Author's Note: Thanks, dear readers, for being patient. This is the first Saturday of the month, so I'm uploading today-the next one will be going up Sep. 5. Anyway, I will start uploading more frequently once I finish writing my other Peter Pan fanfiction, but for now Thawed is only going to be updated once a month. Let me know what you guys think about this chapter and thanks for all the great reviews.

Five. Books

"Oh, my sore eyes can't wait to see the Queen and the Princess. I bet they're absolutely lovely."

—Frozen, Irishman

She had less control over her power than he had assumed she had. He had seen the ice form in her clenched fist. He had seen how angry she became by his simple comment. Yes, he had been arrogant, but he had assumed she would not be so easily moved. He had been wrong.

Haydn lay in bed, listening to the bustling town come alive below him and the other guests rustle about outside his door. He knew it was late in the morning and he should have gotten up an hour ago, but he didn't feel like it. His bed was warm. Outside…not so much. Besides, he liked to ruminate once in a while.

He tapped his fingers gently on his coverlet. Perhaps he had been a bit cruel the previous night. He hadn't intended to insult the queen, and yet he wanted to see her reactions depending on his words. No, he hadn't been testing her. Or had he?

It was time to get up. Haydn shook his head and climbed out of the bed. He quickly dressed, not bothering to call a servant, and headed towards his cousin's room. Not that he was planning to confide anything to Jain, but he wasn't in the mood to eat breakfast along. As he reached his cousin's door, Jain's manservant appeared in his way.

"Is he awake?" Haydn questioned.

The servant blushed slightly. "Uh…yes, that is to say…no. I mean, he's awake, but…"

"I'll take that to assume he is busy in there with his latest conquest."

"Shall I go disturb…"

"No, no, never mind. It wasn't that important either. There's plenty of time to talk with him anyway. Just take care Suleika doesn't find out about the affair. Oh, and don't tell him I was here."

Haydn sauntered away, shaking his head. His cousin may have been politically savvy, but it was a pity he usually used his ability to influence people to get the most beautiful women in his bed. He almost felt sorry for the girl, knowing that Jain would simply throw her aside for another pretty face. He wondered why Suleika—Jain's fiancé back home—had agreed to marry him knowing his reputation. That girl sure seemed to be in complete denial.

After dropping by the kitchen to steal some food, he asked a servant for directions and then headed towards the library. He was curious about the history of Arendelle, and if this power Elsa possessed ran in the family.

Luckily, the library was huge and easy to find. Picking out several books that seemed interesting, he curling up in a chair and started reading. Luckily, everyone seemed too busy having breakfast, socializing, or sleeping to spend time in the library, making it a good place for peace and quiet.

He soon found an interesting article about the previous king and queen. Apparently, they were killed while at sea and their bodies were never found. Luckily, the article mentioned the queen's coronation as well, where she apparently—according to witnesses—sent ice shards flying at guests.

"A bit of a drama queen, isn't she?" Haydn voiced out loud.

"Get out then!"

Haydn glanced up in surprise to see Queen Elsa approaching him with her arms crossed and her eyes on fire. She looked furious.

"If you think so little of me, and if you hate snow so much, why don't you just leave and go back to wherever you came from!" It sounded like she was trying to keep her voice even but was failing miserably. "Why do you and all the other princes and kings think they can just come into my home and say anything they want about it? If you think I'm such a monster, why do you spend one more minute in my castle when you could be doing something much more pleasant?"

Haydn closed the book and stood up. "Your majesty, I didn't mean—"

"Oh, you mean if you knew I was here then you wouldn't have said it? Because you, like everyone else here, wants something from me, whether it be power or title. Well, I'm sick of it! I've just endured a horrific morning where no one has cared what I had to say, where everyone whispers behind my back about how much of a monster I am—"

"I never said you were a monster!" Haydn's voice rose a bit more than he consciously meant for it to. "Trust me, I know everything you are going through. I went through it as well. I—"

Elsa again interrupted him. "You know nothing."

"Elsa?"

Both of them turned as the queen's younger sister, Anna, entered the room. Haydn saw little similarities between the two princesses, besides the fact that they were both pretty in their own way. But Anna was much more bouncy than her older sister, and their looks as well were different, as Anna possessed reddish brown hair and Elsa's was nearly white.

Anne hurried in, looking between the two. "Is everything alright?"

Elsa shook her head. "What is it, Anna?"

"Oh, one of the servants accidentally fell into one of the ice sculptures you made this morning. They kind of broke off the arm of one of the figures. I was wondering if you could—"

"Oh, yes, of course. I'll come immediately." Glaring back at Haydn for a moment, Elsa turned and left the room.

Haydn rolled his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair. Damn, why did he have to snap back at her? Suddenly, he realized that the younger princess hadn't left, and was standing looking at his expectantly.

"What?" He asked.

Anna grinned. "Oh, I was just thinking how I haven't seen Elsa show so much emotion around someone." She thrust out her hand. "I'm Anna, by the way."

Haydn smiled down at the small girl. He wasn't sure why, but he liked this girl. She reminded him of a tiny, yippy puppy. He took her hand firmly. "Haydn."

"Are you one of the princes?"

"Hmm, I am. Prince and heir to Hariq."

"Is it cold there?"

"No, in fact, it's mostly desert."

"Desert? Wow, I've never seen the desert. What's it like? I bet it's hot. It would be hot, of course, it's the desert. But I've always wanted to sunbathe. It must be so much fun. I bet Olaf would love it. Maybe I can convince Kristoff to go there for our honeymoon."

Haydn let out a laugh. "You know, you aren't much like your sister."

"Don't worry, Elsa will get used to you. She's just had a rough morning. She gets cranky when she's stressed. Oh, I'd better see if she needs any help with the sculpture. I'll see you later."

With that, she bounded off, leaving Haydn alone to shake his head, amused. Almost immediately, though, he grimaced, remembering his cousin's words: If you do not persuade everyone, including Queen Elsa, to hate you in the first week you are here, I will shake your hand. And what had he done but gotten her to hate him in the first day. At least her sister seemed to like him: that was a start.

Haydn took a deep breath. "Just act like Jain. Everybody likes him."

With that, he headed out to impress the queen.