Author's Note: Welp, my first fic in a long, long, loooooooong time! This story started out very simple, but with some help from a wonderful friend, it's grown and expanded into something much bigger that I'm quite excited about. This piece in its entirety will end up being quite long, without giving too much away, I'll just say that it's going to end up being more like three sub-stories in one. It will involve more than one Elsa ship, it will introduce some new OC's, and hopefully, it'll be a fun, emotional ride for everyone. Enjoy.

"I'm not here for fire crystals or trinkets, little Troll, I'm here for deep magics!"

A strange, powerful voice echoed from the stone basin. One tall figure stood in the center of a ring of many boulders. Standing boulders, for each stood as little men and woman, wearing tunics of moss and crystal garlands around their necks. A slightly larger boulder stood in the center before the tall figure, unflinching. Resting his arms on a pine staff, he parleyed with the stranger. "We have no deep magics for you here, Loki Odinson."

The tall figure called Loki shuffled, agitated. He looked ever imposing in the moonlight with his golden horned crown. "Do not test me, you insignificant creature. I felt it come from here, the call of powerful sorcery. Do you think you can hide it from me forever? I will find it, and when I do, I shall cast all of you into a pit for your insolence!"

It appeared to Elsa that the figure was done meeting with the trolls, and he stormed off in the direction of the fjords. She kept herself hidden in the shadows, hardly daring to believe what she was seeing. It couldn't really be...that wasn't possible. She waited until she could no longer hear his footsteps before coming forward. "Grandpabbie…"

"Princess Elsa," the elder troll bowed, and the others followed suit. "We heard about your parents. I'm so terribly sorry."

Elsa bit back tears. "They were the only ones who knew...please, I need help, I can't control this on my own."

Grandpabbie gently took Elsa's hands in his; they were large, gravelly, and cool to the touch. "You must not allow your heart to falter in such dire times. Always remember, your Majesty, that fear will bring tragedy. You must fill your heart with love."

"Come with me, Princess." Grandpabbie led her away from the other trolls and to a small grove where they could speak. Elsa knelt on the grass beside him. "You have so much love and wonder inside of you, but you keep it locked away. This is not the way. You must share this love with the world."

"How can I?" Elsa despaired. "My power brings pain. It nearly killed Anna. It's only grown stronger since then."

Grandpabbbie nodded. "Yes, your magic is very powerful, and left unchecked, it can turn terrible. But strength does not mean only destruction. You are meant for great things, I have faith in you. Try to open your heart and find love, yes?" He looked at her, his eyes searching hers for signs of hope.

Elsa looked sadly back at the little troll. "I'll...I'll try. Thank you, Grandpabbie." She rose and walked back towards her horse, wiping tears from her eyes as she went.

"Well now, this is a surprise." A voice rose from nowhere and Elsa gasped as a familiar silhouette emerged from the shadows - no, it looked as though the shadows themselves came together to form the shape of the imposing figure from before, the one the trolls had called Loki Odinson.

He circled her, studying her like an object. "I must admit, this is not what I expected to find, so much magic contained within one tiny mortal."

Elsa eyed the stranger with fear. She prayed he wouldn't notice the frost creeping over the grass at her feet. "I don't know what you're talking about," she lied lamely. "Please, I just want to go home…"

"'My power brings pain. It nearly killed Anna'," he pantomimed, but the way he spoke, it almost sounded as though he relished it. "'It's only grown stronger since then'." The last part he spoke with an edge that told her it was no use lying to him.

"Perhaps I should take your precious Anna out of the picture." Loki stepped closer now, cutting her off from her horse. "What will you do -"

"No!" Elsa blurted. She hadn't even realized when she raised her hand and launched a dozen ice spikes past the stranger's face and into the tree behind him.

Loki paused and slowly turned to observe her work. He tried to hide his excitement, but he was quite aware that it must have looked to her like a malicious grin.

He took slow and purposeful steps to close the gap between them, and Elsa could see more of him in the moonlight; hair black as the night sky above, flowing back over his head, the twinkling in his eyes that conveyed danger, and excitement. "Why...if my brother were here, he would crush you like an insect for conspiring with the Frost Giants. Oh, but you need not fear the same reprisal from me, for I am Loki of Asgard, and I am a most benevolent god. I could teach you how to control your powers, just as you desire...and how to create wonders beyond your wildest dreams."

Elsa kept her hands clutched close to her chest, but she looked at him with cautious intrigue. What if it could be true...there had once been a time when she was happy with her powers, when they brought her and her sister so much joy…

She forced herself to push those thoughts aside, much as she wanted to believe it. Don't be a fool, Elsa. "Loki is just a myth." She scoffed slightly. "Even if you are who you say, why should I trust you? I'm dangerous all on my own, I don't need you exploiting my curse for your own ends."

"Is that what you tell yourself?" He stood before her, eyes piercing into her.

"That I am nothing more than a child's fairytale?" Another dark figure, just as tall, ominous and arrogant as the first stepped out from the trees.

"To keep them from misbehaving?" Yet another copy of Loki appeared from thin air, now blocking the way she came from.

"You don't have to trust me, but I can assure you, there are none in this world who understand magic as I do. Besides that, who else would you turn to? I do believe I heard you say something about how 'the only ones who knew' are gone now." Loki of Asgard knew something about being an outcast, and here, the experience was useful to him.

Elsa looked nervously at the doubles surrounding her, then back at the real Loki. The heartache in her brilliant blue eyes was plain to see. "I just...I don't want to hurt anyone," she said weakly.

"Of course not." Loki cast a nonchalant glance back at the ice shards embedded into the tree behind him. "But you will, if you don't gain control."

"Or if you harm Anna," Elsa added, her eyes now crackling with cold anger. "If you lay a hand on her, Odin himself won't be able to save you."

"Oh, I'm very frightened." He smiled. The way her moods flashed in her gaze sent a shiver of interest through him. He loved to see such emotion from mortals, it was like fine dining and he could not help but provoke them to bring out this side of themselves. He lived for it. "And what, exactly, will you do to a god?"

"A god means nothing to a nonbeliever," Elsa shot back. She moved past him to get to her horse.

Oh, indeed, Loki thought to himself, watching as she left. But he had little use for believers, and so much use for her power. For now, it was time for him to return, before he would be missed and questions asked, but this venture had yielded the most interesting fruit. He would eagerly anticipate his next journey to Midgard.