Author's Note:

1) Sorry for the long gap between updates. Real life and other distractions, you know the drill. it will be better from now on. I have maybe two bridge chapters to get to the ending chapters, which have been written for months. Sheesh.

2) Shoutout to dragunov888 for calling "BS" on the horrible tactics demonstrated in the original version of chapter 13. Elsa may be a noob when it comes to tactics, but Naismith is not, and he would never have let them walk into a killbox like the original version had them do. I fixed it, so the review now speaks to something no longer in existence, thanks for the wakeup call, drag!

Chapter 14 – Pure as Snow

"The key to successful leadership is influence, not authority."
― Kenneth H. Blanchard

"Be thou as chaste as ice, as pure as snow, thou shalt not escape calumny."
— William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act 3, Scene 1

*** Kingdom of Arendelle – Late January, 1841 – Two Days After Fleet Departs ***

Kristoff was getting his back pounded and his hand pumped in congratulations by his ice harvester friends. They had just elected him Guild Master by an overwhelming margin. He wasn't sure about this, he had never been one for politics. He had never been one for people, for that matter. Alone, with Sven for company, had seemed to be enough. At least it had been before he had met up with a crazy woman searching for her sister in a howling blizzard. While wearing a summer ball gown.

"Good on ye, Kristoff! Ye'll do a foin job representin' us to the high 'n mighties, I know it!" The speaker was one of the older ice harvesters, a man who had taught Kristoff much of the trade. His sentiments were echoed by many of the others in the room. There were a few gloomy faces from the supporters of the other candidates, but they were just that, gloomy, not hostile.

One of those other candidates came over and thrust his hand out to Kristoff and said, "Best man won, Bjorgman. You're young, but you've never been dishonest or stupid. Just remember where you've come from." He shook Kristoff's hand, then stalked away, he and a few of his supporters leaving the Guild Hall, probably to drown their sorrows at the nearest pub.

"Wonder what that meant?" Kristoff thought to himself.

"Okay, Kristoff, now we wet down your new title! Let's go, first round is on the new Guild Master!" A hearty cheer reinforced this proclamation, and the group dragged Kristoff off to celebrate.

Too many celebratory drinks later, Kristoff managed to stumble back to the castle gates and knock, almost falling over when he missed on the first try. The 'thump' as his head hit the gate was almost as good as a knock, and he managed to stay upright when the guards pulled it open. "Hey, guys! How ya' doin'?" he greeted them cheerfully.

Knowing smirks on their faces, the two guards said, "Welcome back, Ice Master. The Princess will be glad to know you have returned to us. She's been waiting for you. In the stable. For hours."

"Ohhhh, thash not good. I better get over there and … and ..." Kristoff wasn't sure what he was going to do but his addled brain realized that Anna in a bad mood was a problem. Sven probably wasn't too happy either.

Staggering off across the courtyard, he waved feebly at the two highly amused guards and tried to focus his bleary eyes enough to find his way to the stables and his beloved.

Anna took one look at Kristoff hugging Sven and apologizing for neglecting him and knew he had fallen in with bad company again. Kristoff was not at all prone to get drunk and disorderly, but every now and again his ice harvester buddies managed to talk him into a night of over-indulgence. Usually not THIS overly indulgent, though. Shaking her head, she took him by the hand and led him to his room above the stables, amused at his drunken amiability. "Come on, Kristoff, to bed with you. Morning will come 'way too early for that ale-sodden head of yours."

She steered him to flop onto his bed, then pulled off his boots and threw a blanket over him. He was snoring before she had snuffed the lantern. Anna made sure his water pitcher was full and his chamber pot was empty. He'd need both before morning, she knew from past experience. Shaking her head, she gave him an affectionate peck on the cheek and went down to say her goodnight to Sven. Tomorrow was plenty soon enough to explain why trying to stay even with his ice harvester drinking buddies was a bad idea. And she suspected his own head would do most of the talking, letting her be kind and sympathetic while gently pointing that out.

The next morning at breakfast, Kristoff was bleary-eyed and greenish of skin pallor. He had apparently managed to bathe and dress in clean clothes, although his vest was slightly askew and a shirttail was untucked. Anna suppressed a smile and simply waved the footman to pour coffee for her poor beau. Kristoff fumbled for the cup, then used both hands to bring it to his mouth and drink it all in one long swallow. He sighed, then held the cup out piteously for more. The footman obliged, then left the carafe at Anna's gesture.

