Author's Note:
So I'm excited for you guys to read this chapter so I'll keep this short. This whole chapter is about our favorite ice harvester. Enjoy.
I don't own Frozen
Chapter 14
Kristoff had been on the other side of the mountain selling ice at one of Arendelle's farming villages when the snow hit. Safe to say that no one wanted to buy what they could get for free. Pissed, he had tried to follow the snow to his source but when he reached the base of the mountain it was to face heavy snowfall and sleet. Knowing he didn't have any winter gear with him, Kristoff had headed to Oaken's to wait out the storm until morning. Luckily, he was able to persuade Oaken to front him the supplies he need to scale the mountain.
Kristoff had left Oaken's early in the next morning eager to begin the long trek up to the north mountain. He had ditched the load of ice he was carrying, keeping it would have only slowed Sven down, and they were now making great time to the top of the mountain. Other than having to find an alternate route when they reached a cliff, things were progressing nicely. Kristoff and Sven were currently passing through a grove of frozen trees and Kristoff couldn't begrudge his friend as the reindeer stopped to admire the landscape.
"Sure is beautiful, isn't it, buddy?" Kristoff marveled.
"Sure is!" Kristoff responded in his 'Sven' voice. "It'll be too bad when we bring summer back."
Kristoff sighed. "You know as well as I do that no matter how much we enjoy winter, it's ruining our livelihood to have more than one winter a year."
"But it's so pretty." Sven huffed in agreement.
"I know, buddy." Kristoff trailed off.
He ran his hand through the branches, savoring the natural wind chimes created by this false winter. Winter was Kristoff's favorite season; it was why he was so happy being an ice harvester. When so many others complained about the back breaking work, the long hours spent away from family, and criticized the ice's destructive properties, Kristoff marveled at its multiple forms, how he could feel so at peace alone in the cold and how the ice supported life by becoming water or preserving other types of necessary supplies that people used everyday.
As much as it would kill Kristoff to end this winter, he knew it was for the best. Farmers were panicking as their crops withered and died beneath a blanket of snow, fish would be driven back into warmer waters, trade would suffer; people would starve and die. Whoever or whatever was causing this winter was making the kingdom suffer and they must have known what they were doing. Kristoff just hoped that he was going to be able to make a difference.
The young man rode in silence for the remainder of the journey, weaving his sled delicately around the large spikes of ice that seemed to warn away visitors. Reaching the last cliff before the peak, Kristoff hopped out of the sled to examine the sheer cliff face and trying to decide best how to scale it. He could hear Sven exploring behind him but paid the reindeer no mind until he whined to get Kristoff's attention.
"What is it, Sven?" Kristoff asked, not really paying attention.
The reindeer called again, finally getting Kristoff's attention and enthusiastically pointing towards a cave with his antlers.
"What?" Kristoff pressed, not seeing what the animal was trying to tell him.
Tired of trying to pantomime his findings, Sven walked directly into the small cave that his human friend was obviously too busy to notice. Seeing where Sven was headed, Kristoff ran to catch up.
"Woah, Sven, good job." Kristoff's voice echoed as he passed through the small tunnel which opened up to the peak of the mountain. "This is pretty convenient-. Woah!"
Kristoff cut himself off as the ice palace came into view. The castle was several stories high and made of solid ice with an ice staircase that lead right up to its doors. There was a large, snow covered boulder by the staircase and a long incline that would be an easier, if not steeper, way to head down the mountain than the way Kristoff had originally came.
Sven bleated joyfully and dashed up to the ice staircase, still pulling his sled behind him. Kristoff laughed and was about to call out to free him of the sled when the giant boulder began to move. Kristoff gasped as the boulder revealed itself to be a large, living, snowman. It was at least 10 feet tall with hallow eyes, large fists, and jagged ice protruding from its middle. Seeing the newcomers, the snowman roared, swinging its solid fists at the closest target, the reindeer.
"Sven, run!" Kristoff yelled, running forward towards his friend.
Sven turned, trying to avoid the incoming assault, but was unable to completely clear the sled. With a loud crash, the sled splintered under the force of the blow, and sending its contents flying. Now free of his hindrance, Sven turned and ran, desperate to lead the ice giant away from his friend. Kristoff, however, had grabbed the closest tool that landed near him and was now running towards the monster with a length of rope. He created a loop and swung the rope to catch the snowman in the legs, causing him to trip.
Kristoff searched around in the snow for another weapon when the snowman whined and pounded the ground with its fists like a small child. This made Kristoff pause. The monster was throwing a tantrum that his rampage had been interrupted. He was reminded on the troll children; they were so heavy, they didn't know their own strength and were dangerous to be around humans until they learned how to control themselves. Getting a sudden idea, Kristoff abandoned his search for a weapon and advanced towards the beast's face.
