Chapter 8.

"Elsa, wake up. Come on, you're almost late." I hear Gerda's voice, obviously trying to wake me up and force me to start the day. But I feel like I barely slept a few hours, and that's despite remembering having gone to bed early yesterday.

Not wanting to obey her, I blink a few times to try and see, by the position of the sun outside the window, how early it is. Strangely enough, it's dark outside, and the stars are still very visible, which means dawn is still a few hours away, so… what's happening here? Did Gerda get confused?

"Late?" I ask with a sleepy voice, closing my eyes once more and trying to ignore the candlelight in my room.

"Yes. Queen Anna has requested you accompany her to a festival in Hellesen, a little village nearby." The maid explains, and I would have groaned in frustration if she hadn't mentioned Anna's name. As spontaneous as her request is, I have to admit I don't mind at all if it means I get to spend some time with her.

"Is the festival at five in the morning, or something?" I ask, sitting up and rubbing my eyes to try and get rid of the lingering effects of sleep.

"No, but the village is at six hours from here. By horse." Gerda explains while she goes to the closet to, presumably, pick up a dress for me. "She didn't really want to go, saying she had too many duties, but apparently Princess Rapunzel was able to convince her. She said it was good for her to interact more with her subjects, or something like that."

"But… is it a good idea to bring me along?" I ask, now awake enough to process the information and make sense of it. "I mean, everyone seems to hate ice-wielders, so… couldn't they try to…?"

"The queen has taken care of it." Gerda cuts me off before I can finish my question, giving me an expensive-looking dark blue dress (fit for a princess), a blue jacket that apparently goes along with it, a pair of white silk gloves, and a brown wig. "You'll pretend to be some Coronan noble. The wig will help conceal your true nature." She explains.

"Okay." I nod, understanding Anna's plan, though I'm still not sure this is a great idea, not after almost getting killed two times by Arendellians just because of who I am. But I guess her plan could work, and I'm getting tired of being locked in the castle all the time. Plus, it's the Queen's order, so…

Gerda leaves to get my usual tea while I dress, comb my hair into a bun and put on the wig. Then she returns, makes me drink the tea and have some bread (because apparently she doesn't want me to get hungry on the way to Hellesen), and soon enough she's ushering me towards the entrance hall, where I'm to meet with the royals.

When we arrive Rapunzel and Eugene are already there, well dressed and fully awake, chatting animatedly with each other. They must be morning people… unlike Anna, who has her back pressed against the wall and is fighting hard not to close her eyes and fall to the ground in an exhausted heap. She really is trying to stay awake, but if her constant yawns are any indication, she isn't doing a very good job.

Suddenly she closes her eyes for like five seconds, and it really looks she's about to fall over. I rush to grab her, but just when her body is bending in a position that defies gravity, she stumbles a little, opens her eyes and looks around, disoriented and startled.

"Oh, Elsa. You're here." Rapunzel says with a smile, obviously having noticed me when I ran to catch the falling queen.

"… Elsa?" Anna asks with a sleepy voice as she rubs her eyes with the back of her hand. "You're coming too?"

"Well… you asked me to." I answer, suddenly worried this is actually a mistake. Maybe Anna doesn't want me to come?

"Oh. That's right." She nods, apparently remembering. "It just didn't feel well to have you locked in here all the time. I know I'd go nuts."

"And yet it took a lot of coercing to convince you." Eugene complains, crossing his arms over his chest.

"It's literally five in the morning! I'd never agree to something like this without hesitating." Anna retorts, pouting like some angry puppy. Gosh, does she have to be so adorable all the time?

"Come on, stop complaining." Rapunzel rolls her eyes. "Let's get going. We don't want to arrive late."

Soon enough, we're out at the stables, where four guards, including Kristoff (of course he'd go with us), are waiting for us. Three of them have horses, but my personal protector is next to a… reindeer? Seriously? He didn't want a horse like the others?

Well, I mean, I guess it explains his usually awful smell.

"You're finally here." He says crossing his arms over his chest in an almost scolding manner. "You said we'd leave at five, and it's almost six."

"Oh, stop it, Christopher." Rapunzel says, walking past him and towards the carriage that awaits us. "You know Anna would never wake up so early."

"Plus, a Queen never arrives late." Anna adds with a fake indignant huff before following her cousin into the carriage.

