It's been a week since he's had her in his arms, even though he was the one to push her away it still stung every time he saw her. To combat the hole she left, Edward dove into his instructor role, his lessons got harder and harsher but he still remained fair. One time he had them come at him in groups of four wielding weapons while he used the katana he commissioned from the blacksmith. He made quick work of them and left a few minor cuts and bruises on their bodies. The people who knew him best could see that something was wrong with the young man but he played off any attempt to find out what.
In other news it was a week since Kristoff proposed to Anna in which she excitedly said yes. For the most part the people of Arendelle rejoiced in the news that their Princess had found happiness with the ice harvester. There were a few noble holdouts that felt she should marry someone of royal station but the wedding was confirmed to take place right after the Gathering during the yuletide holidays.
Currently the most important thing that was going on in Arendelle was the tournament to choose Queen Elsa's personal guard. The council had coordinated with Captain Stonewell to oversee the event with a few conditions added in. First being that there would be no use of lethal weapons during the event, second only the advanced class could participate, and finally neither Captain Stonewell or Edward were allowed to participate due to them being instructors.
The Captain accepted the conditions without too much of a fuss and had Edward spend his free time during the day to take half of his advanced class and teach them to mitigate them from knowing each other's weaknesses. While not much could be done in a week in terms of skill, Edward corrected the small mistakes he noticed here and there with their form or technique as they trained. As he got to know his temporary class, one of them stood out among the others.
Hector Bowman was a noble's son that had joined the Arendelle guard to receive his inheritance. The man was a natural fighter, his skill with a mace set him apart from the guards Edward taught. He knew how to look for a weakness in his opponent's form and exploit it to give him the advantage. The one downside Edward found from the man was that he was a pompous asshat. There have been many times Hector had questioned how qualified he was at instructing them when he was essentially a nobody. Edward didn't feel the need to explain himself and mostly ignored the man as he watched the other guard's spar with one another.
Professionally speaking he should have no opinion of who should win but personally he hoped someone would put Bowman in his place but the task was easier said than done. Even Edward had to admit Hector would give him a run for his money should they fight but he was quite confident in his ability to defeat the noble, even without using Wrath. Still he supposed it wasn't his business who won the tournament, only that they could effectively protect Elsa.
The preparations for the tournament were to be completed tomorrow with it being held in two days after. At the moment Edward was watching Hector spar with another guard when someone tapped him on the shoulder. Turning around, he wasn't too surprised to see it was Anna in one of her winter dresses. He hadn't seen her in a few days since the Captain allowed her to miss a few sessions, his 'early wedding gift' he said. The young man looked down at her left hand to see the ring shining proudly on her hand and it made him smile knowing that she was about to get her happy ending.
However, her face was far from happy. She had a glare aimed straight at him with her arms crossed in a way that looked actually looked adorable to him when he consider all the death glares he's gotten. He could tell she was angry even without Wrath feeling her, he simply ignored it hoping she wouldn't turn it loose on him but knowing it was coming sooner or later.
"There something I can do for you Anna?"
He knew what she was going to say, the morning after he slept with Elsa and brought her back to the castle, Anna was the first one to greet them. When he saw her, he knew it was only a matter of time before the blonde confessed what happened between them and the redhead would be out for his blood.
It took Anna five days to get Elsa to tell her what happened, the young man was surprised the blonde could hold out that long against the firecracker she called her sister. He was heading back to his room when he felt an explosion of anger coming from the castle, and he knew it was aimed at him. Edward was lucky to avoid her for two days but it seemed that today was the day she would get her say.
"Yes you can explain to me why you pushed my sister away when you both basically admitted you had feelings for each other!"
"Technically your sister didn't say she had feelings for me so…"
He didn't know why he was being a smartass but the spike in anger from the woman next to him made him shut his mouth, he remembered being warned she had a vicious right hook.
"You knew she had feelings for you, the little things that go on between you two proved that and you still just let her go?!"
"Its for her sake that she doesn't get close to me, I'm not safe to be around and after I make sure your guards are up to snuff, I'm leaving Arendelle as I originally planned."
Anna threw her hands up and looked ready to tear her pigtails out of her head at the despondent tone the young man used. The redhead was a firm believer that love could conquer anything if someone wanted it enough, the problem was Edward confessed he didn't know anything about love. Despite how angry she was, she felt sorry for him that he pushed down his feelings and used logic instead of following his heart.
She had seen Elsa begin to crack the shield he held over his emotions and let some of them slip out when he was among them. The very few times he was happy around her and Kristoff, made Anna really feel like he was part of their family. However, he always had a focused look in his eye like he was being meticulous in everything he did everyday. She knew Wrath had confessed it wanted to take over Edward's body and that meant the young man had to be on guard at all times. But Elsa had told her of times when the young man looked so happy and his focused look vanished.
The redhead had hit this wall before about the young man leaving and failed every time in getting him to consider staying. She just didn't have the pull her sister did over the young man and with them avoiding one another, there was little keeping him in Arendelle.
