a.n. So here it is, Chapter 4. I finally got it posted. I know it's a little late, but this is a long one and it was tough to write. I like how it turned out, though it wasn't exactly what I was envisioning for this chapter. I hope you all like it and I look forward to reading your reviews. Don't forget to read, review, and enjoy!

Chapter 4: Home To Arendelle

"…and about a year ago, I found myself working in the mountains when Arendelle's most unusual summer began." Here Kristoff paused, unsure of how to continue. He had related his own tale to the couple and they were nearing the end of their journey. His part of the story was over and judging by the tentative questions the couple had asked him as he regaled them and the sudden silence that had come over the occupants of the sled, he knew that the pair was anxious to know about the events that had transpired. Arendelle was just over the next hill and once they reached the town, it wouldn't be long before all of their questions would be answered. He turned and saw the couple's eyes on him, waiting for him to continue. "That's…uh…the end of my story. That's really all I can tell you now. Once we reach Arendelle, you'll find out what you really want to know, straight from the source." That seemed to satisfy the pair and they relaxed in their seats to enjoy the rest of the trip. It wasn't too much longer before the final hill came into view. Knowing what was coming, Sven sped up and the sleigh gained a bit more speed as they crested it, a wonderful sight greeting their eyes.

Down below, lit up by the bright summer sun, was the town of Arendelle. A small town nestled on a watery fjord, the little village, to an unknowing visitor, seemed too small, too insignificant. Though the town, and the kingdom itself, was fairly isolated from others, it had a thriving trade culture that depended on good relations with neighboring kingdoms and lands. Though the past year had been hard on both the tiny kingdom and their international relations, with the severing of ties between both the Southern Isles and Weselton, as well as several other once key allies that felt it was in their best interests to not be connected to Arendelle any longer, it not only survived, it thrived. The tale of Arendelle's eternal winter and subsequent thaw, and its magical snow queen, spread far and wide and there were plenty of kingdoms that wanted to have such a powerful place as both a trading partner and ally. Now, the kingdom and its people were reaping the benefits. Ships were constantly coming and going into the many ports and the marketplace was always busy with both local and foreign merchants exchanging goods and wares. Even the palace gates, which had once stayed closed for over a decade, remained wide open and were never shut again. Arendelle was an open, free place, and people from all walks of life, royalty included, were free to come and go as they pleased.

While Kristoff had been witness to this view many times, to him, it never got old. It would always be like coming home from a long journey, no matter how long or short his ice excursions were. Once upon a time, he had been perfectly content to wander from place to place with only a reindeer as a companion, sleeping outside, and rarely venturing to town if he could help it. City life was just not for him; he had spent too much time away from such hustle and bustle, first as an orphan and then with the trolls in their little valley, to be truly comfortable with so many people and so many tight places. But once he met Anna, he gradually grew more at ease with such things. Anna, who herself had never been around many people in her own life, had been much more successful than he in coming to terms with her new life and she tried her hardest to get him to relax in his new surroundings. Her bubbly attitude and optimistic outlook on life, even after everything she had been through, started to rub off on him and it wasn't long before he too had settled into city life. Now, he always breathed a happy sigh of relief whenever he returned home to Arendelle, for that is what it was. His home. The first real home he had ever had. The one place he would never leave. The place where his new life with Anna would soon begin.

Unknown to the mountain man, whose loving expression was reflected by his reindeer companion, the pair of passengers wore a very different look on their faces. Erik and Anya both had expressions of shock, awe, and surprise, though beneath the surface, they were both carefully masking their gratitude and joy at the sight before them. Arendelle was just as beautiful as it had been the last time they had seen it, though there seemed to be something even more spectacular about it now.

Heading down the hill and growing closer to the town, they hid their anxiety well as happy cheers and laughter echoing through the streets and the gleeful shouts of merchants and vendors selling their merchandise met their ears. The din grew louder as the sleigh pulled them towards the town and it seemed only moments before they found themselves at the town's outer limits. Yet, to their surprise the reindeer never stopped and their guide didn't try to force him. Sven contentedly pulled them along into the town with little prompting from the driver. Erik turned to question Kristoff, but stopped when he noticed that the people were smiling at them as they passed by, waving to the man and his reindeer. He even caught a few of the townsfolk bowing slightly to the blonde, much to Kristoff's discomfiture. Both Erik and Anya were startled at the act. If it wasn't for Kristoff's dismissive hand gesture and general awkward demeanor every time, they would have believed the action was for them, and they were almost afraid that they had been recognized. They both breathed a sigh of relief when they realized that Kristoff was the intended recipient of each and every one, though they were confused as to why he was getting such treatment.

