Welcome to my fifth chapter of this story. If you have been keeping up with my story then welcome back and if you are for the first time then welcome and I hope you stay.
This chapter is going to be the last chapter before we get into the main arc of the story and so I have been using the past chapters to try and set up the story as a whole for future chapters.
So with all that said, I hope you enjoy and thank you for reading my story.
"Queen Elsa, our trade has been growing stagnant in the past 5 months. Many of us believe that it is time we should start thinking about extending our friendship to other kingdoms, make new treaties and arrangements so we can provide better opportunities for the people."
Queen Elsa sat on the throne in her council room, surrounded by 5 other councilmen, all sitting in their chairs. It had been a week now since the night she saw through the mirror, and she was trying very hard not to think about it, even though it was nigh impossible. The day after that night, Anna had been extremely suspicious of her sister's strange behavior. The young princess knew the queen was always more of a close book, keeping her thoughts to herself, but it had gotten to a whole new level in those days.
The queen would spend hours gazing aimlessly at the wall, lost in her own thoughts, in her council meetings she would just nod along with whatever was being said and she was not aware of the attention she was drawing to herself due to her strange patterns. Anna had known her sister since she was born, she prided herself on knowing things about Elsa nobody ever would but even she could not figure out why.
For once the thought came to her mind, that perhaps it was what Kristoff had said to her about the traitor is what was weighing on her mind. And that is why one night when the two were alone, she asked her without any hesitation, whether the queen was still fixed on what Hans' brother said about him and her.
And for the first time in days, she saw actual emotions and life come into her sister's eyes. She immediately denied her suspicions, telling her that it was nothing of that sort. But the princess knew when her sister was lying and at that moment she knew whatever the queen was saying was far from the truth. But the one thing she could believe is that she wasn't worried about Hans in any way.
That she could believe, because of how much she knew they both hated him. But after that night, Elsa was reminded that her body language and behavior in these past days had given rise to strange rumors all over the palace, and she immediately started working on them to fix it, before a problem could be caused. So day by day, she perfected the mask of a benevolent queen and resumed her duties perfectly, and just like that the rumors started dying as the people saw the queen was back to her usual elegance and manners.
And as for the queen herself., her nights of peace were left butchered by the bloody and dirty face of prince Hans Westergaard.
"Stagnant? Councilman Dag, are our people not satisfied with the trade routes that have opened in the last three years? I was under the impression that our agreements and deals with the kingdoms of Corona, and Atlantica were sufficient enough to provide food security for all our citizens? Plus with our agreement with the Southern Isles, do our people not have plenty of everything they desire?" the queen asked with a raised brow looking at the tall, stocky man sitting before her. She knew these councilmen were loyal only to themselves and their pockets, and usually when they gave her some sort of an advice, it had a hidden agenda behind it. But thankfully, she knew them better then they realized and her opposing questions made the man in question swallow as he tried to come up with the right answer.
"Your Majesty, what my friend Dag means to say is that it is always better to be pursuing new lands. You are not wrong when you say that Arrendelle is thriving, but no kingdom thrives forever and eventually, we will need to start looking to other lands for their resources. That is why it is always better to make friends with other royals while we are still thriving, so in our time of need, we can always have someone to fall back on." This time the man who spoke was a thin man, with short white hair, and a big moustache sporting his face. His words weren't wrong the queen realized as she turned to him.
"You make a good point, councilman Hoder. But most kingdoms fear us still because of my powers, or the false rumors that the duke of Weselton has been spreading ever since my coronation. The only reason the two kingdoms are our allies is because they have also had dealings with magical beings in the past and they know the truth. Corona accepted our hand of alliance because of princess Rapunzal, whereas I am not sure why Atlantica allied themselves to us so freely but I have heard rumors and stories from my parents about how in the past the kingdom has had dealings with magical sea creatures, which I am not sure about and as for the southern isles, I am sure you are already aware. But my point is that no kingdom will come in alliance with us, not while I sit on this throne." Elsa knew of the rumors that been spread across the entire Scandinavian world about her. Many of them were false and highly exaggerated, but it still didn't help the fact that most of the people were still afraid of her.
