The Guardian
by Concolor44
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Author's Note: Now that things have calmed down some, do you think, perhaps, that Elsa will be more open to reestablishing relations with Weselton? Let's find out…
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Chapter 20: Loose Ends – Part II
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Valley of the Living Rock, 01 July 1841, 4:00pm
Grandpabbie was waiting on Kristoff when he got there. The two stood there for a moment, Kristoff giving the old troll a pleading look, Pabbie staring at the man's arm.
Pabbie spoke first. "To answer your first question, no, I can't return your arm to its former flesh."
Kristoff slumped and muttered, "Damn it."
"I can teach you how to use it, though."
"Oh, I can use the damn thing just fine! As long as what I want to do is crush things to a pulp!"
"And that's what I can help you with."
"… How?"
"You know we are made of rock, correct?"
"Um … well, yeah."
Pabbie picked up a stone from beside his feet, held it out between them, and crushed it to gravel with a squeeze.
"Yeah, I know. All trolls are that strong. But … with each other it doesn't really matter, does it? You hardly ever come into contact with humans. But I could seriously hurt Anna with this!"
"We need to be that strong, to move through earth and rock as we sometimes do. We learn very early how to compensate for that strength in our everyday lives."
"Huh. Okay. Sooooo … does that mean I'll be able … I mean, will it be safe for-"
"Of course. When you finish with my training – this time – Princess Anna will be in no danger from you."
Kristoff let go with a long breath. "When can we get started?"
"Right now, if that's okay with you."
"Right now is perfect."
"When did you last eat?"
That seemed an odd question, but Kristoff shrugged and said, "Maybe an hour before noon."
"You should eat now. These learnings are going to take a lot of stamina at first."
"Oh. Okay. Uh … how long …"
"Until you are ready. I cannot give you a day."
"Sure, sure. But are we talking days or weeks or months?"
"Likely weeks. With the control you already have, I'd say surely not more than two months." He patted the man's arm. "We will get a message to the Princess. Fear not."
"She probably won't be happy with me." That brought on another thought, and he frowned. "That also means I won't be there to protect them."
"True. But the major threat posed by that Ifritt is no more. They should be safe for the time being."
"Can I … that is, can you send someone to watch? Watch over them?"
Pabbie rubbed his jaw. "Perhaps. I will ask." He started walking toward his cave. "First, you eat."
Kristoff trotted to catch him up. "I, uh, also had a question about that King."
"Erik, yes. I expected that, since you didn't learn much the last time you were here. And I have an answer for you."
"Am I going to like it?"
"That's up to you."
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Arendelle Castle, 17 July 1841, 11:00am
"Maybe," offered Elsa, "they'd intended to come for my birthday and got the date wrong." The celebration in question had taken place the previous Wednesday. The city was still sort of winding down from it.
Crossing her arms, Anna huffed, "All I'm saying is that Weaseltown has a lot of nerve, just showing up here like that."
Elsa patted her hand. "I can't believe that the Duke is on the ship. He wouldn't put himself in such a position of weakness after what he's done. Besides, it isn't a war-ship. It poses no threat. I think you were a little precipitous, having it bound and guarded like that."
"After all the lies? The attacks? The murders? He bloody well ought to expect it."
"I wouldn't dream of arguing that point. Still, I'm curious to hear what they have to say after sailing in as bold as brass the way they did."
"And I'm curious to see how long they can float in the fjord without a ship."
"Anna!"
"… Sorry. He just makes me so mad!"
"Well. I won't argue that, either. Still, I think we should …"
A sharp rap sounded on the Receiving Room door. Elsa said, "Come."
One of the Royal Messengers stepped in, strode rapidly up to the Queen, and held out a folded piece of parchment. "Your Majesty."
She reached to take it, but Anna stopped her. "Remember those gashes?"
Dimpling slightly, Elsa corrected, "Geas. And yes, you've got a point." She conjured a pedestal of ice and directed the Messenger to place it there.
Once they were alone again, Elsa used judicious chunks of ice and breaths of wind to open the note. She and Anna looked at it closely.
