Iris Icicle's Arc

Chapter 2 of 4

Her blades hissed across the ice as the crowd's murmur grew louder behind her. She'd made it halfway around the rink when the voice called out again, sharper this time. The challenger wasn't letting it go. The sound cut through the cold air and reached her anyway. "Iris Icicle!" The name rang out clear across the ice. The crowd went silent. She felt it like a weight on her back, that sudden quiet. They'd all turned to watch her now. The challenger stood on the bench near the fire pit where spectators had gathered in a loose circle. Their leather glove pointed straight at her, arm extended. "You're the one they call the Skating Queen. Let's see if you deserve it." Iris stopped. Her chest tightened, but her blades stayed planted on the ice. She didn't flee. The crowd pressed in closer around the rink's edge, waiting to see what she'd do. Her hands clenched inside her own gloves until she felt the pressure of ice crystals forming in her palms from the cold. She couldn't make herself speak. But she could skate. She pushed off hard toward the center of the rink and began to move. Not away this time. Toward them. She picked up speed, her body remembering what it was for, and carved a wide circle that brought her past the bench where the challenger stood. She didn't say yes out loud. But she didn't run either. The crowd's silence broke into scattered cheers. The challenger stepped down from the bench and onto the ice. Iris had answered without words, and now there was no going back.