Suddenly the most cleverest of her council member spoke up, a woman who had served Elsa's grandfather then her father and now her. Councilwomen Ingrid. For a woman in her 80th year, she was extremely sharp and conniving, knowing just what to say and when to say it. But for all those things, she was also extremely loyal to the throne. On Elsa's first official day as queen, she had come before her and graciously told her that she would be honored to teach her everything there is to learn and Elsa considered herself lucky the woman was loyal to her and not to her own self-interest because she did not want a woman like her as an enemy.
"Your majesty, if I may speak freely, there is another way to form new relations with other kingdoms. What you have said is true, but what the other members of this council say is also the truth...And even though there are kingdoms who's nobility is afraid of you, they also know of your physical charms and beauty, which is rivalled by a very few. I have learned through many people that there are dozens of heirs in different kingdoms that would willingly kill for your hand in marriage, and one of those men is the son of King York. The heir to the mighty throne of Fjordane, Prince Sigurd. My people in Fjordane tell me that the prince has been smitten with you since the moment your stories reached him." Elsa was surprised to say the least when she heard Ingrid's words. She had never been made aware of news like this before. She hadn't even ever considered marriage or settling down but it seems her council members were thinking way ahead of her.
"Ingrid is right, my queen. Fjordane is a powerful kingdom with endless resources and if you can catch the Prince, his kingdom could become an enormous ally of ours. What's even better is that Prince Sigurd is the king's only child and if you marry him, your majesty, then you will be in control of both Arrendelle and Fjordane." Dag said with a look on his face that told her he was already dreaming of all the money he could make if something like this happened. But he didn't need to get his hopes up so much, Elsa knew she was in no hurry to get married. Especially an arranged marriage where she would most probably spend her life miserable. Granted, she could never have something like Anna and Kristoff, she still wanted something similar to that.
Elsa let out a small sigh as she closed her eyes for a second and leaned on her palm that was resting on the handle of the throne. "Councilman Dag, I appreciate your insight and plans bu-"
Her words were cut off when suddenly a messenger boy entered and came to her side and bended down as he held forward a sealed envelope.
"For you, your majesty. It carries the insignia of the southern isles." As he said this, Elsa felt a shock run through her while she stared at the letter, remembering the last time she had gotten a letter similar like this with the same symbol on the front. She resisted the shiver that coursed through her body in-front of the court members, but just thinking about what had happened because of her letter, it made her body tremble.
Knowing she was garnering attention, she quickly opened the seal and took out a beautiful letter with words that were written on a special light pink paper which carried with it the scent of lavender. She immediately knew this wasn't a normal letter and the moment she read the first line, she realized her worst fears had come true.
She read through it all quickly before coming to the last part of the letter, which contained the most significant part of the message.
To her Majesty, Queen Elsa of Arrendelle
The royal family of Arrendelle has been cordially invited by His Majesty, King Burgrid of the southern isles, to attend the engagement ceremony of Prince Halfden of the Southern Isles with Princess Penelope of Oroda.
For a week now, Hans had been wrecking his brain over and over, trying to figure out someway out of the hole he was stuck in. He had always prided himself on being quite a bit more intellectual and clever then his thick headed brothers, but at this moment, it seemed as if his creativity had all but run out.
And that was putting aside the fact that he couldn't get a single second of peace and quiet, not from all the damned voices in his head. He never had a moment to himself where he could calmly think over every detail that was needed to be thought over if he was going to make his daring escape.
From the moment he first came upon the idea of escaping his cell, he knew there was only one way he could escape and that was the main door to the cell. He had spent a lifetime here and he knew every sight and location and point in this kingdom and this prison like the back of his own hand. He couldn't break out because the prison wing he was put in was for the more special prisoners. The walls of the cell he was in were made from bricks, but they were also reinforced by sturdy iron plates that were cemented within the bricks, which made it impossible to break them without any tools.
So that only left the option of the front door. And the first thought that came to his mind was to somehow manipulate the guards and cozy upto them and then steal the cell keys from them. But that plan went out the window when he realized that the guards were even bigger asses then his brothers, they did not even bother to glance his way when he tried to call out to them a few times, and instead after his initial effort to start a conversation with them they depraved him of food for two whole days.
