(This chapter has been revised 6/13/2024)

For Better or For Worse

July, 1830...

"Okay...One. Two. Three!"

9-year-old Anna ran down a wooden floor hallway that had been recently polished. As soon as she started running, she glided on the floor, thanks to the socks on her feet. She had glided perfectly at the other end of the hallway.

The princess was preparing herself for another slide. Before she started to dash, she felt a gentle grip on her shoulder. Followed by the voice that she recognized was her father.

"Anna?! What do you think you're doing?"

"I was about to glide down the hallway."

"Yeah, I don't think so."

"Aww, why not, papa?!"

"You could accidentally slide into something. Or trip and fall."

"What if I promise to be careful?"

"Accidents can happen, even if you think you're careful. I'm sorry, but it's best not to take any chances."

"Okay, fine…" Anna slightly frowned as Agdar guided her out of the hallway.

"Why is Papa like this? Why won't he let me have fun?"

While Anna did love attention, she had come to believe there was such a thing as 'too much attention' over the past few years. She would've enjoyed it once upon a time, but her father's overprotectiveness had changed that.

Surely, it couldn't get worse for her.

The next day…

Agdar looked over documents in his study. He disliked doing it, but duty calls for him to do so. The quietness made it more bearable for him, at least. That is until...

SMACK! BANG! CLANK!

That sound made Agdar jump in shock. Dropping what he was doing, he dashed out of his study and headed toward the source of the crash. He was relieved, though also annoyed, at the sight where the noise had occurred.

"Hi, Papa!" Came Anna, who was in the arms of the knight's armor on display. A bicycle was lying sideways just a few inches away, the front wheel still spinning.

"Not again…"

The princess then attempts to get off the armor's arms. One way she did this is by squirming. Agdar was not taking any chances.

"Anna, don't move! Let me get you off." Agdar picked up Anna from the armor and placed her on the ground. He knelt down to her eye level. "Are you alright? Are you hurting anywhere?"

"Nothing hurts."

"Did you hit your head?"

"No."

"Do you feel dizzy?"

"No."

"Feeling sick to your stomach?"

"No."

"How many fingers do I have?"

"Papa, I'm fine…" Anna grumbled, clearly getting annoyed.

But her father still persisted. "Answer the finger question."

Anna gave an irritated sigh before answering. "Five."

Agdar quickly stood to his feet. "No! Something's definitely wrong! I have..." Agdar quickly counted his fingers on his hand, realizing his daughter had answered correctly. "Oh...You're okay."

"Can I go back on my bike now?"

"Tell me what happened first."

"I was just riding my bike."

Agdar stared sternly at his daughter. The displayed armor was near a staircase. He figured out what had happened but wanted Anna to tell the truth. Eventually, his stare got through to her.

"Alright...I was riding my bicycle in the upstairs hallway. I tried to ride it down the staircase...But I hit something, causing me to fly into the armor."

Agdar shook his head disappointingly. "Anna, what did I tell you about doing that?"

"That it is not safe, and I could hurt myself'," the princess replied.

"But you did it anyway when I told you not to last time. Why did you do it again?"

"I...I thought I could do it perfectly this time."

"And did you?"

"No...Are you mad?"

Agdar took a deep breath. "I'm not mad. Just relieved that you're alright. However, you still disobeyed me. I'm afraid I will have to confiscate your bike for a while."

"Okay…I guess I'll talk to Joan, " Anna replied sadly as she walked away.

Agdar hates punishing his daughter, but this is the only way to get the message across to her. Picking up the bike, Agdar walked back into his study. At least he didn't have to worry about his daughter crashing into things with her bike.

Anna had become more daring over the past few years. She did odd things. Talking to paintings? That he was okay with. Running, sliding, and climbing into places that Agdar was uncomfortable with? That he was NOT okay with.

"That girl is getting bolder and bolder. What happened to the girl who simply played with dolls? Not doing crazy stunts!"

Agdar could only hope that it didn't get worse.

The next day...

Queen Idun was walking in the halls reading over a document. Until something caught her eye. Anna was walking towards her direction with a picnic basket in her arms.

"Hi, mama!" Anna greeted me with a smile.

"Hello, sweetheart," Idun greeted. "Where are you off to?"

"Oh, I'm just going to have a picnic. I have yummy sandwiches. Do you want to join me?"

"I would love to, Anna, but I'm afraid I'm busy now. I hope you have a good picnic, though."

"Okay!" Anna happily scurried away. "Bye, mama!"

"A picnic. Hopefully, that's enough to put Agdar at ease," the queen thought.

