Author's notes: First off, this is going to be Elsanna / not related, so DL/DR.

Right, with that out of the way, this is a Modern AU, many of the familiar characters will be here, especially Elsa and Anna. Some things are pretty much right from the movie, others have been changed to fit the new setting. There are also going to be some flashbacks.

And obviously, I don't own Frozen, Disney does.

Thanks ahead of time for reading, and I hope you enjoy the story!

Wings of Ice

Chapter 1 - Legends and Interns

- 250 Years Ago -

Hans wiped the blood from his eyes, mentally cursing his carelessness. He needed to get close to the Ice Witch, close enough that she wouldn't be able to fling more ice spikes at him. The last one barely missed taking an eye out entirely, and one before it had opened a long gash in his right arm. He could feel the blood dripping down his sleeve, making the grip on his sword slick. If he didn't finish this soon, he wouldn't be able to fight at all.

He could hear the last few soldiers left still fighting on the ground floor. They'd stayed behind to buy him time to reach Elsa, but he knew they'd never last against the ice monster the Frost Queen, as some of the troops called her, had raised to combat them. They were brave men, and desperate too. All of them had followed him in hopes of stopping the cursed woman who'd built the palace of ice high in the mountains.

When they'd learned that Elsa had kidnapped Anna, their Crown Princess, it only drove them harder. They were eager to bring her back. Unfortunately, that last part might be too late.

He glanced down at the lower floor of the ice palace and grimaced. Anna's still form lay in a spreading pool of blood. From this distance, he was unable to tell if his betrothed was still alive, but he could only hope. He tightened his hand on his sword. If she was dead...

"Surrender, Elsa!" he called, not really expecting her to, but limited on other options.

A flurry of ice shot over his head in reply, forcing him to duck further down behind the wall. He took a quick look around, spotting a crossbow one of the soldiers had dropped. Unfortunately, it sat in the middle of the room, too far out for him to reach. If he tried to grab it, Elsa would easily hit him with her ice blasts.

The floor shook with dull, thudding impacts from below, and Hans felt his stomach sink. That damnable ice creature was on its way back up. If it got here before he finished with Elsa...

He smiled grimly. Well, if that happened, the Southern Isles would have one less prince to vie for the throne. And Arendelle would remain locked in a permanent winter.

He gathered his courage and dashed for the crossbow, barely managing to grab it before a spike of ice passed by where his hand had been a moment before. He huddled down behind the remains of a fallen pillar and cursed. The string on the crossbow was intact, but in his rush he'd neglected to grab bolts for the weapon.

Such a simple mistake. Erik, the current favorite for the throne, would never have been so stupid. Even Martin, easily his dumbest brother, would have made sure that he had ammunition for it.

His glanced around for a solution before his eyes came to rest on an ice shard that had bounced off the wall behind him. He picked it up and, with some effort and a little pain in his injured arm, managed to situate it in the crossbow.

The footsteps grew louder, booming hollowly as the monster mounted the stairs. This plan was awful. He needed far too much luck. Even if the crossbow fired, even if he actually managed to hit his target, he could only hope Elsa would be vulnerable to her own ice. It was a terrible plan. But it beat being eaten by an ice monster.

"Yrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaghhhhh!" He yelled, charging out. He felt Elsa's ice tugging at the edges of his uniform, but kept going. A pale form rose up before him, the cold radiating from her in waves that matched her fury. Her hands shot out towards him, a faint blue-white glow surrounding them.

Hans lined up his crossbow and pulled the trigger, praying...

- Present day -

"Come onnnnnnnn!" Anna wheedled, tugging on Hans' sleeve. "We're gonna be late at this rate."

"I'm not the one who just had to stop for that triple decker fudge cone," her boyfriend replied with easy humor. "And I'm certainly not the one who dropped it into the glovebox because her phone startled her."

"That was totally not my fault!" Anna fumed. "Ariel called, and I had to talk to her. You know Eric just dumped her for that bimbo Ursula, just because she has a nice 'voice'." She air quoted the last word. "She needed to talk. So I talked to her. Besides, you're the one who set the phone to vibrate. It startled me, so really, if you look at it, this is all your fault, Hans."

"Whatever you say," he said, purposely slowing his pace just to frustrate her she was sure.

