Kristoff couldn't help but replay the conversation he had with his ice harvesting companion on their way down the mountain as he counted the money in his hidden box. He was brutally honest when he admitted that he wronged the prince and that the only thing stopping him from doing the same to them was convenient. Part of him felt he should tell Elsa because he might've been a threat to Arendelle but he was hesitant. During his stay in Arendelle, he hadn't caused trouble in any sense at all, he worked hard and slept that was all he did. Plus the ice harvester knew Edward peaked in on his stash, the first time he was miffed about it but when the young man just closed the case without taking anything he decided to let it go.

Edward seemed to really want money to leave but he wasn't desperate enough to steal from someone who earned it. That made Kristoff trust the man. Now finding out he betrayed someone and hurt them to the point they'd try to kill him was really surprising. That shook his confidence in his friend a bit but then the ice harvester thought who he betrayed. Prince Ahimoth of Blackdust, a kingdom shrouded in secrecy and rumors that painted their soldiers as monsters.

He didn't know the whole story, perhaps they were friends but something happened that forced Edward to betray his best friend. Maybe the Prince deserved it and Edward just felt guilty for almost getting his friend killed. The bottom line was: He. Doesn't. Know.

The real issue that concerned him was if he should tell anyone. The only person who Edward really wanted to avoid hearing about him was the Prince, not Elsa or Anna. He explained that he didn't want them to hide anything from their guests and jeopardize an alliance all because of someone they met a month ago. Kristoff instantly thought about telling Anna but shot it down, he loved her, he really did, but she talked so much. All it would take to get them in trouble was one sentence and she spouted thirty in a minute.

That left Elsa, the two of them had a rocky start with her not being comfortable around someone she didn't know and him not knowing how to act around royalty. However, thanks to the insistence of a certain redhead the two of them actually got close. Elsa was calm and very intellectual he could bring this to her and she'd take it to her grave. The one downside was how he planned on telling her.

Hey Elsa did you know that Ed knows Ahimoth, apparently, they were best friends. So as it turns out, Ed betrayed the guy and almost got him killed, now he's saying Ahimoth will kill him if he sees him again.

He could see Elsa having a few different reactions. One of them would be to demand an explanation from Edward which could end up an emotional nightmare. Another one was she'd confront the Prince about it, which could lead to a political nightmare. His favorite one was that she'd blame him for bringing a stranger into Arendelle and turn him into an ice sculpture.

That last one made him chuckle a bit as he finished counting the coins and resolved he made enough to commission his ring. All he had to do was go to the blacksmith and order it. The very same blacksmith that Edward was currently working at this very moment. He placed all the money in the box and headed out the stables towards the blacksmith. Kristoff did say he would think about keeping Edward's presence a secret from the Prince but he would not put Anna or Elsa in any danger.

He needs to tell them himself and let them decide.

Unknownest to him, there was a pair of green eyes tracking his movements down the street.

Elsa was as always sifting through reports in her study, this time, in particular, was about the bandit reports she's received the last three weeks. The day she sent her guards up the mountain they returned later that night reporting that they couldn't find anything. She had sent small scouting parties to the North Mountain but so far nothing had turned up.

With no results, Captain Stonewell had asked if he himself could go up the mountain with a team to attempt to find something. Elsa was reluctant to grant him permission given his age but with the way things were going, she began to feel she had little choice. Snapping the report in her hands in frustration she turned her thoughts toward the dinner they were having together in an hour.

It would be herself, Anna, Kristoff, Ahimoth and his fiancee Lilian tonight. In the back of her mind she wanted to invite Edward to attend however for the last three weeks he's said he's been busy. On the outside, she had accepted his reasoning with the grace of a Queen but on the inside, she was greatly saddened at the loss of his company. She would've liked to see if he and Ahimoth knew each other if they did then the young man could give her a general idea on the prince.

A knock on her door brought her out of her thoughts and she straightened her posture before beckoning them in. A guard walked in and bowed his head until she gave him permission to rise before he began to speak.

"Your Majesty, Captain Stonewell has asked for your presence in his office regarding the matter concerning the bandits." Elsa sighed.

He's probably going to ask if I decided to agree to his request.

She thought about telling the guard to tell the captain that she had other matters to attend to, namely the dinner. However she had a full hour, that was plenty of time to run down, give him an answer, and get to dinner before it started. Rising out of her chair the woman approached the guard and walked through the door he held open for her.

