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

Part 7

I don't owe him an explanation, or even my help, but I can feel from the spirits that this is the right thing to do. Please trust that this isn't like when the spirits called me—I know what we're dealing with now, and with how slowly progress has been going with Hans's injury, I know how to work around him. Your job in Arendelle is far more important than this, and that's where I need you. You're a Queen first. And a Queen looks out for her people before her sister, so please don't follow me—I will update you as I uncover more. And please don't send Kristoff. I can handle Hans. No longer is he the dangerous monster I once thought him for hurting you.

But don't worry, I've still yet to forgive him, and probably never will.

I'll uncover this mystery, and before long, we'll be playing charades again in Arendelle. I can't wait to see you until then.

All my love,

Elsa

She read her letter, fixed a few mistakes. Then she reread it, made sure she made it clear to Anna that she couldn't directly involve her sister in this. Being Queen meant taking care of the people first, and she'd been away from them for quite some time in Corona. When she visited, she'd seen Anna mature so quickly, more so than in the three years they kept the gates open.

But one could never be too sure.

When she exited the hut, she could just feel Hans's gaze on her, confused given this was the most time they'd ever spent apart. But she snuck out to the river, sighing as she folded her letter into the small bird. Then she whistled for Gale.

When she felt the wind blowing through her hair, Elsa held up her letter. "Hi, Gale. Do you mind delivering this to Arendelle palace for my sister when she returns?"

Gale swept up the letter, but lingered for a moment. Good.

"And Gale... if she protests, if she starts coming after me—you have to keep her away by any means necessary. Please?"

It wasn't like Gale could answer, but Elsa could tell that there was an agreement between the two of them.

"Thank you," she murmured, and Gale was off. She kept watching until she could no longer see the wind over the horizon.

A hand on her shoulder made her jump; she'd been so concentrated, and in retaliation, ice shot out onto the river's edge.

"Whoa, I didn't mean to sneak up on you." Hans pulled his hand back quickly, taking a step back. "Yelena mentioned something about you needing a bit of space."

Normally Elsa would be angered by him assuming he could touch her, but with the ride on the Nokk, and getting intimate to him with his memories... she hated to admit it, but they were growing closer, and part of it was of her own volition.

"No, it's..." Elsa sighed, retracting the ice as quickly as she had formed it. "I was going to head back to talk to you, anyway."

"Let's talk here," he suggested, sitting on the edge. There they were, same as their first private talk, with Hans taking off his boots.

Elsa sat closer than before, rolling her pants up to her knees. She lazily kicked up a few droplets of water. Should she just... start to talk? Mention it out of the blue? Demand to know where he'd heard the song before? How was she supposed to begin?

"You know, it always astounds me that you have such control over your powers, and just how much they can actually do," he said, starting off the conversation. "I mean, controlling ice is one thing, but then your palace? Fabric manipulation? Memory sharing? I never would have guessed ice could do... most of those things."