"Standing in the middle of the road is very dangerous; you get knocked down by the traffic from both sides."
-Margaret Thatcher

…

August 7th, 1840

An inordinate amount of time had had been spent in silence after Gerda's cryptic warning, as the chief maid led Anna out of the castle and into the town. Eventually, they reached their destination, a modest though by no means ramshackle house. Producing a key, Gerda quickly unlocked the door and made her way inside. It was inside, when Gerda began taking off her winter outerwear that Anna finally spoke again.

"Is this… your home?"

Gerda beamed a smile, one that was part pride and partly in response to Anna's obliviousness. "Yes, your Highness. You've never been here, correct?"

"No I haven't." Anna waited, as Gerda stuck a match and lit a gas lamp, bringing light to the dining room they inhabited. But despite Gerda's content expression as she moved about trying to provide hospitability, there was something Anna had to know. "What did you mean, 'I've seen this before?'"

Gerda froze on the spot, a kettle in hand. A few moments of deafening silence passed before Gerda lit a fire and started the kettle for tea. Only then did she turnabout, though with a recently adopted blank expression.

"Do you remember those stories I told you, when you were but a little girl? The one of the little girl and her quest to find her friend?"

Anna smiled fondly at the memory. "The one with the little robber girl, and such? I loved those stories!"

Gerda smiled. "Those weren't stories. The little girl looking for her friend? That was me and Kai, respectfully."

Anna paused, puzzled. "But that means that the Snow Queen is-"

"Yes dear. She's real. She's very real. And tonight, I saw her again. In the form of your sister."

"My god…" Anna's face turned white in terror. "Is Elsa dead? Replaced? Controlled?"

Gerda raised her hands in a gesture to calm Anna down. "Your Highness, I don't know. All I know, is that was not the little girl I helped raise, but a woman I have not seen in decades."

Anna grasped her head in confusion. "But the Snow Queen of your story, she wasn't evil, she was just lonely!"

"I never said she was evil. While I sanitized the events of my journey when I told it to you and Elsa, the truth remained the same. The Snow Queen was a poor, lonely soul who yearned for a companion to replace some deep wound in her heart. But while she clung to Kai all those years ago, that was nothing compared to the way she acted with you tonight."

Anna shook her head, with her hands in a "stop" gesture. "Wait a moment. All the history myself and Elsa have read points to the Draugr we that's trying to kill us being the Snow Queen. Queen Ásta."

"Draugr?" Gerda shook her head. It occurred to Anna that Gerda was never informed about the Draugr incident. "I may not be an expert on monsters, but I remember the stories I myself was told as a child. And the Snow Queen I met in Spitsbergen was no Draugr."

A knock at the door interrupted the revelation, as Gerda shifted gears suddenly. "Ah yes, I was expecting guests. Perhaps they can shed light on this matter."

…

The guests turned out to be none other than a motley collection of Royal Officials, or at least whoever was left. Colonel Grimstad came with a rather disheveled spectacled man wearing a uniform lacking in insignia, and hands clasped in shackles. Sergeant Raewald was the only Guardsman there, likely the only one that could be trusted, and perhaps due to the older soldier's familiarity with lore with the Absence of Grandpabbie. In addition, a few Royal Grenadiers came, escorting a wheelchair bound General Wilhelmsen. Finally, Kristoff made his way in, escorted by a soldier. At first clearly half asleep and groggy, he at once perked up upon seeing the Crown Princess. The ice harvester and princess shared a silent embrace, but any further catching up would have to wait.

All assembled, it was Colonel Grimstad who spoke first, addressing the room. "Many of you are still unclear as to the reasoning of this gathering. That reasoning is simple. Thanks to Madam Gerda, I've been alerted to the possibility of a… magical influence over her Majesty. I've also been attempting to gather information on a possible magical threat to our Kingdom. All of you present have experience or familiarity with the person or persons responsible. And I do not intend to leave this room until we have determined whether or not these two actors are linked, and if so in which way they are linked. Now, let's start at the beginning."

