Chapter Three: The Letter
Time flew by. Days turned to weeks, which turned into months, which turned into years. Soon, Crown Princess Elsa of Arendelle was celebrating her eleventh birthday.
It was a joyous occasion. The king and queen threw a party to celebrate, and Elsa was able to meet and play with a few of the nobles' children. She and Anna didn't get to spend time with people of their age much. It was the price of being princesses who were castleschooled.
Elsa received countless gifts from the people of Arendelle. However, the people didn't know what she looked like, since princesses and princes of Arendella weren't normally introduced to the public until they turned eighteen for privacy and safety issues. If photos of any royal children were leaked, the crime would be equal to treason. The guilty parties would be thrown into the dungeon for life. However, that didn't stop the kingdom's subjects from gifting Elsa all sorts of presents. The king and queen of Arendelle were known for being benevolent, kind and wise rulers, so the people loved them, and to an extent, their daughters.
Elsa and Anna played with the other children the whole day. They built snowmen, danced, and of course, ate lots and lots of chocolate. When the party came to an end, and the nobles and their children had to go, Elsa and Anna waved goodbye to them sadly. Chances to interact with other children were rare.
Their bad mood didn't last long, however. There was still chocolate cake left over from the party, and the royal sisters happily ate it all. Anna licked the chocolate frosting off her fingers, her face covered with cake crumbs. Elsa meanwhile, ate her food daintily with a fork.
She had started her queen training two years ago when her parents had decided that it was time for her to get a taste of what it was going to be like running a kingdom. That included learning manners and etiquette, dancing and music, as well as taking subjects such as history, diplomacy and geography. One cannot expect a future queen to be clueless about the world after all. Anna would be starting her princess lessons soon as well.
Elsa's powers had also gotten stronger. Sometimes when she was alone, Elsa liked to create models of castles and other architecture, as well as little sculptures out of her magic. She also learned how to make her ice and snow disappear to prevent anyone from finding out about her gift. Grand Pabbie had told her that love thaws after Elsa inquired about it. It took her a while to figure out the answer, but she soon discovered that as long as she concentrated on her love for her parents and Anna, she could make the ice and snow disappear.
Poking her last piece of cake with a fork, a thought couldn't help but enter Elsa's mind. Grand Pabbie said that my letter would come around my eleventh birthday, she said. I wonder…
Her train of thought was interrupted when Anna gasped loudly. Elsa turned her head and followed her sister's gaze, her mouth almost falling to the floor when she finally caught sight of what shocked her sister so much. At the doorway of the dining hall was a man in a silver and blue robe. He appeared to be in his seventies, and his long silvery hair matched his silver beard. In his hand was a long stick with an intricate handle. Elsa immediately realised who, or rather what this man was. He was a wizard.
"Gerda," Elsa said, gesturing to one of the maids who was cleaning the table. Though she had stopped her cleaning and was currently staring at the man in shock. Gerda was one of the few castle staff who knew about Elsa's ice magic, having been taking care of the crown princess since Elsa was a baby. She was just like a family to Elsa and Anna. "Can you please get Mama and Papa?"
Gerda recovered from her surprise and gave a small curtsy. "Certainly princess," she said, before hurrying out of the room.
Elsa focused her attention on the wizard. "Please, have a seat," she said as calmly as she could, gesturing to one of the many empty seats at the dining table. "We can wait for my parents."
The man nodded and made her way towards the seat. Elsa glanced at Anna, and she could tell from her sister's face that she was almost going to burst with questions. Something that the man seemed to notice as well.
"All your questions will be answered in due time, young princess," the man said. However, Anna couldn't control herself anymore, and a barrage of questions erupted from her mouth.
"How did you get here? Who are you? What are you? Do you know my sister? Do–" Elsa put her hand over her sister's mouth, effectively shushing her.
"I'm sorry," Elsa apologized to the wizard. "Please excuse her. Anna's just curious." The man gave a good-natured chuckle. "No worries Princess Elsa," the man said. "But as I said, Princess Anna, all your questions will be answered in due time."
Elsa was startled. How did this man know her name?
Just then, the king and queen walked into the dining room. Upon seeing the man sitting contently at the dining table, the parents walked a bit quicker. Behind them, Gerda followed, holding a tray with teacups filled with tea balanced on it.
Agnarr and Iduna sat down opposite the man, and Gerda put the tea down. "Your majesties," he greeted, standing up. "I'm Professor Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts."
