Thank you very much for your support, everyone! It really means a lot! Your support motivates me to keep writing!

I would like to thank roxygoth, BurningFox6, krystal lazuli, and LukeJames for beta reading and helping me improve!

Feedback is always appreciated!

Disclaimer: I do not own Frozen. Frozen is owned by Disney. I only lay claim to Prince Edmund, Prince Lucas, and Master Stephen.

Chapter 4

Edmund and Stephen awoke early feeling refreshed even though they only had six hours of sleep. Pulling on their robes, both men padded over to the window and stared out at the predawn landscape. The quietness calmed them as they decided to practice their yoga. Both men did yoga every morning upon waking up. After having their baths, Edmund and Stephen quickly changed into their yoga clothes and started their practice with a series of sun salutations to greet the morning and awaken their bodies. Following these, they moved through the warrior poses before finally finishing their practice with a short savasana.

"What will we be doing today, Master?" Edmund asked as he and his master got dressed into regular clothes.

"I was thinking of letting you and Lucas explore the town while I see what the castle has to offer after breakfast. Since I did not really see much of the palace yesterday, I figured today would be a good opportunity to do just that," Stephen replied.

"Are you sure about this, Master?" Edmund asked.

Stephen nodded and gave him a warm smile. "You have not seen Lucas in fourteen years. He is your best friend, Edmund. This is a golden opportunity to catch up with him and make up for all those years."

The English prince smiled gratefully, putting a hand on his master's shoulder. "Thank you, Master."

Stephen in return placed a hand on his student's shoulder. "Of course, Edmund. Ever since I began training you, I have always tried to be the best mentor I can be."

"You do a wonderful job with that, Master," Edmund beamed. "Let's go downstairs and have some breakfast now, shall we?"

"Yes, we shall," Stephen stated as he and Edmund made their way to the Great Hall.

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Meanwhile, Lucas was just getting out of bed, stretching his long arms and legs wide before he went to take a bath. Upon finishing his bath and getting dressed, he did some exercise to get his body warmed up before stretching in order to keep his muscles as loose as possible. Once he concluded his stretching, he practiced with his saber, imagining that he was sparring with someone while taking care not to hit or break anything in the suite. After finishing his practicing, the Belgian prince observed the scene outside the window. While it was still cloudy, there was no longer any snow falling. There was, however, a considerable amount of snow on the balcony. The Belgian prince saw the snow went up to his knees. Even with the door closed, he could still feel it was freezing outside. Despite the cold, however, the weather was halcyon; the wind was calm, without even the slightest breeze. Nevertheless, Lucas knew it would be unwise to open the door without having warm clothes on.

He thought about what activities he could do that day. Maybe go see the town?

Deciding he would ask Elsa and Anna first before planning anything, Lucas made his way to the Great Hall for breakfast.

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Edmund was walking to the Great Hall with Stephen when he almost bumped into Lucas as they turned a corner. Laughing, the three men greeted each other.

"Are you going to breakfast, Lucas?" Edmund asked.

"Indeed!" Lucas replied.

The three men headed to the Great Hall. As they entered, they saw the Ice Queen and her sister already seated and the sounds of clinking silverware greeted them.

"I do hope we are not too late?" Edmund asked as they entered the room.

"No, you are right on time. Please sit down, gentlemen," Elsa said as the three men obliged and made their way to their seats.

"Gentlemen, I would like to inform you I have meetings with the council every morning. I apologize that I unfortunately will not be available until later this morning at eleven o'clock," Elsa stated.

"Ugh, those darn meetings!" Anna complained.

"They are not the most fun thing in the world. However, it is my responsibility as Queen to make sure everything in Arendelle is in order," the Ice Queen explained.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Anyway, are you doing anything after that?" the princess wondered.

"Nothing that I know of," Elsa replied.

"Maybe once the meeting is over, we could build a snowman?" Anna suggested.

Elsa nodded with a smile. "We certainly could."

The Ice Queen then turned her attention to the three guests. "Do you three have anything you would like to do today?"

"I was thinking of taking a look around the castle to see all its wonders," Stephen replied.

"Maybe I could give you a tour, Stephen?" Anna piped in.

"That would be greatly appreciated, Anna. Thank you," Stephen responded, smiling.

"No problem!" the princess exclaimed, beaming.

The Snow Queen smiled at her sister's generosity. She then cleared her throat and turned her attention to the two young princes.

"What about you, Edmund and Lucas? Is there anything you two have in mind?" Elsa asked them.

"If it is okay with you Elsa, I was wondering if I could go see the town and what it has to offer," Edmund responded.

"Likewise. The town looks very nice. Going to see the town would also be a great time for Edmund and I to catch up," Lucas added.

