Chapter 02 – The Deal
Elsa blinked. Surely she had misheard.
"I want you to freeze my heart," the redhead repeated with more conviction.
Elsa took her seat back on her throne as she processed what she was requesting. She had been only mildly surprised to see the girl continuing her foolish journey up the mountain after saving her life the previous night.
I should have killed her then. I should kill her now. But something about that familiar darkness in her guest's eyes intrigued her. She didn't remember ever having a female visitor. Everything about her was alluring; from the physical aspects like her face and voice to the way she handled herself in Elsa's presence. She wasn't like those arrogant men who tried to force their way in, nor like the ones who tried to deceive her. The genuine sincerity in her obedience was something Elsa had not seen before. She could still be a snake. She reminded herself not to drop her guard.
"What do they call you?"
"A - Anna," she replied quickly.
"Just Anna? Do the people from Arendelle not usually have surnames or titles?" Elsa asked with a raised eyebrow. She watched carefully as the girl choked on her words. Was it really so hard for her spill it?
"I… I am Princess Anna of Arendelle."
Elsa's hands gripped the arm rests of her throne. Princess Anna. Princess. Her face turned dark.
"Get out!" Emotion roared up before she could stop it. Anna flinched before scrambling to her feet and moving across the room.
A rough frost spread from Elsa as she ran her hands through her loose blonde hair. This couldn't be happening. There, just across the hall was the King's daughter. The King's favourite daughter. The one he didn't throw away.
The air was too heavy to breath. I could kill her. I could send her body back. Elsa's mind was racing. Anna had looked so perfect, so innocent, so intriguing just moments ago. And now just the thought of her face filled her with bitter jealously and disgust.
"I - I can't go back."
Elsa snapped up sharply to face her sister hovering by the door. Sister. The word repulsed her.
Anna played with her fingers. She was right to be nervous. Elsa's vision was painted red. With just one flick of her wrist it would be so easy to take that fragile life: to deny her parents of the heir they wanted. She had never had so much power. It took all of her self-control to keep herself level headed so she could think this through. She needed to maximise this opportunity.
"S - so if you won't freeze my heart then kill me. I'm not going to make it down the mountain anyway," the resignation in her voice caused Elsa to pull back from the haze of resentment clouding her vision.
She looked over Anna in her attempt to stand defiant and strong. Accepting her wish to have her heart frozen was tempting. Sending her back alive and damaged could work even better than killing her…
Elsa couldn't restrain her wandering eyes. How was this girl better than her? Why did Anna deserve her parents love? …Why did she want her heart frozen? There was too much to make sense of. She needed time.
"Take your clothes off," Elsa finally spoke again, jealousy too great to resist. She needed to know what was so special about Anna, and to do that she needed to see all of her.
"I'll freeze -"
"Do as you are told," Elsa commanded her.
Anna silently nodded. Slowly and with reluctance, she began to remove each item of clothing. The Snow Queen's eyes never left her. She stopped at her small clothes.
"Everything," her voice cut across the room, making Anna flinch.
Resigned to her fate, Anna complied and tentatively removed her remaining clothing. She looked away from the Snow Queen's piecing gaze, using her arms to cover as much of her modesty as she could. It was an impossible task.
She waited as the Queen approached with deceivingly silent steps. Please don't look at me. Anna silently prayed in shame. She could feel the woman's eyes burning through her, inspecting and examining every bruise, every scar. Her body was covered in them. It wasn't the body of a princess. No one could possibly know what she hid beneath her dress every day.
"Who did this to you?" the Snow Queen asked after what felt like a lifetime. Anna however remained silent. She couldn't say it. She wouldn't say it. It was irrelevant who caused her this pain. All that mattered was that she could live through it. With a frozen heart she could survive it.
"My magic won't stop you from feeling anything physical," the Snow Queen said. "It will still hurt." She grasped one of Anna's perk breasts hard, drawing a whine from the girl. The cold hand was almost as much a shock as having this stranger hold her so intimately but she forced herself not to fight.
"If I may be frank with you, Your Majesty," Anna said, voice both steady and clear. "I don't care much for the physical pain."
Elsa paused, meeting her sister's eye. She was drowning in darkness. Elsa had seen it in her own reflection too often. For the first time ever she stopped to consider her sister's life not being the perfect dream that Elsa had always believed it to be. She knew she shouldn't have been happy about that but a very large and dark part of her was all too satisfied.
She released Anna's breasts and circled around her again, making sure to take in everything. Skin clung to ribs; a nasty purple bruise spread up from her thigh and joined another on her abdomen. Elsa's eye traced across the silver scars across her back. They were old, repetitive injuries and from the location it was unlikely to be self-inflicted. Discipline perhaps, or just cruelty. There was nothing special about her. Maybe without the bruises and scars her body would be beautiful but as it was, it was ugly and tarnished. All except for her face. Whoever had done this had kept the princess presentable. And her face was so frustratingly perfect. Cheeks flushed red from embarrassment, delicate freckles, high cheekbones. Elsa realised she was wrong when she met her teal eyes again. The pain she carried was all too visible. Her face was just as tarnished as the rest of her. Elsa was pleased to find nothing redeeming about her. But even so, the imperfections were still so tantalisingly alluring.
She couldn't take it any longer. "Put your clothes back on before you freeze," she ordered her.
While Anna scrambled to dress herself Elsa considered how to move forward. She didn't know who had inflicted this pain on her sister, but if it had been their parents would they truly care if she was sent back dead? Conversely, if it wasn't their parents they would no doubt assume Elsa had done this. She needed to know more. Torturing it out of the girl seemed counterproductive. Anna had clearly already endured far more than Elsa ever could have imagined, and she had come all this way in the knowledge she would very likely die. She may have been obedient with simple commands but it had served her purpose. Elsa did not doubt Anna would become difficult if their goals were in conflict. There was only one option, and Elsa was loathed to pick it. Time would be the only way to get her answers.
"…I will freeze your heart in exchange for one favour," Elsa paused for dramatic effect. Anna was hanging off every word. She is so desperate. How tragic her life must be. "You will stay here with me for seven nights. You will not leave unless I permit it. You will be compliant and obedient in everything I ask of you."
"Deal!" Anna didn't hesitate as she flung her hand out. Elsa looked down at it in disdain. "…You're supposed to shake on a deal… but you're a queen. I guess you don't do that sort of stuff," Anna mumbled to herself while withdrawing the hand. "I'm sorry. Now that I know you aren't going to kill me or send me home empty handed I just feel so much better. I was really sure you were going to kill me on the spot."
"First rule. Don't talk so much," Elsa grumbled.
"Yes Ma'am - Your Majesty - what shall I call you?"
Elsa hesitated as she looked Anna over. She could only assume the naive redhead didn't know who she was. Was it worth the risk of her coming to the conclusion that they were sisters? She had no idea what her parents had told Anna. Would Anna even have remembered her anyway?
None of it mattered. I'll deny everything.
"You may call me Elsa."