The Guardian and the Crystals
It has taken all but one hour for Anna and me to prepare for the trip to the Valley of the Living Rock. It's not that it's a long trip as such; it's just not a very exciting one. One long winding road through the middle of the mountain range that passes through a small geyser field and it's just off of there. We haven't left yet though, and in truth it's because I don't want to.
This 'Cyril' character seems to be offering Kristoff to Anna in exchange for me. After all that I've done to her, there is no doubt that I will give myself in when asked. But I am scared. Not scared of what will happen to me, well I am a little bit. Oh who am I kidding; I'm terrified! I haven't felt this powerless since I was staring into Anna's frozen eyes on the fjord, and to me this is no different: I have ruined her life all over again in just another way. Obviously by letting myself go mad up in the North Mountain I had attracted this man's attention, and he has to get what he wants this time, it's the only way I can be sure that Anna will be safe, whatever the cost.
I am snapped back into reality by a delicate knock on my door- oh no! It's closed again! I leap off of my bed and run to the door, I promised her! I promised it would never be closed again and already I have broken it! After nearly falling over, and knocking over a lampshade, I grab the door handle and throw it open, to find Olaf staring at me with concern.
"Umm, is everything okay?" he asked looking at the fallen lampshade, "Kai asked me to ask you when you were going. So… When are ya going Elsa? Kai wants to know!"
His silliness brings a small grin to my face, "I'll be leaving soon." I think for a moment, "Hey Olaf, can I ask you something?" I ask, beckoning him inside.
"Mkay!" he keenly replies as he skips into my room. I close the door behind him, hesitating at its concealment, but I decide to keep it closed just this once while we talk. Olaf plops himself on the floor a little too close to the fire for my liking, and looks expectantly with his usual goofy smile. Little gestures that he does like that warm me inside a little.
"Olaf, can you keep this between us? I don't want Anna, or anyone for that matter, to find out."
"Ooooh a secret!" he playfully salutes me, "don't worry my queen, your secret is safe with me!"
"At ease soldier," I say gently as he lowers his twiggy arm, "right, here it goes." I take a deep breath in, "Olaf I… I don't think I'll be coming back from this trip with Anna."
"Oh, you- oh! I get it, you wanna stay a little bit with the trolls? They're so much fun! Just be careful around the little ones, they might seem lighter but they're really not!"
Let's try this again… "Olaf, I don't think I'll be coming back at all."
His smile quickly fades away and is replaced with a look of sadness, "What? Why? I don't understand?"
It breaks my heart to see him like this, "The only way that the man that did this will release Kristoff back to Anna is a trade; Kristoff for me. It's the only way that Anna and Kristoff can be back together again and come home. I have to stay."
"So, you're never coming back? I'll never see you again?" I can hear the pain in his voice.
"I don't think so Olaf, no." I start tearing up, and the lump in my throat I've become so familiar with has returned, "I'm so sorry Olaf, *sniff* but it's the only way around this."
"No, NO!" he stands now, "There has to be another way! You could take the entire city guard! He would be no match for all of them at once! Use your powers! You could easily beat anyone with them!" he desperately throws all of these ideas at me, but I know they won't work.
"If he sees me approach with a patrol he could harm Kristoff, and I think he has powers too, I can't risk it." This just upsets him even more now.
"No! No no no no no!" he puts his head in his hands, "this can't be happening! We're all finally together again and now we're breaking apart! It's not fair!" he is crying so much now.
"I'm so sorry little guy," I collapse to the floor and bring him into a long, warm embrace, subtly re-freezing him where he melts to my touch and the presence of the fire, "I'm so, so sorry Olaf. Believe me if there was another way I would do it in a heartbeat." I pull away from him and look him in the eyes, those big, always loving eyes that I have filled with tears of absolute sorrow. I seem to have that effect on people nowadays…
"So- *sniff* so this is goodbye then?" he stammers, "That's why you invited me in? This is the last time I'll ever see you again?" All are questions that I wished I would never have to answer with yes, but I have to be strong else I'll never survive this trip.
"Yeah little guy, it is." I raise my hand to his face and he closes his eyes and gently leans his face into it. Olaf is the closest thing I knew I would ever have to a child, which makes this even harder. He sees me as his mother, and I've just told him that this is goodbye forever. I actually feel evil now.
"No come on, brave face!" I say with a fake smile, though I know he sees right through it, but he tries to put a smile on as well. "It's not like you'll ever be alone! Anna and Kristoff will be here, remember? They'll look after you!"
"But what about you? I want you!" he begs.
"I know you want me here sweetie, I want to be here too, but I owe Anna this much, I can't let her down."
"Okay… Can I at least see you off?" he asks.
"Of course you can sweetie, but you must be brave and not cry. Otherwise others might wonder if there's something's up."
"I don't know if I can Elsa, what if the guard sees me crying? I'll have to tell them won't I? I can't lie to them!"
"If you do that the guards will follow us. That would put Kristoff in danger. I can't tell anyone about this, and neither can you."
"But do you even know where you'll be going? It might be dangerous!" This I have no doubt.
"Look Olaf, technically I'm not allowed to leave Arendelle or its surrounding areas without a guard accompaniment. I can't risk this. We're going to the Valley of the Living Rock to consult the trolls there, and then…" I'm not even sure this is a good idea… "…and then we'll be going straight to wherever it is we need to go. If we leave the area around Arendelle, which I'm sure we will, then the guard legally have to follow, risking Kristoff's life."
"So if anyone asks…"
"…we are just going to the trolls, nowhere else." I tear up as I use foresight to plan the future to set his mind at ease a little, "When Anna and Kristoff return without me, normal procedure will follow; Anna will become Queen and Kristoff will become King of Arendelle. Life goes on for everyone."
"Everyone except you!"
"Olaf, that's enough," this is the hardest conversation I have ever had to have, "please, please just try to accept this, and everything will be just fine." I'm actually regretting ever telling him any of this.
"Okay… For Anna and Kristoff?"
"For Anna and Kristoff."
I hug him one last time before we walk to the door and I open it for him. "Take care Olaf."
"Elsa?" he turns to me.
"Yeah sweetie?"
"I love you."
Those words hit me like a stake through my heart.
"I love you too. Don't you ever forget it." I command.
He playfully salutes again, "Yes my queen" he lowers his hand and smiles at me one last time before turning and slowly waddling down the corridor, not once looking back. I just lean against the wall and watch him walk around the corner one last time before I turn back into my bedroom, leaving the door open. Olaf is the only one that will know my intentions for this trip; if Anna found out, it would destroy her. I have a feeling it will anyway, but at least when she finds out she'll have Kristoff back.
I wipe my eyes and decide to go through my things I am bringing with me: A large bag with survival supplies ranging from food that can be eaten cold, to a strange filter that Gerda had made for me that lets us drink from almost any water source. I also have a large purse with a big supply of coins and gemstones for any expenses. I feel I may have to cash in on my position as queen a few times this trip before we leave the outskirts of Arendelle's lands, as my royalty will do us no good outside there. I'm also packing the journal that Gerda had found in the box. I think it's my father's but I haven't opened it yet. Amongst other necessities like a few small maps, clothes and hats, that's it. I won't be bringing my crown as I want to only bring those that are necessary; I don't want to tire out our horses too much.
