Cursed Royalty

chapter eight

ARENDELLE : ( ONE WEEK PRIOR)

The queen nervously watched her husband as he stood expressionless in front of her. His face gave nothing away, it was stoic. In all their years of marriage, never had her Royal Highness seen him so reserved. "Agnarr, maybe she just wanted some time to clear her mind. We cannot jump to conclusions, this is not something Elsa would do. She knows how important it is to uplift the family name, not to taint it." A comforting hand was placed on his shoulder.

His voice was low and calculating. "Please refrain from making excuses, Iduna. I thought this would change her, help her, allow her to start afresh even. But what does she do? Runs from her problems like she usually does. Hell, did the first time not teach her? Since when has her running ever been a solution?!" He yelled.

There it was. His built up anger finally reaching its boiling point and persuading him to do something the King knew he would regret. The restrain he held onto, thinned by each passing minute.

Queen Iduna flinched, her husband loved holding Elsa accountable for her actions, even though he damn well knew how challenging circumstances have been for her. Although, she did have a grasp on where he was coming from because she knew her eldest daughter needed to be tamed, too much freedom proved to be dangerous. God knows where she wandered off to.

"I get she didn't want to get married but as a princess, it is her duty. She is of age, nothing will change that. Regardless of how much she'd like it to. What am I supposed to do now, huh Iduna? I can't just go outside and admit to the Royals that I have no clue where my daughter went. That will get us blacklisted from majority of our foreign affairs, it's a slap to the face. For all these rulers, their ego is their greatest treasure. They'd go to any lengths to nurture their pride."

Iduna usually knew what to do, the correct words to say, how to make things right, but as of now, her mind remained blank. Her last resort seemed to be the common lie, "We can say she's caught the flu. Look outside, Agnarr. The temperature is extremely cold, in the negatives even. They will not question it, we'll reschedule."

The king looked up at his wife, relishing in her optimistic manner. "Well, it's all we can do. Until then, I'll have the guards looking for her."

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Their guests seemed to believe their deception and didn't pester them any further. "The weather will get the best of ya!" King Maximus laughed.

Agnarr joined along, in hopes to make the entire ordeal a little more believable. If they knew how accustomed Elsa was to the cold, this lie would surely be their downfall.

In the desire to keep their relationship intact with their neighbouring kingdom, the Royals offered them to stay the night in Arendelle's most prestigious hotel, which they gladly accepted as they took their leave, wishing for the princess' speedy recovery.

"That went well." Iduna said, collapsing on the couch as she let out a breath she didn't know she was holding in.

"For now. You know how quickly gossip spreads, Iduna. Elsa has left us in a dreadful predicament. She's a disappointment. I've accepted her powers, been there for her through it all. But this? It's unforgivable. No one will tarnish the family's name that generations of my bloodline have worked so hard to build."

His wife agreed with him, she expected better from her daughter. All the speeches she gave Elsa and the time she spent trying to prepare her were a waste of time.

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PRESENT TIME