The Snow Queen gave both men a reassuring smile. "Of course, you two may go see the town. It is a beautiful town I am very happy to be looking after."

"Thank you for your permission to go see the town. I cannot wait to see what I can find there," Edmund said with a smile.

"Thank you for your permission, Elsa. I am looking forward to exploring the town and whatever might be outside of it as well," Lucas stated, grinning.

Elsa gave them both a nod of approval. Edmund and Lucas were certainly fine gentlemen.

The Belgian prince looked outside and observed the overcast wintry scene. "We should definitely bundle up before we go out there. Right Edmund?"

Edmund nodded in agreement. "Yes sir. I would prefer not getting frostbitten toes or fingers."

"Neither would I buddy," Lucas said in agreement.

"Yeah, the cold can really get to you if you're not prepared for it," Anna pointed out, as she had quite a bit of experience with the cold.

"You are correct about that, Anna. It seems you, Elsa, and Kristoff have much more experience with cold than me, Master Stephen, and Lucas," Edmund said sincerely.

"It gets very cold in the winter in Arendelle, so yeah we have quite a bit of experience with it," the princess responded.

"You sound like you really know what to do whenever it gets cold out. After all, I may not have as much cold experience as you, but that does not mean I do not know what to do whenever a cold snap takes place," Lucas explained.

"Taking proper precautions is certainly a good idea. Elsa, on the other hand, is not the slightest bit bothered by the cold," Anna stated.

"With her amazing powers, I assumed the cold never bothered her," Edmund agreed, smiling.

"The cold indeed never bothers me," Elsa responded, beaming at the English prince's compliment of her powers. She was happy the three guests had come to accept her powers rather than be terrified of them.

Anna was really liking the three men. Not only were they being polite and friendly, but they also let her, Elsa, and Kristoff know some interesting things about them. She was almost certain they were honest and noble gentlemen.

The princess realized she had yet to ask Kristoff what he was doing for the day.

"What about you Kristoff? Are you doing anything today?" Anna asked the ice harvester.

"I'm going out to the lake to harvest some ice," Kristoff said.

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

That caught Edmund's attention. "Harvest ice?"

"Yeah," the ice harvester stated.

"How do you do that?" Edmund asked curiously.

Kristoff raised an eyebrow. "What would you like to know about it?"

"Like where do you get the ice from? What do you do with it?" the English prince wondered.

"I harvest ice in the lakes up in the mountains. See the mountains outside?" Kristoff said as he pointed a finger toward the window.

The three men obeyed and saw the mountains that were covered with a large amount of snow.

"After the ice is harvested, I transfer it to my sled. Then my reindeer Sven and I will bring it back here and sell it," the ice harvester explained.

"Ice harvesting sounds quite interesting. I have never heard about ice harvesting before. There is a lake outside of London I go to regularly with my father and master. However, the ice just never gets thick enough to harvest it without any danger of falling in. All we can do is ice skate on the frozen lake," Edmund said.

"Ice harvesting seems fascinating. I have never heard of it, nor have I found any history about Ostenda doing anything like it. How thick does the ice have to be to harvest it?" Lucas asked.

"The ice needs to be at least a foot thick to harvest it safely. Only in the mountains is the ice thick enough year-round," Kristoff explained.

"Well, I hope the ice harvesting goes well for you," Edmund said with a smile.

"Yeah. I am sure you will get an abundance of it at this time of year," Lucas added.

"Maybe someday we can see how ice harvesting is done," Stephen stated.

The ice harvester was gallantly surprised by the three men wishing him luck. He sat there in silence for a moment, studying the three men before a grin appeared on his face.

"Thank you for the good luck wishes gentlemen. You three seem strong enough to handle what it takes to harvest ice. I should let you know, however, that you have to do it in a certain way, or else you could end up falling through the ice or hurting yourself," Kristoff explained.

"You are welcome, Kristoff. As long as you teach us how to harvest ice before we even attempt it, I think we should be alright," the English prince replied with a reassuring smile.

Since the three men had developed an interest in ice harvesting, Kristoff was now wondering if he should maybe ask them to join him. While Stephen expressed his desire to stay inside the castle, the ice harvester thought that since Edmund and Lucas were going outside, they could come with him. Kristoff thought it would be a great chance for him and the princes to learn more about each other.

"Hey Edmund and Lucas? Since you guys seem very interested in ice harvesting, maybe you would like to, I don't know, come with me? I know you two already have plans to see the town, but I just thought I'd offer," Kristoff stated.

Edmund nodded with a smile. "I would love to come and see how you do it."

"Me too. I would like to see what you do when it comes to ice harvesting. Since we will be staying here for a while, I am sure we will have plenty of opportunities to go see the town," Lucas said.

