Elsa looked between Anna and Kai in a confused but subtle manner. "Calendria? Of course, please let her in I will listen to what she has to say," she answered not knowing why this royal was calling unannounced. It made her wary but oddly curious.
Not long after, the guards escorted the Princess into the drawing room, announcing her as 'Princess Tatiana of Calendria'. She was a smaller slight-build lady not much older than Anna by the looks of it. She had dark brown hair that fell in curls past her olive skinned shoulders. Her clothing though had more to be desired and that was what intrigued Elsa the most.
"Please come in and make yourself comfortable," Elsa said and gestured to the guards that she was perfectly fine without them present. No one questioned her powers, naturally, but protocol was always followed which helped to put Elsa at ease. Anna gave a small nod to her sister and slipped out, giving the two some privacy. Once everyone had left the room, Princess Tatiana seemed to relax slightly.
"Thank you for your hospitality Your Majesty."
"Please, call me Elsa," the queen replied feeling oddly at ease with Tatiana. Looking over her tattered clothes, she picked up her teacup and decided to indulge in her curiosity, "so what has brought you to Arendelle? I am assuming royal business of course."
"No," Tatiana answered curtly but quickly righted herself, "no I am not Your-Elsa, I have lost my title as Princess of Calendria."
This news surprised Elsa as she knitted her brow and turned her head at the visitor. "What was the reason for the loss?" she asked now wondering why this girl had come.
Wordlessly, Tatiana raised her hand and waived her wrist. At that moment, a slight stiff breeze blew Elsa's braid off her shoulder. Seeing the confused look on Elsa's face made Tatiana more determined and with a harsh hand movement, she had started a small gale in the drawing room. Paintings flew, curtains tore off and both parties were sent crashing into the nearest wall. The impact knocked Elsa breathless and when she looked over to Tatiana, she noticed that she was holding her chest.
"My apologies, I have yet to control it," Tatiana said looking guiltily around the massacred drawing room. When she noticed Elsa looking towards her tensed hand, she immediately let go and tried to play it off as better than what it was. "My heart is not always very strong, especially when my power is exerted."
"Do you wish to see a doctor?" Elsa asked with concern and began to walk towards Tatiana.
"No thank you, I'm sure I will be fine," Tatiana answered trying to stand up and reassure Elsa. She had traveled a long way and she didn't want to make the Queen think she was weak or volatile.
Three guards burst into the room once she was on her feet and the look of astonishment on their faces was unmasked for all to see. They looked to Queen Elsa on guidance on how to handle the situation. Immediately, Tatiana dropped her gaze in shame and waited for them to escort her out.
"Return to your posts, and let my staff know to prepare a bedroom and some new clothes. Our guest will be staying with us for as long as she likes," Elsa commanded and looked over to Tatiana who was looking quite shocked. Elsa quickly tidied her own appearance and gestured to the rest of the castle. "If you wish to stay, I can try to help you. There's more than just this drawing room if you want to look around."
With a small nod, Tatiana wordlessly followed behind Elsa as she left the drawing room and began her version of a personal tour. Their tour of the rest of the castle was short and sweet, probably not as long as one Anna would have given, and ended at the newly prepared bedroom. They went inside to make sure it was to everyone's liking and Elsa wrapped up her tour speech gazing down at the perfectly folded dresses laid out for Tatiana. Tatiana thanked Elsa, sat on the bed and silently looked out the window, settling her eyes on the graying sea.
Feeling the beginnings of compassion and concern for her, Elsa sat down beside her on the bed. Feeling unsure and wanting to make her more at ease, Elsa began fidgeting slightly before speaking. "Did you come here because of me? Because the legend is true?" she asked, wondering how far the story of the Snow Queen spread after that eternal winter in the summertime.
"Partially yes," Tatiana answered quietly but kept her gaze to the world outside, "I was second in line when my father was king. I was cursed at the age of seventeen with this wind power not long before I was to formally come of age. My father found out and kept me sheltered, not wanting anyone to cause harm to me. But a half-year ago, he was struck in battle leaving him crippled and unable to rule Calendria. Naturally, my eldest brother stepped up and was crowned king not long afterward." Tatiana paused with disdain as she mentioned her brother. Elsa realized that he must have been to blame for her loss of title.
"My elder brother Octavius was tolerant of my power. He wanted to harness it for profit but he also wanted it to stay a secret, all for his personal gain. I believe he felt threatened by me because once it began to grow too strong, he banished me from Calendria under a false accusation of treason, despite my father's pleas. To avoid the death sentence, I fled."
Elsa felt for Tatiana and nodded silently. Her reflection in the window brought Tatiana's eyes away and she finished her story looking longingly at Elsa. "In my travels I had heard of the Snow Queen who had frozen and thawed an entire kingdom. I chartered a boat with what little money I had left to come here," Tatiana said looking hopeful but also crestfallen, "but I shouldn't be burdening you. You have Arendelle to run. I shouldn't be doing this to you. I will leave and get out of your way."
