The Ice Behind Bars

Chapter XXVI: A Mother's Sacrifice

Aphrodite was taking a walk around the halls since she couldn't allow herself to sleep. Hearing Elsa's screams these past days were her own nightmare. Every time she had heard them, she would cry and force herself to stay awake. She knew she did not deserve to sleep while her troubled daughter couldn't. She had already asked many people about how to stop these nightmare attacks but she kept receiving the same answer: "I don't know. I have never seen such a case." And tonight, Aphrodite couldn't sleep for real. She wanted to help Elsa in any way she could. As she walked in circles, thinking about a solution for Elsa, she suddenly heard it…The loud screams. Yet this time, they were full with terror, desperation and pain, that Aphrodite never heard them so horrifying. Her eyes widened when she recognized the voice, "Elsa?!" She whispered and looked around, confused. Another scream from Elsa and Aphrodite had enough. She started sprinting towards the screams as fast as she could. What is happening to her!?... These god damn nightmares! She thought in utter concern. Some guild members poked their heads from their rooms, all sleepy and tired yet confused and fearful because of the screams. Aphrodite ignored the weird and confused looks they were giving her and she had only one thing in her mind: Her daughter was screaming in fear and pain and she had to get to her as fast as she could. "I'm coming, Elsa!" She called out.

When she finally arrived, she gasped in horror at seeing the completely frozen door, and the extremely cold waves coming out from Elsa's room didn't go unnoticed. "Holy… God…" She stared in horror for a minute before she realized that her daughters were in there. "Anna?! Elsa!? Rapunzel?! Anyone?! What's happening in there!? Open the door!" She quickly tried to shove the door open but it wouldn't budge. Elsa screamed again and Aphrodite felt a whole wave of dread and concern overwhelm her body. She lost her mind and forgot about everything. She started hitting the door with her shoulder. "ELSAAAA!... I'm coming, Elsa!... I'm coming!" She leaned back and hit the door with her shoulder again, "Why… won't… you… budge!" She tried again and again. She needs me! She needs me! My baby is screaming! She needs me! But the door wouldn't open. She started to look around quickly and tried desperately to find anything that would help her. Elsa screamed again and Aphrodite clutched her head with her hands as she felt she would have collapsed to the ground. In her panic, she started throwing random things at the door, begging it to open. "Elsaaa!... I'm here, Elsa!" She called out but she knew Elsa couldn't hear anything. Please, God! Please! The adrenaline rushing in her body added so much of a desperate strength that finally with a loud scream from Aphrodite, she ran towards the door and smashed it open, using her entire body. When she entered, the door closed again and started to refreeze. Aphrodite stumbled to the floor-… More like snow. She gasped in horror when she saw the blizzard, the frozen room all around and the snow that covered the floor. The scene was so familiar. She found herself immobile and just stared as images of the ambush snow storm flashed in her mind and the day… the unforgettable, disgracing day when she left Elsa alone. But not this time. She shook her head and casted away the images and turned determined. She wasn't going to leave Elsa again. Not anymore. She brought her arms to cover her eyes from the snow storm. She tried to look around the blizzard and noticed that Anna and Rapunzel were nowhere to be found. She forgot about all that when she noticed Elsa's shaking form on the frozen bed. She ignored the frostbites and the ice forming on her arms and hands, lifted herself up and ran to her daughter. Even when it was extremely cold, she didn't care. Elsa was crying and screaming with her eyes closed and she was clutching the bed sheets tightly. Aphrodite felt her tears form but she also felt them freeze on her cheeks. Her eyes hovered shockingly over Elsa's trembling body. "Elsa?! Elsa! Wake up! Wake up, sweety! Wake up! It's just a nightmare!" She called but noticed how Elsa didn't even look as if she heard. Instead, Elsa screamed, "STOOOPPP!"

Aphrodite started to tremble by seeing her daughter in such condition… and also from the cold. Please make it stop! Make it stop! Whatever it is happening to her! Make it stop! Aphrodite cursed everything around her and was only able to do one thing in all her panic and inside all of that storm. She quickly cradled Elsa in her arms, hugged her tightly to her chest and ignored how her daughter's body temperature was so cold that Aphrodite felt pain all over her own body. Elsa started to flail aggressively, "NO! LEAVE ME ALONE, MAD! LEAVE ME ALONE!" Yet even with Elsa's extremely cold temperature, Aphrodite ignored the pain in her arms and held Elsa closer, "Elsa, no! It's me! I'm here, Elsa!... I'm here! You're safe now! You're with me!" She hugged her even tighter and Elsa kept trying to struggle. Aphrodite then let out a sob of despair as she held her freaked out daughter and she couldn't take it anymore. She leaned down to whisper in her daughter's ears, "Mama's here, now… I'm here. I won't leave you alone anymore."

With that the whole blizzard disappeared in an instant as if it was never there. Yet the cries and whimpers of Elsa where still present. "Stop… Stop… Please… Mama… Make it… Stop…" Elsa cried in her sleep.