Just then Anna comes into my room with an enormous suitcase bulging at the seams. I hurry over as she is struggling with this a lot.
"What- *grunt* have you packed in here?!" I exclaim.
"Just the basic stuff," we slam the case onto the bed and it almost bounces back off! "Breakfasts, lunches, dinners, fire starter kits, winter dresses, sailing dresses, summer dresses, spare clothes for Kristoff, spare food for Kristoff, hats for all of us because it'll probably be freezing you know, some books for the journey, some coins, a tiara Kristoff once bought me, sun lotion, after sun lotion, travel teapot, that weird mouthwash stuff we use every morning, small pillows, blankets…" she pauses scanning her case, "Oh, and these mittens and a survival guide."
"Ummm, don't you think that's a bit, you know, excessive?"
"Yes absolutely! That's why I've brought it in here for us to go through together," she takes out two dresses and holds them up against herself and looks at me, "When we save Kristoff which dress do you think I should wear when he sees me?"
"Green one on the left, definitely." I say quickly. "But before we do that," deep breath… "I need to talk to you about something."
"Okay well, can we talk and sort at the same time, I wanna leave as soon as possible." I keep forgetting that she no doubt wants to get going to Kristoff.
"Of course."
We start throwing everything in the case out onto the bed and the floor and sprawl some of it out across the floor, just how much stuff did she get in here?
"Here's the thing Anna," I start, "When we get to the Valley, Kristoff's Grandpappie will no doubt decipher the map there and then for us- no leave the purple ones here- and I have a feeling that it will lead to somewhere far away from any of Arendelle's territories."
"Okay, so what should we do then?"
"When we find out where we're going, we leave for it there and then."
Anna hears this and stops searching for a missing green sock for a moment, "You don't want to come back here first?"
"No." I say, handing her the sock I had just thrown on the floor, "If we come back here then Kai, Gerda and the guard captain will now doubt want to know where it is we're going."
"Can't we tell them?" she asks, interfolding two mittens into themselves.
"If we do that, and it turns out it's outside Arendelle, we'll need to go it alone. We can't risk the guards coming too."
"So just tell them you want it to be just the two of us?"
"That's the thing Anna," I start looking through the food she has packed, "when we are outside of Arendelle we won't have any royal jurisdiction, so it's a legal requirement to have a guard accompaniment escort us all the way, especially as it's both the only queen and the only princess of Arendelle."
She ponders on my last remark, "So you don't want a guard accompaniment to come with us?"
"No. If we get to wherever Cyril is hiding and he sees the guards, he could hurt Kristoff, I'm not about to let that happen."
"Oh no, yeah you're right we don't want that." She slumps to the bed in thought and her eyes start to tear up, and I know exactly where her mind is right now.
"Anna," I sit next to her and put an arm over her shoulders, "This guy want's me, that much is obvious. I don't know why exactly, but he really wants me, and he's going through a great deal to get to me."
She wipes her eyes a little, "So, what are you saying?"
"I'm saying that now he has Kristoff, do you really think he'd harm him and risk us not showing up for the trade off? I promise you that he might not be living the life of luxury right now, but Krissy is in no danger."
She sniffs and wipes her eyes again, before giving me a gentle, playful nudge in the ribs, "Only I can call him that." She grins a little, which brings some relief to me.
"Now come on, let's finish this, or we'll never get going!"
"That's true!" she says as she jumps up, eager as ever again.
I decide to carry on with my 'mission brief', "so as I was saying, we leave Arendelle alone, and we go under the radar." I read that in a book once, and I really have been looking for an excuse to say it, seemed a good enough time as ever!
"Under the radar? So, like ninjas?"
"Kind of. Just really subtle and low profile. If the guard captain finds out that we're missing he'll send out patrols everywhere, even outside of Arendelle's territories. We must make sure we-"
I'm interrupted by the towering presence of the guard captain as he stands in the doorway, casting a shadow over both the conversation, and the room as a whole. He is enormous, very muscular and at least six foot eight or nine I think. He slowly waltzes into the room with his hands behind his back and his head held high. He is wearing the usual attire of a royal guard, black boots and trousers, but his long overcoat, usually grey and green, is a dashing red with golden tassels and trimmings. He also wears a black helmet with a strange needle atop it, I've always wondered what that was for.
"Forgive me your majesties, but I couldn't help but overhear."
"Oh. You are forgiven!" Anna says with a nervous smile, but her tone quickly sulks, "How much did you hear, exactly?"
"Enough, my princess." His words make my heart sink, our entire plan is ruined!
"No no NO!" I hold my head in my hands, "You've gotta let us go it alone!" I say to his face now, and I'm shocked at my own lapse of stature, "If you don't, then Kristoff could get into serious trouble! I know it's wrong, but it's the only way!"
Anna jumps up now, "He could be killed just for the sake of a little bit of safety! It's not worth it, we need to go alone! You can't make us have a guard escort, you just can't!"
"I don't plan to, your highness…"
"You need to try and make some kind o- wait, what?" Anna cuts short.
"I don't intend to send a battalion to escorts you."
This really shocks me, "You, you're not? But I thought that was the law."
"It is, and as guard captain it is my job to enforce the laws of men in any way I see fit."
Anna scowls in confusion now, "so you ARE going to make us go with the escort?"
"No, I'm not."
This is all really confusing now, "So what are you going to do then?" I ask.
He clicks my door shut, removes his helmet, revealing short but wavy blonde hair, and turns to us both, "I am going to let you both go by yourselves."
It takes a minute for all this to sink in, "You are?" Anna asks.
"I am. May I?" he gestures to the chair at the end of my bed.
"Oh, of course!" I say as Anna and I hurry to the chair and carry it to where we were both sitting. It's actually quite heavy, and I don't know why we are taking it to him, he's more than capable of carrying it himself. I think it's my way of a kind of peace offering as he is essentially going to break several laws for us.
"Well thank you!" he gleefully says as he takes a seat, "Now, I overheard the majority of your plan, and I feel it is in Kristoff's best interests that I allow you to go alone as having a patrol, as you rightly said Elsa, would cause more trouble than good."
"Wow, I can't believe you are agreeing with us!" Anna said cheerfully.
"Neither can I your highness," he says with a quiet tone, "If anyone were to find out of my actions, I could be arrested for countless counts of treason; Knowingly allowing the Royal bloodline to come to harm; failure to enforce protective laws and through doing so allow harm to befell, blah blah blah, the list is as long as my arm!" he holds out his arm to aid the metaphor, to be fair it is quite long.
"Thank you sir," hearing this makes me realise the risk he is putting himself in "I really do appreciate what you're doing for us, and I won't forget it."
"Actually in this scenario I'd rather you did," He said jokingly, causing Anna and I to nervously giggle, "and you can call me Sebastian your majesties."
"Oh, okay. Sebastian it is then!" Anna calls out from behind me, I turn to see she has already gotten back to un-packing and re-packing her stuff.
