Crystal Winter Frost

People said that when you began to live out your destiny, history would repeat itself. My destiny unfolded when a forgotten memory came back to haunt me.

It's no surprise that this happened in an ice fortress that houses my family's memories—it's also the place that I call home. Ahtohallan exudes powerful magic, but it's lonely at the top of the world. When one has too much power, fate finds a way to take advantage of it.

That's what happened to me, and Mom, and Dad. One created an eternal winter, and one almost ruined Easter. Both of them gave in to fear but managed to triumph over it.

I wonder how long it will take until I can fight back against fear.

***

"Thanks for calling the Arendelle castle. This is Crown Princess Alanna Björgman speaking! How may I help you?"

"Alanna, you don't have to answer your own phone like that." My cousin never failed to make me laugh.

"I know, Crystal; but it's fun!" She protested. "What's up?"

"Can I stay over in Arendelle tomorrow?" I asked tentatively.

"Stay over?" Alanna squealed. "Hex, you could live here all year if you wanted to! Of course you can—stay as long as you want. I'll get the rooms ready right now. Mom and Dad will be so excited! Chef Olga has a new recipe that she thinks Aunt Elsa would really enjoy—"

"Hey, Alanna," I fidgeted with the hem of my dress. "I'm coming to Arendelle alone this time around."

Alanna gasped loudly. "Alone?! It's spring; how are your parents that busy?"

I sighed. I didn't want to burden my cousin with the truth, but she deserved to know. "My parents," My voice shook, a lump forming in my throat. "My parents are missing. They were supposed to return from their trip to Corona three weeks ago."

A deafening silence arose from the other end of the phone.

"Crystal," Alanna started, "Crystal Winter Frost. You do not wait three hexing weeks to tell me that your parents are missing."

"I didn't want to—I wasn't sure if they were—I was trying to find them on my own."

"No excuses!" Alanna's shrill voice erupted in my ear. "You should have told me the moment you felt something was wrong. Pack your bags and get here as fast as you can."

"Yes, ma'am." I sighed.

"Good. By the way, Crystal," Alanna spoke softly, "I'm here for you. We'll do everything we can to find them, alright? What matters most is that you're safe with us."

A lone tear rolled down my face. "Thank you."

"I'll see you soon, Crys. I love you."

"I love you too, Alanna."

Sometimes I wished Alanna and I were sisters. What I'd give to never spend my days alone at the top of the world, with nobody to confide in and understand you but the howling wind and layers of ice and snow. In Ahtohallan, all you had were memories, but they were ghosts that you could never get away from, surrounding you at every waking moment. Mom and Dad treasured these wisps of the past dearly, telling me tales of how the memories had saved their lives. I was skeptical—why focus on the past when a bright future awaited you?

If the memories were so crucial to Mom and Dad's survival in the past, I mused, maybe the answer to their whereabouts also lies in Ahtohallan.

I pushed my luggage aside and wandered into the great expanse of the glacier, an ice-cold place warmed by decades of love and sacrifice. Whether I liked it or not, this was home.

After leaving my room and tripping down the ice stairs, I ventured into the main hall of Ahtohallan. The twin thrones sat eerily empty, and the halls were devoid of laughter and noise. The fairies were on holiday; not much winter preparation had to be done in the spring, anyway. But Mom and Dad were supposed to be here—with me—year-round.

Onward, I sighed. Time to find some memories.

I walked to the right of my parents' thrones, and took a deep breath.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!" I sang, and my voice echoed across the empty hall. Suddenly, pink and blue lights lit up in incandescence, and the ice shifted to reveal a passageway to the Memory Chamber. Feeling relieved, I walked on. I hadn't traveled through this passageway since I was ten, but Mom had made her instructions abundantly clear—give Ahtohallan the call, and it would answer.

The ice was brighter down the passageway, illuminated by the lights, but it was narrow and slippery. I steadied myself against the walls as I walked on. Soon, I reached an abyss, with nothing to help me to the other side but columns spaced far apart from each other. This was definitely Mom's doing, I sighed. I faintly remembered flying over the abyss with Dad when I'd last traveled down here ten years ago.

