A/N: All the names mentioned belong to Disney except for the names Cedric and Freyja. Also, Olaf's last name is a Scandinavian variant of the word 'winter.' And just so you guys know, this is a very technical chapter and it was hard for me to finish because of the small details. Also, a lot is packed in this chapter, but hopefully the other chapters will have a more established pacing to them after this one, or at least they won't be as technical as this one. Lastly, I'd like to give a shout out to Sharkamire. Thank you for your help that you gave for this chapter. :)
On a different note: I'd like to apologize for the wait. I was busy with a school project and I was overly stressed by Monday this week. And I mean it. I was so afraid my ecology lab partner and I wouldn't have the time to finish the project. But it worked out in the end right before we had to present and we pulled it off. I could then focus on finishing this chapter. Hopefully, future chapters won't be as hard to pull off as this one.
Since travelling at eight in the morning for two hours, Anna arrived at Elderwood Academy of Archery at last. She stopped in her tracks to marvel at the building she would soon learn to call home and school that was a hundred yards away.
Eager to finally become a student of the academy, Anna resumed her travels and made headway for the check-up and sign-in table to verify her acceptance letter. When Anna got to the table, she gingerly set down her bags and gave her acceptance letter to a woman at the table.
The woman looked at the document scrutinizing its official seal and script before placing it on the table's right side. Without a word, she retrieved a small pile of papers for Anna to deal with. The first paper was a legal waiver for Anna to sign and for the woman to file away. The second paper was a check-in sheet for Anna to fill out which also would be filed away. The third and fourth papers was a wax sealed envelope and a flimsy piece of paper that had a tower number on it. Anna looked back at the woman.
"What are these?"
The woman at last acknowledged Anna's existence with a bored stare. She gestured to the flimsy piece of paper first. "That is your room assignment. On the front is the section of the academy you've been assigned to. If you unfold it, you'll see what floor you're on, which room, and who your roommate or roommates are if you get a double-occupancy or multi-person room. If you see no name that isn't your own, then you have a room to yourself." The woman then glanced over at the envelope and unceremoniously said, "That has the name of your instructor and class location."
Anna's face suddenly brightened up at the mention of the possibility of who she got as an instructor. The woman caught Anna's express and, just before Anna could tear open the envelope, she stopped her.
"Wait."
Anna looked up at the woman. "What?"
"It's highly recommended that students wait to find out who their instructor is after the tour and once they've been settled into their rooms. That way if they get an instructor that they weren't…expecting, they fall down on their bed or something. Plus, they can have time to switch to a different class before lunch. After lunch…Well, after lunch you'll be stuck with that instructor until you can a transfer."
Anna looked at the woman dumbfounded. She couldn't fathom why any student would have an issue in which instructor they got. Before Anna could ask, however, the woman seemed to know what was on her mind.
"Some instructors are harder than others. I mean, most instructors are fair to students, but there are a small few who are a bit harder and rougher around the edges. Actually, the youngest instructor is the hardest and strictest compared to most other instructors. That's why."
"Oh."
"Now, Instructor Kai will come to meet you and give you a brief tour of the academy so you know the essentials and then he'll help you to your room."
"Okay. Where should I meet him?"
"Just move to your left and wait for him. He'll be here shortly."
"Okay…"
Anna placed her papers and acceptance letter in her cloak's inner pocket and picked up her bags. Then she moved to the side and waited for Kai. Within a matter of minutes he popped up, exchanged pleasantries with her, and they proceeded with the tour. They walked past the archway of the outer parameter walls squared off by four, cylinder towers in each corner, crossed the courtyard and then walked inside the main building.
Kai showed Anna the side hallways to the front student towers, dining center, common room, library, garden, the main staircase to the second, third, and fourth floors, the back wings that had stairs leading up to the back student towers, and Gran Pabbie's office in the back half dome of the building. During the tour, Anna noted that the dining center was across the foyer from the common room and that the front side hallways were the immediate right and left of the main hallway and the staircases to the back towers where adjacent to either the dining center or the common room.
