Disclaimer: Frozen is in property of Disney, therefore I do not own the rights.
I do, however, own the OCs Mikkel, Vegar, King Marcus and Frida (and any other name that you don't recognize)
Thank you to everyone who has read/favorite/alert/reviewed my story so far!
Warnings: Foul Language, OOC-ness, Background OCs, Cameo/Name Drops
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I am officially two chapters ahead of the updates, mwahaha! So if anyone has noticed the "Original Character" and "Cameo/Name Drop" warnings popping up, don't worry. The OCs are just servant extras because there is no way in hell Elsa and Anna can live in a castle without a bunch of nameless servants. As for the cameos... I could not resist.
Look readers! A wild plot device has appeared!
Chapter Seven
The rift between the Arendelle sisters was palpable throughout the kingdom. It was obvious to those that visited the Queen during her open hours that she was troubled with personal affairs. The regal air that accompanied the Queen whenever she made any public appearances was not present. She seemed distracted, lost even, as though her mind was where ever her sister stood.
The same could be said for Anna. There was a sense of anger beneath Anna's surface that troubled the town's people. They knew Princess Anna to be sweet and cheery. She was always smiling despite any personal turmoil, but it would seem that whatever had occurred between the Queen and the Princess had been almost as nasty as the Princess's public break up.
Kristoff and Sven had been concerned on the times they visited the palace, but neither of the sisters were willing to go into detail about it. It was only when Kristoff found Olaf did the blond finally understand the stormy silence between the young women.
In the end, much to Anna's chagrin, Kristoff sided with Elsa.
(Sven had sided with Anna, but knowing that proved very little to lighten her mood.)
Olaf didn't like it when the girls fought. In truth, he hated it. He hated seeing them both hurt. He hated the way Elsa would throw herself into her work just to keep the guilt from eating her up inside.
He hated the way the heat of summer would feel like autumn in Elsa's presence or the way the air seemed to melt his snow whenever Anna was around.
(His personal flurry would change depending on which sister he hung out with. With Elsa, Olaf found that his tiny little cloud barely let out a single drop of snow, but with Anna, a small blizzard was needed to keep him barely together. He found that hanging out with Anna during times like this to be nearly impossible. It pained him—it was Anna who needed the company the most.)
He hated the way Anna would sneak off into the courtyard earlier every night just to lose herself in a wave of fire because of how ferocious the burning within her core felt. He had watched, from the safety of the archway, Anna's flames lick the walls of ice in a fitful dance of unexpressed emotion. He'd seen with his own eyes the way her flames would change colors; the way it carved through layers upon layers of Elsa's ice; the way Anna's once beautiful dance felt more like a desperate attempt of release, to let go of the gnawing ache inside of her.
And it seemed to get worse every night, for Olaf realized it took very little effort in Anna's part to release torrents of fire.
(For a moment, Olaf wondered if Elsa knew what was happening; if she kept watch somewhere out of sight just like him. It seemed that every night he followed Anna, the ice her fire had melted through would be hastily repaired again, as though Elsa had only just managed to refill the gaps before Anna's arrival.)
But most of all, he missed them when they were together. Two weeks of eating meals separately, of avoiding each other in the hallways and pretending the other didn't exist when they had no excuse but be in the same room was destroying the sisters inside and out.
This was worse than their years of separation. At least then, Anna didn't have to go through such efforts to avoid her sister.
It needed to stop and it needed to stop now, before things could get any worse and their damaged bond becomes irreversible.
Luckily for Olaf, an opportunity arrived in the most unexpected way.
Anna was surprised—and nervous—when one of the castle maids came looking for her in the frozen courtyard. She had just dispersed a flaming serpent seconds before the older woman's arrival. The old woman's hurried expression turned into wary as she eyed the melting, cracked walls around them, and winced just a little as her foot accidentally stepped into a puddle a little too deep for her flats.
The princess barely suppressed a giggle at the sight. She met the maid the rest of the way to save the poor woman anymore trouble.
"Frida, what are you doing here?" She asked. "I mean, not that you're not allowed her or anything, I'm just surprised you found me."
Frida had been one of their older maids. She was part of the group of servants Anna remembered seeing as a little girl, but her interactions with the gentle woman had always been limited, even back then. When the King had closed off the castle gates, Frida had been one of the unfortunate few who had been released from her services.
