/N: I'm writing this to the 1917 soundtrack so expect it to be dark and moody. I make no apologies. Enjoy!
XXX
Agnarr threw the newspaper onto the fire, orange flames curling around the visage of black text printed boldly on snow white paper, the words of the curse echoed through his mind;
"you will grow to fear, resent and hate the seed that you have grown; in turn nurturing that fear until it consumes both of your daughters. Their blood will be spilt on the icy fjord because of you. Their hearts will grow cold and their minds resentful of you. You will live on, but as a memory of fear and of terror. Not as one of love"
He shivered fiercely despite the warmth of the fire; images of blood spilt on muddy soil soaking through the back of his eyes. He was still wearing his dark green tunic, the golden shoulder pads glittering in the firelight that he could not fell the warmth of, no matter how close he dared to get to the spitting embers. A door creaked open into the gaping room, darkened by the setting sun so only hues of red and orange lit up the walls in a warm glow. Agnarr turned around, face half lit by the fire, so half was orange and the other a pitch black. Emerald met furious sapphire as Iduna glared at him with an unseen intensity that made him cower under her.
"I'm sorry Iduna" he said, his voice with a thick emotion that threatened to swamp him. "I don't know what has gotten into me" he turned back to the fire, orange light casting long shadows across his creased face.
"I do" she stated simply, walking up and putting her hands on his shoulders. "Part of you was hurt in the war Agnarr"
"Well do you know what really stings, I found out that we were being used as bait by Albion" he felt the bile creeping into his throat again, for once Iduna was silent. "They sacrificed thousands of my men to a bloody death whilst they waited for us to be slaughtered. That's why no reinforcements came." he choked a sob back, his strength failing under the weight of memory.
"Why don't you talk to me about it?" she asked, rubbing his back softly. "The wound will only fester if you don't heal it" she said wisely.
"Some wounds are best left to fester"
"That is absolute nonsense Agnarr and you know it" she tutted slightly and sat down on a plush chair, indicating silently for him to sit opposite which he obeyed.
"It's too bad to tell you Iduna" he said, knee shivering against the marble floor.
"Agnarr my home fell into a war; I saw some of my family and friends being killed in horrendous ways and was subsequently locked away from the rest of my living family forever. I have seen my fair share of pain and suffering, as you have too" her sapphire eyes burnt with a deep intensity.
"Nothing can compare to the ridge Iduna" his eyes were transfixed by something far off and distant. "Nothing can" he shook his head slowly, swimming visions of men and bodies filling.
"Then tell me about it, let me help shoulder your burden" Iduna reached out and placed a soft hand on his quivering knee which stopped the instant they made contact.
"We attacked at dawn, it was misty and humid. Everything felt wet to the touch; the mud, our uniforms and the very air itself. Some bombardment was going on in the distance up the ridge, but we couldn't see it. They blew the whistles and we went over..." his voice shook as the memories strangled him. "We couldn't see them firing at first, it would just be a pop or a whistle and someone would fall down. Then the shells started coming, if one would land near someone it would blow them apart, there would be nothing left. Soon the field gave way to a quagmire of mud, the mud would stick to you like cement and it weighed us down. Of course, as it was so humid as well everything just dragged you down in the mud; I heard someone fell into a crater and was so laden with mud he drowned in it. We took a lot of casualties going over their defences, we couldn't use muskets as we didn't have time to reload so we just used our bayonets and swords. The men there would charge at us and hide, poking their knives out to catch us as we walked past, eventually it all went quiet and we thought we had won." Agnarr choked back some bile again, coughing harshly into his hands. Iduna rubbed his arm encouragingly, a reassuring smile spread thinly across her lips.
"The smog covered them. We couldn't see a thing, the smoke from the cannons and muskets was too thick. I remember, I rounded a corner of the trenches and suddenly the man in front of me got hit. A musket ball is strange because rather than it going in and staying there like you read in books; it drags everything with it and barely stops. The lead flew over my shoulder and didn't hit me but the man in front of me didn't have much of a head left. Iduna the blood went all over me, I could feel the muscle and bone in my hair, it was still warm. His eyes stayed transfixed at the spot in the air. All hell broke loose." he raised his gaze to meet her eyes, a shocking darkness filling them. "We couldn't see them through the mist, they just shot from... everywhere. We lost so many that I had to retreat from the ridge there must have been thousands firing at us from every direction. As soon as we had jumped over their defences new shells started falling on us. I tripped and fell on someone calling for help but I kept on running on. The shells were deafening when I got back to our lines, I couldn't hear anything. The bombing was so intense that we couldn't even take the wounded to hospital, so we had to stuff them in the shelters and wait for it to stop. In a bunker about the third the size of this room" he gestured with his hands "one hundred and seventeen men were stationed, with 46 wounded. It was hot, dirty, cramped and smelly. All you could hear was the banging above you from the cannon fire and gunshots. The wounds festered in the warm damp and then when they succumbed to blood loss or infection the dead bodies began to rot too. For 18 days we were trapped in that coffin Iduna. "
"is that why your hands are so raw?" she asked, pointing to them, he shot her a confused look. "From washing them all the time" she clarified, he nodded quietly in response; his eyes covered by a glassy sheen.