The Signal Corps Colonel dug into a briefcase, and withdrew a number of papers, and turned to Sergeant Raewald. "Sergeant, on the night of July 22nd you gave a report on a security breach. In this report, you list it as being a possible Draugr, a legendary creature out of folklore. You list said intruder was confirmed struck by ice magic and was not seen slowed down. Besides this, is there any other rationale for this deduction?"

"Both the Crown Princess and Queen reported the woman smelling of Death and emanating a feel of dread and wrongness. This, and the woman experiencing a panic attack upon recollecting something are all traits that can be assigned to a Draugr."

Grimstad nodded. "Your Highness, can you confirm this? You did drink wine that evening."

"Yes, I can." Anna started, before following. "And yes I drank some wine, what the hell does that have to do with the damn Draugr."

The Colonel raised his hands in a calming gesture. "Your Highness, I meant no disrespect. I simply wish to explore all possible factors so we have as much of solid conclusion as possible."

Raewald spoke up, cutting off Grimstad. "Sir, I spoke to both Queen Elsa and Princess Anna after the event. Neither was particularly intoxicated, especially the Queen."

"I see Sergeant. My apologies, your Highness. I believe we can rule out intoxication."

You better fucking rule out intoxication, Anna thought to herself.

"Now, in addition to the attack that night, Detectives came across what can be best described as a massacre of bandits along one of our major highways. The detectives were unable to come to a concrete conclusion. Men were thrown through trees, man-like claw wounds as well as that of a sword. Bodies were found dismembered and with crushed bones. Sergeant, are these wounds comparable to those a Draugr could inflict?"

Raewald shrugged. "Sir, my experience with the Draugr is one of being familiar with their stories, so I must emphasize that all my knowledge of Draugr is only of their folklore. But yes, Draugr are known to be vicious and incredibly strong, and capable of using a sword."

"I see. I therefore determine that those two events are linked. So our Draugr was likely responsible for both the bandits and certainly responsible for the attack on the Queen and the Princess. That leads us to the next event in the timeline. General Wilhelmsen, please elaborate."

The older General's face bore pain before he spoke, and it was less than likely mental, rather than physical. "I… Well, shortly after that night, the Senior Command of the army became aware of a potential plot by political opposition to overthrow the Monarchy. Minister Widstrom, as such asked to meet and discuss such possible treason, that went beyond constitutional procedure, being performed by the anti-Monarchists. I agreed. There, I met Widstrom, Sergeant Hvitstrom, and a woman wearing a steel mask, a hood and riding clothes."

"That's her!" Anna shouted, startling the older General. "That's the Draugr that attacked me and Elsa!"

"Very well, I believe we can link this woman to all three instances known so far. General carry on. Please describe your interactions with this woman."

Wilhelmsen was even more distraught by this point, sweating and casting sideways glances towards Anna as he continued. "That's the thing. I barely talked to the woman, she mostly sat in the background. When I confronted Widstrom about her, he simply insisted that she was a reliable source. As such, I began asking Widstrom about the treason he hinted about earlier. But… as we talked, we never landed on anything concrete. But I grew more and more certain that the opposition was determined to overthrow the Monarchy and destroy Arendal. By the end of that meeting I vaguely remember signing requisition forms for gunpowder by the ton, as well as lead shot in order to ensure that the army had everything it needed to countermand any action by the civilian opposition. This gunpowder was to be transferred to Sergeant Hvitstrom of the Queen's Own. It wasn't until after I survived the explosion that I realize I had been played. But before, with every word I had with Hvitstrom and Widstrom, I grew more and more passionate that my cause was just."

The room was silent for a moment, as all present besides Grimstad contemplated General Wilhelmsen's admission of aid to traitors and murderers, excused only by another admission of planned mutiny. To Grimstad, this was old news as he launched once again into questioning.

"General, did you see the masked woman make any gestures? Hold up any objects that could be deemed magical? And finally, was alcohol present?"

The wounded General shook his head. "No. The woman did nothing of note, simply hovered in the background. She didn't even seem to pay heed to our discussion. Plus, none of us drank at this meeting."

"I see. Sergeant, any explanation?"

