A/N: Trigger warning: there's a scene about halfway through that describes some domestic abuse.

The Depths

Knock knock knock-knock knock

Anna blustered merrily through the door with a brown paper envelope held casually in her left hand. "Morning sourpuss," she said with a warm smile.

Elsa's jaw clenched. She interlocked her fingers in a tight knot which she placed on top of the petition she had been reading on her tidy desk. After a sigh to compose herself, she moderated her response to, "how about you go back out that door and try that all again from the beginning, Anna?" Her smile was tense.

Anna sighed sympathetically as she crossed the distance from the door to the desk. She sat on the side of the desk, partially covering the petition with her bottom. Elsa cringed slightly, then sat back in irritation.

"You're spending an awful lot of time up here lately," Anna said flatly.

"No I'm not," Elsa replied dismissively. Yes I am, she thought.

Anna gestured towards the latticed window. "Y'know, now that you're caught up on things and all, why don't you take a little time to yourself? You've been running like mad for months. And enough people have tried to kill you that I think a little recharge time is justified. You haven't been up to your ice castle since taking Heinrick up to see the place, and I'm not sure that really qualifies as recharge time." She searched Elsa's face to see how the argument was going. "I'm pretty sure I could sell that to your privy council."

Elsa's eyes wandered to the window. "I'm fine," she said. "The kingdom has been missing me for too long. I can't ... and I don't need to, anyway."

"Mmmmm," Anna mused as she put two fingers to her chin. "Is that why you're spending so much time up here?" Elsa didn't respond. "And is that why you're spending more time on the rear balconies instead of the ones facing the town?"

"I'm not!"

"And is that why you're barely showing up for meals, and looking like you're half there in meetings?"

Elsa hung her head.

"C'mon Elsa. I've noticed. The privy council has noticed." She waved her hand dramatically. "Kristoff has noticed. I think even Sven has noticed!" She rolled her eyes. "The only one who hasn't noticed is Olaf."

Elsa's shoulders drooped. "Anna, I can't -"

Anna rounded the desk and knelt, putting a hand on Elsa's thigh. "An extra week isn't going to bring Arendelle to a halt, Sis," she said gently as she looked up into Elsa's cerulean eyes. "Nothing blew up while you were in Falster." Elsa eyed her in surrender. "Here, this is for you," Anna said, handing over the brown paper envelope. "Special delivery. Your guys just got in."

Elsa glanced at it and her heart soared as soon as she recognized the handwriting. "Ambrelle!" she exclaimed. She snatched up her silver letter opener and deftly sliced it open. Anna stood and watched in delight as Elsa read it with a beaming face.

Dear Queen Elsa,

Our ocean voyage went without a hitch. My betrothed and I agreed on a sign he could use to tell me when it was safe to sneak off the ship and then back on. He's so kind!

Elsa's jaw dropped.

He acts laid-back but he has a mischievous streak. Don't worry - we're being careful. We're both quiet, but when we have talked, it turns out that we have a lot in common. When we reached Delavia, we agreed quickly that we would both prefer to camp outside the towns and travel along uncharted paths. We've only stopped in towns occasionally to buy those things we can't get in the wild. He doesn't know the plants and animals here, so I finally feel like I can be of use instead of just being a kept woman. He learns quickly.

It is so nice to be back in Delavia! The forest here is so beautiful: so green and so alive! I feel like I am being held in its arms all the time. The trees are tall and bushy and are a paler green than in Arendelle. You will have to come visit someday.

We have reached the area of Förhoppning. From here on we will be traveling into the interior along waterways where there are only native villages, so I introduced my three escorts to Bubble yesterday. My betrothed acted laid-back but I think he would do that if the sky was falling. We told Mr. Iversson and Mr. Holm that we will travel alone from here on since Bubble can only carry two of us. So I've sent this letter back with them.

