A/N: I've been sitting on this for almost 3 years, and it's probably been done to death, but here we go.
Updates will be irregular.
Content warnings: this will start out deceptively fluffy. As the fic progresses things will get a lot worse before they get better. But there will be justice. Triggers for reference to and/or scenes of rape and physical/psychological abuse.
For those that are here because you were pinged by my resurrection, Under a Twilight Sky hasn't been dropped - see chapter 1 of that fic for details.
Chapter 01 – Frozen Heart
Elsa watched from the trees as the redheaded girl dragged her frozen feet through the forest path. It was rare for people to come all the way out here, even more so in a blizzard.
She allowed the storm to rage, not holding back on account of this lost traveller. She turned to leave, not caring whether the stranger lived or died. The woman was trespassing in her domain after all; she deserved what was coming to her. In fact she should be grateful Elsa didn't just freeze her on the spot. She flexed her hand, seriously considering it. A dull thud drew her back from her dark thoughts. The traveller had collapsed, grasping at a tree before falling into the powder below.
Elsa waited. When the girl didn't stir she tentatively took light steps over to her. Using her heeled foot, Elsa nudged the girl over. Definitely unconscious. Likely exhaustion. She didn't know what she had expected to see; a trap, a twisted body, a monster? No, that was her.
Elsa tried to remember the last time she had seen a woman up close, let alone having the time to examine them so delicately. This girl was pretty; soft features, fiery red hair peeking out from under that hood, a dusting of freckles across her flushed cheeks. Elsa's eyes trailed down her, taking in every detail. The cloak wasn't thick but it was finely made. She wasn't a peasant, and if she was she had surely stolen this.
With gritted teeth, Elsa rose to her feet and turned away. It was too late for the girl. She'd die out here. There was little point in lingering, examining, wishing...
She turned back to face the redhead. Elsa had never saved or protected life. She had taken and destroyed it as she pleased. If Arendelle trespassed on her mountain she ensured the blizzards would freeze them and any lucky enough to survive that would be dealt with personally.
...and yet here she was, contemplating the impossible.
Kill her.
She knew she should finish it here. She knew if she gave in to this curiosity... this desire for company it would only bring her weakness.
I could release her. She wouldn't need to know who it was who had saved her.
I could keep her. Elsa was more than capable of making a cell. All of the things she could make this woman do; make her feel. But that would cause more problems than it would be worth. Her home was not hospitable, and keeping a servant fed, warm and contained would be a chore in itself.
Elsa hadn't even realised in her deliberation that the storm had faded. She looked around in disdain. She had grown soft. Boredom, she put it down to. She had grown bored. There was no challenge in killing defenceless peasants. No one cared for them. Certainly not the King. The King might care for a noble girl though. Elsa pondered the thought, idly considering again for a moment that sending her back to Arendelle dead might cause upset. She dismissed it almost immediately. No. He wouldn't care for anyone.
She didn't know why she was still debating it. She had made her decision the moment she turned back to face the girl. Using a sheet of ice, Elsa raised the unconscious girl from the snow and moved her from the trail. She knew of a cave nearby which would suit her needs. Sheltered from the elements and, she hoped, warm enough to keep the foolish girl alive until morning.
"Go home, and never return."
"Go home, and never return," the words were like whispers on the wind.
When Anna had awoken in the cave she had to rack her brain to work out how she had gotten there. As much as she had tried she had no memory of resting up, or making a fire. Someone had helped her, but there was no one this far up the mountains. The Snow Queen simply did not allow people to reside in her domain. But that would mean… She pushed the thoughts from her mind. She couldn't consider that right now. She needed to focus on the objective.
The biting cold wind only grew stronger as Anna numbly moved one foot in front of the other. Deep snow slowed every step. She paused to massage some feeling into her freezing legs. People at home always spoke of the elation and accomplishment that followed succeeding in great feats such as rowing across a vicious river, or walking a great distance... or climbing a frozen mountain. Anna felt none of those feelings. It was undoubtedly her own fault. She hadn't trained for this. The entire journey had been reckless, spontaneous at best.
Wiping the sweat from her brow, she looked up at her goal: a magnificent castle made from ice shimmering in the distance. Her breath caught and for a brief moment she forgot the cold. It had taken her days to just make it this far but for the first time she finally felt some progress. Just over the ridge was her destination. Sure, the promise of a hot bath and warm meal would not be on the menu, but Anna prayed the infamous Snow Queen would grant her what she wished.
"As if she will do what I wish," Anna murmured under her breath as she pressed on one step at a step.
The hope Anna carried was small at best. She had heard the stories of the monster that lived in the mountains: the vile and horrible woman who would kill any who trespassed upon the mountain. By some unwritten agreement the Snow Queen resided here and remained here. Arendelle was safe providing its people stayed away. It was the way it had been since Anna could remember. Yet here Anna was, in the lion's den ready to beg for help. So many had come here with pitchforks and fire; ready to burn this castle down. The reward for doing so was beyond what any peasant or mercenary could earn. And here Anna was with no weapons, save from a small dagger, and she doubted that would do her much good. She'd be at the monster's mercy. It was too late to turn back now though, she had already come so far. The thought of returning to her life as it was, was too much to bear. It was enough to give her the resolve to press onward.