"So, had a fun evening at the Guildhall, Ice Master?" Anna asked innocently.

"Mmmm … at the time it seemed like fun," mumbled Kristoff. He looked at her and tried to focus. "After the election, the guys all wanted to celebrate. I couldn't say no, it would look … like I thought I was too good to hang out with them," he explained in a plaintive voice.

Anna nodded thoughtfully, then said, "Elsa has to sit through a lot of state dinners with many toasts to the Queen. She could teach you how to look like you're drinking while not really doing it." She looked at him and saw that the greenish cast to his face was fading to his more normal shade. "Ready for something to eat?"

He looked uncertain, then nodded. "Yeah. Something … soft. Warm. Easy to digest."

"Groats with cream and honey should do it, and be sure to drink a lot of water. Gerda said it's important to drink a lot of water after an evening of imbibing too freely. Papa would do it occasionally, to Mama's great amusement the next day, she said."

"Somehow I can't imagine your father getting drunk," Kristoff mumbled through a spoonful of groats.

"Why not? If anyone should know that 'royals' are just people like everyone else, it would be you!" Anna retorted. "We make mistakes like anyone else. Bad mistakes sometimes … " Her voice trailed off and she looked aside with a frown as she remembered some of her own.

Kristoff was not so hungover that he didn't notice her expression and he reached out to touch her hand and say, "Hey, Feisty Pants, past is in the past, like Elsa says, okay?"

She shook off the glum expression to reply, "Yeah, she's right. And maybe Papa would overdo it sometimes, although I only know that from Gerda, but I can't imagine Elsa all goofy and uninhibited. That's a picture that I can't see in my head. That kind of behavior is just beyond my prim and proper sister."

They finished breakfast, then Kristoff walked Anna to Elsa's study. As Regent, she had to cover all the business of the kingdom in Elsa's absence. It had been two days since Elsa and the Navy had sailed off to deal with the Duke of Weselton, so the pile wasn't too high yet.

When she reached the door, Anna stretched on tip-toe to give Kristoff a peck on the cheek and asked, "What are your plans for the day?"

He smiled at the kiss and replied, "Well, the good news is that after last night I don't think there'll be any activity at the Guild Hall before late this afternoon. So I'm going to go muck out Sven's stall to sweat out the rest of the leftover ale from last night and then maybe catch a nap afterward. What were you planning for lunch?"

"I'm going to work through the entire pile of paper on Elsa's desk, then take the rest of the day off. How about a late lunch this afternoon?"

"Sounds good. Come get me when you're ready." He leaned down to kiss the top of her head, then went off to visit Sven and start that sweating out thing.

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Working on the theory that randomly choosing days to go into town would make assassination attempts unlikely, at least until the weather got better, Anna decided that she and Kristoff deserved an afternoon visiting one of their favorite inns for that late lunch, then would stop by the Guild Hall to check in with anyone who had managed to survive their 'celebration'. The four guards that accompanied them didn't bother Anna at all this time. "Amazing what having a bullet miss you by inches can do to change an attitude," Anna thought sourly. She still hated the necessity for the guards, but she now had a healthy appreciation that there were people in the world that wanted her and Elsa dead. The scary part was she didn't know who or exactly why.

"Skilling for your thoughts, Feisty Pants?" Kristoff asked. He had noticed the uncharacteristic silence as they walked to the inn.

"Sorry. Moping. Worrying. Elsa's on her way to Weaseltown, there's someone out there who wants us dead, and I am so sick and tired of reading trade reports and diplomatic dispatches that I could scream," she replied.

He took her cloak and hung it up next to his own jacket, then held her chair to let her sit. They ordered, then Kristoff took Anna's hand in his own and said, "Anna, Elsa will be okay. She doesn't want to hurt anyone, except the Duke, and that only in his wallet."

"I know. But accidents can happen and I can't help worrying." She brightened a little when their meal was placed on the table. She hadn't eaten a lot for breakfast and her stomach had been reminding her of that little fact all morning.