"Alright, let's say you leave and go to some remote island where no one's around. Wrath will still be in your head and there will be no one around to help you if it gets loose. Also let's consider that Greed guy comes back and he kidnaps Elsa again, can you really say you wouldn't want to be here to get her back?"
"If Elsa's kidnapped her guards will be well trained and able to rescue her, as for me and Wrath, I don't care if it remains inside me forever, as long as it doesn't hurt other people I'm fine."
Anna looked to say something when a particularly loud clank filled the air and she watched Hector knock his opponent off his feet with a hard swing of his mace. The noble proudly stood over his opponent looking quite full of himself before he began to boast.
"This is getting boring is there anyone here who can give me a real challenge? All I've had lately our little girls playing dress up, if this is the best there is then you all might as well not enter the tournament!"
The redhead could see that the guard on the ground was wheezing from the hit that looked a little too brutal from was agreed to be just a practice spar. Plus the little girl comment irritated her as she watched the smug asshole walk away without even checking on his opponent. Edward and Anna walked over to check on the downed guard and sat him down on one of the benches lining the yard to rest for a moment before turning to watch Hector challenge another guard.
"Please tell me that guy isn't going to be the one with my sister all the time."
"Well he is very skilled and I don't think the council particularly cares on how he behaves, as long as he does the job then its fine."
"Even if he's a butthead?"
"The Captain's a butthead and everyone likes him just fine."
"Oh no Captain Stonewell may be a bit of a pill to swallow but he doesn't behave like that guy."
Edward shrugged, like he thought before, it really wasn't his business who was selected to be Elsa's guard. His only concern was that whoever it was, could protect her effectively. He almost missed the next thing Anna said.
"Why don't you enter the tournament, you could totally beat the pants off that guy."
"One, I'm an instructor thus forbidden to do so and two, that would require me to stay for an ever longer time which isn't possible."
The redhead huffed and decided to give up on trying to convince him today. She didn't come out here just to yell at him or convince him to stay, what she really wanted was to convince him to go see Elsa. After they came back a week ago the blonde had been acting strange ever since. To those who only saw her Queen of Arendelle persona they wouldn't notice but to the people closest to her, there was a definite change.
She had taken it easy with her paperwork and generally sat in the gardens just staring out into space for an hour quite often. Her smile never reached her eyes and she would take her meals into her study and not at the dinner table. One really big change was the fact she stopped eating chocolate, Anna knew this because everyday she'd check her stash and the same pink box that Edward had when he brought her back remained unopened.
When she finally got Elsa to confess to what happened she was really happy for her sister that she shared a kiss with someone who really cared for her. It was then she got upset that Edward made it clear that that was the one and only time he'd ever act on his feelings and would behave professionally as long as he stayed here. Elsa then broke down into tears and apologized to Anna for pushing her away when she thought it would protect her and didn't think of how much it hurt her sister.
The redhead wanted to throttle the young man for making her sister cry but could understand where he was coming from.
"You know she misses you right?"
"It's not like I'm very far away, it would take her a five minute walk to see me."
"Then why don't you see her, like you said she isn't very far?"
"There's no reason for me to bother the Queen of Arendelle while I have my job to do."
"So you don't miss her at all?"
Edward remained silent. He knew what she was doing and didn't want to give her any insight on what he might be thinking. Of course he missed her, he missed her everyday for a week since he held her in his arms. He was glad he hadn't seen her or he might've lost his resolve and ran to her as fast as he could. He knew he could've left Arendelle at any time but at this point he could admit that he was finding excuses to stay and tried fooling himself into thinking he was detached from everyone here.
"She's going to have suitors coming next week, men who would love to have her on their arm as their personal little snowflake."
She was trying to get a rise out of him, and it was working. His long sleeved shirt hid the way his arms went taut and his fingers gripped together so hard that he wouldn't be surprised if he broke them soon. He tried really hard but he couldn't stop himself from imagining another man wrapping his arms around the blonde and doing things he himself had fantasized doing against her silk like skin. What really made the image hurt was there were two of them in his mind.
One of them where she wasn't enjoying it and just enduring it. The other was of her losing herself to the pleasure and wanting more.
He honestly didn't know which one would hurt more to think about but in both scenarios, he wanted to tear the man's head off with his bare hands.
Anna saw the way he reacted and couldn't help but smile a little, seems that he did have a heart after all.
The sound of multiple pairs of boots shuffling had the two of them turned around to see a plump man with auburn hair followed by men dressed in brown winter coats embroidered with a symbol of a crossbow on their shoulders. The plump man in the lead an older gentlemen probably closing in on his fifties with side burns that went down his face and connected to his well groomed mustache.
"Father?"
Edward and Anna turned to see Hector walking up to the plump man who was more than likely his father. The older gentleman's face lit up as he opened his arms up and grasped the guard by his arms and heartily patted him on the shoulder.
