When playtime goes wrong and young Elsa accidentally strikes Anna with her icy powers, the royal family seeks healing and answers from the trolls. Grand Pabbie, leader of the trolls, heals Anna but decides to remove any memories she has of Elsa's magic. He also gives strict, dramatic instructions to Elsa to control her powers, warning her, "Fear will be your enemy." To prevent harm that may happen in the future from Elsa's unpredictable powers, her parents then reduce their staff and limit Elsa's interactions with others going forward.
Poor Elsa. She has abilities she doesn't understand, and rather than patiently offering guidance and helping her find a solution (or, heaven forbid, celebrate her powers), every authority figure around Elsa instead frightens her with worst-case scenarios and extreme overreactions. Even worse, she has to hide who she is from her sister, her closest friend. Grand Pabbie doesn't handle that conversation the way he should, and Elsa's parents likewise make the situation worse, despite their intentions. As the audience later witnesses, Elsa is fated to deal with the implications of this traumatizing moment of parenting for the rest of her life.
