The Snow Queen
Once upon a time, there was a castle made entirely of ice. It laid in the frozen north, snow always falling heavily upon the fortress. Inside there lived a beautiful man known as the Snow King. He had striking features and seemed as if he was made of ice. But he was not perfect. His heart was frozen, for it had never known the feelings of love.
He had mirror in his castle and he believed it was the only thing that loved him. Eventually, he realized it never loved him and he shattered the mirror. The pieces flew into the snow, spreading evil in the world. If a shard flew into your eyes, you would believe everything is ugly. If a shard pierced your heart, you would become evil and hateful toward everything.
He was still lonely and wished for someone to love him. He roamed the Earth, flying along in winter snows to see if he would ever find anyone. And this is where our story begins...
Dipper and Mabel were best friends; they loved each other like a brother and sister and spent everyday together. They lived in a small village where summers were beautiful and winters were cold. Dipper was especially bright and Mabel was especially creative, making them the perfect team.
On one winter night, they sat by the fire and Mabel's Grunkle Stan told them a story he would usually tell at his shop of oddities. "What would you guys like to hear about today, hm?" He asked.
"Something beautiful!" Mabel shouted.
"No, something scary!" Dipper said afterward.
"How about a story with both of those things?" The children nodded excitedly. "Once upon a time, in the frozen north, there was a castle. The dreaded Snow King lived there."
"Was he beautiful?" Mabel asked.
"Or scary?" Dipper said.
Stan did a little laugh. "Well, he was both. He was very beautiful, made of ice. When he stood in the sunlight he seemed to glow golden." Mabel gasped, thinking of the beautiful image. "But, he was also evil. He had a dark and cold heart, and wished for everyone else to be evil too. So he shattered a mirror and if a shard ever touched you, you would become evil."
The Snow King laughed and listened to this; he always had time to spy on people when they talked about him. The little girl cuddled up onto the boy, and the being felt a weird pang of jealousy.
Stan continued, "He travels on the winter wind, looking for people to turn evil. You know he's near because ice starts to form on the window."
"Dipper, I'm scared!" Mabel cried. "What if the Snow King comes?"
"Don't be scared Mabel," he said. "If he comes, I'll chase him over to the fire and keep him there till he melts!" Dipper got up and grabbed a broom, starting to whack the air. Mabel and Stan started to laugh, but the King was less than pleased.
"Really, little Pine Tree? You think you could defeat me?" He said. He left his castle on the wind and arrived at the little house. He started to create a coat of ice on the window.
Mabel noticed the window was starting to freeze over. "Dipper, look!" The ice started to form little triangular patches, then they saw a face. "It's the Snow King!"
Then, the being had a horrible idea. He froze the latch on the window, then broke it allowing the wind to blow in. Mabel and Dipper ran to close the window, but before they could some snow came in. Two shards of the mirror flew in, one going into Dipper's eyes and the other piercing his heart.
"Ah!" He fell to the floor, covering his eyes and heart. The wind outside stopped for the King had left. He flew back to his castle to enact the next step of his plan.
Once Mabel got the window closed, she rushed to Dipper. She crouched down then asked, "Dipper, are you okay?" She put her hand on his back and he looked up.
He glared at her and pushed her away. "Please, I'm fine! I'm leaving." On the way out, he kicked over a chair then slammed the door.
"Grunkle Stan, what happened?" Mabel said as she ran over to him and buried her face in his chest.
Grunkle Stan was puzzled, Dipper was usually such a good boy. And he would never do anything to hurt Mabel. "I'm sure he was just scared about the window opening so quickly and the storm. Okay?"
"Okay, Grunkle Stan," Mabel said, still unsure of what happened.
"How about we head to bed?" He said as he got up and out of his chair. Mabel took his hand and started toward her room, but not before looking back to the window. She was worried, and she was right to be.
The next day, Mabel got on her winter clothing and headed outside. Dipper and her usually meet at the town center and she was happy to see him there. "Hi Dipper!" She cheered when she saw him.
"Oh yeah, you're actually happy to see me," he snarled as he walked past her. "I'm going sledding, alone." Mabel was hurt to say the least; she couldn't believe how he was acting. That was when a large wagon zoomed by her which carried some animals and she saw a boy attach his sled to it. In the village it was custom for boys to attach their sleds to the backs of larger carriages and ride along. She saw Dipper was still trying to decide on a carriage to attach to.
That's when a large sled came speeding into the town center. It was a pure white and pulled by four pristine horses whose manes blew in the wind. A large man dressed in royal robes was manning the reigns. Dipper saw this and ran at the chance. Mabel dashed towards him, trying to get him to stop. She felt like if he got on that sled he wouldn't get off.
But it was too late for he had already attached his sled to the back. The sled picked up speed, going around the square a few more times before leaving. "Dipper!" Mabel screamed as she tried to chase the sled. Once she left the town borders, she could only see a faint dot on the horizon.
Dipper hung onto his little sled for dear life, and when he looked back he couldn't see his village anymore. Eventually the sled slid to a stop and the being controlling it stood. When he turned, the light cast a golden glow upon him.
Dipper gaped in awe at the beauty before him, not even the shard in his eye could mask it. 'This is the one,' the King thought to himself. 'This child will be the one to love me.' He saw the boy shivering, and realized he probably couldn't withstand the icy conditions. "Pine Tree," the Snow King spoke and the boy looked him in the eye. "Why don't you come sit here, on my lap?"
Dipper was amazed the being was even talking to him, his voice was high yet alluring. He got up and off his sled, and was then lifted into the larger sled of the King. He was placed on his lap, but that just seemed to make him colder. "You're freezing," he said to the being.
