"Do you trust them?"
Elsa had huddled the three princesses to the side of the shore while they waited for the others to finish hauling the rowboats onto the rocky landscape. She had not taken her eyes off of the Southern Isles princes.
"Alexander is a little snobbish, and Drew can be scary sometimes." Anna lowered her voice to a nearly inaudible whisper, afraid to be overheard. "But I think Grant wants to help us."
"We'll see." Elsa didn't budge against the cold and growing wind that pounded against their chests. She was stoic, calculating, and ever cautious of their movements. "We can't stay together too long. They'll think we're up to something."
"Aren't we?" Merida asked.
"Hush. We'll split up. Anna and I will take the lead." Elsa resolved, ushering her sister up the rocky slope. "Keep your eyes open."
Rapunzel nodded, trailing behind them next to Merida and the rest of the landing company. The three princes were coming too, along with a handful of their own soldiers. Elsa had commanded the rest of the Southern Isles soldiers stay on the ship.
Merida carefully maneuvered her feet around the many rocks until they reached more merciful terrain, the lightly frosted dirt crunching under her footsteps. The hem of her wedding dress was no longer white and clean. It had turned a muddy brown, torn and bogged down with the weight of salt water when she splashed out of her rowboat. The thin lace sleeves weren't enough to protect her arms from the cold as she wrapped them across her chest, stiffening with each brisk breeze that swept the landscape.
"You okay, Merida?" Rapunzel asked softly.
"What do you think?" Merida took a moment to adjust the bow that was hung over her shoulders and lift up her dress, attempting to showcase the full extent of her frustrations. "Look at this dress! It's heavy and dirty and doesn't protect me from a bloody thing!"
"Why didn't you change at the ship?"
"They didn't have any dresses me size. Besides, I figured it'd be funny to show me mum. She always nags me to keep my dresses nice, but I don't think she had a wedding dress in mind."
Rapunzel gave a half-hearted smile, before returning to her own thoughts in silence. Merida carefully searched the princess's face, wrought with unease. Was there something she was hiding?
"Are you okay, Princess?"
"What? Oh, I'm okay. I'm… just cold, is all."
"Does it have anything to do with the Ice Queen?" Merida whispered, motioning with a nudge of her head towards Elsa's direction.
"What, the cold? It's almost winter. I don't think it's her fault."
"That's not what I meant."
Rapunzel looked up to meet Merida's gaze before letting out a small sigh. "I'm worried for her, of course."
"Worried for her? She seems like she can take care of herself. She's kind of scary, actually." Merida shook her head, remembering the destruction she brought on her own ice ship, and the anger that burned within her at the mere mention of Hans' name.
"She's not scary. She just doesn't know what to do."
"Look at her! She has black armor! It's the stuff of legends my mum would tell me about."
"Shh. She's just scared. Elsa has a lot of people to protect, and Hans and the Southern Isles isn't making it any easier for her. With the color of her ice, it's hard for her to hide what she's feeling. Kind of like Pascal here." On cue, the little lizard hopped onto her other shoulder and puffed his chest out to Merida in a dramatic pose, coaxing a laugh from her.
Rapunzel paused. "I wish you could remember. At the ball, she saved our lives from Hans' army. You wouldn't think like that."
"That's not my fault!" Merida hissed, her smile fading as she became increasingly indignant. "And by the sound of it, I don't know if I want to remember. I was forced into marriage, my family was threatened with execution, and now me kingdom is in ruins! Who wants to remember that?"
"You're right, maybe it's for the best," Rapunzel quickly relented, "Hans put you through a lot of pain. I'm sorry."
Merida huffed, turning her head away from Rapunzel. She kept her eyes on the ground that traveled beneath her feet, letting several moments pass before she spoke again, still faced away from the princess. She wanted more than anything to just change the subject.
"Uh, that man... those men you were with, where are they?" Merida asked in a gentler voice.
"What men?"
"The two tall ones. They looked like twins. What are their names?"
"You mean Morgan and Logan? Elsa sent them to my kingdom Corona with a message."
"Oh." Merida said, kicking the dirt with her feet. "What was the message about?"
"She wouldn't tell me. There are a lot of things she doesn't want people to know."
"And you still trust her?"
They peered at the queen who headed the party up the mountain, her pale braid whipping in the wind behind her. She was like a general leading an army into battle, head held high, fists clenched to her sides. But her hands still shook. Charades are hard to maintain.
"I trust her."
A spark of cold flittered on top of Merida's nose, wetting her freckled face. She raised her head up to the cloudy skies to be met by a falling curtain of powdery snow. Instinctively, all heads turned towards the queen. Elsa herself inspected her hands; an unmistakable glimmer of panic passed in her eyes before she dismissed it with a careful wave of her hand.
