A/N: It's a short one, cause I've got a longer one at the end, but I hope you enjoy this chapter. I know there were many directions this could have gone, but hopefully once my other stories come out, this'll make more sense.
Anyways, hope you enjoy! And if you'd like to find out what I'm planning to do now that this is done, stick around till the end.
Also, I don't own Frozen or the Tangled tv series, but that's where title inspo came from and the song is referenced a bit in this chapter.
Chapter 35: Promises Made II
Set two years after the Great Thaw (June 1844)
Ice heels clicked along solid floor as Elsa strode down the hallway, determination clear in her icy blue irises.
Beside her hurried her trusty chamberlain, the man doing his best to keep pace with the queen.
"Is everything ready, Kai?"
The man nodded, "He's waiting for you in the chamber, ma'am."
"And what of his reaction to the summons?"
Kai smirked, "He seemed rather flustered. Kept demanding to know just what we intended to do with him and asking if we knew who he was."
Elsa returned the expression, quite familiar with the ambassador in question. "I'm sure he did."
With a flourish, she turned and shoved open the door, the gesture alerting the occupant of the room to her presence.
He jumped up. "What is the meaning of this?! I hear you're lining up troops near the border. Surely you can't be serious about-"
"So you've noticed our preparations then." Elsa replied with a smug smirk, "I'm glad to hear so, Ambassador, for it will make my job much easier."
The man looked confused. "What job?"
Elsa's hands came to rest on the table before her. "My job of informing your duke to watch his step. The hostile acts he's undertaken have not gone unnoticed and will not go unanswered."
The Weseltonian ambassador frowned, "I don't know what you're talking about."
Elsa simply raised an eyebrow. "I find that hard to believe, Ambassador. You of all people are probably most privy to the recent attacks on our fisherman and the sudden, inexplicable movement of troops to our border. After all, are you not his trusted stooge?"
The ambassador scoffed and dismissed the accusation entirely, replying instead. "Those are laughable dramatizations of otherwise ordinary behaviors. And even if there were some grand strategy, our actions could hardly be called hostile, especially given your lack of courtesy in our negotiations. We were promised entry into the agreement and then rejected without so much as an explanation! Simply put, our duke has had enough of your games."
Elsa narrowed her eyes dangerously, her patience now wearing thin. "Perhaps you and your duke think this a game, Ambassador, but I assure you it is not. Arendelle will no longer stand for any hostile acts on your part, and if you choose to continue down this path, I will have you know that we are prepared to respond with appropriate force."
"Appropriate force!" The ambassador guffawed incredulously. "We've seen the size of your so-called troops, Queen Elsa. Don't think you can pull the wool over our eyes again just because you managed it once. You've hardly the manpower to stave off a handful of rabid monkeys, let alone an army as powerful and well-prepared as ours."
Elsa felt her magic tingling dangerously in her veins as his words hit home. "Well, then, perhaps the duke would like to test this theory of yours. If he is so inclined to conflict, then tell him he shall encounter me on the battlefield, so that we can settle this dispute once and for all."
The ambassador's face quickly morphed from smug confidence to startled disbelief as her words sank in.
"Y-You can't be serious?" He blustered nervously, "Y-You mean to use your-your…?" Fearful eyes darted to her hands in an unspoken question.
Elsa felt her bravado fade upon his words. She hadn't expected his reaction…in fact, she hadn't even been referring to her powers when she'd made the threat but seeing the look of fear on his face made her pause.
What am I doing? What am I saying?!
Part of her wanted to take the words back immediately.
But another part of her, the part that worried about the duke's inclination towards war, wanted to scare the ambassador, so that he could dissuade the duke from his strategy.
Elsa wasn't sure if the rationale made sense outside her head, but in any case, she'd already implied the scenario, and taking them back now would be an act of cowardice.
She straightened her spine and responded in a cool, collected tone, her steady voice effectively masking the swirl of doubt in her mind.
"Tell your duke to watch his next step, for if he chooses to visit, he will be faced with a rather chilly reception, that I can promise you."
The troubled queen ignored the guilt that coursed through her being to focus instead on the look of panic that crossed the ambassador's face at her carefully chosen words.
She waved him off with a hand, now no longer in the mood to look at his sweaty face, but it was all the man needed to scurry off, probably to find the nearest ship and hightail it back to Weselton to warn his boss.
It was only after he'd left that Elsa allowed herself to exhale with what could hardly be called relief, an old familiar friend making itself known as she replayed the past few minutes in her mind.
The friend?
Fear.
Did I actually just threaten Weselton with my powers?
She wasn't sure what scared her most about her interaction. That she had actually threatened the duchy of Weselton, or that she had somewhat delighted in the look of horror that had crossed the ambassador's face.
After all, hadn't she spent her whole life trying not to use her powers for harm, especially because, in a state of panic or unrest, she couldn't guarantee anyone's safety?
Wasn't that what the gloves had been for? And the isolation? And the accompanying onslaught of loneliness and pain and struggle and depression and loss of self-worth and panic and grief?
Hadn't it all been to keep the world safe from her and her curse?
