Hey everyone, first off I'd like to dedicate this chapter to all of my teammates on my sports team. I surprised them yesterday when I met them at the airport. Why is that a surprise you ask? Well because of my health issues I wasn't able to come back and play ball for this semester. So, they were leaving on a sports trip the same day I was arriving at the airport. I 've decided to pop in and surprise them before they hopped on the plane :) So yeah, this is for my team. They're my second family and I wouldn't wanna trade 'em for anything in the world :) Anyways, enjoy the chapter!
Somewhere in the middle of the forest…
It was late afternoon when Elsa finally stirred in her sleep. Slowly opening her eyes, all she saw was… 'rocks?' Elsa remembered what happened last night and jolted herself awake. Still bare feet and clothed in her nightgown, she quickly got up despite her aching headache. A hand went to her forehead and to her surprise, it was wrapped and bandaged. She calmed her beating heart and surveyed the area.
From what she could tell by her surroundings, she was inside a shallow cave and its entrance was hidden behind a curtain of leaves and vines. Next to her was a burnout campfire, and looking down, Elsa saw a makeshift bed, a bag full of extra clothes, she assumed it was made to be a pillow, and a long cloth tarp that was used as a blanket.
Elsa could see the faint rays of sunlight coming through the vines and cautiously walked towards the cave opening. Slowly drawing the leaves back, she peeked outside to see that she was in the middle of a lush forest. Elsa was about to step out further when she heard a commotion to her left. Retreating back inside, she pressed her back against the cave walls.
She waited patiently as the voice grew closer. They were clearly talking to someone, but Elsa could only make out one voice. It sounded like a woman. Last night, she couldn't tell whether the bandits were male or female, so Elsa had to be extra cautious. 'Besides, with my powers, I have the upper advantage here…' Elsa looked at her hands and tested out her ice magic, but in doing so her headache struck through her temple causing her a slight pain.
"Ah!" Elsa whispered and a hand went up to her bandaged head. However, her sound wasn't silent enough when the outside went quiet. They've noticed her presence. Elsa could hear someone getting closer. Taking a deep breath, she waited till the person got near, 'it's now or never,' Elsa thought. She saw the outline of the woman's shadow and decided to strike.
Hopping out of the cave, Elsa used her magic to knock back the woman to the nearest tree and pin her against the bark with her ice. She created a frozen prison that covered the woman's entire body from her feet to her chest, and her arms shackled to the side with the ice stopping at her shoulders.
"WOAH! WHAT THE –?!" the woman yelled.
Elsa ignored the woman's screams as she defensively held out her arms to quickly survey the area for any other attackers. She found no one else besides a single horse tied to the nearby tree who reared back in fright, trying to break free from its reins because of her magic. Then Elsa spotted a hissing fox who protectively stood in front of the woman in her ice prison… 'wait fox?' she thought. When she recognized the fox, Elsa finally looked up to see the familiar face of the person she just trapped; it's the woman from the bridge.
"Are you crazy?!" The woman panicked in her frozen prison. Elsa blinked and reeled back from the woman's screams, "No one told me that you're cold-blooded!"
Elsa was taken back and slightly offended, "What, I'm not –" Elsa sighed, "What are you talking about? Everyone knows of my ice magic," Elsa said.
"Well I don't know how, but I clearly missed the memo," the woman said.
Elsa relaxed her stance a bit, 'Did she really think I was… normal?' Elsa thought, 'No Elsa stay stern and composed. I need answers from this woman…'
"Who are you?" she demanded. But the woman was still in shock as she looked at Elsa with a mixture of surprise and fear, "Look, I'm not going to hurt you, I just want answers."
"Wow, really? That's so great to hear," the woman said, "Let me just get cozy and comfortable while you freeze me to death!"
"I said I'm not –!" Elsa sighed again, "I'd watch that tone if I were you."
"Or what? Is that a threat?" the woman said.
Elsa glared at the woman in question, "No. But if you cooperate then maybe I'll let you go." The woman made a face and huffed as she stared back at the queen in anger, "Now, I will ask again. Who are you?"
"Who're you?" the woman replied.
"I'm asking the questions here!"
"And I'll answer if we at least have a decent introduction, but forgive me if I don't curtsy," the woman said.
