Once upon a time in the hidden mountains of Norway, a young princess lived in a shining castle, the largest in the all the land. Her mother and father ruled over a large village down the mountains near a fjord, but were generous and kind-hearted. They had raised their daughter to be the same, they had taught her that appearances meant nothing, and that true love was found within.
"Papa?" Young Princess Elsa ran up to her father.
"Yes snowflake?" King Agnarr stood before his only child and held her hands as she held them out to him.
"When can I wear my jacket?!" Elsa began jumping up and down as her father chuckled to himself.
"A Princess who wants to be like a Prince?" He shook his head in amusement and smiled at her, handing her a single red rose, her favorite flower.
"You remembered Papa!" Elsa cheered.
"Of course darling!" Agnarr smiled back,
"And I don't want to be like a Prince Papa, I want to be like you!" Elsa's seventeenth birthday was that night.
"You've wanted to be like me ever since you were a little girl snowflake." Agnarr wrapped his arms around his daughter.
"If I am to follow in your footsteps, I must be like you." Elsa teased her father. The two had been partners forever it seemed.
"Princess Elsa?" The two heard a knock on the door, when they turned, Elsa's smile grew. All of the castle servants stood in the doorway helping to hold Elsa's newly woven jacket. It was blue and had a golden pattern of snowflakes and winter sewn along the bottom back half.
Mars the Maitre D', Olaf the Majordomo, Pabbie and Bulda the chefs, Oaken the groundskeeper, Kai the groom of the chamber, and Gerda the second groom of the chamber, all helped to make the jacket. For they had helped raise their beloved Elsa for seventeen years.
The Princess ran to them and gently took the jacket. She immediately put it on over her under-dress.
"Oh thank you so much everyone! This is the best birthday gift I could ever have." Queen Iduna entered and smiled in the doorway as her husband and servants hugged Elsa.
"We also made you this." Mars and Olaf held up a pair of black trousers with the same gold patterns embroidered on them. Elsa gasped and held them to her as she kissed Mars and Olaf on the cheek.
"Now you can be just like your father." Bulda smiled to the Princess.
"I couldn't be happier, I couldn't have wished for a better family." Elsa hugged each and every servant. They had always treated her as their own, they were their little girl.
Agnarr walked to his wife and kissed her, then the two turned back to Elsa as they watched her talk with her servants.
"Where do seventeen years go?" Iduna sighed.
"She grows more and more, I couldn't be more proud of her." Agnarr watched as his daughter tried on her jacket and smiled back at him.
"She really is like you." Iduna kissed her husband on the cheek and walked out. There was more preparation for the night's celebration. Agnarr watched his daughter and sighed happily.
"Please let her be this happy, always." He said to himself before walking out.
As dusk fell on the castle, many of the guests had begun to make their way to the castle. Mars and Olaf were busy welcoming them, while Pabbie and Bulda were busy cooking, and Oaken had made sure the grounds were well prepared and sculpted. Agnarr and Iduna were busy guiding the guests into the ballroom.
"Is Elsa ready yet?" Iduna looked up to her husband as the bright chandeliers shined down on the golden ballroom.
"Kai and Gerda are helping her to be, let me go check." Agnarr kissed his wife and made his way up the winding staircase towards the West Wing.
Elsa was standing anxiously in front of her mirror as Kai and Gerda helped put final touches on her outfit for the evening. The blue coat's gold embroidery shined as Elsa stared at her reflection. A jabot covered the centerpiece of her shirt, while her black trousers fit perfectly, as well as the matching black boots that her father had given her years ago.
"You look... amazing snowflake." Elsa turned to see her father as Kai and Gerda finished touching her up.
"Thank you Papa." Elsa smiled and turned to her father.
"If any girl could pull off looking like a Prince it's you." Agnarr walked towards his daughter.
"Papa, I told you!" Elsa laughed.
"I know, I know. But I didn't come up here to tease you, I have one last present for you." Agnarr held out a small black velvet box to Elsa. She slowly took it and opened it to find a small snowflake pin with a bright blue diamond in the middle. She gasped and look up at her father.
"Now, no matter where I am, I'll always be with you." He gently removed it from the box and helped pin it in the center of her jabot. Elsa simply wrapped her arms around her father and gently laid her head against his chest under his chin.
