Work Text:
Christmas Special
“What would a fate want for Christmas? That thought was coming back for the hundredth time to Evangeline’s mind. Should she buy him a dozen apples? Or a scarf? His skin was always cold, he didn’t need that. And the apples he ate were not ordinary fruits.
She walked down the market as the snow fell lightly on her cape. She already bought presents for Lala and Chaos. So far, she could say she had friends. Lala was on her friend list for a long time, but she decided to add Chaos recently. She was also thinking about him as a friend since he helped her stay human on that fateful night. She thought about Luc as a friend, but giving him a present would have been awkward.
There was one more person she could not add to her friend list, but rather to her love list. J-A-C-K-S. Yes, he was the love of her life. After they broke the Archer’s curse, they agreed to take things slow. Nobody knew that the curse was broken, and no one had seen them having their first kiss. There have been many secret kisses and touches since then. Jacks felt vulnerable and needed time to adjust to his new life. Despite the current situation, he was his old self.
“Argh, I hate Christmas.” He was grumbling when Lala and the Valors set up a meeting to discuss the holiday season tasks.
“What?” Asked Evangeline.
“He hates all the Holidays” Lala replied with a smirk. She knew it would bring trouble for Jacks.
“Why do you hate all holidays?” Evangeline furrowed her bows.
“Christmas is truly not about love and family. It is about decorations, stupid kisses under the mistletoe, false singing, and expensive presents. What are you even getting presents for? The season changing?!” He started his speech bored but became quite upset in the end.
“Jacks, you are being ridiculous.” Evangeline was so disappointed, yet she somehow knew he would react this way. That is just the way he was.
“Fine, put up your stupid decorations, get presents and give kisses under the stupid mistletoe. Just don’t involve me.” It seemed like the mistletoe was the main enemy. He was probably jealous since he could never kiss any girl without killing them.
That was the last time he attended the Christmas meetings.
It was very challenging to love him sometimes. Yet Evangeline wanted to give him something personal and enjoy the holidays with him. She tried to involve him in the preparations, but it was a big failure.
“At least please tell me you are attending the Christmas ball.” Evangeline was looking at him with big watery eyes.
“I do not want to attend. I told you this is all a waste of time.” He sighed and leaned back in his armchair.
“Very well. Then I will ask Chaos or maybe Luc to be my partner…” she provoked him with the other possibilities.
“You wouldn’t dare, Little Fox.” He narrowed his eyes, but he knew he had lost this round.
“Try me, Lord Jacks.” She kept her face straight, but inside she smiled wide. She knew he wouldn’t let her near Luc or Chaos.
“Okay, you won… Anyways, you owe me a dance since Lala’s engagement party.” He smirked.
Lost in thoughts, she found herself wandering at a jewelry stand on the opposite end of the market. She looked at the beautiful crafts and gems and suddenly found out what could be the perfect present for the Prince of Hearts.
Evangeline had a plan, but she needed help. She grabbed her skirt and ran to the castle’s highest tower, where Honora Valor opened the door with a bright smile.
Christmas day finally came. Evangeline put the last ornament on the Christmas tree and took a few steps back to adore the view. The lights on the tree were flickering, its shine mirrored by the decorations. It was one of the most beautiful things she’d ever seen.
It was time to get ready for the ball. She had her rose gold locks pinned on the top of her head. The dress on her was astonishing. It was glittering from top to bottom. It had a deep V-cut neckline and no sleeves. The corset had rose gold glitters and white flowers. The skirt started with white flowers and dark, almost brown shade glittering material underneath. The colors blended into rose gold again. Silky, white flowers were coming up from the bottom as if they wanted to reach the other flowers on the waist.
“Little Fox, I know I promised you to attend the ball, and I will. But first I have to take care of something. Meet you in the main hall.” She heard Jacks’s projected thoughts.
“Don’t keep me waiting for long…” she replied and placed a box on the table. Carefully took out Jacks’s dagger to take one last look. The blade was polished, almost glowing in her hands. How many times was she cut with it…
Sweet memories of Jacks and apples rushed through her mind. She licked her lips. She almost felt the metallic taste of his blood.
When she visited Honora Valor she asked her help to fill the holes in the dagger where the gems were missing. In a couple of minutes, she was holding her breath as Honora gently opened an opal black box and offered to use the stones of the Valory Arch.
One for luck.
One for truth.
One for mirth.
One for youth.
She put the dagger back into the box and approached the main hall, hoping Jacks was already there.
She was wrong.
The whole hall was vibrating. People along the long tables were chatting and laughing when she came to her seat. Mistletoe was hanging from the ceiling and even at the arches. The decoration was mesmerizing. On the sides of the hall, ice sculptures were on the tables. Spicy, sweet biscuits covered the shiny plates. The Christmas tree was the main attraction of course. Evangeline saw people laying their presents underneath the tree. She did not want to give him the gift here. She wanted to see his honest reaction. In front of everyone, he would probably hide all his emotions.
