Campfire Talk
Elsa and Tanya walked rather close to one another through the town market. The queen had bought the blue dress, while Tanya chose the red tunic and pants. She never would have thought red was a color the princess liked, yet it looked very good on her. Looking at her own dress, she felt very unoriginal for choosing blue.
“Look at this Elsa!”
Tanya grabbed her hand and pulled her along to the stand. There were random trinkets all over, things they did not need.
“Look how they got this ship in a bottle! I wonder, how did they do it anyway?”
The princess held up the fragile bottle which looked very old. From Elsa’s perspective, looking through it magnified Tanya’s face, making it seem giant. Tanya set it down.
“Or what about this?”
It was an old book written in a completely foreign language. Probably from a faraway land.
“Nah, I wouldn’t be able to read it…” Tanya trailed off, caught in the midst of all the antiques.
The queen looked over to the docks, where the sun was starting to set. They had what they needed food, new clothes, and a small knife to use as a tool. They decided to save the rest of the money, just in case they had an emergency.
The two girls agreed to leave at night, since neither of them were tired and were growing antsy. But as they were leaving the town, they decided to check out the market, just in case they forgot to purchase something important.
On the other side of the stall, something caught Elsa’s eye. It was a dazzling necklace with a red stone hanging from the chain. Suddenly Elsa was overcome with an impulse to buy it. She looked over. Tanya was not paying any attention and had her back turned.
Quickly the queen pulled out a few silver coins from some of the change she carried, and offered them to the man selling the antiques. He gave her first a look, and then handed over the necklace. Elsa made the barter fast, so Tanya would not see. She would surprise the princess later by giving the necklace to her. The queen stashed it in her pouch just as Tanya turned around.
“Hey we should probably be on our way, don’t you think?”
“Better now than later, try not to get distracted again,” Elsa teased.
Tanya laughed. “I don’t plan on it…” She was not looking at Elsa anymore, but at something over her shoulder. More like someone over her shoulder. Elsa wanted to see what caught the girl’s attention.
“Don’t turn around Elsa, but I think those men are watching you…” Tanya whispered.
Elsa gulped and her anxiety got the best of her. From the corner of her eye, she could make out five men all in raggedy clothes. They were big, they definitely looked like sailors, and they all seemed angry. Not to mention they were all fixing their eyes at her. Then another man joined the five men, who Elsa recognized immediately. It was the captain from the ship which they escaped from.
How were they still alive?
“I think we need to go now,” Elsa said forcefully yet with a hint of fear. “Come on before they see us.” But the pirates saw the girls leaving and started pacing after them. Then they started running and the men did the same.
Elsa turned into an alley and called Tanya to follow her. It was a small space in between the double story houses surrounding them. There were clothing lines that they had to duck under, and sometimes hop over. The ground beneath their feet was brick and rock, with dirt patches here and there. Next to a garbage, there was an old beggar, most likely blind by the look of his eyes, asking for money. Besides him and few other people doing laundry, there was no one walking around in the alley. They were completely out of place, and probably a little suspicious. But how they appeared to the villagers was the last of Elsa’s worries.
They winded through the alley ways until they came to a dead end. “Oh no I knew we should’ve turned the other way,” said Tanya panting.
But close behind them were the pirates, almost caught up with them. Elsa realized the only way past this wall blocking their path was to use her powers. Though she dearly did not want to reveal them, here and now because of whoever else might see, she did not have much of a choice.
“Watch out,” Elsa pushed away Tanya as she sent a blast of ice flying at their pursuers. The ice blast formed into a thick wall, which would stall them for some time. The pirates took out their swords and started hacking at the ice.
Then Elsa took Tanya’s hand and planted her foot firmly on the ground. A pillar of ice grew from underneath them, lifting them up so they could see over the wall. She sent another blast of her powers to form descending stairs on the other side.
“Jump!” Elsa exclaimed. But before she could, she felt a hold on her cloak.
“Yer not getting away this time, witch!” It was the captain. “You’ll pay for what ye did to my crew and ship!” He lifted his sword with a snarl.
“No!”
