Anna hummed a cheery tune as she rode across the bridge, matching the tempo of the steady clip-clop of her stallion's hooves against the cobblestone. An armed guard on horseback dragged along a small wagon with what little of Anna's belongings for the trip several paces behind her.
Azure eyes took in the scenery, marvelling at the clear waters shimmered beneath the early morning light. Anna had never been on this side of the castle before. She vaguely recalled running along this particular bridge once as a child; chased by a playmate a few years older. What was her name again? The pretty girl with bright cerulean eyes and hair that shone like pale moonlight? Somehow, she had always associated that girl with winter, like the first sheet of pure white, fluffy snow that floated down from the skies.
Anna squinted in deep concentration, her lips soundlessly mouthing out different syllables as she attempted to prompt herself but to no avail. The lone call of a horn sounded in the distance, momentarily distracting the redhead as she turned to watch one of the warships docking by the harbour.
"Elsa! HAH!" Anna smacked a gloved fist into her palm in triumph, startling her horse and causing him to jerk in alarm. "Whoops. Easy there, boy." She reached forward to pat the stallion affectionately on the neck, soothing him.
"Hmm. Elsa." The redhead pondered, unable to shake the feeling that she had heard it recently. Did her father mention an Elsa Frost yesterday? As in the Grand Marshal Elsa Frost?
Snorting crudely, Anna dismissed the idea, unaware of the bewildered look that her escort sent her way. There was simply no way her childhood playmate could be the current Grand Marshal. She was bound to remember that little nugget of information otherwise.
"No way. Nope. Nada." The princess affirmed aloud, although a small part of her did wonder where her childhood playmate disappeared to. There had been no goodbye. The older blonde was there one day, then gone the next. No matter how fragmented those memories were, she refused to believe that the Elsa who was like an older sister to her was but a figment of her imagination. She was real, that much Anna was certain of.
The guard, who had been following closely behind glanced at the princess with worry, unconsciously dropping back a few more paces. The princess, fidgety only a moment ago, now had her head drooped and shoulders slumped gloomily as they rode along. The mostly silent journey, punctuated by occasional outbursts from the redhead and her sudden shifts in moods only attested to the rumour that the Arendelle princess was indeed an odd child. Thankfully, they were already on the lowered Keep's drawbridge and he would soon be on his way back to the main castle and his boring post, well away from the awkward princess and her antics.
The beige stallion trotted the last few steps and halted in the middle of the empty courtyard. Jolted out of her thoughts, Anna quickly slid out of the saddle as a tall, muscular man with dirty blond locks hastened forwards from the Keep's entrance.
"Your Highness." He greeted with a deep bow, the movement causing his chainmail to clink softly. "The Grand Marshal apologises for being unable to meet you personally and has sent me in her stead to assist you with settling in." He continued, speaking more to his boots than to Anna as he remained bowed in respect.
Anna shifted her weight from side to side, waiting for the soldier to straighten up. Several long awkward seconds passed with the soldier making no move to alter his position causing the redhead to glance around nervously.
"Uh, at ease?" The slight inflection in her tone making the command come off more as a question. Usually, she had no need to interact much with the guards considering the limited staff within the castle. Thankfully, the soldier snapped back into an upright position, his back straightened as he waited for further instructions.
"Erm. There's no need for formality. I do not wish to be treated differently during my stay here." Anna reached out to pat the taller man awkwardly on the shoulder. "I'm Anna." She introduced herself as an afterthought.
"Kristoff Bjorgman at your service, my Lady." Kristoff dropped into another bow, raising his clenched right fist over his chest in salute.
"Guess this is going to take some getting used to." Anna chuckled lightly, turning away from the soldier and making for the Keep's entrance where he had previously emerged. "Come on, Kristoffer. Think it's time for my tour of the place. Maybe you can even take me to meet the Grand Marshal too." Without waiting for her escort, Anna strode purposefully out of the morning sun and into the cool interior of the Keep.
"It's Kristoff!" The blonde grumbled as he hurried after the princess.
xxx
"My Lord, you asked to see me?" Kristoff bowed in greeting, waiting patiently for the Grand Marshal to acknowledge his presence.
As always, Elsa's quarters was unusually chilly even during these short summer nights. The well-organised room, allocated to the Grand Marshal for use as an office was dimly lit by a single oil lamp sitting atop the desk before the opened windows.
Eyes fixated on the unfurled scroll of parchment before her, Elsa grimaced in disdain at the masculine salutation. Even though she had grown accustomed to it ever since her appointment as Grand Marshal, the term still annoyed her, especially when it came from a friend.
