A/N: My good Elsanna lovers,
This is a story that has been plaguing my mind as of late, and I oly hope it can be written as I see it in my head. I have no beta, so any and all mistakes are mine. I apologize for them all. And for those of you reading my other story, A Fencer's Fear, I am still working on it, I just needed to get this out of my system. Depending on how this progresses it may be changing to an M rating, and also on how you, my readers feel about that.
I hope you enjoy this fun little story, and reviews always help things along! So with that, I leave you The Silver Tongue.
Update: My good friend IceCreamIceQueen prompted this update. She pointed out a few kinks in these first two chapters, so I only removed the first paragraph and fixed a couple of typos in this chapter.
A Knight to Be
Citizens gathered as the winged beast landed in the town proper. Flames sputtered out of its jaws, and roars shook the foundation of the town. Fear erupted in the Arendellian hearts. Dragon landings were uncommon, and dragon landings with damage even less so. Yet, apart from all the other frightened citizens, a curious girl stood. A child of six years watched in amazement at the beast's cries. "Monah? Kolos los hi, Monah? Zu'u los ahraan!" To the normal subjects of Arendelle it sounded like roars of unintelligible sounds, but to this girl, she heard and understood the dragon's words as though they were in common tongue, "Mother? Where are you, Mother? I am scared!"
She stepped forward with a comforting smile on her face, and immediately began speaking with the burgundy scaled dragon, "Are you looking for your mama? Can I help you find her?" The girl stepped closer, hand reaching out to the dragon, but not quite touching it. The dragon craned its head out to smell her hand. With a sneeze, it pressed its snout into her palm.
"P-please. I was flying and got distracted by the fish, and when I looked again, she was go-" A loud roar sounded overhead, "Mother! She's here somewhere! That was her!" The dragon began to bounce around, happiness filling its heart.
The small redheaded girl looked up, in an attempt to spot the mother dragon, as the humans surrounding her had done. However, her teal eyes were the only ones to spot the black shadow that covered a portion of the moon. She quickly turned back to the dragon, with a grin on her face, "Come on! Let's go out there! I bet she's scared too!" To all those watching, they heard a foreign language passing through the small child's lips. Her excited grin revealed a silver tongue gleaming in the moonlight. Wonder, amazement, and even fear cemented in their countenances as they watched the girl pet the dragon, walking out of the town proper.
Her pigtails swayed as she led the young dragon out towards the edge of town, where she thought the mother dragon had landed. With her hand on its head, she could feel the head jerk up and look out into the wilderness. Suddenly the dragon was bounding forward, and she could barely keep up, running behind it, "Mother! Mother! Here I am! I am coming!" The freckled girl grinned, laughing as she chased the dragon outside of town. As soon as the dragon barreled into the much larger black dragon, the girl skidded to a stop. She looked up in wonder at the majestic beast before her.
A regal voice permeated the silent air, "Thank you for returning my son. I apologize for any inconvenience he may have caused you and your town. Rest well, Silver Tongue." She looked at the dragon with a curious tilt of her head. Suddenly, the beast had risen high into the sky, the small dragon upon her back. The child watched in amazement as the dragon flew through the sky.
"Anna! You get your butt back over here right now! Didn't you hear, there was a dragon attack tonight! You could have gotten yourself killed! Don't scare Papa like that again!" She found herself wrapped in the warm embrace of her blacksmith father, Aren Larsen. He was the royal blacksmith, and because of his hard manual labor, his body reflected that. Always warm from the forge, and a strong body, hardened like the steel he melts.
"Sorry, Papa… Um… Can I ask something…?" Anna's voice now turned shy, as she gripped onto her father's apron.
"What is it, sweetie?"
"What's a Silver Tongue?" She could feel his body freeze beneath her as she waited for a reply. What's wrong with a Silver Tongue? Why is Papa scared, she thought to herself.
"Why, my sweet Anna?" His voice was strained, but her ears weren't trained enough to hear it.
So, with a joyous voice she replied, "The Mama Dragon called me that when she was thanking me! She was so worried about her son Papa. He was so scared… I'm glad she wasn't to-" Her feet settled on the ground as she met her father's concerned gaze. He was kneeling before her, cradling her face.