"I love you Papa." She whispered as he embraced her.
"And I love you snowflake."
"There's just one last thing." Elsa slowly moved her braid over her shoulder. Agnarr smiled wide and held his arm out to the Princess. Then the two made their way down the staircase.
Snow gently fell from the stars as Princess Elsa was announced to her guests. Cheers and applause filled the room as Elsa made her way into the ballroom. She was a little intimidated to say the least. She had had many birthday dinners before, but one never as large nor as gracious as this one.
As the moon made its way across the sky, dinner was served, Elsa had danced with many handsome young men, and her gifts had been presented to her. But nothing meant as much as her blue jacket. It represented her love for her father, her mother, and her servants. She never wanted them to be known as her servants, but more as her family. And as the guests made their way out of the castle, it seemed as though all was right in Elsa's life. But her happiness would not last.
Weeks after Elsa's birthday, Agnarr and Iduna received an urgent letter from a fellow kingdom in need of supply. The King and Queen left Elsa and the staff to watch over the castle while they sailed away. Weeks past until Agnarr and Iduna returned, but when they did, a terrible sickness had overcome them.
The kingdom in need of supply had been stricken with a plague, and when the two returned home, they were bedridden. Elsa and the staff did the best they could to take care of the King and Queen, but it only got worse. After a few months, the King and Queen had yet to recover. Then one night, Elsa was summoned to their bedroom along with the staff. She slowly cracked their door open to find them both lying still with their hands locked.
"Elsa?" Agnarr gathered as much voice as he could. Olaf, Mars, and Pabbie all nudged Elsa and nodded at her to go towards her mother and father. The Princess gently knelt down in front of the bed.
"Yes Papa?" A teary eyed Elsa smiled as much as she could at her father.
"Our time...our time is ending Elsa." Agnarr tried to smile as his daughter. Elsa felt tears slowly stream down her face.
"No no no, shh, everything's going to be alright Papa, you'll see." She turned to her mother as she took her father's hand/
"Elsa...don't be afraid." Iduna reached over as she coughed and took hold of Elsa's hand with her husband. Elsa slowly began to sob, she cupped her hand to her mouth and closed her eyes, but never lost her grip on her parents grasp.
"How? How can I... how can I not be afraid of losing the ones I love most?" Elsa sobbed and choked out her words.
"This...this is how." Iduna quietly pointed to Elsa's snowflake diamond. She had worn it day and night every day with every outfit. She looked down at it and tried to smile the most she could.
"We are... always... with you Elsa. No matter what happens, we'll be here with you snowflake." Agnarr held his daughter's hand tighter. Iduna leaned over more to hold on to her daughter's hand. Elsa leaned in and wrapped her arms the best she could around the both of them.
"Don't leave me." She whispered as the staff began to sob with her. They knew their time was coming, but they had tried to do everything they could to reassure Elsa that she had nothing to fear.
"Never snowflake." Agnarr whispered as he wrapped an arm over Elsa's back and Iduna kissed her cheek.
This was it, and she could feel it. Elsa had tried to be brave with every bit of fear that had ever come her way. Whether it was from her various books, or from her own fear of living up to her title. But no fear had ever come close to this one.
"Be brave Elsa." Iduna gently nudged her daughter as she stood back up. The entire staff walked over to Elsa to comfort her.
"I'll try Mama." Elsa held her parents hands even tighter.
"We'll always...be... right...here." Agnarr pinned his finger against Elsa's diamond as she laid with her parents. All of Elsa's memories came back to her in this one moment, her sadness and anger increased, while her happiness had completely disappeared. For the first time in her life, Elsa braced for the worst.
As the sun rose the next morning, Agnarr and Iduna both had passed away overnight. A few weeks later, the Princess and her staff gave the King and Queen a final resting place just outside of the castle grounds. Many villagers mourned the King and Queen's death. But none more than Elsa.
She was lost without them. For the first time in her life, she was empty, numb even. Weeks went by, then months. Elsa had isolated herself in the castle while her staff worked tirelessly to keep up the castle grounds. By the time her eighteenth birthday came, she was in a deep depression and longing sadness. Her anger had grown, she would often take it out on her staff or any villagers that had come to the castle. In a strange way, she blamed herself. Why wasn't she with them? She would often think.
