Disclaimer for the ENTIRE STORY:
Disney owns Frozen and other characters and places to be mentioned.

Prompt:
Horror

Author's Note:
This is my entry for the month of October 2018 in the Elsanna discord's monthly fluff contest!

A Delicious Meal
by Reithel

It started as a normal day; the sun had risen at the time it was expected to and everyone had prepared themselves for the busy day ahead. The moment the clock tower in the middle of the town struck noon, there was a momentary lull. A ghostly silence that shook the insides of every single person that heard it.

Then there was a loud moan.

It didn't come from a person. It was from one of them. The first of their kind.

In her eighteen years of existence, Princess Anna never thought that such things could possibly be real. These type of things only happened in books and tales. The dead shouldn't be able to move because they were physically rotting. Their bones should have been brittle!

But as she stared at the vast wasteland before her, denial for much longer was out of the question. The subject of legends and folklore, the stories told to keep children well-behaved, they were out there digging their foul, bloody mouths and broken hands inside her people's flesh.

A Royal Guard was the most recent victim. It had only been three days since he became food to those insatiable beasts. He was a loyal young man that stood against three moving corpses to protect Anna after having her dress caught on a loose nail just outside the castle. She had been berated by Kai, one of their most trusted servants, for being careless and going out there to help despite knowing what was lurking around.

"Ah."

The princess pressed a gloved hand against the window. She watched, her teal eyes blank, at the remains of their once prosperous kingdom. Some of the houses from the distance had been burned during the beginnings of this ordeal and it was a snowstorm that stopped it from spreading.

At the time, the King ordered most of the knights to spread out and bring survivors inside the safety of the castle. It was also only then that they found out how these things kept growing in numbers. One of the people had been injured and later turned into a human-craving beast. They had to kill... it... on the spot. Since then, every newcomer had been thoroughly checked for any injuries and most of whom were bitten or injured had been thrown inside the dungeon to isolate them while the Royal Physician looked for a cure.

Most of the townspeople who had families that were thrown protested, but King Agnarr stood firm in his decisions. "We couldn't risk more people turning into one of them," he reasoned. So they wept because they knew he was right. He was the King and his words were absolute, but more than that, he was a ruler that needed to do what was best for his people. They needed to accept it if they wanted to survive.

King Agnarr was committed to his duty and his wife to him. In the face of this cruel disaster, he took it upon himself to venture with the knights outside the gates and look for more people to aid.

"I am the Queen of this kingdom, Agnarr," Queen Iduna said one night. "They are my people as much as they are yours. I couldn't possibly stay inside the castle knowing you are out there where it is dangerous. I am going with you."

"My love, it is too risky. If something happens to me, Arendelle needs a ruler. And the girls—"

"This is the safest place. They will be alright."

"But Elsa! She's afraid. If she loses control and—"

"Anna will be here. You and I know that that snowstorm was not a coincidence. You've seen what Elsa can do. She may be afraid, but the blood of a royalty runs deep within her veins. She can protect herself, Anna, and our people in their times of need."

"Do you think she is ready?"

"You weren't when you stepped up and I wasn't when I married you. I believe in our daughters, Agnarr. They are fragile, but together they are strong."

That was the last of them that Princess Anna had heard. It was a conversation they had in their quarters and Anna was running around the castle then. The next morning was when she understood what her mother meant about the snowstorm not being a coincidence. It was difficult to calm Elsa down when they saw their parents' corpses walking outside the castle gates.

No coronation was held. It wasn't a time of celebration. Still, Elsa had taken it upon herself to come up with plans on how to deal with these creatures. She had built a wall around Arendelle with her ice to keep outside threats from entering. Of course, that meant that they were trapped inside the town as well, but it didn't look like they were going to leave anytime soon anyway.

Time passed and the food started to become an issue. Goods from other kingdoms stopped coming after two weeks of the disaster. Soon, the rations would run out. The riches of the crown was useless if there was nothing to spend it on. It was only a matter of days.

Anna's eyes dimmed.

"Princess Anna!" A young man, not a year older than her, came running towards the princess.

"Kristoff." She smiled once the man had stopped in front of her and she noticed the sweat dotting the sides of his head. "Why are you in a rush?"

Kristoff. He was one of the people saved during that mission where her father and mother turned. He had blamed himself for quite some time for his Majesties' deaths even though he was only one of the twenty people that had been brought to the castle at the same time. The princesses had been mourning for their loss that they didn't have the heart nor energy to deal with his sorrows.