Bubble likes my betrothed and that means the world to me. I feel safe around him, like I do with Johan. They are both very capable and self-assured, and keenly observant. The big difference is that when Johan gets around other people, he puts on his angry face. I know it's just a face, though. The reasons for it are complicated. Bo somehow looks relaxed no matter what is happening. Maybe Johan could learn something from him. I hope Johan is okay. His people are gone. I hope he isn't angry all the time now. If he is, I hope I can help him. He's helped me so much.

That's all I can think of to say. Please tell Olaf I said "hello," and Sven, and of course Princess Anna and Baron Kristoff, and Kai and Gerda, and everyone else. I wish you could all be here.

Duchess Ambrelle of Arendelle Deep

P.S.: I can't believe I can put that at the bottom of a letter! Thank you again!

Elsa grinned ear to ear as she contemplated the letter. It only figured that Ambrelle would want Olaf and Sven greeted before anyone else. It reflected her childlike innocence. Or was it childlike detachment? With all that the girl had been through, Elsa was, as ever, surprised that she had recovered so much. Or perhaps that is the 'face' Ambrelle puts on, she wondered. There was also a fair share of contradiction. On the one hand she was obviously thrilled to be back in Delavia, but yet she was still thrilled to use her Arendelle title. And then there was the obvious connection she had made with Bo Nyberg. Calling him 'my betrothed?!' Elsa hadn't seen that coming. But she wasn't used to the way Ambrelle had lived before they had met in Crescent Bay. Elsa wondered for a moment how it would play out when she found Johan. She pursed her lips. It probably wouldn't change anything. It was just odd. Elsa wondered what Bo made of all this. She expected a report from the two men who had just returned, but she wished she had a letter from Bo also.

When Elsa looked back up, Anna was still standing there with a satisfied smile. "Thank you," Elsa said.

"Sure thing. There's more mail downstairs but I thought you'd want this one."

"Here." Elsa offered the letter. "You'll enjoy it too."

"You mean it?"

"Of course!"

"Thanks!" Anna took it and walked slowly towards the window. She gasped aloud. "She's sneaking off the ship?!"

"I know!" said Elsa as she shook her head with a grin. "She can't stay away from the water!"

After another few moments of quiet reading, Anna said, "huh. Looks like Ambrelle and Bo are making quite a connection. I mean, 'betrothed?' Wow. I hope there aren't fireworks when Bo and Johan meet."

Elsa frowned. She couldn't picture Bo Nyberg picking a fight unless it was to protect someone. It all depended on Johan, and, in a way, on Ambrelle. Hopefully she would be sensitive enough to recognize the potential point of conflict.

Elsa looked at the door which Anna had neglected to shut. The letter from Ambrelle had warmed her to the world somewhat, but she still wasn't thrilled about meeting with anyone she didn't need to. Maybe she could put off meeting with the two men until tomorrow...

"Come on, Elsa, you can do it," she heard Anna encourage softly.

She turned her eyes to her sister. Anna was looking over the top of the letter with obvious concern.

"It ..." Elsa tucked her hands along her sides. "Maybe tomorrow," she said distantly.

Again Anna closed the distance, knelt at her side, and put a hand on her thigh. "Oh, Elsa, Elsa, what's wrong? I thought for a while that maybe you were missing Heinrick while he's touring Arendelle, but you've been like this ever since coming home. I'm afraid you're going to lock yourself away from the world again."

Elsa glanced down at Anna and then looked away with a dejected sigh. She untucked her hands and stared at them where they lay in her lap. "Every time I use my powers something goes terribly wrong," she said barely audibly.

Anna pursed her lips and frowned in frustration. "You mean like when you stopped a war? Or when you saved a city? Or when you saved Princess Yasmina from being killed?"

Elsa glanced down briefly again. "I killed that boy," she whispered. "Horribly. I didn't even know his name. And I made Princess Yasmina a murderer." She shook her head slightly as her open mouth searched for words. "I see him in my dreams, Anna. I see him when I'm awake - even when I'm very busy, that sight just bursts into my mind and I can't think." A tear was beginning to make its way down each side of her face.

