CHAPTER 20
"Woah, easy!"
The ice horse rose up on its enormous hind legs as Elsa pulled tightly on the reigns, willing it to stop at the base of the crystalline staircase that lead to the ice palace. It settled back down onto all four legs and the sisters dismounted. Elsa gracefully stepped off of the steed, while Anna jumped down and landed with a loud "oomph".
"You weren't joking when you said that he would have no problem getting us here." Anna said as she began stroking the horse's nose. The animal responded by letting out a grunt of satisfaction. It was truly a marvel. The same trip that took her and Kristoff nearly two days to make on foot was completed by Elsa's horse in less than an hour.
Elsa didn't respond to the Princess' statement. Instead, she turned back towards Arendelle and raised her arms in the air. As she did, the storm concealing the city began to die down until the massive blizzard was nothing more than a small flurry. She moved her hands in a swirling motion which caused a huge circle of storm clouds to form around the mountain. The blizzard raged over all faces of the mountain with the ice palace at its epicenter, though Elsa kept the storm from forming directly over them.
Anna continued petting the ice horse as she watched her sister work with her powers. As the storm around them grew larger and larger, the horse began to grow agitated.
"Hey, hey relax." Anna cooed to the animal. "Shhh, it's alright."
After a few tense seconds, the massive animal finally began to succumb to Anna's calming words and relax. She continued to stroke his head and whisper to it softly, but stopped when the creature's gaze found hers.
The blue hue once emanating from the large, dark orbs was replaced by a sinister golden glow.
"Elsa…"
The Princess turned towards her older sister, whose chest was heaving violently as she manipulated the weather around the mountain. When the storm was raging to Elsa's liking, she lowered her arms and turned to walk towards the palace. Anna could see the fury behind her eyes, just as she had in the eyes of the horse. She knew what the Queen was capable of when she was afraid and upset, but not when she was angry, and the Princess wasn't sure if she ever wanted to know. So as the Queen trudged past her, Anna grabbed her by the arm and did the one thing that she knew would always calm her down.
"Anna, wha-"
Elsa's protest was cut short as Anna crashed their lips together and wrapped her arms around the Queen's lithe form. Elsa was surprised for a short moment, but her surprise was almost immediately forgotten as she gave into her sister's will. A moment later, the kiss was over, and Anna looked up at the Queen with pleading eyes.
"Elsa, you need to relax." she purred. "Please. We will work this out together; there's no need to be angry."
Elsa frowned. She had forgotten how perceptive the younger woman could be. She was an open book, and it seemed that Anna was the only person that could understand the contents. Not to mention that the Princess was right. Anger wouldn't help them understand what had happened, nor would it help them rationally deal with the Prince.
"How did you know I was angry?" she finally asked.
Anna gestured towards the horse, which was staring at them with its glowing amber irises.
"Your powers react to your emotions, remember?"
"Yes." Elsa nodded with a sigh. "I'm sorry, Anna, I just- I would be lying if I said I wasn't angry. Good men died today, men whom we trusted, whom our parents trusted, and Mattias is the-"
She was once again interrupted by Anna's soft lips being pressed against her own, and all negative emotion was instantly overridden by the intense sensation of the contact. Before long, the Princess ended the kiss and smiled at her older sister.
"Don't worry Elsa. We'll figure this out." she said reassuringly. "Together."
Elsa returned the smile, causing the Princess to giggle. The tender moment was cut short a moment later, when Anna winced and grabbed her forehead.
"Ahh." she groaned as she rubbed her head. The sound startled the Queen and concern took over her face.
"Anna, what's wrong?"
"Nothing, I'm fine." the Princess replied. "Just a little headache. I think the altitude might be getting to me. I'll be okay."
Despite her sister's assurance, Elsa remained unconvinced and continued to stare nervously at the Princess. Anna let out an exaggerated sigh and placed a reassuring hand on the Queen's face.
"Elsa, I promise I'm alright." Anna placed a small kiss on her older sister's forehead before turning towards the palace steps. "Now come on, let's go find Mattias and figure all of this out."
Elsa smiled and nodded at the Princess but stopped her from walking away by placing a hand on her shoulder.
"Just one more thing before we head in." she stated. Anna watched curiously as the Queen walked over to a large pile of snow at the base of the staircase. Elsa leaned over and tapped the pile three times with her knuckles. Upon the third tap, the ground started shaking and Elsa quickly returned to her sister's side. A moment later, the snowdrift began cracking and separating as is rose into the air, spraying a fine mist of ice in all directions.