The mountain man must have sensed their curiosity since he turned to face the couple, his face red with embarrassment.

"Uh…yeah. You're probably wondering about that. It's kind of embarrassing actually. You see…"

"Sir Kristoff! Welcome back!"

"Sir Kristoff, did you have a pleasant endeavor?"

"How is the ice harvesting going up in the mountains, Sir Kristoff?"

Sir Kristoff? Why were they calling him that? If the pair had been confused before, they certainly were more so now. They gaped at the man in stunned silence as he thanked the well-wishers and answered their questions.

Once they made their way through the crowd, Kristoff turned once more to his companions.

"I really wish they wouldn't call me that," he muttered dejectedly before focusing on his passengers. "Uh…as I was saying, most of that has to do with what happened last year…which, of course you don't know about yet." He smiled sheepishly at them. "But as for the rest of it…I guess you can say it's because of…"

"Sven! You're back!" Kristoff was again cut off, though this time a happy grin made its way to his face before he mouthed a "Sorry" to the pair as he whipped around to look for the voice. Erik and Anya, still confused and a little miffed at being interrupted again, followed Kristoff's actions and looked towards where they had heard the voice. At first, they didn't see anyone. The crowd had pretty much disappeared as the townspeople resumed their business and the area around them was pretty deserted. No one was paying them any attention anymore and they didn't see any one around who could have shouted.

"Olaf!" Kristoff laughed and the couple watched as the sleigh slowed to a stop and the ice harvester jumped out and rushed to the side of the street, away from the sled. They stayed where they were and were astounded as a white blob appeared, seemingly out of nowhere, and dashed right up to Kristoff.

Was that a snowman running towards them?

Kristoff stood there and let the blob come to him. As much as he liked the little guy, he wasn't really that comfortable with showing a lot of affection in public to anyone, though Sven and Anna were two notable exceptions. But he knew how openly affectionate Olaf was, so he was willing to pat the creature on the top of his snowy head as he received a tight squeeze on the leg.

"Hey Olaf. What have you been up to? Keeping yourself out of trouble?" Kristoff smirked knowingly. As kind-hearted as the snowman was, he was quite naive in the ways of the world and his good intentions often had not-so-good conclusions. But he was learning. Elsa, Kristoff, and especially Anna were always there to help him out and teach him whenever his actions had unintended consequences.

"Oh, you know not much. I've just been wandering around town and playing with the kids. We had this awesome game of tag going on earlier, but I kind of fell apart and had to stop playing while they got my pieces back together. Then I found Anna and helped her with her errands before she went back to the castle for lunch. I stayed with her for a while but since she had to do whatever it is she usually does during the day, I came back outside to play. But then I found you!" Kristoff heard the wonder and excitement in the little creature's voice and couldn't help the soft smile that graced his lips at the mention of his fiancée's name. Olaf loved Anna, and he knew that she adored the snowman just as much. Both of them had that infectious child-like naïveté that never failed to bring a smile to anyone they came into contact with. It certainly worked on him.

"She's back at the castle, huh?" Olaf nodded and Kristoff had a thoughtful look on his face. "Then I guess we better go find her to let her know I'm back. Come on, I'll give you a ride back." Kristoff turned and gestured to the snowman to follow him.

During the entire exchange, Erik and Anya remained silent in the sled, watching the scene before them. They couldn't hear what was being said between the mysterious mountain man and the strange talking snowman, but they could tell that the two seemed to be friends. They were only the slightest bit startled when Kristoff headed back towards them, the newcomer close on his heels. They looked on in awe as the snowman finally noticed them, his eyes and mouth wide in astonishment. The two of them were at a loss for words. What exactly did one say to a talking snowman?

"Hey Sven, who are they?" Kristoff had stopped by the sled to help his snow buddy up and realized he hadn't made the introductions yet.

"Oh sorry, buddy. I guess I forgot to introduce you. Olaf, this is Frederick and his wife Greta. I ran into them up in the mountains. Frederick, Greta, this is Olaf." A wide smile soon appeared on Olaf's face and he waved his arms enthusiastically.

