Chapter Thirty

Disclaimer: I neither own the rights to Disney, Frozen, the Disney universe nor any of its associated media, derivatives or products. I do not profit from this work.

A/N: Sorry for the delay; I was sick all of yesterday. Hope you enjoy!

"Queen Elsa! Princess Anna! Get up, get up!"

A gentle yet excited hand shook them each awake, and Anna blinked as she sat up. The rosy sunrise beyond the glass windows had painted the Great Hall in warm, gentle pinks. "The storm has passed!" Gerda said delightedly.

"Really?" Anna said, yawning. "That's great…" She faded off into dreamland as Elsa groaned and rolled over beside her.

"Your Majesties, please! We have to get you ready!"

"Uhh… ready for what?"

"Why, your wedding, of course! I've already had the families move out of the dressing rooms so they're all prepared."

Anna's eyes opened, as did Elsa's. They glanced at each other, startled, but Elsa quickly said, "Yes, of course, Gerda. Our apologies. Come along, Anna."

Gerda quickly led them out of the Great Hall and through the halls towards the royal dressing rooms. "What's going on?" Anna whispered.

"Just play along. They probably don't realize Hans is missing yet," Elsa whispered back.

"Yeah, okay—whoa, is that your wedding dress?"

Elsa looked down, surprised, and then realized she'd slept in the dress she'd created for herself in the chapel, looking as pristine as it had the night before. "The best thing about snow," she said primly, "is that it doesn't stain, it doesn't rip and it doesn't wrinkle."

"It just melts," Anna said with a giggle, and then stifled herself when Gerda shushed them.

A team of maids and ladies-in-waiting were already in the dressing rooms when the pair arrived. The morning sunlight streamed in bright through the windows, a pleasant sight that made Elsa smile with relief.

"Sit, please, m'Ladies, sit!" a maid urged, pushing both of them into chairs. What happened next, neither Anna nor Elsa would later be able to correctly relate, only remembering snippets of the ladies-in-waiting's preparations as the women flurried around them, oohing and ahhing every few seconds. Despite Elsa's protestations that she could do it herself, the handmaids insisted on fixing her hair ("Pish posh, your Majesty; just sit back and let us handle everything!"), and it seemed to Anna that she couldn't turn one way or the other without someone clucking at her for moving ("Please, your Highness, if you could just hold still a moment longer-!")

Eventually at some point, someone cried, "Mirror! Somebody find a mirror!" and the constant tuggings and pullings and pluckings stopped. Elsa and Anna both found themselves standing in front of a full-length mirror, gaping.

"It's the latest fashion, m'Ladies!" one of the handmaids said excitedly.

Neither the princess nor the queen could quite figure out what to say- in fact, they couldn't speak at all. Both of their faces had been caked with white powder, rouge, and brilliant shades of eye shadow. The maids had even left little black beauty marks just beneath each of their lips.

Elsa was the first to recover, clearing her throat. "Er, well, yes, ladies, thank you for this wonderful, um… work. I-I'm sure I can help the princess get into her wedding dress myself."

"Oh, of course, your Majesty!" one of the maids said, as if mortified to think they'd stayed a moment too long. "We'll be going straightaway!"

"Yes, straightaway, m'Ladies!"

"Straightaway!"

Quickly the dressing room was emptied. As soon as the door had clicked shut, the two sisters looked at each other and burst out laughing. "There is no way," Elsa chuckled, "we are going out in public like this."

"The latest fashion in where?!" Anna said through her guffaws. "The North Pole?!"

"Here." Elsa quickly hurried over to her washbowl and wet the washcloth. She quickly wiped off Anna's makeup and then her own. "If anyone asks, we had an allergic reaction."

"Yeah, to cake frosting," Anna giggled as Elsa redid her sister's eyes and lips, this time in a much more natural manner.

"You should go put on your dress," Elsa advised.

