Chapter Six

There was a steady knocking at the Royal Bedchamber door.

"Princess Anna?" The voice was muffled, male, and a little hesitant.

"Mmmm." Bedcovers twitched as they were pulled higher.

More knocking. "Princess Anna, are you awake?" The voice was a little less hesitant now.

"Mmmyes. Noooo. N'more pastries…." This time the covered heaved as a body rolled under them.

There was a pause before the voice continued, "The Cook wasn't planning on making pastries today, Your Highness."

"Goo. G'night."

"Princess Anna?"

"Yaahm…?"

"Princess Anna, you have a very full schedule today. Please do get up." The voice was beginning to sound like knocking with one's head was a perfectly viable option.

"Nooohmmm..."

There was a very long pause in which Princess Anna began to snore softly. More knocking made her snort and blink. Before she could drift off again, the voice pleaded, "Please don't make me get the snowman."

Anna's eyes popped open and she abruptly sat up. "Olaf?! Is he here?"

"It… he…," the voice corrected itself, "is, ah, outside. Terrori-ah, entertaining some of the delegation staff members." A little more quietly, the voice muttered, "I'm surprised you didn't hear the screaming."

Knuckling sleep from her eyes, Anna called through the door, "He's okay, isn't he?"

"Oh, he is fine." Again, the voice added a mutter that barely came through the door, "Some of our guests may never be the same."

It was Anna's turn to mutter. "They could probably use the change!"

"What was that, Your Highness?"

"Nothing!"

"Princess Anna, do you require assistance in getting ready? I can fetch a housemaid for you."

"No, no I'm fine," she called aloud to the servant, then added to herself, "I think I'm beyond all assistance."

"What was that, Your Highness?"

"Nothing!" She pressed her palms to her eyes and groaned. As quietly as she could, she mumbled, "Not another day. So not ready. Not without Elsa." Was it really only day since Elsa left? Remembering her sister's confidence in her only made Anna's shoulders hunch.

"Princess Anna?" the voice intruded on her ruminations.

"I'm up! I'm up already!" she barked out, then pressed the heel of her hand to her forehead. Snapping at the castle staff certainly wouldn't help matters any. In a more relaxed tone she called, "I'll be out in a bit!"

"Very well. The Royal Treasurer wished to speak with you before breakfast, Your Highness."

Anna groaned. "Make it during breakfast, will ya?"

"Certainly, Your Highness. Will there be anything else?"

"Not right now, thank you!" Calm. She needed to be calm. Cool as ice, cool as Elsa. She waited until she could retreating footsteps before emerging from her bed. Rubbing her face vigorously, then running hands over her tangled mane of red hair, she proceeded to give herself a pep talk.

"Okay, Anna, we can do this. Yesterday… yesterday was awful. But today… today will be better! Might be better. Has to be better. It will be better! Elsa's counting on us! ...you! I mean me!" She pumped her fists in the air, then scrubbed hands through her hair again. Fingers snagged in vicious tangles. With a sigh she stretched out the snarled red strands to stare at them. "But first thing's first," she grumbled.

Freshly groomed and in the intimidatingly quiet dining hall, Anna learned her first regret of the day was agreeing to conduct financial discussions over breakfast. The Royal Treasurer certainly wasn't the problem. He was a modestly dressed man, wearing only trousers, tunic, and vest. He had small glasses that he kept in a pocket of his vest. When he noted Anna staring at him, he smiled gently at her confusion.

"I only wear the finery during more official visits," he explained. "More intimidating that way, I suppose. I just know my joy, first and foremost, is for the numbers, not for the glitter." He paused to study Princess Anna before continuing, "I thought you might want to go over our country's system of trade tariffs as well as our own at least one more time before the rest of the delegations arrive."

Suddenly Anna's simple breakfast of bread, cheese, and fruit looked far less appetizing. She took a deep breath to sigh, but nearly choked on the inhalation. Her breakfast took on the smell of a meat pastry. She did her best not to gag.

The Royal Treasurer peered at her over his small glasses. His voice was surprisingly warm and gentle when he spoke, "I… heard about yesterday. Pretty nasty business, that." He fidgeted with his plate a few times before continuing, "Kai was the one that recommended I speak with you."

"Oh," Anna uttered. The sudden complete lack of appetite was something of a relief as it took away impending nausea, but it left a very hollow feeling inside.

He tapped his plate with his knife. As soon as Anna looked up at him, he twisted his lips into an odd lopsided smile. "I recall the first time I met with the King and Queen… your father and mother… upon my appointment to Royal Treasurer." Looking down at his own food, he grimaced. "Well, let's just say I didn't quite make it to the lavatory. To be honest, I didn't even make it out of the throne room." He looked up and saw Anna's awed expression. Chuckling self-consciously, he continued, "I thought that would be the end of it. But your parents were gracious people. They said it was my, ah, nervousness that convinced them I would be the man for the job."