The ice harvester was somewhat excited the two princes accepted his offer. "Okay then. We will get ready to go into the mountains after breakfast."

Elsa couldn't help but grin at the conversation between Kristoff, Edmund, and Lucas. While she was more than happy to give the two young princes permission to go explore the town, she was nonetheless pleasantly surprised they accepted Kristoff's offer to go with him to harvest ice. The Snow Queen thought it would allow Edmund and Lucas to know more about the ice harvester's life story.

"I hope you three have a great time. Stay safe out there," Elsa encouraged.

"We will," Lucas replied with a wink.

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After breakfast, Kristoff, Edmund, and Lucas were in the stables getting ready for their journey to the mountains, loading their supplies onto Kristoff's sled.

"Is ice harvesting what you do for a living Kristoff?" Edmund asked.

The ice harvester confirmed the English prince's question with a nod. "Yes. I've been doing it for many years since I spent much of my early years in the mountains."

"It sounds like a hard lifestyle," the English prince said.

"At first it was rough for me. Now that I have been doing it for a while, it's not too bad," Kristoff explained.

"I am glad to hear it is not as rough as it sounds," Edmund nodded approvingly.

Lucas, meanwhile, was giving Kristoff's reindeer Sven a carrot to eat. Since they arrived in the stables, the Belgian prince became curious about the reindeer. Upon laying his eyes on the two princes he was not familiar with, Sven had eagerly sniffed them and made attempts to lick them in their faces. This prompted Kristoff to calm his reindeer pal down, as he preferred Sven not getting his saliva on the guests.

"How long have you and Sven been with each other?" Lucas asked.

"When I was a kid, it was just me and Sven. That was until the mountain trolls kind of took us into their family," Kristoff explained.

The eyes of both princes widened with surprise and shock.

"Mountain trolls? I have never heard anything about mountain trolls. What are they like? They are not giant, mean creatures, are they?" Lucas asked, clearly baffled.

Kristoff shook his head and smirked at the reaction of the princes. "They are not as bad as they seem. After all, they are the only family I know of."

The expressions of Edmund and Lucas softened somewhat. They were still a little surprised by the fact there were magical creatures, however.

"Not to get too personal here, but do you happen to know what happened to your biological parents?" Edmund asked.

Kristoff merely shrugged in response. "I sadly don't remember anything about my parents. Aside from Sven, I've been on my own for as long as I can remember. That was until I moved into the castle with Anna and Elsa," Kristoff beamed at the mention of the princess of Arendelle.

"It is unfortunate you never got to know your parents. I am glad you have Sven and the royal family of Arendelle though," Edmund said sincerely.

"I appreciate your sympathy, Edmund. Nonetheless, I have nothing to complain about with my life. Ever since I met Anna, life has become brighter for me and Sven," Kristoff explained.

"You really like Anna, do you?" Lucas asked.

"I guess you could say that I really do. When we first met, however, she was engaged to Hans. Over the course of the journey to end the eternal winter Elsa accidentally cast upon Arendelle, we got closer. By the time it ended, Anna and I really wanted to know more about each other," the ice harvester elaborated.

"You mean the scumbag that attempted to kill her and Elsa to take over the kingdom?" Lucas seethed.

Kristoff nodded with a scornful look on his face. "Yup. After I saw what he was doing to Elsa, I was ready to clobber him for his actions. That was when Anna stepped in to deal with him herself. She then proceeded to punch that scoundrel off the ship. He sure got what he deserved."

"With actions like that, I would have done more than just punch him," Edmund said.

"Would you have killed him?" Kristoff asked.

The English prince shook his head. "I do not think I would go that far. Master Stephen has taught me not to ever think about killing anyone, even those who commit atrocious deeds. While it is in my nature to make someone pay for what they did, it has never been in my nature to kill. It is in my nature, however, to protect those I care about most. Maybe I would have gotten him sent to prison for life."

The ice harvester nodded in both understanding and agreement, knowing where Edmund was going with that.

"What would you have done, Lucas?" Kristoff wondered.

"Probably the same thing as Edmund. Even with the evilest human beings out there, I cannot stand the thought of killing anyone or anything," Lucas explained.

Kristoff deeply appreciated that the two princes were willing to show mercy. On the other hand, Hans did not know how to show leniency whatsoever.

Once the three men had all their supplies ready to go, the ice harvester decided that for the safety of the two princes and himself, he should probably sit in the middle of the sled.

"Hey guys? Maybe I should sit in the middle so I can have better control of Sven. Are you two okay with sitting on either side of me?" Kristoff asked.

The two men nodded.

