Price of Freedom

Chapter 3

See if you can spot the little shoutout to Tangled. :)

In the morning, Kristoff ventured into the town to look for a job.

"I'm gonna need to earn some money to buy us carrots... I'm doing it again. Am I so desperate for contact that I'll resort to talking to a reindeer? Don't answer that."

-snort-

"Thanks."

As Kristoff and Sven entered the town, they noticed a commotion near the docks.

"Come on Sven, market's this way."

Sven let out a low groan and pointed his head towards the docks.

"Nope."

Sven snorted and stalked over to Kristoff.

"Hey, what..."

Kristoff was now being picked up by Sven's antlers, and was being carried towards the docks.

"Fine, fine, OKAY!"

Sven grunted satisfactorily and plunked Kristoff down onto the wooden planks.

As they got closer, they could see mounds of flowers being placed on the edge of the dock, some even placed gently in the water.

As Kristoff and Sven stared open-mouthedly, a young girl reached for a flower, stopping only when an older girl grabbed her hand.

"Kirsten, don't touch them. They're for the king and the queen, and the princess' sister."

The younger girl gazed wide-eyed at the flowers, silent and unmoving.

"Princess Elsa might not like it if we touch flowers for her family. Papa," turning to a bearded man, "will she ever leave the castle?"

"I doubt it, Ingrid. She's stayed in there for six years. It would take a miracle to get her to come out."

Kristoff turned to look at the castle. A flash of white disappeared behind the curtains of an upper window, so quickly he believed he had only imagined it.

"Come on Sven," he murmured quietly.

As night quickly approached, all of the townspeople clamored near the docks.

"Alf, bring the fireworks!"

"Oh no. Come on Sven, we can watch them from the cliff."

-groan-

"Let's go."

-huff-

Twenty minutes later, Kristoff and Sven neared the cliff's edge.

-pop pop pop-

"Wow. See, I told you it would be better here."

Sven bumped Kristoff in the side with his antlers.

"Ow, what's your problem?"

Sven gave him the reindeer version of a smirk, and stared transfixedly through the leaves of the trees as the fireworks above.

As Kristoff moved forward, he noticed a sliver of white behind the trees. He slowly pushed past the branches and looked out towards the cliff's edge.

A girl stood near the edge of the cliff, white nightgown swaying in the summer night's breeze. What shocked him the most was her hair. Although it seemed to be platinum blonde, the gentle light of the moon created the illusion that it was ethereally white.

She stood with her back facing Kristoff, head tilted towards the sky, evidently also watching the fireworks.

Kristoff stared open-mouthedly at the girl, until Sven walked forward, accidentally snapping a twig in half.

The girl quickly turned back, looking Kristoff in the eye. He noticed that while no tears were visible on her face, her blue eyes contained tinges of red on the whites of her eyes, and tear stains marred her cheeks.

"Who are you?" she asked.

"I...I'm sorry. I didn't mean to...I'll go...I...umm..."

As Kristoff turned to leave, the girl reached her left hand out to him.

"No, please, I...I mean...you don't have to go."

Her face had instantly turned scarlet, and she slowly pulled her hand back.

"Are...you sure? I mean...I can go..."

"No, it's fine."

She gave him a tine close-lipped grin, and swiped at her face, trying to remove any traces of tears.

Kristoff hesitated until the girl turned back around and settled gracefully onto the floor.

"Stay back," he whispered to Sven, as he slowly joined her near the edge.

He snuck a glance at her, and saw that she bit her lip, as if trying not to cry, while she stared unblinkingly at the sky.

"Are...you okay?"

"I'm fine. I'm fine," she repeated, as if to assure herself.

"I'm Kristoff."

"Elsa."

"As in the princess, that Elsa?" he asked, a hint of panic in his voice.

"Yes," she answered, with a slight smile.

"Your highness, I'm sorry, I really should go now."

"No please, I'm perfectly capable of sharing." She turned to look at him, this time the smile meeting her eyes.

The two sat in silence, staring at the sky for a while, until Kristoff spoke up.

"I'm sorry about your family," he mumbled.

Elsa closed her eyes and seems to shrink in on herself.

"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said anything," he blurted, and looked down.

"No, it's fine. And thank you, really." She turned to him and didn't say a word until he looked up at her.

"It's been six years. You'd think this wouldn't hurt as much now but..."

Elsa's eyes teared up, but she forced herself to keep going.

"Do you know the story of my family, Kristoff?"

He cautiously shook his head.

Taking in a deep breath, she began her story.