Chapter Two – Name that Crystal Dust! It's Trolls! - Crystallized Past
The entire town was in an uproar. Once the people had found out that someone had not only broken into the castle, but also had injured the queen, no one wanted to be left out of spreading the word. Rumors sprung up like weeds. Some people said that a rival kingdom had sent a spy. Others claimed that it was a rebellion within Arendelle. Another group claimed that it was nature's revenge from the Coronation Chill. Luckily, none of these were true. The truth of the matter was someone of unknown origin had broken in, somehow made the queen terribly ill, and escaped. And no one knew how or why.
Princess Anna sat in the hallway, leaning on the window. She had been there since last night's incident. Queen Elsa had been fading in and out of consciousness, only awake enough to give a brief description of what had happened before passing out once more. The doctors had been trying to treat her all through the night, but they couldn't seem to pinpoint what was wrong. She was running a high fever, and none of the doctors knew what to make of her new hair color. Anna had been darting around the room, giving helpful suggestions and sliding across the ice, until Gerda eventually shooed her out. Then Anna heard a loud clomping from down the hall. Kristoff, wearing his ice harvester's clothes, turned the corner then ran to her. "Anna! There you are! What happened?"
"Kristoff, it's terrible! There was a boy in the castle last night and he hurt Elsa."
"What? A boy? How did he get in? He managed to hurt her?"
"We, well, we don't really know. I heard her shout last night and then I ran in and her hair was brown like Mo-, uh, ahem. It's just he looked so little and scared and there was ice everywhere and I tried to get him away from her and he did because I almost hit him with an icicle but then he really got away like he ran away and the guards couldn't find him and Elsa isn't waking up and I don't know what he did!" Anna gibbered.
"Hey, hey, slow down. We'll fix this," he tried to reassure her.
"What if Elsa's sick for a really long time? I've never seen her even get a cold! She might not get better…" Anna stopped herself, before she talked herself to tears.
"We'll find that boy, and Elsa will get better, and it'll all be okay." Kristoff hugged her close, trying his best to be comforting. Anna pressed herself close to him. They had come a long way from when they first met and Kristoff had been cautious to even touch her. They stood like that for a while until Kai, the head butler of the castle, emerged from Elsa's room.
"Kai!" Anna disentangled herself from Kristoff's huge arms, leaving him a bit miffed. "How is she?" Kai grimaced. He clasped and unclasped his hands several times, visibly brimming with unadulterated worry. Anna found herself holding her breath.
"Her temperature went down some, but she's still running a fever," he reported. Anna exhaled.
"Do you know what caused it?" Kristoff asked. He was still confused on the actual details of the event, but he had been improving at his jittery Anna-terpretations.
"They can't identify an origin," Kai admitted.
"What are we gonna do?" Anna worried aloud. Neither of the men in the room would admit it in front of the princess, but they were equally as downtrodden.
"Some guards," Kai nipped her rambling in the bud, "found this on the roof." He held a handkerchief in his palm and opened it. A glowing blue powder rested in the center of it.
"What is it?" Anna reached out to touch it. Kai quickly stopped her.
"We don't know, but the guard that found it is in the infirmary." He carefully folded the cloth up and handed it to Kristoff. The royal ice gatherer nervously held it away from himself.
"What exactly happened to that guard?" He eyed the packet of dust dubiously.
"He passed out, and his hair started to turn white." Anna touched her hair, having not quite remembered that her own streak had frozen away.
"White? You mean like…?"
"Exactly like the queen's," he confirmed, "Well, how it was before."
"So finding out what that is could help?" Kristoff asked.
"The trolls. We can ask the trolls!" Anna said, relieved to have a plan of action.
"You actually want to see my mom?" Kristoff puzzled. He was sure that Anna had been avoiding his family since their last visit. The infamous "Grass Knot Incident" was still haunting him to this day. He cringed. Anna would never let him live it down.
"Only because it's for Elsa!" Anna shouted over her shoulder. She charged down the hall, determined. Kristoff had no choice but to follow the headstrong heartthrob of a princess.
Anna and Kristoff had made excellent time after Anna had completely bypassed the stables and hijacked Kristoff's sled. He tried to keep her out and get her horse, but Sven had been the opposite of helpful; he had practically lifted them into the sled with his antlers. He pulled them along and showed off all the way into the woods. Before long they had reached the Valley of the Living Rock. Boulders of all shapes and sizes littered the mossy valley. Anna hung back while Kristoff and Sven greeted their family. They passed by the rocks and said hello. The trolls woke up and rolled to welcome them home.