"The bombing stopped, and we took the dead out. The trench was filled with bodies, some half buried in the mud and some just ripped to shreds. I found an Aid box and grabbed it to take to our bunker, but someone's arm was attached, and I just let it go, all the bandages and morphine spilling into the mud. At that point I went back into the bunker and stayed in there for a while. I was terrified to go out and see what was left of an army I had commanded to their deaths. I went back out again and the days kind of blurred together. We would be rotated, stand guard, attack, return etc. We would lose so many men every time we went up and every time, they threw us off again. Our forces dwindled until one night they attacked us. I was asleep at first and thought the noises were rats, but they were actually gallic soldiers running towards us. I woke up and found a soldier pointing a bayonet at me. I he jumped on me and I froze. To be completely honest I thought I was going to die but at the last-minute colonel Amundsen jumped and knocked the guy away. The waves of men came over and we tried to hold them off but eventually it came down to bayonets again. An officer grabbed hold of me but I was able to throw him off and get on top of him..."
Iduna edged closer to his seat as agnarr fell in on himself.
"I strangled him to death iduna, I was so hell bent on stopping him from breathing that I ignored what was going on around me. When it was done, and I looked up I was the only one left standing. Everyone else was either dead or unconscious, they retreated into the field but left the rest of our army in tatters. I found Amundsen and dragged him to a field hospital then I withdrew our forces from the battle." he finished his story with a long sigh.
"So, there you go, the boy that you once fell in love with is dead. He died on that field with the gallic officer writhing in the mud. Not only am I weak for hiding in a ditch for weeks, im also a murderer who was so hell bent on killing someone I let everyone else around me suffer for it." he jumped up from the chair and poured a glass of whisky from a decanter, his hands shook violently as he began to cave in on himself. Soon soft hands wrapped around his waist.
"You did what you had to Agnarr. He would have killed you" she pulled his face round to hers. "And that would have killed me" she kissed him passionately, absorbing all his pain and sorrow from the months of war he had come back from. When their embrace ended, he fell on her, as she supported him, sobs of pain and anguish filled the room as she held him up, the weight of the trauma and war dragging his limbs down into a numb floppiness. Iduna just held onto him tighter, the relief at him finally opening flooding over her. His gold hair stood out at crazed angles as she cradled his body, his taller size meaning he was bent double as she held him. They stayed like that, Agnarr grasping onto her as though she was the only thing keeping him grounded and she speaks soothing words into his ear. Eventually the sobs died down and Agnarr fell silent, his tight grasp unrelenting in the fiery half-light. She eased him down into a chair.
"Whenever you feel like it's too much, speak to me" she commanded.
"I will" his voice was hoarse and broken. She gave him her hand and pulled him up, leading him towards their chambers which they had begun to share more often.
XXX
The crisp morning sunlight burnt through the windowpanes with a dazzling light, the reflections and shadows from the glass plastering the wood panelled walls with a contorting and twisting spectrum of rays. Agnarr opened his eyes quickly and darted his sight around the room, seeing where he was, he relaxed and turned over but felt a solid mass next to him. He froze partially, breath silent in the morning light, and he felt the warmth coming from the mass. He waited a second longer and felt the rhythmic breaths down the back of his neck, he scanned his mind for memory of what it was. He then remembered last night, the sobs, the breakdown and the fighting between him and iduna and how she led him into their room to cuddle. His body relaxed as a mumbled sigh of contentment confirmed his theory. Gingerly he turned around to face the mass, her hair smooth and pristine despite the sleep. Her Lilac sleeping gown was pulled up above her shoulders, offering some warmth against the cool Arendellian night. Her sea blue eyes were hidden by her eyelids, he could see them darting around beneath as though she were following a scene in her head. Her eyes flung open and as she met his gaze she smiled softly.
"Goodmorning" she croaked.
"Goodmorning" he replied, pressing a kiss to her lips as she hummed at the contact.
"What's the plan for today?" she asked quietly, the two revelling in the peace of today.
"We have a delegate from Albion coming over" the disgust in his voice was clear.
"The one who's king you called a coward?"
"That's the one" he flinched at the memory. He heaved himself up, eliciting a dissatisfied groan from Iduna at the loss of contact. He heaved himself off the bed and made towards the door, only to be held back by the sound of sweet laughter coming from the bed.