"And after that, I had to ask Mulan to check on her. And she wanted to tell me all about her trip home. Did I tell you, she saw Gaston? Apparently, he didn't even play one game before throwing out his knee. The idiot was partying before his first game and got drunk and fell off a table." She giggled savagely at the thought of her ex from high school screwing up in such a stupid way. Especially after the way he'd dumped her right before Homecoming in their junior year. Well, if only he could see her now! Popular, lots of friends, getting A's in all her classes, dating a really hot guy who didn't push her faster than she was ready to go. He'd be so jealous, he'd certainly- "Ooooh, sandwiches!"

She was busy stuffing the second one in her mouth when she finally noticed Hans' laughter. He grabbed one for himself and handed her another. "Okay Black Hole, I suppose we can make some time for food."

"So not fair!" She fumed, grinning all the while. Gaston certainly never had been considerate enough to get her food like this. "I am not a black hole."

"You're more like a race car, full of energy and drive." He smiled at her.

"Not an improvement!"

"Great white shark?"

"Hans!" She giggled when she felt his arm slide around her waist, and twisted slightly to deny him the contact. "I don't know why you're trying to take liberties with a girl you just compared to a gravitational anomaly, a car, and a carnivorous fish."

"Maybe because I won't be seeing my little eating machine for quite a while after this?" She let him hug her this time, her heart fluttering a bit. "You're going to get the internship, we both know it."

"Ohmygod, don't jinx it!" Anna thumped her fist against his chest. "They haven't announced it yet. They could still change their minds. Or the funding could get pulled. Or a volcano could erupt. You never know!"

"A volcano, really?" Hans raised a skeptical eyebrow. "You're not more worried about the aliens landing?"

"Hans, you know I don't believe in aliens. Or magic."

"This from the girl who wrote that song about true love for the talent show?"

"Ugh, please tell me you deleted that vid." Anna grimaced, recalling the time her friends egged her into trying out for the college talent festival. "I don't think anyone who listened that could ever believe in love again. I am never going to write anything after having sushi and ice cream again." She declared proudly.

"Most people know better than to try that even once, Anna."

"Most people are boring. Life should be an adventure."

"Yes, and you spent most of the next day reliving that little 'adventure' in the bathroom."

"Are you trying to make me mad?"

"Everyone needs a hobby." He gently elbowed her. "Now get your game face on, here comes the head of the department."

Anna turned towards the message board, eagerly watching the elderly woman tack the sheet of paper to it. The professor barely finished posting it before the board was mobbed with eager students, all crushed together trying to read the list. Anna wormed her way through the crowd, ducking under the arm of one rather tall boy. Her eyes ran down the list.

No.

Nope.

Uhn uh.

No again.

Anna Frostad.

Nope.

Nonono.

Wait, what?

She looked back up the list. There it was, in plain font - 'Anna Frostad.' She rubbed her eyes and looked again. Just to make sure. No mistake, her name was on the list! She made it! She was going to Norway!

"Ohmygodohmygodohmygodohmygod, YES!" She cheered, jumping into the air and bumping her head into someone's arm. "Owwww."

She worked her way back through the packed mass of students. Getting out was harder than going forward, seeing as most of the others hadn't had a chance to review the list yet. Still, she persevered and managed to make it back to Hans. "Well? Did you get it?" He asked her, a slight nervous note in his voice.

"I bumped my head!" She told him proudly. He was supposed to be happy for her, so why did he look so confused? Oh wait, duh, Anna you told him the wrong thing. "Wait, yes, I got it! I'm going to Norway, Hans! I'm totally going to be an archaeologist!"

"My little Indiana Jones!" He beamed at her and kissed her cheek.

"I'm going to pretend that you didn't just compare me to a guy named after a dog, and just be happy."

"You know you like his movies too. I mean, you only make me watch them at least once a month."

Anna glared at him. "Don't think I've forgotten that you tried to get me to watch that other one. Getting nuked in a fridge? Aliens? I told you I don't believe in aliens." She shivered. "I had to bleach my brain after seeing that abomination once."

"And a grail or a box that shoots magic face melting light is better?" Hans teased her.

"You just don't understand." Anna humphed, stamping her foot. Then the realization of what just happened hit her fully. "Ohmygod, I so need to pack. And shop. I need warm clothes, don't I? I'm going to Norway! I'm going to need warm clothes. They'll have chocolate there, right? And pizza? And sandwiches?

