A/N: Falling Snow just turned one year old.
Anna gasped with relief as she stumbled out into the daylight. Leaning against the craggy stones, she paused to let her racing heartbeat slow. While she waited, she tilted her head back and admired the play of the sunbeams through the green needles of the evergreen above her.
It was such a welcome sight after all the time she had spent underground.
She'd been eager to make another trip into town as soon as she'd returned from her first one. Even so, she recognized that she was taking a risk every time she made her little pilgrimage. Well, one could argue that she was taking several risks, but thoughts of everything that might go wrong in the tunnel only seemed to bother her while she actually was in the tunnel.
She had even begun her journey today at a calm, measured walking place, thinking that after the return trip from her last outing, she had managed to conquer that particular problem. She'd made it about a third of the way through before she realized that the oppressive darkness still had the power to unnerve her, even though she now knew that it hid no real dangers. That was when she had decided that her last trip through must have gone more smoothly because she'd been in too much of a hurry to let herself think about exactly where she was.
Which was why she had just finished running the rest of the way to the exit.
Despite all that, the risk that still concerned her most was the prospect of getting caught. Who knew when her father might suddenly feel the need for the comfort of his little sanctuary? In fact, it seemed to Anna like he'd been retreating there quite often lately. She'd sort of developed a habit of checking on the room every so often, hoping she could maybe figure out a pattern as to when it was most likely to be empty for a few hours at a time. If one existed, though, she hadn't been able to make sense of it. The only thing that seemed clear was that Father apparently sought its solitude more than she had expected.
Having only found out about his private retreat recently, she had no way of knowing whether or not his current behavior was typical. Several times, though, she had peeked inside to find him sitting at the table and staring at the wall where she knew the portrait of Aunt Primrose was hung. Whatever he might have been thinking about at those moments, it was apparently engrossing enough that he usually didn't even notice when the door opened just enough for her to steal a glance inside.
The result was that Anna had been forced to wait far longer than she would have liked for this second opportunity to escape the castle. As with her first escapade, she'd finally felt safe sneaking out today only because she knew that her father would once again be tied up in a meeting for several hours. Even then, she wasn't sure she could count on having as much time as she'd had before. So as soon as the opening had presented itself, she'd taken advantage of it. Now here she was, standing on the threshold of another adventure and doing her best not to think about the fact that she was having to actively disobey her parents in order to enjoy it.
Having finally caught her breath, Anna turned toward the boulder that concealed the tunnel's mouth. Based on the deductions she'd made during her last outing, she'd remembered to add a pry bar to the list of items she had carried with her down the tunnel. Now that the time had come, however, she found that she couldn't quite bring herself to trust in her own conclusions. Just because she thought she knew how to unbar the door once it had been sealed shut didn't mean that she was right. And just because she had a tendency to be a bit impulsive at times didn't mean she couldn't recognize a completely unnecessary risk when she saw one. Better, she decided, to just leave the door slightly ajar, like she had the last time, and count on the tree and the remote location to keep it concealed.
So she hid the crowbar in the grass nearby and covered it with a layer of fallen leaves and twigs. At least it would be there now should misfortune find her needing it. With that settled, she was finally able to let her impatient feet spin her around and begin to carry her off down the hill. As she got farther and farther from the hidden passage, it also became steadily easier to allow her growing excitement to drown out any lingering guilt.
By the time she reached the outskirts of the town, she was already grinning from ear to ear.
Anna had briefly considered returning to the market street that she'd visited last time, but only because she had a vague notion that it would be nice to run into Nina and Hille again. She'd quickly discarded the idea, however, because there really was no reason to think they'd just happen to be out shopping with their mother again today. Besides, that really would be a waste. If her chances to slip out were going to be this hard to come by, then she ought to make the best use of her time to try to see as many different things as she could.
That was why she had deliberately chosen to take a different angle in her descent from the hilltop. She now found herself in a section of town that was entirely new to her, farther away from the castle than where she'd visited before. The buildings weren't clustered quite so close together here, nor did there appear to be any shops at all. It seemed like she'd stumbled into a quiet residential area this time, and at first, she found this to be a little disappointing.
It wasn't the nature of the neighborhood that bothered her so much as the emptiness of its streets. Seeing the houses up close was fine and all, but it was the chance to meet (or at least observe) Arendelle's people that ultimately made the risks she was taking seem worthwhile. Here and now, though, there was hardly anyone about, and the handful of people she did see were all hurrying away.
Anna almost decided to give up and try her luck elsewhere when a distant noise drew her attention. She couldn't really make it out clearly, but whatever it was, it seemed to have been made by a great many voices all joined together. Her best guess placed it in the same general direction that those few people had been hastening toward. Unsurprisingly, her curiosity tugged on her insistently until she was soon weaving between houses and down side streets, her ears straining for another sound to help guide her.
She needn't have worried. In no time at all, the murmur of many voices filtered back to her, filling the air like a conclave of ghosts. Even so, it still took her another minute and a wrong turn or two before she grew confident that she was heading in the right direction. The babble grew steadily louder until she rounded one last bend. Then ahead of her, between two buildings at the far end of the street, she at last spotted what she had been searching for.
