Queen Anna looked out across her tourney field. It was a glorious day in summer, the sun was out but a cooling breeze swept across from the mountains. All of the knights of the Company of Arendelle were out today and in fine humor, for this was the tenth anniversary of their founding, the commemoration of both Anna's ascension to the throne and her declaration that not only would her forces not be used in aggression against their neighbors, but that her knights would swear only to act as righteous protectors. She had been just fifteen when her parents had died in a shipwreck, and so she had been in her regency, but still the weight of her word was law, and she had been obeyed.
At first no one believed that Arendelle, which at always been a great military power, would fully embrace peace. Certainly no one believed that the Crown would sacrifice it's own power and riches to bring prosperity to the whole land – even to places not under Arendelle's control. But when the knights began to do good across the land, helping even with menial work such as the harvest or protecting a village from wolves, minds had been changed. When the Company, and by extension Anna, removed the hawkish voices from their midst, those knights who would not embrace peace, and sent them far away with admonitions never to return, the people had begin to believe.
And when the Company accepted the sons and daughters of former enemies into their ranks as equals, including Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, the son of an ancient enemy of Arendelle's, the world, or at least this part of the world had been convinced. More and more like-minded warriors had come to join them. Now the Company was several hundred strong, the most formidable force in the region. So many sat around the table of the Company of the Knights of Arendelle that the table itself had become a mere symbol, and the meetings were now held in the great courtyard of the palace. And that was even with a full half of their forces out roaming the land keeping the peace.
Their tourneys were always a plaisance, for pleasure not war, but despite the use of rebated weapons and the prohibition on killing, it was as hard fought as any war had been. The right to serve as Queen's Champion was prized above all honors in the Company, and all the knights strove to prove themselves worthy.
The smack of sword on shield or helm resounded across the field. The crowd roared as the last of the grand melees began. Anna watched carefully, and was not surprised at what she saw. One knight, the newest addition to the Company, who amongst the happy family of the Company of Arendelle acted as the red-haired stepchild, or very light blond-haired stepchild … or blond sour-faced maiden aunt … or a really cold reclusive sister … Anna couldn't decide which, mowed through the field with single minded determination and preternatural agility and prowess. It was not entirely surprising that Sir Elsa was easily besting the rest of Arendelle's finest, her work ethic was unparalleled and a bit disturbing. She practiced for hours on end, and when she wasn't fighting with her brother and sister knights, she was honing her body. Anna had on more than one occasion had to converse with her as her arms were outstretched, a sizable rock in each hand.
She had no vices, unless you called her taciturn demeanor a vice. She ate only when necessary and disturbingly plain fare. She didn't drink at all. She had no lovers. In fact, Anna was fairly certain she had no friends … except for the Crown Prince Olaf, Anna's six-year-old son. The only time Anna had seen her smile was when she was in the company of her boy.
The other knights accepted her grudgingly. Elsa had arrived wearing their knight-brother Gareth's belt, and had she not also carried a letter in his own hand introducing her there would have been violence. The circumstance might have been funny, Gareth had been perhaps the most amiable of the knights, always up for conversation, good liquor, and a game of cards, had it not also meant that Gareth was dead, and he had sent his newly knighted squire to return to the castle in his stead. Anna tried to imagine how the two of them got along, the jovial Gareth training and living with this woman who never even smiled, and she couldn't. But indeed during their years together, Gareth was a knight who loved to wander far and wide and so had not been back to the castle in some time, he had clearly trained her well.
Anything earlier than that, Elsa's childhood, even how she had met up with the knight, was a mystery. Elsa deflected even the politest of conversation, and had outright refused to answer when asked about her past directly. Dour, cold, solitary and a mystery, Elsa was not the sort of knight Anna had envisioned at her table when she had created it. But Anna had also pronounced that no one would be turned away if they dedicated themselves to the same goals of honesty, generosity, and prowess as the rest of the Company.