From her kneeling position Anna wrapped Elsa in a hug. "Oh, Elsa, I'm so, so sorry," she said. "Would it help to remind yourself what would have happened if you hadn't acted?"

"But it didn't have to happen that way," Elsa stammered through rolling tears. "If I had better control; if I knew what I was doing, if -"

"You're doing the best you can."

"It's not good enough!" Elsa shouted. Anna sat back and Elsa covered her face with her hands. "Don't you see? It's not good enough..." She abruptly sprang to her feet and began to pace the floor. "I know now that it's not possible to have these powers separated from me -" Her voice was starting to sound frantic.

"Elsa -"

"- But I'm dangerous. Dangerous! I'm getting more dangerous every day! Love isn't thawing anymore, Anna, and -" she ran her hands over her hair and then put pressed her fingers on her temples as she paced "- I use my powers without taking time to think, and it's killing people! It's killing children!"

Anna stopped Elsa's pacing by embracing her from behind. "It's going to be okay, Elsa. No one is asking you to use your powers -"

"No, you're wrong," Elsa strained against the hug. "Sooner or later, that's what everyone expects." When she couldn't pull away, she sank slowly to her knees, taking Anna with her. "I'm so afraid, Anna," her voice waivered. "I'm going to freeze the world -"

"Agh! Elsa, that was some butterfly's weird vision -"

"It's coming - I can see it - why am I the only one who can see it -"

"Elsa Marie Árnadalr, STOP IT!" Anna was so close to Elsa's ear that Elsa cringed and ducked away, shuddering. "You need to fight this, Elsa! At the rate you're going, you're going to make it happen just by fearing that it will! Come. On. Elsa. Fight!" Anna held Elsa as she cried. In fact, she was the one holding Elsa up.

Gradually, Elsa got herself back under control. She looked down at her shaking hands. "I can't use my powers in times of fear," she stammered quietly. "Which means I can't use them again."

"Oh, Elsa..." Anna let go and watched warily as Elsa slowly returned to her feet. Elsa's face conveyed utter resignation.

"I'm going to go to my office and look over the rest of my mail, and then I'll meet with the two men in my receiving room." She walked numbly through the open door.

When she entered her office, she spotted a wrapped package sitting on her desk. She recognized it immediately, and her heart sank even lower. It was spherical, about a foot tall. "Oh, no," she whispered. She stood staring at it. She didn't want to know. Not today. But tomorrow will be no better. She took a deep shuddering breath and forced her feet to move. She stood disbelievingly before the ball for a moment and then forced herself to take up the attached note.

Queen Elsa -

I regret to inform you that my daughter Elisabeth has passed on. She took another fever, as she was prone to do, and couldn't overcome it.

I know you said you are not a healer. Whether that is true or not, I cannot judge. I thank you for taking your time to notice my precious daughter. I treasured each day of extra time I had with her.

She was adamant that I send this to you. She said she didn't know why, but she knew you needed it back.

Your servant,

Serrah

Elsa crumpled to the floor. She clutched the letter to her chest and sobbed.

The Mittergaard contingent is making inexplicably good time, Enceladus informed her wryly. The fact that an air elemental is aboard is coincidental, I'm sure.

Sarcasm. In spite of that fact that Elsa was in the middle of a general council meeting, the amused grin snuck out before she could catch it.

They should arrive this afternoon.

"You find something amusing, Your Majesty?"

She cleared her throat. "Er, no, excuse me, Lord Lamond. Please continue."

And I believe I detect a hint of jasmine.

Elsa gritted her teeth to suppress her laughter. She straightened her back and restored her reddened face to professionalism. Thank you, Enceladus.

It was no longer possible for a ship to sneak up on Arendelle. Enceladus' eyesight was too good. Elsa had become accustomed to knowing who was coming before anyone else. She hadn't told anyone about this ability except Heinrick and Anna, who were sworn to secrecy. She especially didn't want High Admiral Naismith to know. It would insult his pride too much. And there would always be a need for his scout and spy networks for times when Enceladus or she were unavailable, if for no other reason. Backup plans were always useful.