Anna blinked several times. "Really?"

The Royal Treasurer nodded gravely. "Yes, really. Said it proved to them that I cared far more about the job itself, rather than any glory attached to it. I still can't say I agree with their reasoning… but it has been an honor and a glorious challenge managing the monies of a kingdom." His thin chest puffed unconsciously as he spoke.

The Princess softly chuckled. She felt her shoulders relax a little.

He nodded, then cleared his throat. "Now, the Royal Tutor did advise me you had basic schooling in our kingdom's economics, but not as thorough as…," he paused, uncomfortable.

Her shoulders went from relaxed to slightly wilted. "As Elsa's, you mean? I know, I know. She was heir-apparent, after all."

"Well, that and her, ah, er, uh… abilities… demanded a great deal of attention. I fear that left you a bit slighted. No offense to the Royal Family meant, of course, Your Highness!"

"None taken," she assured, the wince of her back belying her forgiving smile. Realizing that, she said in a more sincere tone, "No, really, it's okay. It's… it's true, after all."

"Yes, but truth, like numbers, isn't always forgiving," the man said, rubbing his nose with one thin finger. "In this case, truth does not make 'okay'," he sighed, "as it's left you ill-prepared for this. The Queen… your sister, I mean… was planning to instruct you herself during negotiations this year, I believe."

"Really?" Anna perked up, hearing that.

"Mm-hmm. Against our advice. We wanted to start sooner… but… I think she, the Queen, was looking forward to instructing you herself. Now, with the villages… well, now the task falls to me. If you're amenable, Your Highness, I'd recommend we meet before breakfast every day, at least until negotiations are concluded."

Princess Anna sighed again and poked at her food. This morning was already proving to be whirling ride of emotions. "And here I thought I was done with schooling," she tried to joke.

The Royal Treasurer gazed at her sympathetically. "I fear when one is running, or helping to run, a kingdom, the 'schooling' never ends."

"Grrreat…."

"Now, the first thing I thought we would look at would be tariffs. I know the Queen had discussed lifting some aspects of the trade embargoes, but I'm not sure how much detail she had gotten into…."

The lesson lasted almost as long as her breakfast did, since her appetite never quite returned. Elsa had tried to go over tariffs with her, but she was always so solemn about it. Anna couldn't help but try and cheer her sister up, which would often lead to merry distractions until the next bit of castle business pulled her sister away. The Royal Treasure was a quietly determined man, however, and guided the Princess's flighty attention span with the same skill a knight guarded his skittish war horse. By the time he was done with her, Anna felt mentally exhausted and yet capable of reciting certain aspects of tariffs in her sleep.

No sooner had the thin man left the table than Kai appeared. "Pardon me, Your Highness," he said in his deep, soothing tone, "I know normally you and your sister use this time to wander the gardens, but there was so little accomplished yesterday…."

"I dunno, I think I managed to accomplish quite a bit," Princess Anna chirped, then in a grumbled aside added, "if we're counting disasters."

The castle steward grimaced. "Yesterday was… challenging, I will admit; however, I do not think it was quite the disaster you imagine."

She eyed him dubiously. "I find that hard to believe!"

The grimace turned into a wry smile. "Believe it, Your Highness. We all err, we all learn. Perhaps when the Queen returns, you may ask her about her first diplomatic meeting." That wry smile become decidedly sly.

"Elsa made mistakes?" Anna asked, then shook her head. "I mean, of course she made mistakes, she's human, but… she made mistakes?"

"Oh yes, Your Highness. So did your parents, truth be known. Experience matters, after all."

"Yeh, and I have none," she sighed.

"So did they, at one point. So do we all. We all start with no experience, Your Highness, and earn all that we gain."

Princess Anna tilted her head, then grinned a little. "So basically what you're saying is, live and learn, right?"

"Very much so, Your Highness," Kai said with a small, respectful bow. "Now, if you would, about today's concerns…?"

"Oh! Oh, yes, let's get to it!"

While the day wasn't the disaster yesterday had been, it still was of a questionable quality. She spent the morning guided by Kai, addressing various castle staff concerns. This included questions about how she wanted particular matters handled, as well as requests to resolve situations in which staff members disagreed. In both cases, she was confident Kai had the solutions, but he stood quietly by.

Finally she turned to him and demanded, "Is this the goats all over again?"

Kai blinked at her. "The goats, Your Highness?"

"I know you've taken care of stuff like this. Are they just going over your head? Or… are you just having me do it so I know what it's like?"