Aphrodite tears dripped on Elsa's platinum hair. She couldn't believe that this woman was her daughter. This wasn't her daughter! Her daughter was strong, brave and happy! This woman was broken, terrified and sad. Could it really be that all of that change had went this wrong?

"S-Shhhhhh…" She shushed, "I-I'm here, Elsa. You're okay, now." She whispered with a quivering voice and ignored the awful pain in her now-cold body.

Elsa suddenly clutched Aphrodite's dress as if she was holding for dear life. She was trembling badly and she was sweating all over. "It hurts… It hurts!"

I know! I know! Oh dear, I know! Aphrodite stared down at her daughter sorrowfully and winced as she caressed the platinum hair with injured and stinging hands, and tried to sooth her daughter but Elsa kept trembling and crying out fearful words. "I'm… sorry… Mama!... I'm sorry!" And Aphrodite knew that Elsa was still in her nightmare. I am the one sorry, Elsa! I'm the one who should have been in your place! You shouldn't be sorry! It was all my fault! She was so close to feel hopeless and helpless for her daughter and she was this close to believe that she was about to lose her in her hands tonight, but suddenly an idea popped in her head. She cradled Elsa's form even more and held her tightly as she started lulling her out of her nightmare and into her sleep. She leaned closer to Elsa ears and smiled.

(Music rhythm and song from Noble Maiden Fair – Brave but with these lyrics)

Little Snowflake, close your eyes

The sun is going down, now

She started rocking her gently back and forth and placed her cheek on her daughter's head. Elsa's breath started to relax.

Deep in our hearts, love shall thrive

No one can hurt you now

Elsa stopped whimpering as she heard the voice she long loved and treasured. The voice she truly missed and nearly even forgot. The Lullaby… Hers and her mother's lullaby that they always used to sing together. The lullaby that always calmed both down.

When you're alone, hear my voice

I'll be here when you need me

That voice… That beautiful, most soothing voice, just sent a wave of comfort and warmness. Elsa suddenly buried her face in Aphrodite's waist, taking in the scent she missed so horribly. She stopped her cries, yet her face still showed pain. Aphrodite stroked Elsa's hair again with a cold, trembling hand and kept singing softly. The ice on the walls and the snow on the ground started to melt. Elsa's tears suddenly ran down her cheeks, "M-Mama…" Her voice came out so sorrowful and Aphrodite's heart was shattered in two, yet she forced herself to be strong and continued since the lullaby was working. She inhaled shakily, then,

L-Little Baby, count on me

I promise, I'll never let you go.

As the room returned to its normal temperature, Elsa's face finally softened and relaxed as she at last found her peaceful slumber. Elsa's arms wrapped around Aphrodite's waist as she squeezed her mother as if she didn't want to let go and she finally fell to a calming sleep. Aphrodite wanted to cry so badly. She forgot… Forgot how it felt like to have her baby, Elsa, in her arms. She felt as if she was holding Elsa on the day she was born. She stared happily at Elsa's now-noticeable freckles, since they were once hidden by all the bruises. I'm so sorry, Elsa… I'm so sorry for all what happened to you! She brushed her finger on Elsa's cheeks and wiped away her daughter's stray tears. She did not even care if Elsa woke up. She wanted to have this moment for herself and her daughter. The moment she had been wishing for ever since the dreadful day. She was finally having a moment with Elsa and she wasn't going to let anyone ruin it. She didn't care that she was holding a woman in her arms as if she was holding a small child. Couldn't she at least have this moment? Her eyes trailed to Elsa's body and realized for the first time how much her daughter really have grown. She couldn't help but smile on how Elsa grew to become a beautiful woman. Despite her wounds, Elsa's beauty didn't go to waste. She saw how her platinum hair grew long enough to reach right above her waist. How her chubby baby cheeks were replaced with a nice jaw line and into high cheekbones. As she tried to take every single detail of her daughter's face and body, she saw the long and thick eyelashes, the thin eyebrows, the long legs and the slim fingers. Her eyes then trailed to Elsa's neck and shoulders. She bit her lip and her eyebrows formed a line of concern when she witnessed the scars. Her right hand left Elsa's head as it went down to brush the scars on Elsa's back. She just didn't even understand how the hell these scars ended up around Elsa's entire body. She didn't even dare to think of what caused these scars. She closed her eyes, unable to witness the scars as she kept her hand on them. How could this all happen?! What did she ever do to deserve this?! What did I ever do to end up with such a man! She opened her teary eyes again and removed her hand off of Elsa's back and started brushing Elsa's head. "I swear to you, Elsa… I won't let your damn father get away of what he did to you." She whispered and held Elsa protectively tighter and savored every peaceful moment she was finally now having with her long lost daughter. She didn't care that she was freezing from the cold she forced her body to ignore, she didn't care about her stinging and burning hands, she didn't care about how she's feeling a bit dizzy from the cold, she only cared about one thing, and it was her daughter, Elsa. Her eyelids felt heavy, and she closed her eyes and relaxed with her daughter.