Marshmallow raised his massive hands into the air and let out a bellowing yawn that almost caused the sisters to lose their footing. The golem blinked slowly and turned his head towards the duo. A toothy smile stretched across his face when he realized who the visitors were, quickly followed by a small wave from the creature's icy hand.
"Hi, Momma. Hi, Anna." the enormous snowman said excitedly.
"Hello, Marshmallow." Elsa replied. "I wish I had time to chat, but we are here on business. Tell me, has anyone else come to the palace today?"
Elsa felt the air shift around her as the snow golem shook his head no. "Just you." he grumbled. Armed with this new information, she turned to the Princess, who was staring at the massive snowman with suspicious eyes.
"Anna, there's no way that Mattias would be able to reach the palace without alerting Marshmallow. Are you sure he's here?"
"Yes, I'm sure." the Princess answered without breaking eye contact with the snowman. "I'm certain."
Elsa looked on questioningly, which made the Princess finally turn towards her, throwing her arms to her sides in frustration.
"Look, I know it seems crazy, but I know he's here!" Anna cried.
"But how can you be certain if Marshmallow-"
"I just know, alright?" Anna interrupted. "I just- I can't- look, you trust me, right?
"Implicitly."
"Then trust me when I say that he is here, but I can't really explain how I know. I suppose that the best way I can explain it is that I just have a… a feeling, a, a hunch. Like I said, I can't really tell you why."
Anna held her hands up as if she were pleading for the Queen to believe her, and the look on the young woman's face drove the point home.
"I understand, and I believe you." Elsa said calmly. "I just find it hard to believe that he was able to make it past Marshmallow."
"Maybe he got in through the back door." Anna suggested.
"There is no back door, silly." the Queen replied with a giggle. "Just the main entrance."
Anna smiled and shrugged as the blonde turned back towards Marshmallow.
"Are you absolutely sure that no one else came here today?"
The snowman nodded and repeated himself. "Just you."
"Okay then." Elsa replied. "We are going inside. I need you to make sure no one else gets in. Can you do that for me?"
"Yes, Momma." the golem responded with enthusiasm.
"Good. We'll see you later. Come, Anna."
The ground rumbled again as Marshmallow curled back into his snowdrift form at the base of the stairs. Elsa offered her hand to the Princess, who grasped it without hesitation, locking their fingers together as she did. The duo then made their way up the imposing crystal staircase.
About half way up the stairs, Elsa realized that she seemed to be pulling her sister. She turned to see that the Princess was several steps behind and losing ground. The hand that wasn't entwined with hers was once again pressed to her temple, and Elsa could see frustration in the Princess' eyes.
"Anna, are you sure you're alright?" the Queen asked.
"Yeah, I'm sure." Anna answered timidly. "It's just… well, I understand why you're still angry, just… please try to make sure that it doesn't affect your judgement."
"Anna, I'm not angry anymore."
"But the palace, the ice…"
"What about it?"
"It's… it's still golden."
"What?" Elsa turned her head back towards the palace, confused by her sister's accusation. She saw no indication of any anger in the ice; no golden tinge, no cloudiness. Just pure, crystalline blue.
"Anna, the palace isn't golden."
"What do you mean?" Anna retorted. "It's clearly-"
The Princess' defense was cut off by the concerned voice of her older sister.
"Anna, look at the horse."
The redhead debated continuing her protest, but relented and turned to look back down the staircase. There, the ice horse stood next to Marshmallow, mane blowing in the wind from the surrounding blizzard and eyes glowing a brilliant blue.
"His eyes…" Anna muttered. "But the palace, it's-"
She whipped her head back towards the Queen, but what caught her attention wasn't the concerned look from her sister, but the palace itself, which shone a beautiful cerulean, just as it normally did.
"-blue." she finished as a confused pout formed on her face.
"Anna…" the Queen said nervously. Anna rubbed her eyes with her palms and, once her vision was clear, smiled appreciatively.
"Don't worry about me, Elsa. Maybe the thin air is bothering me more than I thought." The Princess explained. "Or maybe I'm the one who needs to calm down!"
Anna finished her reasoning with a nervous laugh which only served to increase the Queen's worry. Elsa's nerves were further frayed when she was suddenly tugged in the direction of the palace as a blur of copper shot past her.
