Introduction

Eight months have passed since Elsa thawed the kingdom. She has settled into a routine and begins to bring Anna into participating in the governance of Arendelle. Her enemies have not forgotten the wrongs they feel need to be avenged, however, and a plot to remove Elsa from the throne of Arendelle is seething beneath the surface. A plot that started long before her coronation. There are two people who need to die before that plot can succeed, however.

Author's note on dates: Word of God has stated that the movie takes place 'around' 1840, so let's just go with 1840. Based on the full moon that Anna and Hans danced under, and Oaken's comment about the 'howler in July', Elsa's coronation took place on July 14, 1840, and the events of the movie took three days. All the dates in this story use July 14, 1840 as the baseline.

I have arbitrarily assigned July 7, 1819 as Elsa's birthday. I'm making the assumption that her coronation day was set up for the convenience of everyone, not necessarily needing to be on the exact day she turns 21. And, equally arbitrarily, I have chosen September, 1837 as the month when her parents took that ill-fated voyage. It would not be totally unlikely for a freak storm to happen that far north in the fall.

The main storyline takes place eight months after Coronation Day, or March, 1841. There will be quite a bit of jumping around to set up that storyline, and I will use flashbacks to do so. I will try to make it clear when each scene takes place with a descriptive heading.

Our story begins with a flashback to the day Elsa learns that she is now Queen Elsa.

** September, 1837 - Kingdom of Arendelle, Royal Council Chambers **

"King Agdar is dead! Long Live Queen Elsa!"

'Queen Elsa' was an eighteen year old girl who had just learned that her parents were dead, and that she was now the Queen of Arendelle. Her brain shut down. She couldn't think, she couldn't breathe. She simply stared at the men in front of her, frozen.

"Your Majesty?" a soft , sympathetic voice spoke in her ear; a brief, light touch on her arm brought her back into focus. It was Kai, one of the few servants left on the castle staff when her father had closed the gates ten years ago. "Your Majesty?" The unspoken words "Are you okay?" hung in the air, because he knew she wasn't. He was concerned for her. He had more reason to be than most of the men in the room.

She tried to speak, couldn't. She swallowed and tried again. "In ... in light of this terrible accident that has taken the King and Queen from us, I decree a mourning period of thirty days." She managed to dredge those words up from her memory, somehow. "Now, please, if you'll excuse me...I...I must request you allow me some time to ... digest this news. In private."

Elsa was able to walk out of the room without breaking down, but as soon as she was out of sight in the hallway she ran as though all the demons of hell were pursuing her. She ran to her room; her sanctuary, her prison; slammed the door behind her and collapsed onto the floor. As she sobbed, ice formed on the walls and snowflakes hung suspended in the air. "Conceal, don't feel. Oh, Papa, Mama!"

"Well, that wasn't very ... impressive." Anders Reinertsen was a member of the Royal Arendelle Council of Advisors. He was a prominent merchant, prosperous and well-connected within the gentry of Arendelle. His ships traded profitably at every port in northern Europe.

"In the name of God, man! She's a young girl, just turned eighteen, who is told that her parents are dead and she's now the Queen. What on earth were you expecting her to do? Sit down in that chair at the head of the table and immediately begin discussing trade negotiations with Weselton? Let her mourn her parents as a daughter before you expect her to be the Queen." This speaker was Admiral Mikael Naismith, commander of the Royal Arendelle Navy and all the other uniformed services of the kingdom.

Admiral Naismith glanced at Kai, received a small nod in return. The two men knew the secret of Elsa's magic power, a secret known to only three people now that the King and Queen had died in a freak storm at sea.

"Yes, a girl, emotional, flighty. Not like her father at all." Reinertsen harrumphed back at the Admiral. "And we hardly know her. Agdar kept her isolated. How do we know she's fit to rule this kingdom?"

"KING Agdar was diligent in training her to succeed him. Keep a civil tongue in your head! Have you no respect for the dead? Or the living?" The Admiral glowered at Reinertsen.

"Gentlemen! Please!" Bishop Henrik Norgaard spoke up before the discussion devolved into more than just bickering. He was far more sympathetic to the Admiral's point of view than Reinertsen's, but he tried to maintain a neutral expression. "We should plan the memorial service for the late King and Queen."

With this to divert them, the council settled back into routine.

"Your Majesty? It's time." Gerda looked at the girl with affection and sympathy. She had been part of the castle staff since before the royal daughters had been born, and loved them as much as she loved her own children.

