This story was inspired by this picture. 

 

 

THE KINGDOM OF SALS, TEN YEARS BEFORE....

The ice cracked beneath his feet, as he ran across the crystal surface of the lake, headed towards the woods, 

exiled from all he knew and loved. 

He'd tried, he tried so hard...

he'd just... 

slipped.

And that had cost him everything; home, love, family...

and normalacy. 

As he ran, snowflakes juttered into the air, his emotions causing a flurry. 

What did they know... they feared what they did not understand.

He had a powerful gift, a wonderful gift...

but they couldn't see past it. 

Exiled... but far from powerless. 

He'd come back, someday...

He'd come back to open arms and welcoming smiles.

The exiled prince entered the snow woods, and there he remained, for ten long years. 

Edited December 19, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

Can't believe you came up with this within a few seconds! Excellent work

Nicely done.

1: Winter 

The trees were bare, icicle's hanging like bats from every branch, the white snow powdering the ground in a soft blanket, cool and crisp to the touch. 

Dameion walked through the forest, his boots crunching on the ice beneath him, forming at his touch in plant~like trendrils across the hardpacked earth beneath the snow.

Ten long years had transformed the frightened 8~year~old child into a tall, lean, lanky man, hair as white as new~frost, smile as cunning and dangerous as a tiger at feeding time. 

Eyes as clear a blue as a winter sky scanned the tree~line, looking for any missing spots in need of icicle hangers. 

Seeing none, he smiled, and walked on, a family of rabbits hopping around his feet. 

He didn't dare pet them, for fear of freezing them, but he smiled, as the followed without fear, knowing he posed them no threat. 

Why would he; he didn't require food, so he didn't hunt them, and he froze their warrens closed at night to keep them safe from the icy chill of the night air, like a father tucking his children in for the night. 

He was prince of the winter winds, ruler of the snows and ice...

and he loved it. 

The snows were his servants, the ice his guards, the winter winds his messanger.

He'd been exiled from the kingdom for his power, for his touch that froze at once, his ability to form the snows with only his hands, creating flurries from nothing. 

Exiled or not, Dameion did not care; let them have their castle, let them have their kingdom. 

Here, the only ruler was him, and he ruled with an iron fist. 

Edited December 19, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

nice work man you're writing is getting so much better!!! honestly you've gone so far keep it up

nice work man you're writing is getting so much better!!! honestly you've gone so far keep it up

Heh, thanks. I really appreciate that.  

2. Icicle

The town of Sals had fallen on hard times as of late: villagers sold meagner wares at market in hopes of earning a copper for a loaf of bread to feed their starving children, ash from fires blackened the streets and faces of passersby, sorrow on every face. 

It was the dead of winter, icicle's hanging from every roof~line, frost covering every window, children huddling around small fires to avoid the freeze. 

The freeze was said to come from the Silver Forest, where prince Dameion, exiled from the kingdom years ago, was told to watch the town, sending his icy wrath to punish all who'd shunned him. 

Whatever the reason, Sals was suffering, and winter had only just begun....

Edited December 19, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

3. Sorrow 

He walked the forest paths, singing melodies he made up, the birds twittering in tune, all in harmony with the snows. 

" ice may form,

snows may fall, 

nothing here

bothers me at all. 

The snows my master,

the winds my guide,

through this cold breeze

we fly." 

His deep voice echoed through the trees, ice forming the words on the frozen surface of the lake, the snows dancing in tune, the winds playing a song through the trees. 

All was peaceful in his wintery realm... but his sorrow was still heavy, weighing upon his mind like a too heavy snow pile on a thin branch. '

The animals didn't understand, they were small minded; his lonely exsistence got to him, even if the snows did obey him.  

In his sorrow, a deep, deep red snow fell, which looked as if blood when it melted in the sun hours later. 

                                                                                                       

Edited December 19, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

4. Snow 

The snows whipped the village, ice cracking windows as the un~ending flurry raged, the winds sounding like screams as it rushed through the trees; deep, echoing screams. 

They huddled together before fires, listening to the screams echo, knowing Dameion's sorrow was the cause of the storm, the icy winds reacting to his emotions as a snow flurry. 

In the forest, the animals hid, as lightning flickered through purple thunderheads, icy rain and hail bashing the trees in anger flurries. 

Dameion let out a scream, throwing ice at trees and bushes, the landscape twisting into a nightmare of ice, sleet, and hail, crystal tears that froze instantly falling from his eyes, as his rage unleashed unto the forest. 