"Sorry, Kristoff. You know how they are." Eugene excuses them. "After you." He then says and gestures me to get in, at which I give a curt nod and go sit beside Anna and in front of Rapunzel.

"Wake me up when we get there." Anna says with a sleepy voice before placing her head on my shoulder and closing her eyes. This simple action sends my head spiraling while my heartrate accelerates and my stomach tightens. I'll never understand how she manages to make me so anxious every time I'm near her. Maybe it's because she's the queen… or maybe I'm just not good with this whole human contact thing. Either way, I hope I could get used to it. Fast. Because Anna's certainly not trying to avoid physical contact with me.

"Be careful." Eugene tells me, stepping into the carriage. "She drools."

"I know." I chuckle, but then pause, frowning. "How do you even know that?"

"Let's just said one day Anna insisted on having a sleepover with me." Rapunzel answers for him. "The next morning I was entirely covered in drool." She laughs, and I have to contain myself from doing the same, eying Anna nervously to see if she's upset by the commentary. Surprisingly enough, she's already asleep.

"Well, looks like she's dead to the world." Eugene says amused, obviously noticing Anna's current state too. "Do you want us to share some of her embarrassing stories with you before she wakes up?"

"Uhm… I don't think Anna would appreciate that." I answer, not wanting to invade her privacy, even if hearing about the queen's most embarrassing moments does seems like a good way to kill some time until we arrive to the carnival.

"If you don't say anything she won't find out." Rapunzel winks in a mischievous way.

"Well…" I bite my lip, unsure, then look down at the sleeping royal and wonder if she'd get mad at her cousin for telling me. I mean, after all Anna tends to take everything lightly, and is still childish enough not to get mad over minor things… but still. She's the queen and I think she deserves some respect.

"Come on, Elsa. It's not like Anna's clumsiness and talent to get in trouble were secret anyways." Eugene insists, and with a sigh I decide to relent. I don't want to be rude to them after all.

"Okay… I guess I would like to hear some stories about Anna."

"… and then she slipped on the mud and ended up tackling a general." Rapunzel laughs as she tells me yet another amusing story. At first I tried to stifle my laughter with my hand, both to be proper and to not wake Anna up, but… I gave up on that pretty soon. "She was so embarrassed she got up and backed up, making an excuse, but she didn't realize there was a dog behind her and she stepped on his tail, waking him up. Of course, he was a feral dog, and ended up chasing Anna through half of the town." She continues. "Once he was about to catch up with her though, she accidentally ran into a man carrying a box of tomatoes, and both her and the dog ended up covered in the red fruits."

"And he didn't bite her?" I ask, trying to restrain my laughter.

"Nah, when he tried that, she hit him with a lute." Eugene answers, as amused by this story as his wife.

"How did she even…?"

"Don't ask." Rapunzel warns me. "That's another entirely different story."

"Okay?" I raise an eyebrow, and am about to ask her to tell me about it nonetheless when Anna suddenly stirs in her sleep, giving us all pause. We don't want her to wake up yet after all; we're having so much fun at her expense.

Eugene and Rapunzel have been telling me story after story ever since the carriage started moving; some of them having been witnessed by them and other having just been told to them by Anna or someone else. It's been a few hours now, and in all that time I haven't just learned that Anna is a reckless and clumsy goofball, but also that, apparently, her parents were very affectionate with her. But also maybe a little overprotective.

For example, one day she snuck out of the castle to go explore the forest, and when her parents had found out she'd gone without guards or even Kristoff to protect her, they'd practically sent all the guards in town to try and find her. Of course, that led to Anna scaring a family of squirrels half-to-death, initiating a stampede of angry reindeer, and falling from a small hill, ending up with multiple bruises and cuts, all in an attempt to avoid the guards. And yes, the redhead should have been more careful and at least take Kristoff with her, but she hadn't even been gone for an hour and everyone was already searching for her. Maybe if the monarchs had given her more freedom (let her out of the palace more often, for example), that wouldn't have happened. But I think I can understand their concern; she was the heir to the throne after all, and someone had tried to kill her when she was just a little kid, so… yeah, not so surprising.

And maybe that's why I don't want her to wake up just yet. I like to hear those little stories, not only because of how funny they are, or how they let me connect in some way with the two foreign royals, but because thanks to them, I now feel like I know more of Anna, even if it's just a little bit.