They were picking over the remnants of dessert when Baron Thorstad walked up and greeted Anna with a polite, "Your Highness, I hope I am not interrupting." He glanced at Kristoff and continued, "I wanted to be one of the first to congratulate the new Guildmaster!"

His effusive smile surprised Kristoff. Thorstad had never found it necessary to notice Kristoff in the past. "Well, thank you, Your Grace. I appreciate the sentiment."

"Yes, well, I am sure your compatriots and associates were very much aware of the advantages of electing you and how that would redound to the benefit of the new guild. They chose well. I look forward to dealing with you this week when the Trade Council meets." Thorstad nodded at Kristoff, made a small bow to Anna, then took his leave.

Kristoff was puzzled by the Baron's remarks. "I wonder what he meant by that?"

Anna hadn't really paid much attention. Although she had dealt with Thorstad during Council meetings in Elsa's absence, he wasn't one of her favorite people. If pressed, she couldn't even say why he made her uncomfortable. It hardly made sense to say, "He smiles too much," as a reason to not like someone.

"I doubt he meant anything, Kristoff. He's a politician, that's what politicians do, they are professionally nice to people. I've never seen him not be nice at council meetings," Anna said thoughtfully. "I should ask Elsa about that … he's been on the council since before she took over when my parents … uh, " she didn't finish the sentence.

"Yeah, I get it." Kristoff patted her hand sympathetically. Three and a half years later and the loss of their parents still weighed heavily on both sisters.

"Maybe more coffee will make us both feel better," Anna said as she waved at the person who was serving them.

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Thorstad entered Rob Pierre's business office and greeted his associate cheerfully. After turning his coat and hat over to a servant, he settled into a chair and asked, "How is the new manufacturing enterprise progressing?"

Pierre growled, "It is proving more difficult than I would have thought to get your countrymen to invest in a new idea." He scribbled more figures in the account book he was working on.

"That's … unfortunate. Although, not that surprising, given how staid and conservative this kingdom is. Our entire economy has been based on our natural resources. Extraction industries like forestry and fishing. The switch to actually making things is … not something that would be embraced with enthusiasm at first." Thorstad tapped his fingers on the desk as he thought.

"Perhaps … what we need is a push, an incentive," Thorstad mused.

"What?" muttered Pierre. "An incentive from who? What kind of incentive?"

Thorstad sat up and slapped the table enthusiastically. "The Crown, some sort of Royal franchise. The Queen has always been supportive of diversifying the economy of Arendelle, broadening the economic base, including more of the population in the ability to share in the prosperity."

Pierre looked at him, his expression clearly one of skepticism. "Why on earth would the monarch care about the people sharing in the prosperity?"

"Rob, I know that you had bad experiences with the royalty and nobility of France, but Arendelle is not like that. I'm not the most enthusiastic fan of the Queen, but as long as I have been on the Royal Council, I have never seen her be anything but mindful of her people. This would be a natural for her to support, I tell you!" Thorstad's conviction distracted him from the sour expression on his associate's face.

"Hmph, I am still unconvinced, but if you think this is something worth pursuing, I will defer to your intimate understanding of your Queen and countrymen. We need something to attract more investment or this will cost us far more than we can hope to gain. How should we proceed?" asked Pierre. He sat back in his chair and watched Thorstad think for a few minutes.

"Well, the Queen herself is in Weselton, presumably preparing to freeze the Duke into a nicely appointed statue. The Princess is acting as Regent until she returns, and we have a Trade Council meeting the day after tomorrow. The newly elected Master of the Ice Guild will be joining us, I'm sure he can persuade the Princess. I'll work on convincing him this is a good opportunity. He should be easy to influence, he's just a jumped-up ice harvester who's fallen into a fortuitous romance."

Pierre had a somewhat higher opinion of Kristoff than Thorstad did. "I doubt that, mon ami. Do not outsmart yourself, eh?"

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Kristoff managed to get through what seemed like an interminable meeting of the Trade Council without incident. The group, numbering about 25 in total, consisted of the Masters of the Trade Guilds, of which the Ice Guild was the newest, and representatives of the major Merchant or Trading Houses. He had to admit he felt more at ease with the other guilds-men than with the high-born rich of the mercantile class.

