Chapter Thirteen: Proximity
The morning began fairly normally for Elsa, even with her less-than-common definition for "normal". She woke up rather early and dressed before attending breakfast. What was not-normal was Anna. Anna was in no way a morning person, but this was bad even for her. If Elsa hadn't known better, she would think Anna had gone "tavern hopping" with Kristoff again.
The princess almost literally dragged herself into the dining room, her skin sickly pale and bags under her eyes, wincing at the bright light and rubbing her head as if having a migraine. She plopped down with barely an attempt at a smile for Elsa and limited herself to coffee.
Elsa tried to keep her worrying instincts from rising. Alphonse had warned all of them that the princess and ice harvester would have a bad morning, the price to be paid for a magical shortcut, and clearly he hadn't been wrong. Elsa decided to just let the matter lie. Well, mostly.
"How's Kristoff faring?" Elsa asked, trying to keep her tone soft. Anna still cringed at the noise, rubbing her temples.
"I'm not sure if he's worse off or not. He wouldn't get out of bed this morning." Elsa had to admit she was surprised - Kristoff was usually the most hardworking man she had ever met and loved his job. He must truly be in pain to shirk his responsibilities.
As if on cue, Kristoff entered the dining room and sat down, pale as death and eyes bloodshot, but otherwise apparently fine. He gave a passable smile to Elsa before taking Anna's hand, trying to comfort her. Alphonse entered soon after and sat, eyes on Kristoff and Anna. He looked to Elsa, who shrugged, and ate his porridge.
"So how are we today?" Alphonse asked, just a bit too innocently. Anna glared at the mage, which in her current state was a fearsome sight. Alphonse twitched a brief smile as if saying "I told you so". Anna growled and simply returned to her coffee. As his grin faded and he returned to his breakfast, Alphonse regarded Kristoff, noting his less-intense symptoms. He focused and Saw the faint aura of multicolored light that seemed to hover over the man, like the northern lights. The Blessing of a Fetch.
Elsa, having noted the byplay between Alphonse and her sister, quickly finished her breakfast. "Alphonse," she said as she rose, "will you come with me, please?" Alphonse nodded and rose as well, but not before delving into his mind for a specific rune, the rune of gift and partnership. He snapped his fingers, settling the metaphorical spell upon Kristoff and Anna, allowing the ice harvester to absorb part of her symptoms. With his unique abilities, it would be over for both of them much faster.
As Elsa led the way through the castle, she cast a glance backward, then looked to Alphonse. "So why was Kristoff doing so much better than Anna?" she asked. Alphonse quirked a smile at the question, impressed with her observation (and a little proud that she had assumed he knew the reason).
"Are you familiar with the term 'Fetch' in folklore?" he asked. Elsa thought it over and, with only the barest hollow memories, she shook her head. "There are stories," Alphonse explained, "of creatures such as elves and trolls kidnapping the children of humans and replacing them with fakes."
"Changelings," Elsa offered, familiar with those stories. Papa had frightened her with them as a little girl, though much less so after her accident with Anna.
"Got it in one," Alphonse noted. "Anyway, these legends are true, though not near as black-and-white as people think. Yes, some creatures took them for … malevolent purposes." Alphonse's eyes blazed as he spoke, and Elsa had a sudden mental image of him attacking tall, thin, pale creatures. "But not all of them. Some took children from dangerous homes, hoping to give them a better life. These children are known as Fetches." Alphonse glanced back, as if he could see Kristoff through the walls (and who's to say he couldn't?)
"I think that when Kristoff was adopted by his the trolls, Pabbie granted him the Fetch's Blessing." Alphonse paused in his monologue, as if allowing Elsa to absorb this new information about her brother-in-law. Elsa thought it over and, really, it changed nothing about how she saw Kristoff or his adopted family. In fact, such a blessing would be quite predictable from Pabbie.
"So what does this 'blessing' entail?" Elsa asked with a smile, genuinely interested and eager to learn. Alphonse hid a smile at her subtle eagerness.
"Fetches are said to be blessed with enhanced strength and stamina, as well as a natural affinity for the wild." Elsa smiled at Alphonse's words, thinking that they fit the mountaineering Kristoff to a tee. She recalled a story from Anna of Kristoff climbing a mountain with only a set of climbing hooks and a rope, all while carrying Sven. This blessing would explain such superhuman feat.
"I also think," Alphonse continued, "that this is what allows Kristoff to properly use Mjolnir. Even wearing a belt of strength, any man would be hard-pressed to lift that weapon, much less use it in battle."