However, even though we keep quiet and try to hold our breath for a few seconds, Anna still sits up and rubs her eyes, before trying to open them and adjust to the light (yes, it's sunny outside now).

"Uhg… are we there already?" She asks with a sleepy voice.

"Not yet." Eugene answers. "I think we're still a few hours from there, actually."

"Damn." She curses. "I was hoping I could sleep all the way." At this, she yawns before eying the closed curtains of the carriage (I insisted on closing them so Anna could sleep more comfortably) and reaching out to open them. "Where are we anyways?"

As she opens the curtain, the beautiful scenery is revealed, and it's so beautiful that, in fact, I almost regret not having opened it sooner. We are on a road traveling near the edge of a cliff, and at the bottom of the cliff lies a vast forest. Farther away a few hills sprout here and there, before giving way to a snowy plain and… wait, what's that thing that extends as far as the eye can see? It almost looks like… a wall? But, despite being pretty black, like it's made of dark stones, it's shining in the sunlight. Almost as if it's made of ice. Or at least encased in it. More so, behind it all that can be seen is an endless barren land of ice and snow. And fog, very dense fog. Beyond it, the only distinguishable things are tall mountains and large gray clouds, like the land has its own personal winter storm. In summer.

I don't know why, but my body instantly tenses up; my stomach twists into knots, my heart rate accelerates to impossible levels and I start to hyperventilate. I also feel scared and angry. I somehow know this isn't how it should be; all that ice is unnatural. It's monstrous. It doesn't belong there.

"The Northern Lands." I breathe out. Even though I don't remember ever having seen them before, I just know without doubt that's where they are.

"Yeah, actually." Anna nods, looking at me with curiosity. "Do you remember them or something?"

"I figured it out thanks to all the ice." I shrug, trying to appear nonchalant, but truth to be told, even if it wasn't a real memory, I did feel something while seeing them. Something powerful. Something I'm sure I wouldn't feel if I'd never been there before.

"Really?" She raises an eyebrow like she doesn't believe me, and truth to be told, I wouldn't either, but thankfully Rapunzel interferes before she can ask more questions.

"Where's the famous Ice Queen's palace?" She asks, trying to find it with her gaze.

"There, on top of the North Mountain." Anna answers, pointing to the tallest mountain in sight and, just as expected, almost on top of it is an icy structure; shining and majestic. In the light of day, it looks almost like a blue sun. It must be pretty large and tall, if we can see it from here, but… this time I don't feel the nasty sensations from before. No, I feel something different, like… longing?

Suddenly, I see a giant snowflake under my feet. I feel a pleasant chill invade my legs and hands as I move around it, releasing my magic. I see as tall columns rise out of nowhere, and flurries fly around me, creating intricate patterns and structures. I see a chandelier and a balcony on a great circular chamber. I suddenly feel happy. I feel powerful. I'm on top of the world. I'm free.

I gasp, clutching my head as my headache intensifies.

That was a memory. I'm sure it was a memory! But… if I built the ice palace, does that make me the Ice Queen? I'd certainly be inclined to think so. But if I'm the evil Ice Queen that froze the Northern Lands, how did I get here? Why did I lose my memory? And, most importantly, why are the Norther Lands still frozen if I'm not there? If I was creating that storm, I would be able to feel it, right? And I wouldn't be scared of it.

Maybe I'm not the Ice Queen after all... Or maybe I am and the other northerners are just keeping it snowy over there in my absence.

That last thought gives me chills. I don't want to be some evil and ruthless magical queen.

"Elsa?" I hear Anna's voice, and just now feel her hand clutching firmly my shoulder. I look up and see her watching at me with worry, probably because of how I'm clutching my head. "Did you have a headache again?"

"Y-yeah." I answer hesitantly, slowly letting my hands fall to my lap. "It's nothing though. I'm fine." I fake out a smile, but she doesn't seem to believe it. Probably because I'm still thinking about the possibility of me being the Ice Queen.

"Did you remember something watching the ice palace?" This time Eugene is the one who asks, and I have to look down at the ground when I answer. I've never been good at lying.

"No." I say, but I can almost feel as all their eyes narrow with suspicion. I can't blame them though; I did sound a little too unsure of my own answer. "Okay, I did." I admit with a sigh, still looking at the carriage's floor. "I remembered being inside the palace." Now, this one's not a lie, but it's not the complete truth either; I don't want them jumping into crazy conclusions just yet.