The Princess observed, "Don't see any of those weird markings like they talked about."
"It's a simple letter of introduction." Elsa read for a bit. "My word. I wasn't aware that the Duke had a niece."
"Me neither."
Elsa gave her a pained look.
With an elaborate sigh, Anna corrected, "Neither was I."
"Thank you."
The letter occupied only one page. They finished the missive and looked at each other.
"Well," said Elsa.
"Huh," said Anna.
"If nothing else, this sounds promising."
"She's definitely taking the right attitude about stuff."
"I believe I'll invite her up for a … let's call it a conference."
"With guards. Lots of them. Heavily armed."
Elsa rolled her eyes.
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12:30pm
There was no fanfare. Tall, spare and proper, Teresa Margaret Elena Morgaine Clade arrived alone. She advanced between a brace of the Queen's Own Guard, walking with a stately pace that didn't disturb the hem of her green velvet gown. With her long, dark hair swept back in a large bun at the nape of her neck, she moved up the geometric center of the room, stopping an excruciatingly correct seven paces from the Queen of Arendelle. She swept a low and flawless curtsy, and stood with her hazel eyes demurely downcast. "Your Majesty. The Court of Weselton sends its felicitations and regards."
"The Crown of Arendelle recognizes you."
"Thank you for speaking with me. I wasn't sure you would." Her eyes flickered up, widened considerably, and dropped back down. "Had no reason to believe that you would."
"If I may ask, given that condition, why did you come at all?"
She did raise her gaze then, staring at Elsa with an unreadable expression. "I … I …" She swallowed hard and collected her wits. "I wanted to convey my gratitude in person for the way you responded to my Uncle's naval attack."
"… Oh?" It took the Queen a few seconds to add, "How is that related?"
"My cousin Arthur was one of the Captains."
Elsa's eyes darkened. "Was he, indeed."
The Duchess lowered her gaze again. "Your Majesty, I don't know how I can fully express my mortification for … recent events."
"Did you have a hand in directing it?"
Eyes flashing wide, Teresa held her hands up at shoulder height. "No! Oh, Heavens, no! I was dead set against it when he first changed."
A frown. "Changed?"
"Yes, Your Majesty. He was … there were these …" Huffing in frustration, she took two slow breaths. "I am afraid the background of events for … all this violence … is rather more than complicated."
Elsa regarded her solemnly, and said, "So, a long story."
"Quite."
"Perhaps we should move to a more comfortable setting."
Her expression brightening, Teresa answered, "That would be much appreciated."
A dozen minutes later the three women were seated around a low table while a trio of servants unobtrusively distributed tea and pastries. Once they had left, Elsa raised her teacup, took a sip, and asked, "Complicated in what way?"
Her focus darting between Queen and Princess a few times, then lingering on Elsa, Teresa drew a steadying breath and began. "When we left your coronation, Uncle James was most exercised. He-"
"Whoa," said Anna. "We?"
"Um … I was with him. He thought it would be a good idea for me to come along. With all the secrecy around Arendelle over the past decade, he felt that the more eyes available for observation, the better."
"Why didn't he introduce you?"
"… You must understand. Uncle James was very fond of me, and I of him. But I was his last living relative closer than third cousin. He was … protective." She looked at each of them, seeing that they didn't get it. "I was in disguise. He said it was for my own safety. I was acting as a sort of charge d'affairs. I stayed in the background." Again her gaze rested on Elsa for a second, flicking rapidly over her features. She colored slightly. "I … got to see most of the coronation while staying anonymous."
"Hmm."
"He-"
"Where were you during the Freeze?"
"In the castle, with the rest of the visitors." Teresa paused a moment to see if Elsa meant to say anything else. When she didn't, the tale continued. "He spent the entire trip home telling everyone on board that you were … dangerous." She nibbled her lip briefly and said, "Now, I didn't think so, but, um …"
"Yes. He had made that statement a few times, though I believe his specific term was 'monster'. It was what led him to direct his bodyguards to kill me."
"And I would like to thank you also for not having him executed for attempted regicide. You would have been fully within your right to do so."
