4. We Know Better
Three days later, Elsa sat on the palace steps, not drawing attention to herself. She watched the courtyard with a grin.
She was on her way to meet Prince Edvin for an outing when she stopped in her tracks. Prince Edvin was waiting for her in the courtyard, but had become...distracted.
He lead Baldur by the reins while a very ecstatic Klaus rode in his saddle. A grin stretched across Edvin's face as he watched Klaus bounce up and down on the saddle. The two paraded around for several minutes, drawing laughs and friendly waves from the servants, before Klaus spotted Elsa on the steps.
"Aunt Elsa!" He shouted, waving an arm at her. Edvin turned, saw her sitting there, and gave her an embarrassed smile. "Aunt Elsa, look! I'm riding a real stallion!"
"Have you outgrown your pony?" Elsa jokes as she stood and dusted off her jacket's bottom with her hand.
"Not yet, but soon I'll be good enough to ride my own stallion! Without Edvin holding the reins or anything!" Klaus scrambled to get off the horse, and Edvin helped him down so he could run and hug Elsa. "I want a stallion instead of a whale now, okay?"
"Okay." Elsa agreed, saluting. Klaus saluted back, turned to wave goodbye to Edvin, then rushed up the steps. Still wearing her grin, Elsa approached Edvin, who was watching Klaus run off with a bemused expression.
"Did he just say 'whale'?" He inquired.
"Don't ask. " Elsa told him dismissively. She watched Edvin's face for a moment, his cheeks were ruddy and he wasn't looking directly after. She said to him, "It was very nice of you to indulge him."
"It was no trouble. It was honestly my pleasure." He said. Elsa leaned closer, recognizing his ruddiness as a blush. This made her grin even wider.
"No need to be so bashful." She teased, nudging his arm with her shoulder.
"I don't do bashful." Edvin informed her confidently, "I do warrior's disconcerted."
"Ah." She accepted her horse's reins from the stable boy, "Where are we going today?"
"I thought we'd go for a ride in the forest. At a slower pace. That way we can enjoy the scenery." He smirked. Elsa's eyes narrowed and she donned a too-sweet smile.
"I suppose. I'd feel that way too if I lost."
"This has nothing to do with our race. Which, I should point out, you didn't win. We tied."
"If it helps you sleep at night. " Elsa shrugged before mounting.
"It does." Edvin admitted smugly as he climbed onto Baldur's back. They set off through the gates and walked at a leisurely pace around the outskirts of the Fjord. Elsa relaxed as she looked out over the harbor.
Halli, Elsa's salt-and-pepper mare, seemed to be enjoying the pace as well. Hallie swayed this way and that, completely at ease. Halli's speckled gray coat was a stark contrast to Baldur's dark brown, incredibly sleek appearance.
"What have you been up to in the past couple of days?" Elsa asked.
"To be honest, I've spent a lot of time in town." Edvin replied. His hands rested casually at the top of his saddle.
"Have you enjoyed it?"
"Immensely. I find the entire population of Arendelle to be very welcoming and kind."
"I'm glad it's to your liking. I feel I don't go into town nearly enough." Elsa admitted, "I would like to visit at some point during the New Spring Celebration, but I find that I scarcely have the time. I find myself wondering how my parents managed it for so many years." For the most part, Elsa's waking hours were filled to the brim with organization meetings and giving directions on preparing for the next event. At the moment, there was much planning going into the Mid-Spring ball, which less than a week away. She'd found time to go riding with Edvin a few days ago, but that had been her only free time...during the day, that is. She'd spent more than one night that week staying up late in the library, reading with Sebastian in comfortable silence.
"Your parents must have been dedicated." Edvin noted, watching her face carefully. She gave him a smile that didn't reach her melancholy eyes.
"They were incredible." She told him heartily.
"Tell me about them." The Prince put on a show of settling into his saddle and watching her attentively. His pantomime made her giggle shortly.