Please… Please someone help her! Was what all Anna thought of as she buried her face in Kristoff's chest. "Flynn! Kristoff! Please god damn it! Help me!" She heard Aiden's desperate cries and that made her feel much worse.

Suddenly, Elsa's screams stopped and everyone felt their heart skip a beat. Anna's eyes slowly widened and she turned to look at the frozen window, "No…" She managed to say. This was it… Elsa was gone. Probably frozen to death.

"No screams…" Flynn muttered in surprise.

"We have to get inside! T-The nightmare is probably finished! Right?!... S-She can't be…" Aiden trailed off and didn't dare say the word.

Anna stared with unblinking eyes at the frozen window. How did I dare leave her to freeze to death! She couldn't forget how the room's temperature was. Her head slowly turned to look at Kristoff, Rapunzel and Flynn, "She… She's gone?" She asked with a breath and pleading eyes. No one dared say a word. Tears ran down Anna's cheeks when she didn't get an answer and she placed a hand on her mouth and let out a muffled sob and started mourning for her best friend.

Aiden saw this and he shook his head. He ran to her, "No, Anna! S-She's alive! I know she is! She is strong! M-Maybe she woke up! Maybe she's no longer in the room! Maybe she's all well and she's looking for you, Anna!" He wasn't going to lose hope just yet. "T-The door! We can smash it open! All of us!" He quickly didn't wait for the others and grabbed Anna's hand, "Come on, Anna!" He pushed her up, "Come on, girl… We're going to save Elsa." He started running as he practically dragged Anna behind him.

Seeing Aiden with hope, Anna stopped her sobs and quickly wiped her tears away and ran behind him. Yes… She's okay… She's okay… The nightmare stopped… The nightmare stopped. She convinced herself and kept praying for Elsa's wellbeing. Everyone else quickly followed the two and none had time to notice that the ice around the window was melting.


When they arrived, they all saw the shocked, horrified and angry crowd that formed outside Elsa's bedroom. But the more shocking thing that had their attention was that Elsa's door wasn't frozen anymore.

"What's happening?" Rapunzel muttered.

"I don't know, come on!" Anna said as she felt even more concerned.

They pushed through the crowd that gave them both glares and worried looks. They were first met with an angry Tyler and a worried Brandon.

"Brandon! What's wrong?! Where's Elsa!?" Aiden asked.

Tyler and Brandon turned to look at them. "You!" Tyler screamed at them. "This is all your fault! You brought this thing here!" He yelled in rage, followed by murmurs and angry shouts of agreement from some of the people in the crowd. And everything happened fast, Tyler was pushed and pinned to the wall, "If you dare say anything about her, I will kill you myself." Aiden intimidated as he pinned the man and received shocked looks from everyone. "She has a name and it's Elsa. If you dare call her anything else I won't hesitate to rip you in half."

Tyler glared at him, "Why do you even fucking care! She is ruining everything I worked hard to build!"

Aiden released him and the man collapsed to the ground. "We built all this… Not just you." And I care for Elsa more than anyone. He finally confessed to himself.

Anna and her friends were already angry at Tyler and Anna mentally praised Aiden. She turned to Brandon, not caring about Tyler. "Brandon, have you seen Elsa?! Did you get her out?!"

Brandon shook his head, "None of us dared enter the room, Anna! The door was completely frozen and it just suddenly thawed!"

"You mean Elsa is still in there?!" Anna yelled in horror and stared at him in disbelieve. She quickly turned to Aiden, "Aiden! Come on, leave Tyler alone! We have to get to Elsa!"

With one last warning and intimidating look to Tyler, Aiden quickly turned and nodded.

They ran to the door and shoved it open and their eyes widened when they saw Aphrodite and the most shocking thing was that Elsa was sleeping in her arms and Aphrodite was shivering terribly from the cold. "Mum?!" Anna called in shock.

Aphrodite opened her eyes and looked up shakily at them and smiled weakly, "S-S-She's… S-Sleeping." She managed to say as she trembled.

Everyone quickly ran to the two in concern. When Brandon saw Aphrodite's condition, his heart stopped. Aphrodite's lips and hands were trembling and blue. "What did you do, you crazy woman?" He asked as both He and Anna released Elsa from her grasp and helped Aphrodite off the bed.

"Mum?... Your hands!" Anna said in concern as she help Aphrodite from her elbow and witnessed her mother's hands that were frostbitten all over. She just couldn't believe that her mother nearly sacrificed herself to save Elsa and She couldn't feel any warmer and prouder towards her. She quickly turned to Flynn and quietly said, "Call for a healer!"

Flynn nodded and quickly scurried off to oblige.