So just what had possessed her to make such a cavalier statement about using her dangerous powers as a weapon against a sovereign nation, of all things?
Elsa wasn't sure how to answer that, and perhaps that was the most terrifying thing of all.
Anna wasn't sure what to make of the sight before her, but Elsa staring out a window with such a troubled look on her face didn't bode well. The princess braced herself for bad news as she asked, "How did it go?"
Elsa let her eyes drift to the bustling courtyard below her as she replied, "I'm not sure."
Anna came to stand beside her with a solemn look on her face, "What do you mean?"
Elsa simply heaved a big sigh in response, but the gesture only worried Anna more.
"Elsie, what happened with the ambassador?"
It was this question that caused Elsa to turn to her sister. "I-I think I've made a mistake."
"Huh?"
Elsa sighed and glanced away, "I gave the ambassador an ultimatum. I said if the duke didn't withdraw his troops and stop all hostile activity, he'd face me on the battlefield."
Anna blinked rapidly in surprise, "I'm sorry, you said what?"
Elsa looked back solemnly, "Exactly."
"But…" Anna furrowed her brows as she considered the implication of the words. "Did-did you mean that? Are you actually going to use your…?" She trailed off, but Elsa didn't miss how Anna's gaze went to her hands.
"I don't know."
A confused Anna could only scratch her head, "So why'd you say it then?"
"I don't know, Anna!" Elsa burst out in exasperation. "I don't know what I was saying! I just wanted to scare them into backing off from a war, but I went too far and when he misinterpreted my words…I-"
She sighed and hung her head, "I decided to use that to my advantage instead. But now…I don't know what to do anymore."
She glanced up into confused teal eyes, "Our troops will be outnumbered if we go to war, Anna. Weselton knows that. They're counting on it in fact. And given their advantage on the battlefield, they have little reason to back off from conflict now, which means if we do go to war… my powers could be the only thing saving Arendelle from destruction."
"So…then you-you should use them, right?" Anna whispered.
Elsa shrugged morosely, "I don't know, Anna."
She turned away to look out the window, her glistening eyes landing on the kingdom she'd tried to protect for so long. "Even just thinking about using my powers makes me feel like I'm dishonoring the sacrifice Mama and Papa made all those years ago. And what about everything we've gone through to keep you and the world safe from me? What becomes of all that?"
When Anna didn't reply, Elsa hung her head, "I know I have a responsibility to protect Arendelle and that being a monarch means making such difficult decisions…but this isn't a decision I'm sure I can make, Anna." She swallowed the painful lump in her throat, "How many people will suffer if I use my powers to defend Arendelle? And how many more will suffer if I choose not to?"
She looked back at her sister, agony swirling in her stormy cerulean eyes. "What am I supposed to do, Anna?"
The princess had no words to respond, but deep inside her began a growing surge of dread and guilt as she asked herself why she'd ever opened her big mouth to begin with.
"I don't know, Elsie."
Anna stood before her boyfriend, her arms wrapped tightly around herself as she stared solemnly at the ground.
"It's my fault."
"Anna, you don't know that."
"Yes, I do, Kristoff!" She rebutted as she spun to face him. "I'm the one who told Elsa to call the duke's bluff. I'm the reason we're on the brink of war and I'm the reason Elsa might need to use her powers and sacrifice everything she's done all these years!"
She turned away, a sob stuck in her throat as she wondered, "M-Maybe Elsa was right. She and Arendelle would be much better off if I'd left for Corona…it seems all I do is cause trouble for everyone."
"Hey, that's not true!" Kristoff shook his head and drew closer to pull Anna into a hug, "You may have given Elsa that advice, but I honestly don't think your words changed much, Anna." He shrugged, "We were heading down this path for a while now. Elsa's tried her best to keep us away from a war, but the duke isn't letting up. The issue would have come up eventually, right?."
Anna sighed hesitantly, but she let the words offer her some brief comfort.
"I'm worried about Elsa," she mumbled into his shoulder, her teal eyes darting to look towards the castle. "I don't know how to help her, Kristoff…I don't know what to do."
Anna didn't need to think hard to remember the overwhelming guilt and grief Elsa had carried with her in the years before the Thaw. Even back then, even with the brief glimpses the princess had managed to get of her sister in those dreadful years, Anna had seen and puzzled over the solemn look in her sister's unnaturally pale face and the lack of light in her cerulean eyes as they glistened with the fear of ever harming another living soul…
And now that she knew about the secret behind her sister's pain, all she could do was worry about the terrifying prospect that loomed over them.
How will she live with herself if she's forced to hurt people...to take a life?
The thought of what such a traumatic decision would do to her sister sent a stake through Anna's aching heart.
But it didn't take long for her sorrow to morph into heartbroken anger. She pulled away from Kristoff and hit a wooden beam with her fist, the sharp sting of her hand on the rough surface feeling like appropriately sufficient punishment for her sins.
"Goddamnit, why can't she just get a happy ending?!"