"Sweetheart… Let's talk about this tomorrow. After you meet the Royal Family. They will want to speak with you. For now, let's rest. I'm sure you're exhausted after your little adventure. So, come on my little adventurer, let's get you in bed. I'll read you the tale about the knight if you get ready quick enough." The girl ran without another word, giggles filling the town as the redhead rushed back into the blacksmith's home. She changed into her nightgown, and snuggled up into bed as her father stepped through the door. He smiled at her, and warmth settled in her chest as she snuggled deeper into the bed.
"Story! Story!" She began to chant, riling a chuckle out of the older man. He seated himself on the edge of her bed after pulling a well worn book from the shelf.
With a ruffle of her hair, he opened to the first page, "Once upon a time, there was a loyal knight. He was the best knight, charged with protecting the Princess…" The blacksmith continued on with the story until the light snores could be heard from the rambunctious girl. With a sigh he closed her favorite book. "You know you're special kid. I… I'm scared for you. I can only hope that you will be a precaution, not a necessity." He leaned down and kissed her forehead before leaving the small room, turning at the doorway, "I love you, my Anna bug." With a sigh he trod back to the forge, dread settling in his stomach. Dread at what would have to happen tomorrow. He would lose his little girl to the guard, and nothing in his life had prepared him for that.
Bags hung underneath his eyes, his dread having kept him up all night. With a weight in his chest, he roused his only daughter from sleep. When it seemed she wasn't going to wake, he threw her onto his shoulder, carrying her into the dining room to feast with him. Even as he plopped her onto the bench, she was dead to the world. So, with his last resort, he dug his fingers into her sides, resulting in high pitched squeals from the redheaded child.
"Awake now?" When a grumpy pout settled on her face, he had his answer. "Hey now, look at what you've got to eat this morning!" The excited grin that erupted on her face was interrupted by embarrassed horror when a beastly growl emitted from her stomach. A bellowing laugh erupted from Aren and he served up a towering plate for his daughter. She shoveled the food into her mouth, dropping food all over herself. At least she has to bathe before we leave, her father thought with a solemn smile on his face. She finished all of about half her plate before she belched with a satisfied smile settled on her face.
"Now off to the bath with you! You can't meet the Queen like that!" He rushed her off to the bathing room, grabbing the pot of warm water off the stove. Filling the tub with enough warm water to bathe her in, he lifted his now naked child into the bath. "Alrighty! Scrub-a-dub time! Let's get all that grime off of ya kid!" When his daughter responded with a giggle and a dive under the surface, he rolled his eyes. As she resurfaced, he lathered soap onto his hands, scrubbing it through her hair. After thoroughly cleansing the mess of her hair, he moved to scrub her body. The dirt and forge soot on her would be gone, and he doubted she'd ever have to scrub the soot from her body after today. I'm going to miss you, he thought as he scrubbed her body clean.
When the only scent permeating the air was of the soap, she rinsed and toweled herself off while her Papa retrieved her outfit for the day.
He rummaged through her closet, grabbing out her best breeches and tunic combination. I only wish we could get you a dress. With another sigh, he barely dragged himself back to his daughter to help her dress. When she had slipped on her favorite boots, he lifted her up into his arms to smother her in a bear hug.
Squealing, Anna found herself seated on her Papa's shoulders. She held onto his forehead tightly, ducking through the doorways. He carried her to the castle gates before setting her down.
"Ah, Aren! What brings you here, boy?" One of the guards greets the blacksmith.
"Sir Eriksen! Good to see you! I'm here to see Her Majesty, Queen Idunn. It is quite urgent business." Aren looks down at his daughter solemnly.
"The Queen is a bit indisposed as of right now, Aren. What is your business?" Sir Eriksen recites, as he must when visitors come to see Her Majesty.
"It is something not to be discussed outside the castle gates." Aren shuffles awkwardly, "Please allow me an audience with her. For this is something of security, so to speak."
Sir Eriksen glanced at the other guard before nodding and allowing Aren and his daughter through the gates.
Kai, the head servant of the castle, stopped Aren at the main doors, asking him once more what is purpose was. "Kai, please gather the Royal Family in the meeting room. Tell them I have something for the Princess' security. Tell them no more than that. We will be awaiting their arrival."
Aren guided himself through the castle halls, arriving at the door to the meeting room with his daughter in tow. She had been unusually silent the whole walk, and when he looked back, he understood. The six year old was struck with wonder at the large interior of the castle. Beautiful purple and gold tapestries lined the hall, suits of armor standing at guard. He slung her over his shoulder to break her from her reverie, slinking through the dreaded door.