"Now c'mon, we're wasting time worrying!" Anna yelled back at her as she barreled up the stairs. Several seconds later, they reached the top, and the Princess stepped to the side, watching Elsa with expectant eyes as she moved slowly towards the massive double doors. The Queen placed a tentative hand in the center of the doors and traced it along the seal that formed between them.
"The doors are still sealed." Elsa said, turning towards the Princess. "Marshmallow was right; no one came in this way. As far as I can tell, no one came in at all."
Anna frowned as the Queen continued her stream of thought.
"Also, we made it here in record time, using magic. Sure, Mattias had a few hours head start, but how could he have made it here before us?"
The redhead's eyes closed and her shoulders sunk towards the ground. She took a deep breath and mustered all the resolve she had left to try and convince the Queen that Mattias was, in fact, in the ice palace.
"Elsa, I know it seems unlikely, impossible even, but he's here." she began weakly. "I can't tell you how he got here, or how I know, but I do." The Princess' voice grew more confident as she spoke, and she moved to the doors and placed her hand on the icy portal.
"You say you can feel your magic, right?"
"Yes." Elsa replied while nodding. "The cold, my powers… they're like extensions of my being. I can feel how they flow out of me and into the world."
"Well, that's kind of what I'm feeling now, just not with the cold." Anna explained. "I just have this… this feeling, here," -she paused and pointed to her head, then the center of her chest- "and here. In my heart." She turned to look back towards the city as Elsa's eyes trailed her movements.
"Over the past six months I've learned to trust my heart. Somehow my heart knows that Mattias is here, just like it knew how to find you out on the fjord." Anna narrowed her eyes, put on the most serious expression she could, and turned to face the Queen.
"He's here, Elsa."
The Queen looked directly at her, matching her stern expression. After a seemingly tense moment, Elsa smiled and reached up to hold the Princess' head in her hands.
"You don't have to tell me twice."
Elsa placed a quick kiss on the younger woman's forehead, which made a smile crack her stoic appearance. Elsa then walked back to the door, and with a small burst of magic, pushed the large doors inward. Anna moved to her side as the doors swung open, trying to keep her rapidly beating heart from bursting from her chest.
The doors finished opening, and both women let out a breath. At first glance, the cavernous room was empty and no sounds were coming from anywhere else in the palace. Together, they took a few cautious steps into the building, just enough to give Elsa space to re-seal the door. As she finished filling the space between the doors with ice, she heard Anna gasp quietly.
"Elsa, look!"
The Queen spun around to find Anna pointing towards the ice fountain. There, Elsa noticed a shine, but not one that would be produced by ice. Rather, this was the reflection of light off of steel.
Elsa stormed towards the fountain and the metallic objects came into focus. In front of the fountain were two swords which had been stabbed into the ice in an X pattern. Just above the swords, on the ledge of the fountain, was a flintlock pistol and a leather vambrace that was fitted with some sort of metal contraption.
"Those are Mattias' weapons." Anna said softly, but the Queen did not shift her focus from the display. "I recognize the designs."
"I know." Elsa replied.
"This just keeps getting stranger and stranger. Why would he leave his weapons here?"
A loud SNAP and a sudden chill caused the Princess to jump as the palace floor began to fissure and separate. The pale blue of the calm ice was being rapidly replaced by the same menacing yellow as before as the cracks snaked from their epicenter at Elsa's feet. Panic washed over Anna and she instinctively reached out for her older sister, but before her hand could reach the Queen's shoulder, Elsa spun around to face her.
Her eyebrows were furrowed and her face was marred with an angry scowl. Her chest and shoulders were noticeably rising and falling with every breath.
"Elsa…" the Princess said, voice filled with trepidation as she pointed to the floor. "are… are you doing this?"
"Yes."
"You're… in control?"
"Yes."
"Okay, I believe you. Just… he's still our friend. Don't hurt him. Please."
"I won't hurt him, Anna." the Queen responded. She closed her eyes and raised her hand, palm up into the air, and a small ball of ice formed a few centimeters above it. Her eyes slid open and the blue glow that was present when she was conjuring the blizzard had returned. Suddenly, jagged spikes began to grow from the ball of ice in her hand and the yellow ice below her began turning a demonic red.
"But I will put the fear of the Gods into him."
"That is… unsettling."
