All Frozen characters belong to disney.
Chapter 1: Correspondence
Elsa
It had been a few months since the accident. The moment that estranged me, enslaved me, rendered me a freak, an anomaly.
A monster.
An animal to be caged in.
I hated it; everything that had happened, everything that I had ended up doing by my hands. How Anna was almost killed by my carelessness and now she was paying the price for it.
I had no one, not my parents, not my sister, not even myself, for nowadays I couldn't even look in the mirror.
The days felt like forever wrapped in a jiffy, excruciating to live through, yet somehow I couldn't remember any of it. Except the feeling of a ball ready to burst at the seams. I couldn't sit silent anymore, too much had happened, and I was going insane not expressing it.
The day before, one of the servants had suggested writing a correspondence; a letter to someone afar. Someone who could write back. Someone to tell, someone who could understand.
One who could judge me without my terrible powers.
Wherever they would be didn't matter; all it took was one returned message, so that I could feel better for once; so that I could have hope.
No use crying about it and losing control yet again; if I was to be a wreck, the least I could do is express it without causing chaos. She I tried singing, drawing, sculpting, even meditation, but none would bring her peace. My emotions always ran havoc when I sang, the drawing was but a pale facsimile of what I was capable of and sculpting meant I had to let my powers run free. The meditation brought me torturous questions I couldn't answer; what if I had just slept that night? Was it going to happen sooner or later? What if Anna died-
No! I could never let that happen, never again.
I hadn't tried a correspondence yet, what was another pebble thrown in the river?
I spun the globe in my room and placed a finger on a random place at a random time. The Southern Isles it was.
I sighed, at least writing was one activity I could do mechanically. Moreover, it was just one letter; one letter couldn't hurt.
I sat on her desk and chair, pulling out a fresh sheet of paper and quill ready in hand. And yet...
And yet, the words wouldn't come.
It was a blank feeling of sinking I had grown familiar to recently; a story threatening to tear my mind apart, but my stubborn hands and fingers wouldn't budge or give quarter. An avalanche inside a statue, that's how I felt.
I steeled myself regardless; even if it is trite, I'll write it. If it is to be a blank page with a line tearing through it, that is what I want them to know.
So I began to write:
To whomever receives this,
Hi, this is princess Elsa from Arendelle. I hope you are doing well. I just wish to talk. Help me, too much has happened. If you find this, please return with a reply to the address below:
The Fjord Castle,
Arendelle city,
Kingdom of Arendelle,
Northern Europe.
Yours Sincerely,
Princess Elsa of Arendelle.
I folded the paper, put it in an envelope, tied it to one of the messenger pigeons that migrated south every winter, and set it free, hoping against hope that someone from the Southern Isles found it.
Hans
I had grown so sick of my twelve brothers. Couldn't these bunch of hawks just leave me alone? Coming last in the pecking order was bad enough, even worse was that the world would never let me forget it. In my eight years of life back then, I could have spent the rest of my days announcing to the world how my twelve brothers persecuted their pet runt.
No, just runt, for even the bloodhounds were treated with more respect, and my father hated those dogs. Those pests just got in the way, tearing at the feasts, no respect, no order, nothing.
Oh, I wish I had a bullet for each of those devils, would serve them right for trying to run me down and cripple me with their bloody jaws, courtesy of the gang of bullies that were my brothers.
Come to think of it, I had managed to stab one in self-defence, the others ran like the cowards they were, but those bloody rats ratted me out, and I got the thrashing of my life from my ever so imposing father.
There I was, recovering from bruises both canine and human in the infirmary. I remembered how I was so livid at them all, I threatened to burn down the palace. The nurse heard me and said, 'Your highness, you are truly fearless, announcing your death wish to the world. But true courage is in living, find something worth living for. A friend, for example.'
That nurse spoke way above her worth, but she had a good idea there. Trouble was, even the runt was better than the common rabble plaguing the streets every day. There I was, not low enough to be trash with others; not high enough to walk in steps with the giants. Just little old me, a footnote waiting to be forgotten.
Maybe I could tell someone about it?
As if the stars were winking at me, a messenger pigeon landed on the windowsill near my sickbed. Tied to it was a small envelope. It wasn't addressed to anyone, just a deep blue envelope inside which there was a message and the sender's address. As I went through the contents of the short letter, the first thing I thought was is she dying? In that case I can't help her.
No, it was foolish to presume. Maybe she's just lonely. But she is a royal, just like me. Isn't she surrounded by people everywhere? Wouldn't she be sick of them?
Or maybe she's also looking for a friend. Guess that nurse was right, having a friend wouldn't hurt.
Mind you, I only wrote an equally short note:
Greetings your highness,
I could be doing better. I know I'll be well if I can listen to your thoughts. Too much has happened here as well, things I wish I could forget.
Yours Sincerely,
Prince Hans of the Southern Isles
The first chapter of a multichapter fic I'm writing for Helsaweek 2020. Enjoy.
As always, constructive feedback is always welcome.