Chapter 3 – Preventing a War
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"Wait, what?" Anna gaped. "War? On us?"
Elsa groaned, both from the news and from the fact that she was going to pass out, right now, in Anna's arms, because her whole body felt like it had had the castle dropped on it.
Anna immediately moved to the nearest bench and sat down, keeping Elsa propped up against her. "What does he say?"
"As soon as the storm passes, the fleet will attack."
"The storm is meant to finish in two days," Anna said, "There's no way we'll be ready to take on an army in two days. We've been pretty much in lock down since the storm started. What are we going to do?"
They both looked expectantly at Elsa, but she appeared to have passed out on Anna's shoulder with her hair looking very windswept. Anna shook her gently. "Elsa? Are you awake?"
No answer.
"Let's get her back to bed," Kai said. "Then we'll take a closer look at this letter."
Anna felt her heart flicker uncertainly at that. She certainly wasn't ready to take on responsibility for the whole of Arendelle – Elsa was queen for a reason. Because Anna just wasn't cut out for it.
Kai gathered Elsa into his arms, and Anna noticed the frown on his face deepen a little.
"What's wrong?" Anna followed him back to Elsa's room.
"She's lost weight, that's all." Kai was worried about the stress Elsa had been under lately. Since her coronation, she had been struggling to adjust to ruling a kingdom, getting to know her sister again, and take on the pressures of actually talking to people. Elsa might not want to spend the rest of her life alone, but she'd be lying if she said she didn't prefer it to being with crowds and strangers. Coupling that with the last few days, where she had hidden away containing her own storm inside herself and refusing to eat, she was pretty run down.
Anna knew he was right. Since the coronation, she had been galloping around Arendelle, exploring the mountains with Kristoff, trying her hand at ice harvesting (she had bruises on her butt for a week after falling), getting involved in everything and generally keeping busy. She had got a tan, gained muscle and learnt various outdoorsy activities.
Elsa had not done any of that. Anna could see it clearer now, with that ridiculous dress on, how Elsa was a little thinner, a little bonier, and a little paler. Anna read the letter from Weselton as she walked, wondering how on earth she was supposed to handle this.
Arendelle certainly wasn't prepared to go to war. Elsa clearly wasn't in any shape to do anything. Everyone was going to look to Anna.
What was she going to do?
"War?" Kristoff questioned, leaning on the windowsill and looking out over Arendelle. Bits of it, anyway, most of it was obscured by heavy clouds and snowfall.
Anna paced back and forth in Elsa's study, chewing on her lip. "Yes."
"Why?"
"Oh, you know, for nearly breaking his neck at the coronation, almost freezing him to death in a blizzard and a castle spewing icicles from the walls, nearly murdering two of his men, boycotting his country as a source of trade and generally pissing him off. Such is life."
"I see."
"He's attacking as soon as the storm clears."
"That explains why they were outside the harbour. They can't get in while the storm is still going on. And if they're right here, we can't avoid them or even lock them out."
"Exactly."
"Wasn't there any sort of warning? I mean, you don't just up and attack someone without reason."
"I don't know. Elsa handles all of that, he might have sent her a thousand letters on the subject and I wouldn't know." Anna clamped her hands against her cheeks. "We are not ready for a war."
Kai was out right now, trying to figure out how many men there were in the Arendelle army, what sort of weapons they had access to and what the defences of the city were like.
Elsa had conked out right after returning with the letter and hadn't woken since, leaving Anna to fidget the night away until now – late the next morning.
She spun around when there was a knock at the door. "Yes?"
"It's me, Princess Anna," Kai opened the door and stuck his head inside. "May I come in?"
"Of course," Anna reminded herself to relax. "Um . . . how did it go?"
Kai was still brushing snow from his hair. "We have no idea how many men there are from Weselton, because we don't know how many ships are out there. We can't set up defences until the storm passes, so we are basically sitting ducks."
"Great," Anna moaned. "And I didn't come up with anything brilliant either."