"Colonel, Draugr are well known for making those around them go mad with prolonged exposure. It's very possible that by simply being nearby the Draugr, the General, along with any others present, may have been driven to bouts of madness."

The old General spoke up again. "I must add something, Colonel. Widstrom did not seem himself at the meeting. Now I know his treason was a surprise to many of us, and I hardly wish to defend him, but he was easily not himself at the meeting I had."

"I concur. I had a few reports here and there of a disparaging remark or two towards the monarchy, but Widstrom was known to be a fairly stable, reliable public servant with a long history of loyalty to Arendal and the public order. It goes against every bit of his history and character to betray us as he did."

"Wait a moment, are we saying that the bastard-"Anna paused after nearly spitting the word bastard in hate and disgust, before regaining composure and continuing, "that killed me and nearly killed Elsa, only did so because the goddamn Draugr made him crazy?"

"Maybe, your Highness. What's more important is to establish the actions of the Draugr, and attempt to derive all intent and motivation from them, as well as her capabilities. To that end, I believe Frikron is next. Lieutenant?"

The spectacled man in the corner, who had not spoken all night, chuckled nervously and raised his shackled hands to scratch his chin before starting. "Yes… I was an officer on the staff of Surtrsen, the traitor in chief as you will. One day he declared that an angel of god gave him a vision, an angel who appeared the 20th of July. She, as you described wore a mask, hood, and riding clothes. It wasn't until much later that I saw what was beneath the mask."

'Which was?"

"It… it changes. One point she unmasked herself to some of Muspell's men. The rest of us saw a young, unassuming woman, but the man she was staring down went mad with fear and pissed himself. But later, she unmasked herself again to me and appeared as a mummified corpse. As the others have said, she always smelt of death and perfume, and she always had an air of dread and wrongness about her."

So if you saw her true form, why are you still alive then?" Already knowing the answer, Grimstad had asked the question nearly rhetorically.

"She wanted to recruit me. She wanted my help in exchange for knowledge, knowledge about everything. I agreed at first, but then I began to learn what she was planning. Simply put she has two goals, kill Queen Elsa and reestablish Arendal as a pagan stronghold from which to spread the faith of the old gods across Scandinavia. She literally planned to have Surtrsen and his men revolt, simply to be wiped out so there would be no internal Christian threat to her plan."

"My god…" Gerda said quietly in the background.

"Yes. I know she then sent Muspell with the magic dagger to kill Princess Anna. Clearly he failed. After that, she tasked me with wiping out numerous pagan and Sami villages, in order to galvanize resistance against the crusader army. I was then that I deserted, and presented the map to my Captors. I only hope that that information was used to save lives."

"There you have it. I believe we can determine that pretty much aspects of the folktales about Draugr are true. And we can safely determine based on the Draugr's actions up to this point that she wishes to kill Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. Now Frikron and Princess Anna have both provided intelligence indicating this Draugr goes by the name of Ásta. Multiple sources have this being the same Queen Ásta of history. If this is true, this means that she was a sorceress capable of many of the same powers as Queen Elsa, if the legends are true. This begs the Question. Is Queen Ásta the same person as the legendary Snow Queen? Gerda, I believe you have the most experience regarding the later?"

Gerda stepped forward, all eyes on her. "I believe I do. As I established with the good Colonel, as a young woman I rescued Kai from the Snow Queen of legend. Many of you may still scoff at the idea, but I swear to God that this is the truth. I must also add that tonight I met her again, in the guise of Queen Elsa. Whether Queen Elsa simply adopted her aura, or was possessed or replaced by her I cannot say."

"I see Gerda. Now has this been going on for a while, or is this a recent phenomenon?"

"No, Colonel. Only the last meeting with her Majesty did I feel the Snow Queen's presence."

"And do you think that the Snow Queen and the Draugr thus described are one and the same?"

Gerda shook her head. "I cannot say. While I remember a certain aura of despair around the Snow Queen, it struck me as her own. And while the Draugr as thusly described bears no resemblance to the woman I met so long ago, she could very well have disguised herself. Plus, this unnatural winter began around the time the trouble with the Draugr started. And Her Majesty, prior to all of this, has sworn to me that this winter is not her own. And I'd know if she had lied to me."

