In Her Majesty's Service
Chapter 1: Beginnings
"For those I love, I will sacrifice."
(written to songs: For the Love of a princess by James Horner, Star Wars: The Force Theme performed by Single String Gamer, Light of the Seven by Ramin Dajawadi, My Name is Lincoln by Steve Jablonsky)
"Elsa!" The queen yelled though the main hall of the castle.
"I believe she is ice skating in the northern ballroom, Your Majesty." Kai answered. Nothing ever happened in the castle without Kai knowing about it. He had been serving Arendelle for all his life - first as a page and errand boy when he was younger, and then later, after turning sixteen, he joined the Arendelle's military under Elsa's father. When injured in combat, and no longer able to perform combat duties, the King appointed him as his steward. Years later, after tensions died, he was promoted as Chief of Staff for the castle.
"Of course she is. Thank you, Kai." Queen Asta answered. Whenever her daughter was avoiding something, Elsa would freeze over the floor of the northern ballroom and skate. The northern ballroom was Elsa's favorite spot in the castle. It was quiet, and hardly used - so it fit her needs well. And the views the room gave were spectacular. Towering windows on the northern wall gave a beautiful view of the mountains which lay in the furthest reaches of the kingdom.
The queen was as she walked up to the closed doors of the ballroom, she saw the wufts of steam coming from the edges of the door. She always encouraged Elsa to practice her unique abilities whenever she had a moment to spare. Queen Asta knew just how important this practice would one day prove to be. These powers would likely save Elsa's life, if not the life of the kingdom itself, if the prophecy was to be taken seriously.
The queen carefully and quietly stepped into the room, watching her eight-year-old daughter spin and twirl across the ice as if dancing to a song only she could hear. A small lopsided snow man sat in the corner of the room with fire pokers for arms. Olaf, the queen thought as she remembered the name of her daughter's snowy pal. Ice covered everything from the floor to the ceiling. Snowflake designs covered the glass panes of the windows and icicles ending in seven point stars hung from the chandeliers. The stark contrast between the winter landscape in the ballroom and the bright green grasses of spring, stretching to the northern mountain ranges outside of the window, was breathtaking.
The princess spun in slow, graceful circles across the ice. She was lonesome and already felt the weight of responsibility of being a royal pressing down on her tiny shoulders. Elsa longed for companionship of someone her own age and the ability to just be a kid.
"Elsa, darling?" Queen Asta said softly.
Elsa's eyes popped open in mild surprise and smiled.
"Mommy!" The young princess exclaimed with all the youth and exuberance of childhood, dashing across the ice, sure footed as if she was walking on the hardwood flooring beneath her tiny feet. Wrapping her arms around her mother and Elsa hugged her tightly.
The queen wrapped her arms around her daughter, returning the tight hug.
"Come, Elsa, you're late for your history lesson." Her mother said.
"Sorry, Mommy, I was practicing." Elsa said.
"I can see that, were you having fun?"
The young princess nodded her head vigorously, her blonde hair flying about, in response.
"Good, good. Now, please be a good girl and thaw the ballroom. You know how cranky it makes Kai." her mother said.
Elsa turned and waved her hand at the ice and snow covering the ballroom. The offending material disappeared in an instant with a show of brilliant blue ice fractals, and she let out a giggle when the fire pokers clanged on the hardwood floor.
The queen smiled and led Elsa out of the ballroom, and in the direction of the library.
"Go on, Elsa, Gertha is waiting for you. I believe she has something special planned for today's history lesson." Queen Asta said as they stopped just short of the library doors.
"Your Majesty, if I may be so bold..." Kai said, suddenly appearing at the Queen's side.
"Go on, Kai, you have been a friend of the royal family for nearly thirty years now. Please, speak your mind." the Queen answered, hiding her surprise well.
"The princess needs a friend, Your Majesty." Kai said.
"I know, Kai, but, with her abilities, she scares the other noble children." the Queen responded sadly.
"Your Majesty, I have a young niece who is about Elsa's age, and she fears nothing." Kai said.