She had become more and more distant from her staff. Her anger had reached a breaking point. She had become cruel and cold towards everyone, including herself. She had lost all love in her heart. The staff knew that her anger only came from the tragedy that had fallen upon them months earlier. And they didn't know how to make her feel any better. But little did any of them know, that on a cold, winter night in December, their lives would change forever.
As the moon rose, villagers once again made their way into the castle. Elsa was turning eighteen. The storm outside had become more and more fierce, the wind was howling, but nevertheless, the villagers came. The snow fell more and more as Elsa sat at her window, pinning her diamond to her jabot. She had worn the same outfit from a year earlier. The blue and gold jacket, the black and gold trousers, her snowflake diamond pin, all of it. And it was all for her mother and father. She needed some way of remembering them besides their portraits.
As dinner began, Elsa sat silent at the head of the table. As gifts were given, Elsa's mind wandered to the memory of the worst night of her life. No gift, no food, and certainly no guests could help her out of this anger and sadness. And as the dancing began, Elsa sat on her father's golden chair completely silent, and seething with nightmarish memories. Olaf, Mars, Kai, Gerda, Bulda, Pabbie, and Oaken all watched in silence and worry for their Princess.
Her father's words filled her head as well as her mother's. They echoed to her over and over again.
"Stop it." She whispered to herself as she pressed her palms over her face.
"Enough." Her tone was a little louder as the dancing continued. More images of her father and mother swept through her mind. "Don't be afraid." "We will always be here."
"Enough!" Elsa stood and shouted. The music suddenly stopped, the dancing suddenly stopped, and the staff suddenly looked up at her.
"I...want... everyone... out!" Elsa pointed to the door. Just as she lifted her finger, the doors to the ballroom suddenly slammed open. Elsa turned around startled by the gust of wind and snow. Olaf tried to step forward but Mars and Bulda lifted their hands out to stop him. Elsa and everyone in the room watched in fear as a black robed figure slowly walked in. Elsa squinted her eyes through the wind to try and make out the figure.
"Who are you?! Why are you here?!" Elsa marched towards the figure.
It was an old beggar woman, seeking shelter from the bitter storm. In her hand, a single red rose. Elsa immediately caught sight of the rose and stopped in her tracks.
"Please, the storm...it's freezing... I... I need... somewhere to stay." The woman held the rose up. Elsa was repulsed at the sight of the woman. She immediately took hold of the rose.
"And you expect me, to let someone as revolting as you into my home?! Get out!" Elsa's voice echoed throughout the castle as everyone stood silent behind her.
"Please... take this rose... just for one night." The woman pointed to the rose. Elsa scoffed and began to turn her back.
"You've lost someone..." The woman motioned to Elsa. Immediately, the Princess turned and slowly began walking back towards the beggar.
"I know...who you... really are... Princess." Elsa slowly knelt down in front of the beggar and felt a tear run down her face as she headed the woman's words and stared down at the rose.
"This...is not... who you... are." Elsa began to cry as the woman put her hand on Elsa's shoulder. Elsa held the rose close to her and closed her eyes. When she opened them, it was as if she had snapped.
"You know nothing about me nor my family! You cannot judge me, only I can! Now..for the last time, GET OUT!"
Elsa turned her back. Moments after, every candle in the castle blew out. All of the guests screamed while the staff stayed near each other. Elsa looked around in fear, a glowing light began to rise behind her, and when she turned, she discovered that the old woman's ugliness had melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress. Elsa fell to her knees and tried to apologize, but it was too late, for the enchantress had seen that she had lost all love and compassion in her heart.
And as punishment, the enchantress transformed her into a fearsome Beast, and placed a powerful spell over the castle and every servant, as they had stood by while Elsa's pain had grown and had done nothing to truly help her. Ashamed of her monstrous form, the Beast concealed herself inside the castle, the enchantress had left her with two objects. One was a magic mirror, that would be the only window to the outside world for the Beast. As days bled into years, the Princess and her servants were forgotten by the world, as the enchantress had removed all memory of them from the villagers.
But the rose she had offered was truly an enchanted rose. If the Beast could learn to once again love another, and earn their love in return by the time that last petal fell, the spell would be broken. If not, she would be doomed to remain a Beast for all time. As the years past, she fell into despair and lost all hope, for who could ever learn to love a Beast?