An extraordinarily dark-skinned man is among them.

Mwebe! Well that made sense. They hadn't discussed when he should come but it was a week from September now and the trip to the far north would require significant preparation. Plus, he had some climate adjustment to make.

The council meeting stretched on and on and Elsa fought to pay attention. That was a problem with having such capable people at her side. Her 100% attention wasn't required like it used to be. But it was getting to be a bad habit.

The interminable meeting finally adjourned. As Elsa left the council chamber with Anna, Kristoff, and Heinrick, she said under her breath, "the Mittergaard ships are almost here. And in addition to Princess Yasmina, Mwebe Otongo is on board."

"Oh. Wow!" Anna remarked.

"He's the African, right?" Kristoff asked.

"Uh-huh" Anna replied. "I bet you and he can exchange some interesting stories."

"You really think he wants to know about ice harvesting and reindeer?"

"Give the guy a chance," said Anna. "He's a naturalist. I'm sure his interests will surprise you! And if things get boring, put an ice cube down his back."

"That sounds like something you would do," Kristoff replied.

Elsa smiled. Now might be a great time to -

No. Her smile withered. That time was over. She felt the urge to tuck her arms along her sides, but there were people about. She maintained her professional dignity - settling for only gripping her hands into fists.

Several hours later they were all assembled on the dock, including Olaf and Kai, as the Cynosure bumped against the moorings. The scent of jasmine rolled off the deck. Elsa stood wearing her turquoise ice dress, her platinum blond hair in its customary braid over her left shoulder, and her hands folded in front of her. She had elected to wear her mother's crown today. Aboard the Cynosure, Princess Yasmina wore a cranberry red kimono with gold edging and embroidery. Its sleeves obscured her arms down to the fingertips. Her face was powdered whiter than Elsa's. She wore her elaborate crown atop her perfectly coiffed black hair. The warm smile on her face almost looked out of place.

"Whoa," Anna said under her breath.

"Don't stare," Elsa whispered through the side of her mouth.

"The Cynosure has never smelled so good," Heinrick mumbled.

To Yasmina's left stood Mwebe, although not very much of him was visible. The lapels of his olive-green suit peeked from below a thick overcoat with upturned collar and he wore a warm woolen muff atop his head. His face however showed the same enthusiastic warmth Elsa had seen in Falster, and his smile gleamed.

The longshoremen threw ropes fore and aft, and not long after the gangplank was lowered and secured. First ashore were a number of the Shinyo soldiers in their auburn armored regalia and helmets. They stood at attention as Princess Yasmina glided down the gangplank. Her glide continued until she had reached her hosts.

"Your Highness!" Elsa said with a lengthy curtsy. "Welcome to Arendelle." Her eye sparkled. "I perceive you had favorable winds." She wrestled to keep a straight face as she said it.

Princess Yasmina's eyes went wide. Had it been anyone else who had said it, it would have been a completely innocent statement, but Elsa could tell Yasmina had caught the implication right away. The woman was fighting a blush and a grin. After a moment's awkward hesitation, she said in her high-pitched lilting accent, "yes, thank you, Queen Elsa." Then after a glance to see if there was anyone else close enough to hear, she allowed herself a small giddy grin as she whispered, "I never do that before!" Her eyes were twinkling with the thrill. Elsa returned a warm smile. Then Yasmina looked up and around, taking in the entire vista of the town and the two opposing cliffs. "Beautiful," she said.

"Thank you," Elsa replied. "I look forward to showing you around. Now may I introduce to you my sister, Princess Anna, and her husband, Kristoff Bjorgman, Baron of the Living Rock. And you have already met Prince Heinrick of Falster who is here acting as my chief diplomat." They bowed/curtsied as they were introduced. "And this is -"

"HI! I'm Olaf!" His twiggy arms were held out wide. "And I like warm hugs!"