"Is that so? Well then I'm sure that neice of yours, Kai, will make a wonderful friend for Elsa." Queen Asta answered.
"Elsa, your lessons for this afternoon have been canceled." Queen Asta stated.
Elsa excitedly looked up from where she was moving peas around her plate.
"Really? Does that mean I can go skating?" asked Elsa. She was quite relieved because it was Tuesday - etiquette day. She understood the importance of it, she really did, but she could never bring herself to fully become engrossed in it, unlike she could with her history lessons. History was the favorite of her lessons. Ever since that first lesson with Gertha a few weeks back, she loved to learn about the brave and fearless knights and their heroic actions.
"Perhaps," the queen said. "But first there is someone your father and I would like you to meet."
Oh, great, thought Elsa. She knew what this meant. This meant it would be another kid, of some far flung kingdom, that her father was trying to broker an alliance with. Just another that would run from her, as soon as she made so much as a snowflake. Her shoulders slumped with responsibility, and her hopes of a fun afternoon were quickly extinguished.
"Oh, Elsa, don't look so down. This could end up being fun." her mother said.
"Yes, Mother."
Queen Asta flinched internally, her mask never changing. Elsa never called her "Mother", unless she was unhappy or at royal function. Just then, Kai knocked quietly on the door stuck his head in and nodded to the queen.
"Come, Elsa"
The queen stood, placing her napkin down on her plate. Walking around the table and taking Elsa's hand, the queen led Elsa to the entrance hall. They found Kai there already, with his little niece standing proudly at the side of the portly man.
"Your Majesty, Your Highness, I present to you Anna of house Valdeen" Kai said kindly. It was not in his official voice for announcing dignitaries or other important people, Elsa noticed. And, at that, she looked up to see a redheaded girl. She had freckles across her cheeks like the stars in the night sky, and wore a dark green dress that matched her eyes. Before Kai could introduce the queen and princess, Anna suddenly closed the distance and hugged Elsa.
Elsa, taken aback by the sudden contact, stiffened sharply before mechanically wrapping her arms around the redhead, in return. Just then Anna realised what she had done pulled back from Elsa.
"My- My apologies, Your Highness." Anna stammered and attempted to give a curtsy, before falling flat on her butt.
Elsa giggled at Anna's unintentional antics. It was one of the happiest sounds that the Queen had heard in a long time.
"It is all right, Anna." Queen Asta said. "Come, Kai. I believe we have some business to go over before council this afternoon?"
"Anna?" Elsa asked.
"Yes, Els… I mean, Your Highness?" Anna struggling to remember what her Aunt had taught her about addressing royalty this morning.
"Elsa. My name is Elsa." Elsa told her firmly.
Anna just nodded, as Elsa took Anna's hands into her own, and a mischievous grin grew.
"Anna, do you like chocolate?" Elsa asked quietly, casting a glance at the backs of the grown ups leaving. Not even waiting for Anna to fully answer, she pulled her through the maze of halls toward the castle's kitchens.
"Elsa, won't we get into trouble?" Anna asked, a little too loudly for Elsa's liking.
"Shh... Anna, we'll only get in trouble if we are caught." Elsa said quietly, with a roll of her eyes. "And we'll only get caught if you keep being so loud."
"Sorry. Do you have a plan then?" Anna asked, a little more quietly this time, as Elsa pressed her back against the wood paneled wall just outside of the kitchens.
Elsa peaked around the corner, looking for their target, knowing Heilda kept a small bowl of chocolates on one of the kitchen counters. She considered it for a moment. She really didn't have a plan, but this was better than walking a line while balancing a book on her head all afternoon while she was supposed to be going over proper etiquette… Or actually practicing that etiquette!
"See the blue bowl on the counter, Anna?" Elsa whispered and knelt down a bit so Anna could see over her.
"Yeah?"
"While I distract Heidla, I want you grab a handful of the chocolates from that bowl. Grab as much as you can, and then meet me at the end of the hall." Elsa whispered.
