Sunlight glimmered off of ripples in the fjord. Elsa shielded her blue eyes with one hand as she looked out toward faraway peaks. Her own kingdom was still nestled under morning shadow. She had left the castle with an entourage of several protective guards. Once she neared the east gate, she had dismissed the rest of her party. Kristoff had proved most obstinate.

"What makes you think I could just sit here while you're out looking for An…Princess Anna?" he'd asked. He had even geared up Sven for the journey. Elsa wasn't sure how much of the conversation the reindeer actually understood, but he looked equally affronted.

"You'll just slow me down."

Elsa regretted saying it. Kristoff had looked so hurt. So she quickly continued, "Besides… someone should stay here in case Anna comes home."

He had definitely wanted to argue with that, but Kai had interrupted. The guard was ready to escort her out of the castle. Kai was to see the Duke of Weselton escorted down to the port. There a ship would take him out of Arendelle; he was no longer welcome. Afterwards, Kai would take up the task of interviewing the remaining dignitaries. Kristoff would have to find his own way to make staying at the castle more bearable.

In fact, Elsa didn't quite understand why the ice harvester was so eager to leave.

Elsa inhaled the warm summer air and dispelled all thoughts of the strange blond man. She would need to concentrate for what she was about to do.

So much of her power had been used out of fear up to this point. She thought of her intentional creations with a smile. She needed something alive like Marshmallow, but not so aggressive. She did not want to give the Arendelle people a new reason to fear her. At the same time, Olaf was too warm and cuddly to provide the kind of assistance she needed right now.

I know, she thought, sweeping her arms up over her head. She embraced a memory from her childhood with Anna. It was from before all traces of Elsa's power had been wiped from Anna's memory. They used to ice skate in the great hall. They'd build Olaf and dance with him while Elsa summoned gentle flurries from the ceiling. After a few inches of snow had settled, they would plop down on their backs, kicking and waving to make snow angels.

Warmth enveloped Elsa's heart as she relived the memories. She turned all around her, waving her hands, drawing her magic out. Tendrils of snowflakes whirled around her, forming a dozen clouds of flurries. Little by little, the snowflakes formed silhouettes of snow angels. Each one had a little 'halo' which worked like Olaf's personal flurry to ensure the snow angels wouldn't melt in the summer heat.

"I'm looking for Princess Anna," she said to them. She knew she didn't actually have to say anything. The snow angels were a part of her, just like her powers. They would obey her innermost thought.

All but one of the twelve snow angels drifted away from her, taking flight in various directions to start their search. The one that lingered offered Elsa its hand.

Elsa smiled and accepted, letting out a startled, "Whoa!" as the snow angel launched toward the east gate. She dangled fearfully as the snow angel flew head on. The gate was closed this early in the morning. Elsa wanted to close her eyes or jump free, not entirely certain that the angel understood Elsa was a solid being. But then the snow angel lifted her higher, carrying them both over the gate and the wall, soaring over the forest tree tops.

It wasn't so bad as long as Elsa didn't over-think how high in the air she was. She even enjoyed it. Wind whipped her braid behind her and cooled her flushed cheeks. When she looked down at the ground below, she could see a rabbit hopping through the trees. The angel turned northwest, leaving the road and flying over wilderness. A falcon flew under them, stalking prey too small for her eyes. But there was no sight of Anna.

"Go back to the road," Elsa commanded. The snow angel gently corrected its path, heading back to the road from Arendelle. It would be easy to spot Anna if she was on the road. Elsa knew it was wishful thinking, but she couldn't help it.

They traveled north, following the road below. There was no sign of Anna, but a building along the side of the road came into view after a few miles. It was a little log cabin. If Elsa was right, it would be the trading post.

The snow angel was careful in its descent. When it had brought Elsa near enough to the ground, it waited for her to balance herself before it released her hand. Elsa's hand tingled when the being let go. The summer air instantly took the place of the comforting chill. She knew the snow angel would wait for her, so she approached the cabin. A sign hung over the porch. She read, "Wandering Oaken's Trading Post," aloud and let herself in.

Elsa paused in the doorway, pleasantly overwhelmed by the fragrance of cedar. When she stepped fully inside, she saw a bookcase along one wall. It had more than just books; it was stocked with jars, baskets and canisters. Men's summer shirts hung from several hangers beneath single wall shelves. A shelf table took up the very center of the shop. This was reserved for folded linens, bread, fruit, cheeses, meat and medicines. Elsa was admiring a vase of wild flowers when the shop owner greeted her.

"Yoohoo! Eek!" Oaken's jaw dropped when the queen turned to face him. He instantly recognized the platinum hair and the enchanting dress from the stories. He himself had never seen the queen up close before. "Your-your-your Majesty! What a surprise!" Oaken bowed, hitting his forehead on his countertop. "Yowch." His hat fell off.