Prince Mattias stood on the balcony of the ice palace watching the ever-growing blizzard swirl around the structure. The occasional burst of snow would escape from the vortex, but the main body of the storm never seemed to reach him. He absentmindedly rubbed his right wrist, which felt oddly light without the blade that usually occupied it.
Mattias frowned nervously as he continued massaging his wrist. He had managed to wipe his weapons clean of the guards' blood, but his cloak and tunic were still stained with the crimson fluid. The bloodstains wouldn't help his case, but judging by the storm that was raging around him, it might not matter.
In the time since his arrival in Arendelle, Mattias had come to understand how the Queen would handle certain situations. Happiness, discomfort, hurt; Elsa had been presented with all and had handled them all in kind. However, the Prince had yet to experience angry-Elsa, and quite frankly, he was petrified. If frightened-Elsa could freeze an entire kingdom with little to no effort, there was no telling what angry-Elsa was capable of, though the massive blizzard outside was very telling.
The Prince shuddered at the thought before turning back into the palace, closing the large doors of ice behind him. It was only a matter of time before Anna found him, and as time dragged on, he became more and more nervous. He patted the lapel of his coat, making sure that the map and book were still there. The documents might very well be the only things that keep him alive through this, that is, if Elsa even gave him a chance to explain himself.
Mattias shook the morbid thought out of his head and tried to keep himself occupied by admiring the palace. It was easy enough to get in, thanks to the information provided to him by Kristoff. He was especially grateful that he was able to avoid the snow golem guarding the steps. There would have been no way for him to successfully fight the creature after exerting so much energy making it up the mountain in such a short time, a fact that was confirmed when he was barely able to scale the side of the structure. He practically fell through the balcony doors when he finally reached them, keeping himself upright only to collapse once he was through the gateway. Mercifully, the Queen and Princess had yet to find him, so he had plenty of time to regain his strength. Now, he stood silently near the balcony doors, feeling naked without his weapons attached to him and waiting to be confronted by Anna and Elsa.
KKKRRRRRKKK
A cracking sound echoed through the palace, and Mattias was instantly on alert. He knew what it meant; the Queen and Princess had arrived.
Mattias frowned. This was a gamble, no doubt, and one that could go horribly wrong for him. Leaving himself this vulnerable went against everything he had ever been taught, but there was no other way. He could only hope that the Queen would show him mercy; that Anna would be able to talk her down if things got out of hand. If his impression of Anna was correct, she wouldn't let the Queen hurt him, even if they didn't believe his story.
SSSHHHHHHHRRRKKK
Another loud crack shot through the air, this time accompanied by a tremor that shook the walls and nearly knocked the Prince off his feet. He regained his balance and fixed his eyes on the staircase to the lower levels. He had no idea what to expect and couldn't deny that the uncertainty had him frightened. He decided to run through the plan in his head; beg for mercy, show them the documents, beg again, and try not to say anything stupid. Simple enough. If that didn't work, he would deploy his trump card.
He would say that there was a courier in the city that was instructed to deliver a letter to King Aleksander in Ørnhaven if Mattias did not return to him by the next sunset. The contents of that letter included a description of the lascivious rendezvous that he had witnessed between the Queen and Princess. If the letter was to be sent, the resulting scandal would ruin the Royal House of Arendelle. There was no way that the sisters would let that happen.
Of course, such a letter didn't actually exist, but the Queen and Princess wouldn't take the chance. He silently hoped that it wouldn't come to that.
KKKKKKKKKKRRRRSSSSSSSS
'No, it won't come to that' he thought. They were his friends; they wouldn't want to hurt him, and he certainly would never do anything to sully their names.
KKKKKKKRRRRRAACK-
…
One last crack, and then silence. Mattias stared at the threshold of the stairwell. An eerie red glow seemed to be coming from the lower levels, though he couldn't tell if it was real or if his fear was simply causing him to see things. A moment passed and the Prince realized that he was holding his breath. He exhaled slowly through his mouth, breath condensing in front of him when it hit the cold air of the palace. As he let out the last bit of air in his lungs, he heard what he believed was the wind howling. It grew louder and louder with each passing moment, suddenly climaxing when a burst of ice flew into the room from the stairwell. An instant later, Mattias was suspended in the air, trapped in a ring of ice that compressed him from every angle as he struggled to break free.
"Good evening, Your Highness."
