Chapter Text
“Not long until your wedding, Your Majesty!” a young lady in the courtyard of Arendelle Castle called in the direction of Queen Anna.
“Thank you!” Anna said in a nervous reply, managing a little wave.
In Arendelle, the sun had risen on a calm summer morning, the sunshine reflecting off of the fjord. Arendelle castle, adorned with it’s icy decorations, stood proudly next to the harbour. The quaint town, with all of its shops and houses, lied a short walk away from it.
At the castle, the gates were wide open and the people were enjoying the courtyard. Children were happily playing in the fountains, their parents keeping a watchful eye on them. Queen Anna was walking with her handler Kai, fretfully going over last minute wedding preparations.
“Is the chapel ready? Have all the guests replied to their invites? What about the food? Do we have enough salad plates?” Anna asked while Kai read over a huge list. Olaf, a magical animated snowman created by Anna’s older sister Elsa, was pretending to glance over the list too.
“It’s all in hand, Your Majesty,” he assured her. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I must just go and check on the kitchen.”
“Very well,” Anna nodded as Kai went on his way.
“Have you had enough practice at being a page, Olaf?” Anna asked.
“Oh sure, I’ve been reading a lot of books!” Olaf nodded with a huge grin.
Anna laughed at him then gave a nervous grin. “Oh, just be good at the wedding, okay Olaf?” she said as she bent down towards him. Olaf looked behind her to see a few familiar faces approaching.
“Well your future husband doesn’t seem nervous!” he said through a smile as his stick arms pointed at them.
“Relax! Everything’s fine!” called Kristoff, walking up to Anna with his reindeer Sven. With him was Ryder, a young Northuldra man who Kristoff had become firm friends with.
“Oh, hi honey!” said Anna, giving Kristoff a peck on the cheek. “I know I shouldn’t worry, I just want everything to be perfect!”
Anna turned to Ryder. “How are you finding Arendelle, Ryder? How does it compare to Northuldra?” Anna asked him with a smile.
“It’s…different!” Ryder replied with his hand on the back of his head. “Everyone is very friendly but there’s so much I’m not used to! At least I have Sven here to remind me of home!” he smiled as he gave Sven a Pat on the head.
“Have you written your best man speech?” Anna asked.
“Don’t worry, it’s all ready!” he replied.
Sven looked up at Kristoff and grunted discontentedly.
“Aw, you okay there buddy? Did you want to be my best man?” Kristoff asked jokingly. He moved over to Sven and started to do his goofy voice.
“Yes, we’re best buddies, I should be your best man!” Kristoff said in Sven’s voice before standing up.
“Don’t worry Sven, you’ve got a very important job to do!” Kristoff said to Sven as he winked and pointed at him with both fingers.
Sven grunted again. “Hey, you’re hungry aren’t you?” Kristoff asked him. Sven grinned and nodded. “Alright buddy, let’s find you some carrots!”
With that, Kristoff and Ryder waved goodbye to Anna, leaving her to continue going over the wedding preparations.
Later that evening, Anna sat at the head of a long dining table. Kristoff was at her side, with Ryder sat on the other. The men devoured their food, while Anna sighed and prodded hers around her plate. Kristoff looked up at her with his mouth full.
“What’s up?” Kristoff asked Anna while leaning over his plate.
Anna sighed again and tried to smile. She glanced over at Kristoff. “It’s just that...I don’t know if I deserve this wedding…” Anna admitted as she looked to the side.
Kristoff swallowed his food, put his cutlery down, and stood next to Anna. He squatted down and put his arm around her.
“Hey, come on, if anyone deserves a big day, it’s you!” Kristoff assured her. “You’ve been through so much!”
Anna smiled a little and put her hand on Kristoff’s. Just then Kai entered the room.
“Excuse me, Your Majesty,” he began to say with his hands behind his back, “there is a pressing matter to attend to–“
Kristoff held his other hand up to Kai. “Could you give us five minutes?” he interrupted.
Kai looked down and saw Kristoff consoling Anna. “Of course,” he said before bowing. He then turned and left.
“As I was saying,” Kristoff continued, “you’ve been through so much! You had such a tough childhood, being kept away from your sister. Then you lost your parents and found out about your sister’s ice powers at her coronation. After that you saved your sister after she went ice crazy and froze the kingdom. You survived a frozen heart, and even punched that evil Prince Hans in the face! And let’s not forget that you freed the forest of Northuldra!”
“Yeah, that was awesome! You got Earth Giants to destroy the dam that was keeping the forest trapped in mist! That was amazing!” Ryder added.
“That’s right!” Kristoff agreed. “And since Elsa discovered she was the Fifth Spirit of nature and abdicated, you’ve done such a great job as queen!”
“I hope the people think that!” Anna gushed.
“Are you kidding?” Kristoff joked. “Everyone is so excited! This wedding isn’t just for you and me, it’s for the whole kingdom. Arendelle was nearly destroyed by a tidal wave when the dam burst, everyone’s looking forward to having something to celebrate!”
“I guess,” Anna giggled a little as she looked down. She then looked at Kristoff.
“But I worry about you too!” Anna smiled. “Being a Prince of Arendelle will be very different from your old life as an ice harvester!”
“I know! I know!” Kristoff nodded. “But you don’t need to worry about that! I know what’s expected of me. And anyway, I’ve sold my sled and Sven is taken care of. My ice harvesting days are behind me. Everything is in hand!”