"Alright I will go see him now, thank you for relaying his request."

As she turned to walk down the hallway she heard a shuffle of feet and found the guard joined with another with their heads bowed. "Please allow us to escort you there, your Majesty."

Elsa turned to the two men in confusion, the captain's office was barely a five-minute walk from the castle with the whole way patrolled by guards. Security had been an ever-present concern in her mind, especially with the rekindled relationship she had with her sister. Elsa also had ice magic on top of all the security so if even if someone was able to get in and attack her, she could freeze them with a flick of her wrist.

She didn't feel the need for an escort but her guards have always insisted she have one due to her being royalty. She nodded her head and the two men straightened their postures then began to follow her.

Edward was hammering out a blade in the blacksmith's forge when he heard the door open behind him. Stopping for a moment, he turned to see Kristoff staring at him with a determined look in his eye. In his hands was the small box he kept his fortune in, judging by the fact he had it on his person he was probably about to buy the ring. Something like that should've put a stupid grin on his face but the one he wore was far from happy.

"Is there something I can help you with?"

Bet he's gonna say Elsa and Anna need to know.

"Anna and Elsa need to know."

A burst of hysterical laughter broke out in the young man's mind as he dropped the hammer and put the hot blade back in the fire before sitting on a bench facing the blonde. He crossed his arms and also had a less than amused expression on his face. He honestly expected the mountain man to tell Anna as soon as he got back, his opinion of the man improved even more for talking to him first before telling the woman. However, his insistence on the matter was more than annoying.

"Ever heard the expression 'what they don't know can't hurt them?' I know that turns out to be wrong most of the time but this isn't one of those times."

"Why are you so afraid of telling them, whatever happened in the past is in the past."

What could he possibly know?

"Kristoff, no good can come with them worrying about me and a Prince they barely just met. It's better that I just disappear, there's no need for all of you to get attached to me, that's why I stopped coming to those dinners of yours." Whatever, retort the blonde man got caught in his throat when he heard his friends' words. When he thought back it all made sense, Ed got two jobs that worked long into the night two days after that dinner. He acted normal when he met up with the foreigner to go up the mountain but deep down he knew that something was up.

He was avoiding them as much as he possibly could before he left.

The hurt expression on his face must've been obvious because the man in front of him started to look a little uncomfortable before turning towards the fire. For a moment neither said anything, only the crackling of the fire filled the room with sound.

"When you left...were you at least going to say goodbye?"

Edward considered the question the first time they went up to the mountain together. Back then his immediate answer was to leave them without a word, but after spending day after day with the blond man he began to grow fond of him. The guy was wise in his own way, with a good sense of loyalty and kindness that made being with him nice. His sense of humor was crude yet very funny if one learned how to unwind.

He chuckled a bit at the memory of Kristoff telling him the first time he met Anna, the foot size crack flew right over her head. To this day, he can't stop himself from laughing when he remembered her response.

Edward hadn't felt anything like this since he was with Ahimoth way back when. Now when he considered the question of would he leave without saying anything, his heart began to hurt. Logically, his leaving without a word was the best option as it mitigated the risk of him wanting to stay. Emotionally, he honestly didn't want to leave. He actually liked Arendelle, the people were nice, the prices were fair and it was peaceful.

There was also the fact that Elsa was in Arendelle.

After he left the castle on his first dinner with all of them, he hastily made his way to his room and locked the door. The second he heard the bolt latch, he dropped to his knees and a cold sweat enveloped him. He had trouble breathing and his vision became blurry as he put his hand on the nightstand and squeezed. The wood was instantly crushed under his fingers as he looked for something else to support him.

Physically speaking he knew nothing was wrong with him, his body was in perfect health and with the small effort he put into his hand he was able to crush the side of the nightstand. His mental state, on the other hand, was compromised, ever since he touched her his body reacted so violently that he could barely stand up straight.

The only reason he was able to maintain his posture was the beautiful crystal blue eyes that had captured his body and mind completely. He honestly enjoyed speaking to her, they spoke about Shakespeare well into the night, comparing favorites and talking about ones they disliked. After doing so, she started talking about herself. She talked about how she at first loved playing with her magic before the accident happened and how much it hurt to shut her sister out. She talked about her parents teaching her the mantra 'Conceal don't feel, don't let it show.' and how she thought it helped when in reality it just bottled up her powers. She also confessed that she thought gloves helped stop her magic but when she was imprisoned, she still managed to freeze the manacles binding her.

