Here Comes The Sun

by TheDuchessOfArendelle

With the help of her little sister Anna, Elsa's heart is slowly melting. But with one secret gone others arise. Will Elsa push Anna away because of these new feelings? Can Anna make Elsa see just how special she is? Not to mention a certain blonde cousin is dropping by for a visit... and who exactly is this mysterious nobleman? ELSANNA. Now with a new dark supernatural element.

26. The Masquerade Part 2

Here Comes The Sun

Chapter 26

BY: The Duchess of Arendelle

The Masquerade Part 2

AN: Over a month? Seriously? Over a month? Ok, yeah. Sorry about that. And sorry for the mistakes. I wanted to get into the actual ball this chapter, but I couldn't without putting this off for another day which is what I didn't want to do. So, please enjoy this chapter, and seriously, next chapter starts off with Anna and her friends leading into the ball.

Elsa sighed for what felt like the millionth time in the past 2 hours. Gerda had stormed into her chambers at exactly 8 o clock, followed closely by five hand maidens. After taking her aside and giving her a tongue lashing over tracking mud and water on her floors, she quickly begun preparation on the monarch. After a bath, which she literally had to pull rank and insist that as queen she was more than capable of bathing herself, she was promptly swept away to the dressing area, which was in a separate section in the large queenly chambers. Sitting her down in front of the large exquisite hand carved mahogany mirror that once belonged to her mother, the maidens went to work painstakingly doing her hair and makeup, while Gerda wondered off to go check on Anna.

Since the ball was a French inspired masquerade, the ladies styled their queen's hair in a complicated way that was common for the royals of Versailles, but way more downplayed than the ridiculously high hairstyles. Elsa stared at her reflection. Her brow furrowed in confusion at the strange hairstyle. "Why are you doing this to my hair? The usual wrap around braid will be fine." Elsa told the women. The maids looked at each other worriedly. Her young lady-in-waiting that had been put in charge of her hair chewed on her lip a bit before realizing how bad of manners that must be in the presence of the queen and quickly stopped. She cleared her throat before nervously responding. "Begging your pardon your majesty, but Claudette gave us specific instructions on how to prepare her majesty's hair and makeup. She says that it has to be done this way for your dress to really come to life." Elsa sighed. Of course she did. Elsa nodded once in a gesture that said 'carry on'. The maids sighed in relief as they went back to pulling, brushing, curling, and spraying her hair. To be completely honest, Elsa didn't care how she would look to others tonight. She was not trying to attract or impress anyone. She had no desire to catch any prince or would be king's eye. The only person she was interested in looking nice for was Anna. As Elsa felt the maid pull her hair once again she sighed. She sincerely hoped Anna was fairing better than her right now.

"No! Gerda No! I am not wearing that… that torture device!" Anna told the old maid as she backed away from the women. Gerda rolled her eyes. "Anna don't be difficult. Claudette says you need to wear this to fit in your gown properly. Now stand still so I can put it on you." She told the redhead as she advanced forward. Anna continued to back away, shaking her head no. "No way. I've never worn a corset before, and I'm not going to start now." Anna told the older woman stubbornly. Gerda rolled her eyes. This girl was surely going to be the death of her. She stood there, thinking how she could get Anna into the corset when an idea popped into her head. She smiled wickedly before quickly covering it with a 'Oh well' look. "Well Princess Anna, I must say I'm a bit disappointed…" she began, turning her back to the princess. "But, not as disappointed as her majesty will be…" she finished, lying through her teeth. This got Anna's attention as she furrowed her brow and stepped a bit closer to the brown haired maid. "Wait, what? What do you mean 'not as disappointed as her majesty will be'? Did she… did she say something?" Anna asked curiously. Gerda was fighting hard to hold back her smile. "Oh no, just a comment she made when I told her about the corsets. Something about looking forward to trying hers on, but only if you wore one. All I know is that I'm going to have to have a word with Claudette. The corset that she made for her majesty is just plain scandalous. But I suppose it doesn't matter now, since you won't be wea-" Before Gerda could even finish the sentence, Anna had snatched the corset out of her hand and was trying to put it on herself. "Don't just stand there Gerda, help me into this thing." This time Gerda didn't hold back her smile.

*********FROZEN********

Kai sat at the old wooden desk in his office. He knew that he should be helping the staff prepare for the ball, he had herd some of the guest that would be staying in the kingdom for a few days had already began to arrive, but this was much more important than any of that. Many old, dusty, and decaying books lay in front of him. One in particular was spread open as he pored over the pages. The Gölkken was the oldest book of magic and spells in all of Arendelle. It was given to King Alexander by the troll king himself when young Alexander had first stumbled across them during the great war. The trolls were tremendous allies to the king, and ultimately it was their magic that helped end the war. Very few people knew this, even Alexander's father was clueless about this fact, or the fact that trolls even existed. Which is why a troubled looking Alexander came to him one night many years ago, looking exhausted and worried, begging Kai to watch after his girls and the book if anything were to happen to him or the queen. Kai agreed without question or protest, swearing on his own life that he would.