"Really?" Anna's eyebrows shoot up to her hairline. "Then that means you are a Northerner!" Surprisingly enough, she doesn't sound at all angry or scared. And only a little bit surprised, but I guess that was to be expected.

"Well, it was pretty obvious from the beginning, wasn't it?" I say, trying not to make such a big deal out of it. I really don't want her to decide I'm suddenly the enemy and need to be executed or thrown into a dungeon.

"Not really. You weren't on the list." She reminds me, and I grimace at this. Of course, just another reminder that I'm probably the Ice Queen; the only description that matched with me was that of someone 'extremely dangerous'.

"You mean the list your parents kept of all the people exiled there?" Rapunzel asks raising an eyebrow. "Because it only contained the names of the exiles. And I bet many Northerners have been born there."

At her words, I mentally face palm myself. Anna actually goes and does it though. I mean, how didn't we think of that? Heck, in the list many families were exiled; parents who would no doubt want to have more children than those they already had. More so, many Northerners that were exiled as kids must now be of age, so… of course the list isn't complete!

"You were born there!" She exclaims, apparently finally making sense of it all. "That's why no description matched with your name."

"Y-yeah… that's probably it." I agree trying to sound more confident than I feel, because after all, I still have my doubts.

"But if you weren't exiled… that means the rule doesn't apply to you." She reasons.

"The rule about killing the Northerners that dare return to Arendelle?" I ask hopeful.

"Yes." She nods happily. "You can't exactly return to Arendelle if you've never been here before."

"Your father didn't make it so all Northerners that dared escape to the south were to be killed?" Eugene asks, obviously finding it hard to believe such a loophole exists.

"Nope." Anna smiles happily. "I've been studying the laws a lot lately, and I'm pretty sure my father's decree is just an addition to the traditional exile rule."

"Okay?" I say, raising an eyebrow. "I guess I'm good now then?"

"Unless you suddenly remember having been exiled." Anna shrugs. "But I seriously doubt that's the case."

"That's… great." I smile, but I don't really feel relieved, not even when Anna smiles back at me. I'm still worried I wasn't born in the Northern Lands at all, even if I know that's the most likely possibility. But maybe I just worry too much. I should be happy, right? Unless a memory about getting exiled pops into of my head and I tell Anna about it, I have nothing to fear. I was born in the Northern Lands. I'm a Northerner, but I'm not an exile. I'm not the Ice Queen.

However, even after Anna changes the subject and starts laughing with her cousin, I still get a nasty feeling in my gut, and I know I'll be thinking about this all day. I won't be able to enjoy the festival.

We arrive a few hours later, and the moment the carriage stops Anna practically jumps out of it, not waiting for the guards to help her, and instead starts greeting pretty much everyone in sight before going to see the nearest stalls and what they're selling. Rapunzel is not so far behind her, and it looks like everyone is pretty fond of both their queen and the foreign princess, so they don't have anything to worry about. I still think they should be more cautious though.

"I've told Rapunzel she shouldn't do that in a foreign kingdom." Eugene says, as if reading my mind. "She's never listened though."

"I imagine." I chuckle, shaking my head.

"We better go make sure they stay out of trouble." He suggests, gesturing to the door, and I nod in understanding before stepping out.

I have to admit, seeing all these people here makes me a little nervous. Maybe a lot nervous, actually. Knowing the only reason they don't react to my presence is a wig that makes me look 'normal' is not only infuriating, but also frightening. If this thing falls accidentally… No, I shouldn't think about that. My magic has been unstable enough as of late, and though the gloves help, I really don't want to cause an accident here. And my magic seems to be linked directly to my emotions, which means I have to remain calm.

"Elsa, come on, look!" Anna pulls me out of my thoughts, grabbing my hand and dragging me towards a nearby stand. Thankfully, the guards are now right behind us, and I feel more protected. "Look at all those flowers, aren't they beautiful?" She exclaims, proceeding to bend over and look closely at all the beautiful bouquets here. There's a vast variety of flowers, from roses and lilies to sunflowers and even the famous golden crocus, symbol of the kingdom of Arendelle.