"Anna-"
"Why can't she just live her life without worrying about her stupid powers and how they might affect me and the kingdom and all the stupid people who can't accept her for who she is?!" Anna cried, "Why can't she just get to be happy, Kristoff?! WHY?!"
She gulped and turned to face her boyfriend, "She hit me on accident once and bore that guilt for thirteen years. What's going to happen if she's forced to kill people…?"
The visions that followed of a broken, traumatized Elsa made Anna want to throw something. She almost did too, but Kristoff pulled her into his arms again and shushed her gently before wiping away the hot tears that streamed down her cheeks.
"We need to have faith, Anna. You have to trust Elsa. Trust that everything will turn out okay."
Anna began to shake her head, but Kristoff held her firm, his voice low and solemn, "We'll be okay, I promise."
Anna had no idea where Kristoff got his faith from, but she had none of it herself. All she could do was slump in his arms and worry about what might come next.
It seemed to the princess that it was the only thing she could do at all.
It was late when Anna trudged into the dining room, but the greeting she got wasn't quite what she'd expected.
"Anna?" Elsa hurried over to her, cerulean eyes wide with horror. She reached for her hand and brought it up to the light, "What happened, love?"
It was then that Anna noticed the blood coagulating from a sizable scratch with bits of fragmented wood buried just underneath the skin.
"I-I don't know."
A concerned Elsa quickly produced her handkerchief and proceeded to bandage the wound, her hands chilling slightly to soothe the pain as they wrapped. "Does it hurt, darling?"
A silent Anna neglected to respond, instead lettingher eyes drift up to meet Elsa's swirling cerulean orbs. But the pain and anguish she found in them only made her guilty heart ache more.
She drew the hand back quickly, startling her sister, "I'm okay, Elsa. Thanks."
The queen quickly got over her surprise and nodded with a confused glance, "Of course…I'll ask Gerda to check on it later."
The princess nodded absently and took her seat, though she had absolutely no appetite at all
Elsa followed her to the table, but she too had no appetite to eat, not with the weight of a seemingly inevitable conflict and the disastrous role that might await her bearing down on her. Instead, she picked at her food, her mind a million miles away.
It was perhaps the quietest dinner the sisters had shared since the Great Thaw, with each of them too lost in their fears and unable to share their hearts' concerns with the other. As she took in the gloomy silence, the princess realized it was a moment she never wanted to experience again.
When the table finally was cleared, Elsa stood up and broke the quiet, but there was a distractedness in her expression. "I-I have some work to tend to."
Anna nodded slowly, her eyes darting to Elsa for just a second before she looked away. "I-I was going to head to bed early…"
When her sister responded by pulling her into a hug and kissing her temple, Anna felt like bursting into tears, but it was with great effort that she managed to blink them back.
After all, Elsa had too much to worry about, she didn't need to spend precious time comforting her…especially not when Anna was the reason for her dilemma to begin with.
"I'll see you in the morning, love."
Anna forced a small smile, "Ok, good night, Elsie."
Elsa mustered what could be called a smile before walking out of the dining room.
As her sister's footsteps faded, Anna could feel the cloud of guilt and fear that had been with her all day manifesting itself into a swirling storm of complex emotions.
It's just you and me…what are we gonna do?
She couldn't sleep.
Anna tossed and turned between her messy sheets, searching for some reprieve to her misery, but every time she closed her eyes, she could only see Elsa…broken, emotionless, soulless, unblinking Elsa.
The tears that streamed down her sister's pallid cheeks felt so real that Anna almost reached out to wipe them away before realizing it was just a dream.
But the emotion still hit home, particularly as Elsa turned to face her.
"Why, Anna?" She whispered. "Why did you do this to me?"
As Anna felt her heart shatter, she couldn't help but wish her sister had yelled at her instead. Elsa's anger she could take, but her disappointment…never.
"You know how much I've suffered! You of all people understand just how much pain I've borne just to keep everyone safe….and yet you pushed me into a conflict without a moment's hesitation?"
Anna could only shake her head, "I-I'm sorry, Elsa…I-I didn't mean to. I thought he was bluffing. I didn't think we'd actually go to war."
Elsa could only emit a mirthless laugh. "You didn't think? That's the problem with you, Anna. You never think. You just do things…and now your recklessness has caught up with you and me…and the whole kingdom!" She swept her arms out to show the thousands of people who stood behind her, each of them innocent and victims of Anna's recklessness.
"I can't believe I listened to you. I trusted you, Anna. But you've put me in an impossible position." Elsa continued. "How am I supposed to take care of things now? How am I supposed to clean up the mess you've made?"
Anna could only swallow the lump in her throat, "I-I don't know, Elsa. But-but I'll do something. I'll help you, I'll find a way to-"
Elsa held up a hand, a sharp icy glare accompanying her next words, "I don't want your help. You've done enough damage." She shook her head, "I don't know why I thought you were worthy of being crown princess…you're just a mess, Anna. You always have been."
She walked away, leaving a stunned Anna behind.
The scene shifted around the heartsick princess to show Elsa standing on a hill, her blue ice gown flowing in the breeze as she stood over the battlefield, her hands out and ready with tingling magic.
