real quick A/N: there's a lil' swear word in there, in cause ur not comfortable with that
Elliott woke up to a massive headache.
There was a dull ache on his neck, and a throbbing, persistent one on his shoulder. He squeezed his eyes and tried to remember...
The ice palace, Blizzard Dragon, the Princess...
I got shot.
Elliott sat upright, the light blanket that had been covering him slipped into the floor of his... cell?
He looked up at the tall stone ceiling, walls, everything. The air was damp and made him wrinkle his nose. He was laying down on a metal cot. His shoulder was bandaged, and he guessed the sweet taste on his tongue must be medicine for the pain. Disbelief, and a little outrage were the first things he properly felt.
On the other side of the cell was a small window, a narrow slit to see the world outside. He jumped to his feet a bit clumsily and ran to it... only to be yanked back, a horrible pain shot up his injured shoulder like a lit fire.
Massive iron shackles completely covered his hands, like gloves, and a thick chain bind him to the wall. Elliott stared down at them, his mouth going dry.
Just what were the odds of a blacksmith fashioning cuffs like this? That completely covered the hands? A venomous feeling climbed up to his throat; and he felt like he was going to be sick. Someone had these custom made.
Did his parents just plan to lock him up eventually? Elliott wanted to scream, or cry, but none of those happened. Instead, anger fueled his veins. Screw them.
He pulled the chains taut, stretching his neck to look out the window.
Andy had been right.
The fjord was completely frozen, he could see little from the window but as far as his eyes could reach everything was white. A strong hail was raining down, the beginning of a storm, and he could see the ships locked in place in the frozen water. There weren't cobblestone paths anymore, everything was ice and snow. And it was getting even deeper.
Guilt and terror twisted in his gut.
"No... gods, please... no..." what have I done?
He wanted to press his face against the glass, but the chains didn't reach that far, and all the strain was hurting his arm and shoulder even more. Pain pulsed through his arm, but he welcomed it. It's the least I deserve after causing all this mess...
His head whipped around to the sound of the door opening and closing quietly. Princess Helena walked in holding a torch, hugging her sides. She placed the torch on the wall and walked over to Elliott, unafraid.
"Why did you bring me here?" he demanded, shaking the chains. Despite everything, he was still the King, what did they think he was going to do—?
"I couldn't let you kill them...or let them kill you," the Princess said, her breath fogging up in front of her as she spoke. That's when Elliott noticed; he couldn't see his own breath. Wow, he really was cold inside and out. "And, believe me, after what you did, Fritz and Dominik were very eager. It's safer this way... for everyone."
He shuddered as he remembered that dark moment, the moment when he'd felt like a caged animal and almost killed two men. Maybe the lowest point in his pathetic existence. The moment shamed him, hurt him. The Princess stood tall in front of him, still hugging her sides and shivering against the cold. There was no sword strapped to her hip, either, Helena was not scared of him.
"I shouldn't be here!" Elliott wanted to cover his face with his hands but, obviously, he could not, "I'm a danger to Arendelle!" he remembered his coronation when the ancient Norse words had been said, how he'd bowed to protect Arendelle from danger— and that included from himself.
"Bring Andy," he demanded suddenly, for the first time questioning why it was the princess and not his brother here. Andy would tell them, Andy would...
"Andy..." Helena licked her lips and shifted her weight from one foot to the other, "Andy has not returned."
"What?" he turned his back on the Princess, straining to see out the window once again at the increasingly bad storm. Oh, hell... Andy could've easily been caught in the middle of that. A hundred different scenarios flashed through his head, each worse than the last. They all ended with him becoming an only child.
"He went to look for you, your Grace, but only his horse returned..." she looked out the window over Elliott's shoulder, a sad and worried look on her face, "I hope he's alright..."
His anxiety rolled and turned in his gut, growing every second. But he didn't get to torture himself much longer, since the Princess was suddenly really close, "If you would just... stop the bad weather? Bring back summer? Maybe Andy could find his way back."
Elliott tried not to sigh in exasperation like he wanted to. He met her gaze and told her the truth, "Don't you see? I can't. I want it to end as much as you do." He shook the chains again, making them rattle, "You have to tell them to let me go," he hated the way his voice cracked at the end. Elliott figured she could talk to whoever his brother had left in charge. Them could be Kai, or Gerda even?
Helena pursed her lips, those green cat—like eyes suddenly calculating, hiding her disappointment at his helplessness to stop the winter. "I'll see what I can do." She shot him one last, blank look and walked out, taking the torch with her.
