Chapter 11: The Conference Begins
Within the first week of her stay in Corona, Elsa was firmly established as a part of the family. She no longer languished in the library, but joined her uncle in the mornings, toured Corona in the afternoons with Eugene or talked with Rapunzel and the queen for hours while enjoying her namesake, and spent the evenings often with the entire family. For the family's part, they enjoyed having her with them and were dreading the day when she would return to her own kingdom. Quite honestly they were loathe for the conference to begin at all and disrupt the tranquility of their time together.
"One more peaceful dinner alone, with my family," King Albert noted at the head of the table in the smaller dining hall the night before the begin of the conference.
"Yes, before the hoards of foreign dignitaries descend upon us like match-making vultures," James complained as he took a bite of meat. "I should dearly love to be at sea."
"Oh James, it cannot be that bad," Rapunzel told him.
"It won't be for you, dear cousin. That band on your finger makes it an entirely different game for you. You may speak to whomever you wish without worry that someone is looking to make a match for someone or another," he reminded his cousin.
"Westbrooke, I thought you enjoyed hunting," Eugene laughed.
"I suppose being the hunted isn't so enjoyable to the Admiral," Elsa added.
James lifted his eyes to poor, innocent Elsa. She really had no idea. "The only consolation is that I will not be the greatest prize to be won this go-round," he told her.
Perplexed, Elsa asked, "Whatever do you mean?"
James cleared his throat. "The younger brother of a Duke and nephew to a Queen, even with two earldoms and a commission as an admiral of his own is nothing compared to a reigning Queen in her own right."
Elsa dropped her fork on her plate. Her jaw might as well have dropped with it. Her aunt reached over to place a hand on hers. "Dearest, surely you knew that you would have potential suitors here?"
Elsa shook her head, her mouth still agape. "I-I thought only of making trade agreements and visiting with family. I assure you, I hadn't even considered such a thing."
She was never before so thankful for her uncle's deep, assuring voice and large, formidable person. "Not to worry, Elsa. The fishermen may cast their lines all they want. You only have to bite if one has the bait you desire."
"So I am a trout?" Elsa asked, attempting to keep a straight face, but she failed, as did every other member of the family.
Elsa was with Rapunzel the next morning as the ships started coming into port. Neither had ever seen so many masts and different flags, not even at Elsa's coronation or Rapunzel's wedding. It seemed trade agreements were more popular than weddings and coronations. The two cousins made a game of trying to identify the kingdoms each flag represented. Elsa knew most of them by heart, having studied them since childhood, but she found Rapunzel actually knew as many or more. They had a grand time of it until they both recognized a purple flag with three golden, diagonal crosses waving in the breeze.
"I didn't know they were coming, Elsa," Rapunzel told her apologetically.
"No, no! All is well," she tried to assure her cousin, though the window sill was getting frosty. "Of course they should be here. Arendelle didn't even cut off trade with them, just the Duchy of Weselton. There didn't seem to be any reason to punish an entire kingdom due to the actions of one wayward prince with no real authority."
Rapunzel straightened the skirt of her dress. "That's a very mature stance to take."
"It would only hurt Arendelle if I were to be petty. That, and it would possibly darken my soul as well," Elsa admitted. "I do not wish to be known as a queen set on revenge."
Rapunzel leaned over her old bassinet to check on her sleeping daughter. "I hope that I am as wise a queen as you when my time comes."
Elsa glanced at her perfect little namesake and smiled. "I hope your coronation is far less eventful than mine, and that there is no need for it to occur for a long, long time."
"From your lips, cousin. From your lips," Rapunzel agreed. "Honestly, I pray Papa lives until long after Elsa is of age so that I may abdicate in her favor. I may have been born into this, but I wasn't raised for it. I am always checking myself, uncertain if I am doing things the proper and correct way. I constantly have the fear that if I say the wrong thing I may cause an international incident."
Elsa brushed her fingers against the sleeping baby's soft cheek. "Oh Rapunzel, there are worse things than causing international incidents, trust me." They both laughed a little more loudly than they meant to before the sleeping infant, and hugged each other as they giggled and shushed each other.
