10. Royal Audience
Elsa gave the people already in the ball room time to stand before striding through the doors. Her back was perfectly straight; the set of her shoulders suggested strength; the carriage of her head indicated confidence. She summoned a gentle cool breeze to waft her cape and conjured a patch of frost overlaid with enlarged, intricately detailed snowflakes to carpet her way to the throne. She paced by the bowing figures without glancing at any of them. Once at the carved wooden throne, she turned on her heel, gathered her cape over her left arm, and gracefully settled onto the purple and green cushion.
Finally, she looked at her guests as they rose from their bows. They were a handsome lot, tall and athletic, clean-shaven with close-cropped hair. The gold jewelry around their necks and wrists was simple but crafted well. Their clothes were flowing cotton, finely woven and brightly colored. She knew the cut of her own ice-dress and lack of hosiery would not cause any offense or misunderstandings, as sometimes had happened with the more uptight cultures.
"Your Majesty, I present to you Ambassador Cocody Jamang and his retinue," said Kai as the man standing next to Minister Rogalund bowed deeply again.
"Welcome to Arendelle, Your Excellency. Now are we well prepared to hear tidings from our esteemed brother, King Adjoua of Daloa," she addressed them in Disnee, an almost-too-good-to-be-true language that just about everyone throughout the world knew without being taught.
Ambassador Jamang stepped forward, dropped to one knee, and bowed his head. The other Daloans did the same where they stood. Elsa wasn't sure if this was simply one of their customs, or if she overdid her entrance.
"Great Queen, we thank you for receiving us," his voice was deep, and not at all tremulous, so Elsa felt safe to assume the kneeling and lack of eye contact was just a polite practice. "Lately, news of Your Majesty's coronation and the wondrous events that transpired did reach my King. My King sends his belated congratulations and well-wishes for Your Majesty's reign. My King desires that there should be everlasting peace between our nations and peoples, and hopes that the most noble and gentle Queen of Arendelle will grant him this humble request."
Aside from their postures, it was one of the less overwrought pleas to not drop a glacier on a country that Elsa had heard over the past year. And it seemed like they did not need any more convincing about her magic.
"You and your people may rise, Your Excellency," Elsa bade them; they did so. "We are of a similar mind to your worthy King, and resolve that henceforth the Kingdom of Arendelle shall reciprocate the amicable and peaceful actions of the Kingdom of Daloa. May both our lands flourish by it." Of course, there would be a much more precisely worded written document to sign later.
"Great Queen, my King Adjoua and my people sincerely thank you for this indulgence," said Jamang, looking her in the face for the first time. "We see that the reports of Your Majesty's good will and wisdom are true. Long may Queen Elsa of Arendelle live!"
"Long may Queen Elsa of Arendelle live!" echoed the rest of the Daloans. Elsa inclined her head subtly but graciously.
"It is our pleasure to accommodate the cordial proposal of our brave brother, your King, and his industrious people. We shall now attend to any other inquiries and announcements that Your Excellency may have," Elsa said, rather hoping that this would be the end of the official courtly audience so that she could get up off the less than comfortable throne and dispense with the use of the first person plural.
"Great Queen, can you make snowmen for us?" Jamang asked.
"What kind of snowmen does Your Excellency mean?" Elsa asked in turn. It was not the first time she had heard that question. Some people wanted to see the act of creating a living snowman; some just wanted to see her produce a fully formed but inanimate snowman from thin air; some just wanted to see her build a snowman in the traditional way, albeit from magical snow; and then some people just wanted an army or laborers.
"Great Queen, the kind that walks and has nimble hands and strong arms and does not melt," Jamang replied, his tone sliding between hopeful and embarrassed. This definitely sounded like a petition for an army or laborers.
"Your Excellency, our policy on such matters is known well," Elsa said severely. "We do not create life without just cause and careful deliberation."
Except, of course, when we do it accidentally, Elsa jabbed at herself.
"Great Queen, we understand this is no small thing that we ask, but it would save our people," Jamang implored. He approached the throne, stopping just short of Elsa's feet and dropped to both knees this time. Rogalund stared at the tableau.
"How so, Your Excellency?" Elsa leaned forward.
"Great Queen, our people will soon be forced to sell off their farmlands or sink into poverty unless we find a labor source that does not need a living wage."
"We are sorry, Your Excellency, we are confused." Elsa really wished she could have this conversation while not sitting on the throne so that she could stop using the Royal We. She supposed she could stand, although that might disquiet the Daloans. She decided to look into what she could do to put an end to the pompous mannerism's last bastion within Arendelle.
"Great Queen, our people cannot earn enough money from their crops to pay the field workers that are needed to grow, harvest, and process them."
"We do not understand, then, why they do not grow a different crop," Elsa said - but immediately remembered something very important. She stood up, and it had nothing to do with avoiding the majestic plural. "Wait a minute! Your main crop is chocolate, or rather the cocoa bean from the cacao tree!"
"Great Queen, you are correct." Jamang also rose to his feet and did not seem off-put. Rogalund's mouth was slightly open, however.
"How is it possible that your people don't make any money selling chocolate? My sister and I alone should be enough of a market to make your people quite rich." Elsa resisted the urge to pace.
"Great Queen, chocolate is not an essential food, and so we must sell it for what the traders will pay. Our farmers receive so little compensation that they are failing."
"Your Excellency is egregiously misinformed about the necessity of chocolate and its selling price. We pay handsomely for it throughout this part of the world. And I still do not understand why your people don't grow something else."
"Great Queen, our land is dense jungle. It is one of the few crops that grows well in the understory. And the soil is not rich enough for grains or grazing livestock, even if we could cut down the jungle. At first, we made good money selling the cocoa beans, but then the traders offered us less and less. Now we are so desperate that some farmers are forcing children to work for only a little food and a place to sleep."
Elsa felt her ire rise, and the carpet of frost from her entrance grew thicker and wider. There was just one possible explanation for this situation.
"Weselton," Queen Elsa hissed with indignant certainty.
Author's Note - Anachronism Stew, since cocoa wasn't grown in Africa until later in the Nineteenth Century, and there wasn't anything like modern commodities trading to create the real-life slave labor tragedy that goes on today in the cocoa producing countries in Africa. But the "Frozen" universe does have a conveniently devious villain with more than enough motivation to do such a thing.
I'm also probably playing a little bit fast and loose with the Royal We. Given the era, it's likely that Elsa would use it any time she spoke in her capacity as "The State," and not just when sitting on the throne, but it seems like Arendelle is a much more laid back country.