Elsa shrugged, trusting Alphonse's theory. Her faint smile dissolved into a neutral look as they approached the door to her office. Inside lay a mound of documents that she needed to look over and approve. The queen sighed and turned to her companion to thank him for talking with her. The words died in her throat upon noticing the glimmer of mischief in his eyes.
"Elsa," he was back to informality, "do you have anything … particularly pressing today?" Elsa couldn't help but notice the color rising in his cheeks, the way his mouth was twitching into a smile. Curiosity piqued, she couldn't help her answer.
"Not really," she said as casually as she could. It wasn't a total lie, really. Alphonse grinned and took her hand and pressed on, eventually leading her to the courtyard beyond one of the castle stables.
"Any particular reason you brought me here?" Elsa asked, half-teasingly. Alphonse glanced at her with that smirk of his and lifted his arms, hands splayed. For a moment nothing happened. And then Elsa could have sworn she saw something flicker over Alphonse's skin, like nimbus of color, red and silver shot through with lines of blue. The breeze blew harder, the mage's cloak flapping gently. Green mist rose from the ground and swirled into a funnel that dispersed to reveal his horse.
Elsa approached the steed, glancing briefly at its eight legs. The beast was one of the largest horses she had ever seen, a far cry from the small work horses that filled Arendelle. Even the thoroughbred war horses of her Guardsmen would balk when facing this animal. Its fur was an ominous grey like a rising thunderhead, its mane a deep red like cedar wood. The horse turned to regard her, allowing her to see its emerald eyes.
Elsa slowly reached for the horse's muzzle. The horse met her halfway and nuzzled her palm, eliciting a giggle from the Snow Queen. Elsa had always loved horses - she related to their natural grace and hardworking attitude. The horse stepped forward and propped its head on her shoulder, curling in like a hug. Elsa giggled and wrapped her arms around the horse's neck in a warm embrace.
"Askvader likes you," Alphonse noted with a warm smile. That in itself was rather impressive. Askvader was usually rather skittish around strangers, on a few occasions even outright hostile. The queen truly had a gift with horses. Elsa petted Askvader with a kind smile, admiring the horse's shining coat.
Alphonse cleared his throat, drawing a glance from the queen. He held out his hand, an unspoken invitation for assistance. Elsa blushed at the act of chivalry and braced herself as Alphonse lifted her by the waist onto the horse before mounting himself. He grasped the reins and let his grin return.
"Ready when you are, Elsa," he said, voice barely level.
"Well, I'm readyyyyyyyyyyyyyy-" Ela shrieked as Askvader shot forward, their surroundings blurring by. She gripped onto Alphonse and the horse slowed to a stop. Alphonse looked back with a wry grin. Elsa slapped his shoulder, heart thundering and breathing ragged from shock. Elsa stumbled down from Askvader and leaned against a tree by the water. She glanced up to see the castle across the harbor. Askvader had crossed all of that in less than a minute?
Elsa stiffened as the horse approached and nuzzled her shoulder, nickering with concern. Elsa chuckled as her nerves settled, then burst into full-on laughter. That had been incredible! That burst of impossible speed that sent them sailing over the water, adrenaline surging through her veins. Elsa may have been more reserved than Anna, but she enjoyed danger more than her sister (and the strangeness was not lost to her). Elsa turned and embraced Askvader's neck, her laughter fading to contentedness.
"So, what did you think?" Alphonse asked. Elsa narrowed her eyes in apparent thought and gestured for him to come closer. The mage hesitated, but drew nearer. As soon as he was within range, Elsa slapped him.
"That's for scaring me," she said crossly. Alphonse glowered as he rubbed his cheek, but shrugged in fairness. Before she could lose her nerve, Elsa drew in again and kissed the red mark on his cheek. "And that's for surprising me," she whispered.
Alphonse's other cheek turned red, as well as his neck. Elsa giggled at the sight of the unflappable mage blushing. Askvader whinnied, the sound almost like laughter. Alphonse turned his ire onto the horse. "Traitor," he accused. The horse shook his mane as if in agreement.
While watching the byplay between horse and man, an idea sprung to mind. "Alphonse," she asked, drawing the mage's attention, "how fast is Askvader?" The mage grinned and stroked the horse's neck.
"Very," was all he said, but it got his point across. Elsa hummed in thought and mounted, the horse grunting in surprise. Alphonse looked up at her in shock. Apparently no one had ever ridden Askvader without him. Elsa offered a hand to help him up.