"Hector my boy! How has training with the guard been treating you?"
"Bored to tears father. None of these guys can hold a candle to me, I'd rather have joined your expeditionary force where I could actually find a challenge, instead of wasting my time here."
The elder Bowman frowned in disapproval before firmly gripping the guard's shoulder to convey his next words. "Son, there is no higher calling than to defend one's home, you're very skilled and would've been a welcomed addition to my force but consider this. The Captain is getting older and older, soon he will need a replacement, that could be you. Think about it the Captain of the Arendelle Guard enjoys many privileges, ones that could allow you to breach into the realm of royalty and find a spouse."
"I'm not really looking to be tied down just yet father, I'm still young and have plenty of opportunities to explore my options."
As the nobles continued to talk with what likely seemed to be security for the elder Bowman standing off to the side, Anna leaned down to whisper to Edward.
"They do realize we can hear them right?"
"I honestly doubt they care and to be quite honest I don't care either. If he wants to take the old man's position, he'd better get comfortable because guys like Stonewell would only surrender their position when they're bodies are buried six feet under and not a moment sooner."
Anna couldn't help but chuckle at that, she knew the Captain was all kinds of stubborn. She liked that about him, when she had shown interest in learning to fight, he taught her right away despite the council deeming it improper. She even remembered that one of them tried to demand he stop teaching the Princess, the old man's response was him lightly grabbing the man's jacket and pressed his cigar into it and puffed it until the jacket had a burnt hole through it.
He was like a grumpy grandpa to her and she would hate to see him leave his position to someone like Hector.
"Now what's this I hear about a tournament to select the Queen's personal guard?" The young noble's face lit up as he began to explain in great detail about how it was set up and that the other guards had no chance against him. Edward lost interest until he caught one comment that made him snap two of his fingers.
"Who knows maybe after spending some time with the Queen, I can show her how to heat up her supposedly cold body."
Oh hell no.
Edward violently shot to his feet and began taking purposeful strides toward them with his fingers already snapped back into place when he clenched his hands. His blue eyes had flecks of red in them but he fought to keep them blue, this was going to be all him, Wrath wouldn't get an ounce of credit from what he did to that bastard of a guard.
How dare he even think of Elsa in such a manner, well he won't be thinking very much when I'm done with him.
Edward was aware to the growing smirk on Anna's face as he continued on his warpath and knew that he was giving her more reason to believe that he actually might be in love with her sister. Honestly he didn't care, the only thing he cared about was getting to the noble's son and make him regret even laying eyes on the blonde.
Unfortunately the large and very firm hand on his shoulder stopped him.
He whirled around to see the Captain with a frown on his face with his usual cigar. Before Edward could push the old man off of him and continue on his warpath, the Captain took the cigar out of his mouth and shouted toward the small group.
"Bowman! I didn't recall scheduling a break! Get your ass back to training before I beat you so bad, your mother regrets opening her legs for that fat fuck you call a father!"
The elder Bowman's face went red in rage as he looked ready to shout at the Captain but his voice died in his throat when he saw the glare the old man gave him. His son quickly rushed off to training knowing that any threat Stonewell made, he was glad to fulfill it. The elder Bowman huffed and turned around to take his leave with his security detail, leaving the Captain, Anna, and a steaming Edward alone in the training yard.
The young man chose at that time to shrug off the older man's hand before turning his way with a glare.
"I didn't need you to do that."
"Obviously you did or you would've assaulted a guard of Arendelle and the security of a noble. Unlike me, you're still a stranger here and the Queen's mercy can't get you out of everything. Had you continued unchecked, the council would use that a reason to pressure the Queen who has stuck up for you multiple times. So I suggest before you lose yourself to that dangerous anger you have that you think of how many people will be affected by it."
Edward deflated when he realized that the old man was right. He wasn't thinking about how him beating on the guard would reflect on Elsa's decision that he remain here. Even though the Captain had arranged for him to be an instructor for the guard, it was Elsa who had to explain to the council how a complete stranger was going to be overseeing their security.
The young man looked at the old man who had a patient expression on his face, the usual rock hard front he generally showed wasn't there. In his eyes, Edward could see understanding in them, he must've heard what Hector had said but prioritized watching out for the young man over dealing with the noble's son.
"Look, I get where you're coming from. Hell if it'd been me when I was younger, I would've punched anyone who tried to stop me in the face and continued on my merry way. But with age you learn a few things, your anger isn't necessarily a bad thing if you know how to focus it. You can't let it blind you, only fuel the power in what you do. During our sessions I've watched you, you're always keeping one eye on me and one on yourself. That means you're always paying half attention to the world around you, that's something that could get you killed one day."
Edward could see the logic in what the man was saying but silently thought that he couldn't possibly understand why he always kept an eye on himself. If the old man knew that he was a walking time bomb, the young man was sure that the Captain would be very eager to eliminate the threat that walked around free in Arendelle.