Eventually, they had grown accustomed to each other and Kristoff had been joining rounds outside the castle to search for more survivors or to simply kill as many of the living dead as he could with the other young folks wishing to achieve peace once again.

"I found a sword from one of my rounds." He pulled out the sword. It had a white handle with intricate carvings, and the blade—steel from what Anna could tell—shone like a burning flame. Anna was surprised he could lift it with one hand. "What should I do with it?"

There was a blush on his cheeks and Anna couldn't help the flicker behind her eyes. He was bad at hiding his feelings due to how awkward he was and Anna knew for quite some time that he was attracted to her. Really, she was flattered.

"I think Captain Marshall is in the dungeons. He knows about swords more than I do." The guy fidgeted at her suggestion. Some of the guards and townspeople that were injured were down there, after all. Who knew if they already turned? "Are you afraid?"

"I—" Kristoff cleared his throat. "I know some of them and I have to admit I don't know how I'll act if some of them turned."

Anna smiled. "Here, I'll accompany you."

"No, wait. I... I can go by myself."

"Do you think I'm not capable of handling myself?"

"Pardon me, Your Highness. It's just..."

She tilted her head. "Just what?"

"The dungeon isn't fit for a princess." Kristoff's cheeks were as red as the blood that Anna once feared.

Anna rolled her eyes playfully and went her way. "I've passed through all kinds of hidden passages and rooms in this castle, Kristoff. A dungeon isn't going to kill me."

His heavy steps stomped through the ground and his armors clanked loudly against each other with each forceful strides. Anna peeked through the window as she passed by one. The sun was shining brighter than it had been the last few days as if the heavens were smiling upon her. It might be a wonderful day.

Once they reached the door that led to the dungeons, Kristoff could barely conceal his unease. Anna bit her lip before reaching for the handle. A foul smell spread through the air. Frost covered about most of the room; it was colder than any other place in the castle. Had it been the first time, chills would've crept through Anna's spine.

"It's freezing." Kristoff shivered. "There's no fire in here?"

Anna ignored the question and stepped in, walking confidently in the middle of the room. She heard the loud gulp from the young man and later on his distinct steps and noisy armor.

"Where is everyone?" he asked.

She smirked.

"Princess Anna, look out!"

He was surprisingly fast for someone of his size. He managed to push her aside before she tripped on a pair of legs that laid casually on the frost-covered ground. The light was dimmed, but still, Anna could tell he was as pale as the hilt of the sword he was holding.

"T-That is..." He gestured to the lifeless body laying on the floor. It was wearing a royal guard armor. "Captain Marshall! Oh God, what is— P-Princess Anna—"

Anna pushed her hand on the ground and used it to force herself to stand. Her hair had fallen out of place and covered her eyes. "Hey, Kristoff?"

"Y-Yes?"

"How far are you willing to fight?" Her voice was low, soft, and eerily quiet. "In this kind of world, do you think peace is still achievable?"

"Princess?" He slowly stood to his height and nervously rubbed the back of his neck. "I-Is something wrong?"

Anna finally lifted her head. She showed no emotion, but her eyes were bright and focused. There was also a looming darkness inside them.

Kristoff gulped. "I will do anything to keep you safe."

That was all the answer she needed. She stepped towards him and pressed an ear against his chest. His heartbeat was fast. He was so warm and alive and perfect. Just what she needed. Her hand, having done the same thing over and over again for the past few days, pushed a brick on the wall on her left. A loud clunk made the young man tense and snap out of his daze.

He stepped back with a flushed face and raised an arm to shield Anna from what might be the cause of the noise. He noticed a room that wasn't there before and took a wary step. Behind him, a malicious grin twitched on Anna's lips.

"What is this room?"

Anna pressed the brick next to the one she pushed earlier and immediately, a lock turned followed by the rising of a metal fence from the ground. It separated her and Kristoff for good. Nonetheless, there were gaps between each post which allowed her to see him.

Kristoff turned wide-eyes. "Wha—?!"

His blood squirted all around and Anna was covered from head to shoulders in an instant. Soon, even her shoes were swimming in his red pool. It was delightful hearing his gurgled cries for help. Even his flesh ripping with every bite was music to her ears. The most wonderful thing about this, though, was when a pair of hazy eyes met hers while those bloody hands held one of his organs.

"Enjoy your meal, Elsa. I'll get you another one soon."