Tatiana got up to leave but Elsa grabbed her wrist which made her stop in her spot. "You are not a burden, not in any way. I want to help and will help as best I can," she answered truthfully. She wanted Tatiana to discover her power and embrace it rather than endure it alone, the way she had. If she could spare another gifted person from the fear and self-hatred, she would indefinitely. After all, she was the Snow Queen, she wasn't in any way powerless.
With a smile that hid grateful tears, Tatiana sat back down on the bed beside Elsa. "Thank you so much. It means a lot to me," she said happily. She truly meant it as well. To find someone who didn't look at her with fear or hatred for just a moment felt so liberating.
"You're welcome," Elsa said and stood up to leave, "now rest. You will need it to recover." On that note, Elsa excused herself and stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her.
When Elsa headed back downstairs, she soon ran into Anna who was looking upset but glad to have located her.
"Elsa, I just found out what is happening and what are you thinking? This girl is out of control! Just look at what she did to the drawing room," Anna gestured back down the hallway towards the room that was slowly being repaired by the staff.
"She is still learning. I was the same way only months before. No one was the wiser and everything was fine before the blowup on my coronation day," Elsa answered feeling slightly defensive. Maybe it was because she could relate to Tatiana because of the powers, but either way she decided abolishing the fear of her was the first priority.
"But this is different," Anna added, "Her powers are not the same as yours and she is not from around here. You saw the hostility that was presented to you. The people love you and know you, not her. It will be worse for her if she practices openly here."
Elsa reflected back on the faces that looked at her in terror the night she accidentally unleashed her power. They were people who had known her since she was small but that didn't change their fear until she was able to prove her worth and strength. Anna had a point, it was very likely that the people of Arendelle would not put up with a powerful stranger, but Elsa had to try.
"Give me a chance to at least try, Anna. If it can make her life a little more bearable and give her acceptance with herself and somewhere where she can live, isn't it worth a couple of hiccups? And don't think of me as so naive, the guards will be made well-aware, though I don't really see the point," Elsa replied before straightening up and assuming her role as ruler. "She will not be harmed so long as I reside here. If it becomes a big problem, then it will be mine and I'll think of something," she said and continued off towards her bedroom.
The next morning, Elsa awoke to the sound of one of the maids frantically her name. Half asleep, she got herself out of bed and opened the door. The maid was stark white, as if she had seen a ghost and seemed rather jumpy. "My sincerest apologies for waking you Your Highness, but there has been an incident in the library," the maid said with the utmost of sorrow for bothering her.
"That's perfectly fine," Elsa replied still slightly gripped by sleep, "I will quickly change and head down to investigate." She watched the maid nod in confirmation and closed the door to prepare herself for what she was supposed to see.
It was a short amount of time between the conversation with the maid and the moment Elsa entered the library. There were books and pages everywhere, far-flung all across the large room. And running around in the middle of it all was Tatiana looking positively embarrassed.
"Your Highness, I am so sorry," she sputtered in grief, "I was up early and thought that I should read until everyone was awake-"
"It's alright, Tatiana. Books can be resorted. And please, call me Elsa," the Queen answered calmly to the chagrin of the staff trying to clean up yet another room. In truth, the situation amused her slightly just because she wasn't used to such innocent discord since she returned to Arendelle. "Though I suggest we work on your wind skills outside for a while."
Once both ladies were ready to begin the training session, Elsa escorted Tatiana out to the courtyard and asked the guards to close the gates just for the practice time. She walked away from Tatiana a few paces and turned to watch her.
"Now I want you to relax. There is no need to fear what you are capable of. Just make easy movements-" Elsa was cut off before she could finish by a large gust of wind shooting straight at her and nearly bowling her over.
"I'm sorry," Tatiana said a bit panicky and began to walk over to assist Elsa. When she stretched out her hand, however, a warm thermal rose from the ground strong enough to pick the Snow Queen up and carry her slowly into the air. Despite Elsa's attempts to try and cool the thermal, Tatiana gasped and waved her arm, trying to weaken it. This only ended up ceasing it completely and dropping Elsa back onto the ground.
"No!" she chastised herself harshly and went over to the stunned queen, "I am so sorry Elsa." Nearly in tears with being so frustrated with herself, Tatiana screamed and released a short wind force as great as that of a cyclone's. It blasted the edges the courtyard that surrounded herself and Elsa, sending anything that wasn't bolted down flying into the air, including some of the guardsmen. Ignoring the ramifications of what just happened, she sat Elsa up and leaned the Queen against her just as Anna came running out.
"I heard a terrible noise-Elsa!" she cried and went over to her sister. Elsa was mildly stunned but no worse for the wear.
"I'm okay Anna, just a little jarred," she answered before standing up, "I think it's safe to call it a day," Elsa conceded and let Anna take her inside. Tatiana did not follow them, mainly because of the guilt she felt but also because of the angry glares Anna was giving her. She decided if she were going to practice that she should do it away from the castle and everyone's disapproving looks. To keep everyone safe, she decided that the mountainside seemed like a good place to start.
Walking by some of the guards that had gotten blown around the courtyard, Tatiana flicked a wrist and set the burly men back onto their feet. "I'm really sorry, I'm going to practice a ways off, okay?" She tried to shut out the muffled angry moans of the men as she slipped out the castle gates and made her way up the mountainside.