I can't help delicately taking one of them, a pink small flower and bringing it up to smell it. And how wonderful it smells! I even have to close my eyes to enjoy it better. I don't think I've ever smell a flower like this. Or even been in proximity to so many flowers! It's very relaxing. It's amazing.

"Do you like it?" I'm startled by a man's voice, and when I look up, I see it's the owner of the stall who spoke, a man in his mid-forties with blond hair and a large mustache.

"Y-yeah." I say shyly before placing the flower back where it belonged. "You have a very beautiful collection of flowers here." I compliment him politely, trying to appear friendly. "Where are they from?"

"Most are from southern countries, like Corona, Weselton and the Southern Iles." He explains. "Others, like the golden crocus, are from Arendelle."

"How do you keep them so well preserved during the whole trip?" I ask curious. I'm no expert, but I'm sure it'd take at least one week to get from Weselton to Arendelle, and that'd be without stopping to sleep or even eat.

"I just have to keep the hydrated and somewhat cold. And change their water almost daily." He says with a smile. "It's not that difficult really."

"Interesting." I say, mesmerized by the colorful bouquets. "And the one I picked… where is it from?"

"It's from the Southern Iles. It's called autumn crocus."

"Autumn crocus." I repeat eyeing at it. "It's very beautiful."

"You want it?" I turn to look at Anna when she speaks, just now remembering she was with me, looking at the flowers with awe all this time.

"Oh, I-I wouldn't want to… I mean, I don't think it'd be proper to…" I stutter, suddenly feeling very nervous by her offer, but she's already made the decision, and nothing that I say will change her mind.

"Nonsense!" She exclaims with a huge grin. "I can see you want it, and I will buy it to you." She says before turning to the vendor and asking how much it costs.

"That'd be two pennies, your high… I mean… your majesty." He corrects himself, but I do catch up on his slip up. Anna doesn't seem to mind, but… I really think her subjects doesn't see her as the queen yet. I could be wrong, but I get the impression they still look at her as the naive and clumsy princess, who's endearing but too silly to be in charge of a kingdom. For Anna's sake, I hope I'm wrong.

"Here." Anna says, pulling me out of my thoughts, as she takes the flower and delicately puts it behind my ear, slightly touching my cheek in the process, and making goosebumps appear all over my skin. It's not only because of how happy she looks when she compliments me either, or the way her touch lingers for a few more seconds than would seem appropriate; it's the way her eyes look at me, so affectionately my heart feels like it wants to jump out of my chest. I don't think anyone has ever looked at me like that before, and I don't know how to react.

"I-I… y-you… I m-mean… Thank you. Your majesty." I stutter, blushing furiously and deviating my gaze, suddenly becoming a nervous wreck. What is wrong with me?

"It's nothing." She shrugs, like it's not a big deal. "Come on, let's go see the other stalls." And with that she takes my hand (I seriously feel I'm going to faint the instant she touches me) and starts running to god-knows-where. A little smile appears on my face despite myself. I get a feeling I'm really going to enjoy my time here.

After buying the flower, the queen and I go see the other stalls (Rapunzel and Eugene disappeared some time ago). There are so many stalls! Most are owned by people of Hellesen, but some are of people from other villages in Arendelle, and even other kingdoms. Like that weird ambulant sauna; apparently the owner came from the mountains near the north border.

I asked Anna what was the festival for, and she explained to me it was to commemorate the anniversary of Hellesen's foundation. Apparently, today was the two hundred and seventy third anniversary of the town, which explains why there were so many people here. They came from nearby villages to celebrate this special occasion with their friends and family.

It was a tradition, apparently, to have a three-day-long fair before the mayor talks a little about the important events that have taken place on the town the last year, and then everyone dances around a great fire at the main square. I honestly can't wait for that; I know it'll be pretty spectacular.

"Come here, come here, and try your aim at the 'rings and bottles' game!" A man shouts as Anna and I pass, eating the chocolate ice-creams we just bought a few minutes ago. "Ladies, don't you wanna participate in the game? You could earn fabulous prices." He politely addresses us, and we stop for a moment to look at the game. There are five wine bottles three feet away from the counter, and people are throwing wooden rings at them, trying to make them land on the bottles.

"What are the rules?" Anna asks curiously as she approaches to the stall. I, of course, follow her.

"Your hand can't get past the counter, and you only have three shots, of which the three have to land on the same bottle." He answers smiling, happy that two potential clients just stopped at his local.