Anna was several feet from her, but it seemed she was glued to her spot for, try as she might, she couldn't approach her sister.
Instead, she could only watch with growing horror as an enemy archer turned his sights on the Snow Queen. He lifted his bow, notched a shiny arrow, took aim…
"ELSA!" Anna called out, but the swirling wind only carried her voice into the distance, away from her sister.
She struggled against the invisible force keeping her rooted, but it was futile.
"Elsa, please! Look behind you!"
But Elsa simply stood, her eyes averted from the danger that befell her and her ears tuned to the conflict below her.
All Anna could do was watch helplessly as the arrow released from its notch and flew through the air.
Unable to watch what would surely follow, she squeezed her eyes shut in abject horror, but the sound remained forever burned into her memory.
"AHHH!"
Several painfully silent minutes passed before Anna opened her eyes, hot tears streaming down her cheeks all the while, and turned to look to where her sister had been standing.
There lay Elsa, bloody and crumpled on the pristine green grass that was now soaked in blood.
E-Elsa's blood.
Anna managed to yank herself from her spot as she ran to her sister's side, but all she could focus on were Elsa's glassy unfocused eyes, the light in her normally sparkling cerulean irises now nowhere to be found.
A heart-breaking sob made its way to her throat, "Elsa!"
She collapsed onto her knees just as the fog swirled around her once again.
When the dream settled, Elsa was alive again, but as Anna took in the sight before her, she almost wished to return to the previous nightmare.
Because before her lay bodies.
So many bodies.
Some were frozen solid where she stood, many of them unarmed, their eyes wide open with horror. Others were impaled in the heart with an ice spike jutting out of the ground, so that they hung in the air like morbid Yule decorations.
And others yet lay shriveled up on the ground, all moisture extracted from their bodies so that they resembled skeletons.
Anna turned her eyes away, only to find a horrified Elsa staring back at her.
"I-I didn't mean it, Anna…" Elsa whispered, her eyes darting from the carnage to her sister. "I just lashed out…I didn't mean to hurt anyone."
Anna took a step, her heart shattering at Elsa's painfully familiar expression, "It-it's ok, Elsa." She bit her tongue to avoid saying anything more, because the truth was…it wasn't ok.
Elsa had murdered people. Brutally murdered people.
But Anna didn't let her face show the shock and horror she felt. Instead, she took another step and whispered back, "I know you didn't mean it."
To her surprise, Elsa shrank back, "Please Anna…don't come closer! I-I don't want to hurt you."
Anna put out her palms in a placating gesture, "It's ok, you won't hurt me."
Elsa shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes, "No, no, I've hurt you before and…I-I can't do it again, Anna…I-I'm a monster."
Anna swallowed her fear and replied, "You-You're not a monster, Elsa…"
But it seemed she'd given away too much. Realization dawned on her sister. "You-you think so too, don't you?"
Anna shook her head, but Elsa didn't accept it, "It's ok, Anna…it's true." She dropped her eyes to look at the destruction she'd wrought, and then… "Please kill me."
The words stopped Anna in her tracks. "What?"
Elsa looked up in painful resignation, "I need you to kill me, Anna, before I hurt anyone else."
"NO!" Anna exclaimed in shock, "I'm not going to kill you."
"Please!" Elsa whispered, "I'm begging you, Anna. I don't trust anyone else…and if you won't do it, they will." She gestured to the angry mob that was slowly making its way up the mountain. "Please…I deserve it."
Anna felt her legs go numb, "I-I can't."
Elsa swallowed the lump in her throat and replied, "You must. Kill the monster I've become, Anna. Please, before it's too late."
Anna took a step back, "I-I can't, Elsa. Please don't ask me to."
A trembling Elsa closed her eyes in response, but when she opened them a few seconds later, there was a clear determination shining in her cerulean orbs. "Fine, if you can't, then I will."
Before Anna could react, Elsa grabbed a wayward sword and thrust it through her own heart.
"NOOO!" Anna hurried forward, but it was too late.
Elsa stumbled back as her legs gave out and then…
She fell off the cliff.
Anna screamed.
"NOOOO!" She shot out of bed, her heart pounding in her throat as she cried at the top of her lungs. It was after several seconds of terrifying silence that she realized she was in her room.
"E-Elsa…"
She stumbled out of bed with a desperate sob, her eyes blurry with overflowing tears. When her knees hit solid ground, she let herself fall into a crumpled heap, her body heaving as she struggled to not throw up. When the nauseous sensation slowly passed, she clambered to her feet, only one thought in her desperate mind.
Elsa, she had to get to Elsa.
Anna fumbled for the doorknob and threw it open, her unsteady body tumbling into the hallway as she wept unashamedly.
"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…" came the mantra as a broken-hearted Anna made her way to Elsa's room.
Halfway there, she collapsed onto the floor as her trembling limbs finally gave out on her. But it was with dogged determination that she pressed on, crawling on all fours until she reached Elsa's white and blue door.
Once she'd leaned her back against painfully familiar wood, she allowed herself to curl up into a ball, her knees pressed into her chest to keep her heart from shattering…
And cried.
