The King's Daughters

Agdar remembered what the day had been like when Elsa was born. Sunny, green, hot (unusually so for an Arendelle summer). He hadn't been there to see Elsa take her first look at the world and sometimes, he wondered if he hadn't missed something by not being the there for her to see then. But, the midwife's young, buxom assistant had fetched him by the time they'd finished cleaning up Idun and had even handed him his daughter upon entering the queen's chambers.

"What do you think my king?" The aged midwife asked, the streaks of gray in her blond hair dulling the halo the sunlight put around her head.

Looking at the pale countenance, pale hair and when she opened her eyes, her icy crystal he remembered asking; "This is my daughter?"

The midwife looked to her assistant, then his wife dozing in the bed. "Your father was just as fair in his youth." He had wondered then if he'd sounded accusing. Suspicious. He must have Agdar thought, but it hadn't been what he meant at all. No. he'd simply been so very awed by her beauty.

She was a summer snowflake. Rare and exquisite. She was his little treasure, right there and then. "I see," he murmured softly; bringing his firstborn close. "I christian her Elsa. Let the messengers know, I want her birth know throughout the kingdom by the end of the week."

Both assistant and midwife curtsied. "Yes my king," they answered. Hurrying out of the room and leaving Agdar to sit with his daughter. Walking to the window, he held her under the light and Elsa began to fuss.

"Shh," he whispered. "Daddy has you.." His daughter made a quiet mewling noise and a small hand escaped the confines of the virgin cloth swaddling her. He gave her his digit, hoping it would calm her. For a moment, it did. Then, he was jolted into gasping as his finger went cold while his daughter let out what was possibly her first shriek.

"..Agdar?" Idun murmured from the bed. Sleepy eyes squinting at him. "Bring her here, she's probably hungry..." Retracting his finger, the king gaze at his daughter with wonder. Had she done that? Froze his finger? How..."Agdar!" His queen snapped. "Stop standing there! Can't you hear how she cries? Bring me my baby!"

Chastised, he hurried to his wife. Handing off Elsa into her waiting arms, once there the baby quieted some and his wife undid the ties of her nightgown. "Eat baby, eat baby..." she murmured.

It took a moment, but Elsa latched on and Agdar felt proud. He had strong daughter. His wife smiled up at him, "Isn't she beautiful?"

"A little treasure," he said in echoing sentiment.

She ran a finger down his daughter's cheek. "What shall we name her?"

"She is Elsa," the king replied.

Idun frowned and then sighed. "I will name the next one-which there will be."

The man took her hand as he nodded. "Of course," he wanted more too. Maybe a whole herd if they were lucky...(they wouldn't be of course, Anna's birth was hard, so very hard that his wife simply couldn't be expected to carry another baby safely and he loved her too much to by chance lose her in his efforts for a third daughter or first son).

Unlike Elsa's birth, where everything had spoken of the unusual, Anna's was an ordinary, sunny spring day. The monotony broken only by the greeting of his eldest daughter.

"Daddy," her little voice called and his treasure, so very poised for a girl of four, approached him while he busily worked through the paper work a king acquired.

Not really looking up from his work, he hummed. Not expecting anything other than for her to sit by his feet like she was wont to do some days.

But instead, an insistent, little hand pulled at his jacket (a fine layer of frost coating the thick fabric). "Elsa," he half-scolded, half-welcomed.

"Sorry," she muttered. "But daddy mommy said to come stay with you."

He frowned. Alarm bells going off within his mind. "Why is that?"

"She said the baby was coming," and then being the little treasure she was, Elsa scrunched her nose. "I didn't see any storks outside the castle though."

Laughing, he swept her up in a joyous hug and Agdar declared "Oh just wait treasure! The stork works in mysterious ways!" She smiled back at him and he felt so proud until the midwife's assistant ran in.

"My king!" She curtsied hurriedly. "The midwife has called for you, things aren't-" the buxom woman's eyes fell to his daughter. "The queen has requested you come."

Putting aside his daughter, the king felt his heart beat against his rib cage. "Take Elsa down to the kitchens for me, won't you?"

"Yes my king." And the assistant smiled. "Come little Elsa," she called.

"What's going on daddy?" His daughter demanded with a voice that would mark her reign with its strength.

He knelt in front of her and put on a giant grin. "Just a little trouble with the stork," he winked. "You go on with Olga, I'll come get you when the baby's here."

Elsa looked far from convinced, yet still she went to the midwife's assistant. "It better be a sister," she declared before the girl began to tug the young woman out of the room.

Despite himself, Agdar laughed and hurried in the opposite direction. Praying to all the higher powers he knew that they would let him keep his wife and second born.

The next morning, when he finally retrieved Elsa; he found the girl asleep sitting up in her room's chair. The king felt badly as he shook her awake (how long had she stayed up waiting for him, he wondered). Icy blue bleary, she reached out and let him carry her to her mother and new sister.

Setting Elsa on the bed, he picks up the baby who slept beside her mother. "This is your sister," he told the girl.

Looking at the pink face, his treasure remarked; "I like Anna."

"An-" he sighed and shook his head. Idun would be unhappy, she would say their first born's attitude was an echo of his own, but he didn't have the heart to tell her no. "I'm happy you like Anna," he said instead.

Elsa smiled up at him. "When she's older we'll build snowmen like the ones in my picture book."

Agdar bent down and bestowed each daughter with a kiss. "I love you Elsa and I love you Anna."

"We love you too, daddy." And the baby's accompanying gurgle seemed to confirm his daughter's declaration.

xXxXxXx

"You'll be fine Elsa."

That was the last thing he ever told his treasure, his beautiful, dangerous, tarnished treasure. Not I trust you to take care of yourself, or I love you or something better than an almost command from her king. He left her unprepared and scared. Choking on salt water and tears, Agdar, King of Arendelle, in his last snatches of life prayed to the same higher powers that had deigned to let him keep his wife and second daughter.

Please guide Elsa to be the queen he'd always envisioned. Proud, controlled and legendary.

A summer snowflake could be nothing else.

(He hadn't forgotten Anna in his final throes, but his heart had always belonged to her sister, so he had prayed that she would find the love she had always deserved and never had from him).

I have watched Frozen for the second time this last Friday and am finally getting some ideas in my head. I kind of wondered just how long Elsa had known about her powers and I also liked the idea of writing about her and Anna's birth from from her father's perspective. It seemed like it could be interesting.

Thanks so much for reading and let me know what you all think with a leaving review!

P.S. If you want to, it'd be awesome if you voted on the poll I have on my page. Thanks!