There was another loud cheer and then a groan from the crowd as Elsa upturned two much taller opponents and disarmed them. This was the third time in a row she had dominated the field, and even the populace who didn't know her personally liked a little variety in their victors. That bout marked the end of the melees, and now the knights would retire to their pavilions to arm for the joust. Anna saw a small blond boy run from the edge of the field into a plain white tent, men at arms, squires and knights dropping in quick surprised bows as he ran. Apparently Olaf was serving as page for Elsa today, helping her arm and armor. Soon it would be time for him to officially become a page and serve a knight in return for training. Anna found herself praying he chose someone else more … bearable … to serve.
"So it seems your favorite knight might be joining us for dinner tonight."
Anna frowned and snorted at the sound of her husband's voice. Married at fourteen, she had spent eight good years with him at her side, so she could answer him without turning, "Kristoff, my love, sarcasm does not befit a king."
His deep belly-laugh resounded behind her. "Nor does such a sour face befit our sovereign queen. Perhaps if she is your champion she will become more understanding of your unique personality."
Anna stuck her tongue out, which was precisely one of the things that she had gotten a lecture on from the high and mighty Sir Elsa. It was true that around the Company's table all were equal; they were all knights no more, no less. But no one else had taken that quite as literally or applied it quite as enthusiastically to Anna. Elsa corrected the queen's words and deeds on an almost daily basis. Her words, her actions, even the state of her armor came under scrutiny and, usually, criticism. And the worst thing was that Anna knew Elsa was right. Anna was prone to rush in immediately, her words often ran away from her, and she could be baited to action. The last had been an unfortunate lesson in the sparring yard, one that had Anna's backside aching for days as she had found herself sprawled on the ground time after time. It was then that Anna had decided that prowess as a virtue was entirely overrated.
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Inside the plain tent that Elsa used as an arming pavilion, Olaf bounced from foot to foot in excitement, his dog Marshmallow bouncing with the same enthusiasm behind him. "That was amazing. You beat everyone. You beat them twice. You beat them every time! I've never seen that before."
"Practice and dedication," Elsa intoned starting to unbuckle the straps that fastened her breastplate.
"I know," Olaf answered and ran over to help. He never allowed his enthusiasm to be dampened by Sir Elsa's tone. She just sounded mean. He knew she was one of the nicest people in the castle. He let out a small 'uff' of exertion as he eased the heavy armor off her body and carried it to the armor stand. "But you make it look easy," he said after he had hung the breastplate up.
Elsa chuckled and then schooled her features back into the stern face she wore as a habit. She knelt in front of the boy. "Nothing about being a knight is easy," she said seriously. "But winning tournaments is probably the least challenging part. The hardest is what goes on in here." She tapped her chest. "To remember to use your strength wisely. To stay your hand when everyone else would attack. To turn from your basest nature, to restrain yourself, to offer your suffering in the place of the suffering of others, that is what it means to be a real knight."
"And I'm gonna be a real knight someday," Olaf said proudly, "just maybe not as good as you."
"You will be a better knight than I," Elsa answered. "And you will be a prince and then, eventually, king."
"Yeah, king," Olaf's enthusiasm finally dimmed, slightly. "But that's not for a long time, a long, long time, I hope."
"Then pester Her Majesty to practice more often," Elsa stood and changed her sweat-sodden gambeson for a clean dry one. Her linen undershirt would dry out on its own. "Her keen sword will keep you safe from ruling until your time." She rolled her shoulders to stretch the replacement padded linen undergarment. "Now if you will forgive me, Your Highness, I must armor my horse for the joust."
"Let me get him! Let me get Winter!" Olaf began to hop around again. Elsa almost laughed. It was when he was like this that he most resembled his mother: enthusiastic, naive, and utterly adorable, an energetic ray of sunshine against a bleak countryside. Fortunately she could indulge Olaf, he wasn't the queen, and he wasn't mar …" Elsa tried not to think of Queen Anna, forcibly turning her mind to other more appropriate considerations.