A feminine voice drew the Prince's attention to the stairwell. He stopped struggling against his icy prison when mist began to creep into the room. The only thing visible through the fog was a pair of floating orbs that were glowing the most brilliant blue he had ever seen. A second later, a figured began to materialize around the orbs, and Mattias realized that the orbs were eyes; Elsa's eyes, to be specific. Sure enough, the Queen stepped through the haze, hand raised in the Prince's direction, keeping the ice around him aloft. The icy floor splintered with her every footfall, and the red aura that he believed that he was hallucinating quickly overtook the room. She took several more steps until she was almost directly beneath him. He locked eyes with the Queen and was terrified by the rage he could sense in the glowing spheres.
"Tell me, Prince Mattias." she growled at him through clenched teeth and balled her hand into a fist.
"What are you doing on my mountain?"
'Wow, I'm pretty good at this.'
Elsa smiled at the performance she was giving, and while internally she was actually quite pleased, the smile took the form of a devilish scowl, making her appear all the more frightening. The Prince's terror was almost palpable and she could feel him struggling against her powers as the ice constricted him.
"Gaahh, Elsa, please, let me-"
"SILENCE!"
The Queen cut him off with a shout and clenched her fist even more, further compressing the man in the ring of ice.
"You will speak ONLY when I give you permission. Is that clear?"
"But Elsa, I-"
"IS. That. Clear."
Mattias opened his mouth to speak, but any protest died on his tongue. He instead nodded his head to signal his understanding.
"Good." Elsa said curtly. "For now, you will listen as I speak."
Another nod from the Prince and Elsa began.
"You are an assassin, both by trade and by allegiance. You are a member of the Brotherhood of Assassins, a notorious breed of killers bent on causing chaos and upsetting the natural order of the world, and for some reason, your masters sent you to kill me."
"No that's not- aughh!"
"I thought you were clear on the rules." Elsa snarled as she tightened her grip. A second later she loosened it slightly and the Prince began gasping for air.
"Where was I?" she continued. "Your masters sent you here to murder my guards, and presumably me and my sister."
She gestured back towards Anna, who was now standing at a reasonable distance behind the Queen.
"Anna is the reason I know all this. She found the symbol on your gun in an old book about the Crusades, in particular a chapter about the Knights Templar and their victory over the Assassins at Masyaf."
Elsa pulled her fist in towards her chest, causing the ice holding Mattias to move towards her. When he was face-level with her, she spoke again.
"That is all history, of course. What matters is the fact that you irrefutably murdered my personal guards. Normally, I wouldn't hesitate to have you executed for your actions."
Elsa furrowed her brow and raised her fist until it was directly in front of the Prince's face. She could see the sweat forming on his brow and the convulsions of fear that racked his body.
"But this situation is anything but normal."
Elsa released her fist and the ice entrapping the Prince dissipated into nothing. The man fell to his knees, gasping for air, though his relief was short lived, as a moment later he was pushed back against the wall by a burst of wind from the Queen's hand. He landed in a heap on the icy floor with a groan and struggled to push himself up.
"You should thank my sister, Mattias." she called from across the room. "She is the reason that you still draw breath. If not for her wise input, I would have already killed you."
Elsa slowly walked towards the middle of the room, keeping her eyes on the Prince the whole time. When she reached the center, she waved her hand out to her side, conjuring duel thrones of ice beside her, both facing the Prince. She took her seat and waved Anna over, who quickly took her place in her own throne at the Queen's side.
"Aside from my sister's merciful nature, you are an old friend, and even I hold that to some regard. So I will give you a chance to explain yourself."
Elsa flicked her hand outward, forming cuffs of ice on the Prince's wrists which were then dragged above him until he was standing with his manacled wrists above his head.
"Speak." The Queen commanded.
Mattias was silent for a moment, seemingly in order to collect his thoughts. Elsa hoped that he wouldn't call her bluff; she would never actually hurt him, but he didn't know that, and hopefully it stayed that way.
The Prince let out a deep breath and raised his head to look directly at the Queen.
"I thank you both for showing mercy, and hopefully I will be able to explain myself to your liking. You are correct, Your Majesty, I am a member of the Assassin Brotherhood, and I did kill your guards, but my motives were not nefarious."
"Five men are dead, and you try to tell me that you meant well by it?"
"I was protecting you and the Princess, Your Majesty."
"By murdering our personal guards?" Elsa shouted.