"Don't look at me. This isn't my snow."
Alexander let out a nervous chuckle. "See, no such thing as magic."
"Are you going to ignore the ice ship and the troll, then?" Grant laughed, continuing up the slope to meet Elsa. "We should take a break. At least get some shelter from the snowfall for a while."
Elsa narrowed her eyes. "We don't need to stop. The sooner we get there the better."
"Actually, Elsa," Anna interrupted, "I think we should stop. My feet are killing me."
Elsa's pursed her lips, but she couldn't say no to her sister's request. "Fine. There's a small cave nearby, we can rest there. But we will leave immediately after the snow stops. We need to get there by nightfall."
Elsa was right. The cave was small. The horses had to be left out in the snow, as well as Elsa, but that was of her own volition. She wasn't bothered by the cold. Merida and Anna rested on a flat boulder near the cave's lip, rubbing their sore feet that ached with the growing miles.
"You know," Anna started, in an almost joyful tone, "it might hurt to walk a lot, but at least I'm on land again. I've been on a ship for a long time, and I hate being on the water."
"Why do you hate that?" Merida asked.
"Oh, well, our parents died in a storm at sea. I never really got over it."
"Sorry to hear that," Merida gave her condolences. "I couldn't imagine losing both my parents. I was terrified when I almost lost me mum."
"What happened to her?"
"She turned into a bear."
Anna returned with an incredulous expression, her eyebrows rose with skepticism. "A bear?"
"I know it sounds crazy. That witch over there, by the troll? She gave me a gamy spell when I wanted to change me fate. Turned me mum into a bear instead."
"What happened then?" Anna asked, still not entirely sure of her story.
"I had to mend my bond with her. We got in a fight before I found the witch, and I had to make it right. Thankfully it turned out for the better and she's not a bear anymore. I'm just worried about her now, with that Hans after her."
"My sister won't let anything happen, I'm sure of it." Anna grinned, taking Merida's hand in warm reassurance.
Merida's eyes drifted to the woman in black armor, standing solitary in the snow with arms crossed, lost in thought. "Maybe."
Anna stared carefully at Merida's face before speaking again. "I think Elsa knows what you went through. She almost lost me too. I nearly died trying to protect her."
"Your sister? What happened?"
"She accidentally froze my heart when we fought earlier that day. But when Hans tried to kill her, I decided to stand in his way. I turned into ice."
"You turned into ice?" Now it was Merida's turn to be skeptical.
"Well, yeah. She didn't mean to freeze my heart. But if your heart is frozen, only an act of true love can thaw it. Otherwise you'll turn into ice forever."
"So…?" Merida questioned, expecting an ending to the story.
"Oh, right. Protecting her was an act of true love, so I thawed out."
Merida thought over her story a little more. "I guess our stories are similar, then."
"You should talk to her," Anna suggested suddenly.
"Who? Elsa? Me?" Merida started to shake her head furiously, her curls slapping into her face. "I don't know if that's such a good idea."
"She's not going to hurt you, Merida. That's probably the last thing she wants to do." Anna stood up, pulling the reluctant princess up with her. "I think a talk will be good for her anyways."
"What do I talk about? What should I say?" Merida could feel Anna's eager hands push into her back, her feet scrapping along the cave floor and into the snow.
"You don't remember a lot that happened. Maybe she can help you remember it."
"N-no, the last time I-" Anna had already pushed Merida into Elsa's view. The queen turned, and her piercing blue eyes met Merida's just as it had on her ice ship, only there was no vicious storm to help mask them. Anna had run off with an audible giggle, stranding Merida alone with her sister.
She took a gulp, clearing her throat. "So, uh… "
"I wanted to apologize," Elsa interrupted, with a voice as soft as the powdered snow.
"What?"
"I know I didn't help you when you lost your memory. I was selfish. I made it about my pain and my problems. I couldn't imagine what you've been through, and what it's like to find yourself in the middle of a war with almost no one you know or trust."
Merida stared blankly into Elsa's eyes, unprepared for an answer.
After a few expectant moments, Elsa continued. "I'm glad you have your father and brothers here for you. At least you're not alone." She bent down slightly, moving her face even closer to the red-head's. "And I will bring you to your mother safely. I made that promise."
"T-thank you," Merida stuttered. It was the only thing she could think to say.
"Excuse me, could I join you ladies?" A voice roused them, along with heavy crunching footsteps in the freshly fallen snow.
"You may," Elsa permitted in monotone, her expression slightly twisted in annoyance. Grant nodded, taking a place on the other side of Elsa.
