[https://i.postimg.cc/L6NZxnQM/TTB-2-Head.png]
Weeks passed, and in came winter. Back in Arendelle, the snow had filled the roofs of townhouses and the royal castle. Arendellians began their preparations for Winter Solstice in the light but chilly snowfall. In a warm and cozy hall within the castle, Alex, Mattias, his soldiers, Kai, and the royal attendants eagerly awaited some news. Abruptly, the Captain of the Royal Guard burst in with a peculiar smile—a smile that was rather unusual for one of the oldest, grumpiest, and yet most regimental soldiers in the service.
“The princess has ordered your direct promotion to general…” he started, pointing at Mattias. “And the cessation of your military service.” he finished, looking at Alex. The royal sergeant knew he had to leave the Royal Guard to be groomed for kingship. But he couldn’t help but complain,
“Aw, come on!”
His exclamation was met with peals of laughter. Kai patted him reassuringly and said, “Don’t worry, Alex. In a few months, we will make you a fine king.” Olina cracked her knuckles and agreed with a slightly bitter smile,
“That’s right, a few months.”
Alex gulped, wondering what that meant for him.
Later that day, a private ceremony was about to begin in the Great Hall. Soldiers who had served in the Enchanted Forest stood in formation. General Mattias and Alex stood at the forefront of the assembly. A knock was heard at the large doors that opened to the hall. The Captain of the Royal Guard, who stood by the door, opened it and announced,
“Soldiers, the princess.”
All of them stamped their feet and came to attention. She walked in with a heart-warming smile as an attendant brought medals and strips of white cloth over to her on a silver plate with a red velvet cloth. Anna wore a magnificent gown with gold designs and a studded tiara. She stopped before Mattias, as the captain started,
“General Destin Mattias, for your service to Arendelle in the Enchanted Forest and for saving the princess from mortal danger, you are awarded both the Long Service Medal and the ‘Order of Princess Anna’.”
Anna took the first medal and pinned it onto his uniform. The second medal was of a curious shape, but Mattias didn’t pay attention to how it looked. After tacking on the second one, she spoke, “Congratulations, General Mattias.” Bowing low, Mattias expressed his gratitude, “Thank you, Your Highness.”
Anna then moved on to Alex, as the captain went on, “Color Sergeant Alex, for honorably completing your service in the Royal Guard, you are being awarded the Medal of Distinguished Service.”
The princess affixed the medal firmly on his chest. The captain cleared his throat and hesitantly read yet another scroll in Anna’s handwriting, “Also… for saving the princess from… er, fire? You, too, have been awarded the ‘Order of Princess Anna’.”
Alex had never heard of that decoration before. Breaking protocol, he took a peek at the medal. It had an overly colorful ribbon—but surprisingly, the award itself was shaped like a tiny golden bar of chocolate!
“Seriously, Anna?” he furtively whispered to her. With a sneaky grin, she replied,
“Didn’t you tell me to ‘share’ some royal duties with my sister?”
As she pinned her unique medal onto his uniform, the captain concluded, “Royal sergeant, you are relaxed from service.”
Anna then unpinned the royal crests fixed above his badge of rank and set them aside on the plate. She carefully wrapped his sergeant’s insignia with strips of white cloth: the same insignia her parents had revealed years before.
“Thank you for your service, Color Sergeant of the Royal Guard.” declared Anna, stepping away.
“It was an honor, Your Hi—Ah!” Before he could finish, she hugged him tight.
“And thank you, Alex, for everything.” Anna never let rules of propriety or others’ expectations stop her from being who she was. To Alex, she was still that sweet, little Anna he had met eleven years ago.
Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
“No. Thank you for asking me to stay, Anna.”
Next, she bestowed similar awards upon other men and women who had served in the Enchanted Forest. Eventually, she left the hall, and the captain began to debrief the soldiers. “You are dismissed, Alex.” He commanded without delay. Alex smartly delivered his final salute and walked out an adjacent door—a prominent chapter of his life had come to an end, and an entirely new one began.
On one of the fortification walls that protruded out of the castle’s main wall, Kai was having a heart-to-heart talk with Kristoff about the upcoming coronation and the preparations for the same. “… It’s going to be a grand celebration, and we have invited all of the Northuldra to come and witness it!”
“It’s gonna be a spectacular day, right? But where’s the spectacle?” asked Kristoff.
“Spectacle? Yes… I haven’t thought of anything yet. But I thought we should honor this day with something special to both our peoples… a monument to our friendship, perhaps?”
Kristoff looked to the town square, where Olaf was practicing to ride Sven using a carrot on a stick. Sven kicked and bucked, excited to see the carrot. Olaf fell off time after time but started to get the hang of it. Kristoff smiled at them, moving his eyes over to the mountains and the distant forests further away from Arendelle. Something suddenly struck him.
