Being an only child was lonely, and Elsa wished she had a sister to hang out with, to play with, to tell stories to and, of course, to build snowmen with. Elsa had known about her ice powers since she was three years old, and she enjoyed making mischief for the servants and maids who took residence in the castle of Arendelle.
Creating slippery patches of clear ice was a fun prank she pulled often, and it was even more fun when her parents brought guests over from other towns. There was one man who looked like a funny little chicken, and watching him slide on the ice while trying to seem like he wasn't was always a memory that Elsa pulled up when she was sad.
But there was one maid that Elsa would never pull a prank on. She was the only person who loved her for who she was. When Elsa was frightened by her powers, this maid would sit by her side and comfort her. When she wanted to play, the maid would join in. And Elsa was happy.
But of course it couldn't last forever. Because of Elsa wanting the maid to play with her, the maid had not done her duties, and because of the pressure from the other maids, her father had to fire her.
"I'm sorry, Elsa, but I have to go," the maid explained ruefully to the ten-year-old. "I should have done my duties, and I didn't. In fact, your father is being very nice about it."
"No, Anna! You can't leave!" Elsa shook her head and back up a little bit, scared of the thought of a future without her best friend. The maid just smiled,
"Elsa...it'll be alright. I'm sure the next person..."
"There won't be a next person!" Elsa yelled, swinging an arm at the girl. Some ice followed her wave and became pointy stalagmites that were aimed at the girl. One had been very close to hurting or killing her.
"Calm down," the maid soothed. "It'll be all right." She stepped around the ice and slowly walked toward the upset child.
"No, Anna, it WON'T!" Elsa shouted, and her body shot out small crystals of ice that flew into different places. One struck the maid in the shoulder and she stumbled back in shock. She didn't quite regain her balance, and she landed on one of the spikes from a few seconds earlier. Blood erupted from the young woman's chest and she coughed as blood entered her lungs.
"I always loved you, Elsa. I'm sorry...it had...to end...this...way." Her head tilted back as her lifeless body drooped. Elsa took a step of confusion and sadness back and hit a wall. That was the last straw. She cried.
Her parents forcefully entered the room and saw the body.
"Ah, shit!" Her father knelt in front of the body and inspected it. "What did you do, Elsa?"
"It...it was an accident," she stuttered in shock. "I was angry...that she had to leave."
The king was silent for a minute before he looked at his wife. He pursed his lips, then got up and whispered something in her ear. Elsa's mother nodded and took a step towards the girl.
"Come one, honey, let's go-" she started to say before Elsa interrupted.
"No! I'm staying right here!" The girl shouted. Another burst of energy shot out of her, hitting both of her parents. Her mother landed on the spears of ice that Elsa had created earlier, next to the maid. Her father stumbled forward, bashing his head into a wall, knocking him unconscious.
Elsa stumbled out of the room, panicked and scared. A servant entered the hallway and noticed her ambling.
"Princess Elsa, are you alright?" His eyes held genuine concern. Elsa looked at him with lightless eyes.
"Yeah, I guess I'm fine." Her voice had no emotion at all, and the servant backed up due to the unnatural behavior. "Get out of here." She commanded, and the servant obeyed.
Elsa walked towards the throne room and sat down on the throne for the first time and gave a smile at the feeling that she was meant to be there. She sat in the golden chair for a good few minutes, cherishing every moment, before standing up. There were some things that needed fixed. She stomped her foot, creating a giant snowflake made of ice on the floor. It spread, climbing up the walls and entering the hallways and other rooms.
Some servants and maids tried to enter, but were impaled on the newly-created spikes of ice that held tightly to the sides of the door frame of the throne room. Elsa heard shrieks on the other side of the wall of impaled nobodies.
The castle emptied as either the ice or the stories spread throughout. Elsa felt accomplished.
Within the next year, all of Arendelle had retreated inland, leaving the usually warm coastal city that was now frozen over behind. Within the next two years, Elsa's power had grown more, and the ice spread further, pushing the weaker villagers even more inland. Some stayed in Neo-Arendelle.
Elsa enjoyed the isolation. She had the whole castle to herself, She had created two servants out of ice to go and gather food for meals, and she needed no one else.
She lived like this for ten years. And that's when the little brats came.
It was the tenth anniversary of her parent's death when the curious children of Neo-Arendelle approached her castle.
"Your majesty," one of her ice servants hissed. "A few children approach. What do you want us to do?"
Elsa thought for a second, then said, "Watch them. If they enter the castle, make sure they don't leave alive."
The two servants looked at each other with devilish grins that complimented their demonic appearances before whisking away toward the door. Elsa just stayed sitting on her throne.
The two servants sat above the front door of the castle, hoping the children would enter. They weren't disappointed. The door opened and a boy and a girl entered, both around the age of twelve. They dusted off their boots and looked around.
"So this is where the Ice Queen lives," the boy said in wonder.
"Bernd, I know that Her Majesty said not to let them leave alive, but that doesn't mean that we have to kill them now."
