Anna lingered on what Hans had told her the other day, she brought all of her knowledge together to try to make sense of the situation.

Nobody had really wanted to invade Arendelle before, they were a peaceful little kingdom with a modest trade in ice and fish, they had a small military and did not usually participate in any major conflicts preferring to stay neutral.

On the other hand, the Southern Isles had a much larger military and even a secretive division called the 'brotherhood of the isles', which no one really knew much about. They had a larger control of the waters between the two kingdoms (partially due to their more advanced Navy) and their trade in a precious black rock made them much wealthier. If the king did decide to make his move the only way forward was to seek outside help, there was no question of that.

Their relationship with the Northuldrans had healed, partially, and she wondered whether involving them would be too big of a request after their complicated history. The spirits would certainly be a force to be reckoned with, but she doubted whether they'd agree to get involved in human conflict such as this unless it affected their forest. Besides, there would still be a lot of death and destruction if it became a full blown battle. And the expenses; it was nearly winter did they need that financial burden?

"Your majesty- would it perhaps be wise to call off the wedding… for now," suggested Aagot. She had informed them of what had taken place in the throne room the next morning and they had all started asking questions that panicked her even more, though she knew it was only for the best.

Anna tried to hide the sadness from her face, damn Prince Hans and damn the Southern Isles, if this turned out to be some sort of cruel prank she was going to be furious with him. She really did not want to say yes, but she knew it was sensible. She nodded sadly. "The guests need to know in advance, it'll save them the journey."

There were people coming from other kingdoms oceans away so it was the least Anna could do in as to not inconvenience anyone.

"How will we explain it to everyone?" asked Hege. Anna hadn't really thought about that, abruptly cancelling a wedding would generate some talk.

What could she say? 'This other kingdom might come over to take control of our kingdom', they had even invited a dignitary from the Southern Isles!

"I don't think it would be wise to mention the invasion," said Janne, echoing her thoughts. "Though of course you know best, your majesty." Anna couldn't tell if she was being sarcastic or not at the last statement. But anyway, she was right, it was an advantage in itself that if the Southern Isles was plotting to invade them they didn't know Arendelle already had some prior warning.

Her advisors had to be informed, of course, and she had to ask Hans on more details of his departure. Supposedly, the king didn't know Hans knew of his plans to invade Arendelle either and he also didn't where his son had escaped to, but only time will tell.

"Aagot, I want a meeting with all my advisors and ask that they bring the prince up from the dungeons too. It'll be in the strategy room." Anna remembered Kai mentioning it once, how it was a shame the room, along with a few others were neglected, she supposed it was about time it was reopened.

Aagot curtsied. "Promptly, your majesty." She hurried away while Janne and Hege stood there awkwardly, watching. She waved them in her direction and they quickly curtsied and followed after her clumsily.

"Yes your majesty!"

"Yes your majesty!" they lifted their skirts and ran in their friend's direction. She watched then hurry away, grieving over the delay of her special day.

Then, she felt something tugging on her dress and she looked down. "You ok Anna?" asked a voice way below. She turned around and kneeled down to the snowman's level.

"Everything is fine," she answered, tilting up his chin to look into his eyes, she wasn't being quite truthful. "Now don't you worry and go do something fun." She felt bad for Olaf, he must miss Elsa too come to think of it and he must be so confused with all this mess going on around him.

"Is it alright if I go visit Sven and Kristoff?" Anna felt a twinge of sadness at the reminder. Last night they'd sent Hans to the dungeons and called it a day, Kristoff had volunteered to stay in the castle, but Anna knew she wasn't going to have a good evening so she'd insisted he go back to his own home.

She was going to have a hard time breaking the news to him about calling it off, she'd been so full of righteous anger yesterday she promised him there would be no delay in the wedding, that she just wasn't giving Hans that satisfaction, but in the morning when she'd calmed down she realised she couldn't keep that promise. It wouldn't be fair anyway, they wouldn't have a peaceful honeymoon if this wasn't out of the way.