The sound of cracking made him look down at his chained hands. They were starting to freeze over.
The gloves did nothing, Elliott realized, because my father told me it would stop my powers, I convinced myself that it was true and ended up believing it. It was all psychological nonsense.
The storm raged on outside.
• • •
"The fire crystal is doing wonders to my health," it had significantly boosted Andy's mood, but he was still feeling weak and overall cold. The crystal had delayed the process just barely. "Unfortunately, I still look like a sixty year old man."
"You could freeze into solid ice, and that's your biggest concern?" Krista grumbled in front of him, urging Suri to go faster still as they charged down the mountain.
"I'd make a really 'ice sculpture, don't you think?" Andy said, dealing with awful things the only way he knew how: terrible humor. "I'd be really cool."
"It's not funny!" Krista said, but she was betrayed by the small chuckle that escaped her.
The General slid on his tummy beside them, like a penguin from Andy's picture books. He'd decided to race against Suri, which was fine because all that did was motivate the reindeer to go even faster.
"The girl's right, m'boy, your jokes are childish." the General said, scowling at him.
"You give me a hard time about acting like a child, but icy that you're no better," Andy cackled, now on a roll. Krista's shoulders shook with controlled laughter, and seeing her laugh somehow made his heart a little less frozen, his grim predicament a little less bad.
The General looked like he wanted to punch him, "Your unfunny jokes deserve prison!"
"There will be just-ice, General, don't worry," Andy said. All those bad jokes would have been pure gold had they been told by Elliott, had his brother—
Don't. Don't think about him.
"The village!"
Suri slowed down to a trot, her hooves crunching over the snowy cobblestone. The General came to a stop too, drawing his sword, "Something's wrong."
He knew they should get to Helena as fast as possible, but he did not like seeing the village so deserted one bit. Sure, people would want to be warm indoors or in some shelter, but completely deserted? That was unusual. He expected at least some people gathering wood, or...
"It's so... empty," Krista deadpanned, the plaza clear of any signs that people even lived there. But every house had a fire, the smoke coming out of the chimneys in all the houses. The silence was almost eerie and Suri whined nervously.
"Yeah, something's definitely wrong," Andy looked at the windows of a nearby house, they were frozen over, so fogged up he couldn't see inside. A cold draft made him shiver and lean closer to Krista, whose back was tense.
"I don't like this..." she murmured. She guided Suri over to one of the houses, "My friend Jon lives here, just let me ask him what's going on, yeah? Then we'll go to the castle..." she dismounted and walked over to the door, with Andy right behind her.
"Jon? Who is Jon?" Andy said, hurrying after her. Walking was becoming a tedious thing, his joints were becoming a little stiff. He twirled the fire crystal around his finger, the small amount of warmth it gave out was reassuring.
"He buys ice from me to keep the fish he sells fresh," she said, and knocked on the door. He felt a tiny spark of jealousy somewhere in his gut. Which was totally illogical, since, one; he had Helena. Two, she said friend. Three, now Andy knew where this Jon lived.
"I see, I see... is he taller than me?"
Krista gave him a bemused look, "He's about my height."
"So I'm taller! Cool, cool..."
"Why do you ask?" she smirked, but suddenly someone from the other end of the door knocked back.
"Hello? Is someone out there?" a man's voice called.
"Yeah! It's Krista Bjorgman? Is that you, Jon?"
"Krista! We can't open the door, go over to the window, please."
Andy and Krista exchanged confused looks. Krista called back, "Why can't you open the door?"
Suddenly the door shook, as if someone had thrown all their weight against it. Krista jumped back. "It's stuck!" Jon said, "Look for yourself."
And look they did.
"Whoa," Krista said, placing a hand on the margin, "It's frozen in place!"
Thick ice glued the door shut, making it impossible to open. Andy gave it a weak kick that made his whole leg ache, but still the door did not budge.
They went over to the window, and Krista wiped the fogginess away with her elbow. A guy about their age, with curly black hair and a neatly trimmed beard was peeking at them from the inside.
Andy saw the thick ice on the window too, it wouldn't be opening either.
"Jon!" Krista pressed her face against the glass. "What's going on?"
"Everyone's trapped... we— everyone is trapped in their homes."
"You could break the glass," Krista said.
"Then the cold would sweep in! And, besides, we don't want those things coming in."
"What things?" Andy asked.
Jon's eyes widened, for the first time noticing Andy and—no, not Andy. Someone behind Andy. The Prince turned his head to see what Jon was staring at with such horror— it was at General Winter.