"Ok." Anna whispered back, feeling rather unsure of this plan.
"And, Anna?" Elsa whispered.
"Yeah?" Anna answered.
"Be quiet." Elsa said, giggling as she headed into the kitchen.
"Heilda? What's for dinner tonight?" Elsa asked. With the crushing weight of a thousand bricks, Elsa had a sudden realization. Hielda would, of course, know that she had just finished lunch and that the kitchen staff would not have started preparing dinner. But this realization came just a second too late, and she prayed that Hielda wouldn't call her out for the suspicious question.
"Your Highness, what a pleasant surprise seeing you down here! Your mother has requested baked luskfish, potatoes with a side of corn this evening." Hielda answered.
"Really? We had luskfish just two days ago." Elsa whined, walking to the far end of the room, causing Heidla to turn her back to Anna.
Heilda looked at the princess and smiled, though she could have sworn that a tuft of red had just darted beneath a nearby counter.
"I know, Princess, but, if you want something else for dinner, you'll need to talk it over with your mother." Heilda answered, as Elsa watched Anna sneak up to the counter and grab two large handfuls of the wax paper wrapped chocolates from the bowl and dart back down the hallway.
"But there might be chocolate cake for desert." Heilda answered, frowning and turning as she heard a distant crash from down the hall. "What was that?"
"Uh, er, nothing!" Elsa answered adding, "I hope." under her breath. "Thank you, Heilda, and I uhhh... look forward to the luskfish!" Elsa gave Heilda her most charming smile before taking off down the hall to find Anna.
Elsa found Anna sprawled on the floor. Parts of a decorative suit of armor were scattered around her.
"I was just looking at it." Anna said defensively, lifting the helm off of her head.
"Don't worry about it, c'mon lets get out of here before we are caught." Elsa said, pulling her new friend to her feet and leading her by the hand to her rooms in the royal wing.
After closing the door behind her Elsa turns to Anna, her eyes bright with anticipation. "So did you get them?"
Anna nodded holding out some of the wax paper wrapped chocolates. "I may have eaten one or two, though..."
Elsa gave a quiet giggle as she padded over to her enormous bed. She pulled herself up, and pat the top of the oversized comforter next to her, a silent request for Anna to come join so that they may indulge in the fruit of their labor.
"Anna, do you wanna build a snowman?" Elsa asked quietly. It had been months since their first chocolate heist in the kitchens, and she had spent a lot of time reflecting on their many adventures together - riding bikes though the castle halls, climbing trees together, swimming in the fjord, stealing sweets from the kitchens... Oh, the trouble they had gotten into, the scoldings they received… They could've curled the paint, but, to Elsa, it had been worth it. She finally had the friend that she had always wished for, and, for once, she was happy. Elsa had spent weeks agonizing over this decision to share her secret with her friend, she felt Anna should know about her powers.
Anna just nodded, her eyes wide with confusion. It was still the middle of summer. Why would Elsa want to build a snowman? Elsa pulled Anna's arm and led her quickly through the castle, to the northernmost ballroom. The curtains were thrown back wide giving the girls an unobstructed view of the vivid summer greens of the northern mountain ranges.
Elsa closed the door behind her, turned to face the center of the room, and closed her eyes. She stood there silently for a moment, and just as Anna was just about to ask a question, she noticed the snowflakes forming around Elsa's hands. Anna just stared in wonder as the snowflakes started swirling around the room and then, with a fwoomph, what appeared to be a ton of snow fell and covered the entire ballroom in six inches of soft powdery snow.
Anna touched it tentatively, as Elsa watched her closely, waiting for the panic to set in on Anna's features. To Elsa's surprise, Anna giggled. Unbeknownst to Elsa, Kai had told Anna that the princess of Arendelle was special, and the rumors around the fjord that Elsa was frost bourne were common.
"You're not scared?" Elsa asked, still stunned at this recent turn of events.
"Of course not! If anything, I am a little upset you waited this long to show me!" Anna replied, with a mischievous grin.
