I'm Afraid of What I'm Risking if I Follow You

Part 1

I'm Afraid of What I'm Risking if I Follow You

Chapter 1

The true balance of nature between each of the spirits had its way of resonating inside Elsa, giving her a sense of peace she had never experienced. Maybe as a child, back when Anna had been well aware of her powers, but it had been too far back for her to really remember the feeling, when all seemed right with the world. Her heart swelled with gratitude; she'd hold onto the frosted back of the Nocc, letting her hair flow freely behind her without a care.

No, Queen of Arendelle had never been her true calling. This was, this communication with the forest, as their bridge to the organic. As the fifth spirit, who could hear their call if their ways were threatened again. Sure, compassion had gone far in the kingdom—but she'd never been the social butterfly. That had always been Anna's strength. From what she'd heard and seen, Anna ran the kingdom fairly, with Kristoff at her side and Olaf as something of his own royal assistant to the new queen.

There were still games of charades every few weeks, and Elsa would spend quite a bit of time in between the forest and her former home. She and Anna had even taken something called a "photograph" together, commemorating their familial bond and capturing their likenesses for the next generations. In fact, once Anna returned from her trek to Corona, she'd even promised Elsa she'd throw some sort of gala to commemorate the new union between the two kingdoms. But Elsa adapted to nature, to the Northuldra so quickly it even surprised her—and she'd never spent as much as a night in the outdoors prior to her sudden move.

The outside really was for her, something Elsa didn't realize, given she'd spent her whole life behind closed doors.

Bruni scurried his way beside the Nocc as Elsa took him on his daily ride on land, her frost keeping him solid. His legs strengthened on the ground more and more with every ride; strong enough, Elsa hoped, to carry her great distances one day.

Hopefully soon, anyway. Sure, communing with the spirits and finding herself certainly brought this closure to the mystery of her past, but then... what was her future? Just here with the Northuldra, waiting for something to alert her? To call her again? Charades with Anna while checking in on Arendelle every once in a while? Sure, she was content with her current present, but... how long could it last before she started feeling like she did before venturing out of Arendelle?

Suddenly Gale, who trailed behind them, whistled something that immediately brought the Nocc to a hurried stop. Bruni and Elsa soon sensed it, her brown furrowing in confusion. There was no voice in the distance, nothing to follow, from what she could gather...

Bruni hopped up to Elsa's shoulder, and she winced at the slight burn before making him another flurry. "I know," she murmured, "the feeling is so much stranger than last time. I can't explain it."

Taking a deep breath, Elsa turned the Nocc around and faced Gale, whose leaves whipped around just beside her. "I sense the source at the tribe?" she asked. With how Gale started back toward home, Elsa took that as a yes.

"Hyah!" The Nocc picked up speed at Elsa's urge, and she hoped the situation wasn't too dire. Maybe the Earth Giants roamed too close to the dwellings? But the feeling wouldn't be this. She knew what that was like—they just needed goading away from the living area. This needed addressing. This was something new entirely, Elsa knew it.

No huge smoke in the distance, save the fire built every evening, which meant nothing was on fire... as she approached, no reindeer came out in a panic, so Ryder had nothing to fear. Easily Honeymaren would have been the first to warn Elsa about the trouble and what it was, but only Yelena stood by her hut, preparing for Elsa's arrival.