"That sounds pretty difficult." I comment, eying at the rings. They are barely wide enough for the bottles.

"Well, if it was easy, everyone could do it, right?" He laughs, obviously trying to make it seem like it's possible to beat the game, but… I don't think anyone has ever done it.

"I'll try." Anna says confident, stepping forward to the counter. "How much is it?"

"Five pennies." He answers with a smirk, obviously doubting a young girl like Anna could win. Also, I don't think he recognizes her as the queen, since he doesn't call her 'your majesty', like everyone else. Interestingly though, even when Anna seems confused for a second for his lack of respect towards her, she doesn't say anything. I'm starting to think not even she thinks of herself as the queen.

"Here it is!" She exclaims, practically shoving the money on his hand before taking the three wooden rings from him and turning and offering me her ice-cream. "Here, hold it for me, will you?" I take it from her hand with a nod, and she proceeds to walk towards the counter, position herself and try to aim.

She closes one eye and sticks out her tongue in a cute way, apparently trying to concentrate, but I really doubt she's ever thrown anything with accuracy in her life, and so it's no surprise when she fails the first shot. By far too much. The ring actually ends up flying out of sight, and the stall's owner has to send a boy to search for it. Anna smiles sheepishly before letting the second ring fly… and hit another bottle, making it topple and crash into the ground. Thankfully, there's a carpet that breaks its fall, and it doesn't smash into a hundred pieces. The last shot is not as bad as the other two though; she actually manages to hit a bottle, and for a moment it seems the ring will go down on it, but then it falls to the ground, failing completely.

"Again." She says determined before putting the money on the counter and taking the wooding rings the man offers her with a suspicious smirk. I really think there's no way to win this game.

This time, she manages to hit one bottle tree times, but only one time does the ring fits into the bottle. And of course, she tries again. In the first throw, she actually manages to land the ring on the bottle, and the man's smirk actually wavers for a moment, more so when she does the same with the second throw. However, at the third throw the ring hits the bottle's top and then falls off, effectively ending any chance Anna may have had at wining.

"Ugh!" She screams in frustration, pulling at her hair. "This thing is impossible."

"It's not for everyone." The man shrugs, heavily implying that someone like Anna wouldn't possibly be able to beat his stupid game. The redhead, however, doesn't seem to catch up on his mean tone, and just slumps her shoulders in defeat, as if accepting he's right. At this, the man seems satisfied, like he gains some kind of twisted satisfaction watching people lose in his stupid game.

Well, I'm not letting him get away with making Anna sad.

"I want to try it too." I say before I can think better about it, making both their heads turn towards me with surprised expressions.

"If you have the money, I don't see why not." The man answers, smiling in an amused way. If he didn't think Anna could win the game, he obviously doubts me even more.

"I'll pay." Anna interferes, giving him some coins. "Go ahead." She then tells me with a kind smile, and I smile gratefully on response.

"You'll see. I win you a prize." I say before giving her the ice-creams and taking off my gloves, putting them on my pocket. I know I really should do this, but I can't think on any other way to win.

I take the wooden rings the man offers me and then breathe in deeply, trying to concentrate. It's crucial I create enough ice around these rings that I can control their trajectory, but in a way that isn't noticeable. So I make a thin layer of transparent ice appear on them before reading myself to throw. I still have to aim, so I don't have to force the rings too much off of their original trajectory, but that proves to be simple enough as I throw the first one.

Even if it's in the air, I can actually feel it and predict where it'll land, so I carefully direct it to land in the bottle with perfect accuracy. I smirk at the stall's owner's stunned face before doing the same with the second and third ring, procuring to melt the ice once I'm finished. Then I turn to him and can't help a smug smile appearing on my face as his eyes widen in disbelief.

"So? Where is my prize?" I ask, just before being crushed by an excited Anna, who does little jumps as she hugs me, utterly impressed by what I just did.

"Wow! Elsa, that was awesome!" She exclaims, wearing a grin so wide it's gotta hurt. "How did you even do that?!"

"Luck." I wink at her before pulling out my gloves and putting them on again, implying I used my magic for this.

"Well, then you must be the luckiest woman ever." The man interferes, trying to sound polite, but obviously restraining his displeasure for my win. "Please, feel free to choose any prize you wish." He says, pointing to a series of toys he has on a table next to the bottles. I don't really need or want anything though, and I think Anna would be happier to have one, so I turn to the redhead and ask her instead.

