The moment Elsa saw Anna under Van Garrett's dagger, she could have frozen him solid in a split second. Of course, she'd have been too blind by anger to figure out how not to freeze Anna too. So maybe there was a silver lining to Van Garrett giving orders a split second faster.

"One snowflake falls from those hands, and I use this!" Van Garrett held the dagger tighter against Anna. "Just one! No powers at all, do you understand?!"

Elsa couldn't even nod. It was taking such an effort to follow his instructions, she couldn't afford to move a muscle.

Gaspar and Malin almost leaped at Van Garrett themselves, until his new friends blocked the way. They tried to fight them off, yet they had enough borrowed weapons from the tunnel supply room to make it unwise.

"This is how it's going to work," Van Garrett started. "My partners are taking Elsa away. We'll say Anna ran away going after them. The King and Queen will reassume the throne, and with her gone, her control over them should disappear. But if I hear one single report of Elsa escaping, or using her powers just one time…."

"She doesn't control us, you lunatic!" Malin yelled. "Where are you even taking her?!"

"The Southern Isles," Van Garrett answered. "It's true, no one in power there has a grudge against Arendelle, or her. But those out of power have friends with places to hold her, from what I've been told. If anything different or magical happens, and if I don't get progress reports at the agreed upon times…."

"Even if she goes, what about us?!" Gaspar asked. "What makes you think we won't tell anyone? What makes you think anyone in Arendelle will buy….whatever cover up you sell them? Especially after that little display outside? Did you seriously think any of this through?"

"Take back the throne and accept she needs to go, and I won't have to. You sent her away for the greater good before. And she didn't even manipulate you then," Van Garrett argued.

"You say one more word about Elsa, and I'll make you kill me myself! Then your whole stupid plan will be ruined, won't it?" Anna figured. "Then I'll be dead….and acts of true love don't cure dagger stabbing. Okay, so I gotta think a few things through here too…."

"There's nothing to think about. If you love us so much, Tomas, you'll let our daughters go now," Gaspar demanded.

"It's okay, Your Majesty. When enough time has passed and her spell has worn off, you'll know better. Just like you did then," Van Garrett promised. "Then we can talk about bringing Anna back."

"Okay, where am I going until then?" Anna asked.

"I have old friends that'll take Elsa to the Southern Isles. They have friends that'll make you comfortable in Weselton," Van Garrett admitted. "If I don't hear about you two being comfortable in your new homes, on time every week….or your parents do anything under Elsa's influence to get you back or expose me, before they're cured….no one will be comfortable."

"Elsa, I'm comfortable with you freezing him now! Do it!" Malin pleaded.

"Yes. Third time would be the charm, wouldn't it?" Van Garrett got into her head, holding Anna harder to seal the deal. With that reminder of the ugly past, Elsa was powerless in every way.

"Elsa, please! Don't let him do this just for me! His plan's too crazy and stupid to work! You can make it fail faster and save me, I know you can!" Anna hoped. But this time, pure faith couldn't get through to Elsa.

"Anna….Mama, Papa…." Elsa tried to explain, feeling like a fearful failure all over again. But she had to suppress it before one little snowflake fell, or else….

She came all too close to muttering three little words again. But Anna, Gaspar and Malin could tell she was thinking them. Since Gaspar and Malin couldn't see her conceal this heavily before or after the shipwreck, and since Anna missed it altogether, this was freshly heartbreaking for them.

"All right, there's still a lot to do. You guys keep the King and Queen here, you guys get Elsa to our Southern Isles boat, and I'll take Anna to our Weselton boat," Van Garrett explained. "By the time I get back, they'll be on their way out and hopefully….our King and Queen will start feeling deprogrammed."

"You don't tell them what to feel, you – " Anna nearly finished with a rather unlady like flourish, if Van Garrett hadn't covered her mouth.

"She'll only be quiet for so long, trust me. Get going, all of you. I gave you the rest of my fortune, so you'd better start earning it," Van Garrett ordered. The group of 'guards' around Elsa marched her down the hall, as she couldn't trust herself to even speak a final word to her family.

"Elsa!" Gaspar and Malin called out, hardly as restrained. However, their guards took a cue from Van Garrett and put a hand over their mouths.

"I'm sorry," Van Garrett said. "I'll start getting you back to normal when I return. I promise." It felt on deaf ears to the furious parents, as Van Garrett took Anna down the other end of the hall.