Edward chose not to say anything regarding her abilities because right then didn't feel like the right time.

As he listened to her talk he couldn't help but see how much alike they were and he felt that he found someone who could understand him. He wanted to be near her more, much more than he should.

Is this what Ahimoth felt that night?

But regardless of how he felt, he knew living here posed a threat to both himself and everyone he knew here. He had to leave, no matter how much he wanted to stay he was going to leave as soon as he could. They had done more than he could repay, so he guessed he could at least grant them a goodbye. Edward looked back to Kristoff with a somber expression.

"When I leave, I'll tell you all goodbye."

The mountain man couldn't help the sad smile that appeared on his face.

"Well, that was a heartwarming conversation."

The two men whirled around to see a man leaning against the door with a cruel smirk on his face. Kristoff dropped the box in his hands and was oblivious to the sound of all the coins spilling onto the floor.

"Hans!"

Elsa walked out to the courtyard with her two guards flanking her. The moon began to rise in the sky and bathe her castle in its glow. As she walked, she thought back to her earlier conversation with her guests. Ahimoth offhandedly mentioned almost being killed by not one but two Elementals yet he reacted in excitement when meeting her. What was so special about her compared to other Elementals?

The woman Lilian seemed to want to avoid that topic given she changed the subject so quickly. At first, Elsa thought that the woman had negative emotions about Elementals but it didn't seem that way when she apologized for the Prince's behavior. It wasn't until Ahimoth mentioned his near-death experiences did her expression change. It was quick if she blinked she would've missed it but in the woman's eyes were the look of pain. Such pain that she looked like she was struck as soon as the words left his lips, the large man took noticed and supported her.

So if Lilian had no grudge against Elementals, why did her eyes darken and she couldn't meet any of their gazes?

The questions churned around in her head as she stopped and looked up at the moon to enjoy the image of her castle in front of it. The ice that decorated her castle glowed evenly in the moonlight and was a beautiful image. The only thing that offsets it was a slight shine on one of the roofs of her castle, it would shine in and out every so often that Elsa was almost hypnotized by it. She barely heard it and if she wasn't facing in the direction she wouldn't have any warning.

A wall of ice hastily rose in front of her flinched form as a bolt was sticking out the other side of her shield.

When Elsa looked up to see the deadly weapon, she remembered when she was attacked in her ice palace. She managed to catch the bolt back then too but this one was much closer than the last one. Before she could say anything, the sounds of swords being drawn brought her attention to her guards who weren't facing the direction the bolt came from.

They were facing her with a murderous tint in their eyes.

The woman took a step back and let out a shriek when the guard on the left charged with an overhead swing. Calling upon her ice powers while trying to take a breath to calm herself down, Elsa shot a bolt of ice at his feet to immobilize him. She let out a sigh in relief when he fell forward with one foot encased in ice.

Her small victory was dashed when the other guard for her as well. She attempted to use the same tactic but was dismayed when he dodged to the side. Ice spikes began to cover the courtyard as Elsa fired bolt after bolt at the man who kept rolling to avoid her attacks. The sound of ice shattering directly behind her, made her turn around to see the first guard had broken his bonds and rushed her again.

The blonde slashed her arm in front of her horizontally and a wall of ice blocked him off from her. This gave her time to face the second guard who was less than five meters away from her swinging his sword from his waist. Thinking quickly, Elsa made a shield of ice on her right side that caught the blade midswing. The man recoiling in shock gave her the chance to freeze his wrist to the shield.

The guard picked up the sword from his useless hand and began hitting the ice on his wrist with the hilt to escape. Elsa quickly froze him from his elbow down to his feet, completely immobilized him. The woman turned to locate the first guard just now getting around her wall of ice and running toward her. With focus, she shot a bolt towards the ground and watched him roll out the way. Unfortunately for him, the bolt wasn't meant to trap him. It was meant to freeze the ground and make it slippery which had him sliding until he hit the ice wall she created. Before he could get to his feet, ice-encased his entire body leaving only his shoulders and head free of ice.