She couldn't sleep and so Elsa sat in her study, her hands playing aimlessly with a single orb of icy magic as she went over the situation in her head for the thousandth time.
But there was little point in rehashing the issue over again, especially when the answer was clearly before her.
She'd said as much to Anna and it was true. Arendelle's military was just far too small for it to successfully fend off any attack from Weselton, and though Elsa had uttered those words in a moment of weakness, the young queen suspected she would be in much the same place even if she hadn't.
It was just the luck of the draw, perhaps.
Or fate telling her she could never truly run away from her powers.
But it didn't really matter what was behind the inevitability of her current situation, but rather what would happen from here.
Because if war was inevitable, Elsa wasn't sure she could work up the courage to do anything more than build up defense mechanisms.
Constructing walls around the kingdom, harmless and easy.
Fighting on the front lines and taking lives, on the other hand?
She swallowed and leaned back into her chair. Even for the sake of her kingdom, she couldn't imagine turning her powers on anyone, even an enemy soldier.
After all, these soldiers had no real quarrel with her. They were working on the orders of the duke, doing his bidding because that was their job. They had families, wives, children.
Unfortunately, she couldn't afford such leniency on the battlefield, not under her duties as protector of her dominion. Simply put, they posed a threat to her kingdom, and so she had to eliminate them using any means necessary, even her powers.
Elsa plopped her head on the desk, wishing for the umpteenth time that she had never been born with magic.
Anna frequently called it a blessing, but Elsa had rarely seen it as anything but a curse.
And why wouldn't she? After all, it had taken years of her life from her, had forced her to grow up before her time and adopt responsibilities too much for any one human to endure alone.
And now…
Now, it was weighing her down much like the sky weighed down a helpless Atlas. It was forcing her to make an impossible choice. Either she could sacrifice her morals and humanity in the defense of her kingdom, or she could keep those values and doom her people in the process.
Unfortunately, she couldn't simply wish her powers away…and she couldn't ignore the dilemma before her any longer either.
Earlier that day, she'd participated in a ceremonial troop inspection. And though the practice was hardly necessary, Elsa figured it was a sight she'd needed to see.
Because the men she would be sending to war were not battle-hardened, time-tested warriors…
They were people her own age, many freshly turned twenty-one.
And how exactly could she send such young men off to defend the borders in what could only be called a suicide mission? How could she force them to participate in such a war fought only to amplify the duke's personal vendetta and soothe his psychopathic ego?
As Elsa had stared at her troops, she'd realized she couldn't.
Abdicating her responsibility because of her personal morals or qualms was the behavior of a coward, and it was high time she stopped being one. Lives were at stake. Arendellian lives. Innocent lives. Her peoples' lives.
She had made a promise to protect them, and if it meant sacrificing everything about herself to keep them safe, then she would do just that.
For them, she had to fight.
Unfortunately, though the simple finality of her decision filled Elsa with immense relief, it was quickly overshadowed by a new swell of nightmarish fears that immediately exacerbated all of her long-held anxieties.
The bone-weary queen closed her eyes and leaned back into her chair as she tried desperately to forget her troubles for just one moment…
But a sudden soul-wrenching scream cut through the dead silence of the night, startling her out of her misery.
"Anna?!"
She jumped from her seat and bolted out of the study, her heart pounding with worry. What if Weselton had-
She ran faster towards Anna's room, but as she turned the corner to the residential wing, she found her sister curled up into a cocoon before her door.
Elsa paused her tracks as she whispered, "Anna?"
The girl let out a sob, but it was all Elsa needed to hear before she hurried to her sister's side and dropped to her knees, "Darling, what happened?"
Bloodshot puffy eyes looked up at her, the storm of agony in them too much for Elsa to absorb.
"I-I'm-" Words failed Anna, so instead she buried her face in Elsa's shoulder and bawled, her fingers grasping desperately at Elsa's nightgown as she craved comfort. "I'm so SO-rry!"
A speechless Elsa wrapped Anna in a hug as she asked, "What for, love?'
But Anna couldn't respond with anything other than choked sobs. "I'm-you…" She managed to let out before she broke off into a hoarse, gut-wrenching cry.
"Shh, I've got you, darling. You'll be okay." It was with this gentle promise that Elsa wrapped her arms around Anna and picked her up. She nudged the door open with a flick of her wrist and entered the room, cradling her sister in her arms. Anna clung to her all the while, her sobs now softening to whimpers that were occasionally interrupted by a wayward hiccup.
She placed Anna on the bed before crawling up onto it herself, but she had barely gotten on the mattress before the redhead ambushed her with a hug, her head buried in Elsa's stomach as she cried.
Elsa didn't have the words to respond to Anna's heartbreaking behavior, and so instead, she wrapped her arms around Anna's trembling frame and waited for her sister to speak.
It was many minutes later when Anna whispered hoarsely, "I'm-I'm so sorry…"
Elsa's arms tightened around her, "What for, sweetheart?"
Anna gulped and looked up as she unloaded the emotional burden she'd been carrying with her all day, the worries, the nightmares, the heartache…
"I just cause trouble for you."