"Come on," she said, "I want to show you something." Elsa could see the spark of intrigue in his eyes, one that grew into a flame of curiosity. He took her proffered hand, bringing a rosy hue to Elsa's cheekbones. He settled behind her and wrapped his hands around her waist, causing her blush to deepen. She suddenly realized that this is as close as a man had ever been to her.
Elsa looked around, getting her bearings, and gently tugged on the reins to point Askvader at the mountains. "A piece of advice," Alphonse said, "trust Askvader. He knows what he's doing." Elsa flicked the reins, and Askvader shot forward, everything blurring by.
Elsa could barely keep track of where they were, the environment indistinct. But in the saddle, she felt as if she knew, without really knowing, where she was, where she was going, as if Askvader himself were guiding her. She felt them coming upon a cliff face, moving too fast to stop, and Askvader shot up the rock wall without the slightest pause.
The pair climbed higher into the mountains, the grass fading to the snow of high altitude as if time were speeding past autumn and into winter, along a familiar path. Or at least, familiar to Elsa. The white blurred by and elsa tugged on the reins, Askvader sliding to a stop. Elsa glanced back at the trail they had left, a good twenty yards of flung snow.
She glanced back at Alphonse to see his expression. And he didn't disappoint - the man looked stunned, his mouth hanging slightly open. After all, it was not every day one saw a place made of crystal blue ice.
Around noon, Anna felt far better than that morning. She had the color back in her skin and her eyes were clear and bright, like the spring sun. Anna strolled with Kristoff, similarly recovered, and looked for a good place to showcase what she had learned. She probably should have waited to show Elsa and Al, but she couldn't resist the chance to show off for her husband.
The couple arrived at a large clearing up the mountain, suitable for Anna's needs. The princess noticed a huge oak tree with a limb snapped down and hanging, sap frozen in place over the hole like a scab. She motioned for Kristoff to watch and focused, just as Freya had taught her in the seemingly endless hours they had practiced.
She tapped into the flow of magic in the air, the currents of eldritch power that flowed through the earth and sky. She became a part of it - a sail pushed by the wind, a water wheel spun by the river - and harnessed that flow. She focused it, guided it, and took hold of the branch, righting it with unnatural strength. She placed her hands on the fork in the tree and wove magic to reattach it, weaving the wood fibers and getting the sap flowing. She removed her hands to reveal the entire branch blooming, the leaves growing and and acorns growing.
Kristoff watched with awe as this happened, as his wife healed a massive oak tree as if it were nothing. Anna turned to beam at him, and stumbled into his chest. Kristoff looked her over with worry, but she waved away his concerns. "Sorry. Just … tired. It'll pass in a minute." She was true to her word, and recovered quickly.
"What was that?" Kristoff asked. And he thought his new skills were impressive. Compared to that, his own form of magic just seemed … destructive. Anna smiled and began to explain. Most of it flew over his head, but he caught the gist. Magic, flow of the universe, life, nature, etcetera. It sounded complicated, but Anna seemed to have it down.
"So where's the hammer?" Anna asked. She had shown him what she could do, or at least one application, and she was eager to see what he could do. Kristoff smiled and reached into his pocket. He flicked his wrist out, the hammer snapping into its proper size with a small thunderclap. Anna jumped in surprise and laughed. She hadn't seen that coming.
Kristoff lifted Mjolnir and dark clouds began to gather, summoned by his will. He mentally gripped the energy surging within those pitch-black clouds and swung down. A bolt of lightning surged down in a twisting braid of destruction and struck a large boulder sticking out of the mountain, blowing it to gravel and sand.
Anna openly stared, mouth gaping, at the hole where the boulder had been. "Woah," she whispered. Kristoff blushed at his wife's reaction, unsure if he should be proud or a little ashamed, and shrunk his hammer back to the size of an amulet and returning it to his pocket. Anna had healed that tree, had washed away injury. All he had done was cause wanton destruction.
He glanced at Anna to find her looking at him with sheer, unbridled love. Anna embraced him and sighed.
"No wonder they say opposites attract," she whispered. Kristoff brushed her chin, drawing her gaze up with a question in his eyes. "The Aesir were figures of battle and war; the Vanir of growth and harvest. War and nature - order and chaos. Two sides of the same coin." She cupped the side of his face, her thumb caressing his cheek. "We compliment each other, Kristoff. Then and now." She buried her face in his chest and sighed with contentment.
Kristoff kissed his wife's forehead and smiled. No matter what happened, he knew where he belonged. Right here, in her arms. And nothing, no matter how world-shaking, would ever change that.