The abandonment.... the exile.... the solitariness....

All too much.

Too much. 

With a sob, he raced through the trees to a large clearing, waving his hand to sweep the snow aside in a massive flurry, a giant door of solid ice carved into the Earth; his sanctuary, his ice palace...

Safe, underground....

away from them, safe... silent...cold, always so cold.

With a cry, he slammed through the doors, and disappeared. 

Above ground, the flurries settled, the winds calmed, and the thunderheads broke apart. 

When the moon shone down on the forest, all was silent, cold, and still. 

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

5. Solitary 

In his ice caverns, Dameion was the only one who walked the halls, everything created out of perfect detail from snow and ice, as cold as the North pole, but perfect for his frozen demeanor. 

The ice caverns stretched for miles beneath the forest floor, room upon room of beauty and wonder. 

Dameion walked to the grand ballroom, lights flickering on as he approached. 

Solid ice instruments lay on a bandstand of snow, the ice floor intricately carved with animals and winter scenes. 

He waved his hand; dozens of dancers suddenly came into being, all perfect replica's of snow and ice, frozen players performing a beautiful ice waltz. 

He watched them, lifeless snow and ice, alive at his sheer whim, and smiled, as the dancers waltzed for many hours in the cold caverns of ice for their lonely master. 

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

6. December Embers 

With the flurry stopped, Henry was free to leave, sneaking out over the roof of the orphanage to watch the moon rise, unaffected bu the cold chills that tormented so many others. 

He watched the moon, remembering, his hands holding his legs close as he huddled in the peak between the chimney and window frame, watching the cold blue moon rise above the tree line of the Silver Forest, where an exiled prince with the power of the snows was said to reside, hiding in an underground cavern of ice and snow during the warmer days. 

He watched the glittering snow glow under the full moon, beautiful... pure...

as he watched, a small flurry briefly created a snowstorm on the lawn, and a perfect snowman stood there.

Terrified, he scrambled back through the window, and hid under the covers intill morning. 

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

7. A New Prince 

Dameion awoke in the night, sensing... power.

His power.

Another, summoning the winds and snows. 

Impossible.....

But not impossible... not impossible at all...

The new prince....

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

8. To The Silver Woods

" So that's it then? You've made up your mind." 

Henry turned to look at Susan, who stared glumly from her bed. 

" Yeah. I need.... I need to see him. "

" The prince? In the Silver Forest? Henry... he'll kill you." 

" Then that's a risk I'll have to take. I need to know why i can... can..."

He made a fist: when he opened it, snowflakes floated free, glowing white in the darkened room. 

" Goodbye."

" Bye, Henry. Be safe."

With that, he was out the window. 

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

9. Journey Through the Snows

He hiked through the silent village, seeing no one at this hour, the dark trees of the Silver Forest indeed seeming to glow silver under the light of the full moon overhead, beautiful, and deadly .

He walked without fear: years of accidents and practice had taught him how to harness the snows, so he feared nothing. 

The village ended all too soon, and the first dark stand of trees marking the forests beginnings appeared, iced solid with blue frost. 

Taking a deep breathe, Henry entered the silent forest, ice and snow all there was to see, the full moon's blue radiance brighter than sunlight in the darkness, small animals scurrying through the bushes with small skittering noises, frightened of the interloper entering their domain. 

As he approached, he heard... music? 

Yes... soft, eerie, lilting music, echoing on the soft breezes like ghosts, coming from deep in the forest. 

Unafraid, Henry squared his shoulders, and walked on. 

Edited December 20, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

For anyone interested, the above chapter was based on this waltz: 

http://youtu.be/vHApVIdbEyo

10. Ice Waltz

The sound grew louder as he ventured deeper into the trees, the echo as eerie as a whisper in a dark room, the sound icy in its volume: icicle music.... music from the snows. 

Henry knew Dameion was causing this music, as he marched bravely on wards, determined to meet the frozen prince face~to~face. 

As he approached, words began to sound, sung by a high, clear voice, un~earthly in sound. 

" Far away, long ago, glowing dim as an ember..."

He reached a large clearing, where giant doors of solid ice were inlaid into the ground, open slightly, showing him the source of the music. 

" Things my heart, used to know..."

There was no going back: it was now or never. Taking a deep breath, Henry slipped into the ice palace, unafraid of the icy chill permeating the rooms. 

