If Kristoff were not used to the cold, the trek north would have been uncomfortable once he crossed the northern sea and entered permafrost lands. As it was, the company—if following and shouting to someone half a mile ahead qualified as company—was less than desirable. The Ice Maiden led him north, but she made a poor guide. Sometimes she disappeared entirely; then Kristoff was left to trust he should just keep north.
The one breakthrough of the journey was when Grand Pabbie's flight boots finally "warmed up" and lifted Kristoff higher. It made keeping up with the Ice Maiden less frustrating, though a new challenge arose when the north winds picked up. They howled around him, warning him to turn back. But he pressed on.
The skies were as white as the snow below. Behind him now, Kristoff could only see black water and more white horizon. If he looked forward, he could occasionally lock sight on the silver form of the Ice Maiden soaring steadily beyond him. Why did she want him to follow? That was a question he'd been wrestling with since the fight in the forest. The only greater mystery was his apparent invulnerability to her magic.
It couldn't be the flight boots. Her magic had failed before he'd even put those on. What then? An unexpected "power" of his own? He scoffed at that.
Next they crossed over stony mountains and a fearsome glacier. Just when Kristoff was beginning to wonder how much farther, he spotted a palace in the middle of a barren, wintry wasteland. It was here the Ice Maiden descended. Kristoff was not sure how to follow suit at first. Then he attempted by wiggling off one of the flight boots. As soon as he started removing it, he was lowered toward the ground. He didn't want to fall outright, so he worked even more slowly to remove the other. He bore his weight carefully so as not to fall upon landing. He was thankful for the thick, woolen socks covering his feet as they crunched onto the snow. Then he looked onward, hanging back to gape at the intimidating structure of ice and snow before him. It didn't glisten with light the way Elsa's ice palace had. No, these walls were so thick, they looked like frozen stone. The winds here were enough to make him shiver, though he knew he should have felt far more uncomfortable than he did. Perhaps it was an additional perk of his newly discovered defense against the Ice Maiden. Or was it just ice and snow in general?
He shook his head. It was no use trying to puzzle it out right this instant.
"Come," his guide commanded. If the Ice Maiden felt at home at this place, she did not show it or look particularly relieved to be 'home'. Without a glance to see if he was following, she strode toward the palace with the same haughty posture.
Truth be told, Kristoff did not want to go in. With Sven now an ice sculpture, that left no one else aware of his location. He glanced back at the horizon behind him and thought of Elsa. It would take a masterful plan indeed to get back to Arendelle once Kristoff discovered the Ice Maiden's weakness—if she had any. There would also be the Ice Maiden's minions guarding him, no doubt.
Kristoff sighed. One thing at a time.
He mustered some courage and took his first steps forward, following the Ice Maiden into her frigid abode. Hesitation met him at the threshold where he gazed into the dark halls awaiting him. Part of him wondered if he'd ever set foot out of the palace if he entered now.
The Ice Maiden's voice echoed from within, though she was out of sight. "Come," she said again, betraying no impatience. It was just a command.
Kristoff thought of the trolls' frightened faces back in the Valley of Living Rock. He shoved his scruples aside for the moment. When the time came, he would worry about fighting his way out. For now, he had work to do.
He entered the palace, almost laughing at his surprise when nothing happened. Icicle daggers did not come flying out at him. The chandelier overhead did not crash down upon his head. Feeling a bit more nerve now, he took a few more steps into the hall. He almost slipped on his third step. He quickly realized why. The floor was made of ice and he was now of course without boots except for the enchanted ones in his hand.
The hall contained nothing but flameless chandeliers and thin pillars of ice lined up one after the other in several rows to the left and right of him. There was merely one aisle for him to follow. Assuming he was meant to follow, Kristoff pushed onward. He stepped carefully to avoid slipping.
Movement closed in on him from both sides before he got very far. Kristoff yelped as an ice maiden crashed into him, shrieking. He spun in circles across the ice floor until he hit one of the pillars. He grabbed it to steady himself and shake the minion off of him. She snarled and snatched the flight boots from him as he fought back the thrashing hands of her sisters encircled around him.
"Hey!" Kristoff protested, almost leaping away from the pillar to retrieve the boots. The motion was too sudden for the icy surface and he would have ended up on his backside if he had not grabbed hold of the pillar once more. The ice maidens ignored him, withdrawing to the shadows of the hall.
They'd taken his means of escape. As Kristoff heard a groan, his head jerked toward the palace doors just in time to see them slam shut.
"This way."
Kristoff turned toward the source of the voice, knowing it would be the Ice Maiden. She stood a little ahead in his path. She had not been there a moment ago.
The ice harvester held back a quip about her sneaking around in her own palace. There was little to be gained by irritating a hostess like the Ice Maiden. Without a word, he gestured for her to lead the way.
She led him to another hall that reminded him of Elsa's Great Hall. But instead of an audience, the center floor had only a pile of broken ice. Kristoff raised his eyebrow at that. Maybe it was some weird kind of Ice Maiden decorating statement.
He only noticed the throne because he was looking for one. But the Ice Maiden ignored her throne and went to the pile of ice shards, beckoning Kristoff behind her. He dubiously followed her and was about to inquire when he noticed something else on the floor beside the pile. It was then he realized the shards were not ice, but glass: mirror glass. A small section of the mirror shards had been fitted together and laid out on the floor beside the pile.
"Make the mirror whole."
"What?" he asked. It was an automatic response. He cleared his throat before she could repeat herself. "I mean, why should I?" The response felt elementary when posed to a being like the Ice Maiden, but he couldn't help himself. Still, other questions ran through his head as well. What was this mirror? Were these shards all part of one mirror or did some not even belong? Was this one big..."truth mirror", as Grand Pabbie had called them?
"If you want to see the reindeer, make the mirror whole."
Kristoff scowled. So she would hold Sven over him again, curse her. Well, according to Grand Pabbie, she was already cursed.
"This is a truth mirror, isn't it?" he asked, receiving no reaction. "How do I know you won't do something evil with it if I help you make one huge truth mirror?"
Still, the Ice Maiden said nothing.
"Why don't you do it yourself or use your magic to do it?"
Again, she looked at him in silence. Creepier and creepier, Kristoff thought with a frown. Then it dawned on him and he grinned. "You can't, can you? Why?"
The Ice Maiden looked from him down to the small section of the recompleted mirror.
"You're not in any position to be making demands now, are you?" Kristoff snapped, finding her refusal to speak increasingly unnecessary. "You were talking a minute ago. Why so quiet now?!"
She looked at him, her expression unchanging as she finally responded. "If you want to leave this place before you grow old and die, make the mirror whole."
It was not the first time he felt real dread in her presence. But this was different. This was no threat of violence, of a quick if brutal death or of being frozen.
Before you grow old and die.
Kristoff shuddered, hardly paying attention as the Ice Maiden left the hall in a flurry of ice and snow.
She couldn't hurt him, but she could keep him prisoner... unless he could find a way out.
Kristoff glanced down at the floor. First he needed to find out more about her and the mirror.
A/N: A short update, I know. I just wanted to get something in before the end of the year! Not quite happy with the other two scenes I would have included, so I'll work on those and update early in the new year.
Oy, I've got a tumblr now! :D Brand new to tumblrland so there is pretty much nothing there, but you can find me at kupotea .tumblr .com. (cuppatea was taken and I like Final Fantasy, ergo kupotea).
Wishing everyone a very Happy 2017! Thank you for reading!