"I am sure I do not know what you're referring to," the castle steward sniffed. As he turned away, however, Anna glimpsed that same sly smile.

Once Kai's list of concerns were addressed, he then turned Anna over to Gerda. It was much the same as when Kai had her, but this time they were speaking with the female staff of the castle. From concerns about kitchen wares to linen supplies, Anna learned more than she thought possible about maintaining a castle. Between Kai and Gerda, she was learning more in a single morning about the staff that kept things running smoothly than she had learned in her lifetime previous to today.

On a whim she turned to Gerda and asked, "Does Elsa know all about this, too? About all the staff does, I mean?"

The Royal Housekeeper hesitated, absently fussing over a shelf of linens one of the housemaids had just finished filling. Glancing at Princess Anna, she sighed, "In a way, Your Highness. As facts and figures, but not so much as… well, as…."

Anna blinked a few times, then guessed, "As people?"

Gerda winced. "I don't mean to sound ill of the Queen, truly I don't!" she hurriedly assured Anna. "She's very gracious, as are you! It's just, well, really, neither of you were raised to… well, to see people. We on the staff understood why, of course, but..." She began tugging at one of the sheets.

Seeing the normally composed woman fidget made Anna uneasy. "Gerda… you and Kai have been this castle's saving graces. Mine and Elsa's too. If you're worried about offending me… don't!"

With a grateful smile Gerda relaxed her tall, thin frame. "You children… well, not children anymore, certainly! But you were both raised in such isolation..."

Anna tilted her head, confused. "But Elsa was the one that was locked in room, and hardly saw anyone. I had free range of the castle…," she broke off, remembering the loneliness that had driven her straight to Hans. Could a year and a half really do that much to erasing the memory of that feeling?

Gerda's smile was both sad and knowing. "Free range of a locked castle, and with minimal staff pushed to its limit taking care of that castle." She pulled out the sheet and proceeded to refold it. "Whether one room or many, you children were alone. Even more so after your parents…," she paused, glancing to Anna with tears in her eyes. "We loved them so, your parents, and it hit us hard. We just didn't know what to do, especially about the two of you. We weren't your parents, and you were just old enough to possibly resent any changes. Or fear them."

A heavy sigh lifted Gerda's thin shoulders. "And in poor Elsa's case, we were afraid. Not of her of course! You were both such sweet, caring children… mischievous scamps, to be sure, but always kind of heart. And still are," she added. Her smile was short-lived, however, as she continued, "But Elsa… we had no idea how to help her control her powers. We knew the King and Queen were working with her on it, but it was always done privately to minimize danger. After… well, we just really didn't know what to do." The Royal Housekeeper shook her head. "To think… the key was in just letting you children be children… be normal sisters to each other..." She let go of the sheet with one hand so she could rub tears from her eyes. "If we had only realized… sooner..."

Princess Anna rested a hand on one of the Royal Housekeeper's slender, strong shoulders. "Gerda…," she said helplessly.

"Ah! Listen to me carry on so! Well," Gerda sniffed, "to bring a quick end to a long story… When we saw how good you two are for each other, we thought perhaps to pick up your teaching where your parents… had to… well, where things left off. We had thought to wait 'til this spring, you know, to give you two a chance to, well, to be sisters again. But then those countries demanded those trade renegotiations, and then whatever that trouble is in the mountains.. Well, suddenly it seemed wise to… to..."

"To step it up a bit?" grinned Anna, although her own eyes were tearing up a bit.

"Well, yes, Your Highness." Gathering herself, Gerda finished refolding the sheet and placed it back on the shelf. Patting it, she said, "I suppose we'll need to do the same for the Queen when she returns… if she's willing, of course."

"I'll make sure she is," barked Princess Anna.

The tears were threatening to stage a comeback in Gerda's eyes. "We should have done this much sooner… so much sooner..."

It was Anna's turn to poke at the folded sheet. She refrained from pulling it out, however, since she was fairly certain her folding skills would not compare. "I dunno, Gerda. I mean, I guess I don't think too much about 'should have'. We make mistakes, we learn, we move on. And sometimes, I'm realizing, we just don't know enough to know better."

Gerda's smile warmed. "You are becoming a very fine lady indeed, Your Highness."

"Thanks again to you and Kai," Anna declared. Suddenly her stomach growled loudly enough to turn a housemaid's head some feet away. With an embarrassed laugh, Anna asked, "Is there more I need to learn? I mean, right now? Can the rest wait 'til after lunch? It is near lunchtime, right?"

"Kai informed me you'll be meeting with court officials after lunch…?"

"Ah. Yeh, I tried to forget that. Maybe I'm not so hungry after all." A second loud growl from her stomach disproved that statement.

