Night covered the village.
The fires had gone out.
The soldiers had fallen asleep around the temporary shelters.
The villagers were finally resting.
But Elsa remained awake.
She sat beneath the old oak tree at the edge of the village.
Edward's backpack rested beside her.
The letter lay in her hands.
For several minutes, she couldn't bring herself to open it.
---
The handwriting was unmistakable.
Messy.
Uneven.
Some letters were larger than others.
Exactly like him.
---
Elsa slowly unfolded the paper.
Her eyes moved across the first line.
And stopped.
> **My dear Elsa,**
Her fingers trembled.
---
She continued.
> **If you're reading this, then something must have happened that made you smile again.**
A small laugh escaped her.
---
"Idiot..."
She wiped her eyes.
"You really thought I'd smile again?"
---
She kept reading.
> **I don't know when you'll find this. Maybe tomorrow. Maybe years from now.**
>
> **Maybe I'll still be beside you when you read it.**
>
> **If I am, I'll probably pretend I didn't write it.**
Elsa smiled through her tears.
---
That sounded exactly like him.
---
> **But if I'm not there...**
>
> **Then listen carefully.**
Her smile slowly disappeared.
---
> **Don't spend your life hating the people who hurt you.**
Elsa lowered the letter.
---
She already knew what came next.
Yet she continued.
---
> **There will be people who call you a monster.**
>
> **There will be people who fear you.**
>
> **There may even be people who try to kill you.**
>
> **Don't let them decide what kind of person you become.**
Her eyes blurred.
---
> **I lied to you about who you were.**
>
> **I know that was wrong.**
>
> **I was afraid.**
Elsa's breathing became uneven.
---
> **When I first found you, I was terrified.**
>
> **I thought protecting you was something I had to do because of a promise.**
>
> **Then I thought I had to do it because I was responsible for you.**
>
> **Somewhere along the way...**
>
> **I stopped thinking about why.**
A tear fell onto the paper.
---
> **You became my daughter.**
Elsa covered her mouth.
Her shoulders began trembling.
---
> **Not because of blood.**
>
> **Not because of destiny.**
>
> **Not because some dragon told me to protect you.**
>
> **Simply because I loved you.**
Elsa couldn't hold back anymore.
She cried.
Quietly.
The way she had cried when Edward died.
But this time...
There was warmth inside the pain.
---
> **So if the world tells you that you don't belong...**
>
> **Don't believe it.**
>
> **You belong wherever your heart chooses to stand.**
Elsa pressed the letter against her chest.
---
Then she read the final lines.
---
> **And Elsa...**
>
> **I'm sorry I couldn't give you the normal life you deserved.**
>
> **I'm sorry you had to hide.**
>
> **I'm sorry you had to run.**
>
> **I'm sorry I couldn't protect you until the end.**
>
> **But if I could choose again...**
>
> **I'd still choose you.**
>
> **Every single time.**
Her tears fell freely now.
---
Then—
The final sentence.
---
> **Don't remember me as the incompetent father who couldn't protect his daughter.**
>
> **Remember me as the foolish man who was lucky enough to be called your father.**
>
> **I love you, Elsa.**
>
> **—Dad**
---
The letter slipped from her hands.
Elsa stared at the ground.
For several seconds...
She couldn't breathe.
---
Then she laughed.
A broken little laugh.
---
"You really were incompetent..."
She wiped her tears.
"...You couldn't even write a letter without making me cry."
---
She picked up the letter carefully.
Folded it.
Pressed it against her heart.
---
"Thank you, Dad."
---
The wind moved through the trees.
The leaves whispered softly.
---
Elsa looked toward the stars.
---
"I'll try."
---
A pause.
---
"I'll try to live."
---
She smiled.
---
"Just like you wanted."
---
Behind the tree—
Someone stood silently.
---
Jack.
---
He had heard everything.
He didn't interrupt.
Didn't approach.
Didn't say a word.
---
Because some moments belonged only to fathers and daughters.
Even when the father was no longer there.
---
Jack quietly turned away.
But before he left—
Elsa spoke.
---
"Jack."
---
He stopped.
---
She didn't look at him.
---
"Did my father ever talk about me?"
---
Jack smiled sadly.
---
"Every day."
---
Elsa closed her eyes.
---
"What did he say?"
---
Jack looked toward the sky.
---
"He said..."
A faint laugh escaped him.
---
"...that you were the strongest person he had ever met."
---
Elsa smiled.
---
"He was wrong."
---
Jack shook his head.
---
"No."
He walked away.
---
"He wasn't."
---
Above them—
The stars continued shining.
And somewhere beyond the mountains...
Something ancient was moving toward them.