Kristoff trailed behind Anna and Elsa as the three made their way down the mountain. He felt hopelessly lost without Sven by his side. It had been decided that Kristoff's near-constant companion would be a bane to the covert operation they were undertaking, and so the reindeer had stayed behind with the trolls.

Now, hiking down the mountain in the bitter cold with two women he barely knew, Kristoff was beginning to wonder if he shouldn't have stayed behind as well.

He couldn't even pretend that he completely understood what had gone on back there with the sisters and Grand Pabbie. True, Kristoff had pieced together some of the story back at the Snow Queen's – Elsa's – castle. That was, after all, the reason he'd brought the sisters to the trolls in the first place. Yet it seemed that he hadn't quite imagined the scope of the situation. He knew now that Anna was the little girl whose parents had come to his family for help many years ago, and he knew that Elsa was the witch who had frozen her. He'd also realized that the two were actually sisters, but Anna hadn't remembered that because her memories had been erased to prevent her brain from freezing solid. Sure, Kristoff understood the gist of the thing, it was more the why's and how's that he was shaky on.

Still, he'd already made a promise to help Anna, and Kristoff was not a man who went back on his word. So, after a few hours' fitful sleep and an awkward afternoon filled with hurried planning, here he was following the two sisters down the mountain as the sun began to dip below the western peaks.

Kristoff studied Elsa as he walked behind her, wracking his brain for memories of a time when Princess Anna had not been the sole heir to the Arendelle throne. Though he had been young at the time, he could vaguely recall the news that the king and queen's eldest daughter had passed away due to a fatal illness when she was a young girl. After the incident, the gates of the Arendelle Castle had been closed, and the people had been forbidden to speak of the deceased princess. With the passage of time, it had begun to seem as though the girl had never existed at all; that she was just a local myth shared by the townspeople when they thought no one was listening.

Yet here Elsa was, alive and well and, apparently, the true heir to the throne. It was all terribly confusing.

They had been walking for a few hours by now, and Arendelle had come into view before them, stretched out over the hills in the waning light. Elsa had stopped walking and Anna, who had taken the lead in their small procession, had not noticed. Kristoff slowed to a halt as well, clearing his throat to get Anna's attention.

Anna turned around, a few feet ahead of them, and noticed the halt in their progress. Making her way back, she said, "Elsa? Are you okay?"

Kristoff could not imagine how strange this must be for Anna. What must it be like to suddenly have your head filled with childhood memories of an apparent stranger? The Elsa that stood before them now was the same girl that Anna remembered from childhood, but so much time had passed since then. Anna barely knew this woman now, but she seemed to trust her absolutely.

The whole thing made Kristoff a bit uncomfortable. After all, he'd been hearing stories about the Snow Queen for a very long time. Kristoff had seen Elsa's powers firsthand and he would be lying if he said they didn't still frighten him somewhat. If it weren't for the endorsement she'd received from Grand Pabbie, Kristoff might not trust her at all.

Elsa still seemed skittish around them as well, though she was clearly much more comfortable with Anna, but she seemed to forget both of their presence for the moment as she dropped to her knees and breathed, "What have I done?"

It wasn't hard to determine Elsa's meaning. Even from this distance, it was plain to see the ways in which the long winter had affected Arendelle. Most of the homes were buried halfway deep in snow, and the fields where crops had grown were nothing but a blanket of white. Most obvious, however, was the frozen fjord. Arendelle had once been a great port city, but without access to the sea they had not been able to ship goods in many years. The merchants had eventually acclimated to trading their goods by way of land, but the loss had still been felt. Kristoff had seen all of this before. It was the way Arendelle had been as long as he could remember. Still, he supposed if the last memories you had of Arendelle were from before the long winter, the sight of it now would come as somewhat of a shock.

Anna approached carefully. They'd both seen what could happen when Elsa got upset. "You didn't mean to," Anna said.

Elsa looked up, eyes shining. "Does that make this any better?" she asked.

"We'll make it better," Anna said, her face a mask of determination as she held out her hand to help Elsa up. Elsa studied her sister's hand for a few moments and then, very timidly, she slipped her own hand into it, flinching slightly as their skin touched. If Anna noticed the hesitation, she did not acknowledge it. Instead, she heaved with all her might, practically dragging Elsa back to her feet. The two shared a small smile.

Kristoff marveled again at how strong the bond seemed to be between the two. He supposed that even estranged and slightly dangerous family was still better than no family at all. Perhaps, if he'd found out about some long lost sibling, he would react in much the same way.

They were walking again now. Elsa still seemed thoroughly unsure of herself, but less so than she had only moments before. It was as though she drew strength from Anna's stubborn optimism. Strange though their bond was, Kristoff hoped it would be strong enough to face whatever lay ahead.

They reached Arendelle under the cover of darkness, as had been their plan. Kristoff still wasn't sure what exactly their next move was. Anna had mentioned secret passageways, a trustworthy servant named Gerda, and an intent to confront Hans while his guard was down, but Kristoff was more just along for the ride.