It was Tanya’s voice. An uncontrolled blast of fire emitted from her hand and flew towards the captain. It hit the hand that had the sword in the air, and the man screamed in pain. He let go of Elsa and kneeled down as his hand burned. The captain’s cronies came to his side as Elsa jumped over, and grabbed a frightened Tanya by the arm. On the other side, Elsa touched the staircase of ice again, freezing it until it shattered into millions of pieces.
On the other side of the wall, a man was yelling in agony. Tanya’s eyes were wide as she held her hands close together.
“Hurry,” Elsa urged her to keep running.
They were already to the edge of the village, when they heard someone familiar say “Wait!”
It was the innkeeper Geralt, who had been so generous. He caught up to them in no time.
“I saw what ‘ye did to those pirates.”
Elsa froze, standing in front of Tanya. She did not know what to say to the man who had treated them so kindly. Was he going to try to prevent them from escaping? The look on his face said otherwise.
“I knew something vas different with ye since ye stepped into my inn. I’ve seen many things in my years, both on sea and land, but I knew that you vere different. That’s vhy I offered you my service.”
Elsa responded, “We are just trying to find our way to Aldyn.”
“And I believe ye. But I also know what ye are. That’s vhy I vant you to take dees.” It was a bundle wrapped heavily with cheap cotton fabric and twine. It was not heavy, but not light either.
“Eet is not fer you, but fer an old woman who lives deep in the forest. Between here and Aldyn, she lives somewhere in those woods. This ‘ees something I need to return to her, but haven’t been able to find her again. Rumor has it, her house moves. Now I’m not asking ye to go out of yer way to deliver another thing fer me. Rather I believe on yer way you’ll more ‘den likely run into her.”
Elsa took the bundle from Geralt, “Um, so what is it?”
“I can’t tell ye. It’s for the old woman to open.” There were yells in the distance. “Now if you hurry, I’ll lead those men chasing you into the opposite direction.”
“Fair enough,” Elsa took the strange package, and put it in her side bag.
“But we don’t know what it is,” Tanya whispered into the queen’s ear.
“We will just have to trust Geralt that it’s not anything that will harm us. He’s been kind to us so far, and I don’t think he’s planning anything sinister.” Elsa could almost always tell when someone was lying, and she did not think the man was.
Geralt shooed the girls, and they escaped into the depths of the forest, and when he was out of their sight, even louder yelling could be heard behind them. “He must be talking to the pirates right now,” said Tanya.
Elsa kept her ears alert and open. What if it was a trap, and Geralt had lied to them this whole time? What if he was conspiring with them? Anxiously Elsa listened closely to hear if the yelling was growing louder. To her relief, the farther they ran through the woods, the more distant the voices became. It was a little over an hour, nothing could be heard anymore.
“I think we’ve lost them,” Tanya knew she had stated the obvious and the Elsa knew that already. But Elsa also knew the girl was more so talking to herself, based on her body language.
After a few hours they stopped at a river to camp, as the sun had already set. The river was wide and deep, but there was nothing they could not cross, with the help of Elsa’s ability to freeze pretty much anything. Nonetheless, they were both drained and in great need of rest.
While Elsa gathered wood, and formed a circle with rocks, Tanya lit the pile of wood on fire. In a snap, a full flame had appeared, and soon enough they had a campfire roaring. After she had started it, Elsa went down to the river to wash her feet. Looking back, she noticed that the younger girl’s focus was totally absorbed in the flames. The reflection of the flame’s light, hit the princess’ eyes so that they turned from a sea blue to a dark blue. Her pale skin glowed a soft orange hue, as she was sitting on top of a fallen log. The fire lit up the whole perimeter around them, where the light and shadows of the trees contrasted. But Tanya was the only thing she kept her eyes on. An inside voice appeared inside of Elsa.
Stop staring at her. You can’t stare at her like that, you know you can’t.
She shook herself aware of what she caught herself doing, and continued to wash her legs. Bathing in the water sounded very relaxing at that moment, and the water was clear as crystal. The queen decided that she would go farther into the river to bathe and wash her hair. She figured no one else was around, and Tanya would be safe.