"Had I known he was going to prosecute an undeclared war against Arendelle, I might have done exactly that."
"Except he wasn't."
Anna said, "Except he did."
"Well … I'm about eighty percent sure he didn't really mean to."
The Princess yelled, "Are you freaking kidding me? He hired mercs! They wiped out a village! They tried-"
"Mercenaries were hired, yes. I realize that. But … well …" Her voice broke. "Please let me show you something." Teresa placed her reticule on her lap, opened it, and withdrew a thin sheaf of papers. Holding it in one hand, she said, "A week after we … we returned, he, ah, sent several spies to Arendelle."
Elsa set her teacup down with rather more force than necessary. Some of it sloshed out. "I knew it!"
Teresa looked near panic. The words tumbled out of her. "He expected you to lose control again and he wanted some proof to back up his suspicions but that's not what happened at all!"
"Really."
"Reports …" swallow "Reports began filtering back to Weselton about three weeks later. It would have been sooner except that the spies wanted to be sure they weren't being led astray in their assumptions." She picked up the top sheet, cleared her throat twice and read, "'General public opinion seems to be a feeling of disgust for how the Princess-now-Queen was treated as a child. Also a widespread fascination with her magic.' And then a few days later: 'Queen Elsa wasted no time in making positive changes in the tax code.' Following that were several reports concerning the high regard with which the average subject of Arendelle held-"
"Citizen."
Teresa blinked at her interruption and then a tiny smile broke through. "Yes. I was getting to that. You reestablished the Alderman system that your grandfather experimented with, only you took it a good bit further." She shuffled the papers and set one on top. "'Queen Elsa has engaged the entire population in the legislative arm of government. She seems to have taken a page from the United States Constitution, at least where the concept of democracy is concerned.'"
"Not exactly. It's a pragmatic approach. It applies only to internal affairs, and communications between the populace and the Crown. I can hardly be an effective ruler if the people dislike me."
Shuffling to the next page, their visitor said, "This is from one month later. 'The degree of loyalty the people show to the Queen is really quite astounding. It's as if the entire kingdom loves her.' This was the last communication from this particular spy. We later determined that he had taken a job running accounts at one of your warehouses. He had no desire to return to Weselton, preferring your form of rule."
A bit of color tinged Elsa's cheeks. Teresa happened to be looking right at her, and drew a sharp breath. Her face flamed; she quickly turned back down to the papers.
Anna noted her reaction. A tiny line appeared between her brows as she processed what she'd seen and heard so far. She watched Teresa carefully.
"As … as the weeks went by and the spies' reports continued in this vein, Uncle James got more and more introspective. Two more spies defected; we only discovered that after learning that their, ah, their families had relocated to Arendelle. The rest began to encourage him to, um, to adopt certain of your practices."
"So are you saying," asked Anna, holding up a hand, "that he invaded Arendelle out of jealousy? That's stupid!"
"No, I'm not saying that at all. As I said, he didn't … well, he didn't mean to."
"You're gonna have to explain that one, 'cause it doesn't make any sense at all."
"I will." She pulled another paper out, only this one was parchment. "I worked with him on this. He wrote it in mid-November." She handed it over.
Anna craned her neck to read over Elsa's shoulder. After a couple of minutes, Elsa dropped it into her lap and said, "I must agree with Anna. This makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. It was only in late November that he started circulating those horrid lies about me! Yet this letter is about as conciliatory as such a thing can get!"
Her voice small, Teresa said, "I believe I have an explanation."
"I certainly hope so."
"About … three days after he wrote that – he was going to have one of the Heralds transcribe it into an official document, but that hadn't yet happened – I went to his rooms to talk with him about …" Her eyes caught Elsa's for half a second. She stiffened slightly, her cheeks taking on a deeper tinge. "But … um … that's not important. Anyway, when he opened his door, he looked at me suspiciously, as if I were a stranger. I … had to remind him who I was. He seemed to remember all of a sudden. I asked him if he wanted to go over the letter again, because the Herald was ready to start … well. He looked at me …" She drew a long breath through her nose, eyes closed. "I beg your pardon. Uncle James had been like a father to me these last eight years since his younger brother, my father, died in a naval battle. Now I very much fear that his mind was going. Some kind of senility, at least. It was so sudden. It's been really … difficult."