“Hey, I think I have seen an ice statue in the forest that will do just right for that… I recommend sending a commission of royal artists and sculptors to the Enchanted Forest.”
Kai agreed, “Well, that sounds good. Definitely, My Lord.”
Afterward, Alex roamed the streets of Arendelle, dressed up as a townsman. He was lured by a familiar smell—Aunt Maiken’s bakery. He sniffed, savoring the scent.
“Mmm… what’s that amazing smell?” he spoke to himself suggestively. He felt the pull of those fresh loaves he craved as a boy. Walking up to the bakery’s counter, he came upon Aunt Maiken. Alex eyed the lone chocolate bar on a shelf. He wanted it: if not for himself, at least for Anna.
“Good day… sir?” Aunt Maiken began hesitantly, unable to recognize Alex’s face buried under a hat. Alex considered this an apt opportunity to put his diplomatic skills to the test, which he would need as King of Arendelle.
“Ma’am, it would be the greatest of my pleasures if you could present me with--”
Before he could complete his sentence, Olaf butted in—he jumped onto the counter and placed coins before himself, “One chocolate bar, please!”
Aunt Maiken instantly gave him his chocolate. “Here you go,” she said, taking the coins. Alex’s mouth hung open in awe.
“Hey, Alex!” started Olaf. “You know, ‘It’s the early bird that catches the worm’.” As the snowman jumped off the table, Alex took off his hat,
“You got me, Olaf.”
Suddenly, Aunt Maiken recognized him. “Oh, my! Alex…?!” she called. She then pulled his cheeks hard and adored him like a puppy.
“Aah! Auntie, stop it!” he struggled to mumble. Controlling her desire, Aunt Maiken loosened her grip.
“Hmmm… My sweetie, I missed you so!”
“I missed you too, Auntie… And your tasty bread!” confessed Alex.
“Aww! Is it…? Wait right here, I’ve got something for you.” she walked into the kitchen. Alex couldn’t wait one moment more. He tapped his feet impatiently, occasionally peeping into the kitchen like a little boy. Aunt Maiken came out soon with a fresh loaf of bread.
“I haven’t packed them for sale yet… but this is just for you, Alex.”
Alex eagerly took the bread, “Thank you so, so much, dearest Auntie.”
“Oh, anything for you, my dearie,” she replied, ruffling his hair.
After he left the bakery, Alex happened to come across Olaf. “Hey, Olaf!” Seeing the loaf in his hand, the snowman’s mouth watered.
“Wait, what? She wasn’t selling bread…” he said, puzzled. With a smug smile, Alex proclaimed,
“Well, I guess, ‘Good comes to those who wait’!”
Anna stood on a balcony within the castle and stared into the fjord with a complacent smile. Gale whizzed past her, circling her and chittering mysteriously. Anna noticed it go about her. “Hi, Gale!” she greeted. Remembering something, she took out a piece of paper, neatly folded in the form of a paper plane, and passed it on to the spirit. “Oh, do you mind? I’ve got a message for my sister.”
The paper plane shot right up into the sky and punctured through the clouds, revealing a vast world of white. Proceeding forth, the airplane drifted swiftly, covering the largest of distances in a jiffy. As it began its descent, it flew right into the Enchanted Forest, which, too, was covered in snow. Moments later, it landed in Elsa’s hand.
“Thank you.” she expressed, catching it in mid-air. As she opened up the letter, Bruni, sitting on her shoulder, crawled onto her hand to read it.
“Charades Friday night. Don’t be late. And don’t worry, Arendelle’s doing just fine. We can’t wait for you to return at the end of winter. Alex longs to see you. I love you.”
Elsa looked up from the note, “I love you too, sis.”
Noticing the wind spirit, Elsa asked, “Hey, Gale! We’re going for a ride. Want to come?”
Gale twirled in an icy wind while the Water Nokk rose from a nearby stream. The Nokk morphed into an ice transformation of itself on Elsa's touch—it could now enter the land. Elsa mounted the Nokk and rode across the Forest. Honeymaren and her brother, Ryder, were herding the reindeer. Elsa waved to them, and they returned in kind. An Earth Giant helped her across to higher land. Bruni trailed her path, shifting in the trees. When the fire spirit gave her chase on land, she created powdery snowflakes. Licking the snow as it sank, Bruni cannonballed into a tiny heap of snow and diffused its heat. Soon, Elsa crossed over into the Dark Sea, which wasn’t very dark anymore—it was frozen solid ice.
Elsa and the Nokk galloped effortlessly on toward Ahtohallan: she was free. Was she going there to see her mother’s memory? Or was she going there to relive her childhood through icy statues? We’ll never know.