Elsa had only ever once knelt down in her entire life. That day, a year before, when she received the news from Hans that her sister had perished. She had collapsed to her knees, overwhelmed by the sensation of dread and guilt, hoping against hope that it wasn't true—that her sister had not died by her hand.
As it turned out, at that exact moment, Anna was still alive—but the only way Elsa found out was when she threw herself in front of Hans's sword. As she did, only then did her body completely freeze, saving Elsa but sacrificing herself in the process. In that one moment, Elsa went through a wide range of emotions.
First, she felt relief that Anna was alive, and the desire to embrace her as quickly as possible, and find a way to save her from the ice in her heart. But it was short-lived, and Elsa barely had time to react before Anna really did freeze in front of her. All the hope she had before was dashed, replaced by terror and pain.
Elsa had jumped to her feet, and ran her hands on Anna's face, praying that her sister was still somehow alive, even now. But her face was cold to the touch, and hard, and her eyes were empty and lifeless.
Elsa collapsed at her sister's feet, hugging her with what little strength she could find, and wept. She wished Anna hadn't died. She wished it had not been her own powers that had killed her. But, above all, she wished she could have at least talked with Anna one last time before it all happened.
In that moment, for the first time in her life, she had wanted to say "I love you" out loud, to her sister's face, so that Anna could hear her say it. So that the past thirteen years of separation would fade away, and they could go back to being sisters again. In that moment, Elsa didn't care about her powers. She had only wanted to tell her sister those three small words—those words that she had never been able to say before, and now would never have a chance to again.
And, almost as if God himself could read her thoughts, Anna thawed out right underneath her arms. She could feel Anna's temperature warm up under her fingers, and she had looked up just in time to see Anna's face return to normal. The blue ice was gone from her body; even the strand of white hair she had had since childhood had disappeared.
Elsa embraced her sister, as hard as she could, and she swore never to let her go ever again. It was a miracle: Anna was back from the dead. Elsa's love for her had saved her from her own magic.
Elsa's love was stronger than the thing she feared the most. And in that moment, she felt her love might indeed have been the strongest thing in the whole world.
Ivan's strong push returned her to the present, and she fell to the ground. The snow fell gently around them, piling up on their shoulders and getting into their hair. The side of a large cliff stood to the side, while on the other Elsa could see all the way down to Arendelle, by now miles away and below them. Ivan had taken her up the path toward the North Mountain, to a place where the snow fell naturally and Elsa was powerless.
Not that Elsa's powers could do anything anyway, since Ivan could not be touched by them. She was completely helpless, and unable to defend herself. Even though she was queen, she was not very strong—especially against the chief guard of Arendelle. He easily forced Elsa to the ground, throwing her in such a way that she landed on her knees, facing in his direction.
She refused to remain kneeling, and collapsed to her belly. She barely brought herself to look Ivan in the eye, her face a mixture of rage and helplessness.
Ivan twirled his sword in his hand, the sharp edge catching rays of sunlight peaking through the clouds. "Think about it, Elsa," he murmured, as if the two were having a casual afternoon conversation. "Think about what can happen, if you only marry me. We can go back to Arendelle, and rule together, as husband and wife." He smiled. "As king and queen." His smile faded. "We can pardon Anna for her crimes against Arendelle. We can live in harmony, without ever having to worry about each other."
Elsa fought the urge to spit at Ivan's feet. Instead she settled for growling, "I do not love you, Ivan. And even if I did, do you really think I would forgive you for all this?" She pushed herself up onto her hands and knees. "Love cannot exist without trust. I never trusted you—and if I ever did, I was a fool to."
"Oh, but you trust Anna, is that it?" Ivan waved his sword in the direction of Arendelle. "You told me you love her, and you want her to know that. Does that mean you trust her as well?" He snickered. "Does that mean she trusts you? Don't make me laugh. You are a horrible sister to her. Not only did you ignore her for thirteen years…" He slammed his sword into the snow, where it stuck straight up. "But you killed her. And you think she'd trust you after all that? Do you think she would forgive you?"
Before today, it would have been a tough question for Elsa to answer, and even then, her answer would probably have been "no." But now, after talking with the troll in the Northeast Pass, Elsa knew the answer, and didn't have to think twice.