Elsa crinkled her brows, "What are you talking about, love?"
Anna ducked her head and turned away, "All I do is make your life miserable…I-I told you to call the duke's bluff and you did and now we're going to go to war and you're going to fight and – I…I did this, Elsa…I'm- I'm so-!"
She let out an anguished sob and said nothing more, but it was enough to bring realization to Elsa's eyes.
"Anna…" A heart-broken Elsa whispered, "You've done nothing of the sort, love. None of this is your fault."
"But-" Anna whispered as she looked up with shimmering teal eyes. "What about what I said?"
A sympathetic Elsa cradled her to her heart with a soft but sad smile, "I'm afraid we'd be in much the same position either way, Anna. Conflict or no conflict, I have certain responsibilities as queen of Arendelle…and when those responsibilities need to be carried out, I must use whatever is at my disposal." She sighed, "That includes my powers."
"I'd often worried about this very issue coming up, but I didn't expect to face it so soon…but none of that is because of you, love. Not one bit of it."
She smiled softly and brushed a delicate hand across Anna's tear-stained cheeks, "In fact, you've been nothing but a blessing through all of this, darling. And if anything, I should thank you for reminding me of my responsibilities."
Anna drew back at that, "Wh-what do you mean?"
Elsa sighed and turned away, "By not responding to Weselton with adequate force, I was abdicating my duty as protector of the dominion. I needed to project strength so that enemies and allies see that Arendelle is not to be trifled with….but I was being a coward. I hoped things would go away if I ignored them, so I did just that."
She looked back at Anna, "But you convinced me to take a stand for the kingdom, darling. You gave me the courage to speak up for our people..." Elsa shook her head softly as she admitted, "I'm not sure I would have even gotten this far without you."
The words offered little comfort to Anna, because at the end of the day, what had really changed?
"You don't have to do this, Elsa. You shouldn't have to be out there."
Elsa simply shrugged, a heaviness in her gesture. "I must, Anna. The kingdom needs me to do this."
When Anna sighed shakily, Elsa pulled her into a comforting embrace, her hands reaching up to brush the princess' hair as she added, "I don't know what comes next. But I do know two things."
She leaned back to clasp her sister's teary face in delicate hands, "I know that I love you and that these past two years have been the best of my life." She swallowed the sudden lump in her throat and continued, "And no matter what happens, I promise you'll live happily ever after, just like you wanted."
Even though her heart cried out at the unfairness of it all, a grief-stricken Anna could only lean against her sister and whisper amid freshly flowing tears, "I-I can't be happy without you, Elsie."
"Shh…" Elsa gently placed her head on top of Anna's as she whispered back, "It'll be okay, Anna. I promise."
Days came and went without word from Weselton. It was nerve-wracking, especially because everything still seemed to be moving towards conflict anyway. There was no cease in troop preparations along the border, nor any end to the havoc Weselton-sponsored pirates wrecked upon poor Arendellian fishermen.
In fact, things seemed to be getting worse.
And it was all driving Elsa slowly insane.
Part of her just wanted to declare war and be done with it, if for no other reason than it would end this mindless game of chicken they both seemed to be playing.
But there was still a small part of her that hoped the duke would see sense. That somewhere in his stuffy cabinet, there existed a voice of reason and calm that could talk the duke down from his high horse and clear the way to a peaceful truce.
It was not much to keep her nightmares at bay, but that little sliver of hope made the waiting somewhat bearable.
And if Elsa had learned one thing after two years with her dear sister, it was to never give up hope, no matter how dark the night seemed. Because the darkest of nights was always followed by the early rays of dawn.
And she had seen firsthand just how true that statement could be.
But even as the Snow Queen prayed for an end to the night, somewhere in the heart of her kingdom, very close to home, there lay a being of the dark. A being who had made the night his home, cherished it, thrived in it.
This being had no desire to see the light, or an end to the chaos that had tormented the kingdom and its poor queen.
And he had plans to keep the kingdom just where he wanted it. In his hands.
He licked the nib of his pen and signed the letter before him.
"Enok!"
The rapid, tidy footsteps of a servant came to a stop by him.
Deadly pale hands handed the scroll over to waiting knobby ones. "Deliver this please. It is a matter of delicacy and urgency."
"Right away, sir." The servant bowed and disappeared into the darkness, leaving the man to lean back into his chair as a puff of smoke escaped his cigar and whirled away into the night.
It was a simple letter, but the words written on its parchment would ensure the night never ended.
At least, not for some people.
"Sweet dreams, Queen Elsa."
Weselton -About two weeks later
The duke was irritated.
Before him lay a cadre of old simpering men such as himself, each of them just as petty and greedy as he, if not more, and yet it seemed for the first time that they were not all on the same page.
"What do you mean I should reconsider my strategy?"
One of the old men rose, his glasses sliding down his face as he addressed the duke, "Your Grace, given the ambassador's vivid description of the queen's intentions should we proceed with an attack, surely it would be wise to hold off?"