"I see." Grimstad stated coldly, slightly disappointed. His gaze thus turned towards Anna. "Your Highness. You have met both the Draugr and Queen Elsa as of this night. What would you say?"

While direct, it was phrased nonchalantly. But a chill ran down Anna's spine as she contemplated it. After all, a confirmation would more than likely see Queen Elsa being seen as compromised. She shook her head. No, not compromised. If the Draugr had replaced Elsa, she wouldn't have stuffed her in a closet somewhere. The monster would have…

Tears flowed from Anna's eyes at the thought. And of the realization. While she couldn't say with certainty if it was the same as weeks prior, she could say with confidence that there was an aura of wrongness about her sister hours before. Yes, with the threat of the Draugr, she couldn't remain quiet.

"I can't say with certainty that they had the same aura. But I can say with certainty that Elsa is not herself." With that, Anna began to lightly sob, with Kristoff moving in to comfort her.

For the first time all night Grimstad reacted to knowledge he didn't already know. Coming to the same conclusion Anna did, he turned pale, before he spoke in a mumble. "I… believe that settles it. Queen Elsa is… compromised. Thusly, Princess Anna is the acting monarch. We must at once secure the compromise regarding Queen Elsa."

A chill hung over the room, as all present contemplated the implications. But before any could speak, the chill became very, very real.

The door blasted open as a blizzard of ice and snow flooded the room. Before anyone could react, boots froze to the floor and any weapon present froze solid. When at last the blinding snow died down, Queen Elsa was revealed to have entered the home, flanked by a number of armed Royal Guardsmen. For her part, Elsa's demeanor was one annoyance. With a single raised eyebrow and an icy glare, she spoke to all present.

"So, it's treason then?"

…

August 8th, 1840

It was after midnight. Snow gently fell in the castle's square, illuminated by a number of bullseye lanterns held by Royal Guardsmen as Anna and the rest of those who had gathered at Gerda's home were forced to their knees. Over watching them was a number of armed Guardsmen, as well as Elsa herself, her face as blank as snow. All the prisoners were gagged and blindfolded, able to do little but kneel in the ice and snow and await their fate. Elsa shook her head at all of this.

"Really? I act a little odd, and you throw this farce of a coup? Unbelievable. Lieutenant?"

Lieutenant Gumrak stepped forward, still clearly at unease. Elsa took note of this. "Yes, your Majesty?"

"Separate Anna, Kristoff and Gerda from these men, and secure them in the dungeon. Shoot the rest."

Gumrak's face went white as a sheet. With horror, he responded. "Your Majesty, all of them? I can understand the ringleaders, but Sergeant Raewald has been a loyal and reliable soldier his whole life. And I can see little justice in shooting private soldiers whose only crime was following the order to attend this meeting."

Gumrak's reasoning made sense, Elsa thought. But as she prepared to speak the words to free them, a wave of emotion overcame her. Flooding her brain with paranoia, jealousy, and hatred. her eyes burned, and logic itself seemed to flicker out as a million voices screamed at her inside her head.

Raewald was the one who provided the shackles Elsa. He locked you in that dungeon to die while Hans prepared to kill Anna! Kill him!

Those soldiers are murderers Elsa! They eagerly took part in that firing squad! They don't deserve pity.

What do any of them know of pain, anyways? None of them suffered like you Elsa. You owe them nothing, least of all mercy!

And why do you spare Kristoff and Gerda? Kristoff is an outsider, and an ally of the trolls. It was THEIR advice that locked you away! Why do you spare their adopted son?

And what about Gerda? Did she raise a finger to end your imprisonment as a child, Elsa? No, she chose her precious career over you, an innocent child! Kill her too!

Yes, Kill them. Kill ALL of them. Leave ONLY ANNA!