"Now my queen," he says in a hush tone to me, I turn my gaze to him now, "I do have something that I would like to input into this 'run away' plot of yours.
"Of course, what is it? Oh, and if we're going by names, you can call me Elsa!" I smile.
"I'm afraid I can't your majesty."
"Oh, okay then." I giggle it off; this man takes his job very seriously, well sort of…
"Now to the matter at hand, I will not make a battalion go with you, but I think it would be wise if I accompanied you along the way myself for protection."
I consider this option; it doesn't seem like a bad idea. It would only be for our protection and I'm sure that Cyril wouldn't feel threatened by the three of us. "That does seem wise Sebastian, but please understand me when I say that I would like to consult with Anna for this." I say gesturing behind me to the strawberry-blonde frantically searching for the green hat.
"Absolutely your majesty, take all the time you need."
"Thank you." I say as I hurry over to Anna.
"Where is it, where is it?" she says to herself under her breath.
"Um, Anna?" I say, tapping my temple and referring to the green hat she is currently wearing.
"Huh? Wha- oh! There it is! Oh gee that's awkward… Thanks Elsa."
"You make me laugh sometimes!" I giggle to her, "Now Sebastian has just made a very good point about our trip-"
"He's cute isn't he?" she blurts out, to my shock.
"What?"
"Don't you think he's cute?" She asks again. I can't see this conversation ending without an answer from me now.
"He is kind of, yeah." I have noticed this; he is rather charming with his wavy hair and his build, he is very muscular! "Why?"
"Don't you like him?" she asks, not taking her big blue eyes off of me as she continues to pack.
"Anna!" This is very straight up from her!
"What? C'mon Elsa, you need someone! A great queen needs her King! I have my Krissy so why can't you have someone?"
I glance back to Sebastian, who is scanning my bookshelf for titles he might recognise. Convinced he's out of earshot, I turn back to my sister, who has somehow managed to slip right in front of my face, waiting for my answer. "Weeeeeeeeeeell?" she's so pushy!
"Anna I don't think we should be talking about this right now," I lower my tone, "I don't think this is the sort of thing that sisters talk about when the 'subject'" I nod over to Sebastian, "is in the same room!"
"Oh fine, you're no fun!" she teases, "So what did dream boy say?" she says, returning to her case.
I explain to her what he suggested about coming with us, and that I think it's a good idea. Before she bites my head off, I also clarify how I feel about Cyril not minding this and that, if it came down to it, he could always make himself scarce when we get to wherever we are going. It would purely be for our benefit and Kristoff wouldn't be in any danger. Eventually, she agrees and continues packing, so I go back to Sebastian with the news.
"She's happy with it, she also says thank you for helping us."
"Yesh, fank yooou Sebastian!" she tries to say behind me, with what I can only imagine is some form of unnecessary clothing in her mouth.
"See?" I smile and nod her way.
"I do yes." He smiled sweetly, "but back to our previous conversation, I accompanying you will mean that my Senior Officer, Gregor will step in as captain of the Guard in my absence."
"Of course yes, will he be okay?" I ask, concerned for this Gregor.
"Oh he'll cope very well I assure you, but that's just the problem, he will be alerted once I tell him I'm leaving with you for a while."
"What will you tell him?"
"I'll say that you requested my accompaniment to the Valley personally. Once however we leave Arendelle, there's nothing I can do. He'll become concered with our disappearance. Once he finds out that we haven't returned, he'll send word out to all the guard posts across Europe."
"Oh no…" I say. "Do you think this is a good idea Sebastian?"
"I don't like it your majesty, but I believe it is necessary given the circumstances."
This is very scary now. I'm glad that Sebastian overheard us now as he has enlightened me to the real threat out there: being found by our own guards.
"What would happen if we're caught?"
"Well," he started, "I'd be held for treason, found guilty and executed, your positions as Queen and Princess would most likely be appealed against by the other rulers of Europe, and as for Kristoff…"
I see where he is going with this, "But it's all we can do right?"
"Given the circumstances, your majesty."
I decide that this is the answer I need. "I understand. We're willing to take these risks if you are Sebastian?"
"I am your majesty."
"Okay, good." I sigh with slight relief, "So what's the plan?"
He doesn't hesitate, "We travel straight from here to the Valley of the living rock, find out where it is we need to go, and go straight there, like you said. What you were saying about keeping a low profile will be our only real weapon, and we just need to hope that people don't start to recognise you on our travels."
"Would they? I mean outside of Arendelle? They wouldn't normally know us would they?"
"Usually no, they will definitely be aware that the Queen of Arendelle wields the power of snow and ice however, so we need to keep that at a minimum. How are you getting on with controlling your talents your majesty?"
I look over my shoulder to my sweet, beloved and finally free sister, still deciding over which cloths to bring with her, "Not a problem anymore." I say confidently with a smile.
"That's good, one less problem to worry about. I'd recommend then that we avoid any form of contact with you two and the public, just as a precaution. We'll move from town to town staying in hostels, and camp out if we have to."
"Camp out?" I repeat with slight concern. Anna had always loved camping out in our tents, but we'd often do it outside with Father, or just in the main hall downstairs!
"Don't worry; I am very well equipped should it come to that. Food and warmth will not be a problem."
"Okay. I have to admit Sebastian, I'm glad you stepped in when you did." It's true, I didn't realise how ill-equipped we were for such a journey.
"As am I your majesty." He grins.
"Are you ever going to be able to just call me Elsa?" I smile fondly at him.
"I don't think so your majesty, once we get out of Arendelle's territory we should stick to initials only, so I believe 'E' is as close as I'll get my queen."
"Very well, 'S'" I wink as he smiles back. Anna was right, he is kinda cute. I could stare into those big green eyes all day!
Just then, Anna crashes on the bed behind me, "Okay, all done!" she puffs, clearly out of breath, "That," she points to the still bulging suitcase, "is all I need to bring!" It doesn't look any smaller that when we started!
No way, I think to myself. I look to Sebastian with my best 'help me' eyes.
He quickly reads my message and nods before getting up and heading over to the case, "Right, let's see what's in here then." He says as he opens up the case and begins throwing everything out across the floor again.
The look of fury on Anna's face almost makes me fall to the floor laughing.
"Oh gosh no, please no more!"
"But my lord insists!"
"I'm sure he does Razor, but if I have any more cocoa I'm gonna be ill!"
"It's the only way to keep warm here." He said with a husky tone of voice.
I sigh, no way he's gonna let off any time soon, "Fine, just leave it on the table then, I'll drink it in a minute."
"Thank you!" he says relieved as he places the steaming mug on the table, taking three empty ones with him.
I'm surprised there aren't any burn marks on this table from all the hot drinks that have been left on it, but he was right in what he said; I've only been here for a few days now and it's absolutely freezing. Being in an icy lair sure doesn't help things, but Cyril said this was the easiest material to build out of, and there's definitely no shortage of that here! He was, however nice enough to give me a room further from the centre of the mountain as it's not too cold here, still cold, just not that cold. It's basically just a massive cave that has been mediocrely dug into the rock, and reinforced with some wooden planks and a fireplace, though I can barely keep it lit. It's nothing like the quality of the build that Elsa has on the north mountain, that's absolutely flawless, but this is amateur. He had his, weird follower things I don't know, move in some furniture to make it more liveable in here for me; I have a bed, a desk and a wardrobe with warmer cloths. He really is treating me with more respect than anyone else has in the past. Whether or not that's just because he wants my knowledge, and afterwards he won't care anymore, I don't know. After everything that has happened I do need just a bit of calming down, and a chilled out place to stay, and this place is starting to grow on me.