"Alright. I'll need your help." Anna quickly disappeared behind the dressing screen as Elsa reapplied her own makeup. After a moment, she walked back out. "Can you do the back?"

"Of course." Elsa walked behind Anna and tightened the laces, tying it at the bottom. "And now your veil."

"Don't forget yours," Anna said, putting hers on. Elsa waved her hands and recreated the lacy cathedral veil. Together, they turned and looked in the mirror.

"My goodness," the older sister said softly. "Look at us."

It truly was a sight to behold. Their different styles were reflected in their dress and hair (Anna's was down and curled beautifully over her shoulders, while Elsa's had been done back in a braided bun with a coronet over top), but each was just as lovely as the other.

"Oh, we nearly forgot!" Elsa said in surprise, and quickly hurried away. She returned a moment later with two carved wooden boxes—one with a sapphire in the center, and one with a ruby.

"Mother had these made for us when we were girls," the Queen said. She opened both to reveal two intricate silver crowns designed like a child's summer flower wreath, frozen in time. From the leaves around the edges were tiny dangling bangles, rumored to ward off evil spirits with their jingling. Decorating the flowers were gemstones matching their box, and in the center of the foremost flowers was a jewel larger than the rest. "They're wedding kransens," Elsa said, placing the sapphire-lined crown atop her veil. She did the same for Anna with the ruby kransen, and then said with a smile, "Now you look perfect." She glanced at her sister, expecting to see her smiling.

Much to her surprise, Anna's perpetually happy expression had faded, and she looked away, blinking hard.

"Anna?" Elsa said, concerned, watching her sister turn away and wipe her eyes. "Anna, what's wrong?"

"N-nothing," she sniffled, trying valiantly to smile. "I'm f-fine."

"Hold on now; you wouldn't want to ruin your makeup," the elder said, rifling through her dresser drawers until she found a clean handkerchief. "Here; use this."

"I'm sorry," the younger said, but the tears kept coming. "I'm sorry, Elsa, I…" She let out a little choked noise, like a sob.

"Anna, it's fine! It's perfectly normal to cry on your wedding day," Elsa reassured her.

"But it's not my wedding day!" Anna said emphatically, and dissolved into tears, slumping down into her chair.

"Well of course it is! Anna, I promise you, no matter what, you will get your wedding," the Queen said resolutely.

"But that's just it," the princess said unhappily. "I don't want my wedding, Elsa."

"What?" Elsa said, baffled.

Anna sighed through her tears, dropping her head. "Kristoff and I s-split up," she said, burying her head in her hands.

"Split up?" Elsa was floored. "Wha- when did this happen?"

"A f-few weeks ago," Anna mumbled, wiping her eyes.

"But—why?"

Anna let out another gasping sob, looking as if she might fall apart all over again, and Elsa said quickly, "Never mind, we don't have to talk about that now. Anna…" She quickly went to embrace her younger sister. Anna accepted gratefully. "I am so, so sorry. I know how much you loved him."

"Love," Anna whispered.

"What?"

"Love. Not loved." She sniffled and drew back. "That's one of the reasons I agreed to end it. If he's not happy being with me now…he never will be. A-and I can't do that to him, Elsa, I c-can't."

There were tears in the elder sister's eyes now, as well. "You have such a big heart, Anna. And I'm sorry it's breaking right now, I really am."

"Thank you," Anna whispered.

"Is there anything I can do? Get you a glass of water, perhaps?"

The younger sister shook her head. "Can we just… sit here for a while? And not talk?"

That was when Elsa knew how badly her sister had to be hurting. Anna never wanted to not talk. "Of course," she said gently. "Anything you want, Anna, I promise."

The other nodded miserably and didn't say another word.

Elsa sat down in the chair beside her, and neither spoke, each lost in her own thoughts. Every now and then, Anna would sniffle pathetically, and Elsa would gently pat her arm , trying to reassure her. It wasn't until she looked down that she realized little frost swirls had appeared around her feet, though thankfully the younger of the sisters was too upset to notice. Though she knew she shouldn't, Elsa couldn't help but feel unhappy for herself, as well.