Seeing her attackers restrained Elsa couldn't help dropping her arms as the adrenaline she felt began to leave her body. Ever since she was attacked in her palace and almost killed those two men from Weselton, she swore to herself she wouldn't use her magic to injure another person, whether they be attacker or not. Instead, she would focus on trapping them so they couldn't harm her or anyone else.

This was the first time since then that she used her ice powers for combat and she couldn't help but feel a little proud of her abilities.

"Very impressive…" Elsa whirled around to see a man dressed in black walking up to her while slowly clapping. His clothing consisted of a thick black hide she couldn't make out but could see it was adorned with buckles and pouches. It covered him from the base of his neck to his shins, the black hide formed coat tails that covered his legs that had black boots sticking out from the bottom. His sleeves when down his arms and into two metal gauntlets that left the fingers exposed while covering his forearms. There was a shaft of wood reinforced with metal sticking out from his back, on it was a trigger of some sort.

On his face was a mask of what seemed to have been modeled after a black wolf. The 'snout' was open as if it was about to bite down on its prey, the wolf's expression was one of anger, and the most chilling feature was the eyes. The wolf's eyes had slits in them so the man could see clearly and from what Elsa could see her heart stopped.

Blood red eyes peered at her as if she was staring down a demon ready to devour her.

"Your magic responds very quickly to your commands, that quite rare. Most Elementals would've had a bolt sticking out their abdomen but you managed to catch it, that's something to remember."

Elsa quickly put her hands in front of her and faced the man with a stern expression as her fingers began to glow. She expected him to put up his guard at the display but all he did was circle her slowly as he surveyed the scene around them.

"I was under the impression this is only your second time being attacked. I expected that bolt to drop you but in the event that it failed these two were supposed to render you unconscious. However they seemed to have gotten overzealous and attempted to kill you, good help is hard to find these days." The man walked towards the first guard and without batting an eye, reached up and snapped his neck. Elsa couldn't fight the shriek that escaped her as she watched in horror as the man plucked the sword that was on the ground and threw it with enough force to pierce the remaining guard's head.

Once the two men were dead, the man finally felt the need to face the young woman who in her eyes had nothing but fear for the monster that killed his own men. "Now that that's taken care of, Queen Elsa I would ask that you surrender to me so I can deliver you to my master."

The woman took a step back as she kept her hands in front of her to give herself distance from the man but he had other plans as he began to walk toward her. "Stay away!" She shot a bolt of ice at his feet and watched him simply skip over it like a puddle as if he continued to step toward her with his gaze never leaving hers.

"There's no need to fear me, I've only been told to bring you with me. No harm will come to you as long as you surrender." He kept stepping forward as Elsa started fire bolt after bolt toward him. Every time one would get close to him, the man barely moved his body out of the way with no effort on his part. It was like he barely considered her a threat and honestly, her fear began to be replaced by anger as she put more effort into her attacks. The man responded with an equal amount of effort as his movements began to get faster to dodge her attacks. Getting frustrated that he kept advancing, Elsa conjured a strip of ice in front of her that produced spikes to keep him at bay. It was then the man finally stopped and looked at the spikes for a moment before turning his gaze towards her.

"Is it my mask, if it scared you so much why didn't you just ask I remove it?" The man removed his mask to reveal an older man with tan skin and greying short messy brown hair. He hooked the mask to one of the buckles before extending his arms with a smile that chilled the woman's bones.

"Is that better, will you surrender now?" Elsa's answer was four columns of translucent ice encasing the man where he stood. The man looked at his prison before scoffing and turning his gaze toward the woman who took a breath to calm herself before holding her head up and walking up to him.

"I will do no such thing, you have committed treason attacking the Queen of Arendelle and you will be punished. I demand you tell me who you are and why you attacked me." He was taller than her perhaps a bit taller than Edward but he was leaner compared to the man. He looked down at her before chuckling a bit and bowed in a way that was insulting to the young woman.

"Forgive my manners, my name is Záviš. As to why I am here, I'm to deliver you to my master as I've said before." The blatant disregard for his actions and her position angered the young woman but she retained her regal poise.

"Well Záviš, you will not be taking me anywhere. You will be imprisoned and then put on trial for treason, I suggest you take the time to reflect on your actions." Elsa began to walk away but stopped when she heard him beginning to laugh.