"Fine," Elsa composed herself in her 'Queen Mode' and looked at the captured woman, "I am Elsa, Queen of Arendelle. And you are?"
"I'm Kieran McCabe, Jack of All Trades. How do you do, your majesty?" Kieran said as she pulled a forced grin.
Elsa cleared her throat and glared at Kieran, "Ms. McCabe, I would –"
"Please don't call me that…" Kieran interrupted, "Just Kieran is fine," she said.
"Alright, Kieran… I would like to know what happened last night."
"Oh, you know, just your normal night of heroic deeds. Save the damsel in distress, beat the bad guys, and live happily ever after surrounded by ice," Kieran exaggerated her point by trying to break free from her prison.
"Kieran," Elsa warned.
"Elsa," Kieran replied.
Elsa glared at Kieran once more because of many reasons, "Answer my questions correctly and then I'll let you go remember."
"Alright alright, keep your cool…" Kieran laughed, but Elsa was unamused, "Okay, I mean calm down, geez," 'Where's her sense of humor?' she thought, "Although what I said is partially true, long story short, while we were camping we spotted you on the back of the bandit's wagon. Fortunate for us, we managed to save you, escape from the bandit's evil clutches, and hid in this cave I found. Then I cared to your injuries and kept watch while you rested for the night. You're welcome by the way," Kieran finished.
Elsa ignored her last statement and continued, "We? Who's we?" she asked.
The fox, who was spectating the scene during their talk, made her appearance as she climbed Kieran's ice prison and curled around her neck protectively, "Iris, me and my horse Oscar."
When Elsa saw the familiar fox named Iris on Kieran's shoulders she relaxed more, "So… it's just you three?"
"Yup," Kieran said.
"There's nobody else?" Elsa asked.
"What part of 'yes' did you not understand?" Kieran said.
"I really don't like your tone…" Elsa said
"And I really don't like being a giant ice cube for a large drink, so can you please let me go now?" Kieran shifted in the ice.
"Hmm… alright, Kieran, I'll let you go," Elsa raised a hand to release the ice, "But, you are to escort me back to Arendelle safely."
"Oh yeah? I don't think so," Kieran said.
"And why not? You're not really in a position to argue, you know…" Elsa said.
"So are you. Without me you won't make it out of the woods let alone back to Arendelle alive," Kieran said, "Besides I'm not going back… I can't…"
'What does she mean by… can't?' Elsa thought, 'Never mind that, I have to do something to change her mind… I have to… I'm sorry Kieran…'
"Kieran," Elsa said softly, "Please, just take me back to Arendelle… take me back home… my sister is waiting for me…"
Elsa's words dug into Kieran, and everything she thought about previously before had disappeared, 'she has a sister?' Kieran thought. She was really thinking about her options when something nudged the side of her head, it was Iris.
"What?" she asked her fox.
Iris looked at her knowingly and made a sound that would say, 'C'mon Kieran, what else are we going to do?' Iris pointed her snout to Elsa and said, 'Help her.'
Kieran groaned, 'I should've just left her when I had the chance,' she thought, 'But no, Iris wanted to stay…' Kieran shook her head to rid of those thoughts, 'Ugh, what are you talking about Kieran. This is someone's life on the line… what would Connor do?' Kieran sighed and gave in, 'Come on, we gotta help her…'
"Fine…" Kieran whispered.
"What?" Elsa said.
"We'll help you get back to Arendelle," Kieran spoke up.
"Really?" Elsa said.
"But… I want to make you a deal," Kieran said
"Oh? What is it?" Elsa replied
"I saved you once, but it's most likely that the bandits are still out there, searching for you. I bet they won't stop until they have you again," Kieran said, "So, traveling back out there will be a great risk for me and my friends. I want some type of reward when we get you back."
"Okay… well I am queen, I'm sure an amount of currency will –"
Kieran shook her head, "I'm sorry, but no, I don't care about money," Kieran said, "I request a ship, a small vessel fit enough for my horse, Oscar, so we all can travel South for the winter."
"You want a boat?"
"Ship, yes."
"Why?"
"I just told you," Kieran said
"Yes, I know. But why? Won't you want to stay in Arendelle?" Elsa said.
