Kristoff

For as long as he could remember, Kristoff had always known what to do. When his parents died, he knew the ice harvesters would make sure he didn't starve. When he met Bulda, he knew the trolls could be the family he never thought he'd have. He knew that it was the right choice to help Anna reach her sister that day at Oaken's. He knew that he loved Anna, and would make her his bride. But now, as he sat in Anna's bedroom, the sun just beginning to stream through the windows, head in his hands, listening to Anna's soft snores, he realized that he had not the faintest idea of what to do next.

He was Prince Consort, placing him directly below Anna in the succession to the throne, which, for all intents and purposes, made him the acting King of Arendelle. It had been three days since Elsa was taken from the castle. Anna was still weak from her wound, and had not yet risen from her bed. Alarik had had no luck on the initial sweep of the area, but an hour ago, a report came in from one of his scouts that the queen's trail had been located. Although Kristoff had hoped to catch Heins before he made it out of the area, he was not surprised. From what Karl told him, the queen would have arrived at their camp within hours of leaving the grounds.

A pang of guilt shot through Kristoff as he thought of the vile man. Karl. I'd kill you again, if I could. Anna will be furious that I lied to her. I hope I can convince her it was for her own good. She needs to recover, and knowing that she killed Karl would not help her rest. ... Yeah, because Anna takes it so well when you do something "for her own good". I'm doomed.

Anna twitched in her sleep, startling Kristoff out of his contemplation. That's it. The time for thinking is past. The time to act is now. Rising to his feet, he walked to the door and opened it quietly, slipping out and closing it behind him. The two men he had stationed there sprang to attention. "My Lord?"

Turning to the first, he said, "Find Alan, Cari, and Gerda and have them report to me here at once. Then find Captain Alarik. Have him gather four of his finest men and join us here. Go." As the man nodded and hurried off, Kristoff turned to the other guard. "Go inform the stables, we will need eight horses saddled and prepared for a long and fast ride. Pack them as light as possible, they must be swift and sure-footed. Go, now, then report back here."

"At once, my Lord. Only... The Princess?" Kristoff waved off his questioning gaze.

"I'm not going anywhere. Now go, quickly."

"Yes, My Lord."

Anna will not like what I have in mind. But it's the only way we can catch up to Elsa in time. And with what Karl told me, we must catch up with her before she reaches his master. Kristoff had often heard the ice harvesters speak of a demon, a vicious beast who could climb inside your mind and make you do awful things, cause nightmares to become reality, and play puppet master with your very soul. For his entire life, Kristoff had disregarded these stories as myth, just a tale meant to frighten children. But last night, Karl had told him of the Dreamwalker, a strange and malicious man who had the ability to control your mind, causing pain or hallucinations on a whim. Kristoff shuddered to think what he might be subjecting Elsa to, even now. Alan and Cari came around the corner, walking with brisk strides towards Kristoff.

"You called for us, My Lord?", Cari asked.

"Yes, but not only for you. I will explain when the rest of the party arrives." Exchanging quizzical glances, but remaining silent, Alan and Cari rested with their backs against opposite walls. Soon enough, the rest of the group joined them. Alarik was last to arrive, flanked by four of his guard. "My Lord, allow me to introduce Baldur,"- a young blonde haired knight carrying a sword and shield who waved excitedly before Alarik shot him a look- "Liam,"- an enormous, cheerful looking man in heavy armor, with a bushy beard to his sternum and a giant battleaxe hanging on his back, who nodded at Kristoff- "Silas,"- an archer who favored Kristoff with a neutral stare, expression blank and unreadable- "and Leila."- a slight, cute woman with night black hair to her shoulders, two short swords hanging off her belt. "These are the best riders in my command. What would you have us do, My Lord?"

"In time, Alarik. This will not be an easy venture. I have a plan to rescue Queen Elsa. The queen was taken by boat down the Otra to Lake Fyresvatn, where the enemy has set up camp. I don't know the identity of the person that ordered the capture, but I know that a man called the Dreamwalker is with him."

"The Dreamwalker?", Gerda gasped. Kristoff turned to her.

"You've heard of him?" Gerda shook her head.

"I've done more than that," she said. "I've met him." Kristoff's mouth dropped open.

"You what?" Gerda nodded. "When? Why? How?"

Gerda took a deep breath. "It was five years ago. Elsa's storm was relatively easy to weather here, but out in the countryside- there just wasn't time to prepare. After Elsa had returned and thawed the fjord, I rode out with my medicines, hoping to help people where I could. Some people I could help, others it was too late. I came across a man late one night while I was riding back to Arendelle. He looked almost feral- his clothes were torn and his face was unshaven. It looked like he had been out there for days. I spoke up to offer help. He said nothing, but I had the most awful sensation I have ever experienced in my life. It felt like someone was poking around inside my head, searching through my memories like books on a shelf. At the same time, I could feel the man's mind even as he felt mine. I felt terror, pain, confusion, sorrow, and most of all, a burning hatred for Queen Elsa. I tried to flee, but he wouldn't allow me to. I could only sit in terror. After what seemed like hours, he broke the connection and fled back into the woods. I rode back to Arendelle, and the whole way, I tried to piece together what had happened. I was so scared that no one would believe me that I have never spoken of it- until now, of course." Everyone was silent for a moment, then Kristoff spoke up.

"Gerda, I think it would be a good idea to share things like this from now on." Gerda looked ashamed.

"I'm sorry, My Lord. It's just… he was so scared. With Elsa casting the kingdom into a dark winter in July from being discovered before she was ready, I didn't want to take the risk of having someone discover him. Who knows what he might have done? I'm so sorry, My Lord…" Well, she does have a point. And if the Dreamwalker is as powerful as they say, maybe it is a good thing we didn't trigger an episode like Elsa's. But then, we wouldn't be in this situation now- stop it. What's done is done.