Thinking about it again makes me reminisce about what I had actually managed to accomplish during my short stay in Arendelle. I alone had managed to trick Anna into love and used her weak emotions to get to the queen. I was planning on killing her, killing the queen, and taking the throne for myself. Now that I am far away from all that for now, I can't help to think to myself:
Was all that what I really wanted?
All my life I had been brought up and raised around bigger, more successful brothers that used to gang up on me and treat me so badly, and I feel that hate was all I knew. After meeting Anna though, I don't know. Seeing her and Elsa on the deck of that ship in each other's arms, they were so happy. I nearly robbed the world of that bond forever just for my own selfish greed. I don't know if I would have wanted that at all. Sure, at the time it was all I'd wanted, but now I'm not so sure. Anna had such a warm heart to Elsa, and to me as a matter of fact! When we were on the balcony the night we met, I was telling her of all of the things my brothers used to do to me, and she genuinely felt for me.
We could have stayed together. Maybe not married as such, but I could have been her Prince she'd look to when she's troubled, if anything ever troubled her that is. We could have been a happy couple and lived in the palace, together as a family. Is this what I really wanted? Just to settle down? To be honest, as much as I'm sure it would just make things worse, for the past few days I have been thinking about returning to Arendelle, to somehow make up for what I've done. I'd probably be arrested and executed on the spot, heck it's what I'd do. Argh man I wish none of it had ever happened!
Just then there's a knock at my door. It takes me a minute to realise I actually need to answer it, in the past I was never given the luxury of privacy. I head to the door and open it to find Lord Purple himself standing at my door, patiently waiting.
"Lord Cyril? You know you don't need to knock, this is your place."
"It is, but THIS," he gestures to my room, "has been reallocated to you for now, and I respect people's privacy. It's no different to what I'd expect in return from them."
"Oh, Well, thank you?" I don't really know how to react.
"My pleasure, may I come in? There are some things I wish to discuss."
"Oh of course! Come in." I step aside as he walks in. He strolls over to the centre of the room and turns to face me, and for the first time, I notice the large red mark on his face.
"Shade would you watch to door for me? I don't want to be interrupted" he says.
"Of course my Lord." His voice startles me as I turn to see him behind me, how the heck did he get in here?
He steps outside the door and stands about a hair width apart from the door frame. As Cyril closes the door, I can't help but ask, "What happened to you?" I say pointing to my face, referring to his marks.
"Oh just a small disagreement with our new guest. So Hans, How are you finding it here? Is everything suited to you?" couldn't have changed that subject any quicker if he'd tried!
"Everything is great, thank you Lord Cyril, you have made me feel most welcome here." Wait- new guest? Who does he mean by that?
"Excellent." he pauses as he notices the poor excuse of a fire, "Having some trouble keeping it lit?"
"Oh yeah, fireplaces were never really something I was good at back home." It's true; we never needed them in the Southern Isles. Instead an inventor had installed these pipes of hot water that warmed up entire rooms!
"Stop calling it that. I seriously doubt you can call home a place where you'll be arrested and tried for treason on sight now can you?"
"This is true." I say slowly, I wonder if I'll I ever be able to return? Not that I'd want to anyway.
"As for this," he says waving at the fireplace behind me, and I feel a wave of heat hit me square in the back, "that should keep it going!"
I turn to see that the embers I had barely managed to sustain were now lost in a roaring fire that actually made crackling sounds as it burnt the firewood.
"Oh wow, that's much better, thank you." I mutter, quickly succumbing to it's warm embrace. It reminds me of when I stepped into the palace at Arendelle for the first time with Anna. Gosh- I need to get her out of my head!
"Not a problem," he heads over to my desk, "now down to business shall we?"
"Certainly." I reply as I take seat, I start to awkwardly look around for another chair, but I notice him grow a small stool of ice below him as he takes a seat. That's impressive.
"The first stage of the plan has been a success and we are currently holding Kristoff on the shelf overlooking the ocean." He begins.
This revelation catches me off-guard, "Kristoff's here?" I don't know why I am surprised, Cyril seems like the kind of guy that gets what he wants, when he wants.
"He is, as planned. The letter has been sent with his reindeer back to Arendelle and Anna and Elsa should be here in a week or so"
"So he's the guest then," I refer to his face again, "did he do this?"
"A cheap, disrespectful shot, which will not happen again."
"I see. Forgive me my lord, but what makes you so sure that they will both come?"
"Because of the excellent job you did whilst you were there, Elsa now values her sister's safety over anything. There is no way she'd let her travel without her." This is true, since my mishap they've never been closer.
"I see. So what happens then? They get here, you do your thing with Elsa's power and you move in with your army?" I really want to sip my cocoa, but I don't think I can stomach any more chocolate.
"Indeed. The original plan as I'm sure you'll remember involved an outright assault to fool the queen, but I believe that this would compromise your position in Arendelle. I doubt they'd be so kind to their new ruler that tried to kill off both the queen and princess, who then took over the city with an army. Respect is earned, not won in force."
I nod in agreement with this, I'd need to prove myself to the people of Arendelle before they'd ever consider allowing me to fill in, which still seems like an impossible task. If I'm honest, I'd like to take to the throne, just to be the best ruler possible; it's the least I owe. I feel like I would sound so facetious if someone were to hear my plan.
"So once you take Elsa's power, what will you do? Let them go on their way?"
He smiles at me with a patronising look, "One step at a time my friend, I'm sure you are eager to take the throne you so desire, but it will take some time first." He brings himself to his feet and the stool he'd created melts into the floor without a trace, "for now," he holds out his arms, "what's mine is yours, 'Mi casa es su casa' as they say in Spain! Feel free to look around the place as you see fit. I think you'll find a few hidden areas you'll appreciate."
"I'll have to take your word for it about the Spain thing," I chuckle, "but thank you. I might take you up on that." I'm dying to get out of this room for a little bit and walk around.
"Excellent." He opens the door and Shade is patiently waiting on the other side, "stay warm!" he says as the door closes behind him and they leave.
One thing sticks in my head; he didn't answer my question about what he'll do with Anna and Elsa once they have left. Would he kill them, both of them? It makes sense to tie up loose ends, but I don't know how I feel about this.
I decide to head out for a walk, but just as I get to the door, a thought comes to my head.
I quickly grab the cocoa before I leave.
Cold… So cold… That's all I can feel now. I've gone past the stage where I'm shivering now, whatever energy I have left is focusing on staying awake. I don't know if the next time I close my eyes will be the last, and it's terrifying. Not for me, right now that seems like the only way out of here, but for Anna. She's was so happy when we were together, for the first time since the accident. And now she can't even have that. If this is the end for me, I don't know if Elsa will be able to fix her. I have to hold on for her. This guy better hope I never get free from this, he's gonna pay for what he's done to us.