All these failures were getting to the former prince's head, making him think of things that he knew were not going to help him, but he couldn't stop himself or put a stop to his thoughts. Each time he would think about his failures, and his old insecurities and thoughts came back, the voices became so much more louder, reminding him of his failures, not just in trying to escape but the failures he had experienced his entire life.
'Give up. You will never leave this prison alive.'
But each time the voices told him to give up or his brain tried to drag him back into the darkness, he would immediately forcefully snap himself out of that frame of mind and go back to thinking of methods to escape.
"Open the door!"
The deep baritone voice of his brother Rudi reached his ears. A part of him immediately became aware that his brother wasn't coming to him for a friendly chat, not very likely. And if Rudi was here, then the other twin was probably not far behind. As he turned towards the door, his eyes fell on the brown-haired prince, and just behind him was his twin brother, Runo. Two who were identical from head to two, with the only difference being that Rudi had brown hair that he always kept trimmed and short, whereas Runo had the trademark Westergaard red hair, that reached his shoulders.
It was almost like a sixth sense in his body now, after taking so many beatings from them that he instinctively became aware when he was in for another session of pain. But unlike before, where he let them do whatever they desired, this time he was riled up by the fire of hope in his heart and he was not going to let these two bastard princes walk over him.
"By the Gods, the only thing worse in this cell besides you, Hans, is probably your horrid smell!" Runo squeezed his nose as he entered the cell behind his brother, tensing up at the horrible smell from inside the cell. Hans was tempted to remind the red-headed prince who's fault was it that he was never allowed to take a shower or wash himself, but instead he just stood alert and glared at the two with all the hate he could muster in his eyes.
"What do you both want?" Hans asked, his voice lacking any sort of amusement or anything, just animosity towards the two men before him.
"Stand outside, men. Give us a moment with our dear brother." Rudi ordered the guards as they quickly bowed and went back to their stations, leaving the three brothers to themselves. As the two walked inside, Hans tensed up, his body sensing nothing but negativity coming from them.
"What, no greetings, little brother? I thought we taught you better then that?" Runo spoke with a smirk on his lips as he turned to the disgraced prince.
"If you have come looking for respect, you will have better results from the dogs outside." Hans scoffed out as he kept his eyes set before him.
"I see your time in the dungeons has made you no less graceful, Hans. But, I don't blame you." A menacing smile emerged on Rudi's lips as he stared at the prisoner.
"You're exactly right, brother. If I was in his position, I wouldn't like to look at the faces of the men who put me in prison as well." said Runo.
"What the hel do you both want?!" Hans growled at the two men.
"Temper, temper. Looks like little Hansy is getting upset by our presence, Rudi." Runo said with a grin as he turned to his twin.
"Whatever shall we do about his horrible manners?" the brown haired twin said in a sarcastic tone.
"Well, I do have a few ideas, but...we'll get to them later. First, I want to ask little brother Hans why he rejected our most gracious offer of attending Halfden's ceremony, and more importantly, why did he make mother cry?" Runo's smirk slowly disappeared by the time his mother's tearful eyes came to his mind, remembering the state she was in after coming back from visiting the 13th son. He hated a lot of things, but he hated nothing more then to see his mother crying and knowing that the cause of her tears was this pathetic man before him made him that much more furious, and the same could be said about the second twin.
Hans glared at the two, sensing the shift in the air around his brothers. He knew they were no longer in their teasing or joking mood and usually this meant his beatings were about to commence. But Runo's words were what ticked him off. How nice of them to care so much about their poor mother? Such obedient and loyal sons, coming to question the disgraced prisoner, trying to prove their worth to the queen.
"I thought you'd be pleased, prince Runo. Dare I ask, after all this time you have begun to miss your dear little brother? Is that why you want me to stand next to you all, prince Rudi? Have your cold hearts started melting because of my absence? If that is true then I am touched, truthfully." Hans knew he was playing a dangerous game, with a mock-innocent look on his face and he spoke his words in a confused tone.
"Choose your words carefully, ingrate. We will not be mocked by the likes of you." Rudi muttered in a dark tone, eyes shadowing up with anger and controlled rage.