"Kristoff." Elsa set the parchment down, leaning back into her chair as she steeped her fingers on her lap. "I trust the Princess is well?"
Kristoff grinned broadly. "All sorted, Mi Lady." He drawled, knowing how much such salutations annoyed the blonde. "I've got her all set up in the room below as instructed. You should go see her soon. She's been asking about you."
Elsa nodded slowly. "I will when I get a moment. I…have been busy." She ended lamely, knowing without doubt that Kristoff would see right through her excuse.
"Yeah. With reading messages that you've probably memorised by now." The blond scoffed. His expression softened when he noticed Elsa spacing out, her eyes taking on that glassy look as she stared at her desk, something that the blonde rarely did. "Els." Kristoff called out softly, concern clearly written on his face.
In all the years that they had spent training together before Elsa rose to a commissioned officer status, Kristoff had only ever seen the blonde looking as vulnerable as she did now once and that had been the very first day Elsa had joined the army.
"Els, what's bothering you?" Kristoff tried again, a little louder this time when the blonde did not respond.
"I – I just…" Elsa began before clamping her mouth shut, lips pursed and eyebrows furrowed. The calm and unperturbed mask was back in place again and Elsa inhaled deeply as she collected her thoughts. "I'm fine. Please see to it that the Princess has everything she needs. I'll leave her in your care." Her words were a clear dismissal and the blonde winced inwardly at the unintended harshness in her tone as Kristoff blinked in surprise.
"As you wish." Kristoff responded stiffly before hastily exiting the room.
As soon as the muscular soldier's long shadow receded, Elsa released a long sigh, mentally berating herself for shutting out yet another person who cared for her. She made a mental note to apologise to the man tomorrow, their years of friendship was worth more than her pride.
xxx
Anna sprawled across the bed in her new room. The mattress was surprisingly comfortable, as were the plump cushions that she had propped beneath her back. The room, although much smaller than her bedroom in the castle was adequately furnished. A cedar desk stood against the opened windows, the wood still damp from the coat of fresh lacquer. A metal trunk sat by the foot of her bed, the lid still propped opened from when she had rummaged through what little of her personal belongings that she had brought along.
The tour of the barracks had been relatively uneventful, thankfully she had Kristoff as her guide and not some stuck up commissioned officer. The blond tended to ramble on and on about the adventures he had up in the mountains with his trusty squire, Sven, making time pass by a little quicker.
Initially, it had been a little odd without an entourage of guards and servants trailing after her whenever she left the safety of the castle. The freedom was liberating but oddly lonely. Anna had never realised just how much she enjoyed having some company, even if her companions were hardly conversationalists.
A soft knock on her door interrupted her thoughts and Anna sat up abruptly waiting expectantly for whoever it was to enter. A long pregnant pause dragged out, with the princess staring intently at the closed, heavy oak door. Why wasn't anyone coming in?
"D'oh!" Anna smacked a hand to her forehead. Of course no one would enter uninvited here. She wasn't in the castle anymore where the only people who would knock on her door were Kai and Gerda.
Scrambling to her feet, she rushed to yank the door open. Hoping whoever it was would still be waiting on the other side. Her eyes landed on Kristoff who had his fist raised, about to knock again.
"Uh, hi!" Anna greeted, a little too enthusiastically, her face falling when she noticed the forlorn expression on the blond's face.
"Hi. Dinner?" The blond asked gruffly, stepping back and gesturing for Anna to follow him.
Anna wordlessly shut the door behind her, striding briskly as she tried to keep up with the clearly sullen man's longer strides. What's with him anyway?
"Hey, you alright?" Anna called out softly as they made their way down the circular stairwell. She may only have known him for less than a day but his current behaviour was markedly different from when he had dropped her off in her room a few hours ago.
The blond seemed to mull over her question, lips pursed into a tight line before he shrugged nonchalantly. "Yeah. It's just El – never mind." He clamped his mouth shut, almost as if he had divulged far too much.
Anna was about to probe Kristoff for more information when the blond spoke again.
"Welcome to your first meal in the communal dining hall." He announced as he paused before a pair of double doors, the cocky grin plastered back on his face again, as if it had never left in the first place.
Slightly puzzled by his sudden change of mood but unwilling to come across as nosy, Anna smiled brightly instead. Kristoff promptly shoved the doors opened and the noise from beyond all but assaulted her ears.
Men in various uniforms sat around on benches flanking three long oak tables, chatting amicably as they helped themselves to the food. Large brass serving bowls and platters occupied the middle of each table; the assortment of food varying from bread loaves, summer fruit, and a rich meat stew that wafted tantalisingly in the air.