Step. Step. Step. Anna repeated in her mind, body ready to collapse with exhaustion. She didn't look up again. Her entire focus was on her feet. She pushed through the wind, the cold, her burning muscles, her numb limbs, and within some long hours she fell to her knees at the icy steps.
"I actually made it," she rasped, holding her chest tight. The air was too thin. It took a good few minutes to overcome the wave of light-headedness.
With a gloved hand, Anna held onto the rails and pulled herself up to her shaky feet. Climbing the stairs may have been the hardest challenge of the entire journey. It wasn't physical exhaustion that made her legs heavy. Anxiousness and apprehension warred with adrenaline.
Slowly and steadily, she made her way to the grand doors and knocked. The door creaked open.
"H - hello?" she called. The sound echoed throughout the open reception room.
Tentatively Anna entered. All around her the ice shone in the daylight. She absently wondered how the Snow Queen made the room so bright with a lack of any obvious windows. There were no torches and Anna wasn't even sure fire would stay lit at this temperature. She wasn't even sure how she was still alive in this bitter cold.
Below her feet the ice was surprisingly easy to walk across. Her hand trailed along the banister as she ascended the staircase and ventured upward.
Perhaps the Snow Queen is asleep. Do monsters even need to sleep? Anna wondered. She wouldn't want to wake the monster. Anna knew all too well from personal experience that disturbing one from the cradle of sleep would not improve their mood. And she would need the Snow Queen to be in the most forgiving and best mood possible if she was to grant her wish.
Anna was drawn through the halls as if pulled by an invisible string. It was fascinating to view the palace and compare it to her own home. The architecture was remarkably similar to Castle Arendelle, and for what it lacked in ornaments and furniture it was compensated by stunning frozen fractals across the walls. They varied between corridors, as if changing theme. Anna was in awe of it all.
She stumbled across a larger door than the others. Curiosity got the better of her and she tentatively brushed her hand across the intricate designs etched into the ice. There was no handle. She hadn't realised it sooner but none of the doors in the castle had handles. As she put more pressure on her hand the door gave way under the weight and slid open across the ice.
"You may enter," a voice summoned from within. Anna jumped in fright. This was happening.
She'd probably die in the next few minutes.
Bracing herself, Anna stepped into the large throne room. The Snow Queen waited at the far end upon a throne of ice. It wasn't the extravagant room that caught Anna's attention, though it was spectacular for a Queen who, Anna assumed, did not receive guests. Her eyes were solely locked upon the blue ones opposite her. Human eyes; cold yet alive. She was not a monster at all, merely a girl; a girl wearing nothing but a shimmering dress. How is she not frozen?
"I thought it was respectful to bow to a queen."
Anna was so enraptured by her voice that it took her a moment to process the words. She knew instantly that she had heard that voice before, but she did not have time to linger on it. Quickly and without grace, she fell to one knee as the knights would for her father.
"F - forgive me -"
"Did I say you could speak?" the Snow Queen interrupted. Anna remained silent as the woman before her rose to her feet. She kept her eyes on the floor, not daring to test her patience. Will she kill me before even letting me speak?
The Snow Queen moved around her like a predator stalking its prey. Anna held her breath, waiting for the moment the woman would stab her in the back. She had been ready to die as soon as she set out on this journey, perhaps months before. But now death was looming before her she felt her heart quicken. The fear was all-consuming.
"The fact you know me means you know very well that you have trespassed," the Snow Queen hummed, still examining her. Anna remained silent, unsure if it was a question or a statement.
She wished she could read the woman's mind. The silence was deafening.
"Tell me why," she finally invited her to speak. Anna remained on her knee but she did look up to meet the Snow Queen's gaze. Her breath caught as they locked eyes again. The disbelief that she was a young woman, barely older than Anna was interrupting all thought.
"Speak," the Snow Queen snapped impatiently. Anna was jolted back to reality.
"W - well Your M - Majesty," she stuttered and stumbled over her words. "I've heard you can freeze a person's heart," she hesitated as she saw the queen's expression grow intense. "I've heard that a person no longer feels anything. All emotions are gone. Is this true?" It took all of Anna's courage to ask the question.
The Snow Queen stood in contemplation for so long Anna was sure she had crossed a line already.
"…Yes. I can do that," she replied, eyes narrowing. "But I am not a mercenary for hire. I do not take requests. I will not get caught up in foolish people's quests for petty revenge," her words were almost as cold as the room.
Anna tried to swallow the lump in her throat but her dry mouth made it impossible. "I - I'm not asking for revenge," she said in a small voice. Anna took several deep breaths to summon up the courage to continue. She knew she had to be sure. Once she asked for what she desired it would set events into motion. There would be no return.
"I… I want you to freeze my heart."