After all, Anna wasn't the only one who wasn't getting married today.

The old mare galloped up the near-empty streets of Arendelle towards the palace. It wasn't until Hans reached the gates and pulled the horse to a halt that he realized his hands had seared the leather reins black. He tried to take several slow breaths to calm himself, but it didn't work. "Come on, come on," he muttered, looking at his burning palms.

"Prince Hans!"

He closed his hands into fists and quickly dismounted as he saw Kai run up. "There you are! We've been looking everywhere for you."

"I have to see the Queen," Hans said urgently.

"Well of course you do, but you'll have to wait half an hour, young man. Can't rush a wedding, and it's lucky, too, considering your state! Of all the irresponsible things to do on your wedding day—where did you get this horse? Never mind that; we need to get you into your uniform!"

"You don't understand; I need to speak with Elsa."

"Yes, and you shall do so at the altar. She's getting ready herself right now, your Highness. Now come along, and quickly!" And before Hans could get another word in edgewise, he found himself being shuffled along by a number of footmen after Kai, none of whom would listen to his insistences that he needed to talk to the Queen.

It was ten minutes before the wedding was scheduled, and Elsa was beginning to get concerned that no one had run into the room telling her that her beloved fiancé was nowhere to be found.

She'd taken to pacing and wringing her hands, two nervous habits she'd picked up after years of bottling her stress in one tiny bedroom. Anna was watching her walk back and forth. "Elsa- Elsa, you need to calm down," Anna said. The princess's eyes were still red, but at least she wasn't crying any more. "They'll be here any minute."

"What if something's gone wrong?" Elsa demanded. "What if someone's hurt; what if the King found out–"

"It's going to be alright. Everything's gone to plan until now, right? Besides, this place is packed with guards; if the King were causing any trouble they'd take care of it. Just breathe, Elsa." She paused. "Besides, you're making it snow."

"What? Oh." She quickly waved her hand and dissipated the light snowfall that had begun to descend from the ceiling. "You're right. I just need to calm down." She sat down in her chair and took a deep breath, rubbing her temples.

There was a sharp knock on the door, and both she and Anna stood up again, the queen hurrying to open it. "Oh, Gerda, thank goodness," Elsa said with relief. "I was beginning to think someone wouldn't come!"

"Nonsense, your Majesty. Are you two ready? The wedding is about to start!"

Elsa and Anna glanced at each other, baffled, and then back at Gerda. "Wait. What?"

Kristoff Bjorgman was not having a good day.

He'd been woken up before dawn to go get ready for a wedding that wasn't actually going to happen, although he'd been expecting that. The footmen who'd been assigned to help him had seemed bent for some reason on making him look as ridiculous as humanly possible. While Kristoff had been expecting to wear a bunad, the traditional Arendellian woolen wedding suit, his attendants had seemed intent on breaking tradition for a more modern look—the "latest fashion" in southern Europe or wherever. They'd taken his refusal to wear a tailcoat pretty hard (he didn't have the build for it, no matter what Anna said) and his rejection of the rather feminine-looking shoes they'd tried to force onto his feet even worse. Eventually he'd managed to get them all out of his room, and had rummaged through his clothes until he'd found a pair of gray pants, a gray silk vest and a red shirt that all looked formal enough to get married in. He'd barely been able to get his pair of good black boots on before another servant arrived and told him it was time to go to the church.

That was strange, he'd decided. Surely someone would've noticed Hans had skipped town by now, and postponed the wedding to send out a search party. By the time he'd arrived at the church and had been pushed in the side door to the front of the altar, his nerves were jumping. It didn't help that he was in front of what seemed like all of Arendelle and then some.