Elsa stared at the odd shop owner, wincing when his head hit the counter in his effort to be proper. "Hello," she greeted him. "Are you all right?"

Oaken let out a hearty chuckle as he rubbed the growing red spot on his forehead. He put his hat back in place and assured the queen he would be fine. "It's just I've never seen you before!" he explained.

"Yes," she said. "I haven't spent a great deal of time outside of Arendelle, or even the castle."

"Well, you're most welcome here, Your Majesty! Um…" Oaken hesitated, gandering about the shop for something that might entice a royal. At a loss, he twiddled with his red mustache. Beaver skins seemed unlikely. She could buy all the fine clothing she wanted right from the shops in town. Surely the food in the castle was superior fare than what he had here. "May I ask what you're looking for?"

"Actually, I'm looking for my sister. Princess Anna? She may have come this way before. She has strawberry-blonde hair, freckles…she's kind of a chatterbox?"

Oaken thought for a moment. "Yes… yes, that must have been her. She stopped here during the blizzard. She left with the abominable blond man."

Kristoff! Elsa thought. Her eyes lit up with the first hope she'd felt in days

"Did you see her after the blizzard?" Elsa asked.

"Yes. She stopped here again yesterday, looking for a map," Oaken answered. "I gave her one since people were saying she was responsible for thawing the kingdom. Err… and you too, of course."

"Was there another man with her this time?" Elsa asked. That part was especially important. She steeled herself for the worst.

"No," Oaken said. "She traveled alone."

Elsa exhaled the breath she'd been holding in.

"Do you know where she was headed?" she asked.

"I'm so sorry, Your Majesty… I didn't ask," Oaken answered.

Elsa looked all around her for a second, comforted at least that Anna had been there not that long ago. She thanked Oaken for the information and exited the trading post. The snow angel stood waiting at the bottom of the steps.

"She's not here," Elsa said. She thought she heard a cross between an, "Aww" and a sigh. She hadn't given the snow angels voices so she was sure she imagined it. "Why would Anna just leave on her own?" she asked. Now that she knew Hans wasn't with Anna, she struggled to understand why Anna had gone without a word. Where would she go from Oaken's?

Elsa felt safe assuming that Anna was out looking for Hans. She herself had blamed Anna for the prince's disappearance.

"This is all my fault…" she said, staring wistfully into the forest. But she only allowed herself that brief moment of self-pity before she snapped out of it. She still had to find Anna!

Elsa thought back to the events over the last few days. If Anna was looking for Hans, then the next best question to ask was where could Hans be? If he had somehow escaped, where would he flee? She had informed the remaining dignitaries of Hans's deceit. If Hans really was a mastermind, he couldn't be stupid enough to hide in Arendelle. Could he? The only place outside of the kingdom that he could know of would be the North Mountain. The North Mountain was cold and snow ridden even in summer. But in summer, wet and loose snow could cause avalanches. No sane person would venture up to the North Mountain, whatever the season.

Images suddenly flashed through her head: Anna trekking through that treacherous terrain. Hans sneaking up behind her, cornering her onto the edge of a cliff.

"Take me north," Elsa instructed her snow angel, taking its arm.

They flew over treetops at wind speed. Elsa closed her eyes and focused on the breeze in her face. Otherwise, anxiety threatened to make her ill.

The snow angel gave Elsa's arm a reassuring squeeze.

Elsa knew they were close when the breeze turned into a howling gust. She opened her eyes when the snow angel let go. Her toes met cold, soft ground. Before her, still standing, was her beautiful ice palace. She brightened a bit. She had not thought she would see it again so soon. Though she was glad to have the opportunity to make things right with her sister and the rest of the kingdom, Elsa would never forget the freedom and calm she felt during her self-imposed exile.

As she started to approach the palace, a pile of snow on the side rumbled and stood up off from the ground.

"Marshmallow!" Elsa exclaimed, running toward the grumpy snow giant. Marshmallow knelt in the snow, gently wrapping his queen in a frosty hug as she nuzzled his round belly.

"Has anyone come to the palace?" Elsa asked, looking up at him.

"No one. I've been guarding it," the snow giant answered.

"Thank you," she beamed. She walked around him to cast replacement ice stairs leading up to the palace. The originals must have broken off when Hans and the royal guards attacked. Echoes from that day haunted her.

Don't be the monster they fear you are.

But Hans had turned out to be the monster. Elsa clenched her fists as she walked up the steps. She recalled her sister's lovestruck eyes back during the coronation ball. How naïve Anna could be…

The palace doors opened with a wave of her hand. Elsa stepped into her palace and felt a wave of tranquility. She turned in slow circles, using her magic to repair all the damage she could find. As far as she was concerned, this place was still another home. She'd be damned before she'd let it fall to ruin.

Neither Anna nor Hans were to be found. Where could she look next? If Anna wasn't in Arendelle, and she hadn't come here, where was she?

