Hello, this is my first Frozen fanfic. Hope you all enjoy!
Say You Will
Chapter 1: The List
Five months after the Great Thaw, and Arendelle couldn't have been better. With the gates now open, and the people free to come and go as they please, there was a certain glow of happiness that the kingdom had been lacking for far too long.
Of course, it was all thanks to the Snow Queen herself. Since discovering that love was the key to controlling her powers, Elsa had been doing everything she could to make up for the accidental winter she set off. She met frequently with the council and discussed plans on reinventing the kingdom itself as well as adding onto it. Having been reclusive for so long, it took a little while for Elsa to come out of her shell and get used to interacting with people. But with her sister Anna's help, she eventually managed to find her place in her kingdom.
The people now adored Elsa. Not only was she a strong and fair queen, but she appealed in a way one doesn't usually expect from a ruler. She strongly emphasized that although she was of royalty, and was blessed with special powers, she was still a human being just like the rest of them. There were days when Elsa would take a break from her frequent meetings, and go out and pay the townspeople a personal visit. Princess Anna would often accompany her, and the two would have hours of fun playing with the children and taking part in the annual festivities.
In addition to the time she spent with her people, Elsa also made sure she had plenty to spend with Anna. Thirteen years had definitely taken a toll on the both of them, so their relationship needed a lot of love to repair the damage done. Every day, the princess and the Queen would do various activities together such as riding their bikes, taking walks down by the pier, eating chocolate sundaes, and visiting Kristoff and Sven. Before too long, the two had reclaimed what had been held from them for so long. There were times when Anna could cry tears of joy. She never truly believed that one day she would be doing something as simple as taking a walk down by the pier with her sister.
"Oh look at that! They just put out a batch of fresh doughnuts!" Anna cried, pointing to a nearby shop where the baker had just placed the pastries. "Can we get some?" The two sisters had decided to take a walk through the town together that day.
Elsa smiled. "I suppose so," she said. The two then went inside the store and purchased a small box of doughnuts, and went to eat them together by the pier. As the two sat on the edge of the dock watching the boats sail in and out of the harbor, the two feasted on the delicious treats they had just bought.
"I love the ones filled with jelly," Anna said, popping another doughnut into her mouth.
"Yes, but you always make a mess with them," Elsa giggled. "Remember that time you ate so many that your hands and face were covered in it. Then you cleaned yourself off on the brand new dress that mama bought you?"
"Oh yeah. She's wasn't too happy about that," Anna laughed. "Especially since I had literally just put it on."
"You were always into mischief."
"So were you if you recall."
"Hey, if I was ever in trouble, it was because you got me into it, OK?" Elsa said holding her hands up in defense.
"Oh yeah, well what about that time you suggested we raid the kitchen for chocolates one evening, knowing full well that the cooks needed them to make a chocolate cake the next day."
Elsa blushed, she had actually forgotten about that one. "Yeah, and we were so sick the next day," she added. "I don't even remember how many chocolates I ate that night."
"Honestly, I didn't even bother counting," Anna said. I was too busy stuffing my face."
Elsa smiled, and wrapped her arm around her sister. "Good times," she said.
The two sat still together for a moment enjoying each other's company. The sun had just begun to set on the horizon, and the shops around them were starting to close. It would be time for bed before too long. Anna looked at Elsa as she gazed off into the sunset. Her sapphire blue eyes were sparkling in the glare.
"Something on your mind?" Anna asked.
"It's nothing," Elsa replied.
"Hey now, remember we promised we would tell each other everything from now on."
Elsa smiled. "Of course. It's just that I had a meeting with the council earlier today, and the topic of discussion was rather unpleasant."
"What was it about?" Anna asked.
"They want me to marry a suitor as soon as possible," Elsa sighed.
Anna frowned. She could see how distressing this was to her sister. Elsa had just recently reclaimed the throne, and was still getting used to running a kingdom. She had enough on her plate as it was without the council pestering her about marriage.
"So what did you tell them?"
"I told them that I wasn't currently seeking a relationship at this time. But that I would consider it in the future."
"And how did they take that?"
"Not well. They began lecturing me about how Arendelle has always been ruled by a king and a queen. Having just one ruler isn't sufficient, and besides, I need an heir who will take the throne when I'm gone."
"But you're still so young, you've got plenty of time to find the king of your dreams."
"I know, but they do have a point. Arendelle always did function well with two rulers. Look at how mama and papa ran things."
"But you're not them, Elsa. You are you. You can't compare yourself to previous rulers."
Elsa smiled. "I know. Just a force of habit I guess."
"So…let's say you were currently looking for a man to marry. Do you have any idea of where to start looking?"
"Oh they've already planned that one out," Elsa said. She pulled a piece of paper out of her dress and unfolded it for Anna to see.
"This is a list of princes from country to country. As you can see, there's a lot of them."
"Wow! I never even knew there were so many princes in the world," Anna said, looking over the list. "This is like trying to pick your favorite candy in the candy store."
Elsa laughed. "That's one way to look at it."
"But I've decided that even though the council has a valid point, I'm going to hold off on marriage for a little while longer. There's just so much more I need to learn about being queen before I take on something as sacred as marriage" she continued.
Anna smiled and hugged her sister. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. You've got all the time in the world for it. Besides, like you would have any problems finding a suitor. You're the most beautiful woman in the world."
Elsa blushed. "I don't know about that, Anna."
"Believe me, you're the definition of beauty."
"Thank you, Anna. What do you say we head on back to the castle? It'll be dark soon."
"That sounds good."
The two sisters walked back to the castle and enjoyed a nice meal together before retiring for the evening. As she lay on her bed, Elsa couldn't help but think about the meeting she had earlier that day. "It just isn't natural for Arendelle to have just one ruler," one of the councilman had said. Elsa got out of bed and walked over to her desk where the list of suitors lay. She held it in her hand, and carefully looked it over. She then pulled a blank sheet of paper out from the desk, grabbed a quill with some ink, and began to write a letter to the first name on the list.
Sorry it's a little short. The next chapter will be longer I promise. This is my first "Frozen" fanfic as well so I hope it's getting off to a good start. Hope you are enjoying so far!