"Well maybe dying isn't the worst thing in the world."
"Soldier's guilt."
"Excuse me?"
The old man took a puff out of his cigar before motioning for the young man to follow him to a bench where they could sit down to talk. Anna tried to follow to listen to the conversation but the Captain raised a hand to stop her. "Don't you have other things to attend to as Princess?"
The redhead groaned as she tried putting on her best puppy dog face to convince the old man to let her listen. Unfortunately for her, the surly grandpa she knew and loved didn't budge. He only pointed in the opposite direction and she pouted before leaving the training yard.
The old man sat down with a huff while taking a puff from his cigar and blowing out the smoke. Edward sat next to him ready to listen as the waited for the Captain to finish with his cigar.
"You have Soldier's guilt, the guilt that comes from something you did that violated your moral compass on the battlefield. It's not uncommon and many soldiers wear it in different ways. There are some who break down over what they did and refuse to fight again, some who embrace their actions and continue to compromise their moral standing for the 'greater good', and others who learn from their mistakes and try to prevent it from happening again." The old man took a break from his explanation to take a puff from his cigar but it was more likely he was giving Edward the chance to let what he was saying to sink in. It was for the most part, the young man thought back to watching Wrath kill all those people with his body and watching Rakat's army cause pain to people unfortunate enough to be in their way. It ate him up to think that it took him so long to finally wrestle control of his own body and fled when he could've stopped them right then and there.
There were times he wished he'd have just stay dead instead of being forced to carry on this new life in which he had to watch himself to prevent the horrors from being repeated.
"You fall under the category where you can't stand to be around innocent people thinking that you might once again do something that'll compromise your moral compass, so you push people away to cope but deep down, you want someone to help you through it."
The young man's eyes widened, he wanted to deny the claim but was more than aware that the old man spoke the truth. He did push people away but he craved Elsa's touch and warmth, she made all of his nightmares go away and let his soul lighter. However, what could he do, even if he accepted what he did and got over his guilt, Wrath was still there waiting for him to slip up. As long as he had Wrath, he needed to be alone and it killed him to admit he didn't want that.
Edward wanted right then and there to tell the Captain about Wrath and ask for his opinion about what he should do but he couldn't bring himself to do it. Instead, he thought about the old man, it was obvious he'd been on the battlefield many times, his posture on its own was always ready for action. The very few times he chose to share stories of his past were often of fighting different enemies from foreign places. From what the young man could tell, war was certainly no stranger to the old man and he couldn't help but wonder if he had any guilt over anything he did in his life.
"What about you, are there things you regret?"
The old man's answer was swift and unexpected.
"No, I regret nothing I've done in this life. Whatever I did, I will gladly do again because it has led me to this point and allowed me the freedom to choose what I do next."
In that moment, Edward felt that the old man couldn't possibly understand him if the Captain had regret nothing. Perhaps he was one of the few to have never compromised his moral compass and fought with it intact his entire life. It was noble, but ultimately it undermined this whole conversation.
"Don't be mistaken, I've killed women and children as well as men on orders from my commanders. I remember torturing a man's family right in front of him so he'd give me the intelligence I was sent to collect. What he told me saved the lives of a battalion, men that could go home and see their families because I was willing to dirty my hands." The conversational tone he took when he admitted that sent a chill down Edward's back. Despite all the things he's done, he never tortured anyone. All of Wrath's kills were quick so it could get to its next kill. Hearing the Captain admit to torturing a man's family in front of him made the young man a little sick and questioned the sanity of the seemingly just old man.
"It took me a very long time for me to accept what I did and realize if I didn't go through that hell back then, I might be a different person now. When I accepted all my actions, I moved on and reached a point that no one could command me to do something that I would regret. Me and the late King always butted heads when he found out about my bloodied past but he saw that I would protect his people so he made me Captain. My job is to protect Arendelle and I will do so, for me, focusing on what I did everything for keeps me from regretting anything as long as I continue with my job, nothing else matters."
That was more like the Stonewell he knew, confident and sure in his beliefs. While it did bother him that the man next to him did some horrific things and doesn't regret them, he couldn't help but envy his mindset and wished he could reconcile his actions in such a way. Unfortunately Edward couldn't do that and honestly didn't think he should, the Captain's words alluded to the saying 'the end justifies the means' to which the young man didn't believe. There were things more valuable than victory and he would like to think that he can maintain his current moral standing over sacrificing it to achieve his goals.
"I'm glad that you can think like that but I can't. I'm not ok with using any means to complete my task, I would rather fight and lose if it meant debasing myself to the demon in my past. I regret many things in my life and would do anything to take them back. But I can't and I'm trying to find a way to live with it while making sure it never happens again. I don't think any less of you but to me your way is wrong and it's something I can never imitate no matter how much I envy the peace you found for yourself."