When the dinner started, she searched the room, yet no sign of Jacks. The seat next to her was untouched.
“I must say you look radiant tonight.” Luc appeared in front of her all of a sudden.
“Thank you, Luc. That’s very kind of you.” she said, but in her mind, she repeated: DON’T LOOK INTO HIS EYES. She knew how that would affect her. God, it was so hard to look at someone but don’t look into the eyes.
“Where is your apple gobbler shadow?” He raised his eyebrows.
“Uhm, I don’t know. He promised to be here shortly.” She put pressure on that word, hoping Jacks could hear it too.
“Well, you still owe me a dance” He winked and lifted his hand while bowing.
“Oh, oh… right.” She took his hand hesitantly, wishing it would be Jacks's hand. She heard almost the same sentence from Luc when they were at Lala’s engagement party. She looked around and caught Chaos’ grin from the corner.
The music started with a slow rhythm, and Luc took the lead. They moved around on the dance floor like she knew how to dance. It was easy while Luc’s hand was on her waist to guide her. He was the first love she had. Evangeline remembered how Luc comforted her after her father died. That sweet boy, who had always been there for her. But after Marisol’s curse, he became her fiancé, then a vampire.
What could have been if Marisol didn’t curse him? Would they still be together? Would they have stayed in Valenda? How would it have ended?
“You know, I wanted to apologize for everything. I was so lost when I came to the North. I saw the world through foggy eyes, not thinking about anything but her. Only one thought played on my mind: I had to find the cure and return to Marisol so we could be together again. When I’ve been bit, I sobered up. The vampire venom lifted the fog from my mind.” He smiled sadly. “When I saw you through the cage, I could not believe my eyes. I want you to know that it wasn’t me, it was the venom. I would never hurt you, Eva.” He looked at her, she could feel his eyes on her flushed cheeks.
Luc looked up and grinned. “Seems like we have an obligation now.”
Following him, she looked up and found herself underneath the mistletoe.
Oh no, no no no no no… This is not good. Do NOT look into his eyes!!! She looked down to avoid eye contact.
Luc was looking at her again but could not see her frightened eyes. Slowly he lifted her chin with his hand and leaned into a kiss. Evangeline tried to fight against it, but she accidentally looked into his eyes. His eyes were so familiar, promising the whole world, all the comfort and a happily ever after. Yet they were on fire, crashed and burned and tortured her soul.
One minute he was there and in another the Prince of Hearts was standing in front of her. His eyes were burning with anger. One of his hands was on Luc’s throat; with the other one, he was holding a dagger to his face. He turned his head towards Evangeline. “Little Fox, look at me.”
She looked into his furious icy blue eyes. This is how she imagined him when she decided to visit his temple. He looked cruel, sublime, merciless. Then the ice melted when their eyes met. Nothing left but the swirling ocean, pulling her deep down. She blinked a few times and smiled at him. “You kept me waiting…” She said playfully.
“Sorry love. Had something to take care of.” He winked and turned back to Luc.
“And you… if I ever and I mean EVER see you near her, I will rip your heart out and chop off your ugly head. Understood vampire boy?” He ground through his teeth.
“Understood, Prince of Hearts” Luc grinned since he was sure about one thing: Jacks could never kiss Evangeline without killing her. He didn’t know how wrong he was.
She will come back to me. He thought and lifted his hands as a sign of surrender.
“Will you dance with me, Little Fox?” He smiled and waited for her to accept his hand.
“If you are asking so nicely, how could I refuse?” Evangeline flushed, but before she could hide her emotions, Jacks grabbed her waist and pulled her closer.
"Every time I leave you alone for a bit, someone tries to steal you from me, kill you or enchant you." He sighed hopelessly.
"But you always find me just in time." Evangeline leaned her head on his chest while they slowed their pace.
"That's your luck. Otherwise, you would have been suffering from Luc's smelly breath and sweaty hands by now." He grimaced to express his disgust.
"Thank you for saving me… again." She lifted her head to look into his darkened eyes. "I know you don't like this Holiday thing, but I have a present for you. It's in my room though. Please accept it." She squeezed his hand to give strength to her words.
"Well, I've got you a gift too." He said shyly. SHYLY! Jacks said something shyly.
The shock on her face made him chuckle. One more thing she was not used to.
"Don't look at me like that. This is all new to me. I've been alive for centuries, yet no one could make me feel the way you do, Little Fox." He stopped suddenly and looked up. Evangeline was so shocked that she did not realize where they were. When Jacks was so close, everything else disappeared. She could only see him, not the surroundings or the other people.
"Kiss me." He demanded after he tilted his head up. Another mistletoe. Doubt and fear filled her eyes.