"You know, I've heard of your intelligence was second to none but seeing you now, I can't believe how dense you are. You've been shooting ice magic all around this courtyard for a while and not one member of your royal guard has shown up." The blonde eyes widened as she realized he was right, the courtyard was completely encased in ice, surely one of her guards would've noticed. She turned around and couldn't help but jump back in shock that she slipped on her own ice and fell on her bottom. Standing almost two feet from her was Záviš, his hands were behind his back with a smile on his face.

Elsa couldn't help but look at the ice prison he was just in, the columns were fifteen feet high, there was no way he climbed out so quickly, especially without making a sound. Before she could raise her hands to attack him, Záviš pulled out a wicked looking crossbow from his back and aimed it at her face. Elsa's mind raced as she looked into his eyes that lost its playfulness and had frustration burning in them.

He said his master wanted me and he killed those two men for trying to kill me meaning he needs me alive. So he won't shoot me point blank like this, maybe if I can trap just his hand on the trigger, I can get him when he panics. It's my best chance!

Before Elsa could even begin to enact her plan, Záviš spoke with a deadpan tone.

"My men are impersonating some of your guards, that's why none of them are here right now. If I could get men to keep everyone from seeing the courtyard, what's stopping me from having men stand by your sister?" The woman froze as she realized the gravity of his words, all thoughts of escaping evaporated as she thought of one of the guards attacking and killing her sister. Her expression must've conveyed her thoughts, Záviš moved the crossbow from her face and placed it on his back.

"I'm not moving from this spot, now is your best chance to incapacitate me with your ice." Elsa looked up into the man's red eyes and couldn't form any thoughts, she was like a deer with a broken leg looking up at a ravenous wolf. She then remembered her sister and forced her mouth to work.

"Please, don't hurt her. I'll go with you, just please don't hurt her…"

Záviš nodded before taking a step back and allowed the woman to get to her feet. When she did, the man gestured around the courtyard at her ice and signaled her to thaw all of it. With shaky fingers, she found it hard to control her magic with the fear in her heart but she remembered Anna and was barely able to do it. The courtyard was as it was before except for the two bodies on the ground. Záviš walked up to them and without a word he produced two matches from his pockets then threw them on the corpses.

Elsa couldn't help the gasp that escaped her lips as the man gestured towards the gates. She was hesitant to follow him but his red eyes showed frustration at her slow pace and he looked back up at the castle, towards Anna's room. The woman quickly picked up the pace and the two were walking past two guards who nodded at her kidnapper before closing the gates behind them. After they got past the bridge, Záviš started to walk slower and less urgently as a guard post began to come up on to their side.

He turned to her slightly and motioned for her to walk ahead. Elsa walked in front of the man and soon a guard was bowing to her with a confused expression on his face. "Your Majesty, I beg your pardon but why are you out so late with no escort?"

The woman realized that this guard was genuine and her first instinct was to tell him about the man behind her. When she turned around, however, Záviš was gone.

The distinct sound of something snapping made her whirl around to see the guard slump in her kidnapper's arms. Tears began to flow down her cheeks as she watched the man toss the guard over the railing and into the fjord, the weight of his weapons making him sink beneath the surface. When she looked up at the cold red eyes who didn't bat an eye over what he just did, she snapped. Forgetting her powers, Elsa attempted to slap Záviš as hard as she possibly could but her small hand was grasped tightly by his.

"Do not make this any more difficult than it has to be."

The woman in her fury tried to slap him with her other hand only to have it caught by the same hand that held her other one. The man lifted his arm up with her wrists in his grasp which made her feet dangle as she was lifted off the ground. Elsa began to kick her feet but it didn't even phase the monster of a man. Forgetting her royal bearing, the Queen was about to attempt to scream when Záviš quickly stuffed a rag in her mouth with his free hand. Before she could attempt to push it out with her tongue, the man whipped out two shackles with engravings on them and locked her hands.

He then let go of her and watched her scramble back from him while uselessly pulling at her bounds forgetting about the cloth in her mouth. When she eventually realized they weren't going to break Elsa, flung her hands out at the man expecting a bolt of ice to shoot out at the man.

Only nothing happened, except Záviš narrowing his eyes down at her.

Flustered that nothing happened, she tried again and again while the man took out another cloth while approaching her. Realizing nothing was happening, Elsa turned around and was about to run when a hand grabbed her by the back of her neck. Wrenching her backward, Záviš tied the second cloth around the one already in her mouth silencing her completely. He turned her around so she could face him and he leaned into her personal space so that he could speak while also intimidating her.