"King Roald and Queen Liv were..." She sighed, "Much beloved by their people. My mother was kind and courteous, she loved children." Elsa looked down at her hands. Her mother did adore children, she came from a large family and longed for one of her own. She sometimes wondered if they'dve had more children had it not been discovered that Elsa had powers. "My father was adventurous and generous. He was a skilled hunter and an involved king." He was very involved with his subjects. That is, until Elsa caused him to close the gates. Her parents were always there for her, encouraging her even when she didn't want to hear it. She knew that all they wanted was for her to be happy. Elsa blinked once. Suppose her parents believed as Sebastian did; that she was as capable of finding happiness as anyone else.
"Elsa?" Edvin asked. Elsa cocked her head. It did not escape her notice that this was the first time he said her name without the 'Queen' pretext or shouting for her help. She hadn't time to appreciate it then. She didn't have much time now, either. Edvin had gotten her attention because she was already silent for too long.
"Yes. Sorry. I was just...thinking." She explained lamely. Why was it that she was eloquent and sophisticated in all other aspects of her life, but when she was around Edvin she could barely string words together?
He seemed to accept her explanation without question.
"What about your family?" Elsa asked, anxious to get off the hot seat.
"Ah." He smiled effortlessly and Elsa was immediately filled with envy, she could hardly mention the word 'family' to herself without being reminded of how she destroyed her own. "The royal family of Horndale are a hearty folk," Edvin continued with a laugh, "My parents, King Thore and Queen Inga, I'm sure you've heard of."
"I've never had the pleasure of meeting them personally."
"Well, my mother likes to fuss, and my father likes to make her worry. " His smile grew wider and Elsa studied his face closely; was there something different about him today?
Unknowingly, Elsa had guided Halli closer and closer to Baldur until the two horses were nearly flank-and-flank. Now that she thought about it, this was her first time seeing Edvin truly smile in the daylight, close enough to see…
"You have dimples! " She exclaimed as the epiphany hit her.
"What?" Edvin asked, taken aback by her sudden outburst.
"I've never noticed before." She beamed at him, "That's adorable."
"Manly." He corrected her gruffly.
"Of course, that's what I meant to say." She looked away, unable to keep the self-satisfied grin away.
"Stop making that face."
"What face?"
"That look girls get when they look at bunnies. " Edvin elaborated flatly. Feeling slightly guilty, Elsa turned back to him while trying to invoke her self-control. She was surprised to see that Edvin didn't look upset with her, his eyes were trained on her face. "Now that you mention it," He admitted, "I've never seen you smile all that much before, either." He appeared to consider her for a moment before adding, "I like it."
She never tell him so, but she like his smile, too. Dimples and all.
"I'm sorry for interrupting, please finish telling me about your parents." Elsa returned her eyes to the path ahead of them.
"As I was saying," He continued with exaggerated forcefulness, "My father can be kind of intimidating. Imagine a man the size of a berserker with the heart of a grizzly bear and the dry humor of a bard ."
"That certainly is an interesting combination."
"My mother has no idea what to do with him." Edvin laughed, "He does exasperate her so. She is always busy, there's always something for her to fuss over or a project for her to work on. We never had a nurse, my mother raised us all by herself. I imagine it was a nightmare when Gustav and I were young."
"Gustav's your older brother?" Elsa asked.
"Yes, we're a lot alike. When we were younger we always played in the garden together. Mother would despair over all of our ruined trousers. We'd terrorize the maids and steal from the cooks, mother could never keep a close enough eye on us."
"It's nice that you and your brother are so close."
"Same for you and Anna." Edvin reminded her, "Anyone can see how close you two are."
"We've certainly grown together over the past few years." Elsa admitted forlornly, "We were inseparable when we were small. But then…" She stared at her hands.
"The powers?" Edvin asked softly. Elsa nodded.
"I hurt her once, she was barely five at the time. After that, my parents and I resolved to keep my powers a secret from everyone, even her. I spent the rest of our childhood keeping her at arms' length. It was for her own protection, but still." She swallowed and pushed on, "Gustav's not your only sibling though, is he?"