"Are you ready for this? It's okay if you don't want to. I understand. What we have is enough." She said and she meant it. She loved all the stolen moments they spent together as a couple. Jacks handled the secret relationship so well, she didn’t want it to be over. She was afraid his behavior would change.
He leaned to her ear and softly whispered. “After this little accident, I want to show everyone: You’re mine.” A shiver tripped down her spine at the last word.
He pulled back to look into her eyes. She swallowed and nodded slowly. “I’m yours.” Not just for tonight. She thought, and she had a feeling that Jacks heard it too.
Then everything went into slow motion. Jacks cupped her face and leaned into a kiss.
“Nooo!” She heard the screams, but she smiled at her love before pushing her mouth to his.
This kiss was indeed worth dying for. Kissing him felt like falling again and again, just like when they jumped off that cliff before. His soft lips felt like clouds, lifting her higher and higher. His hand on her waist held her tight to stay on the ground. He was so close, that she could feel his racing heart against hers. She never thought she could love this hard. Shivers with fire ran through her again and again. This was his attack against her body and every time she happily surrendered.
He pulled out from the kiss with a smirk. She couldn’t help but smile too.
Evangeline was finally able to look around. All she saw were horrified looks. Everyone was looking at them.
“Now that I've declared my claim on you, we should go.” He said smugly and led her out from the main hall.
After they arrived at Evangeline’s room, she felt her hands shaking from the excitement. Will he be happy with the gift? What if he finds it stupid? There’s only one way to find out. Get yourself together and hand it over…
“I’m sure I’ll love it, whatever it is. It’s from you.” He said softly. She didn’t realize that her thoughts were so loud.
Evangeline picked up the box and placed it into his hands. “Merry Christmas, Jacks.” She tried to force a smile on her face.
Jacks pulled the ribbon to untie the bow. His long fingers moved quickly. He held his blade with an adored look.
“I was looking for this for a while” He cracked a smile, his eyes glowed unnaturally.
“I stole it. And with Honora’s help, I repaired it.” She pointed to the gems on the hilt.
“One for luck. One for truth. One for mirth. One for youth.” For a second his eyes were wide open with surprise.
“You put THOSE stones on the hilt?” She heard his shocked voice.
“Yes. Just in case… you know. If you’d like to go back in time.” She said insecurely.
“Oh, Little Fox. I have no reason to go back in time anymore.” He stepped closer and looked deep into her eyes. “Right here and now I have everything I could wish for.” He lowered his head to meet her forehead. “Thank you for this beautiful present.” After a quick kiss, he pulled her towards his room.
“Now it is my turn.” He opened the door and stepped aside so Evangeline could see what was waiting for her. Hundreds of candles lit the room. Shadows were dancing on the walls as he closed the door behind them. She saw rose petals flowing across the floor like blood in the dim light.
“Jacks, what’s going on here?” She asked him curiously.
“I’m done hiding. I want to be with you. Not in secret, but for real. In the Hollow, I meant it, when I asked you to let me pretend you are mine and pretend that you want to be mine. Now I’m asking you to stop pretending.” He held her hands in his and lightly squeezed them.
“Jacks… I stopped pretending right after that night.” She smiled lovingly.
“Then allow me…” He let go of her hands and took a step back. He got down on one knee and pulled out a little jewelry box from his pocket.
“Evangeline Fox, will you honor me by becoming the queen of my heart?” He whispered as these words were so intimate, no one else should hear them.
For a moment, she felt like falling again. She felt dizzy, her heart was racing and her palms were sweaty. A proposal? So this was what he was planning to give her.
She managed to tear her eyes from his and as she looked down there was it. A ring! From the Prince of Hearts, asking her to be his queen.
The ring was gold with a big ruby heart-shaped gem in the middle surrounded by smaller diamonds. But the longer she looked at it the more she saw. Drops of gold-flecked blood were bouncing in the ruby. She knew what those were; she saw them before.
“Is that—?” She started, but he interrupted.
“My blood.” He smiled gently. “You’re not the only one who visited Honora. There was one thing I wanted to do since I used the stones to go back in time and save your life.” Jacks caught the surprise in her eyes but continued before she could speak a word.
“I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you. But you are mortal and I’m a fate. I cannot lose you. Ever. So, I asked her to help me solve this problem. If you say yes, with this ring on your finger and a spell we can have our happily ever after forever.”
She gasped for air, but she knew that this was the greatest gift she could ever imagine.
“Yes. YES!” She cried in excitement and felt the magic swirling through her limbs as he pulled the ring on her finger. He stood up and leaned closer to her.
“I’m yours and you are mine until the end of time. Forever.” He whispered the words so low she could barely hear them.
“Forever.” She replied and felt the weight of the magic behind it.
Jacks sealed their promise with a tender kiss, but she could only think of the fireworks in her stomach and the magic running through her body.
He was finally hers. Forever.