"Elsa, this is where the people come to speak to their ruler, to bring complaints before us or to ask us to settle a dispute between them. In the next year or so, when you're just a little bit older, I think I'll have you join us in here, to meet the people and understand them."
"Yes, Papa."
"You will need to sit very still and quiet, and be respectful of the people speaking. You outrank them, but you are not to value yourself more highly than them because of it."
"Yes, Papa. Will I have to hide my magic?"
The king shifted uncomfortably. "Yes, Elsa. I think you'll have to hide your magic. One day, we'll start to tell people outside of the castle about it, but it would probably be best not to use it too much in front of them all the same. People are frightened of what they don't understand, and magic… Arendelle hasn't seen magic in centuries."
Elsa frowned seriously, trying to figure out what he meant. "Papa, I'm afraid I don't understand," she said, the prim elegance of a princess flowing naturally through her speech, even in her obvious perplexedness. "Anna isn't afraid of my magic. She loves it and always asks me to use it for her. Won't the people stop being frightened, once they see that my magic is… is… not scary?"
Sighing, King Agdar shook his head and scratched the back of his neck as he tried to figure out what to say. His seven-year-old was obviously struggling with his reasoning; and why shouldn't she? He had explained, to a certain extent, the concept that her magic could be dangerous - at least, as far as telling her not to use it directly on people. His solemn little girl knew that freezing people could hurt them, and she would never do that. But how could he explain to her that people wouldn't understand that, that they would see her as a potential threat? How do you tell a seven year old about perception, about possibility, when that potential so drastically contrasts with her reality? Could he shatter her sense of fairness so soon in her life, by explaining that no matter what she did, no matter how good she was to her people, some would see her as a monster?
"It… it won't be that simple, Elsa. Grown-ups have very set ways of seeing things, and even though your magic seems simple to you and Anna, Arendelle's people probably won't see it that way." Risking a little more explanation, he added, "Just because you won't use your magic to hurt people doesn't mean you can't, and that will frighten people a little. But we will help them understand you," he finished hurriedly, "so that they'll know you'll be a good queen. You have a long time of being a princess ahead of you, and your mother and I will make sure you have as good a standing with the people as possible."
"Of course, Papa. I understand." She didn't; not really. Why would anyone be afraid of her if she wouldn't hurt them? Her magic would never do anything bad! It was inconceivable. However, she trusted her mama and papa to make everything all right; they would tell the people not to be scared, and Elsa would show them what a good princess she was.
Relaxing marginally, Agdar smiled as he led his daughter further into the castle, up to the central, highest tower from which they could see the land and sea for miles around. The city of Arendelle spread about them to the north and east, its people like tiny dolls moving through the streets. Beyond were the mountains, with villages springing up in habitable valleys and well-kept trails for miners to use when bringing carts of minerals down the mountains to the capital to be bought and sold. To the southwest was the mouth of the fjord and the open sea.
The king smiled as he gazed upon his land, holding his peace for a few moments as his daughter looked also. "Do you see this, Elsa?" he asked. "These will be your people, sturdy, hardworking folk, down-to-earth and accepting of their lot. For the most part, they're satisfied with what our small country has to offer. If they're not, they become merchants or sailors and travel away. Do you know where most of our trade and merchandise comes from, Elsa?"
"From Weselton, the Western Isles, and Bremerhaven," the princess recited dutifully.
"Exactly," the king answered. "And what are Arendelle's main exports?"
"Timber, fish, and minerals from the mountains. Those are the raw exports; our people are also the main manufacturers of ships in this part of the world."
"Very good! I have no doubt you'll make an excellent queen someday. You've already got the poise and bearing of one!" Agdar smiled fondly at his daughter, and she positively beamed back up at him.
The king and his daughter remained at the top of the tower together for a while longer before going down to eat lunch with their family. Afterwards, Elsa had a tutoring
session, to which she applied herself diligently, eager to learn and grow wise and strong so that she could take care of her people. After all, that was what she had been born for.