"No." He took the hint and answered her, "My younger siblings, Frea and Tollak, are much easier children that Gustav and I were. They give mother almost no trouble. Frea is sixteen; she's a dancer, singer, artist, musician, scholar, and caregiver. Tollak is only nine, and Frea looks after him most of the time even though she doesn't have to. She's teaching him the piano ."
"She must be very talented." Elsa marveled.
"Oh, very. She can play twelve instruments."
"I can't even name that many instruments." She confessed.
"Nor I. But, that's Frea, a rather remarkable girl."
"Aw, you love her." Elsa sang.
"She's my sister, of course I love her." He looked at his companion, eyes appraising, "You'd really like her."
"What makes you say that?"
"Everyone likes Frea, it's not much of a stretch." He snickered, rolling his eyes, "But more than that, she finds something in common with everybody, And she's...bright. You know; intelligent and kind and cheerful."
"What about Tollak? What's he like?" Elsa asked eagerly.
"He quiet. But he's able to master anything he sets his mind to. He's picking up the piano very quickly, Frea has already started making plans to teach him the harp. And he's shown a knack for archery."
"At nine?"
"At nine." Edvin confirmed. His expression was soft with affection as he talked about his family.
Elsa felt the need to mock him for it.
"With such accomplished siblings, it's easy to see how you can be swept under the rug." She scoffed, sitting up haughtily, "After all, you only saved the town from bandits."
"They were very big bandits ." Edvin retorted gravely.
"Yes, yes, very well. But how many instruments can you play?"
"I play with swords. Not harps. How many instruments do you play, Queen Elsa?" He asked.
So he was back to calling her 'Queen'.
"I play the violin." Elsa informed him. He looked mildly impressed. Elsa had read through the entire palace library at a very young age, leaving her with nothing to do behind her closed bedroom door. Many violins had met their end in her icy clutches. After years of frustrating practice, she would say that she could play the instrument well enough.
"You must play a concert for me sometime." Edvin ordered.
"Oh no." Elsa tittered nervously, "I'm not that good with it, really."
"I'm sure you play wonderfully."
" Then spare me from playing so you can continue to think so highly of my abilities. " Elsa suggested.
"One day, I will hear you play." Edvin vowed.
"Not if I can help it." She muttered.
They rode in silence for several minutes, taking in the beautiful, sun-colored waters and blossoming trees.
Elsa was more confused than she'd ever been in her life. For the past week she'd spent time with both Prince Edvin and Prince Sebastian, and she wasn't sure what either of them wanted from her.
She glanced over at Edvin, he was taking in the landscape as though it were a painting; a true work of art.
That was the thing about Edvin; he was always fascinated and constantly lost in thought. He was fun to be around and, although he flustered her at times, she knew that he really cared about what she had to say. She'd told him things that she'd never told a living soul before. She liked that he was vulnerable with her and never judged her, no matter what she was feeling. The flipside of these virtues was that when he didn't want to share his feelings, he was impossible to read.
Sebastian, on the other hand, wore his heart on his sleeve. She didn't need him to say it to know what he was feeling. She had thing in common with him and enjoyed his company, even if they were just sitting in silence. He was sweet and made her blush like no one had before. Plus, Ingrid and Olaf were both practically in love with him themselves.
But, deep down, did she really think she could trust either of them?
Deep down, did she believe one of them could be her true love?
She had honestly no idea.
She followed Edvin as they turned around and headed back to the palace, with the ball fast approaching Elsa couldn't spare as much time as she'd like.
"More ambassadors arrive every day." Ida informed the Queen before she'd even dismounted.
"I know." Elsa remarked coolly as her feet touched the ground.
"People are demanding to be greeted by you, they're becoming impatient." Ida continued, "There's a large number of people awaiting your return in the throne room." Ida looked ruffled, her workload increased as Elsa's did, and Ida certainly did not appreciate the Queen's "time wasting" disappearances.