"Those things!" Jon screamed, pressing a finger against the glass and pointing at the little snowman, "The things that froze the doors and windows! Those creepy things that make the annoying noises."
"Did that son of a gun just call me a thing?" The General waved his sword threateningly, decapitating the cosmos flowers on the windowsill. Jon screamed again and fell back.
"Meltlings!" Krista whipped around, her eyes scanning the deserted surroundings, "Oh gods, they made it to the village!"
"We gotta stop them, then!" Andy said, looking around too for any signs of movement.
"No. We have to get you to the castle... to Helena," Krista mounted Suri and held out her hand, "Come on."
Andy crossed his arms stubbornly, "My people are in danger. I have to—"
"You have to not die," Krista said sharply, "Get on the reindeer, Prince."
"Stop being stupid," the General pushed him from behind, and he landed right on Krista's waiting arms. "I'll handle this, again. I'll meet you back at the castle!"
Just as he said that, a Meltling rounded a corner, all lumpy snow and beady little eyes. When it spotted them, it hissed, and fled back into the alley. The familiar screech of the Ice Duchess made Andy shiver from head to toe. She sounded not too far away. Accepting defeat, he climbed back onto Suri's back.
"Alright, you deal with them," Krista said, probably remembering how ridiculously well the General had fought back on the mountain. "But try to stay out of sight. I think you gave Jon a heart attack."
"That Jon is weak and natural selection is coming for him," without another word, the General ran after the Meltling. Not 5 seconds had passed and a little girl's shrill voice screamed, "IT'S ALIVE!"
• • •
"Are you up for another bad ice joke?" Andy murmured, sounding less upbeat than before. The fire crystal's magic was coming to an end, and that was obvious to all but to Andy himself.
"I don't want any more ice puns, I'm good, thanks," Krista said, feeling the Prince lean heavily against her back. Arendelle's castle was almost white with all the snow, Krista could see that as the great structure loomed closer and hung from the roofs, like a beast's fangs.
"Don't give me the cold shoulder," even weak and scratchy, Andy's laugh warmed her heart. But then his laughter changed to a fit of coughing. Krista dug her heels into her reindeer, urging her to go faster. They were so close, she could already see the mighty gates frosted over. Closed, as they always were.
"Prince Anders is back!" one of the guards up on the wall yelled when he spotted them, "Open the gates!"
Suri skid to a stop in front of the tall gates. Krista jumped off and helped Andy down, "I've got you, careful, careful..."
Andy gripped her hand as she helped him down. Just like in Elliott's ice palace, she helped him walk.
"...Are you g—gonna be okay?" he asked, giving her a soft look.
This huge idiot here was freezing to death and he was concerned about her? And she meant idiot in the most affectionate way possible. This boy had a heart of gold, damn the gods...
"Don't worry about me," she told him, just as the rattling of metal and creak of wood indicated that the gates were opening. "I'll go see if I can help the General, or something..."
She almost gasped when she saw the people that rushed to meet them.
Gerda, she almost blurted out as the plump woman approached them. Of course, Krista had only met her snow counterpart, and saying her name would have been really creepy since they hadn't actually met. A man with a huge nose and ginger hair was with her.
"Kai, Gerda!" Andy said, and he was taken from her arms to theirs.
"Andy! You had us worried sick!"" Gerda cried, this Gerda was just like the snow one.
Krista would have smiled had she not felt so heartbroken.
"My lord, you are freezing," Kai said, furrowing his brows at his white hair, "Let's get you inside." He nodded a polite thanks to Krista and the three of them turned around, towards the castle.
"Get him warm and find Princess Hasint— Helena. Princess Helena," Krista didn't even want to pretend that she didn't care to know the Princess' name anymore. All she cared about was Andy being safe.
"We will. Thank you," Gerda said, as they helped Andy walk between them.
Don't look back Andy. Don't. You'll only make it—
The Prince's sorrowful green eyes found hers, and she literally felt something inside her break. He held her gaze until two heavy gates shut right in her face.
Krista stood there, feeling numb, not necessarily from the cold.
Suri grunted confusedly and nudged the closed gates with her antlers. Her big black eyes looked at her, why is Andy going? Where is he going? Why are you not with him?
"Let's go," Krista sighed, she turned around with a stiff nod. She started to march off.
Her reindeer bleated and kicked at the frozen ground, trying to get her attention. Andy's in there!