People! Lots of people, all gathered together in what looked to be a modest square. From what little she could see, the crowd seemed to be made up of men, women, and children of all ages. It was perfect. With so many people all bunched in together like that, nobody would notice if one more happened to slip in. After all, the only better place for a needle to hide than in a haystack was in the middle of a giant crowd of needles!
Even as Anna scurried forward, a great cheer went up, with a good bit of laughter mixed in as well. She still couldn't tell what was going on, but she was growing ever more eager to find out. Whatever it might be, it certainly sounded like fun.
It actually took her a while longer to answer that question. She first found herself having to circle around behind the throng of people who lined the edges of the square. She'd gone perhaps a quarter of the way around before she finally found an opening wide enough that she could squeeze through, and even then it required a couple of excuse-mes and one oops-sorry. At last, though, she popped out from between the last two bodies and stood gaping in awe and amazement at the spectacle before her.
It was a wedding! At least it was the celebration after the wedding. Probably the noise that had first drawn her attention had been the crowd celebrating the arrival of the happy couple. It wasn't hard to pick them out, either. He wore a high-collared jacket over an embroidered white shirt. Sandwiched in between, perhaps a little impractical in the summer heat but adding a true dash of elegance, was a green vest with intricate red and gold detailing. Leather breeches below and a tall black hat above completed the ensemble.
There was a bit of cloth attached to the hat, the time-honored manner for marking the groom. However, he could have been dressed in little more than a sack and his role would still have been abundantly clear, so long as he remained beside his bride.
She was absolutely breathtaking in her traditional Bunad outfit. A long, black skirt was topped with a dark green apron, which was decorated with ribbons and incredibly colorful embroidery of such fine detail that Anna was only able to get a vague sense of the patterns from this distance. Her white blouse was topped by a second shirt – a red silver-shirt, so named because it was left open to frame the beautifully elaborate silver brooch that rested over her breastbone.
Even that paled to nothing, however, when compared to the incredible headpiece that perched atop her hair. The bridal crown was always the most expensive piece of the wedding ensemble, and they were often heirlooms that all the women in a family would wear generation after generation. This one was actually far larger and more extravagant than the queen's small tiara. Of course, when you would only wear something once in your entire life, practical considerations like size and weight became considerably less important. What mattered instead was feeling special on such a magical day. Judging by the bride's bright smile and even brighter laughter, there were no worries to be had on that score.
It all made Anna wish she that could have seen what her own mother had looked like on her wedding day. None of the paintings that hung in the palace captured that day, which now struck the princess as a terrible oversight. Then again, she really couldn't blame per parents for not wanting to step away from what had surely been a magnificent celebration just to sit for a portrait. Besides, the future inquisitiveness of an as-yet-undreamed-about daughter would hardly have been foremost on their minds.
Another ripple of laughter ran through the crowd, apparently caused by some comment made by the father of the bride that Anna had not been able to hear. The older man clapped the groom on the shoulder, however, and then shook his hand heartily before stepping back to clear the way for the newlyweds. The new husband bowed graciously to his new wife, then offered his hand to her. Together, they strode out into the center of the plaza. There they paused, gazing at one another's faces. For that moment, the entire scene seemed suspended as though time had somehow forgotten about this one small part of the world.
Then suddenly, from somewhere off to Anna's right, a fiddle sprang to life, joined a few beats later by the proud oomph of a tuba and the sharp rap of a hand drum. The jaunty music undid the spell, and the couple began to move.
The dance started simply at first. In fact, it looked less like a dance than the two simply deciding to take a pleasant stroll side by side. However, they couldn't quite seem to make up their minds who ought to be on which side. She started out on his right, but then he passed her hand behind his back so that she ended up on his left. Then he raised their joined hands over her head so that they switched positions again, before he ducked and slipped back beneath them himself.
Their smiles both grew wide as, with one final switch of position, they now came face to face. Each put their left hand on the other's waist, right hand just above their partner's elbow. Then they began to turn together, smaller revolutions within their larger orbit as they continued to circle within the ring of approving onlookers. Just before they finished their loop, he lifted her hand above her head, and she began to spin beneath it, round and round. Anna was starting to feel dizzy just watching.
Seemingly without warning, the tempo of the music shot upward, and the dancers moved to follow suit. Each with one hand low and one high on the other's back, they again began to twirl as one. Her long skirt billowed out behind her with the speed of their spin. His heels clicked rapidly across the closely laid stones. The audience was clapping in time to the rhythm and, caught up in the moment, Anna found herself joining in as well.
The energy of both the dancers and the crowd was reaching a fever pitch when suddenly, with a grand flourish, the small band concluded the first dance of the day. This brought mixed reactions from the spectators. There was plenty of appreciative applause, but also a few groans from some who felt it had all ended too quickly. Those who had been left disappointed had little time to fret, however, for the next song began almost immediately. From all around the square, other couples quickly stepped out of the crowd to join in the merriment.
For her part, Anna was more than content to simply watch. She'd been too young to attend any of the balls that had been held at the palace before the gates had been closed. Elsa had been allowed to attend the early hours of a few, though. When she'd eventually returned to their room, of course, Anna had always scrambled out from under the covers and, despite the fact that she was supposed to have long since been sound asleep herself, plied her sister for every last detail.