"HOLD OFF?" The duke rose from his chair, his mustache quivering with suppressed rage. "Hold off! Why in the blazes would I hold off when victory is within my grasp?"
"But her powers-"
"Gah! Her powers!" The duke brushed the concern off, "Child's play compared to the vast and powerful army I've got at my disposal. She wouldn't be able to get one snowflake out before my trained archers take her out with one shot."
He surprised the entire room by slamming his fist on the table as he thought of just how close he'd come to winning it all. "Pieter was so close…if only that blasted Southern Isles prince hadn't interrupted."
He let himself wallow in the missed opportunity for a beat before turning to his advisors, "We attack in a week's time."
The advisors looked at each other agape, "A week?!"
The duke took a moment to admire the dropped jaws and awe-struck faces of his peers as he replied smugly, "Yes, a week. We haven't a moment to lose."
He grumbled, "I've spent two years waiting to make good on my promise…I'm done waiting. She is weak, her kingdom is defenseless, now is the best time to attack."
The room broke off into chaos, some advisors rising up to loudly denounce the duke's behavior, others rising up to defend him.
Caught among the din, the duke almost missed the messenger that hurried up to him with a letter.
He grabbed the boy and snatched the note out of his hand before unraveling it. And then...
"SHUT UP!
The room promptly zipped it. Satisfied with the response, the duke leaned back into his throne. "Gentlemen, I agree with you all. There is no point in attacking Arendelle when the queen is so willing to defend it using any means necessary. We shall remove all troops from Arendelle's borders and harm them no more."
The council looked at him like he'd gone insane. Some couldn't help but wonder if he really had. "But-but you just said…"
The duke shrugged, "Let's just say there's been a change of plans. One that requires some patience on my part."
One advisor dared to ask, "What kind of plans?"
The duke chuckled, "A friend of mine has offered to take some of the load of my shoulders and deal with the problem himself. All he asks for is a few months. Surely we can wait that long, can't we?"
The men shifted nervously and exchanged curious glances with one another before asking, "Wait for what, exactly?"
Yellow teeth bared into a nasty smile, "Why, for the death of the ice witch, of course!"
It was a rare, miraculously quiet afternoon back in Arendelle when Kai hurried into her study, all out of breath and clutching a paper tightly in his hands.
All Elsa needed to do was look up before she understood the reason behind his expression.
"There's news?"
Kai nodded, words failing the old chamberlain for the minute. He simply handed over the paper, his hands shaking with emotion.
Elsa fumbled with the note as her nervous hands attempted to open it, only to find one simple line from the border scouts.
Weselton's troops were gone.
"We're not going to war…" She replied in an awed whisper. Elsa glanced up, her eyes glistening with hope, "We're not going to war, Kai."
He nodded, "We'll be okay, my lady."
Elsa let out a breathless laugh, and then another, and then she couldn't stop laughing, so relieved was she by the news that her body simply went into autopilot as she released all the nervousness that had pent up in her veins. She shook her head in absolute disbelief, "I-I can't believe it….we're really going to be okay…Anna!" She glanced up, "Does Anna know?"
As if on cue, her sister came barreling into her study, "ELSA!"
The queen only had time to rise from her chair before Anna had her wrapped in a ferocious hug as she exclaimed breathlessly, "Did you hear? We're okay, Elsie. We're really going to be okay. There's not going to be a war and everything is going to be fine and we're actually not going to war!"
"Yes," Elsa nodded with a chuckle, "Yes, love, I just heard."
Anna drew back with a brilliant smile, her first in days. "I-I can't stop smiling…or laughing…is that normal?"
Elsa giggled, "I don't know what's normal anymore, but I get what you mean."
Anna giggled in response and pulled Elsa into another gentler embrace, "You did it, Elsa. You saved us all."
Elsa shook her head and drew back just enough to lock eyes with her sister. "No, not me, love. You saved us. You were right all along. You just needed to have faith in yourself."
A blushing Anna bowed her head and whispered, "Okay fine, we did it. Happy?"
Elsa smirked at the adorable sight, "I can live with that."
A smiling Anna leaned into her once more, but even as Elsa reciprocated the hug, a strange sinking feeling developed in her gut.
One of doubt, and confusion.
Why had Weselton backed off so easily? Victory had been almost assured, given their vast resources…
Perhaps they really had been intimidated by her threat. But even Elsa couldn't imagine that farfetched prospect, especially given the duke's aversion to her existence in the first place. He would have relished the challenge, wanted the chance to take the dangerous Snow Queen out himself. So what explained the duke's sudden turnabout?
"We should celebrate, maybe with cake and hot chocolate. Oooh, maybe we host a ball and invite everyone in the kingdom! What do you say, Elsa?"
"Huh?" The queen turned to her sister, "I'm sorry, love, I didn't hear that."
Anna huffed melodramatically and crossed her arms, "Great, it hasn't even been five minutes and you've already found something else to worry about."
"You know me, darling. It's just how I am." Elsa managed a casual shrug, but there was enough doubt swirling in her eyes to give her away.