It was beautiful, but a cold beauty, proud and haughty, all around carved of solid ice. 

The music came from a large set of double doors ahead, lights flickering inside. 

" Figures dancing gracefully, across my memory.." 

He walked towards the doors, un~afraid of what might lay beyond them, and entered. 

A phantasmagorical sight met his eyes: dancers, hundreds of them, waltzing to the song of a beautiful singer.... 

all carved of solid ice, light beams reflecting off and through them ,as they swirled in graceful circles across a solid ice dancefloor. 

" Someone holds me safe and warm, horses prance through a silver storm..."

It was more beautiful than anything he'd ever seen before, as the music echoed like ghost~whispers in the icy ballroom.

Then, the dancers shattered, and all was silent, as the doors slammed with a great bang that echoed over and over again in the din of the room. 

" How DARE you enter my domain? You shall pay with your life, interloper!" 

Henry turned; the tall man was standing behind him, ice dusting his coat, eyes flashing silver. 

The Frozen Prince.... Dameion. 

Edited December 21, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

11. Intruder 

" I... i just..."

" You just WHAT? Who are you? How did you get here?" 

In his anger, Dameion threw off shards of ice, shattering a crystal window that instantly reformed as if new. 

"I'm.... Henry. I can..." 

" What? Barge in where you're not wanted? Do you KNOW who I am, boy?" 

Henry stood his ground, ice forming on his knuckles. 

" Damn you.... you're Dameion: exiled from Sals ten years ago for freezing the royal guards to death at a coronation. "

Here, Henry held his hand up, and blew.

Snowflakes scattered from his fingers, as Dameion watched in shock.

" You're like me. I too can weild the ice and snow." 

Edited December 21, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

12. Protege 

" You... how?" 

Dameion had never known another who could weild the ice, and could only stare at the boy, snow falling free from his finger tips. 

" i don't know... I just can." 

" You can't go back: they'll try to kill you." 

" You think i don't know that? That's why i came here. "

For the first time in ten years.... Dameion's icy lips lifted in a smile. 

" How old are you, boy?" 

" My names Henry, and i'm ten, sir." 

Dameion laughed outloud,snow flying from him in a small burst with his sudden joy. 

" Sir! Lord, Henry: i'm only eight years older than you. Sir.... " 

He smiled, his eyes lighting up with joy. 

" Call me Dameion. " 

Henry smiled, as bright as the ices surrounding them. 

" Alright... Dameion." 

" You shall live with me, here, in Schloss Frost. "

" Schloss Frost?"

Dameion chuckled. 

" The palace...Schloss Frost. " 

He snapped his fingers, and a man of solid ice appeared from the ground.

" Maestro, if you please." 

13. Ice Waltz, Exile Explained 

The dancers waltzed beautifully to the icy tunes, dancing as fluidly as water on the ice dancefloor. 

" How do you control them? They're so life~like."

Dameion smiled at Henry, his eyes glowing a soft blue. 

" i need only think it, and the ice responds to my call. " 

Henry watched a ice~man toss a beautiful ice~lady into the air, catching her in a graceful move that sent them sliding across the floor, lost in thought. 

Then, he watched a small kitten emerge from the ice, meowing as it dashed through the feet of the waltzers towards them, a jaunty bow of pure snow tied around its neck. 

" Impressive, Henry. "

" Will it shatter? Like the dancers did?" 

" Not if you do not wish it. Given time, the ice will act alone, and not require you anymore. " 

Henry smiled, as the ice~kitten danced around the waltzers feet, nipping at laces and bows as it came to them. 

" Why were you exiled?"

Dameion frowned, the light in his eyes dying. 

" Why do you want to know." 

" Just curiouse. "

" If I tell you, will you leave me alone again?"

" I'm not going anywhere." 

Dameion sighed, and began to speak, and as he spoke, frost formed pictures on the dancers, showing the past....

Edited December 22, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

14. Dameion's Tale

The snow drifted gently outside the windows of the Castle Sals, proud home of the royal family of Sal's, the Gugenheims. 

Dameion was the oldest of five children, aged five to ten, and he loved his little brothers and sister dearly, helping them with everything from art projects to cleaning, to even lying when something had been broken in the castle by one of them. 

Dameion had everything he could ever had wanted, but he also had a terrible secret, a secret involving the red thong tied around his upper left arm, created of calf~skin and dye, painted with odd designs and swirls. 