There was a knock on the open door and the sound of a throat clearing. It was Eugene. "Ladies, I have been requested by the king to escort you down to the throne room so that we may greet all of our esteemed guests." Rapunzel nodded to the baby's nurse, and then each lady took one of Eugene's arms.
They found King Albert seated on his throne, Queen Lillian on a smaller throne to his right. Eugene deposited Rapunzel into a chair to the king's left, and Elsa in one next to Raunzel. He then took his place, standing behind Rapunzel, as he wasn't Coronian royalty by blood nor the reigning sovereign's consort. James then arrived, taking a place standing behind his aunt.
Sometimes Elsa forgot that along with being Queen of Arendelle, she also held her mother's Coronian title of Grande Duchess of Sonne and was therefore considered to be part of the Coronian royal family to all the world. Her uncle was making a statement by having her seated with them in the throne room, and he wanted everyone there to be aware of it. Elsa of Arendelle was a trusted, loved, and respected member of two powerful royal houses. The "Ault Allianse" between Corona and Arendelle had never been stronger.
The first dignitary to pay his respects was King Edmund of Middleham, a land-locked kingdom that just happened to be the largest importer of Arendelle's wool, and his second son, Prince Edgar. King Edmund was a tall, thin man with sharp features and iron gray hair. His son was neither tall nor thin. Where his father seemed all angles, the son was all curves. He looked as though he couldn't have been more than a quarter-century-old, but most of his hair had already receded to the back of his head. He also seemed unusually sweaty to Elsa. She hoped she wouldn't have to dance with him at the ball that was to close the conference.
Next up was King Igor of Waldenscot, and his queen, Helga. Rapunzel whispered to her that they reminded her of the old nursery rhyme of Jack Sprat, causing Elsa to spend much of that greeting covering her mouth with her hand in an attempt to stifle her laughter.
Thirdly came a familiar face to most of the royal family, Fergus, Duke of Westbrooke. Queen Lillian stood to hug her eldest nephew. James stepped from the dais to greet his elder brother with a hearty hug. From there, James picked up a young lady accompanying Fergus and spun her around in the air, kissing her cheek. Elsa kept her eyes on Fergus, rather than focusing on James and the young woman, trying to see any resemblance to his brother. Fergus' hair was a darker shade of brown, and his eyes were a deep brown as well. There was something in his smile though, that reminded her of the Admiral. She realized they both had only one dimple!
The Duke bowed to his cousin, "Congratulations on the birth of the new princess, Rapunzel! You as well, Fitzherbert! I'll have to take a peek at her before I retire this evening, if that is acceptable?" He changed his focus to Elsa, "Your Majesty, Queen Elsa. My brother has told me so much about you in his letters. It is good to meet you for myself!"
"James, er I meant Admiral Westbrooke has mentioned me?" Remembering protocol, she tried to cover her tracks, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Grace. I seem to recall you are married with children. Has your family come with you?" Yet she couldn't take her eyes off of James and the young lady.
Elsa's interest in his brother didn't go unnoticed, but the duke said nothing about it. "Sadly no, my wife and children were unable to join me. All three boys came down with ear infections, and Mary decided to stay at home. My sister, Elinor, is with me," he gestured to a young lady with James.
The girl was probably an inch or so shorter than Elsa. Her hair was a flaming red mess of unruly curls that easily bounced past her shoulders. Something about the gleam in her blue-green eyes told Elsa that her hair wasn't the only unruly mess. She curtsied to Elsa, and sweetly told her, "It is such a pleasure to meet you, Your Majesty! Why you're more beautiful than James described!"
She said that just a little too sweetly, Elsa thought. There was something artificial in her greeting, as if she wanted to give the appearance of sweetness and innocence, but it was only an appearance. Elsa kept a mask about her features, trying not to betray her suspicions, and told the girl, "The pleasure is all mine!" Her mother once told her that the only way to deal with artificial sweetness was to pour even more sugar on top of it.
Fergus and Elinor moved on to find their usual rooms in the family wing of the castle. James and Queen Lillian returned to their places on the dais, and they spent the better part of the day greeting dignitaries. It had taken so long to greet all of them that Rapunzel left to check on Baby Elsa for a while and was able to return. It was good that Rapunzel returned when she did, because one of the last delegations to be presented was one that Elsa needed the support of her cousin to endure. "King Magnus and Queen Irene of the Southern Isles, with Prince Reidar and Prince Jon!" the herald announced.