"What has?"
"His being so distant. He went from warm and affectionate to … he just … he shut me out."
Anna jerked at that statement, stifling a gasp.
"He told me to destroy the letter. Said that he intended to conquer Arendelle and that … that you, Your Majesty, had to die."
Elsa was beginning to suspect something. She said, "I believe I comprehend what's going on."
"You do?"
Anna blurted, "That Ifritt!"
Nodding, Elsa said, "I'd say it got involved personally a bit earlier than we'd thought." Then to Teresa, "Can I assume that the Duke is dead?"
That surprised their guest. "Ah … well, as to that, we assume so. He disappeared. The last anyone saw of him – and I did some extensive interrogation – was the evening of the fourth of June, when he had a meeting with the Commander General. I'd assumed that he must have wandered off and forgotten where he was, and met with an accident. But now you're saying …" She glanced between the two Royals. "What's an Ifritt?"
"We'll get to that in a minute. I have a couple of questions first."
"… Okay."
"Did you see the Commander General after their meeting?"
"Ah … no. Our paths don't cross regularly."
"Is he still there? In Weselton?" She was almost sure what Teresa's answer would be.
"Oh! No, he's not. He left the next morning. As of four days ago, he'd not returned. Why? Is that important?"
"Definitely."
"But …" She sighed. "Okay. Why?"
"Tell me, did anyone happen to notice evidence of a fire in the Duke's chambers?"
Teresa's mouth fell open. "How in the world …"
Anna pounced on that statement. "That's it! Elsa, you're right! It was that Ifritt all along! The Duke never did anything!"
Still focusing on Teresa, Elsa asked, "What did you find?"
"Ah … well, there was … this is the next morning, the fifth of June, you understand."
"Yes. Go on."
"The maid noticed the smell when she opened the door. Not really strong, but like badly burnt meat and hot metal, she said. We could find no evidence of Uncle James, but the curtains were singed and there was a dusting of fine ash in front of the window." Again she insisted, "How did you know that? What am I missing? And what's an Ifritt?"
Cocking her head and giving Teresa a keen look, Elsa asked, "How much do you know about magic?"
"Um. Very little, I'm afraid. I didn't really even believe magic existed until I saw you … um, what, uh, happened at your coronation." She paused, frowning. "Is an Ifritt some kind of magic spell?"
Elsa nibbled her lip for a bit. "I'm trying to decide how best to explain this."
"… Okay."
"There are magical beings. Rather a lot of them. They fall into four – well, five, that I know of, but there may be more – broad categories. Each one is associated with one of the ancient Elements."
"What, like fire and water?"
"Yes. Fire, Water, Earth, and Air. And another I'd not suspected: Cold."
"Cold is an element?"
"Well, no. It's more complicated than that. Anyway, an Ifritt is a Fire Elemental."
"And you think this … magical being had something to do with Uncle James's disappearance?"
"I'm sure of it. It came to Arendelle, led a force of mercenaries that were all paid with Weselton coin, and almost managed to kill me."
Teresa sat back in her chair, stunned. "Wow … . . . … I mean it … wow. So … so how did it make Uncle James do those awful things?"
Elsa and Anna glanced at each other. Anna said, "It most likely possessed him."
"… Possessed him? Like, some kind of demonic thing?"
"Sort of. More like, it pushed his soul out and just used the body. That's the best we've been able to come up with."
Her mouth opened and closed twice; Teresa shook her head and stared past Elsa's shoulder. "So … so you're telling me … that wasn't even Uncle James?"
"Almost certainly not," agreed Elsa. "It was the Ifritt inhabiting and using his body."
Their visitor shivered violently and hugged herself, a few tears escaping. "Dear God." She looked up at them. "Are there more of those horrible things?"
"Um, the short answer is 'yes'. But generally they keep to themselves. This one, the one that hated me so much, was a definite departure from the norm." She and Anna exchanged a look. "They've got a hierarchy. The leader of the Fire Elementals … um, how much do you know of Norse legend?"