One time, she'd even managed to sneak downstairs after she'd been tucked in, and she'd been able to grab a quick look through the door into the grand ballroom. She had wanted so badly to dart out amid all the beautiful ladies and handsome gentlemen in hopes of finding someone who would indulge a young princess in a quick dance. She probably would have done just that too, if Nanny hadn't spotted her. The beleaguered woman had nearly been forced to drag Anna bodily back to her room, so badly did she want to stay and watch despite the lateness of the hour.
Actually, that had been the very last ball that the palace had hosted. She'd never gotten the chance to see one up close and proper, like Elsa had. So maybe this celebration here today didn't take place amid the same opulent surroundings as those royal affairs of the past, but it was still all that Anna could have hoped for and then some.
She stood there with a somewhat dreamy smile on her face, having completely abandoned any thought she might once have had to explore more of the town. Her eyes followed first one dancer and then another. Sometimes the music was slow and romantic, other times fast and lively. Couples young and old mingled together, often switching partners from one song to the next. Her smile was in good company too, since nearly every other face she could see was wearing one as well.
Many marvelous tunes came and went before the fiddle player lowered his instrument, lifted his chin, and called out to the crowd in a clear and carrying voice. "Well, that ought to have served as a fine warmup for everyone. Now I think it's about time for the more daring among you to show what you're really made of. All you young lads out there looking to catch the eye of a certain lass or to impress the one you've already found, this is your chance.
"It's time for the halling!"
Anna's tutelage under Prof. Engelstad had covered a broad variety of topics that her parents had felt were important for a young princess to learn. In fact, it was quite likely that she already had more book learning than most of the adult women with whom she now shared the square. Even so, there were clearly some areas where her education had not been quite so comprehensive, for she had no idea why this announcement was the cause for so much excitement among the assembled guests.
While the women and older men cleared out of the dance area, Anna wondered whether she dared to ask someone about this apparently significant event. After all, despite her best efforts not to draw attention to herself, it really couldn't possibly hurt that much to just ask one little question, could it? Looking around, she spotted a grandmotherly figure who was sitting on a bench near her. Perhaps it was because the older woman reminded her a little bit of Gerda, but Anna decided she seemed a likely candidate to provide her with the answers she wanted.
"Excuse me, please," she said as she leaned over, "but... what's a halling?"
"A halling, child? Well, it's a kind of dance, don't you know. Very fast, very difficult. Requires great strength and skill to do it properly. My husband used to be quite good at it in his younger days." She smiled warmly at the gentleman whose hand she had already been holding, then returned her attention again to Anna. "If you've never seen one before, my dear, you're in for quite a treat."
Anna glanced back at the open space, and her face took on an even more confused look. "Um, so... what's the stool for?"
"You'll see," the woman assured her with a wink. "Wouldn't want to spoil the surprise. Besides, it looks like they're about to get started."
The "they" in this case referred to a group of maybe six young men who had arrayed themselves in a line along the far side of the square. Apparently, these were all the comers brave enough to make the attempt today, because just then the fiddler called out, "Alright, it looks like that's it then. So is everyone ready?"
A chorus of affirmations rose up from around the ring of spectators, but the prospective dancers merely nodded.
"Well then, let the halling begin!"
The fiddler tucked his instrument under his chin, lifted his bow and began to play. The tuba player and the hand drummer both sat this one out, which meant that the music was decidedly simpler. The dancing, it soon turned out, was not.
The first lad in line stepped forward and began to walk in a steady circle, much the same way the newly married couple had started out. After his first go round, however, things started to get more interesting. He turned and began sidling along sideways, but in a most unusual fashion. One leg would cross behind the other then kick up so that it nearly touched his bottom. He'd then push off of the foot that was still planted on the ground, hopping to one side.
He repeated this pattern several times before transitioning into a series of different spins. Sometimes he would again kick backwards, as he'd been doing before. Other times, he'd perform a high kick forward, slapping his toes with one of his hands as his foot reached its apex. Then he'd drop into a deep squat only to spring back up again. Through all of these maneuvers, his momentum never flagged once. He continued to turn, continued to make his way around the circle.
Then things really got interesting.
Midway through his fourth pass, the young man dropped into what looked like just another squat. Suddenly, though, one of his legs shot out straight in front of him, and he proceeded to spin around three times, balancing only on the ball of his pivot foot. As he finished the third turn, he tucked both legs beneath him again, leaned forward, planted his hands on the ground before him, and then pushed off into a handspring somersault that saw him land squarely on his feet and immediately resume the dance as if he'd done nothing more than skip a step. An appreciative whoop rose from the crowd at the casual display of acrobatics.
The dancer didn't pause to acknowledge the praise, however. He had already moved into another series of spins – sometimes standing, sometimes squatting, but never slowing down – until he suddenly leaped high into the air, kicking his heels up behind him and slapping them back down with the palms of his hands before dropping lightly back onto his toes.