Moments later, the Royal Family joined the blacksmith and his daughter. "Aren, Son of Lars, what brings you to us today? And why is it so secretive?"
"Perhaps my daughter should tell you. Go on, tell them about last night, Anna." Aren pushed his daughter closer to the Queen and King.
"So this beautiful dragon landed in town and everyone was so scared! But i didn't really get why because the dragon kept asking for his mama, so I don't know why people were so scared of him, because he was scared too! And we heard his mama so I took him out to meet his mama and she thanked me for helping him and called me Silver Tongue. I don't know why, but it sounds so cool! And she was so pretty too! Oh a-"
"Anna." The warning tone in her father's voice silences her, and she looked up sheepishly at the King and Queen, blush painting her face.
"Ah, I see… Anna was it?" The child nodded. "Would you like to join me in the castle's special gardens? Only special people get to go there," the Queen gestured for Anna to follow her, which the girl happily did. The queen grasped her hand, leading her out to the hidden garden of the castle. Anna's amazement is written clearly across his face, and it brings a sweet smile to the Queen's face. "I have a secret to show you! Can I trust you to keep this a secret?" A toothy grin spread across the child's face as she nodded ecstatically. The Queen pretended to ponder for a moment before asking the second most important question, "Would you like to be a knight? Truly and entirely?" Surprise struck the redhead.
"Me? Really? Yes! Yes!" She jumped up excitedly, before reminding herself she was in the queen's company. Sheepishly she bowed her head, "Sorry…"
Queen Idunn laughed, "Oh, not a problem, dear. Sometimes I wish Elsa would act like a child sometimes. Regardless of that, dear. I'm going to show you something that you must keep a secret from absolutely everyone. Understood?" When she received a nod, the Queen's eyes glowed a beautifully sharp emerald green, and her pupils morphed into slits. Suddenly wings appeared from her shoulder blades, and she grew over twice her size, scales glimmering in the sunlight. Purple scales with even deeper purple spikes surrounded the child as she was surrounded by the dragon.
"Whoa." Anna stood, awestruck. "Is that you, Queen Idunn?" Her silver tongue shined in the sunny garden.
"Silver Tongue, I am indeed Her Majesty. You still want to be a knight, yes?"
Anna paused, staring at the beautiful purple dragon's fierce face, "Would I have to… hurt any dragons…?"
"No, my dear. You would be more… protecting them? Much like you did last night. You see, if it weren't for you last night, the baby dragon may have never left the city alive. Humans are scared of dragons, and dragons are scared of humans. You helped that dragon, and the townspeople last night, dear Silver Tongue. So I ask again. Would you be willing to be a Knight of Arendelle?"
The redhead pondered the possibility of being a hero among all, and she made her decision, "I would. With all my heart, I would protect all living creatures." The large scaly beast surrounding the girl shrunk back into the firm of Queen Idunn, and her eyes morphed from glowing emerald green, back to a gentle blue.
"Anna Arensdotter. You will hereby be known as Sir Arensen, and you will be protected from the public, trained privately, and hereby instated to protect Her Royal Highness, Princess Elsa of Arendelle. You will promise to uphold peace and dignity at all times. You will protect and serve the country of Arendelle. And, you will never be allowed to return to your life as Anna Arensdotter. You will introduce yourself as Andrew Arensen, and from henceforth, you will never be allowed to remove your mask in company. You shall never to another soul speak of what you've seen today, do you understand?" The Queen's regal tone had reappeared and stunned young Anna. To be completely honest, she was rather unsure that she understood, but the images of the dragons she'd recently met played forth in her mind, and she found that she only cared of protecting them.
As a child of six, it seemed too much, but perhaps that youthful naivete allowed her to rush into this pact headlong. There was much she didn't know, but Anna knew she loved knights, and adventure. So with an uneasy heart she replied, "I understand."
From that day on, it would be twelve years before Aren Larsen would see his daughter. Twelve years of rigorous training for the young girl. Twelve years of forming a distant bond with Crown Princess Elsa of Arendelle. The women would spend full days at each other's side without a single word spoken between the two. But still, there was something that sparked when the two girls were side-by-side. Something inexplicably electric.