Many Beauty and the Many Beast

by Felicity Collins

  I knew tomorrow, someone was going to push on that with every card in their hands for doing so and I hoped with all my heart things weren't going to get to that. No matter who it was, killing someone by my hand or order was something I was not capable of bringing myself to do.

  Tomorrow is going to be tough…

  CHAPTER SIX

  Hans's trial was today.

  I was nervous, very nervous… too nervous. I could tell Anna was too. Her usual talkativeness was gone. Today she had actually been very silent and 'Anna' and 'silent' in the same sentence is a bad oxymoron. That morning had been dreadful. Anyone could feel the tension in the air on their fingers. I was anxious because I had a man's life in my hands, Anna was anxious because I was anxious and Kristoff… well… he was actually doing a pretty good job trying to ease the tension, by trying to make the morning as normal as possible and I was grateful for it. Not so much for myself, but more for Anna who seemed to lighten up a bit and seeing her calmer, made me feel a little better as well. As the time of the trial was nearing, Anna and I went back to our rooms to get ready.

  While I waited for Anna to finish, I sat in front of my vanity taking deep breaths. I could do this. I had to do this… but how? No Elsa! You'll find a solution. Everything's going to be fine. Just stay calm… conceal, don't- no! I'm done with that. Breathe in.. breath out… I kept telling myself, taking deep breaths. It was in these moments that I wondered if my parents were this nervous on their first trial. I wondered what they would have done… what my mother would have done in my place.

  It was then that I heard a knock on the door. I got up from the vanity and as I opened the door I found General Ryder standing tall and looking rather dashing in his uniform. It seemed like it was made just for him, showing off his broad shoulders and lean hunky arms. I bet he has a six-pack under his uniform- Whoa! Wait! Where did that come from? Bad Elsa! Bad Elsa! That is completely inappropriate!- I shook my head slightly sending those unqueenly thoughts away as General Ryder gave me a charming smile and spoke up.

  "Queen Elsa" he greeted "You look wonderful this morning" he complimented making me blush slightly. "How are you, Milady?"

  "I'm fine, General Ryder" I answered "What brings you here?" I asked politely

  "If her Grace is ready I wondered if you'd like me to accompany you to the Juridical Palace and, please, your Majesty, I'd be rather grateful if you called me Storm" he said.

  "Of course!" Anna piped up coming to the door, making me slightly jump in surprise since I hadn't realized she was ready as well.

  "Oh, Princess Anna!" he said surprised, following with a bow "I didn't see you there. I thought you were already out"

  "That's alright" Anna said smiling, it seemed like her whole worry for the trial was gone "Just give us a moment"

  "No problem, your Highness" he replied and Anna grabbed my arm and closed the door.

  "Anna, you're freaking me out. What's up with the sudden excitement?" I whispered, raising an eyebrow. Anna looked at me and started to smooth my hair and re-do the end of my braid. "What are you doing?" I asked as soon as she was done replacing a couple of my ice pins in my hair.

  "There! Now you look perfect" she whispered back

  "Anna what's all the fuss abou-" I abruptly stopped as realization dawned on me "You're not playing matchmaker, are you?"

  "What? He came for you! He's tall, he's handsome, a brave warrior, he seems like a gentleman, why don't you give it a shot?"

  "Really, Anna?"

  "He's not even as burly as Kristoff"

  "He probably just wants to ask or inform me about something over the trial; strictly professional"

  "And since when do army generals start something 'strictly professional' by checking out the queen the moment she opens the door?"

  "He wasn't checking me out!" I said feeling heat go to my cheeks.

  "Yeah, and so were you" my eyes widen

  "I wasn't checking him out!"

  "Yes, you were. Come on, Elsa! What's so bad in liking a guy? He's cute, seems nice enough, just give it a try" I rolled my eyes.

  "Alright, fine"

  "You're Majesty, is everything alright?" Storm asked outside the room.