Just when she was about to answer, Elsa caught a fat snowball to the face.
"Oh, oops sor-" Anna started to stammered out an apology. She didn't mean to hit Elsa in the face, it just sorta… happened.
"I'm going to get you back for that!" Elsa started to scoop up her own snowballs, and made to throw them back at Anna.
King Asdgar studied the dwarf sitting at the table with him. The dwarf before him could almost pass for a short human, or at least an ugly human youth, but only if he'd shave the monstrosity of beard first, Asdgar thought to himself. His eyes were closed, as if he didn't care he was in the presence of a king, and, when they were open, those eyes were dark and deep as if he had seen more horrors in his life than Asdgar could possibly comprehend. He wore his armor like a second layer of skin, well oiled leather, chains and plated armor groaned together with the dwarf's every movement. Each breath he took sounded like creaking bellows to the king's ear. And despite the dwarf's apparent lack of attention, and total disregard for the king, his posture suggested otherwise. The dwarf was like a coiled spring. His body was rigid, and he had one leg bouncing - as if he was waiting for an opportunity to jump into some unseen fray.
"You have my sincerest apologies for my wife's tardiness, I am sure it isn't her intention to show any disrespect, Ser...?" King Asdgar said. Truth be told, the dwarf made him more than a little nervous.
"Orlaann." The dwarf replied simply. He wasn't a knight, but far be it from him to explain his position in things to a manling.
"No botha, men h've been waitin on women b'fore we an' they'll be waitin' after we." Orlaann said.
"So they will, Ser Orlaann, so they will." King Asdgar chuckled. "Would you care for a drink?"
"Ale?" Orlaann asked.
"We'll see what we can do." Asdgar replied, nodding to Kai who quickly stepped out of the room to get the refreshments. If Asdgar was a little taken aback by Orlaann's tongue, he was simply flabbergasted at dwarven drinking. Orlaann had downed more ale than what one may think to be physically possible. Truly, the legends were not lying, the king mused to himself.
Orlaann didn't know what to make of the king, let alone this mission he had been sent on. He left his great, two-handed axe at the gate and swore to commit no violence within the confines of the castle, yet it was apparent that the King was still very nervous. Ah, that manling servant had made his return, with the ale. About damn time. Orlaann took the mug of ale and nodded his thanks to Kai and took a long draw on it. It wasn't the best ale that had ever graced his lips, but it was better than the watered down horse piss served in some of the city taverns.
But Orlaann didn't know why he was there. This was an assignment for one of his younger brothers, one who's actually into politics. But no, his brother - Kanmek had asked, so here he was, drinking bad ale, and in the presence of a manling. If this king needed the help of the mighty dwarves, Orlaann would at least hear what the manling had to say. It's not that Orlaann distrusted humans, hell, he's fought alongside enough of them. It's just that their hearts are easily swayed by the moment, and he supposed that was due to the shorter life spans that they lived. He smiled inwardly as an uncomfortable silence descended on the room, he liked dealing with the manlings more when they were uncomfortable. Their facades were easier to crack, their games more apparent. You can always get the heart of a problem easiest through discomfort.
King Asdgar stood from his seat as his wife entered the room.
"So, yer Highnesses…"Orlaann started, picking his words carefully between dwarfish and manling. "Wha' can tha kin'dom unda tha' mountain do fo' ye?"
"You can start, Ser Dwarf, by taking your feet off my table." Queen Asta snaps, giving him the same look that she gives Elsa and Anna, when the pair do anything foolish.
Orlaann looked at her and he started to laugh heartily. Nonetheless, he listened and made a show of taking his feet off the table. The look on her face and the tone of her voice amused him greatly. He liked her; this might be more interesting than he thought.
"Sorry, me lady." Orlaann gave her a slight bow of the head, and took another long draft of his ale.
Asta suspected that the dwarf was anything but sorry.