She had to blink a little at that. "Rather a lot, to be honest. Why?"
"The leader of the Fire Elementals is Lord Surtur."
Teresa wasn't entirely sure how many more shocks she could take. "The Fire Giant? Asgard's enemy?"
"Actually, the whole 'Asgard' thing is probably just a human interpretation of certain facts that are too complex for mortals to entirely understand. But, yes, Surtur is the Fire Giant of legend. When he found out what that rogue Ifritt was doing, he, ah, killed him."
"… Killed."
"That's what it looked like. He sucked all the fire out of him, then gave him over to the Powers of Cold. There was nothing left."
With a shaky hand, Teresa drained the rest of her tea and then held three fingers against her forehead. "This is rather a lot to take in. The one consolation is that it wasn't Uncle James doing all those awful things. I do thank you for that."
"You're welcome." Elsa indicated the letter in her lap. "So do you intend to follow through with the offers stated here?"
Focusing on the Queen, Teresa slowly nodded. "Yes. I did help him write it. I thought they were good ideas then, and I still do."
"Very well. Do you have standing as a Ducal representative? I'd assume so or you wouldn't be here."
"Actually … I'm the Duchess now."
"Oh, indeed?"
"Uncle James had one son. He died of a fever five years ago. My father was next in line, but he was killed in battle, as I said before, so succession passed to his children. I had two brothers, James and Theodore."
"Had? Not 'have'?"
"Correct. They are no longer among the living. They were very, ah, competitive. We never really got along. After Alan died-"
"Alan?"
"Sorry. My cousin, the Duke's son. He was a fine man. Would have made an excellent Duke."
"Ah. Go on."
"When Alan died, James knew he was next in line. He became insufferable, acting as if he already possessed the Dukedom, treating everyone except Uncle James as inferiors, and being the most egregious sycophant to Uncle. It wasn't long before everyone who came in contact with him despised him." She gave a resigned sigh, fidgeting with her skirts. "I know that's a terrible thing to say about one's brother, but it's the truth."
"How old was he?"
"Eighteen."
"And he'd reach majority …"
"At twenty-one. But Uncle James was in reasonably good health, so it would likely be years before he became Duke."
"And he's your … older brother? I don't recall that you said."
"Yes, by eleven months. And Theodore was ten months younger than I."
"My goodness. That's rather close together."
"Yes. And my mother wasn't strong. She died giving birth to Theodore."
"Oh. I'm sorry."
"I had excellent nannies. It's not as if I ever really knew her."
"I see."
"So. James alienated everyone, including me." Her lip curled briefly in disgust. "He was very … open about his plans to marry me off to the first peer who offered him enough money, even though he knew I didn't … I mean the very idea …" Sighing again, she sat straighter and continued, "No matter. About four years ago he started getting sick and weak. The physicians couldn't find the cause. He had no fever, but lost his appetite and began losing weight. They tried everything they knew, but nothing helped. Over the course of a month, he became bedridden, barely able to lift a finger. Finally, one of the physicians began to suspect poison. His food and drink was carefully watched, and before long it was discovered that Theodore was the one poisoning him."
"His own brother?"
"By that point they hated each other. To be fair, James had mentioned more than once that it would be to his advantage to get rid of Theodore, so it was partially a preemptive self-defense. Also, Theo would have made a much better Duke." She leaned back and rubbed her eyes. "I never wanted this."
Anna reached over and took her hand. "I'm sorry you went through that."
"Thank you. Well … James was too far gone by that point for an antidote to help, even if Theo had been inclined to tell them what was in the poison … which he wasn't. James died two weeks later."
"What became of Theodore?"
Teresa's mouth twisted. "Uncle James had a fairly rigid view of the law. Theo was tried, convicted of murder, and hanged. His last words were that if his death could keep a monster like James off the Ducal Seat, it was worth it. And he bid me a long and happy reign."
Elsa took her other hand, giving it a squeeze.