The old man shrugged and finished off his cigar before getting to his feet. "That's fine, it's how I coped with my guilt. If you can't accept my answer then make your own but you won't find it by looking into the past. You need to move forward, right now, you're standing still and stagnant, you won't accomplish anything by standing still. If anything it shows how weak your will is and if you can't even keep your will from being broken then there's no hope at all for you or the people you care about."
It was then with that insightful message, the Captain left. Edward watched him leave with a thoughtful expression. It wasn't the first time someone questioned his will, Wrath always questioned it, even in the beginning. However the young man wondered how could he change that, what was he missing that made his will so weak? Physically he was strong, he had devoted half of his life to training, and he never shrunk away from any life or death situation. His will was more than strong enough, yet here he had a demon who was apart of him and an old soldier who had far more knowledge than he, called his will weak. He wanted to ask why, but there was only one place where he could get that answer.
Wrath.
It's been three weeks since he last spoken to Wrath, he didn't know what it was but the demon just didn't seem all that interested in tormenting him recently. There have been days where he attempted to start a conversation just to figure out what the demon was up to but all he got was silence. It unnerved him so he kept an eye on it but for the most part it was just him for the last three weeks.
Wrath had looked through his memories when they first joined and had seen through his eyes everything he went through since. So the demon knew Edward better than anyone alive, so if he wanted to know why his will was weak then Wrath would know. The only problem was, the demon wasn't in the mood to speak so if he wanted his answer then it looks like he needed to take a trip back to see the trolls.
The young man got up and found Cameron and explained to him that he'd have to take over the class today while he went off to run an errand. The young guard immediately began to panic at the thought of leading a training session but Edward calmed him down and expressed total confidence in the young guard. With a quick outline of what the next class would be over, the young man left to go find Kristoff.
The mountain man nowadays usually spent his time hanging out with Sven in stables or with Anna since he didn't have to harvest ice anymore. The young man stopped by the stables to see the ice harvester fast asleep on a mound of hay next to Sven who was sleeping next to him. Almost feeling bad about waking him, the young man lightly kicked his feet to rouse him. After a couple of hits, the mountain man groggily opened his eyes to see his friend standing over him. He looked out the stable windows to see the sun beginning to go down before turning back to the young man with an annoyed expression over having his nap distrubed.
"Don't you have a class to instruct soon?"
"I need to see Grand Pabbie again."
"For?"
"I need to speak to Wrath."
It was at that moment Kristoff shook off his sleepiness and looked back at the young man with a serious expression.
Elsa having hitting a good stopping point for the day and was now sitting in her study reading one of the many novels she had stacked in the room. What most people didn't know was that Elsa loved reading romance novels, thirteen years isolated in her room had given her plenty of time to escape into the world of books and with her future of becoming a Queen she doubted she'd ever marry for love. So she'd read a romance novel and would pretend for a very short moment that she was the woman in the book falling in love with the man of her dreams. She thanked God many times that books existed or she was sure she would've lost her sanity in her room.
The current one she was reading was about a soldier and his childhood sweetheart. The two of them were best friends as children with the soldier dreaming of one day to be a hero. When he was old enough he joined the kingdom's army and left his hometown. He wrote to the friend he left behind often until one day they stopped. Fearing the worst, his best friend set out to find him. She journeyed through many lands as well as faced many obstacles until finally finding the company the soldier was attached to. When she asked if they knew where he was, the commander said he had been captured by the enemy and that the company planned on cutting their losses and returning home. Upset they were going to abandon her friend, the woman decided she'd go in and save him herself, no matter how difficult the task may be.
That was as far as Elsa had gotten and she longed to see how it would end. The childhood friend was so brave to risk everything for someone she cared about despite the odds stacked against her. The blonde knew the book would likely have a happy ending as most romance novels did and she liked that fact. However she didn't like how that wasn't the case in real life. People thought Anna was the hopeless romantic, but Elsa had her sister beat if someone could look into her private thoughts. It always warmed her heart to see two people joined in love, even through her window she could see some people holding hands, kissing, laughing, and dancing with one another like they were the happiest people in the world.
When she escaped into a book, her thoughts were happy and she enjoyed herself. However when she finished and closed the book, the reality sunk in that she hadn't found her happy ending and she would likely never will. That was the reality of being a Queen, always putting her kingdom first before anything else. Even when Edward came along, she kept telling herself that she was Queen first. Despite the feelings that grew and hopes and desires awakening in her, she knew in the back of her mind that it wouldn't likely come to pass. When he said he couldn't, that they couldn't, it hurt but she was happy that she didn't have to tell him they couldn't.
His denial had put her back on track with her original mindset that she must put the kingdom first. It also drove home that she was human and she decided to add in more breaks and rest after hearing the little tidbit about Elementals losing control of their magic when they lacked rest. She had already had everything set up and planned for the next couple of weeks plus her sister was getting married. That in itself made Elsa happy, her baby sister was about to get her happy ending, life was looking up and the blonde was content.