"She would trust me, because she loves me. She's proven her love to me, through the good times and the bad. That is true love, Ivan." Elsa rose to her feet in defiance. "And that is the kind of love I have for Anna!"
It was a relief, being able to say it out loud—even if it wasn't to the person she intended. But she had to say it, and if Ivan was the only one who could hear her, she would yell it at the top of her lungs.
Ivan stared at her blankly for a few seconds, before retrieving his sword from the ground. He raised the blade so it crossed between their faces. "Let me put it to you simply, Elsa: Either you marry me, or I will kill you and Anna, and rule Arendelle anyway. The choice should be utterly obvious."
Elsa snorted. "Well, let me tell you something—"
A sharp pain on her cheek caused her to recoil. She took a step back, tripped on the hem of her dress, and collapsed on the ground once more, this time facing away from Ivan. The snow helped calm the pain on her cheek a little, but she found herself rubbing. A small trickle of blood rolled down the side, probably the result of Ivan's fingernails digging into her skin when he slapped her.
Ivan shrugged. "I guess if that's the way you want it." He raised his sword. "Do you have any last words, Queen Elsa?"
Elsa had a few choice words, but she resolved to remain as dignified as possible. She simply closed her eyes and lowered her head in defeat. Just like that day a year prior, she only wished she had a little more time, to tell her sister she loved her.
She clenched her fists and gritted her teeth, hoping her end would come quickly and as painlessly as possible. "Anna…" she whispered.
"Elsa!" Anna replied.
Perhaps Ivan had already killed Elsa without her realizing it. Anna's voice came from far away, and as she held out the last vowel, it got louder. It took a moment for Elsa to realize that she wasn't dead, and that Anna was approaching from the distance.
Shocked, she opened her eyes and looked in the direction of the voice. Ivan, equally as shocked, followed her gaze.
Sven was running up the side of the mountain, with incredible swiftness and agility, and Anna was on his back, sword raised above her head. Within seconds, the two were close enough for Anna to jump off Sven's back and swing at Ivan. Ivan barely had time to dodge Anna's sword, and on he second swing he only just managed to parry.
"Anna!" Elsa gasped. She was unable to move, and part of her still wondered if she was dead. The last she had seen Anna, her sister had left her in the Northeast Pass and had returned to Arendelle, the two of them further apart than ever before in their lives. And now, once again, Anna had chosen to forget all of that in order to save her.
And this time, Anna was not freezing solid in front of Elsa. Anna was very much alive, and fiery with rage. She swung furiously, but expertly, at Ivan, causing the guard to fight for his very life. People wouldn't expect it from her, but during their time apart, Anna had some of the best sword training in all of Arendelle, and she was putting it to good use now.
Anna didn't even seem to notice Elsa at the moment. She was completely absorbed in her fight with Ivan. Every move she made, every step she took, every swing of her sword, was carefully calculated. Ivan, barely able to keep up, struggled to find an opening to retaliate.
"You're…Really…Getting…On…My…Nerves!" Anna yelled, one word for every strike.
Elsa found her strength and slowly rose to her feet. She tried to create a block of ice to throw at Ivan in an attempt to help her sister, but her magic didn't respond. Not a snowflake, not a speck of dust—her hands didn't even glow blue. All she could do now was stand to the side and watch her sister.
But Anna didn't seem to need the help. After just a few minutes, Anna was forcing Ivan back, pushing him closer and closer to the side of the cliff. Elsa knew that, once there, Anna would be able to execute a complicated maneuver and disarm Ivan.
Ivan, in the meantime, continued to struggle. He seemed to weaken quickly against Anna, barely able to keep up with every move. More than once, he narrowly avoided getting injured by Anna's sword only due to instant reflexes that he had gained as a guard; any lesser swordsman would have fallen to Anna's blade.
Finally, Anna had Ivan pinned against the cliff. Poised to disarm Ivan, Anna locked swords and slid hers down the length of Ivan's, barely avoiding slicing open his shoulder as she did. Then she intentionally disengaged from Ivan, so that he inadvertedly swung his sword too far to the right and out of harm's way.