"I did it to keep them from murdering you!"
Anna gasped loudly and the Queen recoiled in shock at Mattias' accusation.
"What did you just say?" she asked quietly.
"Stenson and his men were plotting to kill you and the Princess." Mattias explained to the now-dumbfounded Queen.
"How dare you." she hissed. "How DARE you accuse them of that! Captain Stenson was a loyal man who has protected my family for decades, and his men dedicated their lives to keeping us-"
"I can prove it." Mattias boldly interrupted. "I have evidence that- AUGH!"
"Do NOT interrupt me." the Queen commanded, rising to her feet and waving her hand to reform the ring of ice around the Prince's abdomen. "Where is this supposed 'evidence'?"
"It's- argh... in my cloak, just... let me go and- gah... and I'll s-show you!"
Elsa looked to her side at the Princess, who nodded back at her. She turned back to the Prince and raised her hand.
"Fine." she said as she waved her hand, freeing the Prince from the ring of ice as well as his shackles. He fell to his knees and rubbed his wrists where the icy manacles had just been.
"We will see your evidence, Mattias." Elsa continued. "Place it on the floor in front of you, and do no try to approach."
The Prince nodded his understanding. Despite the cold temperature of the palace, he was over heating from the exhaustion of being deprived of oxygen by the ice, and as a result his hair was matted down with sweat and his chest heaved with every breath. He shakily reached into his cloak and pulled out the book and the map, placing them on the floor in front of him. Once it was out of his hands, he collapsed backwards, resting his back on the cool wall.
Using her powers, Elsa manipulated the floor to move the items toward her. When they reached her feet, she reached down and picked up the articles, handing the book to Anna and taking the map for herself. She unfolded the map and studied the markings on it while Anna flipped through the text. She was clearly looking at a map of the castle grounds, but other than that, the parchment was indecipherable.
"What am I looking at, Mattias?" she asked without taking her eyes of the paper.
"It's a map of the castle." the Prince replied. "Stenson was using it to decide the best place to attack you."
"And how can you say that for certain?"
"The markings." he answered. "The X's were locations that wouldn't work; the chapel, the throne room, the stables, even. But look at the bridge; it's circled."
Elsa did as instructed and shifted her focus to the bridge. She found the circle Mattias spoke of, as well as seven smaller circles.
"What are these markings on the bridge?"
"People." he said. "Or rather, where people would be. Those people being you, the Princess, and the guards. Look at the pattern they're drawn in; it's the exact formation that you and the guards were traveling in."
"I see." Elsa replied. "And these two marks that are slashed through?"
"You and the Princess." Mattias said. "The targets."
Elsa looked up at the Prince as he continued.
"The bridge was the perfect place to attack you. Once they barricaded the gate, they had you trapped, outnumbered, and surrounded. You probably would have been able to take out one, maybe two of them, thanks to your powers."
Elsa looked back down at the map and ran her hands over the marks that represented her and Anna.
"But even if you could handle one of them, there would be four others to deal with. You wouldn't be able to fight them all at once, especially since they would have had the element of surprise."
The Prince let out a deep breath and closed his eyes, when he spoke next, his tone of voice was much more somber.
"It would only take one lucky strike to bring you down."
Elsa wouldn't admit it, but the Prince's last statement hit home. Ice started creeping across the paper in her hands and sweat began forming on her forehead. The Prince was right, if he was telling the truth. It would have only taken one precise lunge of a spear or sword and it would have been over. She would have been killed.
Even worse, Anna would have been killed.
She felt her heart rate quickening as her eyes darted back-and-forth nervously between the map, the Prince, and her sister. Her mind was filled with horrifying visions of Anna being struck down by the guards while she was helpless to save her. She shook the thought out of her head and tried to focus on the Prince to distract herself.
"What is to say that you didn't fabricate this map yourself?"
"I cannot prove the origins of the map." Mattias admitted. "My only hope is that you will trust my word."
Elsa pondered the statement before continuing her interrogation.
"Suppose I believe your story," she began. "Why would they do it? Stenson was a man of honor and loyalty. What would change that?"
"Ask the Princess." he replied. "I found that book, along with many others, in an abandoned boathouse on the shore of the fjord. I found the boathouse by following Sergeant Hageback there."
Elsa turned quickly to her sister. The Princess was staring at the book's cover, stoic expression cemented to her face.
"Anna, what is in the book?"