After tossing her dress aside, the queen strode into the cold river in her long undergarments. When the rushing water was finally up to her chin, she undid her long braid, and a silky mane of light blonde hair flowed out. It quickly turned a darker shade, as Elsa dunked the back of her head under the water. The moving water felt soothing against her skin, as if it had magical healing properties. So badly she wished she could let the river sweep her away, along with her worries, and bizarre mood.
Elsa turned her head slightly to check on Tanya way off in the distance. Her eyes were no longer fixated on the campfire, but turned around towards the bathing queen. Elsa could see the girl’s hypnotic fascination in her face. The princess twitched a little when she realized the older girl was looking right back at her. It was obvious that this was awkward for the princess, to be caught staring at the queen in her undergarments. So instead of making it more awkward, Elsa decided to turn the tables around.
“Come in!” She yelled. “The river is cold, and the water feels wonderful!”
Slowly the girl got up from her seat next to the fire and walked to the bank of the river. The brunette took off her shirt, bandage, belt, pants, and boots, while periodically taking quick glances at Elsa, who was expectantly waiting for her.
Elsa was trying her best to contain all urges, to prevent potentially making the situation even more embarrassing for the girl.
Tanya’s undergarments were white to her upper knees, and a white sleeveless shirt. But Elsa could not get over the v-neck of the shirt. But that, she kept to herself.
“Brrr!” Tanya shivered as she crossed her arms. “How are you even swimming in this?”
“You just have to be brave and get all the way in!” Elsa smiled and playfully splashed the girl, as the water was just waist high to her.
“Hey stop it you stinker! I’m going in at my own pace.”
“Did you just call me a stinker?” Elsa raised an eyebrow.
“Yes, as a matter of fact I did. And if you splash me again, you’ll be an even bigger one.”
“Well in that case…” Elsa came up, grabbed Tanya’s hands and pulled her right into the water.
The princess fell flat on her face, and came up from being fully submerged. Her hair turned a darker brown, and was slicked back. In revenge, she splashed at the queen who let out a laugh. Tanya swam closer to Elsa, continuing to splashing her until her revenge would be satisfied. Elsa thought of freezing the splashes in retaliation and for fun, but she decided it would be probably better not to. Instead Elsa went for the girl’s arms to hold her from the attack.
“Gotcha you troublemaker!” Elsa was able to hold her arms and bring the girl close into an embrace. They laughed until they realized after, that they were still hugging.
Elsa’s chest felt like it stopped in that moment. Suddenly she had no idea what she was even doing, or what to do with Tanya pressed to her. She could smell her distinct, yet sweet smell from her hair. She could have lived in her aroma for eternity, for all she cared.
The queen lifted her hand from the girl’s back as if to break away the hug, but decided to stroke Tanya’s straight hair. Her hand went from her head, to her neck, and down her back to where her other hand was.
Tanya felt tense in her arms. It made Elsa suddenly anxious. Had she gone too far or scared the girl? She was getting too “handsy” or touchy with her, which was very much unlike her usual self. Besides with Anna, she had never come this physically intimate with anyone else. But even with Anna, she was her sister. It had only been a week and a half since she and Tanya met.
Elsa’s worries faded away temporarily as Tanya relaxed and moved. The brown haired girl broke off the hug, but not without placing one hand behind the blonde’s head, and kissing her forehead. She squeezed the queen’s hand before releasing, as they waded both up to the river bank.
They made sure to dry off near the fire, which was already burning without their presence. They put back on their traveling clothes, and the robes on their backs to keep warm. Elsa told herself they were far deep inside the miles of forest, for their pursuers to ever find them. Especially with it being night time, and the smoke would be camouflaged with the sky above them. These thoughts were just the smallest worries in the back of Elsa’s head.
She thought about Arendelle, her own kingdom she had left behind. Anna and Kristoff were back, probably keeping things orderly in her absence. When Elsa became queen, she had Anna shadow her with her daily duties. Going through all the documents and legislations to approve and sign, did not capture Anna’s attention at all. Meetings were even worse, when Elsa would notice Anna starting to dose off. Of course the princess did not understand everything they were talking about, but as a princess and representative of Arendelle, she needed to learn a little more respect. At least that’s what Elsa thought. Luckily no one knew Anna as well as her, who could tell when she was getting tired.