Now the crowd was really getting into things, and most of them began clapping in rhythm. For the first time, the dancer allowed himself a small grin. Without slowing his progress, he turned outward to face the onlookers, dropping down into deep knee bends, then popping up onto his heels, arms spread wide as if to take in the whole of the audience.
That was when Anna noticed a comely young woman climbing up onto the stool she had marked earlier. She held two items in her hands: a hat and a wooden rod nearly as long as she was tall. She placed the hat on one end of the pole, then raised it over her head. Holding it parallel to the ground, she extended it forward so that the cap dangled right above the ring around which the lad had been circling.
At first, he seemed to take no notice of either girl or hat, continuing instead to perform other minor stunts as he made his way around the circuit one more time. But as he approached her again, he slowed and lifted his gaze to the end of the pole. Then, with a small flick of his hand, he indicated that she should raise it up a little higher, which she obligingly did.
For the first time, his pace noticeably slowed. He lingered beneath the hat, bouncing from foot to foot and seeming to gauge the distance carefully. The crowd hushed, the clapping grew quieter, and everyone seemed to be holding their breath. Then, with no warning, the young man spun tightly on the spot, bent forward, and flung himself upward. He was nearly horizontal as one outstretched leg swung up off the ground, arced through the air, and connected solidly with the hat, sending it flying halfway across the square.
He landed with a small bounce and a great roar from the crowd, but that climax wasn't the end of his performance. He went straight back to circling the square, spinning and crouching as he went. Then he dropped and, in rapid succession, performed three more handspring somersaults in a row, much to the delight of all watching.
The fiddler paused for a moment, giving the young man time to hurry off and join the crowd. Then the music picked up again and the next challenger stepped forward to try his hand at impressing the eager audience.
Anna once again found herself clapping, laughing, and cheering with all the rest as each comer showed off his particular prowess. Every performance was similar and yet different. Some of the lads spent more time in the air, showing off their skill through jumps rather than rolls. Others incorporated more elaborate spin maneuvers, with sudden changes in direction or abrupt shifts from one leg to another in the middle of their rotations.
All of them, though, had to have a go at the hat. Unfortunately, not all of them actually connected. Such misses were always accompanied by sympathetic groans from the watchers and a round of polite applause for an attempt valiantly made.
As the last of the six completed his final lap, Anna turned to the old woman beside her once again. "That was incredible!" she exclaimed. "I mean, the way they just… And then when they… Not to mention how they managed to... And did you see that one who…?" The end of each sentence was accompanied by a series of elaborate hand motions that vainly attempted to recall the various acrobatics that had impressed her so much. She didn't even bother trying to find words to describe what she had seen. She only wished there had been more of it.
"Hi."
Anna jumped at the voice suddenly so close behind her. When she turned in its direction, she saw the youngest of the halling dancers standing there with his hands thrust deep into his pockets, gazing expectantly in her direction.
Reflexively, she glanced back over her shoulder, convinced that she had to be standing in the way of the person he was actually attempting to talk to. Much to her surprise, however, there didn't seem to be any other likely candidates present. Still, she couldn't quite believe it when she looked back at the young man. "Hi? As in, hi me?"
He grinned. "That was what I was aiming for, yeah."
"Oh. Well, then. Um… Hi."
"My name's Edvard," he announced boldly. He was lanky in both arm and leg, and he looked to be just a year or two older than the princess. There was a cocksure quality to his stance and the tilt of his head, as though he either expected her to find him impressive or else hoped to make himself seem so. "And you are…?"
Anna caught herself just before she blurted out her real name, but not before her mouth had already begun shaping itself around that first A. What finally came out was a little awkward as a result, but it certainly could have been much worse.
"A-a-a visitor. I'm afraid I've never had much of a chance to really see the capital before, you see, so I was just out for a walk today and before I knew it, I'd stumbled into all of this. I hope it's alright that I stayed to watch."
"Oh, sure. I mean, you don't think all these people here are related to the bride and groom, do you? Nah, most of them just happen to live nearby and came out to join the party. You don't have to worry about that."
"That's a relief." She meant it too, because Edvard's few brief sentences of reassurance had given her enough time to come up with a better answer to his original inquiry. "Oh, and you can call me Joan." Then, before he could ask more questions for which she didn't have convenient answers, she immediately did her best to steer the conversation onto a different path.
"You were really good out there," she said with a nod toward the middle of the square. The rest of the crowd had once again reclaimed it for more conventional dancing, but she could still feel the excitement of the halling running through her. "I couldn't believe that you actually managed to kick the hat like that."
He sniffed a bit scornfully. "Ah, I barely touched it. I should have been able to knock it clean off the stick, the way some of the other guys did."
"Most of them are older and taller than you are," she pointed out quite correctly, "and yet you barely let that girl lower it when you took your turn. That ought to count for something. Personally, I think it was pretty amazing that you were able to reach it at all! There's no way I'd be able to come anywhere even close to it. And if I tried, I would probably end up falling on my…"
"Yeah, well," he said, clearing his throat slightly. "I'll get it next time for sure. They often let you give it a second go at the end, you know, but I guess they thought there were too many of us lined up to give us all an extra shot today. If I'd gotten one, though, I bet I would have nailed it, no problem. Ah, but what can you do?"