The old servant was lost in the memory and was startled to find a tear roll down his cheek. He remembered that night so vividly. The fear. The desperation. The sadness. Still to this day he had no idea what had the king so frightened. Exactly eight years after that night, it was announced that the King and Queen of Arendelle were dead, lost at sea. Shaking his head slowly, as if the action would physically remove the thoughts from his head, he focused back on the book. He had no idea what he was looking for, but he felt the answer lie within the pages of this book. Frustration hit Kai and he rose from his seat. Moving over to his window, he opened it and breathed in the fresh air. If only he knew what he was looking for. Just then, a strong gust of wind blew through the open window. The papers on his desk flew all around the room as the pages of the Gölkken began to rapidly turn. The wind finally settled then stopped just as the pages of the book landed on a page with a dark and sinister script. Cautiously, Kai approached his desk. Slowly picking the book up, his face paled. He looked as if he'd stared into the face of the devil himself. He wasn't entirely sure he hadn't.

"Oh no…" he said out loud. This was it. This was what he was looking for. And this. This explained everything that was happening. "I have to warn the queen and princess." He spoke in a breathless, shaky voice. As he turned to leave, he felt his body seize up and become completely numb. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't move. From the shadows he heard a low, dark chuckle. Out of the darkness, Edmond appeared in front of him, green eyes seeming to glow in menacing delight. Slowly, he approached the man, reaching out a hand and grabbing the book from the clutched grasp of Kai's fingers. Flipping through the pages, he stopped on the one Kai was just looking at. His smile widened as he looked back at the unmoving man.

"Thank you Kai. Thank you so much. I've been looking for this everywhere old chap." He told the servant as the man tried his hardest to move. "I know… your plan. I know wh-at you're… trying to do… It… won't work. You… won't… succeed…." Kai chocked out. His throat was beginning to close and breathing became harder. Edmond smirked evilly. "Says you." He simply responded. Kai continued to struggle for mobility, but soon realized it was useless. "Go… ahead… K-kill me." He gasped out. He knew that if Edmond were to kill him, he would be the first one suspected. Then maybe the two royals stood a chance at figuring out his actual plan. Edmond looked at him thoughtfully then smiled. "Are you completely mad? I would be the first one they would come looking for. Surely they would string me from the hangman's noose. No. No. No my good man. But. I can't have you talking, telling those royal brats my plan. No. That won't do. So I'll do this instead…" he said, raising his right hand. The ring he wore began to glow as his eyes glowed a brighter green that soon turned red. He spoke in a language that sounded like none Kai had ever heard before. "He ca-n't… be… controlled!" Kai managed to get out. Then everything went black.

*******FROZEN******

"Oh Princess! You look très belle!" Claudette exclaimed as she circled around the redhead. "You three. Out. Go, go now. I must speak to the princess alone." She told the three hand maidens that had helped Anna prepare and was too admiring the girl's beauty. They all nodded and curtsied as they left the room. "I...can't breathe..." Anna told the French woman. Claudette laughed. "Beauty is pain mon chèrie." Claudette responded. The French designer's eyes then softened. "Are you ready for the ball?" she asked the redhead. Anna knew what she was really asking, and as she thought about her answer, flashes of Elsa ran through her mind. Elsa's smiling face, her sad face, her blushing face, her mischievous face, her angry face, her bored face, her annoyed face, her aroused face, her sweet laughter, her heartbreaking cries, and everything in between. She took in a deep breath and stared the woman in the eye. "Yes." Claudette smiled. "When the time comes, you know where to find me." She told the determined red head. Anna nodded and walked back over to her bed. Claudette made to leave but stopped in the door way. Turning around she said something to Anna in her native tongue. "Bonne chance mon cheri." And with that, she took her leave. Anna smiled. "Thank you." She whispered as she patiently waited for her friends to meet her in her room.

