The Strong and the Weak - Chapter 1

[Aslanslamb]

Elsa finished her mathematics assignment and placed it carefully on her desk.

Her father had asked her to have it done by tonight so he could check over it. It was a particularly difficult set of problems but although she was far from brilliant in math, she was persistent. She had kept working at each problem until it made sense and now she could look at the finished product with pride.

Pride was good because it was a positive emotion, one easy to control. Hopefully, as a queen, she would be able to manage just like this, with determination and hard work and pride.

What if not?

Elsa pushed away the thought. Of course, she would have moments of worry and fear. Everybody had those. But then she would simply ask for time to be alone, to calm down and suppress the silver iciness flowing through hands against her will. And her mother and father would always be there to make sure she had that time alone, that nobody came close to her. Then, when she was ready, she would return to the people and smile upon them serenely. And nobody would ever know.

Knock, knock.

Elsa jumped at the sound and felt cold tingling in her fingertips for a split second. Her reaction to something unexpected. Luckily, she was wearing her gloves. If she wasn't, there would be an icicle on the floor and a puddle to mop up later. And how would she explain it to the servants when there was no water in her room? What if they found out? What if everybody found out?

Elsa closed her eyes and breathed in and out slowly, the way her mother had taught her.

If they had keep the secret successfully for twelve years, there was no reason to panic now.

Knock, knock.

Mother and father never knocked.

It was Anna. Who else? But Anna only knocked in the winters and on rainy days when she was bored and forced to stay inside.

Over time, Elsa had come to think of her little sister as a sort of butterfly flitting about the palace. She was small and sweet and wonderfully free but also very fragile. Butterflies didn't mix with snow and ice.

Knock, knock.

Elsa spoke as calmly as she could. "Anna?"

"Yes," came the reply from behind the door. "It's me."

"Mother isn't here. Neither is father," Elsa said. "You're looking for them, right?"

"No!" Anna said. "I need help with a problem. From you."

Elsa found herself curious. What sorts of problem could carefree Anna possibly have? "What's wrong?" she heard her voice saying.

"Can I come in?"

"No!" Elsa snapped.

"Fine. It's a math problem."

Oh," Elsa said. "Of course, it would be that."

'What do you mean?" Anna said indignantly.

"Nothing. You need to find father."

"He told me that I had to figure it out on my own. But I'm just stuck! It's not fair!"

Welcome to real life, Elsa thought. But she didn't say that. "What's the problem?"

"Well." There was a sound of shuffling papers. "Arendel has six hundred horses all together. There are two male horses for each female horse. How many male horses and female horses are there?"

Elsa thought. She saw immediately how the problem might be done but to explain it...that was the hard part. "Suppose that you have six horses," she said. "And there are two males for each female. Can you do figure that out?"

"Why?" Anna asked.

"Because. I am asking you to."

There was a silence. "Four males and two females," Anna said triumphantly.

"Good. Now, do six hundred horses."

"Huh?"

"It's the same concept," Elsa said. She stared at the door. It would be so easy to just open the door and draw a picture. She wouldn't touch Anna. She wouldn't even look at her. She'd just draw the picture and let it speak for itself. But father and mother had said no.

"I don't get it." Anna sounded near tears. "Why can't the grooms just count all those horses and leave me alone?"

Elsa smiled. She had an idea. "Imagine that when I am queen, I gather all the horses together and I give you one horse for each two horses that I keep for myself. How would I split them up?"

Anna thought for a moment. "You'd line them up and count off. Numbers one and two, go to you, number three goes to me." Anna giggled. "That rhymes."

"So if I was counting off each horse, and I got ten horses, how many would you have?"

"Five."

"And if I had twenty, how many would you have?"

Ten."

"And if together we had six hundred, how many would I have?"

Anna thought. Then she shrieked. "I actually get it! You'd have four hundred!"

"Good," Elsa said. "Now you can go away."

There was a quick gasp from behind the door, followed by a silence.

Elsa sighed. She turned around, ready to walk away from the door.

"Except that you would never share any horses with me," Anna said suddenly. "You never share anything."

Elsa felt tears rush to her eyes. "You just don't understand. You already have everything you could possibly want. While I'm always stuck in here."

"But why?" Anna asked. "Do mother and father lock you in?"

"No. They want me to be here but I choose to be here too," said Elsa, honestly.

'Then you're not really stuck," Anna replied, her voice choked. "And you could be out here with me but...but you don't want to be! You can have your stupid horses! I don't want them anyway!"

Elsa heard the footsteps as her sister ran down the hall.

An hour later, when her father came in, he found Elsa curled up in bed, eyes closed, her blanket and sheets thick with white frost in spite of the gloves. "I'm trying," he heard her wail. "I really am. But I just can't not feel. I can't."

He stood there for a moment. He hugged Anna all the time but hugging Elsa was too dangerous. He reached out for a wisp of her hair and began to stroke it. "You aren't doing anything wrong, Elsa. You're the kindest, gentlest, smartest little girl ever and you're trying your very best to be brave. Mother and I are so proud of you."

Elsa grew calmer as he spoke. She took a few deep breaths, stood up straight. "My blanket. It will be all wet. The servants will think - "

"I'll take care of it. Now, what happened earlier?"

"Ask Anna," Elsa said tightly.

"Anna? You didn't open the door, did you?" The words came out before he could stop them.

"No. I didn't." Elsa sounded tired. "We just talked. She got angry at me because I wouldn't come out."

"Anna is strong," he said. "She can take it."

"But I don't know if I can," Elsa said, her voice shaky.

Someday, they would tell Anna, he thought. Someday, they would sit down their little whirlwind of a girl and tell her everything and then she would understand and forgive. For now, he hoped her natural cheerfulness would pull her through. It was Elsa that he needed to comfort now. He reached for her gloved hand and held it tightly.

Meanwhile, Elsa was thinking, it was so strange. Anna needed to be protected but Anna was strong. It was a paradox, just like the way she didn't need to be protected but was always afraid of things.

"It will get easier," her father said. As Elsa looked at him, he saw that she didn't believe him.

"It won't," she said. "I just have to get stronger instead. And avoid talking to Anna."

"Yes, that's probably for the best," her father said. "And I'll speak to her too. I'll tell her that you are busy."

"Can you...can you tell her that I love her?"

Her father smiled sadly. "I will."

[Ariel.of.Narnia]

Ouch.
Nicely done!

[cor]

OOH! It's so cute! I love it! I had to go back and read it again! It's so beautiful! Nice job!

[elanorelle]

That was done wonderfully. Good job!

[albero1]

Very nice, though I did notice that you did some head-hopping towards the end. But I still think it's a wonderful story (and I like the idea of Elsa helping Anna with math )