He shrugged. Then, with a smirk and a wink, he added, "I bet if you'd been holding the hat out for me, I'd have had no trouble reaching it at all."
"It's not my fault that I'm short," Anna protested.
"No, I didn't… That's not what I..." He laughed self-consciously and rubbed uncomfortably at the back of his neck.
Anna's face changed as the intended meaning of his words sank in, and she quickly turned away to watch the dancers, hoping her embarrassment wasn't showing as plainly as she felt certain it must be. Fortunately, although she didn't realize it, Edvard was a little too busy feeling pleasantly flattered by her earlier praise to take much notice. He was also doing his own level best not to let his thoughts show.
The two stood there silently for a while, each hoping to keep the other from picking up on their particular awkward emotions. Inevitably, someone had to recover first, and it just happened to be Edvard.
"So you like dancing?"
"Oh, yes!" Anna eagerly pounced on the minor shift in topic. "I never had a chance to attend a ball when I was little. Wait, no, that isn't... I mean, of course I didn't. After all, why would anyone invite a little girl to a ball, right? No, I just meant that I always wished that I could have attended a ball, you know? All those gorgeous dresses. And the sophisticated men and graceful women, dancing the night away. It sounds like something right out of a storybook.
"This is different, of course. Oh, but I love it too. It's so much fun to see everyone having such a great time. I could stand here forever just watching dance after dance, listening to the music and feeling how every note drives their movements. Trying to follow their feet but always getting distracted by their hands and their smiles. Thinking how much they're all enjoying themselves and wishing I was out there with them."
"So why aren't you?"
"Hmm?" she asked. She'd let herself get so lost in her own excited musings, his words had barely registered.
"Why aren't you dancing?"
"I'd look rather silly out there all by myself, now wouldn't I?"
"Well then, you can dance with me."
"Wait, what?" Suddenly, Anna realized that their entire conversation had been leading to this moment, step by inevitable step, and she felt absolutely foolish for not having realized it sooner. "No, no, no. I really don't think that would be a good idea."
"Why not? I mean, I realize you don't really know me or anything, but I don't think we'd be the only ones out there who haven't spoken before today. Besides, I promise, I'll be a perfect gentleman. And if I'm not… Well, my mother's around here somewhere, and I'm sure she'll box my ears if I do anything stupid."
"Oh, it's not that," Anna insisted. "You seem perfectly nice and all. It's just that… I really don't think that I should."
"Aw, come on, Joan!" Edvard said, putting on his best roguish smile. "It'll be fun. What harm can there be in one little dance? You just said you wished you were out there, right?"
I wish for a lot of things, Anna thought to herself. I wish I was a little taller. I wish I could see Elsa again. I wish I didn't have to sneak out just to see something this wonderful. And I wish…
"I can't," she said regretfully.
"Sure you can. Nobody's going to stop you. Like I said, everyone's here to have fun, and it doesn't matter if you're a sister, cousin, neighbor, or stranger. We're all part of the family today! So live a little. A bit of fun never hurt anyone. What do you say?" He held out his hand to her.
"Go on, girl!" Anna had almost forgotten the elderly woman she'd been talking to earlier, but clearly she had been listening in on the conversation taking place right beside her. She was now giving the princess a kindly and encouraging smile. "I can vouch for Edvard, if that's what has you worried. He's a good lad."
"No, I really can't," Anna explained sheepishly. She took a step back, both because it made it easier to look between the two of them, but also because she was beginning to feel a bit ganged up on. "I… I don't know how."
Edvard stared at her for a second. Then he laughed. "Oh, is that all? The way you were going on about how much you loved dancing, I just figured… Well shoot, that's not a problem. I can teach you! We'll just wait a little bit for an easier dance. Not everything is as tough as the halling, you know. It'll be a piece of cake, trust me."
Anna hesitated. It did sound like fun, and hadn't that been half the reason she'd been so determined to escape the castle in the first place? Besides, she wanted to learn. She still had hopes that the castle gates might open again someday, and then maybe the ballroom would be used for its proper purpose. She would be expected to attend, of course. Actually, they'd have to lock her in the dungeons to keep her away! But how would it look for the princess to just stand there the entire time and refuse to dance with anyone because she didn't know how?
Then she looked around the little plaza at all the people who were milling about, chatting and watching the dancers. It would only take one of them to recognize the palace uniform she was wearing, only one to begin wondering what a girl her age was doing in such clothes when all the youngest staff had been expelled from the castle years ago. Standing here on the sidelines, she was far less likely to attract attention. Out there, though, fumbling and bumbling through the unfamiliar steps…
She warred with herself. She'd never been one to let a little danger stop her before. Then again, the risks had never been quite so clear before either. She might not get caught, but if she did, it would almost certainly mean an immediate end to her little adventures into town. After all the years she'd waited and all the months she'd searched, could she really stand to lose this tiny taste of freedom so soon? But what good was freedom if you weren't actually free to enjoy it?
So she decided. Stepping forward, she extended her hand toward the one that Edvard still held out to her.
And then the bells in the clock tower rang.