She had returned to the castle of her own will and expressed great joy when Elsa opened the Castle gates and rehired her services. Still, Frida was not a woman Anna ever saw. Seeing her now made the princess rather suspicious.
"My apologies, princess, for disturbing you." The old maid bowed politely. "But the Queen has requested your immediate presence in the Queen's private study."
"Oh. Well, thank you Frida. I guess I'll be on my way then."
Frida gave the princess a customary bow and followed the young woman out of the courtyard without another word.
Anna knocked on the grand oaken doors that led into the Queen's study. Actually, it had been the King's study when their father had been alive, but Anna supposed it now belonged to Elsa, just like how their mother's garden technically belonged to the princess.
"Elsa? It's me, your sister." She scowled, suddenly feeling stupid. Of course she'd know that. She sent for me after all! OK, new plan. "I'm still technically not talking to you but you summoned me so I guess I'll make the exception for today."
"That's good." Elsa said the moment she opened the door. "Because we have something important to discuss."
Without further elaboration, Elsa tugged Anna into the room and closed the door behind them. Anna raised a curious brow at her sister's sudden urgency, but didn't push her for an explanation. When Elsa wanted to keep things a secret, Anna knew better than to pry, no matter how curious.
It wasn't until Anna sat down on the cushioned chair did Elsa hand over an open letter. The red head eyed the broken seal of Corona with incredulity then glanced at the beautifully written words meant only for the eyes of the Queen.
"Should I really be looking at this?" She questioned with a raised brow. "This seems personal. Like, 'only for the eyes of Queen Elsa' personal."
"It's not." Elsa replied with a quick shake of her head. "Have you heard of Rapunzel?"
Anna tore her eyes away from the letter, her curiosity growing tenfold. "Yeah, she's the crown Princess of Corona. I heard we were invited to attend her wedding two years ago but…"
With the way things were then, Anna knew Elsa had declined the invitation.
"She was one of the nobles to attend my coronation last year, do you remember? After the…incident…we've been corresponding through letters." Elsa gave Anna a tentative smile. "We've come up with an idea to better unite our kingdoms."
"How queenly of you, Elsa." Anna remarked, offhand. She skimmed the letter curiously, blue eyes stopping whenever her name was mentioned—which happen more often than she thought was appropriate. "What did you two come up with?"
"A festival."
Anna glanced up at the platinum blonde Queen. "A festival? With Corona?"
"And others," Elsa added. "She thought it would be a good idea to invite some of the neighboring kingdoms as well. It'll be a multicultural festival of sorts, open to anyone who wishes to attend."
"That sounds like a fantastic idea." Anna grinned, feeling genuinely excited for the first time in weeks. "But why are you telling me? What I think doesn't influence Arendelle politics."
That much was true.
How many times had Elsa withheld information about the state of their home during the various times she stressed over a particular matter? It was always with Kai Elsa confided in or Mikkel, the Royal Adviser to the Queen on all political affairs. She never discussed anything political with Anna.
Anna had always assumed it was because of her status as Princess that kept her way from important meetings such as war councils and law signings.
"You have more influence than you realize, Anna." Elsa stated with a slight frown. "You are my sister and the Princess of Arendelle, what you say holds just as much weight as my decisions. Hence, why I've brought you here today. You are the perfect person to oversee this festival. And I trust you." She smiled lovingly.
Corona's letter slipped out of Anna's slackened fingers, the red head's jaw suddenly open ajar. "Wait, what? You're putting me in charge of this?"
"Yes."
"Elsa! I can't be in charge of something like this!"
"Why not? You're the perfect person for the job."
"This is political! It's important! What if I mess up? What if no one likes any of the events I set up for the festival? What if Corona or, or, or King Eric decides to go to war with us because I had one of the stalls sell sea food or something?"
Elsa's gentle cold hands found Anna's face without notice. She raised the girl's freckled chin and smiled down at her as warmly as she could.
"Anna, please accept my offer. I'm truly sorry about breaking my promise to train you. I wasn't sure on how to fix this argument between us, so I thought maybe by letting you plan this festival, you would see that I do trust you; that I do believe in you."
Anna heaved a heavy sigh. She lent into her sister's cold touch and laid a warm hand against the pale cold one.
"OK." She accepted quietly. "I'll do it. But don't get upset if we end up going to war over it."