Their struggles finally faded from Van Garrett and Anna's ears, just as they were about to make a turn. But then something louder rang down the hall. Something remotely like….hooves. Then more noises were heard until something else rang out.

"Bye, Elsa! Hi, Meemaw and Peepaw!" something called like….a talking snowman.

Many more chaotic noises then stampeded like….a charging crowd.

Van Garrett and Anna couldn't understand, although only one of them didn't mind right now. How it happened would have been too much to explain in such a short time anyway – at least on their timetable.

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Earlier that night….

When Gerda heard that Kai actually went home early for the night, she didn't buy it. Even if she didn't know how rare that was for Kai, hearing Van Garrett made the claim made her even more suspicious.

But she kept it down at the moment, figuring she would find Kai in the crowd at the courtyard, and talk to him before the royal family got back. If they were going to be exposed, Kai and Gerda could at least plan a defense for them, and of how they used this secret time together to mend their family again – at least until last night.

Yet Gerda looked through the whole crowd, the whole town and even Kai's home, and there was no sign of him. She had plenty of time to look, since the royal family was still riding home. But it seemed they weren't the only ones missing right now.

Impatient with waiting on all counts, Gerda decided to look elsewhere for answers. Yet since the castle appeared to be deserted now, under the Prime Minister's orders, she suspected she couldn't just ask to go back in and look through Kai's office for clues.

Luckily, there were other ways to get inside. Ways that only two servants were trusted to know about.

Gerda left the crowd and started going around to the back of the castle. It wasn't an easy trek – especially when she started hearing loud noises from the crowd halfway there. But by then, it was too late and pointless to go back.

Perhaps if she snuck back in now, she could catch the royal family as they entered and tell them about Kai from there. That seemed like the easier way to go.

Gerda went on to the back of the castle – specifically, to the entrance for the secret tunnel out of Arendelle. With her knowledge of how to open it from the outside, she made her way into the tunnels and intended to go straight down into the castle.

Yet when she passed by the tunnel that led to the weapons, supplies and war rooms, she heard another commotion.

It wasn't a crowd, but there was yelling. Bellowing, really. Like the bellowing of….someone Gerda had heard bellow introductions for Arendelle's leaders for years.

But this time, it was bellowing for help. Or rather, he was.

"Kai?" Gerda called out, turning towards the neighboring tunnel. "Kai? If this is one of those prankster people, this really isn't a good time!"

"It's not and it isn't!" the familiar voice called. "Gerda, tell me you're not a prankster! Please!"

"Never! No matter how much the Princess tried to make me one!" Gerda announced.

With determination, Gerda ran as fast as her legs could carry – and they could still carry a great deal in a sprint, it turned out. Kai kept calling Gerda's name, until she stopped and realized it was coming from the supply room. Using the great deal her legs could carry, Gerda slammed herself into the door until it broke open.

Even that didn't take as much out of her as seeing Kai tied up inside.

By this point, Kai had toppled himself and his chair over. Fortunately, the scarf Van Garrett tied over his mouth wasn't big enough - at least not enough to be tied securely around his large head. Rubbing the back of his head against the chair and ground, and pushing the front of the scarf around with his mouth and tongue, paved the way for him to get it loose enough to start screaming.

Gerda took care of the rest, getting Kai and his chair upright and untying him all over. "Who did this to you?" she asked in the meantime.

"The Prime Minister. He's gone mad! He thinks Queen Elsa is controlling the King and Queen!" Kai recapped. "He's going to send the Southern Isles mercenaries after her if she doesn't 'let them go'! They're in the castle right now!"

"Oh no….the King! The Queens! The Princess! They're outside right now, they have to be!" Gerda put together. "Van Garrett and the whole town are waiting for them at the courtyard!"

"Then we have to get to them before they get inside!" Kai planned as he got on his feet. "Those mercenaries are inside, though! We'll have to go out the back!"

"I know just the route!" Gerda bragged, in spite of how Kai knew it too.

They both raced down the tunnel, then down the one that took them back outside. They took the route Gerda had just used in reverse, as Gerda was getting more and more distressed that she didn't hear any big crowds.

By the time they got to the courtyard, there was a much smaller crowd still hanging around. By a pure and utter blessing, Kristoff, Sven and Olaf were among them.

"Masters Kristoff, Olaf, Sven!" Kai called out. "Where's the royal family?"

"They went in the castle. Where have you guys been?" Kristoff wondered.