Rapunzel and Aiden quickly rushed to Elsa to check if she was okay and fortunately she was. Oh thank god! She's asleep. Aiden thought, relieved. Rapunzel quickly grabbed a new bed sheet and wrapped it around Elsa, fearing that the princess was freezing too, not knowing that Elsa never felt cold.

Aphrodite shakily got off the bed with the help of Brandon and Anna. She was trembling none stop and her breath was labored. "E-E-Elsa… Elsa… can't… L-Leave… A-Alone." Aphrodite managed to say as she tried to turn to look at Elsa and felt she would pass out at any minute.

Brandon shook his head, "Don't worry about Elsa. She's not alone now. You have to get warm! You're freezing! What were you thinking!?" He said and with the help of Anna, led the poor mother to a warmer room and Aphrodite received concerned looks from the other members as she passed by with the help of Anna and Brandon.

The people were more than shocked. "It's Leanna!" "She was in there with her!" "She stopped her from screaming!" "She saved her!" The murmurs grew around the members and villagers. They just couldn't believe that Leanna… The most cold and stern woman they could ever meet, cared for Elsa so much and would have sacrificed herself to save her. Some said it was bravery, some said it was lunacy and others now believed that the stern Leanna had a soft spot after all. But to Elsa? That was more than weird.

As Aphrodite, Anna and Brandon passed, they didn't notice Tyler's glare.


When they arrived, they sat the shaking Aphrodite on a chair.

Oh, mother… You really are one crazy, great woman. Anna thought as she smiled at her mother but she was still utterly worried for her. She turned to look towards the door so she could try and see the form of Elsa and she saw Kristoff standing in the doorway and he gave her a thumb up. Anna mentally sighed in relief. She turned her attention to her mother, "Why did you do that? You would have been killed!" Anna asked as she grabbed a cloak that one of the members gave her and wrapped it around her cold mother.

Aphrodite shakily shook her head, making sure her terribly stinging hands wouldn't be touched by anything. "E-Elsa… scared… S-S-Scream… N-Nightmare." She managed to breath and Anna sat next to her and wrapped her arm around her mother's shoulder to give her more warmth while Brandon knelt and placed a hand on her knee and looked up at her in concern. Aphrodite looked at them, "I-I… Had to… H-H-Help her." She then gave them a weak smile, "S-She's… O-Okay now."

"Oh, Mum…" Anna said gently as she hugged her mother tighter and rested her cheek on Aphrodite's shoulder. "You do that to all your patients too, right?" Anna asked with a smirk.

Aphrodite tried to laugh. "M-… M-Maybe." She replied with a wide smile and leaned closer to her daughter, taking in the warmth.


When he was sure that Elsa was okay, Aiden got up and smiled at her. He then turned to Rapunzel, "Be sure to keep her safe, would you?" He asked and received a sly smirk from Rapunzel.

"Don't worry. She's fine." Rapunzel said and her smirk grew wider.

Aiden frowned, "Why are you smiling like that?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Oh nothing… I'm just amused." Rapunzel teased and her smirk grew when she received a confused look from Aiden.

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Aiden asked.

Rapunzel turned to look at Elsa and hid her smirk, "You," She paused and turned to bat her eyelashes at him, "And Elsaaaa…" She sing-songed.

Aiden's eyes widened, "W-What!?... N-No, no I'm not! She's still scared of me for god's sake! She still has a lot of things to-"

"Stop lying to me." Rapunzel said playfully. "I'm blonde, not blind." She deadpanned.

"You're just talking nonsense." Aiden defended and blushed hard.

"First sign of Love is Deniaaalll!" Rapunzel sing-songed again.

Aiden couldn't get any redder, "You definitely lost your mind." He quickly turned and left, leaving a giggling Rapunzel.

Yup… He is definitely into her. Rapunzel thought. She then looked at Elsa and smiled, "Well, Elsa. Looks like you were able to gain Aiden's heart." She said softly. Her eyes then glanced around the room, trying to see how much damage was done. The furniture was wet from the thawed ice and a lot of things were thrown randomly around the room because of the blizzard. Rapunzel's eyes shot wide when she saw Elsa's gifts. The two flowers. Zoey's gift, The Blue Hydrangea, was completely destroyed. Yet what caught Rapunzel's eyes was the strange blue rose… That was now dark red, wasn't completely destroyed, only sick and withered and not even bloomed anymore. It was as if the rose closed itself. "No… How?!" She whispered to herself. The rose was dull red and there was no sign of the blue color anymore. She approached the flowers and looked at the plants in surprise. She suddenly gasped and took a step back when she saw the frost and ice on the table and around the rose pot was crawling towards it and into the dirt of the pot as if the rose was the one absorbing everything in. The rose suddenly started to revive and became fully healthy and bright red, yet it was still closed. Then, the ice that went inside the pot, crawled out from the stem and coated the whole rose as if the plant itself was releasing it. Rapunzel watched, speechless in awe as she saw how the rose now looked like a magnificent ice sculpture. She brought her hand up and tried to touch it but right before she could, the ice around the rose broke down and revealed a bright blue rose that suddenly started to bloom unnaturally fast and Rapunzel would have sworn that the rose looked much healthier than before too.