Alone in her chamber that night Anna had a nightmare. It featured Hans' famous words, the ones he'd said right after she lay there waiting for him to save her. Oh Anna, if only there was somebody out there who loved you. Except it wasn't him saying it, it was all the people she loved: her mother and father, her sister, the townspeople, the people of Northuldra, all of them repeating that same damn line…

"Anna?" her thoughts were interrupted, and she was now faced with the pointy orange nose of her (technical) nephew.

"O-of course, of course you can visit them," she answered, patting him on the back. Now, it was time to get and then go see how her ladies in waiting had organised the meeting.

"Aagot didn't even know there was a strategy room if she was to be honest, if there was she'd never seen it before that's for sure. The keeper of the castle knew though, Gerda helped the girls find the place, it had a key too. They unlocked it and had a look around while a flurry of messengers were sent to bring the relevant advisors up.

It was a very dusty, old room, out of fashion décor too, too many oranges, reds and golds in the furniture to have been updated anywhere in the last decade. There was a table in the middle with a slightly outdated map of the world and surrounding it were a few rusty pins and empty bottles of drink. Of course, the bottles were the first things to go, they wiped the table and checked there were enough seats for everyone, bringing in some from the other rooms to compensate.

Soon the advisors began to arrive.

"Wheat biscuits?" offered around Hege, to every person who entered. Aagot snatched them off her in irritation, she was such a farm girl, who knows why she of all people was appointed a lady in waiting?

"I'll have one," smiled Mattias kindly, causing Aagot to surrender the box and Hege gave her friend a smug look. See? the general thought it was a good idea.

Janne in the meanwhile was preoccupied, she hated how dusty the room was and had to send for some maids to come and dust it, it probably hasn't been used properly since the time of the queen's grandfather: King Runeard. "The queen will be over in a moment," informed Aagot, smiling anxiously towards the military people. Her father had arrived, and she was very eager to show him she was doing a good job here though he was currently acting like he didn't know who she was.

The group, mainly consisting of older men nodded in acknowledgement towards them, all taking their seats, they were whispering amongst themselves for a bit as they awaited her majesty's arrival. The three young women didn't know if they were allowed to that really, but its not like they could argue with them now in the absence of the queen. Besides, what would they do? Conspire against her? Never. Mattias especially, he adored Queen Anna.

Hege and Aagot stood smiling near the door, as still as statues but Janne, to Aagot's irritation hovered around determined to see this place spotless. However discretely she was doing it, it really wasn't the time (in Aagot's opinion).

One man, one of the younger individuals in the group looked up to her and then got up and approached Janne, he might have been an officer or something, Janne didn't know a lot about the army.

Philip was a younger officer, in fact the youngest one there, he had neat, slicked back hair and grey eyes and was only slightly taller than Janne herself.

"Excuse me? Why have you let servants in here?"

Janne looked nervously towards the military man and then lifted her head towards Aagot, who pretended she didn't see that and looked the other way, emthe traitor/em. "It's unclean and dusty in here, I thought I'd freshen it up." Everyone in the room was looking at her now it was terribly awkward.

"This place is for planning and strategy; I don't think anyone care that much about how it looks. Now, what one does care about is if the information in here gets out there, to the wrong people." He points dramatically to the window.

She was starting to dislike this stranger, he spoke sort of patronisingly but she maintained a polite smile. "Oh please, are you suggesting there are spies in the castle?"

"Possibly? They want to invade us then, we must not risk that possibility. Now young lady." Janne was sure she was older than him, or at least the same age. "You have no expertise in this sort of thing, so I suggest you don't make your own decisions without consulting your superiors."

He patted her back and Janne's smile twitched for a second. That pompous idiot...

"Excuse me?" she replied, appalled.

He looked away from her dismissively. "Maids, please leave the army room." Janne scoffed, he didn't even call it the right thing, she distinctly remembered Anna referring to it as the strategy room. The maids looked conflicted for a moment and now Janne was actively glaring at him.