"Please, sit down," Agnarr said. The king eyed the unexpected guest up and down, studying his appearance. "Forgive me for asking, but are you a wizard?" Anna's eyes went as wide as saucers. Professor Dumbledore sat back down, taking a sip of his tea.
"I am," he said. "I came to personally deliver Princess Elsa's letter of acceptance, as well as explain her magical abilities to you. But I can tell that the explaining part might not be necessary."
Elsa blushed. Over the years, the rock trolls had taught her and her parents a great deal about magic. Professor Dumbledore handed an envelope with a purple wax seal to Elsa, who took it with trembling hands.
This was it. The moment she's been waiting for. Opening the letter, Elsa quickly read it.
HOGWARTS SCHOOL of WITCHCRAFT and WIZARDRY
Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)
Dear Princess Elsa of Arendelle,
We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.
Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.
Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
The second page of the letter included a list of supplies Elsa would need for the following school year.
Anna ran over to her sister's seat and peered over her shoulder. "Dragon hide gloves?" she frowned. "Where will Elsa get these things?"
"At Diagon Alley," Professor Dumbledore answered. "Someone will be bringing her to shops to shop for necessary school supplies next summer before school if Princess Elsa is to accept the offer."
"So Elsa is a wizard like you?" Anna asked, jumping excitedly. "Can you do magic? Can Elsa do magic? Will I see her again if she goes off to school?"
Dumbledore couldn't help but smile at the young girl's enthusiasm. It was contagious. "Accio chocolate," he said, flicking his wand. In a flash, chocolate appeared in front of Anna, who grabbed it eagerly.
"Wow!" she explained. "You are a wizard! Can Elsa do the same things as you?" "She will in time," Professor Dumbledore answered. "She'll have to learn and practice a lot. Which is why I'm here to urge her to become a student at Hogwarts, a school where she'll be able to learn how to control and master the magic she possesses."
Anna gave the professor a toothy grin. "Elsa will be able to do it," she proclaimed. "She can do anything!"
"Anna, can you head to your bedroom? Your father and I have something important to discuss with Professor Dumbledore," Iduna said. "You'll let Elsa learn magic right?" Anna asked. Iduna smiled and nodded her head, ushering the young princess away.
Once Anna was out of earshot, Elsa turned back to Dumbledore.
"I assume you wanted to ask me about your powers, princess?" the professor said before Elsa could open her mouth.
"How did you know?" Elsa wondered out loud. From her parents' faces, they shared her question.
"You my dear, are an elemental witch," he said. Elsa raised an eyebrow, confused. "It means that you can control elements of nature, or more specifically in your case, ice and snow," Dumbledore explained patiently. "These witches are rare, you see. We haven't taught an elemental witch at Hogwarts for decades."
"I can tell you have great control over your powers Princess Elsa," Dumbledore continued. "But that's not the only type of magic you possess. I know you are aware of the other types of magic you can do. The more common type. You can cast spells with a wand and do other things that other witches and wizards can do."
"Now to answer your question, I know because when you first exhibited signs of being an elemental witch, a special pen at Hogwarts marked your name down, as well as your abilities. I've been preparing for your arrival for quite a while."
"Really?" Elsa said. Dumbledore gave her a kind smile. "Really," he said. "But don't worry. Only me and three other teachers will know of your special abilities. I know you've been wanting to keep them a secret for the time being." Elsa nodded, thankful that the professor was understanding.
"Professor Dumbledore," the king said. "I don't know if you know, but we do not like exposing our children's identity so early on in their life. The rest of the world does not know of them as princesses."
Dumbledore nodded. "Your concerns have already been taken into account, Your Majesty. Princess Elsa's true identity will only be known by me and the three teachers who will know of your daughter's powers. She can attend Hogwarts under an alias."
Elsa's parents thought for a moment. "She can attend under the last name Lovelace. It was my mother's maiden name," Iduna said. Lovelace, Elsa thought. That's a lovely last name.
"Very well. Then it's settled," Dumbledore said. "I look forward to seeing Miss Elsa Lovelace next school year."
He waved his wand again, and disappeared, leaving Elsa to wonder about her future school year.
I apologize in advance if any of the Harry Potter stuff is incorrect. It's been a while since I read the books, so my Harry Potter knowledge is a bit rusty. I'm basing all my facts on information I can find on the Harry Potter Wiki. I might read the book while writing this in the future, but right now, that seems unlikely.
Also, English is not my native language, so there might be grammatical mistakes in the story. Actually, who am I kidding? There are grammatical mistakes in the story. Not to mention spelling mistakes. I already proofread my work once, but I know for a fact that I missed a lot of stuff.