The bishop didn't look too well off, either. Willum was hastily reading through a book of Latin prayers, looking pale and anxious. "Willum, what in the world is going on?" Kristoff muttered under his breath.

"I don't know; I was halfway through a bowl of oatmeal when someone came and told me it was time to officiate a wedding!" the bishop said frantically.

"Well I can't get married today Willum, I–" He stopped suddenly as another young man was quickly placed in front of him by Kai. "Hans?"

"In the flesh," the prince muttered. Despite being rather sharply dressed in his deep-blue naval uniform and silver crown, he looked incredibly nervous and worse for wear, wringing his hands like he wanted to pull them off. Kristoff noticed absently that he was missing his gloves.

"What are you doing here?" the mountain man demanded in a whisper.

"It's a long story; I need to find–" He was cut off suddenly as the choir began the music for the opening march. The doors to the chapel opened, and for a moment, both Kristoff and Hans completely forgot what they'd been talking about.

Kristoff had never seen anything so beautiful in all his life as Anna looked right then. She was a vision of lace and silk, a fiery-haired angel in her element. But something had clearly gone terribly wrong. The angel didn't look happy. In fact, as her eyes met his, they adopted a panicked look—one he was sure was mirrored on his own face.

Hans, on the other hand, was for once in his life stunned speechless. Elsa had looked lovely in her wedding dress the night before, but now, with the snow sparkling in the bright morning light as if her gown and veil were crafted of millions of tiny diamonds, she looked positively radiant. That was, until she spotted the prince, and her eyes flew wide in shock.

The pair, escorted by Kai and Gerda, walked the aisle to the front of the chapel. The march closed with a swift cutoff from the conductor, leaving the completely unprepared bishop to begin the wedding Mass. "Er—in nomine Patris, et Fili, et Spiritus Sancti," he began, crossing himself.

"Amen," the congregation responded dutifully.

"Pax vobis."

"Et cum spiritu tuo."

"W-welcome, everyone," Willum said, looking pale. "We are gathered here today to- to celebrate the joining of four, uh, admirable people into two families—our new Queen and King, and the princess and her prince…"

"What are you doing here?" Elsa hissed.

"I need to speak with you," Hans said tersely.

"You couldn't have found a better place to do it than at the altar?!"

"…An auspicious occasion, I am sure, for not only these four young men and women, but for our country as a whole," Willum said, glancing pointedly at Elsa with an expression that clearly said, do something!

"I tried to leave last night, I did! But I had to come back!" Hans insisted.

"What in the world could possibly have possessed you to come back?!"

"There was this woman-!"

""You had to come back for a woman?!"

"…Today, we all stand as witnesses to a historic union between kingdoms, families, peoples…"

"No, a woman made me come back!"

"What are you talking about?!"

"There was this—this ice witch, or–"

Elsa's eyes flew wide. "What did you just call me?!"

"…The binding of souls…"

"That's not what I meant! She cursed me–"

"I have done nothing to you!"

"…And, at its heart, four people very much in love…"

"You agreed you'd leave, we swore a pact!"

"Elsa, I–"

"You ungrateful, lying, underhanded–"

"You don't underst–"

"–Rat of a man with no sense of–"

"If you would just listen to me!" Hans exploded, finally losing his temper. Fire blasted from his hands across the chapel floor.

Willum had stopped speaking. Everyone was staring at him, shocked, Elsa most of all. Hans realized what he'd done and took a step back. "How did you-?" Elsa whispered.

"That was– I–"

Elsa's eyes filled with sudden realization, as a dozen images flashed through her mind: Hans, his arm unharmed by the flames eating away at his jacket sleeve. Hans's hands spreading around the fire of an overturned candle instead of putting it out. Hans swearing emphatically that he'd had nothing to do with the fire, the fire that destroyed a room with an unopened tinderbox. "It was you," she breathed.

"Elsa–" he started desperately, but she cut him off.