"What's so funny?" he turned around and asked, as Iduna bent double and was consumed by giggles.
"Your hair!" she pointed, before being consumed by laughter once again. He looked in the mirror and saw what she was laughing about. His normally smooth and combed golden hair was sticking up at all angles, sprayed out in a big poof around his head. He groaned and laughed with her before heading down to the bathrooms and sorting it out.
XXX
"Your majesty!" General Olsen called after him, he groaned inside trying to get ready for the summit with Albion.
"What is it general?" the man stopped and saluted Agnarr.
"Albion isn't sending an ambassador" the man panted for a second, wind knocked out from him by running in his uniform. "it's sending a member of the royal family"
"Who?"
"We don't know sir; we just know that the royal standard was flying from their ship." the general stiffened himself up. "May I also suggest you wear your medals sir, it's important to the men" the older man's grey eyes met his and they agreed silently. At that instant bells ringing from the docks announced the ships arrival.
"They're here sir"
The King and the general walked side by side to the great hall, medals and swords jingling against each other with their brisk pace. The two stopped by the great oak doors leading to the marble clad great hall. Agnarr took a soothing breath and nodded to the general who opened the doors, creaking under the hinges. In the hall there were three men dressed in brilliant crimson uniforms, the front man had a light blue sash draped over his left shoulder. Regimental insignia and rankings adorned his coat, the opulent silver and gold medals hanging from his breast.
"His Majesty King Agnarr of Arendelle" the general pronounced, feeling the tension in the room. Agnarr walked up to the man recognising him instantly, he stared into those pasty blue eyes with a bitter intent, seeing the older man's face wrinkle slightly under his observation.
"King William" Agnarr said dryly. "To what do we owe the pleasure" Agnarr shook the outstretched hand a little too firmly noticing the king flinch under his death grip.
"Congratulations are in order" William said, smoothing down his crimson tunic. "We have been victorious"
"You used us as bait, you spilt Arendellian blood for a war they had no part in. You hid behind us so you could sneak around and stab them in their backs" the bitter directness in his voice shocked the older king slightly, but he didn't show it.
"You would have done exactly the same and you know it" William spat back. "Nonetheless, it was a necessary sacrifice. You know as well as I that had Gallia not been controlled it would have threatened the stability of the old continent. Blood may have run ready at the ridge, but had it not run their it would've run down the gutters in your streets" William stepped forward and drew to his full height. "My concern is my kingdom; had you have been in my position would you not have chosen the path with the least casualties for your kingdom?"
"I wouldn't have hidden behind someone only to sneak around the enemy's back" Agnarr drew himself up too, the silver medals glinting in the sunlight and illuminating his dark green uniform.
"It was tactics. The only dishonour is to pursue it so doggedly that lives are wasted as a result. Had we not drained their forces with a battle of attrition and done a head on attack countless lives would have been lost. I know your portfolio Agnarr, you could see it as well as I" William cleared his voice slightly and smoothed back his hair. "I am here to make amends. Your army took the brunt of the attack and showed great courage. The leading generals in our army not only admire but idolise you as a commander, we are your friends. Let us put this dark episode behind us and forge a new alliance together."
"Arendelle will have no part in your wars William. The cost has been too great"
"Oh, I'm not talking about a military alliance, we are forever indebted to your country there. I am talking about trade and political alliance. As you know our colonies in the east have been very profitable and as a sign of thanks and goodwill for our greatest ally who fought alongside us..."
"For you" Agnarr butted in.
"For us..." William continued "we would be more than willing to offer a free trade deal between the two countries, and give you aid and assistance in rebuilding your army to its former glory, as well as perhaps establishing an empire of your own" he passed his hand back and received a scroll from his aide, handing it to Agnarr. "I think you will find the terms very agreeable" William bowed to the young king as finished.
"I will have to consult the council, but this does look like a step in the right direction to mend what has been broken" he passed the scroll to the general. "May I ask why you weren't at the front with your men?" Agnarr chose his words wisely.
"A king's duty is to lead the fighters, not fight himself." William cleared his throat again. "I understand you did. Bravery is a trait I admire, but certainly bravery is a kind word for stupidity."
"I can assure you had you been on the front your opinions of the war would have been very different" Agnarr smiled bitterly at the king, laughing sardonically at the older man.
"That may be so, but I cannot let my emotions get in the way of leading. One must conceal how they feel, otherwise they would be prey to the vultures of the mainland."
"I agree wholeheartedly William. I agree wholeheartedly"
XXX
A/N: Still on track for my chapter a day target. Please review and if you have any prompts or ideas for where this story can go feel free to PM me! R&R!