nixreginam:

   It baffled her how a woman she had perceived to be so utterly strong act so weak when it came to her children’s happiness. She has read countless of books with strong mothers who fought against everything that came their way to make sure their child lived happy lives. But this was reality, not fiction ; even so, the idea of a woman staying meek and obedient even as mothers sickened her. Mothers needed to be strong and protect their children, not stand by and watch the suffer.

    If she was being honest with herself, a part of her would always hate her mother
    for not being strong enough. Wife or not, queen or not, she was a mother first
    and foremost. A mother does more than carry the child for nine months, she is
    supposed to protect her child and love her child. The Church teaches women to
    act like nothing more than an accessory for a man ; a broodmare who obeys their
    husband’s every command. It does not help that society helps this idea spread.
    Women were humans too and should not have to deal with this.

    How many hours did she spend imaging her mother was different, stronger?
    How many hours did she pretend that the literary mothers she read about were
    her mother instead? They would fight for her at least ; they would go against
    their husband’s commands to make sure their children were FREE.

              ❝C-can’t you… Why didn’t you do this sooner?
                You should have fought sooner. You should have
                fought when I turned nine! Ten! You should have…

  You once told me I needed to be strong.
  That I needed to be strong for myself.
  But… why couldn’t you be strong for
  your children?

                      How are we supposed to be strong if our mother… if our mother
                      didn’t even FIGHT for us?❞

     At Elsa’s words, Idun looked away, her eyes closed. How could she answer such questions? Biting down on her lip, she tried to keep the tears locked inside. This should be about comforting her child, not making it about pitying the mother who had failed so badly. She had hoped she had done right for so long, hoped she had done her best. But her best hadn’t been good enough. And now she wondered if they even loved her still. If the answer was ‘no’, she could hardly blame them, even if it would make her heart ache like nothing else. 

     ❝I–I didn’t… I tried. In the beginning. I questioned your father’s
       every decision. I begged him to try something else before being
       so.. so drastic. But nothing worked. Once his mind is set, there
       is no changing it. It got… quite frightening, arguing with him.❞

     The anger in his eyes was something she’d never forget. His hands balled into fists, with Idun so certain he intended to strike her. He had already shaken her roughly. She knew how troubled his own past had been, and she wondered if he could really sink to the level of hitting his wife when she disagreed with him. It was only when she apologised that he calmed down. And she never allowed her children to see him that way. And never told them either.

     ❝And I have very little power, Elsa. I am just Queen Consort; even
       the title is just given to me by him. If he wished, I could simply be
       referred to by 'princess’ again. The servants will do as I ask, I can
       control some of the household, but it’s limited. 

                    It’s one thing to get you out for walks, and trips, but quite another to try
                    and order the gates opened. I cannot go against your father’s wishes
                    once he has made them clear. No one would listen to me. I tried my
                    best with the situation I had but… It wasn’t enough. And I should have
                    seen that sooner. I should have, but because I’m such a fool, I didn’t.
                    And now you’ve both suffered so much. And I do understand if you can
                    never forgive me. You deserved so much better than I.❞