"Here," said the King who then placed a kiss on Dipper's forehead. "Now you won't be able to feel the cold." He moved his robes around to cover Dipper in a blanket, then brought the boy close to his chest. Dipper purred, then snuggled into the man. "The winds will carry us home," said the King.
"Where is home, your majesty?" Dipper questioned. In his eyes there was curiosity and adoration for the King.
The sled started again, this time being picked up by the winds and getting lifted into the air. "My castle, in the icy north. Where no one will be able to reach us." The boy smiled, then rested his head against the man's chest. He eventually fell asleep there, and the King couldn't have been more pleased.
Once they landed, he put a few more kisses on the boy's forehead then lifted him and carried him bridal style. They eventually made it to a room with a large snowy bed and the King lifted the covers and placed the boy underneath. He placed more kisses on his face, pleased with how the boy's skin was already starting to turn a light blue. He then stared down at the boy for he would wake up soon. The King was overjoyed, for he had finally found someone to love him.
Mabel on the other hand was devastated with her best friend being taken away by the Snow King. Everyone believed that Dipper had gotten lost in the storm that day, but she knew what happened. She had a plan: once the Spring came, she would set out for the north and go to the Snow King's castle to rescue Dipper.
---
The Snow King's plan was going accordingly: the boy remained mindlessly devoted to him and his beauty, and he finally had someone which he could love. The boy's heart was almost as frozen as his, so they would be together forever. He had really learned to love the boy, from his pursuit of knowledge to his adorable face.
His skin was a deep blue, just the way the King wanted it. He would pepper kisses on the boy's delicate face, enjoying the feeling of flesh. That feeling would be gone soon though, so he enjoyed it. Each night, he and the boy would walk hand in hand to their large bed. He would hold the boy in his arms and fill his dreams with the beauties of Winter.
He felt like his life was finally complete, but their was still something to irk him. The boy's friend was getting ever closer to his castle, and she seemed determined. He sent different obstacles to block her path, but she was persistent. As long as she didn't make it to his castle before the first storm of Winter, the boy would be his for all of eternity.
It was finally the beginning of Winter, and the King had the perfect storm ready. He held Dipper by his hands and danced with him, lifting and turning the boy as they spinned around the throne room. The boy laughed and the King smiled. He lifted the boy into his arms then dipped him, putting more kisses on his face. The boy cuddled into his King's neck, loving the feeling.
"My love, I must go," said the King. The boy visibly slumped in his arms. "I must start the first storm of the winter, but I shall be back soon." He placed Dipper down on the throne as he usually did, making him look like a perfect doll in a large chair. He placed a kiss on the boy's forehead then said something he never thought he would. "I love you." Dipper just looked up at him, eyes full of the same emotion. 'He may not be able to say it until the year ends,' the King reassured himself.
He left the throne room, then glided along the wintery winds. He started his work, blowing snow across the globe. He didn't even notice the little girl approaching his castle as she trudged through the snow.
Mabel had finally made it to the castle, enduring many trials until she got here. She went through the castles doors, then wandered around until she found the throne room. Dipper was there, sitting on the throne and twiddling his thumbs. He crossed his legs and looked down, completely lost without his King there.
"Dipper!" Mabel shouted as she ran towards him, tears of joy streaming down her face. The boy looked up, shocked at who he saw.
"Mabel?! What are you doing here?" But the emotion of shock was soon replaced by anger. "Leave, I don't want you here," he said as he crossed his arms.
"Dipper please, listen to me," she said as she came to a stop in front of the throne. "I've been through so much to get her, you have no idea. I missed you so much!"
"Yeah, well I didn't miss you!" Dipper shouted. "Now leave, the Snow King will freeze you if he sees you here." He jumped off the throne then pointed toward the exit.
"No Dipper!" Mabel exclaimed. "I missed you too much to not come and save you." She couldn't take it anymore for she put her arms around the boy and cried on him. Her tears went into his eyes, washing the shard out. Some also went onto his heart, melting the shard there.
Dipper stopped struggling against her, then embraced her back once the shards were gone. His skin was returning to its normal rosy color, and he could feel again. "Mabel, you saved me!" He exclaimed. Mabel pulled back to examine him, then went right back to hugging him. They stayed like that for a while until Dipper grabbed her hands and they started spinning around the throne room. They did this and started laughing until they fell on the floor.
Just as they thought they had won, a wind blew in and the Snow King appeared sitting down in his throne. "Pine Tree, why have you moved?" He questioned. "Come here and sit on my lap."
"No!" Dipper exclaimed. He had finally realized what was going on, and he was pretty disappointed in himself for not seeing it before.
"Excuse me?" Questioned the being. This made no sense, he knew that the girl had made it but there was no way she could have reversed his magic.
"He doesn't belong to you anymore, Snow King," Mabel said. "I got here before the end of the first Winter storm, so I saved him."
The King stood, enraged by this. He was about to speak, then realized the girl was right. He was still befuddled by how his magic was reversed, until he realized true love must have freed the boy. "Come on Dipper, we can go now," said the girl.
They both turned, but the King called out to him. "Dipper, wait! I love you. You love me, don't you?" Dipper saw the pleading in the man's eyes, seeing the loneliness that was behind his so called "love."
"I did love you," Dipper said. The King looked at him, about to start again but the boy then said, "but you don't know what love really is." Dipper turned, took Mabel's hand, and set off for home. The King just stared, heart shattering into a million pieces. And then, just like that, him and his castle faded into oblivion.