But without being in Arendelle at all, none of her duties could be kept up to the fullest. She knew that Anna would try her best, but at this time her sister could not understand or keep up with the queen’s obligations.
There are people I specifically hired to teach Anna all my mundane tasks as queen. They will watch over her, Elsa comforted herself. Though none of these hires knew Arendelle better than she did. She was aware of everything going on in the kingdom, or at least that’s what she thought to be true.
Kristoff on the other hand, was a simple man. Simple, yet responsible. She could tell he did not enjoy life being so complicated. Though she did not doubt Anna’s husband to be could pick up royal obligations and the responsibilities of ruling, would he have the drive to be a good king? It was a matter of making the cut or not, it is easily visible if someone does not enjoy what they do. And being the potential future ruler while not have the inner drive to care, could affect the whole kingdom. Elsa could tell Kristoff would be much happier living life as a commoner, or at least as someone with not much responsibility. Anna clearly loved the man, and Elsa did bless the marriage herself. Marrying Kristoff was Anna’s choice, not hers.
Anna is still rash, but she did learn her lesson with Prince Hans of the Southern Isles, she convinced herself. It was more in her nature to think things through, before making a huge decision. At least she thought.
Elsa was so absorbed in thinking to herself and working through all her worries, that she did not notice Tanya watching her. When the princess sitting on the log across from her spoke, Elsa jumped in her seat. Very ungraceful for her nature.
“You do a lot of thinking, don’t you?” Tanya commented.
“I was just admiring the fire you made,” the queen stammered.
“That’s a lie.”
“Excuse me?” The queen was startled at the princess’ bluntness, though after the whole time of knowing her, Tanya was not always the most tactful with words.
“Your forehead creases when you’re thinking.”
“Glad to know someone notices when I look unpleasant,” the queen laughed.
But Tanya just shook her head and continued, “But when you’re just looking at something, your face becomes soft.”
She’s observant of my facial features and expressions, Elsa internally noted to herself.
“I have a lot on my mind,” she admitted to the girl. “As queen I have many responsibilities.” Responsibilities I could have attended if I could’ve just convinced Tanya to come back to Arendelle.
Tanya went silent, as if she read the queen’s mind. And after thought of how to respond to the queen’s truthful, yet slightly passive aggressive comment, she replied, “I hope you understand that I need answers from my parents.”
The reply was genuine. No irritation or defensiveness coming from her voice.
“I need to know why they would just dump me in Arendelle without telling me, or saying goodbye. I thought I meant more to them than that. I mean, what kind of parents do that anyway?”
“They told me they wanted you to learn how to control your powers. Maybe it was not the best way of going about it, but that’s how they did it. I wouldn’t go as far to think that they don’t care about you.”
Tanya’s forehead creased, and crossed her arms. “I’m not convinced. They’re my parents, and I know them well enough to know there is some other reason.”
That was true, Tanya knew them and the ice queen did not. There was no real way for Elsa to truly understand what was going throughout the girl’s head. She was struggling with problems she could relate to, yet they were not her own experiences. As a girl, the queen was most of the time the reject-or, not the reject-ee, in order to hide the secret of her powers. Her parents, she admitted, did not do the best parenting job, yet everything they did do was out of love. Elsa could not comprehend how Tanya’s own parents just left her like that with no warning, as if they did not care.
“But it doesn’t matter. When I get to Aldyn, I’ll get the truth from them,” the princess said matter-of-factly.
“And what happens then?”
“It depends how my parents will respond,” she said simply, as if the thought did not affect her at all.
“And if they lied?”
“Then I’ll get the truth out. Not that hard,” a wisp of a flame came from Tanya’s hand.
“You would consider threatening your parents?” Elsa was genuinely curious at the girl’s extreme gesture.
“I wouldn’t hurt them Elsa, they’re my parents,” she laughed, but had a cynical tone to it. “But based on what they assume of me, they don’t know that. They were never there anyway.”
Clearly, deep down the princess had to be angry. It was obvious to Elsa that Tanya kept harboring some sort of feeling so deep and hidden, and she let it control her. She had experienced it herself growing up, but did not know how long Tanya had been keeping it down. However she was not going to say this to the princess, or out loud for that matter.
