It was a cool summer's night in Northuldra. The glowing campfire was the only source of heat and light in the Northuldran camp. After seeing Freya's immense fiery display, the Northuldra were restless. Unable to sleep, they milled around the camp, occasionally taking walks into the moonlit forest to try and calm down. Suddenly, out of the darkness came a brilliant blue glow. The Northuldra knew that it could only be coming from Elsa on the Water Nokk, so they came out enthusiastically to greet her. Then the Nokk turned as it settled and they caught sight of Freya, who was sitting behind Elsa. The Northuldra suddenly became very nervous and began to back away.

Elsa held out her hand. "It's okay," she called out to everyone. "She lost her powers in Ahtohallan, everything's fine!"

The Northuldra trusted Elsa and breathed a collective sigh of relief. Elsa dismounted the Water Nokk then helped Freya climb down from it. Freya looked around to take in her surroundings, still in a state of shock.

Still trying to stop herself shivering, Freya looked around and marvelled at the forest. She put her hand on a tree that was bathed in the blue light from the Nokk, and the Northuldra held their breath in worry. They all exhaled when Freya took her hand off the tree, leaving it unharmed.

An angry Yelena strode up to Elsa. "Elsa!" she bellowed. "What is the meaning of this? Why have you brought her here?"

"Please, it's okay," Elsa insisted. "She fell into the Chamber of Emptiness and lost her powers. Ahtohallan told her the truth about them. She was born cursed."

On hearing that information, Yelena opened her eyes wide as her attitude to Freya changed completely. She ran over to Freya. Meanwhile, Elsa placed her hand on the Water Nokk, congratulating it on a job well done. It galloped back to the sea.

As soon as Freya saw Yelena she instantly became apologetic, as she remembered what she had put her through.

"You were born cursed?" Yelena said to Freya, who quietly nodded. "You poor child!" Yelena put her hand on Freya's. "Oh, you're freezing," Yelena exclaimed. "Come with us. We'll get you some warm clothes and some food." Yelena threw her arm around Freya's shoulder and led her towards the camp.

"I'm sorry for what I did," Freya said sorrowfully.

"Apologies can wait," Yelena declared. "Right now you need to be cared for."

"Honeymaren!" Yelena called. Honeymaren ran over to them. "Find some clothes for this girl, and get her some food. She needs our help."

Honeymaren nodded and took Freya to her tent. Elsa turned to Yelena.

"I need to send a note to Arendelle," Elsa declared.

"Of course!" Yelena replied. "Quill! Parchment! Now!" she called out.

The Northuldra looked through their supplies and quickly found what they needed. Elsa hastily wrote a note to Anna: "All is well. Freya has been stopped. Returning to Arendelle tomorrow."

Elsa summoned the wind spirit and the note was on its way to Arendelle. She then told Yelena what had happened at Ahtohallan.

Meanwhile, Honeymaren took the still shivering Freya into her tent.

"I have some spare clothes here," Honeymaren said while looking through her things.

"Here we are, get these on!" Honeymaren told Freya while handing her some clothes.

Freya hurriedly changed into the Northuldran clothes. Straight away, she started to feel warmer.

"And to complete the look!" Honeymaren declared before placing a Northuldran hat on Freya's head. "It's a little big, but it will keep your head warm."

Freya grabbed the brim of the hat and tugged it down. It nearly went over her eyes.

"Do I look okay?" Freya asked. "I've never worn a hat before…"

"You look a little silly!" Honeymaren replied as she chuckled a little. "Here!"

Honeymaren adjusted the hat so that Freya could at least see. Freya raised a slight smile. "Th-thank you," she stuttered.

"Now, you need some food," Honeymaren said. "There is a pot of stew on, I'll get you a bowl. Come with me."

They walked out of Honeymaren's tent and towards the campfire. The Northuldra took their places around it and stared at Freya with looks of strange fascination.

"Here, sit down and eat this," Honeymaren told her as she gave her a bowl of stew. Freya happily took the stew, sat down by the campfire and started to tuck in. She calmed down as she warmed herself by the fireside. As she looked around, she could see that the rest of the Northuldra were staring at her. Some were even smiling.

"Why is everyone looking at me?" Freya asked Honeymaren. "I know what I did to your camp, why aren't you angry?"

Honeymaren sighed and smiled. "You've been to Ahtohallan," Honeymaren explained. "We all saw what it did to you, and we know it helped you by taking away your powers."

"Oh," Freya said despondently as she looked down.

"I have to admit I'm jealous," said Honeymaren. "I'd love to go there. Is it as beautiful as Elsa says?" she asked.

Freya frowned. "It contains the truth. For me, it wasn't beautiful…" she said forlornly while she looked at the campfire as its crackling filled the cool night air.

"Oh," Honeymaren replied, sounding disappointed. "What memories did you see there?" she asked, hoping to hear about the wondrous magic of Ahtohallan.

"I, um…" Freya stuttered. Just then Elsa came to join them.

"I think it's a little early to be talking about that," Elsa said gently. Freya sighed in relief. She wasn't ready to confront her memories again yet.

"Why are you being so kind to me?" Freya asked Honeymaren. "I don't deserve any of this, especially after what I did."

Honeymaren reassuringly put her hand on Freya's shoulder. "It's okay," she said, "we Northuldra understand magic. Knowing that you were cursed explains a lot."

"Being cursed doesn't make what I did okay," Freya replied. "I knew what I was doing. I just...never meant to hurt anyone," she said as she started to tear up again.

Elsa put her hand on Freya's other shoulder.

"Hey, no need to cry, you're among friends here," Elsa gently told her. Freya turned to Elsa and tried to smile. "How are you feeling now?" Elsa gently asked her.