Elsa tensed, gripping the arms of her chair tightly. Ice began to trickle up the upholstery of the chair, not noticing that James had moved from his place behind his aunt to one directly behind her. Rapunzel placed a reassuring hand on her cousin's arm, reminding her that she wasn't alone. Elsa calmed and studied the visiting royals from the Southern Isles. King Magnus was a tall, broad-shouldered man of around forty years. His hair was the same red as his youngest brother's, but he wore it longer, to his shoulders, and kept a neatly trimmed beard. His queen had raven black hair and looked to be around thirty-five. She wasn't large, but had a matronly shape about her. The one called Prince Reider was on the shorter side and had blonde hair. Prince Jon was the height of his elder brother but much more slender. When he looked at her, Elsa gasped. He looked just like Hans, but with brown hair rather than red.
When they came to Elsa, all three men bowed to her most humbly. "Queen Elsa," King Magnus called to her attention, "it is with a most humble and contrite heart that I once again ask your forgiveness for the actions of my most treacherous, youngest brother. I am, from the deepest depths of my heart, most respectfully sorry for his actions."
Elsa looked to her uncle for permission, then stood from her chair, offered the king her hand, and asked the party to rise. When they were once again on their feet, and able to look eye to eye with her, she told them, "While your brother's actions were most reprehensible, I can neither hold you nor your kingdom responsible for his crimes. You have been nothing but apologetic and contrite regarding his actions in Arendelle."
Prince Jon spoke up, "We thank you most heartily for not breaking relations with our kingdom. You had every right to do so."
Elsa seriously wanted this interview to be over with as soon as possible. "As stated earlier, I couldn't punish an entire kingdom for the unsanctioned actions of one wayward prince with no authority. It is different with the Duchy of Weselton. Upon further investigation, the Duke has been exploiting Arendelle's resources for his own gain for years. His actions against me were just the tipping point that pushed me to break relations with them."
King Albert laid a hand on her shoulder, "Well said, my niece." He looked about the throne room at the dignitaries conversing to each other. With a raised voice he proclaimed, "It has been a long day. Let us retire for now until tonight's banquet!" With a wave of his hand, the crowd started to disperse.
"This is going to be a long week," Eugene complained as he untied his cravat. "Goldie, would you mind taking a trip for a bit of refreshment at the Snuggly Duckling with me?"
"Eugene," Rapuznel said in that way only she could, "you know that I need to see to Baby Elsa. I would love to see all the boys, but I can't right now. Why don't you take Big Elsa or James?"
"Oh please leave me out of any such plans, cousin," James begged off. "I need to spend some time with my siblings." He bowed and departed.
"That leaves you, Frosty. You in?" Eugene asked.
"Who, me?" Elsa asked. "What is the Snuggly Duckling? It sounds like a place you would want to go to together and alone."
Eugene slapped her on the back, "Oh, it's nothing of the sort. It's just a friendly watering hole just outside the city. It's sort of our place where everyone knows our name."
"Everyone knows your names anyway. You're the Crown Princess and Prince Consort," she replied.
"Tomato, tomato! Are you coming?"
She was curious about this place, but judging by the horrified look on her aunt's face and because she really just needed to spend some time alone, where it was quiet, she declined.
"Hey, it's your loss, Frosty. Vlad would have loved showing you his ceramic unicorns." He kissed his wife goodbye and headed toward the stables as fast as his legs would take him.
"Frosty?" Elsa asked, incredulously. "Why does he keep referring to me as Frosty?"
"Hey, if the shoe fits," Rapunzel told her. "By the way, my feet have been confined to these horrible contraptions for far too long!" She pulled off her shoes, breathing a very audible sigh of relief once her bare feet touched the floor. "You know he's started thinking of you as the sister he never had, don't you?"
"I'm… I'm flattered, I think," she admitted.