"Kristoff!" Bulda shouted, leaving Anna's ears ringing, "And Miss Princess Anna!"
"Hi Mom," Kristoff chuckled as some of the younger trolls pulled at his arms and climbed onto his shoulders. Anna hefted one youngster in her arms, trying desperately not to be pulled over.
"Hello Bulda," she grunted, hoisting another kid with her free arm. She groaned. She had not come here to juggle boulders. She could hardly pay attention with them weighing her down.
"Is Grandpa awake?" Kristoff asked. Grand Pabbie rolled into view.
"Now I am. Welcome home Kristoff," Grand Pabbie greeted.
"We, ugh, have a few questions, oof, for you!" Another playful troll piled onto Anna's shoulders. "Get off of me please," she squeaked. She wondered how Kristoff could manage to do this for all the time he lived with them. He hardly even acknowledged the quartet of kids climbing all over him.
"What's weighing on your mind?" Grand Pabbie asked, concerned.
"Queen Elsa," Kristoff answered. He pulled out the handkerchief and handed it over. Grand Pabbie gingerly unfolded it and examined its contents. His eyes grew wide and he nearly spilled the glowing powder. He slowly folded it back up and gave them a decidedly measured look.
"Where did you get this?" he demanded.
"Grandpa?" Kristoff worried. The last time he had seen his adoptive grandfather in a mood like this, Anna had nearly died. Seems like Anna generally had that effect when she came to see his family.
"Elsa's room," Anna answered, "What is it?"
"This is… a rare magic, to say the least. I haven't seen this since your grandparent's parents were ruling …"
"You've seen it before?" Anna asked. Grand Pabbie nodded gravely.
"I gave this to a man long ago…" He massaged his temple. As he gathered his thoughts, the trolls whispered amongst one another.
"Is he talking about that man? The Liana man…? Impossible! That was years ago! He must be long gone by now!" they gossiped.
"It was very, very long ago," he sighed. "A man, injured and abandoned, found his way into our valley. We healed him, but his injuries were very serious and he could not idle long enough to not injure himself again. He told us that he had been driven out of his town, but refused to state why. After living here for a time it became evident." Grand Pabbie conducted the Northern Lights to illustrate his memory. "Wherever he walked, overbearing weeds would sprout in his wake. He tried to avoid it but no matter where he treaded," The lights showed a man walk across the sky, and was hounded by wildflowers, "the foliage followed." The man was shown hacking at the weeds, but they grew over the vision, smothering the imaginary man.
"Before I proceed, you must understand, this was a time when magic was much more feared. A queen such as your sister would have only been able to rule with the power of fear. No one with even a hint of magic could be trusted, which, consequently, is one of the reasons we live in this valley now. Not too long after he had arrived, and was still recovering, a youngster found a woman hiding in the mountains. If I am recalling this correctly, it was Bulda who discovered her and brought her back to us.
"This woman, she was not secretive about what had forced her into hiding. Insects and any other small animals were revived when she approached." The light morphed to show skeletal bugs and rodents rising up and following the severe woman. She shooed them but they followed her, like a black magic parade. "Similarly to this man, she had no control over what her powers affected. She visited regularly until, as such things often occur, the two of them fell in love and were married soon after."
"That's so sweet!" Anna interjected, temporarily forgetting her worry. Grand Pabbie smiled lightly. He eyed Kristoff's hand on the princess's shoulder. Bulda nudged her husband, Cliff, and gave him a coy smile. When Kristoff noticed their reactions he quickly removed his hand. All of this went right over Anna's head.
"They wanted to have a family together, but they didn't want their children to have to deal with the detestation from others that they received at their homes. Grand Sten, our leader at the time, gave them two options. The man chose the removal and transfer of powers, and the woman chose a home where they could let their powers flourish and grow at their own rate. He gave them both."
"Both? But how would that work?" Kristoff asked.
"For the woman, he provided them with a small amount of land that was near no other people. It was an area reserved for them. The man received a small collection of our crystals. I myself taught him the chants used to transfer powerful energy from a person into a crystal and back again. If they have resorted to using this flimsy dust for the process…" his voice trailed off, troubled.
"What happened to them?" Anna inquired.
