Elsa
Elsa sat on the couch in her private chambers reading the four letters that had been left unopened for a few days. With everything that had happened when she thought about the mysterious voice, she had not been able to find the concentration needed to read or write letters. These were the tasks, that she had set aside but she could not hold it of anymore.
The letters were not common. Each one had a different color and different painted image on them. She sat down with all the letters spread out in front of her on the table and could not decide which one to choose first.
She decided to close her eyes and pick up all the letters, mixing them up then she put the letters in a pile in front of her, and then she then opened her eyes. The first letter at the top was from the southern isles. Resisting the urge to throw the letter into the fire in her fireplace, Elsa forced herself to pick it up. This letter was brown with a sword painted on the front. The sword was the official symbol of the southern isles. With trembling fingers, she opened the letter and found a white piece of paper inside.
She began to read it:
Your Majesty I cannot express enough how sad I was to find out what my son Prince Hans had been trying to do to you and your sister. While this incident may cause a rift in our kingdom's relationship to the point where it cannot be healed, it does not mean that we should not stop trying to heal it. My son's death may be the first step in healing this great divide between us, but rest assured that we are not all like my son. He is a bad egg and he will die for his betrayal. Until then, I urge you not to think badly about us. I would like to send another representative to meet with you if you will allow it. He is a good man and very trusted. Please let me know your answer as soon as possible!
From King Walter.
Elsa was not in the mood to allow another representative from the southern isles to set foot in her kingdom.
"And yet ..." she thought.
The southern isles are the highest militarized kingdom of the five. Not being friends with them can prove to be disastrous! If she had the other three kingdoms behind her, in the event of a war, she would triumph over the southern isles, but at a terrible cost.
A price that she was not prepared to pay!
The second letter was from the Kingdom of Corona. Elsa's relatives were ruling in this realm. Their letter was blue and on it was a painted yellow sun. Elsa smiled as she opened it.
The letter read:
Dear Else I am writing to you because I heard from Rapunzel that things got out of control in your kingdom. I want to remind you that my husband and I stand by your side. If you think danger is imminent and you generally only need help or guidance, we are at your side. One more thing! The King and I have heard of your abilities. I want you to know that it does not change our attitude towards you. If you have time, I would like to see you in the Kingdom of Corona so we can get to know each other a little more. Even though I write to you and make it sound like I really know you, it is just that I want you to know that we are family and families stick together no matter what. We hope to see you when you have the time! Much love
From Arianna
It is true that Queen Arianna and her husband were not so close to Elsa, but Elsa had a feeling that Queen Arianna and her husband were the only true allies she had right now.
"I really should visit them sometime!" she said to herself.
The third letter was from Sultan Ali in the desert kingdom. It was red with a lamp painted on the front.
It read:
You Majesty
I know my ice order is gigantic if that is even a word that can be used to describe it. I would like to send some men and animals to help transport the ice if it suits you? One more thing: I know you and your sister have gone through some crazy things, but you need to know that you have a friend in me. Just whisper and I will be there, ready to help you.
Sultan Ali
Elsa really did not know much about Sultan Ali.
She had heard rumors that he had gone insane following the death of his son. A man with an unstable mind was dangerous because trying to guess his next step would be difficult.
Elsa saw the last letter on the table.
It was white with a chest painted on it. The letter was from the Northern Kingdom. One of the cities in the kingdom was Weselton, the Duke's home, whom had sent men to stop Elsa permanently by killing her!
The letter read:
You Majesty
First, I would like to apologize for the Duke's behavior. He has to pay a large sum of money to me for the shame he has brought upon me. I wanted him suffocated in his sleep, but he is a skilled merchant in this realm. That is why I decided not to have him executed. However, if you want money for the trouble you have been through, I will be happy to send you a treasure chest full of jewels, diamonds, money or any other kind of wealth. Another thing I would like to ask you is this: Weselton is one of the largest cities in my kingdom and I ask you to resume trading with us. You will never have to see the Duke's face again, but my kingdom loses money and merchandise and it damages my kingdom! I will not threaten you, but if through your actions you cause my people to suffer, then I will see no other alternatives to go to war with you, and believe me ... You will not like it! I hope we can rekindle our friendship and build up the trust that I spend years doing with your parents!