"Tell me if the Prime Minister 'freed' the King and Queen from Queen Elsa's 'control' first!" Gerda pleaded.

"He tried, it didn't take," Kristoff rolled his eyes, then took it much more seriously. "Wait….if you weren't here, how do you know he tried that?"

"Because he hid those Southern Isles mercenaries in the castle to attack them if he failed! They might be attacking them right now!" Kai said loud enough for the rest of the crowd to hear.

Kristoff took this in for a second, before his face morphed into one with the steely resolve of a prince. "Not that family, they aren't," he vowed.

He jumped right onto Sven, then got him to bow his head down so Olaf could climb on. "Olaf, when we get to the nearest door, you and your nose know what to do!" he ordered.

"I know! I didn't even say I nose, that's how much I know!" Olaf vowed.

"Are there any actual guards here?" Kristoff asked everyone else, to which only a few un-uniformed guards raised their hands.

"He sent them and the whole staff home! Unless they're locked in tunnels too!" Gerda spat.

"I think it was just me. I can find more and get them here!" Kai offered.

"Okay! We'll need more people to come with us until then!" Kristoff said, turning to the rest of the skeptical crowd. Fighting mercenaries and a Prime Minister wasn't what they came out here to do, after all – even those who were trained for it.

"Look, I get it. But the royal family's under attack by another deluded maniac! He'll hurt the Queen who's done everything for you but freeze you lately, hurt the Princess who we all love, and hurt their parents! Is this an Arendelle that lets our royals suffer like that anymore?" Kristoff asked. "Especially by Southern Isles people that attacked you on Christmas?"

"I'm gonna go with a soft no?" Olaf answered for them.

"Forget it, I wasted too much time monologuing!" Kristoff sighed. "Come on if you want, but we're going in!"

Kristoff got Sven to charge out of the courtyard, towards the nearest door to the castle. There, Olaf jumped off Sven and used his nose to pick the lock. When it was open, Kristoff rode Sven through and inside, with a few guards and more regular people starting to follow.

Still, Kristoff and Sven were the faster ones as they rode through the castle, although they had no idea where to specifically look. They kept racing through the halls in hopes of finding something – and then as they made the next turn, they saw something on the horizon.

Four of those somethings were dressed as guards. But Arendelle's guards wouldn't be guarding and marching Elsa down like that. Why she wasn't freezing them, though….that was much more troubling. But if Kristoff was gonna get answers from her….

"Olaf!" he called as he kept riding Sven down the hall.

"Got it!" Olaf stayed on the same page, preparing to dive off of Sven's head. When they charged close enough, Kristoff brought Sven to a half and Olaf leaped off, jumping on/hugging the shocked guards before they could do anything.

This gave Kristoff the opening to get Sven going again, charge towards Elsa and seize her before the mercenaries grabbed her back.

She was flung onto Sven and barely held on for the ride, as Kristoff held her in front of him. She faintly heard Olaf call, "Bye, Elsa! Hey, Meemaw and Peepaw!" then looked up to see Kristoff was charging towards the men who had her parents.

Sven was able to run down one of them, then use his antlers to push aside another. Kristoff jumped off and tried to take them on man to man, but Elsa was still too paralyzed with uncertainty to help.

One mercenary was about to take advantage and seize her back – until more chaotic charging noises distracted him. The sources of them then came running up the hall.

"Protect the King and Queens!" one of the real guards yelled, as his fellow men at arms, a few regular citizens and a talking snowman rushed to join him. Soon enough, the fighting was on.

Kristoff powered through one enemy fighter to get to Gaspar and Malin, with the other regular guards soon by his side. "Anna?" Kristoff asked them while he could, but saw and heard nothing that told him she was here.

With that, he called out for someone else. "Van Garrett!"

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"Kris-" Anna started calling, but couldn't finish.

Van Garrett finally sprang back into action – or as much as he could while running away, dragging Anna with him and holding his hand over her mouth all at once. It did sound like the mercenaries were at least holding Kristoff and….his people back, so he was still in good shape.

If he disregarded everything else that their attack meant.

Nevertheless, Van Garrett found his way to the bookcase, and the passageway that it opened out of Arendelle. He opened it, ran inside, closed it up from inside the tunnel, and started running again. With no one able to hear him or Anna now, he didn't have to cover her mouth and he could run faster.

