Author Note: Hi! Thanks for reading! "Frozen" and all its characters and settings belong to Disney. These first two chapters are scenes from the movie. I wrote them down to bring out the emotional themes I'm developing in the sequel stories, and to describe the meaning of what happened on the fjord, not just the events. My original story picks up in chapter 3.

Prologue Chapter 1 – Turning Back

Kristoff hung on to Anna, Sven's body rolling in a gallop beneath them. Olaf had fallen off when they reached the snowline again, and was skidding and sliding alongside. That crazy snowman could have fun in any situation.

Anna's shivering reached the convulsive stage. "Hang in there," he pleaded with her, then urged Sven to go faster. Her face was so pale even her freckles had faded. He pulled off his hat and settled it on her white hair.

With nothing to do but ride and worry, Kristoff's brain had time to point out that Grand Pabbie hadn't needed to ask what happened to Anna. Pieces of a dim memory pushed up into his consciousness. The only other time he'd seen this happen, Grand Pabbie had asked questions. There were two little girls that time, the unconscious one and the blonde one. He hadn't noticed very much once Bulda started talking to him, but he remembered that much.

He'd caught barely a glimpse of Elsa in the ice palace, but enough to see that she was even blonder than he was. Not many people retained that hair color past early childhood.

This wasn't Anna's first trip to the rock trolls, nor the first time Grand Pabbie had seen the effects of Elsa's magic on Anna. That crazy sister had tried to kill her before, when they were just kids. How foolish did Anna have to be to go after her again? Not only did she get engaged to a man she just met, but she kept chasing a sister who was nothing but trouble and danger. He was caught in the turmoil of wanting to protect her and being angry at her for getting herself hurt, and destroying his livelihood in the process.

Now he was taking her to Hans. Based on what he'd already seen of Anna's judgment, that was going to be a disaster too. But what else could he do?

They reached the borders of the mainland village. Olaf whooped and skidded off. "I'll meet you guys at the castle!"

"Stay out of sight, Olaf!" Kristoff shouted at him.

"I will!" Olaf shouted back.

The next thing Kristoff heard was Olaf greeting someone to a chorus of shrieks.

Sven galloped across the causeway, his hooves loud on the brick paving stones. The castle gates opened as he reached them. Kristoff dismounted, Anna in his arms.

"Will you be all right?" she asked weakly.

"Don't worry about me," Kristoff said, smiling at her concern. She was the one who couldn't take care of herself.

"Princess Anna!" Several people wearing the green castle livery were reaching out for her as she struggled to her feet.

"Get her warm," Kristoff ordered. "And find Prince Hans! Make sure she's safe."

"We will," they said. Then they led Anna away. She looked back at him once before they shut the immense door in his face.

Kristoff leaned against Sven. He was hungry. He had no sled, no food, no money, and even his belt knife was gone. He had nothing left but Sven. With heavy steps, he turned away for the long hike back to the trolls. Maybe they had a mushroom he could eat. Sven stayed at the door, lowing at it sadly as Kristoff walked away.

~###~

Kristoff hiked up the mountainside, Sven trudging after him. The occasional snowflake fell. Sven turned to look back towards the castle where Anna was, bellowing sadly. He chuffed at Kristoff, bleating anxiously.

"What is it buddy?" Kristoff asked.

Sven swung his antlers, herding Kristoff backwards.

"Hey, watch it," Kristoff warned him. "What's wrong with you?"

Sven growled and snapped at him.

"I don't understand you when you talk like that," Kristoff said, walking away.

Sven scooped him up onto his antlers and started walking back towards Anna.

"Ow! Stop it! Put me down!"

Sven obliged, throwing Kristoff into the snow. He chuffed angrily at him again while Kristoff struggled to his feet.

"No, Sven!" Kristoff scolded him. "We're not going back."

Sven moaned a question.

"She's with her true love," Kristoff said.

Sven just gave him that look.

Kristoff looked back at him hopelessly. The wind gusted with unexpected strength through his hair and Kristoff turned to look. Down in the fjord, the castle's shape was obscured as a storm blew up and around it, writhing and twisting in a cold tornado. It was the most unnatural thing he'd seen, and he'd seen a lot these past two days. There was only one source for something that ominous – Elsa was down there, with Anna, who would try to find her again.

"Anna!" Kristoff exclaimed, and took off running down the mountain.

Sven caught up with him and Kristoff climbed onto his back. Kristoff urged him faster, but Sven was already galloping as fast as he could go down the mountainside and onto the fjord. The storm rose like a wall in front of them. Kristoff only urged Sven to go faster, sure that Anna was at the very heart of her sister's storm.

They dodged around ships and boats, all the detritus that had frozen in the fjord. Kristoff trusted his life to Sven's sure-footed gallop. The wind was breaking things apart, blowing things into their course. Then the wind caught the sail of a frozen ship. Before it snapped off the mainmast, it drove the ship over and the ice beneath it began to crack.

Kristoff and Sven were caught right beneath the falling ship, with nowhere to go but straight ahead. "Go!" Kristoff yelled. Sven put forth a mighty effort to dodge the debris falling off the collapsing ship and even the spar missed them, crashing into the ice and shattering the surface they ran on. Ice broke all around them. As Sven plunged into the icy water, he bucked his friend to safety.

Kristoff scrambled on the ice, turning, screaming for Sven who was in the water littered with ice blocks. At last he surfaced and clambered onto an ice floe. He lowed at Kristoff.

"Good boy," Kristoff said, relieved. If he had to choose between rescuing Anna and rescuing Sven, he wasn't sure which one he would have chosen.

He turned and ran. Anna's voice floated to him in the wind. It could have come from any direction.

"Anna!" he shouted back, and kept running.