Helga

> Remember what we promised, Ingrid. We will never abandon each other.
>       —Helga to her sister

Princess **Helga** is a character on ABC's *Once Upon a Time*. She débuts in the seventh episode of the fourth season. She is portrayed by guest star Sally Pressman and co-star Bailey Herbert.

## History

### Before First Curse

Helga is second child born to Queen Sonja and King Harald of Arendelle, and she has an elder sister, Ingrid, and a younger sister, Gerda. As children, the three develop a close bond. One afternoon, they spot a punctured kite, and Helga and Gerda take a fancy to the kite's ribbons. The kite's owner arrives, but he proves to be a scoundrel when he grabs Gerda; intending to sell her for a high price. Helga rushes forward to help her sister, but she too is restrained by his grip. When the man kicks Ingrid away, she falls backwards as a stream of ice comes out of her hands, which breaks a large tree branch and knocks him unconscious. Ingrid fears hurting her sisters with her new-found powers, but Gerda and Helga are thankful for what she did earlier. Her sisters promise to help conceal the powers, and each take a kite ribbon to solidify their sisterhood. Years later, on the night of their father's birthday celebration, Gerda and Helga attempt to convince Ingrid into coming, but she doesn't want to ruin things with her presence. At the party, Helga brings her admirer, the Duke of Weselton, to meet her father and the couple later dance. After the festivity, the sisters arrive home to find Ingrid packing up as she believes with herself gone, they can have normal lives. Ingrid also passes the throne to Helga, who she thinks is a good fit as Queen. Recalling the ribbon pact they had as children, Helga reaffirms to Ingrid that they are not turning their backs on her, even if her powers are uncontrollable. Gerda mentions a Misthaven resident, Rumplestiltskin, who can help. In exchange for their ribbons, Rumplestiltskin gives Ingrid a pair of gloves to cancel out her powers as well as a urn to entrap her if she becomes too dangerous. In the royal gardens, Helga comes across the Duke and Ingrid. The Duke claims Ingrid attacked him with magic after he did not reciprocate her feelings for him, but Helga sees through his lies and stands by her sister. Furious at being spurned, he threatens to reveal Ingrid's magic to all of Arendelle so the citizens will know their future queen is a monster. Ingrid, angered at his words, blasts him, but the Duke uses Helga as a shield and she takes the hit; turning into an ice statue and crumbling to pieces. As Ingrid cries over her sister's broken body, Gerda arrives to the horrific scene. Gerda, with grief and disgust, entraps Ingrid in the urn and later asks Grand Pabbie to erase everyone's memories of her sisters' existences. *("Family Business", "The Snow Queen")*

## Trivia

* She is described as, "strong, intelligent and beautiful middle sister of three, a blue-eyed blonde in her late 20s/early 30s who always puts her sisters first".
* The name "Helga" is the feminine form of the name "Helge"  derived from the Old Norse name "Helgi" meaning "holy, blessed".

## Appearances

*Note: "Archive" denotes archive footage.*

* Helga appears in a family tree picture in "Family Business".
* Helga appears in a portrait in "Heroes and Villains".

## References

1. ↑ http://tvline.com/2014/09/15/castle-season-7-spoilers-kate-search-for-rick-esposito-ryan/
2. ↑ http://www.behindthename.com/name/helga
3. ↑ http://www.behindthename.com/name/helge