Anna almost staggered. How could that possibly be the time? She'd been so wrapped up in all the laughter and the dancing and everything else, she must have completely missed the tolling of the previous hour. Was Father still in his meeting? Would he be feeling the need to retreat for some peace and quiet once it was over? How much time did she have left to race back down the tunnel and slip through the palace corridors unseen?
She withdrew her hand and gave Edvard a look of deepest regret. "I'm sorry. I can't. I really, really want to, but I have to go. There's someplace I've got to be, and... Oh, I'm so sorry." She turned and once again began to thread her way through the crowd.
"Oh. Okay." Edvard watched her go, more than a little dumbstruck, before he finally raised his hand in farewell and called after her, "Maybe next time then? You know, if you're ever visiting again, and you decide to go for another walk, and there just happens to be another wedding, and I just happen to be there. Or... something."
Distractedly, Anna looked back, smiled, and returned a wave of her own. "I'd like that!" Then she was through the press of bodies, taking off at a run back through the streets toward the foothills, the siege wall, and the dark return trip home.
• • •
"I wish I could describe it better, Elsa. You wouldn't believe the things the halling dancers could do, not unless you saw it with your own eyes. It was so amazing! Of course, even the regular dancing was great. At least now I have some idea of what it must have been like when you got to stay up for the balls."
As was so often the case, the hours after dinner once again found Elsa sitting by her door and listening to Anna's latest news, anecdotes, and stories. Of course, some of the best days were the ones like today, where those three categories all tended to blend into one.
There was absolutely no doubt that Anna's adventures into town excited her more than almost anything else had in the last six years. Elsa could tell that much just by listening to her, and it wasn't only in the sound of her voice either. It was also in the way her voice moved.
From the moment tonight's tale had kicked off, for instance, her sister's words had been continuously rolling back and forth from beyond the door, first to the left then to the right. Obviously, Anna hadn't been able to sit still like she normally did on most evenings. She was so full of energy that her feet insisted on keeping her moving the entire time.
As the story had gone on, it sounded to Elsa like those movements had become increasingly complicated. It was a subtle thing, but Anna's voice would fade just a little, only to then grow louder again a few seconds later. Elsa finally realized that her sister had to be walking around in circles out in the hall, just as she was describing the way the dancers had kept circling the town square. There were occasional hitches in her speech too, sounding almost like hiccups popping out right smack in the middle of words. Since these were sometimes followed by muffled thumps or bangs, Elsa suspected that Anna was even trying out a few little jumps and spins of her own. Just picturing that brought a happy smile to her face.
"I wonder where Mother keeps her wedding dress," her unseen sister continued. "I'd love to see it. I bet it was absolutely stunning. And what kind of crown do you think a queen gets to wear on her wedding day? Or a princess, for that matter? Not that I have any plans, of course!"
Elsa giggled silently at how quickly Anna had hurried to clarify herself. Then she tried to picture her sister all grown up and standing at the altar. She could almost see it, even if the details were rather fuzzy. When she tried to imagine Anna reciting her wedding vows, however, it quickly began to fall apart. Whatever man Anna might someday marry, Elsa hoped he would be the patient sort. He might find himself waiting a while while his bride-to-be sorted out all the proper words.
Alright, that wasn't really fair. But the way Anna was going on tonight, it was hard not to make that leap. Elsa had to work to stifle her laughter as her sister's voice came to her not from the hallway, but from that distant someday in her imagination:
...til death do us part. Or, you know, travel. Because I'd like to go to France someday, but you don't have to come along if you don't want to. Not that I'd mind if you did either. Or, you know, if you needed to go somewhere sometime, that'd be okay too. I'd wait until you got back, because we're married now after all, and...
"It really is incredible getting to go out and see all these things," the present-day Anna was saying as Elsa forced her attention back to the here and now. "Not to mention the fact that I somehow seem to keep making new friends each time without even trying. That's great too, actually, except that it sort of makes me wonder if maybe I'm not as good at keeping a low profile as I think I am."
This came as no surprise to Elsa. Anna trying to remain inconspicuous was like an avalanche trying to keep quiet. It wasn't that her sister sought the attention. She simply seemed to have a sort of charm that drew people to her, made them naturally like and trust her. She was possessed of a warmth and a kindness that no disguise could ever hope to hide. They were qualities that properly belonged in a future queen, instead of fear and self-doubt and...
"But..."
There was a stillness in that word. Elsa couldn't say quite how, but she was certain that Anna's constant movements outside her door had come to an abrupt halt.
"Well, I guess it isn't quite what I imagined it would be. Oh, don't get me wrong. It's wonderful seeing all the friendly people and getting a taste of what life is like outside the castle. That part's fantastic and I'm so glad I'm able to do that. And I wouldn't have been able to do any of it without your help, so I don't want to seem ungrateful or anything. It's just that…"
Anna sighed. "I end up worrying so much that somebody might recognize me that I can't really be myself, you know? I really did want to learn how to dance. You know how I am – even if I'd ended up tripping all over myself, I wouldn't have cared. I almost tried it anyway!
"But the me that would do that isn't supposed to be out there having fun. That me is supposed to still be stuck here inside the castle. So when I'm out there, I have to pretend to be somebody else. I mean, I couldn't even tell Edvard my real name."