Elsa strode into the castle courtyard and slipped quietly off to the side, seating herself on a bench in the shadow of the wall before anyone could notice her and stand to attention. With the absence of her crown, and her purposefully underdone dress, it seemed unlikely that anyone would notice her, and she had exchanged her trademark braid for a simple onyx clasp that held her hair away from her face and let it fall down her back. Heat from the noonday sun bathed the courtyard and rose up again from the stone, as Elsa's people milled about, seemingly happy to continue using the courtyard as a market even though it was out of their way. Idly, the queen wondered when the thrill of the castle gates being open would wear off, and everyone would return to their normal lives. Already the courtyard had fewer people than just last week.
Well, everyone returning to their 'normal' state might not be the right way to say it. That morning, Elsa had opened the Great Hall of the castle for the first time with the express purpose of hearing the petitions of her people. Very few had come - scared of the Snow Queen, she expected, although those who had come had been largely positive. Some had complained about cancelling the trade with Weselton. Others came under the pretext of thanking the queen for the grain and vegetable rations, which the palace had recently distributed to nearby areas as they waited for more to be shipped in, using their gratitude as a thinly veiled disguise for their curiosity about the royal family. The mother who Elsa remembered from her coronation, the one who had asked if she was all right, came only to thank Elsa for opening the gates and to proclaim that Arendelle was sure to prosper in the hands of such a benevolent queen. Elsa smiled at the memory, holding on to the woman's faith in her like a talisman.
Just then, four guards emerged from within the castle, accompanied by a red-headed ball of energy that couldn't keep still. Anna fidgeted and danced impatiently as her guard stopped to secure the doors behind her. Why couldn't she just go to see Kristoff without all the fuss of having a gaggle of guards around her? She knew why, she admitted to herself, but still, it was so frustrating! What's weirder is that, if she hadn't been hoping for some alone time with her boyfriend, she might have actually enjoyed the little fanfare that having a guard produced. As it was, waiting for two men to precede her at a snail's pace while the others watched her back was about to drive her nuts before they even made it across the courtyard. Someone called her name, and Anna turned to see her sister striding towards her.
"Elsa!" she yelled back happily. Elsa grimaced, and gestured for her to keep her voice down. A few people heard and turned toward the noise, bowing hastily when they saw their queen and half-straightening, utterly lost as to what protocol around royalty may be. A short wave and polite nod from Elsa was enough to satisfy them that they could go back to their own business, after glancing around and seeing that no one else was making a fuss about the queen being there.
"Anna," Elsa breathed, grinning as she joined her sister in the circle of guards. "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to meet Kristoff and we're going to see some travelling performers today," Anna answered. "You should come too!"
Clasping her wrist in one hand, Elsa asked, "Are - are you sure? I mean, I wouldn't want to intrude…."
"Elsa! Of course you can come!" She paused. "That is, uh, if you want to. I mean, you know, I'd like you to, but if you're busy it's okay… Okay?"
Elsa smiled hesitantly. "In that case, I'd be happy to come. Lead the way."
Anna squealed and linked arms with her sister. After acquiring two more guards at the gate, Elsa left the castle for the first time since someone had tried to kill her.
Walking through Arendelle, Elsa was amazed at how no one seemed to take any notice of them. Put us in simpler clothes, remove the royal crest, and my crown, and we're just like everyone else, she thought. The guards surrounding them as they strolled through the streets drew several curious glances, but no one paid them any more attention than if they had been any two young ladies from a wealthy family. Anna chattered happily about the performance they were going to see, and about all the things she'd seen outside the castle in the last two weeks. Elsa was about to respond, but stopped suddenly. "What was that?" she whispered quietly.