The snow hasn't let off since I have been a 'guest' here, the ocean is starting to freeze over now and the wind is picking up. The conditions are so harsh, unlike anything I've ever experienced, and my body is in no way shielded from Mother Nature's cruel brutality.
My thoughts now are just full of images of her face. Her luscious strawberry-blonde hair that always smelt like strawberries, the way she laughs, the way she doesn't care about etiquette when she eats, she's perfect. I just wish she was here right now, holding me and keeping me warm the way she always used to. She'd never leave my side, always being close by, and I loved that about her. I was just as obsessed with her, if not more, I mean she is the Princess of Arendelle, and she loves me! It never really sinks in.
This dreamy train of thought makes me realise my eyes are closed again. NO! I have to keep them open again, I can't give up yet! I force them open and through my very blurry, unfocused vision, I can see something in front of my face. Whatever it is, it's warm, I can feel it from here, radiation onto my face, and it slowly brings relief to me that the feeling in my face is returning. Through my frozen nostrils the scent of chocolate batters its way into my nose, sending shivers of a different kind down my spine. Eventually I make out that whoever is in front of me is holding a mug of cocoa for me to drink! I gratefully accept, and lean forward, lapping up the hot cocoa and rinsing my entire mouth out with it, before I gulp it down into my empty stomach. The burning sensation it brings is a great remedy for the freezing temperature my body is currently at. In between my phases of drinking, I stop for a second to get two words out, but the numbness of my mouth makes it harder than I thought.
"Th… tha… Thank… y… you." I stutter, as I continue to drink quickly. All feelings of hatred for my captors I'm supressing in the hope that this becomes a regular supply.
"Don't drink it too fast; it will hurt on the way down."
I freeze solid, metaphorically. I'd recognise that voice anywhere, and the feeling of bitter hatred it brings. I look up and squint at the ginger, carefully trimmed face of Prince Hans, staring at me with the mug in his hands.
"Yo… y… you?"
"I'll be bringing you one of these as often as I can-"
He cuts off and flinches back as I lunge for him with every last bit of energy I have within me, though the chains quickly catch and I just stay where I am, helpless and filled with fury.
"H… how d… dare you try and k… kill Anna. And Elsa!" There is so much I want to say to him, tell him exactly what I think about him, but talking is so painful, "And now, y… you're doing this!"
"I'm sorry this happened to you, but-"
"Sorry?! You're s… sorry?!" I raise my voice now, my throat is on fire but I'm just too angry to stop. "That f… f… fixes everything, doesn't it!?"
"No it doesn't but…"
He stops there in thought, then just leaves, carrying the empty mug with him.
"Is tha… is that it? You j… just came out here to ap… po… apologize!?" I'm screaming out now, but I hear the door close behind me. "IS TH… THAT IT!?"
And the world is empty once again, just me, these freezing shackles and a slightly warmer stomach. My mind is a mess from this very brief encounter though. Hans is here, no doubt he's behind this as well, yet he's helping me? Even if he does feel sorry, he's got a lot more to make up for if he thinks that this changes anything. He tried to kill Anna and Elsa for goodness sake! There's no way you can forgive that. I'm all for giving people second chances but this is just… just different. It's Hans!
That being said, these cocoa's become a regular thing and I'll consider starting to, as much as it pains me to admit it, Hans may have just saved my life.
What is he planning?
Anna, Sebastian and I have been on the road for only twenty minutes at the most now; we'd opted to take three individual horses as oppose to sharing a single sled in case for any reason we need to run from anyone we find, or rather finds us. We are riding in line with each other, selflessly taking up the whole road. I'm on the left, with Anna on the right and Sebastian taking up the middle. I've gone with my own personal horse, Percy, a white stallion Mother had bought for me when I was younger. She said he was to keep me occupied; where I usually wouldn't be able to spend time with anyone, I'd groom and tend to him instead, and he's magnificent. Sebastian has chosen his own palace horse named Cesaer, though he says it's pronounced 'chez-ad-ehe'? It has a strange foreign twinge to it that I like. His fur is jet black with a rather unique small tuft of white hair on his head; from a distance it looks like he is a unicorn, a mythical creature that looks like a horse, but has a long, elegant horn on its head, I've read about them in my books. Cesaer is also wearing gold palace armour matching Sebastian's, bearing the crest of Arendelle. I have a feeling that at some point during our journey we'll have to ditch these as they are a bit of a giveaway.
Anna's horse is a strange one, unfortunately; a light brown creature with white splodges across her body and a long, thick brown mane. She is smaller than our horses and, sadly, we think is about to go in heat. Me and Sebastian both have good equestrian knowledge and know that this could cause serious problems between Cesaer and Percy, but Anna insisted as she's her favourite, so we'll have to cross that bridge when we get to it.
We are well on our way to the Valley of the Living Rock now, the thick forest around us acting as a funnel and a means of solitary protection; shielding us from prying eyes, though there will be no one looking for us for a while yet. Even though the sun is out, it's well into winter now, and a thin layer of snow had settled from the light fall the night before. The mixture of the two make uphill travel slower than usual so we're not really moving at pace, however I do seize the opportunity to rid the atmosphere of the dull clippity-clop of our horses and get to know our new companion a little better.
"So Sebastian, where are you from? I mean, before you took your position at Arendelle?"
"I'm from a small town called Djursholm in Sweden your majesty, a country that borders here. I was stationed at a military barracks to defend the kingdom against street crime and violence. I made my way up the ranks from a city guard to a palace guard, to a royal guard and then eventually, I was offered the role of guard captain."
"Wow, that's really impressive!" Anna adds from her right flank.
"So what brought you to Arendelle? Why leave Sweden?" I ask.
"Well actually, I originally lived in Arendelle in the city's orphanage. There was no room at any of the orphanages back home so I was transferred here. When I was about nine, I was told I was being shipped back to Sweden as a space had opened up there." Both Anna and I are being drawn into his story and we're respectfully silent, "I really didn't want to leave. The nuns that ran the one here were all so nice and friendly, I felt like they actually cared. Back in Sweden…" he pauses for a few seconds and then shakes his head, "I don't know… it was different."
"So," Anna was the first to break the silence, "You don't have any family in Sweden?"
"No. I don't your highness." I can sense a slight upset in his voice, but Anna keeps pressing. "What about your mother? Where is she?"
I can tell that he doesn't want to answer, "Anna, these are very personal questions! You can't just ask someone that!"
"Oh, right. Sorry…"
"It's okay your highness, I just don't really want to talk about it, if that's okay."
"Of course it is!" Whew! Glad we dodged that one!
The next hour or so goes fairly quickly, and I notice that the sun is starting to cover the landscape in its typical orange glow before it sets for the night. "I think we might have to start thinking about camping out at some point." I say out loud.
"Oh look! No need!" Anna says pointing to some geysers just ahead of us.
"Anna we're looking for a Valley, not geysers!" I said quietly.