An uneasy silence descended. Hardly for the first time, Elsa wished that she could reach out to Anna with a bit of sisterly support. It wasn't her self-imposed silence that got in the way this time, though. She honestly didn't know what to say. There didn't seem to be a good answer, because Anna was right. Exercising the natural boldness that was so much a part of her character would almost certainly be one of quickest ways to draw attention to herself while she was out on the town, and that in turn would greatly increase the chances of someone putting two and two together and reaching a most inconvenient conclusion.
"Of course," Anna went on in a tone of resigned acceptance, "that's really an awfully small price to pay to be able to go and see a bit of the world, isn't it? I suppose for the chance to actually get out and experience life a little, it isn't really so very bad to hide just a bit of who I am. After all, what matters is that I know me. And you know me too, so that's even better, right?"
Elsa felt her sister's words embed themselves in her brain and quiver there, like the shaft of an arrow whose head has arrived dead center on its target. Perhaps, she thought, wise advice didn't always have to flow from oldest to youngest after all.
For the chance to actually get out and experience life a little, it isn't really so very bad to hide just a bit of who I am.
Elsa looked down at her gloved hands, at the part of her that she kept hidden every day.
She had once thought that the key to controlling her curse lay in mastering it, but that had ended in near disaster. Afterward, she had almost become convinced that control was something she would never be able to achieve on her own, and that the only way to keep everyone she cared for safe was to remain as far away from them as the confines of the castle would allow.
And yet…
How long had it been since she'd last lost control while wearing her gloves? True, whenever she took them off, she could only last a few seconds before frost started to creep over anything she touched. That was why, even in own her room, she'd been wearing them almost constantly for years now. But at least two years had to have gone by since her powers had last spiked so badly that even the gloves hadn't been able to hold it back. Fare had told her that, by practicing her magic, she'd made it stronger. She had also said that simply refraining from using her abilities was not necessarily enough to weaken them again.
And yet…
If exercising her powers had strengthened them, then might not exercising restraint have strengthened that as well? Heaven only knew she'd been doing little else these last two years. Surely, there had to be some reward for all that effort. The more she studied her lessons, the more knowledge she gained. The more she drew in her sketchbooks, the happier she was with the results. Why should this be the one and only thing in life to follow a different set of rules?
And yet…
If she ever forgot a bit of history or geometry, no one would get hurt. If a slip of her hand resulted in an errant line on the paper, it could simply be erased. If her self-control slipped, however, whose memories might have to be erased next? Mother's? Father's? What if she wasn't even that lucky? What if she missed the head and instead hit someone's heart?
And yet…
Every day, Mother or Father visited her in her room. They willingly took that risk all the time, but not once had she come close to hurting either of them the way she had Anna. And look at Midsummer's Eve, when she'd run into Gerda out in the corridors of the palace! She'd been so frightened, so scared of all the terrible things that could have gone wrong.
And yet nothing had.
Conceal, don't feel, she thought to herself as she continued to stare at her hands. Well, she was still struggling with that second part, but it appeared that somewhere along the way, she'd grown unexpectedly proficient at concealment. She'd been hiding her entire self, after all. But did she really need to? Could she possibly, just maybe, follow Anna's example? Might it be enough to just hide a little bit of herself instead?
It was certainly something worth thinking about, if nothing else.
She only realized that Anna had been continuing to talk throughout her entire internal debate when her sister's voice abruptly broke off. Elsa lifted her head, turning it to look back over her shoulder as though she might see what it was that caused the sudden silence. There was nothing except the white wood of her door, of course. However, she did hear Anna quietly whisper two short words.
"Somebody's coming."
• • •
King Agdar was lost in thought. In fact, he was so deeply absorbed with his own internal concerns that he was very nearly lost in the palace as well. It didn't help at all that his eyes were fixed on the carpeting just in front of his feet, the better to minimize any unfortunate distractions. All told, that was undoubtedly why he almost ran over the small figure who stood in the middle of the hallway. He just barely managed to pull himself up short at the last possible moment. Lifting his head, he looked around, only then realizing where his legs had carried him.
Then he looked down at his daughter.
"Ah, Anna," he said. "Lost track of time again, did you?"
He watched his daughter's eyes grow wide, as though she'd been caught with her hand in the proverbial cookie jar. For the life of him, though, he couldn't understand why. Of course, he had no way of knowing that her mind had immediately jumped to a different hour that she had misplaced earlier that same day, and that at that very moment, she was wondering how he could possibly have found out about it.
"It's past your bedtime."
"Oh," she said, looking immeasurably relieved. "I'm sorry, Father. Guess I got a little carried away again."
"It happens to the best of us. All the same, I think you had best say your goodbyes for tonight. Then I'll walk you back to your room, alright?"
Anna nodded and turned back to face her sister's room. "Did you hear that, Elsa? Father says it's time for bed, so I guess I have to go now. But we'll talk again tomorrow, okay? Hope you have a good night and good dreams." Then, as she so often did, she rested the palm of her hand flat against the door.
"I love you."