Elsa appeared in the doorway, holding the frame with one hand to steady herself. She looked tired, and wrung out from sleepless nights and lack of food and generally disagreeing with her body.
"Oh, Elsa," Anna immediately stepped towards her, "Why are you up? You should be resting, still."
"How many ships did you see, Kristoff?" Elsa's voice was quiet and tense, as though unused for a long time.
"A dozen, perhaps. But I couldn't be sure."
Elsa closed her eyes, doing a mental calculation in her head. She nodded very slightly.
"And they are attacking as soon as the storm passes," Anna added.
Elsa took another step into the room so that she could lean against the doorframe. She seemed to be thinking very hard. Finally, she asked Kai, "What are the city's food provisions like?"
Kai was clearly surprised by her question. "Uh . . . We had a good summer and have lots of food stores available. This winter has been relatively mild, so we're very well off for food. May I ask why?"
Elsa allowed a very small smile. "Tell everyone in Arendelle to prepare for two weeks of no work. Stock up food in homes, wood for fires. Everything they might need."
"Again, may I ask why?"
"There's only so much you can store on a ship. The longer Weselton waits in the harbour, the fewer provisions they will have for their own people. Then they will either have to surrender to us or go home before starving."
"Except for the fact that the storm should end tomorrow," Anna pointed out.
Elsa shook her head. "If the storm doesn't stop, Weselton can't attack."
"What do you . . . ooooh," Anna suddenly realised.
Elsa nodded. "Exactly. I'm not going to let this storm end."
"Elsa, wait," Anna caught up to her sister as Elsa staggered back to her room.
Elsa wasn't exactly hard to catch up to, she was moving slowly with a hand on the wall for support. She glanced at Anna, raising an eyebrow expectantly.
"Please don't do this," Anna said.
"Don't do what?" Elsa paused at her bedroom door.
"Prolong the storm."
"It's the best thing for Arendelle."
"But not for you. I've seen what this storm has done to you. Can you really cope for another two weeks?" Anna knew her voice was pleading, but she was worried for Elsa's health.
Elsa tried to smile reassuringly. "It's easier when it's my storm."
"Easier," Anna pointed out. "Not better. You can't do this to yourself for two weeks."
"Arendelle comes first."
"Not to me," Anna said stubbornly. "You come first to me. And I can't sit back and watch you punish yourself just because the Duke of Weselton is a dick. Elsa, you can't make this storm last."
"Yes, I can," Elsa said quietly.
"You'll kill yourself."
"No, I won't."
"Elsa, look at you," Anna pointed out. "You're pale and shaky, and you can't even stand up without holding onto something. You've had a fever for two days and every time the wind blows I can see you grimace because I know it hurts you."
"It's nothing I can't handle. I've been doing it for years."
"Not on purpose! You can't do this, it's not okay."
"Do you see another way?" Elsa challenged. "Do you see any way to protect this city, and all its innocent people, without using my powers? How do you want me to handle this? This is the only way. No one will get hurt."
"Except you."
"I'll be fine," Elsa smiled. "I'll have you."
"Your majesty, everything has been prepared." Kai bowed politely the next morning.
The storm outside was starting to die down.
Elsa had dragged herself out of bed and to her throne, stubborn as ever in her decision to protect Arendelle. Anna stood at her side, keeping an eye on her in case Elsa keeled over without warning.
"All the people have brought extra supplies, and are ready for another two weeks of storms. Provisions have been set to the outlying families. Everything is ready."
"Thank you," Elsa said, almost sounding like herself, except for the tired drag to her voice.
"The Weselton ships have not moved, but the wind is dying down and the snow has lessened." Kai paused. "Are you sure you want to do this?"
"It seems like the best option, but I'm open for ideas." Elsa heaved herself to her feet.
Anna took a step towards her in case Elsa needed support, but Elsa held up a hand to keep her away. The Queen went slowly to the glass doors and unlatched them. Kai came to her side, holding the door open for Elsa to step out onto the balcony.