Rapunzel took her arm as they walked through the castle together. "We've all grown rather used to having you here with us. The family seems fuller, more complete. Mama and Papa are absolutely in heaven having you and James both here right now. They always wanted a castle-full of children. After so many years of empty rooms, they love having them filled."
"I miss home and Anna," Elsa said, "but it is nice to be a part of a large, complete family. It has been a very long time."
"Well," Rapunzel squeezed her arm before stepping into the nursery, "you handled things quite well today. I am proud to be your cousin, Elsa of Arendelle!"
Once Elsa made it to her suite of rooms, all she wanted to do was to collapse on her bed and sleep for several hours. Unfortunately she also felt somewhat restless and decided to explore the castle some more, making sure to stay in the family wing, far away from where all the visitors were. She couldn't help but find the humor in the fact that she no longer considered herself a visitor, because her family had been so welcoming.
She found a meandering staircase in a tower that looked purely interesting, and curiosity pushed her to see where it led. The staircase took her to a room that spanned the entire tower. She found bookcases filled with books, several stringed musical instruments, a place for what looked like candle-making, and every inch of wall and floor was covered in the most intricate murals she had ever seen. Beyond that, she had a birds eye, panoramic view over the whole city and off into the sea. It seemed like a perfect little getaway nook to her.
She looked at the titles of the books and found several that she knew would have been to Anna's liking. There were quite a few romances, including some that she wasn't sure her aunt would have approved of, such as Fanny Hill. Of course, she would never admit to anyone that she knew the content of Fanny Hill. Still yet, most seemed close to her own personal taste.
"I see you've finally found my little hideaway?" a feminine voice came from the stairway.
Elsa turned around, looking guilty, "Rapunzel, I'm sorry. I was restless and wanted to be alone, so I started exploring and found this. I don't wish to intrude on your personal space." She started to leave, but her cousin stopped her.
"No, it's fine. I don't mind that you're here. Sometimes I just need to get away and be by myself, so Papa gave me this room. It gets to be a little much sometimes, living in a bustling castle when you spent most of your life alone in a tower."
"Or in your bedroom," Elsa admitted. She gestured her hand to the intricate artwork all over the room, "Did you paint all of this?" Rapunzel demurely nodded. "It's marvelous! You have an extraordinary talent, Rapunzel. I'm impressed."
"You're an artist with ice. I'm one with paints. I had a lot of time on my hands to perfect my skill," she shrugged.
Elsa held up her own hands to stare at them. "I never knew what I was capable of doing until the night of my coronation, but now I can't imagine never creating things with my hands. It's a part of me that I can no longer deny. It's something that I'm becoming more comfortable doing in front of others, but it's still mostly something I do in private when I'm trying to relax. It's almost something that I feel like I need to do!"
"That's how I feel about coming up here and painting. Sometimes I just need to get away from everything and let my hands create what they can. It's ok, you know. There's nothing wrong with getting away to yourself sometimes when you need it. Occasionally lose yourself for a little bit, so you don't lose yourself completely and suddenly find yourself isolating again."
"Remember to take the time to refresh and gather myself so I don't just lose it again?" I think that I can do that. Heaven knows sometimes everything gets to just be too much. Even Anna. I love her and want to spend time with her, but I also sometimes just need to step back and catch my breath."
Rapunzel squeezed Elsa's arm. "I knew that you'd understand! I love Eugene and Mama and Papa. so very much, but sometimes I just need to hang from the rafters alone and clear my head. Of course now I have to use rope rather than my hair," she patted her spunky bob.
"Wait, weren't you supposed to be spending time with the baby?" Elsa asked.
"She's asleep, and 'though she be but little, she is fierce.' I thought I would see if inspiration would strike during her nap."
Elsa laughed, not her polite giggle but a deep chortle. "I remember Anna being the same way when she was a baby. Actually Anna is still that way!"
"I can imagine! I guess I should join Eugene at the Snuggle Duckling, but it just seemed the perfect time to come up here and just unwind a moment, you know? There just so much to process. Besides, the smell of the color brown has been even less appealing than it sounds since I first got pregnant.."
Elsa wrinkled her nose, "The smell of the color brown?"