She and Anna stopped to listen, and the six guards paused as well. A muffled shriek came from a nearby alleyway, and Elsa signalled the guards to go check it out. The she yanked back on Anna's sleeve, as Anna had marched off indignantly toward the sound as soon as she first heard it. Following the four guards who had gone toward the alley, the sisters peered into the dimness and saw a young, shabbily dressed girl being pinned against the wall by two equally young men, while a third dug through her pockets. "Stop them!" Elsa hissed at her guards. Three of them rushed forward, the rest hovering protectively around the royal sisters. The robbers, startled, dropped the girl and fled, nimble and light, the soldiers losing ground under the weight of their armour. Without warning, a wall of ice blocked off the end of the alley.
Inhaling sharply, Elsa clenched her hands into trembling fists. Anna glanced at her, concerned, but was quickly distracted by the sight of the guards dragging the young men back down the alleyway towards them. "Elsa, you did it! You stopped them!"
Elsa moaned quietly in response, and Anna looked at her with real worry this time. "Elsa?" The queen waved her off, shaking her head in a quick, 'Not now,' motion. Anna continued peering anxiously at her, glancing away only when the young thieves were before them.
"Don't hurt us!" one pleaded, flinching in fear. All of them were ghastly white, cringing in silence as if they had swallowed their tongues. They stared at Elsa.
"Hurt you!" Elsa recoiled slightly, eyes wide. She shook her head, confusion replaced with sadness. Thoughtlessly, she tugged at her fingers, keenly feeling the absence of her gloves. "No, there's no call to hurt you. Guards, I want one of you to fetch the city jailer. Did you hurt the girl?" she inquired sharply as one of her guards shouldered his way off through the crowds.
"No! No, we didn't!" exclaimed the gaunt, greasy teen who had spoken up before.
"You'd better not have!" Anna roared fiercely.
"Return what belongs to her," Elsa ordered in a high pitched voice.
"Here! Here! Take it!" The youths dumped a leather satchel on the ground, along with a necklace that had a broken chain and a single jewel on it. "That's all she had, I swear!"
Elsa picked up the necklace and satchel and pushed past the young men into the alley where the girl still sat, huddled against the wall. Anna followed her. The royal guards grasped the robbers tightly, though they made no move to escape, but only warily watched the queen - for the queen she must be. Who else had the power of sorcery to create a wall of ice from thin air?
Crouching in front of the girl, Elsa gently asked, "Is this yours? Did they take anything else from you?" Mutely, the girl shook her head, reaching for the items. Peering into the satchel, she gave a satisfied nod.
"This is all I had," she told them faintly. Elsa reached forward, then slightly jerked her hand back, hesitating. When was the last time she had touched someone, other than Anna? Staring at Elsa's outstretched hand, the girl took a shaky breath and then mumbled quietly, "You're the queen?" Elsa nodded, clenching a fist at her side. After another moment of hesitation, the girl grasped Elsa's hand and pulled herself up, then bowed as best she could in the narrow space. "Thank you, Your Majesty. I am in your debt."
Elsa shook her head. "No debt," she murmured. "Protecting my people is part of my job. Is that jailer here yet?" All three girls turned to face the exit of the alley, where the jailer had indeed arrived and was chaining the thieves to take them to the city prison, with the help of the guards. Elsa led the way back to the main street, the other two falling into step behind her, side-by-side.
"What's your name?" Anna asked cheerily. Elsa winced slightly, wondering why she herself hadn't thought to ask that. Just another human thing that I'm bad at.
"Freyja," the younger girl answered softly.
"I'm Anna. Sooo… Uh… What do you do for a living?"
Elsa didn't hear Freyja's answer, but the sound of the two girls chattering softly behind her hovered in the back of her mind as she addressed her guards, who had handed off the robbers and were staring into the alley anxiously.
"The criminals were apprehended? Good. Take us back to the castle. And, for Miss Freyja, - "
"Wait, - what?!" Anna cut in. "Elsa! I have to meet Kristoff! We had plans!"
Elsa froze, staring at her sister. "Oh. Right… I just thought… all the excitement… Right. Let's go see Kristoff."
Anna stared at Elsa, hesitating, then regained her fervour. "Yeah, let's get going! We've wasted too much time already! Hey, Freyja, do you wanna come with us to see the performers? Elsa, can she come with us?"