She was broken out of her thoughts when the room to her study barged open and the redhead had strode into the room. The blonde didn't have to look up from her book to know who had stormed into her study, Anna really took the 'open doors' policy quite seriously.
"Hi Elsa!"
"There something I can do for you Anna?"
The phrase made the Princess's next words stop on the tip of her tongue as she eyed her sister for a moment. Noticing the odd lack of rushed words that usually came out of the redhead's mouth, Elsa looked up to see a weird look on her face.
"What's the face for?"
"You two even talk the same…"
It took very little imagination to know who Anna was talking about and Elsa just went back to her book. She was done speaking to her sister about Edward, she said what she needed to say on the matter and there was nothing else to discuss. Fortunately for her, it seemed that the redhead hadn't come to talk about that particular subject.
"I just wanted to ask if you wanted to go out on the town and grab some chocolate."
The sound of her favorite treat made the blonde look up from her book, she had longed for chocolate for an entire week. Everytime she had a craving for it, her hand would drift toward her secret stash and when she pulled it out to see the same box Edward had gotten for her, the craving vanished and she'd replace the box. She didn't ask any of the castle staff to get her any when she knew that she had a perfectly good stash of it in her drawer. It was quite a conundrum for her, she wanted chocolate so badly yet couldn't bring herself to eat any since she had the pink box in her drawer.
"Sure, I'll come with you to grab some." The blonde had put the book away and rose out of her chair to follow her younger sister out of the room and toward the stables where Kristoff likely was located. When they arrived, the stables were empty. Kristoff, Sven, and his sleigh were gone. The horses he had acquired from his bandit ambush were still in the stables meaning that Sven was likely the only one pulling the sleigh.
"Where'd they go?"
It was at that moment the actual stable boy entered to clean up after the mountain man. Not that there was much to clean since Kristoff took cleanliness in the stable that housed Sven very seriously.
"Master Kristoff, left a while ago with that new instructor. I didn't hear where they were going but they didn't take any supplies so I doubt they'll be gone for long."
Anna thanked the young boy before leaving the stable with Elsa in tow. She wanted to ask the blonde where she'd think they'd gone but stayed her tongue since she knew Elsa was done speaking about the young man that was her first kiss. Knowing there was nothing more to say, Anna decided to just go ahead and leave without them, telling herself they'd be fine.
The two sisters went through town greeting the happy people as they passed until they arrived at their favorite bakery. The redhead didn't notice but upon seeing where they were, Elsa stopped dead in her tracks. Her smile had dropped and she schooled it into a regal one as she crossed the door. Anna was already dancing around the bakery marvelling at the many different kinds of chocolate she's no doubt already tried. The Queen stood near the door with her hands folded at her waist, her expression wasn't negative but it also wasn't happy.
It was then the bakery's owner, the beautiful black haired woman that had a fascination with Edward noticed her two favorite customers. "Queen Elsa! Anna! It's so nice to see you two!"
"Are you sure its us you like seeing or our coins when we almost clean out your bakery Thalia?" Anna came here almost every week, becoming personal friends with the owner and would often clean out a section of chocolate every once in a while. There have been times Thalia tried to just give her the sweets but the redhead always insisted on paying for them.
"Would it bother you if I said I liked them both equally?"
"At least you're honest."
The two continued to joke around while Elsa stood at the door. She knew that Thalia didn't see her face the last time she was here so there was no reason for the blonde to act any other way then she usually did. The problem was, she just couldn't bring herself to put on a smile walk over and engage in some small talk. All she could think about was the way the black haired woman leaned over and traced Edward's arm and leaned against him.
Elsa was self aware enough to know that the slightly sick feeling she had in her stomach was the feeling of jealousy. She didn't know why, between the two of them she had actually kissed the young man but the feeling persist. It kept her from acting normal and honestly just irritated her, so she waited by the door hoping she'd somehow go unnoticed so she wouldn't have to force a normal conversation. The blonde silently cursed the young man over and over in her head for making her feel this way.
"Elsa, you ok?"
The platinum beauty looked up to see Anna and Thalia both looking at her with expectant expressions. Not trusting her voice, she put on a fake smile and nodded. Thalia didn't look entirely convinced but shrugged after a moment while Anna could see right through it and mouthed to her sister.
We're talking about this.
The redhead then turned around to continue her conversation with Thalia. After a few more moments, Anna had decided to only buy two boxes of chocolate, one filled with truffles and the other of milk chocolate. Waving to Thalia, the two sisters left the bakery and continued walking around Arendelle until they ended up near a dock that Anna had first bumped into Hans. Despite the feelings she had about the man, the spot here was nice and peaceful. Whenever she felt the very rare moment to stop bouncing around and enjoy some peace she'd come here.
The two sisters sat down and watched the calm water not saying anything yet. Anna decided to open her truffles and take her time eating them while Elsa didn't seem interested in the pink box next to her. After a while the redhead finally decided to break the silence.