  "Yes, just a second" I answered. Anna was gripping on my shoulders, nearly jumping up and down holding back a squeal "I said 'okay' but calm down. You seem to like him more than I do"

  "Ha! So, you admit you kind of like him" she said playfully pointing an accusing finger at me.

  "Well, I can't really say he's not an attractive guy" I admitted.

  "Oh? Tell me sis, did you agree to give it a shot because I insisted or because you like the idea of having those blue-greenish eyes, broad shoulders and hunky arms all for you? I bet he has a six-pack under that uniform!"

  "Anna!" I exclaimed with my eyes wide in bewilderment.

  "What? It's not like you haven't thought about it!"

  "You are in a relationship!"

  "Just because I'm dating Kristoff it doesn't mean I'm suddenly blind!" I shook my head "Don't worry, Elsa. I'll be right behind you" I smiled at her and opened the door. Storm was there and smiled at us.

  "I'll have to excuse myself, although I'd love to join you, I think my boyfriend has been waiting for me long enough" Anna said. I shot a look at her and she smiled innocently. You little traitor!

  "It's fine, your Highness" Storm said with a smile.

  "Well, then. Bye-bye!" with that Anna waltzed away leaving me alone with General Ryder. So much for being 'right behind me'.

  "So, shall we?" he said holding out his arm for me

  "We shall" I said and looped my arm through his. We walked silently through the castle making our way towards the Juridical Palace. General Ryder was silent for a while, but then he spoke up.

  "So, your Majesty, rumor is this is your first trial" he said.

  "It is, indeed" I answered.

  "Are you nervous?"

  "Kind of, I mean… both Anna and I have been directly involved in this and… yeah, I'm nervous" I said "I knew that I would have to take care of these matters sooner or later, but I wasn't expecting of having someone's life in my hands on my first trial"

  "I'm not going to pretend like I know what you're feeling right now, but if it makes you feel any better I know you'll make the right choice"

  "How can you be so sure? I talked to him and what he told me weren't exactly good things for him… and what he told me about Queen Skylynn wasn't good either"

  "I bet he said he doesn't care about her and that she's just a stupid girl"

  "More or less"

  "Don't believe a word he said about her" I looked at him puzzled "Believe it or not, I used to be friends with Hans and Skylynn and she is the person he cares about more than anything in the world"

  "How do you know them?" I asked surprised

  "I…" he took a deep breath "I'm actually a Drakorian… I was one of the commanders of the army alongside Skylynn, then… things happened and… now I'm in the Southern Isles' army and Skylynn is pretty much angry at me because of the way I left… and if I have to be honest I don't blame her"

  "Is there someone Skylynn is not angry at?" I said sarcastically.

  "That would pretty much be her people, Hans, Princess Anna, and you, Queen Elsa" he answered with a smile.

  "Elsa, just Elsa" Storm smiled charmingly.

  "Of course, Elsa" he stayed silent for a moment looking at me in the eyes with a small smile "Anyway" he said looking away "Being 4 years older than her, I had started my military career earlier than Skylynn. Before the revolution, King Landon's uncle came to the Southern Isles for some political matters and there I met Hans. We became friends and one day he introduced me to Skylynn. I stayed there for a while and then I returned to Drakora, but during my stay I could tell there was a special bond between those two half-siblings. A year later, the rebellion exploded. The moment it did, I immediately joined the rebels. To tell you the truth, I'm ashamed of having served someone like Hugh, but withou
t the rebels I didn't have a choice. The Revolution gave me a the chance to finally do what was right for my country"

  "Basically, you served Hugh for a while because you didn't have any opposition supporting the rightful king to go to" I stated, listening to his tale "But didn't you know about any sort of underground movements?"

  "No. Hugh needed his men, so he basically locked us up in the castle, away from any sort of contact out of his control range. I had no idea there even was an underground movement until the first rebel attack. My father did though, he was leading the attack in fact. How he knew, I have no idea, but he kept me in the dark to protect me" he continued.