"It's Norway, not another planet, Anna." Hans was laughing now. "They'll have pizza."

- Later that night -

Anna sighed softly as Hans slid his hand up her side. Her friends were busy with the party and not paying much attention to the couple on the couch. She was feeling so happy right now, so she decided that maybe he'd earned a little more than just a few kisses. After all, she had dropped her ice cream in his car...

Okay, so maybe a little touching was on the table. Hans wasn't Gaston, he wouldn't try to push for more than that. But just a few. That was all. Besides, she'd earned a little fun, herself.

She, Anna Frostad, was going to Norway! She'd been selected as one of only six undergrad students to join the team researching the castle at the Arendelle site. In less than a week's time, she was going to be a real-life archaeologist!

Ever since she'd been a little girl, she'd loved stories, especially true ones. Her mom would read her all kinds of books, and by the time she was finishing high school, she knew what she wanted to do with her life. She was going to be an archaeologist and help discover new stories too.

And now, her life was on track. Best college she could find? Check. Internship that would eventually lead to her dream job? Check. Boyfriend who was way better than her loser ex from high school? Check. Lots of friends? Check.

Speaking of boyfriends...

Regretfully, she pushed Hans' hand away when it had climbed a bit too high for her. She was no Snow, who had dated her way through the whole football team. If she was honest with herself, she wasn't even Jasmine, who'd run off her her badboy halfway through senior year.

Anna wanted more than just a boyfriend. She wanted love. True love. The kind that drove people to write epic stories. She looked over to Hans, who'd managed to push himself away with a frustrated groan. She smiled. She hadn't even had to say anything. He'd understood her, and despite clearly wanting more, he was willing to go along with her desires.

Okay Anna, maybe the love thing is going just fine.

A cheer erupted from the game going on in the other room. Anna stood up and peeked in - sure enough, the other boys had started another round of poker. She gasped when she saw that clothing was definitely optional.

Yeah, I've had enough party for one night. She blushed a deep, deep red when she ducked into the room to grab her coat. Yup, more party than I want right now!

- A few days later -

The remaining days passed far too slowly for Anna. She was packed and ready to go. She'd practically bought out the whole winter section of Old Navy, for god's sake. Books, chocolate, clothes, chocolate, new computer courtesy of her proud parents, chocolate, other supplies, chocolate. Anna was ready to go.

So of course the morning she was set to leave, her alarm clock decided it had had enough. She even managed to sleep through the first three frantic calls from Hans. Finally, rapid knocks woke her from a deep sleep, and she sat up, her eyes widening when she saw what time it really was. She threw on her clothes, gathered her bags, and dashed out the door, slamming into Hans and spilling her bags all over the hallway.

"Anna, what happened? How could you oversleep on your big day?" He asked her as he helped her gather her things and repack them quickly.

"My alarm clock died. This is all your fault!"

"How is this one my fault? If anything, I'd say a higher power granted that poor clock some mercy and put it out of its misery. I've heard stories from Ariel about how you'd slam that thing."

"Yeah, but you jinxed it. You said I'd get the internship before they posted the list. You totally jinxed me, Hans."

"You can't be serious." He stared at her for a moment before hiding a laugh with his hand.

"What?"

"Mmmmphhhh!" He sputtered into his hand.

"Whaaaaaaaaaaaattttttttt?" She growled at him.

"Anna, you have bedhead."

She reached up, feeling errant strands of hair all over the place. "How bad is it? Be honest with me." Before he could say anything, she threw up a hand to stop him. "No, wait. Don't tell me. It's bad, isn't it? Terminal. I'm going to have to amputate."

"Slow down there, Marie Antoinette. You can put the guillotine away." He reached up to help her fix the mess. Taking one side each, they quickly braided her hair into two simple braids. "See? All better now."

"Thanks." She smiled at him.

"Now, let's get you to the airport before leprechauns run off with your plane or something."

"Are you trying to make me lose this internship, Hans Southisle?"

"Never." He kissed her. "I'm not thrilled about my girlfriend being halfway around the world, but I want you to have this. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity." He grinned crookedly. "Besides, maybe this way, I can get back to my own grad classes. Professor DeVille keeps saying she'll feed me to her dogs if I miss one more lab because I'm helping you, and she's starting to sound like she means it."

