DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DISNEY AND RISE OF THE GUARDIANS.
CONNECTED
CHAPTER I
"You must control this, Elsa!"
"But I can't! I–I don't know how!" cried a young girl with cold tears streaming down her pale face. As her sobs echoed throughout the snow covered room, frost began to build up heavily on the huge windows. "The gloves aren't working, so please don't give me another pair. I'll just freeze it again."
The King of Arendelle tore his eyes away from his daughter. He closed his eyes and remembered the stroll in the royal garden he took in the early hours of the morning last week. An inch of fresh snow had covered the entire garden, causing many of the plants to die immediately. He had ordered a few of the castle gardeners to shovel the snow out and to never utter a word about it to anyone. It would be difficult explaining to an entire kingdom why there was snow in summer. Summer! The time of the year when the sun shone the brightest and when snow was hidden away high in the mountains.
Then his youngest daughter's face flashed in his mind and a strand of white hair, but he quickly pushed that memory to the back of his mind.
He heard his wife, the Queen of Arendelle, shivering beside him and sighed. "This is getting out of hand."
"I'm sorry." Elsa looked down at her shoes, refusing to meet her parents' eyes. She had accidentally froze her entire bedroom and her room was big, considering how she was a princess.
The Queen knelt down and enveloped her daughter in a hug. "Oh, Elsa."
Elsa quickly pushed her mother's arms away from her and backed into a corner. "Please don't touch me!" she shouted.
Hurt flashed through her mother's blue eyes.
"I just don't want to hurt you," Elsa mumbled, clasping her hands together in front of her dress.
The King and Queen exchanged a sad look and never had they felt more helpless than they did at that moment.
"What"–Elsa took a shaky breath–"are you going to do with me...?"
Silence answered her and more tears clouded Elsa's vision. Her shoulders trembled violently, but it wasn't from the cold.
"Mother? Father...?"
"You are expected to become Arendelle's future queen and soon you will have responsibilities to fulfill," her father said, speaking his thoughts aloud. "You cannot hide from Anna forever nor can you hide in this bedroom forever."
At the mention of her little sister's name, Elsa winced. "Please don't talk about Anna," she mumbled and shut her eyes. What happened when they were younger felt like it happened yesterday. She remembered each detail of the horrid event with vivid colors.
It was all her fault. It was her fault that she no longer played with Anna. It was her fault that Anna had a strand of white hair which stood out clearly from her lovely brown hair. It was her fault that Anna fell. It was completely and utterly all her fault and she would never forget that.
"How about the trolls? Surely they might know what to do," the Queen suggested.
"The trolls?" the King repeated. "Oh, yes! The trolls! What a splendid idea. Shall we get going before Anna wakes up?"
Elsa stared at her hands and she brushed off the small mountain of snow she just created. "Yes, let's leave right now."
The King turned away and once he was out the door, he blew on his hands to warm it up, but the Queen lingered. Seeing as how her daughter was only in a thin nightgown, she raised an eyebrow. "Would you like to change into something warmer, darling?"
"Change into something warmer?" Elsa repeated, saying the words like it was a foreign language. "Why? I don't get cold, remember?"
As her parents struggled through the heavy snow on the mountains, Elsa ran through it like it was nothing. The King and Queen shivered even when they were decked in warm layers. Elsa, on the other hand, felt better than she did in her bedroom. The snow comforted her and ignited a lively feeling in her heart.
The King and Queen smiled at Elsa's joy in the snow. It had been far too long since they last saw her genuinely smile.
When the three of them finally reached the mountain trolls' home, grim and anxious looks replaced their smiles. Elsa's future right now relied on the trolls. Was it possible to control her curse? Will there be a day when she can finally hug her sister? Will she be able to look out her bedroom window to her kingdom and have no fear of the future?
The three of them stood there, waiting for the trolls to rise and come back. As they stood there, the Queen of Arendelle wanted nothing more than to hug her daughter. Unfortunately, Elsa kept a careful distance away from her parents. After all, she might turn her parents into ice with just one touch. With that thought, she clasped her hands together tightly behind her.
Slowly, the trolls began to awake from their slumber and more rolled in, surrounding the family at every angle. The trolls parted like the red sea for King Pabbie to pass through. The King of the Trolls bowed and the other trolls mimicked his action.
"Your Majesties, what brings you back here?" he asked.
The King of Arendelle knelt down to make eye contact with Pabbie. "We are looking for someone–anyone–to teach our daughter to control her curse. It is getting too dangerous and so we come to ask for your help."
"Please," the Queen pleaded. She looked as if she was on the verge of tears. "Please help our daughter. We will give you as much gold as you want."
Elsa bit her lip and shuffled her feet nervously. She hated how she was causing her parents so much grief. If only she was normal, none of this would be happening!
Pabbie walked closer to Elsa. "It has been a year since the incident with young Anna, has it not?" he mused. "My dear child, you have let fear overcome you. Your fear is preventing you from controlling your power."
"I–I tried not to let it. I promise!" Elsa said, widening her icy, blue eyes.
"You are merely a child. Fear is a difficult thing to fight," Pabbie said.
The Queen stepped forward and cleared her throat. "But is there any other way to control this curse?" the Queen asked. Desperation and worry for her daughter were apparent in her eyes.
Pabbie scrunched his thick eyebrows together and thought for a moment. "I have heard of a young man with similar powers to young Elsa..."
"Who?" the King demanded. "Where?" Surprise was evident in his voice.
Elsa's eyes shot up and her heart was pounding in her chest. A person like her in the world? It seemed too good to be true. Holding her breath, she waited for Pabbie to continue speaking. She didn't want to miss a single word that was spoken.
"I don't know of his name, but he resides in the highest mountain of Arendelle, where the snow is thickest. There is a good chance that he may be able to help your daughter," Pabbie said.
"The North Mountain," Elsa breathed, covering her mouth with her hands. Her heart started pounding so loud that she wouldn't surprised if the trolls heard it.
The Queen reached for her husband's rough hands and smiled. There may be hope after all. "Thank you. A bag of gold will be sent here by tomorrow morning."
"No." Pabbie raised a hand. "Keep your gold. There is no need to offer anything to me. However, here is something you should keep in mind when you reach the mountain, Elsa."
"Yes?"
"When you get to the mountain top, you must believe."
"Believe?" Elsa asked in confusion.
"Yes, child. Believe."
"Oh. Um, thank you, Mr. Pabbie. I'll remember that." She offered him a small smile and he returned it, his eyes softening as he looked at the troubled young princess. Eager to meet a person who was just like her, she turned on her heel and raced off into the snow. She wanted to get to the mountain as fast as possible.
"Ah, your Majesties?" Pabbie called out.
The King raised a questioning eyebrow, letting his wife do the talking.
"Yes, Pabbie?" the Queen asked.
"When you reach the North Mountain, you must leave Elsa there alone. He will not show if there are any adults. I suggest leaving Elsa at the bottom of the mountain and allow her to climb up herself," Pabbie advised.
They were about to protest at that, but once they realized that Elsa had already gone far ahead and the snow was going to make them lose track of her, they decided against it. Instead, they thanked Pabbie again and shouted for Elsa to slow down.
"Hurry up!" Elsa yelled back. The strong wind whipped her platinum blonde hair everywhere, but she didn't care because for the first time in forever, she felt something new bursting inside of her: hope.
Author's Note: Hey! After watching Disney's Frozen, this was a must write. Jack Frost x Elsa would look so perfect together and a movie with them together would make life complete. Anyway, I hope you all liked the first chapter of this story and please review! Also, Merry Christmas!
-Consolidate