After a very long moment, she drew away and looked up at Agdar, who placed one hand gently on her shoulder. Before he began to lead her away, however, he called out to his older daughter as well. "You probably should be getting to bed before too much longer yourself, young lady. Sleep well, and I'll see you for lessons in the morning. Good night."
Then he and Anna walked off up the passage.
Neither father nor daughter spoke much as they went. Nor was there much conversation once they got to her room and he waited for her to change into her nightclothes. The thoughts that had been preying on Agdar's mind earlier – and far too often of late – had returned to gnaw at him some more.
Soon enough, though, Anna was ready and she climbed into her bed. Agdar sat down on the edge of it and, bending down, kissed her goodnight. As he straightened, however, he caught a hint of his own reflection mirrored in her eyes. Then, although all common sense and reason told him otherwise, his deepest fears and anxieties twisted and distorted it. For an instant, he saw his own father staring back at him.
Despite his attempts to immediately clamp down on the emotions this stirred inside him, some small hint of them must have slipped out onto his face, if only for the briefest of moments. At that close distance, whatever it was had apparently been just enough for Anna to notice.
"Is something the matter, Papa?" she asked.
"Hmm? Oh, no, it's nothing really. Certainly nothing for you to be worrying yourself over."
"Are you sure?" Anna looked at him with concern. It just so happened that the expression, though hidden quickly, was one that she had seen more often than he realized. He had allowed it onto his face frequently enough lately when he thought he was alone, sitting in the little parlor that he and Prim had once shared.
"Of course I'm sure." He attempted to prove this by bringing forth his most confident smile.
"Well, if you say so," she said, sounding entirely unconvinced. "It's just that you've seemed a little – I don't know – not-yourself lately."
"I've had a lot of things on my mind, that's all," he assured her as he tucked the sheets snugly beneath her chin. "Like I said, it's nothing you need to worry about." All the same, his eyes searched her face, looking for something that he knew to be terribly important. He told himself that he was simply making sure that he had eased whatever worries she might still be harboring for him. So maybe he didn't quite believe it, but it was a plausible enough lie to be getting on with.
He stood then, patting her on the shoulder as he did so. "Good night, Anna," he said. "Sleep well. I'll see you tomorrow." Then he turned and began to walk toward the door.
"Papa!"
He stopped and looked back. Anna was sitting up a little in bed, propping herself on her elbows to gaze levelly at him. He lifted his eyebrows in a silent question.
"Papa, could I ask you for a favor?"
"Always," he replied. His growing curiosity was temporarily pushing out the other insistent noises in his brain, and he welcomed the change. "I'll help if I can."
"Well, I was just wondering if… That is, do you think you might be able to..."
Anna pressed her lips tightly together and exhaled through her nose. Then, in a torrent of words that threatened to trip over themselves as they rushed out of her, she quickly finished. "I was hoping that maybe you might be able to teach me how to dance."
Stunned would not have adequately described Agdar's reaction to the request. Shocked and flabbergasted would also have fallen short of the mark. The problem was that about fifteen separate emotions had all slammed into him at once, including one or two that he couldn't be entirely sure he'd had before that precise moment.
There was surprise at the apparent randomness of the thing. There was also a sentimental warmth at the memories of his own dances with Ellinor. This was closely followed by a rush of paternal protectiveness at the thought of some young man holding his precious daughter in his arms that same way. A bittersweet tang accompanied the realization that Anna was indeed old enough now to start seeing boys as something more than just playmates or friends. Her infatuation with Josef had been so clearly unworkable that, once he'd satisfied himself of the stableman's intentions, Agdar had honestly not been able to take it at all seriously.
Most strongly of all, however, was something to which he couldn't quite put a name. It was partly joy and partly pride, but it was also a sense of tremendous relief. It was as if a weight that had been pressing down upon him had been… well, if not removed then at least much lessened. And given what had been weighing on his mind the most lately, it seemed obvious enough why that should be.
What had he taught Anna before now? How to fight with a sword. How to ride a horse. Yes, she'd seemed to enjoy them both. All the same, he couldn't help but think of them the way they had been taught to him: as martial skills, talents an officer had to have in order to lead his men into battle. At least as he knew them, they were the arts of a soldier.
Both were abilities that his father would have prized most highly.
But dancing? That was something he could never picture Ragnarr doing. Even if, at some point before Agdar had even been born, he might once have swept the queen into his arms at a royal ball, the thought of him trying to teach someone else to do the same remained utterly preposterous.
And now, that was precisely what Anna was asking him to do for her.
Before he even realized that he had moved, his arms were wrapped around her and he was holding her tightly against his chest.
"Is that a yes?" she squeaked.
They both shook with Agdar's laughter. It took a while, but he finally drew back. Holding her at arms length and smiling, he looked intently at her face once again, though not in quite the same way he had earlier. Whatever it was he had been searching for then, it seemed he had finally found it at last.
"Of course it's a yes." He reached up to tuck a lock of hair back behind her ear, then he chuckled once more. Without standing up (he found that he was sitting on the bed once again), he nevertheless performed a fair approximation of a courtly bow. "I would be honored, Your Highness."
Anna grinned.
The grand ballroom of Arendelle Palace would soon see dancing once again.