"I'd worry more about Professor Jaffar. That pet snake of his is creepy." She shivered. "And his parrot is just plain rude."

Hans shrugged. "Look on the bright side, one of these days, he'll forget to close the lid on the snake's tank, and the bird problem will be solved, at least."

"Hans!" She choked on a laugh. "That is so not funny."

"Oh please, you can't tell me you're not picturing a snake with an Iago-sized lump trying to slither back into its cage."

"I'm not."

"It's stuck in the doorway, the Iago-lump stopping it from getting back into its tank."

"La la la la. Not listening." She closed her eyes, trying to hide her smile while she plugged her ears with her fingers.

"The snake burps and feathers fly out."

"Not listening!" She felt his hands take hers and gently pull them away from her face.

"This is the Anna you need to show them. If you can be like this, they'll take one look at you and fall in love with you." He smiled softly at her. "And just in case, here's something to help you stack the deck." Hans passed her a folder. "Reading material for the plane."

"What is it?"

"Just some info on the other students at the site. I called in some favors from my bro at the registrars office. Get to know them before you get to know them."

"Thank you, Hans." She gave him one final kiss before getting in the waiting taxi. Soon enough, she'd be leaving New York and on her way to her new life in Norway!

- Later, somewhere over the Atlantic -

Anna flipped through the pages of the folder, too excited to sleep, despite several urgings from the flight attendants. She was on the way, past the point of no return. A brand new expedition beckoned, and she'd be leading the way, going boldly where...

Okay, 'where a bunch of other students, several professors and lots of dead guys had gone before' didn't sound all that impressive, but still. It was the principle of the thing. She had an image to uphold.

The more she read, the more she wanted to meet them all. Professor Weselton ('not Weaseltown!' Hans had scrawled on the paper) was from all rumors a fairly easygoing instructor. He liked jokes and tried to make all the students feel at home. Unfortunately, he wasn't that great at handling change, hence his semi-exile from university politics. She noted that he'd written one book already about the Arendelle ruins and, according to rumors, was busy on the second.

His two grad students were likewise fascinating. Kristoff Bjorgman was writing his thesis on the lifestyle of the nomadic reindeer herders who supplied meat to the castle and town. He had some theories and was hoping the site could provide answers. Plus, Anna decided he was pretty cute in a dopey sort of way. Not that she was interested like that - she had Hans, after all - but still.

Elsa Lynse, on the other hand, was almost a complete mystery. Hans hadn't been able to dig up much information on her. Her records were apparently sealed from some deal made by her parents when she first enrolled. Her thesis was on the mythology of the site, something Anna was very interested in also. Added to the almost total lack of other facts about her, it made Anna extremely curious to meet her.

The other students were more or less familiar to her. She'd had classes with all of them at one point or another over the past two years. She'd be the newest and youngest of the undergrads working the site, but she didn't let it get her down. There were only three others, and two of them would be returning to New York for graduation when the next semester was finished.

All in all, Anna was excited. Two grad students meant two projects she could help with, and two people who could help her in return. An easygoing, funny professor certainly sounded better than the mean old woman Hans was stuck studying under. And the castle they were researching was amazing! Old paintings, a library that was virtually intact, mysterious ruins in the forest! It was just like something from the stories her mother told her as a child.

She reread the files, but the second review took far less time than the first, and she still had another two hours of flying before she changed planes in London. She debated sleeping, but memories of the horrible bedhead she'd suffered this morning kept her awake. She didn't want to frighten her new future friends, after all. She pulled out Professor Weselton's book and started reading.

The next two hours passed rapidly, and before she knew it, the plane started its descent towards London. Anna pressed her face against the window, not wanting to miss a single glimpse of the city and regretting that she hadn't scheduled a longer layover so she could explore for a little bit. That big ferris wheel, for example, looked fun. Plus, she was in Europe now. She wanted to try some real European chocolate.

What? The airline food sucked. She needed to get the taste of it out of her mouth.

- Later still, in Norway -

Anna stepped out of the airport, disappointed that the earth hadn't shifted. She was here at last, her adventure officially underway. It deserved a more monumental recognition than being elbowed out of the way by a rather portly looking man in a chef's hat muttering something about crab cakes in french.