"A little bit better," Freya replied as she shrugged her shoulders. "I just...can't believe my powers are gone!" she said through a smile while her eyes became lost in the campfire. Elsa cleared her throat to get Freya to look at her again.

"Now, let's be honest with each other shall we?" Elsa said quietly through a smile. "You're not really a queen, are you?"

"No," Freya replied, sighing. "I'm a princess. My parents are the king and queen of Rizucia."

Elsa nodded. "And I'm sensing that 'Freya' isn't your real name?" she asked.

"You're right, it's not," she replied. "After I broke out of the tower, I realised I could be whoever I wanted to be. I named myself after the Norse goddess of fire. I suppose it doesn't suit me anymore…" she said as she looked down and smiled a little.

"So what is your real name?" Elsa asked kindly.

Freya paused for a second while she wondered what Elsa would think. She knew that no one in Arendelle knew her real name.

"It's 'Joanna'," she replied. Honeymaren looked away, smiled and gently shook her head.

"That's a beautiful name!" Elsa enthused.

"You think so?" Joanna replied. "It means 'gift'. My parents wanted to have a child for a long time." She looked down and sighed. "They thought I was their gift."

"And you are!" Elsa replied gently. "You may not think that now, but you are!"

Joanna tried to smile at Elsa but she wasn't ready to think positively about her parents yet. She just went back to her stew and didn't reply. After a few seconds, she turned to Honeymaren.

"I'm sorry about what I did to the forest," Joanna said as she closed her eyes.

Honeymaren rubbed her shoulder. "Hey, you've been through a lot," she said consolingly. "If you really want to make it up to us later, I'm sure we can find a way. Maybe you could help us plant some trees? You'll find it's much more rewarding to create than destroy!"

Joanna nodded at the idea then went back to her stew.

"I think there's one person you need to apologise to more than anyone else," said Elsa.

"I know, I know," Joanna replied softly. "I feel worse for Anna more than anyone. Yesterday was supposed to be her special day and I ruined it. I know what I did," she said before holding her head in her hands.

"We'll have to think about how you can make it up to her," said Elsa. Joanna looked up at Elsa and nodded. She shuddered at the thought of what she put Anna through.

After Joanna had eaten a little more of her stew, the fire spirit Bruni made an appearance. He scampered up to Joanna, looked at her while tilting his head, and made a croaking noise to get her attention. Joanna looked down at him and smiled.

"Oh, hi little guy!" she said gently. Bruni licked his eye, causing Joanna to giggle. "Guess I'm not as scary as I was before?"

Bruni hopped up onto the log and stood next to Joanna. She cupped her hands and held them out for Bruni to jump on. Elsa looked on and smiled.

"Oh, ow, hot!" Joanna exclaimed as Bruni ran around the palms of her hands. She opened them up and dropped Bruni back on the log.

"Sorry little guy," Joanna said to Bruni, "but I can't handle you like I used to!"

Elsa smiled and used her powers to create a small pile of snow on the log next to Bruni. He lept on it and sank into it while making a contented gurgling noise. Some steam came off the snow as he changed to a blue colour. Joanna smiled at Elsa before giving Bruni a small stroke with the tip of her finger.

Then, Yelena walked up to the campfire, holding her hands behind her back.

"I hope you have learned why we trust nature," she said to Joanna. "Elsa has told me what happened. Nature did not give you your powers, but it was the spirits that freed you of your curse and delivered you back to us. But now, we all need rest. It has been a long night, but thanks to our protector Elsa, we can all sleep easily."

Honeymaren went to fetch a pail of water to put the campfire out. Joanna saw what she was about to do, and she got up and walked over to her.

"May I?" Joanna asked gently. Honeymaren realised what Joanna wanted. She gave a slight smile and laughed a little while handing her the pail. Joanna smiled back then turned to the fire. She threw the water on it to put it out, then let out a contented sigh.

Elsa took Joanna by the hand. "You can sleep in my tent tonight," she said softly. "Tomorrow we will return to Arendelle."

That night, Joanna slept soundly, exhausted from her experience. In the morning, Joanna and Elsa got out of Elsa's tent and prepared to leave for Arendelle. Honeymaren came up to Joanna to wish her well.

"I meant what I said last night," Honeymaren said to Joanna while holding her by the hand. "We have a tree planting ceremony. It's kind of a rite of passage. You'd be welcome to return and take part!"

"Thank you," Joanna replied, "but I have a lot to sort out before I can think of returning here."

Yelena walked up to them. Joanna looked up at her while tears began to form in her eyes.

"I'm so, so sorry for what I did to you," Joanna began to say. Before she could continue, Yelena took both of her hands and smiled sagely at her.

"You do not need to apologise anymore," Yelena insisted. "You will redeem yourself not with your words, but with your deeds. Now go, begin your life free of your curse. When you are ready to return to Northuldra, we will be here to welcome you with open arms."

Joanna took a deep breath and smiled at Yelena. Then she waved goodbye to the Northuldra before Elsa helped her onto the back of the Water Nokk. They then set off for Arendelle.

As the Nokk galloped over the gentle waters, the morning sun shone brightly over Arendelle castle. Elsa looked up and took a deep breath, happy in the knowledge that the kingdom was now safe.

Joanna looked around Elsa and took a good look at the castle. She could just about make out the damage she had caused, and she gulped. She knew that everyone in the kingdom must hate her, but she also knew that as she no longer had her powers, things had to be different. Her thoughts were full of fear and worry, but they were tinged with hope. Joanna held on tight to Elsa, and before long they reached the castle.