"Philip!" called Mattias, which made everyone in the room jump, this Philip most of all. "Apologise to this young lady and sit back down before I send you back home!" The young man supposedly named Philip scowled at Janne.

"Sorry," he spat out and then walked back to the table in defeat.

"Mattias smiled towards Janne. "It was an excellent idea to clean this place up a little, Queen Anna will certainly appreciate getting this place back as it once was. Phillip, we'll be speaking later."

He looked up to where the maids were busying themselves. "If it isn't too much of a problem, letting in some light would be good too?"

The maids nodded and complied, opening the curtains for perhaps the first time in years, just then, two guards entered with a chained-up man, who squinted at the light entering the room. Following the disgraced prince was Queen Anna, who they all got up and bowed for, the maids also stopped what they were doing and did the same.

Anna remembered sneaking into this room once when she was a child when she was playing hide and seek with Elsa and being absolutely intrigued at all the maps there and the ornate looking table, it was nice to see it all fresh and tidied up. The only thing that made her anxious was to think about how many cruel decisions her grandfather could have made here; Anna understood why her father never used it himself.

She nervously tucked in a strand of hair that was out of place. "Oh no, you really don't have to bow ever time I enter a room."

"Yes, we do your majesty," argued Mattias, giving her a serious look. Anna didn't raise anymore objections.

Janne and this Phillip exchanged sneers before Anna's ladies went to stand behind her now.

"Your majesty, what have you gathered us all here for today?" asked Mattias, though the answer who already partially knew. The supposed invasion, the reappearance of a disgraced prince… All good reasons for finally reopening this desolate corner of the castle again.

"Well, first of all, it's fine if everyone takes a seat again." The military people do, Hege pulls out a seat for Anna, but Anna's ladies stay stood up, as if they expect Anna wasn't addressing them too. "Everyone," she repeated, looking towards them and they look surprised for a moment before sitting down.

She sees the maids hanging around awkwardly. "Sara, Karolin, Sigrid and Helga, you can all go take a break."

Everyone was confused for a moment as to who she was addressing before the maids curtsied and took their leave. As she turned back to her audience sat at the large table in the centre of the room they all had expressions on their faces she could not quite decipher. Had she done something wrong?

"Queen Anna, you are quite something," Mattias finally spoke, Anna had no clue what she'd just done, her cheeks still went red.

"I- thank you general," she thought of what to say next, why had he even said that? She hadn't done anything, she coughed and went back to their main focus. "You're too kind. I've bright you all here because as you may know Prince Hans of the Southern Isles has come with some news of an alleged plan to invade Arendelle."

Everyone at the table turned their attention to the chained prince who was the only one left standing up (apart from the guards). She forced herself to look at him, although it brought back memories she'd rather not dig up. The prince looked unbothered, bored even, she couldn't believe she'd ever fallen for someone that heartless. "Prince Hans, will you please tell everyone what you have already told me."

Hans was very much sleep deprived. Although the Arendelle dungeons weren't the worst dungeons ever, they were rarely ever used and they were a bit damp and cold at times, certainly a contrast to the usual warm rooms with plump goose feather stuffed mattresses Hans always slept on back at home (barring his fairly brief period of community service where his lodgings were a barn). He was trying his best not to yawn in front of everyone, he imagined he must've looked a state.

"I overheard that my father was going to use his military to take Arendelle by force, and I've come to give you warning and aid, in return I would like you to clear my reputation-which the former queen of Arendelle had a hand in sullying-"

Disdainful glances spread across the room. A tall, darker skinned man, who Hans supposed was a high ranking officer of some sort looked towards him intimidatingly. "Are you suggesting it was our former Queen Elsa's fault?"

"Nobody ruined your reputation but yourself Hans," said Anna, giving him an angry look. In his opinion, he was justified, he had done what he'd thought he'd had to for survival, so why was everyone on his back all the time?

Hans shrugged.