Alphonse dismounted Askvader and took a few steps closer, marvelling at the sight before him. An entire palace made of flawless, crystalline ice. Out of habit, he began to determine what it would take to make this, using his own magic. The rune of Ice, clearly, and the rune of Property, maybe the rune of Dawn (used at daybreak) to amplify them and encourage change. And natural magic to amplify all of that.
Even with all of that, he doubted he could even come close to this magnificent structure. This was beyond him and his structured approach. This was … instinctual - fueled by imagination and heart, not just thought and will. A true result of Elsa's connection to True magic, gifted by the cosmos Itself.
As those thoughts flowed away, he began to appreciate not just its size and complexity, but its nature as a work of art. The lines of the palace were smooth and unmarred by flaws, the light of the sun shining through in an array of cool colors.
"So are you going to stare all day," Elsa asked, "or are you going to come inside?" Alphonse started and smiled sheepishly before following her inside. Upon opening the doors, Alphonse gasped in renewed awe. Somehow, it was even more amazing on the inside! The sunlight refracted through the ice walls into glittering tapestries of blues, purples, and whites, rainbows crisscrossing close to the ceiling. The entire palace twinkled like stars in the night sky.
The moment was shattered by the sound of heavy footfalls. A shadow passed over Alphonse, forcing him to look into the face of a very angry-looking snow monster. The creature looked him over and, seeming to sense his power, issued an earsplitting roar. The creature glowed, ice spikes and armor forming around it body and struck out at him. Alphonse ducked and swung his staff. Charged with raw magic, it struck the creature's arm and blasted it off. The monster roared again, louder than before, and sprouted even more spikes and fangs of ice. It struck again-
"Enough!" Elsa's shout cut through the air like a knife. Alphonse turned to her, but she was focused on the snow golem, with a look that was less anger and more motherly disappointment. The golem shifted uneasily, looking guilty as its armaments retracted. It folded its hands, looking utterly like a child in trouble. It suddenly clicked that this golem must be another of Elsa's creations.
"Marshmallow, what did I tell you about attacking guests?" Elsa asked in a scolding tone - one that sounded as if this had happened before.
"To not to," the monster, Marshmallow?, replied.
"That's right," Elsa agreed. "Now apologize." Marshmallow groaned, but turned to face Alphonse.
"I'm sorry, Mister," he said. Given any other monster, Alphonse would have warned them, in no uncertain terms, that attacking him again would lead to severe injury or death (one didn't do what he did for so long without learning that creature of strength tended to only react to force). But looking into those faintly glowing eyes, all he saw was a child. A child in a too-large body who was trying to make amends.
"It's fine," Alphonse said. 'I've had far worse." Boy, was that true. The golem nodded and looked to Elsa, who smiled proudly.
"You're a good boy, Marshmallow," she smiled, and waved her hand. Marshmallow's severed arm dissolved into a whirlwind of snowflakes and surrounded his stump, only to reform into his perfectly fixed arm. Marshmallow smiled widely and knelt to embrace his … mother, Alphonse supposed.
"Hey! What happened in here?" a high-pitched voice called. In waddled a much-smaller classical (if oddly-shaped) snowman. Alphonse had a brief remembrance of his flight with Hugin and recalled seeing a glimpse of this entity. "Hi!" the snowman called upon noticing him, "I'm Olaf, and i like warm hugs!" The snowman, Olaf, waddled up and embraced Alphonse's shins.
Alphonse, feeling a little awkward, looked up to Elsa, who looked to be stifling giggles. With a slight blush, Alphonse knelt to properly embrace the snowman. "Well, I'm Alphonse. And, I haven't had many hugs, at all." Olaf gasped as if he had admitted to being blind and deaf.
"Not anymore," the snowman said in a much calmer volume. "I'll make sure of it!" Olaf giggled and waddled over to Elsa and hugged her as well, much tighter than he had alphonse. "It's so good to see you Elsa," he said. "How're Anna and Kristoff? Oh, and Sven - can't forget Sven!"
Elsa smiled warmly and assured him that they were fine, just going through some strange changes. "What kind of strange changes?" Olaf asked, just as much a child as Marshmallow. Elsa paused and glanced to Alphonse, who simply shrugged. It was her business if she wanted to explain, not his.
Elsa began to explain what had been happening since kristoff and Anna's visit to Grand pabbie, as Olaf had come to the Ice Palace to spend time with Marshmallow after they left. Olaf and Marshmallow listened with rapt attention, as did Alphonse. To hear the events from her perspective, in her own words full of soul and passion, was rather soothing. She had quite a gift for storytelling.