As the newest Guildmaster, he was introduced by the Master of the oldest guild, the Fishermen. He nodded to each of the other members, managed to speak two or three sentences about how humbled he was to join such a distinguished company, and sat back with a sigh of relief when he was finished. "Glad I practiced that with Anna last night," he congratulated himself on his foresight.

After the meeting, he was chatting with some of the other Guild Masters when Baron Thorstad approached and asked if he might invite Kristoff to lunch? Puzzled as to why Thorstad would want to spend time with him, Kristoff agreed and the two men walked to a nearby Inn for the noon meal.

"Ice Master, I congratulate you again on your selection by your fellows to represent them," said the Baron somewhat effusively over coffee.

"Ah, thank you, Your Grace. What can I do for you today?" Kristoff wasn't much for small talk and got right to the point of the meeting.

"Direct, I like that, my boy!"

"I'm not anyone's 'boy', especially not yours," thought Kristoff sourly, but he kept his expression neutral, nodded and gestured at Thorstad to continue. Kristoff had little patience for people who talked down to him, but punching Thorstad out would be overkill and embarrass Anna. And Elsa. He didn't want to do anything that would reflect badly on them, so he stifled his impulse to be rude to the Baron for the moment and listened as Thorstad continued.

"The reason I wished to speak with you was to explain an opportunity for Arendelle to benefit economically and hope that you could bring it to the Princess' attention in the absence of the Queen."

Kristoff was wary. His experience of someone who wanted to explain 'opportunities' that would benefit him 'economically' often led to someone trying to cheat him. Bulda hadn't raised a dummy. The trolls were so old that there really was nothing new under the sun for them, and they had seen every last scam in multiple guises over the years.

"Ah, Your Grace, Anna is only the Regent; Els … I mean, Her Majesty will be gone for only a few weeks, not forever." Kristoff tried to maintain an engaging tone, and his 'innocent and maybe a little dumb' look on his face. He didn't know Thorstad well at all, and wasn't going to commit to anything if he could possibly avoid it.

"I know that, Ice Master. But influence is important, and I know that the Queen accepts her sister's acumen and opinions on matters as she makes her own decisions," Thorstad replied in a somewhat patronizing tone that didn't endear him to Kristoff at all.

"The Queen indeed thinks highly of her sister, Your Grace. However, she has pretty strong opinions of her own, opinions that Anna rarely tries to change or influence." Kristoff was wishing he had never agreed to this meeting. "I am flattered that you think that I can influence the Princess, but I have some Guild business this afternoon. Could we wrap this up please?"

"Of course, of course. I was hoping to convince the Queen to endorse some of the new manufactories that are being organized to take advantage of the trade disagreements with Weselton." Thorstad went on to explain in detail what the new enterprises were intended to do and why a Royal endorsement would be a boost to such an endeavor. Kristoff listened attentively until Thorstad ran down.

"I understand, Your Grace. I will be sure to convey the information to Princess Anna. If I may suggest, however, that a written proposal presented at your next Advisory Council meeting might be more productive than a conversation with me, so that I can talk to Anna, who will then talk to the Queen," Kristoff said.

"Master Kristoff, if I may be so bold, you are young, and not well versed in the ways of the world. Reports are dull and lifeless. The real work of getting things done is through the web of friendships and relationships one forms in their daily activities. You are now a person of great influence, by virtue of your relationship with the Royal Family. I'm sure that entered into your election to your new position. It is not often that commoners have any influence that reaches into the very halls of the palace itself." Thorstad's smug grin made Kristoff itch to wipe it off, but his words were troubling. It wasn't something that had crossed Kristoff's mind before. Was Thorstad right? Was his election because of Anna, not because his friends honestly thought he would do a good job?

After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Kristoff spoke up again. "You're correct, Your Grace. You have given me much to think about. Thank you. I will convey the idea of a Royal franchise to the Princess so that she can talk it over with the Queen upon her return. Although I still think a written proposal will be of interest to Queen Elsa."

Both men stood to leave, and Thorstad nodded at Kristoff with a smile and took his leave.

Watching him go, Kristoff was uneasy and decided he and Anna needed to talk about something other than Sven and Olaf's antics tonight. He recognized the thin ice of life in a Royal court, and knew he needed guidance to cross it safely.