  "Wait, so… your father was also a commander?"

  "Commandant, actually. It's the Drakorian equivalent of General" he said proudly as I caught a glimpse of a small smile "But I'm going off topic now" he said and resumed his tale "When Skylynn managed to get into the army, many men were jealous of her. She was the youngest, she clearly told us she was the result of an affair and of course she was the only woman fighting in the front line in the army of rebels. Of course, there was King Landon's sister as well, but Princess Angel was rarely allowed into battle, for obvious reasons"

  "Naturally" I replied. There was no need to explain: she was the second in line, that says it all.

  "It happened that once there was someone plotting against King Landon. Those men framed Skylynn into being part of a scheme against the king and well. When I informed him about it, Hans got the first ship to Drakora and fought for and with her to prove her innocence and he succeeded. Skylynn could have been dead if it wasn't for him. You should have seen with what courage he faced Landon and persuaded him into giving him time to prove him Skylynn's loyalty and punish those who framed her. He didn't just save Skylynn, he helped her figure out who was really behind the scheme. With Hans' help, Skylynn organized the perfect strategy to incriminate who was really behind it" he paused and looked at me "We were under assault once. Hugh had discovered our hideout and sent some of his men to destroy us. During that fight, one of Hugh's men saw that Landon had his back on him, so he took the chance and charged. I was about to throw myself to save my king, but Skylynn was faster. The moment Landon turned around, she basically threw her arms around him and let that dagger sink right through her back… I then took care of that soldier" Storm paused looking away for a moment "When the fight was over I immediately informed Hans of what happened and two days later he was in Drakora by Skylynn's side. Like Landon and I in those days before his arrival, Hans never left her side either. He would just sit there and hold her hand or lay down beside her and rest only when he really couldn't take stay awake anymore. He watched her over like a hawk. More than once Landon and I had to personally go to him and get him to go eat something while we would have stayed to watch her over" he paused as he remembered "That wound was very deep and she had lost a lot of blood, our healers weren't sure she was going to make it. When Skylynn finally woke up, Hans was there and you don't know with how much affection and relief he hugged her and kissed her cheek, because of how happy he was that she was alive. I remember that Skylynn told me that a couple of days later, Hans came to visit her in the infirmary and begged her to go back to isles. She told me that when she asked why he wanted her to go back, he had said: 'I want you to come back because I can't bear the idea of losing you'. Skylynn stayed though and Hans never came back to Drakora, not even when she took that arrow for Landon, but not because he didn't want to. Sky had asked me not to tell Hans anything because she didn't want him to freak out like that, anymore. To say he was out of his mind with worry is an understatement" he paused.

  That made me think… again. Actually it made everything even more confusing! Who is that man who's fate is in my hands?! When Skylynn and Storm talk about him he seems like a good man, but then I think about what he did to us and what he said when I went to talk to him, that it just confirms that inside that prison cell, there is a murderer. It's just so confusing! Then Storm spoke up again"These were the only examples I could witness with my own eyes, please consider it once you get in there"

  "I will" I said. There was a long silence, the only sound was the one coming from our footsteps as we walked outside towards our destination "This is all very confusing" I complained "If Hans is such a good man as you and Skylynn describe him to be, then why did he do what he did? He tried to kill both Anna and I and he said himself that he isn't sorry at all. I was willing to hear his side of the story to see why he would do such a thing, thinking that maybe there was some good in him, but he killed off that idea as soon as he opened his mouth"

  "I don't know, Elsa. He's… he's not an easy person to understand"

  "Something Skylynn took after really well, along with the irritating cocky attitude" I commented. Storm chuckled.