"Thank you," Elsa smiled then she furrowed her brows. "But why would King Eric wage war against us because of bad sea food?"
Anna rolled her eyes with a huff. "He won't go to war with us because of bad sea food, he'll go to war with us because I decided to sell sea food."
Elsa hummed thoughtfully. "Well, wars have started for less."
Anna chose not to comment. The thought of Arendelle going to war with the Danish because of her bad decisions didn't make her feel better. "Alright, so since I'm going to be in charge of this festival, don't I need a list of the kingdoms that will be attending?"
"You're right." Elsa grabbed a pile of papers and envelopes from the desk and dropped them right in front of Anna. "We have to send out the invitations first."
Anna felt a pout form on her lips, suddenly remembering why getting involved with anything political was optional for her. She really didn't like the paperwork involved.
Elsa couldn't help but laugh.
Anna spent the rest of her week coming up with ideas for Arendelle's first multicultural festival. Getting involved in such a historical thing made Anna forget why she and Elsa were fighting in the first place. She barely had any time to do anything else that didn't require her to eat, sleep and bathe.
She sent word out throughout the kingdoms that she sought ought various acts to perform for the festival. Elsa helped her enlist a variety of chefs from various nationalities to make their multicultural menu. Some of the finest decorators in all of Arendelle were hired to make the festival as beautiful and awe inspiring as it could be.
So far, Anna was happy with the way things were shaping up. Elsa, well, Elsa wouldn't dare admit it, but she was pleased to note that since Anna took up the position as Festival Planner, the princess hadn't found the time to practice her fire. Reinforcing the ice walls for the courtyard had been much easier to attain without the ferocity of Anna's flames assaulting it every night.
Elsa mused at the possibility of not needing to reinforce those ice walls when Anna released a frustrated growl. She snapped out of her daze and glance curiously at the girl, one fine brow arched delicately.
"Something wrong?"
"Oh, you know, just about everything." Anna huffed, scratching vigorously at something on her to-do list. "Vegar gave me a letter this morning from the King of the Southern Isles."
"Oh? And what did it say?"
Anna rolled her eyes. "The same thing it said the last two times King Marcus contacted us. He sends his 'most sincerest apologies for the treasonous acts of his ill minded baby brother' and wishes to send a representative of the Southern Isles to Arendelle's "Festival of Culture" in the hopes of better expressing how terribly sorry they are for almost getting us killed." She spat vehemently, the fountain pen in her hand suddenly exploding.
Elsa flinched away from her sister, spilling bits of black ink she'd been holding all over her wrist. Anna scowled at the molten mess of metal that had once been her pen and reached into her pouch for a backup.
"Sorry. Fountain pens and heat don't get along."
"Anna," Elsa sighed.
"I don't think it's a good idea to have anyone from the Southern Isles attend the festival." The red head continued as though she hadn't just melted a pen.
She walked into the town square, scrutinizing all the wooden stalls the carpenters were building for the festival.
"Even if Marcus is sorry that Hans is a jerk, how can we ever trust a representative from them?"
"Not everyone from the Southern Isles is evil, Anna." Elsa sagely commented, smiling kindly to some of the workers they passed.
"No." Anna admitted reluctantly. "But Hans was."
"Some people go to great lengths to become King."
"You can say that again…" Anna muttered.
The royal sisters stopped in front of three parked caravans colored in bright hues of reds, yellows, oranges and green. A few of the inhabitants wandered in and out of the caravans carrying silk, translucent fabrics; colorful masks of various shapes and sizes, and boxes filled with items only they knew. Some of the men were dressed in baggy clothes of purples and yellows, with rings in their ears and bandanas tied to their black heads.
One slender man in particular amused Anna greatly. He was dressed like a court jester, his clothes tight to his slender body and the colors almost as eccentric as his personality. Like the other men, his hair was as black as night, his beard short and pointed. He had but a single gold loop on his left earlobe that seemed to gleam in the sun's light. He was the leader of the gypsies from what Anna and Elsa could recall, and planned on entertaining the children at the festival with a puppet show. He bowed dramatically at the sight of the two young women, but continued to babble with his gypsy companions about the stories he would plan to tell.