She just sighs and gives her reins a sharp tug to the right, "Follow me! C'mon Cinnamon!" she says as she catches the horses thigh with her boots, and she takes off through a small gap in the trees.
Me and Sebastian look at each other, "Cinnamon?" he asks, just before darting in after her.
"Apparently so," I say to myself, "let's go Percy!" I say as I gently spur him through and give chase.
A few minutes have passed, and we've finally caught up to Anna, who had stopped to look at a cliff face, towering above us.
"Wow, must be at least one hundred feet?" I ask, still staring up at the cliff.
"Two hundred," she corrects me, "Elsa, this is where Marshmallow chased Kristoff and I, we fell from up there!" She pointed up to the high cliff and drew a line in the air with her finger, leading to the floor just next two her.
"How on earth can you survive something like that?" Sebastian said in reply.
"Oh don't worry, Kristoff knew that the snow here," she waves at the floor, "was thick and fresh, like a pillow he said." Luckily he was right…
"Wait a minute…" I say, as I hop off of Percy and walk to the wall of rock, in deep thought. "If Marshmallow chased you through to here, then does that mean…" I point up to the top and lose myself in thought again.
"That's right," Anna says, approaching me, "your palace is up there."
"Her Ice palace?" Sebastian exclaims. His tone of voice quickly changes to a more apologetic one, "Forgive me your majesty, but I had not believed that it was real. It was Hans that organised the party that sought you out up here your majesty," he says, now staring up the cliff also. "I just didn't believe it when I heard it."
"Maybe she can show you on the way back?" Anna asks, as they both look to me, like expectant children begging for a toy, I see what she's planning…
"Huh? Oh- of course we can, on the way back." I promise them.
"Great!" Anna shouts, "Now c'mon! Not far now!" Then just like that, she's off again.
"If this keeps up, poor Cesaer is going to drop with all the gear he is carrying!" Sebastian says to me.
He's right, Cesaer has been carrying the main bulk of our equipment and supplies, our suitcases had been converted into convenient carry sacks to make it easier to carry. He is also sporting full palace armour which isn't light. "Well, let's hope she's right then!"
"With respect, does she even know where she's going your majesty?"
"She's certainly acting like she does isn't she?" I smile back as we both give chase again.
Another ten minutes or so and we pass through the clearing and find ourselves in a flatland with rock and moss everywhere, and a few geysers and pools of fresh water around.
"Is it close to here?" Sebastian asks Anna.
"It's right there actually!" She says pointing to a larger open basin full of boulders, or is that them?
"Then I recommend we dismount here." He says as he jumps off Cesaer. "The water here has been boiled by the pressure underground, meaning it is safe to drink."
"Really?" I ask, turns out I never got around to reading that survival guide.
"Yes your majesty, see?" he points to our trusty transport, and sure enough, all of our horses move towards the pool and start to drink together.
"Aww, that's so cute!" Anna says, flapping her hands at the clearly overwhelming cuteness.
"It kind of is isn't it?" I say.
"Right," Anna snaps out of her trance, "let's go find out what that note means."
We approach the basin and walk to the centre, when Anna notices something different. "Hey look at that! These weren't here before!"
What used to be just empty space with a few rocks in it, had turned into what looked like a small settlement, small huts made of bamboo shoots and leaves for roofs had been erected all over the place. Some were actually quite large, I think maybe even we could all get inside it!
Anna starts calling out to the still rocks around us, "Umm, Trolls? Are you here?" She is met with silence, "Come on guys wake up! We need help!" she starts knocking on random little doors, but still nothing.
"Urm…" Sebastian starts, "Who is she talking to?"
"You'll see!" I wink to him.
A few seconds pass, but it's still as quiet as ever. No movement whatsoever. Just then I notice one of the smaller rocks twitch a little, to which the one next to it says "Shh…" very quietly, making me giggle a little; if I wasn't already looking over there, I would have missed it.
Anna looks around her helplessly and then turns to me, "Why won't they respond?"
"I think they might be nervous about revealing themselves in front of you Sebastian." I say to him.
"You- you're talking about the rocks?" he says in a shallow tone.
"Yes, trolls are very secretive creatures, and won't usually wake until they are in their comfort zone." I recall what I have read about them, "Maybe it'd be best if you leave us for a few m-"
"C'mon guys we don't have time for this!" Anna shouts out now, "Kristoff's in serious trouble and we need help now!"
At that moment, the ground below me seemingly awakens and rumbles loudly, and the mossy covered rocks are all rolling towards us and surrounding us. I see Sebastian slowly place his hand on his sword, but I put a hand on his, reassuring him.
One by one, each rock unfolds itself into a troll, each different in size and clothing. They did however all have a sense of urgency about them. Last time I was here they all surrounded us in formation before revealing themselves all at the same time, but now they're all unfolding in unorganised ways, some in mid-roll, causing them to fall over and some to even crash into each other in distress.
A slightly larger one takes a little longer to get to us, but he slows and unfolds to reveal himself as Pappie Troll, and speaks in a very raspy, elderly voice.
"Your Majesty," he slowly bows to me, "Your highness," then at Anna, "You said Kristoff is in some sort of trouble?"
"Yes Pappie," Anna answers for me, "He's been taken by a lord Cyril. We think may be holding him somewhere as hostage, and that he wants us to go to him."
"Most peculiar." He says to himself, "Why would he do this? Has Kristoff done anything wrong?"
"No, not at all." I interject. "I… We… have reason to believe that he wants to trade Kristoff for myself, though we don't know why." I feel so bad for him; to have his adopted son move into the city with us must have saddened him, but now to hear that he has been taken, and that I, the protector of this realm, couldn't keep him safe?
"My goodness…" I can hear whimpers and murmurs behind him from Kristoff's concerned family, one younger troll even breaks down into tears.
"Oh no, uh uh, no way some magic little worm head is gonna get away with taking MY boy!" One of the female trolls growls out; I assume that this is his adoptive mother.
"I'm so sorry everyone," I start, "If I hadn't been so careless none of this would have happened…"
"You can't say that my Queen," Pappie troll says, "You don't know that with your outburst, you may have avoided more problems down the line." He reassures, although I'm not sure if he's trying to convince me or himself.
"Pappie troll," Anna steps in, "We need your help. Lord Cyril left a note to us, and Elsa- I mean, Queen Elsa, thinks there's something funky about the paper it's on."
"Is this true?" Pappie turns to me, "Do you have this paper with you?"
"Yes I do." I say as I quickly take the piece of paper out of my pocket and hand it to him, and at its touch, he instantly flinches and his eyes widen with admiration.
"Oh my yes, this is very special paper indeed," he says, closing his eyes in deep thought, "This is magic paper, taken from the woods of a faraway place, called the High Isles."
"Is that where we should go?" Anna asks, eager to get her Kristoff back.
"Hmm, I can't be sure. I think we should look into this paper a little more before any decisions are made." He says.
"I tried casting my magic on it back in the castle, but it only revealed this marking." I say, pointing at the now permanent mark left on the paper.
"Ah of course," he says, tapping the image, "A Magic Seal, used to identify an object enchanted with extra capabilities that might not reveal themselves to those without a keen eye." He summarises.