"Likes of me? You forget, I may be a prisoner, a traitor or whatever you may wish to call me. But regretfully, I share the same blood as you so I'd say we aren't that different." Hans said in voice that was obviously meant to rile them up even further. And it did, as in the next second, Hans found himself flat on his back, his jaw sore from the fist he had earned from Rudi. The former prince could feel the raw pain shooting up, his already weakened body even more prone to these strikes, but instead of laying down, he just chuckled slowly and got back on his feet. The two princes just glared at their brother as he picked himself back up.
"One time. That's all the free hits you will get." The condescending smirk had disappeared off his face, his tone cut-throat serious.
"Oh is that so? Well you forget your place dog! We can do whatever we want with you! Just like we have been doing for these last three years! You can't stop us, you never could. Not even father would give a single shit if we told him that we accidently killed you while having a bit of fun, so you can stop with the bravado, mutt!" Runo growled with a menacing grin on his lips. But the instant his words left his lips, they immediately struck a cord in Hans' head as his eyes focused out and became distant.
'Three-Three years?...No...That can't be possible.'
And in an instant, like a snap going off in his brain. He was bombarded. He was overwhelmed as the events his mind had blocked out came at once. Events that had transpired over the last three years, they all came back at once to the front of his head. And the pain! Damn it hurt! His hands went up to grip his dirty locks, as his mouth hung open in disbelief of the sudden revelation.
His head felt like it was being ripped apart from the cruel and terrible memories. It hurt more then any physical torture he had ever suffered. And he just stood there, not moving an inch, not showing a single emotion. He just stood like a statue, feeling like reality and the universe was collapsing on his head. He thought he had felt pain before, but with each seconds, hundreds of more painful memories came back to him. His mind had become more clearer in an instant then it ever been since he had been thrown in prison.
"What the fuck is wrong with him now!?" Runo muttered in confusion as he watched the man go stiff as a corpse. The only signs of his life were the fact that his chest was still heaving and the small trembles and flickers in his hands and arms.
"I think we broke him finally, brother." Rudi proclaimed with a proud grin on his face, feeling as if he had accomplished something very rare. He slowly stepped forward to try and engage with the obviously delirious man, who was still looking at him with a very dead look in his eyes. "Boy!"
Runo's jaw was left unhinged the moment he saw his brother stretch his hand to perhaps push the prisoner, but in the blink of an eye, Hans grabbed his arm and twisted it at an angle where his arm wasn't supposed to go, and suddenly he heard Rudi's arm being twisted out of it's socket and his brother's loud yelp of pain filled the cell. Runo was left stunned in disbelief, almost incapable of moving as he then saw Hans literally bash his own head into Rudi's nose and the painful crunch of his broken nose reached Runo's ears.
"YOU FUCKING MAGGOT! YOU BROKE MY FUCKING NOSE! MY FUCKING ARM! RUNO!" Rudi was hysterical with the pain, his legs giving underneath him. His brother's call for help snapped Runo out of his dazed form. And he immediately pushed towards the prisoner with the intention of putting him back in his place but the moment he saw the animalistic look in Hans' eyes, he stopped dead in his tracks. He swallowed the lump in his throats when the disgraced Westergaard's eyes landed on him, but just as Hans took a step towards him, Runo instinctively took a step back.
The guards came barreling in from all the commotion and the moment they saw their prince wounded on the cell floor, they immediately readied their glaives and pointed them towards the prisoner. Runo's fear left him upon seeing almost a dozen guards standing behind him with weapons at the ready, and that fear gave way to anger and the want to get revenge for his brother.
"Guards! Seize him!" The guards didn't wait a second before advancing. And for all his fighting intelligence, Hans wasn't given a chance as he was outnumbered quite quickly as the guards punched him and struck him with the blunt ends of their weapons. Being in the dazed state Hans was still in, he had no idea what was happening around him. Not registering any of the physical pain he was feeling, his mind still trying to keep up with the mental onslaught he was suffering.
"Hold the bastard down! On his knees!" Runo came forward, his teeth baring as his nostrils flared with rage and anger as he looked upon the man being held down by at-least ten guards. He rolled up his sleeves as he cracked his knuckles. And the moment he came close to Hans, with all the strength he could muster in his bare knuckle, he threw a ferocious left hook to the prisoner that connected with his temple, blowing his head to one side and almost hitting the ground if not for the guards who immediately held him and kept him in place. Drools of spit and blood just oozing and dripping from Hans' mouth and nose, his left eyes darkening due to the fist he received from his other brother before.
