Hero's panic swept over Elsa like a wave, like the feeling of freezing from the inside out. It didn't last as long as Hero hoped - everyone expected her power, and everyone had their own means of coping with it.
The wave of panic did make Elsa more aware of the changes, though. Something must have happened within time. Seconds ago, Merlin had been across the clearing, and Hans had been nowhere to be seen. Now they stood side by side.
Elsa prepared to attack again, this time with fire.
Balance had meaning. It had worked for her, and she could see balance affecting Hans. That had been the mistake with Liesel: her extremism wasn't due to her magic. She'd balanced her magical powers better than any of them. Her lust for power was just that. A human desire to be in charge and to be respected. It wasn't a lack of control. It was completely intentional.
Elsa called for fire, and it came, barreling towards Hero with a roar. Hero blocked it, and the attacks from Merlin and Hans. They attacked, she shielded and took a step back. Over, and over. She was getting tired, Elsa could see her hands tremble a little more every attack she fended off.
They were winning.
Until Liesel got to the edge of the clearing and found a weapon.
It probably should have occured to Elsa to wonder where Gwen was, but she hadn't. All of them stopped their attacks as Gwen and Hero wrestled for something she had held, something shimmering and reflective.
The mirror. Someone was saying something too, and if Elsa squinted she could just barely catch a glimpse of Arthur on the other side of the glass, holding a sword but completely unable to do anything useful with it.
Arthur's sword wasn't the only blade brought to the field, nor was Gwen the only unexpected one to the fight. The blade could have been just a piece of the mirror, at least that's what Elsa thought it was when she first saw the metal reflecting the light. Then one of them screamed.
The fight came to a stop, both women splattered in blood and a boy standing above them, knife in hand. From the mirror, Arthur yelled Gwen's name, Gwen insisting she was fine, it wasn't her, she was fine.
The boy, Elsa didn't know him, stood perfectly still, tears spilling silently from his wide eyes. Anna took the bloody knife from him.
"Geric. It's okay. You're okay, we'll take care of this," she said. Kristoff joined her and took off his jacket and wrapped it around Geric.
Hero remained on the ground, cradling her side, and for once, Elsa could only see Liesel, a girl of about Anna's age, instead of the enemy she'd come to know. Hero sobbed, reaching for her dog as if the creature could help her, and then collapsed onto him.
"No," she whimpered. "No, no, no . NO! You were supposed to help me." She glared at Hans. "I didn't hurt anyone, not really, I just wanted to be seen. Forever."
Hans stood in shock, mirroring Geric's pose opposite to him. Then he knelt next to his sister and pulled her into his arms, ignoring the blood that soaked into his clothes and coated his hands in red. The dog nosed his way back in, whimpering along with his companion until everything returned to quiet.
"She's gone," Hans said. He hadn't yet let go, and he didn't look as though he wanted to.
Morgana came up behind him and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's for the best."
"Is it though? Was any of this for the best?"
ONE YEAR LATER
Elsa looked over the city of Arendelle. It was her first time back since the fight with Hero, and the city looked shockingly normal. People bounced back from changes in power quickly. They had to.
Anna had made transitions as easy as possible. She'd taken to her new role as Arendelle's queen better than Elsa ever could have. And soon, she'd have Kristoff as King by her side. That's why Elsa was back, of course — for the wedding.
Elsa had been wandering for a few months after the fight, searching for more lost stories of magic before settling into Camelot. With Arthur as king, bans on magic had been lifted, although with strict restrictions until people had gotten used to the idea. Morgana and Hans still weren't allowed back in with all the trauma they'd caused, but the two didn't seem to mind. During her months away, sometimes Elsa had come across them doing their own investigation into old magic practices. Morgana made that her new goal, to return magic to its former glory, instead of ruling Camelot. Hans was happy to comply.
As were their two adoptees. As Selia had a gift similar to Hans, she'd been drawn to him immediately. Although everyone was reluctant to leave a young witch in the hands of people who had previously been enemies, they eventually came to an agreement. As long as they checked in with Merlin a few times a year, Selia could stay with Morgana and Hans. And they of course had to check in with Arendelle too: Geric would be there as Queen Anna's ward, and the siblings couldn't stay separated for long.
As for Elsa, she was happy just to be herself at last, with no overwhelming power or responsibility she didn't want.
"Any second thoughts on moving to Camelot?"
Merlin joined her on the castle balcony, looking out at Arendelle.
"None." Elsa knew Merlin couldn't see what she could, all the ways Arendelle needed Anna at the moment, more than they'd needed Elsa. She would visit as often as she could, but it wasn't home anymore. Maybe it never was.
Merlin smiled at her. "Good. Because I'm not leaving you behind ever again." He wrapped an arm around her waist and Elsa snuggled into his embrace. Everything was good.
It's not the dramatic ending I had wanted, but I didn't think I was ever going to get around to writing it. So, here's the summarized version instead. Thought it was better than another incomplete work.