"It all makes sense now. Your first plan failed, so you concocted this entire charade to me trust you, fall in love with you!" The ice around the chapel had started to crack and fracture darkly as Elsa's anger built to a seething wrath. "Is that why you came to Arendelle in the first place?! Did you know about me?! What am I saying, of course you did, you admitted you had spies here–"

"Elsa, I didn't–"

"I should have known better than to trust you," she seethed, stalking forward. "I should have known when you came crawling back here that you had some underhanded motive! I don't know how you got ahold of magic, but I swear to you, Prince Hans, I will find out, and I will never let a monster like you hurt me or my family again!"

The icy blast flew from her fingertips like daggers, and Hans dove out of the way just in time, rolling across the ground and ending up on his feet in the church nave. He drew his sword instinctively, all his senses going into overdrive. The people around him screamed. Elsa's eyes snapped wide, and with a decisive gesture she knocked the weapon from his hand.

Hans's own eyes went wide as he realized he was completely helpless. Elsa's had narrowed again with fury, her lip curled. He'd only ever seen that look on her face once before, and this time there was no him to stop her from spearing him through with an icicle. He had nothing, no sword, no weapon–

Wait.

He did have a weapon. Just one. But it would be enough; it had to be. "Fine," he said darkly, opening his hands like claws. "Let's make this a fair fight."

The flames curled around his fingers in a way that felt both alien and yet strangely natural. Elsa's eyes widened again, and then narrowed even further. For one infinitely long second, each sized the other up.

Fire melts ice.

Snow douses fire.

Which one is stronger?

Neither was quite sure who moved first, but the great blasts of fire and ice struck together with a loud hiss. Steam filled the air, and Hans took advantage of the situation, sending another roaring jet of flames into the fog. It was returned a moment later by needle-sharp icicles, which he dodged. These cut through the mist, making both visible again, and he saw her ready for another shot. The wedding-goers screamed as he jumped over the nearest railing of pews.

Elsa had more control and practice, but Hans was a fast learner. He brought his hands down and across like an X, sending two lines of fire around the circle towards the Queen. She dropped to a knee to avoid them, and then swept her hand out, causing a ring of icicles to appear from the ground right in front of him. Hans backed way just in time and melted the ice with a similar ring of flames. Two blasts met again as each tried to strike the other.

Elsa could faintly hear the parishioners screaming behind the pounding in her ears, and glanced around just briefly to see that the majority of them were cowering behind their pews. Sparks and snowflakes filled the air. Kristoff had pushed Anna far off to the side, he and Willum protecting her like human shields. Elsa breathed a sigh of relief to see that her sister was safe.

That moment's distraction cost her, however; another wave of flames caught her off-guard, and she let out a sharp cry as it seared her arm. A moment later, the feeling of cooling ice crystals relieved the pain, and she looked across the open space to the prince. His teeth were gritted, eyes narrowed. It was that same expression she'd seen when he'd swept the papers off the library table in anger.

Anger. Of course. How much control he had over his powers, Elsa didn't know, but it was a safe bet that he was angry enough now for that control to be slipping. He had power, but how good was he with precision?

She began to advance around the circle as fast as she could, trying to reach him. Hans recognized the strategy and began to throw out attacks. Elsa didn't dodge them, instead using her powers to blast them out of the way before they could reach her. Whenever she had a free moment, she created an obstacle in his path, slowing down his retreat. She was getting closer, and he was getting panicked. For a split second, he lost his focus, glancing towards the church doors.

That was all the time Elsa needed. She dove forward, closing the distance between them. Hans looked back at her, but before he could ready another attack, she'd sent a wave of icicles shooting up from the ground to pin him to the church wall behind him, identical to how she'd trapped the Westleton guard all those months ago in her ice palace. Another blast froze both of his hands to the wall. Try as he might to melt the ice, she continued to refortify it, as another icicle grew towards his neck. Hans began to struggle more violently, trying to get free, his eyes wide with panic. Elsa's teeth ground, her lips curled in a sneer of fury. The tip of the icicle inched closer, and he closed his eyes tight, turning away. She willed herself to end this.