"So you are the magician who saved everyone from those monsters?" Olaf asked, pointing to Alphonse. He had seen the draugr and had been ignored by them, as he was not technically living. But he had heard the stories from townsfolk and the guards, not to mention Anna, about the mysterious magic-wielding hooded man who had saved them. Alphonse felt color rise to his cheeks and nodded. Olaf laughed joyously and tackled him in another hug, followed by Marshmallow lifting him in a tight-yet-careful embrace. Unlike last time, Alphonse couldn't help but feel warmth from these two soothe him. He smiled and tried (only partly-successfully) to return their hugs.
Both snowmen let him go, and Olaf turned to regard Elsa, his lips quirked in a contemplative pooch. His eyes brightened and he grinned widely. "Hey Elsa, why don't you show Al the view from the balcony? I just remembered i need to show something I found to Marshmallow. Come on, little brother!" He took Marshmallow's finger and guided the giant, who simply shrugged, out of the palace.
Elsa sighed in contentment as she watched them leave, stepping close to Alphonse. "I know they can be a little … much," she said. "But they mean well."
"They're incredible," Alphonse said, and meant every word. He took Elsa's hands in his own, palms up. "Not surprising, since they came from these hands." Elsa blushed at the praise and looked into Alphonse's eyes, seeing only sincerity. She blushed and tore her gaze away before offering to lead him up to the balcony.
The silence between the two as they climbed was comfortable, if a little tense. At least to Elsa. She felt something between them, like the charge between a tree and a cloud before lightning struck, or the lull before a storm hit. It was … strange, and somewhere between pleasant and not. As they entered the second floor, she flicked her wrist to open the double doors and they walked onto the balcony over the entrance.
Alphonse's breath caught at the sight of the snow-capped mountains, the sun shining in the crisp mountain air and making the peaks shine white. "It's beautiful isn't it?" Elsa asked, gratified at his reaction. Three waves of awe were pretty good for one day.
"It is," Alphonse said and glanced at Elsa, who swept her gaze over the landscape. Seized by impulse, "But not as beautiful as you." Elsa turned to him with surprise, her cheeks turning red. Alphonse immediately felt regret rise within him. What was that?! Why did he say these embarrassingly sappy (even a kid raised in the woods by spectral birds knew they were just that) things to her? Why did he- wait, was she getting closer?
Elsa was steadily leaning in, and a part of Alphonse realized he was, too. He felt heat rise to his cheeks, felt warmth in his heart and unease in his gut. But it was soon washed away by the warmth as they drew closer. He felt her breath ghost over his cheeks as they drew ever closer. Elsa's eyes closed, as did his own. They were mere centimeters apart, and then their lips touched in a feather-light peck-
Alphonse lurched away as agony flared in his head and chest, like molten lead. He would have screamed if the noise wasn't strangled in his closed throat. He collapsed against the banister as burning lightning seemed to lance through his body, and images flashed through his mind. The cave, his bloody hands, the ice-water, the ravens. All the monsters he had slain and the blood on his hands. His family, bodies splayed out-
"Alphonse!" Elsa shouted in fear, grasping his arm and turning her to him, searching his face. Blood ran from his nose and his right eye, the gold eye, his skin burning and clammy. What was happening to him?!
"I can't-" he gasped, "I'm sorry, I can't-" He lunged over the banister and fell. Elsa shrieked and looked over, catching a raven flying away. Askvader's fearful whinny fell on deaf ears. His look of utter sorrow was burned into her memory.
Elsa felt despair wash over her and she collapsed against the rail, sobs pulsing in her chest. She felt as if her heart were being ripped into tiny pieces.
Logically, she knew she shouldn't feel this way. Who knew what Alphonse was going through? But the heart was anything but logical, and tears began to fall. Elsa collapsed into herself, curling into a little ball to try and ride out the heartbreak.
Unbeknownst to her, someone was watching. Olaf and marshmallow watched with wide eyes as their mother, their strong, smart, loving mother, battled with what she saw on some level as rejection. Olaf came to a decision and gestured for Marshmallow to comfort her. The giant golem approached and knelt to her level, and the queen latched onto him in a hug, which he returned.
Olaf wanted desperately to help his big-little brother comfort Elsa, but he had a job of his own. He turned and slid along the ice of the palace, down the stairs and out the door, and down the slopes, following his supernatural instincts.
There was someone else who would need him as much as Elsa.
Poor Elsa, poor Al. What do ya'll think?