These thoughts, and more all screamed at once, overwhelming Elsa's ability to think. Her fury washed over her, nearly blinding her with hate, as she felt any sense of self-control wash away. What frightened Elsa the most out of all of this, was that this fight took part entirely in her brain. Not once did Elsa lose her composure, nor did Elsa have the choice to do so. It was only with great will power that Elsa was able to wrestle control back into her own proverbial hands. But at once, the voices slipped away, and Elsa's memory with it. She knew she was upset over something, but she couldn't remember what.

"Yes, Lieutenant. Spare the enlisted men. They know not what they did."

The Guard officer's face relaxed a little, though he still had misgivings of about shooting his own comrades in arms. But the Queen did catch them red handed plotting treason against her, after all. There was no time for a trial now, this was war. "At once, your Majesty."

However, moments after the enlisted soldiers had been dragged from the group, Anna stood up. Breaking her shackles through a truly amazing feat of strength and willpower, she then ripped her blindfold and gag from her mouth. Enraged, she stared Elsa down, even as a few Guardsmen leveled rifles on her. At once, she began to accost her sister.

"I was right about you Elsa! If I can even call you that! My sister would never shoot her own people like this! In the dark! Hell, can't you feel-" Anna paused, as she realized that the aura of despair she had felt hours before was no longer present.

"Could it be? Could this be the real Elsa?"

Anna fought back tears. No. Elsa would never stoop to this. At once, she resumed her tirade, this time directed her tirade at Gumrak. "Lieutenant! Did Elsa not scold you and Wilhelmsen for shooting convicted traitors? Does it seem possible to you that the same woman would have you shoot her own officers, without a trial, simply based on her word?"

Gumrak flinched, now unsure what to think. He failed to muster a word. Anna gave little pause, and continued. "This is not Queen Elsa; she is an imposter! We know the Draugr can change her appearance! We need to secure her until we can be sure that any compromise is secure!"

The Guardsmen looked back and forth, unsure what to think or what to do. Anna was not one to casually question her sister's authority, let alone try to overthrow her. But what she suggested was insane. Right?

Plus, a sinking thought lurked in the back of their minds. They had contemplated treason before, during the First Great Freeze, when some weighed their Queen against their country, and found the Queen wanting. Ashamed, they swore they'd never do it again. And yet, here they were. But none acted, before the Queen.

Elsa trembled with a quiet fury, before her eyes glowed blue with anger and wind set her hair aloft. The aura of despair that Anna found missing moments before reemerged, making itself felt like a blizzard. With a voice reinforced with a power that went beyond titles, she spoke down to Anna. "How dare you, little sister! I know who I am! I am Elsa, true Queen of the Ice and Snow, and I will not be usurped by you! Now move aside, or I will make you!"

Elsa's explosion of anger and grandeur steeled Anna's heart, or to be more precise, froze it. Fired up by anger, and convinced that this thing before her was not her sister, the love that had unfrozen her heart faded fast. Anna's hair turned white with only a few stripes of strawberry blonde remaining, and her fingers and toes grew numb. But she refused to budge. "If you wish to murder those who only have Arendal's interests in their heart, then you with have to strike me down too!"

Before Elsa had even a second to contemplate Anna's defiance, the voices from before returned, all shrieking hatred into Elsa's mind.

Why can't she see that you only want her safe? That she's being used by traitors? Unless…

She doesn't love you Elsa.

It all makes sense, Elsa. She rejected your love, she rejected your protection. If she'd rather die than be protected by you, how can you say she has any love in her heart for you?

Yes, she despises you so much she'd rather DIE than be with you. That's all this is.

And she's right. You don't need her. She's not worthy of your love, she's not worthy of you. No one is.

Strike her down and be free of her forever.

Control slipped from Elsa's consciousness, and to something else. Something powered with pure hatred. All Elsa could do was shed tears as an arm no longer under her control conjured a dark foul magic, one of certain lethality. A sad thought came to mind.

"It's just like my dream, all those nights ago. I am a murderer, just like Papa was, at his worst. Except I have no better side…"

A voice from the back of her head, one not her own, seemed to go against the grain and began to scream at Elsa, though it sang a different tune.

"Don't do it Elsa! Don't kill her! You'll never forgive yourself! Stop! STOP! Gods above, forgive me!"