“I just thought you cared about them more than to threaten them.”
“Well then how am I going to get the truth out Elsa?” Tanya said tiredly.
“That’s why I’m here going with you, to help and support you. It’s not in the King and Queen’s best taste to lie to not only their daughter, but the queen of another kingdom, who provided them hospitality during a “time of need.” I want to enforce peace ties between your parents and Arendelle, and make sure that there are no hard feelings with either kingdom.”
Having such a graceful answer from the queen through Tanya off. Her reasoning made clearer why Elsa decided to come along with the princess, even with the princess’ stubbornness.
“Um… thanks,” Tanya looked straight into Elsa’s topaz blue eyes. They sparkled with the flickering of the campfire.
Elsa could tell Tanya was again at loss for words. Another example of how the princess was not very tactful with what she said. But this time it was different. It was not out of rudeness, or choosing to end the conversation there. Tanya was distracted, distracted and staring at the queen.
Elsa wished how she could gaze back into Tanya’s. Her light brown hair glowed a reddish hue, and her ocean blue eyes, like the trees, were a dark contrast from the flames. But she could not stare at the princess like she did. She could not allow herself to, and not promote more of her own unrealities. So Elsa ignored Tanya, and stared back into the fire.
Falling asleep that night was hard. With her responsibilities, kingdom, and family she temporarily left behind haunting her, she could make herself still. There was also the chance of their pursuers finding them, though they had put out the fire hours ago. And then there was Tanya and her own issues. But more importantly just Tanya. After hours of thinking and her mind racing, Elsa finally fell asleep.
Kristoff felt lonely without Anna there. Ever since she left to find her sister, everything about Arendelle seemed colorless and bland. His motivation had not entirely left him, but he found doing his everyday tasks more difficult and unsatisfying. He knew he was not depressed, rather he just could not keep his mind from missing Anna.
He also missed his best friend Sven terribly. They had never been apart for more than a couple days. He knew having Sven with Anna, was almost like him being there with his soon to be wife. Almost the same.
Internally, Kristoff was extremely worried. He knew Elsa was totally capable by herself. But was Anna? Even with Olaf and the magical birds guiding her, she was not exactly the most street smart or careful. All the rash decisions Anna made when they traveled up the North Mountain, replayed through his mind. And even with her decisions, he was at least there to prevent her from getting hurt, at least most of the time. He should not have let her go alone.
Maybe instead of worrying, this will ultimately be good for our relationship. Maybe we need this separation.
But then if Elsa and Anna never came back, Kristoff could not bear to think about that, Arendelle might look to him. He doubted it, since was not related to the royal family in any way. Both of his parents were poor, and died of disease when he was just a toddler, which left him an orphan. But he had become somewhat of a public figure, being engaged to Anna. Since Elsa and Anna were the last of the royal bloodline, responsibility to keep the country stable could potentially fall onto his shoulders. No matter how much he tried to distract himself, he could not stop worrying.
Kristoff had no idea what the royal duties were, nor exactly what Elsa did every day to run the country. He had taken royal etiquette lessons of course, since he would soon be married to Anna. That was a necessity, no matter how boring and dull he found it. Surprisingly he picked up on it with relative ease. He had no problem with all the politesse, like how to eat at a table. But as for placing laws, making agreements and trading with other kingdoms, and all those things he really knew nothing about. Kristoff really did not like thinking about it. Everything all seemed to go over his head. But if the kingdom did fall on to him for some reason, he would assume people in the castle would continue to train him.
He had just entered the back gates to the castle with one of the castle horses from delivering ice. Because he was now engaged to Anna, he did not deliver or harvest ice nearly as much as he had before. There was no need to. But when he did it was more so as a hobby, and because it reminded him of his mountaineering days.
He led the large brown horse back into its stable, poured some food into its bucket, and undid the saddle. He groomed the horse with its brush, as it munched eagerly on its dinner. Kristoff did not care for horses, but did not dislike them either. He could take them or leave them. But he had grown so accustomed to riding and driving Sven, that horses were only sub-par. Even if Sven usually did not like to be ridden on. This older horse had been very good and obedient though throughout the whole trip, and deserved grooming after the long day. Besides, taking care of the horse in a way reminded him of his mangy companion.