"Elsa..." she uttered quietly, her eyes remaining locked to the cover of the book. "I don't- I'm not sure how to say this... rather, I don't want to say it because I don't want to hurt you."
"What do you mean that you don't want to hurt me?"
"The book, Elsa." the Princess said morosely. "The book is about- it's about... witchcraft."
"What?"
"I'm sorry, Elsa," Mattias interjected. "But it seems that they wanted to kill you because they were afraid of you; of your powers."
The Queen turned away from the man and tried to will away the tears forming in her eyes.
"If that's true, why didn't they kill me when my powers were first exposed? Why wait six months to strike?"
"I'm not sure." Mattias responded. "Perhaps they were just biding their time, or they wanted a chance to plan, or maybe they were just too shocked at the time to react."
Elsa blinked away the tears that blurred her vision as the Prince continued his explanation.
"I know that the Captain has been a loyal servant of your family and I know how hard this must be to process, but you have to look at the facts of the matter. Even if you don't believe me, you can believe yourself. You had to have noticed the guards trying to break through your barrier."
The Prince's final statement sent the memory of the attack to the forefront of Elsa's mind. In her head she clearly heard the sound of steel striking ice. The recollection only served to further confuse her, but of all the evidence that Mattias had presented, that memory was the most damning.
Elsa looked over to the Princess who was clutching the book tightly to her chest, sad teal eyes boring into the Queen's own. Tears were flowing freely down Anna's cheeks, and the Queen could see her lower lip trembling.
"Anna," she said, voice shaky and weak. "What do you think?"
Anna's eyes darted back and forth between the Queen and Prince. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came to her.
"I hope I'm not over stepping my boundaries, but she believes me." Mattias interrupted.
"Are you asking her or telling me?" Elsa replied curiously.
"I'm not asking if she believes me, because I already know she does."
The Queen looked at her sister questioningly. Anna's jaw still hung open and she appeared to be holding her breath.
"Anna?"
"He- he's right." the Princess finally murmured. "I believe him. He's telling the truth."
"Anna... are you sure? How can you tell?"
"I just- I can't explain it." the Princess responded. "I just know... I can feel that he's telling the truth."
"Anna, I'm not sure I understand."
"Does your head hurt, Anna?"
The sisters both snapped their heads towards Mattias after the sudden question.
"What did you ask me?" the Princess replied.
"Does your head hurt?" Mattias repeated. "Do you have a headache like the one you had when we played chess?"
"I hardly see how that is relevant." Elsa answered. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Anna begin to cautiously approach the still-sitting Prince.
"How did you know that my head hurt?" the Princess asked, taking another tentative step forward.
"Anna, be careful-"
Anna raised her hand to cut the Queen's statement off as she continued her advance towards the Prince.
"How did you know which chess moves to make, Anna?" Mattias inquired. "How did you know where to find me?"
"Anna, please!"
Mattias stood shakily as the Princess continued to approach him. Elsa pointed her hands towards him in anticipation of defending her sister from any attack that may come as he continued his line of questions.
"How did you find Elsa that day on the fjord?"
The final question made the Princess stop in her place and the Queen to gasp. Elsa kept her eyes trained on her younger sister and her hands raised towards Mattias who was now closing the gap between himself and the Princess. As he approached, he put his hands out to his sides to show he meant no harm.
"I know how you did all of those things, Anna," he stated calmly. "Because I can see the golden light, too."
"What is he talking about Anna?" the Queen asked desperately, though Anna was too stunned to answer.
"I understand how confusing this must be, but I need you to trust me." the Prince continued. "I am first and foremost your friend, and I would never lie to either of you. I can and will explain everything if you allow it."
The Princess took a moment to process what she had just heard before exhaling sharply.
"What... what am I?" she asked, voice shaky and unsure. Mattias' expression grew stern as he drew in a breath. His response shook both sisters to their cores.
"You, Anna, are an Assassin."
A/N
Hey everybody, CosmicSon here with a new chapter, finally. Sorry for the delay, but some major things have happened in my life over the past month, including a 2 week hospital stay in early January. Fret not, I am alive and healthy and ready to work on this story. I doubt there will be a delay like this one again, but I do apologize for my absence. Your patience is extremely appreciated, and to those who messaged me about my status, thank you! And thank ALL of you for waiting around for me. Now, we forge ahead! See you again soon!
-Cosmic