"Which one do you want? I'll let you choose." I say.

"Really?" She asks with a hopeful face, getting even more excited, if possible.

"Yes." I nod, and she immediately bounces off to the table before taking a stuffed white bear and hugging it tightly.

"Oh, it's so pushy!" She sighs in content, making a silly little smile appear on my face. She's just too adorable for her own good sometimes. Not that I'm complaining, of course; nothing warms my heart more than making the redhead happy. Why? I don't know. Maybe because she's the first friend I've made (at least that I remember), or the fact she lets me stay at the palace, even though she placed herself and her position at risk by doing so. Either way, my feelings for her are getting stronger everyday… I just hope that doesn't become a problem in the future.

Night has come, and with it, the time for the mayor to say some words. As the guests of honor, we're given sits in front of the platform, a few feet away from everyone else and with some guards keeping anyone from getting too close to the queen. Anna though, is expected to be up there with the mayor, and she doesn't look comfortable with that at all; she's pacing in front of us with a deep frown, trying to concentrate and calm down, but… I don't think she's succeeding.

"Ugh! Can you stop?" Rapunzel suddenly bursts out. "You're making me dizzy." At her words, Anna actually stops, but only to give her a hard glare.

"I'm just nervous, okay? It's not every day that I have to speak to my subjects." She retorts.

"I'm sure you'll do it well enough." Eugene encourages her, but Anna's scowl just becomes more prominent.

"I don't have any idea of what to say!" She protests. "And I'm sure I'll start rambling and they'll all laugh at me."

"Has that happened before?" I ask, raising an eyebrow. After all, I doubt this is the first time Anna has talked to her people, and if they laughed when she started rambling the last few times… well, let's just say I doubt they have any respect for her whatsoever.

"Well… yeah." She shrugs like it's not a big deal. "I mean, even I have to admit it's funny when I start rambling."

"But it still bothers you." I say, confident that I'm right.

"Well… I mean… it was okay when I was just a silly little princess. But I'm their queen now, and I really want to have their respect and admiration." She admits with a down casted expression. "But maybe I'm not deserving of it, you know? I'm just a girl pretending to be their ruler." Her voice cracks at the end and I see her fists clenching at her sides. She looks like she's about to break down crying at any moment, and that can't be good.

"That's not true." Rapunzel says before I have the chance, and then she stands up and goes to hug her cousin. "You deserve to be queen, Anna. I've seen it all these days I've been here; you try your best to do what your people need, and you think more about them than about yourself."

"But it's not enough." She answers with a trembling voice, her eyes now wet with tears. "It's never enough. I'll never be like my parents."

"That's right." I say, standing up and going to place my hand on Anna's shoulder in a comforting gesture. I don't like to see her cry, or disparaging herself, more so when she doesn't deserve that. "You'll never be like your parents, but maybe that's a good thing." I continue, encouraged by the way Anna looks up at me with hope, like relying on me to lift her spirits. "I mean, I'm sure they were good people, since they raised you well, and Arendelle seems to be prosperous enough." I clarify, not wanting to sound disrespectful to the former monarchs. "But your father was the one who removed all the ice-wielders from the land without a second thought, without even giving us a chance. You, however, took me in, and treated me well. You tried to understand, to judge me for who I am rather than for what I am. And I think that's what makes you a good ruler; you see the good in everyone and try to do the best for them. You care about every single one of the citizens, Anna, and I think if you show them that, they'll notice you're the best Queen they could've asked for."

"You sure have a way with words." Anna chuckles, wiping the tears off her face. "Wanna take my place up there?" She jokes.

"Come on, you'll do it fine." Eugene (who is now standing beside us) assures her. "Just concentrate on what you want to say."

"Yes, tell them about how happy you are to be here, how much you liked the festival… all that stuff." Rapunzel adds.

"And whatever you do, don't look them in the eye." I say. When the three look at me confused, I rush to explain myself, blushing and looking down. "It's easier to address large crowds that way."

"How do you even…?" Anna starts asking, but then a guard comes to inform her it's time, and she seems to forget completely about her question, proceeding to separate from Rapunzel and quickly follow him to the stage.