I reached behind my periwinkle-colored ice tiara for my wand, and pointed it at the columns. A bolt of ice shot out from the snowflake-shaped tip, and a set of ice stairs (with banisters!) unfurled. I crossed the stairway to the other side of the abyss, making a mental note to reprimand Mom about the poor design here when she came back.

Whenever that would be.

Soon enough, the lights dimmed as I reached the official entrance to the Chamber. I tapped my wand on either side of the triangular entrance, making sure the ice was steady and in place—I didn't need a disaster to happen here again.

The Chamber was empty. Only a dim, violet light pulsated through the room.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!" I called out again, raising my wand to the ceiling.

Nothing happened.

"Maybe it's the wand," I thought aloud, my voice echoing twice as much as it did in the hollow Memory Chamber. Only the purest forms of magic could reveal the memories stored in Ahtohallan, and even then, the Protector of the Northuldra—my mother—had to give you permission to see them.

I put my wand back behind my tiara, and lifted my hands up to the sky.

"Ah-ah-ah-ah!" I sang loudly, and the voices of the Memory Chamber responded with gusto. Snow shot out of my hands with an alarming force, and I waved my hands as the blizzard grew stronger, rising up around me and covering the purple hues of the dark Chamber.

"Come, my darling, homeward bound," the ghost of Grandmother Iduna's voice whispered. "When all is lost...and all is found."

The music faded away, and suddenly—a burst of light.

When I opened my eyes again, the snow had settled, and thousands of ice statues filled up the Chamber—my memories had come to life.

As I walked through the transformed Chamber, I gasped in delight at the memories of last summer. Dad had 'pulled a Mom,' (both literally and figuratively), and struck the world with an eternal winter while under a curse. My new friends and I launched ourselves into an adventure complete with falling libraries, catastrophic sleigh rides, and the ultimate power of love that thawed all. I also learned how to tie my own skates—that was definitely a bonus.

I walked further into the room to access older memories. Echoes of laughter filled the air, and I watched as my younger self played with Alanna in the snow, accompanied by our overprotective but caring parents. A snowball fight here, a snowman-building contest there...all ending with customary warm hugs by the fireside and a cup of hot chocolate. My childhood consisted of nothing but bliss. However, there was still no sign of anything that could help me find my parents.

I happened upon another old memory—Mom was giving me my wand for the first time. A younger version of me looked up at the magical object with a wary expression.

I walked closer to the memory, and the ice statues came to life.

"What is it?" Past me asked. I was peering at the wand with skeptical, narrowed eyes.

"A magic wand," Mom replied with mirth, and Dad's eyes seemed to twinkle in delight. "Crystal, this will help you control your powers and be more confident when you perform magic."

"What if I don't want my magic anymore?" I whispered.

"Don't say that," Dad patted my head. "We're giving you the wand so that you won't need to worry about accidents anymore. Your mother and I have made countless mistakes, and we're just trying to protect you from anything that will harm you."

"As long as you have love,"  Mom handed me the wand, "everything is possible."

Young me clutched the wand with uncertainty, holding it away from myself.

Mom helped me wrap my fingers around the wand and point it toward their thrones."Now, channel your love into the magic you have, and think of something special to contribute to Ahtohallan."

I watched as my younger self hesitantly obliged, closing my eyes and taking a deep breath. I channeled my power into my hands, and willed them to transfer to the wand. I thought of warm hugs, Mom and Dad's love, and a beautiful winter wonderland in the great hall. I let out a slow exhale as I felt the magic enter the wand, and opened my eyes as a great beam of ice and snow shot out into the throne room.

We all looked around, and I laughed in delight as I saw snow sculptures scattered across the throne room. "Snow day!" I exclaimed with jubilation.

Mom looked at me with pride in her eyes."You did it, Crystal,"  she smiled."You're amazing, d'ya know that?"