Runo leaned down and gripped the former prince's hair with enough power to rip out a few strands as he looked him deep into his eyes before speaking his rawest feelings to the man before him.
"I'm gonna make you regret what you did, boy! I am going to make you wish you never had the rocks to talk back to us! For what you did to Rudi! For what you said to me! And most importantly, for making mother cry!"
"Can't we just say 'no' and be done with this matter?"
The royal family sat in their personal parlor in the palace, as Queen Elsa held the wedding invitation in her hand, once again confused and puzzled over what she was supposed to do in this situation. Meanwhile, Anna and Kristoff were just as troubled since nobody in Arrendelle trusted anything from the southern isles and none of them believed a single thing that came from said kingdom.
"Yeah Anna's right, Elsa...Can't you just write another letter and respectfully decline their invitation instead of having to go to that miserable place?" Kristoff asked the queen, agreeing with his wife's suggestion.
"I wish it were that easy, Kristoff. But invitations from other kingdoms, invitations such as this are the first signs of whether the two kingdoms are willing to pursue a healthy relation or not. Arrendelle is just recovering from what Hans did, and King Burgrid, his father, has been trying very hard to correct his mistakes." A confused look came on Anna's face as she heard Elsa's words.
"Hans' father? What do you mean?" She asked her older sister. Whereas Elsa's mind was stuck on only one man but she was trying to clear up her sister's confusion.
"You really should keep up with your kingdom's affairs, Anna. For the last 3 years, King Burgrid has allowed our ships to use their trade routes in the southern seas, and has also been sending us resources on an annual basis. And keeping all of that in mind, if I was to just reject this invitation, not only would I mess up our time of peace with the southern isles, but it would also portray our kingdom in a bad light in-front of all the other kingdoms who's nobility will be coming." Elsa knew in her heart that she had no other choice but to go, considering she was still a new queen, many outsiders were expecting to see her and judger her for themselves. And another part of her, the more selfish part, wanted to use this chance to somehow connect to the man she had been dreaming of for the past nights, which also reminded her that she needed to see him once more through her mother's mirror.
"Wait, hold up a second! Are you really saying you're going to go there, Elsa!? To that traitor's homeland?" Anna asked in an astonished tone, a look of disbelief on her lips. Elsa just let out a small sigh, tired of her sister insulting the man over and over again, knowing that it would do nothing, not for him or them.
"I don't know why you're so against this. Hans is in prison, Anna and I don't want to label an entire country as something bad just because of the actions of a single man. Besides, don't you think we can use this opportunity to erase the terrible rumors that have been spread by Weselton? We can show all of them that Arrendelle is not a land with cruel and cold people, or royals that are nothing more then magic weaving witches." Elsa knew her words struck true with Anna. She also knew that no matter how much she hated Hans, she loved Arrendelle a hundred times more and if it came to protecting her kingdom, Anna would do whatever it took.
Anna bit her lip in confusion, mentally weighing over all that her sister had said. She still felt shivers down her spine when she would think about how cruel and malicious Hans' actions were and just the thought of being in the same place as him made her skin crawl. But on the other hand, she couldn't just throw aside her sister's point as she was right as well. Elsa's reign had had a rocky start and they needed to show the world that they were wrong about Arrendelle and this could be a good opportunity for it. But if Elsa really was going, she couldn't let her go alone.
"Alright...I understand your point, Elsa." Anna's words brought a satisfied smile on Elsa's lips as she was glad her sister had managed to see past her hate for Hans and look towards the benefits for Arrendelle.
"I am happy you do, Anna." Elsa spoke in a soft voice. But Anna wasn't done, as she immediately grabbed Kristoff's hand and gripped it tight. She turned to the queen with a determined and motivated look on her lips.
"But if you're going, then I am not letting you go to that place alone. Kristoff and I will also be joining you on this adventure and whatever adversity we face. We face it together as a family!"
Well then, with that this chapter ends but there is much more to come. And I apologize for the lack of Helsa up until now but please bear with me, I am trying to set up as much tension as I can before we get our favorite couple in a scene together.
So if you liked the chapter then please tell me in the comments and reviews. And see you guys in the next chapter.