With Anna screaming, "Elsa! Mama, Papa! Kristoff! Olaf! Sven!" however, it didn't mean it was any easier.

"Be quiet, I have to think!" he urged.

"Good time to start now, huh?" Anna couldn't help but tease.

"You start by telling me how they got in! Why they got in! How he….knew I had you," it dawned on Van Garrett. "They know. They all know I did this. Those criminals were supposed to take the entire fall….I was supposed to stay here and deprogram the King and Queen….and they would keep quiet about me to protect you."

"And it all fell apart because of a blabbermouth," Anna smirked. "Don't worry. Some plans look so smart at first, then you don't see how they could never work till it's way too late. It can be a whole family curse, really."

Van Garrett kept a grip on Anna's wrist, while barely keeping a grip on himself. "I'll have to leave the kingdom with you. Go to Weselton. Get other nations to free them from Elsa for me. But….I spent all my money on those mercenaries! After this, they'll never let me on the boat, let alone Weselton, for free!"

He looked ahead at the tunnel that would take him out of Arendelle, and the one next to it that wouldn't. But that one might have to be the better option, if only for the few minutes he could spare.

"All right," Van Garrett vowed. "We need to make one quick stop before we get out of here."

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While that was going on, the combined efforts of Kristoff, the palace guards that had arrived, some plucky citizens and a snowman were freeing the royal family.

"Elsa, we're doing great!" Kristoff said while holding a mercenary back. "A little bad weather might help, though!"

"I, I can't…." Elsa stammered. "If one of them escapes and tells Van Garrett, Anna…."

"Not if we find them first," Gaspar promised. Kristoff then realized what he had to do – and what he couldn't do, in spite of his deep wish to.

"Then go! You three find her, we'll hold them back and give you time!" Kristoff vowed.

"You're not coming?" Malin asked, before dodging the grip of a mercenary. Sven pinned him down before he took another shot, though.

"Wish I could!" Kristoff sighed. "You guys have actually saved her more than me, though! You'll be fine, powers or not!"

"If we are, we'd better prove it now!" Gaspar helped his wife and daughter back away.

"Go get her! Just go!" Kristoff called out while fighting.

"Thank you, son," Gaspar let slip out. Yet he couldn't give an easier slip to the mercenary leader who grabbed him.

"You're Van Garrett's precious king. But Hans is mine! More's the pity," he taunted.

If there was another taunt banging around in his brain, it was likely crushed – along with a brain cell or two – when a citizen of Arendelle banged a frying pan on the side of his head.

Although the mercenary dropped Gaspar, the citizen dropped the pan when he turned to him instead of going down. "What are you, from Corona?" he asked.

The answer came from Elsa. But only after she picked up the pan and smashed the front of his face.

"No, or he'd know that's much more effective!" she said, although the mercenary wasn't conscious enough to hear him. The citizen did hear her say, "But thank you just the same, though."

"Thank you, My Queen. Please get the Princess back for us," he replied.

"You heard him, go already!" Kristoff pleaded again, as more Arendellians came coming to help.

"I'll never forget this. From any of you," Elsa vowed - letting herself be amazed, if only for one spare second, that common people were fighting for her voluntarily. Just as part of her was still amazed they wanted her, not her parents, to lead them. If only because they didn't up rise like Van Garrett wanted.

Yet she couldn't even save Anna without powers. She'd still have to work on that. But as Kristoff kept urging, a good start would be to actually run and find her.

"Oh, and he locked Kai in the tunnels, but he's out now! Go check those out anyway!" Kristoff called before the royals finally left his sight.

"Already on it, but thank you!" Malin assured.

The royals were quiet with their mouths as their feet loudly carried them down the halls. When they got closer to the bookcase, Gaspar remembered, "He was planning to stay to 'deprogram' us. He can't do that now! He'll have to take Anna away himself….but he said he's got no money left."

"Even if they let him go to Weselton too, they won't let him stay for free. Even with Anna," Elsa reasoned. She put together the rest once they got to the bookcase. "The war room! Between the money and valuable documents in there, that would do it!"

"Good job, sweetheart," Malin said as she opened the passageway. "Just like you'll do a good job saving your sister. No matter how."

"There's a first time for everything," Elsa told herself.

"Like saving her the right way, together," Gaspar told her back. "It's time we got that right once and for all."

On that end, Elsa was ready to obey her father without question, like the old days. Only better.

Only with the reward of seeing Anna again within reach this time.