In recent years, Idun has noticed Agdar becoming more overprotective towards Anna. She could fully understand his behavior, but she feared that his protectiveness would cause Anna to become more rebellious or strain her relationship. She hoped that it would never cross that line.

Clearly, things can't get worse from there. Right?

45 minutes later…

Both rulers were having tea together. They had finally finished most of their work, so they decided to relax. It was one of the few times during the day they were together doing something they wanted rather than their royal duties.

"It's nice to simply relax, right dear?" Idun commented.

"It is," Agdar agreed.

The queen gave a small smile. Perhaps he'll relax without worrying himself to death about Anna for a change.

"By the way, have you seen Anna today?" Agdar asked.

Clearly, Idun had thought too soon.

"If it'll put your mind at ease, I saw her not too long ago on her way to have a picnic. There's no harm to that, is there Agdar?" Idun took a sip of her tea.

"I suppose so," Agdar agreed as he took a sip. "But I didn't see her in the garden when I walked past there fifteen minutes ago."

"That's odd. Where else could Anna be?"

The couple ponders where their daughter could be. Agdar's eyes suddenly widened in realization. "Where did you see her last?"

"In the upstairs hallway, I believe."

It was then that Agdar's eyes changed from realization to horror. He dashed out of the room, followed by Idun. The two quickly made their way to the courtyard and looked around. Agdar reluctantly looked up to the roofs, his suspicions coming true. Anna was sitting high on the castle rooftops, casually munching on a sandwich.

"How did she get up there?" Idun wondered out loud.

"Anna! Get down from the roof this instant!" Agdar shouted. However, Anna didn't flinch. Most likely because she couldn't hear her father or purposely ignored him.

One thing is sure: Things could get worse.

Much later…

After getting Anna off the roof, Agdar & Idun, mostly the former, scolded her and told her the risks she could've been in. Anna, of course, insisted that she wasn't in any danger. Nonetheless, Anna was sentenced to stay in her room until supper. She wasn't happy but quietly accepted her punishment.

Once that was dealt with, Agdar sat at his desk in his study, rubbing his temple. His wife was beside him.

"I swear, Idun. Each day that goes by, she gets bolder and bolder. If this keeps up…." Agdar leaned back on his chair, letting out a breath. "What am I going to do with her?"

"Agdar, I don't like her getting into these situations, but I've been thinking. Perhaps you should let her...cut loose?"

"What do you mean?"

"Anna is an active child. She's going to find ways to shed that energy. Especially since she's always cooped up in this castle."

Agdar suspected that Idun was trying to make a point.

"Where are you going with this?"

Idun breathes out "...I think maybe Anna should go into town."

"By herself?!"

"Of course not. I was suggesting we go into town more often with her. Anna hasn't been out of the castle since she was 4, or young enough to not remember. She's just turned 9. Girls her age should be outside, talk to people, and make friends."

Agdar looked doubtful at Idun's suggestion. The Queen placed a comforting hand on his.

"I know you want to protect her. Believe me, I understand your concerns. But we cannot shelter her forever. She needs to go out in the sun and socialize with others. She will be queen one day, so she should at least know her kingdom. And let her be a child while she's still one for God's sake."

Agdar considered his wife's words carefully. As much as he hated to admit it, Idun was right. Anna is almost at a stage where she should be socializing with others. And keeping her isolated would be a bad idea, especially if she may become Queen one day as Idun pointed out.

The king took a breath. "Alright. We'll take her into town tomorrow, but only if she stays with us."

"Good. And as for here?"

"I should let her cut loose. I should start by giving her bike back. There are still going to be rules, though. For one thing, she has to promise not to ride down the stairs anymore. And she can go on the roof, only if she has either one of us or Kai & Gerda watch her in case something happens. Lastly, she can only slide down empty hallways."

Idun gave a small smile. "I'm sure she'll be okay with that. And she'll most definitely be thrilled about going into town. This will be good for her Agdar. Who knows, maybe by the end of tomorrow, she'll have a new friend."

"Let's not get too ahead of ourselves."

That night, Agdar had told his new rules towards Anna during supper. She disliked the new restrictions but was glad her father was finally letting her have some fun.

After that, he and Idun told each other of their plans to go into the town the next day and that she was coming along too. That, of course, made her excited. She hasn't been out of the castle for several years. She couldn't contain her excitement for the rest of the evening.

Agdar can only hope Idun's suggestion would be a good idea.

For better or for worse, he had no clue.

Here we see Agdar's overprotective side, much to Anna's dismay (:P).

Kudos to anyone if you caught that Finding Nemo reference. I may reference other Disney movies (Pixar included) as well throughout this fic.

And just a heads up, we may be seeing a certain ice harvester and his reindeer friend soon.