Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen. Disney does.
The wind had picked up a bit since I left Arendelle, but it wasn't too bad. Not long after our departure, though, the horse got tired and just walked through the snow.
"Elsa!" I shouted. She couldn't have gotten far. She old had about a five-minute head start. Anything could pass that in no time. So why hadn't I found her yet? "Elsa!" I called again, but still no sign of her. The sun was already starting to rise. How long would this trip take me? The wind had already stopped now, which was good, but the weather stayed cold. "Elsa? It's me, Anna!" I called again. "Your sister who didn't mean to make you freeze the summer." The cold was starting to affect my speaking as I continued. "I'm sorry! I-it's all my f-fault." Out of boredom, although it was more to myself then anything, I added, "Of course, none of this would have happened if she'd just told me her secret." I bent down to look at my horse almost directly, saying, "She's a stinker!" I gave a little chuckle, but then all of a sudden, we heard a noise, and I was butted off my horse and into the snow. I sat up from falling and watched as the horse ran away. "No, no, no! Come back! No, no, no, no!" I urged, but it was too late. I shivered from sitting in the cold snow. "Oooookay," I said, then grabbed a hold of the tree branch above me, only for it to go back upright and me to fall down again, with the pile of snow that had been weighing it down falling onto me. "Ugh!" I said, and wriggled my way out of it. It didn't really help that I was wearing a ball gown meant for the summertime. Hopefully I wouldn't get frostbite or something from this. I lifted up my skirt and walked through the deep snow, one step at a time.
It had been a long, cold trek through the snow, and night was already falling. "Snow," I said. "It had to be snow. She couldn't have had tropical powers that covered the fjords in white sand and warm...," I stopped, noticing something in the distance. There was smoke. Smoke meant only one thing. "Fire!" I said, relieved. I could stop there at least for a couple hours. I gave a little laugh, but then the snow slid from under me, and I fell down the hill and into the creek. The water was ice cold, and definitely not what I needed. I pulled myself out of the water into a standing position, then walked across as quickly as I could. "Cold, cold, cold, cold, cold," I said the whole way. My arms were now freezing because I lost my cloak when I fell, my legs were cold, and my dress was stiff from the ice-cold water. I trekked through the snow and found a cabin where the smoke had been coming from. It was the first thing I saw of any sign of anyone around. I walked up to the building and to the step, but then I couldn't get up the step the way I usually could. I moved to the side and put one foot up, then pulled the rest of my body up. There was a sign above, but it was covered in snow. I tapped it, making it swing, and the snow came off, making it easier for me to read it. "Wandering Oaken's Trading Post," I red out loud. Then the snow on the little board attached to the bigger one fell. "Ooh, and sauna!" That sounded good, especially since I was freezing cold. I opened the door and walked in the best I could, the wind closing the door behind me and pushing me in. I began walking around the store when I heard someone say, "Yoo-hoo." I turned to see a man sitting at the counter.
"Big summer blowout!" He said. "Half off swimming suits, clogs, and a sun balm of my own invention, yah?" He said.
"Oh, great!" I said. "But for now, how about boots? Winter boots? And dresses?"
"Zat vould be in our vinter department," the merchant explained. I looked over to where he had pointed and saw very few things over there.
"Oh," I said, slightly disappointed. But I would work with whatever I had. Better than continuing to walk around in this summer gown. "Just curious, has some other young woman, the queen perhaps, I don't know, come through here?" I really needed clues on where my sister was. It would make it so much easier.
"Only one crazy enough to be in this storm is you, dear," the merchant explained. Just then, the door opened, and someone covered completely in snow. "You and this fellow," he corrected, then picked up his sun balm. "Yoo-hoo! Big summer blowout!" The man walked up right next to me, and said something I couldn't quite make out. I tried acting natural, but it wasn't entirely working.
"Huh?" I asked, then went back to what I was doing seconds before, beginning to whistle.
"Behind you," the man said. I looked down to see that there were carrots. That must be what he wanted.
"Oh, right. Excuse me," I said, moving out of the way. He grabbed a bunch of them and tossed them onto the counter before walking around. "
A real howler in July, yah?" The merchant asked. "Vere ever could it be coming from?"
"The North Mountain," the man answered, carrying over his wanted supplies.
"The North Mountain," I whispered to myself. The North Mountain, especially at the peak, could be very cold - perfect for Elsa's powers. My thoughts were broken when I heard the two men arguing.
"Forty?" The snow-covered man asked. "No, ten!"
"Oh, zat's no good!" The merchant said. "See, zis is from our vinter stock, vere the supply and demand have a big problem." I nodded in understanding. Considering there was sudden winter in the middle of summer, that would make a lot of sense.
"You want to talk about a supply and demand problem? I sell ice for a living," the man said. I looked outside to see a sled full of ice that no one wanted right now, since it was cold enough right now.
"That's a rough business to be in right now," I said. "I mean, that is really-," I noticed the man glaring at me and stopped. "That's unfortunate."
"Still forty," the merchant said. "But I will throw in a visit to Oaken's sauna. Yoo hoo! Hi, family!" He called, waving to the people in the sauna, who all waved back.
"Ten's all I got," the man said. "Help me out here."
"Okay," the merchant said, moving the carrots away. "Ten will get you this and no more."
"Okay, just tell me one thing," I said, veering the conversation from the debate on the supply prices. "What happened on the North Mountain? Did it seem...magical?" The man took off his scarf, revealing more of his face. He didn't look as scary now.
"Yes!" He said. "Now back up, while I deal with this crook here." Just then, the merchant stood up, being about seven feet tall. The ice man gulped at seeing the size of the man. I knew this wasn't going to end well.
"Vat did you call me?" He asked, before picking the man up and carrying him outside. I couldn't see what happened. All I heard was the merchant say good-bye to the man. He came back in and sat back down. "I'm sorry about this violence. I will add a quart of lutefisk, so we have good feelings. Just the outfit and the boots, yeah?" Before that man came in, that was all I would be buying. But what if I could make a deal with him to take me up to the North Mountain? I moved over his stuff into my pile. "All zis?" He asked, and I nodded. "That'll be 50." I pulled out some change from in a bag that I carried in my dress, just in case. Just enough money. I gave it to him, and then walked into one of the extra rooms so I could change into my new outfit. I let my two braids fall to my sides just like how I usually had them. I noticed some bags in the room, and packed the man's wanted supplies in them.
"Do you mind if I use these?" I asked, showing him the bags.
"Oh, sure. Go ahead," he said. "And come back soon." I nodded, then walked outside. I noticed some tracks leading to the barn not far away. It was now or never. I took in a deep breath and walked over to the barn.
A/N: All right. Here's the new chapter. Sorry about no update yesterday. I was extremely busy and didn't have any time to even write the chapter. Hopefully the two chapters I posted on Friday held you over. xD Anyways, I hope you enjoy this chapter! Wow was it hard to not say "Kristoff" in place of "the man". :P See you all next chapter!