For what seemed the longest time, it was just the three of them standing side by side in the whitewashed scenery. Merida started to wonder how discretely she could shift away from the tension between them, but he spoke before she could take a step.
"You're lucky, you know. The both of you."
His steely grey gaze met Merida, then Elsa. Their bodies stiffened.
"How do you mean?" Elsa asked.
"I can see the love you two have for your families, for your sister and your father and your brothers."
"You have twelve brothers. I'm sure your family is not so different," Elsa said.
"You're wrong, Your Majesty," Grant said, his usual boastful pride melted into a sincere solemnness. "I can tell you would do anything for your sister. Would any of my brothers do that for me? I'm not so sure of the answer. Not all of them, I know."
"Surely not Hans," Elsa replied flatly. Merida saw a tightening in her jaw and a newly defined vein in her neck.
"I'm not going to argue with you there," Grant sighed. "Hans doesn't give a damn about any of us. I wouldn't blame him, the way we all treated him growing up. I shouldn't have closed him out when he needed me."
Merida kept close watch of Elsa's profile. Her jaw tightened again, but differently somehow. As if she was no longer clenching down on her anger, but trying to control her grief.
"I know…" she said finally, a throaty wavering in her voice, "I know what that's like."
Grant gave her a smile. "Of course I've told all this to Anna as well. She's something special. Elsa, if you ever think that you've failed her, remember that girl loves you more than any harm you could ever do. She'll always forgive you. Don't take that for granted."
"I try not to." Tears started to well up in Elsa's eyes. She quickly turned away from him to rub them away. "Prince Grant, I would appreciate it if you took your leave."
Grant took a concerned step towards the queen, but she extended her arm to him before he could get closer.
"Please."
He looked up at Merida, who could only reply with a shrug. He finally obliged, giving them a quick bow before returning to the cave.
"Should I leave too?" Merida asked. Elsa closed her eyes, welcoming the near-winter breeze to refresh her face and calm her nerves.
"We should all leave. The snow is slowing now."
Merida nodded and began to head back to the cave for her bow and arrows, but Elsa caught her arm before she got too far. She pulled her in for a whisper.
"And Merida, keep an eye out for that prince. Anna may trust him, but I'm not convinced. If we drop our guard it could be over for us, then they'll win. Checkmate."
A game of chess by a roaring fire. A savage thirst that plagued her throat. A handsome face and a smug grin, filling her glass with a crystal liquid and a sweet smell that burned in her nose. A triumphant word muttered from his lips. "Checkmate."
All of it had gone by in a blur. Merida stumbled backwards with wide eyes and hands grasping desperately at her neck. Elsa held on firmly to her shoulders, shaking her out of her daze.
"Merida, what's wrong? Are you hurt?"
She simply shook her head. "I'm okay. I'll keep an eye out."
Elsa hesitantly let her go. Merida continued to the cave on shaking feet, ignoring the concerned looks of her father and Rapunzel and Anna as she passed them. She flung her bow over her shoulders and picked up her quiver full of arrows. She stared into the gleaming tip of one, the jagged edges sharp and deadly. That foggy memory replayed in her head over and over until she heard the bustling footsteps of the group preparing to leave. Merida left the cave knowing one thing was certain.
That blurry face belonged to Hans.
"How in the…" Alexander mumbled.
Their long trek lasted nearly the whole day, as the group finally arrived at Elsa's ice palace by sunset. But the Southern Isles princes, Merida and her family, and Eugene lagged behind, gaping at the unexpectedly impressive structure and the imposing snow monster that guarded it.
"'Oh, look at me, I'm Alexander and I don't think magic exists. Also I'm an idiot,'" mocked Drew, though he seemed to be hiding his own shock.
"Alright, listen up everybody!" Elsa announced. "We're staying here until I think it's safe to leave for Arendelle."
"Wait, this wasn't our deal," Grant said. "We were going to escort you to Arendelle."
"And you will. But not right now," Elsa replied calmly. "Come along, everyone."
Following Elsa's orders, everyone carefully moved up the steps of the staircase and entered the palace, until only Merida and the Southern Isles remained at its base. Elsa caught Merida's arm again before she could take a step onto the first stair.
"I noticed you don't like walking on ice. I'll help you up."
"Yeah, that's probably for the best," Merida chuckled.
Elsa then turned to the Southern Isles princes, raising up her hand. "You are to sleep here for the night."
"I know, that's what you said," Drew said, impatiently trying to push his way past her. A wall of ice materialized in front of him, pushing him back from the staircase.
"That's not what I meant."
"You mean sleep out here in the snow like dogs?!" Drew yelled, his temper worsened by the rude pushing wall.