Best wishes
King Magnus
Magnus is a fine man Elsa thought to herself, and she knew that he was not guilty of the duke's behavior, but that did not stop her from being angry with him, and now he dared threaten her in this letter!
If Magnus wanted a war or found it necessary to have one, he would fail!
Just as the Duke's bodyguards had tried to kill her, she was ready to slay people from another kingdom to protect her own people. She knew that one day she had to go to extreme measures to protect her people, and it was not a day that she looked forward too, but she knew that she was going to use her powers for extreme purposes if needed be.
She thought of the mother and child who had frozen to death because she could not handle her powers. No matter how she thought about it or turned that incident around in her mind, she felt bad for their deaths. She had come up with the excuse that she could not handle her power at the time, but that did not wash the shame away.
The man, Miko, had disappeared, and rumors had it that he had committed suicide, and Elsa felt devastated, but years of isolation had taught her to hide her feelings, so she found it easy to hide what she was thinking about. Most of her kingdom loved her and the people respected her, but not all people did. She knew it well, but she did not know what to do about it.
Maybe she had to prove them wrong by helping and listening to her people. Another thing she thought about was Turan's death.
Turan had been the person caring for the royal stables for some days, but Elsa's horse had kicked Turan hard in the face, killing him on the spot. The next thing she had to do after that incident was finding another person who was willing to take care of the stables, and she had known only one man to ask!
One morning she rode out with two guards and went towards the largest luxuries house in Arendelle. Kevin the blacksmith and his wife Isa lived in it, and it was well known that Kevin used to be interested in working in the royal stables.
It was widely known that Kevin and Isa had become the most influential couple in town. Kevin's skills as a blacksmith had now surpassed Weasel's skills, whom most people believed had died in the fire years back. Isa had a weaving business and made more money than the whole of Arendelle´s small folks combined, resulting in gossip among the people in the city, and one of the things they talked about was that Kevin had wanted to take care of the royal stables when he was a child.
When she arrived at the door, she knocked on it and was greeted by Isa who told her to come in and rest a little and made them some tea.
After some time getting to know each other, Elsa said, "Kevin, I was wondering if you would come and work for me? My stable boy has recently died and I need someone to help take care of stables. It is known that you used to dream of working in the royal stables as a child. It will be a part-time job really and it is well paid!"
That would mean Kevin had to split his work.
It required him to work two hours in the stables every day and the rest of the day would go with forging. He would make more money by looking after the horses for two hours a day, so he had agreed to take that job as well.
It had solved the stable problem and she could rest a little easier now.
Back in her room, she got up from the couch, went to the window and looked up at the clear black sky filled with stars, pondering her response to each of the letters.
There was a knock on the door.
"Come in" Elsa said.
Tamas stepped inside with a glass of green liquid. Thanks to this drink, Elsa had managed to get a good night's sleep without dreaming, and she felt more rested as a result. She had not heard the voice for a while either.
"Your night drink is ready," he said.
"Thank you Tamas."
He put the drink on top of the table and was about to leave when Elsa asked, "Tamas, would you like to be an official member of my staff?"
"If you want me to be, then the answer is yes." he said calmly.
"Then you will be my new medicine man. I am glad to have you on board."
Tamas gave a brief bow and left the room.
Elsa looked up upon the stars again and thought about her parents.
Would they have been proud of her? Did they look down on her from the stars, watching their daughters and all what was happening in their lives? Had they just died when their ship went down and no one was watching over Anna and herself?
Elsa felt alone, scared even of what the unknown would bring, what would lie beyond the horizon and what time would bring her and do to her.
It was not an easy thing being the queen.
She wondered if her story would be misremembered and if she would become a myth that parents would tell to their kids or would her name and deeds be lost to the mist of time as so many other kings and queens before her.
She answered herself: "Time only knows…"