Iduna of the Northuldra (Agnarr x Iduna)

Chapter 1

I told my parents that I was going fishing, but instead, I am going directly against their wishes of visiting Arendelle - a promise I have actually broken five times already. I usually don't break the rules, but this one was much too enticing.

The curiosity came when I started to notice some differences, around the time I turned nine. My father is the only man in my tribe with red hair and freckles. His Northuldran isn't as advanced as everyone else's, and he doesn't have a connection with the forest spirits. It's as if the forest rejects him every time he tries to call on one of them. We've tried to get Gale, Bruni, and the giants to like him, but for some reason, they just don't trust him.

So I decided to ask him. Why oh why was he so different?

"I'm not from here, Iduna," he told me.

"Then where are you from?"

He sighed, looking down at the ground. "It's a long, hard story. It's not a place I enjoy talking about."

It made no sense to me. What could have possibly happened to have made him so uncomfortable with his past?

I was sweeping the floors outside our tents, and collecting the old berries for compost. Gale was helping me, since she is pretty good at scooping things into piles. None of the other people in our tribe wanted to tell me anything, so I decided to ask her. She is a spirit of few words, so I was surprised when she actually answered.

Her voice was like wind chimes against my ears. "Your father is from a kingdom called Arendelle. It is a place that sits at the bottom of our valley."

"The kingdom that has all the festivals and fun stuff? Why does he hate that place?"

"I'm afraid you might be a bit too young to hear this story. It's a bit...sad."

I furrowed my eyebrows. "I just turned twelve. I can handle sad. Please just tell me."

The wind spirit rushed quickly past me, a stream of cold air that burned my face. I closed my eyes to keep them from getting dry.  Everything around me became still. I opened my eyes. Gale was gone.

Who leaves in the middle of a conversation like that?

Rude.

I would ask and ask and ask, and no one would give me an answer. They would merely roll their eyes and speak of the place with such contempt.

"Arendelle. Hmmph. I was hoping I'd never hear of that dastardly place again."

It made me sad. Not only did I not know about who my father was before he met my mom, but nobody felt comfortable sharing it with me. Must I be so sheltered?

I also had no idea why people reacted to the kingdom with such disgust. It scared me a little, yet somehow activated my sense of adventure even more.

I would take care of the children in our tribe, and tell them made-up stories about Arendelle, a kingdom of people with red hair.

"They can all wield fire, and because of this, they have fireworks celebrations every day. They fight their enemies by making fists of molten lava, and running them through, leaving giant holes in their stomachs. Then they rejoice by burning their bodies and turning them into confetti."