Elsa slumped to the floor. She could not give up. Anna had never given up on her. Elsa wanted from the bottom of her heart to trust Anna the way that Anna trusted her. But if that meant sitting back on the throne in Arendelle and waiting for Anna to come home, there was no way she could do it. She was the older sister. She was meant to protect Anna.

Outside, Marshmallow roared. Elsa heard sudden yelling. She jumped up and rushed out of the palace doors, running down the steps so quickly that any other person would have slipped and fallen. She got to the scene just in time.

"Marshmallow, stop!" she yelled.

Marshmallow's massive fist halted inches from Kristoff's face. The ice harvester was sitting atop Sven the reindeer, both of them with their eyes clamped shut, clearly braced for impact. When the punch didn't come, Kristoff popped one eye open.

"Saved by the queen!" Kristoff said, throwing his arms up in celebration. Sven tried to prod him with his antlers to warn him. Elsa was walking toward them, one deliberate step at a time; her face was dark.

"I thought I told you to stay home," Elsa snapped.

Kristoff hopped off of Sven and stood his ground. Elsa was a little surprised that he didn't flinch away from her when she stopped in front of him.

"Technically, Arendelle is not my home," Kristoff answered. He shrugged. "Anyway, I told you I couldn't do it. Not while Anna might be in trouble."

"Princess," Elsa said. When Kristoff looked at her in utter confusion, she elaborated. "Princess Anna."

"My apologies." He bowed. "Princess Anna."

Elsa scowled and turned away from him, looking back toward her palace. She wasn't any closer to deciding where to search next.

"How did you know I'd be here?" she asked without looking at him.

"I didn't." That made Elsa raise her eyebrow. "I saw you…f-flying," Kristoff explained. "W-we f-f-followed until you w-went out of, of s-s-sight. Then I rrrrememb-b-bered your ice p-palace here at the N-North M-m-mountain."

Elsa gaped at him for the strange speech. Then she looked at his shirt and vest, realizing that he was not exactly dressed for snow.

"You don't strike me as the type who would travel unprepared to an icy mountain," she said, her brows furrowed.

"I w-was… think-k-king of… An…P-p-princess—"

"Never mind. We need to get you out of here," Elsa said quickly. "Sven. If I fly, can you follow?"

When Sven nodded, Elsa hoped he'd actually understood her. But there was little time to worry. She put aside her thoughts on etiquette and propriety as she wrapped Kristoff into her arms and called to her snow angel to lift them.

"Wait, w-what?" Kristoff shivered, distracted by confusion. Without warning, he felt his feet lift off the ground. In seconds, he was several feet in the air. "Your Majesty… what's happening?!" He noticed now that he was barely cold. Elsa's embrace had poured warmth into him. He wondered if that had been the work of her magic too. The flying most definitely was. "Where are we going?"

He looked down only to make sure that Sven could see them. Indeed, the reindeer was pacing back and forth as they drifted higher. Sven obviously didn't know what to make of it all.

"I thought Anna might go to my ice palace if she thought Hans was hiding there," Elsa answered. "But I was wrong." She frowned, her face inches from his.

Kristoff looked up and away from her forlorn eyes. They were too blue, he decided. Eyes bluer than Anna's. Thankfully, a sudden thought distracted him.

"I know someone who might be able to help," he said, though there was definitely hesitation in his voice. He checked the ground, relieved when he could see Sven running to follow them. Good boy, he thought.

"Who?"

Kristoff looked like he wanted to kick himself.

"Kristoff, who?" Elsa asked again.

"Look, they're not your regular group of…um, group. They profess themselves to be experts on everything. They're also really nosy—"

"Would you just tell me who?" she asked, growing annoyed.

Kristoff took a deep breath, held it in to make his cheeks puff out. Then he sighed it all out, looking everywhere but at the queen.

At last, he said, "My family."

"What?"

"My adoptive family," he added. "They have magic… because they're… well, they're kind of…trolls."

Trolls! Elsa stared, wide-eyed. How could she have forgotten the very creatures who helped her sister long ago? The ones who had warned her about controlling her powers…

"That's a great idea!" Elsa exclaimed, startling Kristoff. "Where can we find them?!"

Kristoff looked a little skeptical about her reaction, but he looked down around the forest below them. "There. That valley. That should be their home," he pointed.

Elsa's eyes followed. Miles to the east, she could see a hollow spot in the vast stretch of trees. If she looked carefully, even the trees surrounding the area looked more like tall rock.

"It's called the Valley of Living Rock," he told her.

A/N: I find it really difficult to write Elsa, so chapters with her POV tend to take me longer to write... I usually play music when writing. I have plenty of songs that feel very appropriate for scenes with Hans, Anna and/or Kristoff. When it comes to Elsa, it's harder (outside of the Frozen soundtrack, I mean).

Thanks for reading and reviewing! :)