And then… and then, she stopped. No, Elsa, a clear, firm voice said in the back of her mind. You aren't a monster, remember?

The icicle nearing his throat suddenly stopped its ascent, and Hans, noticing the fact that he was still alive, looked back at her in shock. He barely had the time to realize what had happened before Elsa stamped her foot to the church floor. Ice fractaled out at a lightning speed, forming a column that crystalized around him, racing from his feet to his head until the prince was entirely encased in ice.

For one long moment, the church was silent.

And then Elsa pulled her hands back, and the ice shattered, falling in large chunks all across the floor. Hans fell with them, collapsing to the ground. Elsa hurried forward, hands at the ready, and cautiously checked to make sure he was still alive, pressing two fingers under his neck. The prince was dangerously pale, but his chest rose and fell evenly, and a faint pulse beat under her fingerprints. "He's unconscious," she said, standing up.

She turned to see the entire congregation staring at her. A memory of the previous year's coronation ball flashed through her mind, and she pulled her hands in close, wringing them. "Monster!" she heard the Duke's voice echo in her head.

Now you've done it. They won't forgive you again! Go! Run for it, before–

"Are you alright, m'Lady?" a voice asked tentatively, snapping Elsa out of her inner diatribe. "Your arm…"

She recognized the speaker to be Gerda, and glanced down at her forearm. Her stomach turned over at the sight of the shiny pink burn, and a wave of pain rolled through her as the adrenaline faded. She let out a small noise as she grasped at it, tears pricking her eyes.

"She's hurt!" one of the villagers said urgently. "Is anyone here a doctor?"

"Hold up now, I'm a doctor," a male voice said from near the back, and he hurried forward through the aisle. Elsa vaguely recognized him as the ice harvester who'd delivered the message of the oncoming blizzard—Sigurd Jorgensen, she thought his name was. "Easy there, yer Majesty. We'll get you cleaned up, don't you worry."

Anna quickly hurried forward. The Queen noticed that part of her silk gown had been seared away, black at the edges. "It's alright, Elsa," said the princess in a reassuring tone, for which Elsa was grateful. "Let's just get you to the infirmary. Guards!" Quickly, two stepped forward. "Bring Prince Hans to the dungeons. If he tries anything, knock him unconscious again."

"Your Majesty," one of the guards said, as Anna and Sigurd helped Elsa to the back of the church. "Should we place him in the…the modified cell?"

Anna glanced to Elsa, biting her lip. Elsa hesitated, and then nodded. "Do what you must." The trio left together, Gerda following after.

"Everyone, please, return to your homes," Willum said as the crowd began to buzz. "We will have this sorted out as soon as we are able."

The guards pulled the unconscious prince out of the chapel as the congregation left behind them. They were halfway to the castle when a few figures hurried up to them. "Hold on, now, hold on; that's our brother!"

The guards stopped and quickly bowed. "Your Majesty," they intoned in unison.

"Is he alright?" Agnar said, voice full of worry. Behind him were a pair of his younger brothers, looking on with similar expressions.

"Just unconscious, your Majesty."

The king sighed, seemingly distressed. "My poor, foolish brother… I really thought…" He looked to the guards pleadingly. "Please, let us take him from here. Perhaps when he awakens, I can talk some sense into him."

The guards glanced at each other. "I don't think the Queen would mind," one said. "There is a cell in the back, with cuffs designed for…this sort of need."

"Understood," the king said wearily. "My thanks to both of you. We can take it from here."

They passed off the unconscious man to his brothers, and then left. As soon as they'd left, Agnar glanced at the other two. "Let's go," he said darkly, all traces of fraternal concern gone.

The pair chuckled scornfully and followed the eldest, the dragging boots of the youngest leaving twin trails in the snow behind them.