"Yes, you may get him. Walk him here, slowly and carefully. I can't have either of you lame."
Olaf ran off to the stables leaving Elsa alone with her thoughts swirling in turmoil. It was Olaf and her oath to protect him and his mother that kept her here at the castle. Sir Gareth had made her swear it, to protect the queen and her son, to protect the legacy of the Company of Arendelle. Of course Gareth had no idea that Elsa would find herself drawn to the queen both as a leader but also as a woman. Elsa was sure that from heaven her mentor scowled down on her as she wrestled with impure thoughts. She herself would have never imagined she would be so weak in the face of lust … that was all it was, she berated herself, lust and infatuation … so much so that merely being in the Queen's presence brought her anguish.
"And here you are, about to ensure that you'll spend the next year continually in her presence," Elsa muttered to herself. There was no way around that, becoming the Queen's champion was the best way to protect her.
At the end, when Gareth knew he was dying of wounds sustained driving a band of predatory thieves from a small farming village, he had confided in her his fears and his plan to allay them. The queen, he had said, was still innocent and only believed the best of the people around her, a sentiment that Elsa had herself found to be very true. And while that belief was what made her a great queen, it was what had led her to found the Company – the greatest achievement in the history of Arendelle, it also put her at risk. Arendelle had enemies. Enemies who sat watching enviously as Anna's campaign of peace brought untold prosperity to her lands. Enemies with old scores to settle, many with Anna's father who had expanded their borders more than once at their neighbor's expense, plotted their revenge. Enemies who were as patient as they were cunning and so realized that the only way to defeat Arendelle was if they sundered the Company, something that could only be done from within.
Thus it was that Elsa found herself sworn to protect the queen, which meant she had to be near her. In time she knew she would find many allies in which to confide, there was no doubt that almost all loved the queen as fervently, if more appropriately, as she did. But unlike Gareth, who had been a keen study of personality, a man who could see right through a person to their inner goodness or evil, Elsa had found herself hampered by her own lack of insight and sociability.
People were still a mystery to her, as much a mystery as her god-forsaken powers.
Born to the tribal leader of the people of the North Mountain, she should have surrounded by people, guards, servants, and finally her own warriors, her entire life. But Elsa had been born with magic, ice magic. It had been so long since someone with these powers had been born into the tribe that everything surrounding them was legend. The legends, however, were clear. It was a curse, and it brought devastation to the land. So her father had put her into seclusion, in hopes that the others in their band wouldn't see her, realize what she could do, and so seek to kill her. This plan had worked fairly well, until she started her maturation into a woman. As she grew so did her powers. And when she was thirteen a taboo encounter with a pretty maid ended up with the village frozen in the middle of summer. Elsa had been immediately cast out to freeze or starve, or even be killed by the wolves that lived in the mountains, and if she did not die as they hoped, to go far from their land so she could curse it no more.
And starve she almost had. She had made it down from the mountains by some providence. She had learned to impale fish with her powers, and to eat them raw since she had no fire. Eventually she had found small farms, where she could steal the vegetables left over after the harvest. She had killed the wolves that stalked her and made their untanned hides into coverings that kept the thorns and brambles from her skin, since the cold never bothered her. And that was how Sir Gareth had found her, angry and fearful, stinking and nearly starving, and rummaging through his camp searching for food to steal. But he had looked into her eyes and seen something more, something redeemable, and took her under his care.
"Are you going to need help with the armor," Olaf's voice rang out cutting through her musing.
"If you insist Your Highness," Elsa said, shaking off her thoughts.
"I like it better when you call me Olaf."
"Yes, your highness Prince Olaf," Elsa teased. "Let's start with the caparison so the rest of the barding doesn't rub."
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"Ah, it is your day for good company," Kristoff said with a smirk as he watched Prince Hans of the Southern Isles make his way to the royal gallery.