The wind nearly snatched the door away from Kai, and snow began blowing into the room.
Anna took a step back, trying to keep the frigid wind off her.
Elsa took a deep breath. "Are we all ready for this?"
"Ready if you are, my queen," Kai said, while Anna grunted and pouted.
Elsa flexed her fingers a little, and took a deep breath.
"Elsa, wait!" Anna jumped up next to her. "You can't do this!" The last few days were fixed in her mind, of Elsa unable to move due the storm inside her raging and roaring out of control, Elsa sitting completely still because moving meant pain, Elsa staring at the snow outside while the snow inside her swirled and burned. Anna couldn't watch her sister do that to herself for another two weeks. "I can't watch you do this."
"And I can't watch Arendelle fall," Elsa pointed out reasonably. "We are completely unprepared for an attack. And if I can use my powers to keep everyone safe, then I won't hesitate to do so."
That slight emphasis on the word 'safe' clued Anna in. Oh. Right. Elsa had spent her whole life trying to hide her powers and who she was. And when she had finally let it all out, she had frozen her sister's heart, plunged Arendelle into an unexpected winter and frozen the fjord. Now there was a chance to use her powers for others, for the good of others.
Elsa had more than Arendelle's safety in mind here; she was on a personal mission to prove to herself that her powers weren't only a curse to her. They could be more than a disaster.
Anna twiddled her fingers uncertainly, eyes darting to the storm outside, and back to her sister. "Promise me, if it gets too hard on you, you'll make it stop."
Elsa smiled at her. "Of course. Now, please stand back. I don't want to hit you accidentally."
Anna shifted back a few steps, the pout returning to her face. She couldn't really get a good view from here, and Elsa's powers were too spectacular to miss.
Elsa raised her arms, letting out a breath as she did so. Focus. Control it.
The wind started to pick up again, and the snow came harder. Anna heard the distinctive crackling sound of ice forming and, Elsa's warning forgotten, darted to her sister's side. The fjord and harbour started crawling with ice, solidifying into a thick sheet. Anna couldn't see the ships, they were hidden by the storm, and soon the ice extended further than she could see as well. The wind changed direction, aiming directly at them, drawing the snow in from the ocean.
"Why are you turning the storm this way?" Anna had to yell, even standing right next to Elsa, and squinting as the frigid air blasted into her eyes.
"To stop the ships from leaving," Elsa yelled back. "They'll use up all their supplies and have to surrender."
"Smart," Anna shouted. "I'm going inside now!"
Elsa narrowed her eyes, looking over the newly storming Arendelle. The storm in her belly quieted a little, and rose higher, into her chest. It was more comfortable there, more like a rush of adrenaline than a heaving sickness. It was harder to breath, the storm was cloying in its excitement, and Elsa could feel the excitement of her powers tingling in her fingertips, thrilled at finally being let free.
The relentless nausea of the last few days gave way to fluttery excitement and unreal dizziness. This was the same feeling she had had on the North Mountain, building her ice palace. It was much more welcome than trying to hide from the storm.
Elsa took unsteady steps back inside and Kai closed the doors again. There was snow piled into the throne room. Elsa wanted to get rid of it, but her hands were shaking so badly, and she felt unsteady on her feet.
Perhaps not. Anna was already making displeased faces, and it probably wouldn't help Elsa's case if she either made more snow instead of willing it away, or passed out from excitement. So she left it, and sank back into her throne gratefully. She wasn't sure how much longer she could remain upright.
Kai stood in front of her. "Now that you've sorted that out, please have something to eat."
Oh god, he wasn't serious was he? Elsa blinked at him, her thoughts still a little fuzzy. Eating didn't sound like a good idea, in fact, flopping face first onto her bed and sleeping for two weeks sounded peachy.
"Nap first," she decided, and missed it when Anna rolled her eyes.
"Fine, but I'm waking you up in a few hours and I will force feed you if I have to," Anna said stubbornly.