A white haired man with a big moustache and a monocle , who reminded him a little of the duke of Weselton spoke up. "So, can you tell us how far they are into planning this invasion?"

"They were simply talking of it, discussing hypotheticals."

The old man eyed him more closely, shifting the glass piece that covered his one eye.

"Is that worth coming here for? It doesn't seem to me they'll invade for certain." It's what he'd thought himself to be honest, but he'd made a promise to the only brother in his family that he could stand and he'd stupidly kept it for some reason. He was here already, no point in complaining.

Hans looked agitated and for a moment Anna expected some big outburst but he acted as cooly as ever. "That's just it, this is the prime time to stop father from invading. He spoke about it to my brother Lars directly, and after that my brother thought it was highly likely my father would really go through with it. He'd even gone through all the trouble of getting me out the castle and onto a ship to warn you."

"Well, if that is the case and they still haven't organised their provisions, I'd say we still have a few months before we are faced with any possible military threat."

Everyone nodded. Anna did not know how long preparing for invasion took on average but she took her advisor's words on it.

Navy admiral, Kaija Olsen spoke up after spending most of the meeting folding origami ships out of paper. "In the meantime, I think it would be wise to take some precautions, the number of navy ships in between our kingdoms increased," she placed those small paper ships on the area of the map where the Southern Isles and Arendelle were separated by a large expanse of water, then she took some off again with her eyebrows creased. "But not by too many too quickly or the Southern Isles may take notice."

Anna nodded, she'd rather it never got to the point where anyone was crossing the sea in order to get to them but she understood her point.

Now, it was time to address what Anna was really stuck about. "About cancelling the wedding—"

Hans tilted his head up slightly, but he quickly looked back down again hoping no one would notice. Same old Anna, sacrificing her own happiness for everybody else, but he couldn't help but feel even a little bad for her.

Mattias looked up in surprise. "You're going to cancel the wedding?"

Anna nodded sadly and Mattias reached out his hand to Anna from across the table. "Whatever you wish your majesty. You know what's good for the kingdom."

He really was upset for Anna, he knew how much her and Kristoff loved eachother, and honestly he was excited for a wedding too, him and his wife had gone out into the shops of Arendelle for good clothes to wear and a suitable gift for the kindest and most considerate people he knew.

"I need to send out letters about this and I need to come up with a suitable justification. No one outside this room can know about a potential invasion, no one in the kingdom and no one outside it, it would cause chaos and panic and it wouldn't be good for anyone."

Hege put her hand up anxiously.

Aagot got close to her ear. "The queen is not your governess Hege you can just speak," chastised Aagot quietly, so that nobody else could hear. Hege had no idea what a governess was but she ignored the other woman. Anna did sign for Hege to say what she wanted.

"Did you tell your fiancé Kristoff about that by any chances?" she spoke anxiously.

Anna shot right up in panic, oh no oh no oh no, how could she have forgotten about Kristoff? She'd warned Olaf that very evening, but that was Olaf, she saw him all the time. What if he's told someone and they've told everyone in town? Everyone would be panicking and it would be all her fault because she was stupid and overlooked something very important.

"Your majesty—" started Mattias, trying to calm her nerves. She started to quickly thank all her officials for coming.

"I need to go see Kristoff."

"So… the meeting is over?" asked Philip, who'd been silent throughout the conversation, feeling a bit sore about today's previous events.

"No, just paused."

She grabbed her cape from the back of her seat and set off to the stables.

Three women followed behind her. "Thank you Hege for bringing my attention to this." She felt a bit claustrophobic with them following her through the narrow corridors of the castle while she was already in a state of panic, she looked back at them. "You don't have to follow me everywhere you know."

"We're sorry your majesty," replied Aagot, as the three of them abruptly stopped and backed away quietly. Anna wanted to slam her head in a wall.

"No- you didn't do anything wrong-" She had no time for this, so she rushed away.

At the royal stable she asked Narn to prepare her horse Kjekk. She remembered Hans riding in on him the other day and wondered how he'd managed to pull that off.