While her left hand raised to strike down her sister, Elsa found that her right was suddenly returned to her. But there was no time to wrestle the evil hand away. Once again, the single voice returned.

"Your eyes, Elsa! It's in your eyes!"

Elsa wasted no time. She lifted her right hand and directed a blast of magic into her own eyes, blinding her and knocking her back. But it was too late. The blast of magic was let loose, with nothing to stop it from reaching Anna.

Or so it appeared.

A flurry of snow appeared in front of Anna, forming into a solid mass that deflected the blast and sent it harmlessly into some castle wall, where shattered some stones but little else. For Elsa's part, the damage was more severe. She couldn't open her eyes, and blood streamed from her eyes. More so, her blonde had faded once more, leaving her with the brown hair of her mother with but a few strands of her own.

Anna paused for a moment, taking the scene in. But despite her fury at the magic blasted towards her, she could see Elsa's clear sign of struggle leading up to her self-blinding. At once, dropped her stance of defiance and rushed to Elsa's side, breaking into tears. "I'm sorry Elsa! I'm so sorry! I thought the Draugr had replaced you!"

Through gritted teeth and choking sobs, Elsa replied. "No Anna. This is my fault. I tried to cheat to get my powers back, and I paid the prince. No, all of you paid the price."

Anna lifted Elsa's head out of the snow to nurse, when she saw sparkles of light among Elsa's tears of blood. At first glance she figured it was ice from the blast, but that wasn't the case. It was shards of glass.

"What the…"

A voice as cold as a winter's night responded. "It's shards from the troll mirror."

Anna turned to the sound of the voice, which revealed itself as sight that struck terror into Anna's very core. Before her was none other than the Snow Queen of legend. With skin of bluish white, cover with icy fabric and furs, and bearing a crown of ice and gems, she was very beautiful, like any silent winter night. But that same beauty carried with it fear. Fear of the cold. Fear of hunger. Fear that the sun itself will not return in the morning. All of this too could be felt as you looked upon her.

Both Gerda and Sergeant Raewald, their blindfolds removed, shook with familiar fear, as Raewald dropped to his knees he was so overwhelmed. To this, the Snow Queen turned to face them, studying them for a moment before speaking. "You two, you are familiar to me. One of you was a young soldier who caught my curiosity, the other… Gerda. You've grown much older. I thought it fitting that'd we meet again. That'd you foil my plans once more.

"I will not let you harm my charges. Be gone, witch!" Gerda growled with a fierceness that Anna nor any of the Guardsmen present had ever seen.

"Harm? I simply wished to help Elsa. I never wanted Anna hurt."

"Are you the Draugr!?" Anna screamed at the Snow Queen, shaking with fury. To this, the serene mask of beauty that had not once shown a single emotion twitched with anger for the first time. "No. I am not Ásta."

"Then who are you?" This time it was Elsa, speaking as she grunted though the pain.

"A concerned party Elsa. I so wished to help you…" A sad expression overcame the Snow Queen's face. "But I erred. Worry not, your sight will return to you soon. You'll need it, for when she comes."

Almost on cue, a great explosion was heard in the distance, one that brightened the sky for a few moments, before it died down to a large fire. It was a momentary distraction, but when all eyes returned to the Snow Queen, she was already gone.

…

Ásta stood on a hill overlooking the Crusader camp, watching them scatter about like ants in an effort to put out the massive fire that had been raging for hours and was now overwhelming the camp. So engrossed were they that they failed to notice the remaining Mercenaries make a break for the Woodline, abandoning their zealot allies to the fate that would be the morning's slaughter, for mad, mad Surtrsen planned to launch a final offensive in the morning. Standing next to her was Linda, her trusted Captain. Coming to the same conclusion, she spoke to Ásta.

"Should we intercept them, my Queen?"

"No. They don't matter. None of this matters."

Linda's mummified brow furrowed in confusion, before she inquired. "Ásta?"

Ásta's glowing blue eyes narrowed behind her mask, as she spotted the first pinkish glow of the dawn. "She's here. The Snow Queen is here."

A gust of winter wind blew, stirring the snow on the ground.