As I sit down, however, I can't help wondering how do I know how to address large crowds. If I was just a normal Northerner, I wouldn't know, right? So I must have been someone important, like… No, I'm not going there. I'm not the Ice Queen. I'm not. I just know it.

I don't have time to ponder about it though, because in that moment the major, a bald and tall man, which has to be around fifty, steps into the platform, and everyone quiets, waiting for him to speak. He first gives Anna a little bow, to which she answers with a polite nod, before addressing the people.

"Welcome, everyone." He says with a smile. "And especially to Prin… Queen Anna." Now, he's the second one who almost says her former title. Seems like not even he, a public figure, sees her as the monarch. "And her guests from Corona." He continues. "Princess Rapunzel, Prince-consort Eugene, and Lady Elsa." At this, Rapunzel stands up and waves enthusiastically, earning applauses from the crowd. I start wondering if I'm supposed to do the same, but then she sits down once more and everyone quiets again.

"Your majesty, would you do me the honor?" He asks, signaling her to the front, obviously wanting her to speak. She swallows and clenches her hands at her front so tightly I'm afraid she'll break her fingers or something, but she steps to the front nonetheless and looks around nervously.

"Uhm… H-hi." She starts with a shaky voice, completely disregarding my suggestion of not looking directly at the people. However, she soon seems to realize her mistake, because she deviates her gaze and her eyes land on me. I give her an encouraging smile and a nod, urging her to continue. "Uh… I'm happy to be here today. In this town of Hellesen." Her voice now doesn't waver, but still sounds a little stiff and insecure. And her fear is written all over her face. She really needs to learn how to speak in public. "I-I know today it's a special occasion because it's the…" She pauses and pales, before turning to look at the major. "Uhm… which anniversary is it, again?"

I almost face palm myself. That's something a queen should never do. Geez, didn't her parents teach her anything?

"The two hundred and seventy three anniversary. My Queen." He answers with a quiet tone, so only Anna (and us, because we're in the front row) can hear him.

"Right." She nods nervously and turns to the crowd again. "The two hundred and seventy three anniversary of this town." She says with a forced smile. "And I know this is an important event for you. And Arendelle. Yep, all of Arendelle, including myself." She pauses, taking a deep breath and eying at the stuffed bear that's now in her cousin's lap. "I personally enjoyed the fair very much, you know? The games and… stuff. And chocolates." She giggles, and even I can't help a smile appearing on my face. Everyone else though, actually starts laughing with her, which seems to ease her mood a little. "What I want to say is… It's an honor to be here with you, sharing this special occasion. Thank you." She finishes without further stuttering, which earn her applauses and cheering. Then, she signals the mayor to start his usual speech as she just stays at his side, watching.

He talks about what he's accomplished the last year and about the important events that have happened in the town, ranging from a wedding to the construction of a new school. He also mentions that no Northerners have appeared around here for a while, thanks to the brave efforts of the army, and everyone cheers loudly at that. I, however, can't help feeling uncomfortable at his words. I mean, I know most Northerners have come here with murderous and unethical intentions, but… not all of them, right? I can't believe I'm the only ice-wielder who is not driven crazy by power and thinks of themselves as superior.

But anyways, I really shouldn't worry about that right now. Today is a day of celebration, and I'm not letting any dark thoughts pull me down. The fire is already being lit and the musicians are getting ready to start playing their instruments, so we can dance. Tonight I'll have fun. Tonight I will dance and laugh and talk with Anna, Rapunzel and Eugene.

Tomorrow though, I think I'll have a serious conversation with Anna. She needs to learn to interact with her subjects, so they can see what a wonderful queen she is. I don't know if she'll be offended with my suggestion, but… I'm willing to take the risk. I, somehow, feel like I can help her, and I'm not letting her struggle with her queenly duties on her own if I can be of use to her.

I just hope everything turns out alright.

A/N: Okay, so… I know this took way to long, but in my defense, I has finishing my other fic (Just one week, also Elsanna. Check it out ;D), and I've also had a lot of homework. Sorry about the delay anyways. I hope it won't happen again now that I only have two fics to write.

As always, thanks for reading, favorite, follow and/or reviewing this story. I hoped you liked this chapter and, if you did, please leave a comment telling me what you think of it, or if you have any questions about the story or whatever, you can ask me and I'll be happy to answer :)

And, as always, thanks to my beta reader moonwatcher13.