"Whatever is best for you and everyone else, Kristoff. Since I have not had any experience with guiding a sled, it would be a good idea that you lead your best buddy here. The last thing we need is for anyone to get injured because of some mistake I might end up making while guiding Sven," Edmund explained.

"Same here. I would probably have no idea what I was doing if I attempted to usher Sven," Lucas said.

The ice harvester grinned at the generosity of the two men. "Glad to hear you guys are fine with that. We just need to figure out who will sit on each side of me."

"Does it matter who sits on either side?" Edmund asked.

"I'll let you two decide. It doesn't matter to me," Kristoff said.

"Okay. I will sit on your left side then, and on the way back Edmund and I can switch sides," Lucas suggested.

"Good idea, Luc," Edmund approved.

"Alright then. Let's get going," the ice harvester said as he made himself comfortable in his sled. Once he was settled, Lucas and Edmund climbed into the sled on opposite sides of him.

As soon as everyone was situated within the sled, they were off.

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Anna was showing Stephen around the castle. The princess noticed the graying at the ends of the gentleman's hair. Thus, Anna was curious as to how old he was. However, Anna preferred to be polite with the guests. As a result, she decided not to bother asking Stephen his age. With or without the gray at the end of his hair, Stephen was very handsome.

"What's your story, Stephen?" Anna asked as they continued to walk through the castle hallways.

"I was born in Ireland originally. Dublin, to be precise, which is the capital of the country. While there, I was raised by a wealthy family that cared very deeply about my safety. It inspired me to learn how to use a sword, a bow, and to get stronger every day. That is where I met Edmund's father, King Matthew. When we first met, he was five years old, and I was eleven. Back then he was Prince Matthew. We did everything together, from swimming, to ice skating, seeing who could lift the heaviest weight, who could shoot a bow and arrow the farthest, testing our sword fighting skills, you name it. Matthew and I have been best friends since the day we met. To me he is a brother in everything but blood," Stephen elaborated.

"That's a really good story! It sounds like you and King Matthew get along very well! What's Matthew like?" Anna wondered.

"Matthew is a king beloved by London for his generosity, wisdom, kindness, intelligence, and how much he cares about his kingdom. Life would not be the same without him. I have no idea where I would be right now if Matthew and I never met," Stephen explained.

"I'm glad London has a fair, just ruler like Arendelle does with Elsa," Anna smiled.

"Ah, yes, your sister. Elsa is a graceful, well-mannered, compassionate young woman. You should feel very lucky to have her as a sister. She seems to care very deeply about you," Stephen said.

"Yes, I am lucky Elsa is my sister. I wouldn't have it any other way," the princess stated with a fond smile.

"I am glad to hear that. Anyway, to continue my life story, everything changed for me and Matthew when he was twenty years old. He and I moved to England after he was involved in an arranged marriage with English Princess Isabella. Since her parents were stepping down from being King and Queen, they needed their daughter to find a husband to rule London beside her. At that time, Matthew was still a very young man and did not feel like he could handle the responsibilities of ruling such an enormous city. I assured him he would be a wonderful king, and though he did appreciate the encouragement, he was still unsure whether London would like him ruling their city," Stephen continued.

"Arranged marriages sometimes don't work out. Did Matthew and Isabella love each other?" Anna wondered, some concern in her voice.

Stephen nodded. "Matthew and Isabella loved each other with all their hearts. It made me very happy the arranged marriage ended up working out for the couple. Not long after they were married, Edmund was born. I began to train him the day he was born. However, since I know babies can be very delicate and fragile, I made sure to take it easy on him at first. Only gradually did I increase his workload as he got older and stronger."

"Oh! What do you train him in? Do you like teach him how to use a sword and bow like you and King Matthew did?" Anna wondered.

"That and I saw a lot of potential in Edmund. He took his training so seriously, I decided to train him in every fighting style that we know of today. Even though he is a virtuoso in everything I have taught him now, he never, ever takes his training lightly. Be assured though, that he and I only use our abilities for good. Ed is like a son to me," Stephen assured.

"That's good to hear!" Anna beamed. "What do you like to do for fun?"

"When Edmund and I are not training, we love to venture outside London and see the wonders of the forest outside the city. There is a lake we always go to for swimming in the summer, ice skating in the winter, and sometimes part of Edmund's training. I also like to spend time with Matthew whenever he is not doing any royal duties," Stephen explained.

"Sounds like fun! When's your birthday?" Anna wondered.

"My birthday is coming up pretty soon. New Years' Day is my birthday. I will be turning fifty," Stephen replied.

"Fifty?! Wow! You're halfway to the century mark!" Anna exclaimed.

Stephen chuckled. He liked how Anna was so full of life. "I have been living a great life, and I hope it will continue for many years to come."