It was with a gentle, understanding sigh that Anna clasped both of Elsa's cheeks, "Hey, we're okay. You don't have to worry anymore, Elsa. We can finally have our happily ever after now."
"You're right, Anna. It's just that I…" Elsa paused at the sight of eternally sparkling optimism in Anna's eyes.
Anna was innocent to a fault, always willing to believe the best of everyone, always willing to see the good in people and ignore the ugly.
She had learned difficult lessons, but though they had hardened her a little, her dear baby sister was still very much innocent at heart.
And it was that innocence that Elsa hoped never to take away from Anna…
Because Elsa had lost her own innocence so long ago…and living in a constant state of fear, paranoia, and cynicism about the state of humanity was just utterly exhausting. If she could spare her sister forever, Elsa figured it was the least she could do.
And so she didn't tell Anna about the doubts swirling in her mind. She didn't reveal her now rapidly growing concerns about the sudden abrupt end to the conflict and how it may foreshadow a darker turn later on. She didn't warn her sister about the difficulties that potentially lay ahead for both of them, nor did she tell her sister what she planned to do to prepare for them.
But later that night, after her sister had succumbed to the heavy sleep brought about by a celebratory chocolate binge, Elsa snuck out of bed and summoned the one person she could trust such concerns with. The only other person who shared her harsh, cynical, paranoid view of the world.
Her spymaster.
"Spymaster Gregers, I hope you know why I've called you here at this late hour."
He bowed his head, "I can only assume it was due to the news of Weselton's withdrawal."
Elsa nodded and folded her hands into her lap, "You share my concerns then?"
He nodded, "Unfortunately my lady, there are but a few reasons a man like the duke would give up when victory was so close at hand. None of them bode well for Arendelle. Or for you."
Elsa swallowed the lump in her throat. She wanted so much to believe her troubles were behind her, but it seemed they never would be. "If you could keep a close watch on the duke, track his movements, his communications…"
The man agreed, "I'll keep you informed, my lady."
When Elsa snuck back into bed, it was to a curious Anna looking at her. "Where'd you go?"
Elsa startled at the voice before realizing who it was. "Just needed to check on something, love. Go back to sleep."
Anna shook her head and huffed in a pouty whisper, "I can't sleep without you."
A chuckling Elsa quickly got under the covers and pulled Anna close, letting her sister cuddle in her arms, "I'm sorry, darling. How about now?"
Anna let out a cute yawn before burrowing her head into the crook of Elsa's neck, "Hmm, this is just perfect."
A fond smile graced Elsa's lips as she gently kissed Anna's head, "I'm glad. Now go to sleep, love. You have nothing to fear."
Anna hummed in agreement against her. "I never do, not when I'm with you." She tilted her head back and added, "But you don't have to fear either, Elsie. We're finally going to have our happily ever after."
It was with a tinge of regret that Elsa lied to her sister as she whispered back, "You're right, love. We have nothing to fear."
We'll live happily ever after…after all.
Lol, I can't believe this is really done! Also I'm writing this author's note at 2 am, so I may ramble. But thank you so much to everyone who's read and followed and liked this story. I wouldn't have finished it without you, and it made writing a much more pleasant experience.
I originally started writing for myself, with no intention of uploading my work anywhere. But quarantine hit and I had time to write a lot and then I wondered if anyone else might be interested in reading my work, so I gave it a shot.
Needless to say, I'm glad I did. I hope to continue writing as long as I am able, and goodness knows I have many stories to tell.
Which brings me to my future plans. The next story - the one I hyped up a few chapters ago - is called 'Dying Lanterns'. It's long and angsty and dramatic and fun...for me. I hope you like it just as much. But in any case, it needs a bit of editing before I start uploading.
I'm a little swamped with real-world commitments right now, but since I have most of it written, I hope to have something up for you folks in short order.
That being said, I also have another mostly written story I'd like to share with you all, but I'm not sure if you'd like to read it. It's an exploration of my thoughts and observations during this pandemic and how I imagine our characters would deal with such a similar situation if a disease hit Arendelle. It's not related to this or Dying Lanterns, but it is set in the same time frame as all my other fics - no modern AU - and is somewhat historically accurate. Meaning no COVID, more like influenza. In any case, I know pandemic fatigue is real - I've hit that limit a few times myself over the months - and so I understand if you folks want nothing to do with the story, but I will also assure you that it is an interesting read.
It's far more Elsa-centric than this fic, but there's plenty of angst and humor and fluff...not to mention the intricacies that come from combining a quarantine experience with the sisters' painful past of isolation. Eeesh... anyway, see what I mean?
I don't know how to set up a poll on this thing, so let me know if that's something you'd like to read and maybe I'll upload it. If not, then my next uploads will be for 'Those Little Moments In Between' and 'Georg and Elsa', when inspiration strikes ofc. And when I'm ready, Dying Lanterns will begin.
As for Georg and Elsa, I have some chapters, but nothing I'm ready to post right now. So that's gonna be a less frequent upload cycle than this fic had.
Anyways, that's all I've got for now!
Signing off on this grand and glorious journey until we meet again - the frequent daydreamer