"Yeah,"  I grinned, and my parents wrapped their arms around me.

"Never fear,"  Dad whispered."Never fear."

I watched as he cast his eyes up to the snow cloud hovering above the throne room, and I followed his gaze. It was beginning to turn darker—or maybe it was just a trick of the light. I looked back at the memory scene: Dad's brows were furrowed in confusion, mirroring my current expression.

Memories don't lie.

"What happened?" I murmured, looking at the cloud. I waved it away with the flick of my wand. Dad had mentioned an accident during the memory that must have happened beforehand. Strangely, I couldn't remember what had happened.

"Alright, Crystal, let me go get your new freeze gun!"  Dad broke away from the embrace, picked up his staff, and flew deeper into the chamber. I followed the floating ice sculpture memory further into the Chamber.

A crack formed in one of the walls of the chamber, and I followed Dad in without hesitation. There were answers to be found.

After chasing after the memory of Dad for a bit, I looked around. This part of the chamber was much darker. Past Dad had disappeared over a ledge, and I peered over it.

Then, a wave of sounds blended into a catastrophe.

I watched with widened eyes and a pale face.

"Now let's go play!"  That fateful night—

"More snow!"

"I can't control—"

"ALANNA!"

"Frostbite—"

"...remove the memories..."

"I'm a monster."

"I'm a monster." I mouthed the words, and suddenly there wasn't enough air in the Chamber. I felt dizzy—breathing heavily—not enough—heart beating at an alarming rate—monster—monster—MONSTER.

"I'm a monster!" I screamed into the abyss, panting from the effort.

A lone tear fell onto the ice beneath me. I looked down at my palms.

"Oh no. Oh, no, no, no, no, no—"

Ice was creeping up my fingertips. I'd gone far too deep into the chamber of memories.

My fight-or-flight reflex took over, and I turned around and bolted from the abyss. I could feel ice creeping up my legs, and I ran faster, dashing out of the chamber, past all the memories (both forgotten and memorable), and past the entrance that dimmed as I left. I ran up the ice stairs, not daring to look behind me. I didn't stop till I was out of the corridor, and in the throne room.

My heavy breaths echoed across the empty hall. I looked at my hands and feet: no ice remained.

I let out a deep sigh.

That was enough exploring for today.

I walked solemnly up to my room, heels clicking on the grand staircase faintly. I shut the door with a resolute bang, and sunk down onto the floor behind it in utter defeat.

I closed my eyes.

There was a sudden chill in the air, and I looked around.

The windows were shut.

I stood up and turned around. Black sand crept up from the crack under the door. I stepped back in shock—this was not at all like dream sand. In fact, it was quite the opposite.

It was the stuff of nightmares.

"Who's there?" I took my wand from behind my tiara. "I have ice magic, and I'm not afraid to use it!"

A deep voice chuckled, and a shiver crept up my spine. "Crystal Winter Frost...so here's where you've been hiding."

"I'm not hiding." I gripped my wand tighter.

"At last I've found you," the voice whispered, and the black sand swirled up towards the ceiling. I held my wand out in front of me.

"Who are you?" I questioned.

"Me?" The voice laughed. "Why, I'm your worst enemy."

I furrowed my brows in confusion. "What?"

"Give in to the fear, Crystal," the voice shouted. "Give in!"

An ebony horse, the color of night, took shape in front of me. It neighed ferociously, rearing back on its hind legs. It shook its pitch-black mane—

Pitch Black, the king of nightmares, my subconscious supplied.

"Pitch Black." My eyes widened in realization—of course—we always feared nothing more than fear itself.

I put my wand back and flung my arms out in front of me. "Take that!"

A gigantic blast of ice froze the nightmare horse in place. I let out a deep sigh of relief. I flicked my wrist, and the frozen horse broke into a thousand shattered pieces.

My heart was still pounding in my chest from the effort. I could still hear Pitch's faint chuckle echoing across my mind, and I shook my head.

It wasn't safe in Ahtohallan anymore—I had to leave for Arendelle immediately.