The caravan closest to Anna opened unexpectedly and out came a beautiful woman with wavy midnight black hair and eyes as green as emeralds. Her skin was tanned from hours of dancing under the sun, but seemed to shimmer in the light as though she wore a light powder on her chest and neck. She wore a layered dress in shades of white, green and lavender that jingled ever so lightly from the golden colored bells hanging off a violet silk scarf tied to her waist.
She pulled her lush black hair into a pony tail, tying a soft baby pink ribbon around her mane to keep her face free from the unruly curtain. She gracefully stepped down the caravan, marveling at the spectacle of a bustling Arendelle when green eyes caught sight of the two monarchs. She graciously and politely, curtseyed for the women, a beautiful smile gracing plump red lips.
From behind her, Anna saw a small goat stumble down the caravan steps and smack behind the gypsy woman's legs, though she made no reaction to it.
"Your majesties, what an honor it is to finally meet you. My name is Esmeralda and this is Djali, my companion."
The goat bleated in greeting but kept a safe distance from the sisters, his eyes suspicious.
Elsa and Anna returned the greeting as politely as they could.
"The honor is ours, Esmeralda." Elsa replied. "Welcome to Arendelle. I hope the roads were kind to you and your companions."
"As kind as they can be during this time of year. We were on our way to Paris when Clopin heard wind of your festival." Esmeralda eyed the bustling workers with curious green eyes. "I don't think I've ever heard of something like this ever happening before. My family and I are truly honored that you will allow us to perform for such an event."
"Clopin says you're a magnificent dancer," Anna suddenly beamed. "You're going to perform for the festival right?"
"Yes," Esmeralda chuckled. "Djali and I plan on performing some of our more famous dances. That is, as long as Djali doesn't end up burning his tail again."
Djali snorted in offense, much to the ladies amusement, and trotted back into the caravan with his nose and tail in the air.
"So you dance with fire?" Anna queried, blue eyes bright.
Elsa felt her mood quickly sour, a small sliver of anxiety bubbling in her stomach.
Esmeralda nodded, surprised but sincerely pleased with Anna's interest in her art.
"Do you?"
"All the time!" The red head grinned. "I usually practice in the ballroom back at the castle but Elsa moved me out into the courtyard since I was less likely to burn anything there."
"Anna!"
"Would you like to join me during the performance then?" Esmeralda asked, much to Anna's pleasure and Elsa's chagrin. "The children always seem to like it best when there's more than one dancer on stage."
"Yes, of course! I would love to!" She gushed excitedly, ignoring Elsa's distraught reaction and the cold gust of wind that had swept past them.
"Wonderful! We'll start practice whenever you can. In the meanwhile, I need to go help the other prepare. Thank you again for allowing us the opportunity, your majesty."
Esmeralda gave a bow to the Queen then left to join the rest of the gypsies. They waited until she was out of ear shot before whirling on each other, two sets of blue eyes sharp with displeasure.
"Elsa!" "Anna!" They started in unison, expressions identical. They glared for a moment, one set of blue eyes tinging gold while the other seemed to lighten like frost.
"Really Anna? A fire dance?"
"Is that a problem your majesty?"
Elsa's eyes widened for a millisecond before the mask of authority fell into place. "Yes Anna that is a problem." She grabbed her sister's forearm a little rougher than she meant to and hissed, "You can't flaunt your powers like that Anna! It's irresponsible!"
Steam escape between Elsa's fingers; her sister's eyes now fully molten gold. Elsa did her damnedest to keep her body from wincing, not wanting to let her sister know that her flesh felt as hot as a cooking pot. She nearly did flinch when Anna sighed in exasperation and a stream of smoke escaped from her lips.
My sister is turning into a dragon! Elsa thought, suddenly horrified.
"It's just a performance." Anna stated, oblivious to her sister's thoughts. "Everyone would think it's just a show. I wish you'd stop overreacting to every little thing I do, Elsa. I can take care of myself."
"Anna—"
"Elsa please. Stop worrying about me. I'm doing this whether you like it or not."
Anna pulled away from the Queen's cold touch and started down the rest of the pathway. She stopped a few feet away and glanced over her shoulder.
"Are you coming? I still need help."
Elsa bit her tongue, still concerned with her sister's dance idea, but returned to the red head's side. They continued on their way with tension on their shoulders and worries in their hearts.
Man, I do love me some festivals.
Thanks for the correction lovies!
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