"Yeah, it's somewhere below man smell and really bad man smell. I don't think anyone will be trying to capture that particular aroma for a cologne any time soon." Rapunzel stopped laughing and looked out a window to where several young princes were conversing in the courtyard. "Did any of the young men visiting happen to strike your interest?"
"My interest?" Elsa asked. "As in alliances and diplomatic relations?"
Rapunzel shook her head. "No, I was meaning alliances of a more personal nature. You know, more like we were discussing at dinner the other night?"
"Oh! No!" Elsa's entire body shook at the thought. "Please don't tell me that you're wanting to play the part of match-making mama now, are you?"
Rapunzel waved her hands in surrender, "No, no! I can't even imagine being in your position. It's just… you know between you and me… are you thinking of looking?"
Elsa looked down into her shorter cousin's green eyes, "Honestly? I haven't even thought about it. Perhaps I should be. It's my duty to provide an heir as much as it is to govern. However, I've just been too busy finding myself, getting close to Anna again, getting to know all of my family, and learning how to be a good queen to even think about marriage. I seriously doubt anyone would be interested in marrying me. Kingdom or not, I doubt there are many who would be brave enough to marry the Snow Queen."
"I think that you seriously underestimate yourself, Elsa," Rapunzel told her. "You are a beautiful, intelligent, strong woman. Someday you'll find someone who loves all of who you are. if you're anything like your cousin and sister, he'll probably be a commoner!"
Elsa laughed with her cousin, but she didn't really see herself marrying someone who wasn't born into the life they led. It was fortunate for Rapunzel that Eugene fit in so well, but she worried how Anna and Kristoff would build a lasting relationship with so many differences between them. It didn't really matter if it worked for them, but she saw that as just another in a long line of obstacles she didn't see many, if any, overcoming. "Well, right now I'm just focused on doing what is best for Arendelle and spending time with my family, whom I adore! Romance, even the purely political kind, will have to wait... possibly indefinitely!"
Rapunzel held her thumb to her eye, studying the next place on the wall she planned to paint. Apparently inspiration had struck. "It couldn't be that the lady doth protest too much?"
Elsa shook her head. "No. I'm just not ready yet, and don't know if I ever will be."
Rapunzel took her attention from her thumb and smiled at her cousin. "Whatever makes you happiest. That's most important. I'm thinking blue…"
Elsa smiled back. "I think I'll leave you to your art. Maybe I'll go create some myself. I'll see you later."
"Later," Rapunzel mumbled as she began mixing paints to get the right shade of blue to match Elsa's eyes.
Elsa searched the castle grounds for an open, secluded area in which to practice a little artistry of her own. Amazingly her fingers almost ached to create something out of ice. Yet just as she finally found an acceptable place and was about to begin, she a noise that was sickening to her from the other side of some tall bushes. The last time she had heard that sound had been… well, it had been in her Ice Palace before she had been taken prisoner. Hearing it now triggered memories and fears that had been repressed for almost a year.
Her breathing grew shallow, and her pulse raced with every thwishing sound of arrows being loosed from a bow. A cyclone of flurries danced around her as she parted the bushes, fighting the instinct to curl into a fetal position and hide. Fears of an assassination almost paralyzed her, but she pushed herself onward to face her would-be foe.
There was another thswish, then a thunk as an arrow met its target., which was precariously close to where Elsa now stood.
"Good God, Elsa! I might have just committed regicide had you walked a foot to the left!" an extremely angry James exclaimed.
Elsa leaned against the target, breathing a deep sigh of relief. It was James! It was only James! Her head throbbed from the unevenness of her heartbeat, but she attempted to apologize to him. "I'm so… I'm so terribly sorry, James. I-I heard the arrows shooting, and…" She swallowed, unable to finish her thoughts.
Thankfully James had been to her Ice Palace and had seen the aftermath of her battle. He felt like an utter fool for yelling at her after seeing the fear in her eyes. "Forgive me please, Elsa. You only startled me. I'm sorry my activity frightened you."
Elsa attempted to compose herself. Archery was a favorite pastime for many in their station. She couldn't allow her past traumas to prevent her from well, being a sane person. "No, no James! It was my own fault. Surely you don't expect people to come sneaking through the hedgerows?"