Anna's final move was to hit Ivan's sword at a specific angle, in such a way as to knock it out of his hand. However, as she moved to do so, Ivan planted himself firmly against the cliff face, and very quickly pushed off of it, swinging his fist with all his might.
Anna froze as his fist connected squarely with her chest. The air left her lungs, and she was unable to complete her move. She stood still for several long, long seconds.
"Anna!" Elsa yelled. She ran over to her sister just in time to catch her. The sword fell to the ground, disappearing in the snow, and Anna grasped Elsa's shoulder, frantically trying to gasp for air.
Ivan leaned against the cliff, getting a rebreather of his own. "You should consider her lucky," he wheezed. "If I had hit her during a heartbeat, she'd be dead."
Anna still could not breathe, and if she didn't get air in the next few seconds, she would pass out. Thinking fast, Elsa leaned down, locked her lips with Anna's, and breathed out as smoothly as she could. It seemed to do the job; Anna pulled away immediately and started gasping as much air as her lungs could hold.
Elsa, relieved, held Anna tightly and allowed her to do her thing. It took a few seconds for Anna's breathing to return to normal, and when it did, she still took deeper breaths than normal.
"Anna, are you okay?" Elsa asked, concerned.
Anna looked into Elsa's eyes. Elsa prepared herself to listen to whatever she had to say. Anna could be angry at her, and she could hate her all she wanted. All Elsa wanted to do was tell Anna she loved her, but after the fight Anna had just had with Ivan, she had earned the right to speak first.
"Elsa…" For the first time in her life, it seemed Anna had a hard time figuring out the right words to say. She was speechless. "Did…." She touched Elsa's cheek tenderly. "Did you just kiss me?"
Elsa paused at the comment, and a flush of red appeared on her face. "No! I was just…" She tried to think of the words, to explain to her sister that it was just mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, but when none came to her, she just shook her head in defeat. "Yes. Kiss. That was it. A kiss."
The clatter of Ivan's sword distracted both of them. Ivan pushed himself off the rock and heaved his way to the two sisters. "Quite the impressive show, Anna," he remarked, perhaps even genuinely. "However, I was in the middle of something with Elsa here. And it seems you've jumped in just in time to volunteer as an additional participant."
Sven, who had been standing by the whole time, growled in anger and began running at Ivan. In response, Ivan laid his sword on Elsa's shoulder, forcing Sven to stop in his tracks; if the reindeer tackled Ivan, it would still result in Elsa's death. Sven took an uneasy step back, still growling.
Ivan turned his attention back to Elsa. "This is your last chance, Elsa. Nobody can save you now. Nothing can stop me."
Elsa narrowed her eyes. "My answer remains," she said, as clearly and slowly as possible.
"I figured as much." Ivan moved the sword from Elsa's neck to Anna's, who still lay in Elsa's arms. "Then will you be willing to sacrifice your sister's life as well?"
Elsa felt her breathing stop. She knew Ivan was despicable, but not this bad. She even heard Sven's growling stop as the reindeer realized the same thing she did: Either Elsa agree to marry Ivan, or he would kill Anna.
Before she could even consider her options, Anna sat up. She leaned her head against Elsa's shoulder for support—she was still weary—and wrapped her arms around her sister. She looked Ivan dead in the eye, but didn't say anything. She just stayed there, hugging Elsa and glaring at Ivan defiantly.
In that moment, Elsa didn't need to hear Anna in order to know what she meant. Elsa wrapped her arms around Anna all the tighter and joined her in glaring at Ivan. Elsa would not agree to marry Ivan, and Anna was prepared to die, right here and now, to prevent that from happening.
Anna really did love Elsa, enough to die for her. And now, Elsa was ready to die for Anna as well.
Ivan, dumbfounded, stared at the two girls for a long moment. He seemed incapable of understanding this moment. But Elsa didn't expect him to, because Ivan didn't know what true love really was. But now, at long last, Elsa did, and she didn't even need to tell Anna.
However, given that they would be the final words Anna would ever hear, she might as well anyway. "Anna?" she whispered.
Anna didn't break her gaze at Ivan, as the guard raised his sword. "Yes, Elsa?" she whispered back.
Elsa smiled. "I love you." Just before she closed her eyes, she saw Ivan begin to swing his sword.