"This is Olaf," Elsa finished with a smile. "He was one of my first ice creations." When she looked back at the Princess, she saw that her dark eyes were wide, and her mouth stuck open in a little "O".

"Like Lotus?" she said at last.

"Yes. Why he talks and Lotus doesn't, I can't say."

Yasmina tore her eyes from the snowman and looked again at Elsa and her companions. "I apologize," she said. "I am pleased to meet you." She executed a slow perfect curtsy.

"As am I." Mwebe's voice carried over the group. He had walked up to stand slightly behind and to Yasmina's left. He removed his hat, revealing his closely shorn head, and executed a deep bow."

To Heinrick, Anna, and Kristoff, Elsa said, "This is Mwebe Otongo - a distinguished naturalist from Corromo, Africa. He is here to participate in the expedition to view the comet two months from now."

"The chance of a lifetime!" Mwebe said, grinning enthusiastically.

"Are you ready to come to the castle?" Elsa asked. At their nods, she gestured to Kai. This is our chief butler Kai. Should you need anything -"

"Anything at all," he interrupted with a bow and a flourish.

"- Just let him know."

They mounted the stairs as a group, with Shinyo soldiers before and behind, and began their walk across the causeway to the castle.

Anna started in immediately. "I've only ever heard of the Shinyo Empire," she said. "What is it like?"

The Princess' brow creased slightly. "I think I do not know," she answered. When Anna looked back with confusion, she said, "I know how to be Princess. Now I travel and I see ... so much more than King, Queen, Princess. But it is all I know in Shinyo. I never meet people."

Fascinating, thought Elsa.

"Our castle in Shinyo is very big. Big and flat." She stretched her hands horizontally and then vertically. "We have high walls, but buildings are not high. And there are many of them in the castle." She looked around at the tall cliffs, then gestured towards them. "We have mountains, but not like this."

She's making hand motions, Elsa realized. I wonder what else has changed?

"Does it flood here?" Mwebe asked, looking up the gorge.

"It never has," Elsa replied.

He nodded firmly. "If time permits, I'd like to travel to the end of this gorge."

"It ends at a waterfall," Heinrick informed him.

"All the better! Perhaps I can follow it to its source, if it's not too far."

"Have we ever done that?" Anna asked Kristoff.

"No."

"Perhaps after our expedition," Elsa suggested. "It's a long way, and we don't need two expeditions."

"Have you ever done that?" Anna asked with surprise.

"In a manner of speaking," Elsa replied coyly.

"What is your interest in it?" Heinrick asked.

"Oh - general scientific curiosity." His eyes swept the landscape. "The terrain here is beautiful. Majestic. Unlike any I have seen before. I would like to study it more closely." He trailed his hand along the stone side wall of the causeway as he spoke. Then he abruptly looked down at it, intrigued. "This stone is not from anywhere around here, is it?"

"Huh? How would we know?" Anna asked. She looked at Elsa, who shrugged.

"If I'm not mistaken, it was quarried in northwest Russavia," said Kai matter-of-factly.

"Ryu-shya-u-ya!" Yasmina said with some surprise. "We know it in Shinyo."

"Ah, Russavia," Mwebe said. "A noble place, indeed!"

"The Árnadalr royal family has old connections to that in Russavia," Kai continued.

"How do you know that?" Anna asked.

"Old records. I can show them to you, if you'd like."

"Oh, no, nope. No thanks. I believe you, Kai."

"Perhaps someday I will visit," Said Mwebe with determination.

They continued their chatter through the palace courtyard and were about to enter the castle when Elsa noticed that Yasmina had lingered behind. She was standing at the base of the terrace steps looking east, up the gorge. Elsa stepped back down to her. "What is it?" she asked.

"It is beautiful," Yasmina said once again. "And the air move ..." She cupped her hands in a praying posture. "I like how it move in the valley. I feel it."

The two shared a smile. Between Yasmina and Mwebe, it was shaping up to be a very entertaining and informative visit.

- Ting -

Elsa sat bolt-upright in bed with a gasp. Ambrelle's ring had been broken.