He never removed it, not even while bathing, and his friends constantly teased him. 

The band had a secret too, a big one, and it was to be Dameion's undoing the night of the great Winter Ball. 

 

 

The castle's courtyard glittered under a powdering of frosty snow, as the dancers waltzed to a soft, lilting tune played by a beautiful woman, a second woman singing a song of the December, and the memories it brought. 

" .. Things my heart, used to know, things it yearns to remember..." 

Anyone who was anyone was there: The strausbergs, the Rothschild's, the Glees~Townsons....

Dameion watched from the balcony, as the men in their suits and the ladies in their flowing dresses danced the night away, the singers voice echoing phantom~like through the castle. 

" Figures dancing, gracefully, across my memory..." 

That they did, almost hovering over the marble of the dance floor as the waltz went on, so beautiful...

" Dameion! Come down, son. "

His mother, Duchess Isabil, called, watching from the ornate bench by the castle doors, smiling at him warmly, her eyes as light as embers in her kind face. 

He ran to her, and sat besides her, as she sang softly to him an old lullaby of her own devising.

" Although the winter winds do blow, 

as the cold, so cold snow doth pour, 

from out my own heart love will abide, 

never fear, my own, my child, 

never fear the night, and do not hide." 

He watched the dancers, smiling as his mother gently stroked his arm.... 

wincing as the thong snapped.

" Darling, what's this?"

" Nothing! Nothing... I must go." 

" Darling.." 

" No!" 

Without thinking, he pushed her back with his palms: what fell to the ground was only ice after his power, contained by the cord, has frozen his mother. 

" Sorcery! "

The voice rang clear through the ballroom, as the music crashed to a tangled halt, all on eyes on him. 

He fled, fled in exile...

to the Silver Forest. 

Edited December 22, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

15. Now you know 

" This is what happened ten years ago... when I came here." 

Dameion stopped speaking, his eyes dully reflecting the icicle dancers like tarnished mirrors, clearly disturbed. 

" It wasn't your fault, she didn't know." 

Dameion turned to stare at Henry, the kitten batting at a tassel on his boot. 

" But..." 

Henry smiled, and for the first time....

Dameion felt heat in his icy heart. 

" The past is in the past... you can't go back. Let it go." 

The waltzers danced around them in silvery circles, the ice Henry sat on almost gentle rather than cold, the kitten prancing happily along. 

Henry didn't know much: he didn't know his times tables, he didn't know history, he couldn't read very well, but he did know one thing. 

He was home. 

Edited December 23, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

16. Ice Power

The next day, Dameion took Henry to the Silver Forest, showing him the hollows and clearings he ruled, always certain to refreeze any wanning icicles. 

" Henry... it's time." 

He pointed a large dead oak, the branches barren and wasted. 

" Show me what you can do to that." 

Henry thought, then clenched his hand, holding his arm out in front of him. 

He snapped it back, flicking his fingers open; solid ice shot from his palm, smashing into the tree.

The ice spread, covering the bark like new, leaves of snow and frost sprouting all over, intill a tree as full as any other in summer time stood there, made of solid ice. 

Dameion nodded his head. 

" Impressive indeed, Henry. Impressive indeed." 

17. Things always end in Summer 

The months passed slowly: they practiced Henry's powers daily, until he could ride the winds as free as a bird, icing over trees and fields alike as he flew overhead. 

Dameion watched his progress with joy, finally freed of his solitary exile, but still...

They both knew, deep down, that they couldn't ever go back to Sals, that the town was as good as dead to them. 

The Silver Forest  was theirs. their home, their sanctuary. 

That was all soon to change. 

 

 

 

Henry wouldn't ever forget the day it began to change... when he met her. 

He'd been in the main section of the forest, icing the tops of the mushrooms to keep them fresh for the forest animals, when... she came. 

She walked on the snow barefoot, in a white gown that rode to her ankles, her raven hair loose about her alabaster face, as she smiled at him in a way that didn't quite reach her eyes. 

Henry stared at her; beneath her feet, the snow was melting, her skin glowing a gentle orange. 

Edited December 27, 201311 yr by TheTimidLight

NOTE: I haven't given up on this: it has potential. 

Currently suffering writers block, so please do not delete this.

Thanks. 

UPDATE:

New chapter in the works: gonna post it soon. 

2ND UPDATE:

Rough predraft done: will post after looking up some details I've forgotten.