"I'll be right there."
"And the chef needs your opinion on the soup recipe before anything else. Hurry, we need to get you changed before you greet the dignitaries." Ida hustled off.
Elsa moved to follow the harried maid but Edvin caught her elbow.
"Elsa, wait." He blurted out. Elsa turned back to look at him, his hand dropped from her arm the moment she was facing him. He seemed to be struggling to say something.
"Yes?" She asked, raising her eyebrows.
"I wanted to thank you," He said at last, mastering himself, "for going riding with me today."
"Thank you for inviting me." She replied sincerely.
He looked at her for a long moment as though he wanted to say something else. After a moment, he sighed and settled on "Well, goodbye."
"Goodbye." She bid him. He turned on his heel and walked hurriedly across the courtyard.
"I think the question we need to ask ourselves is: what color best represents spring?" The royal decorator asked zealously.
"Don't you mean, 'what color best represents mid spring'?" Elsa retorted wearily. She stood next to Anna, who'd been sporting a glazed expression for the past hour, in the ballroom. Flowers were being carted in and the decorator was trying to establish a color scheme. After greeting visitors, taste-testing dishes, and standing for a dress fitting, Elsa was ready to sleep for a year. But the decorator would not release her.
"Doesn't pale green mean mid-spring?" Anna asked half-heartedly.
"Pale green and white, that's what I thought." Elsa agreed, "It's transitionary."
"Yeah." Anna bleated .
"There, then." Elsa stated in a harsher tone than was called for, "That's decided. If there's anything else you need from me, I will be available to you first thing tomorrow." She grabbed her sister's hand and dragged her from the ballroom.
"Your Majesty?" The decorator called as the doors closed behind them. A few yards away, the sisters leaned with their backs against the wall.
"Anna," Elsa whimpered, resting her head on her Anna's shoulder, "I'm so exhausted."
"I know." Anna comforted her, patting the top of her head.
"How did Mama and Papa do this every year? I'm not even convinced I'll make it through one year."
"I don't remember much about Mama and Papa's New Spring Celebration." Anna admitted carefully, "But I know that you'll make it through this year, and do it again next year, and the year after that. And it will be so fun and everyone will love it so much that all of this work will be worth it."
"Mm." Elsa grunted as Anna continued to stroke her hair.
"It'll be great. You'll see." Anna assured her. They stayed for several minutes in silence.
"Anna." Elsa sighed, sinking down the wall until she was sitting on the floor.
"Yes?" Anna followed suit.
"If Hans had been different...I mean, if he was who he pretended to be." She looked at her younger sister grimly and asked, "Would you still have married Kristoff?"
Anna considered this question carefully.
"I really don't know." She admitted at last, "Putting true love aside, I don't know who I would have chosen. I might've chosen Kristoff."
"Why? How would you know?" Elsa pressed.
"For one thing, Kristoff loved me. He came back for me even when he thought I'd never love him. That kind of devotion would be hard to ignore, wouldn't it?" Anna shrugged.
"And if Hans loved you?"
"I might've chosen him." Anna replied simply.
"You're not helping." Elsa complained, resting her forehead on her knees dejectedly.
"I'm sorry." Anna laughed, rubbing her sister's back, "If you want the truth; I probably would have gone through with marrying Hans. But that's not what happened. Hans wasn't who he said he was and Kristoff is my true love."
"Hmph."
"Do you want to know what I think?" Anna asked delicately. Elsa hesitated before nodding against her kneecaps. "I think that fate and true love will work itself out. I wholeheartedly believe that you'll end up with your true love, and you'll be very happy."
There it was again; speculation on Elsa's happiness.
"Not to mention that if this is about Sebastian and Edvin, you could be happy with either one." Anna added. Elsa lifted her head an inch.
"You don't believe that." She replied dryly.
"They're both wonderful men. Either of them could be your true love. The thing is; your true love is the person that you love back. Unconditionally. In the end, it really is up to you." Anna patted the Queen's shoulder and stood.