Asdgar looked back and forth between Orlaann and his wife, at the titanic contest of wills that seemed to go on between the two. He started to wonder if maybe his daughter's stubbornness came from his wife instead of himself. But, before things could escalate further, he needed to cut the growing tension. Quickly.
"Orlaann, I'm sure you know that Church is starting to... rile up the people. We have been receiving reports from our spymaster of extremist groups forming, and, even more worryingly, growing. Their actions getting bolder." Asdgar stated.
Orlaann snorted at the thought. The Church hated the dwarves. Hell, they hated anything they didn't understand. The biggest factor in keeping the Church off their backs was the gold that they could provide. Peace never came without a price to be paid.
"Aye, but they like our gold well enoff." replied Orlaann. "Wha' has their britches in wad now?"
"Our daughter." Asta replied softly.
Orlaann locked eyes with the queen for several moments, pondering her statement. Of course he had heard rumors about the princess's abilities, but didn't take much stock in them.
"An' what could a lil." He thought for a moment for the correct word. "Lass haff done to rill up the church?"
"She's… special." Asdgar answered him.
Orlaann thought for a moment, taking a sip of his ale. This was not what his brother had told him to expect from the meeting with the manlings. He prepared himself for a trade deal, not to be discussing the princess!
"Aye. I'm sure evry da thinks that about his lil lasses." Orlaann replied glancing from the King Queen and the servant manling that brought the ale.
Asta sighed. The matter of her daughter's powers was probably the worst kept secret in the kingdom with Elsa using them and scaring off nobel born children.
"Master dwa-" Asta started.
"Orlaann." Orlaann corrected.
"Orlaann, I'm sure you have heard the rumors about our daughter being able create ice and snow out of thin air?" Asta asked.
"Aye, but jus' tales."
"They are true." Asta stated.
Orlaann locked eyes with the queen, again measuring her words against her body language. He didn't like what he saw. Orlaann was no stranger to bumping heads with the Church's fanatics, and if they were turning their attention to the princess...
"An' wha do ye want from us?" Orlaann said carefully.
"We wish an alliance, Ser Orlaann. If the church moves against my daughter and starts a civil war in Arendelle, we would like the dwarves to come to aid to help put it down." Asdgar said.
"Surely ye's army can pu' down a rebellion?" Orlaann asked.
"Yes, but not if the church calls for a holy war against her and brings in outside aide." Asdgar replied.
There it was, Orlaann thought, the heart of the matter. The king and queen feared the church would call for a crusade against a little girl.
"Wha' are ye offerin'?"
"Trade. Halved tariffs and free access to our ports."
Orlaann gave a low whistle, but nodded. "I haff to speak wit' me broder. This is no' wha' I was sent here for. Give me three weeks, yer Majesty."
Asdgar nodded. "Three weeks then."
Orlaann downed the rest of his ale in a massive, single gulp, then slammed the mug onto the table. He had his mission now. The dwarf stood and started towards the door, but, before doing so, he turned to eye the king and queen once more, to get a measure of them. And, again, he saw no deceit in their eyes. His mind was made, this was going to be seen through to the end. If there was one group of manlings Orlaann had an intense hatred for it was the Church and their fanatics. And he would be damned if they were going after a little girl… or come in the way of the revised trade deals.
Once the meeting had finished, Queen Asta and Kai made their way towards the sound raucous laughter, echoing through the halls.
Snowballs and laughter were flying back and forth throughout the ballroom, Kai and the Queen stood by watching the two play. The Queen had not heard her daughter so happy in a long time.
"You were right, Kai. She is fearless."
"She takes after her father, Your Majesty." Kai answered sadly, as they made their way back out of the ballroom.
The girls soon found themselves exhausted and lying on a snowbank conjured by Elsa, with a light flurry falling daintily from the ceiling. They had spent the remainder of the afternoon looking at the colors of the season change on the distant mountainside. The summer greens had given way to the fiery orange and reds of autumn.
"Anna?" Elsa asked quietly.
"Yes, Elsa?" Anna asked.
"What do you want to be when you grow up?" Elsa asked.