before her, the breath freezes in my lungs. The woman—the female—is me. Holding a heavy leather-bound book in her lap, she sits with her feet tucked underneath her. Our matching snowflake necklaces rest at our throats. Delicately pointed ears poke out from under her unbound hair. Sparkling brown eyes look up from the page and directly at me.

I hold my breath before she adjusts, reaching over to set the book atop the stack beside her. My mouth goes dry as I take in her—my—round stomach. It is proudly on display in her simple blue dress.

The nearest window clicks open, and a cool breeze blows in, bringing in a familiar figure. It is the Frost King, broader of shoulder and older. No crown decorates his brow, and he is dressed in a simple black cloak. Twisting in her seat, a warm smile breaks out across her face.

“You’re back early, my love.”

My love. Awareness prickles at my fingertips.

The Frost King settles in next to her and kisses her temple. Pink highlights her cheeks as his hand goes to her stomach.

“I hate being away from you, especially in your condition.” He bestows another kiss. “How are you and our little one doing?”

Her hand comes down on top of his.

“Perfectly well. She’s sleeping for now.”

“Hmm,” Frosty hums. “We still need to decide on a name for her.”

The female elf version of me chuckles, snuggling deeper into the Frost King’s side. The affection in their simple touches causes a wave of longing to wash over me. What a contrast this scene is to the one I just witnessed.

“Our sons are already named after you.” My eyes widen. “Surely, our little female should be named after her mother.”

The Frost King nods, pressing a gentle kiss on her lips.

“Whatever my mate wants, she shall have.”

The blood freezes in my veins. This cannot be—I’m?—

A loud bang echoes through the library as the doors fly open. An older male elf comes strolling in. He is lean and long-legged, the way most teenagers are. Beneath his crop of dark hair and matching eyebrows is a pair of sparkling blue eyes. Racing in beside him is a younger male who barely reaches his hip.

He is a perfect replica of his father.

“Mama, can we go into town?” the younger one asks, coming to stand before her.

Tucking a wildly curling piece of white hair behind his arched ear, she nods.

“Only if you wear your warmest coats, my darlings.”

The older boy comes to the Frost King’s side with a bemused expression. Love pours from the scene before me. It warms a frozen part of me I didn’t even know existed. That golden thread I saw earlier is wrapped around the Frost King’s wrist and tethered to mine. The snowflake glows at our throats, and everything clicks into place.

One to see, but two to feel. I understand the riddle now. Everything is clear to me. The memory—the vision of a future I may have already lost—disappears around me. The library's warmth melts away, and I am thrust back into the raging blizzard at the edge of the frozen lake.

My breaths are painful, and my body feels frozen. Rising on rigid muscles, Glimmer buzzes before me with wide eyes. Words spill from my lips before she can even ask.

“I watched it—the sorceress laid down the curse but left a way to break it.” Tears sting in my eyes. “Only the king knows how. She told him before stealing his memory.”

I give a heartbroken laugh.

“The only way to break it is lost, Glimmer.” The snow fairy sags. “The sorceress made sure of that. I don’t know if there is enough time to unlock the memories buried within him.”

I want to scream and rage—to find this sorceress and demand more answers, even if it is pointless. Was all this indeed for nothing? My heart cracks down the middle.

What’s even crueler is showing me the vision of the life we could’ve had. If only I had been born an elf—we could’ve met and had time together. I could’ve been there for him in his grief and stopped him from turning into the male who brought down this plight.

I think of Mama and Sophia, and though I’d never choose not to know them, is it wrong to want both? To want my elven life with Frosty while also keeping my human family? Those desires matter little now. Both may be already lost to me.

It was one final cruel twist of fate. Dangling the family and companionship I’ve come to desire before me, only to rip it away.

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