The blond man heard whispers far at the other side of the stables. An unusual place to do business. If people wanted to talk in private, they would usually go in room inside a castle or even into the woods. But not a stable. Curious, Kristoff was tempted to find out where the voices were exactly coming from. It was not his place to snoop, but when something seemed or felt unusual, he usually proceeded to check it out.
Putting back the brush and slowly closing the horse’s gate, he made sure to move quietly to the other side of the stable. Most, if not all of the horses were gone, so he did not worry about disturbing the other animals. The voices were coming from the last stable at the far end. Luckily Kristoff’s moccasins did not make a sound. He hid in the stable, two stalls away from the voices. He could not make out whose voices they were exactly, but they definitely voices of men. Kristoff kneeled down and hid himself in the corner.
“What if Her Majesty is never to be seen again? What if Princess Anna doesn’t return?” The first voice was clearly upset.
“I have a plan,” whispered back the second deeper voice, cool and collected.
“Yeah? And what might that be?”
“I can’t tell you. But I promise that the royal line will continue regardless.”
“How can it, if the queen and princess disappear and never come back? They are the last of the royal bloodline. The king left no other sons or daughters, and he was an only child, leaving no distant relatives.”
“It will continue.”
“Through Kristoff?”
“No.” The second voice snapped. “Kristoff has no ounce royal blood. I had my men dig through the archives, and we traced his family tree. They were all poor farmers and harvesters. And his bloodline is just the beginning. He cannot and will not become king if I can help it.”
“But isn’t he engaged to Princess Anna?” The first voice mentioned as if to remind the other man. “He has become a public figure of sorts with Arendelle, especially after the engagement. Many people are starting to look to him.”
“Without the princess, he cannot enter into the royal family. He has absolutely no real training as a royal, not even as a knight or a guard. Most young boys grow up learning these skills, and what did he learn to do? How to harvest ice, and became a grizzly mountain man of all things! I don’t see how the Princess could have chosen him,” there was a twinge of bitterness in the first man’s voice.
“But the public, even royals from the other nations like him. He might not be of royal descent, but the people can sometimes sway the law when the time gets desperate.”
“I know that! You just have to trust my word that I have it all under control. The queen was wrong and rash for leaving her kingdom the way she did. And the princess was even more so. They are both unfit to rule in my opinion. Remember, the queen almost wiped out the whole kingdom with her ice. I will make sure the kingdom will not be left in that man’s hands. Even if I have to take care of him myself.”
Kristoff sat silently in shock. Did they really want him gone so badly? Did the people really look up to him that much, since the queen and princess left? And who wanted him gone entirely? He wished he could just peek around the corner to see the two men, but that would definitely blow his cover. The former ice harvester was strong, but he did not know the size of his two potential opponents. It was better for him to stay hidden for the time being.
The two men continued whispering as they walked out and closed the gate to the stall. Kristoff could feel them coming closer and closer. He wanted to take a tiny look around to see who they were, but did not dare move. They passed his stall quietly, and walked farther down the stable. The blond man heard the feet stop.
One of the voices spoke, “There’s a horse here. Looks like his rider just came in.”
“Well, check whose horse it is.”
Uh oh.
Kristoff needed to get out of there now. He lifted his head to check where the men were. They were heading into his horse’s stall. That was his opportunity to get out of there. He quickly and silently went out the doors of the stable that were right across from him, conveniently. And when he escaped outside, he ran fast around the castle. He would use the side entrance, go back to his room, bathe quickly, and change into fresh clothes. It would look as if he had not been out the whole day.
He knew however that those men must work inside the castle, and that they could possibly recognize it was the horse he was riding lately. If not now, then they would get one of the stable workers to identify its rider.
The ice master knew he was in trouble, and while he had time to get ready for dinner, he would formulate his own plan.
Kristoff had carried on through the rest of the evening until dinner, as if he did not hear the events from earlier. He wished he could have seen a glimpse of those trying to rid of him, but it was too late to wish. Now he would just have to be smart, and careful of everything.
Especially during dinner.