"I would've rather you walk like an adult but I guess I can carry you like a child. You may be wondering why your magic isn't working right now, you're beyond scared so there should be ice build up all around you but look around, no ice. Those shackles were made to restrain Elementals, you won't be breaking out of them. Now regarding your little stunt, while you may have acted aggressively, you did surrender to me, so no harm will come to your sister." Elsa couldn't stop her breathing from speeding up but hearing him say he wouldn't harm Anna did calm her down a bit, only for him to crush her relief.

"When she's brought to my master not one hair on her head will be harmed, unless he decides otherwise."

That made Elsa's eyes widen as she began to thrash and scream in her bounds attempting to get away from Záviš then run to her sister. The man was less than amused as he swiftly chopped the side of her neck and watched her eyes roll into the back of her head. He thought he could hear her whisper her sister's name through her gag but shook his head as he slung her over his shoulder and ran into the night.

Edward and Kristoff stared in shock as the red-headed man pushed himself off the wall and began to circle the two of them. "Your name is Kristoff, right? You must forgive me, we've never been formally introduced and I can't help not remembering every peasant's name."

The mountain man looked ready to charge the man and beat him into an inch of his life but a firm hand on his shoulder stopped him. The blonde looked back at his friend who motioned toward the door where two men with hands on their swords were waiting. Realizing now wasn't the time for rash action, Kristoff took a few breaths to calm down before facing the Prince.

"Well if it makes you feel better, I don't know all the names of snakes and worms, but Anna was very animated when she talked about you so I remembered yours." Hans' face darkened in anger for a moment before a smile slid on his face when he realized he had the advantage.

"Speaking of Anna, how is my fiancee, she doesn't really write so I've had to spy on her to know what she's been up to." Kristoff's face turned beet red as he tried to charge the man again only for an even firmer hand on his shoulder held him back as well as the sound of swords leaving their sheaths.

"Don't you ever call her that, she broke any engagement she had with you when she punched you off that ship!" Hans laughed at the man's expression as he shifted his attention to the other man in the room. The weeks he's spent with bandits on the North Mountain, he ordered them to bring reports on the royal sisters and the ice harvester. As they came in, one report included this man before him, apparently, he helped fend off the ambush Hans ordered on the mountain man. When he asked for intelligence on the stranger, he got nothing. The man worked all day and night and slept afterward, the few times he went out he avoided causing any trouble. When he heard of the time a man spat on his face and he did nothing about it, he instantly called off any attempts to find out more about the man.

He thought he'd be a threat but if he wasn't man enough to fight when someone spat on him then Han's felt he was a coward.

"I don't believe we met, I am Hans of the Southern Isles, what is your name?" The man kept a neutral expression on his face when he answered.

"Edward."

"So Edward, I know this may not seem sincere but you have my deepest apologies as you are about to join my good friend Kristoff here in death. I told them to make it painless but they're bandits, I can't really expect that much from them." As he said that, the two bandits by the door began to advance on them, forcing them to start backing up toward the fire. Kristoff seemed to be ready and raring for a fight but Edward kept a hand on him as he addressed the red-headed man.

"Are you sure you want to do this? Once Queen Elsa finds out you've killed her sister's boyfriend, there won't be many places to hide from her wrath." Hans laughed as he sat back to address Edward.

"I'm not too worried about that monster, because after tonight she'll be out of the way and Arendelle will be mine."

"She has ice magic, I doubt anything you could throw at her would be able to stand up to her abilities."

"I don't need to throw anything at her, she's clouded by emotion. I could force her into surrender if I threatened someone she loves."

"Someone like Anna you mean?" Kristoff fought especially hard to get out of Edward's grip at the mention of her name and her being in danger. He turned to his friend about to shout he let go but his protest died in his throat as the brown-haired man whispered quietly enough that Hans didn't hear.

"Trust me."

Those two words gave the ice harvester enough pause to think about his position, he was surrounded by three men who all had weapons while the only weapons they had access to were across the room. He wagered he could take out Hans and one of the bandits with his bare hands, with Ed backing him up he was confident in their chances. Yet Ed didn't make a move, he was having a conversation with the bastard of Prince. Hans didn't see him as a threat and was confident he had the upper hand so he spoke freely and indulged in the conversation. Kristoff had no idea what his friend was planning but the sincere look in his eyes had him nodding and trying to calm himself.