Kai guided Anna to the front right (or now the left) side hallway to her dorm tower. He escorted her to the seventh and final floor of the cylinder tower. There they encountered five doors labeled in silver as 7A-E and all of them had a "1" and a "T" in the front. Room 1T-7E was Anna's and was farthest and simultaneously the closest from the stairwell. (Yet the close distance taunted Anna since a rail and gap acted as a barrier for her to quickly reach the stairs.) When they stood in front of the door, Kai handed Anna a silver ring with two keys on it.
"The small, silver key will let you into the main entrance of the academy after-hours in case of an emergency and lets you into the dorm tower entrance when it's locked. The big, golden key is for your room."
Kai pulled out a silver pocket watch from his left pocket. He flipped it open and read the time. "It's nearly eleven." He put the watch away.
"Orientation lunch will be served at noon in the dining center. Students will officially meet their instructors at the designated location at one." Kai paused to give Anna two pieces of paper. They were the dining center schedule and the academy hours including a recommended curfew that is aligned with the locking of the main entrance at midnight. "If you want to switch to a different class before lunch, go to Gran Pabbie's office. He's the head Elder of the academy and the Order, so he can authorize any changes in the system including switching out students to a different instructor."
Anna carefully had put the papers in her right pants pocket. Then she readjusted the strap of the bag hanging from her left side. "Um...Mr. Kai?"
Kai gave Anna a fatherly smile. "Just Kai is fine. What is it, Miss Andersen?"
"I have two questions about the rooms."
"Yes?"
"What do the letters and numbers represent?"
"The number "1" and the letter "T" shows that this tower is the first one of twelve. Number seven is for the floor and the letters "A" through "E." are for the rooms."
"Okay. Also, I noticed that there are only five rooms and that I don't have a roommate. How many students are in each room? Because they don't look like they're the same size."
"There are 2,500 students attending the academy and of which 2,160 live within the boundaries of the academy while the other 340 live at the home in the town. A hundred and five students live in twelve towers with seven levels each and 15 students per floor. Each tower has five floors and each floor houses fifteen students each but with five rooms. This means that three rooms have four students to them and share two communal Water Closets and Bathrooms between them, one room has two, and one room has one student. The rest of the students live on the other floors within the main building and 200 of them share the second floor with the instructors but they have their own wings to keep to."
"Oh. Okay. Another question."
"Yes, Miss Andersen?"
"How many instructors are there and how many of them are members of the Order?"
"There are 100 instructors leaving them 25 students each. Half of the instructors belong to the Order. Although only a quarter of the Order are instructors at the academy. I am one of them and so is Gerda. The academy's Head Elder, Gran Pabbie, is an instructor and also leader of the Order. Elder Bulda is his second-in-commend for both the academy and the Order. Lastly, there is Mr. Vinter, Mr. Weselton and Miss Arendelle. Both of Weselton and Arendelle prefer not be called by their given names and are strict but knowledgeable instructors. However, Elsa is by far the youngest and toughest out of all of the instructors. But she's also one the best instructors of the academy and one of the very best members of the Order. Between Cedric Weselton and Elsa Arendelle, Elsa-while she may not give anything away about her real self so easily-is 'the lesser of two evils' if you know what I mean."
Anna cocked her head to the right. "Cedric?"
"Oh, right. That's Weselton's given name. It's the reason he preferred to be called by his surname because he's embarrassed by it."
"Okay…Why does El-I mean, why is that Miss Arendelle doesn't want to be called by her given name?"
"She doesn't want people getting close to her. Very few have the power or privilege to call her by her first name."
"Who?"
"Gran Pabbie and I have authority to call her by her given name. Although, she has given fellow instructor, Olaf Vinter, permission to call her by her first name. It is rumored that he is the only close friend she has since she is hardly seen with anyone else."
"Who are the other instructors?"
"Brock, Fritz, Thea, Astrid, Oaken, and Freyja are all excellent instructors despite not being members of the Order of the Arrow."
"Does everyone who enters the academy graduate from it?"
"No."
"Why?"
"Some people simply drop-out."
"Oh…" Anna took a moment to let piece of information sink in, biting her bottom lip slightly. "How long does it take to graduate?"
"Between one to three years. Now, I really must get going. And you need time to settle in and find out who your instructor is before lunch."