"No, I can't," Kieran repeated, "I was intending on leaving anyways. The sooner I get out of here the better," Kieran said.
"Oh okay…" Elsa said.
"Look, don't take it personally, I'm a traveler and I just don't stay in one place for too long," Kieran said, "Besides, Arendelle doesn't need me…" she said, 'and neither do you…' she thought.
"I understand," Elsa said going into 'Queen Mode' again, "Alright then Kieran, I shall make arrangements for a ship in your name. It will be ready for your transportation, and enough food and fodder on board for you and your horse," Elsa said.
"Pinky promise?" Kieran said.
"What?" Elsa said.
"A pinky promise, haven't you done that before?" Kieran said.
"I – no… never…" Elsa said.
"Well," Kieran said, "To put it lightly it's a promise you can never break. You swear an oath to that person that you will follow through on your promise, no matter what the consequence."
"Isn't that a little much?" Elsa said.
"Not… most of the time…" Kieran said.
"Uh – huh…" Elsa nodded her head unconvinced.
"It's dumb, I know, but it's how I keep my promises," Kieran sighed, "You have a sister right? Haven't you done this as kids?"
"No – I… it's a long story," Elsa said.
"Long enough for this ice to melt?" Kieran joked which earned a glare from Elsa, "I'm kidding," Kieran chuckled, 'Dang…' she thought. "Look do you wanna do this or not?"
"Alright, I'm intrigued," Elsa said.
"Okay well… normally I would need my hand for this, but it's a little iced at the moment…" Kieran hinted at Elsa to let her go but Elsa didn't let release Kieran, she freed her right arm from the ice shackle instead.
"That'll do…" Kieran huffed and shook her hand from the cold.
"It's just a precaution," Elsa said.
"You don't trust me?" Kieran said.
"No, not really," Elsa replied.
'Good,' Kieran thought and nodded her head, 'After all, we are strangers.' "Okay then… for a Pinky Promise, we would wrap our pinkies together like this… and repeat the following: Cross my heart, I won't dare, never break my word, I swear. Now you…"
Elsa repeated, "Cross my heart, I won't dare, never break my word, I swear," she smiled at the ridiculousness of such promise, but swears she will keep her word, "Pinky promise."
"Pinky promise…" And just like before, Kieran's heart could not rest when she saw Elsa's smile. It was just as beautiful as before, and maybe even brighter. Kieran tried so hard to desperately to tell herself that these feelings will pass just like the others, but she is scared of the honest truth. So, she let go of Elsa's pinky like it was hot to the touch and cleared her throat. "Can you let me go now?" she asked.
"Oh, of course," with that said, Elsa raised her hand again and all of the ice disappeared from thin air.
"Thanks," Kieran said as she shook herself off, then she walked towards the cave opening to gather her belongings.
"Where are you going?" Elsa said
"Packing up my things," Kieran replied.
"Alright then, please hurry," Elsa started to follow her when she was struck with another severe headache running through her temple, "Ah!" she screamed out as a hand went to her bandaged head.
"Hey woah, are you okay?" Elsa looked up to see Kieran's golden-brown eyes filled with worry.
'She does care…' Elsa thought, "Yeah, I'm fine," she said.
"Alright…" Kieran took one last look at Elsa then went back into the cave.
Elsa sighed as she continued to stare at the opening when she heard a noise to her right, it was Iris. She nudged her snout to the rock next to her indicating Elsa to have a seat. Elsa obliged and thanked the little animal, "Is she always like this?" Elsa asked the fox.
Iris simply raised an eyebrow and if Elsa could hear her thoughts she would say, 'You have no idea.'
Elsa laughed and then looked at her surroundings while she waited for Kieran. The forest was so peaceful and serene. Elsa wanted to feel relaxed in this lush forest but her anxiety peaked as she was so worried about her kingdom, about Anna. Her leg bounced up and down, and her bare heel tapped the grassy ground ever so lightly beneath her.
As she got more anxious, Iris hopped in her lap and cuddled her legs to stop her shaking. This calmed Elsa down immensely as she smiled and started to pet Iris gently, "Thank you," she said.
"Ahem…"
Elsa's trance was interrupted by a cough from Kieran who was beside her with a pack behind her back and supplies cradled in her arms. Iris hopped off of Elsa's lap when she stood up, dusting herself off, "Ready?" Elsa said.