  "That is Skylynn for you. But don't worry about the cockiness, it's just the character she decided to play"

  "Well, she's very good at playing it. It comes natural" I replied with a small smile, Storm chuckled a little but didn't say anything else. Silence fell among us again, for a moment, then curiosity got the best of me "Storm, why did you leave the Drakorian army?" I asked curiously. His eyes darkened at my question. I bit my lip regretting it "I'm sorry, you don't need to answer if you're not comfortable with it"

  "Thank you" he said gratefully "But just to make things clear, I didn't betray king Landon and Skylynn. I didn't run away… I will eventually tell you why, I promise" he said. I had thought about it, why leaving the Drakorian army to join the Southern Isles? But looking at him, his bright blue eyes were sincere. He wasn't lying at all, he didn't betray Skylynn and Landon.

  "I suppose you had your good reasons" I concluded. He smiled slightly and looked away.

  "So" he began "I see that her Majesty isn't married yet" he said changing the subject.

  "No, I'm not. What about you?" he smiled.

  "I've had a few girlfriends, but it didn't work with either of them so… I'm a bachelor"

  "A few?" I asked slightly surprised. He didn't seem like the womanizer type.

  "Two, to be specific. Not being an aristocrat has it's perks after all, and one of them is having a bigger possibility to test the waters until I find The One"

  "Oh, that makes sense… it is a perk after all. I'm glad Anna found Kristoff"

  "But they aren't married, yet"

  "Keyword: yet" I said with a small smile "Kristoff is actually planning on proposing this Saturday, but they're not getting married until at least seven months have passed" Storm raised an eyebrow "They've been together for just a month, so to avoid possible complications, let's sum it up this way, Kristoff and I made a deal when he came to ask for my blessing" he laughed at the explanation.

  "Smart" Storm commented.

  "Thank you" I answered with a smile.

  "Are you looking forward to it? To marriage, I mean"

  "Well… If I want to get married, I hope it doesn't have to be for saving Arendelle. Don't get me wrong, if something happened to my kingdom and a marriage was needed to save it, I'd marry, but I hope to find 'the one'. I want to marry for love, not for duty, even if my true love turns out to be one of my servants" he smiled, somehow satisfied with my answer.

  "I suppose you have lots of suitors asking for your hand, you'll eventually find him someday" I sighed defeated.

  "I used to have many suitors before I was crowned queen" I said looking down "Let's just say that ever since the Great Thaw, suitors have been… less frequent" I said sadly.

  "It's because of your powers, isn't it?" he asked with a concerned voice as we stopped in front of the Juridical palace.

  "Yes… after the Thaw, only two men came and both began their usual eloquent speech, but every time I said something, they kept telling me how right I am and how they agree with me even for the simplest things like tastes in music" I sighed "They're afraid of me, because of my powers. They may enjoy my presence but they are clearly afraid of becoming ice statues… that actually mak
es me more uncomfortable than they are" he remained silent, but I didn't hold his gaze.

  "You don't have to be uncomfortable" Storm said in a soothing voice. That caught me off guard.

  "What?" I asked puzzled. He turned to the side to face me directly, but when I let go of his arm, he kept holding my hand in his.

  "You know, I believe it's actually a good thing you have less suitors, now" he said as his lips twitched upwards.

  "Oh? And why do my lower chances of finding a suitable husband seem to delight you, General?" he smiled.

  "One simple reason, your Majesty: less suitors for you mean less competition for me" he said holding my hand in both his "I'll see you after the trial, Elsa" he said, brought my hand up and kissing the back of it, then he left turning back once flashing me a smile and then entering the building. I stood there looking at him like… an utterly complete royal idiot. Did he just basically say that he's interested in me? Well, he didn't exactly say it but… my thoughts were interrupted when I felt someone placing his arm on my left shoulder and two hands grabbing my right arm. I looked at my left and saw Kristoff smirking down at me, then to the right and saw Anna with a fake vague smile. I looked at Kristoff, then at Anna, then back to Kristoff, then back to Anna.

  "May I help you?" I asked. Anna smirked.

  "Looks like someone caught General Ryder's eye" Kristoff said with a smirk. I blushed at the comment "I talked to him once, he seems nice enough. I approve" I raised an eyebrow.