"Kristoff," Anna said rolling her eye, "Hans is a decent man. A good knight. He can't help it if he's handsome."
"It's not his looks," Kristoff answered, "It's the way he looks through me, right to you."
Anna laughed, "Now that's just silly."
"Your Majesties," Hans cried out as he made a deep bow at the edge of the viewing stand. Anna waved him forward, and he rose and quickly covered the distance to her side. "May I say, Your Majesty, you are looking very lovely today."
Kristoff shook his head while Anna smiled. "Thank you, Prince Hans. And what brings you here? I would have thought you'd be preparing your horse for the joust."
"My men will take care of that. I came on a much more important mission."
"Mission?"
"Yes, my queen. For I must have some small token of yours to carry with me for luck in the tournament."
Again Anna laughed. "You know I can't do that, Hans. I can't have a favorite."
"Come now," Hans said conspiratorially. "You can't want that … that ice cube posing as a woman to be your champion. She's bad enough now. Imagine if she wins?" He shuddered in mock horror. "If you give me even the smallest token I am sure it will inspire me to great feats. If nothing else it might show her, show everyone, that you are looking for a champion with more than just a quick sword and a strong horse."
Ann paused. It was true that the Company prized much more than just prowess. And emphasis on the other virtues was one of it's defining hallmarks. But still … "As tempting as your offer is Prince Hans. I cannot favor one knight. But you should know that I would look forward to having you as my champion."
Hans sighed, "Well then if I can't persuade you to honor me with a token, I suppose I shall have to let that thought serve as my inspiration." He bowed again and then kissed her hand. "Now I must make ready." Bowing as he walked backward he made it to the edge of the gallery and then disappeared out of sight.
"Really," Kristoff said. "He wanted you to favor him?"
"He had a point," Anna replied. "And he was just being courtly."
"Courtly," Kristoff snorted.
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Elsa stood watching the jousts from a vacant spot near the fence. She wouldn't armor up until she was closer to being called, and she enjoyed watching the others. Olaf and Marshmallow crouched at her side.
"Now watch," Elsa instructed as two knights began their run at each other, each in their own lanes, spurring their horses into a full gallop. "Kai keeps his legs extended and uses his body to help control the horse. The horse already knows what it has to do, so you want to keep the reins loose. You can easily damage a horse's mouth if you don't."
The two knights passed each other, their lances each splintering on the other's shield. Squires handed them new lances at the end of each lane and they prepared to run again.
"I'd never hurt my horse," Olaf said, seriously.
"I know," Elsa reached down and ruffled his hair. "What's the rule about horses?"
"First your horse, then your gear, then yourself," Olaf answered.
"Right. Your horse is your most important tool as a knight. I can repair my armor, I can't repair my horse."
"Winter is the best horse, ever!"
"He is pretty special," Elsa agreed.
Kai and Helga finished their last passes at each each other, and the next set of knights rode up to take their places at either end of the joust. They saluted the queen and then each other.
Elsa saw something flash at the edge of her vision. And then, just as the two knight started their pass, Marshmallow took off across the list field headed right for the horses hooves. Unthinking, Olaf jumped up and ran after him calling for the dog to stop.
"Olaf!" Anna gasped as she saw her son run right into the lane of the first rider. There was no way the horses would be able to stop in time even if they saw what was happening. She froze, sure she was about to witness her son's death.
Elsa easily leapt the fence and charged after the boy. If she could just get him, she might be able to stop him or even just cover him with her body to keep him from being badly trampled. She could hear the thundering hooves mixed with screams as the crowd saw what was happening. With one last powerful thrust of her legs she threw herself at Olaf, pushing him to the small zone of safety between the lanes. Then Elsa braced herself for the pain that was sure to follow as she landed directly in front of the horse. She hoped against hope that it would be a quick death.
Time slowed to a crawl for Elsa. She felt a thud of pain as a hoof came down on her thigh, then she felt a wave of cold blossom across her body. There was no more pain. Her head hit the ground, and everything was black.