Gerda was the third person left alive who knew Elsa's secret. She was dismayed to see the young woman begin to tremble as ice appeared on the walls. Small snowflakes formed to whirl in the air. Elsa was losing control.

"I can't. Oh, Gerda, I just can't!" Tears began to run down Elsa's cheeks, and she staggered on her feet, reached behind her to steady herself against her bed. The snow swirled more swiftly, the ice spread to cover more of the room. "I thought I could, but I can't!"

Gerda knew better than to mouth empty platitudes. She also knew better than to reach out to Elsa; the girl would only recoil at the attempt, she was deathly afraid to touch anyone. The gesture would only make matters worse.

"I understand, Your Majesty. Is there any message I may convey to Princess Anna?" The sisters had been separated for ten years; Anna had no idea that the separation was to protect her. Gerda questioned the wisdom of that decision, but ... she was just a servant.

"Tell her, tell them all ... that I've become ill. Very ill. Too ill to come." Elsa forced the words out through clenched teeth and her sobs. "Please, go, I don't want to hurt you!"

Her heart breaking for the young woman who was her Queen, Gerda nodded, curtsied, and left the room.

Elsa collapsed with her back against the door and wrapped her arms around her knees. She was dressed in a black and grey mourning dress. The memorial for her parents was to begin in less than an hour, and she would not be there. She bent her head to rest on her knees and wept: for them, for herself, for Anna.

Her absence would be noticed. She was now the Queen. Her every move, word, gesture, were now the subject of intense scrutiny. And judgement.

The crowd parted and bowed in respect as Princess Anna walked slowly down the hill from the two cenotaphs erected to commemorate her parents. They waited a few minutes before following her back to Arendelle from the memorial service for the King and Queen.

Anders Reinertsen muttered to Bjorn Thorstad. "So, and where is our new Queen? Couldn't even bring herself to honor her dead parents."

"You heard the princess. She's 'ill'." snorted Thorstad.

"Yes, well, how convenient an excuse. You may believe that, but I certainly don't. I tell you, Thorstad, that girl is not fit to rule this kingdom."

"And who is there to put in her place? An even younger girl, who's as flighty and irresponsible as a five-year old?" Thorstad retorted. Both were careful to speak in whispers that would not be overheard. This conversation could be construed as treason.

"A young girl not yet an adult. Who would be guided by a Regent. A mature Regent, able to influence her development until she reached adulthood. Perhaps influence her choice of a consort. Three years is a long time." Reinertsen's tone of voice made it clear who he thought would make an excellent Regent, perhaps even a consort for a young, naive Princess.

Thorstad snorted again. "An unlikely event, Anders. What would it take to put the sister on the throne? I doubt the Queen will be taking any sea voyages any time soon. So there would be no convenient 'accidents' to remove her. And if anything were to happen to the Queen, Naismith would be suspicious. For that matter, so would Norgaard. They wouldn't rest until they were sure about what had happened."

"Bah! Weaklings, both of them. It takes a tough-minded man to do what is right for the kingdom, even if it means forcing an unfit ruler from the throne." A note of contempt was clear in his voice.

"You'd better not let Naismith hear you call him a weakling. He's a much better swordsman and pistoleer than you are, and a challenge to his honor wouldn't go unanswered." Thorstad cautioned.

"Hrumph." Reinertsen subsided. He knew what would happen if he faced Naismith on the field of honor.

"Give it some time. Let the Council see how she handles herself. If you're right about her, it won't take long for all of them to come around to your way of thinking, even Naismith. He's a loyalist, but his higher loyalty is to Arendelle, not the girl." Thorstad was persuasive.

"We'll see about that." Reinertsen let the conversation drop, but his thoughts continued to plan how he could proceed with the strategy to put the younger Princess on the throne. He was a patient man.

** Present Day - March, 1841 - Eight months after the Coronation of Queen Elsa **

Elsa, Queen of Arendelle, looked out the window overlooking the castle courtyard and cast her thoughts back to that day when the courtyard had been filled with people here to celebrate her coronation. That day she had stood before them terrified that they would discover her secret. A secret she had been hiding for thirteen years. A secret that didn't make it to thirteen years and one day, thanks to her sister Anna.

It wasn't Anna's fault. It wasn't any one person's fault. If Elsa were going to write a 'whose fault was it?' list, it would include her parents, GrandPabbie the eldest troll, her sister Anna and herself, not necessarily in that order.