There was always a chance that someone could sneak venom into his food, or that the chair he sat in would be laced with poison. He thought of going to the kitchen to keep an eye on the chef, or have a taste tester sample his food before he took the first bite. But all that was too obvious, knowing himself. He would get caught or discovered snooping around, making the castle workers suspicious. He was not the most concealable guy.
He would play it cool, like there was nothing in the world to worry about. He would go about in the castle like he usually did before dinnertime; hungry.
The mountain man changed into some nice khaki colored pants, and a nice blue Arendelle tunic and belt. His clothes looked good on him in the mirror, at least Kristoff thought. They fit him well, not to tight or too loose. It was not an extremely fancy outfit, but was what most royals wore when they did not have to impress another royal. There was nothing bad with dressing more appropriate for the castle, though he did miss wearing his comfortable leather and fur clothes. Especially his sof-as-a-cloud bell shaped moccasins. But if this is what he had to do to fit into the royal circle, so be it. His life was at stake.
Kristoff entered the dining hall to see people start to sit down. Businessmen from a nearby kingdom were at the castle to strike a trading agreement with Arendelle. Because Elsa was not present, they were pushing to make a deal with Kai and other officials, before forming an alliance. It had to do with a rare metal only native to their land, which was very durable and expensive. They wished to trade this metal with some of Arendelle’s famous gold, because it was so scarce in their land. Their wish was to trade with a small amount, which was no small amount to Kristoff, and see if it would improve the economy, or if it was a waste. It was good that they were testing it out first. If both kingdoms made profit, a new alliance could be formed.
It was wise that the men from the other kingdom were told Elsa was gone on a business trip. If they had known she was missing for two weeks, they could be tempted to take other actions. Arendelle was strong enough to hold its own for some time, but it could not last without a monarch forever.
Kristoff made sure while both royals were gone, to study up on Arendelle’s government, trade partners, neighbors, economic status, and who had power aside from Elsa. It was unlike him to care about things like this, but really was not so bad after a while. It would be an extremely smart decision for him to learn this stuff, he decided. And he was doing his best to be someone Anna could rely upon. That was what mattered most to him, no matter if she was there or not, that he was doing his best for her.
The more Kristoff involved himself with the matters of the kingdom, the more likely he would become a responsible ruler the people would approve of. But deep down, he knew those strange men in the stable ultimately wanted him gone, not just because he was not a trained ruler, but mostly of commoner blood. That part of him, he could not change. But most of the citizens liked him, because he helped save Arendelle after the coronation gone wrong a summer ago.
A gentleman stood in between Kristoff and the dining table. He was dressed in a nice suit, though it was not the style of most neighboring kingdoms.
“I am Fritz, businessman of the Duke of Noorland. Pleasure to meet you.”
Kristoff accepted his handshake, and with just as much enthusiasm replied, “Kristoff of Arendelle, the princess’ soon-to-be husband.”
“I see, and where is your bride to be?”
“She’s off with Elsa on her business trip,” Kristoff lied. “I’m her to make sure all her duties are performed.”
“Ah a shame, as it would have been the first time meeting the royal family.”
“Yeah, their schedules have been pretty packed as of late.”
“I can see.” Fritz raised an eyebrow. “Let’s take a seat now, and discuss the reason why we’ve come here today.”
The long table was set with a green table cloth, and expensive dishes and silverware. Every seat was filled, mostly by men and women older than he. He thought at least, that he was respectable enough to the representative of Noorland. The kingdom was probably about a month’s travel going directly northeast of Arendelle.
Kristoff was doing his very best to understand the potential agreement being made over dinner. But a good portion of his focus was on whether those wanting him gone would try and make a move. There was only one way to find out. And if Kristoff did not eat at dinner, that would look bad to his guests. Those who knew him around the castle would immediately think something was wrong.
First, he took a few spoonful of soup and waited. Nothing was happening that made him feel unwell. After he polished off the soup, he went for the salad on his plate. Still no ill effects. He was relieved, and took a drink of his water. Nothing. It became clear to Kristoff that then would not have been a good time to rid him. Not with important guests sitting directly across from him. That would definitely ruin the whole possible trading arrangement, and Noorland would be potentially framed. Obviously, the man who wanted Kristoff out of the way cared for Arendelle, and the kingdom’s well-being. He would not risk an opportunity to boost the economy, by poisoning some mountain man on the dinner table.