"Okay. Thank you for your help, Kai. Sorry for keeping you."
Kai gave Anna an understanding smile. "It's alright, Miss Andersen."
"One more question."
"What?"
"How do you know my name?"
"I'm responsible for sealing each and every acceptance letter to be sent to each household, so I learn prospective students' names before they come to the academy."
"But how did you know what I looked like? I hadn't introduced myself yet."
"I remember your father when he was a student here and you look like him."
"Oh."
Kai patted Anna on the shoulder. "I have to go now. You can settle into your new room." Then Kai walked off with a confident silence following him like a shadow.
Anna turned to face the door. She shifted the keys in her right hand before gripping the golden one. She inserted the key into the doorknob and skillfully twisted the knob to open the door. Anna pulled the key out and lugged her bags inside her new room. Dropping her bags at the foot of the bed and shucking off her archery gear onto the floor, Anna plopped down on the soft bed. She sat up and pulled out the envelope from her cloak pocket.
Anna tried out the weight of the envelope. It appeared to be light-weight, but its influence of determining Anna's destiny as an archer weighed heavily on her shoulders. Whoever she got as an instructor greatly determined how hard her time would be at the academy. Especially if she got Mr. Weselton or Miss Arendelle.
Anna took in a deep breath. "You can do this, Anna. No matter who you get as an instructor you can still get through this and be part of the Order."
After a few moments of calming herself, Anna slipped her thumbs under the envelope folds and opened it up. She pulled out the folded piece of paper and unfolded it. On it was the name of her instructor she wasn't hoping for: Elsa Arendelle.
"Fuck," Anna whispered with a pronounced "f" sound. Anna took a moment to collect her thoughts. She had to remind herself that nothing or no one would stand in her way of becoming an elite archer and a member of the Order of the Arrow.
"No. I can't be intimidated by Elsa Arendelle. I can't let her get to me! I can do this! I will pass her class and graduate and become a member of the Order! I have to!"
Anna then looked for the class's location. She discovered that her first class will meet in the courtyard at one. "Hm. The courtyard. That doesn't sound too bad." As Anna recalled the courtyard was a nice and spacious area. She may have been there briefly but it had calming aura about it that made Anna happy about it.
Feeling a little better about her first day at the academy, Anna jumped from her spot on the bed and fist pumped in the air. "Woo! I'm going to be the best archer this town has ever seen! I'll make my parents so proud of me."
Once the excitement settled down inside of her, Anna checked her wrist watch and saw she had fifty minutes until lunch. She walked around and evaluated her small bedroom first. It was twenty feet wide and was fifteen feet long with polished wood flooring and the walls were a cream color. The bed rested against the east wall sticking out in the middle so there was space on both sides. A small, circular window laid in the middle on the east side of the bed straight across from the door. On the right side of the bed was a small bedside table with a lantern pressed against the wall and next to it was a small bookshelf. On the other side of the bed was a modest dresser. Next to the dresser were two clothing hooks attached to the wall and across the way of the dresser was an inverted corner that had a door labeled "WC and Bath." In the left corner of the door (when entering) and across from the inverted corner stood a small, wooden desk and chair with placed parchment and a quill and inkwell.
Anna thought that the bedroom would do for now, but with a few personal touches she would make it feel more like home. And so she went to work making herself more comfortable with her new room. First came the clothes. They were transferred from the bags to the dresser. Then came the bed sheets. They were a forest green color and Anna placed them over the barren mattress. Afterwards, she pulled out a matching pillow and comforter.
When the bed was set, Anna moved on to placing the few books she brought with her onto the shelf. Looking at the giant spaces that still needed to be filled with books, Anna wished she brought more from home but she could only bring what she could carry. Maybe she'd ask for some more books from her mother and father once she got back to the room and write them a letter. But she would worry about that later. She had to keep to a schedule. She checked the time again. It was ten minutes before noon.
Anna decided that she should start heading out for lunch. She grabbed her archery equipment and put it back on, making sure her recurve bow and quiver of arrows were properly secured with their leather straps on her back. She smoothed out her forest green cloak, readjusted her brown leather bracers on her arms, fixed her brown sash tied around her olive green tunic, and grabbed her keys. She took out the remaining pieces of paper from her clothes and placed them in the drawer of her bedside table. Then she walked out and locked the door.