Elsa turned and walked back to her study. "The past is in the past. Let it go." She smiled a little at those words in her head. She had flung them into the sky in defiance that night, alone on the mountain. Futile defiance, as it turned out. She had discovered that running away didn't really solve anything. Problems had a habit of following you and digging you out of your nice, safe hiding place.

Sitting at her desk, Elsa paged through some notes she had written to prepare for this meeting. She mused about the lessons her father had taught her; lessons critical to the good governance of a kingdom. If only she hadn't needed to use those lessons at so young an age; before she was ready. She was determined that her sister would be better prepared should some accident of fate put Anna on the throne. Elsa had felt completely inadequate to take the throne when tragedy took their parents from them. She didn't want Anna to feel that crushing burden in the same way.

While they were growing up, Elsa's education was more intense, but her sister Anna's had not been neglected. Until one of them had children to join the line of succession, they were all that Arendelle had. As Queen, Elsa had the responsibility to ensure that the throne would be in good hands should anything happen to her. She owed that to Arendelle, but more importantly, she owed that to her sister.

Elsa's personality was more reserved and inhibited than her sister's. Elsa was punctual; Anna had a casual attitude toward time. Their clashing styles could have led to real conflicts. But Elsa loved her baby sister so much that she was willing to let Anna be Anna. Most of the time. And, truthfully, she was learning that Anna's approach to life was just what Elsa needed occasionally. She certainly laughed more when Anna was around. She could only hope that maybe a little of her style would rub off on Anna, if only for the peace of mind of the castle staff.

Elsa had asked Anna to meet her this afternoon for some tutoring in political reality. She was late, as usual.

"Hi, Elsa!" Anna bounced into the study with her familiar exuberance. "Look what I brought you from the market!" She held out a small box to Elsa. Chocolate! Both girls loved the sweet rich taste, and Anna always shared with Elsa.

Smiling with delight, Elsa said "Thank you, Anna. You know I appreciate your gifts." Elsa was nothing if not polite, which didn't stop her from sneaking an extra piece of chocolate when Anna wasn't looking.

"So, what's the big plan for this afternoon? I hope it won't take long, Olaf and Sven invited me and Kristoff to a picnic!" Anna said while popping a sweet into her mouth.

"Anna, it will take as long as it takes. You and I have a kingdom to rule, remember?" Elsa replied.

"What's this 'we' stuff? Last time I looked, you're stuck with it for life. And the family histories say our ancestors lived long, healthy lives, so I figure you're good for 75 more years or so!"

Elsa's face suddenly took on a look of profound sorrow, and Anna wished she had bitten her tongue before making that remark. Accidents happen, and no one knew how long their life would be.

"Well most of them ... Elsa, I'm sorry. That was thoughtless. I still miss them, too." Anna sat next to her sister and took her hand. Elsa squeezed it and sighed.

"I know you do. And as much as I hope nothing like that happens to either one of us, we need to plan for that 'just in case'. Papa didn't expect to leave us on our own, but it happened. If my life were cut short, I wouldn't want you to feel the way I did when they told me I was Queen. I wouldn't wish that on my worst enemy."

Anna remembered her own grief-stricken misery when they told her about their parents. She couldn't imagine how the extra burden of assuming the throne had weighed on Elsa.

They sat in silence for a few moments, each lost in their thoughts. Anna finally spoke up.

"Okay, with that as a start, what sort of grueling plans do you have for me, oh Great and Powerful Sovereign Ruler of Arendelle?" Anna hoped a little irreverence would break the gloom. Elsa fell into glum moods too easily, still, and it was hard to get her out of them sometimes.

"You're still continuing your lessons with your tutors, but I think we should add more focus on diplomacy and politics. Plus, I would like you to take on some formal duties with me. A lot of what my job entails is people issues, and you're better at that than I am. I can learn from you, and I want to." Elsa hoped Anna saw this as a sensible plan.

"Ewww...diplomacy? Ugh, like dancing with that weaselly Duke at the ball? I still haven't forgiven you for that!" Anna twisted her face into an imitation of the pretentious little man who had 'danced' all over her toes that night.

Elsa had to laugh at the memory. He had been ridiculous. Before he tried to have his men kill her. Even ridiculous men can be dangerous, if driven by fear and greed.

"Yes, Anna, just like that." Elsa pulled a sheet of paper out out her desk and started writing. "Let's send a note to Kristoff. I don't think you'll be joining that picnic today."

Anna pouted, then sighed. "You better be more fun than they are!" She noticed there was only one chocolate left. 'Elsa you stinker,' she thought as she grabbed it while Elsa was busy concentrating on her note.