Bernd looked at his companion. "Are you mad, Karin? What if they get to the throne room? Her Majesty would not be pleased, and then we'd be gone. We need to get rid of them before anything like that could happen."
"Yes, I know that, but...oh, they're about to enter THAT room. Shh." Karin dropped to watch as Kay and his friend turned the nob. She giggled in anticipation at the screams she knew the children would make.
They came. The children tumbled out of the room, and the girl puked. "Oh that's terrible! What happened in there?" She cried.
The servants smiled. That had been the room where Elsa had become the ice queen. The three bodies were still in pristine condition because of the cold, and Karin had never been sure when that event had taken place. She just knew that it predated her life, but she was a terrible guesser of the passing of time.
The boy moved, catching Karin's attention. He pulled the girl up and patted her on the back. "It'll be okay, Gerda. Come on."
"Alright, now we strike," Bernd hissed at Karin, his voice full of pleasure.
Bernd was about to attack when the boy turned around again. There was no time to hide behind something, so the two stood still, trying to look like statues in case they were spotted.
Gerda gave Kay a look filled with fright and confusion. "What is it?"
The boy kept looking back and forth for something. "I just thought I heard some voices. They were right about this place; it's pretty creepy." The girl nodded emphatically in agreement. "Anyway, we gotta go."
The two made their way through the hallways and approached the throne room.
"Damn," Bernd whispered. "We're gonna be goners for sure. But damn, that boy has some good hearing."
"Or you're too loud," Karin interjected. Bernd just gave her a look. The two made their way down and watched the preceding in the throne room.
"Your Majesty, we've come to ask you for something," the boy said in a quavering voice. The Queen chuckled.
"Our town of Neo-Arendelle is freezing over, just like Arendelle of old. I think it's time to put a stop to this winter. We appreciate that you have these powers, but aren't you lonely? If you melt your ice, you can have people here. You won't have to be alone, and people will enjoy your company. It is better to be praised than it is to be feared, no?"
"I destroyed Arendelle for a reason. You assume that I don't want to be alone, that I don't want to be feared. Well that is where you are wrong, boy." The queen stood up, surprising Karin.
"It's pretty amazing." The girl seconded. She stood close to the boy, clutching his arm. The two servants silently chuckled above them, about to strike. they were about to move when the boy looked up. The two imps scrambled to get out of sight.
"What is it, Fay?" The girl asked, fear evident in her voice.
"Oh, nothing, I guess." Fay turned back to the castle in front of him. "So, let's move on."
The girl audibly gulped. "O-okay."
They started walking, and the demonic servants came out of hiding, following the two on the floor.
"First, I am not alone. I have company that I keep, and I don't need any of your townspeople. Does my company fear me? It is possible. But do I care?" She gave a loud laugh. "The idea is absurd. I do not need worship from people. That is why I will not melt my ice."
The boy took several steps back, afraid.
"I'm actually surprised you made it this far. My parents and that maid didn't scare you away? Tut, tut, tut. I'll just have to give them a talking to." She looked at the two servants that were perched on the door frame to the throne room. "And my servants didn't do the job either. For shame." She shook her head. "Well, Bernd, Karin. You have one last chance." Elsa sat down on the throne to watch.
The two imps leapt at the children, eager to win back the chance of staying themselves. Kay looked around and saw a sword on the wall. He dragged Gerda over to near the wall and grabbed it. It was frozen to the wall and he tugged at it with all his might.
The two demons were almost about to grab him when it came free. He fell and landed on his back, the sword almost slicing his neck. He scrambled to his feet and held the sword at the two servants. They prowled around the two human children like cats about to attack.
Kay took initiative and swung at the closest one. It struck, but did no damage to the ice creature. Kay shook his hand in pain. It's no use, he thought. I've gotta strike the source.
Almost as if they could read his mind, the servants moved.
The Ice Queen sat behind the two servants, smirking at the boy who was trying to be brave. There seemed to be no opening. Kay felt streaks of sweat run down his face and he wiped them away with his parka.
He gave a heavy breath, unsure of what to do when a flash of motion came from his peripheral vision. He risked a glance to see Gerda charging at the two ice creatures with a mace. She swung, knocking them sideways and into a wall.
"Go!" She commanded, and Kay sprung forward. The two demons sprang at Gerda, and she waved the mace around wildly. Kay forced himself not to look and swung at the woman in the chair.
The sword entered her chest and the queen coughed up blood. Kay removed the blade and Elsa dropped out of the throne. He heard a crack as ice started melting and thawing.
Remembering Gerda, Kay looked to where his friend had been. She was bloody, and Kay wasn't sure if she was alive. He rushed over to her, sliding in the slush and water that the thawed ice was creating.
"Gerda, are you alright?" He shook his friend, willing her to still be alive. She didn't respond. He felt her pulse. Nothing. He bit his lip, hugged his friend, and left the castle. As he left, the walls started crumbling, and he shed a tear for what he had just been through.