"Yeah," Kieran said moving towards Oscar, prepping him for travel. "But before we leave…" Kieran brought her backpack around and handed Elsa her bag of extra clothes, "I think it's about time you changed."
Elsa blinked her eyes in surprise and looked down at her attire. Kieran was right, after all this time Elsa had forgotten that she's still clothed in her nightgown, and her feet were bare and dirty. I guess the bandits did not have time or decency to put her shoes on or let her change before they brutally kidnapped her. Elsa quickly grabbed Kieran's bag and held it close to cover herself up. She quietly thanked Kieran and retreated back inside the cave for some privacy.
Kieran watched her enter the small cave and then turned away to give the queen some privacy. As she completed to tie her belongings to Oscar's saddle, her back started to tingle, head felt light, and the butterflies in her stomach came back as she stood there. Kieran shook herself off, trying to get rid of these weird feelings, then distracted herself by staring at the most interesting tree in front of her.
It felt like forever waiting for Elsa to change, but that's understandable considering she's been given a pile of a stranger's clothes. 'I'm standing in the middle of the woods while the Queen of Arendelle is changing behind me,' Kieran blushed lightly, 'And I saved said Queen of Arendelle, no, saved the Snow Queen of Arendelle from being kidnapped… now that was… woah,' Kieran thought, 'And her magic… How did I not know? I gotta get out more… but now that I think about it, everything makes 'snow' much sense.' Kieran chuckled at her own joke when she heard a voice,
"What's so funny?" Elsa said.
It sounded like the queen came outside as her voice grew closer, so Kieran took the chance to peek behind her. "Nothing, I just –" Kieran stopped short as she did a double take in Elsa's direction. Words were caught in her throat as she couldn't comprehend what was in front of her. Elsa was wearing an open-collared, ice blue, almost see through, long sleeve shirt that showed off her milky neck and shoulders. It was underneath a sky-blue heart-shaped bodice dress that stopped at her mid-calf and the slit on the left side of her dress revealed Elsa's dark purple leather knee high heeled boots. Finally, the dress was tied with a beautiful ocean blue ribbon at the waist and a lighter ice blue fabric waist cape draped to the ground below. Then to top it all off, her dress was shimmering bright like diamonds in the sunlight, but if Kieran would look closely, it's all ice.
"I… I don't remember owning that…" Kieran stuttered.
"Yes well, most of your clothes didn't fit me so I used my magic to improvise a little," Elsa smiled and did a small turn, "What do you think?"
'Beautiful,' Kieran thought, "It's – It's… good, you look good."
Elsa laughed, "Thank you," brushing a hair off of her still bandaged head, oblivious to Kieran's rushing feelings.
"Hey, how's your head?" Kieran said recovering from her slight shock.
"It's better I think, but something feels oily?" Elsa said.
"Yeah, sorry. I put an herbal ointment on your bruise to stop the swelling. It should be healed in a day or two," Kieran said
"Thank you," Elsa finally said.
"It's not a problem," Kieran shrugged.
"No Kieran," Elsa smiled, "Thank you for everything. For saving my life, tending to my wounds, for agreeing to take me back. Thank you, Kieran," she smiled
"Your welcome… your majesty," Kieran said
"Oh no, please don't call me that," Elsa laughed as she recited Kieran, "Just call me Elsa, no need for formalities already."
"Alright Elsa," Kieran chuckled, "Ready to hit the road?" she gestured to Oscar who's ready to travel.
"Yes," Elsa said. And with that said, they all hopped on Oscar and left their little cave camp. Kieran sat in front holding the reins, she had her pack slung around her back with Iris inside to make room for Elsa who sat behind Kieran. Kieran made sure to go at a slow pace for the queen and her injury, afraid her headache would get worse if they went any faster.
Elsa had noticed and lightly smiled at Kieran's care for her, even if she doesn't want to show it. Although she was anxious to get back to Arendelle quickly, Elsa was content with this leisurely walk for the meantime.
'Kieran… What a strange woman…' Elsa thought as she discreetly glanced at the back of Kieran's head. She was interrupted by a little fox popping its head out of Kieran's backpack smiling at Elsa. Elsa in return gave Iris a little pet and let the fox cuddle her hand.