Elsa rolled her eyes. "You have tents and you have soldiers. You're still our enemy in this war. We just can't trust you to come inside."
"How dare you – " Drew began, but Grant put a firm hand on his shoulder, pulling him back.
"We understand," Grant said.
"Good. Marshmallow here will be on guard, in case any of you think about ignoring my orders."
"Understood," Grant said again.
Elsa squinted at him and turned her back sharply, the space between them filled by Marshmallow's large presence. She took hold of Merida's hand and began to lead her slowly up each crystal stair. To Elsa's horror, the darkness of her armor started to bleed into the staircase, the black color crawling towards the ice palace. Merida could feel the queen's hand start to shake in hers.
For once, Elsa didn't look like the menacing armored queen Merida had been introduced to. All she could see was a scared woman, devoured by her own power. That's what Rapunzel could see all along. She squeezed her hand slightly. "It's okay."
Elsa's head snapped up, obviously not expecting Merida's comforting words. "Thank you. I just hope the ice doesn't break now." Not exactly comforting words for Merida.
Eventually, they both planted their feet onto the entryway. The queen opened the door.
"Mum!" Merida cried. She rather ungracefully ran and slipped along the ice floor, too excited to take any more caution until she finally fell into her mother's arms. Elinor picked her up, planting numerous kisses on her face. Fergus and her brothers joined in the family reunion.
"Oh, my dear, I was so worried about you!" Elinor exclaimed, putting Merida back down on her feet. Her eyes darted to the ribbon of white hair that fell near Merida's face. "What's this?"
"That was my fault," Elsa admitted.
Merida shook her head. "I'm fine though, mum. Really."
Elinor embraced her daughter again, looking up at Elsa, relieved. "You brought my family back. That's all I could ask for. I can't thank you enough."
Elsa only returned a weak smile.
"Oh, dear, look at your dress! It's ruined!" Elinor cried, inspecting Merida's dress before she could notice the color. "Your… dress…"
Elinor gave Merida a terror-filled glance.
"Don't worry mum, I'm not married. I don't think."
"What do you mean you 'don't think'? Tell me all about it."
"I don't think I can."
"Why not?"
"She doesn't remember." Grand Pabbie wobbled over to them. His serious tone did little to calm Elinor's nerves.
"Prince Hans gave Merida a potion that could manipulate and distort any of her memories. When we found her, I couldn't do anything to salvage them. I had to remove the memories, for everyone's sake."
"How much does she remember? Can she remember?" Elinor asked in a panic.
"She doesn't remember past the date of her trip to Corona. As far as getting her memories back, it's hard to say," the troll explained. "They might come gradually, on their own. Something might trigger her to remember everything at once. She may never remember. Time will tell."
Elinor sighed, cupping her daughter's face in her hands. "Well, you're safe now. We'll figure everything out later."
Merida looked around at the rest of the palace. Several tents and fire pits were set up in the main foyer. Kristoff was joyfully petting a reindeer, and Anna was talking to an anthropomorphic snowman. The walls of the palace began to be overcome with a darkened tint.
"That might be a hard thing to do."
Ice was hard enough to walk on, and it was proving even more difficult to sleep on. Merida tossed and turned on the thin mat, too cold and too uncomfortable to get a good night's rest. What was more frustrating was her family's deep sleep. Of course, her father and brothers could sleep through anything, and her mother may have gotten used to the sleeping arrangements.
Merida couldn't stand her restlessness any longer. She snuck out of the tent, taking hesitant steps on the ice so as not to slip and wake everyone. Perhaps some fresh air would do her good.
Merida tip-toed to the main door and moved it back ever so slowly to let in the night air.
"Stop! We shouldn't do this!"
The desperate shouting sent a chill down her spine. She pushed the door back to allow a small crack between the doors and peered through the slim view. The three Southern Isles princes were standing in the snow, seemingly enraged at each other. Marshmallow stood nearby, confused at the spectacle.
"I knew Klaus shouldn't have sent you with us! You're too soft!" Drew yelled, pointing his finger at Grant.
Grant tried another approach, lowering his voice to a nearly pleading tone. "Come on, we can't do this."
"You said you would do anything for your family, right? Isn't that your motto?" Alexander accused.
"This is different, and you know it."
"Is it? Is it different?" Drew asked. "If you don't help us, Klaus will brand you a traitor. Think about it. Being a traitor to your own family."
"This isn't right, I don't care what Klaus says."
"So be it. But we won't let you get in our way." Drew hopped up onto his horse, waiting for Alexander to do the same. "You made a mistake, Grant."
The two figures rode back down the mountain into the darkness, leaving their brother in the snow. He stood silent, an unmoving statue.