"You know," Anna continued, looking down at her sister slyly, "They say a princess always knows what's in her heart. But you and me. We..." Elsa smiled in spite of herself as Anna quoted a song they made up when they were children.
"We know better." The two chorused. Anna giggled and waved goodbye before heading off down the hall.
Days and nights began to blur together for the exhausted Queen Elsa. At one point that week she dozed off in her chair in the library. When her eyes opened, she saw Sebastian in the chair across from her, watching her closely.
"You were watching me sleep." She accused him groggily, rubbing her eyes. Her legs were draped over the chair's arm, she stretched them before settling further into the position, too comfortable to sit up straight.
"Hm." He hummed amiably. Elsa yawned and stretched her arms.
"Nothing ever ruffles your feathers, does it?" She wondered.
"Not much, no."
"Hm." She fixed him with a calculating stare.
"Please stop trying to think of ways to agitate me. " Sebastian demanded, not unkindly.
"I am doing no such thing."
"I can see the cogs turning as we speak. You intend to embarrass me."
"Hardly." Elsa argued. The book she'd been reading before falling asleep was draped across her chest. She picked it up and closed it, frowning.
"What's wrong?" Sebastian asked.
"I'm just...thinking."
"About?"
"I mean, I'm just wondering," She set the book on the end table and looked at her companion seriously, "Don't you have any, you know, flaws ?"
"Pardon?" He laughed.
"Well, why do you have to be so perfect all the time and make the rest of us look bad?"
"I'm not perfect." Sebastian objected.
"Prove it." The Queen challenged.
He appeared to be thinking very hard.
"You can't think of anything, can you?" Elsa asked, half-awestruck, half-bitter.
"Elsa," Sebastian shook his head, "Don't you wonder why I'm 29 years old and not married ?"
"All the time! That's my point!" Elsa exclaimed. A horrible feeling as though she was freefalling took over as she asked, "You're not actually married, are you?"
"No. Of course not." He held up his hands defensively.
Inconspicuously, she breathed a sigh of relief.
"In part, it's because I have twelve brothers, all of whom overshadow me in some way or another."
"I find that hard to believe." Elsa informed him flatly. He smiled tenderly.
"The truth is; I haven't spent a lot of time looking for a wife. That is, until recently, I've never met anyone I could even i magine being married to. " The look he gave her made her insides go warm and buzz pleasantly.
"That's hardly a flaw on your part. Rather disappointing."
"I think that, you of all people, can understand my fault in this." He said seriously.
Instantly, she did understand.
"Why have you been hiding?" She asked breathlessly.
"I haven't been hiding, exactly. But you know that I can hardly hide my feelings. I'm involved with my people and I love them, I love my parents. But, historically, being as involved with a woman always leads to trouble. That's why I've always been reserved around women. I didn't want to invest in one…unless she was the right one." He held her gaze with his soft hazel eyes and it was suddenly very hard for Elsa to breathe.
"What," Elsa swallowed audibly, "what are you saying?"
He stood and strode the few feet separating them. He knelt before her, a bubble of panic rose in her chest as he took her hand.
"Queen Elsa," He said gravely, "would you do me the honor of accompanying me to the Mid-Spring ball?"
Elsa repressed a hysterical giggle. Although this was not the terrifying question she'd expected, it came with its own connotations. Sebastian was hoping to escort her to the ball. They'd be seen publicly on an actual date.
She looked at him, considering this. This was the most vulnerable she'd ever seen him, and he was definitely no stranger to her vulnerabilities. The thought of dancing with him at the ball...all night…
She smiled, heart swelling as his eyes light up.
She'd never be able to say no to him.
BOOM. My semester is extremely busy right now, but this story is surprisingly high on my priorities list. The next chapter should be up within a week.
Also, Deluxe Soundtrack FTW, anyone?
Don't forget to keep reviewing!
Seriously.
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