"You know that wasn't very nice, right?" Kristoff admonished the snowman. "You could have hurt someone."
The snowman stopped his tantrum to stare at the man. "Hurt?" He asked innocently.
Seizing his chance, Kristoff nodded gravely. "Yes, hurting people is bad. Didn't anyone ever tell you?"
The snowman shook his head no.
"Well, I guess we can forgive you his once since you didn't know any better." Kristoff continued, pretending as if he was talking to a small child. "Do you promise to behave?"
Again, the snowman nodded in the affirmative. Figuring things couldn't get any weirder than they already were, Kristoff released the giant's legs and stood back as it pulled itself into a seated position. Kristoff whistled for Sven, relieved as the reindeer came back after a moment's notice.
"So, big fella, what's your name?" Kristoff asked now that he knew the snowman could talk.
"Don't have one." He replied, his voice low and throaty.
"Well, that won't do." Kristoff muttered staring hard at the creature. He didn't seem very frightening now, in fact, he seemed downright cuddly. "How about Marshmallow?"
"Marsh… mallow?" The snowman sounded out the new word.
"Yeah, cause you're really just a big ol' softy." Kristoff concluded, patting him on the arm. The snowman looked positively delighted.
"Ok!" He agreed.
"Well, Marshmallow. I'm Kristoff and this is Sven!" He introduced himself.
"Kristoff! Sven!" Marshmallow nodded his understanding.
"Good. Now I need to go into this flawless ice palace…" He trailed off and tried to keep his voice from cracking. "Why don't you stay out here with Sven?"
"No visitors…" Marshmallow shook his head but seemed uncertain. He wasn't sure if it was no to all visitors or just no to the last 3 visitors that were here. Sensing the snowman's indecision, Kristoff offered a distraction.
"Tell you what, why don't I go inside for a minute while you play with Sven. Here you can throw-" He broke off as he picked up a piece of his destroyed sled. "You can throw this piece of my dreams- I mean piece of wood, and Sven will fetch it back. It's a game."
"A game?" Marshmallow repeated as Kristoff shoved the wood into his claws. Kristoff noticed that one of his hands looked misshapen.
"Yes, it's fun!" He said with mock enthusiasm. He threw a meaningful glance to Sven and the reindeer began to prance around, effectively distracting the snowman.
Trusting Sven to run if Marshmallow started playing too rough, Kristoff gathered his rope and an ice pick from the ground and snuck behind the snowman. He knew that the snowman wasn't the cause of this winter, he didn't have the brains. Whoever had done caused this winter had created the snow golem to keep anyone away from the ice castle.
Taking a deep breath, Kristoff quickly made it up the staircase, enjoying how the sunlight reflected off of the castle walls before he stood before the ornate door and marveled at the intricate snowflake that was carved on the door. He placed his palm against the door and pushed, amazed that it opened so easily.
"This is the most beautiful place I've ever seen." He mumbled under his breath.
He entered the castle and immediately had to bite back a moan at the sight inside. The magnificent archways, the detailed ice fountain; it was as if someone had made these beautiful sculptures especially for him. He was finding it difficult to reconcile the beauty of what he was seeing with the idea of a kingdom wide curse. He wandered up to the next level, nearly squeaking with happiness with each room he passed until he reached the top of the stairs and found himself face to face with an indoor blizzard.
The wind roared, drowning out all other sound and the snow was so thick, Kristoff could barely see 3 feet in front of him. Gulping, Kristoff pulled in scarf up to protect as much of his face as he could and raised his ice pick to prepare to attack anything that might jump out at him. He slowly made his way to the cause of the storm, trying to mentally prepare himself for whatever malevolent being could be the cause. Was it an angry spirit, determined to rid the land of people? Was it a witch, seeking revenge for some perceived slight? Kristoff had thought he was prepared for anything and so when he began to see the outline of a figure in the snow, his adrenaline began pumping and drew back his weapon.
He closed the distance between himself and the figure with a leap, swinging his ice pick with a roar. The figure screamed, its high voice throwing off Kristoff's expectations and causing him to hesitate. Suddenly, ice formed up from the ground to surround his ice pick, freezing it in mid-air. The ice spread to try and encase his hand as well but Kristoff released his grip on the weapon and fell backwards, away from the formation.
Kristoff pushed up from the ground, trying to get back on his feet in case of another attack but what he saw he was unprepared for. Against the wall with their knees pulled to their chest and one hand raised protectively to ward off another attack, was a girl with tears streaming down her face.
A crying girl. He had attacked a crying girl. She had to have been no older than he was, with platinum blonde hair that looked almost white and a blue gown on. He gazed into her eyes and noticed the intense look of fear she was giving him.
"Oh no." Kristoff mumbled. "What have I done?"
Whew, Kristoff. What are you doing? Next chapter soon!