"Ah, actually, Your Majesty, Your Highness, I have to get home," Freyja stammered, curtsying hastily. "Thank you very much for your kindness, but I had best be going right away." Backing up a couple steps, the girl turned and scurried rapidly up the street as soon as Elsa had nodded her dismissal.
Slumping, Anna grumbled, "Well, I guess she has somewhere very important to be." The princess sighed. Too bad. It'd be fun to get to know someone new.
"Anna," Elsa chided, "she just got attacked! Furthermore, being around royalty can intimidate those who aren't used to it. And," the queen continued quietly, "she might have been scared of me. The sorceress."
"What?! Elsa, no. No. People… they just have to get used to it. That's all. They'll be fine."
Elsa smiled weakly at her sister, who did the same. Anna linked arms with Elsa, dragging her purposefully down the street. "Come on! We've got a performance to see!"
Rosy light filled the castle and long shadows decorated the walls when Elsa and Anna were finally home. Anna followed Elsa into her room, chattering excitedly about everything they'd seen, from the storytellers to the dancers to the fire-eaters and magicians. She also raved about the chocolate-filled pastries she'd discovered at a local bakery. Elsa sighed and flopped onto her bed, trying to stretch the soreness from her limbs and back. Happily, Anna bounced onto the bed beside her, smiling as Elsa grinned up at her.
"That was really cool today, by the way," she said.
"What was?"
"When you made that ice wall to stop those crooks from getting away."
"Oh…" Elsa frowned, her eyebrows drawing together in concentration.
"What? What's the matter?"
Sitting up, she answered, "I… I didn't mean to create a wall of ice. I mean, I sort of did - I wanted to not let them get away, and imagined something blocking their way, and then I made the ice so suddenly, with hardly a second of thought… It frightened me," she admitted.
"Oh." Now it was Anna's turn to frown, thinking. "Well, you didn't do anything wrong," she said slowly. "You didn't hurt anyone, or really lose control. You did a good thing. You got Freyja's stuff back, and I bet she's really grateful."
"Maybe," Elsa replied dubiously. "But I still don't want to use my magic against people. It's dangerous. I… I've only tried using my magic against other people once before, when the Weselton guards were shooting at me. I nearly killed them! It's not safe, to use my magic that way. Not even to defend myself."
Temper flaring, Anna growled, "Elsa! If you need to defend yourself, defend yourself! You can't just let someone kill you!"
"I know, I know," Elsa answered quickly, looking down at her knees. She bit her lip. "I'm just afraid. If I let myself use magic like I did today, then how can a make sure I won't hurt anyone? What if, instead of freezing the space ahead of them, I froze them?"
"That's easy," Anna answered confidently, flinging an arm around Elsa's shoulders. "You just need to practice. Just like anything else. Maybe you could teach yourself magical self-defence," she suggested.
Chuckling weakly, Elsa shook her head. "I'm not ready for that - for practicing with magic against people. Practice in general might be good, though. When I have time…."
Anna pouted. "Elsa, I really want you to have some way to defend yourself. You don't have to throw ice at people, just… block arrows or swords coming your way. That won't hurt anyone, right?"
Meeting her sister's gaze at last, Elsa wavered. Anna's idea sounded… reasonable, if not entirely appealing.
Concealing her triumph, Anna made her eyes as big and sad as she knew how. "Please, Elsa? Just a few self-defence classes? I'd feel so much better," she pleaded, laying it on thickly, "knowing you're that much safer from people who would hurt you!"
Exasperated, Elsa groaned, "Anna!" A lopsided smile graced her face; an admission. Anna had won. "Fine, fine! I'll come up with something suitable. Now, get out of here so I can sleep, before I decide to practice dumping snow on you!" Laughing, Anna dashed from the room, not managing to escape before Elsa's pillow flew across the room and hit her with an audible whuff.
"Goodnight, Elsa!" Anna called, peering around the door with a jaunty wave.
"Goodnight, Anna," her sister answered lovingly. "Sleep well."