The horse reared with a panicked whinny, its rider pulling it aside and across the field to safety. The knights of the Company standing at the side of the field rushed on while several others ran to summon the chirurgeon. Sir Sven ran to Olaf and picked the boy up, quickly ascertaining he had no injuries. The rest of the brothers ran to see what they knew would be the battered body of Elsa. They were amazed. It was as if she had lain down for a nap. There wasn't a mark on her.
Anna raced from the stands and straight to her son. Once she had seen for herself that he was not hurt, badly shaken but not hurt, she too made her way through the crowd to the fallen knight just as the chirurgeon finished her initial assessment.
"She's alive," Gerda said, amazement coloring her voice. "She's … well, I can't say fine, I think she was knocked senseless. But not a broken bone that I see, and certainly nothing that looks like a horse ran her over."
Olaf wriggled from his father's arms and ran over. "Is Elsa going to be OK? Is she hurt?"
"I think so, your Highness," Gerda answered. "I don't know why. It's a miracle."
"A miracle," several of the knights murmured.
"Miracle or not, let's get her inside. Gerda, put her in the guest suite. You can treat her there. Anything she needs you get. I owe," Anna blinked back tears as Kristoff came and put his arm around her. "We owe her everything."
"Can I go with her, Mama?" Olaf asked.
"Not right away, Olaf," Anna answered. "Tomorrow. You can see her tomorrow."
As the queen and king led their son back into the castle, Prince Hans watched them from a distance. "A miracle," he sneered. "Not bloody likely with that witch."
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Anna didn't wait until tomorrow. For the rest of the day she couldn't get the image out of her head of Elsa hurling herself in front of the horse to save Olaf. The tourney had ended early and was rescheduled for later in the spring, which left Anna plenty of time to think about what had happened. It also left her free, which was unusual, so she found herself heading to the guest suite.
"How is she doing?" Anna asked when she stuck her head in through the bedroom door.
Gerda turned and nodded, bowing wasn't something Anna encouraged the staff to do. "She's quite well, your Majesty. She was stirring if not yet awake a bit ago. So I think she'll be fine."
"And no …" Anna hesitated on the words, "no damage?"
"No … well," Gerda beckoned the queen forward. "This is it." Gerda pulled up a finely woven blanket that had been covering the knight. She revealed Elsa's well muscled leg up to her thigh. There Anna saw the most remarkable thing, a bruise in the shape of a perfect horseshoe.
"Don't ask me how that happened, or how that happened and her thigh wasn't shattered. But it wasn't. And there's not another mark on her. A miracle indeed."
"Oh," Anna's expression hung on that sound as it echoed in the room.
"I was just packing up, your Majesty, to head for my own dinner. Is there anything else you needed?"
"No, no," Anna ran her fingers through her hair. "But do you mind if I stay here a while. If she wakes up I'd like for someone to be here."
"Certainly, it's not a problem, your Majesty. I'll be back a little later, and it would be nice if someone stayed."
Anna settled into a chair at the bedside as the chirurgeon finished tidying and shut the door. She had to say she hadn't really looked at Elsa before. It was hard to get past her judgmental attitude to see much other than a rigid nag. But now that she was looking at her, she was surprised. This wasn't the rock holding, endless practicing, queen berating Elsa she thought she knew. This was a woman who loved her son so much that she rushed to give her life for his without so much as a second thought. Anna knew that any other of her Company, indeed many in the Kingdom, would sacrifice themselves for Olaf. But only Elsa had had the presence of mind, the inner strength, the utter lack of selfishness to do it when it had needed to be done. Suddenly Anna had the need to really know this woman, and she started by looking at her peaceful sleeping form.
Elsa was young. She looked much younger than Anna had presumed, maybe only a year or two older than herself, and Anna was always being reminded of how young she was in relation to everyone else in the castle. She was young, and she was pretty. Not just an ordinary pretty, but princess from a fairy-tale sort of pretty, her light blond hair strewn out on the pillow behind her in long soft waves, her long neck, and her surprisingly well endow… well, the blanket had slipped a bit, and Anna pulled it further up Elsa's chest.