What did that mean?

What did that mean!?

What do I do?

I'll - NO! I cannot use my powers!

Elsa sprang from her bed and began to pace. Of course she had planned to use her powers when she gave Ambrelle the ring. There was no other way. She stopped in front of her window and leaned upon the sill, resting her forehead against the glass as she looked down at her hands. Please, she prayed silently. Then she closed her eyes. Enceladus - Ambrelle needs your help. Elsa had never tried creating a gateway somewhere besides where she was, but it was time to try. She focused carefully. She could picture the ice palace in her mind. Her brow knitted in determination as she let her power flow. Did it work, Enceladus?

Yes, Mother.

Elsa's eyes came open and she let out her breath in relief. Please let me know when you have found her.

I have found her. Give me a moment please.

Enceladus was not as free with his feelings as Lotus was, but Elsa caught the unmistakable edge of anger in his last message. Not anger at her, but at whatever situation he had come upon. She walked back from the window and sat on the edge of her bed nervously. She bit at her thumbnail. Put her hand back in her lap when she noticed. Then bit some more. Then she rose and left her room, walking swiftly to Anna and Kristoff's suite. She knocked. Knocked again. "Anna? It's me."

"MmmmmmmmwElsa.. Itsa middla the night..."

"Anna ... I'm sorry. Ambrelle's ring has been broken."

After a moment of bumbling noise, Anna opened the door and slipped out. "What does that mean?" she said in a groggy hushed voice.

"It means she's in trouble."

"Trouble. Trouble like Prince Hans trouble, or like Ken trouble?"

"I don't know!" Elsa wasn't doing a good job of keeping her voice hushed.

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know! I sent Enceladus for her."

"Oh. Whoa. You can do that?"

"It's the first time I've tried. He says he found her but that's all I -"

Please bring us to the castle. And call the doctor.

Elsa squeaked and covered her mouth with her hands. "Oh, Anna - she's hurt!" She turned and ran for the stairs with Anna on her heels. After two second's thought, she called back, "please get the doctor and bring him to the courtyard."

"You got it!"

Elsa passed several sets of guards as she ran. "Come with me!" she called as she passed. When they arrived at the entryway, she shouted, "open the doors!" The group raced onto the terrace where she stopped abruptly, her hands already moving through the air as she directed her power into the formation of the great snowflake. It lit up the town - for a moment - then it was gone - smashed into a dizzying blizzard of shards that fell about them. Somewhere in that dazzling display was the dragon. The sky returned to darkness and Elsa searched it, trying to spot Enceladus. Then she felt the blustering wind as the great dragon emerged into the light of the castle gas lamps. He landed on one foot in the courtyard and grabbed onto the castle spire and front rampart with his wing talons for stability. He gently lowered Ambrelle onto the cobblestones from his other foot. Elsa raced down the terrace steps and slid to a halt on her knees next to Ambrelle. She could feel the fabric of her night dress tearing but she didn't care. She could hear the girl crying. At least she was conscious. She leaned over Ambrelle to shield her from the wind as Enceladus launched away. Then she got her first good look.

Ambrelle's lip was split, her mouth bloody, and her right eye was starting to swell shut. Her clothes appeared intact, which was peculiar, but Elsa noted that she was holding her left hand against her side. The ring was long gone, and those fingers were swelling. Without even thinking about it, Elsa's hands filled with snow which she then clapped around Ambrelle's injured hand. "Oh, Ambrelle! Ambrelle!" she said breathlessly. "You'll be okay! We'll get you fixed up!"

"Oh!" Elsa heard the doctor cry aloud as he slipped and fell just to her left. "Your Majesty, would you clear this ice?"

She glanced around. Almost the entire courtyard was iced over and the air was cold. "I'm so sorry!" she exclaimed. It was gone in an instant.

Anna knelt on Ambrelle's far side. "Ambrelle!" Anna said in shock. "What happened?"

"Johan must have broken my ring," Ambrelle gasped out between sobs. "He got so angry - I'm so sorry..."