"Alright Elsa don't even try to deny what happened back there, you used to love coming to Thalia's shop but today you wouldn't move. You're not even eating the milk chocolate I got for you, what's bothering you?" The blonde didn't respond, all she did was tuck her hands under her armpits, a usual indicator that something was bothering her. Anna stared at her sister with a patient expression, she wanted her to talk without being pushed but realize they were talking about this.
"It's dumb…"
"If its coming from you then its anything but dumb."
Elsa sighed before she untucked her hands and brought them up before wiggling them and creating two mini versions of Edward. Both of them were extremely detailed and identical to one another. The two of them stood with their arms crossed reminiscent to the young man's pensive pose.
"When I told you what happened a week ago, there was something I left out. Me and Edward went to Thalia bakery first and to buy me some chocolate but I ran out making him chase after me then we argued, kissed, and he then said that we couldn't be together."
"Why did you run away from him?"
"Thalia began to flirt with him, I could hear what they were saying and I thought he was falling for her and didn't care that I was in the bakery…" Anna saw red for a second as she imagined Edward shacking up with Thalia right in front of Elsa and wanted to tear his head off but calmed down when her sister continued speaking.
"...it turns out he just wanted to keep Thalia from noticing I was there. When he convinced me to take the day off, I wanted to spend it with him but seeing him with another woman…"
Elsa racked her brain for the right word as Anna patiently listened. When the blonde couldn't supply the word, the redhead took a stab at what she could mean.
"Made you feel like you were invisible to him?"
"Yes. It was almost like I was looking out the window of my room again as someone else got their happy ending instead of me. When he finally caught up to me and explained himself, I honestly didn't care. What I cared about was that he just didn't seem to feel anything and then we started yelling and he then admitted he felt something for me. I cannot begin to describe how it felt to hear him say the way he felt about me, it was honest and sincere…"
As Elsa talked about how emotional Edward could be, the mini version of him in her left hand began to move. It had a bright smile on his face as he waved to Anna then looked up to the blonde with a smirk and bowed at the waist before jumping back up with the same bright smile that was directed at her. The redhead didn't know if Elsa was doing this on purpose but she could see how happy the little man looked in her sister's hand.
"Then after we kissed, he changed back into his distant self. The one that was tortured about what he did in the past and what was inside of him. All he cared about was my safety, and that it would kill him if he ever hurt me so he pushed me away. The fear and guilt he had plagued him and pushed down all of his emotions so that he could be cold and calculated…"
It was then the mini Edward in her left hand moved, it had a solemn and focused look. It kept its arms crossed and looked out toward the ocean, maintaining a distant look in its eyes as it refused to look anywhere else but the endless span of water in front of it.
"I've met both Edwards and there are times that one overpowers the other but soon the other gains control. I don't know what to do, my head tells me that I should just move on and focus on being a Queen but my heart says otherwise. It's telling me that I can break through the solemn Edward and get to the one who admits he feels human and happy around me. That maybe we could have a future together but my head reminds me that it would be impossible, for one he's not royalty and I'm a Queen. The council would never allow it. Two, Wrath is a very real threat. Even though I know he can get control, this Father person might just make them kill people like they did back then. My job as Queen is to protect the people of Arendelle, what kind of Queen does it make me to jeopardize their safety because of my feelings by letting someone stay in Arendelle that…"
Again, Elsa couldn't find the right word. Anna could see where she was coming from and understand her plight but the redhead knew her sister. She was trying to think with logic instead of using her heart, Anna did it all the time and people may call her reckless from time to time but it was her best quality to always follow her heart and hope for the best.
"...is a monster?"
The blonde's eyes widened and she whirled on her sister with an upset expression. She couldn't believe her sister would say that, usually Anna was supposed to be the positive one. They both knew how much Edward suffered with what he did. Someone with so much guilt shouldn't be considered a monster, it wasn't even his fault, he was forced into this! The Edward they knew was kind, caring, supporting, thoughtful, selfless, and many other qualities that a monster was not. She wouldn't allow anyone to call someone close to her like that a monster. The blonde couldn't help raising her voice to her sister and the slip she had on her powers as she spoke.
"He's not a monster!"
The shout made a spark of ice flow from her hands and jerked both of the mini Edwards as they both looked up at Elsa with a surprised expression. Anna on the other hand didn't seem surprised in the least, she knew her sister would disagree vehemently with anyone thinking he was a monster. The reason the redhead said monster was to get Elsa to start thinking with her feelings and not her head. In the Princess's opinion, Edward was in his own ice palace and the only way he was coming down was if Elsa rushed after him and brought him back down. It wouldn't be easy, Anna would do everything she could to help but it was ultimately up to her to get him to come down.