Elsa just nodded. "Fine. Kai, please send someone to the coast guard and tell him that any messages delivered by the Weselton fleet are to come to me immediately."
"Yes, your majesty," Kai gave a quick bow, then marched away, leaving Anna glaring at her sister.
Elsa didn't notice. She was too busy rubbing her eyes and wondering if this had been such a good plan after all. Her hands were still shaking, and they felt weird and strange. She could feel the storm settle in her chest, bobbing up and down uncomfortably.
But the feeling that the whole world was spinning had gone, so she was counting that as progress.
Anna fidgeted back and forth in her room, pacing and turning and generally not being still.
Kristoff was lounging on her bed, bare foot and restringing his lute. They had even left the door open, despite Elsa's orders.
("He's not allowed in your room, Anna, and I'm not joking about that."
"He's not a dog, Elsa, it'll be fine."
"No men. Ever. Not until you're married and forty. Not after the last one.")
But Elsa was asleep and looked like she would be for ages still, so Anna had dragged Kristoff out of his room, flailing in an attempt to grab everything he needed for his precious lute stringing, and hauled him upstairs to 'chat'.
After some 'chatting' with the door closed and lots of giggling and "Shh! She might hear us!" Kristoff had finally been allowed to resume his task and Anna had inspected herself in the mirror for ages, because if Elsa saw her with a hickie she'd flip her lid, and since the kingdom was already under a foot of snow, who knew what she'd do?
A string twanged, and Kristoff frowned at the discordant sound. He turned the peg a bit more, twanging and turning until the string sounded mostly right.
"What if she starves herself?" Anna's comment came from nowhere.
Kristoff didn't bother answering. He knew from experience that Anna would continue the conversation all by herself.
"I know it sounds a little extreme, but she's been a little . . . off . . . these last few days. She said that when she's controlling the storm it's better than when it just occurs naturally. And we did talk about that last night. And she told me that she's felt this way before, when she ran away."
Anna peered out the window, then resumed her pacing. "But we know she didn't eat anything while she away, either."
That had been bothering Anna ever since the coronation. Elsa had apparently been running on pure elation, and her incredibly well thought out plan of "Go back to Arendelle, Anna, and leave me up here on the mountain where I can be myself and starve to death" hadn't made Anna feel any better. Elsa might have magic inside her, but she also needed food.
"I'm going to wake her up," Anna spun on her heel and headed for the door.
"Thought you were letting her rest a few hours," Kristoff pointed out.
"Two days! She hasn't eaten in two days! She's in a coma, not sleeping! I'm going to wake her."
"Should I leave?"
Anna paused. "I suppose it doesn't matter. She won't see you."
"Best not take the risk," Kristoff gathered up his things. "I don't really want to anger her, seeing as she's frozen everything again, on purpose this time." He stood up.
"Come back tonight."
"What?" Kristoff blinked at her. "Are you serious?"
"Yes. Come back here tonight. After dark."
"Anna, we can't-"
"No one will know," Anna waved a hand dismissively. "Where's the harm?"
Your sister could find out and kill me. Kristoff nodded slowly. "Okay. I'll come back after dark. But only if Elsa's not around."
"Perfect," Anna chirped. She whirled out of the room. "See you later!"
Elsa was enjoying her sleep. Now that the storm outside was hers, she was feeling much more settled. It didn't feel like she was at war with her body and her powers. Now she was floating in a haze of semi-sleep, feeling light and fuzzy in her chest.
Her thoughts were muddled, but quiet, and she could hear the wind outside, and despite its howling, it was soothing to her.
"Hey, Elsa?"
Her sleep was interrupted by Anna yelling through the door.
"Are you still asleep?"
Elsa groaned. "Not anymore."
"Great!" Anna burst into the room. "I'm glad you're up."
Elsa kept her eyes closed, and tightened her hands into fists again. She was feeling a little unpredictable, and Anna had a tendency to throw confusing things at Elsa and expect her to just handle it.