"What in the heavens…" Were the only words than Rapunzel was able to pronounce.


Aiden arrived at Aphrodite's room and entered. "Hey there." He greeted gently and smiled warmly at Aphrodite, Anna and Brandon, who all sat next to the fire. "How are you?"

Aphrodite, still trembling, nodded with a tiny smile. "I-I'm fine."

Aiden closed the door behind him and walked closer, "You, Anna and Elsa really love to worry us all now, don't you?"

Anna giggled at that and Aphrodite smiled wider. "You are just jealous because you don't have a mother so strong and brave like mine." Anna joked and made him laugh.

"No doubt in that." He agreed playfully.

A knock on the door was heard and the door opened to reveal Flynn and Waela. "Hey guys, I brought Waela." Flynn announced and motioned for Waela to come in.

When Waela saw Aphrodite's hands, she gasped loud. "Leanna! What happened to you?!" She quickly ran to tend to Aphrodite's injuries.

"She's fine Waela, don't worry." Brandon said with a smile to assure the worried old woman.

Waela quickly grabbed her medical kit and moved to bandage Aphrodite's hands.

Aphrodite winced when Waela started to rub a remedy on her hands and then bandaged them. "I have no idea how you got these frostbites… We're in summer for goodness' sake!" Waela said with a tone that came out like she was scolding her daughter. Waela's eyes suddenly widened, "Wait… Was it the princess who did this to you?!" Waela asked and was obviously uninformed about the thing that just happened.

"No, Waela…" Anna shook her head, "My mum actually saved Elsa when she was trapped in a freezing room and a nightmare."

"Oh my…" Waela looked at Aphrodite and smirked, "Well, looks like you do care quite greatly for the princess." And at that Anna smirked too.

Tell me about it. Anna thought jokingly.

When Waela was done with Aphrodite's hands she looked up at the woman glared at her playfully, "Next time you wanna enter a freezing room, be sure to wear gloves." She warned as if she was scolding a child.

Aphrodite playfully rolled her eyes, "Th-Thank you, Waela… I-I'll make sure of that." She said with a voice that still shivered a bit from the cold.

Waela nodded with a smile, grabbed her stuff and left.

Aphrodite then turned to Aiden, "H-How is… Elsa?"

"Can you stop thinking about Elsa and care for your health just for a sec?" Brandon said with a humored tone.

"She's alright, don't worry." Aiden reassured with a smile.

"Can you imagine how happy Elsa will be when we tell her that you saved her life?!" Anna said excitedly.

"N-No." Aphrodite suddenly denied.

"Wait, what?... Why?!" Anna asked, confused.

Aphrodite sighed, "Anna… If Elsa see me l-like this, she'll think that sh-she hurt me with her powers… A-And she'll get r-really scared… W-We don't… want that, remember? I don't want her t-to think she's a monster who could hurt people." Aphrodite explained and already knew how her daughter always had a bit of fear towards hurting someone with her powers when she was little but now, it was beyond fear.

Anna thought for a moment and knew that her mother was one hundred percent right. She sighed, "I guess you're right." She said in defeat and disappointment and lowered her head.

Aphrodite saw this and smiled sadly, "Don't worry… I still want that day with Elsa that you'll arrange." She confessed, "But I have to rest a bit first."

Anna's face couldn't lit up more, "Really!?" She asked excited, "Oh this will be a great day! I promise. Thank you so much for saving Elsa! She was really lucky that you were there!" Anna then hugged her mother tightly and kissed her cheek. "And now, got to go check on her. And again… I told you that you are a great, brave and warm person who would do anything to keep me and everyone I care dearly for, safe."

Aphrodite hugged her back and sighed, "I'm just a mother then Anna. What you care about, I care about." And that was a fact with some hidden information.

Anna giggled, "Then who knows… Maybe you can be a mother for Elsa too." Anna joked and winked and didn't realize how true her words were.

Aphrodite felt a bit nervous but she shook it away. "I'm- uh… I-I'm glad Elsa is okay now. You can go check on her, Sunshine. I'm fine here. Brandon's with me." Aphrodite assured and looked at Brandon with a friendly smile.

Brandon felt his heart flutter and smiled back happily.

Anna then hugged her one last time, "Okay, then. I'll see you tomorrow morning. You should get some sleep. We're still at midnight." She turned to Brandon, "You better keep my Mama safe, Mister!" She said playfully and made him giggle.

"On my honor." He promised and placed a hand on his chest.

Anna, Aiden and Flynn then went out from Aphrodite's room and left a tired Aphrodite and a relieved and happy Brandon. Outside, they were met with Kristoff and Anna's smile couldn't grow more.


They were walking back to Elsa's bedroom when they saw the worried and angry crowd. They quickly rushed to calm them.

"What's happening here, guys?" Aiden asked.