"So what can this one do?" Anna asks over my shoulder.
"Let's find out. Usually a Magic Seal with low resistance can be triggered when it comes into contact with a form of conjuration," he looks to me now, "Queen Elsa, would you mind casting your magic on here again for me?"
"Okay…" I say.
I drop to a knee as he places the paper on the floor in-between us. I hold out my hand and without hesitation, flow snow and ice from my palm and letting it fall and settle in a mound on the paper. I give it a few seconds before I withdraw my hand, ending the flow, and the mound burying the paper quickly sinks into it and like last time, just exposes that same marking again.
"It's no good," I say to him, "It did reveal that mark but, other than that nothing."
"Hmm… most peculiar" he says rubbing his chin. "Okay, let's try it one more time shall we?"
"But you've just seen what it does!" Anna snaps, "It doesn't work, and we need to find out where to go soon, else he'll hurt Krissy!"
"Anna!" I jump up and spin to face her, shocked at her outburst. Sebastian catches my concerned eyes and places a hand on her shoulder and turns her to face him.
"Try and stay calm your highness," he starts, "This is not how your Mother and Father would like you to react."
"They'd be annoyed too, just like me!" She retorts, "Don't act like you know them better than I do!" This situation is quickly getting out of control, luckily Sebastian seems to know what he's doing.
"Of course they would and I'm not trying to say that, no one knew them better than the two of you," he began, "but I was privileged enough to be close friends with the two of them growing up in the barracks as a teenager, and I assure you that this," he waves Anna up and down with the back of his hand, "is not what they would want for their daughter."
Wow, he certainly has a way with words. As a guard captain, I assumed that he would just be able to diffuse a situation with violence and arrests, but he just proved me very wrong. I quickly turn back to Pappie and the rest of the very shocked trolls.
"I'm so sorry about that, she's been so upset with all that has happened."
"It's quite alright your majesty," he says, waving a dismissive hand in the air, "Though I do think that you should try again in your efforts!" he says tapping the paper.
I focus my thoughts and take a knee again. I raise my hand and generate the flow of snow and ice again, only this time Pappie closes his eyes and holds out a hand, emitting a red glow around the paper. This time the snow settles a lot quicker and the mound starts to reach my hand, making me have to stop. Suddenly the mound quickly drops into the paper much faster than usual, and exposes a detailed map that works around the marking that was already left on the paper. It takes me a moment to realise that it is a map of Europe and the surrounding Isles, with one small group circled that I don't recognise.
"That's the High Isles," Sebastian says over my shoulder, "Is that where we need to go?" he asks Pappie.
"I believe so. It looks like this map has been created purposely for guiding you all to this Lord Cyril's hideout. If what you're saying is true my queen, in that he wants a trade, then that's where he will be keeping Kristoff, I'm sure of it."
"The High Isles…" Sebastian says under his breath while studying the map, "That's at least a five day sail, not including finding a dock with private hire ships… About a week and a half I'd say…"
"A week and a half?!" Anna exclaims, "That's too long! What about Kristoff? If we take that long to reach him then he could be in trouble!"
Sebastian steps in again, "If this is really what he wants then Cyril will wait as long as it takes, he would never bring Kristoff to harm if it meant risking the trade-off."
"Sebastian's right Anna," I say standing up, relieving my dead leg, "He's gone through all the effort to get Kristoff there, he'll be happy to wait for us."
"Yeah, you're right." She says, "Well, we know where to go now, let's go!" she spins around and takes off towards the horses, "Thank you for all the help Pappie!"
"My pleasure your highness!" Pappie calls out, but I believe that she's already out of earshot.
"Thank you for all your help Pappie," I say to him as I start to back off, "I promise we'll bring him back safely."
"I'm sure you will." He says.
Sebastian and I begin to head out after Anna, but just as I'm about to leave the basin, he calls back to me, "I assume then that you'll head back to Arendelle to gather your guards to escort you your majesty?" Something about his tone sounds patronizing, does he know?
"Oh- yes! Sebastian's going to muster up his best for us!" I lie, instantly regretting it.
"I see." He knows. Darn.
My conscience gets the better of me, "Sebastian, would you give me a minute? I'll be out shortly."
He nods and heads after Anna, and I turn back to Pappie. I also notice that he has dismissed all the other trolls leaving just the two of us. He beckons to me to take another knee next to him, just as the feeling in my right leg had returned.
"Your majesty," he begins, "I believe that your intentions for the outcome of this trip may vary to Anna and Sebastian's. Would you agree?"
"What do you mean?" I ask, confused.
"I mean that you would be willing to sneak out and run away from your own kingdom and give yourself in as a trade to ensure that Kristoff returns to Arendelle with Anna, correct?"
I knew I couldn't keep this from him. "Well, yes. But that's the only way it would work."
"That may be the case, but I must encourage you to consider the implications of this result."
At that moment, he waves his arms in the air above us, and a red mist forms with strange shapes in it. These shapes then split off into three different, almost human-like ones. A smaller green one, a taller much wider yellow one, and a smaller thinner blue one. I decide that these represent Anna, Kristoff and I.
"Your personal objective for this mission is to get Anna and Kristoff back home safely, whatever the cost. I believe, however, that you must consider what this means for you, Elsa."
"I don't care what happens to me," I say, "I just want to make sure that Anna lives the best life she could possibly have, and that means Kristoff over me. She has already giver her life for me, it's her turn now, and my mind is made up."
"I understand your view your majesty, but I think you underestimate the way your sister sees you as a part of her life."
"What do you mean?"
"I mean that, to Anna, you are her entire world. With you at her side, she feels that the two of you could accomplish any task. She has lived a life of confinement growing up, and all that time she just worried about you Elsa, the sister that meant the world to her that she suddenly lost through no reason whatsoever. Now that she has you back, that bond of sisterhood has been repaired."
While he is saying this, I notice that the shapes in the air have changed slightly. Between the blue and the green ones, a bright red line has joined the two together, both now emitting a strong red glow that is quite dazzling to look at.
"Now she has this bond back in her life, and it is largely because of this ice man." As he says this, the larger, yellow shape floats towards the top of our link, and two more lines adjoin him to the two below, making a triangle of figures, fiercely glowing red in the air.
"The two of you have become a triangle, the strongest shape in existence. This bond that you all share is a very strong one, one that cannot so easily be broken by others, but easily destroyed in seconds."
"Destroyed in seconds?" I repeat back, "How?"
"By breaking these bonds between you." as he says this, the blue figure floats away and disappears from view and the two bonds connecting it to the yellow and green shapes disintegrate.
"Once one of the three pieces leaves the triangle, it becomes a flat line. This line, if not supported, will fall." As he says this, the two figures drift apart, and slowly fade away into the air. I shudder and gasp at what this represents.
"Well, what can I do?"
"Just be cautious my queen, Anna's heart has only recently been thawed, and it is still very fragile. Very extreme events are set to unfold in the future, and you must make sure that she that her loved ones surround her, else her existence will cease to just a spec in the bigger scheme of things."