Anna's stomach made an embarrassingly loud gurgle, eliciting an amused chortle from Kristoff.
"Come on." He motioned for her to follow him to the mostly empty table in the far corner, gesturing for her to take a seat on one side before moving over to plop down on the bench directly across from her.
Kristoff nicked some crockery from a few seats down, sliding a hardwood carved bowl and a spoon towards an overwhelmed Anna. She surreptitiously glanced around her, lost as to what she should be doing with the crockery cradled in her hands.
Having spent her life being waited on by numerous attentive butlers where she need not serve herself, her first time in a communal setting was interesting to say the least. She watched Kristoff from the corner of her eye, mimicking his actions and ladling a hearty serving of the aromatic stew into her bowl. Fuelled by her gnawing hunger and forgetting her dining etiquette, she grabbed a chunk of bread, dipping it into the steaming broth and taking a huge bite.
Maybe she was famished, but the taste was out of this world. Taking another bite and dripping soup all over the table, it was the mental image of Gerda frowning at her sloppy behaviour that stopped Anna from scarfing down her meal.
What would her parents think if they saw their only daughter behaving in such an uncouth manner?
'They'd probably drag me straight back to the castle for more lessons with the etiquette master.' Anna mused as she wiped a dribble of soup from her chin with the back of her hand.
Seated across from her with a spoonful of stew halfway to his mouth, Kristoff snorted loudly as Anna chewed noisily.
"What?" She asked, speaking through a mouthful of bread.
"You sure you are the princess?" Kristoff quirked an eyebrow at the redhead sceptically.
"Well, I got to blend in. Besides, why'd anyone want to eat delicately and chew like they have a secret? D'you know how frustrating it is to have to nibble on your food when you are so hungry you could eat an entire cow?" Anna waved her spoon wildly, sending droplets of stew flying around.
"I got to say, you're blending in just fine then." Kristoff grinned in amusement.
"Ooh, what're we blending in to?" A chirpy voice interrupted, the bench creaking as a dark haired boy plopped down on next to Anna. "Oh, hello! I'm Olaf!"
The pale skinned boy stuck out his hand in greeting, beaming widely as he grasped Anna's forearm and shook it enthusiastically. The light blue tunic clung onto his scrawny frame, his black hair in a messy mop flopping over his dark eyes. He was young, barely into puberty yet his crooked nose suggested he had been in as many fights as some of the veterans that Anna had seen around the barracks.
"Hello Olaf. I'm Anna." The redhead tried not to grimace as her arm was shook vigorously, silently letting out a breath of relief when the boy released her.
"We never get any girls here." Olaf mused aloud before grasping the princess's shoulders and pulling her into a hug. "Please don't leave us." He begged earnestly.
"Whoa whoa whoa. Back up, kiddo." Kristoff reached across the table, grasping Olaf by the back of his tunic and tugging him away from the astonished redhead.
"Sorry. He really likes hugs. I blame Elsa for spoiling him." Kristoff set the squirming boy down, patting him on the shoulder and urging him to stay put.
"Elsa?" Anna echoed. "As in the Grand Marshal?" She queried, surprised at how the blond addressed his superior so casually.
"Elsa gives the best hugs!" Olaf quipped, crossing his arms over his chest and staring at the ceiling dreamily.
Anna glanced between the two males, confusion etched on her face. Was it natural for the men to speak of their superior with such familiarity? Don't armies in general have a chain of command that demands utmost respect and adherence to?
"Olaf's squire to the Grand Marshal." Kristoff explained, completely misunderstanding Anna's confusion and assuming she was wondering about the relationship between the dark haired boy and the grand marshal.
Anna nodded as if the explanation made perfect sense, hiding her bewilderment behind an understanding smile. Like it's perfectly normal for soldiers to be on such overtly friendly terms with their commanding officer.
"Are these the same men the Kingdom is relying on for its protection? Does Father know his army is essentially a group of men with really gentle hearts?"
As if affirming her suspicions, Olaf scooted down the bench, bumping lightly into a giant of a man that hunkered over the table, all the while squealing "Marshmallow!".
"How in the name of Freya did we even conquer any land when we have soldiers named 'Marshmallow'?!"
Author's Note:
Medieval settings are so foreign to me…
This wasn't meant to be a standalone chapter initially. It didn't quite fit into the first chapter and seemed out of place in the next (Yep, chapter 3 is done! I prefer to stay one chapter ahead just in case I need to fix any discrepancies).
Thank you to the amazing people who left a review and those who followed this story. My inbox nearly exploded from all the notifications! =,)
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