Anna and Elsa both donned disguises as they approached, each hiding their face and clothing beneath a heavy cloak. Kristoff was inconspicuous enough, but Elsa's icy gown and almost other-worldly appearance would be bound to draw attention and Anna would be instantly recognizable for obvious reasons. The cloaks were still a tad suspicious, but with the cold weather they would not seem entirely out of the ordinary.

Yet as the trio crossed the frozen fjord and neared the castle, the first signs that something was amiss began to present themselves. The town that surrounded the castle was by no means the site of a bustling nightlife, but the sun went down early these days and it was still fairly early in the evening. Despite this, there was not a soul out on the streets. The town was so quiet that the sound of their footsteps echoing off the cobblestone streets seemed an unbearable racket. It was unsettling.

Kristoff glanced over at Anna and Elsa and could tell they were experiencing the same sense of unease. He could not see their faces, obscured as they were by the hoods of their cloaks, but the skittish nature of their movements spoke volumes.

They walked on for a few minutes more, but still they didn't come across another living soul. It didn't take long for Anna to voice the thought buzzing in each of their minds. "Something isn't right here," she said, glancing about as they continued on. Elsa and Kristoff did not respond, but their agreement with the statement was understood.

They passed onto a main street now, one that was lined with a number of bars and pubs and usually lively for hours after darkness had fallen. Drunken patrons frequented it every night of the week, filling the air with shouts and song. Yet even here it was deserted. The shops were all closed up tight for the night, and there was not a soul, drunken or otherwise, to be seen.

The three travelers paused here, now truly confused by the state of events. A moment later, Kristoff became aware of the sound of footsteps coming from somewhere to their right. Acting on instinct, he grabbed hold of Anna's wrist and pulled her into an alleyway between two buildings, clamping a hand over her mouth so that she wouldn't cry out. He'd expected Elsa to follow, but he realized to his horror that she'd heard the approaching men too late to run for cover.

They came into view now, three members of the royal guard, the shiny metal badges of their uniform reflecting the light of the torches that lined the road. They stopped a few feet from Elsa, who was twisting around in shock at suddenly having been abandoned by her two companions, and leveled their weapons at her.

"Halt!" the guard in the front demanded, though Elsa clearly was not moving, "Who goes there"

Elsa turned in their direction but said nothing. Her lack of response seemed to agitate the guards. "What are you doing on the streets after curfew?" one of them demanded. Still Elsa made no sound, though she had begun to back up by several paces.

The mention of a curfew confused Kristoff. It certainly explained the lack of people on the streets, but he was certain Arendelle had never had one before. He had no time to dwell on it however, because Anna had begun to struggle in his grasp. Kristoff removed the hand he'd had covering her mouth, but kept his other arm firmly around her waist.

Anna put her hands against Kristoff's arm, struggle to free herself. "Let me go!" she whispered frantically. "We have to help her!"

The guards were advancing on Elsa now, spurred forward by her attempts to retreat. "State your name," one of the guards demanded, his tone more dangerous this time.

What happened next occurred so quickly that it took Kristoff a few seconds to process. Elsa turned to flee, but one of the guards fired a shot at her, the bolt whizzing suddenly and unexpectedly from his crossbow. It had clearly been meant only to wound, not to kill, but Elsa reacted instinctively. She threw her hands up in front of her and a sheet of ice rose up at her command. The arrow pierced the ice halfway and remained there, frozen mere inches from its target.

For a few moments everything stopped as though time itself were holding its breath. Then, with a piercing cry of, "Witch!" the world seemed to speed back up in double time.

The three guards raised their weapons one more, all pointed at Elsa as though she were a viper preparing to strike. Elsa herself was still rooted to the spot, staring blankly at the sheet of ice she'd conjured as though not quite sure what she had done.

Then, just as Elsa drew forth another wall of ice to stop the three new arrows whizzing towards her, Anna cried out her sister's name. Kristoff clamped his hand back over her mouth immediately, but the damage was already done.

The three guards did not seem to have heard the cry, focused as they were on the action taking place, but Elsa did. Turning her gaze from the guards before her, she began to look around wildly as though to determine where Anna's voice had come from.

The momentary distraction was enough. Upon seeing that Elsa's guard was down, one of the guards rushed forward and rammed the butt of his crossbow into the back of her skull with all of his might. Elsa went down immediately, her hood fluttering off as she crumpled to the ground like a sack of stones.

Alrighty, so there's the next chapter. Sorry again for the long wait. School has begun now and it's already kicking my butt even though it's only the third day of classes. I was about to mention that I'd missed getting this up before my birthday ended, but then I remembered that I'm an hour ahead and it's still technically my birthday for another hour in the states. So that's kind of cool.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this one. Unfortunately there may be an even longer wait next time. I know where I want this story to go, and there's really not too much left before the end, but finding time to finish writing it is only going to become harder for me from here on out. I've got the next chapter after this one finished, but after that the rest remains to be written. I'm going to be working on it in whatever bits of free time I can manage for myself, but unfortunately it may be a while. Either way, I hope you enjoyed this one, and I'll see you next time!