"A few years ago, before you two were even born, a young messenger found us and told us that he was their son, and that his father had passed on. I assumed that it was the end of them, but it seems as though there still must be a few people living on in his absence. However, they are not upholding his will. He firmly believed in letting empowered people make their own choices. Anything else would be an underhanded deal for them. I had wondered how they were faring…" He became lost in thought. "There's not much I can do in this situation…" He gently handed the handkerchief back to Kristoff.
"Well, how can we reverse what they did to Elsa? It was them, right?" Kristoff inquired.
"What did they do anyway? I don't think I get it…" Anna muttered. She hated to ask, but it was easier to ask now than to be completely lost later. She had slowly learned that over the years.
"You must have suspected this already, but they have removed her powers over ice and snow." Anna pulled at the hems of her dress. A threat like this surfacing just when things were looking peaceful was unsettling, to say the least. At last, Elsa had come to terms with her power, only to have it taken away, along with her health. Kristoff could see the wheels turning in her head, and he tried to calm her.
"But you can reverse it, right?" Kristoff encouraged.
"Only they will be able to manipulate it now, I can't help you," Grand Pabbie confessed.
"What does that mean for Elsa?" Anna implored.
"You'll have to discuss it with the descendants of that man. Arvid Liana was his name."
"We have to find that boy," Kristoff realized.
Somewhere above the Mediterranean Sea, er, in the mountains surrounding Arendelle… Marshmallow sat at the steps of the ice palace. Elsa had not visited him. In fact, no one had visited him. He would have thought that at least someone would want to see the great big castle in the mountains. It was a beautiful sanctuary, and it was his duty to protect it. He would uphold his duty until he melted. Though it was awfully boring to protect something no one came to see.
He had considered going down into the kingdom to look for the queen, and to be sure that no one was disturbing her solitude, but… Something deep inside told him he had to stay put. Plus he doubted that he could make it all the way down there with his busted leg. That group of soldiers that had taken the queen away had done a wonderful job of disabling him.
He wondered how much time had passed in the kingdom. He didn't have a very good grip on time, but if there was a threat, he could take care of that in no time at all. Those wolves that thought they could desecrate the palace had been terribly surprised when part of the mountain rose up and threw them back into the woods. He remembered their vehement howls quite clearly.
"Ahhhuuh!" a voice howled. Marshmallow nearly jumped. He thought for sure he had scared away the animals for good. "Ahhhhgh," the voice continued to moan. Now it didn't sound so much like a wolf. He settled into the trench he had carved out in the snow and waited. The moaning and groaning grew louder and louder until he could hardly stand it. For a being with no ears he had surprisingly keen hearing, and he did not appreciate the ruckus. "Uuuaahhh…" Marshmallow was just about fed up with whatever was making this noise.
"Go over the mountains, she said!" That was definitely not a wolf. "You won't get caught, she said!" A boy, probably not over sixteen years old yet, hiked up over the crest of the mountain, looking straight at the ground to fish his feet out of the snow. "It will be easy, she said!" He scoffed. "Well if this is easy, then I'm a prince!" He shouted down the mountain, spiting someone who was clearly absent.
"Ice palace my behind…" he muttered, "I don't see any ice," he gasped, "palace! It's a palace! Made of ice! Ice palace! Pal-ice!" He laughed out of joy and exhaustion. "Ha! Hah! This is amazing!" He gestured wildly at the palace. Marshmallow prepared himself to pounce. Then his jaw dropped so far it left a dent in the snow.
When the boy had gestured at the queen's palace, icy streams had shot out of his hands and landed on the ground with an audible thump. A section of his hair turned icy white. "Ah! Mustard seed!" He buried his fists under his arms and hunched his shoulders. "If I keep that up everybody'll know I messed up…" Marshmallow crept up behind the boy and stood at his full height. He breathed icy chills down the back of the boy's ragged shirt. The boy froze and slowly turned his head. Terror filled his face for a split second and then morphed into morbid acceptance and he shrunk back. "You won't get caught, she said," his voice cracked. He darted for the steps. Marshmallow blinked. This kid was full of surprises. He chased after him. "Peace blossoms!" the boy swore.
Chapter two word count: 2,680 words
A/N: I have to say, Anna freaking out is really fun to write, and so are magical backstories. I hope you all liked this chapter! I love all reviews and predictions, so I hope you'll leave some! I'll try to get the next one out next week so get ready for some adventure~ (What a great way to build up the suspense!)