Oh my… He's essentially just told me that losing either Kristoff or me will kill her. That's not the plan! Anna must come first here, but I'm starting to see no way around this.
I sigh and sink my head into my hands, "Oh Pappie, what am I to do? I didn't realise that I meant THAT much to her. She needs to live her life with Kristoff, he means so much to her. It's what she's been looking for all her life! You should see those two together, it's magical. After everything I have put her through, he's like the reward she gets for sticking it out. After Hans, I promised I would be protective over whoever becomes a part of Anna's life, but once I saw Kristoff with her in my Ice Palace, I just knew. It's hard to explain. He's just perfect for her, and loves her as much as she loves him."
"I understand," he smiles, "he's my boy, remember?"
"That's true." I smile, we both giggle slightly.
"Elsa," he turns more serious again, "I urge you to think about what kind of affect that this decision of yours may have on your family, and make sure that Anna is aware."
"You think I should tell her?" I ask.
"I just think that she should be made aware of anything that might be troubling her sister's mind. She's going to need all the emotional support she can get."
Upon saying this, he pulls out a crystal pendant exactly the same as mine! His has more of a lighter, baby-blue glow to it however.
"That's a crystal pendant!" I say in awe, "It's the same as my mother's!" I say as I reach to mine and show him.
"It is, as is the third crystal." He says.
"Third? I didn't know there was a third." This is news to me, though he seems troubled by my lack of knowledge.
"Oh? That's a pity, though I had a feeling that your father had hidden it, it's probably for the best.!
"Well," I hold mine in the air, "would this have been it?"
"Not quite, you know the story of the wizard that infused his being into these crystals, yes?"
"Kind of, but I didn't know that there were three of them!" it's a scary thought, "just how powerful was this wizard?"
"Extremely powerful your majesty, with the wisdom to lead any army to victory, and the power to level an entire empire in seconds." This makes me shiver a little that that kind of power exists! "Luckily for us however, he was very close friends with your parents, and was a good guy."
"Whew! That's a relief!" I say. "So there are three of these?" I can literally feel Anna's stare stabbing at me from through the trees, but curiosity has gotten the better of me, and I might never get to ask these questions ever again.
"Indeed." He looks sternly at my crystal. "Mind, spirit and Power: these are the three segments that make up a great wizard, and it's not uncommon for wizards to use this incarnation, so their abilities can live on in others after death. These are also the parts of his being that he fused with these crystals. He left one to the troll family in the Valley of the living rock," he said tapping his own pendant, "one to Queen Idun," he gestures to mine, "and one more to King Agdar."
"So which ones are which?"
"I have been blessed with the wizard's spirit, so I believe that your mother will have received his powerful mind."
"So where could the power crystal be?"
"Only your father would know your majesty. I would say however, that that particular secret stay buried. Such raw power can easily be misused by those that would hurt others," he sighs a little, "and there seems to me no shortage of people like that recently."
His words remind me of why I am here. I jump up and wipe my dress free of the dirt on my knees, "Don't worry Pappie. We'll bring him back, I promise."
"Thank you your majesty," he smiles at me, "Now hurry along, time is short!"
I turn to head back to Anna and Sebastian, but one more less serious question still ponders on the tip of my tongue. I turn back to Pappie one last time.
"Hey Pappie, where did these huts all come from, did you all build them yourselves?"
"Oh no my queen!" he chuckles, "we trolls are not blessed with the talent of construction unfortunately, Kristoff however is, and he was very good to us don't you think?" he said holding his arms out to his sides, showing off all the new residences. This catches me off guard.
"Kristoff made all of these?" I'm genuinely shocked! They're all so detailed and carefully built, and there's so many of them!
"Well he mustn't take all the credit, you had a great deal to do with it too your majesty."
"Me? What did I do again?"
He smiled and slowly paces towards me, "Queen Elsa, you have given something to Kristoff that we have never been able to offer him: Home. A real home. He loved it here and for us trolls it's perfect, but Kristoff is not a troll. He gets cold and wet during the rain. You've done more than you think, not to mention what you are doing right now for him and Anna!"
"I… I don't know what to say!" I say.
"Nothing needs to be said your majesty," he bows, "Just remember the impact that you have on those around you, not just Kristoff and Anna, but that guard accompanying you? I sense he is growing very fond of you."
"Me?" He… Does he like me? "You think he likes me?" I can feel my cheeks flood bright red.
He simply grins and says, "We'll both see won't we?"
When I break through the clearing and back to the small geyser field, I am greeted, or more confronted, by a clearly annoyed Anna.
"Well I'm glad you decided to show! I thought we were going to save Krissy! Not talk about stones!"
"I'm sorry Anna, it won't happen again." I say as I greet my sister with a hug. I feel that bad for her that I won't even dare to scold her for addressing me the way she did; I do need to remember that I have a position of royalty to uphold. Now that I know how much she cares about me, it makes me realise just how much she has been affected by all this; she'd never raise her voice to me, and nor would I to her.
"Erm, your highness? Your majesty? May I suggest we hurry now?"
Hearing Sebastian voice from atop his horse behind Anna made me realise just how long we've been here. The sun is starting to go down now, and the paths will soon only be lit by lamps and torchbearers. That's when I notice that our royal guard has a lantern of his own, but he's not lit it yet. My mind is still going over what Pappie told me about him.
"Yes, of course we must." I say as I break away from Anna and we clamber on our horses.
As we head out towards the road in single file, Anna breaks the brief silence. "So what did Pappie have to say? You were there for quite a while Elsa!" she asks from in front.
"Just about this crystal that mother had left me. Turns out it's part of a set!"
"Really? Maybe we should start searching for them when we return? You know, one for you, me and Kristoff?"
"That would be a good idea." I say, though I know that I would never ask for Pappie's off of him. It had been left to him for a reason; much like my mother's has been left to me.
Just as this thought crosses my mind, I am suddenly conscious of the rather sharp object in my dress pocket. I reach in to feel my pendant, but I don't remember taking it off? I reach to my neck, and my searching grasp finds the crystal dangling from its chain. I pull this one out of my pocket and quickly recognise it as the one that Pappie was wearing! Has he given this to me? Why would it just present itself now?
Maybe this is the reason that it was left to him, to give to us during this adventure we find ourselves on. I feel that if there's anyone that deserves a wizard's spirit right now, it's my sister. I decide that I'll bring up everything Pappie and I had spoken about when we next camp out, although it's rather safe to travel through these Arendelle roads while dark.
Though I might just need his spirit for when I tell Anna how I intend to get Kristoff back to her, we'll both need all the strength we can get.
Update: 16/12/14 20:53 Formatting and spell check.
Thanks for sticking it out! This was a really long chapter, but during writing it I couldn't really see a natural stopping point so it just kept going!
Also if you didn't already know, Disney have confirmed that they have an animated short following on from Frozen called Frozen Fever, and they have also confirmed a full feature length sequel is in the works! I however will not be following on the story to coincide with the actual Frozen 2, I'll continue it on from the original film.
So a lot for Elsa to think about here as we leave them on their way, and just what does Hans think he's doing? Is he trying to worm his way back into everyone's good books?
We'll see won't we!
All the best,
-Dan