She took the opportunity to call Hans, but it went to voicemail. Checking the time, she saw that he'd be running his lab session for Professor DeVille right about now. Damn, this time difference is going to take some getting used to. She settled for leaving several text messages for him, telling him all about her flight. She figured she could try him tomorrow before her ride to the site arrived.

Anna grabbed her bags and hurried towards the hotel she was staying at for the night. While not the best one around, she figured she wouldn't be stalked by creepy twins or chased by a guy with an axe. And if she wanted to watch a movie, well, Ariel was thousands of miles away, so her ridiculous ban on the Shining didn't count here. She dumped her bags in the room, and set out to explore Oslo. First priority, getting some real food. After all, she was going to be here for at least the next six months, and hopefully a year more if she managed to impress Professor Weselton. She'd have to get used to the local food, and the sooner she started, the better.

After finding a nice restaurant within her budget and happily trying about half the menu, Anna decided to try calling Hans again. Still no answer. She left another message, then crashed on the bed. All at once, jet lag caught up with her. Jet lag ran her over with a tank, then backed up to finish the job. She passed out, still in her clothes.

The next morning, an unfamiliar alarm jolted her awake, followed shortly by a call from the desk. She stumbled through her usual morning routine and made it down to the lobby for breakfast. Her eyes popped at the selection of complimentary pastries sitting on a small table on the side of the room. She grabbed a plate and piled on at least one of each. The amazing thing was, they tasted even better than they'd looked.

Anna finished her breakfast and retrieved her bags from the room. She knew she could just wait there, but she wanted to be in the lobby. She was scheduled to be picked up 'late morning' - nothing more exact than that - and she had no intention of missing her ride.

'Late morning' turned into 'late afternoon', and was looking to grow into 'late evening' when a battered old Volkswagen pulled up out front. The hotel staff shot worried looks at the oil dripping from underneath the car, and Anna couldn't resist staring at it. None of the doors matched the paint of the car itself, or even each other. There was duct tape holding the trunk shut!

"Figures," Anna muttered, standing and stretching before gathering her bags. She had just turned back towards the door when a boy got out of the car and waved to her. She recognized him from the picture Hans gave her. Kristoff.

He looked a bit scruffier than his photo, but in a good way, Anna decided. He moved with a lazy ease, nothing like the stiff, almost formal way of walking Hans used. And his smile was warm and welcoming. He waved again, making sure she knew he was here for her and walked over to her. "Hi! You must be Anna. I'm Kristoff." He extended his hand for her to shake, then noted the collection of bags she carried. "Oh sorry, let me help you with that."

"Thanks. I'm Anna, but you already said that." Anna passed him a few of her bags, wincing when he put them in the trunk with a loud thump. She set the ones she carried in there with more care. He slammed the trunk down and grabbed a roll of duct tape, tearing off a new piece and slapping it over the latch.

"Sorry about Betsi here. Our usual van broke down the other day, so we're having to make do. Betsi was all we had."

"Oh it's fine. She, uh, she has character! Yeah, character!" Anna sat down in the front seat.

"She's a rusty pile of shit." She laughed along with him. "Seriously, I am sorry I'm so late. I tried to call, but cells only work about ten percent of the time out at Arendelle."

"It's okay, really. I appreciate you coming all the way here to pick me up."

"Yeah, well, it's late so we're going to stay with some friends along the way for tonight, and I'll have you there tomorrow morning." Anna was about to object when he kept going. "Don't worry, I cleared it with Weaseltown. Plus, he's not even on site right now anyway. He's off wrangling up some more supplies for us."

"You shouldn't call him that!" Anna said. "I mean, that's what I heard. Everyone says he doesn't like it. I wouldn't like it either, even if it does look like it should be Weaseltown. Hmmm, Weaseltown." She giggled. "It is kinda fun to say."

"Sorry, I guess I should set a better example. You shouldn't get in trouble with him because of me."

"What happened?"

"He won't approve my current thesis. He says that reindeer just aren't as interesting as people. I tried to point out that without reindeer, the people in the castle couldn't eat. Plus I want to show how important to trade they were."

"Oh." 'Oh' was a nice, safe, neutral word. On the one hand, she liked Kristoff. He was nice and kind and fun, and adorable in a dorky kind of way. On the other hand, she needed Professor Weselton to like her so she could stay and live out her dream.

Still, 'Weaseltown' was pretty fun to say.

Next Chapter: Meet Elsa!