He placed an arrow back in his quiver and laughed. "No, I should rather expect mothers of five unmarried daughters to be starving there."
That lifted away any residual anxiety within Elsa regarding the arrows. She pulled an arrow from the target and told him, "Well, you could have some compassion for my poor nerves."
His green eyes sparkled as he laughed. He joined her at the target, pulling arrows. "Oh, don't be missish, Elsa. So you have already read the book you tried so desperately to take from me?"
"Yes," she admitted, handing him his arrow. "It is a favorite of mine."
He snatched the arrow from her. "Mine too!" He started to walk back to where he had been shooting. Elsa followed on his heels.
"So sailors enjoy reading Austen?" she asked.
James pulled an arrow from the quiver and started to aim. "This one does."
Elsa crossed her arms and laughed. "I would never have imagined it."
James' ear turned red, and he sat his bow down with a clang. "Just what should I be reading, Your Majesty?'
Elsa picked up the bow, fingering the string gently. "I don't know… Milton, Goethe. I just didn't consider Austen." She picked up an arrow and appeared to be attempting to shoot it.
"Milton?" he asked with disgust. "Surely you don't think me so puritanical?"
She pulled the bow's string with her right hand, causing the arrow to point to the left. "I hardly know you, James." Even as she said it though, she felt that part of her had always known him. Perhaps it was just the feeling of family they shared within this castle. She wasn't sure, but she was interested in how his ears were turning purple.
"You're doing it all wrong! If you were to loose your arrow now, you would surely kill that cat sleeping near those bushes!" He stalked closer to her, placing his arms around hers, to where her back was pressed against his chest. Never had she been in such close contact with a member of the opposite sex before. She almost shot the cat.
"Here," he instructed, moving her arms with his. "First things first, find an anchor point. Then take your hand back to beneath your chin like this. Cover the leather like so. Then make a claw," he positioned her fingers just so. It was incredibly intimate, his touching her fingers as he positioned them. To her, it was possibly the most intimate contact she had ever shared with anyone. Her hands were so often things to fear. She hardly heard him say, "Then rotate to catch the arrow, and shoot!"
"I missed," she lamented upon not hitting the target.
"Yet you didn't kill the cat, either," he laughed. "Don't worry. It takes a great deal of practice to become a true proficient. I have been shooting since well… almost as long as I could walk, I believe."
Elsa took another arrow from the quiver and gestured to him to assist her again. "I cannot expect to excel if I do not practice a great deal," she smiled.
He hesitated momentarily. It was obvious to him that she had no inclination what she could do to a man. Of course, she could not be denied either. "Lady Catherine would no doubt approve of your desire to improve your skill."
"Or lack thereof," she laughed as she sadly came closer to killing the cat. "Your father taught you?" she asked.
"My mother actually," he smiled. "The women of her family are the true marksmen. Sadly, she was unable to teach my sister. I doubt Fergus or I even compare to her tutelage."
"Does it not aggravate your injury?" Elsa asked, gesturing to the arm that had been in a sling when she arrived in Corona.
"No," he laughed. "Not nearly as much as fencing would, and I desperately needed to relieve some stress after today."
"I would have thought seeing your siblings would overshadow the stressors of the day?" she asked.
He took the bow and shot an arrow, hitting the bullseye directly. "Yes, well Elinor is in a snit. She expected to attend the ball and other activities, but she is not yet out. Fergus brought her mostly to keep her out of Mary's hair. They do not get along well."
Wishing to relieve his agitation, Elsa placed a hand on James' arm. "Younger siblings can be a trial at times. It goes with the age." She smiled at him, and he timidly smiled in return.
"Do me a favor?" he asked.
"Of course," she accepted.
"Don't fall in love too quickly. Hold out for the real thing, Elsa. You deserve no less. Ah, the dinner gong is ringing. Shall we?" He offered her his arm.
"Of course," she answered him, flustered. She wasn't entirely certain as to which she had agreed to.
It's been a little while, as I've been working on The Past Is In the Past. However, I wanted to get back to this. This is a very long chapter and should hold you for a while. Of course, if you're good and review, I'll try to work extra hard on getting another chapter up as soon as possible.