Her horse was a bit of a coward, yes, she vividly remembered him running off and leaving her in the snow during Elsa's winter, but certainly the old stablemaster Narn would've put up a fight. She expected to chastise her horse a little for the whole situation but when he came out with his head down looking all apologetic she couldn't help but forgive him.

She walked over and stroked his mane to reassure him that everything was alright between the two of them: Hans probably threatened something horrible to get him to comply anyway and although her horse was getting a bit braver now she didn't expect him exactly act all heroic in a situation where a fugitive prince was involved.

Aagot came into the stable just as she mounted her horse, she was slightly irritated since she wanted to be left alone to do this. "Your majesty, you cannot leave without any guards."

"I want to go alone," said Anna. Arendelle was a peaceful kingdom, she'd never really needed guards to accompany her to places before but the threat of invasion may have made people more worried for her. However, even then, Anna was good with a sword she could hold her own up, she didn't think it was necessary.

"At least let me come with you," she insisted. Anna looked over at Aagot, a woman with a similar frame to herself but with black hair and a narrower face. She currently in quite a impractical, frilly dress. What would she do if there was any danger? Anna didn't want to judge, but she didn't exactly look like she could fight. In the end, she relented, after all, one person was better than a whole lot of guards in clunky armour following her around.

Aagot quickly took her horse out of the stable herself, hers was slightly taller than Kjekk and more slender with a pure black coat. Him and Kjekk did not seem to be on good terms.

Anna arrived at her fiance's home after a long, silent journey with Aagot in which they did not say anything to eachother. She got off her horse and knocked on Kristoff's door, Aagot stood a few meters away, looking after all their things.

Kristoff lived in a secluded, makeshift house which was previously a barn, it was in the middle of nowhere just how he liked it. Anna had once offered him to move somewhere else, maybe somewhere with running water perhaps, but he insisted it was the most comfortable place for him. He swiftly opened the door which made her wonder if he was waiting to hear from her for all this time. He was no longer wearing the fancy wedding clothes, just his usual practical ones that he looked so much more comfortable in.

Anna couldn't help but think what things would be like if they were both just Anna and Kristoff, two average civilians with no status or responsibilities. A selfish part of her mind wanted a simple life like that with him, where she wasn't the queen of a country, but at the same time she loved serving her people and she knew it was her duty.

"Anna, are you alright?" approached Kristoff with a soft embrace.

"Yeah, of course," reassured Anna whilst still wrapped in his arms, when broke away suddenly and she could see a little disappoint on his face. "Hey- have you told anyone about that—those things Hans said yesterday."

"Oh, that's what you're here for—," he shook his head. "No, I haven't."

Anna sighed in relief and wiped her forehead. "Oh phew that's good, please don't tell anyone."

"Of course not, I'm not stupid," mumbled Kristoff, leaning on the door way. "So, do you have any time to come in?" From inside his house Olaf and Sven perked up excitedly, Olaf waved his twig hand up at Anna, his other clutching a deck of cards.

It was really enticing but Anna she shouldn't, Aagot was waiting outside anyway and she doubted she'd want to participate in a game of Mattis with the rest of them. "Oh Kristoff, I'm so sorry, I'm really busy. You know with all the invasion stuff-"

Kristoff scratched his head but his smile stayed on his face. "No-yeah, I get it." There was an awkward silence for a bit.

Tell him you called off the wedding. Tell him you called off the wedding. "Well-I'll see you later then... Future wife." The teasing smile on his face, it was so hopeful Anna couldn't help but look away.

Of course, they would still get married eventually, just the date would be pushed forward a little.

"Haha, yeah," she smiled back at him, before she could change her mind and perhaps do something sensible he waved and shut the door. Anna was left staring at it and contemplating her own stupidity.

Knocking again seemed so daunting that instead she turned to where Aagot was waiting patiently with the two horses. Aagot quickly stood up and began to prepare their horses for a return to the castle.

Despite the fact that it was spring, Anna knew she was in deep snow.