Elsa sat back and stared, her heart a whirl of emotions. Johan had done this? Johan? And Ambrelle was apologizing? Her hands balled into fists as the air again took on an unnatural chill. How dare he!?

"Elsa..?" Anna said.

"Oh, Your Majesty, no, please, please understand - he's been through so much - please don't be angry -"

Whatever else Ambrelle was saying, Elsa didn't hear it. She pushed away and stood, noting passively the rips in her night dress and her scuffed bleeding knees underneath. Enceladus.

Yes Mother.

I need to get out of here.

A moment later a great splash sent water spraying over the wall and the chapel from the bay beyond. Then a long glassy wing reached over the chapel and touched down at Elsa's feet.

"Elsa!" Anna called. "Where are you going?"

"I don't know," Elsa called back through clenched teeth. She walked the wing into the darkness.

Above the frozen north, Elsa allowed her anger to boil over. How dare he? How DARE he? She hadn't heard details of the story yet, but there was no conceivable scenario that justified what she had seen. It would be trivial to have Enceladus take her back to where he had picked up Ambrelle and she would tear Johan to pieces. The only thing preventing her was Ambrelle's plea.

From her perch atop Enceladus' back, she thrust out her arms and let the power radiate through her, unrestrained. The snow-covered ground beneath them ruptured and burst upward in a tangle of icy spires, twenty feet across at the base, soon reaching their elevation in the sky. Enceladus pumped his wings to stay above them.

To pieces!

Each of the spires burst forth with its own set of massive spikes, resulting in a thicket of interwoven urchins of ice. From above it looked like a dense, impassable forest frozen in time.

TO PIECES!

There was a sudden click in the back of her mind.

What am I doing? She dropped her arms.

It was so easy.

So easy to coax the monster from her.

She tucked her arms along her sides as she regarded with sudden dismay her monument to her anger. It stretched as far as the eye could see. In every direction. And it had been effortless.

Elsa felt physically ill. With but a thought, it all collapsed inwardly into a billowing avalanche of snow. She wrapped her arms around herself. "Enceladus, please take me to the North Mountain," she said under her breath.

Yes, Mother.

Elsa pushed open the crystalline double-doors that led onto the balcony of the ice palace. The sun had just crested the eastern horizon, painting the tips of the snow-capped mountains in a glowing pink and turning the valleys between into unsearchable chasms. She walked to the railing and leaned upon it. She slowly scanned the view from east, to south, to west, drinking in the chilly silent beauty. A light wind whisked past her ears, ruffling her hair slightly.

It wasn't fair. It wasn't fair for her to be here, having left her responsibilities and her guests to sort out the situation in her absence. She just hadn't trusted herself. She took a long deep breath.

Lotus alighted on the railing to her left. The morning sun glistened off his beak and wing and tail feathers. Anna says everything is fine, take some time off, but don't stay away too long, he reported. And Princess Yasmina is convinced you're a god.

Elsa rolled her eyes. "How is Ambrelle?" she asked.

She is improving. She has a black eye, and the doctor says two of her fingers are likely broken, but they should heal well.

Elsa stomach lurched. She shook her head in disgust. Disgust at Johan and disgust at herself for her equally repulsive display of anger just a few hours ago. I pray no one was on that ice sheet. She swallowed hard. "When I sent an escort with her, I never would have imagined that she might need to be protected from Johan," she confessed to Lotus dismally. "The red flag was there in her letter, I just didn't see it." She clucked at herself as she looked at the sky. "I shudder to think how far he might have gone if Enceladus hadn't interceded." She gripped her hands into fists. "I've had a pity-party long enough," she said. She pushed away from the railing and walked purposefully back into the castle. Enceladus, please take me home.

Yes, Mother.

A/N: I tried to find out if the sisters had an official last name, and "Árnadalr" is what I found. Apologies if it's not canon.

Also, I've recently been introduced to "Five Star Stories." Take a look at Ladios Sopp and tell me I'm crazy. :)