Kieran, in front, wanted to know what those girls were giggling about in the back but kept her eyes trained forward for any possible attacks. 'We never know what'll be out there,' she thought, 'I'd be lying if I said this will be easy because I have a bad feeling that this won't end well.' But nonetheless, hearing Elsa's giggles made her believe that this might not be so bad after all… 'Elsa… What a weird woman…' Kieran smiled at her thought and enjoyed listening to the laughter of her fox and the Snow Queen.
Author's Note
Whew! What a long chapter! Thanks for the wait you guys, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. If you like to see Elsa's new design for her dress, please visit my profile on deviantART "TheCurlyCookie" and for more Frozen Flame concept designs.
Alright so... hey everyone, I've got some good news and some bad news.
Good News: I've decided to go back to school and continue my education as a student artist, hooray!
Bad News: However, after a lot of my health problems these past few months, I've made the tough decision to stop playing sports for a semester.
Good News: Although, I do have a lot more free-time for school and for the story! Yay!
Bad News: But since I'm back at school, I've decided to take the next update day off and focus on school. So, you guys won't be getting an update chapter on Monday… :(
GOOD NEWS! But wait! There's more! I'll be returning on Friday the 9th and I'm updating two chapters that day for the wait :) So, be patient everyone, this isn't the end! No siree!
I love you all and I thank you again for taking the time to read my story. It's been amazing how so many people are supporting me to continue writing. I Pinky Promise you guys that I'll try not to disappoint, haha :) Anyways, I'll be responding to comments and reviews down below so please feel free to read through! Thank you!
Anon: Chapter 8: Yes, Kieran has PTSD. She also has long – term depression, anxiety, and a whole other sorts of mental health problems we won't dive into. But yes, Kieran has PTSD and depression. You'll find out later what caused it, but right now you should know, if you haven't already, that Kieran is suffering. But she's too stubborn to ask for help or let people get close, haha doesn't that sound familiar? I promise, Kieran isn't like another Elsa. Elsa's isolation is to protect others, Kieran's isolation is to protect herself. I know it sounds selfish but Kieran only looks out what is best for herself, Iris, and Oscar. I may be diving too much into this, but who cares, Kieran needs to settle down already. I wonder with who? Hmmm…
And thank you, yes, I agree. But both their pasts and their personalities will be important. Again, you'll just have to wait and see :)
I wish so too, maybe I should've gone back and wrote more about them, but I'm sorry. The Rasmus and Kieran bonding time is complete for now. You won't see him for a while. Rasmus and the Beck family are just side characters, like Oaken, they're important but not really. Sorry Rasmus fans, I promise to try and squeeze him in somewhere in the future chapters.
Aw thanks! I'm glad to hear that Kieran has interested you, but what powers? Haha, what if it's just coincidental? Hmmm… :)
Haha, hey I never thought about it that way. I really like Lapis and Steven Universe in general. What a great show, am I right?
Chapter 9: Thanks! I knew I had to bring in Anna's character strength. She's way too important to miss out and it's really fun to write her. I feel honored that I made the dialogue feel believable, even with Kristoff. I feel like their relationship is based on respecting each other, good communication and support, like all relationships should be. Not that I'm judging, I'm sorry, no harm to what I'm saying, but for Kristoff and Anna they're different but quirky in their own way. To talk to one another is to understand each other.
I'm sure everyone is still skeptical about Lukas but what he says is true. I'm not spoiling anything but he truly wants to save Elsa, haha.
Thank you so much, I'm glad I stayed within the lore but created a new structure around it. I thought I was stretching it with Grand Pabbie, but I'm glad to hear that it turned out okay.
I can't say much about the curse, you'll just have to wait, I'm sorry.
Thank you so much about the OOC comment! When you said that it made me raise my fist in the air like in the Breakfast Club :) I truly appreciate what you said. I really want this story to stay true to the original movie, so that's why I'm so focused on trying to make everything close to perfect. Which is why I had a really hard time writing this chapter because I wanted Elsa to stay Elsa and Kieran to be Kieran. If anything seems off, please let me know. It just makes me better and lets me know what I need to work on. Thank you again.
CurlyCookie AWAY!