"It's alright, Gerda. I understand your reasoning. Perhaps you were right. In any case, that answers the question of whether or not Karl was lying. They really do have access to the Dreamwalker."

"Yeah, it's a good thing too," Baldur piped up. "We can't exactly question him more, you know?"

"Why not?" They all jumped as they heard the small voice behind them. In the distraction of Gerda's story, no one noticed the door opening behind them, Anna leaning on the door frame, hand pressed over her wound. Kristoff barely had time to shoot Baldur an angry look before Anna continued. "What do you mean, you can't question him? I didn't kill him. I can't have killed him. I just wounded him. You told me he survived! I can't have killed him!" Anna was growing frantic. "I can't have killed him! Please, he's just wounded! I can't have killed him!" Kristoff rushed towards his wife and enveloped her in in a warm hug, the redhead collapsing into tears in his arms.

"Shhh…. Anna, it's okay. It's okay baby. It's okay. You only did what you had to do." This, it seemed, was the wrong thing to say, as Anna succumbed to a fresh wave of sobs, face contorted with the pain of her wound, sliding down the wall. Out of the corner of his eye, Kristoff glimpsed Leila giving Baldur a swift whack to the back of the head, the other members of the party glaring angrily at him.

"I didn't-", Anna choked out. "I didn't mean… to kill anyone."

"I know baby. I know." Kristoff looked at Alan and mouthed come back in five minutes. Alan nodded and signaled to the rest of the company, who moved off down the hall. Turning his attention back to Anna, he began to stroke her hair and whisper in her ear.

"It's never a good thing when you have to kill someone." Anna shook her head and sobbed harder. "It stays with you, and it will never go away." She looked up at Kristoff, and her eyes were so full of pain and regret that it was all Kristoff could do not to burst into tears himself.

"How do… How do you live with yourself?" That did it. As the tears began to flow down Kristoff's face, he shrugged and said, "I don't know. Everyone is going to deal with it differently. When you walked into that throne room and drew your knife, who were you fighting for? You?" Anna shook her head.

"No, of course not. I was fighting for Elsa. I saw Heins taking her and… I couldn't just sit back and let it happen!"

"And no one expected you to. Anna, you fought bravely, you won. If you hadn't fought back, you would have just been taken right alongside Elsa, and then what? No, you did exactly what you needed to do." Anna had stopped crying and was taking several deep breaths to steady herself.

"I think... I understand. You don't fight because you enjoy it, you don't even fight for yourself. You fight for those you love. You fight for those that can't fight for themselves. You fight… because you have to." Kristoff nodded. "Kristoff. I am so sorry." Taken aback, Kristoff stammered out, "Why?" Anna fixed her teal eyes on Kristoff's brown.

"For condemning you, for killing those men. I didn't understand how anyone could do what you did, without hesitation, without mercy. I'm sure you think I'm upset that I killed someone, and you're right, I am. But I'm upset… and scared… of how much I enjoyed it."

"Anna, what-?"

"Oh, I didn't enjoy fighting him, wounding him… killing him. I enjoyed putting a stop to someone who would do harm to those I love." Kristoff nodded, he understood exactly what she was saying.

"Anna. You should not feel guilty for feeling the way you do. It's the same way I felt after I killed those men in the mountains."

"I know. I know now. It's just… can you forgive me?" Kristoff couldn't help but laugh, and Anna looked up at him with an indignant expression.

"What?", she demanded.

"Anna, how could I not forgive you? There's nothing even to forgive. I wish you never had to find out what it's like to do what I did, but it's the only way you could ever possibly understand. I don't hold this against you! How could I?"

"I don't know! I just need you to tell me it's alright… please." Sobering, Kristoff took both of Anna's hands in his.

"Anna Bjorgman. Everything is alright. I love you more than life itself, and we will get your sister back. I promise."

"Thank you. I love you too, so much." Anna reached up and pulled Kristoff into their first kiss in weeks. They were both out of breath by the time they separated, and Kristoff leaned back to see Alan's grinning face looking down on him.

"Don't let us interrupt you. God knows it's been a while." Anna's lips drew into a pout and she made a rude gesture at Alan, who laughed and pulled Kristoff to his feet. Looking down at his wife, Kristoff said, "We need to get you back into bed, Anna, you should be resting."

Anna looked at Kristoff. Uh oh, I know that look, that look means trouble. "My sister is out there somewhere, possibly hurt, and you expect me to just go lie down like a good girl? No. You're planning something, aren't you? You were talking about it when I came out. Weren't you?" Anna was glaring at each member of the company in turn, all of whom withered under her gaze and looked at Kristoff. They said nothing, but the meaning was clear. This one's on you, Ice Master. "I am going. That's final."

"Anna, you can't. With Elsa gone, you are the queen. You have to remain here!" Anna fixed her stare on Kristoff. "That didn't stop me five years ago from climbing that mountain after my sister, and it's not going to stop me now. Besides, it's not like Elsa hasn't been going out on raids!" It was true, Elsa had personally ridden out to many of the small skirmishes that had erupted following the revelation of her powers. But then again, not only was it her powers that were the cause those powers did give her a slight advantage, and he said as much to Anna. "I don't care! Don't you get it? I will do whatever I can to help Elsa, I don't care what it takes!"

"But, Anna, your wound. You can't ride like that! You can barely stand!" With a savage look, Anna wrenched herself to her feet, standing straight and proud, teal eyes shining fiercely under her strawberry hair.

"I can, and I will. I am going. That's final." Ahh…. that's my girl. My stubborn, passionate, determined, foolish girl. God I've missed her.