During lunch, Anna didn't have much luck making new friends. The food was decent so she couldn't complain about the cooking. But she couldn't help but push around some left over peas on her plate.
She sighed. Anna didn't think she would have trouble making new friends. She was a very friendly person. But her problem, she realized, was that she knew all her friends back in the outskirts of town. Here at the academy, things were different. Things were harder. She didn't know anybody.
Without another thought, Anna scooped up the last remains of her lunch in her mouth and then picked up herself, the plate and water glass from the counter she sat at. The redheaded archer had put away her dishes and left the noisy dining center. Pushing her hands in her pants pockets, Anna went outside and wandered around.
As soon as she approached the courtyard, Anna saw a tall figure leaning against a wall. She advanced towards it until she could see "it" was a "he" and he was burly blonde guy with rosy cheeks. The closer Anna got, the better she could see that he had warm, brown eyes. She smiled. He seemed like a warm enough person to talk to. Anna advanced towards the young blonde man until she was three feet away from him.
"Hi."
The blonde guy glanced at her. He cocked his eyebrows in question. "Who are you?"
Anna pulled out her right hand to offer the guy to shake. She added a friendly yet guarded smile on her face for good measure. "I'm Anna Andersen. And you are?"
The guy conceded. He turned to fully face her and shook hands with her. "Kristoff Bjorgman."
Anna put her hand back into her pocket while he smile grew more genuine. "So Kristoff, are you a new student here at the academy?"
"No. This is my second year. Last year I had Elder Bulda as an instructor. This year I've been moved over to Elsa Arendelle's class."
Anna blanched. "You have her too?"
Kristoff blinked. "Wait…You have Arendelle as well?"
"Yeah." Anna took a moment to sink in that her new friend was also a classmate of hers. Her smile returned. "I guess that makes us classmates."
"Yeah. I guess so."
"If you're a second year then how old are you? Nineteen?"
"No, eighteen actually. I started at seventeen."
"Huh. I'm eighteen myself. By the way, do you know how the academy system on graduation works?"
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, if it takes one to three years to graduate but you get a different instructor each year, how is it determined for a student to stay after the first year?"
"Ah…That's what you want to know. Well, Anna, if Gran Pabbie believes that a student has skill and promise to eventually pass the final test that would allow them to graduate from the academy, but they weren't challenged enough or if their instructor was too hard on them and didn't prepare them properly for the test, then the student may return for another year and or two. Sometimes an instructor will voucher for a student suggesting that the student has promise but needs to have an instructor who will be a better match for them."
"Oh…Okay. What determines who becomes an elite archer and become a member of the Order of the Arrow?"
Kristoff tilted his head toward the center of the courtyard where he had seen some students line up there. "Come on and walk with me. We can talk more as we get to the center of the courtyard. I think some of our classmates are gathering there."
"Okay."
Kristoff shoved his hands in his pockets and began to walk. Anna walked beside him.
"So, what determines an archer to be just a graduate or a member of the Order?"
"Your status as an archer is determined on how well you pass the test at the end of the school year. If you do just fine, you're just a graduate. If you do exceedingly well, you are dubbed an elite archer and automatically become a member of the Order."
"Oh. Okay…." Anna had so many other questions to ask, but she didn't want bother Kristoff, who just a student himself, and ask him questions he may not know the answer to or doesn't care to answer. Regardless, she still had one more question for her new companion and she just dying to ask him.
"Do you know what Elsa Arendelle looks like?"
Kristoff kept his gaze on the arrangement of roll-call squares outlined by chalk ahead of them. "No."
"Why not? Aren't you a second year student? Wouldn't you know what the instructors look like?"
"I know what most of them look like except for Elsa Arendelle. Hardly any of the students have ever seen her since she started working at the academy as an instructor. The only students who've seen her are in her class and they haven't really seen her outside of class."
"What do you know about her?"
"Not much. All I know is that she was accepted into the academy at the age of fifteen, graduated after a year, became a member of the Order, and then finally an instructor at the age of seven teen."