The people turned their attention to the two thieves. "We can't take it anymore." One man started, "We can't sleep because of her! And my children are getting terrified at night!" He said angrily.

"Besides that," A woman began, "She's freezing everything she touches! This sanctuary will come down one day, I tell you!" She said and sent loud worried murmurs around the crowd.

"Hey! Wait, wait!" Anna shouted at them. "She didn't mean to freeze her room she's just-"

"Freeze her room?!" Another man yelled, "She blew the sanctuary, then nearly froze the fort! And it's not the first time she froze her room!" He said as he reminded them of past nights, "But tonight she would have destroyed it completely! Not just freeze it!" Another loud murmurs of agreement were heard.

"And then at the infirmary when she had her panic attack!" A healer called.

"Who knows maybe she is doing all this on purpose!" One woman called angrily and received a 'Yeah' from everyone.

Anna and the other men couldn't believe that all those people were so scared of Elsa. "You guys can't be serious!" Aiden said in disbelief.

"What if one day we wake up to see our children frozen to death!" A man said fearfully and now cries of fear were heard.

Anna then quickly decided to calm them down, "Hey, hey, hey! Listen to me! You guys are over exaggerating! You have to understand that she's really scared of herself!"

The room became silent as everyone listened and then, one man scoffed, "And how is that possible?"

"Guys, please! Be reasonable! You guys still don't know that Elsa had been tortured for fifteen years!" Flynn admitted and everyone started to gasp and whisper in shock.

"She was being mistreated by her own father! She thinks she is a monster because of her powers. She's so scared of hurting someone!... You all know Little Zoey, right? Well guess what? Elsa didn't even dare to come near her so she couldn't hurt her!" Anna explained.

"You already listened how she screams at night from those terrible nightmares." Aiden said and few of the people started to agree.

"Can you imagine how much she suffered that it drove her to have those nightmares? God! Sometimes she can't even wake up from them! She doesn't want to wake up terrified and trembling every night, guys! She wants to be a normal person like us!" Anna said.

"If you guys show her that you're scared she'll never get better." Kristoff joined.

"What if you put yourself in her place?! Or your children in hers! Would you dare watch your children get tortured and beaten and then hated, when on the inside, all what they want is to be happy and have friends!?" Anna asked and took in every expression the people now were making.

Some's faces turned ashamed and guilty about how they accused Elsa. Some gave Anna a smile and had sympathetic looks for Elsa and few were still stubborn and weren't convinced.

"There you go." Anna said happily, "Now… Everyone go to sleep. I bet you're all tired. And… Sorry about the screams and all. It's not actually in Elsa's hands to control them."

And the people started to part away and went back to get their sleep.

"Way to go, big girl." Aiden praised and ruffled Anna's hair.

Anna glared at him and pushed his hand away playfully, "Thank you for ruining my hair, Eedoo." Anna teased.

"Ah… Please stop calling me that!" Aiden whined with a pout and made Anna giggle.

"Ah come on, Eedoooo!" Flynn mocked and received a death glare from Aiden.

Anna laughed at the look on Aiden's face, then, "We should check on Elsa, guys." Anna said and received a nod from the others.

They were back on their tracks to Elsa's room and didn't notice that Tyler was amongst the crowd. Tyler then gave them a glare and went to Aphrodite's room.


"You are really one crazy woman, you know that?" Brandon said as he poured the hot tea for Aphrodite.

"I'll take that as a compliment." Aphrodite joked and sipped her tea.

Brandon was more than thankful that she was alright and that she stopped shivering. "You do realize that not long ago, you just walked into a supernatural blizzard? You could have been frozen to death!"

Aphrodite sighed, "Its Elsa, Brandon. She needed me. And… I would do more than just freeze to death if it would stop her suffering."

"Well next time you wanna do such a thing, be sure to tell someone at least." He informed with a smirk.

"Sorry about that… But I just wasn't thinking of anything but her. She was so scared, Brandon. There was no way I was going to leave her and call for someone else. If I have wasted another minute, the room would have broken down on her head." She explained.

Brandon nodded in understanding.

The door suddenly flew open and Tyler stomped inside. "This has to stop!" He shouted angrily and surprised them. He made his way to Aphrodite and pointed a finger at her, "Your daughter will kill us all if we keep her here!"

Aphrodite was taken aback by the sudden presence of Tyler before she realized what he was saying, "How dare you say that about my daughter!" She yelled back and stood up to meet his eye level.

"Know your place, Tyler." Brandon warned and reminded Tyler that he was talking to a Queen.

Tyler ignored Brandon and continued, "Since the moment your reckless daughter and those stupid friends of hers brought her here, we had nothing but trouble!... With ice! How many times should we clean the ice after her?!"

"My daughter can't control her powers you stupid man! She would never do all this on purpose!" Aphrodite shrieked back.

"WELL YOUR HUSBAND HAD DONE THE RIGHT THING BY LOCKING HER UP!" Tyler said before he could stop himself.