Anna wondered how a woman so obviously beautiful ended up … well, here … a knight … and completely alone. She must have had suitors. Women who were martially inclined usually either married young, as Anna had, and had children early so that they might continue their training without delay, or married very late. Perhaps Elsa was one of the latter. Still Anna could picture dozens of men hanging on her every word … or women, that was a possibility as well. Beautiful people were not usually friendless or socially incompetent, and Elsa was both. How did that happen? Even if she had been low born, and she certainly didn't carry herself as if she were low-born, she would have friends. Maybe she had renounced everyone, her family and friends … not that Anna required that. Any class of man or woman was accepted into the Company, although she herself admitted not many low-born had applied.
So this Elsa, sleeping soundly, little snuffling noises coloring her breathing, looking so young, so innocent, so beautiful, was no less mysterious than the one Anna knew before. And Anna was deep in her ponderings when she realized she was staring into the most crystal-clear, intense, blue eyes she had ever seen.
"Angel," Anna heard Elsa murmur, her voice soft and throaty. "So beautiful. You look so beautiful."
Anna giggled. "I'm not an Angel. I'm just Anna. And you're pretty beautiful yourself."
"Well just, Anna," Elsa replied with a dazed lopsided grin. "I must be in heaven, if you're here with me."
"No, not heaven either," Anna said reaching out and taking Elsa hand. "You're just in my bed … errrr … the guest suite in the palace."
"Wait, what?" Elsa blinked a couple of times as if to bring her thoughts into focus. "What? What happened?"
"You …" And as she thought of what exactly to say, Anna was overcome with the reality of what might have happened, and she started to cry, "You saved Olaf. You saved my baby." As the sobs overtook her, she bent, head dropping until she was resting it on Elsa's shoulder. Sometime later, when she was cried out to mewls and hiccuping, she realized that the other woman was holding her, rubbing her back.
"I'm, I'm sorry," she stuttered. "You're the one who's hurt."
"No, actually, I'm feeling surprisingly good," Elsa muttered. "My head hurts a bit, but that's it."
"You have …" Anna said between shivering breaths … "you have a bruise on your thigh."
"Do I?" Elsa pulled back the blanket with her free hand and then gasped in surprise. "Your Majesty, your Majesty, I am afraid I'm not decent."
"Oh, you're perfectly decent," Anna sniffed. "It's not like I'm not a woman, too. And you saved my son. If you want to lie around naked in the castle for the rest of your life, you have my permission to do so."
Elsa held back a chuckle. "That isn't something I'm likely to want."
"I know, I know … you want to get up and do decent knightly things like you always do." Anna went to right herself, but found that she just didn't have the will. So she stayed, gently resting on Elsa's shoulder. "I'm your queen, and right now … right now you remind me that my son is safe, so you can't move yet." It was a foreign feeling, but completely … right. She didn't know exactly how to describe it, but she felt warm and cared for. "You're making me feel safe, and just for a moment I want to feel safe."
"Oh …. OK." Elsa tensed at first, but then slowly relaxed into Anna's grasp. Eventually her free hand came up again to rub the Queen's back. This time much more tentatively than the first."
"You probably thing I'm a weakling, a wimp, because I'm here crying," Anna said quietly.
"I think nothing of the sort, your Majesty," Elsa answered earnestly. "You are really one of the strongest women I know."
"Oh," Anna found herself saying for the second time today. She brought her eyes up to meet Elsa's and was not at all surprised by the intensity she found there. "Thank you," she continued. They stared at each other, questions forgotten, fears quickly fading, until Anna again lowered herself, this time gently and deliberately to hold the woman before her.
When she kissed Elsa's cheek, it was so soft and tender it could have been easily missed. But it wasn't.