Merida quickly shut the door.
"Elsa."
She knew where she was. When everyone retreated to their tents for the night, Elsa insisted on staying on the balcony floor alone. Merida's eyes followed the path of long staircases that led to the second and third floor.
"Oh boy."
With a combination of sliding, gliding, and slipping, Merida finally landed on the balcony floor. About to burst through the doorway with the news of the royal brothers, yet another conversation echoed from inside Elsa's room, sparking Merida's curiosity. She anchored herself near a wall with only a narrow view of two people in the room, but she listened intently.
"Elsa, I don't know what the plan is here. Why is this a good idea?" Kristoff asked, clearly exasperated.
"I just needed to make sure Queen Elinor was safe. We'll leave as soon as we can," Elsa said reassuringly.
"And go where? Arendelle? It's flooded with the Southern Isles!"
"We can't go to Arendelle, we'll be surrounded by them," Elsa agreed.
"So are we going to Hans? Anna wants to talk to him, and at this point I think it might be the only way."
"NO!"
The sudden cry made everyone jump, including Merida.
"Kristoff, maybe we shouldn't…" another voice spoke outside Merida's view, but she could guess it was Rapunzel.
"No, I want to know why not," Kristoff said, crossing his arms.
Elsa shook her head. "I can't risk it. I can't."
"We might as well, or this war won't ever end."
"We could find another way," said the third voice. It was definitely Rapunzel. Her nervous interruptions didn't seem to be helping.
"What's going on with you two?" Kristoff asked, "You're the only ones who don't think this plan is worth it."
"You're acting like you don't know Hans at all," Elsa said, "What makes you think anything Anna says will help?!"
"What makes you think it won't?! We won't know until we try!"
"Kristoff…"
"It won't." Elsa was firm in her statement.
"You're not even giving Anna a chance! If you're worried about her safety – "
"This isn't about Anna!"
"Then what's it about?!"
"G-guys I think we should…"
"It's about Hans! He's… we can't!" Elsa said, stuttering on her words.
"He's what?" Kristoff asked.
"He's…. his… we just can't." Her tone was just as pleading as Grant's.
"Are you hiding something? Elsa?"
Elsa only answered with a blank stare. Black snow began to swirl around the room. Kristoff took a step back.
"Elsa?"
The storm grew stronger and fiercer, just like the one on her ship. Elsa put her fists up to her temples, her body slumping in shame. The walls started to crack and splinter, spikes growing ever closer to the center of the room. Her knees hit the floor in a ringing crash.
"I FROZE HIS HEART!"
Merida gasped, stepping back abruptly. Her heel slipped on the ice, sending her entire body hurtling onto the floor. Another smaller clattering sound happened just after her fall.
The three figures in the room immediately spotted her in the doorway.
"Merida?" Kristoff asked, gliding his way to her first.
"I'm alright, I'm alright. But I think I dropped something."
Kristoff helped her up just as Rapunzel and Elsa came to her side. Merida searched the ground for the source of the clattering. A small wooden box lay at their feet.
"Is that?" Rapunzel asked.
Kristoff bent down to pick up the box. A look of disbelief colored his face. "It is."
"It's what?" Merida asked. He opened the box to expose the brilliant rings of green and pink crystals, shining light into her eyes.
A dark dungeon. A prisoner behind bars. A man in chains with a look of anguish. A dress fitting and a dozen little needles poking into her body. A parched throat. A last wish.
"These are my – "
"You're wedding rings," Merida finished Kristoff's sentence. "You gave them to me."
"You… you remember that?" Kristoff asked.
Merida put her hand into her now empty pocket. "I had a pocket specially made in this dress to hold onto them for you."
Elsa locked her eyes onto Merida's. The storm behind her had dissipated, the spikes began to retreat. "Merida…"
"Queen Elsa! Queen Elsa!" Incessant shouting erupted from the balcony.
Elsa rolled her eyes. "What now?"
The four of them walked to the balcony as Elsa opened the heavy ice doors. Down below, Marshmallow had Grant squirming in his fist, tightening his grip each time he tried to kick his way out.
"Let me go, I have to get inside. Let me go!"
"What do you want, Prince Grant? It's the middle of the night," Elsa yelled down from the balcony.
"Elsa!" He cried, giving up on his endeavor to escape the snow beast. "The Southern Isles will be here any minute!"
"What do you mean?" Elsa asked, concern growing on her face.
"We're still fighting this war!" Grant's usually kempt hair was now hanging wildly in his face, his misty breath clouding the chilly air. He had everyone's attention.
"And if you don't leave now, you'll be caught in it."