"There you go, that feeling you feel right now, hold on to that. You're right he isn't a monster but he himself thinks he is, the same way you used to when you first revealed your powers. When people called you a monster, I felt the same way you feel right now. They didn't know what you've been through or who you are, I was willing to bet everything that you weren't a monster. Edward feels alone right now and is afraid that he'll wake up one day losing control, you've been in his shoes before. You more than anyone else knows what it's like living with that fear, if anyone can snap him out of it, its you. It won't be easy, I'll do all I can to help but only you can do it, you've gotten him to change his mind before, it's time you do it again."
"But what if I can't?"
Anna smiled and put a hand around her sister's shoulder and nodded her head at the mini statues in the blonde's hands. The two of them both had attentive looks on their faces as they looked to the blonde.
"You really going to tell Edward that you can't help him?"
Elsa was quiet for a moment as she gazed at the two mini statues in her hands that both looked expectantly at her answer. Her brain kept telling her that she couldn't guarantee anything, she didn't know enough and it could've easily backfired. She was also Queen and couldn't devote her time to someone who wasn't a royalty, a suitor, or any part of the hierarchy in Arendelle. But her heart screamed something different, it said that if there's even a small chance she'd take it. That this time she was going to save him.
The blonde smiled at the two statues before answering.
"No, I'm not."
Edward and Kristoff made it to the Valley of the Living Rock and already dealt with the usual uproar of the mountain man being home before speaking with Grand Pabbie. Edward explained what he intended to do and needed the troll to bring Wrath to the physical plane again. The old troll didn't see Elsa or any weapons on the young man and asked that he reconsider.
Edward shook his head as the troll sighed and lead the two back into the cave where the young man sat on his mound and waited for Wrath to appear. Before long, the demon appeared kneeling across from him. Wrath lifted its head up and stared silently at the young man, not one flicker of rage coming from it whatsoever. Edward waited for the demon to say something, anything, but it seemed more than comfortable with sitting there silently. Deciding he would have to be the first one to break the silence, the young man kept a grip on his emotions. Now wasn't the time to get angry and confront the demon all he wanted was to talk.
"You're actually quiet for once."
The only response he got was Wrath blinking once.
"All this time speaking to me, trying to take over, you now decide to take a break?"
Still no response.
"For once, I'm not here to fight. There's something I wanted to ask you."
Wrath tilted its head to the side as if it was curious what he could possibly want to ask but remained silent.
"You've seen my memories and lived in my body feeding off my emotions. One could say you know me better than me anyone else, so if I wanted this question answered you'd have the answer. I want to know why you feel my will is weak."
The demon straightened its head and back. It actually looked like it was interested in the question. Edward waited for an answer, if Wrath really didn't want to talk the young man could easily just leave. While he may be curious on what made his will weak, he could always think on it and figure it out another day. Time continued to flow as the demon held the young man's gaze but remained silent. After enough time passed, Edward decided to cut his losses and got to his feet ready to leave the cave.
"The reason your will is so weak is because you're afraid of yourself. How can you uphold your morals and ideas when you constantly question yourself, the foundation of everything you stand for is suspect in your mind because you fear yourself destroying them."
The young man didn't expect an answer like that. There was no undercurrent of malicious intent or mocking in the demon's tone. In fact it sounded how he did when he told Elsa she needed rest, there was no room to challenge the claim. However Edward knew he wasn't afraid of himself, he was afraid of Wrath taking over. The demon was the reason, he couldn't trust himself to be around people. Suddenly angry, Edward whirled around to face the still kneeling demon with a snarl.
"I don't believe you, you're the one who wants to destroy everything I believe in. I'm not afraid of myself, I'm afraid of you using my body to kill people!"
Wrath didn't move from its mound, perfectly fine with letting the young man vent on it in anger. That's the way it's always been, Edward would always have intense hatred for Wrath. Usually such a source of anger would rejuvenate or arouse the demon but coming from the young man was almost sickening. The demon remembered feeling Edward's intense wrath in the past and felt it was one of the most intoxicating sources its ever felt but now it was old to taste.
"You mean the way I took over and killed those bandits in the cave?"
Edward was taken aback when Wrath mentioned that, it was the most recent time he lost himself to the demon. Wrath had brutally slaughtered those men in the cave in front of Elsa, he just wanted them dead but that wasn't enough for the demon. The fear that was in Elsa's eyes was still burned into his brain.
"Yes, I lost control and you tore them apart."
Wrath chose that time to get to its feet and began walking over to the young man. Edward looked weary and took a slight step back when Wrath got within three feet of him before leaning down until they were eye level.
"I didn't do anything, that night, you took me over."
Hey guys new chapter. WOO. Hope ya'll like the little mini plot twist. Also I just wanted to say that the mini frozen statues were inspired by another Frozen Fanfic I read. Its called "For the First Time in Never" by Nerd-is-frozen. Check it out amazing fanfic, I would review but its already completed. Anyway I'm gonna take a quick break play some Dark Souls 3 on my pc then work on getting the first 5k words tonight and the next 5k tomorrow for a new chapter on Sunday/Monday. Remember to drop a review or a pm, catch y'all later :D