"Why y-you…" Aphrodite's voice vibrated from the wrath she was holding.

"And maybe we should too! She's dangerous and we should lock her up right away before she could hurt anyone!"

Aphrodite's eyes twitched. Her anger turned to rage and she clenched her fists tightly as she sneered at the doomed man in front of her. And Brandon knew that Momma Bear was going to come out.

Without a warning, Aphrodite suddenly grabbed the chair near her and smashed it with all her strength on Tyler, sending him to the ground. "IF YOU EVER THINK OF THAT AGAIN I WON'T HESITATE TO RIP YOUR BALLS IN HALF!" She screamed with eyes so dark and full with hate and her fists were trembling with anger.

Tyler groaned in pain, wiped the blood off of his nose and turned to look at her in shock, "You fucking bitch!" Tyler yelled and got up on his feet to run at the woman but he was suddenly pushed down by Brandon.

"That's enough, Tyler!" Brandon yelled, "Get out of here!" He commanded.

Tyler stared at him with disgust, "You forgot who you're talking to, Brandon! I'm the chief of this god damn fort! And it's all because of… HER fucking daughter," He spat and pointed towards Aphrodite, "That this fort won't last long! My work will go to waste!"

"She already told you that Elsa can't control her powers." Brandon argued.

"And I stand firm by my opinion on locking her-"

Aphrodite was about to grab the fire poker and shove it right into his head but Brandon quickly pushed him out of the room.

"Get the fuck out, Tyler!" Brandon said and shoved him out from the door.

Tyler turned with a glare and stared at the raging mother. He pointed a finger at her, "Mark my word, Aphrodite of Arendelle… There would come a day when you will realize how dangerous she is and you will have to lock her up with your own hands. And if not you, your other daughter will." And with that he closed the door with a smash and left a speechless Aphrodite.


When Anna and the other men entered, they found the sleeping form of Elsa and Rapunzel who was staring in amazement at the blue rose more than Elsa herself did before.

Rapunzel turned to them with wide eyes. "Guys you have to see this!" She called with a whisper and gestured for them to come forth.

With confused faces, Anna and the men approached. "What is it Rapunzel?" Flynn asked.

"Oh no! Zoey's flower!" Anna said sadly in surprise.

"No, no, no! Not that!" Rapunzel said again, "Look! The rose… I-It's blue!"

Anna and the other men exchanged weird looks, "Uh… Of course it's blue. That's Elsa's flower remember? It was already blue." Anna said with a bit of humor in her tone.

Rapunzel shook her head, "No, guys! It was red! I saw it with my own eyes! It was dull red and also it was withered! Then suddenly it started absorbing the ice around it! And then it suddenly released the ice and froze itself and it was AMAZING! Then all of a sudden the ice disappeared and the rose turned b-blue again and it started to bloom quickly! It was only when it released the ice! It was amazing guys! You should have seen it!"

Anna and the men tried to stifle a laugh, "Rapunzel, you totally lost it!" Anna mocked.

"What?" Rapunzel asked as she stared at them in disbelief. They don't believe me!

"Red rose turn blue? Ohhh was it magic?" Kristoff said as he chuckled.

"You didn't hit your head now didn't you?" Aiden asked with a smirk.

"Rapunzel, are you okay, dear?" Flynn asked and felt worried and placed a hand on her shoulder.

Rapunzel shook her head and shoved Flynn's hand off, "Guys, I'm serious! I swear all what I said is true! I've seen it with my own eyes! A-And look! The rose looks much healthier and better than when Bulda gave it to Elsa."

They turned to look at the flowers and realized that Rapunzel was right. The blue rose did look more blossomed. And they were shocked to see that Elsa's blizzard ruined the whole room yet the rose stood unscathed. "Uhm… We should probably ask Bulda about that later." Anna said as she stared cautiously at the weird plant.

"Wait. Did you say that the rose absorbed Elsa's ice?" Aiden asked and Rapunzel quickly nodded. "And you said that it bloomed when it released it again, right?"

"Yeah! It was first all red and closed when the ice stayed inside, but when it was released around the rose… Well… It just turned blue and bloomed. It was scary yet incredible!"

"Hmmm…" Aiden hummed in wonder as he scratched his head, "I have no information what so ever about this rose. I never even seen a blue one."

"Anna is right, we'll ask Bulda about this later. We have other stuff to worry about than a weird plant." Flynn informed and received a nod from everyone.

They all then turned to Elsa and Anna quickly ran to her side. Anna sat delicately and carefully at Elsa's side, not willing to wake her up, and Rapunzel did the same on the other side while the men sat around the bed on the chairs.

"We have to do something about this." Anna said in utter concern, stroking the platinum hair gently.

Everyone watched Elsa in worry. "I know!" Rapunzel whispered, "She's still suffering even after we got her out of there. It's… It's like the torture had followed her here!"