Anna smiled and shook her head a little. “What would I do without you?” she whispered.
Kristoff gave Anna a kiss on the cheek, then went back to his seat.
“Think about the fun stuff!” Kristoff exclaimed. “Ryder and I have our party to look forward to!”
“That’s right!” Ryder agreed.
“Party…” Anna said as she looked at the floor. “I do hope Elsa can make it to mine!”
“Don’t worry, she’ll be here!” Kristoff assured her. “When has your sister ever let you down?”
Anna smiled a little. “I know, I know,” she said as she held her arm and looked to the side. “It’s just that we haven’t seen her for awhile...”
“I’m sure she has her reasons!” Kristoff replied. “Who knows what magic she’s been getting up to?”
“I guess…” Anna said. “I just don’t want her to shut me out again.”
“Take it from me,” Ryder added, “she does get up to a lot of magical business that none of us Northuldra understand. Sometimes we don’t see her for days!”
“You see!” Kristoff exclaimed as he looked back at Anna. “She has been busy! Now, let’s finish dinner, you must be hungry!”
They all finished eating, before Kai returned to talk about wedding plans.
Later that evening, Anna and Kristoff were in their bedroom, changed into their nightclothes. The room was illuminated by a single candle on a bedside table. Kristoff sat up in bed and thumbed through a book while Anna leaned over and looked out of the window.
“It’s really coming down out there,” Anna said as she looked at the heavy rain. There was a rumble of thunder. Anna opened her eyes wide and turned to Kristoff. “I hope the Northuldra are okay!”
“Are you kidding?” Kristoff asked through a gentle smile. “They have your sister to protect them. They don’t need to worry about the weather, Elsa practically is the weather!”
Anna relaxed her shoulders and began to walk towards the bed. “Of course!” she said as she got under the covers.
“You really do worry too much!” Kristoff said as he put his arm around Anna.
“I know, I know…” Anna replied as she cuddled up to Kristoff. She took a glance at his book. “What are you reading?” she asked through a smile.
“Oh, it’s just a book on Arendellian etiquette,” Kristoff said as he placed the book down on the table. “I thought I’d read it to prepare for being a prince. Did you know I’m supposed to eat bananas with a knife and fork?” he asked as the corner of his mouth raised.
“Try being a princess!” Anna exclaimed. “We’re not supposed to be seen eating at all!”
“It’s all a little silly, isn’t it?” said Kristoff. “Oh well, let’s try and sleep, yeah?” he said as he reached over and picked up the candle.
“Yeah!” Anna said as she gave Kristoff a peck on the cheek. “Good night!, my prince!”
Kristoff chuckled. “Good night, Your Majesty!” he said as he blew out the candle. As the rain poured down outside, Anna and Kristoff settled down in their bed and went to sleep.
Meanwhile, north of Arendelle in the forest of Northuldra, Elsa was struggling to sleep in her tent. The night bore the brunt of a summer storm. The wind howled, lightning lit up the sky, and the rains lashed down. Elsa tossed and turned, her thoughts taken up by those of her sister’s impending wedding. Would everything go according to plan? Would it be an event the whole kingdom could be proud of? Elsa shut her eyes tightly and tried to block out the crashes of thunder.
As Elsa tried to sleep, a small sailboat lurched up and down through the raging sea off the coast of Northuldra. On board was a young woman who leaned over the side and held her hair as the waves threw the boat around. At the helm, a man stared into the distance, knowing he had to take the boat ever onwards. A flash of lightning illuminated the coast and the forest. The young woman looked up, forgot her queasiness, and smirked. She stood up, and placed a firm hand on the man’s trembling shoulder. With her head right next to his ear, she pointed, and the boat made its way towards the shore.
The young woman dropped into the knee high water with a sinister smirk on her face. As she got off the boat, the storm relented and the sun began to rise. The boat turned around and sailed back out to sea. The woman had green eyes, plaited blond hair with red streaks in it, and she wore nothing but red shoes and a short, bright scarlet dress. As she marched along the beach, steam rose up from her. With each step she took, flames shot from her heels. She stopped and held out her hand, before laughing with glee as she shot a fireball out of her palm and into the air.
She had the forest of Northuldra in her sights. By the time she reached it the sun was shining brightly. She immersed herself amongst the trees. The morning sun shone through the canopy, leaving beautifully crisp shadows on the ground. Birds sang, rabbits hopped around the forest floor, and squirrels mischievously jumped from branch to branch.
The young woman looked around, taking in her surroundings. Then she placed her hands on a tree, and felt the roughness of the bark. She closed her eyes, and flames shot out of her fingertips. Fire crept up the tree, causing all the animals on it to scamper away. Soon, the tree was totally engulfed. The young woman looked up, delighted as all of the branches were consumed. She shot a jet of flame out of the palm of her hand onto the neighbouring tree, and it too was quickly ablaze. The young woman laughed, and flames appeared in her eyes. She turned herself into a fireball and darted from tree to tree, setting them all on fire. She stood in the middle of the conflagration as branches came crashing down around her. Thick black smoke rose up, and soon the sky became black as night. The more the forest burned, the more the young woman laughed. The flames behind her eyes grew brighter, and fire shot from the red strands in her hair. She laughed to herself even more, and launched plumes of flame from her hands into the air in celebration.
The fire she was surrounded by made her feel more and more powerful. She had found her new kingdom.