Adventures of John: The Return to Arendelle
Chapter 6: The Road to Arendelle
"John!" Rapunzel shrieked, running up and wrapping me in a vise-like hug. "It is you! But how?"
"First, I think it would be best if you let go before I die from lack of oxygen, or your jealous husband hits me with your frying pan," I gasped.
"Oh!" she exclaimed, letting go. "Sorry!"
"It's alright," I said, dusting myself off. Looking at myself, I realized that in my speedy transformation I had forgotten to change my clothes, and I looked a bit out of place, a twenty-something year old man dressed in the too-small clothes of a modern teenager. With a twirl of my finger I changed into simpler traveling clothes for the period, with a chain mail vest and iron shoulder plates over a leather jerkin for protection, a crimson cloak over my shoulders. It felt a little strange to be an adult again, but thinking about it, it wasn't all that odd. With the differences in the flow of time in the various magical realms and all the time I spent in them, I was actually closer to thirty years old anyways.
"I will never get used to that," Eugene said, staring openmouthed at the change.
"You better not," I told him. "When magic becomes too normal, it loses what makes it truly magical."
"But how did you get back?" Rapunzel inquired. "We thought you were forced back to your world."
"I was," I informed them. "And as for getting back here, that is a long story. But tell me, what has happened while I was away?"
"That is also a long story," Eugene told me. "One that we should tell when we are far away from here." He nodded toward the smoking mountain.
"Good idea," I said, a grin spreading across my face. "Hold on tight." With a blast of magic, I sent us all flying into the air, rocketing towards the coastline. We landed in a tumble, my magic the only thing keep the whole lot of us from getting our brains smashed in.
"Let's never, ever do that again!" Eugene exclaimed, immediately before puking all over the ground.
"Now," I began, shaking dust off my cloak, "tell me what's happened since I left."
After about an hour we finished exchanging stories, and I was not happy. Not in the slightest. I had spent all this time and effort so I could return to Arendelle, and now Prince(sorry, King) Hans was going to try and take it all away. I was not going to let that happen. I was not going to let the ambition and wounded pride of a stuck-up princeling take away my happily ever after.
"Let's go," I commanded, standing up abruptly.
"Where?" Rapunzel asked, a touch of worry in her voice. I'm guessing that there was something in my tone, or a look on my face, or possibly it was the fact that in my anger flames had begun licking up the corners of my cloak, that worried her.
"Where else?" I questioned. "Arendelle."
I tried to speed our pace as much as I could, but I was weighed down by the size of our group, and I had to be careful with how much power I used. I couldn't risk breaking that wall inside of me that kept the full force of my abilities at bay. The last time I did that I nearly went nuclear, and only Elsa's frosty magic, channeled through a kiss, was enough to keep me from transforming Arendelle into a smoking crater. I didn't want to risk something like that happening again. And so, we made our agonizingly slow way to Arendelle.
But we were not the only ones heading toward Arendelle. King Hans's fleet of warships had just passed through what in our world would have been the English Channel, and were sailing with all speed for Arendelle. Following them were several very unique ships, gifts from the High Bishop himself, holding a contingent of Imperial Inquisitors trained in all manner of combat, stealth, and the specialty of every Inquisitor, torture. The Coronian Navy also sailed for Arendelle, the banner of the golden sun on a violet background flying high as they came to the aid of their long-time ally.
It was a race against the clock, and we were losing. With the help of Maximus and some conjured steeds we galloped through the woodlands. With the help of a clever pulley system I devised we climbed over the mountains. We knew we were getting close when we discovered areas where the snow was just beginning to melt. But it still wasn't enough, not for me anyways. Every second I wasn't in Arendelle was another second that I spent worrying about what would happen if I didn't come in time. I knew that Elsa could handle herself, but I also knew that Hans would never have launched this campaign if he didn't believe he could defeat her.
Eventually we made our way through a range of snow-capped mountains, our little gathering of ruffians, led by a princess, a former thief, and a sorcerer, huddling against the cold. I created a ring of glowing orbs that provided us with heat, but I could only do so much. We continued along our journey, staying our nights in caves if we could find them, and out in the cold when we couldn't.
Finally, one day as we were trudging through the snow, I saw a figure in the distance. "Hey!" I shouted. "You there!"
The figure began to walk towards us, until I saw that it was not one figure, but two. Not only that, but one of them was a reindeer. "Ho there!" The man shouted. "You okay?"
I know that voice… I thought to myself. I opened my mouth to shout out, by Rapunzel beat me to it.
"Kristoff?" Rapunzel yelled over the wind. "Is that you?"
The figure moved forward, finally becoming close enough to see his face. It was indeed Kristoff, with Sven walking beside him. "Rapunzel? Eugene? What are you doing here?" he asked. Then he saw me. "John? But how?"
"Hey there Kristoff," I chuckled. "Nice to see you too."
"It's not that I'm not glad to see you," he insisted. "But how can you be here?"
"It's a very long story that includes a Faerie Queen, a Spirit of Winter and a madman with a magic blue box," I told him. "But right now we need to get to Arendelle."
"Okay then," he said, obviously bursting with curiosity about how I was here. But he kept his questions to himself and led us to the cabin where he was staying for the night before heading back to Arendelle.
"Why are you all the way out here?" I asked him. "With Elsa's powers, doesn't your ice business kind of become a moot point?"
"Well, I still deliver the ice Elsa makes to people's houses," he told me, "but Sven and I come up into the mountains every few weeks. It was all we knew for so long, it kind of gets hard to live within it, you know?"
"Not really," I laughed. "But I'm glad you were here. I'm not sure we would have made it much farther without you."
"What, even with all your magic?" he asked laughing.
"I can only use so much," I told him. "Last time I drew upon too much magic I nearly transformed Arendelle into a smoking crater, remember?"
"Well, we definitely don't want that."
"No," I answered. "We don't."
The next morning we made our way down the mountain, until we reached a cliff overlooking the ocean. Out in the distance I could see a city on the coast, with a palace out on an island in the fjord. "Arendelle!" I whispered, breathing in deeply. I was almost there. I could feel Elsa's presence, pulling me towards her like a great magnet. Soon we would be together again.
We made it to the city, the townsfolk giving our party a wide berth. It probably had something to do with the appearance of the rougher members of our party, who in all fairness looked quite intimidating. Shorty, the short, ruddy, rotund drunkard sort of ruined the effect, bumbling around and knocking into things, and also hitting on every lady we passed. Finally we made it to the palace, and I left the others in the courtyard, going ahead to Elsa's chambers by myself. I stood outside her door and watched as she placed her signature on a set of documents, much like she had on the day we had our first real conversation. She was just as beautiful as I remembered.*
"Hey there, Princess," I said, leaning on the door casually and giving her my best sly smile.
At the sound of my voice she froze, the quill dropping from her stiff hands. She turned towards me slowly, tears brimming in her eyes. "John?"
*Yes, technically I have seen her many times since I left Arendelle, through the internet and watching Frozen, but the differences between animation and reality are large enough that before returning to Arendelle I was beginning to worry that I would forget what her real face looks like.