There was something weird about how Fritz questioned Kristoff about his fiancé. Of course, he was just old, maybe a little curious towards the queen and princess’ absence.
After dinner, Kristoff who was wiped out from earlier, went back to his room to wash his face and hair. Looking into the mirror, he admitted to himself he needed to take care of his hair more often. He changed into his night clothes, brewed some herbal tea for himself, and picked up a huge book about Arendelle’s history from his night desk. He did not make past two chapters before the herbal tea kicked in, and he passed out.
Anna rode on Sven, with Olaf in her lap. She knew she was lucky just to be riding Sven, as he did not let anybody else besides Kristoff do so. The magical birds never took a rest from flying, besides when they camped for the night.
The princess was surprised that they had not run into any other people, besides the traveler they passed by. The man was strange and sort of mysterious. The way he inquired about her friends and her travels made her uneasy. But there was no sign of anyone following them, which eased her worries.
They were riding along the cliffs next to the vast sea, which put itself between them and Arendelle. It was now several days since a scenery change. And though it was beautiful, Anna grew tired of seeing the same things over and over again.
Did Elsa pass through here? The Princess wondered. She trusted her magical guides, that they were leading her in the right direction. But there was always worrisome thoughts in the back of her head. Being bored so easily for so long only made them fester more.
But while being bored, most of their travels were filled up with talking, mostly between Anna and Olaf. Occasionally there would be grunts from Sven, who was obviously more tired than they were.
“Thank you Sven for letting us ride on your back,” Anna said to the reindeer. In response, Sven just grunted and smiled.
“But I think we’ll walk for a bit, to give your back a rest.”
Sven made an obviously, relieved sound as the girl slid off the blanket.
She looked at her surroundings. It was the same thing she was seeing for the past few days. Forest to her left, cliffs and sea to her right, light gray clouds, and tall grass. Anna squinted her eyes. In the distance there seemed to be a town, with what looked like ships. The closer they got, it became clearer, and her eyes did not fail her. The path split in two directions, one heading for the town, and the left path into the forest. The girl started to move towards the right path, with Sven and Olaf, but the birds started flying in front of her path. They hinted at the other path that they started circling around.
Anna did not know how to interpret it. Were they supposed to go in the forest? But she was tired, her stomach empty, and her feet hurt.
“Anna, I think they’re trying to tell us to take the other path,” commented Olaf. Sven made a grunt in agreement.
“Well, there’s a town over here, and we are running out of food. Plus I could rest my feet for a bit, and I know Sven could definitely as well.”
The snowman and reindeer just looked at each other. It was tempting to take the other path, but it was way off in the other direction. Their only guides clearly chose the other option. The birds started circling around Anna to get her attention, and convince her not to.
“I promise, we will be in and out of there within an hour. Just to get what we need,” she said to one of the birds that landed on her finger. It did not reply back, but instead flew off. It landed next to the other bird on a tree branch, near where the paths forked.
“Um ok then, we won’t take too long. Can you wait for us there please?” A chirp confirmed it had understood her.
Olaf was starting to follow them, when Anna turned to him. “You might want to stay with our guides Olaf. Not because I don’t want you to come, but to make sure our guides don’t leave us.” Realistically, Anna did not want Olaf to come with her and Sven into the village, because seeing a magical snowman might alarm some people. And that could create trouble. Not everyone welcomed Olaf, despite how friendly he was, or how warm his hugs were.
“You can count on me Anna,” he whispered back to her.
“And if people come along, it would be best to stay out of their sight. Who knows what travelers might do in these parts?”
“I’m on it!” Olaf winked, and started talking to the birds. “Heyyyy you two, I’ll be staying behind with you! I definitely need a rest right now, and thought you might like company.”
Anna and Sven were far enough away, that they could only see that Olaf was clearly welcome to hang with the guides.
“Alright Sven, we’ll go in there, get what we need, and be out before the sun starts to set. I promise I won’t take too long.”