"Wow…Hold old is she now?"
Kristoff shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea. She can't be that old considering she is the youngest instructor the academy has ever seen. One of the toughest too, but that's what I've heard. I think the other instructors know she's the toughest, but they don't want to unnecessarily scare away any of her potential students. It wouldn't be fair to her as an instructor, especially since she's also the most passionate about archery."
"Huh. What's your opinion of her? Are you ready to take her on as an instructor?"
Kristoff stopped walking and turned toward Anna with a serious look on his face.
"I'll be honest with you, Anna, but I'll deny everything if you say anything about this to anyone else." He took in a big breath. "I'm terrified of her. I know most of my knowledge about her probably comes from rumors, but I can't help but think she might be some of the things other students have said about her. You know, being strict and scary and stone-faced."
"Okay. Do you think there's more to Miss Arendelle though?"
"I don't know. I guess the only way to find out is see her first."
Kristoff and Anna continued to walk in silence until they randomly stopped at a set of roll-call squares. They looked down at their feet. Kristoff had the number "12" while Anna had "13." They looked at each other with equal amount of curiosity.
"Did Bulda do this in her class?"
"No…This must be something Arendelle does."
The duo then took in their surroundings. They had noticed that there were three sections of roll-call squares. The left and right ones each had two columns with five rows and the middle section stood out by itself with one column and five rows. With further inspection, Kristoff and Anna noticed that the middle section had numbers one through five. The right section had even numbers on the left column and odd numbers on the right. Over at the left section, even numbers were on the right and odds were on the left. Over all there were twenty five squares.
Anna leaned over toward Kristoff staring at the set-up. "This is a weird roll-call."
"Tell me about it."
Over at the left section, some students were talking and snickering. Anna looked at them and then back at Kristoff. "Are they snickering at us?"
"Probably. I had them as classmates last year. They're just a bunch of assholes, so don't bother with them."
Anna straightened out her posture and looked at the ground. "Okay."
Kristoff took note of the despair in Anna's voice. He looked at her and noticed that she had craned her head downward. His mouth twitched a little and his heart swelled with sympathy for the new girl. He hesitantly placed a hand on her back.
"Hey. It'll be okay. I'm sure we'll make it through this class together."
Anna lifted her head up to face Kristoff with a glimmer of hope in her teal eyes. "You really think so?"
"Sure. Why not?"
Anna's face brightened at that encouraging response. Just then, someone tapped Kristoff's shoulder. The blonde guy turned around and his instantly smiled. Facing him was a man with a similar height and build as Kristoff with dark brown eyes and mop-like hair.
"Sven!"
"Hey, Kristoff."
Kristoff lunged forward and lifted up his best friend. After a quick squeeze, Kristoff had placed Sven on the ground.
"It's good to see you again, Sven. I didn't know you were assigned to Arendelle's class as well."
"Well, you know, I wasn't. Once I caught wind that you'd be in her class, I switched out of Weselton's class and into Arendelle's just so we could hang out more. I mean, if we're going to suffer, we may as well suffer together."
"More like be gay together."
Kristoff, Sven, and Anna all turned their attention toward the auburn haired man who had fuzzy sideburns, a smug look on his face and evil twinkling in his light green eyes.
Sven and Kristoff growled together. "Hans…"
Hans chuckled as he took the number "1" spot. He gestured toward Anna. "I see you two ladies recruited an unfortunate soul to be part of your loser bandwagon." He put his hands on his hips and turned fully to face Anna. "Hey, cutie. Come over here and be my number two.
Anna grunted. "No, thank you. I'm fine where I am."
Hans frowned and dropped his hands to his sides. Then he looked down at the number Anna was standing on and smiled. Mirth filled his eyes.
"Fine. Stay there. It's befitting that you got number 13, the unlucky number. I bet you're the biggest klutz and loser in this whole academy."
Anna gritted her teeth and balled her fists. She was about to charge at him when Kristoff held her back. Hans laughed and then turned away from them, smiling to himself as he look out at the front of the roll-call waiting for the instructor to come.
"Let me go! I'll tear that asshole to shreds!" Anna struggled against Kristoff's hold, but she would not give up.