"Suri, to me!" Krista said with an edge that made the reindeer obey reluctantly.
They walked along the bridge, and snow started to fall.
Why him.
• • •
"I'm going back out to look for Prince Anders!" Helena declared, as she stood up from the soft leather chair she'd been sitting in.
Of course, the last thing she wanted to do was go out into the hellish winter, but did she really have a choice? She was cooped up in a small study with a bunch of dignitaries and worst of all, the Duchess of Sandlane. She'd take her chances with the storm, the woman was driving her mad.
They didn't know their King sat in a dungeon, the only ones were the men that had come with her and she'd paid well for their silence. Dominik and Fritz were in the infirmary, so they couldn't tattletale to the Duchess. Besides, the King would only be there until she figured out a way to get him to stop the winter or a safe way to get rid of him.
"You cannot risk going out there again," the Spanish one said in his thick accent.
Don't tell me what to do! she wanted to scream. But she held her tongue and tried the but—I—must— find—my—true—love face. "I would never forgive myself if anything happened to him—"
"If anything happens to the Prince, you're all Arendelle has left," the Duchess said.
The words pleased her, but they were not true. Unless she married Andy, she had no right to the throne. They'd just find some stupid cousin with a better claim and all her effort would have been for nothing.
But the gods were smiling upon her, it seemed.
The door swung open and two servants came in, carrying a hunched over old man— no, not an old man. Andy.
"Princess Helena?" the handmaid said.
Her Prince's hair was ninety percent white, he wore a peasant's travel gear and had a rock tied around his neck, but otherwise he looked unharmed.
"Andy!" her cry of complete relief was real enough. He's not dead, I still have a chance, he's not dead. She rushed to him, holding him in her arms. He was shivering.
"You're... you're so cold, love," she almost flinched away when his cold fingers touched her cheek.
He clung to her, his green eyes wide and desperate, "Helena, you have to kiss me!"
"W—what?" she was utterly confused, she felt a blush spread across her cheeks.
"Now. We have to kiss." He tried to, but he was too weak to pull himself up to his full height, his freezing nose barely grazed her chin.
"We'll give you two some privacy," the disgusting Spanish man winked and ushered everyone out. The Duchess was fanning her face and looking at Helena like she was some wench. Finally they were alone, the only sound the crackling of the fireplace.
Gently, she guided him to a couch, where he lay down. He placed an arm over his forehead while he breathing heavily. What in the blazes had happened to the prince from a few hours ago? The lively prince that had so boldly said "I'll bring him back." She sat on the edge of the couch and touched his cheek. Even through her gloves, she could feel that he was ice cold.
"What happened?" she murmured, taking his bare hand in her gloved one. It was like holding freezing water, but she did not let go. His hand had a faint blue hue to it.
It took him nearly ten seconds to answer her. And when he did, his voice cracked, "Elliott struck me with his powers."
So he had made it to the ice palace, but he had failed to bring the King back. She almost smiled at how she had succeeded. Not only that but she'd come back without a scratch— save for Fritz and Dominik but who cared about them— and Andy had got some rotten luck.
"You said he'd never hurt you," it almost came out with malice, the urge to rub in the fact that she'd been right was almost too much. But she said nothing.
"I was wrong," Andy pulled his arm away from his forehead and placed it over his heart, clenching his teeth as he shut his eyes. "He froze my heart..."
Helena held her breath, waiting for him to continue. And when he did, his eyes shone with hope.
"Only an act of true love can save me," he said, waiting for her reaction.
At first, she only stared at him. What was she supposed to— oh. OH.
"Helena, you have to kiss me!" were the first words out of his mouth when he'd come in. So that's why he'd acted like a dog in heat.
"A true love's kiss," she said dryly. Andy nodded, smiling at her, oh so trustingly.
She could almost feel the blood rushing in her ears, she was so still. This was beyond fucking terrible. If she kissed him, he'd know she did not love him, because nothing would happen. If she didn't, he'd freeze to death all the same.
Her nails dug into her knees, and the Princess of the Southern Isles racked her brain for a decision.
What would my sisters do?
She leaned forward.
+++a terrible, terrible chapter is coming and i am 0% ready for it omg
++ i changed the cover for this story, all credits to juliajm15 on tumblr and her awesome genderbent frozen drawings!
+ can you smell the end getting closer? i can D: ive never finished a story or a comic or anything in my life, so if i finish this story it'll be a first for me and i couldn't be prouder :))
thanks for reading/reviewing/ all that good stuff!