"Well aren't you smart, yes if I just threaten one hair on her head, Elsa just crumbles."

"Not like you can get to her, they're being visited by foreign dignitaries and I'm sure the Queen would've beefed up security."

"You're right, she did, exactly as I planned her to. With no reports from her scouting parties about bandits in the North Mountain, she felt she could send more men out to find them while bringing Arendelle's guards to stand in her castle. That left the village with a skeleton crew of guards, and with all those scouting parties coming and going I doubt she noticed what her guards looked like."

Edward's eyes widened as he finally understood Hans' plan, he used the scouting the parties to take their uniforms and entered the castle. He probably planned on taking Anna hostage and forcing Elsa to surrender, with them both out of the way the bandits would able to ransack Arendelle with all the guards out looking for them. Edward didn't need to know anything else, he and Kristoff needed to leave to get to the castle and warn Elsa. One of them also needed to get to the Captain Stonewell and apprise him of the situation so he could call back the guards.

"Well that's enough talking, I have a busy schedule to keep and I'm afraid I'll have to cut you two out." Hans gestured for the bandits to advance towards the two men.

"Try to make it painless, I'm afraid I don't have the fortitude to witness the carnage I know you two are capable."

The two men charged with bloodlust in their eyes ready to tear Edward and Kristoff limb from limb. The mountain man prepared himself for a fight and was about to charge when the grip on his shoulder tightened. Turning back to Ed in panic, his eyes widened when his friend had a hand on a chain that connected with the ceiling. The brown-haired man pulled the chain and water poured from the ceiling dousing the burning coals with water and flooding the forge with steam. There was so much steam Kristoff couldn't see three feet in front of him, before he could call out to Ed, the hand on his shoulder pulled him into the steam.

The whole time they were talking, Edward had been maneuvering the two of them toward the water chain so that he could make his move. Working here for the last three weeks gave Edward enough knowledge to remember where everything in the forge was even if he was blindfolded. The hand he kept on Kristoff was so he could keep the ice harvester from getting lost in the steam.

Now that they were, Edward made his way towards the door on the far side shouldered it open. He threw Kristoff through before reaching on the wall for the thickest sword he could find then closing the door behind them. He then stabbed the sword into the wooden door, effectively locking the three men inside. Before long the two men began to hear bangs against the door, the sword held strong but Edward knew that sooner or later it wouldn't.

"Kristoff listen, you need to get to the castle and warn Elsa. We don't know which guards are bandits and which aren't so you need to use whatever secret passage Anna showed you to get in without them knowing."

"What about you?"

"Someone's gotta tell Captain Stonewell."

Before Kristoff could argue, Edward was already running down the main road toward the castle. Hans said they didn't consider him a threat so maybe he'd be able to sneak past better than Kristoff could. The other reason he told the ice harvester to go and warn Elsa and Anna was the fact that he knew Ahimoth was in the castle. He had memorized the date the Prince was supposed to arrive and planned accordingly.

Edward honestly dreaded the day his friend came but after what he just learned he couldn't be more relieved to know he was here. If Anna and Elsa were with him then they were safe, no bandit could beat Ahimoth, especially if he's pissed. If Kristoff got to either sister, the castle would be on high alert which would make kidnapping them that much harder. All that was left was alerting the captain, he knew what was happening, he would be able to tell what guard was real and who was a bandit. He'd also be able to recall all the scouting parties to effectively trap the bandits here.

He just needed to get to the barracks, that was all that mattered.

He turned the corner and couldn't help but yelp when a carriage carrying a sled raced past him. He couldn't help but look at the back of the sled and noticed something shine against the wood. He squinted a bit and could make out it was a blue fabric of some kind that sparkled when the moonlight hit. The way it sparkled was familiar to him in some way. When the sled hit a bump on the road and more of the fabric seeped out of the sled, Edward's eyes widened as he took off after the sled. There was only one thing he's seen that was blue, sparkled when light hits it and was thin enough to be mistaken for fabric.

Elsa's ice cape.

Hey guys new update, I'm feeling mildly inspired because I got an email that someone reviewed a chapter, it didn't show up yet of this site but I'm hoping it will :D PLEASE drop some more reviews.