Gerda chuckled. "I think it's safe to say we're done for today. More on later days, since we're trying to catch up on a few years' worth of learning and experience. But for now? One can't rule on an empty stomach!"

"Hah, now that's one lesson I can definitely agree with!" chirped Anna. Impulsively she hugged the taller woman. "Thank you, Gerda… and I'm going to thank Kai too! For all that you do. Seriously. I don't know where Elsa and I would be without you!"

Startled by the breach of hierarchy, it took a moment for the Royal Housekeeper to respond. She did so by hugging Anna with the same gentle warmth she managed the castle staff with and said, "You may not be our children, but we've loved you and Elsa just the same."

The two woman stood like that for several moments, eyes leaking warm tears, before the Royal Housekeeper broke the embrace. She pushed the Princess away, though her hands still rested lightly on Anna's arms. Still smiling, she said, "Now, I believe you mentioned lunch…?"

A third growl answered before the Princess could. Laughing, Anna said, "As long as it's not a meat pastry!"

Lunch was quiet and uneventful, something Anna was extremely grateful for as the rest of the day wore on. The court advisers had long been used to tending to their own affairs with little or no interference. They had to report their business to Kai, of course, but the castle steward's attention had been strained by the unusually broad scope of his duties at the time. The court advisers' deference to Queen Elsa was mainly due to residual fear of her powers and grudging respect for the crown she bore.

Princess Anna had neither powers nor rank with which to intimidate them. That become painfully apparent within the first fifteen minutes of the meeting. The court advisers began telling her what would be done in regards to everything from trade to minor castle affairs. Fresh from her castle staff lessons with Kai and Gerda, Princess Anna was aware of just how improbable some of their ideas would be. At least one of the ideas regarding tariffs on trade seemed outright disastrous in light of the Royal Treasurer's lesson as well.

Every time Princess Anna attempted to take control of the discussions, however, they overrode her by their sheer persistence. In the meetings with the dignitaries, she had been able to gain control in part because they were actively seeking her attention. With the court advisers, their attention was on their businesses. To them, she was little more than a royal stamp of approval rather than a ruling person. The one time she raised her voice, the looks they gave her were not of shocked respect but rather irritated disapproval. Embarrassed, she subsided.

By the time the meeting ended, they were congratulating her on her wisdom as though she had agreed to all their points. She was bitterly congratulating herself on her utter lack of ruling skills.

After the last of the court advisers left, she allowed herself to drop to a slouch in her chair. Kai appeared at her side, a green-cloaked shadow of deferential politeness. She made herself look at him, but saw only sympathy on his face. "That… that was a disaster, wasn't it?" she groaned.

"It… could have gone better, Your Highness," the Royal Steward allowed.

Anna moaned and slipped lower in her chair. "You dealt with them for years, right?" she asked from her position almost below the table.

"Yes, Your Highness. Not as well as the King and Queen, of course, but I did my best."

Rubbing her eyes, Anna forced herself to sit upright again. Running her hands higher, her fingers encountered the small crown perched among tight braids. She kept forgetting it was even there. With a sigh she pulled it from her hair and stared at it. It was a smaller affair than her sister's crown, barely even a tiara.

Yet…

Yet it was still a crown.

"Kai?"

"Yes, Your Highness?"

"Will.. will you have supper with me? Maybe… help me figure out what I did wrong? Or what I could've done better?"

Kai relaxed visibly. "It would be my honor, Your Highness."

It wasn't an easy dinner. Kai was as patient and thorough as the Royal Treasurer, but he was also very stern. Anna began to appreciate how this man was able to hold together a castle and a kingdom after the death of both King and Queen and while waiting for the eldest daughter to reach an age to assume the crown. He had her describe the entire meeting to him, then pointed out things that were said or done she had overlooked or forgotten. With a calm mercilessness, he walked her through each time she attempted to gain control of the meeting and failed. Even when he pointed out that he was able to observe more than she due to his unobtrusive presence as servant, Anna was still feeling fairly inadequate by the time dinner was done.

She trailed her fingers over her sister's door but didn't pause on her way to her own room. Climbing into bed and pulling the covers over her head, she tried to not think of the day. Elsa had faith in her, and she wanted her sister to be proud of her. She could do this. Would do this.

Would at least try to do this.

Hopefully without setting fire to the kingdom in the process.

Anna stared at the dark held in by her bed covers. She wondered how Elsa was doing. If she recalled the travel plans correctly, they would be on their way to the second village by now. At least Kristoff and Sven were with her. Just the thought of all her loved ones soothed her troubled nerves. Sleep came slowly, but when it came it enveloped her gently.

Her last thought before she drifted into dreamlessness was, "Well, at least I haven't burned the kingdom down, so they all have a home to come home to."