Down the hall in Elsa's room, the girl was a mess in everything but appearance. She had long since dismissed her hand maidens, and was still sitting in front of her mother's old mirror. She stared at her reflection. The maids had done a wonder job. Her hair looked amazing. Her make up fantastic. And her dress... The dress she had designed with Claudette before she knew the true intention of the ball, was better than she dreamed it would be. But all of this meant nothing to her now. She was a show piece, polished up nice and good. A prized cow to be auctioned off to the highest bidder. She felt sorrow begin to rise in her chest again and she wanted so bad to cry. Three knocks came at her chamber door. "Go away. I do not wish to be disturbed right now." Elsa called out to the intruder. "Um… it is me. Adam. May I please speak to you?" the brunette prince asked from the other side of the door. Elsa sighed quietly as she thought it over. "Enter." She finally said softly. She heard the door knob turn and the large door opened with a creak. The sound of Adam's boots over the marble floors of her bedroom reached her ears next, then she finally saw the boy stop in front of her. He smiled at her slightly, and she gave him a weak one back. "You look gorgeous." He spoke gently as he took a seat on a plush chair next to her own. "Thank you. You don't look too bad yourself." She answered in the same tone. She wasn't lying. Adam currently had his long brown hair pulled back with a royal blue ribbon. His tailcoat was the same color blue as his ribbon and was trimmed in gold. Under the tailcoat he wore a gold waist coat over a white dress shirt and cravat. His long breeches were black with gold trimmed along the side and were stuffed inside his high brown boots. Elsa gave a small smile. "Claudette?" she asked. Adam rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "She told me the outfit I brought with me was an abomination to fashion." He responded with a shrug. "Where's your mask?" she asked the boy after a short pause. He made a face of annoyance at the question and huffed in displeasure. "She made me this." He said, pulling the half mask out from his jacket's pocket. Elsa had to hold back her laughter at the beastly looking mask with two small horns sticking out from the top.

"It's… it's interesting…" Elsa told the boy. He scoffed and held the mask in both of his hands, staring at it in displeasure. "She says it reflect my personality when I'm in a bad mood." He grumbled. This made Elsa giggle a bit. After that, the two sat in silence for a long moment, just taking comfort in the other's presence. Finally, after who knows how long, Adam turned to Elsa with a sad expression. He grabbed both of her hands and stared at her. "I'm sorry." He told the blonde queen. Elsa knew exactly what he was sorry about and just like that she was reminded why he and countless others were sent here today. "You have nothing to be sorry about. It's not your fault I'm in this mess." She whispered, trying to hold back her tears. Adam shook his head. "I know but... it, it is not fair what is being done tonight." He said on the verge of tears himself. "You and Anna, I've never seen such love as the love you two share." He finished sorrowfully. Elsa gazed at him. Adam was such a nice person. He was sweet and full of empathy. How he could have been considered a beast at one point still baffled her. Removing one of her hands from his, she brought it to his face and gently caressed it. "Well, at least I got a lifelong friend out of it." She told the young prince. A sad smile crossed Adam's face as a tear rolled down his cheek. Elsa rubbed it away and tried to muster up a smile. The two had grown so close in the two weeks he spent with them. Adam had quickly became Elsa's closet friend and confidant. Someone she could talk to when talking to Anna was out of the question. Adam squeezed her hand tightly and smiled back. "Oui. Lifelong friend indeed." He responded.

A knock at the door broke the moment between the two friends. Without thinking, Elsa beckoned the intruder in. Her lady-in-waiting from earlier, Gretchen, forced herself to calmly walk in. The young raven haired girl looked surprised and slightly scandaled to see Adam in there, holding the queen's hand. Elsa mentally berated herself as she thought how this might look to an outsider. The girl stood there, mouth opening and closing for a few seconds before closing it completely and shaking her head. Eyes downcast, she spoke to the queen. "Sorry for the instruction your majesty, but sense Gerda is out helping the staff with the guest, and no one can seem to find Kai, I was elected to tell her majesty that it's time." She spoke quickly. Elsa frowned and looked at Adam who had thankfully dropped her hand and was now standing. He nodded his head slightly and offered an encouraging smile. Elsa looked down at the sparkling floor and at the distorted face looking back at her. She took in a deep breath then slowly let it out. Looking back up, her full ice queen façade was back on and she nodded her head once at the girl. "Thank you Gretchen, I will make be there shortly." She told the girl. Adam took this as his cue to leave as well. "Well, if the time is that near I better go. I am to escort Princess Anna to the ball, and I shan't be late." He bent down to place a small peck on Elsa's cheek, lingering long enough to whisper something to the blonde monarch before finally leaving.

"Never give up mon ami."

AN: Like I said, the actual ball and stuff next chapter for 100% sure, SO …. Yeah. Anyway, hope you enjoyed and see you soon.

BTW, I didn't describe Elsa and Anna's dresses yet for a reason, so if you're thinking that I'm not going to. I am. I just have a certain time I'm going to. Any questions, comments, or concerns, don't be afraid to ask. Also, I'll be posting concept art for their costumes and looks as well as the others on my Tumblr, so look out for that. Okay? Okay.