"Hi, I'm Olaf and I like warm hugs!" There was something eerily familiar about that statement that struck the couple, as if some forgotten memory, long-buried within their minds, was trying to escape. But, as quickly as it had appeared, the feeling was gone and the couple was left to stare at the little creature. His head was almost comically disproportionate to the rest of his body, but it somehow worked for him. He had short stubby legs that seemed to struggle to hold the rest of him up and the bright orange carrot nose he sported seemed to attract the attention of the reindeer, who had turned his head to look at Olaf, a playful glint in his big brown eyes. The most curious part of the whole thing, however, had to be the little snow flurry that seemed to hover over him, staying with him no matter where he went. They had noticed it had stayed right overhead during his short talk with Kristoff and it had followed him on his quick walk to the sled. It was as if it possessed some kind of magical quality. The pair shared a quick look at this realization and their anxiety only increased. They needed answers and they needed them soon.

Both Kristoff and Olaf missed the look that passed between the couple when he reached down and picked up the snowman to place him in the sled next to the woman and he happily settled in comfortably as Kristoff took his seat up front and their trip resumed.

Minutes later, the traveling companions found themselves trotting across a bridge, drawing closer and closer to the magnificent castle that presided regally over Arendelle. Erik and Anya grew more apprehensive as they approached, confused and fearful. It wasn't until they were right at the gates that they gasped in shocked. They knew something was different about is place, that something had happened to the town. Now, they were finally able to see what it was that was different about the castle, and the village, that they had once called home:

No longer were the gates closed.

The castle was open.

There were throngs of people wandering up and down the bridge and in and out of the gates and the castle's courtyard, oblivious to the stares of the couple. But it was the look on the faces of the people that they passed by that really tugged at their hearts.

Everyone was happy.

Free.

The people were joyfully milling about, mingling with one another, coming and going as they pleased. It was a surprising sight, one they thought they would never see again. As surprising, and even welcoming, as it was, it also filled them with trepidation. They had heard rumors, of course, but this was something different. To see the place like this, such a drastic change from what they last knew, was a bit overwhelming. They had always feared it would be dangerous, deadly even, to have such freedom and openness amongst the populace, let alone to have so many visitors and unfamiliar faces roaming around, especially here. But the town, and the people, seemed none the worse for it. In fact, from what they could tell, the citizens were happy and the town seemed to be thriving. The pair thought their questions would be answered by coming back; yet it seemed like they had even more questions than ever before, none more important than the one they seemed to dread above all others:

What happened?

As they made their way through the gates and into the courtyard, they received the same welcome as they had in town as people once again stopped what they were doing to spout their greetings to the group. Kristoff's embarrassment returned as he shyly accepted the words and praises of the citizens. Before long, they found themselves just outside of the doors that led into the interior to the castle. Here, Kristoff stopped the sled and disembarked, making sure to go around to the side to help out the happy little snowman before returning to unhitch Sven from the sled. Erik jumped out of the front seat and went to help his wife and the two of them stared in awe at the sight before them.

It had been a long time since they last saw these doors. They had dreamed about this sight for a long time and to actually be standing here after so many years, it was a bit overwhelming. But they had to rein in their emotions. It wouldn't bode well for them to break down now, not when they were so close to getting all of the answers they had ever wanted. They had managed to compose themselves just as Kristoff and Olaf joined them. The mountain man stepped forward and pushed open the heavy door and the four of them stepped into the entrance hall.

A wave of nostalgia and emotions overcame the couple, but they carefully hid their feelings from their companions as they looked around. Neither Kristoff nor Olaf seemed to be as in awe as they had assumed they'd be. Most people looked around in reverence whenever they entered the castle, the look of amazement obvious on their faces and their anxiety evident in the way they nervously shuffled as they went about whatever business it was they had come there for. But the ice harvester and the snowman showed none of that; in fact, they seemed quite comfortable, practically at home, in the opulent room. They were ready to question him about everything they had witnessed so far when an excited cry rang out.

"KRISTOFF!" All four of them turned their heads to the grand staircase where a red and green blur was quickly making its way down their stairs. Kristoff's face broke into a wide grin as he watched the blur head towards him. Even Olaf's snowy mouth opened in the widest smile they had ever seen from anyone, man or snowman. In a matter of seconds, Kristoff had stepped forward and intercepted the speedy blur, sweeping the figure up in his arms.

From this distance, the couple could just barely make out the shape of a woman squealing happily as she was spun around by the ice man. They watched as the happy reunion unfolded as Kristoff pulled the woman into his arms, squeezing her gently. A few silent kisses and murmured words of affection were exchanged between the two before Kristoff grabbed her hand and pulled her over to the rest of the group, the smile never leaving his face. As they grew closer, her features became clearer and it took everything in them not to gasp out loud. She stood next to Kristoff, hands intertwined as he made the introductions.

"Let me introduce you to a couple of people I met up in the mountains. Anna, this is Frederick and Greta. Frederick, Greta, I'd like you to meet Princess Anna of Arendelle."