Anna bit her lip, "Yesterday I asked Master Walter about this and he said that he doesn't know anything about nightmares. He said that the problem is from inside her mind." She scoffed, "Well duuuhh! I already know it's something from inside her mind. It's a nightmare for god's sake! Of course it's from inside her mind! Where would it come from? Her butt?!" Anna said angrily at the Master's stupid, obvious and unhelpful advice.

"Maybe we should give her more time?" Rapunzel asked and her eyebrows formed a line of concern.

"One more night and the woman would rather kill herself than see… Whatever she is seeing in these horrible nightmares." Flynn said.

"Anna… We don't know what he did to Elsa all these years but we do know that it wasn't anything merciful or good at all. We barely saw little of what he was doing to her and we couldn't even stand it… I even fainted!" Rapunzel said and pointed at herself with both her hands.

"There has to be a way, guys." Anna started as she gave Elsa a sad look, "We can't just leave her to suffer at night. Who cares about this stupid sanctuary! Elsa will stay terrified if we don't get rid of those nightmares."

"It's been only a week since we got Elsa out of there, Anna." Aiden reminded, "Maybe Rapunzel is right. Maybe she really does need only time."

"It's been a week and every night would be the same!" Anna said in frustration, "I can't stand seeing her like that anymore. If it weren't for my mother, we would have lost Elsa tonight. Can you imagine?"

And at that Aiden felt utterly worried, "T-Then you're right! We should try and get rid of these nightmares."

"And besides the nightmares, we've seen that Elsa's gloves don't work if she's really scared. The room was a winter wonderland! The gloves didn't suppress her powers when she was so terrified. We have to be careful."

"What do you think he did to her all those years?" Rapunzel dared to ask.

Everyone turned to look at Elsa's scars, "I don't even wanna know." Anna said sadly.

None of them ever saw someone so traumatized and troubled like Elsa. They were still shocked that she even stayed alive.

They then all thought for ideas to get rid of those nightmares in silence, then, "What if we show her other stuff?" Kristoff suggested, "What if we make her do other stuff? She'll be happy… Right?"

They looked at him, confused. "I don't quite get what you're saying." Anna said.

Kristoff leaned closer, "What I mean is… Elsa doesn't have good memories. We all know that all her life had been nothing but dark and miserable. If she doesn't have good memories, how the hell will she ever have a dream and not a nightmare?"

Anna suddenly gasped in joy when she realized what Kristoff was trying to say. "Why you hell of a genius! How didn't I think of that?! Elsa still have a lot to see! M-Maybe we can keep making her happy and add those happy thoughts to her mind, then she'll have enough to be able to have a dream and slowly get rid of those nightmares!"

"We can make Louis teach her how to cook!" Rapunzel suggested as she raised her hand, giving her opinion.

"Ouh! Maybe she'll love to try other kind of food!" Aiden said innocently and was confused when Anna and Rapunzel exchanged smirks.

"We'll probably need an armor for that." Anna joked to Rapunzel.

Rapunzel agreed playfully, "I just hope she won't spit everything at me or Louis."

"Remember. We should stay away from broccoli." Anna said.

"Why would she spit things? And why broccoli?" Flynn asked.

"Long story." Rapunzel told him as she patted his shoulder.

"And I have an idea!" Kristoff started, "I'll introduce her to Sven! You know reindeers are better than people and they make good friends! I think Elsa will love him." He chuckled a bit, "And maybe I can teach her how to ride. Or even drive the sled!"

Anna and the others laughed a bit at such a scene.

"I can teach her to use the bow or the sword! The girl need to learn to use a weapon in this crazy land now, wouldn't she?" Flynn said excitedly.

"We can take her to other villages or towns or- OH! To the waterfalls or the lake! She needs to get out of the fort for a while right?" Aiden said.

"Or maybe teach her how to dance!" Anna said and everyone fell silent as they stared at her blankly. Anna smiled shyly at how ridiculous her idea was, "Yeah, right. Psh! Elsa dancing. Haha… Crazy, right?" Anna rambled and rubbed the back of her neck awkwardly.

"I think there are a lot of things to do other than dancing." Aiden said, "You can barely touch her," He said as he pointed at Anna, "And we can't even come closer." He said, pointing at himself, Flynn, then Kristoff.

"And that's why she should get to know you guys! If she only knows me and Rapunzel and stay away from you and any other man, well… You guys can never be friends with her." Anna clasped her hands together happily, "So first thing's first, we should teach her how to trust men." Anna informed.

"Now that would be one hell of a challenge." Flynn deadpanned.

"It's worth the try." Aiden said, shrugging his shoulders.

"I'll start first!" Kristoff said happily, "Maybe she loves animals! They are cute and friendly and they make anyone happy!"

Anna smiled warmly at Kristoff, "I think she would like that very much."

"Well!" Rapunzel said, "Just like we planned? Tomorrow morning we'll start."

"Yup!" Anna agreed excitedly, "Let the mission of making Elsa happy begin!"