After a glance down at their hands, a quick, sharp breath and then a couple of longer ones, the Duchess said, "So … so when Uncle James vanished … well. The Duchy couldn't do without a leader. He was declared legally dead three weeks ago, and I was elevated to the title." She unsuccessfully fought her rising blush.
The Queen of Arendelle could well appreciate her position. "And then you had this mess to clean up! I'm so sorry!"
"I'll admit that I was dreading this meeting." She gave Elsa a watery smile. "You have been … so much more than gracious, and I thank you very deeply."
"It would be horrid of me to hold you accountable for others' actions. I believe we can safely dispense with the trade embargo. I know a few merchants who weren't happy with me over that."
"There are many in Weselton who would welcome a return to trade as well."
Anna ventured, "You're twenty-two, right?"
"Yes."
"So, same as Elsa. Hardly an old maid."
"I beg your pardon?"
"Sorry. Got ahead of myself. You'd said earlier that James wanted to sell you off."
"Oh! Yes." Her gaze flicked to Elsa for an instant. "Yes, he did."
Anna chose her words carefully, her keen eye on Teresa the whole time. "But you're the Duchess now. You can pick your own husband, at your leisure. You've got plenty of time."
Teresa gave her a blank look and a couple of slow blinks. "Um … sure. I suppose that's true. If …" She closed her eyes. Sniffled.
Elsa leaned closer. "Duchess? Is there something we can do? You seem quite distressed."
Picking up on Elsa's proximity, Teresa leaned back fractionally. "No. Thank you. You've been more won-wonderful than I could have hoped." Her head turned. Another sniffle escaped. She withdrew her hands to clasp them at her waist and in a shaky voice said, "I believe the trip has been rather fatiguing. If you don't mind, I'd like to return to my ship to rest."
"Nonsense. We have a suite of rooms designated for visiting dignitaries. You really must stay with us here."
"Oh. Um … very well. If it's not too much trouble, I left a couple of ladies-in-waiting on the ship. If you could …"
"Certainly. I'll send someone for them immediately. And any of your personal effects you'd like to have."
Teresa blinked away tears and bit her lip. In a slightly strangled voice, she said, "Thank you. You are too kind."
"Not at all." Elsa rang a small bell. When the guards came back in, she said, "Would you please ask Kai to attend to the Duchess of Weselton? She is to be given every accommodation."
"Yes, Your Majesty." He hurried off.
Turning back to Teresa, Elsa could see that she was holding her composure by the thinnest of threads. Stepping over and taking her hands again, Elsa murmured, "The stresses of the day have fatigued you. We would love to see you at dinner, but I will understand if you would rather sleep. Travel is frequently difficult, and this trip must be especially so." She gave Teresa's fingers a light squeeze.
"Yes … uh … thank you. I … I will have to see … how that go-goes after I've rested." Her blush was back in force, and she wasn't meeting Elsa's eyes, facts which Anna noted with a faint grin.
Kai appeared, and led the Duchess away.
Elsa retrieved the parchment and read through it again, with occasional quiet comments to herself.
"She likes you."
Her head jerking up, Elsa stared at her sister. "What did you say?"
"I said, she likes you."
"Oh. Well, that is surely no surprise. She wasn't at all certain of our good graces, and is obviously grateful to have been so pleasantly received."
"That is not what I mean, and you know it."
Elsa finally caught her intimation. Her mouth dropped open, her cheeks flushed, a light flurry of snow fell around her, and she gave a strangled little cough before recovering and stating primly, "Your imagination is working overtime, Anna."
"I'm not wrong."
"Whatever led you to that-"
"Because I was paying attention? It was glaring at me, once I knew what to look for. She's totally smitten."
"Which makes absolutely no difference at all, ever. Even were I so inclined, I can't risk a close, physical relationship … with anyone. You know that. That's why you and Kristoff need to have children: I never will."
"I know you've convinced yourself of that. And I think it's hogwash."
Gliding out of the room, Elsa said, "You know what? I'm just going to ignore you until you start making sense."
Walking a bit faster to catch up, Anna giggled and said, "Yeah, you keep telling yourself that."
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How's that phrase go? Oh, yes: "Well, that escalated quickly!"