"So, remember when you said you were going to eat something?"
"Not now," Elsa mumbled. "Maybe tomorrow."
"No, now," Anna tugged the blankets off her sister.
Elsa curled into a tighter ball.
"You can't hibernate!" Anna dumped all the blankets on the floor. "Come on, get up. Kai is going to flip if you don't eat something today."
"Anna, I can't. My stomach has been doing loops all day; the thought of food makes it worse."
"You need to be strong and healthy to make raging snowstorms," Anna pointed out. "Anyway, it doesn't have to be food. Want some ice cream? Chocolate? Sandwich, perhaps?"
Elsa cracked one eye open. "Or nothing."
"Come on, get up." Anna shook Elsa by the shoulder. "A walk will do you good."
"Why don't we put your guts in a blender and then see how much you want to walk around?"
"You're exaggerating," Anna tugged her sister upright. "There! Come on, let's find you some food."
Elsa wobbled on her feet, and quickly slung an arm around Anna's shoulders. "This is ridiculous."
"So is hibernating when winter is your 'thing'." Anna started walking determinedly out of the room, meaning Elsa had to either go with her or get dropped on the floor. "So, the storm seems to be going well."
Elsa didn't bother to answer that.
"I have to ask . . . was there any sort of warning that Weselton was going to attack?"
"Hm?"
Anna shrugged. "It's just . . . it seems a little unexpected. I hope. Am I wrong?"
"Not exactly." Elsa sighed. "I did get a few letters from the Duke of Weselton following my coronation. Mostly complaining, but nothing to indicate an actual attack. I assumed it wasn't that important. Arendelle hasn't had a war in years, so it didn't occur to me." Elsa paused. "Do you think it's my fault?"
"What? No!" Anna exclaimed. "How could you even think that?"
"It sort of is. Everything would have been fine if I had just stayed calm." Or if Anna hadn't dropped a bombshell on Elsa by announcing her marriage to a complete stranger.
"Elsa, it's not your fault. And you're trying your best to solve this problem without anyone getting hurt." Anna patted Elsa on the back. "Now, sit down."
Anna deposited Elsa in a chair at the small kitchen table. It was usually used to prepare food, but no one was around and Anna didn't really want to leave Elsa alone.
"Want some tea?" Anna asked.
"I guess." Elsa propped her elbows on the table and rested her face in her hands. "Am I a terrible person?"
"No. How can you even suggest that?"
Elsa shrugged. "Using my powers to . . . get my way."
"To save everyone," Anna corrected firmly. "To prevent a war. To keep our people safe. To stop our city from being savaged. And in doing so you're hurting yourself. That's selfless and kind. Or very stupid."
Anna set a mug of tea down in front of Elsa, and sat next to her with her own mug.
Elsa wanted to question when tea started being served in mugs and not tea cups, but she was too tired to bother. She stared at the steam curling off the top for a while, her eyes feeling heavy.
Anna chattered away beside her, telling her about Kristoff, and the last few things they had done together (excluding earlier that day, of course) and what had happened the last time they went to visit Kristoff's family.
Elsa heard most of it through a haze of . . . something. Her head felt fuzzy and cloudy, and she was regretting letting Anna drag her all the way down to the kitchen. Her bed seemed a very long way away. Perhaps she could just rest her head on the table for a while . . .
Elsa folded her arms and used them as a pillow.
"Elsa?" Anna nudged her gently. "Hey, are you okay?"
"Just resting." Elsa mumbled, but she couldn't open her eyes anymore.
Anna laid a hand softly on her back, and spoke gently. "I'm going to fetch Kai to take you back to bed, okay?"
Elsa nodded. Bed sounded good. Sleep was even better. Elsa heard Anna leaving, but after that things became a little distant and quiet, and by the time Anna and Kai returned, Elsa was asleep again.
Thanks for reading. Things start getting a bit more intense in the next few chapters, provided work doesn't take over my entire life.
SpicedGold