"Anna, let it go. He's not worth the trouble. He'll just keep messing with you if you let him."
Anna struggled in Kristoff's arms until she lost the will and energy to so anymore. Then she calmed down and he had let her place her feet back on her number.
Anna crossed her arms like a petulant child. "Fine. But this isn't over. I'll show him."
"Anna, I don't think you want to compete with Hans Westergaard. He's a really good archer. The only reason he's here again is because Weselton accused him of cheating at the final test. He had to convince Gran Pabbie to come again to a different instructor, so he could graduate. And Gran Pabbie let him, but apparently he gave Arendelle as his new instructor. I may be terrified of her, but I hope she puts him in his place."
"No. I'll put him in his place. I'm sure Miss Arendelle could easily put him in place, but I want the pleasure of beating him at his game."
Sven shook his head. "You're crazy, you know that, right?"
"I don't care. Besides, I think it would be interesting to have a rival. At least I'll stay on my toes if I have a rival of sorts."
"Whatever you say, Red."
Anna then seriously looked at Sven. "By the way, we haven't been properly introduced."
Kristoff blushed. He nearly forgotten Anna was beside him when Sven came around. He bashfully rubbed the back of his neck.
"Right…So Sven, this is Anna Andersen. Anna this is my best friend, Sven Carlson."
Anna smiled and offered Sven a handshake. He took it.
"Nice to meet you, Sven."
Sven smiled back at Anna. "Nice to meet you too, Anna."
Anna's smile faltered to a flat line. "And please don't call me 'Red.' The name bothers me."
"Why?"
"Red is the color of blood and I can't stand looking at blood if I can help it."
"Okay."
Anna's smiled returned to her face. "Thanks for understanding, Sven."
Sven shrugged. "No problem."
Then Sven looked from the backside of the courtyard and toward the academy's entrance. After a quick look at his pocket watch, Sven looked back at Kristoff and Anna.
"I need to find a spot. It's nearly one and I think our instructor is approaching."
A flash of panic crossed both of Kristoff's and Anna's faces. "Elsa Arendelle is coming!"
"Yeah. Talk to you guys later."
Anna frantically looked around. It appeared that more of their classmates filled up roll-call squares as she and Kristoff talked with Sven. She was worried that he wouldn't be near them, but then Anna noticed that Sven thankfully took the number "4" square right across the way from Kristoff on his left. Anna briefly calmed down. But then she turned to watch her instructor come towards the class and felt her stomach drop.
"Oh, God…Here she comes," Anna whispered.
Anna turned back around to avoid making eye contact right away with Elsa Arendelle. She didn't want to prematurely look at her instructor and already feel like a nervous wreck at the start of class. Remaining steadfast with her resolves, Anna stared at the front of the class. As Elsa walked past by, Anna only caught a glimpse of a blue tunic and dark blue cloak from her peripheral vision.
When Elsa was at the front of the class, she turned around dead center, spread her legs apart and put her arms behind her back a la military general. She wore lean and crisp black pants tucked in at the knee with impeccably polished brown leather boots. She scanned the crowd of twenty five students with icy blue eyes under a fringe of golden-white hair poking out from her immaculate French bun. At her right hip hung a sheathed dagger and her exquisite bow that was littered with fine, minute details that could express a whole society's history with finely carved-in symbols if it was crafted that way.
Everyone stood stiff in front of her, including Hans. But he had to put on a brave face since he was closest to her and she could scrutinize every flaw of his if he showed any sign of fear before her.
Once she knew her students were ready for class, despite reading their fear-laden looks that told her that they could easily wet themselves at any given moment, she cleared her throat. At the sound, some students stiffened up more and others relaxed a little.
"I'm Elsa Arendelle and I'll be your instructor for the year. You shall only call me Miss Arendelle. If you attempt to call me otherwise, you will get an earful from me and then some."
Those who had relaxed before went back to being stiff. Elsa spoke with a tight lip and unconvincing voice.
"Don't worry. I may be a strict instructor, but you will learn much from me and if I see potential in any one of you, I will help you reach your full potential."
Elsa relaxed her stance and waited for any reactions just as she had done years before.
TBC…